Epic Fighter question: engaging mooks

[Cheiromancer]

Suppose this is the situation: you are a 30th level fighter and there is a horde of relatively low level opponents between you and the BBEG about 60 feet away (no more than 4 hit dice each). You want to get to him in a round or two. What feats would best enable you to get past the mooks?

Assume that an epic globe of invulnerability kind of effect is blanketing the area, and is suppressing all new spells and spell-like abilities. You can't drink a potion of haste or activate a cape of the mountebank, nor can the party wizard use some neat teleportation type spell to rearrange the battle-field. In fact, a house-ruled disjunction has wiped out your temporary buffs (the house rule is that magic items get a big bonus to their saves- all your important gear survived). It is up to your martial ability (represented by feats, ability scores and BAB, and always-on magic items) to cross the battle-field and engage the BBEG before it is too late.

What's the best way of doing this? Is there a bull-rush build that would allow you to toss the mooks out of the way like bowling pins? Is there some kind of cleaving feat chain that lets you hack through 60 feet of armed opposition in a round or two?

How would you build a level 30 fighter that could do this?

 

[the Jester]

I think what you're actually looking for is a massive overrun of some kind.

Sounds perfect for some new, customized epic feats.

 

[Rhun]

Hell, by level 30 you should be able to make a jump check and clear the hoard of mooks, I would think.

 

[szilard]

Can the Fighter fly?

If not, max out Jump. +33. Strength of 36. +46. Boots of Swiftness. +78.

Jump over the mooks.

Ideally, there should be a feat (built off of Improved Overrun and, perhaps, Whirlwind Attack) that allows you to attempt to overrun all opponents in your path.

-Stuart

 

[FireLance]

Do you actually need to fight your way through the mooks?

If not, jumping 60 feet requires a DC 60 Jump check after a running start. A 30th-level fighter could have up to 33 ranks in Jump. If he has a Strength of 26, that's another +8 bonus. If he has the Run feat, he gets another +4 to Jump checks after a running start. With the Epic Speed epic feat, his speed increases by 30 feet, so that's another +12 bonus. Finally, the Legendary Leaper epic feat allows him to make a running jump after moving only 5 feet. Add in Skill Focus (Jump) and Epic Skill Focus (Jump), and he can easily jump over the mooks and land next to the BBEG.

If you actually do have to fight through the mooks, your best bet is probably to use the Penetrating Shot (PHB2) feat, which allows you to attack and deal damage to all enemies in a 60-foot line as a standard action with a projectile weapon. Assuming you have a +7 composite longbow that allows you to add your Strength bonus to damage (assume 26 Strength), and you have Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Specialization, Ranged Weapon Mastery (PHB2) and Epic Weapon Specialization, you will do 1d8+25 points of damage to each enemy you hit (extra damage, such as from a sneak attack is only applied once, to the first creature you hit). Hopefully, this will be enough to clear a path to the BBEG.

 

[pawsplay]

Define "horde." A 30th level character could easily cleave five or six guys a round.

Also, there is probably a way to weasel a good Tumble check by that level.

 

[DM_Matt]

Define "horde." A 30th level character could easily cleave five or six guys a round.

Also, there is probably a way to weasel a good Tumble check by that level.

Sometihng to boost your speed a lot plus dervish dance plus great cleave (at high elvles, comes with the dance) plus robilar's gambit if necessary.

 

[Quartz]

How are the mooks modelled?

If the mooks are modelled as individuals, then Cleave with Great Cleave and Combat Reflexes, and feats which allow you extra movement. Add in a modicum of Power Attack and you'll drop one every hit and you'll have a huge number of hits.

If the mooks are modelled as a swarm or mob, then Power Atack for all your worth.

 

[Endur]

Power Attack and Great Cleave will take out all adjacent mooks even without any magic. Supreme Cleave lets you take a five foot step and keep on cleaving.

You could do a Xena and run or jump from the head of one mook to the next mook.

 

[Cheiromancer]

Does Supreme Cleave let you take more than one five foot step? Or only one?

Anyone know of a Great Overrun feat? One that lets you overrun more than one opponent?

Great ideas, everyone- many thanks.