An attack needed [Archive] - Wizards Community

An attack needed [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
LKD
04-26-08, 03:11 PM I am working on a Rakshasa Naztharune - Disciple of Dipator/occult slayer and I need a primary attack for him. str 36 dex 34 con 38.

The DoD offers a nice boost to crit threat range for iron weapons, so I don't want any adamantium or wood or such. And as you can guess, this'll be an epic character with a good bit of funds.

I'd like to use and abuse Karmic strike dual weilding and just draw AoO's all fight long countering back with with my own AoO's, but the damage compared to going big and heavy seems to not justify the feats. Since DR is going to be a big factor. Dual wilding will offer a bigger threat range, but less damage. Especially since there isn't the +1.5 str damage bonus. Though dual wielding smaller weapons means I can use them in a grapple opposed to the larger weapons....

My ideas are:
Greatsword: high bonus, few secondary effects
Dual wielding kukri: low bonus, a lot of crit effects
Iron quarterstaff (is there such a thing?): high bonus, few secondary effects

I have 4 free feat slots to assign to benefit my primary attack form. Any advice? I know that using a couple different types of weapons is easily possible, but I want to choose one as the main style to match skills with. I would really like to have fast healing as at least 2 or them to account for all the incurred AoO's. But if there is a better attack style, I'd consider it.
blade265
04-26-08, 03:31 PM Greatsword, Weighted: This greatsword is a single-edged blade with a weight just over halfway up the length of the blade, attached to its back. The sword is weighted to such a finely balanced degree that it has no adverse effect on the wielder, however the extra weight allows the weapon more effective cutting power. 2d8 18-20/x2 Arms & Armor 3.5 Bastion Press p21
LKD
04-26-08, 06:30 PM OK. I think that wins. I like the damage and he threat range. Odd that there are no down sides to it.
dman11235
04-26-08, 06:49 PM Exotic weapon. If not, something's wrong. If you want to focus on crits I suggest either a high multiplier or a large range. Scythes are fun when you do crit, and you can get what, an 18-20 range on them? If you want to do the kukri thing, that's fine too. Or scimitars and go into Dervish. That's always fun. Or just a falchion.

As for weapon enhancements, do +1 and then +9 worth of effects. Do not ever get more than a +1 weapon, especially at high levels, when your party arcanist can just cast Greater Magic Weapon every morning. And at really high levels every other day.

My suggestions for enhancements:
Collision (XPH, SRD, MiC): +5 damage
Transmuting (MiC): ignore all DR (even DR/-)
Bodyfeeding (XPH, SRD, MiC): temp hp on a crit
Vampiric (MiC): heals with each strike+deals more damage
Speed (DMG, SRD): Extra attack
Wounding (DMG, SRD): con damage on each hit
I thin that's all the good ones. Oh, and don't get any of the energy ones, not worth it. Wounding does a lot more damage than two of them together. The bursts are worse.
LKD
04-27-08, 12:57 AM I like the suggestions. I was tempted mildly, but now? I think I will go scythe and put improved crit on it for a 17-20 threat range. :)

Something that maybe you overlooked as a good bonus I'll be picking up for the main weapon...

Desiccating Burst - Deals 1d4 dehydration damage 1d8 vs plants and water elementals – or, on crits, 1d8 dehydration damage 2d8 vs plants and water elementals

I can only think of a few creatures that are immune to this damage. My back up weapon will be very much focused on dealing with those constructs and undead. :)
dman11235
04-27-08, 09:56 AM Like I said, bursts and extra damage dice are not great enhancements. Put wounding, transmuting (!), collision, speed, and bodyfeeding on first. Oh, and with a scythe it will be 3d8 dessication damage. Average damage: 13.5 for a +2 bonus. Average damage for wounding (at level 20): 10. But depends on the enemy, more HD=more damage. Average for collision: 20. Average damage for Dessicating Burst on a non-crit: 2.5. Wounding: still 10. Collision: 5. And transmuting, by level 20 DR is common in high ammounts, and you don't always want more than one weapon (in fact, save your money). So that's an arbitrary number, probably around +10 damage. Bodyfeeding: no extra damage, but temp HP=to your crit damage? With a scythe? That's going to be insane, it's +20 from collision alone. And Vampiric, even though it's only +1d6 damage, heals you a small amount. Though I'd rather have Bodyfeeding over it. And finally, Speed: +1 attack. That's a lot more damage than just +1d4.

EDIT: I forgot about Enervating, Eager, and Warning (all MiC). Enervating is negative levels on a crit, and the other two are boosts to initiative, which can be quite useful. Also, Ghost Touch+Ghost Strike (MiC) can be useful if you plan on facing a lot of undead, otherwise just the augment crystal. Regardless, get the augment crystal for constructs, and not another weapon. You need no backups. Illusion Bane is also nifty. Same with Revealing. And finally, Weakening.
Jay_Ibero_911
04-27-08, 11:05 AM As far as dual wielding and AOO's, just take double hit from Miniature's handbook. Let's you AOO with both weapons, nasty if they are both wounding.
LKD
04-27-08, 11:41 AM Dman?

Where do you see collision doing extra damage on a crit? I thought properties were not allowed to be multiplied in crits?
Jay_Ibero_911
04-27-08, 05:31 PM Dman?

Where do you see collision doing extra damage on a crit? I thought properties were not allowed to be multiplied in crits?

Only extra DICE don't get multiplied. Any flat damage does get multiplied on a crit, regardless of source.
dman11235
04-27-08, 06:14 PM So the flat +5 from Collision get multiplied. That's why it's so much better than those measly +1d6 ones.

Also, there are a lot of things immune to Dessication damage: constructs and undead for one.
LKD
04-27-08, 08:33 PM So the flat +5 from Collision get multiplied. That's why it's so much better than those measly +1d6 ones.

Also, there are a lot of things immune to Dessication damage: constructs and undead for one.

I see. Damn legalese. I always put words where none are. :) Thanks on the clarification both of you!

As for Dessication... That's about all that's on that list. Those two types are basically objects and I hope to deal with them with a better suited secondary weapon.

I'm not thinking of the golf bag approach, but I hate being unprepared. And building a fighter type that can be nulified by an army of undead doesn't sit well with me. I've had enough rogues to know better. :)
dman11235
04-27-08, 09:03 PM Well, wouldn't one weapon that's equaly effective be better than two that are differently effective? There is also no power difference between the one and either one of the two, other than the fact that you need two to cover what the one does. Also, the secondary weapons suck gold away from your primary weapon and defenses. You can get a transmuting weapon, and that takes care of DR. The weapon augment crystals help against undead, constructs, and others. So why waste gold on a secondary weapon that will be worse even though it's designed to take on those rare opponents?

Also, spells, some races from Sandstorm, fire elementals. And once again, the others deal more damage than Dessicating Burst. So why take it? And the opportunity benefits of some of them are worth much more than +2.5 damage, 13.5 on a crit. Especially Bodyfeeding. Average damage on a crit for you is likely around 100+, so that's 50+ temp HP.
LKD
04-28-08, 01:20 AM The reason for not sticking to just 1 really good weapon:
Backup weapon when the enemy breaks it; By disenchantment, rusting grasp, or sundering, or a whole litany of other means, not the least of which is greater dispelling.
Close fighting when in a grapple
Disarming
Theft
Immunity to criticals

I understand what you mean about dehydration not be the best of the best. Still, it's a good power because there is no immunity you can acquire against it by any form of magic (Save polymorph or shapechange). That's all I'm really saying. I didn't take it for my weapon. I took -con, speed, transmut, sudden stunning, teleporting, vamparism (I forget all the exact names).

I would have liked the temp HP, but it seemed too much of a cost. And I didn't want to break the +10 barrier. I'm still not sure that that is a good idea. I am worried about what difference an epic vs a really high power weapon is. I have no desire to have to drop all my starting money on 1 item.
dman11235
04-28-08, 10:30 AM That's why you don't let them break it. Also, greater dispel magic doesn't permenantly get rid of the enhancements, just 1d4 rounds, and has a will save. And any caster using that against you have some brain condition, so wont be a problem anyways. Have your party mage cast Hardness on it a bunch of times, that'll make it immune to, well, destruction. And any DM who uses Mordenkainen's Disjunction on their party should be shot with a hammer. Unless it's for story reasons or plans to reimburse you completely. And in that case your back up wont be good anymore either.

Don't let them grapple. However a dagger with just +1 transmuting might be a god thing for that. But if you truly fear grappling, you might want to take Close-Quarters Fighting, which means no creature can ever grapple you again. Add your damage on the AoO to your grapple check. Yeah. Oh, and they provoke even if they have imp grap.

What's this immunity to crits you speak of? Weapon augment crystals get rid of it for constructs and undead, and plants and elementals aren't common at all. Besides, you aren't relying on crits to deal damage. You'll be slightly less good without a secondary weapon. And if you do have a secondary weapon it'll suck so much gold into itself that it'll make your primary worse and it won't be as good as your primary even against those that it was meant to face.

Locked gauntlets=no disarming.

Any DM who steal items from the party, see MDK above.
risner
04-28-08, 02:43 PM Greatsword, Weighted: This greatsword is a single-edged blade with a weight just over halfway up the length of the blade, attached to its back. The sword is weighted to such a finely balanced degree that it has no adverse effect on the wielder, however the extra weight allows the weapon more effective cutting power. 2d8 18-20/x2 Arms & Armor 3.5 Bastion Press p21

That is 3rd party, and is way way way more powerful than an exotic weapon should be.
Jay_Ibero_911
04-28-08, 04:57 PM TWF with 2 wounding kukris and being an AOO machine with combat reflexes, karmic strike, and double hit will let you do a ton of con damage in a very short period of time.
LKD
04-28-08, 05:22 PM As for the gold. It's not an issue. I have quite a bit to afford things with. Obviously there are sacrifices, but I can't see buying a +11 weapon when I can instead have 2 or 3 really good special purpose +10 weapons and use the extra for ability bonuses. If there is a reason to have 1 epic wepon over a couple +10 weapons, please let me now. I really want to hear about it.

I'll touch on crystals for a sec. I think they are too overpowered, and the weapon has an ego of 36 already. The DM may not even allow what I picked out so far, so I am hedging my bets and not going full bore munchkin saving myself the need to rewrite the whole thing.

As for relying on other players. That sounds good, but two things:
Rakshasa are evil. I expect no help from allies though it's wholly welcome.
I also have no idea who else is in the game, it's not set yet. So there is no clue if the group will be all fighters, all clerics, all mages, all monks... No idea.

I'll say this in my opinion, a good DM will be tossing dispell's out like candy in a town parade. 1d4+1 rounds is a LONG time when you are only holding a mastercraft weapon and getting pummeled like a geek at 3 o'clock. A good DM will make the party rely on the character not the gear. I have no issue with a DM tossing out Mort's ray of DM loathing, dropping an antimagic field, or sundering a weapon to pieces. After all, what is good for the PC's is good for the enemy if you want epic fights and heart stopping confrontations.

As for close quarters, that only works on the first grapple. By this level, you'd be getting opposed 3 a round. And the way monks are with bonuses, or creatures with massive size mods, it's probably more prudent to assume that you will get caught then saved by a feat. Still, it's a free AoO and worth taking. I'll have to re-look at fast healing vs this feat.

I agree a locking gauntlet is nice. But I am not sure they work on 2 handed weapons. Still the +10 can easily be overcome. That is not a guarantee I think.
LKD
04-28-08, 05:26 PM TWF with 2 wounding kukris and being an AOO machine with combat reflexes, karmic strike, and double hit will let you do a ton of con damage in a very short period of time.

I agree with you Jay. My only concern was giving up fast healing 9 for two weapon and double strike. Though I would have a crit range of 9-20 How can one not be tempted... Damn you. Stupid second thoughts. XD
Jay_Ibero_911
04-28-08, 05:27 PM As for the gold. It's not an issue. I have quite a bit to afford things with. Obviously there are sacrifices, but I can't see buying a +11 weapon when I can instead have 2 or 3 really good special purpose +10 weapons and use the extra for ability bonuses. If there is a reason to have 1 epic wepon over a couple +10 weapons, please let me now. I really want to hear about it.

I'll touch on crystals for a sec. I think they are too overpowered, and the weapon has an ego of 36 already. The DM may not even allow what I picked out so far, so I am hedging my bets and not going full bore munchkin saving myself the need to rewrite the whole thing.

As for relying on other players. That sounds good, but two things:
Rakshasa are evil. I expect no help from allies though it's wholly welcome.
I also have no idea who else is in the game, it's not set yet. So there is no clue if the group will be all fighters, all clerics, all mages, all monks... No idea.

I'll say this in my opinion, a good DM will be tossing dispell's out like candy in a town parade. 1d4+1 rounds is a LONG time when you are only holding a mastercraft weapon and getting pummeled like a geek at 3 o'clock. A good DM will make the party rely on the character not the gear. I have no issue with a DM tossing out Mort's ray of DM loathing, dropping an antimagic field, or sundering a weapon to pieces. After all, what is good for the PC's is good for the enemy if you want epic fights and heart stopping confrontations.

As for close quarters, that only works on the first grapple. By this level, you'd be getting opposed 3 a round. And the way monks are with bonuses, or creatures with massive size mods, it's probably more prudent to assume that you will get caught then saved by a feat. Still, it's a free AoO and worth taking. I'll have to re-look at fast healing vs this feat.

I agree a locking gauntlet is nice. But I am not sure they work on 2 handed weapons. Still the +10 can easily be overcome. That is not a guarantee I think.

If you've got combat reflexes and high dex, then you have plenty of chances to prevent grapples with close quarters fighting, especially if you are a 2 handed power attack machine doing tons of damage per hit. You've got your own bab+str+size (if any) to grapple...PLUS the damage you did, which should be WAY more than any grappler can manage to overcome reliably. Of course you could just get a ring of freedom of movement, or the freedom armor upgrade and not have to worry about grapples at all...
dman11235
04-28-08, 06:41 PM Locked gauntlets mean to more disarming except on really, really unlucky circumstances or a mean DM. If you still fear it, take Improved Disarm for another +4. And then the weapon enhancement that eleports it back to your hands as a free action.

Now, your DM regularly throws MDKs at you? He regularly gets rid of all of your magic items? All of them. Yes, all of them. Oh, and as for dispel, it's not that it's a mean DM doing that to you, it's a stupid one. That was just a wasted action for the enemy spell caster. But seriously, your DM gets rid of all of your magic items on a regular basis?

Now, why are weapon crystals overpowered? Is it because an energy one is as powerful as a +1 bonus? Well, have you been listening to me? Those energy ones are completely worthless as bonuses. They are respectable as crystals. Oh, and I have led you to absolutely no munchining what so ever. Munckining is bad. Well, the other weapon crystals are powerful, but not overpowered. They just mean that the things they target need to be more wary. My DM, for instance, had an undead orc (intelligent undead) wear heavy fortification armor because he knew of these crystals.

As for grapple, did you say monks were good grapplers? Please tell me that's not what you said. Well, the Close Quarter's Combat feat will make it so you never get grappled. A +50 to your grapple check means you win. I don't care who the opposition is, you win. And that's if they have Imp Grap or Imp Grab. If they don't no grappling at all. The only catch is: you need to hit. But that's easy at this level. Also, the +50 is a low estimate for this level. But if you're still worried, Jay had some good suggestions.

Now, I'm not going to tell you to get a +11 or higher weapon. In fact it's not worth it. However, that extra cash? It goes towards other stuff. Defenses, versatilities, etc. Wings of Flying for one, the best armor you can get, tomes, stat boosts, skill boosts (up to +30 before epic pricing!), other movement boosts, attack boosts (ioun stones, etc), heck even a ring of universal energy resistance (MiC). There's a ton of other stuff out there that you could spend money on.
LKD
04-28-08, 09:17 PM I know. A ton of stuff. Too much for me really. Why I was asking for help, and I got a LOT of it, I appreciate it all.

The limited feat slots, and the limited ability to find more starting equipment of this caliber makes me hesitant to buy anything at all. But I am reading and I am listening. Just hope I don't make a grand mistake. The small ones are ok. :)

Well time to make the final choices...

I do disagree though on dispell and antimagic.
I've had enough dealings with antimagic (Dispelling key items, survived a Mort crash with half the gear nulled), I even teamed with an antimagic PrC. God, I wish I knew where it came from. Anyway. You may want to look up maxing it out some time. You might be surprised how a quickened dispell and a maximized follow up with shred through anything.

(Edit: No, not normally dealing with Mort, yes I like misspelling it :), though more often the gray rod beam of DM evil comes at me. The levels seldom get that high, or when they do, they usually don't last that long. So it comes into play and its something to consider planning for. but not at all often.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
LKD 04-26-08, 03:11 PM	I am working on a Rakshasa Naztharune - Disciple of Dipator/occult slayer and I need a primary attack for him. str 36 dex 34 con 38. The DoD offers a nice boost to crit threat range for iron weapons, so I don't want any adamantium or wood or such. And as you can guess, this'll be an epic character with a good bit of funds. I'd like to use and abuse Karmic strike dual weilding and just draw AoO's all fight long countering back with with my own AoO's, but the damage compared to going big and heavy seems to not justify the feats. Since DR is going to be a big factor. Dual wilding will offer a bigger threat range, but less damage. Especially since there isn't the +1.5 str damage bonus. Though dual wielding smaller weapons means I can use them in a grapple opposed to the larger weapons.... My ideas are: Greatsword: high bonus, few secondary effects Dual wielding kukri: low bonus, a lot of crit effects Iron quarterstaff (is there such a thing?): high bonus, few secondary effects I have 4 free feat slots to assign to benefit my primary attack form. Any advice? I know that using a couple different types of weapons is easily possible, but I want to choose one as the main style to match skills with. I would really like to have fast healing as at least 2 or them to account for all the incurred AoO's. But if there is a better attack style, I'd consider it.
blade265 04-26-08, 03:31 PM	Greatsword, Weighted: This greatsword is a single-edged blade with a weight just over halfway up the length of the blade, attached to its back. The sword is weighted to such a finely balanced degree that it has no adverse effect on the wielder, however the extra weight allows the weapon more effective cutting power. 2d8 18-20/x2 Arms & Armor 3.5 Bastion Press p21
LKD 04-26-08, 06:30 PM	OK. I think that wins. I like the damage and he threat range. Odd that there are no down sides to it.
dman11235 04-26-08, 06:49 PM	Exotic weapon. If not, something's wrong. If you want to focus on crits I suggest either a high multiplier or a large range. Scythes are fun when you do crit, and you can get what, an 18-20 range on them? If you want to do the kukri thing, that's fine too. Or scimitars and go into Dervish. That's always fun. Or just a falchion. As for weapon enhancements, do +1 and then +9 worth of effects. Do not ever get more than a +1 weapon, especially at high levels, when your party arcanist can just cast Greater Magic Weapon every morning. And at really high levels every other day. My suggestions for enhancements: Collision (XPH, SRD, MiC): +5 damage Transmuting (MiC): ignore all DR (even DR/-) Bodyfeeding (XPH, SRD, MiC): temp hp on a crit Vampiric (MiC): heals with each strike+deals more damage Speed (DMG, SRD): Extra attack Wounding (DMG, SRD): con damage on each hit I thin that's all the good ones. Oh, and don't get any of the energy ones, not worth it. Wounding does a lot more damage than two of them together. The bursts are worse.
LKD 04-27-08, 12:57 AM	I like the suggestions. I was tempted mildly, but now? I think I will go scythe and put improved crit on it for a 17-20 threat range. :) Something that maybe you overlooked as a good bonus I'll be picking up for the main weapon... Desiccating Burst - Deals 1d4 dehydration damage 1d8 vs plants and water elementals – or, on crits, 1d8 dehydration damage 2d8 vs plants and water elementals I can only think of a few creatures that are immune to this damage. My back up weapon will be very much focused on dealing with those constructs and undead. :)
dman11235 04-27-08, 09:56 AM	Like I said, bursts and extra damage dice are not great enhancements. Put wounding, transmuting (!), collision, speed, and bodyfeeding on first. Oh, and with a scythe it will be 3d8 dessication damage. Average damage: 13.5 for a +2 bonus. Average damage for wounding (at level 20): 10. But depends on the enemy, more HD=more damage. Average for collision: 20. Average damage for Dessicating Burst on a non-crit: 2.5. Wounding: still 10. Collision: 5. And transmuting, by level 20 DR is common in high ammounts, and you don't always want more than one weapon (in fact, save your money). So that's an arbitrary number, probably around +10 damage. Bodyfeeding: no extra damage, but temp HP=to your crit damage? With a scythe? That's going to be insane, it's +20 from collision alone. And Vampiric, even though it's only +1d6 damage, heals you a small amount. Though I'd rather have Bodyfeeding over it. And finally, Speed: +1 attack. That's a lot more damage than just +1d4. EDIT: I forgot about Enervating, Eager, and Warning (all MiC). Enervating is negative levels on a crit, and the other two are boosts to initiative, which can be quite useful. Also, Ghost Touch+Ghost Strike (MiC) can be useful if you plan on facing a lot of undead, otherwise just the augment crystal. Regardless, get the augment crystal for constructs, and not another weapon. You need no backups. Illusion Bane is also nifty. Same with Revealing. And finally, Weakening.
Jay_Ibero_911 04-27-08, 11:05 AM	As far as dual wielding and AOO's, just take double hit from Miniature's handbook. Let's you AOO with both weapons, nasty if they are both wounding.
LKD 04-27-08, 11:41 AM	Dman? Where do you see collision doing extra damage on a crit? I thought properties were not allowed to be multiplied in crits?
Jay_Ibero_911 04-27-08, 05:31 PM	Dman? Where do you see collision doing extra damage on a crit? I thought properties were not allowed to be multiplied in crits? Only extra DICE don't get multiplied. Any flat damage does get multiplied on a crit, regardless of source.
dman11235 04-27-08, 06:14 PM	So the flat +5 from Collision get multiplied. That's why it's so much better than those measly +1d6 ones. Also, there are a lot of things immune to Dessication damage: constructs and undead for one.
LKD 04-27-08, 08:33 PM	So the flat +5 from Collision get multiplied. That's why it's so much better than those measly +1d6 ones. Also, there are a lot of things immune to Dessication damage: constructs and undead for one. I see. Damn legalese. I always put words where none are. :) Thanks on the clarification both of you! As for Dessication... That's about all that's on that list. Those two types are basically objects and I hope to deal with them with a better suited secondary weapon. I'm not thinking of the golf bag approach, but I hate being unprepared. And building a fighter type that can be nulified by an army of undead doesn't sit well with me. I've had enough rogues to know better. :)
dman11235 04-27-08, 09:03 PM	Well, wouldn't one weapon that's equaly effective be better than two that are differently effective? There is also no power difference between the one and either one of the two, other than the fact that you need two to cover what the one does. Also, the secondary weapons suck gold away from your primary weapon and defenses. You can get a transmuting weapon, and that takes care of DR. The weapon augment crystals help against undead, constructs, and others. So why waste gold on a secondary weapon that will be worse even though it's designed to take on those rare opponents? Also, spells, some races from Sandstorm, fire elementals. And once again, the others deal more damage than Dessicating Burst. So why take it? And the opportunity benefits of some of them are worth much more than +2.5 damage, 13.5 on a crit. Especially Bodyfeeding. Average damage on a crit for you is likely around 100+, so that's 50+ temp HP.
LKD 04-28-08, 01:20 AM	The reason for not sticking to just 1 really good weapon: Backup weapon when the enemy breaks it; By disenchantment, rusting grasp, or sundering, or a whole litany of other means, not the least of which is greater dispelling. Close fighting when in a grapple Disarming Theft Immunity to criticals I understand what you mean about dehydration not be the best of the best. Still, it's a good power because there is no immunity you can acquire against it by any form of magic (Save polymorph or shapechange). That's all I'm really saying. I didn't take it for my weapon. I took -con, speed, transmut, sudden stunning, teleporting, vamparism (I forget all the exact names). I would have liked the temp HP, but it seemed too much of a cost. And I didn't want to break the +10 barrier. I'm still not sure that that is a good idea. I am worried about what difference an epic vs a really high power weapon is. I have no desire to have to drop all my starting money on 1 item.
dman11235 04-28-08, 10:30 AM	That's why you don't let them break it. Also, greater dispel magic doesn't permenantly get rid of the enhancements, just 1d4 rounds, and has a will save. And any caster using that against you have some brain condition, so wont be a problem anyways. Have your party mage cast Hardness on it a bunch of times, that'll make it immune to, well, destruction. And any DM who uses Mordenkainen's Disjunction on their party should be shot with a hammer. Unless it's for story reasons or plans to reimburse you completely. And in that case your back up wont be good anymore either. Don't let them grapple. However a dagger with just +1 transmuting might be a god thing for that. But if you truly fear grappling, you might want to take Close-Quarters Fighting, which means no creature can ever grapple you again. Add your damage on the AoO to your grapple check. Yeah. Oh, and they provoke even if they have imp grap. What's this immunity to crits you speak of? Weapon augment crystals get rid of it for constructs and undead, and plants and elementals aren't common at all. Besides, you aren't relying on crits to deal damage. You'll be slightly less good without a secondary weapon. And if you do have a secondary weapon it'll suck so much gold into itself that it'll make your primary worse and it won't be as good as your primary even against those that it was meant to face. Locked gauntlets=no disarming. Any DM who steal items from the party, see MDK above.
risner 04-28-08, 02:43 PM	Greatsword, Weighted: This greatsword is a single-edged blade with a weight just over halfway up the length of the blade, attached to its back. The sword is weighted to such a finely balanced degree that it has no adverse effect on the wielder, however the extra weight allows the weapon more effective cutting power. 2d8 18-20/x2 Arms & Armor 3.5 Bastion Press p21 That is 3rd party, and is way way way more powerful than an exotic weapon should be.
Jay_Ibero_911 04-28-08, 04:57 PM	TWF with 2 wounding kukris and being an AOO machine with combat reflexes, karmic strike, and double hit will let you do a ton of con damage in a very short period of time.
LKD 04-28-08, 05:22 PM	As for the gold. It's not an issue. I have quite a bit to afford things with. Obviously there are sacrifices, but I can't see buying a +11 weapon when I can instead have 2 or 3 really good special purpose +10 weapons and use the extra for ability bonuses. If there is a reason to have 1 epic wepon over a couple +10 weapons, please let me now. I really want to hear about it. I'll touch on crystals for a sec. I think they are too overpowered, and the weapon has an ego of 36 already. The DM may not even allow what I picked out so far, so I am hedging my bets and not going full bore munchkin saving myself the need to rewrite the whole thing. As for relying on other players. That sounds good, but two things: Rakshasa are evil. I expect no help from allies though it's wholly welcome. I also have no idea who else is in the game, it's not set yet. So there is no clue if the group will be all fighters, all clerics, all mages, all monks... No idea. I'll say this in my opinion, a good DM will be tossing dispell's out like candy in a town parade. 1d4+1 rounds is a LONG time when you are only holding a mastercraft weapon and getting pummeled like a geek at 3 o'clock. A good DM will make the party rely on the character not the gear. I have no issue with a DM tossing out Mort's ray of DM loathing, dropping an antimagic field, or sundering a weapon to pieces. After all, what is good for the PC's is good for the enemy if you want epic fights and heart stopping confrontations. As for close quarters, that only works on the first grapple. By this level, you'd be getting opposed 3 a round. And the way monks are with bonuses, or creatures with massive size mods, it's probably more prudent to assume that you will get caught then saved by a feat. Still, it's a free AoO and worth taking. I'll have to re-look at fast healing vs this feat. I agree a locking gauntlet is nice. But I am not sure they work on 2 handed weapons. Still the +10 can easily be overcome. That is not a guarantee I think.
LKD 04-28-08, 05:26 PM	TWF with 2 wounding kukris and being an AOO machine with combat reflexes, karmic strike, and double hit will let you do a ton of con damage in a very short period of time. I agree with you Jay. My only concern was giving up fast healing 9 for two weapon and double strike. Though I would have a crit range of 9-20 How can one not be tempted... Damn you. Stupid second thoughts. XD
Jay_Ibero_911 04-28-08, 05:27 PM	As for the gold. It's not an issue. I have quite a bit to afford things with. Obviously there are sacrifices, but I can't see buying a +11 weapon when I can instead have 2 or 3 really good special purpose +10 weapons and use the extra for ability bonuses. If there is a reason to have 1 epic wepon over a couple +10 weapons, please let me now. I really want to hear about it. I'll touch on crystals for a sec. I think they are too overpowered, and the weapon has an ego of 36 already. The DM may not even allow what I picked out so far, so I am hedging my bets and not going full bore munchkin saving myself the need to rewrite the whole thing. As for relying on other players. That sounds good, but two things: Rakshasa are evil. I expect no help from allies though it's wholly welcome. I also have no idea who else is in the game, it's not set yet. So there is no clue if the group will be all fighters, all clerics, all mages, all monks... No idea. I'll say this in my opinion, a good DM will be tossing dispell's out like candy in a town parade. 1d4+1 rounds is a LONG time when you are only holding a mastercraft weapon and getting pummeled like a geek at 3 o'clock. A good DM will make the party rely on the character not the gear. I have no issue with a DM tossing out Mort's ray of DM loathing, dropping an antimagic field, or sundering a weapon to pieces. After all, what is good for the PC's is good for the enemy if you want epic fights and heart stopping confrontations. As for close quarters, that only works on the first grapple. By this level, you'd be getting opposed 3 a round. And the way monks are with bonuses, or creatures with massive size mods, it's probably more prudent to assume that you will get caught then saved by a feat. Still, it's a free AoO and worth taking. I'll have to re-look at fast healing vs this feat. I agree a locking gauntlet is nice. But I am not sure they work on 2 handed weapons. Still the +10 can easily be overcome. That is not a guarantee I think. If you've got combat reflexes and high dex, then you have plenty of chances to prevent grapples with close quarters fighting, especially if you are a 2 handed power attack machine doing tons of damage per hit. You've got your own bab+str+size (if any) to grapple...PLUS the damage you did, which should be WAY more than any grappler can manage to overcome reliably. Of course you could just get a ring of freedom of movement, or the freedom armor upgrade and not have to worry about grapples at all...
dman11235 04-28-08, 06:41 PM	Locked gauntlets mean to more disarming except on really, really unlucky circumstances or a mean DM. If you still fear it, take Improved Disarm for another +4. And then the weapon enhancement that eleports it back to your hands as a free action. Now, your DM regularly throws MDKs at you? He regularly gets rid of all of your magic items? All of them. Yes, all of them. Oh, and as for dispel, it's not that it's a mean DM doing that to you, it's a stupid one. That was just a wasted action for the enemy spell caster. But seriously, your DM gets rid of all of your magic items on a regular basis? Now, why are weapon crystals overpowered? Is it because an energy one is as powerful as a +1 bonus? Well, have you been listening to me? Those energy ones are completely worthless as bonuses. They are respectable as crystals. Oh, and I have led you to absolutely no munchining what so ever. Munckining is bad. Well, the other weapon crystals are powerful, but not overpowered. They just mean that the things they target need to be more wary. My DM, for instance, had an undead orc (intelligent undead) wear heavy fortification armor because he knew of these crystals. As for grapple, did you say monks were good grapplers? Please tell me that's not what you said. Well, the Close Quarter's Combat feat will make it so you never get grappled. A +50 to your grapple check means you win. I don't care who the opposition is, you win. And that's if they have Imp Grap or Imp Grab. If they don't no grappling at all. The only catch is: you need to hit. But that's easy at this level. Also, the +50 is a low estimate for this level. But if you're still worried, Jay had some good suggestions. Now, I'm not going to tell you to get a +11 or higher weapon. In fact it's not worth it. However, that extra cash? It goes towards other stuff. Defenses, versatilities, etc. Wings of Flying for one, the best armor you can get, tomes, stat boosts, skill boosts (up to +30 before epic pricing!), other movement boosts, attack boosts (ioun stones, etc), heck even a ring of universal energy resistance (MiC). There's a ton of other stuff out there that you could spend money on.
LKD 04-28-08, 09:17 PM	I know. A ton of stuff. Too much for me really. Why I was asking for help, and I got a LOT of it, I appreciate it all. The limited feat slots, and the limited ability to find more starting equipment of this caliber makes me hesitant to buy anything at all. But I am reading and I am listening. Just hope I don't make a grand mistake. The small ones are ok. :) Well time to make the final choices... I do disagree though on dispell and antimagic. I've had enough dealings with antimagic (Dispelling key items, survived a Mort crash with half the gear nulled), I even teamed with an antimagic PrC. God, I wish I knew where it came from. Anyway. You may want to look up maxing it out some time. You might be surprised how a quickened dispell and a maximized follow up with shred through anything. (Edit: No, not normally dealing with Mort, yes I like misspelling it :), though more often the gray rod beam of DM evil comes at me. The levels seldom get that high, or when they do, they usually don't last that long. So it comes into play and its something to consider planning for. but not at all often.