Boosting Electrokineticist damage with Manifesting and Maneuvers

[Answerer]

OK, so I have an Erudite 5/Electrokineticist 1//Warblade 4/Slayer 2, where Slayer is progressing Erudite manifesting. StP is not available (because my DM is generous, not insane), and UPD is interpreted as total per day, not per day per level.

I want to give him scary damage with the Electric Whip, but I'm not certain of the best way to do so.

Obviously, there will be maneuvers to use. At level 6, the best I can do is +2d6 damage from a strike and +1d6 from Punishing Stance. Solid, but not amazing.

The first obvious step, in my mind, is to use Power Attack, since the Electric Whip is a touch attack and I have full BAB. But I will only get 1:1 Power Attack on it, which is rather disappointing.

Beyond this, I'm not sure. The normal routes (pumping Str, increasing size) don't do anything for me. Is there any power I can use to give foes an Electricity Weakness? What sorts of things will even add on to the Electric Whip?

EDIT: For these purposes, assume that the Electric Lash works with martial maneuvers and is treated as a melee attack, because these houserules are in play.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

You can use a normal whip two-handed, no rules limit you to using only one hand to wield an energy lash or when making ranged touch attacks in general, you can make a thrown weapon attack with two hands, and plenty of projectile weapons are two-handed. There's nothing prohibiting you from wielding it with both hands. Go ahead and get 2:1 power attack, and get Armbands of Might for another +2 damage.

If you were using Sonokineticist instead, you could obtain the spell Creaking Cacophony (SC) to give opponents vulnerability to sonic damage, thus dealing 50% more per hit. You can put Creaking Cacophony on an eternal wand, or get a custom use-activated item and have an NPC hireling or a familiar/psicrystal activate it. Such an item would probably be an instrument, like a drum or something with strings, and you could even discount is price by making it only work for someone with enough Perform ranks. Psicrystals get their own skill ranks and feats due to their actual HD gain.

Note that while you can use an energy lash with any feat that could apply to a standard whip, that does not carry over to any non-feat abilities. Nearly every martial strike, boost, and stance which applies to the use of a weapon must be used with a melee weapon. The only exception may be if you take Martial Study/Stance, in which case only that particular maneuver or stance could be used with the lash, if at all considering the feat's benefit can only be indirectly applied to a whip. You would need an extremely lenient DM to use martial maneuvers with an energy lash.

I was about to suggest sneak attack and Craven, but you can't flank with an energy lash because flanking doesn't apply to ranged attacks. If you can come up with an easy way to enable sneak attack on this character it may be worth considering.

[Answerer]

You can use a normal whip two-handed, no rules limit you to using only one hand to wield an energy lash or when making ranged touch attacks in general, you can make a thrown weapon attack with two hands, and plenty of projectile weapons are two-handed. There's nothing prohibiting you from wielding it with both hands. Go ahead and get 2:1 power attack, and get Armbands of Might for another +2 damage.
Hrm. Fair enough, that seems like a thing to do.


If you were using Sonokineticist instead, you could obtain the spell Creaking Cacophony (SC) to give opponents vulnerability to sonic damage, thus dealing 50% more per hit. You can put Creaking Cacophony on an eternal wand, or get a custom use-activated item and have an NPC hireling or a familiar/psicrystal activate it. Such an item would probably be an instrument, like a drum or something with strings, and you could even discount is price by making it only work for someone with enough Perform ranks. Psicrystals get their own skill ranks and feats due to their actual HD gain.
Sonokineticist has all kinds of advantages, but loses basically all of the cool factor. I'll see about an alternative perhaps.


Note that while you can use an energy lash with any feat that could apply to a standard whip, that does not carry over to any non-feat abilities. Nearly every martial strike, boost, and stance which applies to the use of a weapon must be used with a melee weapon. The only exception may be if you take Martial Study/Stance, in which case only that particular maneuver or stance could be used with the lash, if at all considering the feat's benefit can only be indirectly applied to a whip. You would need an extremely lenient DM to use martial maneuvers with an energy lash.
DM waived this issue; should have said.


I was about to suggest sneak attack and Craven, but you can't flank with an energy lash because flanking doesn't apply to ranged attacks. If you can come up with an easy way to enable sneak attack on this character it may be worth considering.
Yeah, DM says the energy lash is a melee attack.

[Biffoniacus_Furiou]

Yeah, DM says the energy lash is a melee attack.

In that case, just 1d6 sneak attack qualifies you for Craven. You can even become immune to mind-affecting without losing its benefits, unless you have a shrewd DM.

If you want to drastically change the build, go Sneak Attack (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#fighter) Thug (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#fighterVariantThug) instead of Warblade, and be sure to get Zhentarim Soldier (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060327a) and free class features (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cwc/20061013a). Maybe take Psychic Assassin (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20040723d) 5 for Mind Cripple if you can make a deal with your DM to get rid of death attack and poison use in exchange for ignoring the alignment and special prerequisites.

One thing of note about a typical fire lash, as a noninstantaneous magical fire anything that takes damage from it has a chance of catching on fire per the DMG. The same goes for Dragonfire Inspiration. Speaking of which, maybe pick up Leadership for a DFI Bard, and wield a flaming lightning whip. At Bard 3 he can give +4d6 damage, at 6th he can get Words of Creation to make it +7d6, and at 8th it goes to +9d6. With flaws he can use Dragontouched for Draconic Heritage to inspire sonic damage, if you switch to Sonokineticist, and then Creaking Cacophony will work with all of that.

[eggs]

Psi-like abilities can benefit from most of the feats and items that boost SLAs. I'm not sure what to do with that, beside possibly using Bracers of the Entangling Blast (wouldn't help damage any, but Entangle might be a good rider effect), but it's there.

Knowledge Devotion or Stormguard Warrior tricks could work. The Solicit Psicrystal+Control Body trick would get an extra attack per round with your Intelligence added to damage.

Extra natural weapons or Snap Kick are boring answers, but at very worst, they could be used to charge Stormguard Warrior.

[ThiagoMartell]

In that case, just 1d6 sneak attack qualifies you for Craven. You can even become immune to mind-affecting without losing its benefits, if you can sneak it past your DM.

Fixed that for you.

Answerer, between maneuvers and Power Attack you'll be doing fine, mostly. Consider if your DM allows Exotic Weapon Master abilities to apply to your electric lash as if it were a whip - some readings of Exotic Reach allow you to threaten everything within 15ft. Otherwhise, the Ranged Opportunist feat (it's from Dragon Magazine - it may be in Dragon Compendium) plus a handcrossbow should work. Since a whip is exotic and one handed, you might want to take a look at Uncanny Blow.

It might be too late to fit it in your build, but with those houserules the Warmind's Sweeping Strike ability is fantastic.

[Dusk Eclipse]

At higher levels (electrokinetist 4) you can use Weapon onshock(?) to increase your base damage. Could you use metaphysical weapon or dissolving weapon powers with your electrowhip?

[Answerer]

In that case, just 1d6 sneak attack qualifies you for Craven. You can even become immune to mind-affecting without losing its benefits, unless you have a shrewd DM.
Shrewd would be putting it mildly, yes. Moreover, since I'm hoping to continue Slayer (which gets a pretty sweet Mind Blank), that seems to have decidedly limited usefulness.


If you want to drastically change the build, go Sneak Attack (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#fighter) Thug (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/variant/classes/variantCharacterClasses.htm#fighterVariantThug) instead of Warblade, and be sure to get Zhentarim Soldier (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060327a) and free class features (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cwc/20061013a). Maybe take Psychic Assassin (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/psm/20040723d) 5 for Mind Cripple if you can make a deal with your DM to get rid of death attack and poison use in exchange for ignoring the alignment and special prerequisites.
My DM won't care about alignment or special prerequisites (I believe the line went something like "I don't care what you put on your sheet, I know damn well that your alignment is 'murderhobo'."), but I'm not sure how much Psychic Assassin is the direction I want to go. It has potential; I'll consider it.

Thug Fighter/Zhentarim Soldier are interesting, but I have other things I want to do with my levels.


One thing of note about a typical fire lash, as a noninstantaneous magical fire anything that takes damage from it has a chance of catching on fire per the DMG. The same goes for Dragonfire Inspiration. Speaking of which, maybe pick up Leadership for a DFI Bard, and wield a flaming lightning whip. At Bard 3 he can give +4d6 damage, at 6th he can get Words of Creation to make it +7d6, and at 8th it goes to +9d6. With flaws he can use Dragontouched for Draconic Heritage to inspire sonic damage, if you switch to Sonokineticist, and then Creaking Cacophony will work with all of that.
Leadership's out, so that's a no go. A cohort would be out of character in any case.

The bit about fire is interesting, but my DM specifically suggested I not take Pyrokineticist despite it being cooler because the campaign is likely to feature even more fire-resistant enemies than normal.


Psi-like abilities can benefit from most of the feats and items that boost SLAs. I'm not sure what to do with that, beside possibly using Bracers of the Entangling Blast (wouldn't help damage any, but Entangle might be a good rider effect), but it's there.
Good to know, and I'll look into the bracers.


Knowledge Devotion or Stormguard Warrior tricks could work. The Solicit Psicrystal+Control Body trick would get an extra attack per round with your Intelligence added to damage.
Have Knowledge Devotion, want Stormguard Warrior. I'd kind of like to avoid going the extra attack route, since I want to actually use martial maneuvers... probably not the best way to go for damage, though.


Extra natural weapons or Snap Kick are boring answers, but at very worst, they could be used to charge Stormguard Warrior.
Indeed.


Answerer, between maneuvers and Power Attack you'll be doing fine, mostly.
Heh, I consider myself a reasonably competent optimizer (though without as much knowledge of Psionics as I'd like); I'm not asking to keep up with a moderately optimized party, I'm looking to come up with damage figures that will shine even compared to my well-optimized comrades.

Not that I want to dominate the encounters, more that I'm looking to play a glass-cannon-ish character, which I can't really justify if his cannon isn't up to par.


Consider if your DM allows Exotic Weapon Master abilities to apply to your electric lash as if it were a whip - some readings of Exotic Reach allow you to threaten everything within 15ft. Otherwhise, the Ranged Opportunist feat (it's from Dragon Magazine - it may be in Dragon Compendium) plus a handcrossbow should work. Since a whip is exotic and one handed, you might want to take a look at Uncanny Blow.
These are definitely interesting and I will certainly consider them.


It might be too late to fit it in your build, but with those houserules the Warmind's Sweeping Strike ability is fantastic.
That... may have a lot of potential. I will have to see if my DM allows it.

The primary problem is that War Mind is Wis-based, and my character is specifically intelligent. While I can probably juggle a lot of things, that's one that I can't (and won't).


At higher levels (electrokinetist 4) you can use Weapon onshock(?) to increase your base damage. Could you use metaphysical weapon or dissolving weapon powers with your electrowhip?
True, but I'm not sure that's worth the levels... uh, at all.