Paladin/Battlemind Help

[Salukiknight]

In terms of a "role" defender of course.

Beyond that, the characters father is a dwarven battlerager (not 3.5, think Pwent Thibbledorf), in fact he leads a unit of them. The father and his unit are rather famous. This guy has recently completed a tour of duty with the clan, and is setting out in an attempt to prove himself to be more than just the son of some legend. Thus, he starkly differs from the father in combat by measuring success not by the amount of enemies slain, but the health of his comrades.

 

[Arctic Wolf]

In terms of a "role" defender of course.

Beyond that, the characters father is a dwarven battlerager (not 3.5, think Pwent Thibbledorf), in fact he leads a unit of them. The father and his unit are rather famous. This guy has recently completed a tour of duty with the clan, and is setting out in an attempt to prove himself to be more than just the son of some legend. Thus, he starkly differs from the father in combat by measuring success not by the amount of enemies slain, but the health of his comrades.

Hmm, if you put it like that then maybe you should get the plate armor in a different feat other than the hybrid one. It seems like you should either get Divine Mettle, that way your allies can get a free saving throw and this is based off wanting to keep his allies alive plus you have a nice cha mod to aid in this. Also since he is trying to prove himself to be just as capable as his famous father, Speed of Thought sounds good too since he would want to rush in there and get the enemies attention. What do you think of my opinions? meow

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Yeah- given the options, take the armor prof to get the Plate.

Speed of thought would let YOU choose where to engage foes, which affects a cascade of options.

Divine Mettle could make you very popular if your party faces a lot of foes that hav nasty "save ends" effects. I've been in enough encounters in which failed saves just debilitated the party's ability to fight.

 

[Salukiknight]

You both make very valid points! I'll have to reassess those options!
This is exactly why I posted here, cause someone is going to think differently! I appreciate the help!

 

[Salukiknight]

OH.

This just in. Armor Proficiency Plate REQUIRES 15 str & con.
I can't give up either of my 3 primary stats (con, wis, cha) to meet that.
So technically, Paladin Armor Prof is my only method of getting plate.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

That WOULD be a valid reason to take it as a Hybrid Talent, then.

Another feat that might matter depending on how many Melee Basic Attacks you make: Melee Training PHB2 p187/HotFL p316: Choose ability other than Str- make MBAs w/proficient weapon using that stat's bonus for Att rolls & 1/2 bonus for damage.

Use Con, and that feat has just effectively given you a +3 to your MBAs and you'll do +2 damage instead of +1.

This will help with all OAs, and any bonus attacks granted by your allies.

 

[Salukiknight]

I had definitely thought about that one too

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I wouldn't take it until I knew more about the party I was adventuring with. Classes that give out MBAs aren't truly common. However, as a defender, your PC should probably be in position to do a fair number of MBAs by virtue of his own abilities & positioning.

However, I'll just say this one last time: even though it looks like HT is your only path to Plate armor, I would seriously think about whether THAT armor will be what defines your PC, or whether one of the other HT Encounter powers would make you more effective. While I am a long standing and vocal proponent of PCs with good defenses, sometimes the other abilities bring a bit more dynamism, flavor, fun, and even group acceptance to the character.

In addition, I have to say after a couple years of 4Ed play, I have to say I also have a preference for accumulating powers. IME, Encounter powers are your biggest bang for the buck, and any feat that gets you one is a blessing. It's not that they are necessarily the best powers, but generally speaking, they are where most of your tactical combat options lie. Once they're gone, battle becomes a slog of using your At-Wills and basic attacks.

PS: check your Battlemind stuff carefully to see which are your best options for Augmentable At-Wills, and see if any of the feats that grant you extra PP are of any use to you.

 

[GreyICE]

Ugh.

I hate the combination so much. I don't even get the RP behind it. Did the battlemind suddenly discover god? The holy crusader develop psionics?

I will say you're going to have a hard time making a class out of that. Especially a defender. Battleminds are notorious for low damage, with nerfed melee training, and paladins are notorious for mediocre mark punishment without going strength.

I honestly think unless your heart is set on this you should go pure paladin, or pick an easier class than battlemind. There's a difference between 'non-optimized' and 'not doing anything' and a battlemind|paladin risks doing nothing very badly.

At least hybrid with an ardent or something. It wont be optimized, but at least you won't be at war with your own stat array.

 

[Salukiknight]

Ok GreyIce, I see what you're getting at. I've been wondering how the straight paladin would feels intead of the BM mix. So would you help me explore that?

Actual Stat block is

13
16
11
11
14
15

Dwarf gives me +2 con, and the other +2 (by Faerun rules) I can float to str or wis. +1 x2 from level 4. So what would you recommend?

STR 19
CON 18
DEX 11
INT 11
WIS 13
CHA 14

Thats my first though, Dwarf as +2 str & con. Giving both con & str a point.