Spellblade Aloth

[MortyTheGobbo]

In my latest playthrough, I made Aloth a rogue/wizard multiclass. As so often happens, it works well enough but I feel like something is missing. He's dual-wielding his scepter and a generic want and casting debuffs. I tried to make him backstab, but it doesn't work so well with ranged weapons. I'm not sure if there's any trick to it or if sneak attacking at range and casting spells is all there is. How have people build him with this combo?

[Enoch]

Don't take Backstab unless you're going to be using the invisibility abilities heavily.  Sneak Attack (if that's what you meant) works fine with ranged attacks.  Just get the targets debuffed first, and the damage bonus should apply.

Spellblade Aloth works well for me.  I use him mostly as an engine for combining AoE summoned weapons with the Rogue's debuffing abilities.  Early on, Kalakoth's Minor Blights is your main damage source.  Use with Infuse with Vital Essence (for the INT inspiration's effects on durations and AoEs) and maybe a Pull of Eora to concentrate the enemy.   Once you can access PL5, though, repec into a straight melee build.  (Keep a backup grimoire that has the ranged debuffing stuff when that's more what the party needs.)  Get one of the melee-forward grimoires, and your self-buff order is something like IwVE, Spirit Shield, Mirrored Image, Deleterious Alacrity, and Citzal's Spirit Lance.  (You can add things like Spell Reflection and Flame Shield situationally.)  The Lance AoE is quite large, and the effects of your afflicting Rogue attack abilities will apply to everyone in it.  Summon a Phantom once you're holding it if you like. 

I wrote down the ability build that I spec'ed him into for melee use at one point, because I anticipated a skills-focused respec later on.  This is what I was planning on, pairing with Katrenn's or Llengrath's Martial grimoire (they're mostly identical, and include necessary spells like Spirit Shield, DAoM, and the Lance).  Rogue abilities plaintext; Wizard bold.

2) (Whichever of Escape or Crippling Strike he doesn't start with)

3) Thrust of TV

4) Mirrored Image;  Blinding Strike

5) Two-handed style

6) Dirty Fighting

7) Arcane Dampener; Arterial Strike

8 ) Confounding Blind

9) Finishing Blow

10) Essential Phantom; Persistent Distraction

11) Pull of Eora

12) Withering Strike

13) Rapid Casting; Deep Wounds

14) Devastating Blow

15) Ryngrim's Repulsive Visage

16) Arkemyr's Capricious Hex; Toxic Strike

17-20)  Other than to be sure to get Deathblows at level 19, doesn't matter much. 

 

N.B., Some of that was influenced by the party around him, and it may not even accurately reflect what I did when I actually leveled him up.  Many of the spell choices are just things I like to have in the party for utility (Aloth was usually the only Wizard in the group), rather than anything that is necessary for this build.  He doesn't use Thrust or Dampener often, but every once in a while, it's exactly what the party needs.  (The Capricious Hex is just a fun combat-opener.)  I'd love to get Combusting Wounds in there too, but his standard buff routine uses all his 2nd-level slots. 

Edited December 2, 2019 by Enoch

[Frog Man]

Love you Enoch. Using aloth spellblade right now. 

[MortyTheGobbo]

I wound up doing something similar, in that I had him use Minor Blights and a lot of self-buffs to deal Sneak Attack in an area. It does seem to work well. Maybe I'll try the lance and your build later on.

[Enoch]

On 12/14/2019 at 12:13 PM, MortyTheGobbo said:

I wound up doing something similar, in that I had him use Minor Blights and a lot of self-buffs to deal Sneak Attack in an area. It does seem to work well. Maybe I'll try the lance and your build later on.

Yes, pre-Citzal's, I used the Battle-Worn Grimoire for Chill Fog, Combusting Wounds, and Minor Blights.  When tier IV opened up, Pull of Eora was the obvious choice.  Kept a backup Grimoire with melee stuff for when that was most appropriate.  He was probably less effective than a single-classed Wizard would've been at that point (being a tier behind on spells hurts!), but it worked well enough, and his value skyrocketed when the Lance came online.