The Melee-Caster...Supraman!

[xAlistairx]

Right, so I'm well aware that gish builds don't work very well with this game. I feel that with the no-save no-SR dots though, and of course the pale master PrEs that one could potentially work very well. It would be far from optimal, but it would be fun to play (possibly one of the most fun builds in my eyes)

So I'm looking for constructive criticism aside from not to do a gish. Perhaps how to optimize the build better. I'll attempt to summarize later, but finally, here is Supraman!:

Character Plan by DDO Character Planner Version 03.12.02
DDO Character Planner Home Page

Supraman
Level 20 Lawful Good Dwarf Male
(8 Fighter \ 12 Wizard) 
Hit Points: 300
Spell Points: 688 
BAB: 14\14\19\24
Fortitude: 14
Reflex: 5
Will: 9

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
Abilities        Base Stats          Modified Stats
(28 Point)       (Level 1)             (Level 20)
Strength             18                    24
Dexterity             8                     8
Constitution         16                    18
Intelligence         14                    16
Wisdom                8                     8
Charisma              6                     6

                  Starting          Feat/Enhancement
                 Base Skills         Modified Skills
Skills           (Level 1)            (Level 20)
Balance              -1                     3
Bluff                -2                    -1
Concentration         5                    28
Diplomacy            -2                    -1
Disable Device        n/a                   n/a
Haggle               -2                    -2
Heal                 -1                    -1
Hide                 -1                    -1
Intimidate            2                    22
Jump                  8                    23
Listen               -1                    -1
Move Silently        -1                    -1
Open Lock            n/a                   n/a
Perform              n/a                   n/a
Repair                2                     3
Search                2                     5
Spot                 -1                    -1
Swim                  4                     7
Tumble               n/a                   n/a
Use Magic Device      0                     0

Level 1 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Toughness
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Two Handed Fighting
Enhancement: Fighter Haste Boost I
Enhancement: Dwarven Axe Damage I
Enhancement: Fighter Toughness I


Level 2 (Wizard)
Feat: (Wizard Bonus) Spell Focus: Necromancy
Enhancement: Frost Manipulation I
Enhancement: Storm Manipulation I
Enhancement: Wizard Energy of the Scholar I


Level 3 (Wizard)
Feat: (Selected) Extend Spell
Enhancement: Dwarven Constitution I
Enhancement: Racial Toughness I
Enhancement: Glacial Spellcasting I
Enhancement: Charged Spellcasting I


Level 4 (Wizard)
Enhancement: Deadly Ice I
Enhancement: Deadly Shocks I
Enhancement: Frost Manipulation II
Enhancement: Storm Manipulation II


Level 5 (Wizard)
Enhancement: Dwarven Axe Attack I
Enhancement: Wizard Intelligence I


Level 6 (Wizard)
Feat: (Selected) Empower Spell
Feat: (Wizard Bonus) Maximize Spell
Enhancement: Storm Manipulation III
Enhancement: Wizard Energy of the Scholar II


Level 7 (Wizard)
Enhancement: Wizard Pale Master I
Enhancement: Shroud of the Zombie


Level 8 (Wizard)
Enhancement: Dwarven Axe Damage II


Level 9 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Shield Mastery
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Weapon Focus: Slashing Weapons
Enhancement: Frost Manipulation III
Enhancement: Storm Manipulation IV
Enhancement: Fighter Strength I


Level 10 (Fighter)
Enhancement: Racial Toughness II
Enhancement: Glacial Spellcasting II
Enhancement: Charged Spellcasting II


Level 11 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Weapon Specialization: Slashing Weapons
Enhancement: Deadly Ice II
Enhancement: Deadly Shocks II
Enhancement: Fighter Toughness II


Level 12 (Wizard)
Feat: (Selected) Improved Critical: Slashing Weapons
Enhancement: Dwarven Constitution II


Level 13 (Wizard)
Enhancement: Glacial Spellcasting III
Enhancement: Frost Manipulation IV
Enhancement: Frost Manipulation V
Enhancement: Storm Manipulation V


Level 14 (Wizard)
Feat: (Wizard Bonus) Quicken Spell
Enhancement: Wizard Intelligence II


Level 15 (Wizard)
Feat: (Selected) Greater Spell Focus: Necromancy
Enhancement: Wizard Energy of the Scholar III


Level 16 (Wizard)
Enhancement: Fighter Attack Boost I
Enhancement: Wizard Pale Master II
Enhancement: Shroud of the Vampire


Level 17 (Fighter)
Enhancement: Fighter Attack Boost II
Enhancement: Fighter Critical Accuracy I
Enhancement: Fighter Critical Accuracy II


Level 18 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Improved Two Handed Fighting
Feat: (Selected) Power Attack
Enhancement: Fighter Kensei I


Level 19 (Fighter)
Enhancement: Kensei Greataxe Mastery I
Enhancement: Deadly Ice III
Enhancement: Frost Manipulation VI
Enhancement: Storm Manipulation VI


Level 20 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Greater Two Handed Fighting
Enhancement: Fighter Greataxe Specialization I
Enhancement: Charged Spellcasting III
Enhancement: Charged Spellcasting IV
Enhancement: Deadly Ice IV

Name: Yeah, it isn't important, but he's more than a man (fighter, wizard, etc.)...he's gone above the usual class calling I guess? Ha...

Class Split: I considered 14 Wiz/6 Fighter for the extra SP and spell selection. However, the extra feat and melee damage really sealed the deal on 12 Wiz/8 Fighter, especially since this build couldn't use that many spells of that level anyways.

Leveling: In the early levels, fire would be the primary spell damage enhancement focused upon, with ice second. This is due to the abundance of lower level fire spells and good ole Firewall. Once devils start showing up more and there's more immunity to fire, he will respec enhancements into what I have above.

DPS: The deeps on this build should be on par with a poorish melee at best, when just attacking. It has maxed out strength and the dwarven axe enhancements. Primarily he would use a greataxe for the damage, but if in the lead tanking role or soloing, he would bust out a tower shield and use a dwarven axe. With all the self arcane buffs in the game (extended) you won't even need a bard/wiz following you around keeping you tough

As far as spell DPS, that's a whole different story. He will constantly have on Death Aura which will do some damage to every enemy around him; probably a large amount when tanking. However, the DOT dps is also pretty important to this build. Though they won't match the DPS of a pure Wiz or pure Sorc, they'll be pretty high considering what you gain in melee DPS and survivability. Speaking of which

Survivability: Death Aura will constantly be ticking away on you with Vampire Form on. Now, this is an important dilemma in the build. Vampire Form will give you +2 Strength and essentially lesser vampirism. However, it takes away 25% hate gen. Since this build isn't meant to main tank, that shouldn't be a problem, but it's worthy of noting. One could potentially take Wraith Form for 25% incorp and full hate gen if they wanted to main tank. However, you'd have to fit in a place for mental toughness. Up to the individual.

Tank?: The focus of this build is the ability to throw around spells and melee for essentially the fun of it. The survivability is usually just a bonus. However, this build has max ranks in intim for hate gen. If one was to main tank, you'd probably want to keep a tower shield on at all times. It should do an impressive job however with 20% damage reduction and constant health ticks.

Problems: A main problem could end up being the terrible saves. Also, HP could definitely have been raised higher. Running out of SP could also be a serious problem if one uses spells more often than possible. It's a sort of rhythm one would have to get into while playing the gish part.

Well, that's about it. Feel free to give some constructive criticism on what to fix with it, or some different level splits, or your success with something like this, etc.

[Phidius]

1. Vampire - make sure you bring your own coffin... you're going to need it. I highly recommend squeezing in Mental Toughness so that you don't give up on the build once you hit level 16.

2. Avoid burst damage (see above) - I'd recommend 2 rog/2 monk over 2 more levels of fighter, as the evasion against spells would be very helpful, and you're not going to be getting support from the majority of the divines in your party.

To be honest, if you want a PM gish build, I'd recommend 18 Wizard for the Lich. It sucks that they made the level 18 form the best for both casting and meleeing.