Skirmish strike means that you can spend one action to perform a step and a strike, in either order. Skirmish strike has the flourish trait, and only one flourish can be performed per turn.
So, you could use 2 actions to step and one action for skirmish strike to get a turn consisting of 3 steps and a strike if you wanted, I suppose.
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Skirmish Strike > Nimble Dodge.
Rogues have some great Reactions, like Sidestep or Opportune Backstab at 8th. Nimble Dodge is so-so, so don't bother clogging up a higher level slot with it.
Skirmish Strike is a Flourish, so only once per round, but it's not giving you an extra Step to use whenever you'd like. It's a package deal that during one action you can do a normal Strike + Step or Step + normal Strike. Whatever you do with your other actions are separate (though can't be another Flourish).
I prefer Light Step, but I also play/GM in a large variety of environments. If terrain or speed aren't issues, then Skirmish Strike is like a permanent mini-Haste for positioning which is pretty cool. With your MCD Wizard, being able to save an action positioning could be more useful since you should often have a use for it. BUT it does not combo well at all with Twin Feint due to MAP! Light Step would be better IMO.
Many on the boards will recommend Gang Up, though I think if you can position yourself well (or feint in your case), it's unnecessary.
Sorry if this is dumb, but what does MAP mean? Also thank you very much this is really helpful. Im still really new to pathfinder.Skirmish Strike > Nimble Dodge.
Rogues have some great Reactions, like Sidestep or Opportune Backstab at 8th. Nimble Dodge is so-so, so don't bother clogging up a higher level slot with it.Skirmish Strike is a Flourish, so only once per round, but it's not giving you an extra Step to use whenever you'd like. It's a package deal that during one action you can do a normal Strike + Step or Step + normal Strike. Whatever you do with your other actions are separate (though can't be another Flourish).
I prefer Light Step, but I also play/GM in a large variety of environments. If terrain or speed aren't issues, then Skirmish Strike is like a permanent mini-Haste for positioning which is pretty cool. With your MCD Wizard, being able to save an action positioning could be more useful since you should often have a use for it. BUT it does not combo well at all with Twin Feint due to MAP! Light Step would be better IMO.
Many on the boards will recommend Gang Up, though I think if you can position yourself well (or feint in your case), it's unnecessary.
MAP is short for Multiple Attack Penalty. That's the -5 attack roll penalty you take on your 2nd attack of the round and the -10 penalty for the later attacks.
Getting away from an enemy entirely can be a far more effective defense than extra AC.
As a rogue, you typically don't want to stand next to an enemy at the end of your turn. Otherwise, the enemy could spend every action they have to attack you for damage- and you are not the tankiest martial character.
With skirmish strike, you can force your opponent to spend move actions to catch up to you. That means less actions leftover for attacks and whatever other "pleasant" surprises they might have up their sleeve.
This is particularly true because of your current bread and butter- twin feint. That is a 2 action ability, which leaves you with little breathing room afterwards. With skirmish strike, you can both get in a 3rd attack in the round, and you can also retreat.
Skirmish Strike is a great feat *if* you don't need to regularly use another Flourish feat. You probably don't, so go for it.
Skirmish Strike is a great feat *if* you don't need to regularly use another Flourish feat. You probably don't, so go for it.
I think their only other built in flourish is another similar feat with stealth advantages. So unless he takes a dedication, I think he will be fine.
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The biggest issue with Skirmish Strike is the stiff competition it has at level 6:
- Gang Up - Makes flanking really easy to pull off. One of the best Rogue feats in my opinion.
- Light Step - Ignoring all Difficult Terrain can be extremely useful.
- Skirmish Strike - Good, but probably not as good as the previous two feats.
- Twist the Knife - Okay, as far as I can tell, this feat is pretty horrible...
- you skirmished first and your 'automatically flat-footed' attack is at -8 or -10 or
- you skirmished last, meaning this feat just gave you a third attack as you step (again, at -8 or -10, so unlikely to actually hit).
The strengths of this feat seem to be
- Getting into/maintaining a flanking position (Gang Up is a better option for you, but Skirmish Strike might be better for your party),
- Stepping back to take another action that might provoke without losing an attack (Spells, Battle Medicine, etc), or
- quickly changing to another close-by target (really dependent on the fight geography).
Overall, I like this feat, but it doesn't quite make the cut for my character.