One Big Punch

[AtwasAwamps]

So I have another concept rattling around in my head.

A barefisted fighter that fights with only one hand and his feet, his other constantly tucked behind his back...until...its time...to bring out the big guns.

A sort of "I am not left-handed" trick, but much less impressive and much more flavor/fun. I want this character to have the ability to pump up a single punch to stupid levels. I'd like to avoid precision damage such as sneak attack, sudden strike, and skirmish, and I'd like to focus on the idea of a "fistful of dice" as the attack.

If we could stay away from ToB, even though I know that it would be great for this concept, I’d appreciate it. It’s not that its overpowered, it’s just that I’m sure the answer to my question using that book is basically “unarmed swordsage” and that’s not what I want to do. I don’t want to use maneuvers to reach this goal. For some reason that removes the fun for me. Stances, however, might be totally okay.

An example of what I’m looking for:


Iron Fist + Fiery Ki + Greater Psionic Fist = a 6d6+Fist Damage attack. That’s not bad. I want to go way, way further though.

The charging strike:

Iron Fist + Fiery Ki + Greater Psionic Fist + Powerful Charge + Jumping Kick: 6d6+1d8+1d12+(Fist Damage)

Any thoughts/suggestions? I really just want one HUGE punch.

[Pharaoh's Fist]

Decisive Strike Monk2/Psychic Warrior

[sonofzeal]

Decisive Strike Monk2/Psychic Warrior
Why 2? You only need one for Tashalatora. But yes, I was thinking Decisive Strike too. It's a little ambiguous whether Tashalatora would advance it (since it's not technically "flurry"), but I can't imagine a DM saying no.

Also, I'd toss in Deep Impact + Power Attack, and Martial Study: Rabid Wolf Strike if you can swing it.

[AtwasAwamps]

Decisive Strike Monk2/Psychic Warrior

A little more detail, if I may ask...I was looking less for class suggestions and more for a bit of guidance towards feats/spells/powers.

What does Deep Impact do?

[sonofzeal]

A little more detail, if I may ask...I was looking less for class suggestions and more for a bit of guidance towards feats/spells/powers.

What does Deep Impact do?
Deep Impact (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/psionic/psionicFeats.htm#deepImpact).

And you really do want Tashalatora PsiWar for this, IMO. Gives you all sorts of things you can throw out when desperately needed (but you blow through pp), and you're still decent the rest of the time if you've chosen your feats well.

[ex cathedra]

Decisive Strike is an ACF that lets a monk, instead of flurrying, make a single highly damaging attack. It's, like, a monk ACF so I don't remember the specifics.

Monk/Psychic Warrior uses the Tashalatora feat to progress most monk class features with a single psionic class, so as a Monk2/PsyWar18 you'll be punching like a Monk 20. Use Expansion, Improved Natural Attack, and a handful of other things to give your base damage dice an absurd amount of size modifiers.

[AtwasAwamps]

Decisive Strike sounds excellent!

Increasing damage die is all well and good and I like it, but what I'm really looking for is not a steady, consistent damaging attack. I want this to be a situational thing. Something like "Ah, so you're a toughy. I will use my RIGHT hand now..." and pulls the right hand, on fire and glowing and such, from behind his back for a punch.

Less about effectiveness, more about flavor. That said, the effectiveness suggestions are excellent and for that I thank you.

[The Glyphstone]

Problem is that the flavor you want is deeply tied to effectiveness - you want a single attack (possibly concealable) that does a significant amount of damage, but the number of ways to do that (except for Decisive Strike) that don't either A: affect all other attacks you're doing in the meantime, or B: require a significant amount of buffing (ruining the surprise element) are almost nonexistent.

I suppose you could go into Kensai and only enchant said right fist heavily with stuff like Collision...

[AtwasAwamps]

Problem is that the flavor you want is deeply tied to effectiveness - you want a single attack (possibly concealable) that does a significant amount of damage, but the number of ways to do that (except for Decisive Strike) that don't either A: affect all other attacks you're doing in the meantime, or B: require a significant amount of buffing (ruining the surprise element) are almost nonexistent.

I suppose you could go into Kensai and only enchant said right fist heavily with stuff like Collision...

Hrmm. I think I'm just not making myself clear here, which seems to be a problem I have a lot on these forums, for which I sincerely apologize.

Not ALL of the enhancements have to work EXCLUSIVELY on the “Big Punch”, but I’m looking for a way to make at least ONE attack in the routine significantly more ridiculous than the others. So if we’re adding dice/damage to the second/third attack in a single attack action, great…I just want that first one to be ludicrously huge, preferably as a result of what at least appears to be, fluff-wise, martial arts skill or something similar.

I’m still not sure I’m getting my point across, but thank you to anyone who’s been taking the time to look at this. I am really sorry I am a fussy punk who keeps wasting your time.

[oxybe]

i think it's called "divine fist", the monk/cleric PRC from complete divine

either way, nothing says KAPOW like a fist full of "harm".

monk punch progression, high str, a bunch of imp.nat.attacks and some cleric buffs so you can hit. practiced spellcaster so your caster level hit isn't entirely horrible. maybe power attack.

load up a harm in your fist, charge and...pew! to da moon!

monk's belt for obvious base damage boosts.

there is an amulet in savage species that lets you enchant your natural attacks, so you can add a few more dice of damage that way.

this is part of my "Zangeif" cleric/monk build. this is effectively his "banishing fist" attack.

[Moriato]

There's the feat "Hammerfist" from Races of Faerun, which, if I remember right, lets you make one attack as though you were using your fists 2-handed, so 1.5 str, 2x power attack etc. I think it takes a standard action though, so I don't know how well it would work with the rest of your ideas. Also this is from memory, mind you, I don't have any books handy so I could be wrong on the details.

[Bagelz]

shifter race, add warshaper 4, increases your "natural attack", read unarmed strike, by 1 size catagory plus reach plus some other broken stuff.

try to find some feats that make you count a large creature, and you have "huge" monk fists. (base 1d6->1d8->2d6)

as far as only one punch, take charging feats, as in dmgx2 or dmgx3 when you charge

[Sstoopidtallkid]

Power Attack. Be as strong as you like at any moment. And if you can get large size, levels in War Hulk are always awesome.

[Kris Strife]

Try grabbing a single level of an arcane caster class for Fist of Stone? 1st level spell, gives +6 to str score and lets you make a 1d8 slam attack, adding 1.5*Str bonus if thats the only attack you make.

[jiriku]

as a carmendine monk/sorcerer/enlightened fist, you could charge all manner of touch spells into your Hidden Mighty Fist (TM), such as shocking grasp, vampiric touch, or shivering touch. This would indeed deliver a rude surprise to your opponent.

[The Glyphstone]

Duskblade > sorcerer. Full BAB compared to 1/2 BAB, an already serious problem with Monk and Enlightened Fist, and you get all the good touch-related spells anyways.

[erikun]

Monk 6/Zerth Cenobite 10

Use Expansion to increase your size as a swift action, full attack, use the Cenobite's Temporal Distillation to gain another full round action, full attack again. It's not "one big punch" but it is unloading a lot of damage in a single round.

Combine with the Practiced Manifester feat, and you can spend 13 PP to use Expansion for two size increases and a swift action.

What is this "Tashalatora" feat, and where can it be found?

[Mongoose87]

Monk 6/Zerth Cenobite 10

Use Expansion to increase your size as a swift action, full attack, use the Cenobite's Temporal Distillation to gain another full round action, full attack again. It's not "one big punch" but it is unloading a lot of damage in a single round.

Combine with the Practiced Manifester feat, and you can spend 13 PP to use Expansion for two size increases and a swift action.

What is this "Tashalatora" feat, and where can it be found?

It's from Secrets of Sarlona, and it allows you to stack Monk and Psychic Warrior for certain class features.

[kemmotar]

A few things you can do:

1) monk dip
2) superior unarmed strike (increases damage dice)
3) improved natural attack (increases damage dice) TOB
4) be large (goliath, half ogre for example)
5) psychic warrior for expansion
6) shock trooper for headless charge (PA without losing attack roll)
7) Brute gaunlets
8) possibly kensai to enchant your fists
9) possible duskblade?

[Eldariel]

So you want the Gigaton Punch (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBHxXufqOEY)? ... ... Sorry.

And yeah, there's that feat which enables you to do damage as a two-handed attack if you limit yourself to one attack a turn; I think that could suit you rather well. Other than that, the basic unarmed advice given here is rocksolid.