Two-handed fighting (not TWF)

[Thurbane]

I agree that two-handed fighting is one of the neglected combat styles in terms of feats and PrCs. Maybe this has been done for balance reasons...

 

[Mercule]

I'm sorry that I don't have any positive suggestions to make, but I just wanted to say that I never expected to see anyone write *that* paragraph! A 2H weapon user feeling outclassed by a swashbuckler! Order the tickertape parade, I say

Cheers

Heh. Yeah, I've heard a lot of people complain about the Swashbuckler being underpowered. Such has not been my experience, but this character is the first Swashbuckler in the campaign so may be a fluke.

The more I come back to this topic, the more I think the whole disparity may be a result of a confluence of circumstances that may result in a perception of inequity, rather that actual fact.

The fighter is actually one half of a multiple-persona character (pretty cool backstory, actually, and something he's wanted to do for years). The other half of the character is a rogue/warlock, but the fighter is supposed to be the primary persona. This is an LA +1 perk, though he's bought it off according to the UA rules. Currently, he's about 1/4 of a level behind the elf (both are 10th) and catching up, but that may contribute to the perception.

Secondly, the warlock is the only sneaky character in the group. That, plus his specific bag of tricks, means the party has been requesting his aid a fair amount. They've got the swashbuckler, a druid, and a ranger archer, so they are pretty combat heavy. Spider climb, invisibility, and trapfinding have been insanely invaluable, by comparison. So, the fighter nets less damage in the long run, due to absence.

Because of his frequent absence, most of the group's "combinations" and buffs involve the elf. For, example, she's the one that gets bark skin on her in every combat.

On top of everything else, this means that -- when he actually gets a chance -- the fighter often joins into combat with no armor whatsoever. Even considering the extra 25-30 hps the fighter has, he's still out of action much quicker than the elf. He's naked (plus class-based AC), and she can push her AC close to 30, if she needs to.

Pretty much everytime the fighter engages, though, he does get some insane damage. In every major battle where the fighter has engaged, even nekkid, he has made a battle-defining attack.

 

[moritheil]

So the fighter is losing out on total damage because his nudist tendencies prevent him from staying in the fight. That's . . . really not what I would have guessed.