Author Topic: Soulknife / Kensai  (Read 4832 times)

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CannibalSmith

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Soulknife / Kensai
« on: January 09, 2009, 09:05:42 PM »
I want to improve upon the Soulknife / Kensai build from the Soulknife Build Guide & Compendium. Eberron's kalashtar need good soulknife (and monk) builds for the Shadow Hunters.

Lawful Good Kalashtar
Soulknife 8 / Kensai 6 / War Mind 6
1st: Two-Weapon Fighting
3rd: Weapon Finesse
6th: Combat Expertise
9th: Soulblade Warrior
12th: Improved Two-Weapon Fighting
15th: Greater Two-Weapon Fighting
18th: Practiced Manifester

Take 1st and 6th racial substitution levels. Kensai's oath is easy - pledge to Il-Yannah, and you're done. The fun begins at 9th level when you get to pick your first enhancement bonus from Kensai. Flip open Magic Item Compendium to weapon enhancements and pick, say:
Impaling (+1) - Roll vs touch AC for 3 6 rounds per day. What Deep Impact?
Morphing (+1) - Now, there's versatility. It's your mind blade - you're always proficient with it!
Dispelling (+1) - Dispel magic 3 6 times a day. Show them gishes, who's da man!
Transmuting (+2) - The problem of bashers at high levels is was overcoming DR.
You'll probably want to pick Evil Outsider Bane at some point if you're fighting the Dreaming Dark - they are all evil outsiders.

By level 14 we've maxed out our mind blades (two +4 short swords with +5 worth of abilities). So we pick War Mind for full BAB, manifesting, and miscellaneous goodies. Prerequisites are easy, and you definitely are part of an old psionic organization bla, bla, bla. Pick whatever powers you want, but do pick Expansion, Psionic Lion's Charge, and Hustle - you have been using these powers through psionic tattoos throughout your carreer already.

Quote
Alternatively, a soulknife can split his mind blade into two identical short swords, suitable for fighting with a weapon in each hand.
The mind blade is a single weapon. When it's split into two, all the bonuses from Kensai either get copied to both blades or none. DM call. He might ask you to pay imbuing XP for mind blade as a double weapon. Whatever.
« Last Edit: January 14, 2009, 01:56:45 PM by CannibalSmith »

woodenbandman

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #1 on: January 09, 2009, 09:13:02 PM »
That's pretty good. Don't forget maxed concentration, too! Hustle/charge time, expansion, linked power, lion's charge... Need a way to get moar power points, though. Get those things that hold power points. A bunch of them.

Lycanthromancer

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #2 on: January 10, 2009, 06:13:42 PM »
+1 manifesting arrows. Draw as a free action, and each one has 5 power points. 50 of them cost the same as a normal +1 manifester weapon (item cost + 16000 gp).
[spoiler]Masculine men like masculine things. Masculine men are masculine. Therefore, liking masculine men is masculine.

I dare anyone to find a hole in that logic.
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Which book is Lycanthromancer in?
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shit.. concerning psionics optimization, lycan IS the book
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BowenSilverclaw

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #3 on: January 10, 2009, 06:19:34 PM »
And that's why I love your contributions, Lycan :)

"Weakness? Come test thy mettle against me, hairless ape, and we shall know who is weak!"

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CannibalSmith

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #4 on: January 10, 2009, 06:29:50 PM »
Except they're not a weapon.

Negative Zero

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #5 on: January 10, 2009, 06:31:12 PM »
Yeah they are. They can be used as improvised weapons. Check your PHB.

CannibalSmith

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #6 on: January 10, 2009, 06:41:49 PM »
Then why stop there? Manifest tankards, chairs, baskets, shovels, bottles, and more. Need a boat? Just say "a sufficiently large creature could use it as an improvised weapon", and poof! Hell, pick up Sizing too! You can smack people with miniature ships, right?

In any case, you'd get only two arrows, not 50.

Lycanthromancer

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #7 on: January 10, 2009, 08:00:48 PM »
Note that any ammo can be enhanced just like a launcher can, and you can put the manifester quality on ranged weapons.

Then why stop there? Manifest tankards, chairs, baskets, shovels, bottles, and more. Need a boat? Just say "a sufficiently large creature could use it as an improvised weapon", and poof! Hell, pick up Sizing too! You can smack people with miniature ships, right?

The trick with ammo is that it's enhanced in batches of 50, and 50 of them cost the same as a single launcher or melee weapon.

Thus, it costs just over 17,000 gp for 50 +1 manifester arrows.

You should be able to craft them in smaller batches, if you want, if 50 of them is a bit of overkill.

In any case, you'd get only two arrows, not 50.

Huh?
[spoiler]Masculine men like masculine things. Masculine men are masculine. Therefore, liking masculine men is masculine.

I dare anyone to find a hole in that logic.
______________________________________
[/spoiler]I'm a writer. These are my stories. Some are even SFW! (Warning: Mostly Gay.)
My awesome poster collection. (Warning, some are NSFW.)
Agita's awesome poster collection.
[spoiler]
+1 Lycanthromancer
Which book is Lycanthromancer in?
Lyca ... is in the book. Yes he is.
 :D
shit.. concerning psionics optimization, lycan IS the book
[/spoiler]

CannibalSmith

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #8 on: January 10, 2009, 08:19:42 PM »
Edit: Never mind. I get what you're saying. Has anyone ever successfully sneaked this past his DM and not wrecked the game?

At level 15 this build has 17 power points from Kalashar race mostly. I think that's plenty considering your ML is 1 at this point, and you're manifesting cheap 1st level powers. Hmm, would this build benefit from Practiced Manifester more than from Cloak Dance?
« Last Edit: January 10, 2009, 08:27:19 PM by CannibalSmith »

Vidar

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #9 on: January 11, 2009, 06:42:14 AM »
Although RAW the arrows work, it's night impossible to let your DM allow this. I know mine wouldn't, and if he get's any looser, gravity will lose its grip on him and he'll float to the stratosphere, make speed and will be sending greeting cards from Mars in a few months, whining that a planet made of Mars totally sucks and he'd rather like a planet made of Kinder Surprise. I'm drifting of topic here, just like my DM hypotheticly would, very hypotheticly, since how else does he manage the breathing/pressure/temperature problems? Maybe he could cast endure elements often enough, but that'd be hard since he is no caster, so let's try and keep on topic and lose the hypothesis, ok?!
All space monkeys and sharks aside: you're paying the same for 250 pp as you are for 5 pp without practically any drawback, ESPECIALLY as a soulknife, as you can draw unlimited arrows that turn and still have all your actions after you dropped each one. And it's not as easy to compromise either.

BowenSilverclaw

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Re: Soulknife / Kensai
« Reply #10 on: January 12, 2009, 05:04:25 PM »
Heh, I'd let it fly if you use it for some more endurance and not for nova-tactics :)

Btw, greetings from Mars :P
"Weakness? Come test thy mettle against me, hairless ape, and we shall know who is weak!"

Quote from: J0lt
You caught a fish.  It was awesome.   :lol