Thief class of some sort.

Darth Malignus · Post by **Darth Malignus** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 1:28 am

Well, I sort of need some pro/cons regarding some different Thieves. One Single-, Multi- and Dual-class, to be exact.

I´m always partial towards a straight-up Half-elf or Elf Fighter/Thief. You get Backstabs like ordinary Thieves, more attacks and so on. I´ve never really checked if the Fighter-class nets you some better saves in some regards, where the Thief-class may have been lagging behind and vice versa, but maybe that, too. And, perhaps most importantly, this class gets access to both HLA-pools.

Now as a plain Thief the Swashbuckler seems like a tempting choice, with the combat bonuses in mind, but I sure like that backstabbing. Of course a Swashbuckler can backstab, sure, but seeing that he/she does only ordinary damage without multipliers when doing so, that´s sort of out of the picture.

And my preferred Dual would probably be a Kensai/Thief. You´ll get the Thief HLA-pool and that´s it, but you´ll get the UAI eventually, so you´ll at some point be able to wear armor, bracers etc. restricted to the Kensai. And as this class, the Grandmastery of some weapons will be available, which may be all well and good. Or not.

So, which one do you think is the best? I´ve never really tried out the Swashbuckler, but is it worth it? I´m the hack and slash type, but will this class hack enough? Or should I stick to the Multi- and Dual-class?

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Thu Mar 19, 2009 6:26 am

I think that Assassin is the most fun to play, if you decide to roleplay.

I personally dislike the fighter/thief multiclass combination (even though you CAN take Smite and Assassinate multiple times). If you must have two classes, the Kensai/Thief or a Thief/Mage are stronger candidates due to them actually getting "outside" bonuses to attack (which get multiplied when you're backstabbing).

Kensai/Thief (dualed in the early twenties) is the most powerful thief combination (next to Thief/Mage or Illusionist/Thief). A 13/14 Kensai dualed to a 39 thief is strong as well.

You CAN play Swashbuckler as a hack and slash character. As the backstab has a multiplier of x1, it's essentially useless, sure, you still get the +4 THAC0 bonus, but you shouldn't have much trouble hitting enemies either way. Towards endgame, you will have some five attacks per round and a constant AC of -24, depending on item choice of course. The Swashbuckler is a very strong melee fighter and can be easily played without much through.

SiN_Fury · Post by **SiN_Fury** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 3:02 am

I just recently started a Half-Orc Fighter/Thief and I must say it is insanely fun. The moment you get UAI and start swinging Carsomyr around things fall like flies...especially when you get Greater Whirlwind Attack. 10 attacks with Carsomyr in 1 round is just sick. The multiclass allows you to have a LOT of daily Spike traps and Greater Whirlwind Attacks...which I hate to say is kind of overpowered.

Since you can't put 5 points into a proficiency, it allows you to be a little more versatile as well. When I want defense, I carry around the long sword Blackrazor from the hell trials. If you work things out right, after the Hell trials and the Machine of Lum the Mad, you will get a 25 strength every time Blackrazor proc's as well as 20 life, and you can also backstab with it. This also frees up all the various Girdles of Giant strength for other characters to use.

Right now I just finished Yaga'Shura and my group looks like this

1.Korgan (Crom Faeyr. Str 25)
2.Fighter/Thief (Carsomyr. Str 23...but 25 when I have other sword proc)
3.Sarevok (Silver Sword. Str 22 from Girdle)
4.Viconia (Flail of Ages. Str 21 from Girdle + Holy Symbol)
5.Imoen (Bow of Gesen. Str 19 from Girdle)
6.Edwin (Staff of Magi. Str is normal)

While yes this group may be short on AC, I figure most things will be able to hit me anyway so the faster I kill them the less damage they do. Demogorgon went down in half a round once I used Korgan's, Sarevok's, and my main's Greater Whirlwind Attacks. The only thing I regret about this group is that there isn't a 6th evil person, so I figured keeping Imoen would be at the very least amusing for her interactions with Sarevok.

Khumak · Post by **Khumak** » Thu Apr 09, 2009 7:02 pm

The lack of backstab basically makes swashbuckler an "almost" fighter with thief skills. Great if you don't really want a thief but still want to be able to disarm traps, pick locks, etc. Swashbucker>Mage can work as sort of a substitute for a Kensai>Mage. Less offense but a lot more defense + thief skills. Makes a great tank.

I normally have 2 thieves. Kensai>Thief as my "late game" thief. Assassin>Mage as my "early game" thief. If they both dual class at around the same time you've got a fully functional thief for the whole game and between the 2 you've got a badass fighter, a badass mage, and 2 badass backstabbers.

jouke1988 · Post by **jouke1988** » Tue Apr 21, 2009 10:46 am

Re

I would try a Illusionist/Thief, something like Jan but better. I think it is one of the best combo's and it makes your party at least a lot harder to beat.

Fighter133 · Post by **Fighter133** » Mon Aug 10, 2009 9:52 am

I personally really love the swashbuckler class. Backstabbing is nice but i can get by without it and the thaco, damage, and ac bonuses the swashbuckler gets are amazing. Also, those thaco and damage bonuses apply to ranged weapons as well so throw tuigan on a swashbuckler and you have a pretty good archer.