Chosen weapon for Sword Saint options

[Veganleader1]

I'm looking at piecing together unique character builds that I haven't considered yet and am looking at the options for Sword Saint Magus. I am noticing that they don't have kinetic blast as an option for Chosen Weapon thus ruling out a hybrid build with a Kineticist. It seems like the Dark Elementalist could pair quite well as they both could use Intelligence and be tossing spells and buffs. Maybe that is too much free synergy and not sure if it is intended that Kinetic Blast not get paired with SS as an option. I'm looking at the list of available weapons and seeing things like Claw, Bite, Other Natural Weapons, and Gore. How exactly could these things get paired in with SS? And what even gives Gore as an option?

If you shapeshift into a wolf or some other thing or use a feral mutagen from alchemist would these activate the uncanny dodge effect 100% of the time or not? You can only select one of these and from my limited shapeshifting experience have noticed multiple things shown as equipped during shapeshifted times. If you pick the motherless tiefling heritage would the bite option be available all the time to activate the uncanny dodge? This is really a confusing issue. Other natural weapons I would assume would be like an elemental slam attack. It really seems like speccing into SS for these things would be something you do only after getting your shapeshifting skills up and running. Any insight into this will be appreciated.

[InEffect]

Don't.

[Veganleader1]

I just for kicks started a Motherless Tiefling with Bite as my chosen weapon and it appears to apply the uncanny defense bonus all the time. I'm guessing this would allow you to get away with using any weapon you want and still get the AC buff due to the persistent secondary bite attack from the racial. Really I can't seem to find a reason to go SS at all except for maybe a duelist tank which is quite strong. Was wondering about mixing with 2 handed fighter quarterstaff and a monk dip for flurry of blows and some AC buff to go with 5 levels of SS for spells/buffs and the +2 weapon buffs. Not sure it's really worth it but the extra AC buffs and spell buffs might really help out a character that will already not be able to wear armor. I know it all seems a bit spread thin, would probably be the kind of character that would have to wear the belt and hats of perfection.

[InEffect]

SS can ramp his damage by a lot and one-shot things with maximized vital strike from that DLC falcata. Otherwise he is meh.
Oh, and I guess he's roughly on par with dragon scion at AC stacking.

[Veganleader1]

It really seems like other than duelist there is really not much synergy between intelligence classes.

[InEffect]

Saint is not really an int class. It's a martial class with a bit of int scaling. Meaning you stop at 14 or 16 base int and never use any DC spells ever.
Duelist is fine because it wasn't fixed along with rogue for applying to different elements. so if you have 7 levels of duelist int bonus and you have alkali gloves, bane dice and the likes you apply that damage several times for 1 attack. Not sure if saints precision damage works the same still or was fixed as I haven't really played saint for a long time.

[Veganleader1]

I see. So far I have built up 2 SS hybrid builds, one as a duelist with SS 8 Dueling Blade, Monk 1, Vivisectionist 1, Duelist 3 at lvl 13 with 48 AC unbuffed. The second one was SS 5 Unarmed, Monk 1, Thug 4, Trickster 5 at level 15 with 53 AP unbuffed. They were basically both tanks. Neither one did all that much damage and the Unarmed one really took until after level 10 to really do much at all though she shared the load with Valerie.

[InEffect]

AT is kinda a waste on SS as you want to keep up the BAB. SS7/M1/Duelist7/V3 is usually what people go to for saint tanks. Reason for AT would be if you rely on transform and with thug levels it won't be the case. rogue levels on magus are bad anyways as slashing/piercing grace does the same for you without spending class levels

[haplok]

Originally posted by Veganleader1:

Really I can't seem to find a reason to go SS at all except for maybe a duelist tank which is quite strong. Was wondering about mixing with 2 handed fighter quarterstaff and a monk dip for flurry of blows and some AC buff to go with 5 levels of SS for spells/buffs and the +2 weapon buffs. Not sure it's really worth it but the extra AC buffs and spell buffs might really help out a character that will already not be able to wear armor. I know it all seems a bit spread thin, would probably be the kind of character that would have to wear the belt and hats of perfection.

Here, I've got a reason for you:
https://i.imgur.com/3NAHykl.jpg

[haplok]

Originally posted by InEffect:

SS can ramp his damage by a lot and one-shot things with maximized vital strike from that DLC falcata. Otherwise he is meh.
Oh, and I guess he's roughly on par with dragon scion at AC stacking.

Roughly on par, perhaps. But his bonus AC is of the Touch variety. Although... since when can an ES get 9 extra AC (with +8 hat, Bokken's pot and Ring of Circumstances)?

[Veganleader1]

I like this. That's a helluva hit. What skills went into this?

[InEffect]

Originally posted by haplok:

Originally posted by InEffect:

SS can ramp his damage by a lot and one-shot things with maximized vital strike from that DLC falcata. Otherwise he is meh.
Oh, and I guess he's roughly on par with dragon scion at AC stacking.

Roughly on par, perhaps. But his bonus AC is of the Touch variety. Although... since when can an ES get 9 extra AC (with +8 hat, Bokken's pot and Ring of Circumstances)?

+4 nat from bloodline, +a lot from cha and dex becuse 1 level monk dip(depends on stat spread). both easily break 70AC so it doesn't really matter after all. what it comes down to is SS gets it from int and scion has higher CHA and bloodline AC+wings. tbh even touch AC doesn't differ all too much to actually matter

[haplok]

Originally posted by Veganleader1:

I like this. That's a helluva hit. What skills went into this?

Large Bastard Sword 2d8 base damage -> 4d8 with Legendary Proportions (Colossal size) -> 6d8 with Lead Blades (Gargantuan Size; here from wand, I've only found a single one; Craft Items mods mod would be nice, COULD pick 5 ranger levels, but it'd hurt the build -> GVS at level 20, worse SS features); Greater Vital Strike multiplies that x4 (requires 16 BAB OR 16 SS levels, as he can substitute levels for BAB in feat requirements), SS Perfect Strike maxes base weapon damage and adds +1 to crit multiplier (therefore x3).

Btw. the build isn't properly optimized, I reckon about 20 more flat damage modifiers are possible (therefore about +60 critical damage). Not that it really matters at that point.

[haplok]

Originally posted by InEffect:

SS can ramp his damage by a lot and one-shot things with maximized vital strike from that DLC falcata. Otherwise he is meh.

As for otherwise meh, I beg to differ. He can do such tricks many times per day:
https://i.imgur.com/aKvGhMz.jpg

I know, I know, you consider Eldritch Arcana cheating. I don't.
Well, at high levels metamagick'ed Vampiric Touch isn't that much worse (actually better defense-wise).

[Veganleader1]

Originally posted by haplok:

Originally posted by Veganleader1:

I like this. That's a helluva hit. What skills went into this?

Large Bastard Sword 2d8 base damage -> 4d8 with Legendary Proportions (Colossal size) -> 6d8 with Lead Blades (Gargantuan Size; here from wand, I've only found a single one; Craft Items mods mod would be nice, COULD pick 5 ranger levels, but it'd hurt the build -> GVS at level 20, worse other SS features); Greater Vital Strike multiplies that x4 (requires 16 BAB OR 16 SS levels, as he can substitute levels for BAB in feat requirements), SS Perfect Strike maxes base weapon damage and adds +1 to crit multiplier (therefore x3).

Btw. the build isn't properly optimized, I reckon about 20 more flat damage modifiers are possible (therefore about +60 critical damage). Not that it really matters at that point.

This is a Str build?

[haplok]

Of course, how else can you do damage?
Dex builds are weak damage-wise in Kingmaker.

Still, this Str build reaches ~65 AC with Mirror Image and Displacement (before Defensive Crane Style and Wings), which should be enough to tank anything but Unfair difficulty mobs.