The half-orc chainfighter archetype?

[Dykstrav]

The elven archer that unleashes a storm of arrows upon his foes. The grizzled dwarven fighter that wades into the front ranks, battleaxe swinging. The halfling sneak that the ogres never see coming- until his daggers are deep in their backs.

The half-orc chainfighter?

I've noticed that many of the common builds have a basis in literature, popular fiction, mythology or legends, favorite TV shows or video games. This doesn't seem to be the case with the emergent archetype of the half-orc barbarian/fighter that has specialized in the spiked chain.

Rules-mongering and the dreaded concept of "balance" aside, does this archetype have any basis in anything before 3E Dungeons & Dragons? What caused this arcetype to emerge?

 

[mmu1]

The elven archer that unleashes a storm of arrows upon his foes. The grizzled dwarven fighter that wades into the front ranks, battleaxe swinging. The halfling sneak that the ogres never see coming- until his daggers are deep in their backs.

The half-orc chainfighter?

I've noticed that many of the common builds have a basis in literature, popular fiction, mythology or legends, favorite TV shows or video games. This doesn't seem to be the case with the emergent archetype of the half-orc barbarian/fighter that has specialized in the spiked chain.

Rules-mongering and the dreaded concept of "balance" aside, does this archetype have any basis in anything before 3E Dungeons & Dragons? What caused this arcetype to emerge?

Well... You can't really sweep the "rule-mongering" aside - it's a powergaming build, pure and simple. High strength characters are very good at tripping, and that's all there really is to it.

 

[Klaus]

What archetype? The most common half-orc build is the barbarian greataxe wielder.

 

[CRGreathouse]

Wha...? I've never seen a half-orc use a spiked chain before. The few spiked chain wielders in my campaign have all been human.

 

[Dykstrav]

So it'd seem that this is a local phenomenon? That's what I thought when I was living in Cali, but when I moved to NC I saw the same builds.

Generally, the character in question starts as a barbarian, takes 4 levels of fighter (for Weapon Specialization) and then either continues as a barbarian or starts picking up levels of rogue to get sneak attack. I do tend to think the situation is motivated by rules, as the players have talked about gaining abilities more than their characters being motivated to check out these classes.

I've only seen two half-orc greataxe wielders over the course of 3E and 3.5. I've seen far more spiked chain half-orcs (at least sixteen that I can remember off the top of my head). I am willing to concede that maybe it's purely local, but I don't think it is. The fact that there's even a half-orc chainfighter miniature leads me to believe it's a reasonably popular build.

 

[Nifft]

It seems to me that most chain builds are feat-intensive, so Human Barbarians would be a popular choice. The other choice I've seen is a Warforged Fighter chain-guy.

Half-orcs and half-elves are vastly unpopular. As are gnomes & halflings. Basically, it's lots of Humans, a few Dwarves & Warforged and an occasional Elf.

Cheers, -- N

 

[pbd]

The elven archer that unleashes a storm of arrows upon his foes. The grizzled dwarven fighter that wades into the front ranks, battleaxe swinging. The halfling sneak that the ogres never see coming- until his daggers are deep in their backs.

The half-orc chainfighter?

I've noticed that many of the common builds have a basis in literature, popular fiction, mythology or legends, favorite TV shows or video games. This doesn't seem to be the case with the emergent archetype of the half-orc barbarian/fighter that has specialized in the spiked chain.

Rules-mongering and the dreaded concept of "balance" aside, does this archetype have any basis in anything before 3E Dungeons & Dragons? What caused this arcetype to emerge?

Well considering the spiked-chain is more or less an artifact of 3rd Ed DnD, it can't really have a basis from before...

 

[Crust]

I see your point. There's the mini, and there's that awesome pic in Complete Warrior of the orcish duo messin' up a hag, the one with the axe, the other with the chains. It's there.

One of my players runs a half-orc chainfighter, currently a fighter 6 I believe. He makes great use of combat reflexes and improved trip.

 

[Joshua Randall]

that awesome pic in Complete Warrior of the orcish duo messin' up a hag, the one with the axe, the other with the chains.

That's what I immediately thought of when I saw this thread. I wouldn't be surprised if that piece of artwork inspired a certain build, in a similar manner to how Legolas as portrayed in the LotR movies inspired the (modern) elf archer build.

 

[blargney the second]

Goblinoid chainfighters are an Eberron staple. It was the preferred weapon of the Dhakaani hobgoblin empire.