Kitsune Sword Saint Dex based

[mudakonn]

Since Kitsune is only who has DEX and INT tagged, not sure though. Weapon focus Estoc

[Nismu]

i would think nice choice with bite and vulpine pounce option or in human form and mythic to get +4 str,dex and con

[blackvoid]

I played both. 2H reach weapon STR based is better as you can stack it into 40s. It also procs a lot on teamwork feats due to reach in legendary proportions.

I test my builds in MidN Isles standalone and levelling via toybox.

[Azure-Ghost]

Strengh has the benefit of reach and the cleave/cleaving finish line to attack multiple enemies at once as well as higher carry capacity.
Dex has the benefit of higher attack of opportunity cap and better defense.

[blackvoid]

SS should be running mage armor mythic, mirror image, shield, displacement etc. IMO in this game burst alpha strike is much better than any +8 to AC.

The crit range on my SS with fauchard if I recall correctly right now was (11-20)x5 with 50 dmg on non-crit hit. And then you get autocrit confirmation. it's just beastly.

[jsaving]

Dex-based saints who eventually take mythic finesse will still typically dish out 10-20% less damage than strength-based saints, mainly because Wrath provides more ways to boost strength but secondarily because of the mythic/regular feats you lose teeing up mythic finesse. In exchange you get slightly higher AC and slightly more room to bump up whichever mental stat (wisdom or charisma) you're tapping with a monk splash.

So you want to be aware going into a dex-based saint that you're sacrificing a fair amount of damage for a slight gain in survivability. Generally that trade is not going to be worth it, though dex-based saints still outperform most other characters at DPS so you'll be completely fine making your way through the game on standard difficulty levels.

(Unless you are by chance in the small minority of players who play unfair or brutal unfair and love Inevitable Excess? If so, the endgame there will shred your magical defenses and the extra AC from a dex-based saint actually makes a meaningful difference to your survivability.)

[mudakonn]

Originally posted by blackvoid:

SS should be running mage armor mythic, mirror image, shield, displacement etc. IMO in this game burst alpha strike is much better than any +8 to AC.

The crit range on my SS with fauchard if I recall correctly right now was (11-20)x5 with 50 dmg on non-crit hit. And then you get autocrit confirmation. it's just beastly.

I am looking to shore up my defences early/mid game first so i took a level of monk and crane style, dumped CHA and STR to 7 and 5 to get WIS to 16 and INT to 18)

If i feel i need capstone there is Legend path - can do separate save:)

[blackvoid]

Yea, I saved too before going Legend. You keep first 2 mythics. For me it was Last Stand and Mythical Power Attack.

You can mix any levels early game to make game easier. You'll still get your 20 of SS. I went straight to 37 after conversion.