Defensive specialist [Archive] - Wizards Community

Defensive specialist [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Oewyn
02-20-07, 04:00 PM I had this idea about a character that specializes in defense, but just not AC. His goal is to have high saves, good AC, and good defense against trip/grapple/disarm. With the new LGCS which opened up a lot of PH2 feats, i found a few that might fit my character design, mainly the combat focus feats. Here is my build:

Human

Stats: Str 14(18) Dex 14(18) Con16(25) Int 8 Wis 14, Cha 8

Fighter 8/Hexblade 3/ Ranger 2/ Monk 2
Lvl 1: Ranger Feats: Iron will, Endurance <track>
Lvl 2: Hexblade
Lvl 3: Hexblade Feats: Indomitable Will(PH2)
Lvl 4: Hexblade Abilities: Mettle (+1 Con)
Lvl 5: Ranger Abilities: 2 weapon fighting style (Taken to prevent xp/gp penalties)
Lvl 6: Monk Feats: Combat Focus(PH2), <Improved Grapple> <Improved Unarmed Strike>
Lvl 7: Monk Feats: <Combat Reflexes> Abilities: Evasion
Lvl 8: Fighter Feats: <Power Attack> (+1 Con)
Lvl 9: Fighter Feats: Blind-fight <Combat Stability>(PH2)
Lvl 10: Fighter
Lvl 11: Fighter Feats: <Combat Vigor>(PH2)
Lvl 12: Fighter Feats: Shield Specialization (Heavy)(PH2)
Lvl 13: Fighter Feats: <Shield Ward>(PH2)
Lvl 14: Fighter
Lvl 15: Fighter Feats: Armor Specialization(light)(PH2), <Combat Awareness>(PH2)

Equipment:
+4 str belt
+4 dex gloves
+6 con amulet
+5 cloak of resistance
+5 ring of Protection
+4 Heavy shield
+4 mithril Breastplate
Various magical weaponry(+1/+2 weapons)

HP: 194
AC: 35
Touch: 19(26 with Shield Ward)
Flat Footed: 31

Saves: Fort +25, Reflex +18, Will +17(+21 with Combat Focus)
Grapple: +22(+29 w/ shield ward) (+37 with Combat Stability)

Feats of note:
Combat Stability: +8 to resist bull rush/grapple/trip/disarm attempts
Combat Vigor: Fast Healing 4
Combat Awareness: know all adjacent target's HP, blindsight 5 feet
Combat Focus: +4 will Saves
Indomitable will: Will saves against mind-affecting and fear affects, roll 2d20, take highest.
Shield Ward: shield ac to touch, resists against bullrush/grapple/overrun/trip/disarm
Armor Specialization: dr 2/- when in light armor.

Abilities: Evasion, Mettle, +1 to saves against spells/spell-likes

Obviously offense is not this character's main objective. What do you guys think?
UMiskatonic
02-20-07, 04:14 PM While this guy is a fortress, I think defense is a losing strategy. With expertise and TWF, this guy will miss twice a round, and enemies can simply ignore him.

How will he keep the rest of the party alive?

Will you be willing to skip those defenses, and power attack full in order to put someone down, or will you play it safe?
Mommy was an Orc
02-20-07, 04:17 PM I think it could be cleaned up a little. You've taken 2 levels in Ranger and taken Endurance as a feat. You're an 8 Charisma character with Hexblade 3 when all you really want from it is Mettle. 3 levels of Ranger right off the bat lets you keep your exact feat progression. Pious Templar 4 gets you spells, Mettle, Smite, good Will Save, WS, DR 1/-, and a bonus feat. Somewhat negating the need for Armor Specialization as well which with the feat back from Ranger gets you WF, WS, and True Believer for free.

So Ranger 3/Monk 2/Fighter 6/Pious Templar 4 would be your build, dropping Endurance(but getting it right back) and Armor Specialization.
Oewyn
02-20-07, 04:39 PM While this guy is a fortress, I think defense is a losing strategy. With expertise and TWF, this guy will miss twice a round, and enemies can simply ignore him.

How will he keep the rest of the party alive?

Will you be willing to skip those defenses, and power attack full in order to put someone down, or will you play it safe?

I hadn't really planned on using two weapon fighting, i simply needed to pick a weapon style for ranger.

Perhaps i should drop my heavy shield, pick up a buckler and improved buckler defense. This would only drop my AC by one allow me to use a 2-hander instead.

I'll look into pious Templar.
Oewyn
02-20-07, 05:39 PM I think it could be cleaned up a little. You've taken 2 levels in Ranger and taken Endurance as a feat. You're an 8 Charisma character with Hexblade 3 when all you really want from it is Mettle. 3 levels of Ranger right off the bat lets you keep your exact feat progression. Pious Templar 4 gets you spells, Mettle, Smite, good Will Save, WS, DR 1/-, and a bonus feat. Somewhat negating the need for Armor Specialization as well which with the feat back from Ranger gets you WF, WS, and True Believer for free.

So Ranger 3/Monk 2/Fighter 6/Pious Templar 4 would be your build, dropping Endurance(but getting it right back) and Armor Specialization.

I looked at it. I could go:

1 Ranger: Iron will, weapon Focus(Greatsword) <track>
2 Ranger
3 Ranger <endurance> True Believer
4 Monk <imp unarmed strike> <imp Grapple>
5 Monk <combat reflexes>
6 Fighter <power attack> combat focus
7 Pious Templar
8 Pious Templar
9 Pious Templar <Weapon Spec(Greatsword)> combat stability
10 Pious Templar <combat vigor>
11 Fighter <imp Buckler Defense>
12 Fighter Shield Spec (Buckler)
13 Fighter <shield ward>
14 Fighter
15 Fighter Melee Weapon Mastery <Slashing Furry>

I don't see where i can put in indomitable will now except maybe at 15th. Iron will is still a great feat, but maybe drop it and pick up imp buckler defense earlier? Also it seems that i don't need Ranger 3 if I'm dropping Indomitable will. Any ideas on what i could dip into for 1 level?
Akhamshyy
02-20-07, 06:20 PM Is there any way for you to fit in feats like good karma, or goad to redirect attacks to you so you could bounce hits for your allies?
Oewyn
02-20-07, 06:38 PM Is there any way for you to fit in feats like good karma, or goad to redirect attacks to you so you could bounce hits for your allies?

Goad requires a charisma of 13, and i don't see that happening. I already suffer quite a bit from Multi-Attribute Disorder (MAD). I don't have complete scoundrel yet so i don't know the pre-reqs for good karma nor what it actually does other than the description from the Feat Index at WOTC.
Akhamshyy
02-20-07, 07:34 PM I forgot about the Cha needed for goad. Good karma has no pre-reqs beyond being 3rd level.
It lets you burn a luck reroll to redirect an attack that could have been directed at you, to you, instead of an adjacent ally.
So you become a devoted defender type. They need to hit your AC now, but if it hits it does half as much more damage. It also, of course, gives you a luck reroll to use it with.
Oewyn
02-20-07, 07:53 PM Hrmm then that would be a once-per-day thing as i don't have any luck re-rolls already. I do have the paladin spell list as a pious templar so perhaps i could buy 6 50gp rings and keep a shield other spell prepped as one of my 2nd level spells. With my new build i won't be doing a lot of damage, maybe around 20 points average w/out power attack. my melee bonus is +18/+13/+8, weapon focus and buckler cancel each other out, but melee weapon mastery adds one more so +19/+14/+9 total. So maybe i could power attack for a little, but not much before i start missing a lot.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Oewyn 02-20-07, 04:00 PM	I had this idea about a character that specializes in defense, but just not AC. His goal is to have high saves, good AC, and good defense against trip/grapple/disarm. With the new LGCS which opened up a lot of PH2 feats, i found a few that might fit my character design, mainly the combat focus feats. Here is my build: Human Stats: Str 14(18) Dex 14(18) Con16(25) Int 8 Wis 14, Cha 8 Fighter 8/Hexblade 3/ Ranger 2/ Monk 2 Lvl 1: Ranger Feats: Iron will, Endurance <track> Lvl 2: Hexblade Lvl 3: Hexblade Feats: Indomitable Will(PH2) Lvl 4: Hexblade Abilities: Mettle (+1 Con) Lvl 5: Ranger Abilities: 2 weapon fighting style (Taken to prevent xp/gp penalties) Lvl 6: Monk Feats: Combat Focus(PH2), <Improved Grapple> <Improved Unarmed Strike> Lvl 7: Monk Feats: <Combat Reflexes> Abilities: Evasion Lvl 8: Fighter Feats: <Power Attack> (+1 Con) Lvl 9: Fighter Feats: Blind-fight <Combat Stability>(PH2) Lvl 10: Fighter Lvl 11: Fighter Feats: <Combat Vigor>(PH2) Lvl 12: Fighter Feats: Shield Specialization (Heavy)(PH2) Lvl 13: Fighter Feats: <Shield Ward>(PH2) Lvl 14: Fighter Lvl 15: Fighter Feats: Armor Specialization(light)(PH2), <Combat Awareness>(PH2) Equipment: +4 str belt +4 dex gloves +6 con amulet +5 cloak of resistance +5 ring of Protection +4 Heavy shield +4 mithril Breastplate Various magical weaponry(+1/+2 weapons) HP: 194 AC: 35 Touch: 19(26 with Shield Ward) Flat Footed: 31 Saves: Fort +25, Reflex +18, Will +17(+21 with Combat Focus) Grapple: +22(+29 w/ shield ward) (+37 with Combat Stability) Feats of note: Combat Stability: +8 to resist bull rush/grapple/trip/disarm attempts Combat Vigor: Fast Healing 4 Combat Awareness: know all adjacent target's HP, blindsight 5 feet Combat Focus: +4 will Saves Indomitable will: Will saves against mind-affecting and fear affects, roll 2d20, take highest. Shield Ward: shield ac to touch, resists against bullrush/grapple/overrun/trip/disarm Armor Specialization: dr 2/- when in light armor. Abilities: Evasion, Mettle, +1 to saves against spells/spell-likes Obviously offense is not this character's main objective. What do you guys think?
UMiskatonic 02-20-07, 04:14 PM	While this guy is a fortress, I think defense is a losing strategy. With expertise and TWF, this guy will miss twice a round, and enemies can simply ignore him. How will he keep the rest of the party alive? Will you be willing to skip those defenses, and power attack full in order to put someone down, or will you play it safe?
Mommy was an Orc 02-20-07, 04:17 PM	I think it could be cleaned up a little. You've taken 2 levels in Ranger and taken Endurance as a feat. You're an 8 Charisma character with Hexblade 3 when all you really want from it is Mettle. 3 levels of Ranger right off the bat lets you keep your exact feat progression. Pious Templar 4 gets you spells, Mettle, Smite, good Will Save, WS, DR 1/-, and a bonus feat. Somewhat negating the need for Armor Specialization as well which with the feat back from Ranger gets you WF, WS, and True Believer for free. So Ranger 3/Monk 2/Fighter 6/Pious Templar 4 would be your build, dropping Endurance(but getting it right back) and Armor Specialization.
Oewyn 02-20-07, 04:39 PM	While this guy is a fortress, I think defense is a losing strategy. With expertise and TWF, this guy will miss twice a round, and enemies can simply ignore him. How will he keep the rest of the party alive? Will you be willing to skip those defenses, and power attack full in order to put someone down, or will you play it safe? I hadn't really planned on using two weapon fighting, i simply needed to pick a weapon style for ranger. Perhaps i should drop my heavy shield, pick up a buckler and improved buckler defense. This would only drop my AC by one allow me to use a 2-hander instead. I'll look into pious Templar.
Oewyn 02-20-07, 05:39 PM	I think it could be cleaned up a little. You've taken 2 levels in Ranger and taken Endurance as a feat. You're an 8 Charisma character with Hexblade 3 when all you really want from it is Mettle. 3 levels of Ranger right off the bat lets you keep your exact feat progression. Pious Templar 4 gets you spells, Mettle, Smite, good Will Save, WS, DR 1/-, and a bonus feat. Somewhat negating the need for Armor Specialization as well which with the feat back from Ranger gets you WF, WS, and True Believer for free. So Ranger 3/Monk 2/Fighter 6/Pious Templar 4 would be your build, dropping Endurance(but getting it right back) and Armor Specialization. I looked at it. I could go: 1 Ranger: Iron will, weapon Focus(Greatsword) <track> 2 Ranger 3 Ranger <endurance> True Believer 4 Monk <imp unarmed strike> <imp Grapple> 5 Monk <combat reflexes> 6 Fighter <power attack> combat focus 7 Pious Templar 8 Pious Templar 9 Pious Templar <Weapon Spec(Greatsword)> combat stability 10 Pious Templar <combat vigor> 11 Fighter <imp Buckler Defense> 12 Fighter Shield Spec (Buckler) 13 Fighter <shield ward> 14 Fighter 15 Fighter Melee Weapon Mastery <Slashing Furry> I don't see where i can put in indomitable will now except maybe at 15th. Iron will is still a great feat, but maybe drop it and pick up imp buckler defense earlier? Also it seems that i don't need Ranger 3 if I'm dropping Indomitable will. Any ideas on what i could dip into for 1 level?
Akhamshyy 02-20-07, 06:20 PM	Is there any way for you to fit in feats like good karma, or goad to redirect attacks to you so you could bounce hits for your allies?
Oewyn 02-20-07, 06:38 PM	Is there any way for you to fit in feats like good karma, or goad to redirect attacks to you so you could bounce hits for your allies? Goad requires a charisma of 13, and i don't see that happening. I already suffer quite a bit from Multi-Attribute Disorder (MAD). I don't have complete scoundrel yet so i don't know the pre-reqs for good karma nor what it actually does other than the description from the Feat Index at WOTC.
Akhamshyy 02-20-07, 07:34 PM	I forgot about the Cha needed for goad. Good karma has no pre-reqs beyond being 3rd level. It lets you burn a luck reroll to redirect an attack that could have been directed at you, to you, instead of an adjacent ally. So you become a devoted defender type. They need to hit your AC now, but if it hits it does half as much more damage. It also, of course, gives you a luck reroll to use it with.
Oewyn 02-20-07, 07:53 PM	Hrmm then that would be a once-per-day thing as i don't have any luck re-rolls already. I do have the paladin spell list as a pious templar so perhaps i could buy 6 50gp rings and keep a shield other spell prepped as one of my 2nd level spells. With my new build i won't be doing a lot of damage, maybe around 20 points average w/out power attack. my melee bonus is +18/+13/+8, weapon focus and buckler cancel each other out, but melee weapon mastery adds one more so +19/+14/+9 total. So maybe i could power attack for a little, but not much before i start missing a lot.