want some help making a powerful tribe leader

[SirNMN]

So for a while I have talked about the nomadic tribe called the Bear Clan. But now I need a leader. the clan all have the were bear template except that they are mostly LN, and start with a class level of barbarian. I am thinking the leader will have have a mixture of war sharper and bear warrior at about either CR 16 as he is one of the great powers of the north, any suggestions.

[InvisibleBison]

You'll probably want to make him a werebear of a bigger sort of bear than everyone else. Also, normally barbarians can't be lawful. Are you making an exception for these guys?

[Cerefel]

Instead of Werebear you might be better off with a few levels in Bear Warrior. The LA and animal HD from were___ tend to make most builds weaker rather than stronger.

[The Viscount]

If you want him to be a leader by example, then consider perhaps some Frenzied Berserker with your warshaper.

If you want him to be a leader by inspiration, consider the rarely used Warchief. It's not the easiest class to use, but it can make for some strong followers.

[Thurbane]

There's a great PrC in Miniatures Handbook called Warchief - well, I say great; it's great thematically. Mechanically? Not so much.

You give your followers a Strength boost that works a bit like a Marshal Aura. The downside is they take damage equal to their hit dice each round. If you can get fast healing or regeneration on tribe members, it might be worth it for the lulz.

It also gives some permanent Cha boosts, and an ability for your body guards to block attacks on you similar to a Knight.

[Diovid]

A relatively straightforward build is Barbarian 5 / Fist of the Forest 2 / Bear Warrior 5 / Warshaper 4 with the Barbarian variants Bear Totem and City Brawler.

[ExLibrisMortis]

I feel like a leader should have at least a little bit of affinity with the powers of the north, that is, some druidic magic. You can get rage from druid levels, and you can add some (mystic/prestige) ranger levels. Druid 1 with the druidic avenger and swift and deadly hunter ACFs will get you barbarian rage, wisdom to AC, fast movement (twice, even, as monk and barbarian), and favoured enemy. It's pretty nice for four levels, especially if you continue in rage-improving PrCs, such as Bear Warrior.

Something like barbarian 1/druid 4/fist of the forest 3/bear warrior 5-10. City brawler barbarian, for the IUS requirement.

[The Viscount]

Going off what Thurbane said, the first question about negating the damage from Warchief is whether or not DR applies. If it does, they'll be pretty safe by virtue of being lycanthropes. If not, then dragon shaman plus thrallherd will help you lessen the damage and replace the ones you lose.

[Flickerdart]

There's a fairly obscure prestige class called Bane of Infidels in the 3.0 sourcebook Masters of the Wild that makes an awesome tribe leader. The Bane of Infidels can incite rage in his subjects, sling mystic fire, sacrifice captives for bonuses, and detect disloyalty and falsehoods within his clan.

It's a divine spellcaster PrC, so that may be difficult to fit into your clan of bearbarians.

[SirNMN]

You'll probably want to make him a werebear of a bigger sort of bear than everyone else. Also, normally barbarians can't be lawful. Are you making an exception for these guys?

That had slipped my mind I was focusing no the fact that a were bear has to be LG and forgotten that Barbarians can't be Lawful, and I am making an exception to the good


Instead of Werebear you might be better off with a few levels in Bear Warrior. The LA and animal HD from were___ tend to make most builds weaker rather than stronger.

No a problem with NPC the use CR. So while a NPC would end up effective level 10 the CR is only 5 and no risk of infection from the curse. These guys are at the half way point be tween were Creatures and Shifters so they can't spread it except to ther kids


If you want him to be a leader by example, then consider perhaps some Frenzied Berserker with your warshaper.

If you want him to be a leader by inspiration, consider the rarely used Warchief. It's not the easiest class to use, but it can make for some strong followers.

The Clan is lead by the strongest member so Frenzied berserker makes sense but I don't like the Idea of him going nuts on his own guys. I do like the ispire frenzy as that would make a group of than scary all at once. Warchief sound good but, inspiration not really what I am going for since that make others stronger an doesn't even give him a full BAB.


I feel like a leader should have at least a little bit of affinity with the powers of the north, that is, some druidic magic. You can get rage from druid levels, and you can add some (mystic/prestige) ranger levels. Druid 1 with the druidic avenger and swift and deadly hunter ACFs will get you barbarian rage, wisdom to AC, fast movement (twice, even, as monk and barbarian), and favoured enemy. It's pretty nice for four levels, especially if you continue in rage-improving PrCs, such as Bear Warrior.

Something like barbarian 1/druid 4/fist of the forest 3/bear warrior 5-10. City brawler barbarian, for the IUS requirement.

I like it it solves the problem of the no lawful barbarians and druid gives them a bit in touch with nature as well, and no armor fights as well as they have good nat armor and don't need shape shifting from a druid since they get it from the Lycanthropy. fist of forest sort of work except I they are nomads who protect their territory some times expand not nature it self.


There's a fairly obscure prestige class called Bane of Infidels in the 3.0 sourcebook Masters of the Wild that makes an awesome tribe leader. The Bane of Infidels can incite rage in his subjects, sling mystic fire, sacrifice captives for bonuses, and detect disloyalty and falsehoods within his clan.

It's a divine spellcaster PrC, so that may be difficult to fit into your clan of bearbarians.

I don't see using it on the chief but every Tribe has a shaman might make him with it and he would have plenty of clout that the party might try to deal with him.

Thanks for all the hep everyone now I just need to make it a coherent whole and I will be good I will also post him if any one want to use him when I am finished

[The Viscount]

If you want to avoid attacking the rest of your party as a Frenzied berserker, consider wielding an intelligent weapon. It counts as a creature so you can choose to attack it, and since you can't attack it with itself you'd revert to unarmed strikes dealing nonlethal, which the weapon as a construct is immune to.

[SirNMN]

OK if someone can tell me how to post a table and I will post what I have made

[Andry]

Don't forget to use this as their theme song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WtL3Wpcp7I&list=PL78749A68EDA97EBE

[SirNMN]

Don't forget to use this as their theme song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WtL3Wpcp7I&list=PL78749A68EDA97EBE

Spot on. That is where I got the inspiration to create the clan and what made the strongest impression on them at this point. Even if that is because the group was coming to the meeting singing. unfortunately or fortunately depending on how it goes the party thinks they group of wearbears, and as such Law Good

[Scorponok]

Whatever else you give them, don't forget the leader should always have an easy to access Bear's Endurance.

[Emperor Tippy]

Don't make them Barbarians.

A tribe of Werebear Monks, perhaps with Vow of Poverty for amusement could be an interesting deconstruction of the idea.

Maybe throw in some Psionics and Tome of Battle classes as well.

For the leader I would go gestalt. Werebear 7/ Invisible Fist Decisive Strike Martial Monk 9// Swordsage 16. Throw on VoP so that you don't have to deal with picking out magic items. Balance on the Sky solves the flight issue.

Throw on Intuitive Attack and a re-fluffed level of Shiba Protector in place of the 9th Monk level and you should be good.

You now have a bear that can rip through entire armies while also being all wise and leader like.