Request for help: picking feats

[Hannibal Barca]

Member

Registered: Jan 2002
Location: Somerville, MA
Posts: 106
I keep hearing references to Close Quarters Fighting, and I'm surprised I don't know of it. Where is it from and what does it do?

-The Souljourner


Sword and the Fist. It allows an opprtunity attack against improved grab with damage from the successful opportunity attack added to your opposed roll against the grapple.

 

[Spatzimaus]

You absolutely need Power Attack.

Frankly, I think every fighter needs Power Attack, Expertise, Improved Initiative, and Combat Reflexes. Or, at least as many of those as his stats allow.

You just can't compare these with other Feats. It's really insane.

Power Attack: you'll have plenty of extra attack bonus once you get to high levels. ACs just don't scale up as fast as attack bonuses, in my experience, even when your target is another tank. On the other hand, you'll NEED the extra damage to counteract the ever-increasing HP totals.
This also leads to the ever-popular Cleave.

Expertise: you'll have plenty of extra attack bonus, and if you're the tank of the group you NEED your AC to scale up as fast as your attack bonus. See the trend? I'd get Power Attack first, though.

Combat Reflexes: For some fighters this isn't as important, but I've found this Feat pays for itself even if you only get ONE extra AoO out of it. There are too many times when I've run up against a caster who thinks "ha ha, he used his AoO on that other guy, I'll be safe casting now!"...WHAP...fizzle
Of course, my main fighter-type person uses a reach weapon, so I get a lot of movement AoOs. But the principle holds.

Improved Initiative: You just can't realize how good this is until you see it in action. If you're in a group and you always wait for the Mass Haste then sure, it's not quite as strong, unless you're the one casting the Mass Haste. But solo?
If I'm fighting Bob, and we have equal Initiative modifiers, I have a 47.5% chance of winning the roll, he has a 47.5% chance of winning the roll, and there's a 5% chance of tie.
If I take Improved Initiative, I now have a 66% chance of winning, he has a 30% chance of winning, and there's a 4% chance of tie.
Those aren't the sort of odds you want to be on the short side of.

 

[Pazu]

Chun-Tzu: Thanks for the ref on Spell Girding. I don't have MoF, but maybe I can borrow a copy from someone. Where does the Elven Thinblade come from?

Spatzimaus: It's starting to look like the good old basic feats from the PHB may be the best investment compared to the fancy new ones in OA and the class books. Expertise is definitely there already (required for the character), and I figure Power Attack is a no-brainer because of his high BAB (and his eventual ability to cast True Strike). Looks like Combat Reflexes is a big winner for lots of folks.

Thanks, folks.

-- Pazu

 

[Chun-tzu]

Pazu, the Elven Thinblade is from Dragon magazine, #275. It's a medium piercing weapon that does 1d8, and crits on an 18-20 for triple damage. It's also finessable.

As if you didn't have enough feats to choose from!

 

[Darklone]

I'd take Dodge at first level and Combat Casting at third. Seems to me a +2 to AC is more useful to a first level character than a better chance at casting cantrips in battle, but YMMV.

Did I overlook some official errata?

Since when gives Dodge a +2 to AC?

 

[Chun-tzu]

Did I overlook some official errata?

Since when gives Dodge a +2 to AC?

Oops! I must have been thinking of Off-Hand Parry and Twin-Sword Style. Dodge gives +1.