The Best Defense is a Good Offense [Fighter] [Archive] - Wizards Community

The Best Defense is a Good Offense [Fighter] [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Dither
03-16-07, 06:35 PM I was just looking at some other threads where fighters were being discussed as too weak, blah, blah, same old story.

I hit upon an interesting, crazy, and possibly revolutionary idea (I 'm sure someone may have thought of it before).

THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter]
Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th
Benefit: You gain a dodge bonus to your Armor Class equal to your Strength bonus against attacks made by the opponent against which you have declared your Dodge feat.
Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat.

...

Discuss.
Moccanime
03-17-07, 09:52 AM Think it is seaverly overpowered.

One change that is definely needed is that the increase in ac bonus should only apply if the fighter has attacked his opponent with a melee (or reach) weapon since his last turn.
Fallenangel359
03-17-07, 10:01 AM I was about to say massively overpowered, and then I read the list of requirements.

Maybe half your strength modifier?

Its a problem when you have +5 mithril fullplate, dex mod of 3, +5 ring of deflection, +5 amulet of natural armor, +5 tower shield, and your ac is up the wazoo, and then you take this, and since your strength mod is like 11 or 12, you gain that much more AC
Narthon
03-17-07, 10:04 AM I thought the best defense was high DR and elemental resistances.
Moccanime
03-17-07, 10:14 AM Maybe it could be based of power attack instead of str, so that you get the same bonus to AC as you get to damage. Then you just have to say it dosn't work in conjuration with vicius power attack (or what the feat that move the attack penaly to ac penalty is called).

THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter]
Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th
Benefit: Whenever you attack your target of the dodge feat while using power attack, the bonus from your dodge feat increase with amount equal to the penalty you took to attack rolls with a maximum dodge bonus of +5. This dodge bonus last until the begining of your next turn.
Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat.
Fallenangel359
03-17-07, 11:01 AM thats kinda nice, turns power attack into combat expertise, and requires combat expertise

Not bad
ShubNiggurath
03-17-07, 12:56 PM THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter]
Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th
Benefit: Whenever you attack your target of the dodge feat while using power attack, the bonus from your dodge feat increase with amount equal to the penalty you took with Power Attack. This dodge bonus last until the begining of your next turn.
Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat.

MASSIVELY overpowered. Take this and shock trooper (CW).
With shock trooper you take the power attack penality to your AC. With this you take it back as a bonus. Result? Free power attack!!!!
You always power attack =BAB, do more damage and have no0 downside, either to your AB or AC.

Leave the game as it is. Anything you think can and will break it, given a sufficient number of available splatbooks.
ManinBlaq
03-17-07, 01:12 PM Yea .. I like the idea of combining CE and PA .. Lowering your Attack and getting the benefits of both -- but specifing that feats that augment either CE or PA aren't stackable with this new effect.

I would also stipulate ..

That unlike Power Attack -- this ability won't give you 2x damage if you wield a two handed weapon.
Moccanime
03-17-07, 01:49 PM Changed the wording a bit, closing the loophole with shock trooper. Also this is not that overpowered as it only apply to the character you use dodge feat against.

Leave the game as it is. Anything you think can and will break it, given a sufficient number of available splatbooks.
Bwahahahahahahahahahaha
Including anything beyond the three core books is game breaking when charOPs get their dirty hands on it.
daladinn
03-17-07, 02:01 PM you do realize the HUGE gapping loophole with combat defense also right?
Ventilatory_Threshold
03-17-07, 02:06 PM THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter]
Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th
Benefit: Whenever you attack your target of the dodge feat while using power attack, the bonus from your dodge feat increase with amount equal to the penalty you took to attack rolls. This dodge bonus last until the begining of your next turn.
Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat.
This is more powerful than the feat in the first post. By a lot.
Bwahahahahahahahahahaha
Including anything beyond the three core books is game breaking when charOPs get their dirty hands on it.
Including ANYTHING (yes, Core too!) is game-breaking when the CharOps get their hands on it. Their hands are also not dirty.

EDIT: The name of this feat is my philosophy on driving.
Moccanime
03-17-07, 02:25 PM This is more powerful than the feat in the first post. By a lot.
Please specifiy where it is more powerfull. Like the OP feat it only apply to one target, but also require you to make a melee attack first and you only get the bonus when taking a penalty to attack and it also dosn't give a bonus higher than +5.

The OP feat could easily result in a bonus of +7 or +8 with little optimising and no penalty.

This is more powerful Including ANYTHING (yes, Core too!) is game-breaking when the CharOps get their hands on it. Their hands are also not dirty.
So true.
Also I apologize if the dirty hands comment could seam offending, it wasn't meant that way.

EDIT: The name of this feat is my philosophy on driving.
Know several people who share your philosophy.
Ventilatory_Threshold
03-17-07, 02:31 PM Please specifiy where it is more powerfull. Like the OP feat it only apply to one target, but also require you to make a melee attack first and you only get the bonus when taking a penalty to attack and it also dosn't give a bonus higher than +5.
That's where you're wrong. You can Power Attack your whole BAB away and make a half-assed attack to gain up to +20 to your AC.
So true.
Also I apologize if the dirty hands comment could seam offending, it wasn't meant that way.
Eh, some people seem to label the CO boards regulars as munchkins. I make a point to correct any such references.
mkill
03-17-07, 02:34 PM I hit upon an interesting, crazy, and possibly revolutionary idea (I 'm sure someone may have thought of it before).

THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter]
Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th
Benefit: You gain a dodge bonus to your Armor Class equal to your Strength bonus against attacks made by the opponent against which you have declared your Dodge feat.
Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat.

Meh, I'm not a fan of "take an attribute bonus and add it where it does not belong". It creates more problems than it solves.

Second, low AC is not the main problem of the fighter. Even with the feat, enemies can easily target his will save or simply ignore him (ethereal, flying, more hp than he can deplete in a round, enemies in groups, etc.). Your feat doesn't even help against flat-footed attacks.

Third, the (perceived) problem with the fighter is a structural problem. It could probably be solved by feats, but you'd need a longer list of feats, that actually change how the fighter works in high-level play (level 10+). Your feat starts to early and does not tackle any core issue. (lack of tactical variants, lack of out-of-game application, dependence on magical equipment, linear power curve, lack of mobility, lack of defense against supernatural attacks and abilities, no strategic abilities)
daladinn
03-17-07, 02:35 PM combat focus --

"while you maintain your combat focus , you can change the target of your dodge feat to a new opponent as an IMMEDIATE action"

everyone your aware of is now your dodge opponent according to this. please correct me if i am wrong
Moccanime
03-17-07, 02:49 PM That's where you're wrong. You can Power Attack your whole BAB away and make a half-assed attack to gain up to +20 to your AC.

*smacks forehead* I was sure that there was a -5 limited to power attack just like combat expertice. Guess that was happen when one dosn't read up on a feat before making another feat based on it. Do you think it would be balanced if the was a +5 limited to the dodge bonus.

Eh, some people seem to label the CO boards regulars as munchkins. I make a point to correct any such references.

Okay, good to know that I didn't offend anyone, have a unlucky tendency of doing it unintentionally quite often.
Ventilatory_Threshold
03-17-07, 02:54 PM Do you think it would be balanced if the was a +5 limited to the dodge bonus.
I guess so. But I always feel like the martial types could use more AC. YMMV.
Dither
03-17-07, 03:37 PM Think it is seaverly overpowered.

One change that is definely needed is that the increase in ac bonus should only apply if the fighter has attacked his opponent with a melee (or reach) weapon since his last turn.

I "severely" do not agree. Increasing the bonus that a fighter gets against the target of the Dodge feat has some precedence with the Psionic Dodge feat (found in XPH), and that feat requires less than this one. The Dodge feat is considered underpowered by many, though this is not the subject of this thread. This feat adds utility to the Dodge feat. Remember that the Dodge feat targets only a single opponent.

I was about to say massively overpowered, and then I read the list of requirements.

Maybe half your strength modifier?

Its a problem when you have +5 mithril fullplate, dex mod of 3, +5 ring of deflection, +5 amulet of natural armor, +5 tower shield, and your ac is up the wazoo, and then you take this, and since your strength mod is like 11 or 12, you gain that much more AC

In order to have a Strength mod of 11 or 12, you need to have a Strength score of 32 or 34, in which case I do not think that this feat will break your game, it is either already broken by having such a ridiculously high Strength score, or you are facing challenges against which this feat will not give you "that" much of a benefit.

Addmitedly, this feat is not designed with ridiculously epic levels in mind. At 6th level, a half-orc fighter with the elite array will have a strength of 17 before items, (given that with the racial penalty to INT, he must put his 15 in INT to qualify for Combat Expertise) perhaps 19 after items if he's lucky, and that means that with the heavy feat requirements and focus of the character, he will get +5 to AC against a single opponent (target of his Dodge feat).

combat focus --

"while you maintain your combat focus , you can change the target of your dodge feat to a new opponent as an IMMEDIATE action"

everyone your aware of is now your dodge opponent according to this. please correct me if i am wrong

You get one Immediate action per round. If you use a Swift action during your turn, you do not get an Immediate action. Awesome synergy there, though.

I guess so. But I always feel like the martial types could use more AC. YMMV.

I heartily agree. Makes tanking more fun.
Dither
03-17-07, 03:49 PM I thought the best defense was high DR and elemental resistances.

Agreed. The name is based on flavor.
Dither
03-17-07, 03:53 PM MASSIVELY overpowered. Take this and shock trooper (CW).
With shock trooper you take the power attack penality to your AC. With this you take it back as a bonus. Result? Free power attack!!!!
You always power attack =BAB, do more damage and have no0 downside, either to your AB or AC.

Look at the requirements for this combination you have suggested:
Strength 13, Dexterity 13, Intelligence 13, Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack, Shock Trooper, base attack bonus +6, fighter level 6th

That takes up every single feat from 1st to 6th level (unless you are human). How is this feat not balanced against those kind of requirements?

Shock Trooper allows you to shift the penalty from your BAB to your AC. If your Strength is less than the -5 penalty you are taking, (which it will be unless you have uber stats for a 6th level character), then you are simply halving your Power Attack penalty. Plus, with Shock Trooper, you must charge, which already reduces your AC. So in order to get this "overpowered" exchange you are referring to, you must spend every single feat between 1st and 6th level and charge every round to get half the Power Attack penalties for a single attack on a charge attack.

I don't see how this is overpowered.

Leave the game as it is. Anything you think can and will break it, given a sufficient number of available splatbooks.

Look at the feat requirements. Everything is from the Core books. This feat would not break a Core game. Think of it like a Dwarven-Defender-style feat.
Dither
03-17-07, 03:55 PM thats kinda nice, turns power attack into combat expertise, and requires combat expertise

Not bad

I think I will slightly alter the feat to make it incompatible with Rage. Not exactly sure. It requires Power Attack and Dodge, which can both be used during Rage, but Combat Expertise cannot be. I think... actually, this should be compatible with Rage, since it requires Endurance (which isn't *all* that helpful to a barbarian) and Combat Expertise (which *really* isn't helpful to a barbarian).

Thanks for the kind words.
Dither
03-17-07, 04:00 PM Meh, I'm not a fan of "take an attribute bonus and add it where it does not belong". It creates more problems than it solves.

So, in your opinion, since that is what you are stating, where do ability modifiers belong?

Second, low AC is not the main problem of the fighter. Even with the feat, enemies can easily target his will save or simply ignore him (ethereal, flying, more hp than he can deplete in a round, enemies in groups, etc.). Your feat doesn't even help against flat-footed attacks.

Thank you for pointing out how this feat is far from overpowered. Just because a fighter's AC is harder does not mean he is invulnerable, as some people who replied to this thread seem to think. I like how this feat increases a fighter's touch AC, which tends to be weak for many fighters, given their dependency on armor for AC.

Third, the (perceived) problem with the fighter is a structural problem. It could probably be solved by feats, but you'd need a longer list of feats, that actually change how the fighter works in high-level play (level 10+). Your feat starts to early and does not tackle any core issue. (lack of tactical variants, lack of out-of-game application, dependence on magical equipment, linear power curve, lack of mobility, lack of defense against supernatural attacks and abilities, no strategic abilities)

What you bring up here is beyond the scope of this feat. This feat does not offer a solution to the "fighter is weak" issue. It provides an option, nothing more.
Dither
03-17-07, 04:14 PM Eh, some people seem to label the CO boards regulars as munchkins. I make a point to correct any such references.

We appreciate your support, Sir.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Dither 03-16-07, 06:35 PM	I was just looking at some other threads where fighters were being discussed as too weak, blah, blah, same old story. I hit upon an interesting, crazy, and possibly revolutionary idea (I 'm sure someone may have thought of it before). THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter] Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th Benefit: You gain a dodge bonus to your Armor Class equal to your Strength bonus against attacks made by the opponent against which you have declared your Dodge feat. Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat. ... Discuss.
Moccanime 03-17-07, 09:52 AM	Think it is seaverly overpowered. One change that is definely needed is that the increase in ac bonus should only apply if the fighter has attacked his opponent with a melee (or reach) weapon since his last turn.
Fallenangel359 03-17-07, 10:01 AM	I was about to say massively overpowered, and then I read the list of requirements. Maybe half your strength modifier? Its a problem when you have +5 mithril fullplate, dex mod of 3, +5 ring of deflection, +5 amulet of natural armor, +5 tower shield, and your ac is up the wazoo, and then you take this, and since your strength mod is like 11 or 12, you gain that much more AC
Narthon 03-17-07, 10:04 AM	I thought the best defense was high DR and elemental resistances.
Moccanime 03-17-07, 10:14 AM	Maybe it could be based of power attack instead of str, so that you get the same bonus to AC as you get to damage. Then you just have to say it dosn't work in conjuration with vicius power attack (or what the feat that move the attack penaly to ac penalty is called). THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter] Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th Benefit: Whenever you attack your target of the dodge feat while using power attack, the bonus from your dodge feat increase with amount equal to the penalty you took to attack rolls with a maximum dodge bonus of +5. This dodge bonus last until the begining of your next turn. Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat.
Fallenangel359 03-17-07, 11:01 AM	thats kinda nice, turns power attack into combat expertise, and requires combat expertise Not bad
ShubNiggurath 03-17-07, 12:56 PM	THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter] Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th Benefit: Whenever you attack your target of the dodge feat while using power attack, the bonus from your dodge feat increase with amount equal to the penalty you took with Power Attack. This dodge bonus last until the begining of your next turn. Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat. MASSIVELY overpowered. Take this and shock trooper (CW). With shock trooper you take the power attack penality to your AC. With this you take it back as a bonus. Result? Free power attack!!!! You always power attack =BAB, do more damage and have no0 downside, either to your AB or AC. Leave the game as it is. Anything you think can and will break it, given a sufficient number of available splatbooks.
ManinBlaq 03-17-07, 01:12 PM	Yea .. I like the idea of combining CE and PA .. Lowering your Attack and getting the benefits of both -- but specifing that feats that augment either CE or PA aren't stackable with this new effect. I would also stipulate .. That unlike Power Attack -- this ability won't give you 2x damage if you wield a two handed weapon.
Moccanime 03-17-07, 01:49 PM	Changed the wording a bit, closing the loophole with shock trooper. Also this is not that overpowered as it only apply to the character you use dodge feat against. Leave the game as it is. Anything you think can and will break it, given a sufficient number of available splatbooks. Bwahahahahahahahahahaha Including anything beyond the three core books is game breaking when charOPs get their dirty hands on it.
daladinn 03-17-07, 02:01 PM	you do realize the HUGE gapping loophole with combat defense also right?
Ventilatory_Threshold 03-17-07, 02:06 PM	THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter] Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th Benefit: Whenever you attack your target of the dodge feat while using power attack, the bonus from your dodge feat increase with amount equal to the penalty you took to attack rolls. This dodge bonus last until the begining of your next turn. Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat. This is more powerful than the feat in the first post. By a lot. Bwahahahahahahahahahaha Including anything beyond the three core books is game breaking when charOPs get their dirty hands on it. Including ANYTHING (yes, Core too!) is game-breaking when the CharOps get their hands on it. Their hands are also not dirty. EDIT: The name of this feat is my philosophy on driving.
Moccanime 03-17-07, 02:25 PM	This is more powerful than the feat in the first post. By a lot. Please specifiy where it is more powerfull. Like the OP feat it only apply to one target, but also require you to make a melee attack first and you only get the bonus when taking a penalty to attack and it also dosn't give a bonus higher than +5. The OP feat could easily result in a bonus of +7 or +8 with little optimising and no penalty. This is more powerful Including ANYTHING (yes, Core too!) is game-breaking when the CharOps get their hands on it. Their hands are also not dirty. So true. Also I apologize if the dirty hands comment could seam offending, it wasn't meant that way. EDIT: The name of this feat is my philosophy on driving. Know several people who share your philosophy.
Ventilatory_Threshold 03-17-07, 02:31 PM	Please specifiy where it is more powerfull. Like the OP feat it only apply to one target, but also require you to make a melee attack first and you only get the bonus when taking a penalty to attack and it also dosn't give a bonus higher than +5. That's where you're wrong. You can Power Attack your whole BAB away and make a half-assed attack to gain up to +20 to your AC. So true. Also I apologize if the dirty hands comment could seam offending, it wasn't meant that way. Eh, some people seem to label the CO boards regulars as munchkins. I make a point to correct any such references.
mkill 03-17-07, 02:34 PM	I hit upon an interesting, crazy, and possibly revolutionary idea (I 'm sure someone may have thought of it before). THE BEST DEFENSE IS A GOOD OFFENSE [Fighter] Requirements: Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Power Attack, fighter level 6th Benefit: You gain a dodge bonus to your Armor Class equal to your Strength bonus against attacks made by the opponent against which you have declared your Dodge feat. Special: A fighter may take The Best Defense Is A Good Offense as a fighter bonus feat. Meh, I'm not a fan of "take an attribute bonus and add it where it does not belong". It creates more problems than it solves. Second, low AC is not the main problem of the fighter. Even with the feat, enemies can easily target his will save or simply ignore him (ethereal, flying, more hp than he can deplete in a round, enemies in groups, etc.). Your feat doesn't even help against flat-footed attacks. Third, the (perceived) problem with the fighter is a structural problem. It could probably be solved by feats, but you'd need a longer list of feats, that actually change how the fighter works in high-level play (level 10+). Your feat starts to early and does not tackle any core issue. (lack of tactical variants, lack of out-of-game application, dependence on magical equipment, linear power curve, lack of mobility, lack of defense against supernatural attacks and abilities, no strategic abilities)
daladinn 03-17-07, 02:35 PM	combat focus -- "while you maintain your combat focus , you can change the target of your dodge feat to a new opponent as an IMMEDIATE action" everyone your aware of is now your dodge opponent according to this. please correct me if i am wrong
Moccanime 03-17-07, 02:49 PM	That's where you're wrong. You can Power Attack your whole BAB away and make a half-assed attack to gain up to +20 to your AC. smacks forehead I was sure that there was a -5 limited to power attack just like combat expertice. Guess that was happen when one dosn't read up on a feat before making another feat based on it. Do you think it would be balanced if the was a +5 limited to the dodge bonus. Eh, some people seem to label the CO boards regulars as munchkins. I make a point to correct any such references. Okay, good to know that I didn't offend anyone, have a unlucky tendency of doing it unintentionally quite often.
Ventilatory_Threshold 03-17-07, 02:54 PM	Do you think it would be balanced if the was a +5 limited to the dodge bonus. I guess so. But I always feel like the martial types could use more AC. YMMV.
Dither 03-17-07, 03:37 PM	Think it is seaverly overpowered. One change that is definely needed is that the increase in ac bonus should only apply if the fighter has attacked his opponent with a melee (or reach) weapon since his last turn. I "severely" do not agree. Increasing the bonus that a fighter gets against the target of the Dodge feat has some precedence with the Psionic Dodge feat (found in XPH), and that feat requires less than this one. The Dodge feat is considered underpowered by many, though this is not the subject of this thread. This feat adds utility to the Dodge feat. Remember that the Dodge feat targets only a single opponent. I was about to say massively overpowered, and then I read the list of requirements. Maybe half your strength modifier? Its a problem when you have +5 mithril fullplate, dex mod of 3, +5 ring of deflection, +5 amulet of natural armor, +5 tower shield, and your ac is up the wazoo, and then you take this, and since your strength mod is like 11 or 12, you gain that much more AC In order to have a Strength mod of 11 or 12, you need to have a Strength score of 32 or 34, in which case I do not think that this feat will break your game, it is either already broken by having such a ridiculously high Strength score, or you are facing challenges against which this feat will not give you "that" much of a benefit. Addmitedly, this feat is not designed with ridiculously epic levels in mind. At 6th level, a half-orc fighter with the elite array will have a strength of 17 before items, (given that with the racial penalty to INT, he must put his 15 in INT to qualify for Combat Expertise) perhaps 19 after items if he's lucky, and that means that with the heavy feat requirements and focus of the character, he will get +5 to AC against a single opponent (target of his Dodge feat). combat focus -- "while you maintain your combat focus , you can change the target of your dodge feat to a new opponent as an IMMEDIATE action" everyone your aware of is now your dodge opponent according to this. please correct me if i am wrong You get one Immediate action per round. If you use a Swift action during your turn, you do not get an Immediate action. Awesome synergy there, though. I guess so. But I always feel like the martial types could use more AC. YMMV. I heartily agree. Makes tanking more fun.
Dither 03-17-07, 03:49 PM	I thought the best defense was high DR and elemental resistances. Agreed. The name is based on flavor.
Dither 03-17-07, 03:53 PM	MASSIVELY overpowered. Take this and shock trooper (CW). With shock trooper you take the power attack penality to your AC. With this you take it back as a bonus. Result? Free power attack!!!! You always power attack =BAB, do more damage and have no0 downside, either to your AB or AC. Look at the requirements for this combination you have suggested: Strength 13, Dexterity 13, Intelligence 13, Combat Expertise, Dodge, Endurance, Improved Bull Rush, Power Attack, Shock Trooper, base attack bonus +6, fighter level 6th That takes up every single feat from 1st to 6th level (unless you are human). How is this feat not balanced against those kind of requirements? Shock Trooper allows you to shift the penalty from your BAB to your AC. If your Strength is less than the -5 penalty you are taking, (which it will be unless you have uber stats for a 6th level character), then you are simply halving your Power Attack penalty. Plus, with Shock Trooper, you must charge, which already reduces your AC. So in order to get this "overpowered" exchange you are referring to, you must spend every single feat between 1st and 6th level and charge every round to get half the Power Attack penalties for a single attack on a charge attack. I don't see how this is overpowered. Leave the game as it is. Anything you think can and will break it, given a sufficient number of available splatbooks. Look at the feat requirements. Everything is from the Core books. This feat would not break a Core game. Think of it like a Dwarven-Defender-style feat.
Dither 03-17-07, 03:55 PM	thats kinda nice, turns power attack into combat expertise, and requires combat expertise Not bad I think I will slightly alter the feat to make it incompatible with Rage. Not exactly sure. It requires Power Attack and Dodge, which can both be used during Rage, but Combat Expertise cannot be. I think... actually, this should be compatible with Rage, since it requires Endurance (which isn't all that helpful to a barbarian) and Combat Expertise (which really isn't helpful to a barbarian). Thanks for the kind words.
Dither 03-17-07, 04:00 PM	Meh, I'm not a fan of "take an attribute bonus and add it where it does not belong". It creates more problems than it solves. So, in your opinion, since that is what you are stating, where do ability modifiers belong? Second, low AC is not the main problem of the fighter. Even with the feat, enemies can easily target his will save or simply ignore him (ethereal, flying, more hp than he can deplete in a round, enemies in groups, etc.). Your feat doesn't even help against flat-footed attacks. Thank you for pointing out how this feat is far from overpowered. Just because a fighter's AC is harder does not mean he is invulnerable, as some people who replied to this thread seem to think. I like how this feat increases a fighter's touch AC, which tends to be weak for many fighters, given their dependency on armor for AC. Third, the (perceived) problem with the fighter is a structural problem. It could probably be solved by feats, but you'd need a longer list of feats, that actually change how the fighter works in high-level play (level 10+). Your feat starts to early and does not tackle any core issue. (lack of tactical variants, lack of out-of-game application, dependence on magical equipment, linear power curve, lack of mobility, lack of defense against supernatural attacks and abilities, no strategic abilities) What you bring up here is beyond the scope of this feat. This feat does not offer a solution to the "fighter is weak" issue. It provides an option, nothing more.
Dither 03-17-07, 04:14 PM	Eh, some people seem to label the CO boards regulars as munchkins. I make a point to correct any such references. We appreciate your support, Sir.