Island of blades

[Bigby'sCrushingHand]

what is the general consensus regarding the island of blades stance from the Tome of Battle? is it overpowered?

this is my first foray into p&p 3.5 character creation and all this take a level of this and a level of that is kinda foreign.. my character design was supposed to be a half-drow assassin type, but off the bat i decided i didn't like certain things about the prestige class. the lack of skill points being a serious issue since i am the only rogue type character we have.
i decided i was going to try rogue/fighter combo just to get a couple of extra feats and a slightly higher BAB. i was sitting around last week and i checked out the swordsage class in the ToB and figured i could get more out of my character if i swapped my levels of fighter for levels of SS. i grabbed two weapon defense, which is useless if you have 2nd level swordsage and add your wis bonus to your ac, not to mention you get free weapon focus, and the shadow blade feat is great for weapon finesse characters, also nullifying my need for weapon spec. also it comes down to 4 extra skill points per level with skills that are actualy used by both classes. it just fits my idea for him better any way.

the last combat we did i was able to go crazy with sneak attacks due to island of blades, and before i get hit with the nerf bat or put my dm in an awkward position, i just want to get the lowdown on opinions of the ability. i might add that the week before i was completely useless as we were fighting plants.

i have to level up my character before the next session, and i'm not sure what to do with him.

 

[blargney the second]

If you want to build a Dex-based character, swordsage rocks. Go shadow hand and never look back.

Island of blades is an awesome stance - just remember the restriction that you and your buddy have to be adjacent to the flankee.
-blarg

 

[Bigby'sCrushingHand]

ok, here my question though. on page 48 of the ToB the brief description states "You and allies flank all adjacent foes." and the main description also states "you can gain this benefit against multiple opponents at the same time, as can your allies."

it seems pretty cut and dry there, but i just want to make sure i'm not misinterpreting it. basically anyone in my party that is adjacent to the same foe as me is flanking? that's the way we were running it and i was sneak attacking the crap out of everyone.

 

[Stalker0]

You were running it correctly. If you want to nerf anything, nerf shadow blade. I think any feat that completely eliminates the need for strength for a melee character is overpowered.

 

[Mistwell]

ok, here my question though. on page 48 of the ToB the brief description states "You and allies flank all adjacent foes." and the main description also states "you can gain this benefit against multiple opponents at the same time, as can your allies."

it seems pretty cut and dry there, but i just want to make sure i'm not misinterpreting it. basically anyone in my party that is adjacent to the same foe as me is flanking? that's the way we were running it and i was sneak attacking the crap out of everyone.

You are reading it correctly.

You are in the fortunate position of being in a party with enough people who see the benefit of getting close to the foes, including the same foes you are fighting. A lot of groups have one melee type, and a bunch of ranged attackers from behind (either missle weapon, thrown weapon, or spells).

So, you are receiving what seems to be a disproportionate benefit due to the tactics of your party. The stance itself isn't particularly overpowered (though it is good). Most of the time, if people wanted to replicate that benefit, they could with appropriate ranks in tumble and/or the Mobility feat.