[Pathfinder] Updating an old module's mid-boss

[Benly]

So, the campaign I'm currently running is a Pathfinder-ization of the 2E module The Gates Of Firestorm Peak with a level 6 party. The party will soon be coming up against a mid-boss type of fight. Unfortunately, the mid-boss was a level 9 dwarf fighter in the original, which is considerably less dangerous relatively speaking in 3E/PF than it was in the old days. I'm looking to work him into a form that will be a somewhat more credible threat.

The fight will probably be a semi-duel: only the NPC and one PC in actual combat (probably the party's barbarian or paladin), but with other PCs allowed to buff as long as none of their spells affect the NPC. The NPC has a special condition which gives him a save-or-die attack, but it takes several rounds after the save is made to kill its target, which means I'd rather not rely on it to give him his threat. I'm willing to grandfather in 3.5 feats and PrCs for this character, but I would want their effects to be relatively non-obvious - that is, if someone was watching the fight and didn't know the behind-the-scenes rules, he could believe that this guy really was just a badass but somewhat insane Fighter (so Barbarian rages would be okay, but not Bear Warrior, for example.) I'd rather avoid any ToB material that's obviously supernatural, as well.

So, any suggestions for feats or PrCs that could make this guy more of a hazard? I don't want him to be a Certain Winner, but I would like him to present a credible threat and be plausible as somebody none of his underlings is willing to challenge directly.

[veekie]

Perhaps an Inquisitor? You can make a straightforward but reasonably effective build riding on Heroism, Judgements, Bane and other buffs

[carnivore]

try this:

Dwarf

Fighter(Weapon Master(Dwarven Waraxe)) 9

Traits:
Reactionary
Threatening Defender


Feats:
PA
Combat Expertise
Weapon Focus(Dwarven Waraxe)
Weapon Specialization(Dwarven Waraxe)
Bloody Assault
Furious Focus
Fight On
Imp Dirty Trick
Step Up
Greater Weapon Focus(Dwarven Waraxe)

this should make for a fun encounter .... the Duel Should be interesting depending on the Buffs the players can give

Tactical ideas:
Charge+PA+Furious Focus+Bloody Assault

Dirty Tricks when you have the opportunity to use them

 

[Benly]

I like Carnivore's suggestion and will probably roll in that direction. The problem with the Inquisitor idea is that it's a spellcaster, which is a bit off from what I'm trying for.

Last night's session actually ended on a cliffhanger right before the duel (yeah, I procrastinate like crazy) which means I actually know the details of what Team Hero is fielding. The barbarian is stepping up as expected, and on top of her rage (Animal Fury, Lesser Beast Totem, and Beast Totem) is packing Heroism, Blur, False Life, Shield, Resistance, Guidance, Elemental Touch, and has an infusion of True Strike on hand if she feels the need for it. We'll see how it goes.

[Benly]

Just a followup on how it went. Due to scheduling problems, the duel ended up finally going down tonight. I used more or less Carnivore's build. The fight was fairly short but brutal; the barbarian won but needed immediate clerical attention to avoid dying as soon as rage wore off. The save-or-die actually saved her life in a sense, since the enemy used it on his first turn instead of attacking; if he'd attacked that round as well, she would've been killed with damage. Instead, she survived but the party needed to hurry to figure out how to treat the condition it had inflicted, which is about the outcome I would've hoped for.

In other words, the build was exactly as strong as it needed to be to serve the plot optimally. Good job! There wasn't enough time to use Dirty Trick, but he did get to show off his Bloody Assault.

[carnivore]

im glad they enjoyed it

if you need another build just ask