Making the most of RKV

[Aegis013]

I'll be playing a RKV in an upcoming game. I'm the player with the highest system mastery and we have a new player, and a player with pretty low system mastery. I think the party will be a Rogue//Hexblade gestalt, a Warblade/Eternal Blade, unknown third member and myself. So I don't want my character to be the most absurd thing around. General RKV advice or tricks and tips are also nice.

The basic build is Cleric 2/Crusader 3/RKV 10/Crusader 5. Due to not wanting to be too terribly absurd, I'm aiming for 9th level maneuvers instead of spells. I intend to use DMM: Quicken with this character for fast buffing (or healing if absolutely necessary) while fighting. Though would like the playground's thoughts on feats, divine impetus use, etc.

It's important to note that magic items may not be available when WBL would dictate they would be available. Things like Nightsticks probably won't ever be available, and due to that, no magic items or magic item related advice is really particularly relevant, but if you feel like it's worth mentioning, I'd be glad to hear it. Also, level adjustment and racial hit dice are not allowed.

Spoiled below is build information, including maneuver selection.

Cleric 2/Crusader 3/RKV 10/Crusader 5 - assuming 20th level
Race: Human
Deity: Wee Jas - Domains: Trickery(for hide skill), Inquisition
Alignment: LN
Spd: 30ft
Initiative: +0

HP: 162 (assuming average HP, rounded down)
AC: 10, FF: 10, T: 10

Str: 14, Dex 10, Con 16, Int 8, Wis 15, Cha 14
4 points from levels will probably go into strength, the other point possibly into wisdom.

Fort: 15, Ref: 5, Will: 17

BAB: 19

Flaws: Murky-Eyed, Shaky
Feats: (f1) Power Attack, (f2) Extra Granted Maneuver, H. Quicken Spell, 1. DMM: Quicken, 3. Extra Turning, 6. Extra Turning, 9. Extra Turning, 12. Extra Turning, 15. Extra Turning, 18. Extra Turning

Maneuver breakdown as follows:

level 3 (IL 2) - Iron Guard's Glare(stance), Crusader Strike, Vanguard Strike, Charging Minotaur, Douse the Flames, Leading the attack

level 5 (IL 4) - Leading the Charge(stance), Mountain Hammer

level 6 (IL 5) - Thicket of Blades(stance)

level 7 (IL 6) - White Raven Tactics

Level 9 (IL 8) - Bone Splitting Strike

Level 11 (IL 10) - Press the Advantage(stance), Flanking Maneuver

Level 13 (IL 12) - War Leader's Charge

Level 15 (IL 14) - Shadow Blink

Level 16 (IL 15) - exchange Crusader Strike for Greater Divine Surge

Level 17 (IL 16) - White Raven Hammer

Level 18 (IL 17) - exchange Vanguard Strike for Strike of Righteous Vitality

Level 19 (IL 18) - War Master's Charge

Level 20 (IL 19) - exchange Charging Minotaur for Mountain Tombstone Strike

Thanks for any help.

[Snowbluff]

I would actually say you don't need that many Extra Turning. You might as well be packing Night Sticks. Easy MM: Quicken might be handy as well. It pays for itself in the turn attempts after 4 DMM: Quicken, so it's better than Extra Turning Past that point. XD

It's good to see you have Extra Granted Mave. You might want a tactical feat as well, you get access to some nice ones.

[Aegis013]

I hadn't thought to use Easy Metamagic, that's a good idea. Thanks!

[Snowbluff]

I hadn't thought to use Easy Metamagic, that's a good idea. Thanks!

Yeah, no pro8lem, 8ro. So, you Turn Attempt should be divisible by 4, so you should drop your Cha to 12 so you can 8ump up another stat. So you'll have 3+1(cha), then another 4 for each Extra Turning or Nightstick.

Can you even meet the skill prereqs with such a low int?

Side note, I know you didn't want to be ridiculous, but you could Idiot Crusader. I'm just going to leave it out there, in case you go for a high-optimization game.

If you're allowed even more Dragon Material, Lady's Gambit is really sweet with a Crusader's innate toughness.

[Essence_of_War]

Wow that is...a lot...of extra turning.

See if your DM will allow you to have Undead/undeath as a domain for Wee Jas, it sorta fits thematically, and its granted ability is Extra Turning. Could free up a feat slot for you. If not that, the Law domain is also a strong choice, if nothing else, to trade it away for Law Devotion (CC), but that gives you another non-spell buff.

I see that you're not using a lot of the power of Thicket/Iron Guard. If you want some extra combat options you might try some of these feats:

Combat Reflexes + Stand Still is a pretty good choice if you're going to be using Thicket of Blades.

Defensive Sweep (at BAB +15) has a neat synergy w/ Thicket of Blades. If they move, you get an AoO, if they don't move, you get an AoO. Yay!

Robilar's Gambit at BAB +12 is obviously very nice also.

Stone Power is always worth a mention, but it scales rather poorly. I'd miss it if you're starting at higher level. If you're starting at lower levels, it might be fine to take stone power at the earliest opportunity, and then take power attack later.

I generally like the idea of trying to generate extra attacks, especially if you think that you're going to use most of your standard actions to initiate strike maneuvers. It makes you feel more useful when you miss on that one attack roll a turn :smallsmile:!

[Aegis013]

@Snowbluff: Thanks again for the help, and yes, due to the human bonus skill points, meeting the skill requirements is a non-issue even with 8 int. Idiot Crusader will definitely be too high power for the DM. I'm also trying to keep him in mind, his system mastery isn't as high as mine and I don't want to make it so encounters have to be elevated to my level making it difficult for the other two less rules savvy players. As far as lowering Cha, I'm loathe to do so, since Divine Impetus has plenty of use (like changing stances) and I can use the additional Turn Attempts for that or Divine Fury on top of maneuvers. Having a few off-count turning attempts seems handy once I get to those abilities.

@Essence_of_War: Yes, it is. I took Inquisition because I'm fairly certain I'll be the only one in the party with access to dispel magic, and it's a spell that can come in handy in too many situations. The Trickery Domain is for hide, so I can even get into Ruby Knight Vindicator. I'll consider Undeath further though.

Honestly I'm taking Iron Guard's Glare and Thicket of Blades because I didn't see other, better options. The Warblade/Eternal Blade is using a spike chain, stormguard warrior, rolibar's gambit, type character, so I don't want to intrude on his schtick. My taking thicket of blades is largely to spare him from finding a way to get it. Plus, in order dex up enough to support that playstyle I'm not sure what I'd be willing to give up.

Thanks for the help guys. Feats are now:
1. Power Attack/Extra Granted Maneuver/Quicken Spell/DMM: Quicken, 3. Easy MM: Quicken, 6-18 Extra Turning.