Pathfinder Soulknife (deadly Fist) advice

[Neopopulas]

So recently i was looking into monks and pathfinder doesn't seem to have done MUCH (Qinggong aside) to help monks out much.

I was pointed towards the Deadly Fist archtype for the soulknife which looks great. It gets (effectively) flurry, it has decent damage progression (equal to, or superior to the monks) and aside from some minor things can do most of the monk things (speed, agility and so on)

With Focused Offense, you can get Wis to Damage, which is nice (though wisdom isn't as needed because while it helps with psionic powers (gifted blade) i don't THINK its needed for much other things in the soulkife class), there is no Wis to AC like monks, and no inherent bonus to AC like monks either.

This makes sense, after all, the soulknife can wear armour. The problem i'm having is i'd rather NOT wear armour, at least visually, and i'd rather not have to spend tons of cash to make armour not armour either.

So with that in mind.. Can anyone give me any advice here?

Basically, since i was getting Focused Offense i'd end up getting Wis to damage and to-hit, which is nice, especially since i wasn't aiming to focus on a real strength build (though i'll need like, 13 for power attack).

But that said, the monk gains AC from both an inherent bonus, and their wisdom, whereas Soulknife/Deadly Fist doesn't, and since i don't want to wear armour - for that unarmed/armoured melee martial artist look - i'm going to suffer for it by a fair margin as the levels go up.

If anyone has an idea of ways to get a decent AC bump without spending tons of cash i'd love to hear it, whether its getting wis to AC, or something else, anything else. general build advice is welcome as well since there doesn't seem to be much in the way of guides out there.

Addendum: I considered a one-level dip into monk but i'd lose +1 BaB and my GM might be a little iffy on my level dipping JUST so i can get Wis to attack, damage AND AC..

Addendum two: Its pretty much just pathfinder, but its anything pathfinder that you can find on the SRD (http://www.d20pfsrd.com)

[Fax Celestis]

You could also take the Armored Blade archetype. Completely compatible with Deadly Fist, lets you make mindarmor. Take the Full Enhancement blade skill and be done.

[Psyren]

Focused Defense gets you Wis to AC, just fight defensively/use Combat Expertise. Or you can dip monk if you really want it on constantly, but really there's not a lot of difference between the two compared to the manifesting you lose.

Until 4th-level, just wear a chain shirt or some leather. Alternatively, Unlocked Talent + Inertial Armor, preferably with the +2 Practiced Manifester-esque ML trait.

[Novawurmson]

Agreeing with Psyren: Focused Defense+Combat Expertise should keep your AC looking decent, though you will go a little MAD needing Int 13. What point buy are you looking at?

[Psyren]

With low Int, you can still go with the "Fight Defensively" option to trigger Focused Defense. The penalty is much higher than Combat Expertise, but anybody can do it without needing a feat or Int 13.

EDIT: For kicks I'll go ahead and summarize the three ways to trigger Focused Defense.

Fight Defensively: -4 to all attacks, gain Wis+2 AC. Both benefits last one round. Declared as part of melee attack.

Total Defense: Requires standard action, no attacks allowed (including AoOs.) Gain Wis+4 AC. Lasts one round.

Combat Expertise: Requires feat + 13 Int. Declared as part of melee attack (so can be "turned on" out-of-turn during AoO etc.) -1 to all attacks, gain Wis+1 AC. At 4 BAB, it becomes -2 to all attacks and Wis+2 AC, increasing again at 8, 12, 16, and 20 BAB. (Maximum -6 all attacks, Wis+6 AC.)

[Neopopulas]

Its quite a high point buy (25) and though we're starting at level 1, the progress will be pretty quick.

It means that combat expertise isn't TOO bad - and the soulkinfe gets a full BaB, i believe. 13 int isn't terrible, but if i want power attack too, i'm looking at high wis, high dex, 13 int/str and we're back creeping back into the monk's MAD, but not quite as bad.

I took a look at the Armoured Blade but both the Armoured Blade and Deadly Fist replace the Form Mind Blade and Shape Mind Blade traits which make them mututally exclusive, as far as i know. If i'm wrong, on the other hand... if i could somehow make use of them both at the same time it would kind of be perfect.

Gifted Blade lets me take Inertial Armour, which is pretty good at +4 which is PRETTY MUCH what you would get from monk wis bonus (and it can be augmented) and it lasts an hour.

Granted at level 3 with Gifted Blade. Gifted Blade seems cool but it is worth giving up the psychic strike (which seems really cool). The power progression on the Gifted Blade is PRETTY slow but there are some okay powers in there. Expansion, Endorphin surge, wall walker but there isn't a ton. For the cost of 11 cha, maybe Unlocked Talent + Inertial armour is better?

[Fax Celestis]

I took a look at the Armoured Blade but both the Armoured Blade and Deadly Fist replace the Form Mind Blade and Shape Mind Blade traits which make them mututally exclusive, as far as i know. If i'm wrong, on the other hand... if i could somehow make use of them both at the same time it would kind of be perfect. They both change it. A liberal reading or a permissive DM would allow them to apply together.

[Neopopulas]

When i first saw it i went looking for some way to have, basically, two mind blade abilities so i could have two different types (the armour, and the deadly fist) but sadly i wasn't able to.

I think i'll just end up grabbing a feat or two (like combat expertise) and banking on getting like.. AC enchanted bodywraps or just bracers of armour or something instead.

[Psyren]

Well, Inertial Armor stacks with Focused Defense/Monk AC, so...

http://t.qkme.me/3q3rgr.jpg

Note that Focused Defense and Monk AC should even stack with each other. While JJ (or was it JB?) ruled against X stat applying to Y bonus twice, Focused Defense actually takes a more roundabout route - giving you a dodge bonus (which explicitly stacks with everything) that just happens to be equal to your Wis bonus, instead of applying your Wis to AC directly.

[StreamOfTheSky]

I would dip Master of Many Styles Monk to pick up Crane Wing (have Crane Style before entering; or at least have dodge, enter on an odd level, and use your general feat on Crane Style) *and* get wisdom to AC, on top of the wis to AC from Focused Defense, which you also want. With Crane, the penalty for fighting defensively is only -2 for +4 (3 acrobatics ranks) AC. Much later on, Crane Riposte will drop it to -1. No Int needed. Oh, and you deflect the first hit per round, too.

Consider dipping back for a 2nd monk level later on to add Snake Fang (have Snake Style and Combat Reflexes already), since MoMS lets you use two styles, and snake fang works so well w/ crane wing.

Gifted Blade is worth it for Metaphysical Weapon alone; it also has inertial armor and Vigor, and some powers that *don't* need/desire full augmentation (since your PP is so terrible). Be sure to inquire about psionic/magic transparency for the Magical Knack trait, since GB comes with a -2 manifester level penalty on its own, even before the possible monk dips.

EDIT: Never buy bracers of armor! They're disgustingly overpriced! Buying your party arcanist a 1st level pearl of power or two (in case it gets dispelled) is a far cheaper investment and will give you +4 AC (16000 gp to get that with the bracers). Or just use Inertial Armor yourself...

[Psyren]

I would dip Master of Many Styles Monk to pick up Crane Wing (have Crane Style before entering; or at least have dodge, enter on an odd level, and use your general feat on Crane Style) *and* get wisdom to AC, on top of the wis to AC from Focused Defense, which you also want. With Crane, the penalty for fighting defensively is only -2 for +4 (3 acrobatics ranks) AC. Much later on, Crane Riposte will drop it to -1. No Int needed. Oh, and you deflect the first hit per round, too.

I like it; this is very handy if your point buy is too low for Combat Expertise's Int requirement. Since you also need Str, Dex and Con, leaning on your feats in this way can be helpful.

While MoMS does make this feat easier to get however, it does delay your manifesting (and cut down your PP) even further. If you're going to dip monk though this is probably the one to go with; especially since it replaces Flurry (which you can easily get back with Bladeskills.)



Consider dipping back for a 2nd monk level later on to add Snake Fang (have Snake Style and Combat Reflexes already), since MoMS lets you use two styles, and snake fang works so well w/ crane wing.

Note that the FAQ clarified that the Crane Wing deflection does not count as a "miss" and therefore does not trigger Snake Fang. I would probably go with Monkey Style -> Monkey Moves instead, myself.



Gifted Blade is worth it for Metaphysical Weapon alone; it also has inertial armor and Vigor, and some powers that *don't* need/desire full augmentation (since your PP is so terrible). Be sure to inquire about psionic/magic transparency for the Magical Knack trait, since GB comes with a -2 manifester level penalty on its own, even before the possible monk dips.

Actually, no need to do this - Psionics Expanded includes the Psionic Knack trait. Annoyingly, it hasn't made it to the SRD yet, but it does just what you describe.

"Psionic Knack: You are naturally psionically gifted, even if you dabble in other studies. Pick a class with a manifester level when you gain this trait—your manifester level in that class gains a +2 trait bonus as long as this bonus doesn’t raise your manifester level above your current Hit Dice. You must have a level in the class chosen to gain this benefit."



EDIT: Never buy bracers of armor! They're disgustingly overpriced! Buying your party arcanist a 1st level pearl of power or two (in case it gets dispelled) is a far cheaper investment and will give you +4 AC (16000 gp to get that with the bracers). Or just use Inertial Armor yourself...

Inertial/Mage Armor can't carry armor properties though, while the bracers can. And you're saving a ton of money on an AoMF/weapon anyway, so you can splurge in other areas.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Alright, well... Crane's +4 AC for minimal attack penalty is still good synergy with Snake Fang, even if Crane Wing doesn't trigger it now.

Maybe it'd be better then to dip MoMS for Snake Fang (it has really tough/awful pre-reqs) once you have Snake Style, grab Crane Style on your own as before (pretty easy pre-reqs), and just pick up Crane Wing once you have BAB +5. Then you only need to dip monk for one level. I like getting Crane Wing super early, but in the long run the above is probably better for you.

[Neopopulas]

Thanks for the continued replies. i was looking into good feats, there doesn't seem to be a TON of cool psionic ones - up the walls could be good because its more of an urban-ish game - but i can work that with just a high acrobatics skill, i think.

I'm still debating Gifted Blade. It seems good, but i'm not sure what powers i'd really get out of it, it WOULD free up a feat instead of taking Unlocked Talent to get Inertial armour and i could use that feat for something else. is Gifted Blade really worth giving up the psychic strike?

Seems like PS is good extra damage when you need it and i only saw a couple of powers in the Gifted Blade list that were really good plus the progression is kinda slow. Level 7 before you even get level 2 powers). Also PS allows some blade skills like Furious Charge and Absorbing/Reflective strike

You would end up with 2 powers known, both 1st level until level 7, one would go to Inertial Armour and the other would probably go to Expansion or Metaphysical Weapon, which isn't terrible, but the progression is to slow and even higher level powers aren't fantastic.

Speaking of feats, are the style feats worth it? I was looking at a few, but i've never used them before.

For example, if i took Crane Style it's a pretty good tree, but it requires dodge, so its a little more expensive than Combat Expertise + Focused defense (also its -2 instead of -1 from CE) but it does lead into Crane Wing.

Dodge + Crane Style + Focused Defense is a 2 feat 1 blade skill investment, nets me +1 AC (dodge), +1 (crane style), and +2 (Fighting Defensively) for -2 to attack (not horrible with a full bab class) PLUS my wis (+3 at the moment) for a total of 7 AC and -2 attack so long as i'm fighting defensively, which could be a lot of the time, since its only costing me -2 attack at the moment.

OR, do i take Combat Expertise (-1 attack, +1 AC) and Focused Defense (+3 AC), which is cheaper, and only costs me -1 attack, but only nets me +4.

Or.. i guess, i can take both..

Dodge + Crane Style + Combat Expertise means i can EITHER;
Fight defensively (with Crane Style) and take -2 to attack for +7 AC
Use Combat Expertise for -1 attack for +4 AC
Use Combat Expertise AND fight defensively for -3 to attack and +8 AC (which doesn't seem worth the extra -1 to me)

What other style feats are good? I was looking into a few.

Crane Style -> Crane Wing obviously. Crane Riposite seems good but i don't know how much use one extra AoO would be.

Monkey style makes tumble and the like much easier.

Snapping Turtle counts if i'm totally unarmed?

[StreamOfTheSky]

Keep in mind, you get an extra AC from fighting defensively if you have 3 ranks in acrobatics. And do keep in mind, as your BAB increases, the attack penalty (and AC bonus) of Combat Expertise *will* go up. You have no say in the matter. It's a big part of the reason why CE is such a bad feat. So thinking of it as only a -1 isn't the whole picture.

Also, wis is only +3? That sounds too low... You're basing everything off of it, and Wis +2 races abound, you should be able to start at level 1 with an 18, easily. Maybe even a 19 so it hits 20 by level 4.

As for other styles...like I said, Snake Fang is incredible. Unfortunately Snake Sidewind is extremely bad, so you would want to walk into Master of Many Styles w/ Snake Style already, so you can instantly grab Snake Fang and skip the garbage.

[Psyren]

I'm still debating Gifted Blade. It seems good, but i'm not sure what powers i'd really get out of it, it WOULD free up a feat instead of taking Unlocked Talent to get Inertial armour and i could use that feat for something else. is Gifted Blade really worth giving up the psychic strike?

Gifted Blade >>>> Psychic Strike, both in damage and utility, even with the low PP GBs get. Don't forget that with Psionic Knack you're a full manifester, and as Stream pointed out you get everything off Wis so there's no reason not to max it, netting you close to triple the PP listed in the table.



Seems like PS is good extra damage when you need it and i only saw a couple of powers in the Gifted Blade list that were really good plus the progression is kinda slow. Level 7 before you even get level 2 powers). Also PS allows some blade skills like Furious Charge and Absorbing/Reflective strike.

1) They get a ton of useful powers, and keep in mind that their power selection works like the Vitalist, i.e. you can change your powers known every morning. To top it off you can even keep stones or dorjes around of the more situational ones, e.g. a stone of Synesthete if you need to go kill something with a nasty gaze attack like a Basilisk.

2) Psionics is different from spellcasting - power levels don't matter as much as spell levels do, because many powers are augmentable and uncapped. For example, you can power up your Vigor or Inertial Armor as high as a Psion can, or if you learn Astral Construct via Expanded Knowledge, you can create a 9th-level version just like any Shaper.

3) Furious Charge is unnecessary since you have PLC. Absorbing Blade is one of the stronger reasons to stay with Psychic Strike, but what you gain in exchange is strong utility in every encounter instead of a situational defense in some.




Speaking of feats, are the style feats worth it? I was looking at a few, but i've never used them before.

Stream and I suggested some good ones for you (Crane, Snake, Monkey.) Snapping Turtle is pretty weak.

[Truffles]

in complete... champion? there is a feat that lets you lvl both paladin and monk at the same time... getting paladins spells but also monks progression. I built one once who worshipped bahamut. He had that battlecasting and some cold fist feat or something and that spell.... where you do 2 damg to urself for an extra d6 of damg (up to ten damg and 5d6) and then i took the option of spirits (dungeonscape?) instead of a mount so i could heal three times my lay on hands amount.

seems to have the same flavor ur looking for... healing damg small spells awesome monk build

[Neopopulas]

Keep in mind, you get an extra AC from fighting defensively if you have 3 ranks in acrobatics. And do keep in mind, as your BAB increases, the attack penalty (and AC bonus) of Combat Expertise *will* go up. You have no say in the matter. It's a big part of the reason why CE is such a bad feat. So thinking of it as only a -1 isn't the whole picture.

Also, wis is only +3? That sounds too low... You're basing everything off of it, and Wis +2 races abound, you should be able to start at level 1 with an 18, easily. Maybe even a 19 so it hits 20 by level 4.

As for other styles...like I said, Snake Fang is incredible. Unfortunately Snake Sidewind is extremely bad, so you would want to walk into Master of Many Styles w/ Snake Style already, so you can instantly grab Snake Fang and skip the garbage.

Sadly, i didn't notice that about Combat Expertise. I expected something more like Power Attack. good catch. That saves me 3 points for not having to get 13 int (even if i should for skills) JUST for CE (basically). And also i might as well drop back to 10 cha and go Gifted Blade instead of just getting Inertial armour.

That gets me stats of 13/16/12/10/18/10 with the +2 wis from Human getting me to that 18.

13 strength for power attack - even if i don't get the full bonus its probably still worth it and 12 con because we all need con.

A few points i should make, and meant to make initially. My GM isn't allowing traits, he never does, and its pretty much humans, elves and MAYBE dwarves as races, with dwarves not REALLY fitting in.

As it stands i've dropped CE and i'll probably pick up Crane Style and fight defensively.

[Psyren]

Note that Dwarf isn't a bad choice here, as it will get you to 14 Con and Cha down to 8 with the same Wis. Call yourself Beardfist Hammerfist :smallwink: Otherwise, Half-Giant or Elan are the ideal choices but Human will ultimately work.

No traits is a bummer but -2 ML won't cripple you. As Stream suggested, get those Acrobatics ranks so that you boost the fight defensively bonus.

Can you get Unlocked Talent at all? Since Gifted Blades still start with Wild Talent this will get you a much needed PP boost and a power you can use at level 1.

[Neopopulas]

I could get Unlocked Talent, but i would need to bump to 11 cha (not a huge deal) and a feat, but i could alway just use the gifted blade to get it. Also if i ever DO end up in armour, which is always an open i guess, Inertial Armour doesn't stack (though Thicken skin does, but its less)

[StreamOfTheSky]

"I expected something more like Power Attack."

...Power Attack *also* increases the penalty against your will. It's also annoying, but unlike CE, the basic benefit was actually pretty handy to begin with and the stat requirement isn't as demanding for a martial, so people just deal with it.

As for traits... What if you took the Additional Traits feat? The feat even says it can be used in games w/o free traits to gain some traits. Then you're spending a feat, doesn't hurt to ask the DM...

[Neopopulas]

I think i have things sorted out. Thanks for everyone's help!

I'm kinda-sorta working on feats. Mostly i took the Crane style feat trees. I'm considering Power Attack but 1:1 isn't amazing, though its nice at later levels, it also costs 13 strength. It allows me to get Cleave but i probably won't use cleave at lot at the level i'd be getting it (which is like, 7)

I have one feat floating around, but i'm still torn over what to get.

I took Dodge as my human feat (so i can get crane style.
Crane style at level 3 (because you need at least +2 BAB)
I'll probably get Crane Wing at level 5.

I'm not sure where to go. I could get Psionic Meditation so i can refocus quicker, since its important for some blade skills and its important to have up if i use Focused Defense.

I COULD get power attack but i'd probably take it at level 7, which means i should get Weapon Focus at level 1 so i can offset the penalty a little, but level 7 is a long way to go. It leads into Cleave but we're getting to a level where it matters a lot less.

Weapon Focus has some decent things building off it but most seem to also need 13 strength.

I'm tempted to drop strength entirely, since i won't need it and instead focus on something like Wis or Dex feats, but i haven't found a ton that i like yet.

[Psyren]

I think you're overstressing the Power Attack penalty. If -1 attack is the difference between you hitting and missing then you're missing half the time anyway and PA is making next to no difference. And it's 1:2 in Pathfinder, not 1:1. And yes, the penalty increases as you level, but so are the bonuses from your fists, items and stats, not to mention you have powers like Offensive Precognition as well. However, if your point buy is painfully low I would indeed drop it and Cleave, dump Str to 10 and focus on Wis from level 2 onward.

Focused Offense/Defense require you to maintain psionic focus. If you're not planning to spend it on anything, skip Psionic Meditation. Focus at the start of the game/when you wake up, and just leave it on all day. (In Pathfinder, you don't lose focus for running out of PP anymore.)

[Neopopulas]

SOME of the bladeskills require you to expend your focus, but probably not enough that it matters. I suppose since they are light weapons i don't get 1.5 but i still get the +2 bonus for -1 attack..
I guess the question is.. is it worth the 3 points in strength? or one more point to something like dex?

I'll probably end up just going power attack because its always kinda useful.

Power attack leads into some decent things though.

[Psyren]

I guess the question is.. is it worth the 3 points in strength? or one more point to something like dex?

You said you had high PB (25) - what are your stats looking like right now if you don't go with 13 Str?

[StreamOfTheSky]

25 point buy human, you could do

Str 10, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 7
Str 8, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 8
Str 7, Dex 14, Con 16, Int 11, Wis 20, Cha 7

Trying to squeeze 3 points in to the top array (which would probably be my choice) makes for some tough choices...
Str 13, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 9, Wis 20, Cha 7
Str 13, Dex 12, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 7
Str 13, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 7

I really don't think you need power attack. I'd just skip it and not bother with strength.
EDIT: Also I agree, don't get Psionic Meditation. Avoid anything that requires expending psionic focus like the plague, and just keep it up all day long. Your attack/damage depends on it being up way too much to go messing around with it. There are plenty of decent options that require keeping it up (instead of expending it) to pick among, not to mention lots of non-psionic feats.

[Neopopulas]

Without strength it would probably end up looking like
STR 10, DEX 17, CON 12, INT 10, WIS 18, CHA 10

Really i only need Dex and Wis. Strengh bad to have, but i'll have 18 dex in like two levels which is nice for a low armour sort of game, wis is attack and damage, so thats a primary, strength would ONLY be useful for having power attack.

I never used power attack much, i usually play casters, so i'm not really 'used' to using it much.

I should note that the GM doesn't like dumping stats so anything under 10 needs a really good explaination

[Novawurmson]

You might consider starting with an 11 in Strength and picking up a +2 Str item when you want to take Power Attack. As you're a Full BAB class, it is a nice damage boost, but at low levels, you'll be killing thing quickly anyway without it.

[Neopopulas]

I think, so far, the general thought is to not worry about Power Attack and i sort of agree. Of course now the qustion is, what OTHER good feats are there? I have some style feats - Crane style mostly. But i've had some trouble finding other feats.

And a fair few of them seem to want combat expertise or power attack which makes it funny.

The inherent bonus from soulknife, plus gifted blade and any magical items i get should keep my damage up.

[StreamOfTheSky]

I would suggest then...

Str 7, Dex 16, Con 14, Int 11, Wis 20, Cha 7

The array you listed makes no sense. You're spending MORE on dex than you are on wis (wis is 18, so 16 before racial), and expecting to boost it at level 4. You're over-paying for points like crazy. You should pick the stat you want highest, make it highest, and then boost it every 4th level, as a general rule.

Dex may help AC, but it is capped by armor. And you can get +dex items later on. a +3 dex means you could eventually get a Dex +6 belt for a modifier of +6, which is the cap Mithral Chain Shirt allows. If you're angling for Mithral Breastplate, that caps even lower, at +5 dex. Anything beyond that is wasted.

And if you *are* dipping monk and thus not wearing armor... you have even more reason to focus on wis. As that's now adding to AC, and unlike dex, you keep it while flat-footed.

If you do want good wis and dex, I suggest using a race that boosts both. There's seriously like half a dozen of them...

EDIT: Ok, if your DM doesn't allow dumping stats, you should go with

Str 11, Dex 14, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 20, Cha 10

And get +2 str belt later on for power attack if you decide you want it. I'm surprised he insists on all PCs being at least average at everything, though. You'd think you could at least get a low charisma and be anti-social.

[Psyren]

Str 8, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 12, Wis 20, Cha 8

@OP: I'd probably go with this one (just because I hate the idea of starting with less than 8 in a stat) and if you start at level 1, just rely on a crossbow starting out. Once you hit level 2, pick up Focused Offense, wear some decent armor and wade into melee punching left and right. And once you hit level 4, you can peel the armor off, pick Focused Defense and be the kung-fu genius you envisioned.

[Neopopulas]

I'll probably be using Focused Defense a lot, actually. It doesn't hurt me too much - especially with Crane Style.

I'm not TOO worried about the damage from power attack i'm just not sure how soulknife damage scales and if it needed it or not.

I think right now its more a matter of "i don't know what feats to pick" and less "i'm worried about damage.

[Psyren]

I'll probably be using Focused Defense a lot, actually. It doesn't hurt me too much - especially with Crane Style.

Well yeah, that's what I said :smalltongue: But you don't get it until 2nd level, so wearing armor at level 1 (even just a chain shirt or something) may be a good idea, unless you're starting the game at 2+. And try to go first in combat, since you can't fight defensively until you attack, so your AC will be abysmally low if you get caught flat-footed.



I'm not TOO worried about the damage from power attack i'm just not sure how soulknife damage scales and if it needed it or not.

The weapon scales and you're basically Wis SAD (getting even HP from Wis thanks to Vigor); combined with Flurry and your ability to get pounce later, you'll be able to dish out quite a bit of hurt if all your attacks land. Combined with your fists' ability to easily bypass DR and your ability to raise your to-hit through psionics and you should have little trouble damagewise. You also get Wis to damage (though not attack) for your hadouken Psychokinetic Discharge.

You're also pretty good at maneuvers - CMB is an attack roll too, so you get Wis to it, and you also have full BAB. Grapple is particularly useful since you can get size, enhancement and even insight bonuses directly to your check, plus your hands are empty so no penalties. Tripping is also good - not only can you again increase your size, you can also increase your reach, and even put the trip property on your fists thanks to Weapon Special and Toppling Strike. Improved Toppling Strike will let you "trip-cleave" a roomful of baddies and make them stay down. Either of these combos can make you a better tank by controlling the battlefield and keeping enemies behind you.



I think right now its more a matter of "i don't know what feats to pick" and less "i'm worried about damage.

Per the above, you may want to build towards a certain combat style. I recommend focusing on either Wrestler or Kung-Fu Tripper, and then dedicating the rest of your feats to psionics. You'll want an Unlocked Talent in there (Minor Metamorphosis and Inevitable Strike are great choices) along with some Expanded Knowledges (strongly consider Astral Construct.) Because you're Wis-SAD, your PP actually won't be that far behind a Psywar's. By level 11 you should have a psicrystal, so that you can EK Share Pain and double your hitpoints.

[Neopopulas]

I'd like to build into trip, but i wont really make use it of it until level 7 at the earliest.

AND i have to use 13 int and combat expertise and THEN improved trip and so on. So annoying that everything uses combat expertise and i don't really see myself using it.

Obviously though i'm going to need something. 13str and power attack for those trees. 13int and combat expertise for that tree.

[StreamOfTheSky]

Or just pick completely different feats.

Look at the XPH ones. Maybe look into Enforcer or Cornugon Smash. Maybe Step Up -- it won't do anything to casters, but it'll mess up enemy archers and reach weapon users something fierce. There's the boring but decent Dodge and Toughness. Stunning Fist is alright later on... Maybe pick up Hellcat Stealth and be the party scout.

There's a lot of feats out there. It's not just the PA and CE feat trees.

It is rather annoying that Dazing Assault requires PA...

[Neopopulas]

I've been looking at a few to just round out a "style" like bleeding attack or Hamatulatsu though i'm not sure how good some of them are.

If i could get Posion use from somewhere i'd use that Adder strike thing

[Psyren]

Poisons aren't worth wasting feats on. Lots of creatures are resistant or outright immune, Adder Strike is just asking the DM to screw with you ("Did you remember to put your gloves on?") and the DCs of nonmagical poisons rarely scale at all.

[Neopopulas]

Shame. Well maybe i'll just pick up Deflect arrows and be done with it and find some of the higher level ones that need higher BAB like Punishing Kick, it needs +8 BAB, but i have the 13 con and 13 wis to get it later anyway.

I could get Scorpion style. But that tree isn't REALLY good until you at least get to Medusa's wrath, right?

Scorpion Strike isn't terrible though, i've just never seen a lot of need to stop enemies moving around.