Warblade - Maneuvers optimization

[Pupi]

Currently building a flipper-jumping machine with THW, ecl14 and something that looks like this:
Warblade 1 - Fighter 2 - Warblade 4 - Weretouched Master 5 - Warblade 7, Shifter with Longtooth and Beasthide traits.

Considering prerequisites, initiator level and everything else, I wrote down the choice of these maneuvers, preferring Tiger Claw' disciplin to Stone Dragon' (even tho w/out TWF).

Bad idea?

1 LEADING THE CHARGE
1 WOLF FANG STRIKE
1 SUDDEN LEAP
1 LEADING THE ATTACK

2 WALL OF BLADES

2 CLAW AT THE MOON

3 LEAPING DRAGON STANCE
3 IRON HEART SURGE Switch Wolf Fang Strike

4 WHITE RAVEN STRIKE
5 DANCING MONGOOSE Switch Leading the Attack

5 IRON HEART FOCUS


I would then go on like this:

6 WAR LEADER’S CHARGE

6 RABID BEAR STRIKE

7 PRESS THE ADVANTAGE
7 FINISHING MOVE

7 SWOOPING DRAGON STRIKE


8 RAGING MONGOOSE

[...]


The targets here are WAR MASTER'S CHARGE and FERAL DEATH BLOW


NDR I do know well that two dips into barb and Rage would have broken things but don't worry, a bard in party is ready to unleash me and I already have pounce 4/day. I preferred a little flavour to a typical ubercharger whirling frenzy-thing. I may provide you with the choice of Feats too if interested (no flaws allowed).

[Saintheart]

Not a lot to add here, but I'd take Emerald Razor over Claw at the Moon. Touch attack > +2d6 damage, especially as the levels get higher.

[noce]

Personal experience with White Raven Tactics: it can end encounters.
At your ECL, either allowing a friendly caster to act again in the same round (in case they acted before you) or helping them act soon (if your initiative was high) can completely change the encounter.

Our party, unfortunately, had no casters but two warblades. The second warblade in initiative order usually used WRT to let the first one act again, which then used WRT on the other one, thus resulting in two turns each in the first round.

[Pupi]

Not a lot to add here, but I'd take Emerald Razor over Claw at the Moon. Touch attack > +2d6 damage, especially as the levels get higher.

I preferred Claw at the Moon since I understood (also reading some old threads here) that when initiating a maneuver that requires to make a Jump check, I would also automatically initiate a charge and therefore Leap Attack and/or Battle Jump would come into play if meeting the prerequisites. Did I read it well?

[Pupi]

Personal experience with White Raven Tactics: it can end encounters.
At your ECL, either allowing a friendly caster to act again in the same round (in case they acted before you) or helping them act soon (if your initiative was high) can completely change the encounter.

Our party, unfortunately, had no casters but two warblades. The second warblade in initiative order usually used WRT to let the first one act again, which then used WRT on the other one, thus resulting in two turns each in the first round.

Nice indeed!

[Saintheart]

I preferred Claw at the Moon since I understood (also reading some old threads here) that when initiating a maneuver that requires to make a Jump check, I would also automatically initiate a charge and therefore Leap Attack and/or Battle Jump would come into play if meeting the prerequisites. Did I read it well?

I'm not your DM, but there's a couple of points I'd be focusing on if I had to rule on it:

(1) Leap Attack requires that the attack follows all the normal rules for making a charge. Charges normally require at least 10 feet of movement directly towards the target, so suddenly jumping right into the air next to the target under Claw at the Moon may or may not satisfy that requirement. Also, charges are a full round action by RAW, and Claw at the Moon is a standard action. It may lock it out on that basis.

(2) Battle Jump applies to jumping down on an opponent. I know it's commonly argued that dropping down on a target triggers it, but read the wording of the feat and then note that jumping down is a specific action under the Jump skill check. (https://www.d20srd.org/srd/skills/jump.htm) Again, Claw at the Moon may not trigger it.

[Pupi]

The reading you give is very precise and detailed, thank you. However, I remain doubtful when reading the higher tier maneuvers and what is guaranteed by the Leapig Dragon Stance: are your thoughts still the same for Death From Above or Swooping Dragon Strike?
In addition, any jumps you make while in this stance are considered running jumps.
and
You can execute a charge by simply dropping from a height of at least 5 feet above your opponent.

Wouldn't a Jump Check score above 40 trigger Battle Jump on a 5 foot tall foe?

[Saintheart]

I think it still depends on how your DM reads Battle Jump. The question for him is: does merely dropping onto an opponent due to gravity's influence trigger Battle Jump, or does it take you actually springing down at an opponent, from a height?

Battle Jump itself says: "You can't jump from more than 30 feet above your opponent, nor can you effectively battle jump while under the influence of a fly or levitate spell or effect, as you have to hurl yourself down on your foe." That would seem inconsistent with the idea that just falling onto your target after jumping into the air is enough to trigger Battle Jump. But as I said: it depends on how your DM reads the feat, because it contains other phrases that don't immediately fit with that assertion. It's not well-written, which is why it can potentially be ab/used this way.

I also don't think Leaping Dragon Stance does much to change that. The stance deems your jumps are always running jumps, but I think you'd have a hard time convincing a DM that this means you are deemed to have moved 10 feet and thus satisfied the requirements for a charge. "Considered a running jump" is normally only relevant for determining the DC of the Jump check, i.e. if it's not a running jump then the DC for getting over a given distance is doubled, per Jump's rules.

[Pupi]

I think it still depends on how your DM reads Battle Jump. The question for him is: does merely dropping onto an opponent due to gravity's influence trigger Battle Jump, or does it take you actually springing down at an opponent, from a height?

Battle Jump itself says: "You can't jump from more than 30 feet above your opponent, nor can you effectively battle jump while under the influence of a fly or levitate spell or effect, as you have to hurl yourself down on your foe." That would seem inconsistent with the idea that just falling onto your target after jumping into the air is enough to trigger Battle Jump. But as I said: it depends on how your DM reads the feat, because it contains other phrases that don't immediately fit with that assertion. It's not well-written, which is why it can potentially be ab/used this way.

I also don't think Leaping Dragon Stance does much to change that. The stance deems your jumps are always running jumps, but I think you'd have a hard time convincing a DM that this means you are deemed to have moved 10 feet and thus satisfied the requirements for a charge. "Considered a running jump" is normally only relevant for determining the DC of the Jump check, i.e. if it's not a running jump then the DC for getting over a given distance is doubled, per Jump's rules.

I think here both me and my DM will have to agree with you, thanks!

Speaking instead of the PrC Weretouched Master: since I would tend to aim for a TH weapon, Longtooth trait seemed to me to be the best choice as a racial trait: Longtooth Elite is the feat that I took as a prerequisite. As Bonus Shifter Feats I would grab Ragewild Fighter and an Extra Shifter Trait (Beasthide maybe for the +2 Bonus to CA). The Weretouched I (Tiger or Bear) skill would still guarantee me claws that I would end up not using with a two-handed weapon: here too the choice between Tiger and Bear leads me to prefer Bear due to the mere superior increase of abilities (and because I already have Pounce 4/day as a psionic power). This choice would affect the Hybrid Form and the Alternate Form: here, however, I find myself conflicted (all pre ERRATA). I'm looking at the abilities but also the stat blocks of Dire Bear and Dire Tiger for the Alternate. Advices?