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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lord Pendragon" data-source="post: 3298886" data-attributes="member: 707">Intelligent foes will find ways to bypass the meatshield.  It's not that hard, unless all of your adventuring takes place in 5-foot corridors.While there's certainly a balance that needs to be struck between offense and defense, I'd still suggest taking some basic defensive measures.Alter Self is a fantastic defensive spell, letting you get an easy +6 natural armor.Improved Invisibility is, IMO, the most useful defense in the game.  Sure, there are things out there that will be able to see invisibility, but it's going to stymie a lot of incoming attacks regardless.Mage Armor.  +4 AC may not be much, but this spell can be cast outside of combat, making this a very cheap +4 to AC.  I always have it up until I pick up more powerful Bracers of Armor.Shield.  I like to Quicken this later on, for another +4 AC.  Combined with the two spells up above, that gives me a base 24 AC plus any dex bonus I might have (which I usually do, prioritizing Dex just after Int and Con.)Thus far, you've only spent the first round in combat buffing (the Improved Invisibility).  From here you can decide whether more defense is necessary.  If not, start buffing/blasting.Also, as you move into the mid-levels, consider resistances and protections from energy, to help take the edge off those area-of-effect spells.</blockquote>