request: good feats for 6th level human paly

[Kat']

Plus I strongly doubt that a paladin taking levels in Exotic Weapon Master would be, uh, optimized...

 

[phindar]

Consider that you could have just used a greatsword "for free", and then you realize you're paying two feats for +2 damage. Is it still worth it?

Cheers, -- N

Well, I said "ain't all that bad", not "worth it". Wielding a Monkey Grip Bastard Sword one handed at -2 is pretty much the same as wielding a normal Bastard Sword two handed and using 2 pts of Power Attack. You always have a -2 to hit, you get about 4 or 5 points of damage out of it on average, and you can still use a shield. Its sub-optimal, but its what I like to call "high sub-optimal". Or, almost worth it.

 

[Darklone]

Plus I strongly doubt that a paladin taking levels in Exotic Weapon Master would be, uh, optimized...

You need only one level and these builds don't reach high paladin levels anyhow due to LA stacking.

 

[Aleolus]

Here are some, if your DM is willing to allow Incarnum.

Shape Soulmeld (Armguards of Disruption)
Prerequisite: Con 13 or higher.
You can shape the soulmeld Armguards of Disruption, which grants a touch attack which deals 1d6 damage to undead creatures, usable once per round. If you have and invest essentia into it, it increases the damage dealt by 1d6 per point of essentia.

Bonus Essentia: 2 points of essentia, since you can shape soulmelds, which you can invest as you want.

Sapphire Smite: By investing essentia into this feat, you gain both extra uses of your Smite class ability and extra damage on your Smites, both equal to the essentia invested into it. Also gives one point of essentia.

Then you put two points into your Sapphire Smite, which gives you a total of 4 Smite Evils per day and +8 (total, +6 from levels, +2 from the essentia in the feat) on Smite damage rolls, and the other one into the Armguards of Disruption, increasing it to a 2d6 touch attack, which only affects undead. Once you hit level 12, you also might want to consider taking Open Lesser Chakra, and selecting your Arms chakra. By sacrificing the ability to wear magical bracers, you can bind the Armguards of Disruption to your Arms chakra, giving you an Insight bonus to your AC equal to the amount of essentia invested in the soulmeld. Selecting the arms with that feat also grants you a +2 insight bonus on grapple checks, as a side bonus.

 

[Nifft]

Well, I said "ain't all that bad", not "worth it". Wielding a Monkey Grip Bastard Sword one handed at -2 is pretty much the same as wielding a normal Bastard Sword two handed and using 2 pts of Power Attack. You always have a -2 to hit, you get about 4 or 5 points of damage out of it on average, and you can still use a shield. Its sub-optimal, but its what I like to call "high sub-optimal". Or, almost worth it.

Average damage on 2d8 = 9.0; average damage on 1d10 = 5.5.

You're trading -2 to hit for +3.5 average damage, which is less than you'd get for the same trade using two-handed power attack.

Getting +5 points of damage would indeed be worth -2 to attack (as instantiated here).

Cheers, -- N

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

I would also suggest that Improved Critical with either Falchion or Rapier works rather well. There is a nice bit of synergy with both Bless Weapon and Divine Might.

 

[Aleolus]

Extra Smiting just doesn't seem too useful to me, but then again I generally ignore the paladin's smite ability because you only get like 1 or 2 - and you can use them both on a full attack and miss twice and they're wasted. Sure, you eventually get up to 5, but there are so FEW that you're always just saving them for the BBEG anyway. Extra Smiting uses a precious feat slot and doesn't even solve the problem. Yeah, smites = oh wait, there's that one other character option I forgot about... (Seriously, they need to make smiting X/encounter - it wouldn't hurt anything and it would actually make it useful. And it roughly scales with your full attack action anyway...)

Which is why you go with Sapphire Smite instead. For one feat slot, you can get up to three or four extra Smites, plus bonuses on damage rolls! Of course, you have to find different ways to get essentia, but that's what the Incarnum feats are for, almost every one of them gives a point of essentia, and you can dump most of them into Sapphire Smite!

 

[pressedcat]

I agree that the PHBII alternate class feature is great for a paladin. (Not a feat, but great.)

Extra Smiting just doesn't seem too useful to me, but then again I generally ignore the paladin's smite ability because you only get like 1 or 2 - and you can use them both on a full attack and miss twice and they're wasted.

I think you're grossly underestimating the potential of smiting here.

First a question: do you have the spell compendium, and if so, have you not read the description of the 1st level spell rhino rush?

Coupled with the charging smite alternative class ability this can be truly scary (and as a bonus if you miss on a charging smite attack, the smite is not used).

With divine damage and power attack on a rhino rushed charging smite, you can do nuts amounts of damage:

Lvl 6 paladin, +1 greatsword, str 16, cha 20 with charging smite ability can do on a charge vs evil critter whilst pa for max of

(2d6 +5 from greatsword + 12 from pa + 5 from divine might + 18 from charging smite)x2 from rhino rush = average of 94pts of damage, and with the charge and smite, you are at +1 to hit over a normal attack. And at lvl 6 these items/stats are really pretty low unless you are under wealth and have noone buffing the party.

Granted you wont be doing this all day, but against a scary opponent this can really turn the battle.

Oh and another vote for the repairing ability damage feat.

Doh, didn't spot second page so apologies if i'm just repeating other people :\

 

[Sitara]

Hmm can someone put up charging smite here?

 

[evilbob]

Granted you wont be doing this all day, but against a scary opponent this can really turn the battle.

I appreciate your point there. I think 20 Cha is pretty impressive for a level 6 paly, but with eagle's splendor it's certainly within range. And that's a mighty insane hit for a level 6 character.

Personally - and this is just my own style, I guess - I still value things that can be done all day long far greater than 1-shots or things you can only do a very limited number of times per day. To me, once a day 94 damage is still < good average damage all day long. Sure, it's great against the boss, but otherwise you still need the staying power to get to the boss or else it doesn't matter much. And you could always miss. But all of this is really a side-discussion; the alternate class feature combined with that spell are certainly a good combo. And thanks for the feat thought as well!