E6 Magus advice?

[RotBot]

Hey all, I'm currently playing in an E6 campaign, with the magus(kensai) class. (more on E6: http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?206323-E6-The-Game-Inside-D-amp -D

The DM in general has been cool with making small allowances- letting me treat my scimitar as a finesse weapon, etc. I try to be very transparent and polite with DMs about what my goals are with my build.

I went into the class thinking its only redeeming quality, beyond the cool arcane pool buffs, was its ability to get two attacks with spellstrike + spell combat, considering in an e6 game it will never get third level spells, or a second normal attack. The kensai dervish seemed like the only setup that even made the class really worth it compared to the damage a normal level 6 barbarian, rogue or even fighter can pull without concentration checks(still very risk at level 6) and expending limited resources and etc.

Anyway, while I was pretty proud of discovering the dervish combo on my own after finding the guide on this board, using arcane mark as a "flurry" attack hadn't occurred to me at all. I just moved up to level 2 and gained spell strike, so I figured I would shoot the dm an email asking if he was okay with that, or if I'd have to wait and learn close combat to use ray of frost/etc to "flurry" with 0 level spells.

His response totally blindsided me. He feels like the arcane mark flurry isn't even an issue, because spell strike and spell combat are two totally separate actions, and you can only use one or the other, not both in tandem.

So.....I know there's plenty of threads discussing the finer points of spell combat + spell strike, and have found the comment from the lead designer saying he doesnt the the arcane mark thing is OP, but I was wondering if there is maybe some actual article where a paizo dev flat out states in simple terms that there is no reason why these two abilities should be exclusive, and/or that they were designed to function in unison. I know it just seems like common knowledge on the board, but I'm not sure if common knowledge will be enough for my dm to say "okay, thats cool". I think he's just having a kneejerk reaction to being able to get two attacks and a spell attack on a class that normally has a single attack or attack + spell, without looking at how limited my resources to actually use the abilities are compared to more standard damage dealers. I'd like to be able to just give him a very clear official statement about how the abilities work rather than have the whole thing devolve into an argument. If he houserules that the abilities don't work together, my character is basically relegated to being a gimpy bard instead of a gishy blade master. D:

I'm also curious if anyone has any points to discuss on an E6 magus in general, it seems like a lot of the "good" stuff comes into play between 9 and 12. Magical lineage loses a lot of appeal with such limited spellslots, combat casting suddenly seems practically mandatory, arcane strike still seems handy, expeditious retreat suddenly seems really good, since fly and haste are off the table. I'll probably look into expanding my arcane pool and arcanas known to give my magus more overall oomph and flexibility. Thanks for any feedback!

[Kolokotroni]

Spellstrike (Su): At 2nd level, whenever a magus casts a spell with a range of “touch” from the magus spell list, he can deliver the spell through any weapon he is wielding as part of a melee attack. Instead of the free melee touch attack normally allowed to deliver the spell, a magus can make one free melee attack with his weapon (at his highest base attack bonus) as part of casting this spell.

Spell Combat (Ex): At 1st level, a magus learns to cast spells and wield his weapons at the same time. This functions much like two-weapon fighting, but the off-hand weapon is a spell that is being cast.

Theres no faq on it because its blatent. The idea that spellstrike cant be used with spellcombat is nonsensical. Spell strike lets you cast a spell with a range of touch through a weapon. Spell combat lets you cast a spell and make attacks. Its not just common knowledge its right there in the text.

As for an E6 magus, you can still shine, but you have to watch your resources. Also, I particuarly like the hexcrafter in E6, as the right hexes can give you some much needed longevity, and the flight hex is just right for an E6 game. (I am currently playing a 6th level hexcrafter magus and loving it)

[RotBot]

Kolokotroni wrote:

Spellstrike (Su): At 2nd level, whenever a magus casts a spell with a range of “touch” from the magus spell list, he can deliver the spell through any weapon he is wielding as part of a melee attack. Instead of the free melee touch attack normally allowed to deliver the spell, a magus can make one free melee attack with his weapon (at his highest base attack bonus) as part of casting this spell.

Spell Combat (Ex): At 1st level, a magus learns to cast spells and wield his weapons at the same time. This functions much like two-weapon fighting, but the off-hand weapon is a spell that is being cast.

Theres no faq on it because its blatent. The idea that spellstrike cant be used with spellcombat is nonsensical. Spell strike lets you cast a spell with a range of touch through a weapon. Spell combat lets you cast a spell and make attacks. Its not just common knowledge its right there in the text.

As for an E6 magus, you can still shine, but you have to watch your resources. Also, I particuarly like the hexcrafter in E6, as the right hexes can give you some much needed longevity, and the flight hex is just right for an E6 game. (I am currently playing a 6th level hexcrafter magus and loving it)

Hey thanks for the response. I think I'll try snipping your quotes with the bolded text and hopefully hell be fine with it with a closer reading. interesting points on the hexcrafter, especially the flight hex, I'll try to keep that in mind if I'm in a game like this again and want to roll magus again! The main idea behind using kensai was being able to stack my intelligence up for more ac than normal(and still use an armored kilt!), but I can definitely see flight being a worthy tradeoff for that. If anyone has any other ideas for how to approach this while avoiding the "player vs dm" situation, or any other thoughts on E6 Magi, I'd love to hear them.

[Cap. Darling]

I am currently hopping my gm Will accept my combo of the enforcer feat and the Frostbite Spell delivered via spellstrike.
And god luck with the game.

[RotBot]

Cap. Darling wrote:

I am currently hopping my gm Will accept my combo of the enforcer feat and the Frostbite Spell delivered via spellstrike.

And god luck with the game.

That's an awesome combo, hopefully it works!

[Blackstorm]

RotBot wrote:

If anyone has any other ideas for how to approach this while avoiding the "player vs dm" situation, or any other thoughts on E6 Magi, I'd love to hear them.

There's not so much other to say. Just read the class features, they refers to two separate things. The only other thing I can add is that both you and your DM should read the awesome, life saver Guide to Spellstrike and Spell Combat.

Trust me, read it all. You'll learn more from one reading from this guide than from 100 reading through the class features of the Magus.

PS: Hexcrafter is just... well, it kick your opponents in the nuts. For a E6 game, I reccomend an elf, wich has a +1/6 magus arcana (or hex, via hex arcana) per level as favored class bonus, and I would suggest Evil Eye, Slumber, Flight, Arcane Accuracy. Maybe an Extra Hex/Arcana for Prehenshile Hair, and a Extra Arcane Pool. 1 Feat left, your choice. That's my actual setup, even if I'm not in a E6 game.