BaB and wizard.

[hellatze]

this section are talk how to use BaB on wizard. which is completely useless after 2 level.

what i hate to do with this BaB ?

Do BaB really important to make diverse class ?

Do BaB are needed to exist ?

[Klorox]

Well, wizards are not designed to be fighters, so they don't need a high bab. the more a class will fight with weapons (including empty handed like a monk), the more important its BAB is...

[Bob Bob Bob]

Ranged touch attacks use BAB. Melee touch attacks use BAB. Lots of spells use one or the other (scorching ray and shocking grasp, for example). It's also a factor in CMD. So yes, wizards do still use their BAB.

[Rysky]

Touch AC is much, much lower than normal AC for pretty much everything, Wizards don't need a high BAB.

[hellatze]

Rysky wrote:

Touch AC is much, much lower than normal AC for pretty much everything, Wizards don't need a high BAB.

i was wondering why some of wizard spell need touch ?

even so, thunderbolt never use touch attack, but scorching ray require touch.

[Rysky]

Lighting Bolt gives a Reflex save for a reduced effect, spells that rely on Touch Attacks don't usually grant a save for a diminished effect.

[Gisher]

hellatze wrote:

Rysky wrote:

Touch AC is much, much lower than normal AC for pretty much everything, Wizards don't need a high BAB.

i was wondering why some of wizard spell need touch ?

even so, thunderbolt never use touch attack, but scorching ray require touch.

Spells like Lightning Bolt and Fireball affect everyone one in the designated area. Spells like Scorching Ray are targeting specific creatures so you need to make Attack Rolls to hit them.

[Mathmuse]

Some enemies are better attacked via an attack roll than by an area-of-effect spell. Consider the example from Order of the Stick 518:

Mystic theurge Tsukiko, while battling rogue archer Haley, turns invisible.
HALEY: What? Giving up already? I thought we'd have a few more rounds of me effortlessly dodging your spells while making you look like a goth porcupine.
TSUKIKO: Why bother? You're right, Haley. You can dodge any spell I can cast at you that allows a Reflex save.
TSUKIKO: That's why after our last fight I looked up a few evocations that use attack rolls instead. Electric Orb.

Tsukiko did not turn invisible simply to gain more time for talking. Attacking while invisible give a +2 bonus to the attack roll and denies the defender her Dexterity bonus to AC.

The arcane spells that use attack rolls are more effective in the hands of the 3/4 BAB arcane spellcasters, such as bard and magus, and the full BAB arcane spellcaster, bloodrager. Those classes often apply magic to weapon attacks, such as via the feat Arcane Strike. Wizards and other 1/2 BAB arcane spellcasters prefer touch spells.

Once for variety, my wife played a melee sorceress specializing in touch spells. This sorceress was a viable character, though she had to wear a chain shirt and live with occassional spell failure until she qualified for Arcane Armor Training. The melee touch spells are powerful for their level to balance the risk to the wizard, a feature exploited in the design of the magus.

[Thunderlord]

Everyone is replying as if they understood what this guy was saying. That or I'm up too late. If wizards had full BAB they'd have full magic and hit chance. Not even the magus has full BAB. Anything that increases BAB costs some of the wizards spellcasting.

The Eldritch Knight requires a fighter level and sacrifices another spellcasting level but it has full BAB. The Hell Knight Enforcer has full casting but 3/4 BAB. Evangelist has stunted casting and 3/4 BAB.

PrCs like the EK are geared for Gish characters and the Gish never has full BAB. At least to my knowledge.