D&D 4E 4e Tiefling Battlemind

[Andor]

I'm not convinced you're getting all that much extra damage out of the combo. Unless I'm missing something, you need three hits within a turn cycle (from the start of your turn to the end of your next turn) in order for Headsman's Chop to do anything for you (barring extra help from your party), and the 2nd and 3rd hits can't allow an enemy turn in-between (or they just stand up). In other words, you're not really getting control and damage on every hit--you're getting control or damage, and the damage doesn't happen until you've invested enough control. And to get there, you're giving up a shield, forcing yourself to take two Expertise feats or Versatile Expertise (giving up the riders from Flail Expertise and Heavy Blade Expertise), and forcing yourself to maintain enchantments on two weapons.

True, but I figure the redeeming power is Lightning Rush. The turn cycle really runs from the end of my last turn until the end of this one, and lightning rush +2 pp means I will often get an attack before my turn starts. Then they are slowed or prone and vulnerable. And of course Brutal Barrage is a 3 to 4 hit attack chain all on it's own.

At that point, I think you'd be better off with Mark of Storm + Rushing Cleats + Polearm Momentum + Headsman's Chop with a Lightning Gouge. Now you're able to prone on any hit, you gain a lot of positioning control from slide 2 on any hit, and your base weapon damage is 2d6 (brutal 1) instead of 1d8 (brutal 1). It's about the same investment, but it's actually giving you both control and damage on every hit instead of only giving you one or the other.

"Side-by-side" analysis I wrote out to help form the opinions stated above:
Turathi Weapon Training + Net Training + Versatile Expertise + World Serpent's Grasp + Headsman's Chop + Heavy Blade Opportunist
Mark of Storms + Gouge Proficiency + Spear Expertise + Polearm Momentum + Headsman's Chop + Melee Training

Both need the same number of feats to get going. Net/Khopesh combo has the advantage of using at-wills on OAs, but lacks a useful MBA to use with stuff like charging, leader-granted attacks, Strikebacks, etc. It's also either expensive to maintain or giving up accuracy and damage from enhancement bonuses due to the need to maintain two magical weapons. Gouge combo has higher base damage, easier access to the Headsman's Chop payoff, and is easier to expand on with further feats (since everything I take applies to my single weapon), but is more reliant on specific magic items (Rushing Cleats and Lightning weapon). Can free up the weapon enhancement by being Stormsoul Genasi and investing another feat for Shocking Flame, which is definitely the way to go if looking at Frost or Radiant abuse on top of the prone exploitation.

Mark of Storms is fine, if we're playing in Eberron, which I don't think we are. I would never take a Mark outside of an Eberron campaign and I'm pretty sure my GM wouldn't let me if I tried. Also Polearm Momentum requires MCing to Fighter which is another feat.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to drop the net for a shield (not that I can wield one with a Gouge ) I just find all that control very, very tempting. As I see it there are really only 2 roles in 4e. Striker and Damage mitigation. Defenders, Controllers, and Leaders are all on damage mitigation duty, and it doesn't really matter if they blur which way they do it so long as they are doing their job.

And that net is a lot of control. Still, it's not nearly as great as I thought it was if it doesn't work with Concussive Spike. Although bizarrely enough Polearm Momentum does work with it. Yikes, Concussive Spike + Polarm Momentum + Cha 12 means push 2 and prone everything in a close blast 3 at will. I may have just talked myself into it. Although HBO is so very good that I wonder if a glaive isn't better than a gouge, especially since my Paragon damage will be coming from Brutal Barrage which cares not for your [W] die.