[D&D 3.0] How to build a Fighter-Mage?

[TolumvireOfArendur]

I would recommend taking Fighter levels fairly early on, at least level 2, if not level 1, as 1st level Wizards lack survivability. As a Fighter, you would have the benefits of high hp and armor, and be able to switch to Wizard with a high number of hit points as a buffer, so to speak.

In terms of school specialization, evocation isn't really the best idea in my mind. Certainly, don't take it as a banned school, but for a melee fighter/caster, evocation is unwieldy because if often requires you to be at great range. I would personally specialize in abjuration or conjuration. One awesome build would be to become for a summoner wizard, and go in to melee with your summoned monsters. The tactical value of summoned meat shields goes beyond even their stats. They can be used to harry dangerous enemies, to trip, to flank, to protect your back, and even as sacrifices to by time.

In terms of feats, I would take the Eschew Materials feat as past as possible. Spell components can be annoying. However, one build I might recommend trying is having Dexterity being your highest stat, and taking Weapon Finesse. This will allow you to have a high AC bonus, and while you will loose out on damage, a Bastard Sword deals 1d10 anyway.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

High Str and Int, followed by Con and finally Dex.

Personally, I'd choose Dex over Con- the extra HP you get from Con are an ablative resource; the ranged combat, initiative & AC bonuses you get from Dex are not.

And is Spellsword worth it? It seems really underwhelming. I mostly dislike the loss of spell casting levels.

If you're multiclassing into a non-casting class, you're already losing casting levels. With Spellsword, you don't lose as many, plus you gain the ability to ignore a certain amount of ASF and cast spells through your melee attacks.

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

Ok thanks for the tips guys, but I really need more help. I am going out of my mind here deciding what to do and what not to do. The game is this coming Saturday, we will be playing all evening until late night. We are going to start at level 1 and are expected to go all the way uptill level 3, give or take by adventures end. The adventure will then continue every other Saturday. Our DM says he designed the adventure to level us up quickly the first time, but subsequent adventures will have slower leveling, max of 1 per session if that.

Mithril is out of the question at level 1, so are masterwork items. The game is going to be low on magic and special items, especially as much time will be spent in the wild and in dungeons. Death is a real possibility in this game. Whoever dies joins the DM running monsters for that night only, and can rejoin the next game with a new character but with less xp than the rest of the survivors. This might seem harsh, but adds a cool thrill to the game (we are all old friends from High School so we are cool with it)

So anyway here is what I have planned:

-Race Human (free feat is too attractive since we start at level 1.)
-High Str and Int, followed by Con and finally Dex. I won't focus that much on AC like [MENTION=6693129]Severed[/MENTION]Head said, but I still need to survive to level 3-4 to be able to cast Mirror Image.
-First level will be Wizard. I want to cast spells right off the bat. Also, while I would actually prefer sorcerer, I will be loosing spell levels already due to multi classing into a fighter, so it's not worth it IMO to lose even more by taking Sorcerer. Best of all I get Scribe Scroll I can use to make back up scrolls for emergencies.
-Spec school Evocation or Abjuration. Opposing schools Necromancy, Divination, and Enchantment. Losing True Strike hurts, but it's the ONLY Divination spell worth taking for a warrior mage up until the really high levels. Just not worth it IMO. And I don't want to loose Illusion for mirror image and other cool stuff.

Don't worry about True Strike. You won't miss it, unless you wanted to use lots of ranged attacks. Why? Because it's a standard action. It's almost a "neener neener" spell, in that it looks really good, but is actually worthless.

I can also take Color Spray instead of Sleep to have a group disabler.
-Feat Choices: EWP Bastard Sword, Spell Focus (unless someone recommends another)

Now I need tips on how to proceed and/or further improve it. Should I go Wizard 3 asap in order to get mirror image? Or should I go for a Fighter level earlier?

And is Spellsword worth it? It seems really underwhelming. I mostly dislike the loss of spell casting levels. But there really is nothing else worthwhile to take. Blade singer sucks.

This is kind of ... confusing. I'm not sure what your PC expects to do in combat. Color Spray is a fantastic 1st-level spell, but there's nothing distinguishing you from a 1st-level wizard who isn't going to become a fighter/mage. Furthermore, your Int will probably be lower than a "pure" mage, so your save DCs won't be as good. In other words, why do you want fighter levels?

If you're planning on buffing-and-bashing, then Spell Focus is a wasted feat. Spells like Magic Weapon would more suit you. If you could bribe your DM into allowing Wraithstrike (that's a 3.5 spell, unfortunately) that's all the better.

My recommendation would be to focus on touch spells. If there's a wizard spell that works like "Burning Blade", all the better. Unfortunately those spells are pretty lame at low level.

On the other hand, maybe you're just looking for a tougher mage.

I had forgotten how limiting school specialization was in 3.0. If you could keep Necromancy, you could use Vampiric Touch, a handy touch spell for when you're getting bashed. (I don't recall if False Life is a 3.0 spell, but if it is, I'd recommend trying to keep that school. That spell saved my 3.5 wizard's life numerous times, even though my wizard was not a fighter/mage.)

Be very careful about using defensive spells. A lot of listed defensive spells are worthless. Fiery Shield for instance. Tough fighters will simply absorb the hits and cut the mage up anyway, since the damage they have to take is pretty low.

I read a few other posts on this topic. One suggestion was to take Combat Expertise to survive low-level, and with your low AC this is always helpful. Of course it hurts your attack bonus. Another suggestion was to use Spring Attack and spells (I don't know if that's actually legal).

One of my own is to get a good familiar, like a bat. A bat can deliver touch spells. Instead of putting your fragile familiar in harm's way, have it cast touch buff spells on you. That helps relieve the action economy problem a little.

Similarly, the Mount spell gives you an assistant who is really handy. No, it isn't good at combat, but can still aid another, and more to the point, if you take Spirited Charge, you're dealing triple damage with melee attacks. Plus it's throw-away. Gets worse at high levels because it will fail every save thrown at it, such as AoE attacks, fear, etc.

See if Ability Enhancer is 3.0 or 3.5: http://www.realmshelps.net/cgi-bin/featbox.pl?feat=Ability_Enhancer

Take a look at Enlarge Person. It works a bit differently in 3.0 compared to 3.5, being weaker, but it can still help.

However, one build I might recommend trying is having Dexterity being your highest stat, and taking Weapon Finesse. This will allow you to have a high AC bonus, and while you will loose out on damage, a Bastard Sword deals 1d10 anyway.

Unfortunately you can't finesse a bastard sword.

 

[TolumvireOfArendur]

Unfortunately you can't finesse a bastard sword.

I forgot about that; thanks for pointing it out. In that case, a rapier might be a better choice.

 

[Sitara]

@(Psi)SeveredHead

I intend my PC to have the option of fighting in melee and casting spells, either destructive or utility. I am not looking to be the best in the game with either, just competent enough to have fun. A warrior-mage, nothing too fancy. Think Fighter/Mage from AD&D 2e.

Enlarge person is indeed useful in 3e, unlike 3.5e where it is basically useless. Here is the 3.0e SRD. If you have time, please skim it over and give me more tips. You have been very helpful

http://www.opengamingfoundation.org/srd.html

Combat Expertise is a good feat, but I don't want to reduce my attack bonus. I am not looking to be competent in multiple attacks at all, just a single attack. I was hoping to use Mage Armor + dex bonus to cover my armor needs (until I get something like Amulet of Natural Armor or Bracers of Armor...but magic items will be rare in this game) when I am in melee. Mage armor lasts 1 hour per level so it can last me 2 combats in the first level or so as long as both combats occur within a close timeframe of each other.

Also, a good thing about this game is that it involves travel in the wilderness with no random encounters. All encounters are hand picked, and days may pass in narration between encounters so characters will be fully healed and all spells memorized. However the encounters we do play out will be tough and designed to use 50% or more of the party's resources, no piddly challenge ratings. If only one encounter is planned between days of travel, it will be designed with 80%+ of the party's resources in mind

Thus, doing damage is important in melee and magic as well as spells that disable. Spells like Charm Person are not that useful, at least not initially. Later on we will spend time in towns and doing some investigation, as well as possibly a large amount of time on the high seas on a ship, so non combat utility spells will be more useful then.

So I was thinking about taking Power Attack rather than Combat Expertise; a -2 to attack won't hurt much at lower levels with a moderate to high attack bonus from STR, and by wielding a Bastard Blade in two hands I can add a goodly amount of damage to a blow if needed.

For combat spells I was thinking to use the Orb cheeze err I mean spells, like lesser Fire Orb or Lesser Electric Orb from Tome and Blood. They do much more damage than Magic Missile at lower levels, and with the high dex bonus (for a high AC) I could have a greater than average decent chance to hit. @TolumvireOfArendur 's suggestion of using Weapon Finesse would be almost perfect, but finesse weapons suck. Coolness is one of the main reasons I want to play this character, and wielding a rapier is the definition of uncool. Not to mention the piddling damage. Regarding buff spells I want to avoid them, because most have very little durations, only enough for one fight. Useful to have in a spellbook to save for the BBEG, so I will take Bulls Strength if I get to level 3, but overall I prefer longer durations like Mage Armor's.

Hmm, can I use a Katana as a finesse weapon? That would work out really well.

EDIT: Oh and for Familiars, I am going for Toad for the +2 to CON. Yeah I know it's super cheezy but this is a MAD build so I need all the cheeze I can muster. That's why I am here asking you good folk for your expertise!!

 

[(Psi)SeveredHead]

@(Psi)SeveredHead

I intend my PC to have the option of fighting in melee and casting spells, either destructive or utility. I am not looking to be the best in the game with either, just competent enough to have fun. A warrior-mage, nothing too fancy. Think Fighter/Mage from AD&D 2e.

I've played 7 years of 2e and that trope never really made sense to me. You would need to have spells that make you good in melee and spells that blast/control and weapons skills. Or perhaps you're looking to use spells first, then when you run out use a weapon. That seems a good idea at low levels, but it only really works out when you've got a few levels under your belt, by which point you're not really running out of spells.

Enlarge person is indeed useful in 3e, unlike 3.5e where it is basically useless. Here is the 3.0e SRD. If you have time, please skim it over and give me more tips. You have been very helpful

I looked that up already, but it seemed confusing in 3.0. Apparently you need two levels before you even get +1 Strength out of it. (The 3.5 version immediately gave you a size bonus, for extra damage, and the penalty to hit was canceled out by the bonus to Strength.)

I was hoping to use Mage Armor + dex bonus to cover my armor needs (until I get something like Amulet of Natural Armor or Bracers of Armor...but magic items will be rare in this game) when I am in melee. Mage armor lasts 1 hour per level so it can last me 2 combats in the first level or so as long as both combats occur within a close timeframe of each other.

Be sure to take Craft Wondrous Item. Available at 3rd-level. If you have a cleric they'll be happy too, as they can cooperate with you to make cleric-only items.

Also, an AC of about 17 isn't impressive, not when a 1st-level fighter can have more, all day. You're still going to need those short-term non-AC-boosting defensive buffs.

Also, a good thing about this game is that it involves travel in the wilderness with no random encounters. All encounters are hand picked, and days may pass in narration between encounters so characters will be fully healed and all spells memorized. However the encounters we do play out will be tough and designed to use 50% or more of the party's resources, no piddly challenge ratings. If only one encounter is planned between days of travel, it will be designed with 80%+ of the party's resources in mind

Thus, doing damage is important in melee and magic as well as spells that disable.

Even big fights don't last long (in terms of rounds), so you should probably focus on very short-term powerful buffs or attack spells after a few levels rather than longer-term buffs. (Simply put, those are worth more than sword swings.)

Regarding buff spells I want to avoid them, because most have very little durations, only enough for one fight.

Were you talking ability score buffs, or defensive buffs?

Hmm, can I use a Katana as a finesse weapon? That would work out really well.

No, that's not possible in the rules. A katana is actually a pretty big and heavy weapon anyway.

EDIT: Oh and for Familiars, I am going for Toad for the +2 to CON. Yeah I know it's super cheezy but this is a MAD build so I need all the cheeze I can muster. That's why I am here asking you good folk for your expertise!!

They can still deliver touch spells on you. Too bad True Strike isn't a touch spell, because ...