ProfessorWoland
2013-07-06, 10:41 PM
So at the moment I am playing a Goliath rogue who specializes in grappling people to death (my DM allows me to do sneak attack damage within a grapple.) He grapples people, pins them, and proceeds to sneak attack them and murders their faces while they are pinned. Also he has armor spikes for additional grapple damage and the Earth's Embrace feat to help deal more damage in the grapple.
My DM is making some new grapple feats, because he agrees that the ones that exist are ridiculously few and far between and that a good deal of them are under-powered to the point of being handicaps rather than boons.
To this end, my DM is also reworking the Reaping Mauler prestige class from the Complete Warrior and he is also reworking the way that grapple works to some degree so that is not the horrible joke that it used to be.
Changes include, but are not limited to:
1) The saves for Sleeper Hold and the death-grapple ability are based off of my strength and not my wisdom, and they will no longer be super low.
2) The bonuses to grapple will not be pitiful.
3) He is adding a couple of new abilities.
4) He has done away with clever wrestling.
5) I won't lose the benefits of the class if I increase in size.
6) Other changes to make it a playable class instead of a unspeakably awful one.
7) He also let me buy off my level adjustment, so I can go to level 20.
8) He is also allowing me to deal sneak attack damage in a grapple without a feat.
At this point I have four classes I like for this;
1) Rogue - Lovely being huge Goliath who sneak attacks people in a grapple.
2) Reaping Mauler (Comp. Warrior) - Terrible without the rework, but my DM is fixing it. Can knock people unconscious with a grapple at third level(?) and kill them by pinning them for three rounds at level 5.
Reqs - BA +5, Improved Unarmed Strike, Tumble 5 ranks, Escape Artist 5 ranks
3) Black Blood Cultist (Champions of Ruin) - A rage-based grapple-centric 10-level prestige class that gives you many natural attacks while raging, at level 8 you deal damage as if you had hit with all of your natural attacks whenever you succeed on a grapple, and at level 10 you have the natural attacks even when not raging. Also at 5th level I believe they can coup de grace as a move action, which has great synergy with the Reaping Mauler's ability to knock people unconscious.
Reqs - Knowledge (nature) 2 ranks, Survival 8 ranks, Improved Unarmed Strike, Track, Ability to rage.
4) Barbarian - Just to get Black Blood Cultist.
This is me so far
Level 6 Goliath Rogue
Str 20
Dex 12
Con 15
Int 12
Wis 10
Cha 8
Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike, Improved Grapple, Earth's Embrace, Bear Hug (+3 grapple checks in pin)
I am not looking to branch out into any other classes, I know I like those four. My question is, what order should I go into them in and for how many levels.
My current idea is
Rogue 9 (for the sneak attack damage)
Reaping Mauler 5 (to max out the class)
Black Blood Cultist 10 (to max out the class)
Barbarian 1 (to qualify for Black Blood Cultist)
I don't know what order I should do that in or if another combination would do more damage/be more efficient.
Additionaly, my DM will allow me to rework my Goliath character to redistribute class levels and such, so I can restart this character and be level six, but in different classes if I so choose. Any suggestions on what order I should do this in, and what order to do it in so that I become an actual threat as quickly as possible?
I am also looking for item and graft suggestions for a grappler.
My DM is making some new grapple feats, because he agrees that the ones that exist are ridiculously few and far between and that a good deal of them are under-powered to the point of being handicaps rather than boons.
To this end, my DM is also reworking the Reaping Mauler prestige class from the Complete Warrior and he is also reworking the way that grapple works to some degree so that is not the horrible joke that it used to be.
Changes include, but are not limited to:
1) The saves for Sleeper Hold and the death-grapple ability are based off of my strength and not my wisdom, and they will no longer be super low.
2) The bonuses to grapple will not be pitiful.
3) He is adding a couple of new abilities.
4) He has done away with clever wrestling.
5) I won't lose the benefits of the class if I increase in size.
6) Other changes to make it a playable class instead of a unspeakably awful one.
7) He also let me buy off my level adjustment, so I can go to level 20.
8) He is also allowing me to deal sneak attack damage in a grapple without a feat.
At this point I have four classes I like for this;
1) Rogue - Lovely being huge Goliath who sneak attacks people in a grapple.
2) Reaping Mauler (Comp. Warrior) - Terrible without the rework, but my DM is fixing it. Can knock people unconscious with a grapple at third level(?) and kill them by pinning them for three rounds at level 5.
Reqs - BA +5, Improved Unarmed Strike, Tumble 5 ranks, Escape Artist 5 ranks
3) Black Blood Cultist (Champions of Ruin) - A rage-based grapple-centric 10-level prestige class that gives you many natural attacks while raging, at level 8 you deal damage as if you had hit with all of your natural attacks whenever you succeed on a grapple, and at level 10 you have the natural attacks even when not raging. Also at 5th level I believe they can coup de grace as a move action, which has great synergy with the Reaping Mauler's ability to knock people unconscious.
Reqs - Knowledge (nature) 2 ranks, Survival 8 ranks, Improved Unarmed Strike, Track, Ability to rage.
4) Barbarian - Just to get Black Blood Cultist.
This is me so far
Level 6 Goliath Rogue
Str 20
Dex 12
Con 15
Int 12
Wis 10
Cha 8
Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike, Improved Grapple, Earth's Embrace, Bear Hug (+3 grapple checks in pin)
I am not looking to branch out into any other classes, I know I like those four. My question is, what order should I go into them in and for how many levels.
My current idea is
Rogue 9 (for the sneak attack damage)
Reaping Mauler 5 (to max out the class)
Black Blood Cultist 10 (to max out the class)
Barbarian 1 (to qualify for Black Blood Cultist)
I don't know what order I should do that in or if another combination would do more damage/be more efficient.
Additionaly, my DM will allow me to rework my Goliath character to redistribute class levels and such, so I can restart this character and be level six, but in different classes if I so choose. Any suggestions on what order I should do this in, and what order to do it in so that I become an actual threat as quickly as possible?
I am also looking for item and graft suggestions for a grappler.