Gnomish Quickrazors, and 1 Million Ways to be caught Flat Footed in West Side Story

[MrNumbers]

If there's a more appropriate thread to stick this in, I'm more than happy to have it moved. I'm a wee babe in the woods here, as it were.

Here's the Fluff for my level 10 build. I come into it with two questions: Where to from here, and how can I get what I've got more efficiently?

West Side Gnomey

An ex-member of the Tunnel Badgers, Tiny Nothing fell hard for Moria,
sister of Tulgan, leader of the Stone Gnolls, a rival Dwarven gang
in his home city of New Corbies in the shady slums of the Underdark.

He'd thought he'd put his gangster days behind him to pursue a career
in theatre, to finally make something big of this Tiny Nothing and win
the heart of Moria, at long last. But his long-dormant gang ties
would rise to the surface to make of his life a tragedy for the ages...

Now he walks the darkest streets, putting equal use to his knowledge
of costume and wardrobe as his gangfighting. And his friends in
darkest shadows have taught him some tricks from the orient that
can make a flashing blade sing...

It's said that the Stone Gnolls and Tunnel Badgers fear nothing.

What was that?

Oh.

Don't worry.

It was probably Nothing.

So far this is what I got --

Race: Whisper Gnome (Oh, they're so good for this build)
Attributes:

16+2 Cha
16 Int
10 Str
10 Con
12 Wis
18 Dex

Advancement: Rogue (Mimic) 1/Fighter (Thug) 2/ Rogue (Penetrating Strike) 3/ Assassin 5

Which looks a little like:

Lvl BAB Fort Ref Will
1st +0 +0 +2 +0 Sneak attack +1d6, Mimic
ROGUE (MIMIC)
1st +1 +2 +0 +0 Skillz
2nd +2 +3 +0 +0 Bonus feat
FIGHTER (THUG)
2nd +1 +0 +3 +0 Evasion -- +1 Cha
3rd +2 +1 +3 +1 Sneak attack +2d6, Penetrating Strike
ROGUE (Penetrating Strike)
1st +0 +0 +2 +0 Sneak attack +1d6, death attack, poison use, spells
2nd +1 +0 +3 +0 +1 save against poison, uncanny dodge
3rd +2 +1 +3 +1 Sneak attack +2d6 -- +1 Cha
4th +3 +1 +4 +1 +2 save against poison
5th +3 +1 +4 +1 Improved uncanny dodge, sneak attack +3d6
ASSASSIN
TTL +7/+2 +5 +7 +2

This.

Now, with his 130 skill points or so, we've got ludicrously high Disguise, Bluff, Sleight of Hand, Hide and Tumble, all at least 10 ranks. The five skill tricks we have are:

To "Flatfooted" add "Sneak attack and Iajitsu Focus damage"

Hidden Blade -- Catch Opponents flatfooted until opponents notice what I'm doing.
Acrobatic Backstab -- Tumble to catch them flatfooted?
Sudden Draw -- Well, would you look at that? AoO with a hidden weapon -- say, a concealed Gnomish Quickrazor -- catch someone as flatfooted.
Second Impression -- Keep the act going. No one's seen the knife yet, and you were very careful about the blood...
Mosquito Bite -- More for the fluff than the crunch. Opponent doesn't realize they're dead until I've left the room to pour them another cup of tea. What's more fun than having no one realize you've stabbed the boss to death? Not having the boss realize it either. Second Impression helps doubly here, as well as good Bluff.

Now. Here's where the build falls down. Originally I'd planned to use Able Learner to get the 6 or so ranks of Iajitsu focus that'd get me into the, ooh, ~50 percent success rate of 3d6 extra damage. Remembered that's Human only and thwacked myself over the head. So now I'm genuinely considering Skill Focus in it just so I can save 6 skill rank points I'd otherwise need to invest in skill tricks and their pre-req's. But as it is, I'm using it more as a cheap gimmick -- was it ever not? -- when there might be better ways to just buff the sneak dice instead to compensate.

Quickdraw: Irrelevent, but a prereq.
Weapon Finesse: Roll the razor off Dex instead
Flick of the Wrist(CW): Draw a weapon and catch an opponent flat-footed for the attack? Yes, please. Almost obsoletes most of the skill tricks, but I do like the fluff of them.

It's these two in concert I'm more interested in, though:
Mercurial Strike(Dragon Compendium) and Combat Reflexes
Mercurial Strike lets me make an attack of opportunity, if unarmed, by arming myself and catching my opponent flatfooted. Sneak attack dice added, of course.
Combat Reflexes, meanwhile, means I get to do that up to my Dex bonus.

So let's have two quickrazors, then.

If one of them is Keen... Keen (10'' threat range) Weapon: +4 Gnomish Quickrazor - 1d3

I have reach with this thing. Anything charging me or moving to within striking range without a longspear is sneak-attacked in the face. And since this character is meant to be an urban brawler, of sorts, the proper Assassin's Creed methodology, the simplest solution to the fight might simply be "Don't fight opponents with reach".

Other items here, of course.
Blurstrike (10 Flat Footed/Day) Gnomish Quickrazor: - 1d3
8,000GP

Mask of Lies (MiC 115, 4,500gp) Provides continuous Undetectable Alignment, a +5 to Bluff checks, and the ability to use Disguise Self three times per day.

Gloves of the Master Strategist (Ghostwalk, 3,600 gp) True Strike 1/day and functions like gloves of storing

Ring of Arming 5,000 GP -- Stores armour and weapons completely.

As many: Eggshell Grenade (OA, 10gp) blind your target (no save) and area around him (DC < 15) -- as he can fit in the Gloves.

So what am I missing here? I'm happy with this build. It seems to synergize incredibly nicely with the gnomish quickrazor and it seems to make a creature I wouldn't otherwise play viable. It supports the fluff concept, I feel, which is rather important to me.

But this is my first proper build. So I'm curious to know what I'm missing, what I could do better, and if parts of this are simply broken or not working because I'm not reading the rules right.

[Troacctid]

Well, if it helps, the Blurstrike weapon property (+2, MIC) allows you to render your opponent flat-footed against your next attack 10 times per day as a swift action.

Also, you should use the Drow Fighter (DrU) instead of Thug (they're mutually exclusive, since they both trade away armor proficiencies). It gives you Dex to damage against flat-footed targets, as well as +2 to initiative, and you keep the bonus feat at 1st level.

[ZamielVanWeber]

Drow fighter does not give the boost to skills that thug does though, including keeping Sleight of Hand on his class list.

[Cerefel]

The Keen ability isn't referring to your actual reach, it's referring to your critical threat rolls. It's a fairly common mistake though.

[MrNumbers]

Well, if it helps, the Blurstrike weapon property (+2, MIC) allows you to render your opponent flat-footed against your next attack 10 times per day as a swift action.

Check the other items spoiler. It's the off-hand weapon.

Added bonus being all those 'hidden weapon' feats are for the individual hidden weapons. And two-weapon fighting penalties only factor in if I try to roll with both simultaneously. Which would be another build entirely -- or this one with a few tweaks. Hrrm.

And Thug has a bunch of skills that I need, and some fantastic flavour besides. Drow Fighter is harder to consolidate the fluff with the build. Not only, as VanWeber points out, is that fluff better suited for him though, but a lot of his skill tricks require keeping Sleight of Hand in-house, as it were. Otherwise I'm hemorrhaging skill ranks to get those last Skill Trick requirements and purchases at 10.

EDIT:


The Keen ability isn't referring to your actual reach, it's referring to your critical threat rolls. It's a fairly common mistake though.

But if I'm just trying to use it to have Attacks of Opportunity with Mercurial Strike, though, that still works?

[Troacctid]

Drow fighter does not give the boost to skills that thug does though, including keeping Sleight of Hand on his class list.

But since you get the bonus feat at 1st, you only need one level, not two. Replace the second level with another level of Rogue and you actually end up ahead on skill points.

[MrNumbers]

But since you get the bonus feat at 1st, you only need one level, not two. Replace the second level with another level of Rogue and you actually end up ahead on skill points.

Lower hit dice, slightly worse saves, and a redundant iteration of Uncanny Dodge for it make it less appealing.

[DarthPeleus]

Not sure what you've already looked at but some things to consider:

Levels in Factotum (http://dndtools.pw/classes/factotum/)-
Gives all skills (iaijutsu focus)
3rd level gets you int to str/dex checks and skills (initiative is a dex check btw), and some weird casting
8th level gives an ability that lets you gain standard actions

Bard-
Cha synergy
helps with your theater and dance fluff, including the ability to break out into song for magical buffs
access to Snowflake Wardance (http://dndtools.pw/feats/frostburn--68/snowflake-wardance--2671/)
also good skill points

Slippers of Battledancing (http://www.imarvintpa.com/dndlive/items.php?ID=3184) - this is tricky to use but typically a tempo bloodspike(Magic of Ebberon pg 140) or a dorje of Hustle (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/powers/hustle.htm) gets the job done.

If you're using Dragon Compendium I believe that has a class called battledancer that gives Cha to AC as well.

[Boci]

But if I'm just trying to use it to have Attacks of Opportunity with Mercurial Strike, though, that still works?

You'll need another way of getting 10ft reach, as keen doesn't provide that.

[MrNumbers]

Not sure what you've already looked at but some things to consider:

Levels in Factotum-
Gives all skills (iaijutsu focus)
3rd level gets you int to str/dex checks and skills (initiative is a dex check btw), and some weird casting


Funnily enough, this build was originally designed explicitly around the Factotum, a class I'm already playing. The strange thing is, they have less skill points than a straight rogue, worse saves, and all classes here have all the skills I'm using as class skills, and the three dip into Factotum would replace the three dip into Rogue.

I'd trade 3d6 sneak attack and the Penetrating Strike alternate level, which would probably hurt me slightly more. The skill ranks I'd save with Iajitsu focus would actually only just break even by what I lose from not going Rogue.

Also, more DM's allow it.



Bard-
Cha synergy
helps with your theater and dance fluff, including the ability to break out into song for magical buffs
access to Snowflake Wardance also good skill points

Slippers of Battledancing - this is tricky to use but typically a tempo bloodspike(Magic of Ebberon pg 140) or a dorje of Hustle gets the job done.

If you're using Dragon Compendium I believe that has a class called battledancer that gives Cha to AC as well.

Funnily enough times two, I'd even considered using Master of Masks with the Assassin mask just for this very reason, before massaging my temples and realizing I was a goddamn idiot.

It's seriously tempting. Some extra spell ranks would be nice, Snowflake Wardance would be done in the form of me approaching, clicking my fingers, the blades shooting from my wrists with each finger snap -- West side / East side! -- but I'd have to do quite a major retooling. To get it to work with what's here.

I think if I were doing this, I'd go a bit heavier on the theatre version. Snowflake Wardance, Battleslippers, three ranks of Swashbuckler and the Hit and Run Drow Fighter would let me Add Cha+Cha+Cha+Cha to my attacks.

Your arse started out a narrow-way, but I did a snap-kick plie all over it and now that's broadway, baby.

The question is, would the +Cha to the flatfooted hits build be a fair tradeoff to how much sneak attack I'm pulling off?



You'll need another way of getting 10ft reach, as keen doesn't provide that.

No, sorry, new question: Why is there a magical enhancement that increases your threat range but then doesn't let you act on it? What purpose does it serve? It's competing with Brilliant Energy and --

Oh my god it means critical threat range. That makes at once an absurdly lot more sense, and is horribly disappointing. But it means I can look into a different enchantment for it, then.

EDIT: Yes I realize that was said above, and I even responded to it. I critically failed my literacy roll. I read critical threat range as reactive threat range or something at the time. In retrospect, I can clearly see the obvious word is obvious.

[Boci]

Oh my god it means critical threat range. That makes at once an absurdly lot more sense, and is horribly disappointing. But it means I can look into a different enchantment for it, then.

I don't know of any weapon enhancement that improves reach, the ones that do will likely only do so 3/day or something, or only activate on your attack. The one method I do know of is Inhumane Reach (Willing Deformity tall only works for medium creatures). It requires Aberrant blood as preq, and gives you a -1 to all attack roles, but the trade off is worth it as to hit bonuses are fairly easy to come by buy reach is very hard to increase. The problem is its a fairly fluff heavy ability with a visual tell, so it cannot just be slotted on to any character, unless the DM is lenient on allowing refluffs.