Build help: Early Entry

[Arc_knight25]

I have me a build I would like to try. Not overly optimized but I think I can have some fun with it.

My problem is getting into Frenzied Beserker sooner. The need for 4 feats before getting to level 7 is pretty tough. Looking for Lvl 6 Aerial Avenger to get Swoop.

Pretty much a Raging Frenzied Bird with a giant spear dive bombing as much as he can.

Barbarian/Frenzied Beserker/Aerial Avenger

Frenzied Beserker
+6 BAB
Power Attack,Cleave, Destructive Rage, Intimidating Rage

Aerial Avenger
Tumble:5
Reflex +3
Dodge, Mobility

Race: Raptoran 5HD Flight +2dex -2 Con

1 Barbarian Fast movement(can be traded out) Iliteracy, Rage 1/day Feat: Power Attack
2 Barbarian Uncanny dodge
3 Barbarian trapsense 1 Feat: Cleave
4 Barbarian Rage 2/day
5 Barbarian Improved uncanny dodge
6 Barbarian Trap Sense 2 Feat: Destructive Rage
7 Barbarian DR1/-
8 Barbarian Rage3/day
9 Barbarian Trapsense 3 Feat: Intimidating Rage
10 Frenzied Beserker Frenzy, Diehard
11 Frenzied Beserker Supreme Cleave
12 Frenzied Beserker Frenzyx2 Feat: Dodge
13 Frenzied Beserker Deathless Frenzy
14 Frenzied Beserker Frenzyx3, improved Power attack
15 Barbarian DR2/- Feat :Mobility
16 Aerial Avenger Flyby Attack
17 Aerial Avenger Momentum 1, Power Dive
18 Aerial Avenger Manuverability increase, +10 flight speed Feat:
19 Aerial Avenger Death From Above +1, Range increase
20 Aerial Avenger Momentum +2

[Arc_knight25]

Found my Fix.

Going to take 1 level of Fighter at level 3 and going to make it the Raptoran substitution level so I can glide in medium armour.

Means i can drop out the one level of Barbarian and take the extra level for my 6 lvls in Aerial Avenger for swoop.

[Darrin]

Why only 1 level of fighter? And why so much barbarian?

Fighter 2 gets you Power Attack and Cleave. Monk 2 with the Cobra Strike variant fighting style (Unearthed Arcana) gets you Dodge and Mobility, as well as Ref +3 and Evasion (or possibly the Invisible Fist ACF from Exemplars of Evil).

Fighter 2/Monk 2/Barbarian 3 gets you into FB or Aerial Avenger. You can use the Skilled City-Dweller ACF from the Cityscape Web Enhancement (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20070228a) to swap your Fighter/Barbarian Ride skill for Tumble.

[Arc_knight25]

That is perfect. Alittle rearranging in my progression and everything works out great. Was hoping to get into Frenzied Beserker 1st but this works as well.

With some messing around here is what I have now

1 Fighter Feat: Power Attack, Bonus Feat: Cleave Raptoran variant: Encumbered Flight
2 Monk Cobra Strike Style: Dodge, +2 Escape Artist, Flurry of blows, Unarmed strike
3 Monk Cobra Strike Style: Mobility, Evasion(trade up?) Feat:?
4 Barbarian Fast movement(Trade up?), Rage 1/day
5 Barbarian Uncanny dodge
6 Aerial Avenger Flyby Attack Feat: Destructive Rage
7 Aerial Avenger Momentum 1, Power Dive
8 Aerial Avenger Manuverability increase, +10 flight speed
9 Aerial Avenger Death From Above +1, Range increase Feat: Intimidating Rage
10 Aerial Avenger Momentum +2
11 Frenzied Beserker Frenzy, Diehard
12 Frenzied Beserker Supreme Cleave Feat: Extra rage
13 Frenzied Beserker Frenzyx2
14 Frenzied Beserker Deathless Frenzy
15 Frenzied Beserker Frenzyx3, improved Power attack Feat: Leap Attack
16 Barbarian trapsense 1(Trade up?)
17 Barbarian Rage 2/day
18 Barbarian Improved uncanny dodge Feat: ?
19 Barbarian Trapsense +2
20 Aerial Avenger Swoop


I have feats at 3 and 18 that I'm not sure I should take. What feats do you think would go with the build?

[Darrin]

I have feats at 3 and 18 that I'm not sure I should take. What feats do you think would go with the build?

Hmm. I'd probably move Destructive Rage up to 3rd, and maybe take Air Heritage (Planar Handbook) at 6th. Or possibly Superior Unarmed Strike with Snap Kick later (18th?).

Another option might be Instantaneous Rage (CWar) + Imperious Command (Drow of the Underdark) + Never Outnumbered skill trick (CScoundrel). This is an old trick for Fear-based builds, but this lets you enter rage immediately, even to respond to a surprise attack, and you can demoralize every opponent within 10'. If they fail, they are cowering for 1 round (no Dex bonus, -2 AC, no actions). That's *before* combat has even started.

Otherwise, Travel Devotion (3rd) is quite nifty, or just take Extra Rage.

[Arc_knight25]

Only problem with taking Destructive Rage at 3rd is I really can't. Don't have any Barbarian levels to qualify for it yet. And i don't want to take Barbarian first because of the Monk Alignment restrictions. Is there not a feat that allows you to level both as a Monk and Barbarian?

Air Heritage works great for the build. More mobility can never be a bad thing.
Not really focused on a fear build.

For the Travel Devotion do you need to have a domain or can any class just take it?

So far some great idea's thank you.

[Unusual Muse]

Only problem with taking Destructive Rage at 3rd is I really can't. Don't have any Barbarian levels to qualify for it yet. And i don't want to take Barbarian first because of the Monk Alignment restrictions. Is there not a feat that allows you to level both as a Monk and Barbarian?

I don't know what sources are on the table for you, but in Dragon #310 there's a monk variant that gets Rage... called, appropriately, the Raging Monk.

EDIT: And even if you go Ex-Monk and start taking Barbarian levels, your monk levels still stack with Barbarian levels for Rage. FYI, you lose Flurry in order to gain Rage.

[Arc_knight25]

I normally don't use any of the Dragon Magazine items. Most of my DM's don't as well. But it would help my feat progression quite well if I did take that variant.

Other then that I don't mind how things are shaped. May trade out trap sense for Spell sense for the added AC v.s spells. Pounce is always an option as well. Nothing like Pounceing with a dive bomb attack.

[Rubik]

Other then that I don't mind how things are shaped. May trade out trap sense for Spell sense for the added AC v.s spells. Pounce is always an option as well. Nothing like Pounceing with a dive bomb attack.I would, on both counts. Trap sense is literally and utterly useless, since it grants a dodge bonus, which is not applied when flat-footed, and traps almost universally spring when you're flat-footed.

And pounce is never a bad thing.

[Darrin]

Only problem with taking Destructive Rage at 3rd is I really can't. Don't have any Barbarian levels to qualify for it yet. And i don't want to take Barbarian first because of the Monk Alignment restrictions.


Whoops. Missed that for some reason. It also slipped my mind about the whole alignment thing.



Is there not a feat that allows you to level both as a Monk and Barbarian?


No, mostly because of the alignment thing. There is a Chaos Monk in Dragon #335. If you're trying to do rage as a lawful monk, then there are ways around that (well, mostly Half-Orc Paragon).



For the Travel Devotion do you need to have a domain or can any class just take it?


No, anyone can take Devotion feats. If you think someone will hassle you about it, just put something in your backstory about your mother was a priestess of Fharlanghn.

The tricky part is activating them more than once per day, which is easy to do if you have Turn Undead, but not so much if you don't. But you can take Travel Devotion multiple times if you want it for more than 1/day.

[Arc_knight25]

Trading up Flurry for Decisive Strike seems like a good thing to do as well. I found a Homebrew feat on DnDWiki called Aestic Savage letting your monk and Barbarian levels stack for unarmed damage and number of rage's/day. Doesn't say anything on Alignment restrictions though.

I may hold off on the travel domain just because come level 8 i'll have a boat load of movement and with pounce shouldn't really need the feat.

Here is what I have now:

1 Fighter Feat: Power Attack, Bonus Feat: Cleave Raptoran variant: Encumbered Flight
2 Monk Cobra Strike Style: Dodge, +2 Escape Artist, Decisive Strike, Unarmed strike
3 Monk Cobra Strike Style: Mobility, Evasion(trade up?) Feat: Air Heritage
4 Barbarian Pounce Rage 1/day
5 Barbarian Uncanny dodge
6 Aerial Avenger Flyby Attack Feat: Destructive Rage
7 Aerial Avenger Momentum 1, Power Dive
8 Aerial Avenger Manuverability increase, +10 flight speed
9 Aerial Avenger Death From Above +1, Range increase Feat: Intimidating Rage
10 Aerial Avenger Momentum +2
11 Frenzied Beserker Frenzy, Diehard
12 Frenzied Beserker Supreme Cleave Feat: Extra Rage
13 Frenzied Beserker Frenzyx2
14 Frenzied Beserker Deathless Frenzy
15 Frenzied Beserker Frenzyx3, improved Power attack Feat: Leap Attack
16 Barbarian Spell Sense 1
17 Barbarian Rage 2/day
18 Barbarian Improved uncanny dodge Feat: ?
19 Barbarian Spell Sense 2
20 Aerial Avenger Swoop

Just that level 18 feat I'm looking at now.

[Malak'ai]

For your first level in Barbarian, use the Spirit Lion Totem variant from Complete Champion. Trades out Fast Movement for Pounce - Full Attack off a charge. YAY!

And if you can get your DM to allow Flaws, take something like Shaky and get Dreadful Wrath (Player's Guide to Faerûn, pg 38. It is a "Regional Feat" you may have to argue convince your DM to allow) and you have to take it at level 1, but you get Frightful Presence on any charge, full attack or when you cast a spell that either targets an enemy or includes an enemy in its area.