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So, I'm planning to play the game as a assassin/mage, and I was wondering, at which levels does the backstab multiplier become higher? I know that for fighter/mages the earliest optimal level to dual is 9, so you get another profiency star, but is it the same for thieves(assassins)? I will be playing in a party, by the way.

At 9th Level, the backstab multiplier goes up to 4, and at 13th Level, the multiplier goes up to 5.

Argh... You should've asked me earlier, my assassin is lvl20 now and has a 6x multiplayer. I'm not sure when I got it, but I'll tell you when it goes to 7x. Unless someone beats me to it, that is.

I assume the backstab multiplier for an Assassin goes up to 6x at 17th Level and goes up to 7x at 21st Level. But I wouldn't dual an Assassin to a Mage at 21st Level, so I thought it was a moot point.

I just thought of something. At 9th Level, an Assassin doesn't have enough Thieving points to do anything besides Hide in Shadows and Move Silently. If your Assassin has 100 points in Hide in Shadows and 85 points in Move Silently, he'll only have 35 points in Open Locks, 10 points in Find Traps, 25 points in Pick Pockets, and 5 points in Set Traps. At 13th Level, you'll have another 60 points to distribute. You might as well put all of them into one ability just so he'll be good at something else besides backstabbing.

I do it again, I quote myself from an earlier post:

"I've never seen the point in waiting too long to dual. Lots of people play half the game in a first class, then dual and play the rest of the game in the second class. Only in the very end of ToB do they regain the abilities of the first class and realize the full potential of their PC. And what's the point in having this über PC when the game is almost over anyway?

I recommend dualing the Assassin at level 10 (either to a Fighter or a Mage). You'll get a x4 damage multiplier, three Poison per day, will have 100 % in both Hide in Shadows and Move Silently and will finally get a faster working poison. Best of all, you'll be able to play your dual class PC as he's supposed to be played for almost the entire game."

Thanks for the help! I'll definately dual at 10, then, and to a mage. I want to do the mage stronhold quests (the only ones besides cleric, ranger, and bard that I haven't done)

[QUOTE=Aztaroth]Thanks for the help! I'll definately dual at 10, then, and to a mage. I want to do the mage stronhold quests (the only ones besides cleric, ranger, and bard that I haven't done)[/QUOTE]

In that case, don't forget to poison your Melf's Minute Meteors! You should also consider to put your thief skills in Detect Traps and Open Locks, as you will have Invisibility spells to use before backstabs anyway.

If you are going to dual there is no point to put points in stealth, put your precious point in other abilities and use potions/rings/spells for becom invisible

Methinks VonDondu is correct, as I just leveled and got the x7 damage.

[QUOTE=lompo]If you are going to dual there is no point to put points in stealth, put your precious point in other abilities and use potions/rings/spells for becom invisible[/QUOTE]

That would depend on how much he desires to slip in and out of shadows. Potions, rings and spells are not endless, and should perhaps be kept for going invisible after landing the first backstab, in order to then land a second one.

One should perhaps keep in mind though, that an Assassin(10)/Mage won't be able to land that many backstabs anyway, especially not later on (but the poison with Melf's Minute Meteors are still awesome!). This changes with Tenser's though, and you then have to remember that spells may not be thrown when transformed.

After dualing to mage, you can always use the SoM to backstab as well. That thing is like, backstab-o-rama.

You can't backstab with SoM, because is not considered a weapon a thief can use.

[QUOTE=lompo]You can't backstab with SoM, because is not considered a weapon a thief can use.[/QUOTE]

That is correct. But Cuchulain82 probably meant that you can use it to go invisible as many times as you want...

[QUOTE=Astafas]That is correct. But Cuchulain82 probably meant that you can use it to go invisible as many times as you want...[/QUOTE]
That is what I meant. It is basically an infinite invisibility spell. Just equip it, move into position, pause, switch weapons, and *bang* backstab away.

I'm not sure, but when you switch from SoM to another weapon you should not be any more invisible, thus you shouldn't be able to backstab.
but I agree it's an infinite source of invisible spell; use it after backstab to run away.

[QUOTE=lompo]I'm not sure, but when you switch from SoM to another weapon you should not be any more invisible, thus you shouldn't be able to backstab.[/QUOTE]
The key word is *should*. After switching weapons, you do go visible, but there is a delay, similar to coming out of stealth mode. So, if you use the staff to get in place, pause, and then switch weapons to attack w/a backstab, you are set. (Trust me- I love playing F->TH, and with UAI the SOM is ridiculously cheesy)