unbongwah
Well-known member
You can read about what's coming in the Lamannia threads:
Just wanted to jump-start some theory-crafting ideas about how to take advantage of the new racial options. In particular, who can benefit from +1 competence bonus to critical threat range to dwarven axes, heavy picks, or warhammers?
Fighter Vanguard (dwarven axe)
Based on this build.
Stats: STR > CON > INT with enough DEX for Whirlwind Attack + pre-reqs. We'll be using Know the Angles for Battle Trance, hence why INT shouldn't be dumped; the extra skill points are just a bonus.
Enhancements:
Epic Destinies: Rager version uses Tier-5 Divine Crusader w/Mantle + T4 Fury of the Wild, leftover points can go into Unyielding Sentinel or Legendary Dreadnought. Non-Rager w/Precision would use a different configuration, like T5 Crusader + T3 Sentinel + T3 FotW.
Dragonlord (heavy pick or warhammer)
Enhancements:
Heavy picks are still "only" 18-20/x6 weapons with this configuration (16-20/x6 for Deathnip), so warhammer w/Knight's Training would be the more sensible option (16-20/x5). But if you've been dying to run a new heavy pick build, well, you'll have a new option.
Dark Hunter (warhammer)
Stats: max DEX > CON > INT
Enhancements:
Swashbuckler (throwing axe)
Except for Nightforge Spike, throwing axe is the only throwing weapon with an x3 critical multiplier. That becomes 15-20/x4 with Swashbuckling + Improved Critical. However that isn't enough to offset what it lacks compared to shuriken and throwing daggers; i.e., extra Doubleshot from Ninja cores + Shuriken Expertise or Simple Thrown Weapon Expertise, the burst DPS bonus from Ten Thousand Stars + Shadow Double or Multitude of Missiles.
One of the Duergar Enhancements is Forge Apprentice: "You gain proficiency with Handaxes, Light Picks, Light Hammers, Throwing Axes, and Throwing Hammers, and consider them Simple Weapons." The latter makes all of them compatible with Vile Chemist bonuses to simple weapons; it should also make throwing axes & hammers compatible with Simple Thrown Weapon Expertise and Multitude of Missiles.
Will this be enough to make throwing axes competitive with daggers which can take advantage of everything in Vistani Knife Fighter too? We'll find out!
My first thought: max-DEX bard 3 / ranger 5 to start for T5 Deepwood Stalker (Improved Archer's Focus, +20% Doubleshot, extra Favored Enemy, etc.) + T3 Horizon Walker (No Step Missed) + T3 Swashbuckling (Dashing Scoundrel) + Forge Apprentice. That's ~70 APs so what else you multiclass and how deep you can go in another tree depends on how many bonus APs you have. Option 1 is Alchemist for Vile Chemist: 6 APs to activate extra Imbue dice. Option 2 is rogue or Arcane Trickster for lots of sneak attacks and possibly more Imbue Dice from Assassin or AT. Option 3 is fighter to load up on Ranged Power, extra feats, and (if you have the APs) Power Surge; for a Mindcleaver this also saves a +1 Lesser Heart of Wood.
Other T5 options: Dragonlord for +2 critical multiplier so throwing axes become 15-20/x5 (as do handaxes if going for a SWF+thrower hybrid); Vile Chemist for Chemical Weapon (you eventually hit the attack speed cap without it, but it may help for leveling).
Just wanted to jump-start some theory-crafting ideas about how to take advantage of the new racial options. In particular, who can benefit from +1 competence bonus to critical threat range to dwarven axes, heavy picks, or warhammers?
Fighter Vanguard (dwarven axe)
Based on this build.
Stats: STR > CON > INT with enough DEX for Whirlwind Attack + pre-reqs. We'll be using Know the Angles for Battle Trance, hence why INT shouldn't be dumped; the extra skill points are just a bonus.
Enhancements:
- 41 Vanguard for Tier-5s and capstone (+20% attack speed, free stun attempt on 10% of shield bashes)
- 17 racial for +1 critical threat range to dwarven axes
- 11 Kensei for Haste Boost and +1 critical multiplier
- 6 Harper Agent for Know the Angles
Epic Destinies: Rager version uses Tier-5 Divine Crusader w/Mantle + T4 Fury of the Wild, leftover points can go into Unyielding Sentinel or Legendary Dreadnought. Non-Rager w/Precision would use a different configuration, like T5 Crusader + T3 Sentinel + T3 FotW.
Dragonlord (heavy pick or warhammer)
Enhancements:
- 41 Dragonlord for Tier-5s (+2 crit multiplier etc.) and capstone
- 22 Ravager
- 17 racial for +1 critical threat range to heavy pick or warhammer
Heavy picks are still "only" 18-20/x6 weapons with this configuration (16-20/x6 for Deathnip), so warhammer w/Knight's Training would be the more sensible option (16-20/x5). But if you've been dying to run a new heavy pick build, well, you'll have a new option.
Dark Hunter (warhammer)
Stats: max DEX > CON > INT
Enhancements:
- 41 Tempest for T5 & capstone
- 21 Dark Hunter for Opportune Moment
- 17 racial for +1 critical threat range to heavy pick or warhammer
- 6 Harper Agent for KtA
Swashbuckler (throwing axe)
Except for Nightforge Spike, throwing axe is the only throwing weapon with an x3 critical multiplier. That becomes 15-20/x4 with Swashbuckling + Improved Critical. However that isn't enough to offset what it lacks compared to shuriken and throwing daggers; i.e., extra Doubleshot from Ninja cores + Shuriken Expertise or Simple Thrown Weapon Expertise, the burst DPS bonus from Ten Thousand Stars + Shadow Double or Multitude of Missiles.
One of the Duergar Enhancements is Forge Apprentice: "You gain proficiency with Handaxes, Light Picks, Light Hammers, Throwing Axes, and Throwing Hammers, and consider them Simple Weapons." The latter makes all of them compatible with Vile Chemist bonuses to simple weapons; it should also make throwing axes & hammers compatible with Simple Thrown Weapon Expertise and Multitude of Missiles.
Will this be enough to make throwing axes competitive with daggers which can take advantage of everything in Vistani Knife Fighter too? We'll find out!
My first thought: max-DEX bard 3 / ranger 5 to start for T5 Deepwood Stalker (Improved Archer's Focus, +20% Doubleshot, extra Favored Enemy, etc.) + T3 Horizon Walker (No Step Missed) + T3 Swashbuckling (Dashing Scoundrel) + Forge Apprentice. That's ~70 APs so what else you multiclass and how deep you can go in another tree depends on how many bonus APs you have. Option 1 is Alchemist for Vile Chemist: 6 APs to activate extra Imbue dice. Option 2 is rogue or Arcane Trickster for lots of sneak attacks and possibly more Imbue Dice from Assassin or AT. Option 3 is fighter to load up on Ranged Power, extra feats, and (if you have the APs) Power Surge; for a Mindcleaver this also saves a +1 Lesser Heart of Wood.
Other T5 options: Dragonlord for +2 critical multiplier so throwing axes become 15-20/x5 (as do handaxes if going for a SWF+thrower hybrid); Vile Chemist for Chemical Weapon (you eventually hit the attack speed cap without it, but it may help for leveling).
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