They are very different characters.
The Magus is much better at blending spells into his combat to be able to attack and put up mirror image or cast shocking grasp with a weapon attack. He can do it all in a lot of armor and he can supplement his melee attacks with extra damage of spells.
The Eldridge Knight does not blend combat and magic in the same way. He can fight in full armor and attack a lot... or he can cast a spell but generally not both. However the EK can cast much more powerful spells like time stop, giant form, mind blank, etc. Additionally since he is a nine level caster he will have tougher save DC's in general.
So do you want to be a very good switch hitter and using melee to supplement you spell casting? Do you want those spells to be terrible to behold and make your enemies shake while you follow up with a great axe attack? Then EK is the way to go.
Do you want to be a blur of a warrior fighting with fire in one hand and a blade in the other? The Magus is the choice.
In terms of game power the Magus has the advantage when it comes to action economy. The Eldridge Knight has the more versatility in combat styles and a larger variety of spells with more out of combat choices.
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They are very different characters.
The Magus is much better at blending spells into his combat to be able to attack and put up mirror image or cast shocking grasp with a weapon attack. He can do it all in a lot of armor and he can supplement his melee attacks with extra damage of spells.
The Eldridge Knight does not blend combat and magic in the same way. He can fight in full armor and attack a lot... or he can cast a spell but generally not both. However the EK can cast much more powerful spells like time stop, giant form, mind blank, etc. Additionally since he is a nine level caster he will have tougher save DC's in general.
So do you want to be a very good switch hitter and using melee to supplement you spell casting? Do you want those spells to be terrible to behold and make your enemies shake while you follow up with a great axe attack? Then EK is the way to go.
Do you want to be a blur of a warrior fighting with fire in one hand and a blade in the other? The Magus is the choice.
In terms of game power the Magus has the advantage when it comes to action economy. The Eldridge Knight has the more versatility in combat styles and a larger variety of spells with more out of combat choices.
But wouldn't the EK pull ahead once he get's access to Quicken spell since he could more than likely buff himself with a free action?
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Not necessarily. The Magus and the EK, as Thazar stated, really are two different beasts.
The EK can be a better melee combatant, simply because he has access to more, and better, buff spells and abilities. The magus relies on his spells to cause damage, and CAN buff himself, but melee combat is generally the instrument through which he uses his magic.
Or, look at it this way. At 20th level, assuming the Fighter 1/Wizard 5/EK 10/Wizard 4 progression, which is probably the most popular, you've got a character with 3/4 BAB (same as the Magus), access to more buffing spells, 9th level spells, and more control and utility spell options.
The 20th level Magus, on the other hand, is likely casting high-damage spells (probably blasting better than the EK), doing more damage, and likely in better armor. He has more swift actions available than the EK, leaving him free to cast swift action, intensified shocking grasps on his turn as 5th level spells if he is so inclined, which, altogether, allow for some spiffy damage potential. He can also use that swift action for Arcane Pool expenditure, or Arcane Strike.
The EK, while he can quicken spells, is forced to decide between quickened spells, arcane strike, arcane armor training, and his class ability that allows for a free quickened spell on a confirmed crit. In addition, the EK can gain the benefit of wielding a two-handed weapon, a luxury the Magus doesn't gain, and that, combined with his likely very high Strength score + Power Attack, means that the EK can probably hit harder per weapon attack than the Magus.
Oh, and the Magus gains the benefit of the incredibly potent Force Hook Charge/Full Attack via Spell Combat, so on a round that the EK gets his buff in and can attack, Mr. Magus is full-attacking.
It's a close call deciding which is "better", and in reality I don't think there's really a clear answer. EK is more of a spellcaster, having more variety and utility, while Magus is more of a warrior, complete with all the tools for high defensive and offensive potential.
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Right now I am leveling up a Fighter/Sorcerer/Eldritch Knight. Was thinking of going Magus but I like the Sorcer bloodlines. Took the Crossblooded Destined/Verdant Archtype. There are some weaknesses though, won't have many spells and will have to roll for Arcane Failure. He should be badass if he makes it to high level though.
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You make a good point Davor about having to choose between all of the swift actions. My theory is, when casting a buff, use arcane armor training, when attacking, use arcane strike. Of course if you use arcane strike, then roll a crit, you cant use the EK ability to cast again as a swift action. Then if you want to cast a quickened spell, you will have to roll for Arcane Spell Failure. Is there any item or ability in the game that lets you use 2 swift actions? That would be cool.
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Correction: If you want 9th level spells, you are capped at +16 BAB (minimum 17th caster level means you need 10 levels of Eldritch Knight, 8 Levels of Wizard, and 2 of Fighter, bringing the grand total BAB to 10+4+2= +16).
correction: no you dont
1 fighter or ranger
5 wizard
10 EK
4 AA
is a level 20 character with a wizzard level of 17 which is one 9th per day.
EKs don't do armour well.
To cast in mithral chain takes two feats and a swift action, which means an EK can never cast a quickened spell or use its capstone without sucking up the ASF. If an EK wants to use full plate, he has to eat 5% ASF anyway, since AAM only negates 20%, and mithral full plate has a 25% ASF.
His only other option is to take Still Spell, which sucks, but considering the alternative... Probably better to not bother with armour at all.
There used to be a really good level by level comparison of Magus v EK back in the playtest boards, but I can't seem to find it. I'll keep looking
Plus, if he is a hexcrafter he can get up to 9th level SLA's that NEVER run out.
Slumber
Ice Tomb
Are the main fort and will save or lose abilities.
Not to mention stuff like flight hex which saves a TON of spells and other potent things.
The Magus really makes a pretty terrible archer. He can't use either of his signature abilities with ranged weapons.
The Myrmidarch's Ranged Spellstrike mitigates this somewhat, but he still can't use spell combat, not to mention reduced spells and loss of Spell Recall.
If you want a melee fighter/mage, proftobe's comparison is pretty apt. An EK can fight or cast in a round, but he can't easily do both. A Magus can do both at once, but has a restrictive spell list, not to mention less powerful spells
P.S. I found that thread. This uses the playtest rules rather than the UM rules. Which means, among other things, Spell Combat and Spellstrike aren't as good, No Spell Recall or Arcane Pool, and some abilities are gained at different levels, but much of it is still apt. Maybe you can still get some use out of it.
A myrmidarch with halfling staff sling could be nice (doesn't have to be a halfling) because the staff sling counts as melee and as ranged weapon and thus can be used with spell combat and ranged spellstrike.
A well built and pre-buffed EK would actually have a decent chance of matching a Magus in a fight even if the Magus is going full-on nova with spells, and spells like cold ice strike at higher levels help even the playing field as far as supplementing burst damage with spells is concerned. But it's like comparing, say, a paladin and a combat cleric. They can both fight, but they're ultimately different creatures, each with their advantages and disadvantages.
The Magus is better at casting spells as he swings his sword, and using the combination to dish out high damage.
The EK is better at buffing himself and using his spells for a wider variety of tasks.
Also, the EK needs a little more effort to set up for toe-to-toe combat, both in terms of player planning and in-game. If you're going for versatility, expect to have less spells to pump your combat potential with. If you want an EK that can buff himself up quick and wade into combat swinging whilst popping off an occasional spell as needed, then you need to devote more resources to maintaining long-term buffs whilst maintaining a selection of short-term buffs (not too many, since you usually don't want to spend more than 1 round buffing, and almost never more than 2). Hr/lvl buffs are your friend, and sometimes 10min/lvl buffs, but invest heavily in metamagic extend rods.
It's all about payoff really. The Magus does well at low levels because of the additional attack power they get from Spellstrike. He'll also be wearing armor where the EK could probably at best get medium armor with Arcane Armor Mastery (unless he has some other way of mitigating the penalty or doesn't care). At high levels the Magus gets a few more tricks.
The EK on the other hand starts out slow. You're gonna need a level of fighter and five wizard just to qualify. A 1F/5W/10EK is going to have better BAB and HP not to mention he'll be casting spells like a 14th level wizard. The real advantage kicks in with putting more levels in wizard and getting 7th, 8th and 9th level spells.
In the long run EK is far superior.
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The Magus is better at casting spells as he swings his sword, and using the combination to dish out high damage.The EK is better at buffing himself and using his spells for a wider variety of tasks.
this is it 100%
god spells versus raw damage. playing a switch hitter EK is a better character, IMO, because of the full spell list that you get from your wizard levels. you get to choose between 6th levels spells on the magus list at 20 or 9th from the sorcerer/wizard list at 20. there is a reason why people make fighter vs caster discrepancy threads.
but the magus, at 20th, can hit you with 10d6 vamperic touch on a 15-20 crit range. then if they crit they cast it again, then they can have one in a spell storing weapon, and then if they dont crit quicken cast one. not counting crits thats 30d6 no save that give temporary hps equal to damage delt, maximized if you want to. then add in what ever ammount of physical damage you muster.
thats one massive can of ass whoop.
which one is better? i guess thats personal opinion. i would go with the EK personally.
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Also keep in mind what level you are playing the character from and two. If the campaign is set to stop at level 7, play the magus. If your starting at level 10, and playing through level 20, the Eldritch Knight, with its higher spell levels, may be a better option. (Both, of course, depending on the other characters in the party.)
Arcane Duelist does either role WORSE dpr wise. but he's still an awesome buffer+Backup fighter.
the Magus spellist is better offensively than a Arcane Duelist and his abilities make him a better fighter.
Again, Hexcrafter erases the Wiz/EK spell advantage a little (at least vs single targtets.)
If you want a archer spellwarrior then Wiz5/Ranger or Fighter1/AA4/EK10 is best. 9th level spells, BAB17, and gets the ability to put a spell on an arrow (so like a ranged spellstrike). Takes awile to get going.
If you want a MELEE spellwarrior then Hexcrafter with/without Staff Magus is Better. Awesome from level 1.
read the hexcrafter and EK guides to see how to build them.