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View Full Version : Please help a Pathfinder Eldricht knight optimize Dual Wielding Crossbows.



Grifthin
2010-09-02, 09:18 AM
Righto here's the challenge - taking nothing but core pathfinder and building a level 20 character that uses 2 crossbows at once. Must not be dependent on magic items. At the moment it looks like this:

Race: elf - need the +2 dex and +2 int.
Wizard 5/Fighter 5/Eldricht Knight 10
Specialist Transmuter so I can get +2 Dex when prepping spells.
All stat points except 1 went into dex.
Stats are:

STR 12
DEX 18
CON 14
INT 14
WIS 10
CHA 10

At level 20 using transmuter for +2 Dex

STR 12
DEX 26
CON 14
INT 17
WIS 10
CHA 10

Feats I have selected are:

Arcane armor casting and mastery for the -20% Spell casting failure
Weapon focus, Specialization, Greater weapon focus, Greater Specialization
Exotic Weapon Proficiency Repeating light crossbows
Combat casting, Deadly Aim, Precise Shot, Point Blank Shot
Rapid Shot, Two weapon Fighting, improved Two weapon fighting, Greater Two weapon fighting, Extend spell.

Basic plan is to take Crossbow Smithing skill and make very large Magazines (20-30 bolts) for my Crossbows, then use Unseen servants just to pull the little lever in between shots.

Shots at level 20 with haste and my feats:

+16/+16/+16/+11/+6/+1 - Main hand with a non magical Crossbow
+16/+16/+11/+6 with my offhand with a non magical Crossbow

Just to confirm - each crossbow gets a extra shot from rapid shot when full attacking right ? If not, lose 1 attack on offhand.

That's 10 shots a round each dealing 1d8+16 damage within 30 feat. Obviously with a magical crossbow it will be much better. I have 7th level spells (these really are just support and utility) as well as full attacks. How can I improve this build - where can I drop levels and what feats can I get that will improve things, and how do I make space for them. Please help me o mighty playground optimizers - and remember, Pathfinder core only.

Grifthin
2010-09-03, 01:04 AM
Nobody with any ideas ?

GodGoblin
2010-09-03, 04:31 AM
Well it looks like you have covered all your bases! All i can think of adding would be if you took the Over sized TWF feat could you use 2 heavy repeater crossbows?

Sadly I have nothing else to really offer but thats a pretty damn cool concept let us know how it goes in game!

Eldariel
2010-09-03, 05:02 AM
Well...Fighter 5/Wizard 5 is pretty bad with regards to prerequisites, saves, casting and...well, everything else. I think you'd be better served with Fighter 2/Wizard 5/Eldritch Knight 10/Wizard +3. This gets you everything you wanted (you'll miss out on Armor Optimization and Weapon Training 1, whop-de-doo) and only loses 1 feat by comparison, for 8th and 9th level spells (Time Stop > Buff everything you can think of is pretty good for a Gish, as is Moment of Prescience to Act First and so on...). You still get 16 BAB so you get the 4 attacks at the end of your career.

Rather than use Repeating Light Crossbow, just get two Light Crossbows and a Glove of Storing (or Unseen Servants or some such if you don't want magic items). You can put one of the Crossbows into it as a free action, load the other as a free action (Rapid Reload) and return the Crossbow as a free action, effectively getting you full iteratives without any 5-bolt limitation. Unless you absolutely have to use Repeaters?


Also, pay attention to spells that enhance your combat ability; Minor/Major Creation for lots of plant-based Poison (say, Black Lotus Extract?) applied beforehand to each bolt, Flame Arrow for extra Fire-damage on your Bolts, Greater Magic Weapon/(Greater) Heroism/etc. and such. It's good to be a caster. Don't forget Quicken Spell; being able to cast a buff and then full attacking is priceless. Extend Spell would be extremely convenient too.

And honestly, I'd put my level-ups in Int. More spells = happy camper. Don't forget the Elemental Body/Form of the Dragon/Giant Shape-line for some bonuses either. And if you can't get magic items, just use the Bear's Endurance-line. They last 10 mins per level so higher up, they'll last all day. In general, the less items you can get, the more spellcasting you'll want.

EDIT: Oh, and Combat Casting is a rather easy drop. You should be fine without it, even if it's Paizo; just use 5' steps to not be next to things that could hit you, or Quickened Teleports or such. If you need more drops, I'd say Rapid Shot, Greater Weapon Spec and Focus are the next to go. Rapid Shot only applies once per full attack so only one, unfortunately. And Greater Weapon Spec and Focus just grant lesser benefits than the rest of your feats.