Having Trouble picking a class.

[Morithias]

Okay this is a bit more complex than my usual questions since I'm not necessarly going for "What is the most powerful" in this case, but I'll try to make this as clear as I can. So stick with me for a while.

I've always hated elves, the way that they suck crunch wise, yet so many writers write them as perfect mary-sue, who are justified in their arrogance, so I decided "what's more arrogant than an elf princess?" And decided to completely turn the elf princess concept on it's head.

Now most of my groups camps start at level 3, and the drow don't really have a "princess" type of society, sure birth matters in the drow world, but being born to a powerful mother means you're more of a pawn or target than any real form of power at least until you off your parents. So I decided to go with the elf from Frostburn that is stated to be just as arrogant the snow elf, and for good measure slap on the Arctic and feral templates.

So our race is as follows: Feral Arctic Snow elf.

Short version: +4 str +4 con -4 int +2 wis -4 charisma, and an elf.

Now the basic "story" behind this elf is that the elf princess nicknamed "Senhime" or "war princess" was basically a psychopathic blood knight who got exiled due to her violent and war-loving nature. I haven't decided why they exiled her but it could range anywhere from murder to disobidence, to simple fear of what would happen when she took the throne.

But I'm REALLY stuck on what class to take, for the following reasons.

Monk: Monks suck, everyone knows that, but the unarmed matches with the claws and she gets boosts in almost every monk stat, plus the wisdom to AC matches with her natural armor making a good nice tough, hard to hit girl.

The cons to monk is of course that they suck, and that I do not think "Lawful" when I read the backstory about how she got kicked out for being one bad day from becoming a paladin of slaughter.

Paladin of Slaughter: Not really her thing, plus the whole "can't perform lawful or good acts" just screams stupid. Senhime is not dumb, she just has a very sadomasicist (sp?) love of war and conflict.

Fighter: Makes sense, can be any alignment, easy to work fluff and crunch together, but I don't really know what to do with her. D&D even at low levels is rocket tag, and I'm having a hard time coming up with a legit fighter build that both stretches out the fight on purpose to enjoy it, yet isn't suicidal.

Barbarian: Tough, Chaotic, Matches well with Feral, but again having a little trouble with the "time limit on rage" thing. Senhime wants to extend fighting, she's the type of psychopath who would constantly switch sides during a war, not cause she is some dumb true neutral, but because she wants the war to go on for as long as possible, because her love for war is almost sexual in nature.

Druid variant that trades wildshape for monk ac bonus: Probably the most powerful option I'm considering, but I just can't see miss psychopath casting spells.

[Kelb_Panthera]

What about ranger?

Str based twf sounds like it would fit this sort of character and you could get wands and such for druid-ish magical effects. Favored enemy ([most likely humanoid enemy in the area]).

[Endelehia]

Since you are going for chaotic evil,you could consider the lolth touched template instead of feral ( or just take them both :P).

A poison user Swashbuckler/rogue with the daring outlaw feat.Although it doesn't fit the "knight" stereotype,it is thematically appropriate with both the elf and the psychopath part.

P.S your stats modifiers seems to be a bit off

[gorfnab]

Swordsage or Psychic Warrior could work with those stats.

[paddyfool]

You want your character to be good at stretching out a fight while they humiliate their opponent? To do that, you have to be tough, and good at locking down your opponent. Crusader, perhaps?

[ThiagoMartell]

"Senhime" sounds very weird. I'd advise using Sensou no Hime.

[Morithias]

Since you are going for chaotic evil,you could consider the lolth touched template instead of feral ( or just take them both :P).

P.S your stats modifiers seems to be a bit off

Both the feral and lolth touched templates are considered fairly overpowered in my group, taking both although it may be allowed might be a tad um... controversial.

Snow elf: +2 dex -2 cha
Arctic: +2 con -2 cha
feral: +4 str -2 dex +2 con -4 int +2 wis

+4 str +4 con -4 int +2 wis -4 charisma

Looks right to me, mind giving me some math? Please and thank you.


"Senhime" sounds very weird. I'd advise using Sensou no Hime.

Stole the name from a videogame. Not 100% sure how accurate it is seeing how it's from a fan translation, and I'm 90% sure it's actually some kind of Kanji pun rather than a literal translation.

Sensou No Hime does have a nice ring to it though.

[thompur]

What about ranger?

Str based twf sounds like it would fit this sort of character and you could get wands and such for druid-ish magical effects. Favored enemy ([most likely humanoid enemy in the area]).

Ranger was my first thought, too. My second was Warblade until I realized the -4 to int & cha.

[ThiagoMartell]

Stole the name from a videogame. Not 100% sure how accurate it is seeing how it's from a fan translation, and I'm 90% sure it's actually some kind of Kanji pun rather than a literal translation.

Yeah, Senhime sounds weird because it's a made up word. If it's intentional it's fine. :smallcool:

[theNater]

Go Barbarian and don't rage right away. You still get d12 hit points, uncanny dodge, and damage reduction while not raging, and you'll have enough dexterity to get a good AC in light or medium armor.

[Morithias]

Yeah, Senhime sounds weird because it's a made up word. If it's intentional it's fine. :smallcool:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senhime

No apparently it's a real person....did not see that coming.

Hmmm...you all have good ideas.

[ThiagoMartell]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Senhime

No apparently it's a real person....did not see that coming.

But that 'sen' is a different character, now I understand the pun...

[limejuicepowder]

Spirit shaman maybe? I know it sounds wacky, but stick with me for a mo:

-spell casting is largely based on charisma, which you have a big penalty to, but if you focus on buffing spells it won't matter. The druid list is filled with options for turning in to a beast and shredding people in melee, and that's what the shaman has access to

-the ever-changing "spells known" list goes well with her chaotic nature

-I don't what type of crazy you imagine her to be, but the spirit shaman's preoccupation with ghosts and spirits could potentially fit very well ("the voices made me do it")

-SS have several situational abilities that lend themselves to just wading in to combat and kicking ass, like chastise spirit

-having access to her own healing would go a long way towards staying alive, just from a practicality standpoint. This is actually part of a wider and more important point: chaotic evil people generally don't have a lot of friends, thus being able to take care of themselves is more important. For this reason I would stay away from a fighter (they don't even get survival)

Alternatively, a swift hunter ranger with a dip in barb for fast movement might also work pretty well. By sticking to a hit-and-run style of combat, you can prolong the fight without putting yourself in so much danger. If you did this, I would recommend the climb speed variant of the scout from dungeonscape. Easier to stay away from people when you have a climb speed, and I think crawling along walls and swinging from tree to tree goes with the feralness.

[killianh]

when ever I can't pick a base class I always try to think of the PrC that best suits the character concept. After that I go with the best general option for a not-too-cheesy early entry. If you try that it might be of the best help to you. Other wise for a martial character without a set build a good lead in is Barbarian 1/fighter 2. Great boost for any martial oriented character