Thri-keen or Warforged Totemist?

[danzibr]

Post says it all. I'm going to write up a Totemist (already have it started) and was wondering if I should go Thri-keen or Warforged. Let's assume no LA buyoff and +1 LA version Thri-keen. Thoughts? We'd be talking a 3-20 campaign or something.

[Essence_of_War]

If you're sure that you're going to 20, I'd lean pretty heavily towards Warforged.

Even with LA buyoff, you're stuck with the monstrous humanoid hit dice that will cap your totemist advancement at 18. Monstrous humanoid hit dice are OK if you HAVE to have racial hit dice, but I'd rather have more everything that those last levels of totemist give you than monstrous humanoid hit dice.

Also the warforged slam (and 2nd slam and bite!) stacks with all of your totemist natural attacks, and although the thri-kreen's bite should stack with all the usual soulmeld options, the claws won't stack with the usual kruthik/sphinx/girallon claws.

Edit:

There's a pretty solid warforged totemist build a the totemist handbook (http://brilliantgameologists.com/boards/index.php?topic=2943) if you want some ideas:

Warforged Totemist 8/Barbarian 2/Totem Rager 10

Feats:

1st: Jaws of Death
Flaw 1: Expanded Soulmeld Capacity
Flaw 2: Cerulean Will
3rd: Multiattack
6th: Cobalt Rage
9th: Extra Rage
12th: Double Chakra (Totem)
15th: Second Slam
18th: Split Chakra (Arms)

This build is a monster in combat. Even from level 1, it shows what true ferocity can be with a pair of attacks (Bite+Slam). As soon as you hit 2nd, your damage output triples with the Girallon Arms meld. At 3rd, your chances of hitting increase. At 6th, you gain the house of all houses: Cobalt Rage. From this point until 17th, you are taking levels in Totem Rager.

An alternate route to conserve on Soulmelds is to drop Cerulean Will for Dragon Tail (Races of the Dragon) by being a Dragonborn or taking Dragontouched. This is less house-rules dependent, but more feat and item-intense.

Swap out the Fast Movement for Pounce via CC's Lion Totem variant. This easily breaks the combat wide open, as it allows you to dish out the damage on a Charge with ease.

Invest as much Essentia into the Girallon Arms and into one other Soulmeld (like Landshark Boots or Sphinx Claws) as you can afford. Then make sure the rest is in Cobalt Rage. While not needed, Rage Claws do have a nice touch to them.

If you can afford the PB, Dragonborn is a nice way to get extra HP. And it opens up another trick: The Dragon Tail feat from races of the Dragon. At the cost of your Composite Plating (and possibly your two slams) you get a Tail attack at 1st level. Vicious doesn't even start to describe it.

A good item to have is the Shadow Hand Gloves from the Bo9S (and have the Assassin's Stance as the 3rd level maneuver it grants). Heavily debatable, but man does it hurt if it is allowed.

I leave out Rapidstrike and its older brother for a few reasons: 1) BAB requirements puts it at the later-levels when it won't make much of a difference, and 2) Wrong race.

[Ballista]

Call me out if I'm wrong but... Can't you just get Energy Drain'd to get rid of those monstrous humanoid HD?

[Snowbluff]

Call me out if I'm wrong but... Can't you just get Energy Drain'd to get rid of those monstrous humanoid HD?

Yeah, but even if you can't I would go with Thri-kreen. The Thri-kreen starts with extra natural attacks, saving you a bind possibly, and Totemist doesn't have agood capstone. There, I said it. It's quantitative, not qualitative, so not worth it my book. To be honest, having that last bind is more useful than a the bonus damage you would get with your NA bind of choice(s).