Touch-Spell Specialist?

[DragoonWraith]

Can anyone think of a good way to build a spellcaster who focuses (almost) entirely on offensive touch spells, actually going into melee and touching enemies?

I think it would be awesome.

I don't really care what type of spellcasting (or not-spellcasting like Psionics or whatever), as long as we're talking about supernatural touch attacks by obviously magical characters (i.e. no wraithstrike weapons on a standard melee build or something like that).

Starting at level 1, though I'm also just interested in this out of my own curiosity, so even if a build requires higher levels, just go ahead and post it. Just, bonus points for something I can start in realistically from level 1.

Allowed books: SRD, Completes, Races, PhB2, MIC, MoI, ToB, Eberron and Forgotten Realms. Pretty mych anything that is offical.

One trait, one flaw.

Feel free to suggest things that use other books, so long as they're official WotC material (as stated above), but definitely favor stuff that goes off of those.

[Flickerdart]

Sorcerer/Monk is good. Ascetic Mage gives you CHA instead of WIS to stuff.

[PId6]

Abjurant Champion can have the Bab and AC necessary for wading into melee and touching opponents. Battle Sorcerer can be a good choice of base class for easy access to the class and better HD/Bab. Arcane Fusion is a nice spell for this since it allows you to cast True Casting or True Strike along with a 4th or lower touch spell.

Of course, there's always Duskblade, whose whole class is built around this concept. He ends up able to deliver touch spells on full attacks, though his small spell list keeps him from having access to the most powerful touch spells.

[Sophismata]

ToB? Jade Phoenix Mage!

Warblade / Wizard / JPM. You can use strikes with your touchspells, advance both maneuvers and spells (though not full spell, I think it's 8/10), and generally wander around being awesome.

Note that you only get automatic quicken once / encounter, and only level 5 and below, but the ability to martial strike with touch spells should make up for the round spent casting it (assuming cast / strike / cast / strike).

Other than that, class can spend spell slots for damage aura, DR/good, slight bonuses to caster level (1 to all, or 3 to fire), and the capstone is really cool. You explode like the phoenix, and rise from the ashes fully restored.

Most importantly, Wizard spell list, so you have access to nearly every arcane spell out there. Don't use Shivering Touch, though - even if you can quicken and empower it for free once per encounter.


Edit: You need to be level 6, with at least 3 levels of Wizard to take it. Wiz 5 / War 1 can work, taking the Warblade level at 1 for the hitdie and skills, or level 5 for the level 2 maneuvers. You must also be nonevil. You'll be able to use touch spells from level 2, at the latest.

[Totally Guy]

I like the Enlightened fist prestige class.

You take one or two levels of monk followed by three or four levels of sorcerer or wizard. Then at level 6 you enter the prestige class.

You're not just delivering touch spells, you're punching them in the face with them.

The wisdom to AC MAD that the monk suffers with can be alleviated by Ascetic Mage (for sorcerer styles) or Kung Fu Genius (for wizard styles).

Your BAB suffers a bit. I've used weapon finesse on my own character as his damage comes from spells and he can self buff Dex.

Hit points are a little shakey but the false life spell can help with that.

The other problem this guy has is surviability at low levels. As a monk, he's not good and weaker than most when he's a high Charisma man.

At the top end there's a class feature, Hold Ray, which turns ray spells into touch spells as the touch spell pools runs a bit dry for high level.

After taking all the levels of Enlightened fist... well your potential drops because you need to find a better option than resuming monk or your spellcasting class. But lots of games don't make it that far so it might not be an issue.

My own character uses PHB material, Complete Mage and a feat from Complete Adventurer.

Edit: Oh no! Kung Fu genius is a Dragon magazine feat! That probably restricts you down to the Sorcerer variety. To pick up Ascetic Mage at level 6 you need to do Monk 1/Sorcerer 4. Going Monk 2/Sorcerer 3 means you'd not qualify until level 9. Unless you entered the PrC at level 7 instead...

[Melamoto]

I like the Enlightened fist prestige class.

The class was designed around this entire concept. It has no purpose other than delivering touch spells to the opponent. I think it would be right for you.

[Totally Guy]

The class was designed around this entire concept. It has no purpose other than delivering touch spells to the opponent. I think it would be right for you.

Seriously? I got it right?

Cool. Normally I end up picking the stupidest way of getting there.

[Heliomance]

I like the Enlightened fist prestige class.

You take one or two levels of monk followed by three or four levels of sorcerer or wizard. Then at level 6 you enter the prestige class.

You're not just delivering touch spells, you're punching them in the face with them.

The wisdom to AC MAD that the monk suffers with can be alleviated by Ascetic Mage (for sorcerer styles) or Kung Fu Genius (for wizard styles).

Your BAB suffers a bit. I've used weapon finesse on my own character as his damage comes from spells and he can self buff Dex.

Hit points are a little shakey but the false life spell can help with that.

The other problem this guy has is surviability at low levels. As a monk, he's not good and weaker than most when he's a high Charisma man.

At the top end there's a class feature, Hold Ray, which turns ray spells into touch spells as the touch spell pools runs a bit dry for high level.

After taking all the levels of Enlightened fist... well your potential drops because you need to find a better option than resuming monk or your spellcasting class. But lots of games don't make it that far so it might not be an issue.

My own character uses PHB material, Complete Mage and a feat from Complete Adventurer.

Edit: Oh no! Kung Fu genius is a Dragon magazine feat! That probably restricts you down to the Sorcerer variety. To pick up Ascetic Mage at level 6 you need to do Monk 1/Sorcerer 4. Going Monk 2/Sorcerer 3 means you'd not qualify until level 9. Unless you entered the PrC at level 7 instead...

Carmendine Monk is a feat from somewhere in Forgotten Realms (I think) which does pretty much exactly the same as Kung-Fu Genius.

[peacenlove]

Carmendine Monk is a feat from somewhere in Forgotten Realms (I think) which does pretty much exactly the same as Kung-Fu Genius.

Champions of valor specifically.

[Totally Guy]

Carmendine Monk is a feat from somewhere in Forgotten Realms (I think) which does pretty much exactly the same as Kung-Fu Genius.

Champions of Valour.

Well that's alright then. And you could get that at first level.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

Dread Necromancer. There's so many stackable touch abilities that it's not even funny.

[quick_comment]

Straight wizard. Shapechange into a hydra, cast spellflower, deliver 12 touch spells on an attack

[woodenbandman]

^That is bad advice and you know it. His character will be banned so quickly.

You could take the Illithid Grapple feats to get extra tentacles. There's also something like that in the Aberrant blood feat line.

[Keld Denar]

Deepspawn. Gives you 2x 1d4 tentacles that you can treat as primary weapons or secondary natural attacks. As long as you have that and Aberrant Blood, you might as well pick up Inhuman Reach as well, so you can tentacle touch people from 10' away.

Seriously, everything is better with tentacles!

[quick_comment]

^That is bad advice and you know it. His character will be banned so quickly.

You could take the Illithid Grapple feats to get extra tentacles. There's also something like that in the Aberrant blood feat line.

But its totally worth the look on the GMs face after he asks how much dex damage his monster just took. 12 maximized shivering touches =216 dex damage!

[RagnaroksChosen]

May i sugest a cleric?
Never mind all the inflict spells
There's also belker claws(i belive)
and others.
Decent bab(3/4) which is nice.
you can get close and not have to worry about it

I would take domains that get you more touch spells I think a cleric can get shivering touch.

Also may want to look into spell flower especially if you can get extra limbs/ attacks.

[Optimystik]

Straight wizard. Shapechange into

And we're done!

[Myrmex]

Straight wizard. Shapechange into a hydra, cast spellflower, deliver 12 touch spells on an attack

Ehhh, builds that require 17 levels to pull off usually aren't what people are looking for.

[nysisobli]

Duskblade, with improved unarmed strike =)

[DragoonWraith]

May i sugest a cleric?
Never mind all the inflict spells
There's also belker claws(i belive)
and others.
Decent bab(3/4) which is nice.
you can get close and not have to worry about it

I would take domains that get you more touch spells I think a cleric can get shivering touch.

Also may want to look into spell flower especially if you can get extra limbs/ attacks.

So far, I actually like this idea best, and possibly JPM. I don't really want to punch things with spells, I really want to tap things with spells.

And I'd like to be at least vaguely humanoid, so tentacles or hydras.... not so much.

[Epinephrine]

Duskblade, with improved unarmed strike =)

Funny, I was thinking Duskblade too :)

[quick_comment]

Ehhh, builds that require 17 levels to pull off usually aren't what people are looking for.

Polymorph works fine for hydra shape.


You can also try to let your GM allow arcane swordsage - pick the spells with him and it wont be ridiculous.

[RagnaroksChosen]

So far, I actually like this idea best, and possibly JPM. I don't really want to punch things with spells, I really want to tap things with spells.

And I'd like to be at least vaguely humanoid, so tentacles or hydras.... not so much.

if you can get some stuff out of liber motris theres some nice fell metamagic... thats pritty much what you want.

I would pick up divine metamagic feat thing... stack wisdom charisma(for more turn attempts) and dex(with finese) or str.

should be pritty good I've always wanted to do an inflicter cleric... also remember inflict spells are necromantic... i would sugest picking up spell focus necromancy if you go inflicter route. as its will for half.

But ya got to go for the time being.

[ericgrau]

Spectral hand and <gasp> a familiar, both to touch without touching.

Spells that are just plain better b/c they are touch range. Like irresistible dance. No save, just suck. Touch of idiocy too. Empower it or maximize it. Hmm, wizards don't get so many. Might also want to try cleric.

[RagnaroksChosen]

Spectral hand and <gasp> a familiar, both to touch without touching.

Spells that are just plain better b/c they are touch range. Like irresistible dance. No save, just suck. Touch of idiocy too. Empower it or maximize it. Hmm, wizards don't get so many. Might also want to try cleric.

ya know that brings up a good point there arn't a tone of good touch spells for wizards but there are some nice ones.

I wonder if taking that prestige class from Ebberon that gives extra domains might do well here... especialy if he can grab more touch spells from domain spells...

[Thespianus]

If your DM allows it (which he might not do) there's a book out by Monte Cook called "Eldritch Might 3: The Nexus" which contains the Feat "Battle Touch", which gives you a full attack option with touch spells. So if you cast a spell and only take a 5 foot step to approach your target, you can deliver as many touch attacks with the spell as you could if you were attacking with a dagger.

BAB 6/1 gives two attacks and with Haste you get three attacks with the spell, however, you're limited to the same target, ie you can't touch more than one monster this way.

Might be considered overpowererd, but then again, it's direct damage against one target, not Batmanism.

[PId6]

Might be considered overpowererd, but then again, it's direct damage against one target, not Batmanism.

Direct damage, maybe not, but use that with Poison or Shivering Touch and things take a sharp turn to broken.

[DragoonWraith]

Spectral hand and <gasp> a familiar, both to touch without touching.

And thereby defeating the purpose of the character concept, which is to actually do the touching. Not touching means I'm not playing the character I want to play.

A Familiar-master might be interesting, though.

Spells that are just plain better b/c they are touch range. Like irresistible dance. No save, just suck. Touch of idiocy too. Empower it or maximize it. Hmm, wizards don't get so many. Might also want to try cleric.

Yeah, I'm thinking Cleric might be the best way to do it. Plus I haven't played one, so that's cool.

I wonder if taking that prestige class from Ebberon that gives extra domains might do well here... especialy if he can grab more touch spells from domain spells...

Considering it's an Eberron campaign, I suspect the answer may very well be yes. What book?

If your DM allows it (which he might not do) there's a book out by Monte Cook called "Eldritch Might 3: The Nexus" which contains the Feat "Battle Touch", which gives you a full attack option with touch spells. So if you cast a spell and only take a 5 foot step to approach your target, you can deliver as many touch attacks with the spell as you could if you were attacking with a dagger.

BAB 6/1 gives two attacks and with Haste you get three attacks with the spell, however, you're limited to the same target, ie you can't touch more than one monster this way.

Might be considered overpowererd, but then again, it's direct damage against one target, not Batmanism.

Wellll... the DM said "Anything official, no homebrew", so I'm suspecting 3rd party stuff is out. Plus, it's a popular campaign, so there's a lot of people trying to get in, so I might have trouble being chosen if I went a route like that, even if he allowed it at all.

Direct damage, maybe not, but use that with Poison or Shivering Touch and things take a sharp turn to broken.

Here's an interesting debate: would I be justified in using Shivering Touch if I'm actually personally delivering the touch, and I'm not a Batman Wizard breaking everything, or is it still just too broken?

[PId6]

Here's an interesting debate: would I be justified in using Shivering Touch if I'm actually personally delivering the touch, and I'm not a Batman Wizard breaking everything, or is it still just too broken?

Nitpick: Batman wizards don't break everything; the whole point of batman wizards is to play well with the party and not rule the game.

And yeah, still broken. With (superior) invisibility, teleportation, movement enhancers, and/or various defensive spells, it's not that difficult to touch someone with minimal risk if you really focused on it. And it only takes one touch to kill a Great Wyrm Gold Dragon...

[Thespianus]

Direct damage, maybe not, but use that with Poison or Shivering Touch and things take a sharp turn to broken.

Yeah, but the problem there lies with Poison and Shivering Touch and not with the Feat, right? Shivering Touch is flat-out broken.