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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Elder-Basilisk" data-source="post: 2711647" data-attributes="member: 3146">I've played a fighter/wizard from level 1-17 in Living Greyhawk and this is my take on it:First: In 3.5, you have no cause to worry that fighter/wizard is an inherently weak combination. Especially with wraithstrike, you will put most other builds to shame as a melee damage dealer and still be able to cast high level arcane spells. Even without wraithstrike, you can be a very powerful character who can easily hold his own against any other equal level melee fighter. (My build: Fighter 1/Wizard 6/Spellsword 1/Eldritch Knight 9; In eberron, Phantom Knight is probably better than eldritch knight).2. The two primary class combinations should be fighter/wizard and paladin/sorcerer.Your other alternatives are less effective.By choosing ranger as your fighter type class, you forgoe heavy armor proficiency and don't qualify for spellsword. You also gain no fighting ability beyond +1 BAB and martial weapons as a first level ranger. (And, by level 17, having 4 ranks of listen isn't much more impressive than having none).By choosing barbarian as your fighting class, you also forgoe spellsword and furthermoe will have to choose between using your best warrior ability--rage--and casting spells. You also do not have the option to use combat expertise while raging which cuts down on the synergy between warrior and wizard stats.By choosing hexblade as your starting class, you forgo spellsword and meaningful offensive options for a weak curse ability that won't improve with level.By choosing swashbuckler as your starting class, you forgo spellsword and lock yourself into the dex fighter route. Dex fighting can be made to work, but you want to use strength and power attack if you're going to dish out the damage.By choosing warmage as your arcane class, you lose out on a lot of the no-save offensive spells (ray of enfeeblement, etc) that synergize with your abilities as well as many of the key defensive and offensive spells for a fighter/mage (shield, false life, wraithstrike, heroism, alter self, greater magic weapon, blink, improved blink, etc).I think it should be possible to make a fighter/swashbuckler/spellsword/bladesinger work but you'd lose a lot of spellpower that way.... Suel Arcanamach is another possible route, but again, you have a lot less spellpower than you can get with the fighter/wizard or paladin/sorcerer combos.3. Since your effectiveness depends upon mixing fighting and spellcasting, you need to find ways to do both at once. At high levels, quicken spell is your friend. Quickened ray of enfeeblement, true strike (in non-wraithstrike games), scorching ray, whirlling blade, etc are very effective. At lower levels, long duration spells like false life, greater magic weapon, etc. are your bread and butter along with swift spells like critical strike, bladeweave, wraithstrike, swift fly, etc. Arcane Strike is another very good feat. (I'd say it's mandatory for any optimized melee fighter/mage and it's also the reason that melee fighter/mages are FAR superior to archer fighter/mages). It enables you to do two things. First, it adds to attack and damage (and works very well with whirling blade). Second, it allows you to use the spells that aren't useful. Got a fires of purity spell prepped but you're fighting efreeti and fire elementals? Arcane Strike baby. Got banishment prepped and you're fighting a dragon? Arcane Strike. Analyze dweomer but orcs are kicking in the door to your tower instead of letting you have the restful day you'd planned? Arcane strike. Contingency is similarly useful.Key spells:Level 1: ray of enfeeblement, shield, enlarge person, critical strikeLevel 2: Whirling blade, Scorching ray (at high levels), false life, wraithstrike, bladeweave (at low levels), alter self (+6 natural armor as a troglodyte), mirror image, see invisibility, swift flyLevel 3: greater magic weapon, heroism, dragonscales (draconomicon--and as an enhancement bonus to natural armor, it stacks with alter self), and BLINK (next to wraithstrike which is so hideously broken, it shouldn't be allowed in any game unless it is MUCH higher level--4 at minimum, 6 at a good guess, blink is the single best spell for a fighter/mage. It combines good defense with a very good offensive boost (and, to make matters worse, it synergizes nicely with wraithstrike since between blink and wraithstrike, a target's AC is usually 10+size+deflection), displacement.Level 4: greater invisibility, polymorph, enervationLevel 5: mass fire shield, overland flight, vitriolic sphere (effectively no-save which is good because you can't afford to max int),  IMPROVED BLINK (like blink but better), freezing fog, wall of forceLevel 6: Fires of purity, contingency, brilliant blade (if your DM is sensible enough to ban wraithstrike)Level 7: Limited wish (think Stalwart Pact), energy immunity, power word blind, bigby's grasping hand, banishment (a great spell and you can typically muster quite a few items to boost the DC to a reasonable level like the holy sword you should carry--and if you aren't fighting outsiders, Arcane strike).Level 8: Mind blank, moment of prescience, otto's irresistable dance, iron body (unimpressive offensively, but it's a great defensive spell rendering you immune to a host of special attacks)</blockquote>

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