First level feat

[NobleSavage]

Thanks to my online character sheet provider going down without warning, and myself not taking the precaution of making backups of the character sheets, I am in the process of re-building a character I'm currently playing. He is a Ninja2 Diviner5 Spellwarp Sniper1, and I've used all the feats except one from 1st level. Taking Ninja at level one, I can't do any of the metamagic feats that would be helpful, so I'm left with a throw-away feat.

I'm wondering which stand-alone feat that could be taken at 1st level would be most useful. I'm looking at either Improved Init or Expanded Ki Pool, to let me go invisible 6 times a day instead of just 3. That would help with assuring my Sudden Strike damage happens, and its saved my character's life several times as a defensive ability, but would it be better than a killer Init mod? Or is there something better I'm overlooking?

[Amiria]

How about Darkstalker (http://realmshelps.dandello.net/cgi-bin/feats.pl?Darkstalker,LoM) (LoM) ?

As for your two choices, I'd go for Expanded Ki Pool.

[Azerian Kelimon]

You could also take Improved initiative. It can help define fights.

[Tellah]

Winning initiative is very important for a Ninja, and even more so for a Spellwarp Sniper. Many people are quick to deride Improved Initiative for being a flat bonus that doesn't scale with level, but initiative rolls themselves don't scale with level. Tleilaxu_Ghola, from the Character Optimization board, crunched the numbers for initiative rolls for Monster Manual creatures' stats, levels 1-20, and found that average initiative rolls are pretty much static. Touch ACs actually decrease with higher CR monsters, since more of them are larger.

Not knowing what your other feats are, I'd advise you to spend your feats on Improved Initiative, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, and (dare I say it) Weapon Focus: Ray. You will fire into melee, so Precise Shot is a +4 right off the bat. Most people wouldn't jump for joy at the +1 to hit from Weapon Focus, but since touch ACs hover around 12 for the entire game, it's significant.

Side point: if you switch out those Ninja levels for Rogue levels, you'll be able to cast grease, deny your opponents their Dex bonus to AC (unless they have 5 or more ranks in Balance), and sneak attack with a ray. With the Wizard levels you really have no need of a class ability to become invisible, so if it were me, I'd do Rogue/Diviner/SS and just call myself a ninja.

[MeklorIlavator]

You may want to check out the Rod of Magical Precision, from the complete Mage, which effectively gives you precise shot for free, and allows you to ignore concealments a couple times per day.

[NobleSavage]

In retrospect I'd probably go that direction, too, Tellah, but as I've played this character for 3-4 levels now, I'm trying to keep the same build as I started out with for continuity sake. Tweaking more than rebuilding.

Will probably go with Imp Init, as I'll be getting G Invisi next level.