Build a roguey wizard (beguiler)

[Banaticus]

I was thinking about being a roguey wizard and I found this thread: http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=198100

This is the character progression that I'm planning:
1. Beguilar
2. Beguilar
3. Beguilar
4. Beguilar
5. Beguilar
6. Mindbender -- yes, with Mindsight from Lords of Madness :)
7. Rogue
8. Unseen Seer
9. Arcane Trickster (the Pathfinder version -- seriously, ranged legerdemain 1/day? Psh.)
The game's starting at 9th level and although I hate to interrupt my caster progression, I needed 2d6 sneak attack fast to get that ranged legerdemain in time to start.

So, who wants to help me with feats and skills since it's been a while since I last played anything at all in 3.5. The character will be a whisper gnome.

[docnessuno]

A Swordsage dip instead of the rogue one could qualify you (depending on your DM's interpreatation of the rules) with assassin stance, giving 2d6 SA and some nice tactical options.

As for feats, Craven and Darkstalker are very good options.

[Banaticus]

How does that work? Edit: Oh, I see, you pick six maneuvers from the listed disciplines and one of those maneuvers could be assassin's stance? It seems as though if I were to choose a different stance, I would temporarily lose the Arcane Trickster PrC until I take that stance back up again. The duration says "stance" -- how long is that? I'm not very familiar with the Tome of Battle.

[thethird]

The way I would do it (with partial bab):

Beguiler 5 / Mindbender 1 / Prestige Bard 1 / Divine Oracle 1 / Swordsage 1 / Unseen Seer 7 / Divine Oracle +2 / Unseen Seer +1

You will need some way of getting perform as a class skill, also take martial stance (assassin's stance) at level 9) to get 2d6 of sneak attack. That let's you enter arcane trickster at 10 (if you really want), only loosing one caster level. But I'm a big fan of unseen seer + divine oracle (specially with prestige bard), you will probably want practiced spellcaster at some point to compensate the loss of caster levels for spells outside of divination (and your favored schools) but this gets a caster level of 27 for divination spells (at level 20, pre items). It also gets the divination enhancement of the divine oracle which is sick when combined with choose destiny or hunter's eye.

Spell wise you will want:

Distract assailant (allows sneak attack)
Hunter's eye (sneak attack goodness you get 1/3 of your divination caster level on sneak attack damage 27/3 = 9; 9d6)
Guidance of the avatar (+20 to a skill check)
Choose destiny (Roll two d20 pick better result for everything)

[Banaticus]

Swordsage sounds cool, it seems amazing, but I think I'm going to have to go with rogue for trapfinding, because that's sort of a signature roguey thing. 20 is the base DC for a mechanical trap in the SRD, anything else and anything magical is going to be higher than that. We're 9th level, so any traps that could be found and disabled without being cakewalks are basically going to require the trapfinding ability (or we could just send a barbarian ahead, but I digress). Any of you know any alternate method for finding traps?

[docnessuno]

Swordsage sounds cool, it seems amazing, but I think I'm going to have to go with rogue for trapfinding, because that's sort of a signature roguey thing. 20 is the base DC for a mechanical trap in the SRD, anything else and anything magical is going to be higher than that. We're 9th level, so any traps that could be found and disabled without being cakewalks are basically going to require the trapfinding ability (or we could just send a barbarian ahead, but I digress). Any of you know any alternate method for finding traps?

Beguiler get trapfinding at level 1.

[Banaticus]

You're right. Ok:

Swordsage
Beguiler
Beguiler
Beguiler
Beguiler
Unseen Seer (hide, search, spot)8, (sense motive, spellcraft)4, 1st level arcane spell and two divinations
Mindbender (bluff, diplomacy, intimidate, sense motive)4, charm person, 5th caster level
Arcane Trickster (decipher script, disable device, escape artist)7, know (arcana) 4, mage hand, arcane spell 3rd level, 2d6 sneak
Divine Oracle Know (religion) 8 Skill Focus religion, 2 divination spells
And that's 9th level.

Hmm, wait a minute, Mage Hand isn't on the beguiler spell list. Is the Magical Training feat from Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting and Player's Guide to Faerûn the only way to be able to cast it?

[thethird]

It's in the bard spell list so a level of prestige bard will get it to you, along with all the other sweet sweet bard spells (and a bonus of +2 to divination).

[Banaticus]

Ah, found what I was thinking of, Unseen Seer, 2nd level. Ok, drop Divine Oracle and add on another level of Unseen Seer.

[Keld Denar]

Beguiler doesn't really get a lot of spells to SA with, so unless you are just buffing yourself with Greater Invis and stabbing people the old fashion way, I think you are taking away from your awesome Beguileriness to be a halfassed halfass. Focus is the key to powah. Keep those CLs. Arcane Trickster doesn't really give you that much.