Author Topic: Class and Concept: The Swashbuckler  (Read 50056 times)

Offline Jackinthegreen

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Class and Concept: The Swashbuckler
« on: July 19, 2013, 06:44:21 PM »
I started writing this handbook up well over a year ago, but of course I still don't have it as complete as I would like due mostly to my own half-assedness.  It's in useable condition though, but chances are I need to do more formatting on it and since I'm not experienced in getting a feel for it in Word, comments about improving the handbook can be done via PM or through the usual discussion thread.

Note: If you feel like lifting anything from this and making your own handbook or whatever, go ahead.  I'm not even going to ask you credit me on this because I just wanted to get this thing out and about.

Class and Concept: Swashbuckler


Table of Contents:
1: Introduction and party interaction
2: Attributes and races
3: Standard class features and ACF’s
4: Feats, skills, and skill tricks
5: Multiclassing and Prestige Classes
5a: Playing the concept instead of the class
6: Equipment
7: Sample builds
8: Credits

(click to show/hide)

Introduction

The swashbuckler: A person of daring, intrigue, and panache.  Or so the fictional accounts and characters have made out to be over the years.  In actuality the name comes from a fighting style using a sword and buckler, which was applied with much “swashing and making noise on the buckler.” 

Does the official class actually compare to the legendary characters of renown?  Sadly, no.  It may have access to social skills enough to possibly be deemed “charismatic,” but it has no actual Charisma synergies or even class abilities based on the stat.  Thankfully the “Dead Level ability” addresses this a little and adds something unique to the class, which I’ll go over in Part 3 with the other class features.

So, how then does one play a swashbuckler in D&D?  Sure you could go with the full twenty levels of the base class, but there are much better ways of realizing the concept and being effective.  The concept might be realized with good Dex, Int, and Cha representing a quick, witty, and charming person, but those alone don’t make an effective character.

Party Interaction

The swashbuckler class is primarily meant for melee but can do a tiny bit in other areas.

Melee: Swashbucklers are meant to be melee combatants, plain and simple.  Most class features are keyed toward being in melee or getting into melee.  Thankfully the class has full BAB and also high health with d10 HD so swashbucklers have a good start, but the class itself doesn’t get much else.

Control and debuffing:  Swashbucklers have no class abilities or synergies to control the battlefield unless you decide to pick up a reach weapon you can Finesse (kusari-gama, spinning sword, spiked chain, etc) for “lockdown.”  The only debuffing a standard swashbuckler will be doing is Str or Con damage on crits, which come at levels 14 and 19 respectively.  Item enhancements and spells do better than those and much earlier.

Party Face: A swashbuckler has access to Bluff, Diplomacy, and Sense Motive as class skills.  Unfortunately, swashbucklers usually have little reason to pump Cha and a few reasons to dump Wis.  In short, a swashbuckler is unlikely to have as much social prowess as most would think it should.  The other skills available have little or no party effect as well as being situational at best.  At least the class has some incentive to up Int, so skill points won’t be in the crapper.




Attributes

Strength: Swashbucklers just don’t need it usually.  They get Dex to hit from level 1 and Int to damage at level 3.  Sure Str still applies to damage, but at this point the only reason to pump Str is for skills and certain combat maneuvers such as tripping, which swashbucklers normally don’t do well anyway.  A -1 or 2 won’t be too bad but any worse might (literally) be crippling.

Dexterity: Swashbucklers have Weapon Finesse as a bonus feat at 1st level and only light armor proficiency.  If you can’t figure out why this is blue, I can’t help you.

Constitution: Important for everybody.  You might have issues juggling this with other stats though.  Needless to say, dump if you plan on becoming undead.

Intelligence: This contributes to damage and skill points.  To be effective at swashbuckling you’ll need this.

Wisdom: Dump, but try not to have worse than -1 or 2. Your Will save sucks, and a low Wisdom will make it suck even more.  The good news is you won’t exactly be very threatening if you’re Dominated.

Charisma: Helps a bit with the social skills, but nothing else for a pure Swashbuckler.  If you really want to keep with the archetype though, this will get a decent score.

For a typical swashbuckler I’d say the attributes boil down to Dex>=Int>Con>Cha>Wis=Str.  A decent 28 PB build might go:  Str 8 Dex 16 Con 14 Int 14 Wis 8 Cha 10.  Yeah, the class has some MAD.

Races

Most civilized races will have swashbucklers.  As with any class though, some are better than others.  Take note that no races have swashbuckler as favored, so you might run into multiclassing issues if your DM is the type that insists on that crap.

PHB races:
Dwarf: The notion of a dwarf swashbuckler is an odd one, but they can manage it.  +2 Con is nice for surviving, and -2 Cha isn’t so bad.  They’re at a tactical disadvantage because of low speed though, and their ability to stay at that speed despite heavier armor doesn’t really matter for a swashbuckler due to light armor.

Elf: Bonus to Dex and penalty to Con means elves are hard to quantify, but that Con hit will probably hurt more than the Dex will help.  The feat Improved Weapon Familiarity allows elves access to the Elven Courtblade set of weapons which all benefit from Weapon Finesse, so elves can have a bit of a weapon advantage.

Gnome: Bonus to Con, penalty to Str.  This turns out to be pretty good, along with the fact that they can switch their exotic weapon familiarity over to Gnomish Quickrazor.  The slow speed hurts as with dwarves, and the small size means less damaging weapons.  The +1 accuracy bonus from being small helps mitigate that.Whisper Gnomes have a Dex bonus and 30 foot move speed in spite of being small, though they trade that Dex for a Cha penalty which can hurt depending on your style.

Half-elf: Half-elves are the pinnacle of boring.  You can do better.

Half-orc: Int loss hurts and the strength bonus isn’t useful. Don’t do it.

Halfling: -2 STR, +2 Dex and +1 to all saves.  Pretty good if you ask me.  Slow speed still hurts, as can small size. Strongheart Halflings from the FRCS come out ahead due to the extra feat in place of the save boosts.

Human: As usual, humans are a fine choice.  The extra feat and skills are always welcome.

Other notables:

Changeling: If you’re in a campaign with good social options and have access to Eberron races, Changelings offer great ways to make the most of it.  Combine with the Seduction dead level ability to great effect.  Also goes well with the Changeling Rogue racial sub levels, if you want a Daring Outlaw build.

Anthropomorphic cat: This furball is from Savage Species and the reason for its LA is because of the skill and stat differences.  In short, Dex to Climb and Jump instead of Str (which essentially grants you the Agile Athlete feat) along with +4 racial mods on Climb, Hide, and Move Silently. There are also the +8 mods on Balance and Jump checks. The racial Hide bonus improves to +8 in tall grass or heavy undergrowth.  Finally, the stat differences are -4 Str, +2 Dex, and +2 Wis.  What this means is you get to dump even more Str since two of your skills no longer use it.  There’s also flavoring yourself as Puss in Boots if you’d like.

Krynn Minotaur (DLCS): The only reason this race is mentioned is because they are written as practiced sailors.  Their stats are totally out of sync with the way swashbucklers work though (+4 str, -2 dex, -2 int, -2 cha), so it’s not recommended for them to take the swashbuckler class.


Swashbuckler Class Features:

Hit Dice: As a fighter, swashbucklers get a D10.  Pretty good start.
BAB: Also like a fighter with full BAB.
Saves: Once again just like a fighter with good Fort, poor Ref, and poor Will.
Weapon and Armor proficiencies: All simple weapons, all martial weapons, and light armor but no shields.  I find it somewhat amusing that a class with “buckler” in its name isn’t proficient in them, but nonproficiency penalties are easily circumvented if you really must have a shield.
Skills: Decent skill list and skill points with some Int synergy to the class.  See the Skills section for more info.
Weapon Finesse (1): This feat plays heavily into the swashbuckler style, so it’s no surprise a swashbuckler gets it totally free at first level.  It makes for a good dip too since swashbuckler 1 is mostly better than fighter 1 if the character just wants Weapon Finesse and you won’t be penalized XP for multiclassing.
Grace (2, 9, and 20): A save bonus of +3 over 20 levels is crap. It’s even crappier because it’s a competence bonus, which is quite common among buffs and items.  However, Grace is a requirement for a couple multiclassing feats that add some nice things to the character. See the Feat section for more info.
Insightful Strike (3): It’s +Int to damage (in addition to Str) on Finesse weapons, but doesn’t work on crit-immune targets so it’s useless when facing such enemies.  Still, Insightful Strike is the main reason for taking a 3 level dip in swashbuckler and is the main cut off point unless you have access to the dead level ability at 4th.  From this point on, all class features go downhill.
Dodge Bonus (5, 10, 15, and 20): AC tends to be a poor buff by later levels. The fact that this only works against melee attacks of one opponent makes this feature pretty crappy, much like a similarly named feat.  Unlike the feat though, this doesn’t lead into anything useful.
Acrobatic Charge (7): Any character can use Jump and Tumble, etc to avoid difficult terrain during a charge. Psionic characters can essentially ignore it from level 1.
Improved Flanking (8): An extra +2 on flanking is alright for a rogue since they have Sneak Attack, but the swashbuckler has no features whatsoever that play off flanking.
Lucky (11): The ability to reroll a failed check can be done by other characters from level 1.  If this was 1/encounter instead of 1/day and 5 levels sooner it would be good.
Acrobatic Skill Mastery (13): Taking 10 on Jump and Tumble at all times is alright, but items will tend to make the player forget this class feature even exists.  Other classes grant the option to Take 10 on more than just 2 skills before level 13.
Weakening Critical (14): 2 Str damage on a crit won’t impress anyone at this level.  Many things you fight will probably be immune to crits anyway. Casters and weapon enhancements do this much better and much earlier.
Slippery Mind (17): This gives the ability to reroll a failed save one round after failing the save against a mind-affecting Enchantment effect.  Once again it’s something certain other classes can effectively do from level 1.  Rogues can do it from 10 or 13 if they care to take it.  You can also use an item or be a certain race/creature to be immune in the first place.
Wounding Critical (19): 2 Con damage on a crit at level 19 just plain sucks.  Low level spells and weapon enchantments (like Wounding) do better than this.

Alternate Class Features:

Arcane Stunt (CM, p. 32): Lose Grace to gain the effects of blur, expeditious retreat, feather fall, jump, or spider climb a few times a day. As a swift (or in FF’s case, immediate) action. If it wasn’t for the fact that Grace is required for Daring Outlaw and Daring Warrior, this trade would be blue.  Those feats are covered in the Feats section.

Drow Swashbuckler (DotU, p. 59): Technically doesn’t require being a Drow.  When wielding two weapons and hitting at least once with both, you gain a free 5-foot step as a swift action that doesn’t count against the normal limits on 5-foot steps. Replaces Acrobatic Charge.  To me this seems like it’s replacing a worthless ability with a practically worthless ability.

Shield of Blades (PHB 2, p. 63): Replaces Dodge Bonus.  When attacking with two light weapons, gain a shield bonus starting at +2 and going up to +5 at 20th level.  This is lackluster because it requires attacking with two light weapons (not just Finesse weapons which is what the class is based on), which is only worthwhile if you have TWF or better.  Gaining the same and better shield bonus can be done better with an actual shield.


Seduction: Gain a new use of the Bluff skill at 4th level called seduce to learn secret. Basically, if you make a Bluff check of 10, 20, 30, 40, or 50, you can learn a potentially valuable secret from an NPC.  If your game is heavy on intrigue and you can afford to pump Bluff up, then this is worthwhile.  If not, then of course it’s probably not worthwhile for you.  Note that WotC added an option for the DM to give this use to all characters and oddly enough the use time is lowered in that version.  Chat with your DM about what can be allowed in the game.


Multiclass Feats:


Daring Outlaw (CSc, p. 76) Requires Grace +1, 2d6 Sneak Attack.
This is the multiclass feat for rogue/swashbucklers. The main thing worth noting is it allows rogue and swashbuckler levels to stack for the purpose of determining SA damage.  It also advances the Grace and Dodge Bonus features.  See if your DM will allow Arcane Stunt in place of Grace, since the substitution makes for a more flavorful and useful character.

   Daring Outlaw (Complete Adventurer Ninja):  Thanks to a CA ninja’s Sudden Strike counting as Sneak Attack for feats (see CAd page 8), it’s possible to stack swashbuckler and ninja levels for this feat.  I wouldn’t recommend it though because the ninja relies heavily on Wis, and that’s a dump stat for swashbucklers.  Your DM might also decide that since the feat specifically says rogue, you don’t actually benefit from the feat.  Or you might get certain abilities but not others.  Check with your DM before trying this.

   Daring Outlaw (Rokugan Ninja): The ninja from Rokugan Campaign Setting gets proper Sneak Attack, so you’re good on qualifying if this version of ninja is accepted.  The classes actually mesh decently well with each other since none of their high level class features are worthwhile except for Sneak Attack, and they’re both full BAB with some Int synergy.  Keep in mind this ninja needs to be updated to 3.5, but it’s just the skills that will need fixing since all the other features work as-is.

   Daring Outlaw (fighter):There’s a fighter variant in UA that trades the fighter’s feats for, you guessed it, Sneak Attack.  Do not even think about trying this.  A fighter’s feats will get you much more versatility and, if chosen well, damage, than SA will.  There is also the fighter’s infamously bad set of skills to think about.


Daring Warrior (CSc, pg 76) Requires Weapon Specialization, Grace +1.
It’s fighter/swashbuckler this time around. This feat allows fighter levels to advance Grace and Dodge and also allows swashbuckler levels to count as fighter levels for the prerequisites on fighter feats.  Feats available only to fighters are listed further down.  Since the latter swashbuckler class features are worse than good fighter bonus feats, this feat should work well for you if you don’t mind the loss of skills (which can be worked around with certain Fighter ACFs).  As mentioned in Daring Outlaw, see if your DM will allow Arcane Stunt to qualify in place of Grace for this feat.

   Daring Warrior (rogue) Why is rogue listed under this when it has Daring Outlaw?  There’s a rogue ACF in Unearthed Arcana that trades Sneak Attack for the fighter’s bonus feat progression.  It doesn’t explicitly say rogue levels count as fighter level for prerequisites, but it’s something that a lenient DM could allow.  This would allow you to get many more skills points and feats, but you’d lose out on BAB (which isn’t so bad since you can still get 16 with 4 levels of swashbuckler).

   Daring Warrior (Warblade): The Warblade from Tome of Battle qualifies as a fighter of 2 levels lower for feat prerequisites, so the Weapon Spec requirement can be met.  These classes mesh well together since both have nice Int synergy, although you’ll quickly realize that Warblade trumps swashbuckler quite handily at every turn thanks to maneuvers and better class features.


General Feats

   Agile Athlete: Swaps the Climb and Jump skills to benefit from Dex instead of Str.  If you expect to use these skills often, absolutely get this feat.

   Combat Reflexes: You have the Dex to make a lot of AoO’s with this feat.  Combine with a reach/adjacent weapon (spiked chains, spinning swords, and the kusari-gama all benefit from Weapon Finesse) and you’ve got a good start on battlefield control.

   Combat Expertise: The AC bonus doesn’t do a whole lot, but this is a prerequisite to other good feats like Improved Trip.

   Dodge: The least they could have done was make the swashbuckler’s actual Dodge ability count as this feat like Ninja Dodge for the Rokugan ninja does, but oh well.  It is a prerequisite for several good (and bad) feats and some prestige classes.  The feat on its own is rather crappy.

   Shadow Blade: Requires a Shadow Hand stance, but in return you get Dex to melee weapon damage while in that stance.  To meet the prerequisite you’ll need a dip in Swordsage or the feats Martial Study and Martial Stance.  Assassin’s Stance tends to work well especially if your DM allows it to qualify you for Daring Outlaw.

   Martial Study:  Use it to gain any maneuver you qualify for.  A Warblade dip will probably suit you better, but if you want a maneuver from the Desert Wind, Devoted Spirit, Setting Sun, or Shadow Hand styles this will get that.

   Martial Stance: There are plenty of good stances around.  Of special note is Assassin’s Stance, which can technically qualify you for Daring Outlaw without rogue or ninja levels.

   Exotic Weapon Proficiency:  A few exotic weapons are worth it.  The spiked chain can benefit from Weapon Finesse and will make a great weapon for a swashbuckler..  The kusari-gama (DMG 144) is essentially a light version of the spiked chain and allows for TWF.  The spinning sword from Secrets of Sarlona 13 is a one-handed version of the spiked chain with some slight changes.  If you can use Dragon Magazine, the Crescent Knife from DM 275 page 44 is an excellent weapon because it’s two attacks per swing, effectively doubling your attacks.  TWF and get Sneak Attack for some very fun numbers.  If you’re more of a traditionalist with weapons, the Elven Courtblade from Complete Warrior/Races of the Wild might turn your fancy.

   Two-weapon Fighting: This feat and its chain usually aren’t worthwhile for a swashbuckler to get unless you have Sneak Attack.  Pick up Gloves of the Balanced Hand from MiC to get TWF or Improved TWF if you already have the base TWF feat.

   Shape Soulmeld (Sailor’s Bracers): More for theme than anything else since shaping it alone grants a +4 insight bonus to    Profession (Sailor), Swim, and Use Rope checks.  If you can bind it to your Arms chakra then you effectively get a swim speed.


Fighter specific feats:

   Weapon Specialization: Requires fighter level 4.  A +2 bonus on damage rolls is only alright for a feat, but it is required for Daring Warrior. Don’t bother with Greater Weapon Focus/Specialization because of:

   Melee Weapon Mastery: Requires Weapon Specialization and BAB +8.  This feat grants +2 on both attack and damage rolls, which essentially combines and obviates the want for Greater Weapon Focus and Specialization without needing 8 or 12 levels of fighter.

   Weapon Supremacy: Requires fighter 18, Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, Weapon Mastery, Greater Weapon Focus, and Greater Weapon Specialization.  Gain +4 against disarms, wield the weapon in a grapple as if you weren’t grappling, gain a +5 bonus to any attack after the first during a full attack, Take 10 once per round on an attack roll, and gain +1 AC.  The intense (generally crappy) feat investment is simply not worth it.  Don’t bother with it on a pure fighter much less a swashbuckler.

Skills:

Balance (Dex): Most tend to leave this at 5 ranks to keep from being flat-footed while balancing.  Few classes (including swashbucklers) have much use for this skill otherwise.
   Bluff (Cha): Simply for its synergies, putting 5 ranks here is worth it.
   Climb (Str): Few classes ever put ranks in this, but if you routinely find yourself in spots where Climb is necessary (such as fighting on a ship’s rigging) then points here might be worthwhile.
   Craft (Int): Crafting can be useful, but it’s usually not worth sinking points into.  Poisonmaking gets an honorable mention for usually being better than Weakening Critical and Wounding Critical.
   Diplomacy (Cha): Diplomacy is broken, period. Max this.
   Escape Artist (Dex):  Don’t bother with ranks here unless it’s somehow really useful in your campaign.
   Jump (Str): If you plan on using Tumble, 5 ranks here will give a +2 there.  Otherwise, it’s usually not worth many skill points.  Maybe 1 if you’d rather land on your feet instead of your face.
   Profession (Wis): Most professions aren’t worth much.  If you’re having a seafaring campaign though, Profession (Sailor) (benefits detailed in the Stormwrack supplement) might be useful.  Certain prestige classes geared towards a swashbuckler also require ranks in this.
   Sense Motive (Wis): Sometimes useful, but most only do 5 ranks for the Diplomacy synergy.
   Swim (Str): Any reputable sailor knows how to swim, but the skill itself usually isn’t worth much unless you expect to actually be in the water a lot. 1 rank.
   Tumble (Dex): This skill is mostly used to avoid AoO’s, so shoot for a regular check of 15 or so.  Higher can be nice if using other options.  Put at least 5 ranks in for synergies to Balance and Jump.
   Use Rope (Dex): Don’t bother with this unless you actually intend to, well, Use Ropes.  You might get some use from its synergies though.

Skill Tricks:

Introduced in Complete Scoundrel, Skill Tricks are a way for characters to get some extra options while playing.


Acrobatic Backstab: Pretty good, especially for a Daring Outlaw build.  With a high Dex for the skill itself and Int to get skill points, Tumble checks will be a breeze.
   Back on Your Feet: May not be worth much, but an immediate action to get up from prone will help keep you in the fight.
   Nimble Charge: This is one of the things that make the Acrobatic Charge feature worthless.
   Timely Misdirection: The feint action is very rarely worthwhile, plus there are other ways to negate AoO’s.
   Twisted Charge: Make up to a 90 degree turn during a charge. This is another thing that makes Acrobatic Charge worthless.

Multiclassing
(work in progress)

Beguiler: If you absolutely need to feint in combat as a swift action, beguiler 6 and Improved Feint are one of the very few ways to do that. (The only other one I know of is a psionic feat that WotC added with the psychic rogue).  The beguiler is a good class, but if your focus is on combat chances are this extended dip won’t be for you.

Factotum: For three levels you get Int to Str and Dex checks and skills plus wiggle room on other things thanks to Inspiration points.  If you’re looking for better skill synergy plus versatility, this is a great way to get it.

Warblade: One level gives you maneuvers, Int to reflex saves (which will stack with Grace since it’s an Insight bonus), and the ability to retrain weapon-specific feats like Weapon Focus to use another weapon.  A second level grants another maneuver known and Uncanny Dodge.  A third level grants yet another maneuver known and your Int bonus to confirming criticals.  Or you could just be pure Warblade and call yourself a swashbuckler by picking some more thematic maneuvers and roleplaying appropriately.

Rogue: Rogues are generally a better class than swashbucklers with only the lower BAB, HD, and save swap being seen as disadvantages.

Fighter: The extra feats, if chosen well, will help with combat more than the later swashbuckler class features.  The Thug variant fighter from Unearthed Arcana is great because it has more class skills and more skills per level (4+int) than the regular fighter for trading off medium and heavy armor proficiency.

Swordsage: As the only base class which grants access to the Shadow Hand style, a dip here might be worth it to get the Shadow Blade feat.



Prestige Classes:

Scarlet Corsair (Stormwrack)
Dread Pirate (Complete Adventurer)


Playing the concept instead of the class:

   So you want to play a swashbuckler without actually taking levels in the swashbuckler class?  Here are a few suggestions:

   Fighter: Combat-wise, the standard fighter has more going for it than the swashbuckler.  The skill point loss hurts though, but that can be worked around a bit with UA’s Thug variant.

   Rogue: Notice how the swashbuckler has multiclass feats for fighter and rogue? That’s because the swashbuckler is essentially the love child of them.  You can pull off a more skill-focused swashbuckler with rogue levels.

   Warblade: A pure warblade can be a great swashbuckler depending on your chosen maneuvers.


Equipment:

Feycraft Armor: When wearing feycraft armor (DMG2 pg. 275), the user gets a +1 bonus to Bluff checks made to deceive another creature with words.  Chat with your DM about what this means, including possible interaction with the Seduction ability.

Feycraft Weapons: Feycraft weapons allow 1-handed weapons to benefit from Weapon Finesse as if they were a light weapon.  Since so much of a swashbuckler’s damage is based on the weapon benefitting from Weapon Finesse, feycraft weapons allow for more flexibility in choosing what weapon to use.  They’re also Cold Iron, for what it’s worth when fighting anything with applicable DR.


Sample Builds:

None yet



Credits:

Thanks to Dictum Mortuum for some of the handbook layout.  You can take a look at his works through this link.

Further thanks to dman11235 for his Monk guide, which I’ve also used a lot of formatting from.

Finally, I’ve taken some ideas and notes from Why Tier 5s are in Tier 5.
« Last Edit: January 18, 2015, 08:37:37 PM by Jackinthegreen »