First Duskblade 3.5

[Stormageddon]

So my character was killed in game today. I rolled up a Duskblade.

So far it is a level 6 Drow Duskblade.

Stats:

Str 17
Dex 17
Con 13
Int 18
Wis 13
Cha 15

Feats

Power Attack
Monkey Grip
Home in the Deep

The questions are: what are the must have feats for this class? Is there any great PrCs for the class out there?

[Crow]

Arcane Strike is pretty useful.

[Tempest Fennac]

Is Monkey Grip weally worthwhile? If there's a chance that you'll end up fighting large groups of weak enemies much later in the game, I recommend working towards Whilwind Attack (I think you can use Arcane Chanelling with all the attacks).

[Thespianus]

Also, you're setting Con as a dump stat? It does seem odd to me, but there might be some reason for this?

Also, out of curiosity, does Cleave work with the spell channeling of the Duskblade? Or would a Cleave attempt just be a normal weapon attack?

[AB]

You don`t need INT 18. Most of your spells don`t have saves, and you do not need bonus spells from high Int, `cause you already have many spells per day. Since your highest spell grade will be 6, you really only need INT 16. On your level, start with 14 and upgrade later with items.

For a duskblade, especially a drow (-2 CON, +2 LA), you still need some CON, since you are a melee char (allthough its a clever choice for a duskblade to use reach weapons, like the glaive of spiked chain) and will take some damage in melee - with your d8 hit dice and your mediocre AC, that will become a problem, so some extra HP are your best friends (thats why Vampiric Touch will become your most beloved offensive spell).

[Tempest Fennac]

I's say relying on an item would be a bad idea in case it gets broken or lost (I thought DBs only went up to level 5 spells, so 15 Int will be fine).

[AB]

You`re right, it`s only level 5 spells, and not before 17th level. So it`s absolutely ok to start with a 14 and use one of your ability score increases at level 4/8/12/16 to boost your INT.

[Stormageddon]

Also, you're setting Con as a dump stat? It does seem odd to me, but there might be some reason for this?

Also, out of curiosity, does Cleave work with the spell channeling of the Duskblade? Or would a Cleave attempt just be a normal weapon attack?

Indeed there is a reason. The original rolls, before drow changes (and 4th level ability point)were:

Str: 16
Dex: 15
Con: 15
Int: 16
Wis: 13
Cha: 13

With highest score being 16 and the drow taking -2 con. The best I could do would would 14 con.

But I see the wisdom in this. Made I can get the DM to let me change the 4th level ability point from str to con.

[Thespianus]

With highest score being 16 and the drow taking -2 con. The best I could do would would 14 con.

But I see the wisdom in this. Made I can get the DM to let me change the 4th level ability point from str to con.

I forgot about the Drow Con-penalty, my bad. I guess the Drow in general make fairly poor Duskblades, but I'm all for uphill battles in character generation. If you want a Drow, play a Drow, and to heck with the consequences. :)

As for fun PrCs for a Duskblade, I wonder how a two level dip into Unseen Seer would work? It would allow you to pick one new Divination spell from any spell list and add it to your spell list. The spell Hunter's Eye (PHB2, IIRC) will give you 1D6 of Sneak Attack per 3 levels of caster, in addition to the 1D6 you get from the first level of Unseen Seer, giving you a total of 5D6 sneak attack at character level 10.

As a Drow, getting sneak attack seems right up your alley, and the times when you will be able to attack a flanked foe and add 5D6 or so extra damage to each channelling attack in a full attack round will be memorable indeed. :)


EDIT: I do apologize, I am a fool. I forgot about the prerequisites for Unseen Seer, it requires 8 ranks of Spot, Seach and Hide IIRC. Not very easy for a straight up duskblade.

[Chronos]

Your eventual best choice for a prestige class is probably Sublime Chord, since the duskblade's channeling ability isn't limited to duskblade spells. The build would be something like duskblade 13 (to get full-attack channel) / bard 1 (to meet prereqs for chord) / sublime chord 6. This will get you higher level spells to channel than a straight duskblade, plus a much wider list to choose from.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

See about using one of the Lesser Drow variants, or LA buyoff or something. +2 really hurts.

[Thurbane]

I just started my own thread before I noticed this one, I'll respot here:

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Hi all,

I’ve not yet played or DMd a Duskblade, and I just had two quick questions:

1.) Is Arcane Strike a good feat for the Duskblade?

2.) Is Abjurant Champion a decent PrC for the Duskblade, and if so, should he take a dip, or the whole five levels?

Also, as a general query, any tips or tricks for optimizing the Duskblade, other than the class handbook over the WotC forums? This will likely be a character that starts at level 1 and works its way up to about 13th or so…

Cheers - T

[Paramour Pink]

I don't know a much about magic users in general, but just in case it might be helpful, there's a Duskblade Handbook (http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=837888) to look through for ideas. :smallsmile:

[Waspinator]

See about using one of the Lesser Drow variants, or LA buyoff or something. +2 really hurts.

Check this out:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20040213a
Basically, it has LA 0 versions of many races with some class levels you can later take if you want to get the full racial traits.

[Samb]

"is abjurant champion a good PrC for duskblade?"

I would have to say no, unless you took a level as a specialized transmuted and even then fighter6/transmuter 2 is better to dip into than duskblade 5. Why? Because transmuter gets more spells and most of Abj champ's require abj spells, duskblade can't compete with a transmuter in this area.

That being said, abj champ is a rediculous PrC for a transmuter + melée but not a base Gish. This generally true for any Gish PrC I think.

And yes arcane strike is a good option for duskblades or any Gish in general.