Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 riplox Jul 16, 2008 1:24:59	Ok. This is a bit different for me now. Usually I roll stats, pick a race, then a class and come up with a character background as kind of an afterthought. Well I have a character background worked out as shown below, but what I need is some help in choosing what class and race to use. I don't necessarily want to be a lurk-in-the-shadows/strike/retreat kind of player. I kind of want him to be able to jump in to whatever battle he's facing (within limits of course) and take out the baddies, but I've played a Fighter or Warblade for the last 6 characters. Although I love em to death and the 4th ed Fighter is IMO the best yet, I think I'm ready for something new, but I can't stay away from the awesomeness that is the Fighter. I was thinking of making a Paladin, but I don't think that my character should have any religious tie-ins even though the char-background could certainly encompass that aspect. If I were going to have a lightly-armored and highly-mobile combatant, he'd have to dual wield for the sake of image/cool factor and combat ability. So it's Fighter (with some Warlord multiclassing), Ranger, or Rogue. For the races it's one of four (Dragonborn, Dwarf, Human, or Shadar-Kai). Character Background Our campaign is going to have a very Norse-based theme with all the current gods being replaced by the Norse pantheon and Dwarves being the equivalent of Humans in occurrence and population in a standard game. Anyway. My character story is as follows: When Balthazar was a very young child, he and the all the other males in his village were captured by giants under the command of the Duergar, in order to expand their slave numbers. After years toiling in the mines under tyrannical slavers, he and a group of other miners were eventually transported to another mine when the caravan was attacked by bandits. In the commotion, he and the other captives managed to escape, but Balth was the only one to stick around and watch the group tear apart the Duergar and giants. Realizing he had nothing to return to, and with the group now resting and going through the few spoils of the fight, he approached them and explained his situation. He requested that he could accompany them until he could find at least a semi-permanent place to live. They agreed after some deliberation and he stayed with them as their general aide, at first helping them with their equipment and fixing meals. After some time, when he had earned their respect, he was taught how to weild a weapon and would later be given a suit of armor so that he may help them in their quests, freeing those living under oppressive rule much like he had been. Eventually, Balthazar parted ways with the group, thankful for their efforts and generosity, but wanting to set higher goals and be an instrumental part of bringing freedom to the lands.
#2 kouk Jul 16, 2008 3:19:15	Probably Warlord base with some Ranger, or Ranger base with some Fighter. What role you want to play is really important though. For ranger, you can add in a bit about wandering the wilderness or living in a rural village at some point to make it fit better with the story. A TWF Ranger is a striker, which means you run up into melee to kick butt, but nobody is really expecting you to cover them. Your job is damage. Fighter or Warlord multiclass would give you a drop more versatility perhaps, if you want it. The only way you will get real use out of two-weapon fighting is by being a Ranger, no other class really supports that in any meaningful way. On the other hand if you just want to hold two weapons, that's fine :P
#3 rainkiss Jul 16, 2008 7:55:38	Given what you want, and your background, I'd go with a TWF Ranger, with Dungeoneering (all those years in the mines). Ranger, 'cause it's easiest to go with dual wielding without the need to multiclass. (I'm putting off playing mix-and-match 'til I've had more time with pure classes, myself.) Shadar-Kai just plain look cool, but that's my humble opinion.
#4 drmorganes Jul 16, 2008 8:41:32	While I agree that fighters have finally come into their own, remember they're Defenders now. Their primary focus is to be attacked, not necessarily to take down the baddies. For that you want a Striker. So with that in mind, I second the vote for TWF Ranger. Rangers have the best mobility of all the classes in the Player's Handbook. Many of their attack powers include the ability to either shift themselves or slide/push their targets. Additionally their damage output isn't contingent upon having Combat Advantage like a rogue. Keep in mind, too, that many attack powers work just as well with two melee weapons as they do with a ranged weapon. You'll wind up focusing on one or the other, obviously, but keeping a bow handy is always worthwhile.
#5 drmorganes Jul 16, 2008 8:50:23	As for race... that's up in the air. Dwarves get a +2 bonus to Wisdom, which helps with secondary effect (extra damage, increased movement, etc) on your class powers. The CON boost is helpful in terms of healing surges and HP. The racial ability to resist being moved by an opponent is nice, too. Put your best ability score into Str to help with your primary attack vector. Their racial speed is a bit of a downer, though. You're tougher than most, but not as fast. A quick reminder on TWF, though: you MUST use a weapon with the Off Hand property for your second weapon. There are no penalties for oversized offhand weapon use now. You can use a weapon offhand or you can't. This limits you to a choice of 6 weapons. This makes your damage calculations a bit more cumbersome, and can mean you have a different attack bonus between your two weapons. Depending on your feat choices, you may want to keep both weapons in the same weapon group. Edit: Gods, I don't know how I missed that... Thanks for the correction, tyweise!
#6 tyweise Jul 16, 2008 14:43:40	Rangers who select the TWF combat style are not limited to off-hand weapons. They can use any two one-handed weapons together. You still must designate one of them as the 'main hand' weapon, as some ranger powers have different damage or effects for the main hand vs off hand weapons. Also taking the Two Weapon Fighting feat will add +1 dmg to your main hand, even if you use a power that attacks with both weapons.
#7 drmorganes Jul 17, 2008 12:48:37	Edit: Nothing to see here...
#8 chimaera2000 Jul 18, 2008 14:42:06	I found the same thing when I was designing my eladrin wizard for my last game. Initially, I had a hard time pinning down exactly what I wanted my character to be able to do. Her background lent itself to a lot of different classes and ability score arrays and I'd had a devil of a time getting it right when there were so many (often interesting) options to choose from. What solved it for me was imagining my character as if she were part of a movie or book. What traits would I see her display most often? After a while, I realized that it made the most sense for her to be perceptive, knowledgeable and iron-willed, so I increased Intelligence and Wisdom instead of having a highly balanced stat array. Likewise, with her strong academic background and resistance to change it made sense to stick with her career as a wizard. I found that it takes a fair amount of honesty and introspection to figure out most specifically what you'd like your character to be able to do. That's the sort of thing that you'll probably have to answer on your own. ;)
#9 riplox Jul 18, 2008 22:33:38	I just say to heck with it. I'm tired of flip-flopping among classes and avoiding the one I always play. Fighter has been my role in this group since the begining and I think it'll remain that way for a while. I can't help it. I love the heavily armored guys that rely on toughness, determination, and skill instead of magic and quickness to get them through stuff. And seeing as we roll for our stats instead of point buying, we're usually better off stat-wise, especially if we use my lucky Parcheesi dice. I roll in the open and i hardly ever roll below 13. My stats I have to work with are 12, 14, 16, 17, 17, & 18 before racial mods. So now it's Dragonborn, Dwarf, or Human...
#10 Alter_Boy Jul 18, 2008 23:29:09	Dwarves have good CON and WILL, attributes good for your tough bones and will. Plus, it's hard to push them around (or down). However, humans have +1 to their non-AC defenses and access to great feats (+1 to saves, +3 to attacks made with an action point) Dragonborn would be nice for the better healing surges, but it sounds like you wouldn't like the magical breath weapon.