For My $$
For my money, its the straight classed Barbarian. Human or Dwarf. Toss out all the non-core races and really all the itenerant non-core crapola. Non core stuff is fun and all for some folks but really I guess I'm not one of them. To me choosing a monster race would be cheating anyhow.
If your human barbarian at 10th level with 5 feats go 1st: Dodge, Mobility, 3rd. Power Attack, 6th Spring Attack; 9th Combat Expertise (Eventually Building to Wirlwind Attack) you are officially sick and wrong.
Yes it can be got a LOT faster by taking a level or two of fighter but you get behind on other cool facets of barbarism: Damage Reduction 2/--, Trap Sense +3 (big help here), Improved uncanny Dodge so you cannot be flanked and 3 rages per day. Your' one level away from greater rage meaning you get very fat will save buffs when your raged, and lets face it you can practically be raged all the time.
Use the two handed weapons and 2 handed reach weapons with spring attack + power attack and those big muscular ogres and half-orcs become big muscular piles of flayed beef because they cant take that AOO on you after you spring them with an attack radius of 50 ft.
50 ft. keeps you safely out of the threat of tripping and tangling by mr. chain fighter as well.
Enemies have to charge you to hit you giving YOU the AOO on them because of reach (which is like getting an extra attack that you lost from using spring attack in the first place, but with your full attack bonus). I've done barbarians and fighter barbarians like this for years. Carry some throwing axes or javelins in case you encounter flying opponents and your golden.
Fighters could technically do the same thing but they can't rage. They can't rage and have that rage stack with bulls strength too. Yup, they can't take cheap advantage of an easy +8 bonus to strength. They don't move 10ft per round faster than other beings of similar race (or 20 ft. faster with haste or some magical speed enhancing item). The fighter with all the same or similar feats falls to the same trap that the big hulk ogre or half orc falls to. Death by pinball.
They can hold action and wait to attack you when you spring in and thats about it. They can even try to sunder said reach weapon or disarm. Good luck vs a much superior (even if temporary) strength.
Now the dwarf build is as sick or sicker for the same reasons. Loses a feat but the dwarf barbarian goes with the power attack/cleave/greatcleave iron will build anyhow. A friend plays the dwarf barbarian build and its given me pause to think how sick and broken such characters can be. Con bonus for being a dwarf means that D12 is very MIGHTY for hit points per level. Assuming a meager 18 con with bonus that means 40 bonus hps at level 10. Even with bad die rolls an avg of 100 hps at lvl 10 is nothing to sneeze at. We all know with all of its 3.5'ness D&D characters of 10th level often have a con item giving them a minimum of +2 con which amps up the bonus HPS even more. When raged you get to tack on 20 more hit points which doesn't suck. Ever.
Bonus saves vs. magic. Bonuses for their size vs. giants and other critters. All bonuses to drop into power attack and still maintain a fresh attack bonus. Bonuses vs. poison. Basically this type of character with a high wisdom is never really going to fail saving throws once they get to 13th level. Worried about save or die will saves? Dont. Worried about effects that kill characters with under 80-120 hps? Dont have to. That and the big con lets you rage seemingly forever. At 20th level the dwarf only fails saves on 1. (6 )in the case of reflex saves, but damage from meteor swarms is currently meaningless with his 80 bonus Hps from Mighty Rage.
So choice is yours. Human Barbarian that almost never gets hit and wails out wicked damage or Dwarf Barbarian who wails out wicked damage and has more bonus hit points than the wizard has total hit points?
Case
