- Work in Progress*
Introduction
This is a collection of items that I think benefit the Gish (or Spellblade) play style in a way that is stronger than simply having a character that uses spells with occasional weapon attacks, or vice versa. Specifically, these items leverage Arcane Acuity and Arcane Synergy to empower characters that use spells and weapon attacks in tandem with one another. Characters properly built in this style can do quite a bit of damage, but mostly they're just fun.
Overview
First of all, are Gish characters good? It... depends. Generally speaking, I find that a more focused character is going to perform better than a character that dabbles in a little bit of everything, so something like a Thief Rogue or a Great Weapons Master character will do better physical damage than a Gish, while a Sorcerer or a Wizard will probably do better spell damage than a Gish. The trick here is that a proper Gish can be extremely flexible, with access to both physical and magical damage in combat. Likewise, a Gish will often have utility that a purely physical character won't, like Longstrider or Minor Illusion, and will be more durable and persistent in combat than a pure spell caster, so there's definitely a trade-off.
There are a couple of different ways you can build a Gish, or a Spellblade, or a Hexblade, whatever you want to call it, which I will go over later. There are two main distinctions between Gish builds, whether you want to do damage, or whether you want to be useful. Not that doing damage isn't useful, but you get the idea. The distinction between damage and utility is important, because different builds will focus on different aspects of a Spellblade's kit, considering things like Eldritch Strike, Shield, or Defensive Flourish as possible options. Whichever roll you want your Gish to fill, you will need to know ahead of time, and prepare for. Obviously, you can have a Gish that does both, but not all Gish will be able to do both, if that makes sense.
Some Build Ideas
Intelligence as your main Spellcasting modifier
Intelligence Eldritch Knight, either 11 Fighter/1 Wizard, or 5-7 Fighter/5-7 Wizard imo
Arcane Trickster + Wizard (+Bard?)
Charisma as your main Spellcasting modifier
12 levels of Paladin or Pact of the Blade Warlock.
6 levels of Pact of the Blade Warlock with 6 levels of Paladin or Bard
Paladin + Bard
Paladin + Sorcerer
5 Paladin + 5 Warlock +2 Fighter
Wisdom as your main Spellcasting modifier
Wisdom builds (Cleric/Monk/Druid)
Equipment
Helmets
Diadem of Arcane Synergy
Helmet of Arcane Acuity
Browbeaten Circlet
Hat of Fire Acuity
Hat of Storm Scion's Power
The Lifebringer
Warped Headband of Intellect
Diadem of Arcane Synergy
Pyroquickness Hat
Helm of Arcane Acuity
Capes
Gloves
Gloves of Battlemage's Power
Armor
Boots
Boots of Arcane Bolstering
Accessories
Ring of Arcane Synergy