So playing my first Kitsune in a dungeon crawl game. My job is to have all the skills and bring DPS. This is what I got:
Ninja level 1
STR 12
Dex15
Con 12
Int 18
Wis 12
Cha 14
Feat: Accomplished Sneak Attack (Wont work till 3rd level but can still take it now.)
Traits Magical Knack and Meta magic Master: Shocking Grasp
Plan:
Level 1: Ninja: Feat: Accomplished Sneak attack
Level 2: Arcanist Blade Adept:
Level 3 Ninja: Ninja Trick Pressure Points
Feat: Extra Exploit: Arcane Slide
Level 4: Arcanist Blade Adept:
Level 5 Arcanist Blade Adept: Feat: Extra Exploit: Spell Strike
Level 6 Arcanist Blade Adept:
Level 7 Arcanist Blade Adept: Exploit: Eldritch Blade
Feat: Extra Exploit: Arcane Weapon
Level 8 Arcane Trickster
Level 9+ Arcane Trickster Feat: Intensify Spell
Tactics Uses Vanish and later Invisibility to do hit and fade with Black Blade Katana (Exotic one handed so works as far as we can tell)
Will pick up Exploit Arcane Weapon so it will be Keen and Exploit: Spell Strike so hopefully crit 15-20 X2 shocking grasp sneak attacks.
Ninja trick will be Pressure Points so add 1 STR or DEX damage per sneak attack.
What can I do to make this better?
Hmmm.... I am a little curious about your build and three questions come to mind:
1) Why kitsune and are you open to a different race? I know with Half-elf you can easily make up the caster level loss for two levels of ninja.
2) How many levels of ninja are you planning on taking? Depending on your race, you could get a new ninja trick if you take 6 levels. Saves a feat. Caster level seriously impacted, though.
3) Are you able/willing to use retraining option and the variant Multiclass rules? Many of the options you pick up with the blade adept archetype can be mimicked through the VMC Magus option, meaning you could retrain your exploits (Spellstrike) once the Magus Spellstrike becomes online. In addition, you can pick up Magus Arcanas, like Ki Arcana to blend you Arcane pool and Ki pool together. You won't even need Arcane Weapon (you'd be getting Arcane Pool from 3rd Level).
Hmmm.... I am a little curious about your build and three questions come to mind:
1) Why kitsune and are you open to a different race? I know with Half-elf you can easily make up the caster level loss for two levels of ninja.
2) How many levels of ninja are you planning on taking? Depending on your race, you could get a new ninja trick if you take 6 levels. Saves a feat. Caster level seriously impacted, though.
3) Are you able/willing to use retraining option and the variant Multiclass rules? Many of the options you pick up with the blade adept archetype can be mimicked through the VMC Magus option, meaning you could retrain your exploits (Spellstrike) once the Magus Spellstrike becomes online. In addition, you can pick up Magus Arcanas, like Ki Arcana to blend you Arcane pool and Ki pool together. You won't even need Arcane Weapon (you'd be getting Arcane Pool from 3rd Level).
1) Never played a kitsune and the +2 Dex +2 Int (With alternate trait) works for the build. The -2 str isn't the worst since most of my damage will be from magic and i'm just using the katana for easy spell crit. The magical knack trait covers the caster level cost for two levels.
2) Ninja I was only planning on the 2 for the Ki pool. While I could go more to get the sneak attack it would cost me more on the caster level and you need 2 sneak attack to do arcane trickster.
3) I hadn't thought of the Multi-class rules. I generally don't like them since they take so long to kick of and I don't like planning on a retrain. If it wasn't for desire to have knowledge all I would honestly trade the Arcanist for Magus.
With 8+Int skills, you can be quite skilled without max Int.
If you drop your Int, you can buff up another stat.
/cevah
Umm, not sure if you're still reading this or not but let me get through a few things real quick:
1: How do you plan to hit things?
Without Weapon Finesse you are sitting on a +1 to hit from Strength and then you are playing Ninja which is a 3/4ths BAB class. Dipping into Arcanist at level 2 means that you'll be on +0 BAB for 2 levels. This means that your roll to hit with melee and melee touch attacks will be +1 for 2 levels. The DPS you get when missing all your attacks is 0.
Solution: Weapon Finesse for +2 to hit, more points spent into Dex or Strength however you plan on attacking. I'd aim for at least 17 Dex so you can have 18 at 4th level. It will also help your armor because you cannot wear armor as an Arcanist and cast spells successfully. Right now your max AC is like 16 and thats with Mage armor. You have a 13 AC normally and that means you die sooo fast.
2: Why 18 Int?
If you're not a full caster (you're not) and you don't plan on casting spells with DCs (you don't), then why have 18 Int? Its a waste if all you plan on doing is gishing it up with the party. Shocking Grasp doesn't have a scaling DC, neither will your party buffs. Take 16 Int instead and redistribute those attribute points to better stats (like Dex). You'll survive with one less skill point per level, especially if you take the feat that lets you treat Arcane Trickster as a favored class.
3: Why Ninja?
I get that you are trying to go for an Arcane Trickster, but why Ninja and not Rogue? If there is a flavor thing you are doing, I'm cool with it, but Unchained Rogue would at least give you free Weapon Finesse at level one. Plus you could even still take Pressure Points if you really wanted to!
4: How open is your GM to variant rules?
Fractional BAB means that your Base Attack Bonus is added up by Decimals instead of from the Chart with your class. This will greatly benefit you throughout your whole career as you will get 1.5 BAB from your Ninja Levels instead of 1, 2.5 BAB from your Arcanist levels instead of 2, and will give you an instant .75 BAB when you prestige into Arcane Trickster instead of giving you a 0 BAB growth. This goes back to "your DPS is 0 if you never hit"
Address those and pose more questions if you care to, I'd be happy to help.