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View Full Version : How's my wizard look? (4th)



Lamech
2010-02-16, 03:38 PM
So never played fourth. I may be doing so soon, and I wanted to play arcane caster who wasn't a bard or swordmage, and decided a wizard might be nice. I'm asking for any improvments that the all knowing GitP might have, and if I made any serious errors.

Class: Wizard Orb user
Race :Eladrin
Stats: Wis:16 Int:18 Dex:13 Cha:12 Str:8 Con:11
Skills: Arcana, Nature, Insight, Thievery, Stealth
Feats: Ritual Caster (duh) Implement Expertise (orb)
Powers: Wills: Thunderwave, Illusionary Ambush, Cantrips (duh)
Power's I've encountered: Orbmaster's Incendiary Detonation, Feystep(duh)
Power's I see on a daily basis: Sleep/Flaming Sphere
Equitment: Longsword, Staff ('cause you know wizard), Orb, Standard adventuring kit (adventures are common enough to have these?) Clothes*2 Thieves tools 28gp
Background: Criminal, Poor, Scholar
Rituals: Make Whole, Tenser's floating disk, unseen servent

Also note the character concept includes: Feyish creature so Elf/Eladrin/Drow type stuff, arcanist (not bard/swordsage) which obviously requires a staff, and the current background. The rituals should be something that one could use as a non-adventurer.

The only party member that I know of is swordmage with an agies of defense.
I have access too (I think): Player's guide to fauren, PHI, PHII, Arcane power, and monstrus manual 1 (btw why in gods name did they decide those rituals in that book were a good idea?)

I also have a few questions about using a longsword as an implement: If I was using say Eldarin sword wizardy could I stack wand expertise and sword expertise? If I got it from spiral tower paragon could I use the proficeny bonus, and both expertise feats?

Sipex
2010-02-16, 03:44 PM
I don't think you can stack wand and sword expertise. You'd need to take Implement Expertise: Longsword to get a bonus to your spells if you went that route.

Otherwise, not a bad build at all. You should do fine.

Yakk
2010-02-16, 03:47 PM
Well, you'd go Focused Expertise: Longsword, and Weapon Focus: Heavy Blades if you went that route.

The standard kit is not standard for the world, but rather for D&D PCs.

Why do you have a staff again? Is a mystic orb not wizardly enough? :-)

The proficiency bonus only works on WEAPON powers.

Evard
2010-02-16, 03:49 PM
You want focused expertise then gives a +1 to weapon attack or implement attack with a weapon.

If you just took weapon expertise then it would only go toward melee
If you took implement expertise it only goes toward implements
the feat focused expertise is a combination of the two. No you can't stack all of them.

Weapon Focus technically could be ruled to work with both weapon dmg and implement dmg though... I don't know if WOTC has ruled one way or the other but as a house rule i would say it would.

Other than that your wizard looks fine, just pick out some neat spells... If you want a bit more dmg you could go duel implement caster and have a second long sword in your hand (not used as a melee weapon) which could give you two weapon defense etc..

Sipex
2010-02-16, 03:50 PM
Oh yeah, I didn't notice the excess staff. That is sort of redundant. Orbs are just as wizardy.

DabblerWizard
2010-02-16, 03:51 PM
I'm pretty sure thievery and stealth aren't class skills for a wizard.

Sipex
2010-02-16, 03:53 PM
Other than that your wizard looks fine, just pick out some neat spells... If you want a bit more dmg you could go duel implement caster and have a second long sword in your hand (not used as a melee weapon) which could give you two weapon defense etc..

I'm not sure, would two weapon defense work like that? I think it needs to be classified as a weapon for that and the only way he's dualing longswords is if he multiclasses ranger.

Lamech
2010-02-16, 03:56 PM
Oh yeah, I didn't notice the excess staff. That is sort of redundant. Orbs are just as wizardy.
I really don't think so...

I'm pretty sure thievery and stealth aren't class skills for a wizard. Background and Eladrin education? Background lets me add a skill to my class list? Eladrin education lets me add a skill from the list in chapter five of the PHI?

Kurald Galain
2010-02-16, 04:08 PM
Feats: Ritual Caster (duh) Implement Expertise (orb)
I would recommend starting with Enlarge Spell. It almost triples the area of burst-1 attacks, and hitting more targets is frequently more effective than a +1 to hit, and more flashy as well.



Powers: Wills: Thunderwave, Illusionary Ambush, Cantrips (duh)
TW is one of the best at-wills in the game, but IA isn't very impressive. Consider Winged Horde (an enemies-only area effect) and you'll never need single-target spells.


Power's I've encountered: Orbmaster's Incendiary Detonation, Feystep(duh)
Power's I see on a daily basis: Sleep/Flaming Sphere
Good picks, all. Consider Grease as an alternative daily, simply on grounds that it's hilarious. Note that Flaming Sphere can be bought for 520 gp, thus saving you a power slot.


If I was using say Eldarin sword wizardy could I stack wand expertise and sword expertise? If I got it from spiral tower paragon could I use the proficeny bonus, and both expertise feats?
No, and no. Is the longsword meant for Cunning Weapon stunlocking? Because otherwise I wonder why you're using it in the first place.


Just a few future suggestions: (L2) Jump is extremely versatile, (L3) Color Spray is awesome, both for its dazing and its damage type, and (L5) has numerous great options including Stinking Cloud and Visions of Avarice. I can highly recommend getting the Arcane Familiar feat, as well as the unexpected feat Quick Draw; see guide in my sig for an explanation. Finally, it is very useful to pick equipment that gives you resistances.

Lamech
2010-02-16, 04:26 PM
TW is one of the best at-wills in the game, but IA isn't very impressive. Consider Winged Horde (an enemies-only area effect) and you'll never need single-target spells.Winged horde sounds really useful, what book is that from?



Good picks, all. Consider Grease as an alternative daily, simply on grounds that it's hilarious. Note that Flaming Sphere can be bought for 520 gp, thus saving you a power slot.Really? That rocks. Consider it changed.


No, and no. Is the longsword meant for Cunning Weapon stunlocking? Because otherwise I wonder why you're using it in the first place.I might pick up cunning weapon in the future for lockdown. Also it looks cool. And no one expects the person with the sword to start flying. I was thinking of spiral tower as a possible paragpn path if I get that far by some miracle.



Just a few future suggestions: (L2) Jump is extremely versatile, (L3) Color Spray is awesome, both for its dazing and its damage type, and (L5) has numerous great options including Stinking Cloud and Visions of Avarice. I can highly recommend getting the Arcane Familiar feat, as well as the unexpected feat Quick Draw; see guide in my sig for an explanation. Finally, it is very useful to pick equipment that gives you resistances.
I was thinking I'd pick up a spider familiar, for the -1 to spell that slow, and by spells that slow I mean sleep. And thanks for the suggestions.

P.S. Have they errata'd earth brute (arcane power: wizard 13)? Or am I missing something because two seem to be able to kill anything by playing ping-pong with it.