3.5 Proper Incantrix Build/Melee Caster

[kayden87]

Hey guys, anyone know a proper( Option A ) Incantrix build that is 3.5 and updated by RAW, OR ( Option B ) A arcane spell caster that can cast stoneskin/despell magic/identify/ledgendlore, but is based around melee combat? Poly into a dragon or take a dragon form? Both of course must be arcane. or arcane/divine if arcane caster levels aren't to low.

Race still unknown at this point. Good amount of INT preferred

Any ideas would be awesome

[Flickerdart]

So what you're asking for is basically any gish build? There's tons. It's not hard to get 9th level spells and +16 BAB by 20.

[kayden87]

Ive seen alot of posts about a gish, No idea what it is tho

[Flickerdart]

Gish is the term for a front-liner that can also cast spells. In Core, Wizard 9/Fighter 1/Eldritch Knight 10 is a gish. Then you slap on stuff like Abjurant Champion and Spellsword. Gishes take longer to pay off than either straight magic or melee, but they're competent in both roles.

[Psyren]

There are also what are called "gish-in-a-can" classes, i.e. base classes that can use magic and fight at the frontline all the way throughout their careers. These include classes like the Duskblade and Psychic Warrior. You can also build other classes to take this role like the Bard, Dread Necromancer and Binder.

[Treblain]

This looks like it would be much easier to do on a cleric. Any reason why it would have to be arcane?

[kardar233]

Arcane fighting support is better. For example, the classic Sorcadin:

Paladin2/Sorceror4/Spellsword1/Abjurant Champion5/Sacred Exorcist8

Gets 18th-level Sorc casting, +16 BAB, Turn Undead and Cha to all stats, plus a bunch of fancy benefits from Abjurant Champion.

The other reason is that building a Cleric for melee isn't much trouble. Just cast Divine Power and Righteous Might and you're off.

[Flickerdart]

Arcane spells are, by and large, better than divine spells, so most customized gishes tend to be arcane. There's no reason that a gish can't be divine though - Cleric/Prestige Paladin gets you where you need to be rather handily even without persisting Divine Power.

[Treblain]

I'm just thinking that all of the requirements of the build can be accomplished on a cleric with the right domains, while having no issues with ASF, BAB easily kept high due to Divine Power, easier time persisting spells, and less work choosing which spells to learn. Arcane melee fighters have some benefits, like access to Wraithstrike and other good spells, Arcane Strike, and Abjurant Champion, but clerics can be great with less effort. The "classic Sorcadin" takes five classes and only barely gets the benchmark of gishiness; a single 9th level spell known at level 20? Arcane builds have to go into specific PrCs like Incantatrix to get their Persist going, while clerics can get it at low levels without much effort.

[Flickerdart]

A properly built Persist Cleric has a ton of single-level dips to maximize its TU pool. Persists that you get going "without much effort" don't have very much return at all.

[Hirax]

Incantatrix can be a great melee build if:
1. You allow ocular spell to persist things like heroics
2. You allow persist and extend to work together for 48 hour buffs

All you need to do is grab arcane disciple: luck and get more uses of miracle either via pearls of power or making it an archmage SLA. Making it an SLA or grabbing a single PoP would allow you to keep 4 cleric buffs active at once, with two obvious candidates being divine power and algid enhancement. And mantle of the icy soul if you don't want to get the cold subtype from elsewhere. Then persist as many castings of heroics as you've got a mind to. Voila, you've made vanilla fighters worthless.