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View Full Version : The Hibachi Half-Orc (RP, Optimization) (3.5)



AstralFire
2008-07-19, 11:27 PM
For detailed information, my sheet is here: http://www.thetangledweb.net/forums/profiler/view_char.php?cid=15282

Roleplaying: My first time playing a half-orc, though I've NPCed them a few times. Altair is a retired bodyguard; his wife is dead of grief, his children have abandoned him or died. Presumably the last of a seafaring tribe of orcs that he's never really met, he believes in trying to be an orc he can be proud of, and that'll have to do for upholding his tribe's honor. He's something of a lech (though that doesn't dominate his character) and a gadget whiz, having experimented on occasion with ornithopters. Poor these days, he makes money by street performing, using his desert wind maneuvers and great physical prowess to cook for crowds - the food is mostly inedible, but the preparation is amazing. (His two most famous dishes/shows are Crow Pot Pies, where he skins, slices, coats and bakes a crow in mid-air, and Rain of Bacon - he uses Death Mark to cause a pig to explode in charbroiled pork products.)

Looking for small little things to do with his personality. He's a bit snarky and generally prefers to avoid a serious fight (often preferring to either intimidate the foe or using obfuscating stupidity to make it seem like he's not worth it), but loves to spar. Absolutely *loves* children as he misses his own.

Optimization: A Swordsage 8, he needs to be a semi-tank for the group. They're mostly pretty durable, so I just want him to be able to lock down the one or two that are most troublesome. To this end, I am building him equally for damage and durability (I plan to have him pick up Combat Vigor as soon as possible for Fast Healing 2/4 and he's got Stand Still+reach weapon as well as the ability to charge about to a dangerous foe). At this point, I'm torn about whether I should:
- Have him go straight Swordsage, continuing to emphasize Desert Wind (though less so), Stone Dragon, and Tiger Claw with a little of Diamond Mind. Currently favored.
- Splice in 4 or 6 Warblade levels, for the higher fort and HP and some access to Iron Heart. I initially favored this, but the only thing I really want from Warblade is that DR 5/- stance, and this will retard my maneuver progression for everything else.
- Splice in 2 Warblade levels for a renewable source of maneuvers, Martial Study/Stance anything higher in Iron Heart.
- Splice in 2 Fighter levels and go for Master of Nine. (Doesn't really seem to fit the character flavor-wise, too philosophical even for a very ruminating half-orc.)
- Splice in lots of Fighter so I can do the tripper thing and have better control and Power Attacking.
- ???

AstralFire
2008-07-20, 07:55 PM
I think he'll adopt a speaking pattern that mostly uses short words. Brevity's the soul of wit, right? And I think a smart half-orc should be different from a smart human. He's still raised in a culture which typically encourages violence. His intelligence would have to be curt to get the attention of those he deals with.