kensai prc

[questionmark693]

Am I missing something, or is this in fact a very solid choice for somebody who just wants to be very good at hitting things with his sword?

[danzibr]

Am I missing something, or is this in fact a very solid choice for somebody who just wants to be very good at hitting things with his sword?
I like it, but I feel it's pretty mediocre.

[Vaz]

1) Clerics do it better.
2) Initiators do it better.
3) If it's for the magic weapon, then Ancestral Relic does it for "Good" alignment at the expense of a feat.

Its abilities are essentiall *hit it harder*; and other things hit harder.

[Nihilarian]

What Vaz said.

It has a use for natural weapon users, at least. Not essential, but it's there.

[shylocke]

Which kensai? Complete warrior or oriental adventures? The oriental one is more like then sword and fist weapon master. I like the CW. Its my backup char right now in case my ninja dies. Scythe master FTW!

[Segev]

Would it stack with Ancestral Relic and/or Legacy Weapon in any useful way?

[Xintas]

Yes. You could use Ancestral Relic to use all of the gold resources you have to get the weapon as high as possible and then use XP to get it the rest of the way or vice versa. Not worth a feat but it can save you some gold/XP depending on which way you pay for the second half.

Other than that...no. It's pretty good at hitting stuff though.

[questionmark693]

It is the CW version. I guess I was thinking it enhances your weapon for almost free, letting you use your wbl for everything else fighters cant do. If you lead into it, then follow it up with initiator classes, it seems pretty good.

[Urpriest]

It is the CW version. I guess I was thinking it enhances your weapon for almost free, letting you use your wbl for everything else fighters cant do. If you lead into it, then follow it up with initiator classes, it seems pretty good.

Good weapons are pretty cheap unless you're doing something really specialized, though. A couple +1s for things like Valorous, maybe some bigger stuff like Splitting for archers, cover the rest with the cost of a Pearl of Power and your friendly GMW-caster...getting your AC up is generally way more costly, not to mention picking up immunities.

[Dimers]

Would it stack with Ancestral Relic and/or Legacy Weapon in any useful way?

Yes; Ancestral Relic doesn't need to be a weapon at all, and if you're a TWFer or want good ranged and melee options, it's nice to have two weapons. Not being well-read, I don't know what kind of investment LW needs, but if it's just a feat then it's great. I could see a kensai with Ancestral Relic armor, an Item Familiar ring, a melee Legacy Weapon and a ranged kensai weapon.

@OP: Kensai also get a good class skill list, more skill points than many melee classes, a sizeable boost to Strength on demand, a social skill boost and a better AoE Reflex save than basically anybody ever. It's a good deal. Sure, it doesn't get The Most Important Thing In The Game, but it's a very nice package for someone who meets the rather weird entry requirements.

[Arc_knight25]

It is a great boost to any melee character. Just the RP value that comes with it can be costly. Needing to have an oath to a Lord or Deity can be difficult for some players.

I personally like the class and all of the fluff that goes with it. I theory crafted a 1/2 orc Fighter/Exotic weapon master/Kensai. It was MAD as heck because of the need for good Str, Dex, and Int. Have it saved in case I ever get a good stat line.

[Kelb_Panthera]

It's not the best, it's not the worst. I think "solid" is a pretty apt description. In particular, if you have evasion and concentration for a class skill, withstand can make you virtually immune to ref-save targeting effects. That's nothing to sneeze at.