Glaive of the Dungeon Crasher (3.5e Optimized Character Build)

Author's Note: "People always seem to run into walls whenever I'm around. Stop that. You're just hurting yourself."

Introduction
Summary::Using the Dungeon Crasher variant from Dungeonscape along with the Eldritch Glaive invocation from Dragon Magic and Large and In Charge from Races of the Dragon you can have a great hybrid defender/striker who combines damage with zone control.

Spells, Powers, Soulmelds, Stances, etc...

 * Expansion from the Warmind levels to get big for a boost to Large and In Charge, Bull Rushes, and a bigger threat area.
 * Get Eldritch Glaive from Dragon Magic.

Items

 * Armbands of Might from Magic Item Compendium will raise your damage by another 2
 * A Nightstick from Libris Mortis will let you use Travel Devotion a few more times per day. No need for the cheese of multiple Nightsticks, since one use of Turn Undead will last you a whole encounter.

Progression
Starting Ability Scores (Before Racial Adjustments): (Assuming 32 Point Buy) 16 14 15 10 14 8

Race (Templates): Race::Goliath (or Human, see Variants)

Starting Racial Traits: +4 Strength, -2 Dex, +2 Constitution, Powerful Build, +1 Natural Armor

At level 20: Final Class Progression::Ardent 1 / Cleric 1 / Fighter 6 / Crusader 1 / Warlock 1 / Warmind 7 / Hellfire Warlock 3

Other Components
For your ardent mantles, pick up Conflict for Weapon Focus: Eldritch Blade and Force for Force Screen to boost your AC at lower levels.

Highlights
Hit things against a wall with your Eldritch Glaive while power attacking freely due to using touch attacks. Use Thicket of Blades combined with Large and In Charge to stop enemies in their tracks, and use Travel Devotion to move around freely while still being able to use Eldritch Glaive (which requires a full-round action).

Assuming 20 starting strength after racial mods, your strength will be 20 + 4 (level) + 4 (tome) + 6 (item) +4 (Chain of Personal Superiority) = 38 at level 20. Full attack (every attack is a touch attack) will be 14 (Str) + 16 (BAB) - 16 (Power Attack) + 1 (Weapon Focus) + 2 (Melee Weapon Mastery) = +17/+12/+7/+2, with damage (assuming you're bashing them against a wall with the Knockback feat) being 7d6 (Eldritch Glaive + Hellfire Blast) + 21 (Two-Handed Weapon Strength) + 8d6+42 (Dungeon Crasher) + 2 (Weapon Specialization) + 2 (Melee Weapon Mastery) + 32 (Power Attack with a two-handed weapon) = 15d6+99 or 151.5 on average, all the while keeping the target locked down. Should all attacks hit, that comes out to 606 damage per round on average.

Use Sweeping Strike to deal this damage twice if two enemies are adjacent to each other, as well as to punish two enemies at the same time if only one moves, AoOing both of them.

Further Optimization
Find a way to fly (such as Winged Boots, or a 5' by 5' Carpet of Flying) and fly above your opponent, considering the ground as a "wall" with which to bash them into.

Limitations
Due to being kept at Light armor, your armor class might suffer which could be a problem before you pick up Thicket of Blades.

Also, Spell Resistance can completely cripple this build due to the low caster level for Warlock.

DM Counters
Add creatures that can teleport as a swift action, ranged attacks and AoE spells that do damage.

Spell Resistance. 'Nuff said.

Miscellaneous
This build assumes that the retarded multiclass xp penalty rules are not used.

Variants
If using the multiclass xp penalty rules, go Human and take the Jotunbrud feat from Races of Faerun to effectively give yourself Powerful Build.

An alternative to Large and In Charge is Stand Still from the Expanded Psionics Handbook.