Making a melee/spellcaster combo and need help

[rgard]

There's also the alternative class feature Spell Shield (Du p.13) for Socerers (also legal for the Battle Sorcerer too AFAIK). You lose the ability to have a familiar, but gain the ability to shield yourself from damage by sacrificing spell slots as an immediate action. Often overlooked, but extremely useful for a melee oriented arcanist.

Thurbane, I'm having a brain cramp...which book is 'Du'?

Thanks in advance,
Rich

 

[Thurbane]

Thurbane, I'm having a brain cramp...which book is 'Du'?

Thanks in advance,
Rich

Dungeonscape.

It's a btter abbrievation than Dung.

 

[rgard]

Dungeonscape.

It's a btter abbrievation than Dung.

Great thanks! And I agree it's better than Dung!

 

[Thurbane]

I'm not great at "builds", but here goes:

Battle Sorcerer* 7/Abjurant Champion 5/Dragonslayer 1/Spellsword 1/Eldritch Knight 6
*Spell Shield alternative class feature, above

BAB +18, caster level 19, ignore 10% ASF, HD: 7d8+5d10+1d10+1d8+6d6

On second thought, if you ditch the Eldritch Knight, and replace those with another 6 levels of Battle Sorcerer, you end up with:

BAB +17, caster level 20, ignore 10% ASF, HD: 7d8+5d10+1d10+1d8+6d8

You lose one BAB, but end up with FULL caster level progression, and some extra HP.

 

[rgard]

On second thought, if you ditch the Eldritch Knight, and replace those with another 6 levels of Battle Sorcerer, you end up with:

BAB +17, caster level 20, ignore 10% ASF, HD: 7d8+5d10+1d10+1d8+6d8

You lose one BAB, but end up with FULL caster level progression, and some extra HP.

Hi Thurbane,

How do you have the cast in light armor and the ignore 10% ASF mesh? Do you use the 10% ASF with a shield?

I tried to find a way to have the BS's light armored casting work with the 10% ingore ASF when UA first came out (with respect to armor worn, not shields) and didn't find a way to stack it that was satisfactory.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[Klaus]

Hi Thurbane,

How do you have the cast in light armor and the ignore 10% ASF mesh? Do you use the 10% ASF with a shield?

I tried to find a way to have the BS's light armored casting work with the 10% ingore ASF when UA first came out (with respect to armor worn, not shields) and didn't find a way to stack it that was satisfactory.

Thanks,
Rich

The reduced ASF applies to items not covered by Armored Mage (light), namely medium and heavy armor and with shields.

 

[rgard]

The reduced ASF applies to items not covered by Armored Mage (light), namely medium and heavy armor and with shields.

Hi Klaus, thanks. I will probably limit it to working with shields. The way I tried to fit the two together before was to take the difference between the light armor ASF and the medium/heavy armor ASF and subtract the 10% ASF to arrive at a total (reduced) ASF. If the character was wearing medium armor and had light armored casting, I wanted to give some credit for the light armored casting in addition to the spellsword reduction. Problem is that the percentages are all different within the light armor group.

Thanks,
Rich

 

[Thurbane]

If you take the Battlecaster feat, you can use medium armor (i.e. mithril plate) with no ASF. The level of Spellsword is more for BAB progression than the ignore 10% ASF feature, but it will allow you to use a light shield with no ASF.

 

[Shin Okada]

If you take the Battlecaster feat, you can use medium armor (i.e. mithril plate) with no ASF. The level of Spellsword is more for BAB progression than the ignore 10% ASF feature, but it will allow you to use a light shield with no ASF.

In my understanding it does not work like that.

From SRD.

A bard can cast bard spells while wearing light armor without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. However, like any other arcane spellcaster, a bard wearing medium or heavy armor or using a shield incurs a chance of arcane spell failure if the spell in question has a somatic component (most do).

Now, by taking Battlecaster feat, he can wear medium armor without incurring the normal arcane spell failure chance. But that is all.

If he wears a buckler or any other type of shield, now he is "using a shield" and thus suffers from arcane spell failure chance, not only from that of buckler but from armor, too. Because he violated the required condition.

So, a bard with light armor with a mithral buckler (0% failure chance) still suffer armor's spell failure chance.

A Bard with Battlecaster feat and -5% miss chance from Spellsword class feature, in mithral full-plate (medium armor, 25% miss chance) with a Buckler (5%) has (25 +5 -5=) 25% miss chance in total.

 

[Thurbane]

Thats a pretty different interpretation from mine.

The combination of Battle Sorcerer with the Battle Caster feat means he can use medium armor with no ASF. This does not extend to shields, obviously. I see no reason why using a shield would suddenly mean that his medium armor is treated as anything other than medium armor. AFAIK, the ASF for the shield would be treated completely separately.