PDA

View Full Version : D&D 3.x Other Combat Focus



Stratovarius
2017-10-23, 11:18 AM
This is me trying to make the Combat Focus set of feats (PHBII) not suck.

Combat Focus [Focus]
Prerequisites: BAB +1, Wis 13
Benefit: In battle, you push aside the chaos of the fight and attain a focused state that grants you a keen, clear picture of the battle. Fear and pain ebb away as you focus solely on defeating your enemy. The first time you make a successful attack during an encounter, you gain your combat focus. In this state, your mind and body become one, allowing you to overcome mundane physical limits. You can maintain your combat focus for 10 rounds after entering it, +1 additional round per four character levels. You can only gain your combat focus once per encounter. While you are maintaining your combat focus, you gain a bonus on Will saves equal to the number of Focus feats you possess. If you have BAB of +8 or higher, you gain Mettle (as per Hexblade). If you have BAB of +16 or higher, you gain Slippery Mind (as per Rogue).

Combat Awareness [Focus]
Prerequisites: Combat Focus
Benefit: While maintaining your combat focus, you learn the current hit point total of each adjacent opponent and ally. If you have BAB of +8 or higher, you gain Blightsight out to 10 feet. If you have BAB of +16 or higher, once per round you can make an attack of opportunity against an opponent who has just been struck for damage by another character. This attack counts as your attack of opportunity for that round.

Combat Defense [Focus]
Prerequisites: Combat Focus
Benefit: While you are maintaining your combat focus, you gain a bonus on Armour Class equal to the number of Focus feats you possess. If you have BAB of +8 or higher, you gain Uncanny Dodge (as per Rogue). If you have BAB of +16 or higher, you gain the ability to roll with an attack. On the first successful attack against you in each round, you can attempt a reflex save (DC = damage dealt). Success cuts the damage in half, after any damage reduction is taken into account.

Combat Stability [Focus]
Prerequisites: Combat Focus
Benefit: While you are maintaining your combat focus, you gain a bonus on checks or rolls to engage in or resist bull rush, disarm, grapple, overrun, and trip attempts equal to twice the number of Focus feats you possess. If you have BAB of +8 or higher, once per round when you hit with a melee attack, you can attempt to trip the opponent as a free action without making a touch attack or provoking an attack of opportunity. If the attempt fails, the opponent cannot react to trip you. If you have BAB of +16 or higher, you gain the ability move and attack normally, even under the influence of magic that usually impedes movement, such as paralysis, solid fog, slow, and web.

Combat Strike [Focus]
Prerequisites: Combat Focus
Benefit: If you choose to end your combat focus as a swift action, you can make a number of extra attacks against adjacent enemies equal to the number of Focus feats you possess. You immediately lose all benefits from Focus feats that affect you only while you are maintaining your combat focus. If you have BAB of +8 or higher, the additional attacks deal extra damage equal to the number of focus feats you possess. If you have BAB of +16 or higher, these attacks ignore any concealment or damage reduction.

Combat Vigor [Focus]
Prerequisites: Combat Focus
Benefit: While you maintain your combat focus, you gain fast healing equal to the number of Focus feats you possess. If you have BAB of +8 or higher, you gain bonus to movement speed equal to 5' ft for each Focus feats you possess. If you have BAB of +16 or higher, you gain Steely Resolve and Furious Counterstrike (as per Crusader, treating your character level as your Crusader level).

rferries
2017-10-25, 09:40 AM
These are all exceptionally powerful (and I say this as a guy who feels feats SHOULD be powerful). The fact that the benefits are mostly minor at low levels/few feats helps, but they definitely get overpowered at high levels or if you tailor your build around them.

HOWEVER: they help non-spellcasters stay on even footing with spellcasters, and that's a good thing. A 4th-level human fighter that takes all these feats will actually be tier 1, albeit briefly.

Stratovarius
2017-10-25, 12:16 PM
These are all exceptionally powerful (and I say this as a guy who feels feats SHOULD be powerful). The fact that the benefits are mostly minor at low levels/few feats helps, but they definitely get overpowered at high levels or if you tailor your build around them.

HOWEVER: they help non-spellcasters stay on even footing with spellcasters, and that's a good thing. A 4th-level human fighter that takes all these feats will actually be tier 1, albeit briefly.

It's really the latter reason they look as they do - it's very hard to make melee characters that can keep up with even moderately levelled spellcasters who are deploying spells like Evard's Tentacles of Forced Intrusion and other extremely powerful options. My preferred way to do that is giving them martial spellcasting (Hello, ToB), but even that eventually pales compared to higher level spells. So strong feats are a nice to have, but not necessarily going to change the actual power balance over the course of the game.

rferries
2017-10-25, 02:20 PM
It's really the latter reason they look as they do - it's very hard to make melee characters that can keep up with even moderately levelled spellcasters who are deploying spells like Evard's Tentacles of Forced Intrusion and other extremely powerful options. My preferred way to do that is giving them martial spellcasting (Hello, ToB), but even that eventually pales compared to higher level spells. So strong feats are a nice to have, but not necessarily going to change the actual power balance over the course of the game.

Agreed! Though some of these could be dangerous in the hands of spellcasters; I suggest adding BAB as prerequisites (and/or in place of the character level at which the feats improve).

nikkoli
2017-10-25, 03:28 PM
Do you get extras uses of combat awareness if you have combat reflexes at the lvl 16 part ?

Stratovarius
2017-10-26, 08:49 AM
Agreed! Though some of these could be dangerous in the hands of spellcasters; I suggest adding BAB as prerequisites (and/or in place of the character level at which the feats improve).

I like this suggestion. Will do.


Do you get extras uses of combat awareness if you have combat reflexes at the lvl 16 part ?

If you have more than one AoO per round, yes.

Stratovarius
2018-04-02, 02:37 PM
Updated with the BAB suggestion change.

rferries
2018-04-02, 03:07 PM
Updated with the BAB suggestion change.

Very nice, locks out even clerics and druids from the high-level benefits and greatly helps martials. Kudos!

Stratovarius
2018-05-11, 09:51 AM
Convergence

"A short step, and I shall be far and away."
– Kilgrae the Disappearing, Convergence

Text

Becoming a Convergence
Text

Table 1: The Convergence
Hit Die: d12


Level BAB Ref Fort Will Special Abilities
–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––– ––––––––––––––––––––––
1 +1 +2 +2 +2 Focus Feats
2 +2 +3 +3 +3 Focus Feats
3 +3 +3 +3 +3 Focus Feats, Convergence

Class skills (4 + Int modifier per level): Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Craft (Int), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Knowledge (all but Arcana, Religion, The Planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Profession (Wis), Ride (Dex), Search (Int), Spot (Wis), Survival (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex), and Use Rope (Dex)

Requirements:
Skills: Balance 16, Listen 16, Spot 16
Feats: Combat Focus
BAB: +13

Class Features
All of the following are class features of the Convergence.

Focus Feats (Ex): At 1st and 2nd level, the Convergence selects two Focus feats for which he meets the prerequisites. At 3rd level, one Focus feat.
Convergence (Ex): The Convergence's combat focus becomes permanent, unless cancelled by Combat Strike, in which case it returns in his next encounter.