Bard / Red Mantis Assassin build

[Douglas Muir 406]

Bard 5 / RMA

Start with a human or half-human. Buy 15 Cha, put the racial +2 there, increase to 18 at 4th level. Take Eagle's Splendor as a 2nd level spell. Cast it before starting an attack.

With two sabers, the save DC against your Prayer attack will be an eye-watering 18 + RMA level. Invest a couple of thousand gp in a headband of charisma -- perfectly reasonable by 7th level -- and that jumps to 19 + RMA level.

Hum.

Doug M.

[Rockhopper]

Only problem is Eagle's Splendor won't stack with Headband of Charisma. They're both the same type of enhancement bonus, so you merely take the higher of the two.

[Douglas Muir 406]

Rockhopper wrote:

Only problem is Eagle's Splendor won't stack with Headband of Charisma. They're both the same type of enhancement bonus, so you merely take the higher of the two.

Okay, good point.

DC 18 + RMA is still nothing to sneeze at, though. That'll melt the minds of most characters of comparable level.

Doug M.

[Douglas Muir 406]

See, it took me some staring to realize that Prayer Attack is the RMA version of Death Strike: you PA someone, wait three rounds, then walk up and cut their throat.

Cha is not a high priority for most of the classes that will progress to RMA. Fighter types will tend to dump it, while for rogues it competes with Dex and Int. But a bard is perfectly ready to max out Cha, and she's got a low level Cha-enhancing spell as well.

Obviously this is situational as heck. But it does lead to some interesting results. A Bard 5 / RMA 2 facing a group of four equal-level fighters or rogues would have a better than even chance of fascinating them all. If I'm reading the RAW right, she could maintain the fascination by concentrating, and one by one coup de grace them all without anyone getting another saving throw. Correct?

Doug M.

[Venomblade]

The moment you draw a weapon fascinate ends.

Any potential threat to the target allows the target to make a new saving throw against the effect. Any obvious threat, such as someone drawing a weapon, casting a spell, or aiming a weapon at the target, automatically breaks the effect.

Still bard/RMA is a great combo!

[Douglas Muir 406]

Venomblade wrote:

The moment you draw a weapon fascinate ends.

Er... no.

"To initiate a prayer attack, she holds her sawtooth sabre (or sabres) out, point down, and weaves the blade in the air. She must be within 30 feet of and visible to her victim. Beginning a prayer attack is a standard action, and causes her victim to be fascinated by her unless he makes a Will save (DC 10 + the Red Mantis assassin’s class level + her Charisma modifier—if she’s wielding two sawtooth sabres, this DC gains a +2 bonus). She can maintain the fascination effect by concentrating. The victim may attempt a new save to escape fascination each time a threat (other than the fascinating assassin) appears. At any point after 3 rounds, she may make a coup de grace attack against the target, provided the target is still fascinated. Activating or concentrating on maintaining a prayer attack does not provoke an attack of opportunity."

That says to me that while /another/ threat may break the fascination, the original RMA herself does not. The Prayer Attack would be pretty worthless otherwise, no?

Doug M.

[Venomblade]

Ah, I was talking about the Bards fascinate ability.