Blasting sorc build help

[Yellowbeard]

Thinking of making a gnome blasting sorc stats 9,16,15,11,11,16 (gnome to get the con boost). We can take 2 flaws from UA but we can use PHB,PHB2 and all the completes except scoundrel to build. The setting will be in ravenloft. It was suggested to me to take PBS and precise shot for RTA but I'm at a loss for other feats/spells. Was also thinking of dropping the familiar for metamagic specialist. Any advice will be helpful thanks

[Yellowbeard]

Whose name would be Gnome Saying

[Red Fel]

Thinking of making a gnome blasting sorc stats 9,16,15,11,11,16 (gnome to get the con boost). We can take 2 flaws from UA but we can use PHB,PHB2 and all the completes except scoundrel to build. The setting will be in ravenloft. It was suggested to me to take PBS and precise shot for RTA but I'm at a loss for other feats/spells. Was also thinking of dropping the familiar for metamagic specialist. Any advice will be helpful thanks

Blasting Sorc? Sounds like you need the Mailman (http://community.wizards.com/forum/previous-editions-character-optimization/threads/1765181). The Mailman was designed around a single concept: The Mail Must Be Delivered. Here, "the mail" means "damage." The Mailman is designed to do precisely that - his bread and butter spells are ranged touch attacks, no SR, no save. He boosts them through a variety of metamagic and class abilities. He doesn't do battlefield control, he doesn't do utility spells, he does blasting.

Blasting isn't the ideal character build, but if you want to do it, do it well. And let neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stay you from the swift completion of your blasting.

[Yellowbeard]

Well I just got done playing shackled city as an arcane/controll so I wanted to step away from that. Unfortunately we're playing with 4 people the cleric being the only other experienced player, the new players are playing a Druid and a swashbuckler/rouge so I really don't know what build I should use

[Hiro Quester]

IMHO, if you're the only arcane caster, you probably need to do some BFC. A pure blaster caster works best in a party that has someone else bring the God wizard type.

[KingSmitty]

if you can get races of stone allowed, grab a whisper gnome, an extra +4 to move silently and hide on top of the bonuses from small size is a great boon. On top of that, you'll have 30ft movement. If you have to beg to get it, do it. Although the -2 to charisma is the only limiting factor

[Optimator]

Too bad you don't have access to the 3.5 Incantatrix. At least you have access to Arcane Thesis--that'll help a lot. Grab Orb of Fire, make it your thesis'd spell, and go to town with Empower Spell and the line of feats that boost fire spells (I think they're in PHB2? Searing Spell and the like. Or am I thinking Sandstorm?). Try to get metamagic rods if you can. You don't have access to Runestaves so choose your spells wisely. Blasting is quite suboptimal but you can make it work and have tons of fun, to be sure.

Just don't fill up half your spells known with redundant blasting spells. I think there's an Evocation spell that forces a triple save, some sort of thundering/Sonic spell. Should be in Complete Arcane since it's in the SpC, but you may get unlucky there and it's in a Faerun book. Many of the best blast spells you don't have access to, so choosing your go-to spells is a bit easier. Disintegrate would be a good choice for it's utility as well as undead-killing. Glass Strike is the best Undead killer (works well on aberrations, too!), and I think you have access to it. Grab some of the major BFC spells, like Grease, Solid Fog, Sleet Storm, Black Tentacles, Acid Fog, Freezing Fog, Web, Pyrotechnics, Dimensional Anchor/Lock, Glitterdust, Transmute Rock to Mud, etc. Grab a few of the essential Wizard spells, like Teleport, Greater Mirror Image. Blink/Greater Blink, Fly, etc. You should have a very functional and fun character that way. The trick is to not get bogged down with useless blast spells.

Ask your DM if you can spend XP and/or gold to get more spells known. Spell research is great too--see if your DM is okay with custom spells that are Druid/Cleric spells with the serial numbers scratched off. All the Druid sun spells will be fantastic in Ravenloft. Firestorm is a great Cleric blast spell.

Going to level 17? Things like Maw of Chaos are great blast spells. I was about to suggest Frostfell, but you don't have access to Frostburn or the Arcane Spellsurge feat.

[Grod_The_Giant]

It was suggested to me to take PBS and precise shot for RTA
That seems like a tremendous waste. You'll have enough variety that you won't need to shoot into melee much, and even if you do, you're making touch attacks-- easy to make.

The goal of the mailman (the classic blaster mage build) is twofold: power up your damage spells with metamagic, and deliver lots of them via action economy abuse. For the latter, you're pretty solid. Complete Mage has Arcane Fusion, PHB 2 has Celerity, Contingency is available both as a spell (PHB) and feat (CArc). The former is harder, as most of the best options-- Easy/Practical Metamagic, Incantrix, and suchlike-- aren't available. Your best bets are:

Arcane Thesis (CArc) isn't a terrible option if you pick the right spell-- say, orb of force.
Residual Metamagic (CM) is good if you're spamming the same spell, and can afford to cast it the first time.
Dweomerkeeper (CDiv web enhancement) is irritating to qualify for gracefully (you need to be able to cast arcane and divine spells), but has a flat metamagic cost reduction at level 10. Also the always-insane Supernatural Spell. Mantle of Spells doesn't do much unless you can temporarily get the ability to cast a spell somehow, though.
Ultimate Magus (CM) has some wonky mechanics for stacking two arcane casting classes, but it does let you get off free metamagic feats by sacrificing spells from the other class' list.

[DeAnno]

Thinking of making a gnome blasting sorc stats 9,16,15,11,11,16 (gnome to get the con boost). We can take 2 flaws from UA but we can use PHB,PHB2 and all the completes except scoundrel to build.

I would ask for a clarification of how Arcane Thesis exactly works in your game. Most DMs leave enough teeth in it for it to still be good, but knowing if an Energy Subbed Empowered Orb of Fire is 4th or 5th level is important. If you are playing 1-20 strongly consider taking Arcane Thesis at 6th level with a slightly suboptimal spell such as Scorching Ray or Melf's Unicorn Arrow due to the strength it offers at intermediate levels, especially if you feel you are falling behind the party. Don't be afraid to take Arcane Thesis twice.

The Arcane Fusion line from CM should be your late game bread and butter since you don't have access to ways out of Daze nor do you have Arcane Spellsurge. Make sure to take the fast metamagic familiar swap if only to squeeze metamagic into Fusions later.

Most Prestige Classes are pretty disappointing. Don't waste feats getting into a thing that is worse than the value of the feats themselves. Remember a feat in your build can either get you new metamagic to make all your Arcane Thesises better or a new Arcane Thesis to make all your metamagic better. Residual Metamagic is also very good in this environment and should be considered strongly. Argent Savant is not an unreasonable PRC if you want to do everything with Force damage. Ultimate Magus is hard on your Sorcerer side, needing either 3 Wizard levels or a Wizard level and a feat just to get in, not to mention hazards of lost levels inside (the two bonus feats are very nice but still). Dweomerkeeper is ok, but does cost a feat and a cleric level and doesn't give much payoff until level 10 for blasting, so meh.

You may want to go gishy and dip Paladin 2, following up with a combination of Spellsword and Abjurant Champion. This is slightly better than usual because without Spellsurge the swift action use of the Abj Champ is quite useful and possibly even worth the feat to get in. All and all I wouldn't advise this path though, since to be feat neutral by going Spellsword 3 you're down 3 CLs on the package; it becomes more attractive when you can dip Marshal 1 and kick up SR checks for the whole party instead of the long Paladin 2 adventure.

Everyone will tell you base class Sorc past level 6 sucks and you shouldn't ever take it. In this environment they may actually be wrong, if you don't want to waste your feats or caster levels qualifying for below-value PRCs don't let them convince you to. Cheap filler like Fatespinner 4 is always fine though if you like. Were I in your shoes playing 1-20 the only costly one I'd be really interested in maybe doing is Argent Savant, and that only because doing a fire-focused build without Force-Charged Energy or the Sandstorm Metamagic feats is kind of inadvisable.

[Anthrowhale]

As an example: LG Sorcerer 12/Paragnostic Apostle 2/Sorcerer 6

Paragnostic Apostle has Manifest Ethos which converts your damaging spells into half "divine power" against opposed alignments. Due to cross-class skills selection, you must purchse knowledge[Religion] cross-class so it comes online late.

Feats:
L1: Twin Spell (T)
(Flaw) Sanctum Spell (S)
(Flaw) Cooperative Spell (C)
L3: Empower Spell (E)
L6: Arcane Thesis (Lesser Orb of Fire) [LOF]
L9: E Subst[Acid] (A)
L12: Arcane Thesis (Arcane Fusion) [AF]
L15: Maximize Spell (M)
L18: Arcane Thesis (Greater Arcane Fusion) [GAF]

Level 6: TSCE LOF: 9 Fire damage/ECL
Level 12: TSC AF [TSCEA LOF, TSCA LOF]: 19 Acid damage/ECL
Level 15: TSC AF [TSCMEA LOF, TSCA LOF]: 20 Acid damage/ECL or 10 acid + 10 damage vs evil or chaotic / ECL
Level 18: TSC GAF [TSCMEA LOF, TSC AF [TSCMEA LOF, TSCA LOF]]: 44 Acid damage/ECL or 22 acid + 22 damage vs evil or chaotic / ECL

Level 1-5, you survive as a Sorcerer.
At level 6-11, you do solid damage.
At level 12+ you are plausibly overpowered, although it depends a great deal on the game.