Fun melee builds

[SirAxealot]

Looking for some ideas for what it says in the title

System: 3.5
Psionics and Incarnum are banned
Build for level 10 with room to grow

[A_S]

3.5 or PF?
Mundane only or anything that has melee as its main shtick?
Any source restrictions?
Have you played before? If so, what things did you find fun and what things were not fun?

[SirAxealot]

3.5
anything with melee as the main schtick
no psionics or incarnum
I have and so far I have played a charger barbarian which was reasonably fun, looking for something a bit more tactical though

[A_S]

If you like hitting things really hard, but want more options each turn than "who do I hit really hard this time," I think Tome of Battle is likely to be your friend. Crusader 20 and Warblade 20 are both perfectly respectable builds; a little dipping will get you a couple other cool features and help mitigate some stupid design decisions in the classes related to when they get stances.

Is there anything in particular you want to be able to do? Area control via reach and tripping or big damage via charging + power attack optimization are the two main melee schticks, but there are other options, too.

[Eslin]

Yeah, seconded. For melee power with large quantities of options to make combat tactical, ToB is the best thing you'll find in 3.5

[SirAxealot]

lets say I want to mix a swordsage with a couple of other ingredients for maximum ass kicking

which ingredients should I use

[WhatBigTeeth]

Gishes, Tome of Battle builds, Dragonmarked PrCs and Domain feats are almost always solid bases for fun melee.

[A_S]

If it's allowed, and the game is going to go high enough level for it to come into play, I always want Shadow Pounce with a Swordsage. Telflammar Shadowlord is probably your best bet for getting that.

Unfortunately, although the Shadow Hand teleportation maneuvers trigger Shadow Pounce, they don't qualify you for the class, since it explicitly needs either Shadow Stride or Dimension Door. You can probably use Shape Soulmeld + Open Least Chakra for Blink Shirt to qualify (two feats), or you can pick up a template that grants Dimension Door as an SLA, or you can just gish it up and take some levels in a casting class.

Here's a Shadow Pounce gish build I wrote up a while back, which uses Warblade rather than Swordsage for the superior recovery mechanic:Human (28 point buy)

Str: 14
Dex: 14
Con: 14
Int: 16
Wis: 8
Cha: 8

1 - Human Paragon 1 - Dodge, Blind Fight
2 - Wizard 1
3 - Human Paragon 2 - Mobility, Spring Attack, Practiced Spellcaster (Wizard)
4 - Wizard 2 - Str 15
5 - Warblade 1
6 - Human Paragon 3 - Martial Study (Shadow Jaunt)
7 - Jade Phoenix Mage 1
8 - Jade Phoenix Mage 2 - Str 16
9 - Jade Phoenix Mage 3 - Martial Stance (Assassin's Stance)
10 - Jade Phoenix Mage 4
11 - Telflammar Shadowlord 1
12 - Telflammar Shadowlord 2 - Arcane Strike, Str 17
13 - Telflammar Shadowlord 3
14 - Telflammar Shadowlord 4
15 - Telflammar Shadowlord 5 - Martial Study (Shadow Stride)
16 - Jade Phoenix Mage 5 - Str 18
17 - Jade Phoenix Mage 6
18 - Jade Phoenix Mage 7 - Martial Study (Shadow Blink)
19 - Jade Phoenix Mage 8
20 - Jade Phoenix Mage 9 - Str 19

Maneuvers:
5 (IL 3) - Moment of Perfect Mind, Action Before Thought, Mountain Hammer
7 (IL 4) - Crusader's Strike
9 (IL 6) - Burning Blade
16 (IL 11) - Divine Surge
18 (IL 13) - Fire Riposte
20 (IL 15) - Leaping Flame

Typical maneuvers readied: Moment of Perfect Mind, Action Before Thought, Shadow Jaunt, Shadow Stride, Shadow Blink, Leaping Flame)

Stances:
5 - Hunter's Sense
16 - Aura of Perfect Order

(Typical stance: Assassin's Stance)

[DMVerdandi]

lets say I want to mix a swordsage with a couple of other ingredients for maximum ass kicking

which ingredients should I use

Spirit lion totem barbarian[Ferocity variant] 1/Warblade 2/Swordsage7

Feats
1.Power Attack
3.Adaptive Style
6.Martial Study [Iron Heart]
9.Exotic weapon proficiency (???)

[Wings of Peace]

Whirling Lion Totem Barbarian 1/Binder/Other Stuff if desired. Build yourself like a natural weapon focused uber charger and use your occult powers for situations smashing stuff isn't relevant. Char ideas include traveling tribalman.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Wildshape Ranger 5 / Master of Many Forms 5.

Get an Urban Companion (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20070228a) (your effective druid level 2 animal would've just been an annoyance anyway) for a familiar and you actually meet all the feat requirements automatically.

Add Vow of Poverty, perhaps. It's weaker than having gear, but then you don't have to deal with the insipid "polymorph errata" that caused wildshaping to leave you naked. Well, you do still, but you don't care as much. I mostly just wanted a build like this inspired by Cutey Honey. :smallsmile:

[Metahuman1]

If you can get the feats for it and don't have to worry about being able to upkeep the freaking mount too much, Strong heart Halfling Paladin of Freedom 4/ Crusader x is kinda a different way to do things. Trust me, Spirited Charge + Power Attack + Shock Trooper + Ride By attack with a Lance does a lot for you on Damage. More so if you can find a trick to get full mounted attack.

If you really wanna Optimize every inch, start Crusader, go a couple of levels each into Prestige Paladin of Freedom and a re fluffed good aligned Urpriest, and then do a re-fluffed Ruby Night Vindicator with the DMM: Persist Line.

You'll be a terror.