Warblade Help

[Delanas]

Hello, Im considering playing a warblade i really like the idea of all the extra stuff he gets but i was hoping someone could clarify some stuff for me.

I'm going Two weapon fighting with two short swords. The Warblade maneuvers can be refreshed with a swift action, now since ive not really played dnd a lot im still not 100% up on all the actions you can take in a single round.

SO lets say i attack with both my weapons, this means i now cant make a movement and lets say i use two maneuvers can i then use a swift action and get them back for my next turn? is that possible?

Also is is possible that i can use my maneuvers and stances while ive been knocked to the ground?

I also just wanted to ask if you had any general advice on warblade feats/play style are there better weapons to use with two weapon fighting?

I've found some guides and discussion just wanted to get these questions answered really.

[Greenish]

SO lets say i attack with both my weapons, this means i now cant make a movement and lets say i use two maneuvers can i then use a swift action and get them back for my next turn? is that possible?Warblade refreshing mechanic requires that you do not use any maneuvers on the turn you're refreshing them. So, you've used two maneuvers on earlier turns, you can use a swift action and make a full attack (attack with both weapons), and the maneuvers will be refreshed for the next round. But if you used a maneuver, you can't use the swift action to refresh it to use it again next round.


Also is is possible that i can use my maneuvers and stances while ive been knocked to the ground?As long as you're conscious and not paralyzed, you can use maneuvers and stances.


I also just wanted to ask if you had any general advice on warblade feats/play style are there better weapons to use with two weapon fighting?If you're going for TWF warblade, I like double weapons, since you can use them two-handed for strikes and the like, and TWF when you get full attacks.

[Edit]: Kukris are also popular for getting crits more often. Works well with Blood in the Water stance from Tiger Claw.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Okay.

First of all, let's break down a round. In a round of D&D, you can do:

1 Swift Action (Immediate Actions taken off your turn consume your Swift Action for next round)
1 Move Action
1 Standard Action (which can also be used to make another move action)
Any number of free actions your DM deems reasonable.

You can also use your Move+Standard actions together to make a Full-Round Action.

All of this is explained in detail here (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/combat/actionsInCombat.htm#theCombatRound).

Now, you've got a couple of problems:

1) Warblades refresh their maneuvers as a standard action, which can either be one basic melee attack or a flourish that does nothing except refresh the maneuvers. EDIT: Okay, technically you refresh with a Swift and then have to take a Standard Action to make a basic attack or flourish. So technically, it takes both your Swift and your Standard for the round.
2) Most attack maneuvers are standard actions that you cannot make as part of a full attack (as it's a Full-Round action). There is no way you'll ever be able to make 2 Standard Action maneuvers in a round (barring a Wizard or a White Raven maneuver screwing with your initiative).

There's not much you can do about the first one - it's there to make sure you have to worry about running out of maneuvers if you keep using them. For the second, though, there's a couple of things you can do to be an effective TWF Warblade, to wit, taking a lot of Boost maneuvers (especially ones that add damage to every attack for a round), which usually take Swift actions, and taking maneuvers that allow you to attack with both weapons as part of the maneuver - there are a lot of these in the Tiger Claw style.

[Darrin]

SO lets say i attack with both my weapons, this means i now cant make a movement and lets say i use two maneuvers can i then use a swift action and get them back for my next turn? is that possible?


Every round you get:

standard action
move action
swift action

or:

full-round action
swift action

If you're going to use TWF, to attack more than once per round you need to use a Full Attack, which is a full-round action.

Maneuvers are divided into Strikes, Boosts, and Counters. Most Strikes require a standard action, so they are usually incompatable with TWF or full-round attacks. And since you can only use one standard action per round, once you use a strike, you generally can't use another strike. You *can* combine a Strike (standard action) with a Boost (swift action), however: Steel Wind + Burning Blade, for example. Boosts can only be used during your turn, while Counters (immediate actions) are generally used when it's not your turn, but you have to give up your swift action on your next turn.

As a Warblade, you can refresh your readied maneuvers with a swift action, but you must make a standard or full attack that round, and cannot use any maneuvers on that turn (this includes Strikes and Boosts). So no, you can't use a strike on your turn, then refresh with a swift action at the end of that turn. You have to wait until your next turn, and give up using any maneuvers that turn, but you can still full attack as normal.



Also is is possible that i can use my maneuvers and stances while ive been knocked to the ground?


Yes. You can still attack while prone, so you can still use all of your maneuvers/stances. The only requirement for being able to use a maneuver is you must be able to "move", so there are certain status conditions that prevent you from using maneuvers: dazed, stunned, paralyzed, and probably a few others.



I also just wanted to ask if you had any general advice on warblade feats/play style are there better weapons to use with two weapon fighting?


TWF requires you to make full attacks whenever possible, so go heavy on boosts/counters and light on strikes. If you do take a strike, make sure it offers something other than just extra damage, such as Mountain Hammer (ignores DR/hardness) or Death From Above (free movement). Stances are easy, since you'll probably spend 95% of your time in Punishing Stance, 5% of your time in Leading the Charge, and the other 5% in something else. For that last 5%, look for something with a lot of out-of-combat utility, such as Hearing the Air (blindsense) or Leaping Dragon Stance (jump over tall buildings).

Make sure you've got a reliable way to move + full attack (see Person_Man's guide to Pounce (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=103358)). Travel Devotion is easy-peasy, but only works 1/day unless you can get ahold of Turn Undead or take it multiple times. Sudden Leap (Tiger Claw 1) is also quite nifty, and can be refreshed every other round.

Shortswords should work just fine for TWF (particularly if you spend some feats on Martial Study, Martial Stance, and Shadow Blade), but Greatsword + Armor Spikes, Guisarme + Armor Spikes, or Greatsword + Improved Unarmed Strike work just as well, and can also be combined with Power Attack. Dwarf with Dwarven Waraxe + Oversize TWF (Complete Adventurer) is also pretty solid.

[Lateral]

1) Warblades refresh their maneuvers as a standard action, which can either be one basic melee attack or a flourish that does nothing except refresh the maneuvers. EDIT: Okay, technically you refresh with a Swift and then have to take a Standard Action to make a basic attack or flourish. So technically, it takes both your Swift and your Standard for the round.

Melee attack, not standard action. You can regain them with a full attack as well.

[sonofzeal]

Melee attack, not standard action. You can regain them with a full attack as well.
It also says "a" melee attack, implying singular. The counterpoint is that in a full attack you do make "a" melee attack, and then you make another, and another. The countercounterpoint is that singular implies just that, singular. The countercountercounterpoint is that...

....


....yeah, just show the relevant passage to your DM and ask what they think. Seriously.

[Delanas]

Thanks for all your help, i understand now. I guess it would be over powered having manoeuvres for each round, and i'm currently building my warblade! now to look up all the manoevres and feats.

[deuxhero]

As long as you're conscious and not paralyzed, you can use maneuvers and stances.


Which is the OTHER reason Iron Heart Surge is badly designed. You can't overcome hold person or charm with your heroic willpower.

[Nerd-o-rama]

Which is the OTHER reason Iron Heart Surge is badly designed. You can't overcome hold person or charm with your heroic willpower.

I've always played IHS as a 3.5 version of a 4e Immediate Interrupt, even if that's not how Immediate Actions are necessarily supposed to work - it goes off and negates the triggering condition before it's applied. That's the only way I can make sense of it.


It also says "a" melee attack, implying singular. The counterpoint is that in a full attack you do make "a" melee attack, and then you make another, and another. The countercounterpoint is that singular implies just that, singular. The countercountercounterpoint is that...

....


....yeah, just show the relevant passage to your DM and ask what they think. Seriously.

Yeah I'm choosing to play it as "single Standard Action melee attack" in my game as a voluntary nerf, but I can definitely see how it can be read otherwise.