Duskblade Dragon Disciple: A match made in heaven?

[EyethatBinds]

I'm going to be playing a character starting Saturday starting level 1. Since the party was shorthanded on casters and fighters I rolled a Duskblade. Leafing through my tomes I spotted the Dragon Disciple and noted the requirements. The bloody prestige class only requires 8 ranks in Knowledge Arcana and the ability to cast spells spontaneously. That means I could qualify without having to level dip and I'd keep my BAB pretty high.

Is there any compelling reason not to do this? Sure, I'd be down caster levels, but the boost to Strength and other stats would make it well worth the effort, and the massive HD makes it almost too tempting.

[Big Fau]

The boost in Strength is minor compared to the benefits of spells. Arcane Strike (with a 5th level spell) > +6 Strength.

Never mind the fact that you'd create a spacial paradox.

[JaronK]

I actually find Arcane Duelist to be an interesting combination with Duskblade. It's... a weird class. But some of those abilities when combined with a Keen Enfeebling Rapier are incredibly powerful.

JaronK

[Eldonauran]

The boost in Strength is minor compared to the benefits of spells. Arcane Strike (with a 5th level spell) > +6 Strength.

Agreed. The 3.5e Dragon Disciple is usually not worth it. The Pathfinder version, on the other hand, gets 7/10 casting increases.

[avr]

You also lose out on BAB, and getting scaly can be a considerable social detriment in some campaigns.

[EyethatBinds]

You also lose out on BAB, and getting scaly can be a considerable social detriment in some campaigns.

The former is mitigated by natural attacks, flight, and a big boost to Strength. The latter is eliminated by disguise self. But good points.

[Nightraiderx]

dragon blooded human so you can take sorc heritage feats and then you can grab claws. So you cast chill touch on one of your claws and forget about it and when you decide to channel, you can take a swift action and get that other claw attack in. Only way i can think that'd be even decent for your melee.

[Big Fau]

The former is mitigated by natural attacks, flight, and a big boost to Strength. The latter is eliminated by disguise self. But good points.

Duskblades get Flight from spells, Disintegrate as a 5th level spell (which is vastly superior to a pair of claws and a bite), and spells that boost their ability scores (Animalistic Power, never mind the fact that they can drastically expand this with feats).

5th level spells>Dragon Disciple. If you really want the "I'm a dragon" flavor, Dragonborn of Bahamut is the best option (and can save you a spell known since it gives you wings).

[EyethatBinds]

While you are correct that Duskblades can fly, they can only do it for one round. Disintegrate is a great spell and the 4th and 5th level spells are really good for the class. They just don't seem quite worth it to slough all the way through 3rd level's somewhat useless spells.

I ran some theoretical numbers for the character at 20th level and managed to come out about the same overall power level. DD Duskblade has 300 hp (we use max at every level) versus 240 for a straight duskblade, so staying power is a consideration here. Their melee comes out about even 33 versus 31, and with practiced spell caster Dragon Disciple spells won't last as long but probably will last long enough.

Dragonborn is a great race, but I'd rather not be good and I'm already pretty happy being a normal human (for now).