what is the best commoner build you know?

[CyberThread]

Well? Seems to be wild feat plus cHicken

[Seerow]

I like the one that came up recently that involves wielding a black-hole pig.

[Inevitability]

Does commoner 1 / wizard 19 count? :smalltongue:

[Malimar]

Bubs (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=7097263&postcount=38). (Somehow I'd forgotten that it's got a level of Marshal, but the principle is the same.)

[mabriss lethe]

Best? Probably not, but I've been playing with a commoner build for a while, trying to come up with a combination of options that will allow the character to contribute meaningfully throughout a 20 level career.

Here's what I've got so far:

Races (assuming LA+0): Human, Azurin, and Silverbrow Human come out near the top with the additional feats, skills, options the bring to the table. You can get a nice start for bringing the core of a build to the table. Kalashtar are a pretty good race to work with, since you can use them to weasel in some psionics, and with a little cheese, potentially the most powerful choice. Warforged is also a pretty solid choice, granting a solid selection of immunities and a natural weapon. For many races, becoming a Necropolitan might be appealing.

Feats: You'll want to avoid feats that just add bigger numbers to rolls. Go for feats that grant entirely new abilities. Look to things like Bind Vestige line, the X Devotion feat line, Planar Touchstone, Draconic Aura, Hidden Talent,Psicrystal affinity, Martial Study/Stance, Wild Cohort, Apprentice and Shape soulmeld. The criteria you want to use is to weigh how much a given feat brings to the table vs. how much you have to dump on prerequisites.

Skills: You don't have native access to a lot of skills, but you do have a few good ones. Craft and Handle Animal are worth some exploration. Poison making is a fast way to make money and a way to contribute to combat enough to consider adding Master of Poisons to the feat list. Trapmaking is also a good craft skill when used in conjunction with the boobytrap rules. Handle Animal is the big one, though. It allows you to raise, train, and control a collection of meat shields. It really goes well with the Wild Cohort feat. Spot and Listen are going to be your go-to survival skills. Don't neglect them. Your other native skills are of varying degree of utility, though dropping a few points in them can help you to survive as an adventurer. A handful of feats like Martial Study will grant access to other skills that can open other options.

Ability Scores: It's debatable which ability scores are most important on a commoner. Strength will probably not be a big concern. You'll want to avoid direct melee combat like the plague. Constitution looks like a great choice, since you're so squishy and have poor saves. However, the commoner is so incredibly fragile, a bump to constitution isn't likely to actually affect the outcome. Dexterity isn't a bad option. Any combat you're likely to engage in should be ranged, it adds to touch AC (which is worth the investment) and reflex saves. Intelligence is also a good choice. It gives you better access to your skill list and assists with craft checks, which are some of the only tricks you really have. Wisdom is so-so. It bumps your will save and also boosts spot and listen checks. A decent score can help in long term survival by avoiding or preparing for confrontations before they begin. Charisma, depending on your particular build will be either a must have, or a dump stat. If you're pumping your Handle Animal checks or gained access to Diplomacy or Intimidate via Martial Study, it's indispensable. Otherwise, it's not that useful.

Equipment: Your equipment has to perform two things. It needs to keep you alive, and it needs to give you new things to do. Your single simple weapon proficiency will only matter early on, with the Light Crossbow coming out on top, even though affording one at start of play might be difficult with a commoner's limited starting gold. Clubs and slings are also good options, since they cost nothing to make and offer ranged options. Weaponlike alchemical items are a decent way to fight in early levels. Since those are expensive for a 1st level commoner, invest in humble flasks of oil, rigging them in advance as DIY firebombs. Once magic items become an option, kit yourself out with defensive options in a way similar to a wizard, since you have no armor proficiency. Your other items should focus on finding new ways to affect the outcome of battle without class features. Look to things like Thorn Pouches and Rods of Viscid Globs to hinder opponents, or Shapesand for universal utility.

[Zweisteine]

I'm not sure about a specific build (edit: never mind, see below), but there are a few combos I like, and a handbooks (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?232822-The-Commoner-Handbook).

My favorite commoner feats (i.e. some of the best for combat):
Shape Soulmeld (soulspark familiar), Hidden Talent, Psicrystal Affinity (if hidden talent qualifies you for it (edit: nope :smallfrown:)), Wild Cohort, Bind Vestige, Improved Bind Vestige, Practiced Binder, Leadership

And a build:
Race: Azurin
Feats:

Shape Soulmeld (Soulspark Familiar)
Hidden Talent

If Hidden Talent qualifies for it, get Psicrystal Affinity (edit: it doesn't actually qualify :smallfrown:)
Wild Cohort
Flaws: Noncombatant and Shaky are probably best, but any should work.

These four feats make you a one-man army, if a weak one.
The Psicrystal is your scout, the Cohort is your bodyguard, and the Soulspark can be used for offense, because it can heal itself.

EDIT:


The best commoner build is this one:
Note: a better optimizer might be able to do this at a lower level
Desert Kobold Commoner
Abilities 2, 10, 10, 16, 8, 11 (15-point buy: 8, 8, 10, 16, 8, 11)
Feats:
Hidden Talent (call to mind, precognition, or anything else, really. Those are just more directly useful.)
Skill Focus (Knowledge (the planes))
Education (the planes, any other) (makes knowledge a class skill)
Flaws:
Pathetic (strength), Noncombatant (or any that do not reduce knowledge checks)
Traits:
Absent-minded, Specialized, Illiterate (pick two, bonuses to Knowledge (the planes))
Skills:
Knowledge (the planes) 4 ranks
Craft or Profession (any usable for making money) 4 ranks

Use craft/profession to make enough money to buy a book (masterwork knowledge skill tool).

Bonuses to Knowledge (the planes):
+4 skill ranks, +1 education, +3 skill focus, +2 traits, +3 intelligence, +2 book
Total: +15

Take 10 on the knowledge check to know about Pazuzu.

Be Pun-pun.

[Darrin]

Well? Seems to be wild feat plus cHicken

The Cube (www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?147304-The-Cube&p=8187767&viewfull=1#post8187767) was a chicken-free Commoner build.

[Azoth]

I am a fan of Azurin Commoner 1.

Feats:
Flaw: Shape Soulmeld (Riding Gauntlets)
Flaw: Skill Focus (Handle Animal)
Azurin: Nymph's Kiss
1st: Karmic Tie

Max Ranks in: Handle Animal, Proffesion (animal breeder), and cross class Diplomacy.

Handle Animal is 4 ranks +6 riding gauntlets +3 skill focus +2 Nymph's kiss+2 karmic Tie=+17 before ability mods. Means he can bread creatures up to 37HD successfully.

Diplomacy= 2 ranks +2 Nymph's Kiss +2 karmic Tie=+6 before ability mod or any gear. It will be hard, but he can diplomance a magic beast into serving him.

Starting wealth of 900GP. Yeah...he can breed an entire army of various critters to serve him for any needed purpose. He can even autosucceed training them for any trick and Warbeast template if the hit dice are below a certain threshold.

[Zombulian]

While being one of the many builds that doesn't go any more than 1 level in Commoner, the Necromancy based chicken builds always hold a special place in my heart. Whether it's a Warlock build that spams the create undead invocation and throws his creations as little negative energy bombs, a Death's Master build that explodes his chickens every round to heal himself and siphoning their blood so he can cast in armor, or a Necrocarnate sucking their souls with the Heart of Incarnum feat to give himself absurd amounts of Temp Health. I love them all.

[mabriss lethe]

I'm not sure about a specific build (edit: never mind, see below), but there are a few combos I like, and a handbooks (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?232822-The-Commoner-Handbook).

My favorite commoner feats (i.e. some of the best for combat):
Shape Soulmeld (soulspark familiar), Hidden Talent, Psicrystal Affinity (if hidden talent qualifies you for it (edit: nope :smallfrown:)), Wild Cohort, Bind Vestige, Improved Bind Vestige, Practiced Binder, Leadership

If Hidden Talent qualifies for it, get Psicrystal Affinity (edit: it doesn't actually qualify :smallfrown:)



However, you can qualify for psicrystal affinity if you have a manifester level via other means. Either the Kalashtar's mind link power, the Maenad's scream or any of the Host feats from CPsi will grant you a real ML equal to 1/2 your HD. Kalashtar is the best, simply because they can take the Kalashtar mindlink feat, which boosts its ML up to your HD instead of 1/2. It's the basis for building a "pocket psion."

[CyberThread]

I am a fan of Azurin Commoner 1.

Feats:
Flaw: Shape Soulmeld (Riding Gauntlets)
Flaw: Skill Focus (Handle Animal)
Azurin: Nymph's Kiss
1st: Karmic Tie

Max Ranks in: Handle Animal, Proffesion (animal breeder), and cross class Diplomacy.

Handle Animal is 4 ranks +6 riding gauntlets +3 skill focus +2 Nymph's kiss+2 karmic Tie=+17 before ability mods. Means he can bread creatures up to 37HD successfully.

Diplomacy= 2 ranks +2 Nymph's Kiss +2 karmic Tie=+6 before ability mod or any gear. It will be hard, but he can diplomance a magic beast into serving him.

Starting wealth of 900GP. Yeah...he can breed an entire army of various critters to serve him for any needed purpose. He can even autosucceed training them for any trick and Warbeast template if the hit dice are below a certain threshold.



Question, what exactly can I do with bread that has 37 HD, does that make it sourdough ?

[Azoth]

Question, what exactly can I do with bread that has 37 HD, does that make it sourdough ?

Nope. It makes it a weak old loaf of French Bread with DR25/butcher's cleaver. It also causes 2d6 desication damage to one trying to eat it without propperly soaking it in gravy or slathering it in otherwise moist condiments.

*Yeah sorry for the typo. I was/am at work and was getting called to deal with something while typing quickly.*

[CyberThread]

how hide can you abuse that level one handle animal do you think befroe a book is thrown at you?

[Azoth]

how hide can you abuse that level one handle animal do you think befroe a book is thrown at you?

If I am hiding I have cover and concealment, so the real question is what are the odds of the book hitting me?

[Rebel7284]

Cloistered Cleric 13/Chicken Infested Commoner 1

Persist Greater Consumptive Field.

Draw some chickens.

While there aren't many levels of commoner, it's very important to the build.

[Vedhin]

Cloistered Cleric 13/Chicken Infested Commoner 1

Persist Greater Consumptive Field.

Draw some chickens.

While there aren't many levels of commoner, it's very important to the build.

Y'know what that reminds me of? This:


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v232/Vegitto-Kun/Forum/Chickensgivemestrength1.jpg