Sparrow Hengeyokai melee build

[daremetoidareyo]

Assume there is no level adjustment, like the Dragon magazine erratta suggests. Also maximize fighting ability in sparrow form not humanoid.

The sparrow is sized as fine, 1ft/50ft flying speed, has an AC of 24, no attacks?, a strength of 1, and a dex of 23.

How can we make this guy a combat powerhouse?

I'm thinking of confound the big folk + underfoot combat + improved trip. Trip attacks using dexterity with size category negation, while fighting defensively while having 50% of having strike hit their opponent. The problem is the strength score of 1.


Flickerdart:
Improved flyby attack + martial maneuvers


Prime32
Spectral dagger + way to wield it. Perhaps warlock levels with edritch glaive or claws

Deophaun
Opposable weapon enhancement. +1. Savage Species.
DM2IDU note: maybe aberration blood + prehensile tail OR a grafted on additional arm?


Whambamsam
no monk levels + superior unarmed strike + shadowhand maneuvers


DM2IDU note: I'm like this route. Mostly for the throw opponent 10 or more feet maneuvers!


Troacctid
Warshaper + natural attacks + size increases

DM2IDU note: Maybe totemist for the first 5 levels?

EDIT: Working Build


Level
Class
feats


1
Unarmed Swordsage (TOB)
Flyby Attack, Improved Unarmed Strike


2
Fighter (drow ACF) (DotU)
Weapon finesse


3
Fighter
Great Flyby attack, Superior Unarmed Strike (TOB)


4
Fighter



5
Fighter
Power Attack


6
Swordsage
Shadow Blade (TOB)


7
Swordsage



8
Martial Rogue (UA)
weapon expertise


9
Martial Rogue (UA)
improved trip, giantbane (CW)


10
Citadel elite



11
Citadel elite
Underfoot combat (RoW)


12
Citadel elite
Confound the big folk (RoW)


13
Citadel elite
snap kick (TOB)


14
assassin?



15




16




17




18




19




20




Fight in Human form until level 3, until you can do 1 point of damage as a sparrow. Use flyby attacks with your maneuvers. You don't have 5' reach, so you have to enter squares in order to attack. Giant bane allows you to make climb checks to move with the opponent, as well as giving you a +4 dodge bonus to your AC during full defense, which further increases your combat expertise. Underfoot combat allows you to get soft cover from the opponent that you are in the square of. Confound the big folk offers your opponent to always be flatfooted against you (assassins stance!) your trip attacks don't use size bonuses anymore (hello throw maneuvers!). Also, if you enter their square and fight defensively, other opponents targeting you have a 50% of hitting the other person in the square.
Consider deceptive dodge as a level 15 feat, so that when the opponent in your square attempts to attack you, and they miss, you divert their attack to anyone else around you. Also consider gruesome finish from exemplars of evil. Perhaps craven from Champions of ruin is a good choice if you dip a class with sneak attack as a class feature.

You constantly have -5 to damage due to your low strength score. Do to the polymorph wording of the hengeyokai ability, you can't simply use your level up ability bonuses to fix that. You need to get enhancement bonii to strength. Weapon finesse removes the -5 to attack from low strength, Shadow blade adds dex to damage in addition to the strength penalty. The drow ACF allows you to add dex to damage again if the target is flatfooted (confounded big folk synergy). The fourth level of swordsage allows you to add your wisdom to your damage. If you remove the improved trip, and your DM allows it, kung fu genius would switch wisdom to AC and damage to INT to AC and damage. Then you can have wisdom as a dump stat again, and just pump intelligence and charisma.

32 Point buy, Str and dex as dump stats. Con12, int 16, wis 17(-2 = 15) cha 13
4th level increases all go to wisdom

[Flickerdart]

Improved Fly-by Attack is a must. Use martial maneuvers, since they don't care about your Strength when dealing damage. White Raven, more like White Sparrow.

[Prime32]

Spectral Dagger from MIC? Any attack made with it resolves as a CL1 chill touch spell, meaning its base damage isn't lowered by your size and your Strength doesn't come into play (the Shadow Blade feat still works). You'd need to figure out a way for a sparrow to wield a dagger though...

You could also try a warlock with Eldritch Glaive or Eldritch Claws.

[WhamBamSam]

There's always the good ol' cheese of Superior Unarmed Strike not caring about your size if you're a non-Monk. Unarmed Strikes have the additional advantage of being a Shadow Hand weapon (for Shadow Blade) that can be wielded as a sparrow, so that's nice. Snap Kick will also be a nice addition to your Flyby maneuver routine and has the advantage (in this case) of halving your negative Str mod on the second attack.

[Nashira]

You could build something akin to Tippy's bird of prey. In on my phone right now so I don't have the link handy, but it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to find.

[Deophaun]

You'd need to figure out a way for a sparrow to wield a dagger though...

Opposable weapon enhancement. +1. Savage Species.

[Troacctid]

My first thought is to go Warshaper, sprout a bunch of natural weapons, boost their size category, and go to town with them.


You could build something akin to Tippy's bird of prey. In on my phone right now so I don't have the link handy, but it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to find.

You mean this (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?286818-Bird-of-Prey-(Tippy-s-Awesome-Flying-Sniper))? That's a ranged build. Doesn't work with melee.

[Solaris]

Going a bit simpler than the maneuvers, it strikes me that Weapon Finesse and sneak attack are a bit of a natural on this build.

[Deophaun]

You mean this (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?286818-Bird-of-Prey-(Tippy-s-Awesome-Flying-Sniper))? That's a ranged build. Doesn't work with melee.

The Shiba Protector dip would work, though.

[daremetoidareyo]

Another idea: Wisdom 15, Charisma as high as possible, int high for skill points


Level

Class
Feat


1
Cleric (destroy dead ACF from Expedition to Ravenloft)
With Elf and Animal domains
point blank shot, animal devotion (serpent), spit venom (SK)


2
Drow Fighter
weapon focus (spit)


3
Fighter
flyby attack, Dead Eye (DrCom)


4
rogue



5
rogue



6
rogue
venomous strike (DotU)


7
cleric



8
cleric



9
cleric
craven


10
contemplative
travel devotion


11
contemplative



12
death delver
extra turning


13
sacred exorcist




The serpent strike animal devotion simply does con damage, and it can therefor be pumped up. Using dead eye to add dex to damage. Use sneak attacks but forgo the precision damage with arterial strike and make them lose con every turn, but you do add that nice craven bonus. Depending on how many turn attempts a day you need, you can also add aleval school, and venomous strike, you know...if poison isn't evil in your DMs world. The nice thing about this is that you only fear plants and constructs, undead are not a problem.