help to build a fighter.

[SammySir]

Hi all,

In a current campaign and need a back up character, things look bleak
Have an idea what I want but just trying to work out the best way to do it.
The other players are real power builds and tough to stand shoulder to shoulder with!

From the story side off things he’s going to be a human fighter who thinks that he is the greatest fighter off all! Even if he sees someone do better it was just luck.


Just need some help with the numbers & feat side off things?
The books I’m allowed use by my DM are all the complete and core, no Psionics. And all the races books.
That’s all.
Want to be able to pick up any weapon and kick ass! No limiting to one weapon e.g. Spike chain ( we always seem to find loads, and half no one can use!)

Numbers: 15, 17, 13, 10, 9, 16
The LVL is 6th but I plan to live past it!

For any help or point to a previous thread Thanks in advance.
if i've posted in the wrong area sorry.

[Grumman]

Is ToB and Warblade an option? Weapon Aptitude lets you switch your feats so that they work with whatever weapon you want. Otherwise you'll want to steer clear of most single-weapon feats, unless you can pick up Melee Weapon Mastery from PHBII.

Another idea would be to buy a Sizing, Morphing, Aptitude weapon, and simply reshape it into whatever weapon you want. With the Aptitude enhancement you will still benefit from all your feats, no matter what shape the weapon is in.

[SammySir]

Tome off battle (forgot all about that) and the PHBII are both allowed.
will look into both these as soon as i can. i have to get the books off one off the other players.
will consider this warblade too,but like the idea off being a normal fighter, can i mulit class and get that ablitiy?

[Temotei]

Yes. It's a first-level ability. It also allows you to stack your fighter levels with warblade levels to get fighter-exclusive feats, with (fighter levels + warblade levels - 2) being the formula. Or at least, that's what I understood when I read it. I might have gotten something wrong.

[BooNL]

To be honest, if the rest of the party is optimized out the wazoo, you might be better off going straight Warblade.
The system isn't difficult to use and you really have to try to make a sucky build. Especially when compared to the fighter, who will suck 90% of the time.

[Incorrect]

For a Fighter you cant go wrong with feats like Power Attack and Improved Trip. Maybe a dip in Lion Totem Barbarian.

But in an optimised party you are better of with a ToB class, they are just better!

[kamikasei]

It would be helpful if you described the rest of the party. It might be difficult to make your character as or more powerful than them, but perhaps you can find a role where no one else is stepping on your toes, so that a straight-up comparison isn't necessary.

[AslanCross]

Fighter/Warblade multiclass can turn out pretty well especially if you use the Dungeoncrasher Fighter from Dungeonscape. Charging Minotaur + Dungeoncrasher damage will add up a lot even at low levels. Warblade will give you far more options than just being an ordinary fighter, and you don't even need to be all mystical about it. The Warblade is the most ordinary of all the ToB classes.

[SammySir]

I’m not sure on the exact builds in the party
There is:
Dragon shaman that is part dragon (he recently got changed by bahmuht) who has rolled Max Hp all the time, front line fighting

An elf cleric with wings that’s a cover’s scouting / back up healer,

Human cleric of tempus hurting healing machine,

Elf duskblade that piles out the damage with lighting

Wizard that all about summoning bugs! Big ones and blasting stuff

An elf rogue with loads off wee skill tricks

[Temotei]

I’m not sure on the exact builds in the party
There is:
Dragon shaman that is part dragon (he recently got changed by bahmuht) who has rolled Max Hp all the time, front line fighting

An elf cleric with wings that’s a cover’s scouting / back up healer,

Human cleric of tempus hurting healing machine,

Elf duskblade that piles out the damage with lighting

Wizard that all about summoning bugs! Big ones and blasting stuff

An elf rogue with loads off wee skill tricks

Wizards that blast aren't optimized. Just saying.

[kamikasei]

It sounds like between the shaman, cleric and duskblade, they have tankiness and high damage output covered. You might be well served going for a battlefield control / tripmonkey build - but that would lock you in to a particular weapon or at least weapon type. Alternatively, if there's enemy HP enough to share out between you, a leader-type build with some White Raven maneuvers might be good, given a large party and a conjuror - the more people on your side, the more bang you get per buffing and tactical-manipulation maneuver.

[BooNL]

I agree with Kamikasei, there's plenty of melee guys in the group already.

Leader classes you could consider are: bard, crusader, marshal or dragon shaman.

Though the latter is used already, you could focus more on the auras found in Dragon Magic. Marshal is a pretty weak class, so unless you multi it's probably not worth it.

I'd say either a straight Crusader or a Bard/Crusader or Draconic Bard focusing on Dragonfire Inspiration and Draconic Auras (maybe a dip in Marshal or Dragon Shaman).

[Wings of Peace]

Are Web Enhancements allowed or Complete Warrior? As an alternative to something out of ToB (Not that it can't supplement the build quite well) 3 levels of Arcane Duelist and some Frenzied Berserker with a Two-Handed weapon are pretty amazing. PA damage lets you easily boost your AB to wherever you want it through Dexterous attack. For the Arcane requirement I would take a level in Duskblade for the full BaB progression if it's available. And of course if you're taking Frenzied Berserker lets not forget to make that Barbarian dip a Lion Totem Barbarian

[Keld Denar]

Goliath Fighter2/Warblade3 (ECL6)

Take the Dungeoncrasher ACF from Dungeonscape.

Take Power Attack and Imp Bull Rush at 1, Knockback at 3.

Warblade Manevuers should be
1 Steel Wind, Sapphire Nightmare Blade, Moment of Perfect Mind
2 Emerald Razor
3 Mountain Hammer
Stance should probably be either Stonefoot Stance (plant yourself for the extra +2 on knockbacks) or Punishing Stance for the extra damage.

Trick is simple. Walk up to someone. If they are alone, Emerald Razor and PA for max. If they are with a friend, Steel Wind and PA for ~2. After those, dish out some Sapphire Nightmare Blade to add your allies and some Mountain Hammer when you need big hits. Again, PA for ~2, just to activate Knockback. When you knock someone back, if they hit a wall, they take an extra 2d6+1.5x str. Its pretty much awesome.

Goliaths are in Races of Stone, along with the Knockback feat. Everything else is PHB/ToB.

[Person_Man]

Obligatory link.

Stock Fighter Advice:

Fighter is actually quite a respectable choice up to ECL 12ish if you know what you're doing. The keys are alternate class features and careful feat selection (see obligatory melee combos link above).

At level 1, Fighters get the Tower Shield for free. This in itself is useful. But if you don't like it, Races of Stone also lets you trade it away for Exotic Shield Proficiency, which has several uses. I suggest using it for a Gnome Battle Cloak, which is essentially a shield you wear on your back, which is essentially a free Animated shield. Or you can take the Extreme Shield if you want +3 AC without a To-Hit penalty (but don't care about making shield bash attacks). If you want a mounted build (which is one of your best core-ish options) then I suggest a Riding Shield.

At levels 2 and 6, Dungonscape lets you trade away feats for the Dungeoncrasher ability, which gives you massive damage when you Bull Rush an enemy into a wall or solid object. As others have opined, the easiest way to abuse this is through the Knockback feat. Check out Flaming Homer and the King of Pong. If you want to be less abusive and/or don't want to be a Goliath, then I suggest you be a Raptorian or Dragonborn for free flight (though it doesn't kick in until ECL 12). This lets you move above enemies, so that you can Bull Rush them into the floor. You can also get free Bull Rush attempts from the Shield of the Severed Hand (Complete Divine pg 102 or MIC) and/or Brutal Surge weapons (MIC). It's also worth mentioning that Dungeoncrasher damage is so high that even a single mundane Bull Rush per turn can kill most enemies.

At 2nd level or higher you can give up a Fighter bonus feat to gain the Resolute ability (Complete Champion). It allows you to immediately shift 1/2 your BAB to your Will Save. Hugely useful at mid to high levels, as Will Saves are often Save or Lose. Once you get to level 10 or higher I would definitely pick this one up, unless you can find some other form of mental protection.

A nifty web ad on gives you various buffs to your ability to Demoralize. The most important kicks in at 11th level, which lets you Demoralize as a Swift Action. This can be a powerful tool, especially when combined with the Imperious Command feat (Drow of the Underdark) which makes Demoralized enemies Cower.

Put that together, and you get respectable defense, strong offense, and two forms of battlefield control (Bull Rush and Fear). Pretty solid for any low to mid level melee build.