Bloodstorm Duskblade

[Kaje]

So, would a Duskblade/Bloodstorm Blade be able to channel with thrown weapons?

[Tvtyrant]

Yes, at level two you can make a ranged throw as a melee attack, allowing you to channel spells through it.

[Kaje]

Sweet. Thanks. I love finding all these interesting combinations.

[true_shinken]

Since Duskblades get blasting spells, specially rays that target touch AC, I fail to see how this is useful.

[Pie Guy]

Since Duskblades get blasting spells, specially rays that target touch AC, I fail to see how this is useful.

Because then you get to channel touch range spells at a distance.

[true_shinken]

Because then you get to channel touch range spells at a distance.

Name one that matters.

[Big Fau]

Name one that matters.

The Duskblade spell list isn't exactly big on touch spells, for some reason. But Slay Living on a Dagger.


Maybe they intended the Duskblade to be able to channel Ranged Touch spells, but changed their minds post-test playing? Or they didn't want the class to step on the toes of the Arcane Archer? The latter makes sense for WotC, but the former makes sense considering when PH2 was published (since it was around the time they were figuring out what worked and what didn't).

[dextercorvia]

Name one that matters.

Vampiric Touch is the best one that they get. However, I like for my Duskblades to take a few levels of Chameleon casting. Suddenly they have touch spells to care about.

[Nashwolfe]

Yes, at level two you can make a ranged throw as a melee attack, allowing you to channel spells through it.
What's the source for this please?


Arcane Channeling: Starting at 3rd level, a duskblade can use a standard action to deliver touch-range spells he knows through his weapon as a melee attack, provided that the spell has a casting time of one standard action or less.

Duskblade/Cleric/Bloodstorm Blade then? Thrown daggers doing d10 con damage. I may have to try this at some point.

[Hirax]

What's the source for this please?


Tome of Battle. A 4 level dip is as much as you ever want from it.

[Veyr]

Duskblade/Cleric/Bloodstorm Blade then? Thrown daggers doing d10 con damage. I may have to try this at some point.
You need at least Duskblade 3 and Bloodstorm Blade 2, so this is costing you 5 Cleric spellcasting levels, not to mention a ton of feats on Martial Study. Dipping Crusader for Ruby Knight Vindicator helps, but is costing you yet another Cleric spellcasting level.

And there's no prayer of getting the Duskblade 13 ability, which is the really cool one, IMO.

[dextercorvia]

You don't need cleric. Chameleon gets you there faster.

Duskblade13/BloodstormBlade2/Chameleon5 gets 4th level spells from any list.

Edit: I prefer getting Chameleon to 7 so that you can Double Focus Arcane with Divine.

[Tvtyrant]

What's the source for this please?


Thunderous Blow, p. 101

[Thurbane]

You don't need cleric. Chameleon gets you there faster.
So does Ur-Priest. Gets a bit MAD though.

[Tanngrisnir]

What book is Chameleon in?

[Divide by Zero]

What book is Chameleon in?

Races of Destiny.

[Tanngrisnir]

Races of Destiny.

Thanks, I've been looking for a way to get better touch spells for a Duskblade.

[candycorn]

Bloodstorm Blade can be useful when you take 10 levels. The capstone, with a decent weapon, can be very effective. For example:

Let's use a seeking weapon with a lesser truedeath crystal. Ghost touch, and ignores concealment miss chance.

Capstone ability lets you make 1 attack on as many targets as you like. You can target squares. So let's say we have a weapon with a 50 foot range increment, and let's say we're using the bracers that double your range increment (MIC) and the far shot feat.

That gives us 150' increment, and the ability to attack targets up to 750 feet away. Further, you can attack through 5 foot walls (ghost touch treats your weapon as incorporeal whenever it's more beneficial), and you'll ignore concealment and incorporeal miss chances.

Translation: Attack just about every square within 750 feet, as a full round action. No matter if the target's hiding, invisible, etc, doesn't matter. If they're there, they get hit. There's another weapon enhancement that illuminates struck targets (as per faerie fire). This combo essentially negates invisibility, allows for stealth attacking through walls, and the like.

It's not the absolute best use of the extra 6 levels, but it's not a bad option to have...

Imagine gestalt duskblade // warblade / bloodstorm blade.

At level 15, every target in 750 feet gets to enjoy a vampiric touch.

[true_shinken]

Vampiric Touch is the best one that they get. However, I like for my Duskblades to take a few levels of Chameleon casting. Suddenly they have touch spells to care about.

Yeah, with Chameleon this becomes workable.

[Kansaschaser]

Bloodstorm Blade can be useful when you take 10 levels. The capstone, with a decent weapon, can be very effective. For example:

Let's use a seeking weapon with a lesser truedeath crystal. Ghost touch, and ignores concealment miss chance.

Capstone ability lets you make 1 attack on as many targets as you like. You can target squares. So let's say we have a weapon with a 50 foot range increment, and let's say we're using the bracers that double your range increment (MIC) and the far shot feat.

That gives us 150' increment, and the ability to attack targets up to 750 feet away. Further, you can attack through 5 foot walls (ghost touch treats your weapon as incorporeal whenever it's more beneficial), and you'll ignore concealment and incorporeal miss chances.

Translation: Attack just about every square within 750 feet, as a full round action. No matter if the target's hiding, invisible, etc, doesn't matter. If they're there, they get hit. There's another weapon enhancement that illuminates struck targets (as per faerie fire). This combo essentially negates invisibility, allows for stealth attacking through walls, and the like.

It's not the absolute best use of the extra 6 levels, but it's not a bad option to have...

Imagine gestalt duskblade // warblade / bloodstorm blade.

At level 15, every target in 750 feet gets to enjoy a vampiric touch.

Combine this with a weapon with a good threat range, Improved Critical, and the Blood in the Water stance. Say there are 50 targets within 750 feet, then you could have about a 28% chance of activating Blood in the Water to give you an untyped +1 bonus on attacks and damage. That's each time you crit, you get the stacking bonus.

I've done the calculations on this, and if you dropped a Bloodstorm Blade into the middle of a battlefield(like from the Lord of the Rings movies), he could potentially whipe the board clean of bad guys in just a few rounds. Most spellcasters couldn't replicate this effect until they get epic level spells.

[true_shinken]

This stunt looks like Captain America's Precision Guided Shield (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/PrecisionGuidedBoomerang)

[IthroZada]

Now, what would you need to do to make sure you have enough ammo to hit every square within 750ft? I'd be a tad skeptical of a PC carrying... what 90k daggers?

[Terazul]

Now, what would you need to do to make sure you have enough ammo to hit every square within 750ft? I'd be a tad skeptical of a PC carrying... what 90k daggers?

Single weapon. It bounces.

[IthroZada]

Single weapon. It bounces.

Well, that's ludicrously awesome.

[Keld Denar]

Yo, the speed of light called...he said SLOW THE FARK DOWN!

[kardar233]

Do you heal a lot? Do have trouble with having to run to your friends to save them from certain burny and painful death? Try Healing Shivstm today! Just take a few levels in Duskblade and Bloodstorm Blade and stab your friends with knives to heal them! Your idiotic friend is a -8hp and dropping on top of a ledge you can't get to in two rounds? Cast Cure, throw a Healing Shivtm at him and *bam*! He's back in the fight! Comes with free* Iron Heart maneuvers: Guaranteed to make you suck less in combat! Even if you're a cleric!

*Only for certain values and/or definitions of free. Healing shivs are not for everyone. Possible side effects include dry mouth, nausea, vomiting, water retention, painful rectal itch, hallucination, dementia, psychosis, coma, death, and halitosis. Healing Shivs are not for everyone. Consult your family cleric before use.

[Kaje]

Bloodstorm Blade can be useful when you take 10 levels. The capstone, with a decent weapon, can be very effective. For example:

Let's use a seeking weapon with a lesser truedeath crystal. Ghost touch, and ignores concealment miss chance.

Capstone ability lets you make 1 attack on as many targets as you like. You can target squares. So let's say we have a weapon with a 50 foot range increment, and let's say we're using the bracers that double your range increment (MIC) and the far shot feat.

That gives us 150' increment, and the ability to attack targets up to 750 feet away. Further, you can attack through 5 foot walls (ghost touch treats your weapon as incorporeal whenever it's more beneficial), and you'll ignore concealment and incorporeal miss chances.

Translation: Attack just about every square within 750 feet, as a full round action. No matter if the target's hiding, invisible, etc, doesn't matter. If they're there, they get hit. There's another weapon enhancement that illuminates struck targets (as per faerie fire). This combo essentially negates invisibility, allows for stealth attacking through walls, and the like.

It's not the absolute best use of the extra 6 levels, but it's not a bad option to have...

Imagine gestalt duskblade // warblade / bloodstorm blade.

At level 15, every target in 750 feet gets to enjoy a vampiric touch.
While awesome, don't the necessary duskblade and bloodstorm blade abilities require separate full-round actions to activate?

[Greenish]

While awesome, don't the necessary duskblade and bloodstorm blade abilities require separate full-round actions to activate?Duskblade's level 13 channeling is just a full attack, and Bloodstorm Blade's Thunderous Throw is swift action to activate.

[FMArthur]

Do you heal a lot? Do have trouble with having to run to your friends to save them from certain burny and painful death? Try Healing Shivstm today! Just take a few levels in Duskblade and Bloodstorm Blade and stab your friends with knives to heal them! Your idiotic friend is a -8hp and dropping on top of a ledge you can't get to in two rounds? Cast Cure, throw a Healing Shivtm at him and *bam*! He's back in the fight! Comes with free* Iron Heart maneuvers: Guaranteed to make you suck less in combat! Even if you're a cleric!

*Only for certain values and/or definitions of free. Healing shivs are not for everyone. Possible side effects include dry mouth, nausea, vomiting, water retention, painful rectal itch, hallucination, dementia, psychosis, coma, death, and halitosis. Healing Shivs are not for everyone. Consult your family cleric before use.
Hold on, I think your weapon damage happens before the spell goes off; -8hp is too low to be stabbed into health.

[NineThePuma]

Not if it's a Tiny dagger. =3

[Rejakor]

Name one that matters.

Shivering Touch.

[Kaje]

Duskblade's level 13 channeling is just a full attack, and Bloodstorm Blade's Thunderous Throw is swift action to activate.

Right, but Blade Storm is a full-round action. You can absolutely channel a Thunderous Throw, but Blade Storm to channel against everyone in 750 feet?

[NineThePuma]

Could you arcane channel a whirlwind attack?

[dextercorvia]

Could you arcane channel a whirlwind attack?

Yes, it is a Full Attack Action.

[NineThePuma]

Where's the difference between that and Bladestorm, exactly?

[Kaje]

Whirlwind Attack is a full-attack action. Full-attack actions are full-round actions, but not all full-round actions are full-attacks. Blade Storm appears to be one of these.

[dextercorvia]

Where's the difference between that and Bladestorm, exactly?

Those are full round actions. Arcane Channeling requires it to be a full-attack.