Rasslin'- D&D Style!

[Dremen]

For the Mk 4 / Ft 2 1/2 orc.

I would nix the EXPERT TACTICIAN feat unless you have UnBALANCING STRIKE. Its not good enough on its own for this chaaracter.

Note earths embrace works like this. When you get a pin all your damage is doubled (same as crit damage. If you crit it is even better) and it can work with choke hold.

For this Character I'd take Improved CdG. Lets you finish off opponents with a standard action not full round. Can remenber the prereqs. Take this instead of expert tac.

I'd pick up Weapon focus unarmed and power attack, or power attack and cleave.

For magic, I'd get +1 protection stuff, monks belt, and a +1 quarter staff (for DR, you can use this and get your favorable # of attacks, its large, and you don't need 2 of them like eother monks weapons)

Also some thing that allows you to use fireshield. Great for grappling. Maybe a ring that casts it x/day.

Note extra movement will help you in combat. Walk slower to keep your companions with you, but in combat you have more options with more speed. You can also assist your buddies better.

-D

 

[drdevoid]

Improved Coup de Grace & then some

Dremen,

Nice. First things first, though. Does anybody have any good Mexican Wrestler style names for this guy? I have quite a few background ideas for the Crusty "Ole Thorny" guy (Rog/Rgr/Brb). He once ran a traveling grappling show as a con in the sticks picking off easy targets with all manners of scams. Ostracized in the outskirts and unsure he could make in the high-falutin' (Spelling? Hooked-on-Phonics works for me!) city and was forced to learn to use his grappling ability in the wild and try to make it through the rough winter. He emerged as a hearty woodsman now with the savvy and cunning that makes him so dangerous. Anyway, I played around with his 87 skill points and got almost every non-magic related synergy bonus in the book. That was fun.

I keep thinking of wrestling teams for these guys to face. In my mind I keep going back to the team of Gnomeling & Bear. The Gnomeling (House Rule race ECL +1) is a Sor/Rog using Illusions and cantrips to annoy, confuse and tire the opponent getting a sneak attack jab or three. He cheats by tagging out to a Halfling Rogue and Gnome Monk. The bear just does what comes all natural-like.

Okay, quick questions regarding this feat (or the main event, as it were):

Which supplement is this from?
Does the Coup de Grace still provoke attacks of opportunity from adjacent foes?
It changes a CdG from a full round to a MEA, right?

So the tactics would be:

If stunned, use for an instant critical hit. If pinned, use choke hold. If the opponent fails the save, use Improved CdG for triple damage. Is that right? Could you use a power attack with that? Probably not, since you aren't rolling to attack. Hmm, I can't decide if I'd go with a vicious head butt, a body slam or something else. . .

As for equipment, I like the quarter staff as bo. One doesn't get the unarmed attack bonus using though, does one? It only mentions the favorable number of attacks for the monk's light weapons. Is that from the erratta or changed in OA? And if used as a double weapon, one suffers a -4 on hand, -8 off hand penalty, right? This one is more confusing, I'm not sure I understand the meaning of "other than a monk special weapon." (PHb p. 39) The quarterstaff isn't an exotic weapon, it's simple which most classes have, and it isn't light.

Okay, how about Improved CdG, Power Attack, and Close Quarters Fighting (or Clever Wrestling). I'd hate to be powerless against creatures with improved grab or ones that are large.

Finally, I just wanted to mention that I'm not dissing the monk class with my sigh over Still Mind and Slow Fall. I think a 7th monk is really amazing and would play one straight easy. The 3rd and 4th level abilities certainly are handy too, I'm just min/maxing ridiculously. (I can hear the courses of "Duh" from here. Thanks.)

 

[Saeviomagy]

I wouldn't bother with power attack, because I don't believe you can use it while grappling (can anyone tell me different?)

 

[drdevoid]

Magic Items, Barbarians & more

Does anybody understand how to do the pricing for those Bracers in Magic of Faerun that grant improved unarmed strike and can have weapon abilities placed on them. For example, how much would it cost for the Disarming (+2 equiv) ability? It's gotta be expensive but it's not over 25K, is it? There's this line about it being triple the ability cost but then it says something about doubling. If they aren't prohibitive a pair of those and a monk's belt and "Ole Thorny" would be dynamite. If I switched the standard clothing item around I could have gloves of strength (Gauntlets seem too silly to me when unarmored) and bracers of dexterity. I'd like to create an item for wrestling boots; either one that grants Improved Trip and/or +2 to trip attack when grappling or one's that grant a stability bonus against a trip when grappled. What do you think?

How about the other Barbarian variants I did? Victim had mention Heroes of High Favor: Half-Orcs (Badaxe Games), but no one has it in stock around here. Can anybody tell me what would work with the whole grappler idea (or the ex-monk/barbarian). Should I try taking Extra Rage (MotW) and use the feats from Wrath and Rage (Green Ronin) that let you trade a rage attempt for an ability for a round? There's one that grants Great Cleave and the next one on that chain grants Whirlwind Attack. Does anybody think they should extend this kind of thing to stunning fist (improved stunning fist)? Burn a stunning fist attempt to up the DC, double the rounds the opponent is stunned, or increase the modifiers from being stunned? I think Technik4 was doing something like this over in house rules . . .