D&D 3E/3.5 3.5 Half-Orc Ranger build help

[IWannaPlayLions]

So, taking a change of pace and swapping characters in an on-going campaign, and need some help with some of the mechanical details on my new character. The primary details are essentially set in stone, everything has to be core-ish (Some things are being allowed from complete series and PHBII, but if my DM smells powergaming, they'll deny it automatically). I know already that the character isn't the most efficient at what he's attempting to do, but some of it is specifically that way for story purposes.

9th level character, half-orc ranger Lawful Neutral
Stats with racial modifiers, lvl 4 & 8 points already added(to str)
STR 22
DEX 18
CON 18
INT 14
WIS 16
CHA 13

Primary role in the party is tank and melee non-magic damage dealer.(Party already has a non-optimized Druid and a Sorc/Mindbender, both level 9, plus an NPC cleric healer for non-combat only use)

Only definite feat is Natural Bond(already approved) for lvl 9 feat, to gain a Dire Wolf Animal companion.(story related)

Theme of character is a bounty hunter who prefers to take targets alive.

****Now where I need help****

Even though I will be primarily melee, I'm considering going Archer specialty ranger (for damage closing and chasing), and thematically the character fits being a THF instead of a TWF melee champ.

Weapon-wise, I'm considering either Greatsword, Falchion (would be starting with a keen version), or Glaive, as primary melee weapon. If I go Glaive, I am preapproved on taking the Short Haft Feat, from PHBII.

If playing from lvl 9 to epic, which weapon/feat combo will be the most effective? Greatsword/Falchion with power attack feat chain? Glaive and Imp Trip? Focusing all feats on my bow and simply using a 2h weapon normally?

Also, what prestige classes should I be looking at?

Should I be doing a fighter dip instead, and scrapping the dire wolf for regular wolf, or going prestige asap? Trying to figure out the exact direction to go mechanically, while maintaining the few specific details needed for story purposes.(half orc, animal companion, acting as party tank, lawful neutral).

Any advise is helpful, and appreciated.

 

[Dandu]

I think you should stick to melee combat; archery is a very resource intensive combat style. I would take TWF, but use a Greatsword and Armor Spikes to TWF with, as Armor Spikes count as an offhand weapon. If you want to trip, you can use a Guisarm (tripping reach weapon) and Armor Spikes in conjunction.

You should definately consider the Horizon Walker prestige class. The Planar terrain masteries are very good. Shifting Plane Mastery, for instance, gives you Dimension Door once every 1d4 rounds - quite a potent ability.

I'd be careful with your dire wolf. At high levels, it might die a bit more often than you'd like.

 

[IWannaPlayLions]

Yeah, it wouldn't likely be kept until epic levels, just as the main companion at entry. How does TWF work with a twohand weapon and a functional offhand such as armor spikes? Is full strength still applied to the main weapon, or does it fall to 1h values? Is there any RAW concerning use of armor spikes as an offhand weapon? I only ask these things, because I get accused of powergaming (I don't, I swear), for doing anything that seems out of place. (You should have seen my dm's reaction when I first unleashed twf fury with my halfling rogue/assassin. A Handful of d6's later, they were not amused, and swore I couldn't have done what I did, though it was standard halfling/rogue twf.)

 

[Dandu]

When you TWF with a two handed weapon, 1.5x your STR bonus is applied to damage with your two handed weapon and 0.5x to damage with your off hand weapon.

Armor spikes are specifically listed as off hand weapons in the armor section of the SRD and PHB. There should be no issue here.

Also, it sounds like your group is composed of total noobs.

 

[IWannaPlayLions]

Not noobs, but females who think mechanical optimization that borders on absurdity is wrong. Also, the DM(my better half), grew up on first and second edition, so many of the tricks, like a dual wielding halfling rogue dropping stupid amounts of sneak attack damage, are new to her. Our druid is a first time dnder, and doesn't realize the damage potential of her druid.

But yeah, to give you a clue on their ideas of power gaming, I got the other DM(we are running a side campaign with the sorcerer's player DMing) to let me play a stock Warlock, and the entire group thinks my character is totally "OP"(Other two characters are a Cleric and a Druid), because "at level 6 you can do 3d6 damage every round, with a guaranteed hit, and you can have 24 hour flight and see invisibility". Attempting to explain how this hardly makes a warlock "OP" was somewhat useless, though they are still letting me play it.

 

[Sekhmet]

>level 6
>3d6 touch attack is OP

Please play a leap attacking, pouncing, charging, shock trooper barbarian / frenzied berserker next game.

 

[Grogg of the North]

In Dragon 326, they presented alternative weapon styles for the ranger. One of them, Strong Arm, focused on THF. Could you ask your DM if you could use that instead of going TWF or Archery?

If you are a bounty hunter, there is the Bloodhound PrC (CAdv), Justicar (CW), Vigilante (CAdv), Consecrated Harrier (CD) and Stalker of Kharash (BoED). Unfortunately, I don't think any of them advance animal companion and most have either their own spell casting or no spell casting at all.

Also, Natural Bond only affects your effective druid level for determining what tricks, HD, and such. Not for determining what animal companion you can get.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Double post.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

If you want to play a ranged combat Ranger who is frequently tanking in melee, I suggest the weapon you use is the Greatspear. 2d6X3 P, RI = 10', Reach = 10. Put 6 in a quiver of Ehlonna, along with a nice selection of javelins and arrows. Throw a couple as you close, and then continue to dish out the damage when in close.

I'd also invest in the Combat expertise feat tree (Stand Still, Deft Opportunist, Hold the Line) to get the most out of a reach weapon and your Dex. Short Haft is nice, but spiked armor will do in a pinch. If one of your buddies has Enlarge Person, so much the better- 3d6 + more reach is nice. Ditto Bull's Strength.

A little dip into Fighter or PsyWar gets you some bonus combat feats; the latter class trades off some BAB for the ability to use Expansion, and not have to worry about Enlarge Person from an ally. A big enough dip, and you can double the power of Expansion.

Monkey Grip is not a great feat, but with this weapon (and potentially, the ability to go big), its basically as good as Power Attack (used at the same penalty to BAB) and has more flavor...and still works with Power Attack. Plus, you'd be able to throw a spear doing 3d6 damage...or more.

 

[Dandu]

Pity you can't turn off Monkey Grip.