[D&D3.5] Sources of extra damage

[Coidzor]

So I know about skirmish and sneak attack and I'm dimly aware of dragonfire inspiration, but what other mechanical features are there that fulfill this sort of extra damage on physical attacks that's not from power attack and bumping up strength?

Pretty much inspired by this post here (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showpost.php?p=7552219&postcount=11) reminding me of my ignorance on the matter.

I know at least that skirmish and sneak attack are sources of precision damage, but I wouldn't know how to even begin to look to see if there are any other sources of precision damage dice.

[Keld Denar]

Complete Champion has a few.

Holy Warrior (as I mentioned) is a Reserve feat. If you hold a War domain spell of 4th level or higher in reserve, you gain a bonus on damage rolls equal to that spells level. That means at least +4 damage on every hit. Not amazing, but combined with a couple other things can actually make cleric TWF viable.

Knowledge Devotion is also great. Make a Knowledge Check, get a decent bonus to hit and damage against foes you know stuff about. At the bare minimum, this is +1/+1, making it far superior to Weapon Focus. It also makes any one Knowledge skill a class skill FOREVER.

Dragonfire Inspiration is a feat in Dragon Magic that converts a bards normal +x/+x hit and damage Inspire Courage into +xd6 elemental damage. This damage is normally fire, although certain heritage feats can adjust the flavor. Its the backbone in "Bardblade" duel wielding Bard/Warblade hybreds.

Shadow Blade is a feat in Tome of Battle that subs Str for Dex with certain weapons. Since Dex is not Str, you don't suffer from the normal 1/2 Str bonus to damage with your offhand. Also, since Dex is the prereq for higher level TWF feats, you get ability synergy, which is preferable to MAD.

A number of Soulmelds also give bonuses to hit and damage when you invest Essentia into them. These are mainly for Multiattacking Totemists, but with the right build, you could pop them in at other places.

That kind of stuff.

[Ashtar]

Rangers gain the damage against their favored enemies.

Spell compendium has a pile of spells to gain extra +xd6 damage. Including some for the Ranger spell list.

Of course there's the classic weapon enchantments (Flaming, Frost, Shock).

There's the Psionic Weapon feat in the psionics section, but it requires that you expend your psi focus for 2d6 extra damage, with a second feat for 4d6.

I'f have to look through the books for more...

[Dhavaer]

Shadow Blade is a feat in Tome of Battle that subs Str for Dex with certain weapons. Since Dex is not Str, you don't suffer from the normal 1/2 Str bonus to damage with your offhand. Also, since Dex is the prereq for higher level TWF feats, you get ability synergy, which is preferable to MAD.

Shadow Blade actually adds Dex as a bonus, rather than subbing for Strength.

[Bob]

There's the Psionic Weapon feat in the psionics section, but it requires that you expend your psi focus for 2d6 extra damage, with a second feat for 4d6.

though you would get more mileage out of your psionic focus by using deep impact and full power attacking. Deep impact lets you expend your psionic focus to make a melee attack into a touch attack, and you know what power attack does.

[Choco]

Iaijutsu Focus from Oriental Adventures is a SKILL that adds a certain amount of d6 to your damage roll against a flat footed opponent (if you just drew the weapon) based on the skill check. Samurai2/WarbladeX is a killer combo because the Samurai class gets you Iaijutsu Focus as a class skill, and combine that with the Warblade's Sapphire Nightmare Blade (makes the target flat-footed if you pass a concentration check) and you got a fairly decent, non-broken build.

[RagnaroksChosen]

Also Smite is a good source of extra damage depending on the smites source...

I've always been a big fan of Killorians smite. Lots of times per day(though only once an hour).

eaither way sopme of the smites are good bonus dmg.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

There's also about 30 different classes and PrCs floating around with 'Sneak Attack but not really' sources of damage.

[RagnaroksChosen]

There's also about 30 different classes and PrCs floating around with 'Sneak Attack but not really' sources of damage.

agreed.... lol


Though I wonder how many different types of static bonus's there are out there...


I know a bunch where mentioned... dex to dmg, holy warrior, smite, Swashbuckler, knowledge devotion, power attack, etc...
I wonder what kind of build could incorporate the most amount of static bonuses
i bet it would be something like
swashbuckler 3/cloistered cleric 1(knowledge devotion + desctruction domains)/ Sword sage 1/ paladin of freedom 3/x

with holy warrior and shadow blade getting picked up
though you could switch shadow blade for 2 levels of that elf prc that gives dex to dmg.

[mabriss lethe]

energy assault crystals from Magic item compendium. come in least, lesser, greater varieties. also, Fire, cold, electricity, and acid. Need at least a masterwork weapon to bond one. (+1 or better magic weapon to really get things going with the lesser variety.) Leasts deal 1 extra pt of damage, lessers deal 1d6, and greater adds an additional effect based on energy type.

They're one of my favorite magic items in the game. inexpensive, you can swap different crystals between different weapons.

[UserClone]

Let's not forget Craven, a feat from Forgotten Realms sourcebook Champions of Ruin, that grants you +1/character level to the damage of every sneak attack you make.

[lord_khaine]

though you would get more mileage out of your psionic focus by using deep impact and full power attacking. Deep impact lets you expend your psionic focus to make a melee attack into a touch attack, and you know what power attack does.

Actualy, its not that great, the 4d6 feat adds 14 average points of damage, to beat that you would have to power attack for at least 8, where you get +2 damage for a singel feat, on a singel attack each round (or so).

Its first late game, or with more feats addet that it starts to become worth the efford.

[Thrice Dead Cat]

There's also the Collision enhancement for weapons at either +1 or +2, which adds a straight 5 damage per hit.

[Coidzor]

There's also about 30 different classes and PrCs floating around with 'Sneak Attack but not really' sources of damage.

Is this the whole Precision Damage family you're referring to? I know about sneak attack coming from multiple classes and skirmish, but what other permutations on precision damage are there?

[arguskos]

Is this the whole Precision Damage family you're referring to? I know about sneak attack coming from multiple classes and skirmish, but what other permutations on precision damage are there?
There's sudden strike, from the Ninja.

There are a variety of other random "here, add +1d6 to this really specific attack type!" effects, like the Ranged Precision ability of the... Order of the Bow Initiate, I think it is.

[Sstoopidtallkid]

Is this the whole Precision Damage family you're referring to? I know about sneak attack coming from multiple classes and skirmish, but what other permutations on precision damage are there?From CS, there's Surprise Strike, Sudden Raystrike, Ranged Precision, Sudden Strike, and probably a dozen others that I'm forgetting. I don't even hate them because they're weak, I hate them because they're so weird to keep track of.

[Lycanthromancer]

Anything with a natural weapon gets Improved Natural Attack and magic fang/amulets of natural attack.

Assassins have Death Attack.

Factotums from Dungeonscape have sneak-attack-but-not-really Cunning Strike. They also get Cunning Insight for +Int to damage (as well as attack rolls and saving throws) at 1st level, in exchange for an inspiration point.

You have the standard weapon bonuses (flaming, frost, etc), as well as psychokinetic (and psychokinetic burst), and psychic from the XPH.

The Expanded Psionics Handbook also gives you a number of powers that grant direct damage bonuses, such as offensive prescience, hammer, dissipating touch/weapon, weapon/claw of energy, metaphysical claw/weapon, dissolving touch/weapon, painful strike, the augment to psionic lion's charge, graft weapon, form of doom, and, indirectly, wounding, prevenom/prevenom weapon and truevenom/truevenom weapon.

Powers, spells, and effects that increase your Str score (or Dex, for certain builds), such as strength of my enemy, animal affinity, bull's strength, polymorph, metamorphosis, polymorph any object, shapechange, greater metamorphosis, enlarge person, expansion, and wild shape.

Augmenting psionic effects tends to increase the damage bonuses considerably (when they're available, anyway).

Rare effects such as control body outright replace damage from Str with other ability scores. In this case, Intelligence (alternately, your manifesting score, if your DM handwaves it).

You also have poisons and *hiss* ravages *hiss*.

FYI, most of this is available in the SRD (but not ravages, thankfully).