Iron Chef Optimization Challenge in the Playground CXVII

[loky1109]

What? You don't think Sneak Attack AND Favored Enemy is worth a caster level? Plus a good skill list but with only 4 skill points a level?

Plus POISON use, which is so good that we took away that first sneak attack die we were gonna give.

Sarcasm?

I mean it is bad for my ideas. Not at all. And there is Unseen Seer.

[WhamBamSam]

I'm done with everything but fluff, which I'll try to knock out when I have time on Saturday morning.

[H_H_F_F]

I'm done with everything but fluff, which I'll try to knock out when I have time on Saturday morning.

I've got 1 table fully formed and 1 that still needs skills. I wrote down the fluff for the entry I'm not sure I'll submit, but I still need to finish the fluff for the entry I'm sure about, and I haven't written extensive snapshots for either.

[Seward]

Sarcasm?

I mean it is bad for my ideas. Not at all. And there is Unseen Seer.

Yes Sarcasm.

Weirdly the one I submitted I thought I couldn't do because of how the class worked. I kept coming up short on spell slots or feats or skills or something.

Then I found a way that was both obvious and, for me, unusual, because it went against the grain of how I usually design a character.

This class has some unusual stuff that an Unseen Seer can't do. US is a better arcane rogue, no question. But if you just wanna kill one particular guy this class is actually kind of interesting.

Which is what lead me to my second idea, but I'm not sure I can get it together in time, as rain did in fact happen and things are slowly lurching into motion over here.

Edit - ok, the character got into my head last night and insisted on being finished, and we got enough done yesterday a rest day was in order. So second one submitted.

[Zaq]

Build's finally in. That took way longer than I anticipated, but to be fair, the build matured a lot as I was working on it, and I feel much better about it now than I did when I first started.

Can't wait to see the others!

[Seward]

This class has been growing on me. A Gish Assassin is actually kinda cool, at least in a party ok with that. Of course in a lot of games I've played it would be very much a late bloomer, kinda like arcane archer. Takes a long time to get into and a long time for the class features to be dangerous enough for what it costs. Plus it's mostly only incredibly dangerous to one single individual a day, with 24 hour+spell memorization between victims.

[Gruftzwerg]

This class has been growing on me. A Gish Assassin is actually kinda cool, at least in a party ok with that. Of course in a lot of games I've played it would be very much a late bloomer, kinda like arcane archer. Takes a long time to get into and a long time for the class features to be dangerous enough for what it costs.

Agree, this prc turned out more fun as expected imho.

Plus it's mostly only incredibly dangerous to one single individual a day, with 24 hour+spell memorization between victims.

nah, you are doing it wrong!^^

I think you are missing out a lot of potential here. Just wait for the revel ;)

______________________________________

edit: I've managed to complete a build and have sent it in. I've another one that still needs to be written up, but unless someone else needs extra time too, I'm leaning more towards abandoning it and just posting it as non-entry after the reveal.

[Seward]

I think you are missing out a lot of potential here. Just wait for the revel ;)

After last time where like 3 entries weaponized slow fall, I'm pretty sure there will be a lot of fun surprises.

[NinjaGuy]

Hello all! Long time lurker and fan. Looooong time. Love these competitions, and seeing what you all come up with.

Given the 2 weeks of judging time, any chance I could get a day's worth of leeway? I had been working on another build and deemed it unworthy ultimately, but I'd like to try my hand at my first competition and inspiration struck a bit late. If not, no problem, deadlines are there for a reason. Either way, hope this one is as interesting as the previous ones have been!

[The Viscount]

I've received a number of messages asking for an extension already. You have your day.

[H_H_F_F]

I won't be submitting my second entry after all, though I will share it after the reveal. It just ended up... boring.

Thanks, Viscount!

[Gruftzwerg]

I managed to quickly write up the second build. But I don't have high expectations for this one. But who knows..
I liked the fluff here and thus wanted to share it anyway xD

[Wildstag]

I'll share an idea after the reveal, but really I don't think it would have worked or done well regardless, since it's not really so much optimal as it is the kinda gimmick I'd like playing. But it'll be fun to see the idea compared to what people actually submit.

[NinjaGuy]

Just submitted! Had a rough go at the formatting, but I think I ended up pulling it off. Thanks for the extension, and I can't wait to see the other (winning) submissions. heheheh

I won't be submitting my second entry after all, though I will share it after the reveal. It just ended up... boring.

Thanks, Viscount!

I know the feeling, that's exactly why I scrapped my initial build. Can't bring a masterwork spork to a fancy knife fight!

I managed to quickly write up the second build. But I don't have high expectations for this one. But who knows..
I liked the fluff here and thus wanted to share it anyway xD

And that's how I feel about my second build!

I'll share an idea after the reveal, but really I don't think it would have worked or done well regardless, since it's not really so much optimal as it is the kinda gimmick I'd like playing. But it'll be fun to see the idea compared to what people actually submit.

That's the exact type of knife to bring to the fight!

Anyway, good luck to all!

[Gruftzwerg]

I'm getting exited what builds everybody did come up with. And I'm curios if others tried something similar as me with my two build.

[Seward]

since it's not really so much optimal as it is the kinda gimmick I'd like playing.

I tend to try for something I'd want to actually play in these builds. Which means any gimmicks have to be the sort that a GM and/or table might appreciate. That could impact my scoring, but that's not the main point of this for me. The fun is in seeing what happens during the build when the character starts to come to life for me and also what everybody else comes up with.

The scoring is more - it lets me see how it looks to somebody else outside the gaming experience I've had. Which is a different kind of fun.

Regardless, my first metric is "don't be useless". Because that's rarely fun for anybody at the table, including me.

[loky1109]

Are we waiting for somebody building or for
The Viscount only?

[H_H_F_F]

While we're waiting for the reveal and the judgement to follow: I'll plug this round of the Villainous Competition (found in my signature). It has a bit more than a week to go. Anyone interested in cooking or judging is welcome to take a look!

[Thurbane]

Couldn't find the time to work on this, and my build stub was pretty...meh. Best of luck to all competitors!

[The Viscount]

Are we waiting for somebody building or for
The Viscount only?

Just waiting on me to get back from work. Now that I have, it's time for the reveal! (Please hold off on posting until the all clear.)

[The Viscount]

A much better suit than clubs.

Queen of Swords

Images from https://www.sacred-texts.com/tarot/index.htm public domain info at bottom of linked page



Ruled by intellect, she sees clearly through deception and her justice is fair but without mercy, to others or herself.

The name started as a slur. Pretty much my entire race is from the royal line of our old Empire so it was Princess Sword once the Elves taught me how to use a sword and it became a regular part of my spellcasting when carrying out vengeance kills. Why swords? Everything in the Underdark has spell resistance and usually quite effective saving throws. I wasn't gifted with a strong body but I'd pit my mind's ability to focus arcane power against anybody's thews. Swords are just one of the more effective ways to project that power.

Spoiler: Character Build Tables

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Spoiler: Stub

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LN Imiskari Wizard5/Ruathar1/Imiskari Vengeance Taker10/Master of The Unseen Hand4.

Spoiler: Abilities

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Plan for Int/Con up to +6 enh by L15, Tome clear thought+5 for Int 36 at L20
Reflex and Fort saves tend to be about the same due to ability differences

_8 Str
_6 Dex (-2 Imiskari)
16 Con (10 points)
20 Int (16 points, +2 Imiskari) +1 every 4 levels, 25 at L20
_8 Wis
14 Cha (6 points)

Spoiler: Level Table

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Kn Other* is 1 skill rank in each of Knowledge
Architecture & Engineering, Geography, History, Local (Underdark), Nobility & Royalty, Planes, Religion.

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Wizard1	0	0	0	2	28: {+2 CC} Disable Device: 1; {+3} Kn Arcane: 3; {+4} Kn Dungeon: 4; {+4} Kn Nature: 4; {+7} Kn Other*: 7; {+4} Spellcraft: 4; {+4 CC} Survival: 2;	Scribe Spell, Track	Focused Specialist Transmuter, Viper Familiar (Bluff+3)
2nd	Wizard2	1	0	0	3	7: Disable Device: 1; {+2} Kn Arcane: 5; {+1} Kn Dungeon: 5; {+1} Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; {+1} Spellcraft: 5; Survival: 2; {+2} Collector of Stories;
3rd	Wizard3	1	1	1	3	7: {+6} Concentration: 6; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 5; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; {+1} Spellcraft: 6; Survival: 2; Collector of Stories;	Metamagic School Focus Transmutation
4th	Wizard4	2	1	1	4	7: {+1} Concentration: 7; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 5; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; {+6 CC} Sense Motive: 3; Spellcraft: 6; Survival: 2; Collector of Stories;
5th	Wizard5	2	1	1	4	7: {+1} Concentration: 8; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 5; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; {+2 CC} Move Silently: 1; {+2 CC} Sense Motive: 4; Spellcraft: 6; Survival: 2; {+2} Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Quicken Spell
6th	Ruathar1	2	1	3	6	9: Concentration: 8; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 5; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; {+4} Hide: 4; {+4} Move Silently: 5; {+1} Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Survival: 2; Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Twin Spell	Word of Friendship, Gift of the Elves (+1 Longsword), Wizard CL=6
7th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker1	2	1	5	8	9: {+5} Bluff: 5; Concentration: 8; Disable Device: 1; {+4} Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Survival: 2; Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		Target of Vengeance(ToV)+2
8th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker2	3	1	6	9	10: Bluff: 5; Concentration: 8; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; {+5} Listen: 5; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; {+5} Spot: 5; Survival: 2; Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		ToV+3, Poison Use, Wizard CL=7
9th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker3	4	2	6	9	10: {+1} Bluff: 6; {+4} Concentration: 12; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 5; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Spot: 5; {+3} Survival: 5; {+2} Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Arcane Thesis Whirling Blade	ToV+4, Sneak Attack +1d6
10th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker4	5	2	7	10	10: {+3} Bluff: 9; {+1} Concentration: 13; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; {+2} Listen: 7; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; {+2} Spot: 7; {+2} Survival: 7; Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		ToV+5, Far Sense, Wizard CL=8
11th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker5	5	2	7	10	10: {+3} Bluff: 12; {+1} Concentration: 14; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; {+2} Listen: 9; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; {+2} Spot: 9; {+2} Survival: 9; Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		ToV+6, Sneak Attack +2d6
12th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker6	6	3	8	11	10: {+3} Bluff: 15; {+1} Concentration: 15; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; {+2} Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; {+2} Spot: 11; {+2} Survival: 11; Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Practiced Spellcaster	ToV+7, Seeker, Wizard SL=9 CL=12
13th	Master of the Unseen Hand1	7	3	8	13	8: {+2 CC} Bluff: 16; Concentration: 15; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; {+2 CC} Sense Motive: 6; {+2} Spellcraft: 8; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; {+2} Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Wizard CL=13 (from Practiced Spellcaster)	Versatile Telekinesis
14th	Master of the Unseen Hand2	8	3	8	14	8: {+2 CC} Bluff: 17; Concentration: 15; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; {+4 CC} Sense Motive: 8; Spellcraft: 8; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; {+2} False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		Sustained Concentration, Telekinetic Wielder, Telekinesis CL=14 (From MotUH)
15th	Master of the Unseen Hand3	9	4	9	14	8: {+2 CC} Bluff: 18; Concentration: 15; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; {+6 CC} Sense Motive: 11; Spellcraft: 8; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Craft Rod	Full Attack Telekinesis, TK CL=15
16th	Master of the Unseen Hand4	10	4	9	15	9: {+2 CC} Bluff: 19; {+4} Concentration: 19; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 11; {+3} Spellcraft: 11; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		Improved Violent Thrust, Telekinetic Flight, TK CL=16
17th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker7	11	4	9	15	11: {+1} Bluff: 20; {+1} Concentration: 20; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 11; {+7} Sleight of Hand: 7; Spellcraft: 11; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; {+2} Conceal Spellcasting, False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		ToV+8, Sneak Attack +3d6
18th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker8	12	4	10	16	11: {+1} Bluff: 21; {+1} Concentration: 21; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 11; {+9} Sleight of Hand: 16; Spellcraft: 11; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; Conceal Spellcasting, False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;	Somatic Weaponry	ToV+9, Scry Target, Wizard SL=10 CL=14, TK CL=18
19th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker9	12	5	10	16	11: {+1} Bluff: 22; Concentration: 21; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 11; {+6} Sleight of Hand: 22; Spellcraft: 11; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; {+4 CC} Disguise: 2; Conceal Spellcasting, False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		ToV+10, Sneak Attack +4d6
20th	Imiskari Vengeance Taker10	13	5	11	17	11: {+1} Bluff: 23; {+2} Concentration: 23; Disable Device: 1; Kn Arcane: 9; Kn Dungeon: 5; Kn Nature: 5; Kn Other*: 7; Hide: 4; Listen: 11; Move Silently: 5; Sense Motive: 11; Sleight of Hand: 22; Spellcraft: 11; Spot: 11; Survival: 11; {+6 CC} Disguise: 5; {+2} Second Impression, Conceal Spellcasting, False Theurgy, Distracting Taunt, Swift Concentration, Ecstatic Fervor, Collector of Stories;		ToV+11, Death Attack, Wizard SL=11 CL=15, TK CL=19

Spoiler: Spells

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Spells per Day
As a focused specialist, 3 of the spells prepared at each level must be transmutations
Abjuration, Enchantment and Necromancy are banned. Past L5 gear will add a few more slots.

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th
1st	5	5	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	6	6	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	6	6	4	-	-	-	-
4th	6	7	5	-	-	-	-
5th	6	7	5	4	-	-	-
6-7	6	7	6	5	-	-	-
8-9	6	8	7	5	4	-	-
10-11	6	8	7	6	5	-	-
12-15	6	8	8	6	5	4	-
16-17	6	8	8	7	5	4	-
18-19	6	8	8	7	6	5	-
20	6	8	8	8	6	5	4

Spoiler: Class/Feat/Skill Sources

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Complete Arcane
..Twin Spell
Complete Divine
..Practiced Spellcaster
Complete Mage
..Focused Specialist
..Metamagic School Focus
..Somatic Weaponry
Complete Scoundrel
..Skill Tricks
Complete Warrior
..Master of the Unseen Hand
Races of the Wild
..Ruathar
Underdark
..Imiskari Vengeance Taker
..Imiskari Human Subrace

Spoiler: Story and Milestones

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I started as an explorer, sure that my book learning, magical talent and affable nature would help me survive the newly opened world beyond the Seal. As it turns out, "Friendly Face" isn't much help when the nice merchant decides you'd be a more useful slave than tinker or trading partner. Although I'm pretty sure by now the Drow regret that one of theirs made that choice. It didn't end well for the merchant and I always have a bit of extra enthusiasm for any mission involving Drow. I credit my viper with surviving that first encounter. Being able to lie convincingly was necessary for engineering the escape, and Ssthr actually got the coup de grace on the merchant, a fact which he never let me forget once he could speak to me.

Spoiler: L1-5 The Magician

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Spoiler: Image & Divination Qualities

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She is young and confident with broad training in all the arts, ready to engage with the world.

Starting skills are focused around her not getting lost and dying of starvation in the underdark or aboveground wilderness. A broad education with basic survival and her familiar picking up the slack. The skills don't come together well until L2, when synergy bonuses give her viper a +5 to survival and her a +3 on tracking, +5 if the viper can aid another with scent tracking. Also at L2, she gets significantly better at monster identification. After that, skill growth is focused on feat and class prerequisites while growing basic competence as a spellcaster.

Spoiler: Tactics and Role

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In this period she's a primary arcane caster with a utility/buffing focus. Her early experience with Drow made her deeply skeptical of spells that let the opponent save or resist. She was inclined in L1-2 to leverage crafting skills (+5 at anything with proper tools), disable device and cantrips to set up traps, even going so far as to milk her viper for poison, although it was rarely decisive. Her obsession with complex tactics lead her to scribe scrolls for basic party buffs (enlarge, magic weapon, similar) to free spell slots for her plan-of-the-day. With Friendly Face (RoD) and her viper's bluff bonus she also did most interpersonal stuff for her party (underdark races other than drow tend to get cha hits).

At Lvl3 she fell in love with Whirling Blade. Int to attack and damage, no SR no save, affecting a small area. With Blade of Fire (SPC) and later triple weapon capsule retainers with fire/frost/spark capsules (CV) she would eventually acquire masterwork cold iron, mithril and adamantine daggers to back it up, a potion of bless weapon for magic resistant or dr-good and sometimes guild the lily with sonic weapon(SPC) and magic weapon if she had time to buff. Elaborate tactics to set up whirling blade ambushes became the focus of spellcasting, with boring fights managed with scrolls of L1 spells or the occasional grudging spell slot. She also began a long progression of feats that would turn her into a whirling blade goddess...in 6 levels or so.

Level 5 was another significant shift, but this time the spell was Deeper Darkness. Her earlier encounters with Drow got her access to Ebon Eyes(SPC) from a dead wizard's spellbook, and her teammates all having native darkvision encouraged her to research that spell back at lvl3. It turns out that most underdark critters, Grimlocks and devils excluded, don't have a plan for total darkness when your team can see. Her team now looks like a blob of darkness that washes over an area leaving a bunch of dead bodies behind, carved up or smashed or clawed depending on who is doing the killing. For her, the radius is the same as her whirling blade range, so her enemies are always blinded and flatfooted, although spell slots do limit just how many times she can contribute to the offense.

The most consequential decision I made early in my career was to pursue the last survivor of the Drow merchant band that enslaved me. It took years, and by the time I found him again, I'd progressed to using Deeper Darkness and Ebon Eyes to shield my party and give us a massive advantage. I pursued him to a religious outpost, planned and executed an assault with my team and, while mildly disappointed that he died in the outer defenses, followed through and discovered we'd also rescued a group of high ranking surface elves. Not being an idiot, when they suggested we'd risked our lives to rescue them I let them believe it and didn't mention the actual reason we were there. They offered Ruathar training to me, mostly because my lack of stealth even as an unarmored person made them kind of embarrassed for me. I took the training because they also would teach me how to use a better blade.

What I didn't know though, is that my dedication to the death of that guard brought me to the attention of the Imiskari Vengeance Takers, and my Ruathar training is what qualified me to actually join their ranks, as they put an inordinate emphasis on stealth training when anybody who qualifies can just cast invisibility or darkness or disguise themselves or something instead.

Spoiler: L6-11 Princess Sword

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Spoiler: Image & Divination Qualities

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Always looking over her shoulder, she thrives in an environment of chaos, gossip, innuendo and backbiting. While retaining the uncertainty of youth, she is developing the instincts to pick just the right moment to strike and is developing the clarity to cut through deception and rumor.

In this period skills improved by Target of Vengeance get the focus, as she starts to get famous enough that her victims begin to take precautions or strike back.

Spoiler: Tactics and Role

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This period is transitional, as she adapts her IVT training to her preferences and starts shifting out of primary caster role to a gish-assassin. She calculates early that the maximum benefit of the training is tied to launching as many attacks as possible and plans for that. Her mastery of whirling blade is designed to let her quicken and twin whirling blade at level 9, giving her a devastating first strike nova, especially combined with ToV and sneak attack bonuses. Clairvoyance and Divination on her target help with her elaborate plans.

At level 8, she can cast Minor Creation and craft some of the easier plant based poisons (her take 10 with Fox Cunning cast is 18), in vast quantities. Enough so her whole party can go in with poisoned weapons and ammunition, although the divine caster typically uses slow poison on other party members to prevent accidents. She prefers incapacitating poisons when she can get them and greatly prizes drow venom, but against her specific vengeance victim will sometimes use viper poison, to let her familiar help out.

The +1 ruathar longsword she is provided gets equipped with ghostblight capsule retainers (CV), giving her a potent if brief option vs incorporals. As she gets better known and counters to her darkness start appearing she mixes it up with circle of invisibility, disguise self/alter self/bluff and other approaches to set up her devastating first strike.

At lvl 10 with +4 headband, +1 longsword and no other spell support is 3 attacks at +13 to hit against a typically flatfooted and often blind enemy, doing d8+9 (or just shy of 40 damage) vs most enemies and doing d8+d6sneak+9+5Tov=24/attack or 72 damage. Buffs typically boost both more (eg, GMW, sonic weapon, maybe something like prayer, etc)

Telekinesis changed everything of course. Only one precision attack but a dozen main attacks is devastating against my sworn enemies. Although ironically right after I crafted my quicken rod, my target wouldn't come out of hiding unless I agreed to a "fair duel". No spells during, only effects running when we arrive, no flying out of reach, no blocking his vision. Well, he got a lesson in what a mage can do instead of platemail on defense, and what maintaining two TK effects do on offense. I'd fabricated a Kama just in case neither spell beat his spell resistance and when the first failed I cut him up a bit and tripped him with the weapon, stepping back, then stuck the second spell and it ended with him pinned, prone and being sliced up while I watched calmly from out of reach. He got two attacks. One missed, the other didn't do enough damage to break concentration.

Spoiler: L12-15 Telekinetic Sword Master

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Spoiler: Image & Divination Qualities

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Survivors of her attack not on her target list as she gathers up swords. The person in the image is the master of the field, resistance is hopeless.

In this period sense motive catches up to other ToV skills (+10 before ToV bonus), and skill tricks enhancing MotUH and IVT roles are the focus.

Spoiler: Tactics and Role

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At first TK lets her get away with all kinds of shenanigans, like having captured drow crossbow bolts ambush a victim and get the ire pointed at them. Eventually hubris won out. With Fabricate, she can craft and launch 1 size large greatsword per CL (max 15, just under weight limit) or even a massive 300lb sword for the coup de grace. With a lesser rod of chain spell (MIC, 14k), she can GMW all of them (in 2 castings which also buffs party weapons) +3. With shrink item she can keep them around as the size of a size-small dagger (1d3) and with a word have them all burst their sheaths and fall to ground ready to use. She's not above using flame arrow+poison on dr-penetrating ammunition to punch it up. Attack mod for GMW3 at L15 is only a moderate +21(x15 attacks)+whirling bladex1 attack

Defensively she has alter self troglodyte, dragon skin (SPC), greater mage armor(CA)+mithril buckler/ring protection likely around30ish total at lvl15. She can cast two versions of TK ahead of time and maintain them (if using a mount to move), using one for a violent thrust opener and the other for combat maneuvers and weapon attacks with MOTU class features. Her attack mods using combat maneuvers are decent, at L15 she's got +25/20/15/10(with orange ioun stone for CL+1 and headband+6) and her bull rush/trip number is +9, enough for humanoid targets especially with haste for more attempts. Against a ToV target she can try for iteratives to set up sneak attack damage and a moderate attack mix or just use TK, get sneak only 1 time but 15xToV bonus on overall damage

In the story "Master's Touch" (CV) spell made her proficient with the kama.

These days my enemies are so afraid of my swords that they forget to check other approaches such as impersonating the bodyguard. I can kill easily with a typical weapon or quiver of ammo.

Spoiler: L16-20 Queen of Swords

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Spoiler: Image & Divination Qualities

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A typical ToV victim after a TK violent thrust of size large greatswords. The card is one of endings. Very thorough endings.

Added a conceal magic trick and slight of hand, which took a lot of points to make useful, while keeping up with bluff and concentration. Bluff +35 vs ToV unbuffed, +25 vs all others.

Spoiler: Tactics and Role

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L16 gives her caster level for bab on violent thrust and intelligence added to damage. It is a massive boost to that effect. 17-20 boost caster levels and IVT abilities. Somatic Weaponry lets her two-hand whirling blades or combine with a lesser quicken rod+twin spell, when she's doing area control. By level 20 the overkill on a ToV is incredible. (15 attacks at +36 to hit, damage (3d6+4gmw+13int+11ToV)x15+4d6 sneak= roughly 525 damage, -75 per 5 dr.

She can execute scry and die with quicken-rod+teleport+command word to unshrink swords+violent thrust. Or infiltrate and set up a death attack with a quickened cantrip and see if it works before unleashing the pain.

[The Viscount]

Spelled just like it sounds, naturally.

Spoiler: Portrait

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https://www.virginieropars.com/

Spoiler: Story

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Formerly Dril’jhael Vralice had another name and another appearance. She was a drow. But now she is a drider. Horrific hybrid, cursed and jilted. She was betrayed by her sister, framed to Lolth’s rage. She was a priestess, young but promising. Once she was entrusted to make a sacrifice. And her sister did something with the victim. Something very, very wrong. Full Lolth’s wrath fell on Dril’jhael. And now all that she has is her burning thirst for revenge! It has to happen today. Her sister, curse her name, is outside the city, alone. Best opportunity!
But wait! Who is it? Some… human? Attack the sister and almost kill her? That is never going to happen! Two venomous spits and a failed assassin fall near his prey.
- What?.. Sis? Is it you? You saved me…
- Of course I saved you. After all we are sisters, I couldn't let some human kill you. I’ll do it myself!!!
- What? Wait!...
Achievement of the goal knocked Dril’jhael out. She doesn't know how long she's been sitting near sisters dead body, until heard human’s voice.
- It was some… unexpected. I see you both had some story behind. Let me hear it.
And Dril’jhael suddenly told him all. All her anger and pain, all current happiness and voidness. When she ended, the assassin answered.
- I should introduce you to the Retributive Masters, our Lodge is just what you need now.
- You should what? I’ll kill you now and you can’t prevent this.
- Of course you can do this. And you're gonna lose the best opportunity you can get. Your choice.

Spoiler: Stats

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Abilities	Initial	Race / Template	8th	12th	16th	Total
STR	8	4				12
DEX	14	4				18
CON	18	6	1	1	1	27
INT	12	4				16
WIS	8	6				14
CHA	14	6				20

Spoiler: LE Drider Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10

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Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Drider-1	0	0	0	2	20: {+4} Concentration: 4; {+4} Hide: 4; {+2} Listen: 2; {+4} Move Silently: 4; {+2} Spot: 2; {+4 CC} Survival: 2;	Track	Poison, Spell-Like Abilities, Darkvision 60 ft., spell resistance 17, Spells (Sorcerer)
2nd	Drider-2	1	0	0	3	5: {+1} Concentration: 5; {+1} Hide: 5; {+1} Listen: 3; {+1} Move Silently: 5; {+1} Spot: 3; Survival: 2;
3rd	Drider-3	2	1	1	3	5: {+1} Concentration: 6; {+1} Hide: 6; {+1} Listen: 4; {+1} Move Silently: 6; {+1} Spot: 4; Survival: 2;	Spit Venom
4th	Drider-4	3	1	1	4	5: {+1} Concentration: 7; {+1} Hide: 7; {+1} Listen: 5; {+1} Move Silently: 7; {+1} Spot: 5; Survival: 2;
5th	Drider-5	3	1	1	4	5: {+1} Concentration: 8; {+1} Hide: 8; {+1} Listen: 6; {+1} Move Silently: 8; {+1} Spot: 6; Survival: 2;
6th	Drider-6	4	2	2	5	5: {+1} Concentration: 9; {+1} Hide: 9; {+1} Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 9; {+1} Spot: 7; Survival: 2;	Extend Spell
7th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-1	4	2	4	7	7: {+1} Concentration: 10; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 1; {+1} Hide: 10; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 10; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 1; {+1} Spellcraft: 1; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 3;		Target of vengeance
8th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-2	5	2	5	8	7: {+1} Concentration: 11; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 2; {+1} Hide: 11; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 11; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 2; {+1} Spellcraft: 2; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 4;		Poison use
9th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-3	6	3	5	8	7: {+1} Concentration: 12; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 3; {+1} Hide: 12; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 12; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 3; {+1} Spellcraft: 3; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 5;	Poison Spell	Sneak attack +1d6
10th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-4	7	3	6	9	7: {+1} Concentration: 13; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 4; {+1} Hide: 13; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 13; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 4; {+1} Spellcraft: 4; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 6;		Far sense
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-5	7	3	6	9	7: {+1} Concentration: 14; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 5; {+1} Hide: 14; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 14; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 5; {+1} Spellcraft: 5; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 7;		Sneak attack +2d6
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-6	8	4	7	10	7: {+1} Concentration: 15; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 6; {+1} Hide: 15; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 15; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 6; {+1} Spellcraft: 6; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 8;	Invisible Spell	Seeker
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-7	9	4	7	10	7: {+1} Concentration: 16; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 7; {+1} Hide: 16; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 16; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 7; {+1} Spellcraft: 7; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 9;		Sneak attack +3d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-8	10	4	8	11	7: {+1} Concentration: 17; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; {+1} Hide: 17; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 17; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 8; {+1} Spellcraft: 8; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 10;		Scry target
15th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-9	10	5	8	11	7: {+1} Concentration: 18; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 9; {+1} Hide: 18; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 18; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 9; {+1} Spellcraft: 9; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 11;	Venomous Strike	Sneak attack +4d6
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker-10	11	5	9	12	7: {+1} Concentration: 19; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 10; {+1} Hide: 19; Listen: 7; {+1} Move Silently: 19; {+1} Sleight of Hand: 10; {+1} Spellcraft: 10; Spot: 7; {+1} Survival: 12;		Death attack

Level	Class	0th	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
1st	Sorcerer	5 (4) Launch Bolt, Detect Magic, Touch of Fatigue, Detect Poison	3 (2) Chill Touch, Spell Flower
2nd	Sorcerer	6 (5) Prestidigitation	4 (2)
3rd	Sorcerer	6 (5)	5 (3) Corrosive Grasp
4th	Sorcerer	6 (6) Silent Portal	6 (3)	3 (1) Spectral Hand
5th	Sorcerer	6 (6)	6 (4) True Casting	4 (2) Combust
6th	Sorcerer	6 (7) Arcane Mark	6 (4)	5 (2)	3 (1) Girallon’s Blessing
8th	Sorcerer	6 (7)	6 (5) Remove Scent	6 (3) Heroics	4 (2) Shivering Touch
10th	Sorcerer	6 (8) Disrupt Undead	6 (5)	6 (3)	5 (2)	3 (1) Invisibility, Greater
12th	Sorcerer	6 (8)	6 (5)	6 (4) Belker Claws	6 (3) Mind Poison	4 (2) Know Vulnerabilities
14th	Sorcerer	6 (9) Electric Jolt	6 (5)	6 (4)	6 (3)	5 (2)	3 (1) Night’s Caress
16th	Sorcerer	6 (9)	6 (5)	6 (5) Wracking Touch	6 (4) Spider Poison	6 (3) Minor Creation	4 (2) Teleport

Spell slots* (Spell known)
* Not included bonus spells from high Cha.

Spoiler: ECL 10

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Dril’jhael Vralice is almost regular drider. But somehow she didn't fell into chaos. Instead her thirst for revenge upped her discipline on another level. She like her poison and touch spells.
With Spectral Hand spell she can touch somebody far of herself. Even around the corner if using clairvoyance.
Spell Flower and Girallon’s Blessing together allow to have selection between up to four touch spell at once. With liberal reading of Spectral Hand it can be used to deliver all four in one round. With appropriate penalties for multiweapon fighting of course.
If she need, she can deliver her poison via spit or, if target is too far, via Launch Bolt cantrip.

Spoiler: ECL 15

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Dril’jhael Vralice is Vengeance Taker now. She no longer afraid of poisoning herself and now can deliver poison via every damaging touch spell. Plus, she has Heroics spell. With it she can get Two-Weapon Fighting feat before casting Girallon’s Blessing. This should give her Multi-Weapon Fighting feat after. Also she has Greater Invisibility and Remove Scent for more stealth and Shivering Touch as new option for touch attacks.

Spoiler: ECL 20

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Look how many all Dril’jhael has now. Invisible Spell for Spectral Hand and touch spell if need lets her take full advantage of her sneak attack, Venomous Strike, and Death attack.
More touch spells to do Dril’jhael's job. Know Vulnerabilities for study her target. Teleport for Scry and Die tactics. Minor Creation for more different poisons. Yes, them shouldn't work with Poison Spell, but Launch Bolt still is with Dril’jhael.

Spoiler: Spectral Hand and Sneak attacks

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Spoiler: Sneak attack distance

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I remind you that 30 ft distance limit apply only on ranged attacks, but Spectral Hand touch spell attacks are melee and can be Sneak at any distance.

Spoiler: Invisible Spell

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Invisible Spectral Hand should always attack as sneak attack.

Spoiler: Some tactics

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Spell Flower should always be casted with Extend Spell.
Dril’jhael's poison due Spit Venom is contact, too. And she apply it to her spiked gauntlets or similar weapon. Or can spit in target's drink or meal.
Chill Touch is most useable spell. It allow multiple touches with single cast and does Str damage. This is good addition to Str-damage poison.
Night’s Caress in most cases is anti-undead tool. Yes, it works well against living, too, but for them are other methods.

Spoiler: Open question

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Poison Spell and ability damaging spells. They do or don't work together? I don't know. I can find both pro and contra. So I don't rely on this, but should mention.

Spoiler: Sources

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Drider - SRD, MM1
Imaskari Vengeance Taker - Secret Ingredient
Track - PHB
Extend Spell - PHB
Spit Venom - Serpent Kingdoms
Poison Spell - Drow of the Underdark
Venomous Strike - DotU
Invisible Spell - CityScape
Night's Caress - Spell Compendium
Know Vulnerabilities - SC
Mind Poison - SC
Girallon’s Blessing - SC
Heroics - SC
Belker Claw - SC
Combust - SC
Remove Scent - SC
Corrosive Grasp - SC
Spell Flower - SC
Launch Bolt - SC
Electric Jolt - SC
Wracking Touch - SC
Spider Poison - Magic of Faerun
Shivering Touch - Frostburn
True Casting - Complete Mage
other spells - PHB

[The Viscount]

Goblins and dragons, like peanut butter and jelly.

LuckLuck

Spoiler: Story and Play Notes

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The Chosen of Tiamat.

That was the name given to his litter of goblins. He and his brother came out big, strong, fast to learn pushing out all but his sister, who they both liked too well to starve. Dragonrider they said. Two to be chosen, for the black and the green.

But...he just didn't hate elves enough. Lagged his brother at tracking and stealth and was hopeless at scouting enemies. Strong in arms and a good rider, he also failed the tests of faith and magnetism. They even taught him to read hoping he'd be a wizard, as one dragonrider was supposed to have arcane might and it sure wasn't his brother. But the magical writings made no sense. "Just a warrior" they said. Send him to the Worg Riders. Maybe his sister will cast spells eventually.

Worg Riders are scouts, and he was still terrible at that. But he was dangerous in melee, could draw a stronger bow than his peers and could sometimes make just impossible shots. His squad found a use for him, he was the point of the spear and the one to kill enemy scouts once spotted. And a poor tracker is better than no tracker. Asked to explain those impossible shots "Just lucky. I have a lucky target, and I shout the lucky word and I never miss. But calling on so much luck is slow. I learned how to whisper to my lance and bow too, and they are lucky too. But not very long."

So his war name became LuckLuck. And while he wasn't well liked, his squad also admitted he had good ideas sometimes, if strange. Also while he wasn't a great tracker, any tracker is better than no tracker, so he earned his food.

Spoiler: L1-2

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LuckLuck is at this stage a goblin Worg Rider (or Riding Dog or Wolf rider if not part of a warband, but a normal party), who has strength instead of wisdom and tracking instead of spot and listen.

He uses his magic to enhance his weapons and his shots, mostly. He hits decently hard, quite hard for a goblin, but his mount is as dangerous as he is.

He knows he's something more, the cantrips he casts when he's supposed to be scouting tells him so. But he can't muster proper dragon breath, just little blobs of acid or rays of cold or a little light. By the time he realizes he can make those little zaps not hurt him, the Tiamat priests no longer think he's interesting and he's tired of failing their tests.

His sister failed the tests and some stupid bugbear got teamed with the green dragon. His perfect brother of course is now a dragonrider and doing important work against elves in a swamp. LuckLuck thought maybe he could become a Blademaster, as nobody cared if they got distracted and didn't notice Human cavalry or whatever. But they laughed at him as too small, even though he had no trouble figuring out how to stab with both hands, although spiky armor works better for close combat when you are also using a bow and lance.

He is getting a bit worried though. His last lance charge shot lightning through his enemy. But he still can't breathe lightning. What is going in? Cold, Acid, Lightning. How many dragons did his ancestors sleep with? And why is it all coming out of fingers or weapons, not properly from his mouth?

Spoiler: L3-5

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With both TWF and channeling shocking grasp (especially with a lance charge) his offense is getting more potent. In a real party he might take obscuring mist before dimension hop, depending on what it needed. As a Red Hand of Doom goblin, his higher level spells don't come out until the crisis at L5

A major inflection point in his power is when he can quicken a dimension hop to get into TWF position, but that will matter more at level 6, when his attacks double.

The Green Dragon is Dead and so is the stupid Bugbear who was too big to ride it, even if he could fire lightning bolts. He's pretty sure he was supposed to be that dragonrider, with his lightning lance, but with the dragon dead it hardly matters anymore.

Stupid humans broke the bridge, so his squad was sent through the mountains to raid and burn, till the big army could make a new one. Then it happened. They rode their grass-eating giant critters at shocking speed and a blast of flame seared his squad, followed by arrows aimed at the wolves. LuckLuck wasn't badly hurt - goblin burning parties are frequently careless so he had cast a luck charm against fire, but all the wolves were dead, his squad was dead or dying and the stupid dragon-sorcerer-jerk was out of position with her stupid hobgoblins and we are all going to die before we get out of here.

Tiamat Fry That. Waving his arms in rage and screaming incoherently, a cloud of smoke surrounded himself and his poor squad mates. He yelped in surprise and found himself in a dark alleyway out of line of fire of everything.

Doing what goblins do best, he hid, and watched as the humans were seared with lightning and peppered with arrows from the other squad. And watched in horror as they healed, and destroyed the sorcerer and her minions. Two of his squad mates survived though. They crawled out through the smoke and confusion to join him. When they reported back days later, their Captain was shocked that they'd survived. "Those are the humans and elves that killed the dragon. You are well named". His squad mates kept their mouths shut, just nodding in agreement.

Spoiler: L6-10

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In this period, his duskblade spells increasingly either support setting up ambushes or making his attacks more deadly. He moves away from archery and more into lance charge followed by TWF, mostly with armor spikes as secondary and sometimes primary weapon. He usually doesn't fill both hands with a weapons, wanting one free for spellcasting, but a 2-handed weapon like a lance is fine, as he can grip or release grip with one hand as a free action.

Another major power inflection point comes at level 9 with arcane strike and Greater Magic Weapon. His quick spells are still usually used with dimension hop to set up full attack actions, or for emergency escapes followed by swift expeditious retreat and raw stealth from a new position, with swift invisibility as a backup if he's already used his quick casting for the day.

In this tier he can cast defensively or while riding a Worg pretty reliably.

A note on Blade of Blood. You can't channel that spell but you can cast it on a weapon before a fight and that first surprise round attack that you're adding Shocking Grasp or Vampiric Touch to with a channel can also do an extra 3d6 damage, and if using vampiric touch, the -5hp isn't a bother. Any time you can cast a damage buff before a fight that will apply in surprise round is gold for an assassin.

His brother is dead. For all his training against elves and humans, it was that half-orc with the gigantic bow that took him down, the same one that killed LuckLuck's Worg, the only creature who ever really seemed to like him.

LuckLuck spent the approach to Brindle chasing down slaves, breaking up pockets of resistance. His old squad mates are all dead but he's gathered odds and sods of Red Hand stragglers with him and his unit had some impressive wins. When asked for a reward, he said "I want to hunt and kill the Halforc, who slew my dragonrider brother and helped kill the Black and the Green. Let me go into that city when we breach the walls, and I will kill him for you."

The Wyrmlord shrugged. LuckLuck wasn't important, and he might even succeed. "Granted".

Two days later.....

The Red Hand host was defeated, the Wyrmlord and the Red Dragon dead. His squad was dead again. LuckLuck doesn't think much of Tiamat these days, she seems like a bad planner. But that halforc is not just dead, his head is in LuckLuck's bag. Lets see that stupid sun priest heal THAT.

As he settled the head to cook in the fire, hoping to make a brain stew of his foe, a Human snuck up on him. LuckLuck sighed, this just keeps happening. But he didn't get stabbed, or shot. The Human just tossed light balls in front of him to dance and get his attention, while staying under what LuckLuck had to admit was very good cover, and in a thicket it would be risky to dimension hop into. The Human spoke strangely, even for a human, but what it had to say was of interest.

"We couldn't help but notice your excellent revenge against the slayer of your brother. You were wasted in the Red Hand. Would you be interested in learning how to do that sort of thing better? All we ask is you kill people who need killing from time to time, but you are free to choose your own vendettas most days."

Spoiler: L11-15

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IVT has significant synergy with a TWF attacker who has 7 attacks (with haste boots) by level 12, plus a quickened dimension hop to get all of those attacks after sneaking to close enough range with quite respectable stealth skills and/or swift invisibility and/or a normal dimension hop.

He can't force the sneak attack barring going first in initiative but has a solid dexterity, pretty good odds of setting up an ambush, his weapons can be poisoned for the first two strikes and arcane strike+Target of Vengeance is no joke even without sneak attack.

With two quickened dimension hops a day, he can ambush a single guy, even surrounded by allies, and has a fair chance of getting a kill and getting away, although obviously he's not averse to just poisoning a bedtime drink with his talents rather than going full blender if the odds don't seem good. He doesn't fight with a mount anymore, but might have one moderately nearby to speed a getaway once he's broken contact.

In this tier his concentration, with level appropriate constitution item, is sufficient to cast in a grapple.

At level 15 he gets enough experience going after hard targets to learn how to stealth around scent, blindsense and similar.

He does sometimes work with others, and can set up an even more nasty ambush with a quick dimension hop followed by regroup if the range isn't too long, relying on his party members to do the work. Not a tactic vs his ToV target, but good on other days.

LuckLuck finds it strange to be part of a society where he is actually respected. He doesn't really understand the concept of "righting wrongs" but he does understand "needs killing" and they don't seem to get too upset as his interpretations of that. They have room for people like him in their organization, and they aren't stupid enough to do things that get a party of adventurers crashing into their home. Unlike Tiamat's dumb priests.

Spoiler: L16-20

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In this tear, LuckLuck builds in long range assassination into his toolkit, which is why he finally starts raising his spot skill, and likely backs it up with magic items.

At first, it is quick invisible/dimension door next to a victim in surprise round, then blender full attack+quick dimension door out. But he also starts working in long range archery, for enemies that have obnoxious things like anticipate teleport or dimensional lock operating. 4 iterative attacks + haste attack + ToV + GMW + keen + oils of whatever will do the most damage (flame arrow align weapon, poison, whatever) are still pretty dangerous. At level 20 he adds the following sequence.

Surprise round quick acid arrow, acid arrow. Round 1 quick acid arrow, full attack from bow. Odds are enemy dies, and has a bunch of rounds of acid destroying his body as his retainers look on in horror. For this sort of thing he would add a mount back in, using it to move out of cover to shoot and end under cover.

Retributive Master. LuckLuck likes the sound of that. His mentor finally retired and now LuckLuck gets to give orders. Sure the others will likely overrule him sometimes. He still doesn't understand what motivates those strange humans and their allies. But LuckLuck knows killing and vengeance pretty good.

Spoiler: Character Build Tables

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So - I thought it would be fun to write up an IVT who knows nothing about magic or really anything else (spellcraft, kn skills blah blah) but actually makes use of the required entry skills. I also thought a full bab casting class with TWF tree as soon as possible would have some good synergy when IVT levels kick in.

The whole RHOD Goblin....that came later. I kept trying to do Strongheart Halfling or maybe that Laika dog race but "Goblin Goblin Gobbbbblinnnn" kept intruding in my head. So that is what I did.

Spoiler: Stub

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LE Goblin Duskblade10/Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10

Spoiler: Abilities

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Abilities	Initial	Race (Goblin)	4th	8th	12th	16th	20th
STR	16	-2	1	1		1	1
DEX	16	2			1
CON	14
INT	14
WIS	8
CHA	8	-2

Level \ Abilities	STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
1st	14	18	14	14	8	6
2nd	14	18	14	14	8	6
3rd	14	18	14	14	8	6
4th	15	18	14	14	8	6
5th	15	18	14	14	8	6
6th	15	18	14	14	8	6
7th	15	18	14	14	8	6
8th	16	18	14	14	8	6
9th	16	18	14	14	8	6
10th	16	18	14	14	8	6
11th	16	18	14	14	8	6
12th	16	19	14	14	8	6
13th	16	19	14	14	8	6
14th	16	19	14	14	8	6
15th	16	19	14	14	8	6
16th	17	19	14	14	8	6
17th	17	19	14	14	8	6
18th	17	19	14	14	8	6
19th	17	19	14	14	8	6
20th	18	19	14	14	8	6

Spoiler: Level Table

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Goblin Move 30' Darkvision, Size Small (Hide+4, Attack+1, AC+1, Combat Maneuver-4), Move Silently+4, Speak Goblin, Common, Draconic, Elvish

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Duskblade 1	1	2	0	2	16: {+4 CC} Hide: 2; {+4 CC} Move Silently: 2; {+4} Ride: 4; {+4 CC} Survival: 2;	Tracking	Arcane Attunement, Armored Mage (Light)
2nd	Duskblade 2	2	3	0	3	4: {+4} Concentration: 4; Hide: 2; Move Silently: 2; Ride: 4; Survival: 2;	Combat Casting (bonus)
3rd	Duskblade 3	3	3	1	3	4: Concentration: 4; {+2 CC} Hide: 3; {+2 CC} Move Silently: 3; Ride: 4; Survival: 2;	Two Weapon Fighting	Arcane Channeling
4th	Duskblade 4	4	4	1	4	4: {+2} Concentration: 6; Hide: 3; Move Silently: 3; Ride: 4; {+2 CC} Survival: 3;		Armored Mage (Medium)
5th	Duskblade 5	5	4	1	4	4: Concentration: 6; {+2 CC} Hide: 4; {+2 CC} Move Silently: 4; Ride: 4; Survival: 3;		Quick Cast 1/d
6th	Duskblade 6	6	5	2	5	4: {+2} Concentration: 8; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 4; Ride: 4; {+2 CC} Survival: 4;	Improved Two Weapon Fighting	Spell Power+2
7th	Duskblade 7	7	5	2	5	4: Concentration: 8; {+2 CC} Hide: 5; {+2 CC} Move Silently: 5; Ride: 4; Survival: 4;		Armored Mage (Hvy Shield)
8th	Duskblade 8	8	6	2	6	4: {+2} Concentration: 10; Hide: 5; Move Silently: 5; Ride: 4; {+2 CC} Survival: 5;
9th	Duskblade 9	9	6	3	6	4: Concentration: 10; {+2 CC} Hide: 6; {+2 CC} Move Silently: 6; Ride: 4; Survival: 5;	Arcane Strike
10th	Duskblade 10	10	7	3	7	4: {+2} Concentration: 12; Hide: 6; Move Silently: 6; Ride: 4; {+2 CC} Survival: 6;		Quick Cast 2/d
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 1	10	7	5	9	6: Concentration: 12; {+2} Hide: 8; {+2} Move Silently: 8; Ride: 4; Survival: 6; {+2} Ecstatic Fervor;		Target of Vengeance 3
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 2	11	7	6	10	6: Concentration: 12; Hide: 8; Move Silently: 8; Ride: 4; {+6 CC} Perform (Dance): 3; Survival: 6; Ecstatic Fervor;	Greater Two Weapon Fighting	ToV4 Poison Use Duskblade Casting 11
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 3	12	8	6	10	6: Concentration: 12; Hide: 8; Move Silently: 8; Ride: 4; {+4 CC} Perform (Dance): 5; Survival: 6; {+2} Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;		ToV5 Sneak Attack 1d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 4	13	8	7	11	6: Concentration: 12; {+3} Hide: 11; {+3} Move Silently: 11; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;		ToV6 Far Sense Duskblade Casting 12
15th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 5	13	8	7	11	6: Concentration: 12; {+3} Hide: 14; {+3} Move Silently: 14; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;	Darkstalker	ToV7 Sneak Attack 2d6
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 6	14	9	8	12	6: {+2} Concentration: 14; {+2} Hide: 16; {+2} Move Silently: 16; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;		ToV8 Seeker Duskblade Casting 13
17th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 7	15	9	8	12	6: Concentration: 14; {+3} Hide: 19; {+3} Move Silently: 19; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;		ToV9 Sneak Attack 3d6
18th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 8	16	9	9	13	6: Concentration: 14; {+2} Hide: 21; {+2} Move Silently: 21; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; {+2} Spot: 2; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;	Versatile Spellcaster	ToV10 Scry Target Duskblade Casting 14
19th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 9	16	10	9	13	6: Concentration: 14; {+1} Hide: 22; {+1} Move Silently: 22; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; {+4} Spot: 6; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;		ToV11 Sneak Attack 5d6
20th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10	17	10	10	14	6: Concentration: 14; {+1} Hide: 23; {+1} Move Silently: 23; Ride: 4; Perform (Dance): 5; {+4} Spot: 10; Survival: 6; Shrouded Dance, Ecstatic Fervor;		ToV12 Death Attack Duskblade Casting 15

Spoiler: Spellcasting

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Note: Arcane Attunement adds 5 uses/day (total) of Dancing Lights, Detect Magic, Flare or Ghost Sound as a SLA, save DC=9 (based on cha, not int)

Note: There are only 4 duskblade cantrips (Acid Splash, Disrupt Undead, Ray of Frost and Touch of Fatigue) All 4 are known at Level 1.

Level	Attunements	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Spells Known
1st	5	3	3	0	0	0	Magic Weapon,Stand (PH2), Swift Expeditious Retreat(SC), Truestrike
2nd	5	4	4	0	0	0	Resist Energy
3rd	5	5	5	0	0	0	Shocking Grasp
4th	5	6	6	0	0	0	Obscuring Mist
5th	5	6	6	3	0	0	Dimension Hop (PH2)
6th	5	6	7	4	0	0	Swift Invisiblity (SC)
7th	5	6	7	6	0	0	See Invisible
8th	5	6	8	7	0	0	Swift Fly(SC)
9th	5	6	8	7	2	0	Gr Magic Weapon swap Magic Weapon for Blade of Blood
10-11	5	6	9	8	3	0	Vampiric Touch
12-13	5	6	9	8	5	0	Regroup (PH2)
14-15	5	6	9	9	6	0	Keen Edge
16-17	5	6	10	9	6	2	Dimension Door
18-19	5	6	10	9	7	3	Dispel Magic
20th	5	6	10	9	7	5	Acid Arrow

Spoiler: Sources

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Duskblade: Players Handbook II
Imaskari Vengeance Taker: Underdark


Arcane Strike: Complete Warrior
Skill Tricks: Complete Scoundrel
Darkstalker: Lords of Madness
Versatile Spellcaster: Races of the Dragon

Noncore Spells: Players Handbook II or Spell Compendium, as noted

[The Viscount]

Which hit song by the band James does this make you think of?

Good morn to our sorcerer, James,
Whose trust was seduced by some claims:
The good old Assembly
Made him feel all trembly
With hopes of the power of names.

However, the names that are true
Are ridiculous, leaving him blue.
Although out of spite
He would still seek their might,
Ne'er utterance would young James do.

The truenaming left him disjointed
Despondent and so disappointed
This e'er-vengeful creature
Laid low his first teacher
And then his next target appointed.

As it turns out, the Masters Retributive
Found the efforts of young James contributive.
This backstory tragic
Fueled study of magic
And to him more justice attributive.

And so, like a wily old fox,
James learned to think out of the box.
He would learn in a dream
Of the target supreme
After which his foe's truename he'd dox.

"Alright, now you listen here, Bob!
I will turn your ass into a blob!
The sins of your past
Make this easy to cast
And you'll vanish with nary a sob!"

Good morn to our sorcerer, James,
So awash with the power of names.
Should you draw his ire
Go build your own pyre
And gently consent to the flames.

---

James
Lawful evil human
Human paragon 1 / Sorcerer 1 / Imaskari vengeance taker 10 / Virtuoso 1 / Sublime chord 1 / Keeper of the cerulean sign 6
Member of the Paragnostic Assembly

Spoiler: Tables

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Abilities	Initial	Race / Template	4th	8th	12th	16th	20th
STR	12
DEX	12
CON	14
INT	16
WIS	8
CHA	16		1	1	1	1	1

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Human paragon 1	0	0	0	2	32: {+4} Truespeak: 4; {+4} Perform (Limerick): 4; {+4} Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; {+4} Knowledge (planes): 4; {+4} Listen: 4; {+4} Hide: 4; {+4} Move Silently: 4; {+2} Diplomacy: 2; {+2} Survival: 2;	Track, Primitive Caster	Adaptive learning (Truespeak as permanent class skill)
2nd	Sorcerer 1	0	0	0	4	6: Truespeak: 4; Perform (Limerick): 4; {+4} Knowledge (arcana): 4; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; Listen: 4; Hide: 4; {+2 CC} Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 2; Survival: 2;		Divine companion, spells, eff sorc level 1
3rd	Imaskari vengeance taker 1	0	0	2	6	8: {+2} Truespeak: 6; {+2 CC} Perform (Limerick): 5; Knowledge (arcana): 4; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; Listen: 4; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; {+4 CC} Diplomacy: 4; Survival: 2;	Sudden Extend	Target of vengeance
4th	Imaskari vengeance taker 2	1	0	3	7	8: {+1} Truespeak: 7; {+2 CC} Perform (Limerick): 6; {+1} Knowledge (arcana): 5; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; Listen: 4; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; {+4 CC} Intimidate: 2; Survival: 2;		Poison use, eff sorc level 2
5th	Imaskari vengeance taker 3	2	1	3	7	8: {+1} Truespeak: 8; {+2 CC} Perform (Limerick): 7; {+1} Knowledge (arcana): 6; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; Listen: 4; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; {+4 CC} Intimidate: 4; Survival: 2;		Sneak attack +1d6
6th	Imaskari vengeance taker 4	3	1	4	8	8: {+1} Truespeak: 9; {+2 CC} Perform (Limerick): 8; Knowledge (arcana): 6; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; {+5} Listen: 9; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Survival: 2;	Dreamtelling	Far sense, eff sorc level 3
7th	Imaskari vengeance taker 5	3	1	4	8	8: {+1} Truespeak: 10; {+4 CC} Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 6; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; {+1} Listen: 10; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; {+2} Profession (astrologer): 2; Survival: 2;		Sneak attack +2d6
8th	Imaskari vengeance taker 6	4	2	5	9	8: {+1} Truespeak: 11; Perform (Limerick): 10; {+5} Knowledge (arcana): 11; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; {+1} Listen: 11; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; {+1} Profession (astrologer): 3; Survival: 2;		Seeker, eff sorc level 4
9th	Imaskari vengeance taker 7	5	2	5	9	8: {+1} Truespeak: 12; Perform (Limerick): 10; {+1} Knowledge (arcana): 12; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; {+1} Listen: 12; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; {+2} Spellcraft: 2; {+3} Profession (astrologer): 6; Survival: 2;	Craft Wondrous Item	Sneak attack +3d6
10th	Virtuoso 1	5	2	5	11	10: Truespeak: 12; Perform (Limerick): 10; {+2 CC} Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 4; Knowledge (planes): 4; {+2 CC} Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; {+2} Sense Motive: 2; {+4} Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Survival: 2;		Bardic music (fascinate), virtuoso performance (persuasive song)
11th	Sublime chord 1	5	2	5	13	8: Truespeak: 12; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; {+4} Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; Knowledge (planes): 4; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; {+4 CC} Sense Motive: 4; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Survival: 2;		Bardic lore, bardic music, spells, eff SC level 1 (CL 5)
12th	Imaskari vengeance taker 8	6	2	6	14	8: {+1} Truespeak: 13; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; Knowledge (planes): 4; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; {+2 CC} Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; {+5} Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2;	Aberration Banemagic	Scry target, eff SC level 2 (CL 6)
13th	Imaskari vengeance taker 9	6	3	6	14	8: {+1} Truespeak: 14; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; {+4 CC} Knowledge (planes): 6; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+1} Concentration: 1; {+2 CC} Knowledge (local): 1;		Sneak attack +4d6
14th	Imaskari vengeance taker 10	7	3	7	15	8: {+1} Truespeak: 15; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; {+4 CC} Knowledge (planes): 8; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+1} Concentration: 2; Knowledge (local): 1; {+2 CC} Knowledge (nature): 1;		Death attack, eff SC level 3 (CL 7)
15th	Keeper of the cerulean sign 1	7	3	7	17	10: {+3} Truespeak: 18; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; {+7} Knowledge (planes): 15; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; Concentration: 2; Knowledge (local): 1; Knowledge (nature): 1;	Venomous Strike	Cerulean focus, detect aberrant taint, eff SC level 4 (CL 8)
16th	Keeper of the cerulean sign 2	8	3	7	18	10: {+1} Truespeak: 19; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; {+4} Knowledge (planes): 19; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+5} Concentration: 7; Knowledge (local): 1; Knowledge (nature): 1;		Greater banemagic 1/day, eff SC level 5 (CL 9)
17th	Keeper of the cerulean sign 3	8	4	8	18	10: {+1} Truespeak: 20; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 8; {+1} Knowledge (planes): 20; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+8} Concentration: 15; Knowledge (local): 1; Knowledge (nature): 1;		Word of revelation, eff SC level 6 (CL 10)
18th	Keeper of the cerulean sign 4	9	4	8	19	10: {+1} Truespeak: 21; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; {+2} Knowledge (dungeoneering): 10; {+1} Knowledge (planes): 21; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+4} Concentration: 19; Knowledge (local): 1; Knowledge (nature): 1; {+2} Collector of Stories;	Sculpt Spell	Greater banemagic 2/day, eff SC level 7 (CL 11)
19th	Keeper of the cerulean sign 5	9	4	8	19	10: {+1} Truespeak: 22; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; Knowledge (dungeoneering): 10; {+1} Knowledge (planes): 22; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+3} Concentration: 22; {+5} Knowledge (local): 6; Knowledge (nature): 1; Collector of Stories;		Portal warding, eff SC level 8 (CL 12)
20th	Keeper of the cerulean sign 6	10	5	9	20	10: {+1} Truespeak: 23; Perform (Limerick): 10; Knowledge (arcana): 13; {+3} Knowledge (dungeoneering): 13; {+1} Knowledge (planes): 23; Listen: 13; Hide: 4; Move Silently: 5; Diplomacy: 4; Intimidate: 4; Sense Motive: 5; Spellcraft: 6; Profession (astrologer): 6; Gather Information: 5; Survival: 2; {+1} Concentration: 23; {+4} Knowledge (local): 10; Knowledge (nature): 1; Collector of Stories;		Greater banemagic 3/day, eff SC level 9 (CL 13)

Spoiler: Spells per day

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Eff sorcerer level	ECL	0th	1st	2nd
1st	2	5	3	—
2nd	4	6	4	—
3rd	6	6	5	—
4th	8	6	6	3

Eff Sublime chord level	ECL	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	11	2	1	—	—	—	—
2nd	12	2	2	—	—	—	—
3rd	14	3	2	1	—	—	—
4th	15	3	3	2	—	—	—
5th	16	3	3	2	1	—	—
6th	17	4	3	3	2	—	—
7th	18	4	4	3	2	1	—
8th	19	4	4	3	3	2	—
9th	20	4	4	4	3	2	1

Spoiler: Spells known

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Eff sorcerer level	ECL	0th	1st	2nd
1st	2	Detect magic, sonic snap, prestidigitation, mending	Power word pain, ancient knowledge
2nd	4	Mage hand
3rd	6		Scramble true position
4th	8	Ghost sound		Cloud of knives

Eff Sublime chord level	ECL	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	11	Warp truename, legion of sentinels, invoke the cerulean sign	Storm touch
2nd	12	Beckon monster	Mislead
3rd	14			Greater anticipate teleportation
4th	15		Overland flight	Otto's irresistible dance
5th	16				Arcane spellsurge
6th	17		Toxic weapon	Lesser dragonshape	Greater teleport
7th	18					Superior invisibility
8th	19			Disintegrate	Finger of death	Mind blank
9th	20						Unname

Spoiler: Why do these spells matter?

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Spell	Source/page	Why's it cool?
Cantrips	Varies	They're cantrips, whatever, don't waste my time.
Power word pain	Races of the Dragon pg 116	This is important for two reasons. First, it's just a very powerful spell for a very long time. It's nearly unavoidable damage for the first large portion of the game, and it's repeatable (so it triggers Aberrant Banemagic multiple times, once that matters). Second, it has no somatic or material component, so it can be given +2 CL via Primitive Caster. This allows for CL 3 right away, letting us put three copies of it (and thus three spell levels) into the divine companion, thereby meeting the requirement for 3rd level spells early on.
Ancient knowledge	Magic of Eberron pg 94	Researching personal truenames requires Knowledge checks, and this is a nice easy +5 bonus to that! Also helps with Dreamtelling.
Scramble true position	Tome of Magic pg 258	To be blunt, this spell is simply entertaining. Break up formations, knock people prone, maybe get lucky and shunt them somewhere hazardous… it's simply fun! It's also a great Sculpt candidate later on. Oh, and I'm going to leave you in anticipation, but there's more coming.
Cloud of knives	PHB2 pg 107	This spell involves making multiple attack rolls on multiple rounds with a relatively minor investment of actions up front. That means triggering Target of Vengeance bonus damage and sneak attack multiple times (and potentially triggering Banemagic multiple times) for just a single action invested. Remember that since this spell makes an attack roll, it's a weaponlike spell.
Warp truename	Tome of Magic pg 261	This is kind of key to one of our core tricks against a chosen target. Not only is it a really nasty debuff, but forcing the target to be an aberration means that Banemagic (and, eventually, Greater Banemagic) will apply, thereby ramping up damage and save DCs. What delightful vengeance!
Legion of sentinels	PHB2 pg 116 plus errata (http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/errata)	I love this dang spell. It's strong enough that I don't mind one bit giving up a 4th for it despite it being a 3rd. Note that the errata gives some key numbers. The spell's making attack rolls, so it's a weaponlike spell and the weaponlike spell rules apply. The spell explicitly gives flanking, so that's a good sneak attack trigger. Sculpt Spell means a bigger (and more advantageous) area, and that means more attacks from this spell. Beckon monster will force targets to come closer and provoke from this spell. It's just great start to finish. Oh, and don't forget that spells exist in three dimensions! Nothing says that the sentinels have to be on solid ground, so (assuming a Medium foe), the squares 5' above ground level will also contain sentinels that can get in their swings.
Invoke the cerulean sign	Lords of Madness pg 211	The primary purpose of this spell is to allow us to meet the prereq for keeper of the cerulean sign (since this spell is needed in crafting the cerulean sign item, and keeper of the cerulean sign requires that we be able to do that unaided). Of course, since warp truename forces a target to become an aberration, that also forces them to be affected by this spell, if you feel like it. Not a primary strategy, but an option nonetheless. Since it has no verbal component, Primitive Caster gives an easy +1 CL (or even +2 if you feel like messing around with the rare herbs, but that's kind of annoying).
Beckon monster	Tome of Magic pg 256	Forced movement is rare in this edition, so that's already fun before we even start on any combos. Forced movement that eats the target's actions is even more fun. And when you've got up a legion of sentinels around the target and any movement is going to trigger all sorts of counterattacks? Well that's about as nice as it gets! Note that this doesn't require a personal truename, so it even works against folks other than your chosen target.
Storm touch	Magic of Eberron pg 103	"Quite simply, this is a damage spell. It's a nice easy touch attack, so it's a weaponlike spell (and by now, that should lead to a familiar mantra: sneak attack, Target of Vengeance, and maybe Banemagic all triggering over and over). As a melee touch attack, it means you can get sneak attack just from flanking without necessarily going invisible. The stun effect is great if they happen to fail a save. Rules Compendium pg. 136 says ""Casting time takes precedence over normal rules for attacks, unless a spell’s description says otherwise. If a spell allows its caster to make multiple attacks and has a casting time of 1 standard action, all those attacks occur during that standard action. The caster uses the highest applicable attack bonus for each attack in such a case."" Which would indicate that you get a whole bunch of touch attacks all as a single action. I personally think that's a little bit abusive and isn't the intent of that rule, so I'm assuming that you just get one attack per round (maybe two, with BAB?) and therefore the sneak attack triggers on multiple rounds, but if you want to accept the more powerful reading that allows for a massive spike of damage all at once, be my guest!"
Mislead	PHB pg 255	Note that this is a 5th level spell for bards, and as sublime chord says, when a spell is a different level for bards and for sorcerers, learn it as a bard. Anyway, improved invisibility is a good time (sneak attack or even death attack!), and doing it with an illusory double causing havoc is excellent for getting into or getting out of trouble.
Overland flight	PHB pg 259	Does this really require an introduction? All-day flight is valuable, period.
Toxic weapon	PHB2 pg 126	Since the SI gives poison use, we may as well use it! This is also a good chance to use Venomous Strike and make the DC even nastier. A bit less sketchy than the tired old "minor creation for black lotus extract" trick, and easier on our poor overstretched skill points, too.
Greater anticipate teleportation	Spell Compendium pg 13	We… got a big combo here. So this spell lasts 24 hours and we can assume to have it up all day every day without spending time in combat. It's useful on its own, but it really shines when combined with scramble true position, which doesn't allow a save (against the teleport), doesn't require a personal truename, and only costs a 1st level slot. James can simply make a battlefield disappear for three rounds (and they're none the wiser) before rearranging it randomly! As the spell indicates, this is a great chance to set up a readied action or another really nasty situation. Against the sworn target of vengeance, though, this gets even more fun. Since IVT gives the scry target ability as a SLA, it has only a standard action casting time. With arcane spellsurge (see below), Jack can use a swift action on scramble true position and then a standard on scry target, at which point he can observe the target (wherever it is) for three rounds before it poofs back onto the field. Since the target is unaware of the delay, they're not aware that they're being observed. Three rounds just so happens to be the amount of time it takes to set up a death attack! So against normal enemies, this lets you really disadvantage them and basically just not worry about them for a few rounds; against your special target, this can be a free death attack.
Lesser dragonshape	Dragon Magic pg 66	This isn't technically a weaponlike spell per se, but it is a spell that lets you make a whole lot of attack rolls, which will all trigger sneak attack and Target of Vengeance multiple times (when applicable). I love that it's natively a swift action, too.
Otto's irresistible dance	PHB pg 259	May as well take advantage of having access to the bard list too. No-save-just-suck is fun times even if it's mind-affecting. Are you immune? No? Then you lose, good day sir. Note that this forces the target to provoke, which is lovely with legion of sentinels. This is one of the best spells to ready for when someone comes back from
Disintegrate	PHB pg 222	Also cheekily known as greater open or as make hole. Terraforming the world around you is a good fun caster thing to do. If you choose to use it offensively, since it's a ray, it's weaponlike and therefore you get to use your bonuses!
Arcane spellsurge	Dragon Magic pg 64	Action economy: the spell! Want to make sneak attacks AND cast spells at the same time? Look no farther! If you want to get off multiple spells per round, just haul in Sculpt Spell, since the spontaneous metamagic rules work in your favor when arcane spellsurge is up. Notice that this also lets a true scry-and-die happen: observe the target remotely for three rounds (IVT's far sense is ideal), teleport in as a swift, then make a nice death attack as a standard before they've even rolled initiative.
Greater teleport	PHB pg 293	The utility is self-evident. You can go wherever the heck you want with no difficulty, and that's awesome. And of course, since the SI gives a nice scrying ability, who doesn't love a classic scry-and-die setup? Find a target, teleport in, and unload for all you're worth before they can react. Timeless. Note that there's no concern with your own greater anticipate teleportation; you can teleport out no problem, and your destination square at the time you cast the spell is not in your aura, so you won't be delayed.
Finger of death	PHB pg 230	A simple, no-nonsense save-or-die. They might be a little annoying as game design, but they're certainly powerful. (Especially with, say, Greater Banemagic amping up the DC by +6…)
Superior invisibility	Spell Compendium pg 125	Does just what you think. Great for sneak attacks, death attacks, observations, escapes, heists, offense, defense, whatever you want.
Mind blank	PHB pg 253	The eternal defensive classic. Immunity to mind-affecting and to divination? All day? Yeah, that's worth a spell known!
Unname	Tome of Magic pg 260	Here it is, the capstone! If you hate someone so much that you're willing to spend an entire day swearing vengeance against them, well, you may as well research their truename so that you can utterly remove them from the cosmos! I firmly believe that no one but an Imaskari vengeance taker would even bother trying to learn or cast this spell, but it seems entirely in keeping with what IVT is all about. Naturally, if you want to soften them up with warp truename first (I mean, you already have their personal truename), then you should absolutely use Greater Banemagic here for a +6 on the save DC, but maybe you don't even need that.

Spoiler: Meat and potatoes

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This build started from the premise that spending an entire day (or three entire days if someone else happens to kill the bastard) swearing vengeance against a target is kind of a long time. And if you're going to spend that much time and effort hating on one specific person, then you might as well spend a little bit more time and avail yourself of another kind of really specific tool that only works against certain people you've researched in advance: personal truenames, as described on Tome of Magic pg. 197.

Now, if you aren't a truenamer (and who wants to be a truenamer?), the main appeal of personal truenames is that certain spells require that you say the target's personal truename in order for the spell to work. And hey, spells? IVT advances casting, so that seems like a good thing!

What's more, IVT's divination ability actually makes it easier to research personal truenames. So really, this is in keeping with the whole premise. The IVT gets mad at someone, spends a really long time fuming about it and looking up every possible sin that the target ever committed, and comes after them with a single-minded purpose and fury rarely seen outside of, like, weird fanboys on the internet.

Now, once personal truename spells are on the table, there's an obvious tantalizing semi-forbidden fruit at the apex: unname, that really cool-looking spell with the neat picture of the mind flayer being erased from reality. I want that. Don't we all want that? We all want that! That's like the essence of what IVT is all about: research the hell out of a very specific target and then end them with, as is said, extreme prejudice. But it's a ninth, so that's a bummer. Since IVT loses five levels of casting, there's no way to get a ninth with it if you're starting with a regular base class for your spells.

I know, I know, you're rolling your eyes at sublime chord, but hear me out, okay? Sublime chord is basically the best way to get sor/wiz ninths while still accommodating a bunch of missing caster levels, since you only need nine levels of advancement to get it. I'm not going for sublime chord because "lol casting strong;" I'm going for sublime chord because it's the only way to get what is possibly the most thematic spell imaginable for IVT. Only IVT would bother looking up someone's name for this, so to give it up just because a plain ol' wizard can't get it in time feels like quitter talk.

But… well, let's say that I enter the SI at ECL 6, with five levels of whatever else first to get my spells. Can't get into sublime chord before ECL 11 because it's got multiple skill gates. But if I have, for example, five levels of IVT after I start advancing sublime chord, well, that's just not going to work, because then I'd lose out on ninths, and that's literally the entire point of why I'm not just being a plain ol' wizard or whatever. So that means that I need to get into IVT early. But how?

So as I'm sure will be seen several times this round, the SI's low skill gate simply begs for an early-entry trick, since it's a lot easier to get around spell level requirements than around skill requirements. I believe that this particular trick I intend to show off is new, or at least new-ish; I don't recall personally seeing anyone else use it before.

The sorcerer's "divine companion" alternate class feature in Complete Champion allows the sorcerer to give up their familiar in exchange for a nebulous not-a-creature that can hold arcane spell energy and then spit it back out for healing or defensive effects. It's cute enough. But the wording is… particular. I'm going to highlight a few bits (Complete Champion pgs 51-2):

The divine companion stores arcane energy and redirects it to you according to your level and your needs. To fill this reservoir, you must cast one or more targeted spells at this creature. A spell so cast does not produce its normal effect; the companion simply absorbs the spell's energy. It can store a number of spell levels equal to your arcane caster level.

[. . .]

It uses your caster level for any checks required, and when it releases arcane energy, the level of the effect created equals the number of spell levels released.

[. . .]

As a standard action, you can order your divine companion to convert the energy it has stored into healing power. This is the equivalent of a conjuration (healing) spell.

[. . .]

As a swift action, you can order the creature to convert the energy it has stored into protecting you. This is the equivalent of an abjuration spell that provides you with . . .

You see it, right? With CL 3, I can cast three targeted first-level spells into the companion and then order it to release those three spells at once. This is considered to be an abjuration spell or a conjuration spell, and the level of the effect is the number of spell levels used at once (in this case, three, for a third-level spell).

Now, how to get CL 3 with a single level of sorcerer? There's a few methods (like Bloodline of Fire in PGtF, or Spell Thematics/Ship's Mage + the Spellgifted trait, or others), but I like using Primitive Caster, which lets you add V, S, and/or M components to spells that don't have them already and rewards you with +1 CL for each one that you add. Since power word pain is already a really good spell and it only has a verbal component to start, that can be used to bootstrap into CL 3 while casting it. Since the spell energy is absorbed by you casting it at your not-a-creature companion, that should be enough to get 3 levels in there all at once and then bam, qualification!

(Note that you don't have to use the herb every time. You only need to do this once! Maybe you don't even need to actually go through with it but you simply need to have the capability! And there's no penalty for failing the Profession check and it can be used untrained, so just take 20 to get the herb(s) you need.)

So one level of sorcerer with divine companion and Primitive Caster takes care of the spell requirement. Human gives an extra feat to take care of Track. Hide and MS aren't sorcerer skills and I don't have any spare feats or ACFs left to use to fix that, so I had to take another class to take care of those requirements. Since the whole deal is to use Truespeak, using human paragon to get Truespeak as a permanent class skill effectively saves a feat that would have otherwise been spent on Truename Training. Human paragon, conveniently, also gives weird stuff like Perform in-class, since Perform is necessary to get into sublime chord.

Sublime chord also requires bardic music, and since IVT requires that the character be lawful, that means that I need to get bardic music from something other than bard, since no one wants to mess around with an alignment shift mid-build in order to qualify for stuff. There's a few options for getting bardic music without a nonlawful alignment, but the one that requires the fewest feats is virtuoso. Truth be told, that is virtuoso's sole purpose in this build. In a game that ignores stupid alignment restrictions, I'd just have taken a simple level of bard and gotten bardic music and my Perform ranks that way. Would have saved some cross-class skill points. Ah, well, nevertheless!

Now, the other really cool spell that involves a personal truename is warp truename. It's a really nasty debuff (the target's physical stats all become 10 and it loses all or almost all of its abilities), and it also changes the target's type to aberration. Which means that it's possible to take advantage of all sorts of really specific anti-aberration stuff that would otherwise be unreliable. I mean, if you're going to take revenge, take it on YOUR terms! (Have you ever read Moxon's The Revisionaries? Remember the part with Goop-Goop? I imagine a little like that.) In this case, we're looking at Aberration Banemagic and at the keeper of the cerulean sign, which is a delightful way to round out the progression. I like Banemagic because it's not actually metamagic and it simply requires that you be using magic on the target, so once you've warped their truename, you're automatically in business. And the Greater Banemagic ability from keeper of the cerulean sign is pretty welcome, too. I mean, whether it's adding +6d6 to a spell that's going to ping round after round or adding +6 to the save DC of a save-or-die, that's noticeable!

Let's talk about truenaming a little bit! Craft Wondrous Item happens to be a prereq for keeper of the cerulean sign, but it's also a grade-A feat for someone interested in making Truespeak checks. Make yourself an amulet of the silver tongue! Make a nice competence bonus to Truespeak! Make something with a bonus to Knowledge skills! Make other, cool, non-truenaming related items! Your cerulean sign has to be made solo, but nothing else necessarily must be. Also, the Paragnostic Assembly (Complete Champion pg 72) is there for bonuses as well; James qualifies with HD, ranks in Knowledges, and so on. (Also also, remember that the DCs for scramble true position and beckon monster are lower than the others.)

Sudden Extend is my favorite feat to use as a prereq for "any metamagic feat," since it works early on and it's always useful. What's more, the fact that you can use it on your highest-level spells is pretty nice! It never goes out of style. The reason James needs "any metamagic feat" is for Sculpt Spell, which frankly is just hilarious with scramble true position or legion of sentinels (or a few other choices). Dreamtelling is used to get commune effects to aid in researching personal truenames. Make liberal use of ancient knowledge here; also remember that you can spend time studying to change your Paragnostic Assembly bonus between Truespeak and a specific Knowledge skill, so since you're already spending time researching, there's no reason not to take advantage. Also, while it takes a few levels to really get a lot of ranks in K: Planes, two things to remember: first, it's only when warp truename comes online that it becomes important to research personal truenames (and that's about when you start getting a lot of K: Planes ranks), and second, there's lots of ways to get bonuses to Knowledge checks beyond just ranks. Venomous Strike is quite appropriate for someone with poison use, sneak attack, and a penchant for scry-and-die tactics. Use toxic weapon, store-bought poison, or both for a lovely little bonus.

So in summary, James researches personal truenames of targets he hates and uses them to either erase those targets from existence or to make their existence very brief and painful. He has loads of weaponlike spells with which to trigger sneak attack and the target of vengeance bonus over and over. He can do a true scry-and-die. He has an unusual method of triggering death attack via the scramble true position + greater anticipate teleportation + scry target combo. He uses Venomous Strike and toxic weapon to take advantage of poison use. He uses the seeker ability to aid in researching personal truenames. His spell combos are all sorts of fun. No one else goes as far as he does when it comes to taking true vengeance!

Spoiler: Prereqs

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Game element	Prereq	Met at ECL
Sublime chord (before ECL 11):	K Arcana 13	10
Sublime chord	Listen 13	10
Sublime chord	Profession (astrologer) 6	9
Sublime chord	Perform (any) 10	7
Sublime chord	Spellcraft 6	10
Sublime chord	Bardic music	10
Virtuoso	Diplomacy 4	3
Virtuoso	Intimidate 4	5
Virtuoso	Perform (any) 10	7
Virtuoso	Arcane CL 1	2
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	Hide 4	1
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	Move Silently 5	2
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	Survival 2	1
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	3rd level arcane spells	2
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	Track	1
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	Lawful	Backstory
Imaskari Vengeance Taker	Must have killed someone purely for revenge	Backstory
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	Gather Information 5	12
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	K Arcana 8	8
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	K Dungeoneering 8	11
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	Sense Motive 5	12
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	Craft Wondrous Item	9
Craft Wondrous Item	CL 3	6
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	Aberration Banemagic	12
Keeper of the Cerulean Sign	Craft a cerulean sign without aid	11
Craft a cerulean sign without aid	Invoke the Cerulean Sign as spell known	11
Venomous Strike	Poison use	4
Venomous Strike	2d6 sneak attack	7
Sculpt Spell	Any metamagic feat	3

Spoiler: Sources

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Category	Element	Book	Page
Class	Human paragon	Unearthed Arcana	43
Class	Sorcerer	PHB	51
Class	Imaskari vengeance taker	Underdark	37
Class	Virtuoso	Complete Adventurer	89
Class	Sublime chord	Complete Arcane	61
Class	Keeper of the cerulean sign	Lords of Madness	194
ACF	Divine companion	Complete Champion	51
Feat	Track	PHB	101
Feat	Primitive Caster	Frostburn	49
Feat	Sudden Extend	Complete Arcane	83
Feat	Dreamtelling	Heroes of Horror	122
Feat	Craft Wondrous Item	PHB	92
Feat	Aberration Banemagic	Lords of Madness	178
Feat	Venomous Strike	Drow of the Underdark	54
Feat	Sculpt Spell	Complete Arcane	83

Spells and other game elements are cited in-line or in their dedicated table.

Sincere thanks as always to mattie_p. I probably would have given up in making that skill table if it weren't for his auto-formatting spreadsheet. Thanks, man. You rock.

[The Viscount]

Karakan, Karakan, gets all the vengeance that he can.

Karakan, the vengeful Poison-merchant
Master of the Poisoneus Hands

(Karakan: translates from Turkish into "dark blood")

Karakan is a Dragonwrought Kobold who has lived his live. He spend most of his younger years in the mines, honing his physical abilities while meditating each day (Draconic Rite of Passage) which turned him into a disciplined and well physically defined Kobold (monk). After spending most of his life in the tribe and barely leaving it on his own, he decides that his last years as great wyrm (121+ years) should be spend as wandering (poison) merchant, traveling the world to find trading connections for his tribe. After a long search, while traveling around in a caravan, he did find some people who did accept him as a kobold (selling poisons). But before his tribe could profit from the new potential trading partners, the caravan was attacked by brutal bandits who slayed most of the people.
Karakan barely survived this incident and was found by some Imaskari "Talent Scouts" on their way home form a slave marked. They did hope to find potential candidates under the slaves who have the fire of vengeance in their eyes and have potential to become Imaskari Vengeance Takers. They where out of luck so far.
But despite being almost dead, this Dragonwrought Kobold seems to be an interesting specimen. Once the kobold awakes, he explains what happened.
Karakan, angered by the loss of the valuable connections, swears vengeance as the "talent scouts" notice the fire in his eyes. Seems the talent scouts where lucky in the end. This starts a fruitful connection between em. Over time he gets introduced to the Lodge of the Retributive Masters. Those want to "help" him to get revenge and even are willing to build up a trading route with the Kobold tribe, if he also swears loyalty to the Lodge of the Retributive Masters in return.

Spoiler: Tables, Spells, SLAs

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Dragonwrought Kobold (Shadow Dragon heritage)

Sorcerer 5 / Monk 1 / Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10 / Unseen Seer 4

Alignment: lawful - evil

Ability	LVL 1	(32P. + racial modifiers)	max lvl + full gear	(modifiers)
STR:	10	(14-2)	10
DEX:	16	(14+2)	18	+2 Horseshoe of Flame
CON:	12	(14-2)	12 (-)*	*none if temporary undead
INT:	16	(13+3)	30	+10 Horseshoe of Flame, +4 Wish
WIS:	12	(9+3)	12
CHA:	18	(15+3)	34	+6 Horseshoe of Flame, +5 Wish, +5 lvlUp

*Skills:
(+X) = X points invested; cross class (double cost included) when red colored

Level	Class	BAB	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Skills (+X points invested)	Feats	Features
1st	Monk (1) Fighting Style: Sleeping Tiger	+0	+2	+2	+2	Concentration: 4 Handle Animal: 2 (+4) Hide: 4 Move Silently: 4 Sense Motive: 4 Spot: 4 Survival: 2 (+4)	Dragonwrought Kobold (Shadow Dragon: Move Silently +2) (Races of the Dragon) Bonus Feat: Weapon Finesse	Draconic Rite of Passage: -1 HP Blood Wind 1/day (Races of the Dragon)
2nd	Sorcerer (1) Variant: Animal Companion	+0	+2	+2	+4	Concentration: 5 Spellcraft: 4 (+4)		Animal Companion: medium Viper
3rd	Sorcerer (2)	+1	+2	+2	+5	Concentration: 6 Craft (Poisonmaking): 4 (+4)	Track	New Class Abilities
4th	Sorcerer (3)	+1	+3	+3	+5	Concentration: 7 Craft (Poisonmaking) 7 (+3) Spellcraft: 5		New Class Abilities
5th	Dragonblood Sorcerer (4) (substitution level - Races of the Dragon)	+2	+3	+3	+6	Use Magic Device: 5 (+5)		Class Skills: minus Craft and Profession plus Use Magic Device Arcane insight +2 Spell-Like-Ablility
6th	Sorcerer (5)	+2	+3	+3	+6	Concentration: 8 Use Magic Device: 7 (+4)	Draconic Reservoir	Greater Draconic Rite of Passage: -3 HP +1 Sorcerer spell progression
7th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (1)	+2	+3	+5	+8	Concentration: 10 (+2) Craft (Poisonmaking): 10 (+3) Hide: 7 (+2)		Target of Vengeance
8th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (2)	+3	+3	+6	+7	Concentration: 11 Craft (Poisonmaking): 11 Hide: 8 Move Silently: 5 Search: 3 (+3)		Poison Use
9th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (3)	+4	+4	+6	+7	Concentration: 12 Craft (Poisonmaking): 12 Search: 8 (+5)	Poison Spell (Drow of the Underdark)	Sneak Attack +1d6
10th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (4)	+5	+4	+7	+8	Concentration: 13 Craft (Poisonmaking): 13 Spot: 5 (+5)		Far Sense
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (5)	+5	+4	+7	+8	Concentration: 14 Craft (Poisonmaking) 14 Spot: 8 (+3) Use Magic Device: 8 (+2)		Sneak Attack +2d6
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (6)	+6	+5	+8	+9	Concentration: 15 Craft (Poisonmaking): 15 Hide: 9 Use Magic Device: 10 (+4)	Multiattack (Monster Manual)	Seeker
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (7)	+7	+5	+8	+9	Concentration: 16 Craft (Poisonmaking): 16 Hide: 10 Use Magic Device: 12 (+4)		Sneak Attack +3d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (8)	+8	+5	+9	+10	Concentration: 17 Craft (Poisonmaking): 17 Hide: 11 Use Magic Device: 14 (+2)		Scry Target
15th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (9)	+8	+6	+9	+10	Concentration: 18 Craft (Poisonmaking): 18 Hide: 12 Use Magic Device: 16 (+4)	Natural Bond (Animal Companion: Fleshraker)	Sneak Attack +4d6
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (10)	+9	+6	+10	+11	Concentration: 19 Craft (Poisonmaking): 19 Hide: 13 Use Magic Device: 18 (+4)		Death Attack
17th	Unseen Seer (1) (Complete Mage)	+9	+6	+10	+13	Concentration: 20 Craft (Poisonmaking): 20 Hide: 16 (+3) Use Magic Device: 20 (+4)		Damage Bonus +1d6
18th	Unseen Seer (2)	+10	+6	+10	+14	Concentration: 21 Craft (Poisonmaking): 21 Hide: 21 (+5) Use Magic Device: 21 (+2)	Improved Multiattack (Draconomicon)	Advanced Learning: Hunter's Eye (PHB II) Silent Spell
19th	Unseen Seer (3)	+11	+7	+11	+14	Concentration: 22 Craft (Poisonmaking): 22 Hide: 22 Move Silently: 9 (+4) Use Magic Device: 22 (+2)		Divination Spell Power +1
20th	Unseen Seer (4)	+12	+7	+11	+15	Concentration: 23 Craft (Poisonmaking): 23 Hide: 23 Move Silently: 13 (+4) Use Magic Device: 23 (+2)		Damage Bonus +2d6

Spells per Day/Spells Known

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th
1st	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	5/4	3/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	6/5	4/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
4th	6/5	5/3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
5th	6/6	6/3	3/1	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
6th	6/6	6/4	4/2	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
GDROP*	6/7	6/4	5/2	3/1	-	-	-	-	-	-
7th	6/7	6/4	5/2	3/1	-	-	-	-	-	-
8th	6/7	6/5	6/3	4/2	-	-	-	-	-	-
9th	6/7	6/5	6/3	4/2	-	-	-	-	-	-
10th	6/8	6/5	6/3	5/2	3/1	-	-	-	-	-
11th	6/8	6/5	6/3	5/2	3/1	-	-	-	-	-
12th	6/8	6/5	6/4	6/3	4/2	-	-	-	-	-
13th	6/8	6/5	6/4	6/3	4/2	-	-	-	-	-
14th	6/9	6/5	6/4	6/3	5/2	3/1	-	-	-	-
15th	6/9	6/5	6/4	6/3	5/2	3/1	-	-	-	-
16th	6/9	6/5	6/5	6/4	6/3	4/2	-	-	-	-
17th	6/9	6/5	6/5	6/4	6/3	5/2	3/1	-	-	-
18th	6/9	6/5	6/5	6/4	6/4	6/3	4/2	-	-	-
19th	6/9	6/5	6/5	6/4	6/4	6/3	5/2	3/1	-	-
20th	6/9	6/5	6/5	6/4	6/4	6/4	6/3	4/2	-	-

* Greater Draconic Rite of Passage = +1 Sorcerer spell progression.

SLA

SLA have a special purpose in this build. Touch spell charges vanish if you "cast" another spell. With SLAs, we can bypass this limitation and keep our charges.

(Draconic Rite of Passage)
Blood Wind (SpellCom.) - Swift action spell that lets you make unarmed and natural attacks at range for a single round.
Starts with 1/day and goes up to 3/day at lvl 6.

(Dragonblooded Sorcerer SLA)
We pick Lesser Spider Form first when we get the ability. Later we change it temporary to Wings of Cover and finally to Hunter's Eye. 3/day
Note that we know a spell less of that lvl and give up one spell slot of that lvl as long as we have that spell as SLA.

Spells Known

0:
Detect Magic (PHB)- not much to say here
Detect Poison (PHB)- Helps to find and farm poisons (by finding poisonous plants and creatures with poison abilities).
Launch Item (Spell Compendium) - As the name suggests, launches an item at range. Will be abused to lauch Ossarra (Yuan-Ti mixture) that poisons all non-scaled ones.
...

1:
Lesser Spider Form - turns Karakan (and/or his animal companion) into a medium monstrous spider. Useful to stop fleeing foes or climbing up walls. Also good to stop melee enemies from aproaching us. Combines with Bood Wind a safe kill option.

Chilling Touch (PHB) - Gives one charge per "level". Thus a good touch spell to abuse with Poison Spell.

Death's Grimace (BoVD) - Leaves a personal mark on a dead body to claim that you murdered him. A good roleplay spell to work as vengeance taker.

Golem Strike (SpellCom.)- To be able to affect constructs with sneak attacks, if our target should use constructs to defend himfelf.

Stupor (BoVD) - places one creature already helpless in a clouded, confused state for h/clvl. Foe can be moved without noticing what really happens. Abuse this to preserve a foe that is helpless (e.g. from ability damage) and take him back and kill him in public (Imaskar) or wherever he deserves to die according to your contract.

2:
Alter Self (PHB) - turn into a tiny Shadow Dragon: +7NA claw/claw/bite attack 120ft fly speed average maneuverability; a nice travel form and early lvl combat form.

Mirror Image (PHB) - A good defense to get hit less often in a fight.

Wings of Cover (RotD) - Combined with Mirror Image a strong strategy to not get hit.

Knock (PHB) - nothing shall stand between a kobold and his ambitions. Knock all doors and chests open.

Magic Mouth (PHB) - Leave a magic mouth on the corpses of your foes with a message of warning. Can be made permanent (via scroll of permanency) if the corpse should be setup in public as example.


3:
Shivering Touch - a melee touch spell with a duration instead of charges. Just what we need for Poison Spell. The 3d6 dex dmg quickly turn most foes helpless so that all further attacks crit.

Nightmare Terrain - gives basically Hide In Plain Sight for the caster, which is the main selling point imho. The crouwdcontrol effect is just the icing.

Ghost Companion - kills target willing animal or (magical) beast and turns it into a Ghost for days per caster level. After that it really dies. Since we can get a new animal companion within 24h, this can be abused to get a really strong companion.

Greater Magic Weapon - up to +5 bonus for unarmed strikes.



4:
Locate Creature - great to track down your foes.

Polymorph - gives access to many forms to produce some venom and make poisons out of it (e.g Wywern). Combatforms like Hydra (multiple Bite attacks) or Wartroll (claw/claw/bite) are useful for large scale battles

Greater Invisibility - one of the best spells for sneaky gish characters
Dimensional Anchor (PHB) - Stop enemy from using teleport effects to escape


5:
Arcane Fusion - "Arcane Fusion: Poison Spell: Chill Touch + Poison Spell: Shivering Touch" allows to have 2 touchspells up, since you don't "cast" the spells, but you gain both effects. (bypasses the holding the charge rule to lose any touch spell if you attempt to cast another spell).

Evacuation Rune - Swift action to teleport back to a location you "marked" with this spell. With this we can quickly escape hopefully within the same round we have killed our target. Or if we somehow fail our target and need to escape. Can also be abused to send "marked" letters or gifts to your target foe. A nice Scry & Die tool.

Fabricate - to fabricate lots and lots of poisons.

Undying Vigor of the Dragonlords (Dragon Magic) - healing spell that also works on undead since it is not positive energy!



6:
Contingency - Mostly abused to save actions for buffing or for some other small tricks mentioned in the build.

Mordenkainen's Trusted Bloodhounds - Conjures hounds that are to everyone else invisible. They have Track and an effective survival skill equal to your caster level.

Probe Thoughts - Read directly into people's memory. Why bother asking verbally and risking to be lied to?^^

7:
Greater Teleport - Why bother with all the things that could happen on your journey to your target if we can skip all that to get to the main villain.

Forcecage (PHB) - Combine with Contingency: Arcane Fusion: Dimensional Anchor + (any other 1st lvl spell) to lock anyone (even caster) in place within a single round. Our personal dueling arena^^

Spoiler: Recommended Gear

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Recommended Magic Items

None of these items are mandatory for the build to function, but they can greatly enhance the builds strengths.

Wish x5 for INT & CHA: (10x 28,825g) 288,250g

Necklace of Natural Weapons (Savage Species) + 1 + Assassination (Cityscape) + Impact (Arms & Equipment) + Keen (DMG) + Ghost Touch (DMG)

This is the main item of the build since it is so expensive. Effective price of a (+5 weapon + 600g) x3 (Claws, Bite, Unarmed Strike) results into a total price of 151.800g.
Our Fleshraker should also get one for Claws and Tail. Its bite doesn't have poison and can't be used with tail (which has poison) on the same target. Thus the bite attack is negligible and we ignore it to make the item a lil bit cheaper, 101.200g. Together, they charge our WBL with 253.000g
The Assassination ability enhances our poison DCs by the weapon enchantment. Combined with Greater Magic Weapon +5 (unarmed Strike) and Greater Magic Fang (max clvl wand; Claws + Bite for yourself and Claws + Tail on the fleshraker) the DC of all poison attacks will be raised by 5. Without this, poisons become weak against higher lvl enemies. Keen and Impact are nice, since our poisons and Shivering Touch can quickly render an enemy "helpless" to take critical damage. While the poisons sadly don't get multiplied, the sneak attack damage profits very well from this.

Anklet of Translocation + Horseshoes of Flame
Anklet of Translocation is a nice short range tacticle teleport that preserves our Full Attack when needed. The Horseshoes are applied on em mainly because of the great Statboosts (emulate race with UMD). +2 DEX, 10 INT, +6 CHA, 3x7h fly + nightmarish look per day

Shadow Cloak (DotU) 5500GP
Immediate action teleport. Either for defensive use to dodge an attack, or for tactile movement to preserve our Full-Attack.

Kimono of Storing 4.400g (Oriental Adventures)
Free action access to the Rod of Quickening and other stuff.

(Ghost Touch) Battle Bridle 9.900g (incl. 10% extra for GT)
Gives Mounted Combat and +5 on ride checks. The ghost touch ability is needed to ride the "ghost" Fleshraker while the kobold is not a ghost.

Metamagic Rod Quicken (normal) 75.500g
Can be abused for quickly refreshing buffs (e.g. Arcane Fusion: "Poison Spell: Chill Touch" + "Poison Spell: Shivering Touch).

Recommended Wands

I'll just note those worth special mentioning and won't make a full list of useful wands. You should know the normal stuff that you would pick yourself with UMD.

Greater Magic Fang (max caster lvl): Enhances our Natural Weapons by +5. This also benefits the Assassination enhancement to provide +5 for our Poison DCs.

Last Breath (Druid 4th - Complete Divine): Revives (-1hp stable) a creature that died the last round (without CON or LVL loss). Combined with the Contingency spell, we can now bring our Animal Companion back to life and avoid the 24h for getting a new one. This makes the Ghost Companion spell abuse more comfortable.
And since "lesser spider form" gives us the animal type, our kobold can qualify for the Ghost Companion spell aswell. Abuse Contingent Spell with Ghost Companion to bypass the casting limitation of the spider form. Later we can abuse Contingency:Last Breath to safely come back to life. Rinse and repeat whenever you feel the need for it.

Venomfire (Serpent Kingdom) - Enhances the venom of our animal companion (or any form for alter self/poly with access to venom) by alot.

Primal Instinct (Dragon Magic) - 24h +5 compentence bonus on Initiative & Survival checks

Grave Strike (Spell Compendium) - Allows Sneak Attacks on undead targets.

Vine Strike (Spell Compendium) - Allows Sneak Attacks against plant type enemies.

Golem Strike (Spell Compendium) - Allows Sneak Attacks against constructs.

Recommended Poisons

Here is a small selection of recommended poisons

Medium Sized Spider venom
Injury, DC 13, 1d4 STR / 1d4 STR or 1d6 STR /1d6 STR..
Our viper companion will give us access to this poison. The monstours spider has 2 different values since the values in the main statblock and the poison statblock differ. This typo seems to be in the SRD and the MM. So, pick the value that you like more..

Wyvern poison
Injury, DC 17, 2d6 CON / 2d6 CON
With Polymorph we can shape into a Wyvern ourselve and thus produce lots of the poison in downtimes. Burn off some polymorph slots before going to bed. Karakan relies on CON dmg poison when he wants to kill his enemies as fast as possible.

Darklight brew
Injury, DC 23, 2d6CON + 1d6STR / blinded

Bkack Lotus
Contact, DC 20, 3d6 CON / 3d6 CON
contact poison, thus only usable in ghost form due to poison immunity

Terinar root
Contact, DC16, 1d6 DEX / 2d6 DEX
again contact poison and thus only for ghost form. This is the poison of choice if we want to quickly make our foe helpless (together with Shivering Touch).

Ossara - Yuan Ti poisons from Serpent Kingdom

These nice things buff scaled ones (includes our Kobold Karakan) and poisons anyone else. You need to brun em up to create the smoke. Any creature that inhales the smoke is affected (either poisoned or buffed). Most noteable:
Faele: buff: -1 damage per dice taken / poison: 2d6 CON - 1d6 CON
Battasss: buff: bypass Concentration checks / poison 1d4 WIS - 1d4+2 rounds sleep
Ulathlasss: buff: become immune to heat and cold. take only half damage from fire and ice. If Karakan has direct contact with the burning oil, he even becomes immune to fire and ice temporary.

Spoiler: 1-5

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Karakan starts a simple kobold monk with access to Blood Wind as SLA 1/day and Weapon Finesse. This allows for a ranged full attack with claw/claw/bite which should give him once a day the upper hand in a battle. With becoming a Sorcerer we get an Animal Companion (variant) and pick a medium viper which gives the build early access to the poison theme of the SI. Lesser Spiderform is the first spell we pick and should carry us together with monk and blood wind over the early levels. The Dragonblooded Sorcerer substitution level gives the build access to UMD (to max it up to character lvl +3). While we need to spend double the points on the later levels, we still try to max it.
Alter Self will be abused to turn Karakan into a tiny Shadow Dragon (+7NA, 120ft fly average, claw/claw/bite) which is a good combat and travel form.

Spoiler: 6-10

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Karakan get more Blood Wind uses and we get the lost caster lvl back (via Gr. Draconic Rite of Passage). Finally he is worth to become a real Imaskari Vengeance Taker. "Poison Use & Poison Spell" allows us to apply the poisons we craft (poisonmaking) to apply to melee touch spells we cast. Together with Chill Touch and/or Silvering Touch we get multiple uses of each single poison dose we need to cast those spells. This just cries to be abused with multiple unarmed strikes and natural attacks via full attack (holding the charge rules allows touch spells to be placed on your unarmed strikes or natural attacks). Up to 4 attacks (unarmed strike(s) as primary weapon at full BAB, all natural weapons at -5), which means up to 4 poison save rolls (note that the secondary rolls can also be stacked, so make sure to keep track of em if needed).
Mirror Image + Wings of Cover keep the lil kobold alive if he should draw to much aggro^^
With Nightmare Terrain we basically get access to HIPS. Now we can much better fight in large crowds without being spotted by everyone immediately. This helps to be hidden in combat all the time and to always get sneak attack damage when needed.
Locate Creature helps to find our target foe and keep track if he tries to flee.

Spoiler: 11-15

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Multiattack lessens the penalties for all our Natural Weapons (to -2 for being secondary weapons). This helps to hit more reliable and apply our sneak attack damage and our poisons more often (due to hitting more often). Further Multiattack seems to be exploitable with the Monk's Unarmed Strike ability by RAW:

Spoiler: RAW: Monk's unarmed strike + Multiattack

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Monk's Unarmed Strike give the specific exception to let em count as either manufactured or natural weapon for "spells and effects".
"Effects" is undefined in 3.5 but heavily used over all rule books. A few rare cases even are more specifically talking about "magical effects", but that doesn't mean that all effects have to be magical.
While one might argue that the general rules for counting as natural weapon are not effects, this is not the chase for anything altering/trumping them.
In fact, anything that affects you is an "effect" by RAW. In the chase of feats, we have multiple feats with the following statement:

Special
You can gain this feat multiple times. Its effects do not stack. Each time you take the feat, it applies to a new type of weapon.

So it is safe to assume that the rules also see feats as effects. Now, (Improved) Multiattack is a feat that works with Natural Weapons. A monk's unarmed strike may count as Natural Weapon for spells and effects. So with Multiattack, we can now add our unarmed strike as natural weapon into our full attack routine.
How is this important you ask? Well, monk's unarmed strike also allows to be used with 8 different body parts (fists, elbows, knees, feet). So the optimal declaration of bodyparts for his full attack would look like: (example)
1. use regular Unarmed Strike attacks including iterative attack with your right elbow
2. use claws (thus blocking the fists) and bite
3. declare the remaining body parts as natural weapons (left elbow + left & right knees and feet).
By RAW it seems that a monk can get a crazy amount of attacks by selecting the Multiattack feat line. While the build doesn't rely on this RAW cheese, it is nice to showcase the possibility for this exploit in this build. I haven't seen this exploit mentioned so far and it was just a coincidence that I noticed it while writing up the build. That's why I wanted to share it here together with the build.

Seeker and Scry Target allows us to reveal more info about our contract target.
Polymorph is the base gish spell to go. But in this chase its main purpose is to get access to natural poisons as ingredient for craft poisonmaking. On the hand the common combat forms like War Troll or a Hydra work really well with the sneak attacks and poisons provided by the build.
Greater Invisibility is just pure gold in a sneaky gish build. Be it for just scouting or for easy kills against anything that can't see/reveal you.
Arcane Fusion allows us to have both Shivering Touch and Chill Touch up, both enhances via Poison Spell. This allows Karakan to apply 2 instances of poison per unarmed strike/natural attack he makes.
Natural Bound increases our effective Druid levels so that we can now have a Fleshraker as Animal Companion. These also produce a natural poison and are a much better combat animal than the viper. Since Karakan is small and the Flesharaker is of medium size, we can use it as mount almost anywhere where normal/medium PC can go. Finally we can share our Arcane Fusion: Poison Spells:(Chill Touch / Shivering Touch). We can now apply lots and lots of poisons per round.
Ghost Companion turns our Fleshraker into a Ghost (template) which greatly enhances its combat abilities. It gets a bunch of abilities including several with ability damage which have a great synergy with our poisons. With a Ghost Touch Necklace of Natural Weapons it can still use its physical abilities and apply poison. The animal dies really at the end of the spell, but since its duration is measured in days per caster level its still worth it. Especially since we can get a new animal companion within 24h of downtime.
If we have access to a wand of Last Breath, we can abuse Contingency to automatically raise the ghost the round after it really dies. Note that Contingency doesn't require you to "cast" the company spell. It sole requires "you to place" the spell. While the wand my be the caster of the spell, it's the wand's user who "places the spell"(chooses the target).
With that, we can now abuse Ghost Companion on ourselves. We abuse Lesser Spider Form to get the required animal type and Contingency:Ghost Companion to bypass the casting limitation while being in spider form. We can abuse the same Contingency:Last Breath combo to come back to life. Rinse and Repeat whenever we need it.

Spoiler: 16-20

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Dimensional Anchor helps to lock down teleportation as escape option if you have a caster as target. Together with Forcecage we have our personal duel arena.
Evacuation Rune can be used either defensively (mark a safe location) or offensively (mark a gift/letter that you send to your target) and only has a swift action casting time. Perfect for Karakan to escape in the same round he kills the main villain.
This works very well with his new gained Death Attack ability. Study target for 3 rounds via, kill and swift teleport away.
Once we get access to Greater Teleport, we can scry our target (Scry Target) of vengeance > study him for 3 rounds > teleport > Death Attack + swift action teleport back to safety. Blink in and out to leave a dead corpse behind.
Unseen Seer accompanies our Vengeance Taker levels well to finish the build. The Bonus Damage dice stack with Karakan's Sneak Attack (up to 6d6 sneak attack dmg). With gaining access to Hunter's Eye we can further improve his sneak attack damage dice. The extra caster level provided by Divination Spell Power (+1) helps to get the most of Hunter's Eye at lvl 20 (21/3= +7d6). Hunter's Eye is also selected as final SLA for Dragonblooded Sorcerer, so that it doesn't interfere with his touch spell charges (see holding the charge rules for chasting new spell and losing the charge).
Improved Multiattack gets rid of the remaining penalty for our secondary Natural Attack This allows us to attack with all natural weapons at full BAB. Since the build has a low BAB for a gish, this compensates that problem to some degree.

Last Words

We finally reached the end of the build. We have a very sneaky poison user that has multiple damage options (raw melee damage, sneak attack, poison, spells, temporary "becoming a ghost"..) with multiple escape options.
Thx due to Poison Spell each unarmed strike & natural weapon in a full attack applies 2 poisons on his victim. And if he turns into a Ghost, he can use his unarmed strikes (charged with poison touch spells) back a touch attack again (with a Ghost Touch Necklace of Natural Weapons). Due to the Assassination enhancement, the DCs of the poisons get raised up to +5 (GMW + GMF). With this, we can quickly poison multiple enemies to death. Being a Ghost gives us many strong abilities that further enhance the ability damage output Karakan can dish out.
Just a lil example of a full buffed unarmed strike/natural attack made as touch attack:
Chill Touch + Shivering Touch + 2x Black Lotus poison + Ghost: Draining Touch + Hunter's Eye Sneak Attack
1Str dmg & 1d6 dmg + 3d6 Dex dmg + 2x 3d6 CON + 1d6 on any ability score selected + 6d6 +7d6
= potentially (if all saves are failed) 14d6 dmg + 1Str dmg + 3d6 DEX dmg + 6d6 CON + 1d6 on a single ability score (e.g CON again for a total of 7d6 CON dmg)
If the foe should survive this somehow, there is a high potential that he might be helpless sole due to Shivering touch, which lets all further attacks automatically crit (helpless rules).
And while we are are talking about being a ghost, the undead type gives, alters some parts of the build. Polymorph can't be used without a CON score. But Alter Self still can be used. Since Alter Self sole gives gives natural weapons and further has a size and HD restriction, there is not much to choose from. Libris Mortis offers Bone Rat Swarm as a good option imho. While we don't get the swarm subtype, we get the swarm attack. Since it is listed as "Attack:" it has to be either a manufactured or natural weapon. Thus Karakan has now a swarm attack to release his touch attacks. Just move into those spaces where the most enemies are standing and automatically hit em at the end of the turn to release your touch spell charges (-are released always on contact, even unintentionally).
Remind you that the ghost template still affects Karakan in this form. While your target form for Alter Self may not have a template, Alter Self does not suppress any templates you already have. Thus the template is still in full effect (except those things where Alter Self calls out that you loose em, like attacks that rely on a body part. Being a Ghost doesn't change any body part at all, those remain all the same. thus Ghost abilities remain uneffected).
The Death Attack's DC can be raised up to 30 (10 base + 10 lvl + 10 Int modifier) which provides a very deadly SCRY & DIE tactic. I bet, you don't wanna be haunted by this kobolds ghost ;)
And when it comes down to tracking and spying out targets, the build relies on the IVT abilities and has a few spells like Locate Creature and Mind Probe to do the job.

I hope you all enjoyed the build and I'm looking forward for the reveal to see the other meals that have been cooked this round =)

[The Viscount]

The chef's note does say least, not non-.

"He's run away! Get him!"

Alkathira screamed with frustration, bringing low her blade. The vampire in front of her was reduced to dust in a blaze of light, but there were many more, perhaps too many to leave her allies and chase after her prey. On the other hand, she couldn't risk the Derro Shadoweaver getting away. Memories of the homeworld vexed her, reminding her of the fate this cosmos could face if such beings were allowed to run amok. She was gripped by indecision.

I'll find out.

Time… slowed. Slowed, as someone who was-but-wasn't Alkathira delved into the weave. In the far realms of her minds, endless possibilities exploded, worlds dying and being born in an eternal fraction of a second.

Stay. I was told to stay.

Alkathira's laughter echoed through the caves as she charged.

--

Karaz Laksh panted, his hand to his side as he ran. Wizards weren't supposed to run, but he really thought he could take his pursuers, and his attempts at escaping through more conventional means were countered. Countered by that terrible woman – the one who chased him down in the waking world as well as in his dreams, the one who was dressed as a wizard but attempted to cut of his head with a crude sword.

Still, he was alive, uninjured – and he's escaped! And they'll have no way of tracking him down in time, magical means or otherwise. Only a moment more, and he'll get to his sanctum, where he'll be protected. Then will he take his vengeance. He'll eat their flesh, and spread their blood on the walls of the tunnels. He'll find th-

A figure materialized right in front of him as he ran, and before he could possibly react, his head was taken off in one clean swoop.

Alkathira Hamerubot:
LN female Synad. Duskblade 5/ Knight of The Weave 1/ Abjurant Champion 4/ Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10.

Str 16, Dex 8, Con 14, Int 14, Wis 8, Cha 16. All advancements go to Cha.

Spoiler: Table

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Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Duskblade (PHBII p.19) 1	1	2	0	2	Craft (Poisonmaking) 4, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2 (cc), Tumble 4.	Hidden Talent (Minor Psionic Creation) (XPH p.67)	Skilled city dweller: Ride for Tumble, Arcane Attunement, Armored Mage (light).
2nd	Duskblade 2	2	3	0	3	Craft (Poisonmaking) 5 (+1), Hide 1 (cc), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 5 (+1).	Combat Casting (b)	-
3rd	Duskblade 3	3	3	1	3	Craft (Poisonmaking) 6 (+1), Hide 2 (cc, +1), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 6 (+1).	Power Attack	Arcane Channeling
4th	Duskblade 4	4	4	1	4	Craft (Poisonmaking) 7 (+1), Hide 3 (cc, +1), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 7 (+1).	-	Amored Mage (medium)
5th	Duskblade 5	5	4	1	4	Craft (Poisonmaking) 8 (+1), Hide 4 (cc, +1), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 8 (+1).	-	Quick Cast 1/day
6th	Knight of the Weave (CoV p.111)	5	6	1	6	Craft (Poisonmaking) 8, Hide 4, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 8, Use Magic Device 4.	Fiendish Bloodline (Dragon Compendium p.98)	Detect Magic, Read Magic
7th	Abjurant Champion (CM p.50) 1	6	6	1	8	Craft (Poisonmaking) 8, Hide 4, Move Silently 1 (cc), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 10 (+2), Use Magic Device 4.	-	Skilled City dweller: ride for tumble, Abjurant Armor, Extended Abjuration
8th	Abjurant Champion 2	7	6	1	9	Craft (Poisonmaking) 8, Hide 4, Move Silently 2.5 (cc, +1.5), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 11 (+1), Use Magic Device 4.	-	Swift Abjuration
9th	Abjurant Champion 3	8	7	2	9	Craft (Poisonmaking) 8, Hide 4, Move Silently 3 (cc, +0.5), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 12 (+1), Use Magic Device 4, Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab	Track	-
10th	Abjurant Champion 4	9	7	2	10	Craft (Poisonmaking) 8, Hide 4, Move Silently 5 (cc, +2), Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 12, Use Magic Device 4, Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab.	-	Arcane Boost
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker (Und p.37)1	9	7	4	12	Craft (Poisonmaking) 10 (+2), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 14 (+2), Use Magic Device 4, Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	-	Target of Vengeance
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 2	10	7	5	13	Craft (Poisonmaking) 15(+5), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 15 (+1), Use Magic Device 4, Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	Practiced Spellcaster: Duskblade (CArc p.82)	Poison Use
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 3	11	8	5	13	Craft (Poisonmaking) 16 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 16 (+1), Use Magic Device 6 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	-	Sneak Attack +1d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 4	12	8	6	14	Craft (Poisonmaking) 17 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 17 (+1), Use Magic Device 8 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	-	Far Sense
15th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 5	12	8	6	14	Craft (Poisonmaking) 18 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 18 (+1), Use Magic Device 10 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	Staggering Strike (CAdv p.112)	Sneak Attack +2d6
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 6	13	9	7	15	Craft (Poisonmaking) 19 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 19 (+1), Use Magic Device 12 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	-	Seeker
17th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 7	14	9	7	15	Craft (Poisonmaking) 20 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 20 (+1), Use Magic Device 14 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	-	Sneak Attack +3d6
18th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 8	15	9	8	16	Craft (Poisonmaking) 21 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 21 (+1), Use Magic Device 16 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.	Venomous Strike (DotU 54)	Scry Target
19th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 9	15	10	8	16	Craft (Poisonmaking) 22 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 22 (+1), Use Magic Device 18 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.		Sneak Attack +4d6
20th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10	16	10	9	17	Craft (Poisonmaking) 23 (+1), Hide 4, Move Silently 5, Spellcraft 4, Survival 2, Tumble 23 (+1), Use Magic Device 20 (cc, +2), Skill Tricks: Actobatic Backstab, Back on Your Feet.		Death Attack

Spoiler: Spells

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Duskblade spells known:

0-Level: Acid Splash (1), Disrupt Undead (1), Ray of Frost (1), Touch of Fatigue (1).
1st Level: Chill touch (1), Color Spray (1), Ray of Enfeeblement (2), Shocking Grasp (3), Resist Energy (4).
2nd Level: Dimension Hop (5).


Duskblade spells per day:

Level	0th	1st	2nd
1st	3	2	-
2nd	4	3	-
3rd	5	4	-
4th	6	5	-
5th	6	5	2

Knight of The Weave spells known:

1st Level: Protection from Good (6), Mage Armor (6), Shield (6), Bless Weapon (8), Divine Favor (10).
2nd Level: Darkness (8), See Invisibility (8), Shield Other (8), Darkvision (10), Delay Poison (14).
3rd Level: Sepia Snake Sigil (10), Dispel Magic (10), Fly (10), Daylight (14), Greater Magic Weapon (18).
4th Level: Bestow Curse (12), Death Ward (12), Lesser Globe of Invulnerability (12), Mark of Justice (16).
5th Level: Nightmare (14), Disrupting Weapon (14), True Seeing (14), Spell resistance (18).
6th level: Mislead (16), Banishment (16), Greater Dispel Magic (16), Teleport (20).


Knight of The Weave spells per day:

Level	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th
6th	2	-	-	-	-	-
7th	2	-	-	-	-	-
8th	3	2	-	-	-	-
9th	3	2	-	-	-	-
10th	4	3	2	-	-	-
11th	4	3	2	-	-	-
12th	4	3	2	2	-	-
13th	4	3	2	2	-	-
14th	4	4	3	2	2	-
15th	4	4	3	2	2	-
16th	4	4	3	3	2	2
17th	4	4	3	3	2	2
18th	4	4	4	3	3	2
19th	4	4	4	3	3	2
20th	4	4	4	3	3	3

Spoiler: Build Discussion

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Starting out, Alkathira plays as a classic gish – something that would stay true throughout her career. With 5 pp and access to psionic minor creation, she grants her party a versatility of resources usually not available to a focused class like the duskblade. She also knows her way around a poison lab, which means many poisons for intrigue or other purposes can be made. As a synad, she's also very well suited to the underdark – darkvision, 14 int and bonus languages (any) to speak undercommon from level 1, and the aberration type on top of a bonus to will saves to keep safe from the many monsters and evil npcs with abilities that invade the mind.

Staple options like color spray and ray of enfeeblement show up at the jump, and are backed up by power attack and arcane channeling (shocking grasp/ chill touch/ touch of fatigue) at level 3. Dimension hop, her only second level Duskblade spell, can be used for utility purposes on herself and her allies, and can be a nightmare when channeled against full-attackers or at any environment more interesting than a flat featureless plain. Quick cast once per day also comes along at level 5, and is incredibly useful for buffing, debuffing or damaging whenever she absolutely has to do it immediately.

She dips into Knight of The Weave at level 6, taking fiendish bloodline at the same level to enhance her very limited spell known list. Duskblade means easy entry with +5 BaB as well as enjoying the benefit of an arcane caster level, which stacks with KoTW. She immediately leaves the class for abjurant champion, which she qualifies for with the bonus combat casting feat from duskblade, preserving her full BaB and helping her supplement her AC after losing access to medium armor. Arcane boost is a nice way to use under-utilized spell slots when full attacking, and the rest of the features need no introduction to explain their usefulness. Martial arcanist, usually a very tempting option, is completely redundant for this build, meaning Alkathira leaves the class after 4 levels.

Her spell list is comprised of classic arcane and divine staples (though they're all arcane for her), as well as some options uniquely useful to the underdark and to her specific tactics. All of her spells are important, and most are obvious in their usefulness – nothing needs to be said about divine favor, see invisibility, dispel magic, sepia snake sigil, etc. Shield other can be used as a swift action to defend an ally at significant risk, which is nice. A couple of spells that may not be as obvious up to level 10 are protection from good and darkvision. Despite mostly fighting against evil targets, protection from good is awesome for Alkathira – she can cast it as a swift action, making it incredibly useful whenever mind-affecting enemies are afoot. Darkvision comes along right before joining the vengeance takers – those accept surface dwellers as well, and some of those may not have native darkvision.

She has use magic device, but it fully develops much later into the build – so it's lucky she can use wands for cure spells, restoration, scrolls of break enchantment and remove curse, all from her class list. Her other important achievement before level 10 is gaining access to acrobatic backstab at level 9. Since her staple option at the beginning of any fight is moving towards an enemy and channeling a spell at them, getting to do so against flatfooted enemies is a nice touch.

Alkathira enters the SI after gaining third level spells at level 10. KoTW's unique casting progression means she keeps progressing at exactly the same pace, despite moving to a half casting class. By level 20, she'll have full KoTW casting.

Level 11 itself is kind of bland, obviously – there's not much you can do with target of vengeance itself. The bonus damage from it can be multiplied by critical hits, so it's pretty good on a power-attacking chassis that'll soon get a third iterative, who's probably using a falchion (hopefully keen) as her standard weapon by this level. She also takes back on your feet, which is very situational but exceedingly useful.

A lot, however, happens at level 12. Poison use, when combined with her craft ranks and her access to minor creation means she has unlimited access to some extremely potent poisons. A triple weapon capsule retainer (CAdv p. 122) is a mundane purchase that's absolutely worth it at this point. She can pick and choose the best poison against the enemies she expects to be dealing with, never needing any supplies to get the perfect poison for the job. She also takes practiced spellcaster for duskblade – which, again, stacks with her KoTW CL. Her caster level for duskblade spells is 9, and her caster level for knight of the weave is 15. It's going to stagnate slowly through her career, finishing at 19 at level 20.
This is also the level that gets her 4th level spells – death ward, lesser globe of invulnerability, and the absolutely nasty on a duskblade bestow curse. A typical opening move for this level would be tumbling past an enemy into a good flanking position, probably swift casting shield (probably), protection from good or resist energy (situationally) on the way, and then channeling bestow curse with a powerful melee hit augmented by poison against a flatfooted opponent. Following rounds she can full attack an enemy that's probably flanked by now, using her swift action to cast another abjuration spell, apply another dose of poison, or use her arcane boost. This tactic will remain one of her most reliable tactics throughout her career, and will soon be enhanced by her sneak attack feature – which can be applied against flatfooted enemies in the first round, and flanked enemies in the following rounds.

During the following levels, this sneak attack will be improved upon with 2 feats. First, by staggering strike – a debuff that completely cripples full attackers, and forces anyone else to choose between getting away or doing something, mostly ensuring flanked full attacks for all subsequent rounds. The DC for this feat is equal to the damage dealt by the attack, which means only having 2d6 sneak attack dice doesn't matter – her power attack should do far more damage than can be bypassed by even the toughest enemies. She also has 10 ranks in UMD by this point (will go up to 20 by the end of the build), supported by pretty good Cha. That's useful for a whole heap of things, but a wratihstrike (CAdv p.158) wand is worth mentioning as a relatively cheap source of power for her, making it far easier to do tremendous amounts of damage and ensuring a fail on the staggering strike save.

The second feat utilizing her sneak attack is venomous strike, her last feat. Sacrificing 2d6 of damage on one of her sneak attacks for increased DC on her poison is absolutely worth it, and that option is especially attractive given the fact she's guaranteed to never run out of poison doses. It also doesn't really impact her staggering strike DC that much – especially against her vengeance target.

We've concluded the discussion on Alkathira's feats and most of her class features. The only features not yet discussed are the SLAs and the death attack. The specific SLAs the Vengeance taker gains access to are unique in that they emulate spells which would usually take far more time to cast than the standard action cost of an SLA. Their divinatory nature still makes it a hard sell to use them in combat – unless you can even further reduce their action economy cost, which Alkathira can do through her multitask racial feature once per day. Looking into the next room as a swift action can be worth it here and there, but a swift action use of seeker will be reliably worth it in combat. Facing a tough decision? Fearing there's something you're missing? Ask the DM if they're up to something, and how you should approach this combat if you wish to succeed in your mission. Just incredibly useful. Before we talk about death attack and scry target, let's look at the rest of Alkathira's spells.

Level 14 brings her daylight, which many enemies in the underdark will have severe disadvantage against, and delay poison. Delay poison is a weird spell, but it's there for a reason – "bring 'em back alive". Alkathira has been sent to hunt someone down, and the "I've poisoned you and I have the antidote" approach is a pretty good way of taking someone hostage, if the opportunity presents itself. That same theme is enhanced with mark of justice at level 16 – another option not usually available to arcane casters, and another one which allows her to deal with her targets non-lethally, when the situation justifies it. Her third spell which is all about dealing with her target is nightmare – possess someone's dreams while you're chasing after them, slowing them down. Fun.

Disrupting weapon is one of the best gish spells around, also usually unavailable to arcane casters. Its dependence on CL makes it a hard sell for most half-casters, but as discussed that's the opposite of being an issue in Alkathira's case. Alkathira was far from useless against undead before taking this spell at 14, but they're still resistant to her sneak-stagger, her chill touch and her poison – so having the option to just instantly destroy undead is covering up for many of the SI's weaknesses. Quick cast, as usual, covers for the cases in which she needs it right-freaking-now.

The rest of her spells are again just obviously awesome spells. Of special note are her CL again allowing her to fully utilize greater dispel magic, and her psionic minor creation allowing her to manufacture items to increase the DC on the encounter-solving spell which is banishment, coming online only 3 levels after a full wizard would have access to it. No "ugh, we'll be facing X demons, we should have brought Y holy symbol" for Alkathira.

20th level brings forth the capstone of the SI, death attack. It's also the point at which Alkathira hits 16 BaB, and the level in which she learns her final spell, allowing her to perform her final move: the 1000 mile decapitation.

Here's how it works: Alkathira scries on target. She looks at her target for 3 rounds, observing them and looking at their surroundings. She then uses her 1/day quick cast to cast teleport into an adjacent square. Quick casting teleport means it's still her turn when she arrives, so she still has her full-round action to go. She can absolutely demolish her target, full-attacking them with death attack, poison, sneak attack – anything she's got. Even if the DM (or judge) decides for some reason that she can't pick the exact square she teleports into, she still has her movement and a channeled-poisoned-staggering-death attack at hand. All in the turn she teleported.

Spoiler

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The image above is the least horny depiction of a bald woman with a sword on the internet.

All sources are notified in the text.

[The Viscount]

The wildly different original pitch of Ed, Edd, and Eddy.

Eddy + Cat

Good Cop/Bard Cop
CN-LN Telthyrian Human

Bard 1/Battle Dancer 1/ deadly hunter Druid 1/ Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10/Lyric Thaumaturge 7

BACKGROUND

Spoiler: background

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There once was a very naughty bard battle dancer named Eddy. They once got severly traumatized by a troll warlord, an experience that sent Eddy on the lam for months. Eddy switches alignment, forsaking the freedom and honor and dignity of a life of chaos and becomes a police officer dedicated to upholding the law. During this time they met a cat. The cat adopted them. Then Eddy and his new buddy went and got revenge and were recruited by the imaskari.

Spoiler: ABILITIES

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Abilities	Initial	Race / Template	Level 4	Level 8	Level 12	Level 16	Level 20
Str	10	0	10	10	10	10	10
Dex	14	0	14	14	14	14	14
Con	12	0	12	12	12	13	14
Int	10	0	10	10	10	10	10
Wis	13	0	13	13	13	13	13
Cha	17	0	18	19	20	20	20

Spoiler: BUILD

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Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Bard	0	0	2	2	K. (arcana) (+4) 4; Perform (dance) (+4) 4; Hide (+4) 4; Bluff (+4) 4; Move Silently (+4) 4; Concentration (+3) 3; Spellcraft (+4) 4; K. planes (+1) 1	Heighten spell, Talfirian song (Races of Faerun p. 170)	Bardic music, bardic knowledge, countersong, fascinate, inspire courage +1,
2nd	Battle Dancer (Dragon Compendium p. 26)	1	0	4	2	K. (arcana) 4; Perform (dance) (+1) 5; Hide 4; Bluff 4; Move Silently (+1) 5; Concentration 3; Spellcraft 4; Tumble (+3) 3; K. planes 1	Improved Unarmed Strike	AC bonus, unarmed strike
3rd	Deadly Hunter urban companion (WEB: Cityscape)Druid (Unearthed Arcana p. 58)	1	2	4	4	K. (arcana) 4; Perform (dance) 5; Hide 4; Bluff 4; Move Silently 5; Concentration 3; Spellcraft 4; Tumble 3; Survival (+3) 3; K. planes (+2 CC) 2	Track (b), Alertness (b), Extra Music (Complete Adventurer p. 109)	Bonus to AC, Track, Favored Enemy, urban companion: feat cat: (Web: Fabulous Cats), wild empathy, nature sense, druid casting
4th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 1	1	2	6	6	K. (arcana) (+1) 5; Perform (dance) (+2 CC) 6; Hide 4; Bluff 4; Move Silently 5; Concentration 3; Spellcraft (+1) 5; Tumble 3; Survival (+1) 4; K. planes 2		target of vengeance
5th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 2	2	2	7	7	K. (arcana) (+1) 6; Perform (dance) (+2 CC) 7; Hide 4; Bluff (+1) 5; Move Silently 5; Concentration 3; Spellcraft (+1) 6; Tumble 3; Survival 4; K. planes 2		poison use
6th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 3	3	3	7	7	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+2 CC) 8; Hide (+1) 5; Bluff (+1) 6; Move Silently (+1) 6; Concentration 3; Spellcraft 6; Tumble 3; Survival 4; K. planes 2	Ascetic mage (Complete Adventurer p. 105)	sneak attack 1d6
7th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 4	4	3	8	8	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+2 CC) 9; Hide 5; Bluff 6; Move Silently 6; Concentration (+1) 4; Spellcraft (+1) 7; Tumble 3; Survival (+1) 5; K. planes 2		far sense,
8th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 5	4	3	8	8	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+2 CC) 10; Hide 5; Bluff 6; Move Silently 6; Concentration 4; Spellcraft 7; Tumble (+3) 6; Survival 5; K. planes 2		Sneak attack +2d6
9th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 6	5	4	9	9	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) 10; Hide (+3) 8; Bluff (+1) 7; Move Silently (+1) 7; Concentration 4; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 6; Survival 5; K. planes 2	Snowflake Wardance (Frostburn,p. 50)	Seeker
10th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 7	6	4	9	9	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) 10; Hide 8; Bluff 7; Move Silently 7; Concentration (+1) 5; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 6; Survival (+3) 8; K. planes 2; Balance (+1) 1		Sneak Attack +3d6
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 8	7	4	10	10	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) 10; Hide (+1) 9; Bluff 7; Move Silently (+3) 10; Concentration 5; Spellcraft 7; Tumble (+1) 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 1		Scry target
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 9	7	5	10	10	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) 10; Hide 9; Bluff 7; Move Silently 10; Concentration (+1) 6; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance (+4) 5	Melodic casting (Complete Mage p. 44)	Sneak Attack +4d6
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10	8	5	11	11	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+2) 12; Hide 9; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5; Perform (Ettiquette) (+2) 2		Death Attack
14th	Lyric Thaumaturge 1 (Complete Mage p. 67)	8	5	13	13	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+2) 14; Hide 9; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5; Perform (ettiquette) (+1) 3		Bardic music, bonus spell
15th	Lyric Thaumaturge 2	9	5	14	14	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+2) 16; Hide 9; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5;	Captivating Melody (Complete Mage p. 40), staggering strike (Complete Adventurer p. 112)	captivating melody
16th	Lyric Thaumaturge 3	10	6	14	14	K. (arcana) 6; Bluff (+1) 2; Perform (dance) (+2) 18; Hide 9; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5;		Spell Secret
17th	Lyric Thaumaturge 4	11	6	15	15	K. (arcana) 6; Bluff (+1) 3; Perform (dance) (+2) 20; Hide 9; Bluff (+1) 1; Concentration (+1) 1; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5;		Bonus Spell
18th	Lyric Thaumaturge 5	11	6	15	15	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+1) 21; Hide 9; Bluff (+1) 4; Concentration (+1) 2; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5; Perform (ettiquette) (+1) 4	Mastery of twisted Shadow (Player's Guide to Eberron p. 126)	Sonic might
19th	Lyric Thaumaturge 6	12	7	16	16	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+1) 22; Hide 9; Bluff (+1) 13; Concentration (+1) 3; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5; Perform (ettiquette) (+2) 10		Spell Seccret
20th	Lyric Thaumaturge 7	13	7	16	16	K. (arcana) 6; Perform (dance) (+1) 23; Hide 9; Bluff (+1) 4; Concentration (+1) 4; Spellcraft 7; Tumble 7; Survival 8; K. planes 2; Balance 5; Perform (ettiquette) (+2) 12		Bonus Spell

Spells per Day

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
1st	2	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	2	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	2	-	-	-	-	-
4th	2	-	-	-	-	-
5th	3	0	-	-	-	-
6th	3	0	-	-	-	-
7th	3	1	-	-	-	-
8th	3	1	-	-	-	-
9th	3	2	0	-	-	-
10th	3	2	0	-	-	-
11th	3	3	1	-	-	-
12th	3	3	1	-	-	-
13th	3	3	2	-	-	-
14th*	3	4	3	0	-	-
15th	3	4	4	1	-	-
16th	3	4	4	2	-	-
17th*	3	4	4	3	1	-
18th	3	4	4	4	2	-
19th	3	4	4	4	3	-
20th*	3	4	4	4	3	1

Spells Known

Level	0lvl	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
1st	4	-	-	-	-	-
2nd	4	-	-	-	-	-
3rd	4	-	-	-	-	-
4th	4	-	-	-	-	-
5th	5	2	-	-	-	-
6th	5	2	-	-	-	-
7th	6	3	-	-	-	-
8th	6	3	-	-	-	-
9th	6	3	2	-	-	-
10th	6	3	2	-	-	-
11th	6	4	3	-	-	-
12th	6	4	3	-	-	-
13th	6	4	3	-	-	-
14th	6	4	4	2	-	-
15th	6	4	4	3	-	-
16th*	6	5	5	3	-	-
17th	6	5	5	4	2	-
18th	6	5	5	4	3	-
19th*	6	5	5	5	4	-
20th	6	5	5	5	5	2

SPELLS
0: ghost sound, mage hand, detect magic, read magic, message, Summon instrument

1: instant diversion (Races of the Dragon p.113), cure light wounds, ironthunder horn (Spell Comp p. 126), instant of power (The Forge of War p. 114), Serene Visage (Spell Comp. 182)

2: whirling blade (Spell Comp p. 238), mirror image, deceptive facade (complete mage p.102), know vulnerabilities (Spell Comp p. 129), Glossolalia (Expanded Psionics Handbook p.220)

3: Shadow dagger (Shackled City Adventure Path p.336), haste, dissonant chord (Spell Comp p. 69), glibness, major image

4: Resonating bolt (Spell Comp p. 174), melf's slumber arrow (Complete Mage p.110), Fire Dance (Web: Far Corners), voice of the dragon (Spell Comp p. 232), greater invisibility.

5: dancing blade (PHB2 p.109), shadow evocation.

URBAN COMPANION

Spoiler: ”Urban Companion: CAT”

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Size/Type: Tiny Magical Beast
Hit Dice: ½ d8 (2 hp) or ¾ of master’s HP
Initiative: +2
Speed: 30 ft. (6 squares)
Armor Class: 15 (+2 size, +2 Dex +1Nat armor), touch 14, flat-footed 13
Base Attack/Grapple: +0/-12
Attack: Claw +4 melee (1d2-4)
Full Attack: 2 claws +4 melee (1d2-4) and bite -1 melee (1d3-4)
Space/Reach: 2½ ft./0 ft.
Special Attacks: —
Special Qualities: Low-light vision, scent,
Saves: Fort +2, Ref +4, Will +1
Abilities: Str 3, Dex 15, Con 10, Int 6, Wis 12, Cha 7
Skills: Balance +10, Climb +6, Hide +16*, Jump +10, Listen +3, Move Silently +8, Spot +3 Feats:
1: Stealthy, Weapon FinesseB
3: Martial Study (shadow blade technique) (Tome of Battle p.31 & 76)
6: Martial Stance (Island of blades) (Tome of Battle p.31 &78)
9: Combat reflexes
12: Giantbane (Complete warrior p.111)
15: Martial Study (Shadow garotte)(Tome of Battle p.31 & 78)
18: Don't mind me (fabulous cats)

City Scape
This is identical to the sorcerer's ability to summon a familiar (PH 52), including all benefits granted and gained by the familiar, except as noted below. Her functional level for determining the abilities of the companion is equal to her druid level or one-half her ranger level. She does not lose experience points if her urban companion is slain, and she requires only 24 hours to replace one who is lost.
Her urban companion has total hit points equal to 3/4 her own hit points, rather than half as per a familiar.
The urban companion gains the ability to speak with other animals of its kind when she has an effective master level of 1st.

Alertness, improved evasion, share spells, empathic link

FAB CATS
Variant: If you want to make the feline familiars in your game more exciting, consider letting them gain additional feats at the same rate as their masters do (at master levels 3rd, 6th, 9th, 12th, 15th, and 18th). In this way, a 10th-level human sorcerer could have a cat familiar that possessed four feats.

Spoiler: ”Level 5”

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Imaskari Vengeance Taker: Getting there mad early. Check it.

A Telthyrian Human can take talfirian song and spend bardic music uses to cast illusion spells of 3rd level or higher. So, just like that, we have spent our two 1st level feats to get that amazing feat and the heighten spell pre-req, and annexed our third level feat slot for extra bardic uses. That means we can enter Imaskari Vengeance Taker at 4.

But, i wanted charisma to AC twice, and with the sunk cost of already having to make up some story about changing alignment (bards are chaotic) that makes sense and is capable of skirting past an elegance penalty thru sheer hard-work of composing an entire character arc, I might as well get that charisma to AC twice. Since we have this "must get revenge" pre-requisite for this class itself, we have a pretty much built in story about a bard battledancer travelling-ne’er-do-well who happened upon a trauma so severe that it changed their alignment from chaotic to lawful. Which then sets them on the “path to vengeance!” Full stop. That’s my angle. Getting into Imaskari vengeance Taker (IVT, henceforth) practically demanded that this be the story told. Of the bard with the ability to pump up their spells of 3rd level stat getting cajoled into the seedy world of lawfully-aligned revenge-maniacs. All the pieces are there. Except for the track feat.

Ok, we could go ranger to get that track feat, or we could go druid with favored enemy and free track free animal urban companion and wisdom to AC as a monk and spells. Which you know, is better than that level of ranger and its 1 BAB. Since we can already artificially inflate spell levels for feat/prestige prerequisites due to the terribly expansive and permissive language of the talfirian song feat, we can just slot the ascetic mage feat into that level six slot, thereby ensuring that we do indeed get charisma bonus to AC twice.

And that animal companion is just gonna die every 24 hours if we try to use it. So we’ll swap that on out with the urban companion acf from city scape. Which operates exactly like a sorcerer summoning a familiar, except it gets ¾ of your hp, which is nice, and there’s no xp penalty when your targets of vengeance try to to take you down by besmirching the life force of your familiar. What’s really cool is that because you can choose the familiar, you can choose a cat. And in the gift that can’t stop giving that is a single level of druid in a 3.5 edition optimization contest, is that the cat familiar got a significant boost with a variant rule found in Gwendolyn F. Kestrel’s DnD masterpiece: the Fabulous Cats April fool’s day article archived on the web. The familiar gets feats at the same rate as its master. It didn’t care about master’s fiddly little familiar based leveling constructs: It gets feats when you get feats by leveling up. We have an imaskari flanking buddy. Who can take island of blades!

We are gonna need to do some revengeancing soon, so let’s get this cat that can help me get flanking bonii on the people that im gonna sneak attack with my snowflake wardance infused bard spells (shadow dagger) (whirling bladed) while also providing a nice +3 cushion on my sparse skill ranks in move silently.

Levels 4 and 5 see our early entry into the class that we’ve all been waiting for!

Imaskari Vengeance Taker. (as conceived by AI at wombo)

It gets our bard casting up to level 2! What do we get?! first level spells at level 5! That you can heighten them to 5th level if you’re weird and the spell to be heightened is an illusion spell.You would be doing this instead of doing any cool bard music based stuff, which is the probable better use of bardic music for the beginning levels???.

And I think I can devise the perfect entrance exam to join the IVTs. The IVT only care about the spell level of what people can cast. So they hire 20-35 5th level abjurers to try to counterspell you as part of a multi day initiation. They can run the statistical analysis on the sampling the counterspell success of the NPC wizards who conveniently all have the same stats. And if the heightened ghostsound that this bard can play gets counterspelled less than half of the time, well then he’s definitely capable of fulfilling the weird needs of this mafia-like vengeance organization and theory byzantine but statistically sound method of getting “jumped in”

The IVT is offering this build something specific: sneak attack and +5 levels of bard casting. Plus all that backstory, whew. It sure is flavorful. There’s some other stuff about target’s of vengeance and stuff, namely a huge bonus to bluff, but that’s gonna require some higher levels. Which, I believe, are going to conveniently follow this late night scree posing as honest entry.

Spoiler: ”Level 10”

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5 succulent levels of imaskari vengeance taker. A total of 3d6 sneak attack. Oh, are those second level bard spells I see there? Are you whirling your snowflake wardance blades all over the place? And I’m sure the island of blades cat in your square is helping add some of those sweet sweet sneak attack dice.

Your cat has scent and can talk to you, isn’t that basically the same as getting a scent bonus on your own survival checks to track? I mean, it should be. Because then, you have a nice ToV bonus to your survival checks to make you as competent as a skillpoint starved ranger.

Speaking of your cat, whom has been officially named “Cat” because that’s what he is, and lawful bards think like that; Snakes swiftness or spider hand are some fun druid spells to share a casting on with the cat.

I wish i could tell you more about the in’s and outs of these levels, but they’re basically to make instant diversions and mirror images to get snowdance warflake attacks, and when you’re lined up adequately, hit the bad guys with a whirling blade of the slashing weapon of your choice. Plus, if you’ve made it this far, chances are you are using those weird little diddies in your spell list pretty creatively. And with a nice high DC of 22 before you start adding charisma or dex boosting items or abilities.

Spoiler: ”LEVEL 15”

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This is the high point of the build, I think. You have your shadow dagger, drawn from the shackled city adventure path.

So let’s talk about that book that’ll be a real burden for you to find a copy of. And…it falls directly into the hole that the dragon compendium falls into: Paizo published dnd logo-ed content. The weird, second party sourcebook. One is Dragon compendium, back when paizo did the publishing of dragon magazine. And another is the shackled city adventure path sourcebook, which came out later in the run of the pre-pathfinder era. Check out some of these screenshots.

Spoiler: pic of first page

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This thing is officially licensed and produced by the company responsible for the production of Wizards of the Coast’s 1st-party monthly modular content. Well, time to settle some case law, Mr. Volunteer Judge. We know all about the law. We’re a lawful battle dancer bard with shadowdagger.

Here's some discussion to help you decide: Link

Anyways, if Dragon comp is allowed...then this should be.
SHADOW DAGGER

Spoiler

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It’s an amazing spell that becomes like a lightning bolt that you can sneak attack with when you pair it with whirling blade. And it comes back to your hand for your attacks of opportunity, and with snowflake wardance, you may get charisma to attack rolls twice? Depending if you read that the charisma bonus stacking with strength or dexterity non-exclusively to the list of ability scores used to make weapons hit. Like in the case of weaponlike spells.. And if the opponent happens to be sneak attackable in that line of 10d6 shadow dagger damage, they become staggered. Limiting their movement or actions, and because it triggers per sneak attack, it applies to everyone hit by a whirling shadow dagger, so long as they are flanked, flatfooted, or denied dex to AC. . With giantbane and shadow garrotte on your cat, you should be able to get a few choice enemies to be sneak attackable pretty often.

Ahh yes, ALSO, this is the level where choosing serene visage and glibness can help you on your bluff checks against your target of vengeance. It is a +50 sense motive modifier to an epic bluff skill check to incept the idea of a suggestion spell, as an ex ability into the head of your target of vengeance. And I’m counting at least a +45 to that roll before we add charisma modifiers and bluff skill ranks let alone favored enemy, which will obviously be arcanists (complete mage p.32) if allowed, because that’s categorically the best favored enemy choice. Otherwise, choose something from your backstory.

And if you’re sharing these spells with your familiar, they too can instill suggestions on the catlike things that it can talk to. And if your ToV is a catlike thing, they are gonna be getting suggestion bombed until they turn themselves in to face the authorities.

Spoiler: ”Level 20”

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Here we are, 20 levels in. I feel like we all learned alot. So the rest of this build is enhancing the gishy bard spell casting, culminating in shadow evocation, improved invisibility, fire dance, and dancing blade. If you need to, you can heighten a major image up to 9th level to resist dispelling. If I get around to monkeying with the skills, we should be able to fit eberrons “mastery of the twisted shadow” feat in there you should be able to cast instant diversion as a swift, get concealment for a whole line of sneak attacks from a whirling shadowdagger. Or maybe you need to hide when you set up your big shadow evocation. And you can heighten these illusions to get more concealment using bardic music uses and talfirian song. Further, this build leverages that sneak attack attack and can actually continue to use its early entry tricks well into late game. with 16 ranks in bluff and glibness and +10 to bluff, you can instill a suggestion in a target of vengeance no problem

[The Viscount]

You decided whether spiked body shots are involved.

Ivy, the poisonous belly-dancer of death

Life is not always easy. Especially if you are born as Deepwyrm bastard in the drow society. Ivy's mother tried to raise her as best as she can. But she got sick and died early as Ivy was still young. Since her so called relatives didn't care for her, she left home with a wandering belly dancer group, who where luckily looking for some background dancer at that moment.
Years have passed and she did befriend with the others in the group and had a close relationship with them. And Shaely was like a younger sister to her. Spending every day for several years their relationship grew.
One day, while giving a personal show for a rich drow, an incident happened. The drow was drunk and tried to rape Shaely. She refused heavily while the other girls and Ivy tried to come to rescue. But the guards of the Drow block their way. Shaely, desperate in her situation drew a knife, attached from the drow's side and did cut him.
The drow in pain & anger ordered his guards to kill her and sell the others on the slave market.
Shaely cries out loud and swears to kill him!
At the slave market she gets a ruff treatment, since Ivy can't calm down anymore.
While she gets punished again for her behavior, 2 man stop by and watch the scene. They are Imaskari, scouting for good slaves that can be turned into loyal Imaskari Vengeance Taker with the "right treatment".
"And oh boy, what a furious young lady we have here.." one of em says, while the slave trader turns around and notices em.
... the beginning of Ivy's journey to vengeance starts...


Race: Deepwyrm Half-Drow

Stats:
STR: 14
DEX: 14
CON: 14
INT: 16 > 32 (+5 Wish, +5 from level + 6 from item)
WIS: 10
CHA: 10

Religion: Kossuth
Alignment: L-G

Spoiler: table

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Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Ref Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Monk Fighting Style: Cobra Strike (SRD)	+0	+2	+2	+2	Concentration: 4 Knowledge (religion): 4 Perform (dance): 4 Hide: 4 Move Silently: 4 Survive: 2 (4P) Tumble: 4	Bonus Feat: Dodge Endurance	AC bonus flurry unarmed strike
2nd	Combat Wizard (SRD)	+0	+2	+2	+4	Concentration: 5 Knowledge (religion): 5 Knowledge (planes): 3 (+3)	Fighter Bonus Feat: Mobility	Familiar: Parrot (same stats as Raven) (source Stormwrack) < Fighter Bonus Feat
3rd	Combat Wizard	+1	+2	+2	+5	Concentration: 6 Knowledge (religion): 6 Knowledge (planes): 6	Combat Casting
4th	Combat Wizard	+1	+3	+3	+5	Concentration: 7 Knowledge (religion): 7 Knowledge (planes): 7 Perform: 5 (+2)
5th	Combat Wizard	+2	+3	+3	+6	Concentration: 8 Craft (Poisonmaking): 1 Knowledge (planes): 8 Perform: 6 (+2)
6th	Combat Wizard	+2	+3	+3	+6	Concentration: 9 Craft (Poisonmaking): 2 Knowledge (planes): 9 Move Silently: 5 (+2)	Track Fighter Bonus Feat: Versatile Unarmed Strike (source PHB II)	< Fighter bonus feat
7th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+2	+3	+5	+8	Concentration: 10 Craft (Posionmaking): 4 (+2) Knowledge (Planes): 10 (+2) Perform: 6 (+2)		Target of Vengeance
8th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+3	+3	+6	+9	Concentration: 11 Craft (Poisonmaking): 6 (+2) Perform: 8 (+4)		Poison Use
9th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+4	+4	+6	+9	Concentration: 12 Craft (Poisonmaking): 8 (+2) Perform: 10 (+4)	Poison Spell (Drow of the Underdark)	Sneak Attack 1d6
10th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+5	+4	+7	+10	Concentration: 13 Craft (Poisonmaking): 10 (+2) Perform: 12 (+4)		Far Sence
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+5	+4	+7	+10	Concentration: 14 Craft (Poisonmaking): 12 (+2) Perform: 14 (+4)		Sneak Attack 2d6
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+6	+5	+8	+11	Concentration: 15 Craft (Poisonmaking): 15 (+3) Perform: 15 (+2) Tumble: 5	Extend Spell	Seaker
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+7	+5	+8	+11	Concentration: 16 Craft (Poisonmaking): 16 Perform: 16 (+2) Tumble: 8 (+3)		Sneak Attack 3d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+8	+5	+9	+12	Concentration: 17 Craft (Poisonmaking): 17 Perform: 17 (+2) Tumble: 11 (+3)		Scry Target
15th	Sacred Exorcist (source Complete Divine)	+8	+5	+9	+14	Concentration: 18 Craft (Poisonmaking) 18 Knowledge (religion): 8 Perform 18 (+2)	Lolth's Caress	Exorcism Turn Undead
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+8	+6	+9	+14	Concentration: 19 Craft (Poisonmaking): 19 Perform: 19 (+2) Tumble: 14 (+3)		Sneak Attack 4d6
17th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker	+9	+6	+10	+15	Concentration: 20 Craft (Poisonmaking): 20 Perform: 20 (+2) Tumble: 17 (+3)		Death Attack
18th	Spelldancer (source Magic of Faerun)	+9	+6	+12	+17	Concentration: 21 Craft (Poisonmaking): 21 Perform: 21 Tumble: 21 (+4)	Persistent Spell	Spelldance
19th	Spelldancer	+10	+6	+13	+18	Concentration: 22 Craft (Poisonmaking): 22 Knowledge (religion): 11 (+3) Perform: 22 Tumble: 22		Enthralling Dance Evasion
20th	Spelldancer	+10	+7	+13	+18	Concentration: 23 Craft (Poisonmaking): 23 Knowledge (religion): 14 (+3) Perform: 23 Tumble: 23		Cooperative Dance

Spoiler: Spells

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Spells:
I won't list all spells that you can take at level up. Because imho a wizard profits more when they adjust their spell selection depending in which direction the campaign goes. As such, I will only list some build specific spells.

0:
Detect Magic / Poison
Both simple but useful. With Detect Poison, we can look for poison resources. Be it in the wild, or on the (black) market.

1:
Chill Touch / Corrosive Gasp (spell compendium)
Both are touch spells that have level (!) x charges. With Poison Spell and Monk's unarmed strike we can apply multiple instances of poison.

Mage Armor
Not much to say here, if you play a gish without armor.

2:
Alter Self
Early access to other forms. Troglodytes and Wyrmling Shadow Dragons are some good options here.

Mirror Image:
A nice defence for a gish

Knock
We are not a skillmonkey, but we have spells to compensate for this at least.

3:
Shivering Touch (Spell compendium)
Comes with a duration of round per caster lvl and thus is the better choice for Poison Spell.

4:
Flame Whips (Spell compendium)
gain two melee touch attacks with a 15-foot reach that each deals 6d6 points of fire damage. Combine these with your Shivering Touch and have fun with Poison Spell

Locate Target
I guess this should be obvious why this is a handy spell for this build.

Polymorph
Can be used to produce some venom for Craft (poisonmaking). Otherwise some nice combat form (Hydra, War Troll..) for larger battles.

5:
Contingency
To shorten bufftime

6:
Fabricate
To quickly fabricate poison with Ivy's craft (poisonmaking) skill.

Mordenkainen's Trusted Bloodhounds
Have track and casterlevel = survival

7:
Greater Teleport
For Scry and Teleport tactics.

Kiss of the Vampire (spell compendium)
The main reason for this spell is that it gives undead type. And that makes immune to ability damage and fatigue. If the bell is not ringing for you, Spelldancer gets ability damage and becomes fatigued when over her free limit for Spelldance. Persist any spell you want and can affort (spell slots).

Spoiler: 1-20

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1-5
Ivy starts out as monk and quickly switch to wizard after that. Now she can apply touch spells to her unarmed strikes. Mage Armor offers some extra protection for the early levels. Alter Self is a good combat and utility tool that pushes her good at lvl 5 (don't forget to share with your familiar).

6-10
Now we can enter IVT. Ivy gets access to frist SI abilties to macially persue her target better.
Versatile Unarmed Strike allows to switch the dmg type of our unarmed strike. Handy if the enemy should have specific DR types. Further, this allows to wield a "Whirling" - weapon enchantment. Posion Spell allows to add our poison to the our touch spells for extra fun. Shivering Touch and Flame Whip become our main touch spells. Polymorph helps if we should get into tougher fights (again, share with your familiar). Further we can produce venom with some forms (e.g. Wywern). Locate Target helps up to get the job done.

11-15
We get the SI ingredients abilities as everyone else. Helps to get the job done.^^
Extend Spell can be nice if you know that longer fights might occur. Or is you intend to flight for a longer time.
When we dip Sacred Exorcist, we get Turn Undead. That, we will use to fuel Lolth's Caress. That forces nearby foe to make any potential secondary poison save immediately. Stack some poison charges together with your familiar and nuke your foes with the accumulate secondary saves.

16-20
With spelldancer, we can now persist spells. Add in Kiss of the Vampire to become undead and persist anything you want. Make dancing shows with your spells up. Include even Fire Whip and pretend that it is part of the belly dance show. Lure your enemies into your poisonous dance of death. Dance cooperatively with your familiar and give everybody the hottest and most poisoning show of their live.

Spoiler: items

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Recommend Item:

Necklace of Natural Weapons + 5 + Assassination + Whirling
Assassination adds the enhancement bonus of the weapon on out poison DC. Whirling allows to use Whirling Attack 3x day.

Belt of Battle:
A standard action more to active Lolth's Caress can make the difference between live and death.
Even just using it for the movement action to preserve the full attack is nice.

END

[The Viscount]

Fire cleanses.

Lord Ej of Adon
The Flame of Vengeance

LE Otherworldly Talaire Ranger 4/Warblade 1/Mortal Hunter 5/Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10

Spoiler: A Man Wronged…

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Ability Scores
14 Str, 12 Dex, 14 Con, 12 Int, 14 Wis, 14 Cha
Increase Wis at 4th and 8th, Cha at all other opportunities

Build Table

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Ranger 1	1	2	2	0	32: {+4} Concentration: 4; {+4} Craft (Poisonmaking): 4; {+4} Handle Animal: 4; {+4} Hide: 4; {+4} Move Silently: 4; {+4} Tumble: 4; {+4} Survival: 4; {+4} Spot: 4;	Otherworldly, AntagonistH, TrackB	Favored Enemy (Humanoid (Human)), Voice of the City, Skilled City-Dweller (Ride for Tumble)
2nd	Ranger 2	2	3	3	0	8: {+1} Concentration: 5; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 5; {+1} Handle Animal: 5; Hide: 4; {+1} Jump: 1; {+1} Move Silently: 5; {+1} Tumble: 5; {+1} Survival: 5; {+1} Spot: 5;	Two-Weapon FightingB	Combat Style
3rd	Ranger 3	3	3	3	1	8: {+1} Concentration: 6; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 6; {+1} Handle Animal: 6; Hide: 4; {+2} Jump: 3; Move Silently: 5; {+1} Tumble: 6; {+1} Survival: 6; {+1} Spot: 6;	Mortalbane, EnduranceB, Wild Talent (Adon)T	-
4th	Ranger 4	4	4	4	1	8: {+1} Concentration: 7; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 7; {+1} Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; {+2} Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; {+1} Tumble: 7; {+1} Survival: 7; {+1} Spot: 7;	AlertnessF	Urban Companion (Tiny Viper)
5th	Warblade 1	5	6	4	1	6: {+3} Balance: 3; {+1} Concentration: 8; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; {+1} Tumble: 8; Survival: 7; Spot: 7;	-	Battle Clarity (Reflex Saves), Weapon Aptitude
6th	Mortal Hunter 1	6	8	4	1	6: Balance: 3; {+1} Bluff: 1; {+1} Concentration: 9; Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+2} Survival: 9; {+2} Spot: 9;	Fly-By Attack	Mortal Hunting +1, Mortal Skin (Any Humanoid)
7th	Mortal Hunter 2	7	9	4	1	6: Balance: 3; {+3} Bluff: 4; {+1} Concentration: 10; Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 10; {+1} Spot: 10;	Boost Spell-Like AbilityB	Detect Mortals
8th	Mortal Hunter 3	8	9	5	2	6: Balance: 3; {+3} Bluff: 7; {+1} Concentration: 11; Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 11; {+1} Spot: 11;	-	Mortal Hunting +2
9th	Mortal Hunter 4	9	10	5	2	6: Balance: 3; {+3} Bluff: 10; {+1} Concentration: 12; Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 12; {+1} Spot: 12;	Improved Familiar	Smite Mortals
10th	Mortal Hunter 5	10	10	5	2	6: Balance: 3; {+3} Bluff: 13; {+1} Concentration: 13; Craft (Poisonmaking): 8; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 13; {+1} Spot: 13;	-	Spurn Mortal Magic, Mortal Skin (Any Non-dragon)
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 1	10	10	7	4	6: {+2} Balance: 5; Bluff: 13; {+1} Concentration: 14; {+3} Craft (Poisonmaking): 11; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; Survival: 13; Spot: 13;	-	Target of Vengeance
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 2	11	10	8	5	6: Balance: 5; Bluff: 13; {+1} Concentration: 15; {+4} Craft (Poisonmaking): 15; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; Survival: 13; {+1} Spot: 14;	Metamorphic Transfer	Poison Use
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 3	12	11	8	5	6: Balance: 5; {+1} Bluff: 14; {+1} Concentration: 16; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 16; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+2} Survival: 15; {+1} Spot: 15;	-	Sneak Attack +1d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 4	13	11	9	6	6: Balance: 5; {+2} Bluff: 16; {+1} Concentration: 17; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 17; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 16; {+1} Spot: 16;	-	Far Sense
15th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 5	13	11	9	6	6: Balance: 5; {+1} Bluff: 17; {+1} Concentration: 18; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 18; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 17; {+2} Spot: 18;	Martial Study (Ruby Nightmare Blade)	Sneak Attack +2d6
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 6	14	12	10	7	6: Balance: 5; {+2} Bluff: 19; {+1} Concentration: 19; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 19; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+1} Survival: 18; {+1} Spot: 19;	-	Seeker
17th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 7	15	12	10	7	6: Balance: 5; {+1} Bluff: 20; {+1} Concentration: 20; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 20; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+2} Survival: 20; {+1} Spot: 20;	-	Sneak Attack +3d6
18th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 8	16	12	11	8	6: Balance: 5; {+1} Bluff: 21; {+1} Concentration: 21; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 21; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; Survival: 20; {+1} Spot: 21; {+2} Clarity of Vision;	Craven	Scry Target
19th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 9	16	13	11	8	6: Balance: 5; {+1} Bluff: 22; {+1} Concentration: 22; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 22; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; Tumble: 8; {+2} Survival: 22; {+1} Spot: 22; Clarity of Vision;	-	Sneak Attack +4d6
20th	Imaskari Vengeance Taker 10	17	13	12	9	6: Balance: 5; {+1} Bluff: 23; {+1} Concentration: 23; {+1} Craft (Poisonmaking): 23; Handle Animal: 7; Hide: 4; Jump: 5; Move Silently: 5; {+1} Tumble: 9; {+1} Survival: 23; {+1} Spot: 23; Clarity of Vision;	-	Death Attack

H indicates the additional feat at 1st level for being Human.
B indicates a bonus feat from class levels.
T indicates the Talaire Wild Talent feat gained in place of an existing feat upon realizing Talaire Heritage.

Ranger Casting

Level	1st
4th	0

*Does not include bonus spells for a high Wis score.

Warblade Maneuvers

Level	Maneuvers Known	Maneuvers Readied	Stances Known
5th	Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Moment of the Perfect Mind, Claw at the Moon	3	Hunter's Sense
15th	Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Moment of the Perfect Mind, Claw at the Moon, Ruby Nightmare Blade	3	Hunter's Sense

Mortal Hunter Casting

Level	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
6th	0
7th	1
8th	1	0
9th	1	1
10th	1	1	0
12th	1	1	1
14th	2	1	1	0
16th	2	1	1	1
18th	2	2	1	1
20th	2	2	2	1

*Does not include bonus spells for a high Cha score.

Spoiler: In Search of Retribution…

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Level 5

Spoiler

Show

The orphanage lay in ashes, whose taste seemed to fill Ej’s mouth. The only life that he had ever known lay in smoldering ruin.

“Who would do this? Why?”

“They were after you.”

Ej looked around for the source of the voice, but saw no one. “Who said that?! Where are you?!”

“Inside of you,” the voice responded. “We placed fragments of our consciousness in your mind for the time when they would be needed.”

“How did you know…” he trailed off, unsure of what he was trying to ask. “Why me?”

“You were born to the house of Adon, witnessed by an angel. You carry a destiny that you cannot ignore.”

“Me? What destiny?” The moment he asked, Ej felt a searing pain across his face, as if he had been in the fire that consumed his home. He screamed in pain, staggering toward the nearby lake in hope plunging his head into the cold water, but by the time he got there, the pain had subsided. He stared into his reflection in the placid water to see a mark of emerald flame across his face.

“To carry the flame of House Adon. The flame of vengeance.”


Otherworldly is a regional feat that originally only applied to a small number of racial/regional character backgrounds, but Champions of Valor offers expanded options to qualify for it, the most open-ended of which is Celestial-Attended Birth. If evil people Planar Binding an angel to cause an otherworldly birth doesn’t sit right, Ej could also have a more conventional Heroic Destiny^TM and then be struck by Tragedy^TM that inspires him to seek revenge, or could plausibly be of Mullhorandi Royal descent (another Champions of Valor background that qualifies for Otherworldly) as he’s already a scion of a mysterious noble house. Speaking of, Ej is also a Talaire, a variant human from Complete Psionic. Talaire are, on their face, not terribly appealing, as they replace their regular human bonus feat with a variant Wild Talent, but there is also the following bit that makes them significantly better.

If one of the players decides that his background is Talairan (or if the DM decides for him), perhaps the symbol that appears on all Talairans was merely long delayed on the character. After some triggering event (even a dream), the symbol appears, and the PC wakes to psionic power. This means he must give up a feat and take Wild Talent instead, unless his particular Wild Talent feat is gained as part of his normal feat progression.

So a Talaire that awakens their heritage later on can trade out any feat they like (in this case the dead weight of Ranger’s Endurance) for the special Wild Talent instead of their precious human bonus feat. This gives Ej a Power Point and Psionic Focus, and a 1/day ML 1 PLA for Psionic Minor Creation, alongside another splash of psionics in the form of the Antagonist Host feat, which grants a PLA Energy Ray or Crystal Shard 1/day at a ML that scales at ½ Character Level. The ML will come in handy later, and since feats that work on SLAs explicitly work for PLAs per Complete Psionic, it allows Ej to get some juice out of the Mortalbane feat tax for Mortal Hunter, especially at these levels where an extra 2d6 is much more meaningful. The Alertness feat from his Urban Companion, a few skill ranks which overlap with those required by the SI, and the maintaining of full BAB round out Mortal Hunter qualification. Tactics-wise, Ej will fight sword and board with a light shield and a one-handed weapon, using TWF and slinging his Antagonist PLA when appropriate. His saves are good, with Moment of the Perfect Mind shoring up his Will, and he should be fairly reliable in these levels. Out of combat, he is a capable scout, between his splash of stealth, good spotting, familiar, and tracking (with Scent thanks to Hunter’s Sense), and can craft poisons including with Psionic Minor Creation and by milking the venom of his Urban Companion, though he does not yet have Poison Use.

Level 10

Spoiler

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Blood soaked through bandages from wounds that would not heal onto the sea and sun insignia of house Cogitare that adorned the swordsman’s tunic. Breathing raggedly, he assumed a fighting stance as a shadow, familiar and yet different in its shape from those that the thing had taken previously, save for the spear and shield. The swordsman’s eyes flashed red and he grew to a size that would be a match for this new horrid form. There would only be one chance. Another non-fatal exchange would at best mean another gaping wound that rejected even psionic attempts at mending. With a snarl, the Cogitari swung with all his might, only for the blow to be parried off the shield and the spear to find his throat.


Mortal Hunter is a fun class that, due to being tucked away in BoVD and its Outsider type prereq, doesn’t get enough love. It comes with some decent abilities for hunting and killing mortals, its own arcane casting, and most notably, a powerful (Su) Polymorph ability. This ability is initially limited to humanoids, which even then includes some gems like Flind Gnolls and Crucians for numbers or the likes of Avariel Elves and Darfellan for movement modes, but at 5th level opens up to any mortal nondragon, with mortal defined as any creature not of the outsider, construct, undead, or fey types, arguably including elemental forms even though they aren’t normally accessible through Polymorph. The Mortal Hunter list is small, but has some good stuff, and Ej will get particular use out of Vile Lance at 3rd level. Vile damage can be difficult to get rid of, which opens up the possibility of hit and run attrition tactics with Flyby Attack and his tracking abilities. Arcane casting also opens up Improved Familiar, since Urban Companion is identical to the ability to summon a familiar except in the ways it’s not. Ej’s arcane spellcaster level is still a little low, but high enough that he can scale up his snake to a larger version.

Level 15

Spoiler

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Ej was curled up on a rock in the form of a black viper, staring down at the captive Cogitari. They were badly wounded but for the moment stable, at the brink of unconsciousness but as focused as they could be on the hateful glare they directed up at him. Ej hissed derisively as he slightered down towards his enemy. He sank his fangs into their flesh, pulling a piece of skin off as he pulled his head back.

“You’ll… never… get away with this!” The captive gasped as the venom began to take effect. “I have… powerful friends. They’ll… realize… I’ve gone missing. I’ll… be… raised… before… you… know… it...”

Ej flicked out his forked tongue with the bit of flesh on it. “No one will know until it’s too late,” he hissed. “You’ll be seen walking around like normal in the next few days. The venom of the Shadow Asp will have its chance to take effect before anyone is the wiser. Your soul will be bound to this place in the form of a shade,” he gave a sibilant chuckle, “at least until I return to put it to a… more productive use than your miserable existence. I will bend your shade to my will, and shred your soul into nothing to call replacements for the servants that your knights destroyed. By the time anyone thinks to really look into what happened to you, you will be nothing, not so much as a shadow on a wall.”


Ej has finally entered the SI. Target of Vengeance is a good sized bonus. As a flat improvement to damage it can be multiplied by Ruby Nightmare Blade, making Flyby Vile Lance attacks more threatening, and it also improves Bluff, which Mortal Hunter and the SI have allowed Ej to catch up on and is especially handy to have with his disguise abilities, and his already potent scouting/tracking skills along with the Far Sense ability. Poison Use is also online, and Ej can finally put his Psionic Minor Creation poisonmaking abilities, and the ability to milk venom from forms that he assumes or from his familiar (with these levels of casting progression, he can trade up to an Imp, which offers both its own venom and that of a medium monstrous spider Alternate Form). Meanwhile, apart from access to dragon forms, Ej continues to gain everything that there is to want out of the Mortal Skin ability. As its caster level is equal to character level, he’s now at Polymorph’s HD cap, and with the ML for Antagonist’s PLA reaching the threshold to qualify for Metamorphic Transfer in time for his 12th level feat, he can gain supernatural abilities from the forms he assumes as well. The possibilities this opens up are far too numerous to list, but there is one option that bears mention as a particularly grimdark means of taking vengeance on someone. By assuming the form of a Shadow Asp and taking its Create Spawn ability, Ej can cause an enemy killed by his Asp venom to rise as a Shadow in 1d2 days bound to the location where they died. This will likely require first capturing the target alive or otherwise being able to finish them off in a suboptimal combat form (milking venom while in Shadow Asp form is certainly possible, but Ej will likely need to be in that form when the poison kills the enemy, which will at the very least mean changing form while waiting for secondary damage to finish the target off), but having the option to methodically whittle targets down with vile damage helps there. Once a hated enemy is made into a Shadow, they can be pacified with Rebuke Undead from Rot Reaver form, and then, per BoVD, used as a soul component. The spell Call Dretch Horde has such a component and appears on the Mortal Hunter list, so this gives Ej a way to destroy the souls of foes forever, and as a little bonus gain some long-term minions (which, even if they aren’t much of a threat at this level on their own, can still assist by throwing Stinking Clouds around).

Level 20

Spoiler

Show

Even when alone with his thoughts, Ej was never really alone, and the thoughts were not necessarily his. What thoughts he could be most certain were had been fixated on this as the numbers of House Cogitare had been increasingly diminished by his vengeance. But was it really *his* vengeance?

“They burned down the orphanage didn’t they?” The voice came to his head unbidden. “They knew you were destined to avenge the House of Adon.”

“That’s another thing. I haven’t exactly lived my life on the side of the angels. Something doesn’t add up about how I came by this destiny of mine.”

“…”

“I think you bound an angel to observe my birth. You gave me my ‘destiny’ on purpose. The ultimate oath of vengeance, one that the heavens themselves would witness as you swore to profane the mortal world. You then orchestrated events so that the Cogatari would learn of my existence as a scion of House Adon and attempt to kill me, so as to give me a push in the right direction. Well, am I right?”

“What do you intend to do now that you know?”

“The thing I’m best at. Vengeance.”


Finishing out the SI, Ej nabs a few handy divination abilities to improve his scouting, Craven to leverage his Sneak Attack into another flat damage source to multiply with Ruby Nightmare Blade, and the Death Attack capstone, which his attrition tactics and disguise abilities can help to afford observation turns, and which adds an immediate save-or-die threat to each of his passes along with the longer-term problem of vile damage.

Spoiler: Someone’s Gonna Pay

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Book of Vile Darkness: Boost Spell-Like Ability, Call Dretch Horde, Mortal Hunter, Mortalbane, Vile Lance, Rules for Soul Components
Champions of Ruin: Craven
Champions of Valor: Celestial-Attended Birth
Cityscape Web-Enhancement: Skilled City-Dweller, Urban Companion, Voice of the City
Complete Adventurer: Craft (Poisonmaking) Rules
Complete Psionic: Antagonist, Talaire, Wild Talent (Adon), PLA Rules
Complete Scoundrel: Clarity of Vision, Improved Familiar (Medium Viper)
Complete Warrior: Extra Smiting
Dungeon Master’s Guide: Improved Familiar (Imp)
Fiend Folio: Shadow Asp
Monster Manual III:
Player’s Guide to Faerun: Otherworldly
Tome of Battle: Martial Study, Warblade, Maneuvers
Underdark: Imaskari Vengeance Taker
Everything else is SRD.

[The Viscount]

Fatespinners love those giant coins.

Jane Wick



Lawful Evil Human Beguiler 5/ Mindbender 1/ Beguiler 2/ Unseen Seer 2/ Imaskari Vengeance Taker 8/ Fatespinner 2 of Shar

Abilities	Point Buy	4th	8th	12th	16th	20th
STR	8
DEX	16
CON	14
INT	18	19	20	21	22	23
WIS	8
CHA	8

Level	Class	Base Attack Bonus	Fort Save	Reflex Save	Will Save	Skills	Feats	Class Features
1st	Beguiler	0	0	0	2	Bluff 4, Diplomacy 2, Disable Device 2, Hide 4, Intimidate 1, Listen 4, Move Silently 4, Open Lock 2, Search 4, Sense Motive 2, Spellcraft 2, Spot 4, Tumble 4, Use Magic Device 4.	Track, Penumbra Bloodline	Armored Mage, Trapfinding
2nd	Beguiler	1	0	0	3	Bluff 5, Diplomacy 3, Disable Device 2, Hide 5, Intimidate 2, Listen 5, Move Silently 5, Open Lock 2, Search 5, Sense Motive 2, Spellcraft 2, Spot 5, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 5.		Cloaked Casting (+1 DC), Surprise Casting
3rd	Beguiler	1	1	1	3	Bluff 6, Diplomacy 3, Disable Device 2, Hide 6, Intimidate 3, Jump 1, Listen 6, Move Silently 6, Open Lock 2, Search 6, Sense Motive 3, Spellcraft 2, Spot 6, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 6.	Darkstalker	Advanced Learning (Power Word Pain)
4th	Beguiler	2	1	1	4	Bluff 7, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 2, Hide 7, Intimidate 4, Jump 2, Listen 7, Move Silently 7, Open Lock 2, Search 7, Sense Motive 3, Spellcraft 2, Spot 7, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 7.
5th	Beguiler	2	1	1	4	Bluff 8, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 2, Hide 8, Intimidate 4, Jump 3, Listen 8, Move Silently 8, Open Lock 2, Search 8, Sense Motive 4, Spellcraft 4, Spot 8, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 8.	Silent Spell (Retrain @10th - Versatile Spellcaster)
6th	Mindbender	2	3	1	6	Bluff 9, Concentration 1, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 2, Hide 8, Intimidate 4, Jump 3, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 2, Knowledge (Nature) 2, Listen 8, Move Silently 8, Open Lock 2, Search 8, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 8, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 8.	Mindsight	Telepathy (100 ft.)
7th	Beguiler	3	4	2	7	Bluff 10, Concentration 1, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 2, Hide 10, Intimidate 4, Jump 3, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 2, Knowledge (Nature) 2, Listen 10, Move Silently 10, Open Lock 2, Search 8, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 10, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 10.		Surprise Casting (Move Action)
8th	Beguiler	3	4	2	7	Bluff 11, Concentration 1, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 11, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 2, Knowledge (Nature) 2, Listen 11, Move Silently 11, Open Lock 2, Search 11, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 11, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Advanced Learning (Shadow Conjuration)
9th	Unseen Seer	3	4	2	9	Bluff 12, Concentration 1, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 12, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 4, Knowledge (Nature) 4, Listen 12, Move Silently 12, Open Lock 2, Search 12, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 12, Survival 1, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.	Shadow Weave Magic	Damage Bonus +1d6
10th	Unseen Seer	4	4	2	10	Bluff 13, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 13, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 13, Move Silently 13, Open Lock 2, Search 13, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 13, Survival 2, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.	Silent Spell	Advanced Learning (Hunter's Eye)
11th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	4	4	4	12	Bluff 14, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 14, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 14, Move Silently 14, Open Lock 2, Search 14, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 14, Survival 6, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Target of Vengeance +2
12th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	5	4	5	13	Bluff 15, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 15, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 15, Move Silently 15, Open Lock 2, Search 15, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 15, Survival 10, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.	Practised Spellcaster	Target of Vengeance +3, Poison Use
13th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	6	5	5	13	Bluff 16, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 16, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 16, Move Silently 16, Open Lock 2, Search 16, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 16, Survival 14, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Target of Vengeance +4, Sneak Attack +1d6
14th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	7	5	6	14	Bluff 17, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 17, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 1, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 17, Move Silently 17, Open Lock 2, Search 17, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 17, Survival 17, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Target of Vengeance +5, Far Sense
15th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	7	5	6	14	Bluff 18, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 18, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 3, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 18, Move Silently 18, Open Lock 2, Profession (Gambler) 1,Search 18, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 18, Survival 18, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.	Craven	Target of Vengeance +6, Sneak Attack +1d6
16th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	8	6	7	15	Bluff 19, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 19, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 5, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 19, Move Silently 19, Open Lock 2, Profession (Gambler) 3, Search 19, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 19, Survival 19, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Target of Vengeance +7, Seeker
17th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	9	6	7	15	Bluff 20, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 20, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 7, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 20, Move Silently 20, Open Lock 2, Profession (Gambler) 5, Search 20, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 20, Survival 20, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Target of Vengeance +8, Sneak Attack +1d6
18th	Imaskari Vengeance Seeker	10	6	8	16	Bluff 21, Concentration 5, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 21, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 10, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 21, Move Silently 21, Open Lock 3, Profession (Gambler) 5, Search 21, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 21, Survival 21, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.	Arcane Mastery	Target of Vengeance +9, Scry Target
19th	Fatespinner	10	6	8	18	Bluff 21, Concentration 13, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 21, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 10, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 21, Move Silently 21, Open Lock 3, Profession (Gambler) 5, Search 21, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 21, Survival 21, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Spin Fate
20th	Fatespinner	11	6	8	19	Bluff 21, Concentration 21, Diplomacy 4, Disable Device 3, Hide 21, Intimidate 4, Jump 5, Knowledge (Arcana) 10, Knowledge (Dungeoneering) 5, Knowledge (Nature) 5, Listen 21, Move Silently 21, Open Lock 3, Profession (Gambler) 5, Search 21, Sense Motive 5, Spellcraft 4, Spot 21, Survival 21, Tumble 5, Use Magic Device 11.		Fickle Finger of Fate

Level	0th	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th
1st	5	4
2nd	6	5
3rd	6	6
4th	6	7	4
5th	6	7	5
6th	6	7	6	4
7th	6	8	7	5
8th	6	8	7	6	4
9th	6	8	7	7	5
10th	6	8	7	7	6	4
12th	6	8	7	7	7	5
13th	6	8	7	7	7	5
14th	6	8	7	7	7	6	3
15th	6	8	7	7	7	6	3
16th	6	8	8	7	7	7	5
17th	6	8	8	7	7	7	5
18th	6	8	8	7	7	7	6	3
19th	6	8	8	7	7	7	6	4
20th	6	8	8	7	7	7	7	5	3

Spoiler: Backstory

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Jane Wick used to live in a house with her dog and fiancee… And well, you know what they say, “hell hath no fury like a woman scorned…” Those pants did NOT make her look fat and John is no longer alive to say any different. Overreaction? Maybe. But it definitely awakened something in her that she hadn’t known about before, a simple, yet insatiable murderous retritbutive based bloodlust. The puppy’s doing just fine, however. Happy ending.

I tried to make the build as focused and flavorful as possible with Imaskari Vengeance Taker in mind. As a solo arcane tracker, and assassin, using divination to do as much research as possible, Jane’s a one woman party and can do pretty much anything needed to exact revenge on any enemy of the guild.

Spoiler: 1-5

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@1-5 Jane is a simple Beguiler, building the foundation for what’s to come, picking up Penumbra Bloodline and Shadow Weave Magic for the flavor match and some bonus utility, but that comes last.

Spoiler: 6-10

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@6-10 She starts coming into her own; Mindsight, being important for an arcane tracker, once she’s within 100 ft there’s no way the target of her vengeance will be able to escape. She starts using invisibility to stay hidden while using non-attack-based spells to do her bidding, picking up Shadow Conjuration with Advanced learning to be able to cast any [Creation] or [Summoning] spell of her choice. She’s also become incredibly adept at staying hidden herself, with Darkstalker picking up where Invisibility, Greater Invisibility and her Hide and Move Silently checks end. Finally, her levels of Unseen Seer give her a ton of bonus damage to really help use what comes next, with 1d6 Bonus Damage and a Hunter’s Eye’s worth of d6s…

Spoiler: 11-15

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@11-15 Is somewhat of a sweet spot of Jane’s, but nobody would tell her that to her face. She gets her new favorite spell, Shadow Evocation, which allows her to use any Evocation spell of 4th or lower, which happen to include the likes of Orb of Acid, a no save beauty. But preparation is definitely Jane’s MO; so before going into the fight she’ll be asking her bestie, Shar, what to use against her Targets of Vengeance. The Clairvoyance spell and the versatility of Shadow Evocation allows her to tailor her tactics of how to approach, and dance with her next dance partner for maximum effectiveness. At 15th, she even gets to keep all her daily spells while still keeping an eye on her target, just getting more in the mood for murder with every second of Far Sense. She can also now swap over to Greater Invisibility in combat, and snipe with her giant Hide bonus from being invisible, dealing all those juicy 1d6 dice from all those sources to a likely flat footed/touch AC, once she’s done toying with her prey.

Spoiler: 16-20

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@16-20 Jane gets into a groove, getting even better at what she now knows to be her true calling, killing. More Sneak Attack dice, and Craven for a whopping HD’s worth of straight damage. Fatespinner lets her boost a DC by another +1 2/day Or +2 1/day, while allowing her to nab 8th level spells and keep her CL at 20/20. I couldn’t decide on whether or not to take the last 2 levels of Imaskari or go over to Fatespinner, but Greater Shadow Evocation from the Penumbra Bloodline and Fickle Finger of Fate felt fiercely, almost forcibly, flavorful.

Spoiler: Purchases

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Collar of Umbral Metamorphosis
Caine's Flagon of Shadows
Headband of Intellect +6
Tome of Clear Thought +5
Bracers of Murder
Feycraft Weapon
Metamagic Rods
Longspoon Masterwork Thieves' Tools

Wands:

Runestaves, or wands, of her favorite attack spells (Lesser/Orb of Acid, Shivering Touch etc.)
Primal Instincts, Sorc 3, +5 survival and initiative (uncanny dodge in combination)
Primal Senses, +5 spot and listen (uncanny dodge in combination)
Golem/Grave/Vinestrike

Other cool stuff… Jane’s not in it for the money, she’s never worked a day in her life. She lives to kill.