Warforged mage

[SerCana]

This is my first attempt at a build. I am sort of fascinated with warforged although have never tried to play one. As I was looking at builds on the forums one sort of intrigued me and that was a mage with a touch of monk to improve reflex saves. As far as spells I have no idea so they may seem all over the place. Again no idea of what enhancements to take. All constructive advice is appreciated. 32 point build.

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Level 20 Lawful Good Warforged Male
(2 Monk \ 18 Wizard) 
Hit Points: 212
Spell Points: 1145 
BAB: 10\10\15\20
Fortitude: 12
Reflex: 14
Will: 14

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
Abilities        Base Stats          Modified Stats
(32 Point)       (Level 1)             (Level 20)
Strength             12                    12
Dexterity            12                    12
Constitution         16                    16
Intelligence         16                    21
Wisdom               10                    10
Charisma             10                    10

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
                 Base Skills         Modified Skills
Skills           (Level 1)            (Level 20)
Balance               5                    23
Bluff                 0                     0
Concentration         7                    26
Diplomacy             4                    12
Disable Device        n/a                   n/a
Haggle                0                     0
Heal                  0                     0
Hide                  1                     1
Intimidate            0                     0
Jump                  5                    14
Listen                0                     0
Move Silently         1                     1
Open Lock             n/a                   n/a
Perform               n/a                   n/a
Repair                3                     5
Search                5                     8
Spot                  0                     0
Swim                  1                     1
Tumble                5                     6.5
Use Magic Device      2                    11.5

Level 1 (Monk)
Skill: Balance (+4)
Skill: Concentration (+4)
Skill: Diplomacy (+4)
Skill: Jump (+4)
Skill: Search (+2)
Skill: Tumble (+4)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+2)
Feat: (Selected) Insightful Reflexes
Feat: (Monk Bonus) Toughness


Level 2 (Monk)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+1)
Skill: Jump (+1)
Skill: Search (+0.5)
Skill: Tumble (+1)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Feat: (Monk Bonus) Toughness


Level 3 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Feat: (Wizard Bonus) Spell Focus: Necromancy
Feat: (Selected) Spell Focus: Transmutation
Spell (1): Detect Secret Doors
Spell (1): Hypnotism
Spell (1): Mage Armor
Spell (1): Magic Missle
Spell (1): Shield
Spell (1): Sonic Blast


Level 4 (Wizard)
Ability Raise: INT
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (1): Acid Spray
Spell (1): Grease


Level 5 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+0.5)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (2): Melf's Acid Arrow
Spell (2): Otto's Resistable Dance


Level 6 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+0.5)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Search (+0.5)
Skill: Tumble (+0.5)
Feat: (Selected) Greater Spell Focus: Necromancy
Spell (2): Web
Spell (2): Knock


Level 7 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Feat: (Wizard Bonus) Maximize Spell
Spell (3): Lightning Bolt
Spell (3): Haste


Level 8 (Wizard)
Ability Raise: INT
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (3): Fireball
Spell (3): Displacement


Level 9 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Feat: (Selected) Greater Spell Focus: Transmutation
Spell (4): Burning Blood
Spell (4): Dimension Door


Level 10 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (4): Wall of Fire
Spell (4): Summon Monster IV


Level 11 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (5): Protection From Elements
Spell (5): Ball Lightning


Level 12 (Wizard)
Ability Raise: INT
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Feat: (Selected) Empower Spell
Feat: (Wizard Bonus) Extend Spell
Spell (5): Dominate Person
Spell (5): Hold Monster


Level 13 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (6): Greater Heroism
Spell (6): Mass Bull's Strength


Level 14 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (6): Symbol of Persuasion
Spell (6): Mass Suggestion


Level 15 (Wizard)
Feat: (Selected) Spell Penetration
Spell (7): Finger of Death
Spell (7): Summon Monster VII


Level 16 (Wizard)
Ability Raise: INT
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+2)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (7): Otto's Sphere of Dancing
Spell (7): Mass Hold Person


Level 17 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+2)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)


Level 18 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+1)
Feat: (Selected) Greater Spell Penetration
Spell (8): Mass Charm Monster
Spell (8): Otto's Irresistable Dance


Level 19 (Wizard)
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+0.5)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+1)
Spell (8): Sunburst
Spell (8): Symbol of Death


Level 20 (Wizard)
Ability Raise: INT
Skill: Balance (+1)
Skill: Concentration (+1)
Skill: Diplomacy (+1)
Skill: Jump (+0.5)
Skill: Use Magic Device (+0.5)
Spell (9): Power Word: Kill
Spell (9): Mass Hold Monster

[nolaureltree000]

why transmutation?

id recommend taking extend earlier. its really helpful to have longer buffs and saves you a good amount of SP as you dont have to rebuff as quickly.

also why monk instead of rogue? if you just want to get your reflex saves up, rogue will give you the same reflex saves iirc, but youll also be able to take trapskills and help boost your UMD.

youll want to max INT. id dump stat WIS or CHA. if you go with rouge levels, wis helps with spot but i dont think you really need that high of a base WIS to have a decent spot. and as long as you know the level, youll know where all the traps are anyways. putting in points to boost your will saves really isnt very necessary. CHA is only going to help with UMD and thats expendable depending on your goals.

you could also dump stat DEX. youre not taking any melee feats so even with two monk levels, you wont be doing much unarmed damage. youd be better off dumping DEX and WIS, maxing INT, getting CON to 18, then putting whatever is left into STR. then you can get a decent greatsword/greataxe and use the touch of the master spell and hack your way through the lower levels.

[Kourier]

At some point I think you want to take heighten... Maybe drop gsf: transmutation.

Edit: Also, you want to take spells that can't be bought from the vendors. Everything else should be scribed in from a scroll.

The spells that can't be found from vendors should be taken at level ups.

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=305790

Edit again: You also want to max int. Since you have insightful reflexes and you're a wizard I'd pull from dex and wisdom. Remember to take your toughness enhancements - easy hp.

[NinjaNeed]

What Nolaure... said.

Also, I would think about rogue instead of monk. With your int score skill points would be no problem (max disable device and search at each level. Any spare into Open Lock and Spot. All after Concentration ofc) and you should be able to get any trap in game.

[SerCana]

Thank you for your input. I have changed over to rogue and he looks playable (heck they are all playable).

Not sure about enhancements, guess I still need to do some more reading. I understand that U9 changed wizard enhancements some. any suggestion on who has a good write up about them.

I also was told that warforged need to have a "feat" that allows clerics to heal them. True?

[Winter_storm]

feat no, "Warforged healer's friend" enhancement yes

[redoubt]

If you are a WF mage, you can repair yourself. Taking healers friend is not as important as on a class that cannot repair themselves.

That said, tier 1 is cheap...

...but so is tier 1 of a great many things now...

So it makes some tough choices. (Which is good.)

[GreatOwl]

Starting INT of 16? :O
I'm for sure not an expert, but one thing I know: you want as much int as you can get (and that will still not feel like enough). With a splash you also loose the +2 int from the capstone (reason enough for me not to splash on a wizard, but that's personal choice) so you really really will end up wishing you had maxed it a char creation.

I'm currently playing a WF and started off with the first tear of healer's friend, it is cheap and nice at low levels (when you don't have many hp, or many sp, and you don't have the Reconstruct spell). At mid levels you will realize that one tear of it is really not enough, and that you can repair yourself quite easily with Reconstruct; time to get something else instead. Oh and do not forget to take Inscribed Armor as soon as you can to avoid spell failure.

As for spells, don't worry too much you will find scrolls and inscribe anything you don't pick up when leveling. Do a search in the forums, there are threads that list the spells not available at vendors, those should be your first priority when talking to a trainer. Only thing I would suggest to make sure of doing is picking up from the trainer Master's Touch right away (it is only available in the portable hole and you won't be able to get there for a while). Best spell you can have at low levels; cast that, some buffs, and swing something sharp.

[richieelias27]

Thank you for your input. I have changed over to rogue and he looks playable (heck they are all playable).

Not sure about enhancements, guess I still need to do some more reading. I understand that U9 changed wizard enhancements some. any suggestion on who has a good write up about them.

I also was told that warforged need to have a "feat" that allows clerics to heal them. True?

Regarding Monk vs Rogue - Two different playstyles. Some prefer monk over rogue in order to go unarmed at least part of the time as a palemaster and also because having even 1 rogue level sometimes causes people to *expect* you to be a trap monkey. If your desire is to be able to disarm traps though, then yes - go rogue. Monk will also give you 2 extra feats over the rogue option. All things to consider.

As for a feat to allow healing, it is exactly the opposite of that. You need to *not* have a certain feat in order to be healed by clerics. Do not, under any circumstances, ever take the feat "Improved Fortification". That is the feat that makes it impossible for Clerics to heal you.

Regarding Stat points: You can safely dump Dexterity and use insightful reflexes to use INT as your reflex save. Wis can also safely be left at 8 due to WF immunities and the Greater Heroism spell. Charisma - same story, leave it at 8. With 2 levels of rogue you can max your UMD without wasting points in CHA. Bumping your INT to 18 is a much better investment than all 3 of these.

Some say Max your Con for survivability. Personally I say bring it 2 under Max (18for WF) as otherwise you are forced to leave STR at 8 (with a 32 point build), which I simply cannot bring myself to do as I despise being left helpless or walking slowly because I am burdened.

[Ninety0ne]

and also because having even 1 rogue level sometimes causes people to *expect* you to be a trap monkey.
.[/QUOTE]

This is asinine. If you are splashing rogue on a wizard and you cannot/will not do traps you are wasting your time. Just go wiz 20.

[Ninety0ne]

Regarding Monk vs Rogue - Two different playstyles

yes effective (rogue) vs underwhelming (lol melee)

[Jaid314]

yes effective (rogue) vs underwhelming (lol melee)

monk offers better overall saves (fort, ref, and will vs just ref), 2 bonus feats, better hit points, better unarmed attack animation (and yes, your melee can be fairly decent if you equip yourself for it, at least good enough to finish off mobs that are almost dead), healing amp enhancements, first tier of animal path (for example monkey for minor elemental resistance and trap saves bonus), first tier of elemental path (can use for a bit of DR and con, for example, or for boosting strength to help protect against strength draining effects). so, for example, if someone made an elf wizard and wanted to shore up their low con... go earth stance, and use a quarterstaff or kamas (note that with crafting now, you don't even have to shop around until you find the kamas you need).

rogue splash has plenty to offer a wizard, it is true, but so does a monk splash. rogue offers better skills, monk offers better survivability. both are good choices.

[Ninety0ne]

monk offers better overall saves (fort, ref, and will vs just ref), 2 bonus feats, better hit points, better unarmed attack animation (and yes, your melee can be fairly decent if you equip yourself for it, at least good enough to finish off mobs that are almost dead), healing amp enhancements, first tier of animal path (for example monkey for minor elemental resistance and trap saves bonus), first tier of elemental path (can use for a bit of DR and con, for example, or for boosting strength to help protect against strength draining effects). so, for example, if someone made an elf wizard and wanted to shore up their low con... go earth stance, and use a quarterstaff or kamas (note that with crafting now, you don't even have to shop around until you find the kamas you need).

rogue splash has plenty to offer a wizard, it is true, but so does a monk splash. rogue offers better skills, monk offers better survivability. both are good choices.

No they arent. Monk lacks the synergy of abilities with a wf arcane that make for an effective multiclass. Monk overall just loses. The save increases are largely irrelavnt with insightful ref and being a robot or a lich or a robot lich. The lol monk damage (good enough to finish off monsters) is just that and silly weak compared to your arcane abilities. First tier stances dont seem to provide much that a wizrogue wont get somewhere elese.
And i suppose if it were to come down to whats better of joke dps masterstouc/divine power a gs greatxe with rogue haste boost is prolly > wiz monk
Monk healing amp is a waste when you use either negative energy or repair to heal.

Again for the op look at a multiclass build as the two great things that go great togeter.. ie peanut butter and choclate is good peanutbutter and mayonaise is not. If you cant find a really strong synergy between the classes you are mixing you might want to reconsider your choices.

[SerCana]

Appreciate everyone's input, I acutally ended up going pure Wizard and am having fun with him, if I can get my fingers to hit the right key to cast the right spell, lol. One last question.

Why UMD? Why should I keep adding skill points into UMD? Maybe I'm just dense, but at least so far he has the ability to use wands. Are there othere magical devices that he will not be able to use?

Thanks again.

[Ryiah]

No they arent. Monk lacks the synergy of abilities with a wf arcane that make for an effective multiclass. Monk overall just loses. The save increases are largely irrelavnt with insightful ref and being a robot or a lich or a robot lich. The lol monk damage (good enough to finish off monsters) is just that and silly weak compared to your arcane abilities.

I've found it works pretty well actually. Problem with going rogue is, as has been mentioned, you're usually expected to do the role of a rogue. Not everyone likes that. I was also experimenting around trying to find a good combination and eventually decided for casting that an 18/2 with 18 int, 16 con, 14 str was pretty ideal. Buffed up it wasn't melee-level damage, but it could do enough if I didn't want to waste SP. And while your arcane spells will hit a lot harder, if one of my spells is almost a one-shot I prefer to just poke it as I run past it. Why waste SP when you can do the same thing for essentially free?

ie peanut butter and choclate is good peanutbutter and mayonaise is not.

Just because you don't think those two go together doesn't mean they don't. It just means one of two things. Either you've never tried it or you disliked it. Everyone has different tastes and opinions as can be seen from the sandwich made from those components in the recipe below having an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars over 47 reviews.

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/peanut-...ch/Detail.aspx

[GreatOwl]

Appreciate everyone's input, I acutally ended up going pure Wizard and am having fun with him, if I can get my fingers to hit the right key to cast the right spell, lol. One last question.

Why UMD? Why should I keep adding skill points into UMD? Maybe I'm just dense, but at least so far he has the ability to use wands. Are there othere magical devices that he will not be able to use?

Thanks again.

High UMD will allow you to bypass race requirements on items or weapons, and it will allow you to use divine wands/scrolls.
Now, chances are your UMD score will be to low to really make a difference, but let's face it you get a ton of skill points per level where else would you put them

[SerCana]

actually I have been thinking about spot. I am great at finding things, but can't spot anything that would lead me to do a search.

by the way the reason, I choose not to use rogue is the fact that other players will immediately assign anyone with any rogue capability as open that door/disable that trap role. I have seen it happen.

Didn't go monk, because as was pointed out a Great Axe with master's touch gives you enough kill power to finish those that the spell didn't quite do in.

Thanks again.

[GreatOwl]

Spot is a good skill for any class; not so much for traps, but because it will allow you to see enemies at a greater distance. After making a half blind barb, I highly enjoy having spare points to put in the skill on my wizard. Now I can finally see them coming before they hit me in the face

For survivability, I would also recommend jump and balance.

After that, you will still have points to spend. Pick whatever.