I want to build a magus Kensei that wields a nodachi. My problem is that I waste the spell combat ability by using a 2 handed weapon. Is there an option that I may not be aware of for a magus that wants a 2 handed weapon that isn't a bastard sword or katana? Like perhaps a feat or trait?
Ooo, ooo, I know this one! Wait, must find PDF...
There is the Tiefling trait that lets you wield Large weapons which *might* be able to be used to let you wield properly sized two-handers with one hand by counting them as smaller and taking the penalty... Kind of a roundabout way and iffy but might work. :/
Lol, my GM is pretty lenient so he'd probably allow a round about path because he knows that I just build characters I like not characters to break games. I just really like the fluff based around the nodachi weapon and its actual stats like p/s, 1d10, and brac are just added awesomeness. It's a bit saddening that I'll have to deal compromising for something I don't want to wield...
Found it. Might of the Magus has the Greatweapon Spell Combat feat which lets the magus use spell combat with two-handed weapons. It's not viable for DEX-focused magi and it increases the attack roll penalty -3.
Wow, that's really awesome, thank you Ambrosia Slaad!!! You just made my day.
It's also worth noting that it's (Might of the Magus) not from Paizo, but from a 3rd party publisher which many GMs do not allow.
It's also worth noting that it's (Might of the Magus) not from Paizo, but from a 3rd party publisher which many GMs do not allow.
Yeah, that's why I linked to the product page, which also has reviews.
For non-3rd party, another possibility is to be a Kasatha. Having 4 arms means that you can wield a two-handed weapon and still have 1 hand free to cast spells in Spell Combat, and 1 hand free for something else. If you aren't allowed to use OP races (Kasatha is 20 RP), you could dip 2 levels in Alchemist (be sure to get the Magical Knack trait to offset caster level delay; unfortunately doesn't offset delay of spellcasting progression), and get the Vestigial Arm discovery -- this can't be used to make an attack, but nothing says it can't do the Somatic Components for casting a spell -- although a strict interpretation might argue that since Spell Combat is part of an attack, you can't use it for this. Still another method is to be a Mindblade Magus and get up to 13th level, at which point the Dual Manifest ability explicitly allows using a two-handed weapon with Spell Combat. An approach that doesn't require quite so many levels is to be a normal Magus and use Alter Self to turn yourself into a Kasatha (which strangely is Humanoid instead of Monstrous Humanoid, so it's legal as long as your character can find the concept to know what they're doing with this), and later use Monstrous Physique to turn yourself into a multi-armed Monstrous Humanoid.
I'll also look into mind blade with my gm, the alter self would work too, I didn't even think of that.
Or the classic "a katana is a masterwork bastard sword", which as a Kensai you can definitely get proficiency in to wield it 1 handed. Add in the Tiefling oversized limbs racial trait, and you now have a large bastard sword weldable in 1 hand which could theoretically qualify as a nodachi visually. It doesn't have the stats though obviously.
As far as I can tell, Spell Combat occupies one metaphorical hand, so you can't do anything involving two handed weapons+spell combat without an explicit exception.
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Another couple possibilities:
Weapon Trick: Polearm. Choke up. Take a -2 attack in order to "choke up" and wield the polearm as a one-handed weapon.
Good thing you wanted to do it with a nodachi since they are in the polearm group.
Of course, doing it that way is pretty much strictly inferior to just using a katana and wielding it in two hands whenever you feel like it.
Five levels of Arcane Duelist bard: You gain a bonded weapon and can perform the somatic components of spells with the hand that is holding your bonded weapon.
Again, not a good solution (unless you are going gestalt--and even then you probably have better things to gestalt to than bard), but a DM might let it work.
I recall someone mentioning the 4-armed option in another thread as a no-go according to RAW, but I've never seen anything else from Paizo (or anyone else, for that matter). I'm not sure how I'd rule other than not allowing the race.
Keep in mind the new spell bladed tutor's spirit which essentially eliminates the penalty from power attack for 1 minute/level (the penalty alternates between 0 and -1 every few levels). 2-handing any 1-handed weapon with power attack and little or no penalty is worth giving up spell combat when you aren't attempting spell damage (shocking grasp, etc.).
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I mean, a Nodachi is basically just a big Katana. You could just use a Katana and describe it as being really large.
No it is NOT a big Katana, it's practically a polearm with a long blade at the end of it. It's as much a katana as a broadsword is a glaive-guisarme.
The whole melee/caster with a two-hander thing is more the territory of Dragon Disciples and Eldritch Knights, though it takes more careful choices to make a good EK than it does to make a good Magus.
You can use Frostbite fairly effectively with a two-handed Magus, since once you activate it it has multiple charges; you can activate it when moving up and striking, and then go full-on two-hand power attack with it already running instead of spell combat. You would still want to be able to one-hand your weapon sometimes though.
I mean, a Nodachi is basically just a big Katana. You could just use a Katana and describe it as being really large.No it is NOT a big Katana, it's practically a polearm with a long blade at the end of it. It's as much a katana as a broadsword is a glaive-guisarme.
Off topic but wasn't there an old 3/3.5 artifact based on "all weapons are just weird swords"? It had an unstated sibling that was "Not a sword" which had the caveat that if you could think of a way to use it as a weapon it would change into something else because "all weapons are just weird swords". lol
I mean, a Nodachi is basically just a big Katana. You could just use a Katana and describe it as being really large.No it is NOT a big Katana, it's practically a polearm with a long blade at the end of it. It's as much a katana as a broadsword is a glaive-guisarme.
While the definitions for medieval weaponry can be somewhat fluid, "dachi" translates as sword, and they do mean it.
The dachi here (太刀) is the same as tachi (太刀, lit. "great sword"), the older style of sword/mounts that predate the katana. The chi is also the same character as katana (刀) and the tō in nihontō (日本刀 "Japanese sword")
Yes, magus is a powerful class but with the Kensei build I sacrifice 1 spell per spell level and armour proficiency, I've been playing for a long time and I don't generally like building character's that are super ridiculous, I really just make characters for the flavour and katana really isn't the same flavour, It appears similar as a large size to a nodachi but the Kensei restricts weapon choices and the nodachi offers interesting versatility like slashing/piercing and brace.
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I was looking at doing something similar and the only official thing I found was a two level dip into the erratta'd Titan Mauler barbarian archetype.
Jotungrip: The weapon must be appropriately sized for her, and it is treated as one-handed when determining the effect of Power Attack, Strength bonus to damage, and the like.
I'd assume that the "and the like" would let it work with Spell Combat.
I just want to ask, isnt to a major balance issue that Spell Combat cant be used with two-handed weapons as it basically gives you a third arm to use touch spells as a free action attack? It would be awesome as I hate having an empty hand, but really cheesy.
Spellstrike is the alternative to combine touch spells with your weapon, especially a two-handed weapon. It loses Touch AC but does have bonus damage from the weapon.
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Yes, magus is a powerful class but with the Kensei build I sacrifice 1 spell per spell level and armour proficiency, I've been playing for a long time and I don't generally like building character's that are super ridiculous, I really just make characters for the flavour and katana really isn't the same flavour, It appears similar as a large size to a nodachi but the Kensei restricts weapon choices and the nodachi offers interesting versatility like slashing/piercing and brace.
You know, if you want a Kensai with a really badass weapon...
Besides having stats to rival the nodachi, it's finessable.
Path of Iron is a different 3PP product that has many magus archetypes to help with different styles of combat. Check it out, highly recommend it.
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4) Spear Dancing Spiral + Quarterstaff Master. Spear Dancing Spiral lets you treat a polearm as a quarterstaff for interaction with feats and abilities and Quarterstaff Master lets you wield a Quarterstaff one-handed. Feat intensive and you'll need +5 BAB (which you won't have until lvl 6 and no feat slot until lvl 7). But you'll have a lot of versatility because you'd be able to wield the Nodachi as a 1-h weapon, a 2-h weapon, or TWF with it as a doubel weapon. If you take Spear Dancing Reach, you can grant it reach as a swift action when using it double. 5/10
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One minor nit: If you are going pure Magus, your BAB goes +0, +1, +2, +3, +3, +4, +5 -- you need 7th level to get BAB +5. But what I really wanted to say is:
Just got an idea to expand on this. If you actually manage to get all the way down the Spear Dancing Style feat chain, Spear Dancing Reach lets you give the Reach property to your weapon -- even if it didn't originally have that property. And conveniently, some Spears can be wielded one-handed, so that you don't have to get Quarterstaff Master and Weapon Focus (Quarterstaff), but this doesn't hurt the usage of them with Spear Dancing Reach. One disadvantage is that Spear Dancing Reach eats a Swift Action every turn (not just to start using it). 6/10?
I'm sure this has been answered somewhere, but can a medium-sized Tiefling stack Over-Sized Limb with the Titan Mauler's Jotungrip to wield a large-sized Greatsword in one hand?
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I want to build a magus Kensei that wields a nodachi. My problem is that I waste the spell combat ability by using a 2 handed weapon. Is there an option that I may not be aware of for a magus that wants a 2 handed weapon that isn't a bastard sword or katana? Like perhaps a feat or trait?
Yep that is a problem.
I would build around that using aoo as primary attacks and cast buff/defence spells with your standard action. Classic reach cleric strategy.Frostbite and chill touch works well with this.
The debate is somewhat moot anyhow, since the idea that you can't strike up close with a long weapon is nonsense anyways. A major part of fighting technique with longer swords and polearms was close-up manipulation, like a leveraged, cross-checking knockdown with a pollaxe or a half-handing 'murderstroke' where you end up with a long sword gripped across the blade with two hands and reverse the pommel into the enemy's head with lethal force.
Here's another thought: If you want to go the Quarterstaff Master route, Staff Magus gives you this as a bonus feat at 1st level, and you can combine this archetype with a decent number of other Magus archetypes (including Hexcrafter), and it's a not too shabby archetype on its own if you don't mind the limited weapon choices or plan to do something that is going to work around this anyway (like being a Half-Elf with Ancestral Weapon (Elven Branched Spear), or dipping Swashbuckler, the latter potentially as an Elf to make Elven Branched Spear be a martial weapon for you, otherwise go Human for the extra feat). This archetype (almost) requires you to go Dex-based, but if you're going to go down the Spear Dancing Style chain, you already need to go Dex-based anyway.
. . . Unless you get a Finessable two-handed weapon with the Agile enchantment (so far, no way without enchantment to get Dex-to-Damage with a two-handed Finessable weapon unless you long dip 3 whole levels of Unchained Rogue, which then does nerf you noticeably even with Magical Knack, so make sure you will be able to get that enhancement on your favorite weapon).
At the point where you're trying to make a Magus work with a two-handed finessed reach spear wielded as a one-handed non-reach weapon with TWF that you don't use, it may be more worthwhile to go Urban Barbarian + Teleportation School reach-EK...
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^Worthy of consideration, except that if you're going to do that, I prefer Bloodrager for the martial dip, so that you can qualify for Mad Magic without needing additional feats, and also get the potential (if you go Arcanist or Exploiter Wizard for your casting class) to progress the Bloodrager Bloodline by way of the Arcane Exploit Bloodline Development.
Edit: (For those who haven't seen this already) Here is an option to do the above while dispensing entirely with Eldritch Knight.
^Agreed, I prefer a pure Blade Arcanist to EK.
For reach stuff, I like Wizard for taking the Knowledge is Power Arcane Discovery to trip like a Lore Warden, and/or Teleportation School to play savage reach games.
It depends. The damage difference between one-handed strikes and full two-handed Power Attack strikes is pretty major.
Bite the bullet and waste Spell Combat. It seems pretty clear that you just want to be magus with a Nodachi and while the loss of spell combat is a problem for expected DPS of Magus, you aren't looking to optimize power. You still have all your power up suites that Magus gives, and you just focus of channeling your spells through your honking-huge sword.