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jiriku
2009-10-25, 09:53 PM
I see in Races of the Wild that a mithril chain shirt with thistledown padding has a 5% arcane spell failure chance. Are there any enhancements I could add to this armor to knock off that last 5% spell failure chance?

Zaydos
2009-10-25, 09:56 PM
Mithril twilight chain shirt. No Arcane Spell Failure; twilight has a market price bonus of +1 and reduces spell failure by 10%.

Krazddndfreek
2009-10-25, 09:57 PM
Twilight Armor, from BoED. Also in the PHB 2 as a sidebar for duskblades. Gives 10% spell failure reduction for only a +1 bonus. You wouldn't even need the thistledown padding.

EDIT: ninja'd

jiriku
2009-10-25, 10:02 PM
Sweet! Just what I needed. Thanks!

Pharaoh's Fist
2009-10-25, 10:02 PM
Mithral Feycraft Twilight Thistledown chain shirt.....

sofawall
2009-10-25, 10:08 PM
Mithral Feycraft Githcraft, if your DM would allow such a thing.

Darrin
2009-10-25, 10:31 PM
I see in Races of the Wild that a mithril chain shirt with thistledown padding has a 5% arcane spell failure chance. Are there any enhancements I could add to this armor to knock off that last 5% spell failure chance?

Either the Feycraft template (500 GP, +1 untyped bonus to Bluff checks), or Githcraft template (600 GP, +1 untyped bonus to Concentration checks) would knock off that last 5% ASF. Both templates are in the DMGII.

A one-level dip into Spellsword can also knock off 10% ASF.

If you can take double the weight and double the armor check penalty, armor made from Blended Quartz (A&EG) can drop ASF by -20%. Twilight gets you another -10%, Githcraft -5%, Feycraft -5%, Spellsword -10%... you can get up to -50%, which would cover a tower shield, mechanus gear, or battle plate.

Archetype-
2009-10-25, 10:51 PM
<emerges from a command bunker pock-marked with many small craters from boltgun shells hitting it>

You're asking what the best armor is for an arcane caster? I could be wrong about this, but there are actually several fairly good ones I can think of. If you're looking for actual armor you can wear and enhance, you can't go wrong with the good old-fashioned +X Twilight mithral shirt as many above have already said (or not said and gotten it made by fey/gith and/or given it thistledown padding). The Twilight enhancement first appeared in the Book of Exalted Deeds (the BoED), but has appeared in the PH2 and the Magic Item Compendium. If you feel like taking a short dip in Spellsword (only recommended for gishes with armor proficiencies), you could possibly pick up a +X Twilight mithral breastplate as well. I personally don't recommend it, as you will miss out on an all-important caster level to accomplish this.

While it isn't actual armor, the SRD has the Robe of the Archmagi (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/magicItems/wondrousItems.htm#robeoftheArchmagi) in three different flavors (one each for Good, Neutral, and Evil). The armor bonus is slightly better that of the Mage Armor spell, but it also provides a nice bonus to your saving throws and effectively gives you Spell Penetration (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/feats.htm#spellPenetration) without actually taking the feat (the bonus is an enhancement rather than untyped, though). If you take a look in Complete Arcane, there's another item called Dyrr's Impervious Vestment that provides a better armor bonus than full plate and a once-a-day Blade Barrier (the form that surrounds you). Both item use the same slot that armor occupies, and are wicked expensive.

You can also just make your own armor with your own magic, which saves you lots of cash. There's the Mage Armor (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/mageArmor.htm) I mentioned above, and its bigger brother Greater Mage Armor in the Spell Compendium. If you don't mind being a goody-two-shoes, you can also use the Luminous Armor spell from the BoED and get all the perks of breastplate without the nasty drawbacks associated with wearing armor. Once you get higher level spells you can start casting the Greater version of that and get the perks of full plate! It does shed light, so if you're trying to be stealthy when it's dark out you'll stick out like a sore thumb. It also does a bit of Strength damage when the spell ends, but it lasts for hours and you can easily Extend it so it lasts all day!

That's just what I can think of off the top of my head right now, and I'm certain others will think of more and/or ninja me here. Just remember this. Whatever “armor” you decide to go with, back up that AC with a good miss chance like (Greater) Blink or Displacement and/or a good stealth effect such as Invisibility. Being able to fly will also help a lot.

-Archetype

Tiktakkat
2009-10-25, 10:58 PM
I think you would have to stop at 45% off, as finding a githyanki under the supernatural influence of a fey on the astral plane is a bit too much to expect, so I doubt you could get both templates on the same item. :smallwink:

sofawall
2009-10-25, 11:06 PM
I think you would have to stop at 45% off, as finding a githyanki under the supernatural influence of a fey on the astral plane is a bit too much to expect, so I doubt you could get both templates on the same item. :smallwink:

Isn't there a prestige class that makes you a fey?

Also, Gather Info strikes again!

Archetype-
2009-10-25, 11:14 PM
Isn't there a prestige class that makes you a fey?


I don't know of it, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was one. I mean, there's a prestige class for turning into a dry lich, a half-dragon, an elemental, and even a space drug addict. Of course, only one of those ends in you getting sent to rehab.

ShneekeyTheLost
2009-10-25, 11:25 PM
I don't know of it, but it wouldn't surprise me if there was one. I mean, there's a prestige class for turning into a dry lich, a half-dragon, an elemental, and even a space drug addict. Of course, only one of those ends in you getting sent to rehab.

Yea, anyone wanting to waste 10 levels in a class that requires spellcasting but doesn't advance spellcasting progression just to become a half-dragon is going to need some rehab to lay off whatever it was they were on when they thought it would be a good idea...

:smallbiggrin:

FMArthur
2009-10-25, 11:48 PM
I propose a challenge:

Get a caster into Clockwork Armor (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cw/20070212a). It is perhaps the worst armor I've ever seen statted out, but the imagery is simply too cool to resist trying. 90% failure chance to work down from. Can it be done or is that 50% reduction the absolute maximum?

KitsuneKionchi
2009-10-25, 11:51 PM
Yea, anyone wanting to waste 10 levels in a class that requires spellcasting but doesn't advance spellcasting progression just to become a half-dragon is going to need some rehab to lay off whatever it was they were on when they thought it would be a good idea...

:smallbiggrin:

And yet I've honestly heard PCs justifications for always having "Draconic" as a language as "hey, it has a PrC prerequisite...who knows?"

Archetype-
2009-10-26, 12:12 AM
Yea, anyone wanting to waste 10 levels in a class that requires spellcasting but doesn't advance spellcasting progression just to become a half-dragon is going to need some rehab to lay off whatever it was they were on when they thought it would be a good idea...

:smallbiggrin:

I was referring to the Green Star Adept, but pretty much every PrC I referenced save perhaps the dry lich one has a valid argument for being sent to rehab. Either that or being shot out of an earthshaker cannon.

oxinabox
2009-10-26, 12:50 AM
We also have the problem of 2 methods for avoiding Acrane Failure.

Some classes have no ASF in Light armour, eg Bard.
Some go right up to Heavy (Warmage?).
There the feat battlecaster wich increases this catagory up one weight catagory. but you must already have the ability to ignore some ASF for a weight catagory.

THe only way i can think of the get a wizard to have a chance to ignore ASF for a weight catagory (as compared to for a %age, like from spellsword)
is the FIghter Alternate Class feature:
Loose heavy and medium armour proficenct, sellect one of your arcane spell casting classed:
So long as your fighter lvl is equal to the highest lvl spell you can cast, you may ignore ASF in light armour.

And that's useless: except in gestalt, where i think it's proably one of the easier Gish builds allowed: spellsword and all gish PrC's are banned (but not gish base classes)


Maybe you could just get Still spell, no somatic companants on ASF


WotC gets confused by this double system:
Eg Duskblades are recommened.
Twightlied magic amour.
But twilight reducted failure chance by 10%
But Duskblades don't care about the percentage:
If it's light armour (or whatever the apropriate weight for them is) then it could have 100% ASF, and they wouldn't be affected.
If it's not then, they have no more advantage to wearing it than any wizard in twightlighted armour.

then again by the PHB most classes should take the Toughness feat

Pharaoh's Fist
2009-10-26, 01:02 AM
I propose a challenge:

Get a caster into Clockwork Armor (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cw/20070212a). It is perhaps the worst armor I've ever seen statted out, but the imagery is simply too cool to resist trying. 90% failure chance to work down from. Can it be done or is that 50% reduction the absolute maximum?

Wizard with Still Spell and Practical Metamatic to reduce Still Spell to a +0 cost.

Myrmex
2009-10-26, 01:13 AM
Wizard with Still Spell and Practical Metamatic to reduce Still Spell to a +0 cost.

Practical Metamagic doesn't work that way.
I don't know about Practical Metamatic, though.

Person_Man
2009-10-26, 11:07 AM
Also, don't forget to use a shield. You can negate the Spell Failure with the same methods that you do for armor, and add +1 to +7ish to your AC, depending on the enchantments you buy for it.

Sinfire Titan
2009-10-26, 11:33 AM
I propose a challenge:

Get a caster into Clockwork Armor (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cw/20070212a). It is perhaps the worst armor I've ever seen statted out, but the imagery is simply too cool to resist trying. 90% failure chance to work down from. Can it be done or is that 50% reduction the absolute maximum?

Starting with Githcraft (the optimal choice, as Concentration helps, and you can only apply one template as per the DMG 2 rules), Thistledown padding, Blended Quartz, Twilight, a level dip into Spellsword (required) gets us 45% off of the 90%. A three level dip into Spellsword (really, this is the most CO recommends if you do take more than 1 level) gets it another 10%. A custom magic item that duplicates the Twilight ability (ring, obviously) would cost a bit, but knocks off another 10% (I consider this cheating though). Getting it lower than 35% is a problem. There's an alchemical substance in one of the splats that lowers ASF for 1 hour, but I can't remember the name or book off hand.


Two more levels of Spellsword is out of the question. The Fighter ACF from Complete Mage doesn't work that well.

jiriku
2009-10-26, 11:40 AM
Even better! A githcraft thistledown mithril chain shirt +x is cheaper than a twilight mithril chain shirt +x, and the character is a githyanki, so it's natural for him to have githcrafted armor. I'll definitely be packing a mithril light shield as well. Armor proficiency and armored casting feats are for suckers!

Karsh
2009-10-26, 12:03 PM
I propose a challenge:

Get a caster into Clockwork Armor (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cw/20070212a). It is perhaps the worst armor I've ever seen statted out, but the imagery is simply too cool to resist trying. 90% failure chance to work down from. Can it be done or is that 50% reduction the absolute maximum?

...actually...


Success allows a Medium-size creature of any Strength to use the armor effectively, as long as they have Armor Proficiency (heavy). Creatures without that proficiency may still wear the armor but suffer a -8 Armor Check penalty to all the usual skills and suffer a 90% chance of spell failure.

Get Heavy Armor Proficiency. No ASF.

Starbuck_II
2009-10-26, 12:09 PM
...actually...



Get Heavy Armor Proficiency. No ASF.

It is only Brestplate ASF if you have Heavy armor proficiency it says in secobd paragraph: "The small levers inside the breastplate control ..."

FMArthur
2009-10-26, 12:29 PM
It is only Brestplate ASF if you have Heavy armor proficiency it says in secobd paragraph: "The small levers inside the breastplate control ..."

That doesn't make the armor itself a breastplate. I think Karsh is right; this significantly improves my opinion of the Clockwork Armor.

Thurbane
2009-10-26, 09:21 PM
1. Take a class that can cast arcane spells in light armor (or take one that can't, and get into the Urban Savant PrC, which gives this ability).
2. Take the Battlecaster Feat (now you can cast in medium armor with no ASF).
3. Get a suit of mithril Mechanus armor (counts as medium).
4. Profit.

oxinabox
2009-10-26, 09:39 PM
It is only Brestplate ASF if you have Heavy armor proficiency it says in secobd paragraph: "The small levers inside the breastplate control ..."

I agree, a set of fullplate has a breastplate, but it isn't breastplate armour