Classes for a mageslayer? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Classes for a mageslayer? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Candin
06-15-07, 07:12 PM I'm thinking of rolling a character that focuses on targetting spellcasters. We usually run parties larger than usual, so I think I can afford such a narrow specialization and double as a defensive meatshield to boot.

Does anyone have any suggestions? Right now I'm looking at the spellsword, in no small part to be able to silence spellcasters with my weapon (and to be able to use a rod of quickening for a similar effect).

I'm looking at the mageslayer feats in Complete Arcane as well, but I'm uncertain if they're worth taking.
Apupunchau
06-15-07, 07:21 PM I'm not sure if it's actually any good as a class but I'm more about flavor then anything else. In Complete Warrior I think there is a class called Occultslayer or something along those lines.
danielinthewolvesden
06-15-07, 07:31 PM Occult slayer works well, and there are a couple really good Feats in CW that work well to0.
Iarmeister
06-15-07, 08:04 PM If you don't mind fighting fire with fire, proverbially speaking, try the Noctumancer PrC from ToM.
periscope
06-15-07, 08:34 PM there is a prc on the boards which is geared for hunting down and beating casters.

Its based in a city called Solstice but I cant remember the name of it.

You permanently forsake all magic effects and spells (must always try to save vs a spell, even beneficial). Due to your due's you cant take VoP.

In return you gain bonuses to ability scores, fast healing, bonuses to armor, shields, and weapons, and I believe you gain SR.

There is a spell warped template in the MM3. If a spell fails to bypass your SR, you "eat" the magic (gaining various bonuses, including temp Hp, bonuses to speed, ability scores, etc.)

Here is a link to the Rune Knight class on the boards. Its very well made, balanced, and lets you act like a magic "lightning rod". Show those casters who's boss.

http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=378718
YamiSouru
06-15-07, 08:43 PM Ranger.
It has a variant in complete mage that allows it to focus it's favored enemy on those who cast arcane spells and invocations. Also if i recall that one mage slayer feat makes it so that all mages you threaten cannot cast defensively, which means you get a attack of oppertunity when they cast anything and combined with a decent smack with a magebane weapon and youll be setting a pretty decent concentration dc.

And maybe multiclass into occult slayer.(if possible)

This likely isnt the best arcane hunter, but it's the first thing that comes to mind :)
periscope
06-15-07, 09:09 PM Ranger.
It has a variant in complete mage that allows it to focus it's favored enemy on those who cast arcane spells and invocations. Also if i recall that one mage slayer feat makes it so that all mages you threaten cannot cast defensively, which means you get a attack of oppertunity when they cast anything and combined with a decent smack with a magebane weapon and youll be setting a pretty decent concentration dc.

And maybe multiclass into occult slayer.(if possible)

This likely isnt the best arcane hunter, but it's the first thing that comes to mind :)

but wouldnt the mageslayer tree reduce the rangers spells?

give a monk a necklace of natural weapons with the magebane enhancement. Go get em boys!
xanthor
06-16-07, 12:28 AM Mage Slaying...nice

If this was a party goal, then in a perfect world I would have a fighter armed with a magebane weapon (see Magic Item Compendium. Amazing mage killing abilities. The magic bonus is raised by +2 and deals an additional 2d6 dmg when vrs a mage) and a Ultimate Magi (armed with a high dex and Improve Init) who's sole purpose would be to use all of those spells to dispel any spells being used. Then I would add a rogue and an ranger with the distracting blow varient.

Now if i was just building a single mageslayer to work in a party, then i would start with a ranger/rogue.

- Archer or Weapon Finesse to take advantage of the high dex
- High Dex
- Evasion (Good for avoiding spells like fireball)
- Distracting Shot Variant (You loose the Animal Companion, but you will have a better chance of keeping surviving then anybody else in your party would.)

-> The reasons for this are simple. Ranger and rogue grant both a high reflex save, which along side with the high dex score and the Rogue's evasion, would make area affects such as fireball virtually useless against you (save of course for the horrible roll that seems to come up when you'd regret it the most).
-> This leaves the mage's second most popular form off attacks, Ray and ranged touch attacks. A high dex would make the spells harder to connect with your character.
-> The aforementioned high dex would make for a low strength, and therefore using weapon finesse or archery as your method of attacking. Seeing how a mage can connect with nearly any opponent across the board, using range as deterrent would prove ineffective. Therefore fighting within 30ft would grant your character the added bonus of using the additional Sneak Attack damage to their advantage. The only advantage of archery over weapon finesse melee would be the ability to fire past the mage's 'meat shields' and attack him directly.
-> The distracting Blow Variant (from PHB2) would force the mage's focus to be locked onto you. This would save your party from being targeted by spells, and the high dex score/reflex save/evasion would make you harder to hit (as mentioned above)

As for equipment, weapons (either melee or ranged) with the magebane ability would grant and nice +2 and +2d6 dmg bonus.

If you do decide to do the melee route, i would suggest a keen rapier with the 'telling blow' feat (i hope i have the correct name. The feat I'm thinking of grants you sneak attack when ever you achieve a crit hit) and the skill trick (forgot the name) that allows your to tumble through somebodies threat range to avoid an attack of opportuinity and catch the opponent flat-footed when you attack.

That's what i came up with off the top of my head. The only thing better i could think of would be using a drow character (or something similar) to be blessed with a nice spell resistance.

Hope This helps

(ps HI....this is my introductory post)
Count Arioch the 28th
06-16-07, 12:54 AM There is only one effective mageslaying class.

Wizard to level 20. Specialize in spells that harm mages. (For example, any fortitude save will wreak havoc on mages, when you get Evard's black tentacles that's the "I win" spell against other spellcasters, power word spells work better on beings with fewer HP, and so forth.)

I suggest beingt a generalist, preferably an elf sub level generalist where you get a free spell per level anyway. Focus on abjurations, but keep a mind to keep useful spells from any school of magic. Necromancy will work at lower levels, but when death ward comes into play that'll be less useful. Dimensional anchor is clutch for defeating any wizard that's higher than 9th level. And of course, since you said you're in a big party, a good tactic in that case is simply attmepting to sounterspell everything the bad guy casts and let the rest of the party whale on him.

Seriously, if you want to slay wizards, your only choice is to be one yourself, otehr classes simply aren't suited to do so.
dndlocke
06-16-07, 01:02 AM there is a prc on the boards which is geared for hunting down and beating casters.

Its based in a city called Solstice but I cant remember the name of it.

You permanently forsake all magic effects and spells (must always try to save vs a spell, even beneficial). Due to your due's you cant take VoP.

In return you gain bonuses to ability scores, fast healing, bonuses to armor, shields, and weapons, and I believe you gain SR.

There is a spell warped template in the MM3. If a spell fails to bypass your SR, you "eat" the magic (gaining various bonuses, including temp Hp, bonuses to speed, ability scores, etc.)

Here is a link to the Rune Knight class on the boards. Its very well made, balanced, and lets you act like a magic "lightning rod". Show those casters who's boss.

http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=378718

That is the Forsaker class from Tome and Blood book. You sacrafice magical items equivalent to a certain gp amount per day or week and you get all above mentioned plus some DR of 20/+1 i think at 10th, aint much, but itll turn a non magic weapon pretty fast, unless its an ogre barb with a great axe that is ^_^
Archangel62
06-16-07, 01:14 AM If you want to be martial, take Hexblade for 4 levels to get dark companion, fighter 2 for feats, then 5 Occult Slayer (CW) 5 Witch slayer (ToM) and 5 Incarnate blade (MoI)
periscope
06-16-07, 01:14 AM no, I was talking about a prc I saw on the boards. Knight of Solstice or something like that.

Though the forsaker class might be what your looking for, I wouldnt recommend it as your abilities fade if you dont destroy so many magic items a day/week (depending on the ability) and therefore suck up your resources like nothing in life.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Candin 06-15-07, 07:12 PM	I'm thinking of rolling a character that focuses on targetting spellcasters. We usually run parties larger than usual, so I think I can afford such a narrow specialization and double as a defensive meatshield to boot. Does anyone have any suggestions? Right now I'm looking at the spellsword, in no small part to be able to silence spellcasters with my weapon (and to be able to use a rod of quickening for a similar effect). I'm looking at the mageslayer feats in Complete Arcane as well, but I'm uncertain if they're worth taking.
Apupunchau 06-15-07, 07:21 PM	I'm not sure if it's actually any good as a class but I'm more about flavor then anything else. In Complete Warrior I think there is a class called Occultslayer or something along those lines.
danielinthewolvesden 06-15-07, 07:31 PM	Occult slayer works well, and there are a couple really good Feats in CW that work well to0.
Iarmeister 06-15-07, 08:04 PM	If you don't mind fighting fire with fire, proverbially speaking, try the Noctumancer PrC from ToM.
periscope 06-15-07, 08:34 PM	there is a prc on the boards which is geared for hunting down and beating casters. Its based in a city called Solstice but I cant remember the name of it. You permanently forsake all magic effects and spells (must always try to save vs a spell, even beneficial). Due to your due's you cant take VoP. In return you gain bonuses to ability scores, fast healing, bonuses to armor, shields, and weapons, and I believe you gain SR. There is a spell warped template in the MM3. If a spell fails to bypass your SR, you "eat" the magic (gaining various bonuses, including temp Hp, bonuses to speed, ability scores, etc.) Here is a link to the Rune Knight class on the boards. Its very well made, balanced, and lets you act like a magic "lightning rod". Show those casters who's boss. http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=378718
YamiSouru 06-15-07, 08:43 PM	Ranger. It has a variant in complete mage that allows it to focus it's favored enemy on those who cast arcane spells and invocations. Also if i recall that one mage slayer feat makes it so that all mages you threaten cannot cast defensively, which means you get a attack of oppertunity when they cast anything and combined with a decent smack with a magebane weapon and youll be setting a pretty decent concentration dc. And maybe multiclass into occult slayer.(if possible) This likely isnt the best arcane hunter, but it's the first thing that comes to mind :)
periscope 06-15-07, 09:09 PM	Ranger. It has a variant in complete mage that allows it to focus it's favored enemy on those who cast arcane spells and invocations. Also if i recall that one mage slayer feat makes it so that all mages you threaten cannot cast defensively, which means you get a attack of oppertunity when they cast anything and combined with a decent smack with a magebane weapon and youll be setting a pretty decent concentration dc. And maybe multiclass into occult slayer.(if possible) This likely isnt the best arcane hunter, but it's the first thing that comes to mind :) but wouldnt the mageslayer tree reduce the rangers spells? give a monk a necklace of natural weapons with the magebane enhancement. Go get em boys!
xanthor 06-16-07, 12:28 AM	Mage Slaying...nice If this was a party goal, then in a perfect world I would have a fighter armed with a magebane weapon (see Magic Item Compendium. Amazing mage killing abilities. The magic bonus is raised by +2 and deals an additional 2d6 dmg when vrs a mage) and a Ultimate Magi (armed with a high dex and Improve Init) who's sole purpose would be to use all of those spells to dispel any spells being used. Then I would add a rogue and an ranger with the distracting blow varient. Now if i was just building a single mageslayer to work in a party, then i would start with a ranger/rogue. - Archer or Weapon Finesse to take advantage of the high dex - High Dex - Evasion (Good for avoiding spells like fireball) - Distracting Shot Variant (You loose the Animal Companion, but you will have a better chance of keeping surviving then anybody else in your party would.) -> The reasons for this are simple. Ranger and rogue grant both a high reflex save, which along side with the high dex score and the Rogue's evasion, would make area affects such as fireball virtually useless against you (save of course for the horrible roll that seems to come up when you'd regret it the most). -> This leaves the mage's second most popular form off attacks, Ray and ranged touch attacks. A high dex would make the spells harder to connect with your character. -> The aforementioned high dex would make for a low strength, and therefore using weapon finesse or archery as your method of attacking. Seeing how a mage can connect with nearly any opponent across the board, using range as deterrent would prove ineffective. Therefore fighting within 30ft would grant your character the added bonus of using the additional Sneak Attack damage to their advantage. The only advantage of archery over weapon finesse melee would be the ability to fire past the mage's 'meat shields' and attack him directly. -> The distracting Blow Variant (from PHB2) would force the mage's focus to be locked onto you. This would save your party from being targeted by spells, and the high dex score/reflex save/evasion would make you harder to hit (as mentioned above) As for equipment, weapons (either melee or ranged) with the magebane ability would grant and nice +2 and +2d6 dmg bonus. If you do decide to do the melee route, i would suggest a keen rapier with the 'telling blow' feat (i hope i have the correct name. The feat I'm thinking of grants you sneak attack when ever you achieve a crit hit) and the skill trick (forgot the name) that allows your to tumble through somebodies threat range to avoid an attack of opportuinity and catch the opponent flat-footed when you attack. That's what i came up with off the top of my head. The only thing better i could think of would be using a drow character (or something similar) to be blessed with a nice spell resistance. Hope This helps (ps HI....this is my introductory post)
Count Arioch the 28th 06-16-07, 12:54 AM	There is only one effective mageslaying class. Wizard to level 20. Specialize in spells that harm mages. (For example, any fortitude save will wreak havoc on mages, when you get Evard's black tentacles that's the "I win" spell against other spellcasters, power word spells work better on beings with fewer HP, and so forth.) I suggest beingt a generalist, preferably an elf sub level generalist where you get a free spell per level anyway. Focus on abjurations, but keep a mind to keep useful spells from any school of magic. Necromancy will work at lower levels, but when death ward comes into play that'll be less useful. Dimensional anchor is clutch for defeating any wizard that's higher than 9th level. And of course, since you said you're in a big party, a good tactic in that case is simply attmepting to sounterspell everything the bad guy casts and let the rest of the party whale on him. Seriously, if you want to slay wizards, your only choice is to be one yourself, otehr classes simply aren't suited to do so.
dndlocke 06-16-07, 01:02 AM	there is a prc on the boards which is geared for hunting down and beating casters. Its based in a city called Solstice but I cant remember the name of it. You permanently forsake all magic effects and spells (must always try to save vs a spell, even beneficial). Due to your due's you cant take VoP. In return you gain bonuses to ability scores, fast healing, bonuses to armor, shields, and weapons, and I believe you gain SR. There is a spell warped template in the MM3. If a spell fails to bypass your SR, you "eat" the magic (gaining various bonuses, including temp Hp, bonuses to speed, ability scores, etc.) Here is a link to the Rune Knight class on the boards. Its very well made, balanced, and lets you act like a magic "lightning rod". Show those casters who's boss. http://boards1.wizards.com/showthread.php?t=378718 That is the Forsaker class from Tome and Blood book. You sacrafice magical items equivalent to a certain gp amount per day or week and you get all above mentioned plus some DR of 20/+1 i think at 10th, aint much, but itll turn a non magic weapon pretty fast, unless its an ogre barb with a great axe that is ^_^
Archangel62 06-16-07, 01:14 AM	If you want to be martial, take Hexblade for 4 levels to get dark companion, fighter 2 for feats, then 5 Occult Slayer (CW) 5 Witch slayer (ToM) and 5 Incarnate blade (MoI)
periscope 06-16-07, 01:14 AM	no, I was talking about a prc I saw on the boards. Knight of Solstice or something like that. Though the forsaker class might be what your looking for, I wouldnt recommend it as your abilities fade if you dont destroy so many magic items a day/week (depending on the ability) and therefore suck up your resources like nothing in life.