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Abaddon87
2010-04-01, 10:22 AM
So I'm making a LE Human Warblade/Wizard gestalt character who is PrC in Iaijutsu Master/Swiftblade (respectively). My two main weapons are Katanas, a primary and a backup, with wand cambers in them. I was thinking about having the wands with either Distract Assailant or Insightful Feint (both are in the Comp Adventurer). Both would allow me to flat-footed my target and allow my Iaijutsu strike, but which is better? Distract Assailant allows a WIL save and Insightful Feint requires Improved Feint feat to use feint as part of a move action.

My question is which one you guys would recommend? Or are there other spells that are swift action cast spells that I could use instead to flat-footed my opponent?

Also, with Swiftblades ability to cast Haste as a swift action naturally, would putting it in a wand still allow me to cast it like that?

Akal Saris
2010-04-01, 11:55 AM
If you have the spare 2 feats for CE/Improved Feint, then Insightful Feint is the better of the two spells, and you're only 1 more feat away from Improved Trip after that. The wizard variant from Unearthed Arcana that trades out scribe scroll and metamagic feats for combat bonus feats is terrific for this kind of gish, by the way. If you don't have the spare feats, then I'd just go with Distract Assailant and hope for the best.

Sapphire Nightmare Blade (1st level warblade maneuver) can also flat-foot opponents, by the way. So can Grease or any other spell/effect that makes opponents have to balance if they don't have 5 ranks in balance.

And no, I don't think Haste would be swift cast from a wand even though you can normally cast it as auto-quickened. Check with your DM for his ruling though.

Yuki Akuma
2010-04-01, 11:57 AM
Using a spell from a wand isn't casting the spell, it's using a spell-trigger item, so no deal on the auto-quicken.

Abaddon87
2010-04-01, 12:04 PM
Yea thats one of the reasons I went with Warblade. I can pick up Imp Feint with flaws or at lvl 3 I think.

tyckspoon
2010-04-01, 12:25 PM
Both of those spells are pretty horrible.. Distract Assailant from a wand will have an insignificant DC, such that you probably have much better things to do with your Swift actions (since you're a Warblade/Wizard, this is almost guaranteed.) Insightful Feint requires you to feint, which burns your move action, and casting it requires your Swift; again, you're probably going to do better damage with a Boost + Full Attack (although if you don't need the spell to successfully Feint something you could use a Swift->Move ability like Hustle or a Belt of Battle to Feint + Full Attack, which would effectively transform your Swift action into a Boost that granted your Iajutsu damage.)

Edit: Although an Iajutsu Strike of Perfect Clarity would be the ultimate samurai-movie one-cut kill.

Abaddon87
2010-04-01, 12:25 PM
Using a spell from a wand isn't casting the spell, it's using a spell-trigger item, so no deal on the auto-quicken.

Darn... Maybe my DM will be nice to me... :smallamused:

jiriku
2010-04-01, 12:33 PM
There is swift haste spell with a duration of 1d4 rounds. It's not on the wizard list, however, so you'd have to UMD it.

Abaddon87
2010-04-01, 12:35 PM
Swift Haste is a Ranger 2 spell and its only one round...