Gish Swashbuckler/Warmage/?

[RagnaroksChosen]

So I am thinking about making a gish for a mid to high powergaming group(nothing ridiculously broken). I wanted to try a high int build and was thinking of going swashbuckler warmage. Warmage has some nifty spells seems to make a decent gish... what prestige classes should I go. I can't really settle on one. Any ideas thoughts or advice?

[Tvtyrant]

Warmage is usually used for blasting, which prevents it from being a normal Gish. If you want to go the Gish route, you could go Rainbow Warsnake and then use Divine Power or some of the other Cleric buffing spells on yourself.

[ImperatorK]

Isn't a Gish supposed to be a caster (often multiclassed and prestige-classed with a more fighting class(es)) who buffs himself to be a better warrior? And isn't the Warmage basically an evoker? If my assumptions are correct then they don't mesh well together.

EDIT: Ninja'd.

[RagnaroksChosen]

You would think that but they have a few decent low level spells that could carry the character a bit. I meen they have fists of stone, True Strike, whirling blade.

Plus if they have fists of stone up they get a natural attack so i think they can channel there touch's through it or is that unarmed attacks?

But regardless i figure if i go with something like
3 swashbuckler/3 warmage (though less if I could)/Some gish prc or just good prc.

with str 13ish int as high as i can get it, dex next highest,

I think it could be a pritty solid fighter, especialy if I pick up a 2 hander with power attack.

[FMArthur]

There are two weapons that you can Power Attack with and use Swashbuckler's Insightful Strike, and they are both exotic. It also doesn't work in more than light armor, which works against your warmage class features.

Factotum levels can get you Int to more things and far more benefits than swashbuckler. I don't think getting Int - situationally - to weapon damage is worth setting three levels on fire for Insightful Strike.

In fact, as a pure Int-focused melee/spellcaster hybrid, straight factotum is actually pretty good. Even a 1-level dip with a handful of Fonts of Inspiration can get you Int to attack, damage and saves, making you strongly Int-SAD and not taking up your normal class levels. The warmage class gets its own metamagic feats and has its spells for options, so losing 3 feats or so isn't very disruptive. If you do decide you want Int to more stuff, factotum 3 will get it to physical skills & checks, initiative and AC. A far better investment.

[Telok]

I worked on this once. Here is what I have.

1, swash, martial study: shadow blade technique
2, swash
3, swash, martial stance: island of blades
4, warmage
5, warmage
6, duskblade, shadow blade
7, duskblade
8, duskblade

or
1, duskblade, martial study: shadow blade technique
2, duskblade
3, duskblade, martial stance: island of blades
4, warmage
5, swash
6, swash, shadow blade
7, warmage
8, swash

The point of all this is...
Warmage Edge – Add your Intelligence modifier to the damage done by any spell that does hit-point damage.
Insightful Strike – When using a Finesse weapon, add your Intelligence modifier to your weapon damage (in addition to your Strength modifier). Only applies to creatures vulnerable to Critical Hits
Arcane Channeling (standard attack) – As a Standard Attack, a Duskblade may cast a ‘touch attack’ spell and deliver the spell through a melee weapon attack.
And of course Shadow Blade adds your Dex bonus to damage with the correct weapon.

I won't claim that it's optimized, just that it is what I came up with a couple of years ago when I looked at it.