Is there any way to make sword and board not suck?

[PhaedrusXY]

I guess no one really noticed that build I tossed up on page 2? Was hoping to see some comments or something at least. *shrug*

Doesn't it have an XP penalty? Barbarian is the favored class for goliaths, right?

[Surreal]

I guess no one really noticed that build I tossed up on page 2? Was hoping to see some comments or something at least. *shrug*

Doesn't it have an XP penalty? Barbarian is the favored class for goliaths, right?

Bah, people still go by those? Fine, slap on Dragonborn and call it a day (let's say for flight, so you have the option of bull rushing people into the ground from range).

[skydragonknight]

Bloodstorm Blade/Dungeoncrasher Fighters are fun.
My finishing touch is usually Master Thrower 5 for touch attack-power attacks to synergize with Knockback and boomerang daze(Talenta Boomerang Build).

If your normal damage is consistently high enough, you could use Boomerang Daze instead of Three Mountains as your combat debuff. Your shield was an aptitude shield, yes?

[BowenSilverclaw]

Ah, long live Aptitude Cheese

[JaronK]

So in other words, your party sucks. Gotcha.

Let me say again: no one in the party was hit in the entire encounter.  As for the mount, it was a Magebreed Warbeast Desmoderu Hunting Bat that was advanced 1 HD to be a mount for a Human Factotum.  950gp, and a very sexy mount.  +12 to hit, 1d8+15 damage, at level 5.  In that combat, it did the most damage... and at level 5, that's quite reasonable.  In fact, at lower levels mounts doing more damage than traditional melees is pretty darn common.  They tend to have high static strength scores and be quite good for that sort of thing.

And you took the fact that no one in the party was hurt at all in the encounter and the mount did the most damage to mean the party sucks?  Seriously?  Here's a thought... maybe no one in the party rolled as well.  Heck, I rolled a 19 for my Iajuitsu Focus Check and proceeded to roll 1, 1, 2, 2, 3 for damage on that attack (pesky).  Or maybe, just maybe, never being hit is an indication that the party is strong, not weak.

JaronK

[Sunic_Flames]

Oh, it's the Epic Fael Trainwreck game. Fuck it, even I'm not touching that shit.

[BowenSilverclaw]

Down boy *hits SF with a rolled up newspaper*

[Sunic_Flames]

Down boy *hits SF with a rolled up newspaper*

*Opens mouth and immolates the newspaper mid swing, the arm holding it, about 50% of the rest of Bowen, and some random scenery with fire breath*

You get down, fucker.

[BowenSilverclaw]

You do realise the cheese involved with a proper Werebear, right?

[Sunic_Flames]

You do realise the cheese involved with a proper Werebear, right?

A lot of Strength and Con, which spells could care less about, and a spell grants the caster just as well without the cost.

[JaronK]

Oh, it's the Epic Fael Trainwreck game. Fuck it, even I'm not touching that shit.

No failure involved at all, and how could you judge if it's a trainwreck?  It's a skillmonkey game, and we took appropriate mounts (stealthy, mobile, good detection abilities) at the given costs.  Actually, it's a lot of fun.  We're just, you know, actually making use of skills like Handle Animal instead of putting all our power into Wizard style casting.

JaronK

[Surreal]

Ah, long live Aptitude Cheese

I think aptitude shields can have a hand in making sword'n'board viable. I'm not sure how exactly, but it feels like potential is there. Not enough to compete with a charger mind you, but at least enough to make people consider it playable.

[JaronK]

Well, shields don't have the nifty critical range that makes Kukris so attractive for it.  If anything, I'd expect it to go the other way... Aptitude weapons that could make use of Shield Charge would make shields less attractive.

JaronK

[Surreal]

Eh, tomato tothaco, I guess it does go both ways.

Bloodstorm Blade/Dungeoncrasher Fighters are fun.
My finishing touch is usually Master Thrower 5 for touch attack-power attacks to synergize with Knockback and boomerang daze(Talenta Boomerang Build).

If your normal damage is consistently high enough, you could use Boomerang Daze instead of Three Mountains as your combat debuff. Your shield was an aptitude shield, yes?

Has anyone ever made a build specifically for aptitude weapons, just to see how many effects we can stack onto a single weapon? Might make for an interesting and even serviceable build.

Lightning Mace
Boomerage Daze/Ricochet
Three Mountains
Shield Slam/Charge
Eagle's Fury (Sandstorm)
etc

And see, now I have this funny idea of a troll drunken master bloodstorm blade who rips off his arm (there's a feat in Savage Species for that I think) and throws it around like a boomerang...

[altpersona]

Eh, tomato tothaco, I guess it does go both ways.

And see, now I have this funny idea of a troll drunken master bloodstorm blade who rips off his arm (there's a feat in Savage Species for that I think) and throws it around like a boomerang...

i think something like that has been done, except i think it threw its head... but i dont recall exactly..

[JaronK]

I've messed with it a few times.  In the end, Lightning Mace and Roundabout Kick are the two really big feats to get, as they result in so many extra attacks.

JaronK

[BowenSilverclaw]

You do realise the cheese involved with a proper Werebear, right?

A lot of Strength and Con, which spells could care less about, and a spell grants the caster just as well without the cost.

Meh, I was talking about actual interesting stuff, not the usual boring Polymorph-like physical boosts

[Sunic_Flames]

You do realise the cheese involved with a proper Werebear, right?

A lot of Strength and Con, which spells could care less about, and a spell grants the caster just as well without the cost.

Meh, I was talking about actual interesting stuff, not the usual boring Polymorph-like physical boosts

Ok so... losing a bunch of class levels?

Jaron: It's a trainwreck because I distinctly recall all the Epic Fucking Fail bullshit that came from it. Personally I'm surprised they got that shit back on the tracks and moving again, but eh. It will derail again shortly.

[JaronK]

What trainwreck that came from it?  You're talking about the online thing where someone wanted to see a reasonably optimized Factotum in play, and then they all came back with Necropolitan Strongheart Halflings and stuff?  That's not what I'm talking about (that never got off the ground, obviously).  Yeah, that was an obvious train wreck in the making, and no, that never got moving at all.

The game I'm talking about just started in real life last Monday.  I've been trying to do an all skillmonkey game for a while now, and a bunch of friends liked the idea, so we've just started.  No train wreck involved, I assure you.  Just a game with a bunch of skillmonkeys (a bunch of Factotums, plus a Rogue, a Beguiler, a Spellthief, an Artificer, and a Warblade/Swordsage) running around in Eberron jungles.  The relevant point is that two of us are on bats (Magebreed Warbeast Hunting Bats, one large for the human, one small for the halfling) and the AC of the bats seems to be holding out just fine for the moment.  My Factotum's AC is absolute crap already, so his AC doesn't matter (Dex 16 + Mage Armor + Vulnerable flaw, and that's it), but the tank and the bats are fine.

JaronK

[Tshern]

Eh, tomato tothaco, I guess it does go both ways.

Bloodstorm Blade/Dungeoncrasher Fighters are fun.
My finishing touch is usually Master Thrower 5 for touch attack-power attacks to synergize with Knockback and boomerang daze(Talenta Boomerang Build).

If your normal damage is consistently high enough, you could use Boomerang Daze instead of Three Mountains as your combat debuff. Your shield was an aptitude shield, yes?

Has anyone ever made a build specifically for aptitude weapons, just to see how many effects we can stack onto a single weapon? Might make for an interesting and even serviceable build.

Lightning Mace
Boomerage Daze/Ricochet
Three Mountains
Shield Slam/Charge
Eagle's Fury (Sandstorm)
etc

And see, now I have this funny idea of a troll drunken master bloodstorm blade who rips off his arm (there's a feat in Savage Species for that I think) and throws it around like a boomerang...

Win, Surreal, win.