Originally posted by Tempest_Stormwind:
Surprise! Not dead yet!
The name's more for legacy, at this point, I'm afraid, as this is more likely to be a sporadic thing than a regular feature.
As usual for the showcase, these builds are intended to spur discussion and perhaps inspire a few people in the spirit of the old CO boards. They come from members of my gaming group - me, Radical Taoist, DisposableHero_, Andarious, Sionnis, and Seishi - and I'll always identify who wrote the build at the start, so do not assume I'm the guy behind all of them (because I'm not!).
Unless otherwise noted, showcase builds use 28 point-buy, and have their snapshots evaluated using fractional base attack / saves (because it simplifies the math). None of them actually rely on fractional to be built, though. The format I use showcases their progression at key levels rather than just presenting the build and showing off a few tricks at level 20; most of these are capable of being played 1-20 if you so choose.
With that out of the way, let's get started. This week, RadicalTaoist presents the result of getting bitten by the gaming bug again. (He did the writeup, too – I’ve added a few notes, but the build and the writeup are all his.)
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SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
A.K.A. the last sorcerer RT is ever going to build.
Required Books: Complete Adventurer (for the Scout), PHB2 (for spells and an alternate class feature), Lords of Madness (for the Darkstalker feat), Spell Compendium, Complete Mage, Complete Arcane (for Practiced Spellcaster and Persistent Spell), Dragon Magic (for Arcane Spellsurge), Races of Destiny (for the Able Learner feat), Cityscape (for the class skill substitutions). The Magic Item Compendium is always good for obvious reasons.
Unearthed Arcana used: None!
Background: RT likes building sorcerers. He enjoys knowing exactly what he’s bringing to the table and being able to call upon it spontaneously. RT hates building sorcerers. The limited number of spells known is prohibitive as all hell, and because sorcerers learn their spells of each level gradually, you have to make the difficult decision of when to pick up that handy spell and map that to expectations of what you will face over your adventuring career. RT hates playing wizards. The constant spell searching feels like homework and he plays D&D to have fun, not do research. RT envies the power of wizards. There’s not much else in the game that brings so much in raw options. This build is the magnum opus of RT’s sorcerer construction abilities, a Tier 2 optimized sorcerer that can, if not compete directly with prepared wizards, take on anything that you’d normally think you needed a Tier 1 build to challenge. It is also optimized to fit within a few constraints - have something to offer the rest of the party, use no Unearthed Arcana, and be powerful but not so unbelievably powerful that a GM will ban it once its tricks see action - and that means forgoing Celerity. It spurns Mage of the Arcane Order, choosing instead to have just enough options to cover practically every tactical need a PC will face, and cramming them as ruthlessly as possible into the Sorcerer’s limited spells known. I know what you’re thinking: “A sorc calibrated for Tier 1 threats that gives up on Celerity? Seriously?” Bear with us.
There is a bit of a history to this project of RT’s. He tried several times to optimize sorcerers, particularly Mage of the Arcane Order builds, around the list of spells that F*cking Kill People, but kept running into spell resistance problems and the question of what to do with those monsters that pack great bonuses to all three saves. He then tried his hand at Unseen Seers. The #1 Snoipah build made it very obvious how powerful Unseen Seers were with spells that could apply precision damage multiple times per casting. His first build using the tactic that is introduced in this build at level 12 used sneak attack and the Craven feat. It was inspired by the famous Call of Duty player Sandy Ravage, known for his aggressive surprise tactics and devastating AC-130 bombing runs. (Editor’s note: This should clearly show that RT wrote this writeup, not me – I generally stay outside Call of Duty’s minimum safe distance and know nothing of its scene. Still, I get the point.) The build did damage in the quad digits, but relied on spells like Celerity (plus the Eberron-specific Mark of the Dauntless) and ran into serious feast or famine issues against foes that could ignore its most powerful tactics. Between the Celerity and the thousands of points of damage, RT figured it needed to be toned down. The next incarnation dropped a lot of sneak attack damage (and the Craven feat), but was still Eberron-specific (it was a changeling build that used Recaster to pick up Favored of the Martyr) and still faced feast-or-famine issues (relying on sneak attack but few rogue levels meant that any enemy with 5 levels of barbarian could neuter my primary offensive tactic, even though many epic foes were helpless against it). Once RT realized that there was an alternative to sneak attack for getting the damage up there, and that he needed other kill moves (including some from the earliest forms of this project), the current incarnation of the build came to be.
The result has something for everyone: powerful offensive options for practically every foe in the game, defensive options to handle the vast majority of threats, support and trapscouting to help the rest of the party, and enough of the Sorcerer’s action advantage spells to pull off all of the above in a hurry - all while following constraints that can prevent the GM banning your PC, exploiting tight synergy between spells and class features, and managing to fit it all into the Sorcerer’s spells known progression in a way that respects the increasing difficulty and durability of the foes you face. Going by the Magic the Gathering psychographics, we’ve had a good mix of Johnny, Timmy, and Spike builds throughout the showcase, but this is by far the most Spike-ish build RT’s ever made. You’re not likely to get a more finely tuned sorc out of him than this.
(Editor’s note: This does ignore the Rule Compendium’s ad-hoc decision to apply precision damage only once if it’s done with multiple attacks in the same non-full-round action, because the rule comes out of nowhere and makes no sense in how it’s implemented. Now, as to why it’s implemented, well, this build might be a pretty good reason for that.)
The Basics
· Race: Human. Nonnegotiable; we need Able Learner and the skill points.
· Ability Scores: 8/14/12/14/10/16. Your Charisma score is absolutely the first and last word, the highest priority for any stat boosts.
· Alignment: Any, but note that one of your later spells is [Evil].
Skill Notes: You will need to take the Skilled City Dweller alternate class feature from Cityscape’s web enhancement with your first level of Scout, and swap out Survival for Sense Motive. You want to meet the prerequisites for Unseen Seer by level 5, and the prerequisites for Archmage by level 15. Those are demanding prestige classes, so plan out your skill points in advance. With Able Learner, being human, and 14 Intelligence, you only get 5 skill points per level for your final five levels, so you can only max out five skills. I recommend that they be Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Spellcraft, and Spot. Up until then, getting Search, Disable Device, and Concentration to 18 ranks is a good idea, and if you keep those near max it will allow you to be a passable trapscout for the first three quarters of the non-epic game, which is really all the time you can expect to need trapscouting.
Basic Equipment: You want to stick to ranged weaponry early on, and don’t forget those thieves’ tools. You will wear armor at level 1, and after level 1 you will only wear armor with no arcane spell failure chance. By level 5 you’ll want to have your hands on some daggers; they’re an essential component to a spell you’ll be casting regularly until level 12.
Magical Gear Goals: Your most important offensive item is your Cha booster; your most important defensive items are whatever you can attach the Shadow and Silent Moves enhancements to (+1 Bracers of Armor if your GM will allow it, or +1 Twilight padded armor otherwise). Everything else is about boosting your casting. Runestaffs, drakehelms, wands, rings of wizardry, metamagic rods; expand your horizons at all costs. A wand of Scorching Ray, bought as soon as you can get your hands on one, will probably last you until level 12, at which point a better option opens up. You’ll also want MIC’s Periapt of the Sullen Sea or an Eternal Wand of Heart of Water for access to Freedom of Movement, and MIC’s Dispelling Cord to boost your dispelling in the late game. Also, the Horizon Goggles from Complete Mage are an absolute godsend to your long-range tactics. The final spell list will include must-have spells to grab via items.
The Build.
Build Stub: Scout 1/Sorcerer 4/Unseen Seer 10/Archmage 5 (in exactly that order)
1 – Scout – (Trapfinding, skirmish +1d6) (Able Learner, Darkstalker)
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[sblock]You’re a fairly standard and unusually charismatic 1st level scout, able to Hide Better thanks to Darkstalker and probably boasting a few ranks in Spellcraft since Able Learner lets you. Remember, we swap out Survival for Sense Motive here. [/sblock]2 – Sorcerer – (Accelerated metamagic) (Nerveskitter, Sniper’s Shot)
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[sblock]Both these spells can be found in the SPC.
Nerveskitter lets you go first, and Sniper’s Shot removes the range limitations on your skirmish. Kite your opponents and keep a safe distance. Both of these spells will be useful forever.
We choose the accelerated metamagic alternate class feature from the PHB2 for reasons that will be handy later, though admittedly this does hurt like hell not having a familiar to share scouting with.
[/sblock]3 – Sorcerer – (Practiced Spellcaster)
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[sblock]I know, it’s only a +1 boost to caster level, but we needed this feat somewhere. Sorcerer 2 tries its damnedest to be a dead level.[/sblock]4 – Sorcerer – (Golem Strike)
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[sblock]Golem strike is from the SPC.
We now can bypass the precision damage immunity of the two most problematic monster types.
[/sblock]5 – Sorcerer – (Cloud of Knives)
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[sblock]Cloud of knives is from the PHB2.
Here’s where you start to build action advantage. Move, poke with Cloud of Knives, and then cast Benign Transposition to get your ally in the right location is a highly effective tactic and one that will serve you in many fights. This role - position support with a bit of poking damage on the side - will define you straight into level 11.
[/sblock]6 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +2d6) (Spell Focus: Conjuration) (Accelerated Movement, Cloud of Bewilderment)
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[sblock]Both these spells can be found in the SPC.
We finally get our next boost to skirmish damage, along with an important stealth enabling spell in Accelerated Movement and a poor man’s Stinking Cloud. Cloud of Bewilderment will probably be better for a scout unseen seer; it takes up a smaller area and thus is less likely to block your movement or the movement of your team. Your feat selection for this level gives it the same saving throw DC as a third level spell anyways.
Also, the drought of skill points is over, as Unseen Seer comes with a ton of skill points and you can slip back into the role of trapscout comfortably. Don’t forget to budget for Archmage, though!
[/sblock]7 – Unseen Seer – (Advanced learning) (Silent Spell) (Grave Strike, Dimension Step)
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[sblock]Grave strike can be found in the SPC. Dimension step is from the PHB2.
We now branch out into that highly underrated area of support, position control, with Dimension Step. That spell is unparalleled for getting your teammates where they need to be RIGHT NOW at short ranges, which is why I picked it up as soon as possible. A warning about Grave Strike and Golem Strike, though: they compete with Sniper’s Shot for your swift action, so you while you can skirmish zombies and robots, you’ll need to be close. Don’t discount Silent Spell, either - with the accelerated metamagic class feature, we can use it to maintain cover when a verbal component would give away our position.
On an equipment note, now’s a good time to pick up a CL 7 wand of Scorching Ray, if you can.
[/sblock]8 – Unseen Seer – (Divination spell power +1) (True Casting, Fog Cloud, Greater Magic Weapon)
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[sblock]True casting is from the SPC.
While True Casting is just being picked up for future purposes (all our offensive tactics right now ignore spell resistance), the other two spells are very handy now. Fog Cloud lets you produce concealment to hide with, and a lot more of it than Cloud of Bewilderment (without the risk of nauseating yourself too). We’re aiming for a Gnowhere Gnome(x) defense, trying to minimize enemies’ chances to target you in the first place. Greater Magic Weapon comes online at just the right caster level to make it more worthwhile than Magic Weapon, and the CL drawback from divination spell power is eaten by that Practiced Spellcaster feat we took five levels ago.
[/sblock]9 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +3d6) (Skill Focus: Spellcraft) (Ruin Delver’s Fortune)
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[sblock]Ruin delver’s fortune is from the SPC.
I adore Ruin Delver’s Fortune. For a high-Charisma spellcaster who relies on stealth and concealment fto defend themselves, this spell is the ultimate protection, able to neuter so many of the nasty area effects used to smoke out or burn such targets. We may not be as sneaky as a Gnowhere Gnome(x), but we won’t be fearing Fireballs or Cloudkills. You can even use the temporary hit point option this spell offers to shrug off no-save HP taxes like Vortex of Teeth and Ice Storm.
Also, we’ve caught up to the straight-classed scout in skirmish damage. One of the reasons we went Scout instead of Rogue is because Skirmish penetrates uncanny dodge; the other is that Unseen Seer advances Skirmish faster than Scout does. Keep on kiting!
[/sblock]10 – Unseen Seer – (Advanced learning, guarded mind) (Vine Strike, Fuse Arms, Girallon’s Blessing, Dimension Door)
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[sblock]All these spells besides dimension door can be found in the SPC.
We’re pushing the support angle more. Level 10 really is the level by which your team should at least have Dimension Door if not something beefier. Fuse Arms and Girallon’s Blessing are a well-known buff combo, if a bit unusual, but you’ll see why I picked it in two levels. Vine Strike cuts away another group of precision-immune enemies. And on the class feature front, we pick up a permanent Nondetection effect on ourselves from guarded mind, which helps us maintain our Gnowhere Gnome defense.
[/sblock]11 – Unseen Seer – (Divination spell power +2) (Overland Flight)
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[sblock]Having flight whenever you need flight is long overdue. We’ll need it for many reasons, one of which is to facilitate next level’s combo. [/sblock]12 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +4d6) (Spell Focus: Transmutation) (Speak to Allies, Giant’s Wrath, Improved Invisibility, Telekinesis)
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[sblock]Speak to allies and giant’s wrath are from the SPC.
Friendly AC-130 inbound.
Telekinesis and Giant’s Wrath make for a lovely combo. Giant’s Wrath summons up ⅓ your CL in miniaturized boulders that deal 2d6 damage on impact when thrown and enjoy an insight bonus to attack and damage rolls equal to half your caster level (max 10). Telekinesis can throw one projectile per caster level (max 15), and your attack roll uses Charisma instead of Dexterity and a base attack bonus equal to your caster level. Combine them and, at this level at least, you’re doing ridiculous damage with unmatched accuracy (your primary casting stat to hit and a bonus of 1.5 * your CL?). The big weakness of this tactic is its vulnerability to high DR, as damage reduction takes a bite out of lots of attacks. But that’s why it’s most dangerous in the hands of Unseen Seers, who can pile on enough precision damage to each boulder to just overwhelm such defenses.
Right now? You have a CL of 12 and +4d6 skirmish. If you move before casting telekinesis, you can launch up to 12 boulders, each of which enjoys an attack bonus of +18+your Charisma bonus (which should be at least +6 by now) and hits for 6d6+6 damage. That’s potentially 72d6+72 damage (324 average) if they all hit. The highest monster AC at CR 12 is 28 (the average is 21), and the highest monster HP total is 300 (the average is 196).
This combo has been introduced into this build in a way to minimize the chances of it being banned or nerfed. The fact that it takes a while can be used to argue for its balance - you’re changing combat to a game of hide and seek, where enemies must find you before you load and deliver your devastating barrage. (Never mind that if you’re doing stealth right, they won’t.) Giant’s Wrath is a great deal less exploitative than Shrink Item (the Shrink Item + Telekinesis combo will wreck your game if you allow it). If your GM rules that you need more hands to carry all those pebbles, well hey, you happen to have Girallon’s Blessing. Show off your many-armed form and boast that you have become Death, the destroyer of worlds.
Unlike the Mailman(x) or Holy Fire(x), who deliver a few perfect strikes, you can bury your targets with an onslaught of attacks. One, or maybe two will miss, but odds are that enough will get through to slaughter your foe. Your other selections help you fill the role of distant untouchable fire support. Speak with Allies is a poor man’s Telepathic Bond, allowing for communication with your allies while invisible and flying away. Speaking of, we now have Improved Invisibility, completing our Gnowhere Gnome defense. You can already deliver your death barrages from beyond True Seeing range (Telekinesis at this level has a range of 220 feet, and Sniper’s Shot is a thing), and Fog Cloud can blind True Seers at closer distances. You even picked up an Archmage prerequisite feat, Spell Focus: Transmutation, at the perfect level in case you wanted to use Telekinesis for throwing enemies instead of rocks.
[/sblock]13 – Unseen Seer – (Advanced learning) (True Seeing (as a 5th level spell), Greater Dispel Magic)
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[sblock]Greater Dispel Magic was a given - we need to be able to peel buffs and disable magic items, especially when there are so many that grant immunity to precision damage (Elemental Body and fortification armor come to mind). But this level here also included the most difficult decision of the build - to pick up a cheap True Seeing from the cleric spell list, or to pick up Hunter’s Eye (from the Spell Compendium.
It was not an easy call. Hunter’s Eye on an Unseen Seer is unbelievably powerful. On this build, it would offer another +5d6 precision damage per hit, more than our skirmish damage. At higher levels it will effectively double our already obscene damage output. But on the other hand, our damage output is already more than high enough, and achieving the conditions for a sneak attack is much harder than pulling off skirmish damage. Meanwhile, flat miss chances are the one thing that can cut our otherwise incredibly accurate barrages down to a survivable size, and True Seeing turns many of them off. Getting it cheap means we can immediately start using it with Silent Spell, and that’s important when our defense relies on keeping our position unknown. Now you can pick up True Seeing via items, but there’s a lot competing for our budget already. The Runestaff of Vision is great, but there are a lot of great runestaffs out there, and you can only use one at a time. Besides, equipment can be dispelled or sundered. Another option was to take Hunter’s Eye in favour of Vine Strike (which was selected earlier), but RT balked at that given the plant type monsters that were introduced in the MMIII, some which have significant DR and one of which boasts a miss chance that True Seeing can’t pierce.
In the end, RT decided to play it safe, reasoning that our damage was more than sufficient for the foes we could expect and that it would be better to pre-empt potential counter tactics than gamble on the feast-or-famine game of meeting Sneak Attack’s tactical demands. There was also the other limitation he was following, “try not to provoke the DM’s banhammer”, and given how rapidly your spike damage increased, doubling it further may not be a wise idea right now. But you should know that the option exists, and the raw power Hunter’s Eye will bring you should not under any circumstances be ignored. Know your own game well and fine tune this build to your needs.
[/sblock]14 – Unseen Seer – (Divination spell power +3) (Vortex of Teeth, Dragonsight, Gemjump)
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[sblock]All these spells can be found in the SPC.
Vortex of Teeth is there because, while this build excels at spike damage, sometimes you need to make an area unfriendly. It also bothers incorporeal foes, whose miss chance ignores True Seeing, and doesn’t offer a save. And this build needed something effective versus swarms by now anyways.
Dragonsight supports our stealth defense - if we’re going to be ducking in and out of Fog Clouds or dropping airstrikes on foes from outside of True Seeing range, we need better sensory powers. Dragonsight provides in spades.
Gemjump supports our role as a mobility assistance caster, which has fallen off in light of our spike damage but still deserves attention. It’s a poor man’s Teleportation Circle - though not too poor, you still need to afford the component.
[/sblock]15 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +5d6) (Extend Spell) (Avasculate)
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[sblock]Avasculate can be found in the SPC.
Ahhh, Avasculate. The only creatures flat-out immune to this spell (undead and constructs) are already vulnerable to our TK barrages. Meanwhile, the most problematic walls of HP - oozes, elementals (oddly enough), and those weird aberrations and outsiders with natural immunity to precision damage - are all susceptible to Avasculate, which is great for reducing walls of HP and also ignores DR. Avasculate also has a chance to stun, though it’s not likely to happen against the foes we can expect to use it on (anything weak enough to fail the save against Avasculate is probably weak enough to bury in a TK barrage instead).
Also worth noting: with Extend Spell, we can cast a two-round Sniper’s Shot, saving our swift action for next round. That means we can now murder plants, undead, and constructs from a distance too.
[/sblock]16 – Archmage – (Mastery of counterspelling) (Greater Blink, Wall of Gears, Arcane Spellsurge)
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[sblock]Greater blink and wall of gears are from the SPC. Arcane spellsurge can be found in Dragon Magic.
Greater Blink is a must have. Not only is it a fantastic defense, giving you a miss chance True Seeing won’t beat and letting you walk through walls, but it also counters itself - if some caster stacks on the miss chances, you want to minimize them. It even lets you bring the hate to Ethereal Jaunting foes. The winner of this round’s spell selections, however, is the incredible Arcane Spellsurge. DAT ACTION ADVANTAGE. If it weren’t for the fact it is Universal and thus not a member of any school it would have been our 7th level spell pick last level. Curse your demanding yet balanced prerequisites, Archmage! Incidentally, mastery of counterspelling adds additional utility to Greater Dispel magic. If you’re in a mage duel and can’t instantly splatter them, use Arcane Spellsurge to cast with your swift action while you ready counterspells with your standard, and return those nasty save-or-dies to sender.
Our only real throwaway spell pick this level is Wall of Gears. It’s a great battlefield shaping spell, and that is an area we’ve neglected. Warping foes around the battlefield is more useful if you can drop obstacles your foes have trouble warping around. But ultimately, if there was a spell RT would drop in this build, Wall of Gears is it. If you can stomach selecting a 5th level spell in place of a 6th, Nightmare Terrain from Complete Mage is a very very very strong contender.
Incidentally, this is the first caster level increase in which we don’t add another projectile to our TK barrages, which caps at 15 projectiles. Sad. But it is a level in which our Giant’s Wrath and Greater Magic Weapon bonuses increase. Let’s run some numbers:
2d6 boulder damage + 8 insight + 5d6 skirmish = 32.5 average damage per hit, with an attack bonus of 24 + your Charisma modifier, which should be +7 or +8 by now.
If 14 attacks hit (let’s give them a lucky natural 1), you’re dealing 455 damage per barrage, minus their DR times 14 sadly. Note that the average CR 16 monster has 239 hp, and the highest hp a CR 16 monster can boast of is 378. Also note that, if you’re willing to cast Giant’s Wrath 5 times in preparation, you can launch two murder barrages in a single round. Arcane Spellsurge makes it happen.
See why RT felt Hunter’s Eye was overkill?
[/sblock]17 – Archmage – (Spell power) (Greater Arcane Fusion)
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[sblock]Greater arcane fusion can be found in Complete Mage.
Ooof. More action advantage, and another reason to boast about being a sorc. You can keep your fast access to 9th level spells, wizards; GAF rapidly accelerates all our combos, allowing us to go from zero to Elder Evil slaying in a matter of a few rounds. First round, Arcane Fusion to cast Spellsurge and a Giant’s Wrath, then Giant’s Wrath again as a swift. Second round, cast a Silent Giant’s wrath as a standard, move, and then cast a Telekinesis (or another GAF containing TK and whatever support spell you want) to set the rocks flying. You’ll need a third round (or to give up one of your Wraths) to fit a Sniper’s Shot or Golem Strike in there though.
[/sblock]18 – Archmage – (Arcane reach) (Persistent Spell) (Glass Strike, Greater Plane Shift)
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[sblock]Both of these spells can be found in the SPC.
Here come those backup kill moves mentioned in the opening introduction. It is RT’s opinion that Glass Strike and Greater Plane Shift, once they’ve been given some range (such as by the archmage’s arcane reach high arcana option), are flat out hands down the best kill moves in the game that still allow saves. Glass Strike targets the Fortitude save, but affects objects, bypassing a number of immunities. You can turn undead to glass statues with this. Since Glass Strike can affect objects, it can also double as an inefficient Disintegrate when it comes to reshaping the battlefield - glass walls are a lot easier to break than stone walls. Greater Plane Shift targets the Will save, but is not mind-affecting in any way, and can even affect multiple targets. It also allows destination targeting; you can send a half dozen mind-blanked enemies straight into Orcus’ zombie pot with a single casting (if you’ve been there before, and it is such a popular tourist destination). And for a little bonus, you remember those feats we took to qualify for Archmage? That’s right, Spell Focus in Conjuration and Transmutation.
But that doesn’t even include this level’s feat choice! Ahh, Persistent Spell. Now, we have Grave Strike and Sniper’s Shot and the rest of those on all day long. Admittedly, the price in 7th level slots is painfully high (on top of Archmage slot costs), but the action advantage this grants is great.
[/sblock]19 – Archmage – (Mastery of shaping) (Mage’s Disjunction)
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[sblock]So, by now we have kill moves to handle just about anything in any book. But there are still buffs, and they need to be removed. While Greater Dispel Magic is great, nothing says “no nice things for you” like Disjunction - and thanks to the archmage’s mastery of shaping high arcana, you can use this close-range spell without any risk of friendly fire. Good times. [/sblock]20 – Archmage – (Arcane reach) (Moment of Prescience, Time Stop)
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[sblock]And the last possibilities of resistance fall away. With Moment of Prescience, we can spot other Gnowhere Gnome types in spite of stratospheric Hide bonuses. (Funnily enough, thanks to Unseen Seer and Archmage, if we’re wearing an orange ioun stone we hit the maximum bonus for this spell the same level that we learn it. With Time Stop, we have as much action advantage as we’re willing to spend 9th level spell slots on. Another arcane reach means our backup kill moves have enough reach to be used safely even against big enemies. We are exceedingly good at killing anything we ever want to kill, anywhere, anytime.[/sblock]
Sorcerer spells known
[sblock]By level and in order of acquisition. Advanced Learning selections are marked with asterisks.1. Nerveskitter (SPC), sniper’s shot (SPC), benign transposition (SPC), golem strike (SPC), grave strike* (SPC), true casting (SPC), vine strike* (SPC)
2. Cloud of knives (PHB2), cloud of bewilderment (SPC), fog cloud, fuse arms (SPC), speak to allies (SPC)
3. Dimension step (PHB2), greater magic weapon, girallon’s blessing (SPC), giant’s wrath (SPC)
4. Ruin delver’s fortune (SPC), dimension door, improved invisibility, vortex of teeth (SPC)
5. Overland flight, telekinesis, true seeing*, dragonsight (SPC), greater blink (SPC)
6. Greater dispel magic, gemjump (SPC), wall of gears (SPC)
7. Avasculate (SPC), arcane spellsurge (DMag), glass strike (SPC)
8. Greater arcane fusion (CMag), greater plane shift (SPC), moment of prescience
9. Mage’s disjunction, time stop
Absolutely worth getting through items:
1. Benign transposition (SPC), grease
2. Scorching ray (hold out for a CL 7 version if you can)
3. Haste, heart of water (CMag), sleet storm (there are a lot of good spells on the list of spells that F***ing Kill People at this level, including stinking cloud, legion of sentinels, and vertigo field)
4. Black tentacles, enervate (particularly useful for handling things you can’t skirmish at low levels), bloodstar (SPC, given how many times you’ll trigger this with a telekinesis barrage, odds are you’ll get some Con damage in there somewhere)
5. Nightmare terrain (CMag, cannot recommend this spell enough), arcane fusion (CMag)
7. Greater Arcane Sight (identifying buffstacks at a glance should not be underestimated)
[/sblock]
Snapshot: At 20th level, assuming +6 items on Cha, Con, and Dex, and a +5 tome for Cha along with all the level up bonuses, we’ve got 135 hp, a base attack bonus of +12, and saving throw bonuses of +6/+8/+11 before cloaks or any other equipment. You have 6/8/8/8/8/6/6/4/7/4 spell slots per level (from 0 to 9) per day. With a caster level of 21 before items, and a Charisma bonus of +11, you’re looking at telekinetic barrages of 15 Giant’s Wrath pebbles per casting, each made with a +41 attack bonus and dealing 7d6+10 damage on impact (34.5 damage average) before DR, for a result of 105d6+150 damage per casting of telekinesis (517.5 average) before DR, or 98d6 + 140 in case you miss with one boulder (483 average – the average CR 20 HP is around 400). Arcane Spellsurge lets you drop two of these in one round. Multiply a target’s DR by the number of attacks that hit to figure out how much that reduces the barrage damage (DR 15/epic, for example, will reduce a 15-hit barrage by 225 damage, sadly). Remember that the Telekinesis barrages can be delivered from 310 ft. away, and that’s before range-boosting equipment like the Horizon Goggles. Our backup kill moves, Glass Strike and Greater Plane Shift, force saving throws of DC 29 (Fort) and DC 30 (Will) respectively. On the defensive front, we’re boasting +43 on our Hide and Move Silently checks with only some Greater Shadow and Greater Silent Moves equipment, and Ruin Delver’s Fortune can boost any of our saves by +11 (along with immunity to fear, immunity to poison, or evasion) or give us 4d6+11 hit points (25 average, more than enough to beat the usual no-save HP taxes).
Against this build at level 20? The only monsters RT can find that aren’t a complete pushovers or wyrm/great wyrm dragons are found in the Epic Level Handbook or Elder Evils. Hell, out of the Elder Evils, only Pandorym (outsider type, crit immunity, incorporeal miss chance, and DR 15/stuff we don’t have????) and Kyuss are a real challenge. Outside of those, the Tarrasque itself is one of the few that can’t be wiped in a single round (bloody immunity to rays like Avasculate…), and it has little capability to retaliate against a flying invisible kill sat. This build just erases entire categories of threats from the game. And all without touching Celerity.
Overall Strengths: We do really have something for everyone. Enormous spike damage, significant boosts to team mobility, good trapscouting, a solid defense that prevents enemy targeting and neutralizes untargeted effects, backup options for different opponents - there are very few tactical gaps this build leaves uncovered. And it does so without touching the exceedingly powerful casting options that would tempt GM Thor into smiting you with his Banmjolnir. You offer enough support to your party that they shouldn’t feel left out, either.
Overall Weaknesses: Elementals. $#@&ing elementals. Oozes are annoying but stupid, plants and undead can be difficult before you pick up their Strike spells, but elementals? By the time you have the options that let you answer these foes, they’re not showing up anymore! The core Elder Elementals are CR 11 (one bloody level before your airstrike combo comes online) and have enough DR to shrug off your skirmish-denied airstrikes. You can’t even dispel the summoned ones until 13! There are some other monsters, like chaos beasts and gibbering mouthers, that are likewise resistant to the tricks you can bring but otherwise don’t have the walls of HP to burn through. But elementals? $#@& elementals. We hates them, tricksy elementals, we hates them forever! Other than that, we’re playing a squishy mage who can run into problems against anything that can beat those stealth checks, and we don’t enjoy insanely high skill bonuses like the Gnowhere Gnome. Play cautious, especially at lower levels.
Variants: Swapping in spells from the “absolutely worth getting from items” list is an option, but otherwise, the biggest way to amp up this build is to abandon the self-imposed limitations RT adopted to dodge the banhammer. Swapping out Wall of Gears for Celerity or Contingency, for example, would do quite a bit. Swapping out Vortex of Teeth for Wings of Flurry is also a good call; RT only turned away from Wings of Flurry because it was neutered by Evasion. You could also grab different feats if flaws are allowed, or if you give up on Archmage - Mobile Spellcasting and Twin Spell come to mind. Abandoning Archmage means abandoning Glass Strike and Greater Plane Shift, though, unless you can get Reach Spell for free - but there are plenty of other great options at those levels. If RT was going to ramp up the power, he’d drop Archmage for Legacy Champion (further boosting Unseen Seer), which would give him another die of Skirmish, feats to spare for Twin Spell and Mobile Spellcasting, and another advanced knowledge option (so as to enjoy both Hunter’s Eye and cheaper True Seeing). He’d then swap out Greater Plane Shift for Trap the Soul, Glass Strike for Limited Wish, and Wall of Gears for Contingency or Celerity (Limited Wish can replicate Favored of the Martyr). Transdimensional Spell might have a place in games where incorporeal foes are to be expected. If you really want to flirt with absolute power, well, go with Shrink Item and try to fit in Sanctum Spell. But fairly be ye warned.
There you have it.
TS: Sorry that took so long, everyone. I’ve been swamped, but RT, well, recently got un-swamped.
Originally posted by ObsidianConspiracy:
All I can say is I am thoroughly impressed, I could see this flying with any DM I've played in a game with and any to come too. Very impressive. Can't really offer much to help it along unfortunately. Still I'm in the same boat as RT, I prefer sorcerers to wizards, unless I've a very very specific wizard idea in mind, an example of this would be Malconvolker
Originally posted by Caker:
Another fun thing to throw with telekinesis are beads of force. 5d6 per bead in a 10 ft radius burst, no save. Albiet very expensive at 3k gold a piece, maybe you can get your friendly neighborhood artificer to craft some at a reduced cost
. I like this build, in that it is incredibly simple. Uses two prestiege classes, and finishes them. Doesn't go book diving for obscure spells, feats or items. Fills multiple roles, while not sacrificing power elsewhere. I will definitely be looking at this next time I build a sorcerer.
Originally posted by Uninspired:
I literally just created an account so Icould say how happy I am to see this build posted. I love the Weekly Optimization Showcase and ever new update, however sporadic, makes me happy.
Telekinesis is one of my favorite spells and whenever I think about using it for blasting I always plan on stacking SA onto it. I never occured to me to use skirmish. What a clever idea. It's a damn shame Craen doesn't work with Skirmish but as you point out; the damage output of this build is pretty good. It can work fine without it.
Originally posted by Tempest_Stormwind:
EDIT: I forgot to mention - when RT builds characters, particularly casters, he usually assumes they've got nothing equipmentwise except perhaps a stat booster (frankly, I was shocked that this build assumes a wand of scorching ray or the like). This may explain why this build has all the -Strike spells on its spells known, instead of using wand chambers or "spells-known items" (runestaff, drake-helm, etc). Personally, I relegate situational spells to gear wherever possible, which reduces pressure and opens up slots for lower-level supports early on (and even retains the Persistent Spell effect from the endgame - just use Complete Mage's metamagic wandgrips) - but it does change the relative importance of your swift action (something that becomes all the more evident the more spellcasters and martial adepts you build).
Were I working with this, or if flaws were allowed, I'd definitely work in Mobile Spellcasting, in effect getting Spring Attack for spells (move to trigger skirmish and establish LoS, then Mobile Spellcast to bail out of there and back into cover; use Metamagic Specialist or Arcane Spellsurge if you want a metamagic spell here. Interestingly, Mobile Spellcasting has an auxiliary role here - it can be used to extend the casting time of a swift-action spell into a standard action, even if the spell in question doesn't combine well with any of your metamagic (although here, that's basically just saving you the slot with Still Spell or Extend Spell). This is particularly amazing if you're under the effect of Arcane Spellsurge or are using swift-action spells that persist until the end of your next turn.).
Originally posted by Luna_Trigger:
Nifty idea in theory, but your anti-immunity options still fail against one very important category: Spellcasters. Unless I've missed something, you have no real options against that save Disjunction. Then again, that's frequently true with any solid buff routine, so I guess that's not too big of a flaw. Also, Darkstalker isn't terribly reliable.
Still, for something relying on precision damage, it's pretty nifty. Greater Plane Shift with Archmage was a very nice touch.
Surprise! Not dead yet!
The name's more for legacy, at this point, I'm afraid, as this is more likely to be a sporadic thing than a regular feature.
As usual for the showcase, these builds are intended to spur discussion and perhaps inspire a few people in the spirit of the old CO boards. They come from members of my gaming group - me, Radical Taoist, DisposableHero_, Andarious, Sionnis, and Seishi - and I'll always identify who wrote the build at the start, so do not assume I'm the guy behind all of them (because I'm not!).
Unless otherwise noted, showcase builds use 28 point-buy, and have their snapshots evaluated using fractional base attack / saves (because it simplifies the math). None of them actually rely on fractional to be built, though. The format I use showcases their progression at key levels rather than just presenting the build and showing off a few tricks at level 20; most of these are capable of being played 1-20 if you so choose.
With that out of the way, let's get started. This week, RadicalTaoist presents the result of getting bitten by the gaming bug again. (He did the writeup, too – I’ve added a few notes, but the build and the writeup are all his.)
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SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
A.K.A. the last sorcerer RT is ever going to build.
Required Books: Complete Adventurer (for the Scout), PHB2 (for spells and an alternate class feature), Lords of Madness (for the Darkstalker feat), Spell Compendium, Complete Mage, Complete Arcane (for Practiced Spellcaster and Persistent Spell), Dragon Magic (for Arcane Spellsurge), Races of Destiny (for the Able Learner feat), Cityscape (for the class skill substitutions). The Magic Item Compendium is always good for obvious reasons.
Unearthed Arcana used: None!
Background: RT likes building sorcerers. He enjoys knowing exactly what he’s bringing to the table and being able to call upon it spontaneously. RT hates building sorcerers. The limited number of spells known is prohibitive as all hell, and because sorcerers learn their spells of each level gradually, you have to make the difficult decision of when to pick up that handy spell and map that to expectations of what you will face over your adventuring career. RT hates playing wizards. The constant spell searching feels like homework and he plays D&D to have fun, not do research. RT envies the power of wizards. There’s not much else in the game that brings so much in raw options. This build is the magnum opus of RT’s sorcerer construction abilities, a Tier 2 optimized sorcerer that can, if not compete directly with prepared wizards, take on anything that you’d normally think you needed a Tier 1 build to challenge. It is also optimized to fit within a few constraints - have something to offer the rest of the party, use no Unearthed Arcana, and be powerful but not so unbelievably powerful that a GM will ban it once its tricks see action - and that means forgoing Celerity. It spurns Mage of the Arcane Order, choosing instead to have just enough options to cover practically every tactical need a PC will face, and cramming them as ruthlessly as possible into the Sorcerer’s limited spells known. I know what you’re thinking: “A sorc calibrated for Tier 1 threats that gives up on Celerity? Seriously?” Bear with us.
There is a bit of a history to this project of RT’s. He tried several times to optimize sorcerers, particularly Mage of the Arcane Order builds, around the list of spells that F*cking Kill People, but kept running into spell resistance problems and the question of what to do with those monsters that pack great bonuses to all three saves. He then tried his hand at Unseen Seers. The #1 Snoipah build made it very obvious how powerful Unseen Seers were with spells that could apply precision damage multiple times per casting. His first build using the tactic that is introduced in this build at level 12 used sneak attack and the Craven feat. It was inspired by the famous Call of Duty player Sandy Ravage, known for his aggressive surprise tactics and devastating AC-130 bombing runs. (Editor’s note: This should clearly show that RT wrote this writeup, not me – I generally stay outside Call of Duty’s minimum safe distance and know nothing of its scene. Still, I get the point.) The build did damage in the quad digits, but relied on spells like Celerity (plus the Eberron-specific Mark of the Dauntless) and ran into serious feast or famine issues against foes that could ignore its most powerful tactics. Between the Celerity and the thousands of points of damage, RT figured it needed to be toned down. The next incarnation dropped a lot of sneak attack damage (and the Craven feat), but was still Eberron-specific (it was a changeling build that used Recaster to pick up Favored of the Martyr) and still faced feast-or-famine issues (relying on sneak attack but few rogue levels meant that any enemy with 5 levels of barbarian could neuter my primary offensive tactic, even though many epic foes were helpless against it). Once RT realized that there was an alternative to sneak attack for getting the damage up there, and that he needed other kill moves (including some from the earliest forms of this project), the current incarnation of the build came to be.
The result has something for everyone: powerful offensive options for practically every foe in the game, defensive options to handle the vast majority of threats, support and trapscouting to help the rest of the party, and enough of the Sorcerer’s action advantage spells to pull off all of the above in a hurry - all while following constraints that can prevent the GM banning your PC, exploiting tight synergy between spells and class features, and managing to fit it all into the Sorcerer’s spells known progression in a way that respects the increasing difficulty and durability of the foes you face. Going by the Magic the Gathering psychographics, we’ve had a good mix of Johnny, Timmy, and Spike builds throughout the showcase, but this is by far the most Spike-ish build RT’s ever made. You’re not likely to get a more finely tuned sorc out of him than this.
(Editor’s note: This does ignore the Rule Compendium’s ad-hoc decision to apply precision damage only once if it’s done with multiple attacks in the same non-full-round action, because the rule comes out of nowhere and makes no sense in how it’s implemented. Now, as to why it’s implemented, well, this build might be a pretty good reason for that.)
The Basics
· Race: Human. Nonnegotiable; we need Able Learner and the skill points.
· Ability Scores: 8/14/12/14/10/16. Your Charisma score is absolutely the first and last word, the highest priority for any stat boosts.
· Alignment: Any, but note that one of your later spells is [Evil].
Skill Notes: You will need to take the Skilled City Dweller alternate class feature from Cityscape’s web enhancement with your first level of Scout, and swap out Survival for Sense Motive. You want to meet the prerequisites for Unseen Seer by level 5, and the prerequisites for Archmage by level 15. Those are demanding prestige classes, so plan out your skill points in advance. With Able Learner, being human, and 14 Intelligence, you only get 5 skill points per level for your final five levels, so you can only max out five skills. I recommend that they be Hide, Listen, Move Silently, Spellcraft, and Spot. Up until then, getting Search, Disable Device, and Concentration to 18 ranks is a good idea, and if you keep those near max it will allow you to be a passable trapscout for the first three quarters of the non-epic game, which is really all the time you can expect to need trapscouting.
Basic Equipment: You want to stick to ranged weaponry early on, and don’t forget those thieves’ tools. You will wear armor at level 1, and after level 1 you will only wear armor with no arcane spell failure chance. By level 5 you’ll want to have your hands on some daggers; they’re an essential component to a spell you’ll be casting regularly until level 12.
Magical Gear Goals: Your most important offensive item is your Cha booster; your most important defensive items are whatever you can attach the Shadow and Silent Moves enhancements to (+1 Bracers of Armor if your GM will allow it, or +1 Twilight padded armor otherwise). Everything else is about boosting your casting. Runestaffs, drakehelms, wands, rings of wizardry, metamagic rods; expand your horizons at all costs. A wand of Scorching Ray, bought as soon as you can get your hands on one, will probably last you until level 12, at which point a better option opens up. You’ll also want MIC’s Periapt of the Sullen Sea or an Eternal Wand of Heart of Water for access to Freedom of Movement, and MIC’s Dispelling Cord to boost your dispelling in the late game. Also, the Horizon Goggles from Complete Mage are an absolute godsend to your long-range tactics. The final spell list will include must-have spells to grab via items.
The Build.
Build Stub: Scout 1/Sorcerer 4/Unseen Seer 10/Archmage 5 (in exactly that order)
1 – Scout – (Trapfinding, skirmish +1d6) (Able Learner, Darkstalker)
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[sblock]You’re a fairly standard and unusually charismatic 1st level scout, able to Hide Better thanks to Darkstalker and probably boasting a few ranks in Spellcraft since Able Learner lets you. Remember, we swap out Survival for Sense Motive here. [/sblock]2 – Sorcerer – (Accelerated metamagic) (Nerveskitter, Sniper’s Shot)
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[sblock]Both these spells can be found in the SPC.
Nerveskitter lets you go first, and Sniper’s Shot removes the range limitations on your skirmish. Kite your opponents and keep a safe distance. Both of these spells will be useful forever.
We choose the accelerated metamagic alternate class feature from the PHB2 for reasons that will be handy later, though admittedly this does hurt like hell not having a familiar to share scouting with.
[/sblock]3 – Sorcerer – (Practiced Spellcaster)
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[sblock]I know, it’s only a +1 boost to caster level, but we needed this feat somewhere. Sorcerer 2 tries its damnedest to be a dead level.[/sblock]4 – Sorcerer – (Golem Strike)
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[sblock]Golem strike is from the SPC.
We now can bypass the precision damage immunity of the two most problematic monster types.
[/sblock]5 – Sorcerer – (Cloud of Knives)
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[sblock]Cloud of knives is from the PHB2.
Here’s where you start to build action advantage. Move, poke with Cloud of Knives, and then cast Benign Transposition to get your ally in the right location is a highly effective tactic and one that will serve you in many fights. This role - position support with a bit of poking damage on the side - will define you straight into level 11.
[/sblock]6 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +2d6) (Spell Focus: Conjuration) (Accelerated Movement, Cloud of Bewilderment)
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[sblock]Both these spells can be found in the SPC.
We finally get our next boost to skirmish damage, along with an important stealth enabling spell in Accelerated Movement and a poor man’s Stinking Cloud. Cloud of Bewilderment will probably be better for a scout unseen seer; it takes up a smaller area and thus is less likely to block your movement or the movement of your team. Your feat selection for this level gives it the same saving throw DC as a third level spell anyways.
Also, the drought of skill points is over, as Unseen Seer comes with a ton of skill points and you can slip back into the role of trapscout comfortably. Don’t forget to budget for Archmage, though!
[/sblock]7 – Unseen Seer – (Advanced learning) (Silent Spell) (Grave Strike, Dimension Step)
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[sblock]Grave strike can be found in the SPC. Dimension step is from the PHB2.
We now branch out into that highly underrated area of support, position control, with Dimension Step. That spell is unparalleled for getting your teammates where they need to be RIGHT NOW at short ranges, which is why I picked it up as soon as possible. A warning about Grave Strike and Golem Strike, though: they compete with Sniper’s Shot for your swift action, so you while you can skirmish zombies and robots, you’ll need to be close. Don’t discount Silent Spell, either - with the accelerated metamagic class feature, we can use it to maintain cover when a verbal component would give away our position.
On an equipment note, now’s a good time to pick up a CL 7 wand of Scorching Ray, if you can.
[/sblock]8 – Unseen Seer – (Divination spell power +1) (True Casting, Fog Cloud, Greater Magic Weapon)
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[sblock]True casting is from the SPC.
While True Casting is just being picked up for future purposes (all our offensive tactics right now ignore spell resistance), the other two spells are very handy now. Fog Cloud lets you produce concealment to hide with, and a lot more of it than Cloud of Bewilderment (without the risk of nauseating yourself too). We’re aiming for a Gnowhere Gnome(x) defense, trying to minimize enemies’ chances to target you in the first place. Greater Magic Weapon comes online at just the right caster level to make it more worthwhile than Magic Weapon, and the CL drawback from divination spell power is eaten by that Practiced Spellcaster feat we took five levels ago.
[/sblock]9 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +3d6) (Skill Focus: Spellcraft) (Ruin Delver’s Fortune)
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[sblock]Ruin delver’s fortune is from the SPC.
I adore Ruin Delver’s Fortune. For a high-Charisma spellcaster who relies on stealth and concealment fto defend themselves, this spell is the ultimate protection, able to neuter so many of the nasty area effects used to smoke out or burn such targets. We may not be as sneaky as a Gnowhere Gnome(x), but we won’t be fearing Fireballs or Cloudkills. You can even use the temporary hit point option this spell offers to shrug off no-save HP taxes like Vortex of Teeth and Ice Storm.
Also, we’ve caught up to the straight-classed scout in skirmish damage. One of the reasons we went Scout instead of Rogue is because Skirmish penetrates uncanny dodge; the other is that Unseen Seer advances Skirmish faster than Scout does. Keep on kiting!
[/sblock]10 – Unseen Seer – (Advanced learning, guarded mind) (Vine Strike, Fuse Arms, Girallon’s Blessing, Dimension Door)
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[sblock]All these spells besides dimension door can be found in the SPC.
We’re pushing the support angle more. Level 10 really is the level by which your team should at least have Dimension Door if not something beefier. Fuse Arms and Girallon’s Blessing are a well-known buff combo, if a bit unusual, but you’ll see why I picked it in two levels. Vine Strike cuts away another group of precision-immune enemies. And on the class feature front, we pick up a permanent Nondetection effect on ourselves from guarded mind, which helps us maintain our Gnowhere Gnome defense.
[/sblock]11 – Unseen Seer – (Divination spell power +2) (Overland Flight)
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[sblock]Having flight whenever you need flight is long overdue. We’ll need it for many reasons, one of which is to facilitate next level’s combo. [/sblock]12 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +4d6) (Spell Focus: Transmutation) (Speak to Allies, Giant’s Wrath, Improved Invisibility, Telekinesis)
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[sblock]Speak to allies and giant’s wrath are from the SPC.
Friendly AC-130 inbound.
Telekinesis and Giant’s Wrath make for a lovely combo. Giant’s Wrath summons up ⅓ your CL in miniaturized boulders that deal 2d6 damage on impact when thrown and enjoy an insight bonus to attack and damage rolls equal to half your caster level (max 10). Telekinesis can throw one projectile per caster level (max 15), and your attack roll uses Charisma instead of Dexterity and a base attack bonus equal to your caster level. Combine them and, at this level at least, you’re doing ridiculous damage with unmatched accuracy (your primary casting stat to hit and a bonus of 1.5 * your CL?). The big weakness of this tactic is its vulnerability to high DR, as damage reduction takes a bite out of lots of attacks. But that’s why it’s most dangerous in the hands of Unseen Seers, who can pile on enough precision damage to each boulder to just overwhelm such defenses.
Right now? You have a CL of 12 and +4d6 skirmish. If you move before casting telekinesis, you can launch up to 12 boulders, each of which enjoys an attack bonus of +18+your Charisma bonus (which should be at least +6 by now) and hits for 6d6+6 damage. That’s potentially 72d6+72 damage (324 average) if they all hit. The highest monster AC at CR 12 is 28 (the average is 21), and the highest monster HP total is 300 (the average is 196).
This combo has been introduced into this build in a way to minimize the chances of it being banned or nerfed. The fact that it takes a while can be used to argue for its balance - you’re changing combat to a game of hide and seek, where enemies must find you before you load and deliver your devastating barrage. (Never mind that if you’re doing stealth right, they won’t.) Giant’s Wrath is a great deal less exploitative than Shrink Item (the Shrink Item + Telekinesis combo will wreck your game if you allow it). If your GM rules that you need more hands to carry all those pebbles, well hey, you happen to have Girallon’s Blessing. Show off your many-armed form and boast that you have become Death, the destroyer of worlds.
Unlike the Mailman(x) or Holy Fire(x), who deliver a few perfect strikes, you can bury your targets with an onslaught of attacks. One, or maybe two will miss, but odds are that enough will get through to slaughter your foe. Your other selections help you fill the role of distant untouchable fire support. Speak with Allies is a poor man’s Telepathic Bond, allowing for communication with your allies while invisible and flying away. Speaking of, we now have Improved Invisibility, completing our Gnowhere Gnome defense. You can already deliver your death barrages from beyond True Seeing range (Telekinesis at this level has a range of 220 feet, and Sniper’s Shot is a thing), and Fog Cloud can blind True Seers at closer distances. You even picked up an Archmage prerequisite feat, Spell Focus: Transmutation, at the perfect level in case you wanted to use Telekinesis for throwing enemies instead of rocks.
[/sblock]13 – Unseen Seer – (Advanced learning) (True Seeing (as a 5th level spell), Greater Dispel Magic)
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[sblock]Greater Dispel Magic was a given - we need to be able to peel buffs and disable magic items, especially when there are so many that grant immunity to precision damage (Elemental Body and fortification armor come to mind). But this level here also included the most difficult decision of the build - to pick up a cheap True Seeing from the cleric spell list, or to pick up Hunter’s Eye (from the Spell Compendium.
It was not an easy call. Hunter’s Eye on an Unseen Seer is unbelievably powerful. On this build, it would offer another +5d6 precision damage per hit, more than our skirmish damage. At higher levels it will effectively double our already obscene damage output. But on the other hand, our damage output is already more than high enough, and achieving the conditions for a sneak attack is much harder than pulling off skirmish damage. Meanwhile, flat miss chances are the one thing that can cut our otherwise incredibly accurate barrages down to a survivable size, and True Seeing turns many of them off. Getting it cheap means we can immediately start using it with Silent Spell, and that’s important when our defense relies on keeping our position unknown. Now you can pick up True Seeing via items, but there’s a lot competing for our budget already. The Runestaff of Vision is great, but there are a lot of great runestaffs out there, and you can only use one at a time. Besides, equipment can be dispelled or sundered. Another option was to take Hunter’s Eye in favour of Vine Strike (which was selected earlier), but RT balked at that given the plant type monsters that were introduced in the MMIII, some which have significant DR and one of which boasts a miss chance that True Seeing can’t pierce.
In the end, RT decided to play it safe, reasoning that our damage was more than sufficient for the foes we could expect and that it would be better to pre-empt potential counter tactics than gamble on the feast-or-famine game of meeting Sneak Attack’s tactical demands. There was also the other limitation he was following, “try not to provoke the DM’s banhammer”, and given how rapidly your spike damage increased, doubling it further may not be a wise idea right now. But you should know that the option exists, and the raw power Hunter’s Eye will bring you should not under any circumstances be ignored. Know your own game well and fine tune this build to your needs.
[/sblock]14 – Unseen Seer – (Divination spell power +3) (Vortex of Teeth, Dragonsight, Gemjump)
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[sblock]All these spells can be found in the SPC.
Vortex of Teeth is there because, while this build excels at spike damage, sometimes you need to make an area unfriendly. It also bothers incorporeal foes, whose miss chance ignores True Seeing, and doesn’t offer a save. And this build needed something effective versus swarms by now anyways.
Dragonsight supports our stealth defense - if we’re going to be ducking in and out of Fog Clouds or dropping airstrikes on foes from outside of True Seeing range, we need better sensory powers. Dragonsight provides in spades.
Gemjump supports our role as a mobility assistance caster, which has fallen off in light of our spike damage but still deserves attention. It’s a poor man’s Teleportation Circle - though not too poor, you still need to afford the component.
[/sblock]15 – Unseen Seer – (Skirmish +5d6) (Extend Spell) (Avasculate)
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[sblock]Avasculate can be found in the SPC.
Ahhh, Avasculate. The only creatures flat-out immune to this spell (undead and constructs) are already vulnerable to our TK barrages. Meanwhile, the most problematic walls of HP - oozes, elementals (oddly enough), and those weird aberrations and outsiders with natural immunity to precision damage - are all susceptible to Avasculate, which is great for reducing walls of HP and also ignores DR. Avasculate also has a chance to stun, though it’s not likely to happen against the foes we can expect to use it on (anything weak enough to fail the save against Avasculate is probably weak enough to bury in a TK barrage instead).
Also worth noting: with Extend Spell, we can cast a two-round Sniper’s Shot, saving our swift action for next round. That means we can now murder plants, undead, and constructs from a distance too.
[/sblock]16 – Archmage – (Mastery of counterspelling) (Greater Blink, Wall of Gears, Arcane Spellsurge)
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[sblock]Greater blink and wall of gears are from the SPC. Arcane spellsurge can be found in Dragon Magic.
Greater Blink is a must have. Not only is it a fantastic defense, giving you a miss chance True Seeing won’t beat and letting you walk through walls, but it also counters itself - if some caster stacks on the miss chances, you want to minimize them. It even lets you bring the hate to Ethereal Jaunting foes. The winner of this round’s spell selections, however, is the incredible Arcane Spellsurge. DAT ACTION ADVANTAGE. If it weren’t for the fact it is Universal and thus not a member of any school it would have been our 7th level spell pick last level. Curse your demanding yet balanced prerequisites, Archmage! Incidentally, mastery of counterspelling adds additional utility to Greater Dispel magic. If you’re in a mage duel and can’t instantly splatter them, use Arcane Spellsurge to cast with your swift action while you ready counterspells with your standard, and return those nasty save-or-dies to sender.
Our only real throwaway spell pick this level is Wall of Gears. It’s a great battlefield shaping spell, and that is an area we’ve neglected. Warping foes around the battlefield is more useful if you can drop obstacles your foes have trouble warping around. But ultimately, if there was a spell RT would drop in this build, Wall of Gears is it. If you can stomach selecting a 5th level spell in place of a 6th, Nightmare Terrain from Complete Mage is a very very very strong contender.
Incidentally, this is the first caster level increase in which we don’t add another projectile to our TK barrages, which caps at 15 projectiles. Sad. But it is a level in which our Giant’s Wrath and Greater Magic Weapon bonuses increase. Let’s run some numbers:
2d6 boulder damage + 8 insight + 5d6 skirmish = 32.5 average damage per hit, with an attack bonus of 24 + your Charisma modifier, which should be +7 or +8 by now.
If 14 attacks hit (let’s give them a lucky natural 1), you’re dealing 455 damage per barrage, minus their DR times 14 sadly. Note that the average CR 16 monster has 239 hp, and the highest hp a CR 16 monster can boast of is 378. Also note that, if you’re willing to cast Giant’s Wrath 5 times in preparation, you can launch two murder barrages in a single round. Arcane Spellsurge makes it happen.
See why RT felt Hunter’s Eye was overkill?
[/sblock]17 – Archmage – (Spell power) (Greater Arcane Fusion)
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[sblock]Greater arcane fusion can be found in Complete Mage.
Ooof. More action advantage, and another reason to boast about being a sorc. You can keep your fast access to 9th level spells, wizards; GAF rapidly accelerates all our combos, allowing us to go from zero to Elder Evil slaying in a matter of a few rounds. First round, Arcane Fusion to cast Spellsurge and a Giant’s Wrath, then Giant’s Wrath again as a swift. Second round, cast a Silent Giant’s wrath as a standard, move, and then cast a Telekinesis (or another GAF containing TK and whatever support spell you want) to set the rocks flying. You’ll need a third round (or to give up one of your Wraths) to fit a Sniper’s Shot or Golem Strike in there though.
[/sblock]18 – Archmage – (Arcane reach) (Persistent Spell) (Glass Strike, Greater Plane Shift)
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[sblock]Both of these spells can be found in the SPC.
Here come those backup kill moves mentioned in the opening introduction. It is RT’s opinion that Glass Strike and Greater Plane Shift, once they’ve been given some range (such as by the archmage’s arcane reach high arcana option), are flat out hands down the best kill moves in the game that still allow saves. Glass Strike targets the Fortitude save, but affects objects, bypassing a number of immunities. You can turn undead to glass statues with this. Since Glass Strike can affect objects, it can also double as an inefficient Disintegrate when it comes to reshaping the battlefield - glass walls are a lot easier to break than stone walls. Greater Plane Shift targets the Will save, but is not mind-affecting in any way, and can even affect multiple targets. It also allows destination targeting; you can send a half dozen mind-blanked enemies straight into Orcus’ zombie pot with a single casting (if you’ve been there before, and it is such a popular tourist destination). And for a little bonus, you remember those feats we took to qualify for Archmage? That’s right, Spell Focus in Conjuration and Transmutation.
But that doesn’t even include this level’s feat choice! Ahh, Persistent Spell. Now, we have Grave Strike and Sniper’s Shot and the rest of those on all day long. Admittedly, the price in 7th level slots is painfully high (on top of Archmage slot costs), but the action advantage this grants is great.
[/sblock]19 – Archmage – (Mastery of shaping) (Mage’s Disjunction)
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[sblock]So, by now we have kill moves to handle just about anything in any book. But there are still buffs, and they need to be removed. While Greater Dispel Magic is great, nothing says “no nice things for you” like Disjunction - and thanks to the archmage’s mastery of shaping high arcana, you can use this close-range spell without any risk of friendly fire. Good times. [/sblock]20 – Archmage – (Arcane reach) (Moment of Prescience, Time Stop)
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[sblock]And the last possibilities of resistance fall away. With Moment of Prescience, we can spot other Gnowhere Gnome types in spite of stratospheric Hide bonuses. (Funnily enough, thanks to Unseen Seer and Archmage, if we’re wearing an orange ioun stone we hit the maximum bonus for this spell the same level that we learn it. With Time Stop, we have as much action advantage as we’re willing to spend 9th level spell slots on. Another arcane reach means our backup kill moves have enough reach to be used safely even against big enemies. We are exceedingly good at killing anything we ever want to kill, anywhere, anytime.[/sblock]
Sorcerer spells known
[sblock]By level and in order of acquisition. Advanced Learning selections are marked with asterisks.1. Nerveskitter (SPC), sniper’s shot (SPC), benign transposition (SPC), golem strike (SPC), grave strike* (SPC), true casting (SPC), vine strike* (SPC)
2. Cloud of knives (PHB2), cloud of bewilderment (SPC), fog cloud, fuse arms (SPC), speak to allies (SPC)
3. Dimension step (PHB2), greater magic weapon, girallon’s blessing (SPC), giant’s wrath (SPC)
4. Ruin delver’s fortune (SPC), dimension door, improved invisibility, vortex of teeth (SPC)
5. Overland flight, telekinesis, true seeing*, dragonsight (SPC), greater blink (SPC)
6. Greater dispel magic, gemjump (SPC), wall of gears (SPC)
7. Avasculate (SPC), arcane spellsurge (DMag), glass strike (SPC)
8. Greater arcane fusion (CMag), greater plane shift (SPC), moment of prescience
9. Mage’s disjunction, time stop
Absolutely worth getting through items:
1. Benign transposition (SPC), grease
2. Scorching ray (hold out for a CL 7 version if you can)
3. Haste, heart of water (CMag), sleet storm (there are a lot of good spells on the list of spells that F***ing Kill People at this level, including stinking cloud, legion of sentinels, and vertigo field)
4. Black tentacles, enervate (particularly useful for handling things you can’t skirmish at low levels), bloodstar (SPC, given how many times you’ll trigger this with a telekinesis barrage, odds are you’ll get some Con damage in there somewhere)
5. Nightmare terrain (CMag, cannot recommend this spell enough), arcane fusion (CMag)
7. Greater Arcane Sight (identifying buffstacks at a glance should not be underestimated)
[/sblock]
Snapshot: At 20th level, assuming +6 items on Cha, Con, and Dex, and a +5 tome for Cha along with all the level up bonuses, we’ve got 135 hp, a base attack bonus of +12, and saving throw bonuses of +6/+8/+11 before cloaks or any other equipment. You have 6/8/8/8/8/6/6/4/7/4 spell slots per level (from 0 to 9) per day. With a caster level of 21 before items, and a Charisma bonus of +11, you’re looking at telekinetic barrages of 15 Giant’s Wrath pebbles per casting, each made with a +41 attack bonus and dealing 7d6+10 damage on impact (34.5 damage average) before DR, for a result of 105d6+150 damage per casting of telekinesis (517.5 average) before DR, or 98d6 + 140 in case you miss with one boulder (483 average – the average CR 20 HP is around 400). Arcane Spellsurge lets you drop two of these in one round. Multiply a target’s DR by the number of attacks that hit to figure out how much that reduces the barrage damage (DR 15/epic, for example, will reduce a 15-hit barrage by 225 damage, sadly). Remember that the Telekinesis barrages can be delivered from 310 ft. away, and that’s before range-boosting equipment like the Horizon Goggles. Our backup kill moves, Glass Strike and Greater Plane Shift, force saving throws of DC 29 (Fort) and DC 30 (Will) respectively. On the defensive front, we’re boasting +43 on our Hide and Move Silently checks with only some Greater Shadow and Greater Silent Moves equipment, and Ruin Delver’s Fortune can boost any of our saves by +11 (along with immunity to fear, immunity to poison, or evasion) or give us 4d6+11 hit points (25 average, more than enough to beat the usual no-save HP taxes).
Against this build at level 20? The only monsters RT can find that aren’t a complete pushovers or wyrm/great wyrm dragons are found in the Epic Level Handbook or Elder Evils. Hell, out of the Elder Evils, only Pandorym (outsider type, crit immunity, incorporeal miss chance, and DR 15/stuff we don’t have????) and Kyuss are a real challenge. Outside of those, the Tarrasque itself is one of the few that can’t be wiped in a single round (bloody immunity to rays like Avasculate…), and it has little capability to retaliate against a flying invisible kill sat. This build just erases entire categories of threats from the game. And all without touching Celerity.
Overall Strengths: We do really have something for everyone. Enormous spike damage, significant boosts to team mobility, good trapscouting, a solid defense that prevents enemy targeting and neutralizes untargeted effects, backup options for different opponents - there are very few tactical gaps this build leaves uncovered. And it does so without touching the exceedingly powerful casting options that would tempt GM Thor into smiting you with his Banmjolnir. You offer enough support to your party that they shouldn’t feel left out, either.
Overall Weaknesses: Elementals. $#@&ing elementals. Oozes are annoying but stupid, plants and undead can be difficult before you pick up their Strike spells, but elementals? By the time you have the options that let you answer these foes, they’re not showing up anymore! The core Elder Elementals are CR 11 (one bloody level before your airstrike combo comes online) and have enough DR to shrug off your skirmish-denied airstrikes. You can’t even dispel the summoned ones until 13! There are some other monsters, like chaos beasts and gibbering mouthers, that are likewise resistant to the tricks you can bring but otherwise don’t have the walls of HP to burn through. But elementals? $#@& elementals. We hates them, tricksy elementals, we hates them forever! Other than that, we’re playing a squishy mage who can run into problems against anything that can beat those stealth checks, and we don’t enjoy insanely high skill bonuses like the Gnowhere Gnome. Play cautious, especially at lower levels.
Variants: Swapping in spells from the “absolutely worth getting from items” list is an option, but otherwise, the biggest way to amp up this build is to abandon the self-imposed limitations RT adopted to dodge the banhammer. Swapping out Wall of Gears for Celerity or Contingency, for example, would do quite a bit. Swapping out Vortex of Teeth for Wings of Flurry is also a good call; RT only turned away from Wings of Flurry because it was neutered by Evasion. You could also grab different feats if flaws are allowed, or if you give up on Archmage - Mobile Spellcasting and Twin Spell come to mind. Abandoning Archmage means abandoning Glass Strike and Greater Plane Shift, though, unless you can get Reach Spell for free - but there are plenty of other great options at those levels. If RT was going to ramp up the power, he’d drop Archmage for Legacy Champion (further boosting Unseen Seer), which would give him another die of Skirmish, feats to spare for Twin Spell and Mobile Spellcasting, and another advanced knowledge option (so as to enjoy both Hunter’s Eye and cheaper True Seeing). He’d then swap out Greater Plane Shift for Trap the Soul, Glass Strike for Limited Wish, and Wall of Gears for Contingency or Celerity (Limited Wish can replicate Favored of the Martyr). Transdimensional Spell might have a place in games where incorporeal foes are to be expected. If you really want to flirt with absolute power, well, go with Shrink Item and try to fit in Sanctum Spell. But fairly be ye warned.
There you have it.
TS: Sorry that took so long, everyone. I’ve been swamped, but RT, well, recently got un-swamped.
Originally posted by ObsidianConspiracy:
All I can say is I am thoroughly impressed, I could see this flying with any DM I've played in a game with and any to come too. Very impressive. Can't really offer much to help it along unfortunately. Still I'm in the same boat as RT, I prefer sorcerers to wizards, unless I've a very very specific wizard idea in mind, an example of this would be Malconvolker
Originally posted by Caker:
Another fun thing to throw with telekinesis are beads of force. 5d6 per bead in a 10 ft radius burst, no save. Albiet very expensive at 3k gold a piece, maybe you can get your friendly neighborhood artificer to craft some at a reduced cost
. I like this build, in that it is incredibly simple. Uses two prestiege classes, and finishes them. Doesn't go book diving for obscure spells, feats or items. Fills multiple roles, while not sacrificing power elsewhere. I will definitely be looking at this next time I build a sorcerer.Originally posted by Uninspired:
I literally just created an account so Icould say how happy I am to see this build posted. I love the Weekly Optimization Showcase and ever new update, however sporadic, makes me happy.
Telekinesis is one of my favorite spells and whenever I think about using it for blasting I always plan on stacking SA onto it. I never occured to me to use skirmish. What a clever idea. It's a damn shame Craen doesn't work with Skirmish but as you point out; the damage output of this build is pretty good. It can work fine without it.
Originally posted by Tempest_Stormwind:
The very first time I saw TK abused, it was a similar exploit, though the beads in question don't actually cause direct damage. (This was also in 3e, which had roughly double the volume per bead.)Caker wrote:Another fun thing to throw with telekinesis are beads of force. 5d6 per bead in a 10 ft radius burst, no save. Albiet very expensive at 3k gold a piece, maybe you can get your friendly neighborhood artificer to craft some at a reduced cost
I'm the same way. I'd be torn between this and my (slightly modified, internal version) Holy Fire were I to play sorcerer for much the same reason. This build is much more versatile and doesn't use action spells, though Holy Fire fights in a more clearly definable, tightly-themed fashion (arcane exorcist and countermage). Both builds progress in a logical manner with clearly defined prestige classes and very little tomfoolery on the magical front, and yet can actually deliver enough damage to make it count (well, assumine one ignores the ass-pull ruling in the RC about precision damage in the same non-full-round action) while still supporting the team in other areas (Something for Everyone has more support magic, though some of it comes online very late).
EDIT: I forgot to mention - when RT builds characters, particularly casters, he usually assumes they've got nothing equipmentwise except perhaps a stat booster (frankly, I was shocked that this build assumes a wand of scorching ray or the like). This may explain why this build has all the -Strike spells on its spells known, instead of using wand chambers or "spells-known items" (runestaff, drake-helm, etc). Personally, I relegate situational spells to gear wherever possible, which reduces pressure and opens up slots for lower-level supports early on (and even retains the Persistent Spell effect from the endgame - just use Complete Mage's metamagic wandgrips) - but it does change the relative importance of your swift action (something that becomes all the more evident the more spellcasters and martial adepts you build).
Were I working with this, or if flaws were allowed, I'd definitely work in Mobile Spellcasting, in effect getting Spring Attack for spells (move to trigger skirmish and establish LoS, then Mobile Spellcast to bail out of there and back into cover; use Metamagic Specialist or Arcane Spellsurge if you want a metamagic spell here. Interestingly, Mobile Spellcasting has an auxiliary role here - it can be used to extend the casting time of a swift-action spell into a standard action, even if the spell in question doesn't combine well with any of your metamagic (although here, that's basically just saving you the slot with Still Spell or Extend Spell). This is particularly amazing if you're under the effect of Arcane Spellsurge or are using swift-action spells that persist until the end of your next turn.).
Thanks. Comments like this make my day. Glad that the showcases are appreciated (even though I had very little to do with this one).
We're also fond of pairing it with Lesser Weapon Augmentation (the artificer infusion; by the levels where TK is involved, it's easier to use this one instead of Personal Weapon Augmentation) to slap an appropriate Bane on a pile of ammo and unloading it first, which helps solve the enhancement bonus problem (against whatever you're targeting, it's got a +2 enhancement bonus) and adds a whopping 2d6 damage on to each piece of ammo before TK throws it; this also has a minor element of friend-or-foe on it, since it's unlikely the caster has Precise Shot and thus might hit allies in melee with their targets (but such hits presumably won't trigger Bane, meaning it's buffered a bit). Giant's Wrath lets someone perform a similar setup on a class that can normally use Telekinesis directly (instead of through items), even though there's no indication that Giant's Wrath boulders are treated as ammunition.
Originally posted by Luna_Trigger:
Nifty idea in theory, but your anti-immunity options still fail against one very important category: Spellcasters. Unless I've missed something, you have no real options against that save Disjunction. Then again, that's frequently true with any solid buff routine, so I guess that's not too big of a flaw. Also, Darkstalker isn't terribly reliable.
Still, for something relying on precision damage, it's pretty nifty. Greater Plane Shift with Archmage was a very nice touch.
