Eldritch Knight Build

[gathomas]

I'm playing as a pretty standard Fighter character, and I eventually want to go for the Eldritch Knight prestige class. What would be the best multi-class to achieve that?

Magus seems tempting, but it looks like I'd have to take several levels in the class to really make it worthwhile (losing the casting penalties from wearing armor, for example). Would I be better off just going for Sorcerer/Wizard instead? They seem kind of basic by way of comparison.

As a follow-on question, if I take multi-class levels, will that prevent me from reaching level 20 as a Fighter?

[Halcyon]

Buff Sorcerer and then Dragon Disciple 4 are my votes. If you wanted to do magus you'd want to do magus in place of fighter, not in addition to it.

Yes it will prevent fighter 20. You only get 20 levels to work with total between all classes.

[Mork]

I do like

1 Aldori Defender / 7 Eldritch Scoundrel / 10 Eldritch Knight

So as you can see, fighter is just a 1 level dip to get a few thing for free, not the main class to unlock Eldritch Knight.

Other very basic possibilities

6 Sorcerer / 10 Eldritch Knight
5 Wizard / 10 Eldritch Knight
7 Magus / 10 Eldritch Knight
7 Bard / 10 Eldritch Knight
7 Eldritch Scoundrel / 10 Eldritch Knight
7 Eldritch Scion / 10 Eldritch Knight
4 Dragon disciple / 4 Bard or 4 Eldritch Scion or 3 Draconic Sorcerer / 10 Eldritch Knight

[Frostfeather]

It depends on exactly what you want to achieve and how you're going to use your casting. A more "balanced" EK with Wiz/Sorc works as a truly versatile character for whom offensive casting is probably just as important as attacking with weapons.

Most EK builds people on PK forums tend to lean towards using casting just to self buff, then attack with weapons. You'll have to decide which direction you want to go in.

I'd argue that the former will almost always be better overall if you're good at using your spells, and the latter simply requires less micro and less spell-specific knowledge. The more caster-heavy version will likely be easier to use in turn based, too.

[Corridian]

Not to derail this, but doing what Mork said as his first option will give you the most spell casting and damage dice. The other way might be to do the sorcerer paladin dragon disciple EK (best tank by far), but honestly I would just do the Magus all the way if you are wanting to do fighting and spell use.

[x_equals_speed]

If you're already playing as a pretty standard fighter and looking to add to them rather than start a new character or respect then you're probably best adding a level or sorcerer or wizard.

Eldritch Knight gives you extra caster levels, but nothing else, so having a class with few or basic abilities but strong casting will probably do you more good than a class with great abilities (which you won't get) and weaker casting.

If you've got multiple fighter levels and only one caster level your attack rolls will be almost as good as a fighter of your level, but your spells will be very far behind a caster of your level - so you're probably going to wind up emphasising hitting things. To get the most out of the casting you'll want to look for powerful "self only" spells that are usually cast by people who are less good at fighting. Things like mirror image and some of the shapeshifting spells can be a good fit here.

Whether you for wizard or sorceror depends on a few things, but if this is an existing character we're talking about the most important factor will be their stats. The level of spell you can cast and how many spells you get each day will depend on one of your stats, intelligence for wizards, charisma for sorcerers. If one of those is 4 or more higher than the other that makes your choice for you.

You're limited to 20 levels total, so the only way to hit level 20 in any class (including fighter) is to take no other classes.

[jonnin]

If you're already playing as a pretty standard fighter and looking to add to them rather than start a new character or respect then you're probably best adding a level or sorcerer or wizard.

I am a big fan of the kinetic knight if you want a magical melee mix. Being con based, it works well with a fighter base. Or normal kinetic gets better 'spells' but needs better stats too.

[jsaving]

Ordinarily if you wanted to give a front-line fighter some magical ability, you'd splash 2 levels of archaeologist and 4 levels of dragon disciple. That would certainly be an option here, and you could add as many levels of EK as you wanted.

The main alternative that comes to mind is respeccing into eldritch scion (abyssal bloodline). It isn't quite as good as a sword saint damage-wise but offers a nice combination of high DPS, high caster level, and a solid selection of spells, all while being probably the most novice-friendly magus in the game.

[razvedchiki]

what classes would anyone take to make a fighter/mage dual from bg2? with a focus on melee.

[Frostfeather]

Originally posted by razvedchiki:

what classes would anyone take to make a fighter/mage dual from bg2? with a focus on melee.

You could just go any non-Eldritch Archer Magus. Magi are very popular for good reason: they're relatively straightforward to build, very effective, they get Arcane Weapon Enhancements (add damage/effects to your weapon), and can deliver touch spells with their weapon attacks.

If you go the EK route, you're losing the weapon enhancements, Spellstrike, and Spell Combat, but possibly gaining more casting potential. Based on you wanting to focus on melee, I'd highly recommend Magus because it's designed for what you want already.

Otherwise, Eldritch Scoundrel or Eldritch Scoundrel into EK would also be very effective. You gain Sneak Attack, the full Wizard spell list instead of the somewhat nerfed Magus list, and Dex to damage on certain weapons.

[razvedchiki]

would 4 archaeologist/10 eldritch knight/6 fighter work?

[Mork]

Originally posted by razvedchiki:

what classes would anyone take to make a fighter/mage dual from bg2? with a focus on melee.

5 wizard / 5 fighter / 10 Eldritch Knight

It's not going to be the most powerful thing ever but it's pretty much a fighter/mage from BG 1-2

[Mork]

Originally posted by razvedchiki:

would 4 archaeologist/10 eldritch knight/6 fighter work?

no

You need 7 level of bard to reach his level 3 spells.

[jsaving]

Fighter/mage duals in BG2 combined high DPS with a top-tier caster level and eventual 9th level spell access to create a super-strong character. Probably the closest mechanical match in Kingmaker would be a melee sorcerer[www.gog.com]. Alternatively you could consider an abyssal-bloodline eldritch scion, which lacks 9th level spells but requires less prep work and a lower player skill level to properly handle.