Post Hollow Artorias the Abysswalker build.

[Varg Sarath]

Hello everyone! I am currently in the very early stages of creating a Post hollow Artorias build but i am not sure how to entirely get it working.

I want something with good physical stats & enough skill points for me to waste on tumble - jump - move silently etc and if possible some darkness related abilities. This is what i have so far.

*everyone in the campaign is a +1 hence i'm going a +2 without losing more than one level. necropolitan counts as +1 in our campaign*

Race + Template

Goliath for Empowered for free and the increased strength, Necropolitan for flavour and the boons, not to mention not needing to take points in constitution and designating a dump stat without losing anything is pretty sweet.
Armor:
Breastplate with some flavour text as an armor? perhaps mithril to lower the skill penalities?
weapon:
Large Greatsword
Class: Possibly Fighter/Swordsage/Rogue/Telflammar shadowlord as a combo put this part is very much open to better suggestions.

Any help on the class or perhaps a better template to fit with what i wish would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! *Will post the final character once done*

[Minty_Illness]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfFOixQVYHU

Lets look for a second at how Artorias fights. In my experience fighting him I've seen plenty of feinting attacks, whirlwind attacks, charging attacks, and leaping attacks. Artorias seems a bit like the Shock Trooper sort. When I pulled off a similar character I used a Titan-bloodline Half-Giant Fighter. I focused on Power Attack, cleave, and leaping attack. A Hollowed Artorias doesn't bother using shields and doesn't rightly care how his target looks so monkeygrip that Greatsword and kiss your shield goodbye! I wouldn't worry about move silently. Thats Lord's Blade Ciaran territory.

[Varg Sarath]

Thanks Minty! Leap attack seems absolutely a must as feat. However i need hide due to the fact that while i may not use it ingame, I will need it for something else given my research into this. To make the jumps work, You need 3 levels in ninjaspy for the

Acrobatics (Su): A 3rd-level ninja spy gains a +10 competence bonus on Balance, Climb, Jump, and Tumble checks. At 7th level, this bonus increases to +20. In addition, a ninja can always choose to take 10 on a Balance, Climb, Jump, or Tumble check, even when circumstances would normally prevent him from doing so.

Leap of the Clouds (Su): A 3rd-level ninja spy's jumping distance (vertical or horizontal) is not limited according to his height.

These two combined with leap attack means i can do some pretty ridicilous leaps, Combine it with Leap attack, Two Weapon Pounce, Empowered from goliath gives you the usage of large weapons and allows you to be treated as a large creature so Monkey grip is not strictly nessescary for the blade.

[Varg Sarath]

So far i got something along the line of Fighter X for the feats, Rogue 3-6 for evasion + improved evasion *Flat footed immunity seems good* 3 Ninja spy for the leaps

[torrasque666]

You know that using 3.5 rules(which I'm assuming you are) there is no limit in any way to your jumps right?

[Lilapop]

If you really want to replicate Artorias' style, you will have to go with EWP: Bastard Sword and not use your left hand at all. That thing he wields is one size category smaller than the Zweihänder, and he is using the Bastard Sword/Mansword R1 and R2 attacks, so it is definitely a bastard sword in D&D. He also seems to have lost use of his left arm when saving his puppy, and was probably going exclusively sword&board before that as well.

[Snowbluff]

I'd like to nitpick that I don't think he was hollow. He might have been merely corrupted by the darkness. His templates should reflect this.

Leap Attack and/or Battle Jump would be a must.

Law Devotion would grant him a strong bonus to hit, and represent his power up mid-fight. Animal Devotion might be an option, too.

[Bluydee]

Warblade encompasses all his jumping attacks and whirlwinds, and if you can mix Pathfinder and 3.5 you can try and get Black Seraph from Path of War to do his darkness powers.

[Dusk Eclipse]

Yeah straight warblade works wonders for Artorias, pick up a Bastard Sword and go to town, picking up a pair of strongarm bracers ASAP would also be pretty useful, the abyss sword is BIG. I'd also suggest dipping Exotic Weapon Master for a level (or two to avoid wasting IL) and pick the Uncanny blow stunt so you can power attack with a 2:1 ratio even while one handing.

[Varg Sarath]

Thank you all for the quick responses! :D Now for the daunting task of answering it all in what i had in mind.

Lilapop i do agree and a Large bastard sword would be amazing anyway and with a build i had in mind i know how i may get that

Snowbluff, I don't know. Alot of game sources & wiki's said he had hollowed I.E lost his humanity from walking the abyss as he after all failed his task, But this is far to big a debate to start so let's agree to disagree on that one. As for Law & Animal domain. Well we are allowed Leadership in this campaign and i was thinking of going Wild Cohort + Warbeast instead and have Sif be an Oversized Worg.

PS: In all fairness i'd say Necropolitans more represent Undead than outright hollowed mindless ones anyway.

Bluydee, Unfortunatly this is 3.5 only. No pathfinder to use here.

And i'l check out Warblade too Dusk, I was actually looking at another build at the moment which would end up something like:

Level 9+1 (as mentioned previously, everyone in the campaign is a +1 hence my +2 is reduced to a +1. so everyone else is 10 while i'm 9)

Fighter 2 *for the bonus feats*
Swordsage 11
Ninja spy 4

Okay i know this sounds weird but hear me out.

being a Necropolitan made in an area of a zone that is desecrated he get's a 12 hit dice +2 every level meaning his health is good either way.

Mithral breastplate with a bit of flavour will give him light armor qualities on a medium armor and can still technically look the same *As it's flavour text anyway*

Now for the weird class choices. Fighter, rather obvious. he's a knight and it's a generally good thing anyway for most fighter style templates.

Swordsage. Why?

All the bonus skill points first of all and if you start in it, Jump & tumble are skill points that are really good to have as well not to mention the prerequesite feats for Ninja spy *i'l get to that in a moment* that you'l need. Also this:

Child of Shadow Stance

As an initiate of the Shadow Hand school, you learn to channel and control dark, shadowy energies. This energy flows around you like a concealing robe, hiding you from your opponents as they attempt to strike you

You get Concealment as a bonus of everyone after running 10 feet *Nice when your jumpsmashing around the place anyway* And it with a bit of flavour tweaking can easily be that seeping shadowmass emitting from his body, Also if there's one thing i remember about the boss fight it's that he was pretty damn hard to hit. This stacks up with that.

There's also the Shadow stride ability giving you with flavour the charge-slash Artorias uses mid combat and there's several other abilities that can essentially be summed up with Shadowstuff + sword = damage. Which i felt was present in the boss fight.

Ninja spy now why in the world would i pick this option? Well. 3 reasons

as mentioned above Exotic weapon proficiency Bastard sword, i get 2 free exotic proficiency feats that
i can spend on bastard sword and i thought just for fun Bolas. *trip + combat expertise gotten later on for the repeated smash*

Also these 3 abilities

Acrobatics (Su): A 3rd-level ninja spy gains a +10 competence bonus on Balance, Climb, Jump, and Tumble checks. At 7th level, this bonus increases to +20. In addition, a ninja can always choose to take 10 on a Balance, Climb, Jump, or Tumble check, even when circumstances would normally prevent him from doing so.

+10 to all that negating the armor penalities? Yes please.

Leap of the Clouds (Su): A 3rd-level ninja spy's jumping distance (vertical or horizontal) is not limited according to his height.

Leap attack 40 feet and just leap around lightly in general like that? Yes please. especially since Goliath's don't require a running start either

Hide in Plain Sight (Su): A 4th-level ninja spy can use the Hide skill even while being observed. As long as he is within 10 feet of some sort of shadow, a ninja spy can hide himself from view in the open without anything to actually hide behind. A ninja spy cannot, however, hide in his own shadow.

For the dramatic enterances.

Any thoughts?

[Snowbluff]

Not Domain, Devotion. Law Devotion buffs attack or AC. Animal Devotion provides a variety of buffs, including Str or flight.

[Varg Sarath]

Ah sorry. My bad! hmm, not a bad thought at all. Think Law would fit better though but..Do i want to waste a feat on it over Leadership..Not sure on that one o.o

[Snowbluff]

Usually, people waste a level for Cloistered Cleric, then trade all three domains for the feats. :p