Acid Splash combos and how to make it work?

[noce]

Hello all.
In another thread (https://forums.giantitp.com/showthread.php?657743-Top-10-cantrips) people were talking of the crazy combos you could pull out of Acid Splash.

I get this is a ranged touch attack cantrip with no save and no SR, so you could apply precision damage and metamagic to it.
Still, it just doesn't seem a lot to me.

For sneak attacks (or sudden strikes) I see many problems:

you're just applying them to a 1d3 base damage
many enemies have resistance to acid (demons and devils, for example) [on a side note, does sneak attack damage also count as acid damage in this case?]
you're doing a single attack per round, while even ranged builds can apply sneak attacks several times per round with Greater Manyshot
as always for ranged sneak attacks, flanking is no longer an option
there are creatures immune to precision damage, but this obviously is not Acid Splash fault


Skirmish shares most of the difficulties of sneak attacks, except that it's easier to apply on a standard action attack, but deals even less damage.
Regarding metamagics, at highter levels there are better spells to apply them to, while at lower levels there are simply more versatile spells to cast.


So, I opened this thread to discuss and collect ideas to exploit this little cantrip in meaningful ways, both with gish and caster builds.
What base classes, prestige classes, feats and tactics would you use?
How does it fare compared with similar but more straightforward builds (eg melee rogue, greater manyshot rogue, direct damage caster)?

[Inevitability]

many enemies have resistance to acid (demons and devils, for example) [on a side note, does sneak attack damage also count as acid damage in this case?]

It is! Rules compendium goes into that, it also specifies that spells that deal ability damage/drain or negative levels specifically don't work like that: the SA damage is negative energy in that case.



Acid Splash's low level also makes it the prime choice for metamagic tricks: Fell Animate is the most notable one, but getting a quickened sneak attack with a 4th-level slot can also be pretty good for unseen seer builds.

[Zarvistic]

At the low levels I like this on warmage. With edge, knowledge devotion and gauntlets of heartfell blows its good damage from a level 0 slot. Also decent from a level 1 slot with lingering spell or using a metamagic reducer.

[noce]

Acid Splash's low level also makes it the prime choice for metamagic tricks: Fell Animate is the most notable one, but getting a quickened sneak attack with a 4th-level slot can also be pretty good for unseen seer builds.


This is exactly what I'm talking about: you're using a 3rd level spell slot hoping to kill something with 1d3 + ~6d6 (much more likely 1d3 + 2d6 when you get this combo working) acid damage in order to raise it as a zombie. It could be situational to be able to kill something with just 10-20 hit point damage, unless you're killing commoners, dogs and so on just to carry around a horde of weak zombies (killing a riding dog requires 23 damage).

Regarding Quicken, with a 4th level slot you can cast a swift ray for 1d3 + ~6d6.
Alternatives are:

Critical Strike spell, swift 1st level, that gives you keen, Power Critical and +1d6 for each of your attacks: this is often worse but costs a lot less.
Hunter's Eye, swift 2nd level Unseen Seers have access to, that gives you ~4d6 bonus sneak attack damage for all your attacks: this not only is better, but also cheaper than Quickened Acid Splash


Also, both spells I listed do not require you to take a feat for Quickened Metamagic, and also work while flanking.
Is Acid Splash really worth it?

[Inevitability]

This is exactly what I'm talking about: you're using a 3rd level spell slot hoping to kill something with 1d3 + ~6d6 (much more likely 1d3 + 2d6 when you get this combo working) acid damage in order to raise it as a zombie. It could be situational to be able to kill something with just 10-20 hit point damage, unless you're killing commoners, dogs and so on just to carry around a horde of weak zombies (killing a riding dog requires 23 damage).

That's not the use case for fell animate at all: you use it out of combat, after subduing a foe with nonlethal damage / save-or-loses / mundane intimidation-assisted surrenders. Get someone down to -9, splash to kill, profit. Really, not killing foes isn't all that hard.

[sleepyphoenixx]

An Unseen Seer with Hunter's Eye and Craven does enough damage for Acid Splash to deal with the fodder. You're (probably) not using it against the boss except as a finisher, but it saves your higher level slots.
It's also a cheap option to carry on a wand, either as a backup for a caster with a metamagic wand grip (assuming you have a MM feat like Fell Drain to make it useful) or for sneak attackers to deal with DR, Wind Wall and other things that mess with mundane attacks.


At the low levels I like this on warmage. With edge, knowledge devotion and gauntlets of heartfell blows its good damage from a level 0 slot. Also decent from a level 1 slot with lingering spell or using a metamagic reducer.

Gauntlets of Heartfelt Blows only work on melee attacks.

[Kurald Galain]

Acid Splash's brother, Ray of Frost, combines well with a Magus with the Close Range arcana and Chilling Amplification, and possibly Rime Spell. The net result is an additional weapon attack that is makes the target unable to 5'-step (meaning you can 5'-step away and it cannot full attack you).

[Zarvistic]

Gauntlets of Heartfelt Blows only work on melee attacks.
Works on touch attacks too.

[Chronos]

Quoth Inevitability:

It is! Rules compendium goes into that, it also specifies that spells that deal ability damage/drain or negative levels specifically don't work like that: the SA damage is negative energy in that case.
Or, if you prefer for your rules to come from the actual rulebooks, it's also in Complete Arcane.

[Fero]

Acid Splash is a compelling choice if you want to add MM or similar effects that trigger when a spell does damage because: 1-it hits reliably, 2- it is SR No, and 3- it is 0 level (and thus easier to augment with MM). For example, a level 3 wizard can use a lvl 2 slot to cast Fell Drain Acid Splashes to cause level drain early on to make wights. In other words, Acid Splash is simply a useful vehicle for meta spell effects.