[SWSE Optimization Help]Light-Whip User!

[Lord_Gareth]

The Light-Whip. In an entire universe full of ill-thought, badly written technology, this is perhaps one of the least thought-out, most ill-conceived things ever, but there's no denying that it's cool as hell. I wanted to focus my upcoming Star Wars: Saga Edition character around the use of the Light-Whip, but would like some advice on how to do so. The following books are legal: SWSE Core, KOTOR, Force Unleashed, Threats of the Galaxy, and whatever the hell the title for the New Republic one is, as well as any first-party web releases. My character is a Human Jedi 1, with the following spread for statistics: Str 14, Dex 18, Con 8, Int 14, Wis 15, Cha 16 (we rolled. I had to make a tough choice). Where should I spend my initial feats, skills, and cash, and how should I advance if I want to focus on the more martial aspect of the Jedi class, using as little force powers (and Force feats) as possible?

[The_Snark]

Step 1 for any lightwhip user: get your GM to clarify how the silly thing actually works.

Given that the Jedi Academy Training Manual isn't on your list of allowed sources, I'm guessing that you're using the lightwhip stats printed in Threats instead of the JATM version. That clears up some of the ambiguity, but by no means all. Ask your GM: when you use the Pin and Trip feats with the weapon, is that on top of a normal attack, or does it work exactly like Pin and Trip (i.e. you grapple instead of dealing damage).

(In case you were curious, the JATM version of the lightwhip has the opposite issue: you explicitly get to deal damage in addition to the grab/grapple, but it's vague on whether you need to have the Pin or Trip feats.)

Anyway. Once you've got that sorted out, building a lightwhip wielder is not much different from a conventional saber-wielder. (You have reach, which is nice, and the option to grapple, but neither of those requires much/any investment to take advantage of.) Given your Dexterity, I'm guessing you'll want Weapon Finesse. It's good to plan for a prestige class in advance, but qualifying for Jedi Knight (are you actually a Jedi, or just using the class) is effortless. There's enough solid feats and talents available, even just using those books, that it's hard to recommend anything specific.

(Out of curiosity: "New Republic book"? I'm not aware of that one.)

[Lord_Gareth]

(Out of curiosity: "New Republic book"? I'm not aware of that one.)

It's the one with the Vong and Luke's Mary Sue descendants and all that stuff.

[Seatbelt]

It's the one with the Vong and Luke's Mary Sue descendants and all that stuff.

Is that the Legacy era or the NJO era?

[Trekkin]

I had never heard of lightwhips before today, and indeed never imagined one could make "weightless" plasma behave like a whip. Questions of how one makes a weightless, dragless material droop aside, wouldn't the Jedi Guardian tree from The Force Unleashed work well for a martial Jedi? If nothing else, it'd capitalize on your Dex.

[The_Snark]

Is that the Legacy era or the NJO era?

Probably Legacy; I'm pretty sure the NJO never got its own sourcebook. Hence my confusion. (I don't think the New Republic is even around in the newer stuff.)

[Beleriphon]

Probably Legacy; I'm pretty sure the NJO never got its own sourcebook. Hence my confusion. (I don't think the New Republic is even around in the newer stuff.)

Its Legacy. New Republic is gone, replaced by the GFFA (Galactic Federation of Free Alliances). That started up during the end run of the NJO and the rest of more or less occurs in the Legacy Era comics. Which I have never read.

[MeeposFire]

I had never heard of lightwhips before today, and indeed never imagined one could make "weightless" plasma behave like a whip. Questions of how one makes a weightless, dragless material droop aside, wouldn't the Jedi Guardian tree from The Force Unleashed work well for a martial Jedi? If nothing else, it'd capitalize on your Dex.

Well if you want to ask that you might as well start asking about how lightsabers work because there are Physics issues with that too.

[IdleMuse]

Precision from the Legacy Era book (Jedi talent) lseems good for this build, in combination with Double Attack or later Triple; by moving adjacent to a target and attacking it, you're pretty much guaranteed a full attack on that target next turn (thanks to the range of the Lightwhip) which is usually enough to wipe an enemy.

In terms of more general advice, I'd suggest having a flick through other PrCs than Jedi Knight for some cool ideas; While Jedi Knight is perfectly fine, for a martial jedi you also have some other options if you want something a little more left-of-centre. Flicking through your allowed sources, I can see Melee Duelist (KOTOR) is a great example of this; it's prereqs are kind of specific, but none of them are bad for a melee fighter, especially if you can convince your GM that a Lightwhip is an Exotic weapon as well as a Lightsaber :smallwink:. For this, you gain access to a bunch of useful talents, specifically the Single Weapon flourish line and its prereqs, and an ability at even levels that lets you reroll your Acrobatic Strike rolls (kind of a required feat for dex-jedi if you aren't using the errata that cuts it back to a +2).

That's just one example; you can have fun with something as simple as Elite Trooper from the core book, giving you access to talents you wouldn't otherwise consider for a Jedi (and the PBS prereq can be used with Throw Lightsaber, an amusing image for a Lightwhip wielder :smallbiggrin::smallconfused:).

[utherphoenyx]

Precision epecially if you can convince your GM that a Lightwhip is an Exotic weapon as well as a Lightsaber

all lightsabers are exotic weapons i.e Exotic weapon proficency (lightsaber)...
jedi like samurai are trained specifically to use such an exotic weapon..
further more @ the OP if you are focused on teh martial aspect and NOT
the force-using or scholarly aspect then why do you have such a high INt and CHA and a con the rivals a common duros?

[IdleMuse]

all lightsabers are exotic weapons i.e Exotic weapon proficency (lightsaber)...

Not in Saga Edition; Lightsabers are their own weapon group, not exotic.

[Lord_Gareth]

the force-using or scholarly aspect then why do you have such a high INt and CHA and a con the rivals a common duros?

I didn't say I wasn't going to incorporate the scholarly aspect of the Jedi; all you have to do for that, however, is to train some Knowledges. As far as the stat spread, my character is a promising Padawan, but she's also willful. She feels forced into her Jedi training, like she's being shackled to the legacies and expectations of other people, and as a result she kicks and fights and basically cuts her nose off to spite her face. She's not angry, just frustrated and wanting to be independent; her master, more patient than most, has ignored numerous bits of advice to cease her training and abandon her, feeling that her untapped potential should be unlocked.

As far as the Constitution, she comes from a high-moisture world rife with fungi and various spore-based plants and has contracted an incurable, though non-fatal, condition as a result. She has issues breathing, doesn't have a lot of long-term energy or stamina, and suffers from infrequent dizzy spells.