Warblade Cleric Optimization

[Sooner]

Playing in a Gestalt Campaign (Lvl 10) set mostly in the Underdark and dealing mainly with Drow, Lolth, and the various monsters that populate the realm. DM will be throwing in additional challenging fights including at least 1 master thrower with palm toss, double throw and returning, splitting, seeking daggers.

The Rules as they are now:
4d6 - Best 3
No LA buyoff
No Skill Tricks (CS)
No Homebrew
Books the DM isn't familiar with are subject to approval.
No Regens or Rerolls; you die and you are out.
55k gp to start with, might have access to some party funds

Party members will most likely include:
Divine Warrior - Optimized Divine Warrior with Spells, 2x +5 Longswords, permanent daylight on command, etc
Druid / Shadowdancer - Skillmonkey with focus on strong melee from wildshaping combined with the stealth and feats of shadowdancers
Arcane Master: Arcane caster PrCs and Base unknown but he has a thing for wizards
Bard -> PrC / Warlock: Party Face with slight skill monkey and some useful tricks.

But this isn't about them, just a reference for my position in the party

Warblade 10 / Cloistered Cleric 10

Str - 18 Wis - 18 Con - 16 Int - 15 Cha - 14 Dex - 13
Full BaB - D12 HD - 6 + Int Skill Points - Lore Class Feature - Free Knowledge Domain - Additional Spells

For Warblade focusing on Diamond Mind specs to abuse Concentration checks. Third Eye Concentrate for +10 competence bonus on conc checks and Steady Concentration so I can take 10 even if not normally allowed to. Which puts my Concentration at 26 and by taking a 10 I can without fail have a 36 as my Will, Reflex, Fort saves and for various strikes.

Cleric focuses on buff spells because I can't get my charisma any higher without going a little mad. I get Freedom of Movement
as a supernatural ability 10 rounds a day at my discretion. I won't go through the lower level spells (most people just use the same ones) but I will address high levels and domain granted spells. Travel grants the best spells giving me Teleport 5th / Fly 3rd / Dimension Door 4th. Buff Spells are Righteous Might, Divine Power, and Divine Favor for a Size, Enhancement, and Luck bonus respectively.

Feats taken are:

Adaptive Style: I haven't totally figured out how this works but essentially when combined with Diamond Mind I have all maneuvers readied at the start of my turn.
Steady Concentration: Take 10 on Conc checks where it would normally not be possible.
Power Attack: I can use Emerald Razor to melee attack using touch AC. Power Attack rocks for that. And for the x4 damage attack.
Imp. Init: Warblade Bonus feats kinda suck but extra initiative is always welcome
Weapon Focus (adaptive): 1 hour a day to change to any weapon
Weapon Spec (adaptive): same as above.
Blade Mediation: +2 Conc Checks, +1 Diamond Mind Maneuver DC, some other bonus when using weapon appropriate for maneuver.
Knowledge Devotion: I have 13 ranks in Knowledge (Arcane, Religion, Dungeoneering, Planes)

So I must confess my utter ignorance of appropriate weapons, armor, items. I basically started really playing D&D 2 1/2 weeks ago so my actual knowledge of gameplay effectiveness and magic items (which I have been loathe to read through) is spotty at best. Any advice pertaining to making my character "be all it can be" is awesome though.

[The_Mad_Linguist]

can you give a little bit more information about what books your gm is familiar with (completes?  setting specific? that sort of thing)?

Looks like you got some pretty good rolls.  I assume those stats are taking into account leveling up bonuses?

[Sooner]

Most of the stuff the DM is unfamiliar with is the Races of X books and Eberron books. All of the completes and core books he knows.
And yes, 2 points have been put into Wisdom to boost up spells known though they could potentially be moved.

That being said the Divine warrior is our usual DM and has an intimidating array of knowledge of the game so he can probably vouch for all but the most broken of books.

Also as an addition, Mystic Theurge and similar classes are banned because of their similarities and stacking with gestalt games.

[Maat_Mons]

Unless I am mistaken, splitting can only be applied to a bow. 

Buying 2 +5 longswords costs 100,630 gp.  Making 2 +5 longswords costs 50,630 gp.  I hope that's not actually how he spends his gold. 

The holy warrior feat (Complete Champion) would give you +5 damage.  Adaptive style doesn't do much for a warblade and I don't know of any trick for circumventing the normal limit of maneuvers readied. 

You'll want a +1 martial discipline weapon (Tome of Battle).  As long as you are in a stance of the appropriate discipline, you get a +3 to attack on top of the weapon's enhancement bonus.  You'll also want a +1 animated shield (Dungeon Master's Guide).  That lets you use a two-handed weapon and a shield at the same time.  Beyond that, just cast magic vestment and greater magic weapon instead of buying more expensive armor and weapons.  You can use a metamagic rod of extend (Dungeon Master's Guide) to make those spells last 20 hours. 

I don't understand your comment on charisma.  Charisma doesn't seem to relate to the decision to focus on buff spells. 

Another way to go is two-weapon fighting.  This would synergize with the +7 damage from holy warrior and weapon specialization.  Tiger claw also synergizes with two-weapon fighting.  Putting a level into crusader for martial spirit (plus proficiency with ranged martial weapons and heavy armor) wouldn't be bad.  That would cause you to heal 2 points of damage per attack and you could make 4 attacks per round (or 6 with dancing mongoose).  If you have access to Magic of Incarnum, there are 2 feats that would bump that to healing 6 damage per attack. 

If you go with two-weapon fighting, you could take just the first two-weapon fighting feat and get the second attack with your off hand from gloves of the balance hand (Magic of Faerun/Magic Item Compendium). 

[Sooner]

Buying 2 +5 longswords costs 100,630 gp.  Making 2 +5 longswords costs 50,630 gp.  I hope that's not actually how he spends his gold.

I think it might deal with a dip into paladin levels, Cold Iron LS ----> Holy Avenger. But then again Idk

Adaptive style doesn't do much for a warblade and I don't know of any trick for circumventing the normal limit of maneuvers readied.

I might have mistyped, I think the intent is to use the initiative boost and then use the action to change maneuvers at the start of every round so that you have access to a new "set" every time.

I don't understand your comment on charisma.  Charisma doesn't seem to relate to the decision to focus on buff spells.

 

I thought it governed saves and turns but maybe I was mistaken?

[Endarire]

Turning is CHA-based.  Either max or ignore turning.  Only DEX, CON, and WIS affect Reflex, Fortitude, and Will saves respectively.

[kurashu]

Cloistered Cleric 17/Ordained Champion 3\Warblade 18/Bloodstorm Blade 2

Domains: Knowledge, Undeath, Planning. Take Persist Spell as your 1st level feat (and DMM(Persist) if you are a human).
To Meet Requirements: Point Blank Shot, Weapon Focus

Other feats you should take: Power Attack and lots of Extra Turn Undead.

Be LN to turn undead and take a level of Dread Necromancer to gain rebuke undead and double your number of turn/rebuke per day -- seems like your DM is going to throw some tough stuff at you, might as well be able to buff the whole party.

For 10th level, your build should look like: Cloistered Cleric 3/Dread Necromancer 1/Ordained Champion 3/Cloistered Cleric +3||Warblade 7/Bloodstorm Blade 2\Warblade +1.

Concentrate on Wis = Con > Cha > Int = Str > Dex.

You could also sub in Archivist for cloistered cleric and Sacred Exocist for Dread Necro, but you'd get half as many turn/rebukes but you'd have a shit ton more spells to use. Int = Con > Cha > Str > Dex > Wis then.


But the basic idea of this build is to abuse Channel Spell and Martial Throw together so you can channel a spell into a thrown weapon and strike from afar with stuff like a harm on fully powered attack hit.

[The_Mad_Linguist]

You can't PrC on both sides of gestalt

[duncandun]

I think there is a feat in Tome of battle that allows you to sub concentration checks for will saves.

I would take this, even though you will have a decent willsave as a cleric, you will have a much higher concentration check(or should) and it is also easily boostable with a +10 item or the like.

would probably be really handy, esp in a gestalt game(IE more dirty tricks) and esp in an underdark gestalt game.

[Tonymitsu]

Splitting can only be applied to a bow, remind your "anti-homebrew" DM of that.  

But ditto on what was said about Adaptive Style.  Adaptive Style lets you reshuffle your readied maneuvers as a full-round action.  Warblades can recover all expended maneuvers during combat by using their swift action and then making a single melee attack, or by using their swift and standard action to do nothing (which lets you also move in that round).  Only on the rarest occasions will you say, "Darn I wish I'd readied  that maneuver instead" and in nine out of ten of those situations it wouldn't have made much of a difference.

Charisma only governs your ability to effectively turn undead, not how many attempts you get at it.  Clerics casting is based off Wisdom and that sets the saves for the spells they cast.  Level 2 Paladins add their Charisma modifier as a bonus to their saves, if that's what you were thinking of.

Archivist also has better synergy with Warblade since they cast off of Intelligence.

I think there is a feat in Tome of battle that allows you to sub concentration checks for will saves.

Not that I recall, but there is a Level 1 Diamond Mind maneuver, Moment of the Perfect Mind, that does that.  It's one of the best 1st level maneuvers in the book too

[duncandun]

I think there is a feat in Tome of battle that allows you to sub concentration checks for will saves.

Not that I recall, but there is a Level 1 Diamond Mind maneuver, Moment of the Perfect Mind, that does that.  It's one of the best 1st level maneuvers in the book too

Ah okay, I'm not that versed in ToB.

Been thinking about doing a cloisteredcleric/prestigepaladin/crusader/rkv thingy for my next character though. need to research some builds...

[Sooner]

Actually there is a Diamond Mind Maneuver for every save.

Action Before Thought: Conc check for Reflex save

Mind Over Body: Conc check for Fort save

Moment of Perfect Mind: Conc check for Will save

Also 2 strikes deal damage equal to or 2x your concentration check

Which means I can take a 36 in any save or deal 36-72 damage with an attack any time or roll for higher and have 27-46 as my save and 27-54 to 46-92 as my damage in a round.

[duncandun]

Actually there is a Diamond Mind Maneuver for every save.

Action Before Thought: Conc check for Reflex save

Mind Over Body: Conc check for Fort save

Moment of Perfect Mind: Conc check for Will save

Also 2 strikes deal damage equal to or 2x your concentration check

Which means I can take a 36 in any save or deal 36-72 damage with an attack any time or roll for higher and have 27-46 as my save and 27-54 to 46-92 as my damage in a round.

the saves are definitely nice but the damage is pretty meh, I wouldn't worry about those maneuvers.

[Endarire]

May the Hood inspire you.

[Sooner]

May the Hood inspire you.

Awesome, would be interesting to see a gestalt version of that character.