What feats are ESSENTIAL

[Plane Sailing]

There have been three fighters in my campaign to date, and NONE of them took weapon focus and weapon spec. They have all gone for multi-purpose feats. One was following a two-weapon fighting chain (mismatched weapons), one took the whirlwind chain, another took the cleave chain and then one of the expertise chains.

Bottom line? No feat is essential to all fighters.

After all, one of the considerations for creating feats is that if it is so good that everyone would take it, it is too powerful. Clearly the existing PHB feats all take that nicely into consideration.

 

[Scarab]

Knockdown
+Expert Tactician
=Free Attack, and your opponent is prone (throw in a few rogue levels for optimum effect).
Expert Tactician is a great feat. Not only because of the KD+ET loophole, but also because if you act first you get a free attack against flatfooted opponents. You get free attacks against stunned opponents, held opponents, etc. etc. etc.

Common misconception -- you don't get a free attack against prone opponents. You don't lose your dex bonus while prone.

 

[reveal]

I would say Expert Tactician is a really good feat to have. But if you are going to have it, I would also recommend pumping up that Bluff skill as much as possible. Here's why:

Feinting in combat is a standard action that does not provoke an AoO. Let's say you are a fighter standing toe to toe with an opponent and you have an axe.

You swing with your axe (a partial action) and then make a Bluff check (a standard action). You suceed and, because you do, your opponent looses their Dex bonus. And because they do, and you have the Expert Tactician feat, you AUTOMATICALLY get a second attack for free.

 

[Crothian]

I would say Expert Tactician is a really good feat to have. But if you are going to have it, I would also recommend pumping up that Bluff skill as much as possible. Here's why:

Feinting in combat is a standard action that does not provoke an AoO. Let's say you are a fighter standing toe to toe with an opponent and you have an axe.

You swing with your axe (a partial action) and then make a Bluff check (a standard action). You suceed and, because you do, your opponent looses their Dex bonus. And because they do, and you have the Expert Tactician feat, you AUTOMATICALLY get a second attack for free.

Attacking is a Standard action, so unless your hasted or otherwising getting an additional partial action you cannot fient and attack the same round.

I'll chime in that no feat is essential. The closest would be alertness. For fighter, cleric, wizards, and sorcerers that's like 4 levels of free skill points dedicated to those two skills (each skill is cross class, each +1 would take 2 skill points or one level for these classes). It's not perfect, and not everyone truely needs it but it is one of the more commone feats I see. Improved Iniative is the other really common feat I see.

 

[Magic Rub]

I'm fond of Spring attack & combat reflex

 

[WillieW]

What feats are essential for a high level fighter -- that is, without them he would be handicapped and underpowered?

The two feats he walks around on are pretty important.

I'm sorry.

I couldn't resist.

I'll get back in my box.

 

[Henry]

I share the opinion that no one feat is the most needed - not even Wpn Focus/spn. spec.

Thanks to the multiple types of fighters possible, you could make a "weapon master" type fighter (expertise, improved disarm, improved trip, point-blank shot, far shot, etc.) who is a master of any weapon he can pick up. By not taking feats that rely on a specific weapon, he can be equally effective no matter WHAT he is equipped with. (A gladiator-type, or mercenacy-type who has always had to think on his feet, would work well with this concept.)

Alternately, you could be a mounted knight, with every mounted feat known to man or elf, who is merely an average fighter when off his mount. A wardog-riding halfling is perfect for this part.

Or, take one level in monk, and spend the rest of your feats improving the deadliness of your unarmed prowess. wpn focus/wpn spec/expertise/power attack/imp. disarm/improved trip/improved ovverrun/mobility/spring attack/improved crit/ etc. will turn you into quite the nasty fighter. Make friends with a druid who can enchant your hands, and you become a female human monk who is the nastiest form of Hell on two feet that never defiled herself with a killing instument of man.

There are no "must have" fighter feats - only feats you must have to fill a certain concept.

 

[IceBear]

Attacking is a Standard action, so unless your hasted or otherwising getting an additional partial action you cannot fient and attack the same round.

I have to agree. It looks like the original poster was playing Expert Tactician wrong.

IceBear

 

[reveal]

I have to agree. It looks like the original poster was playing Expert Tactician wrong.

IceBear

Not really. I don't have the feat. But I didn't realize you could not take a Standard Action and a Partial Action in the same round.

 

[Voadam]

You can do a standard action with a move or a move equivalent action. A partial action is a standard action (such as an attack) without a move but can only be done under certain circumstances (slowed, as a bonus when hasted, readying an action). A standard or a partial action can be done as a move equivalent action but not the other way around. You can't get two attacks without haste or using a full attack action.