[Request] Assistance with an Assassin-type build

[SquishE]

The title says a lot, but I've until tomorrow night to actually create the stats for the character I... sort of... already introduced. >_>

Not normally a problem, I've seen a few decent Assassin builds, but this one needs to be a bit ...specific.
The game is heavily house ruled. Spells are all over the place... custom spell lists have been made.

So I'm hoping to avoid a build that uses a lot of spell support.
The characters are only level 5 or 6.
We're allowed to request *one* special item... I don't know how far 'special' goes though. xD It's GM fiat.

Long story short, I've been trying to make an optimized low level build for an out-of-combat stalker-type character, in-combat killifier.

The real problem I suppose is that I've never really liked the flavor of the assassin prc (which was turned into it's own class in a 3rd party supplement).

The race is treated like a human. Suggestions? 

[Mooncrow]

Hrm, so Unseen Seer, and probably factotum are out then.   Are Psionics in the same boat?

[Maat Mons]

Do you want to use sneak attack?  If not, you could do something with swordsage or, failing that, feat rogue.  There's no reason a sneaky guy can't power attack with a two-handed weapon. 

[SquishE]

Hrm, so Unseen Seer, and probably factotum are out then.   Are Psionics in the same boat?

Yea, Psionics are completely banned. D: There are some AWESOME builds using a psionic class in them. It's a real shame.
I know, it's why this has been .... difficult to conceive.

I don't HAVE to use sneak attack for damage, but cleaving around with a 2 hander would be a little.... out of character. xD

Edit:
This Daring Outlaw build looked... interesting. Seems a little light in the pants at low level though.

This AC2 build looks pretty cool, too. Not too bad at low level.
Thoughts?

[RobbyPants]

(Moved here as it's a build request)

This Daring Outlaw build looked... interesting. Seems a little light in the pants at low level though.

If you want a Daring Outlaw build workable at low levels, you need to take the feat at level 6. That being said, there's no reason you can't play a fairly run of the mill rogue as an assassin. If you want to be in melee a lot, Daring Outlaw is a good way to get a better BAB and HD.

Do something along the lines of Rogue 3/Swashbuckler 3/Rogue +1/Swashbuckler +X.

Take TWF and Weapon Finesse early. Take Daring Outlaw at 6th level.

If you had feats to blow or didn't mind a Swordsage dip (this would hurt your BAB), you could pick up a Shadow Hand stance and used Shadow Blade to get +Dex to damage on your weapons (if you use a Shadow Hand weapon - easy enough to do).

Other than that, make sure you take ranks in UMD so you can do useful stuff at higher levels other than Sneak Attack.


It's not a super strong build, but it should be doable at levels 5-6.

[Mooncrow]

(Moved here as it's a build request)

This Daring Outlaw build looked... interesting. Seems a little light in the pants at low level though.

If you want a Daring Outlaw build workable at low levels, you need to take the feat at level 6. That being said, there's no reason you can't play a fairly run of the mill rogue as an assassin. If you want to be in melee a lot, Daring Outlaw is a good way to get a better BAB and HD.

Do something along the lines of Rogue 3/Swashbuckler 3/Rogue +1/Swashbuckler +X.

Take TWF and Weapon Finesse early. Take Daring Outlaw at 6th level.

If you had feats to blow or didn't mind a Swordsage dip (this would hurt your BAB), you could pick up a Shadow Hand stance and used Shadow Blade to get +Dex to damage on your weapons (if you use a Shadow Hand weapon - easy enough to do).

Other than that, make sure you take ranks in UMD so you can do useful stuff at higher levels other than Sneak Attack.


It's not a super strong build, but it should be doable at levels 5-6.

Nightsong Enforcer can be a good place to go as well, especially if you can set up a flanking buddy.

[Aragorn]

Is homebrew out of the picture? If not there are some awesome classes. If not then swordsage with shadow hand is probably your best bet.

[SquishE]

First, sorry about posting in the wrong section, Robby. D:

Is homebrew out of the picture? If not there are some awesome classes. If not then swordsage with shadow hand is probably your best bet.

I could probably pull off homebrew as long as it wasn't spell-heavy. I just find it difficult to sift through all the cheesey and/or bad homebrew. If you have suggestions, I'm all ears. xD

This DM is particularly story heavy (is accustom to running diceless), so combat in a dice game tends to be... chaotic and unfocused. Which is why a few of us that are more inclined to min/max are trying to do so within acceptable limits (we've found it keeps her games flowing more easily).

I know most of you are probably asking why we're bothering, and that's because our DM was super excited about the setting, and we're pretty much along with it until it's run its course. It's difficult to explain beyond that. xD

I was in fact thinking of taking a Swordsage dip for the stances and such, giving me some more utility. I just got home so I'm going to sit down and try to pen this out for critique in a few...

Thank you for the replies thus far.

[Aragorn]

Then I have just the thing for you.
The White Clad, found here http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?p=7362908. Not sure how the fluff works in your campaign but it can be easily adapted. Its a fu class, although its not super powerful. With some thought however, it could be rewarding. It works best in a city setting, but if you scroll down it has an outsider ACF for rural settings. Basicly HiPS in non rural settings.

Enjoy.