User:Cedges/Disciple of Criticals (3.5e Optimized Character Build)

Author: Cedges (talk) Date Created: 6/6/2010 Status: Draft Editing: Clarity edits only please

Rating box not supported outside of the main namespace.

Rate this article Your rating for this article: Favor Like Neutral Dislike Oppose Submit | Cancel Discuss this article

Introduction

Uses an increased critical threat range to do tremendous amounts of damage in 3.5.

References

• Book of Vile Darkness (3.0) (Disciple of Dispater 60)
• Tome of Battle (Warblade 20, Martial Study 31, Aptitude weapons)
• Dragon Magazine 353 (Whip Dagger 28)

Game Rule Components

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

Distracting Ember, Blood in the Water

Items

Needed weapons:

• Two Light Maces, graduate to
• +1 Aptitude 18-20 one-handed and possibly off-hand as soon as affordable. Graduate to
• +1 Aptitude Keen 18-20 one-handed weapon as soon as it is affordable, and possibly a similar off-hand weapon. By Disciple of Dispater 8, graduate to
• +1 Aptitude Cold-Iron 18-20 one-handed weapon

Also pick up a whip-dagger or two (19-20 crit, threatens 5-15', 1d6 slashing damage, does damage to armored foes, otherwise a whip, including for feats) at some point:

• +1 Aptitude Cold-Iron Whip Dagger

Progression

Starting Ability Scores (Before Racial Adjustments): 15+ str, 15+ dex, 13+ int

Race (Templates): Human. Stongheart Halfling would require 17 str, which is more expensive to point buy.

ECL	Class/HD/LA	Base Attack Bonus	Saving Throws			Feats	Class Features	Special	No-Sweep		Sweep w/ Ember
			Fort	Ref	Will				Crit Immune	Critable	Crit Immune	Critable
1st	Warblade 1	+	+	+	+	Weapon Focus, Two-Weapon Fighting, Combat Reflexes1, Lightning Mace1	Weapon aptitude, Blood in the Water	Lightning mace gives you a measly 1.05 attacks/attack	1	1.05	N/A	N/A
2nd	Fighter 1	+	+	+	+	Power Attack			1	1.05	N/A	N/A
3rd	Psychic Warrior 1	+	+	+	+	Improved Unarmed Strike, Roundabout Kick		You're almost as good unarmed as with maces	1	1.05	N/A	N/A
4th	Psychic Warrior 2	+	+	+	+	Combat Expertise			1	1.05	N/A	N/A
5th	Psychic Warrior 3	+	+	+	+				1	1.05	N/A	N/A
6th	War Mind 1	+	+	+	+	Martial Study (Distracting Ember)			1	1.05	N/A	N/A
7th	War Mind 2	+	+	+	+			You should be able to afford a pair of +1 aptitude 18-20 weapons. You do 1.17 attacks/attack.	1.18	1.41	N/A	N/A
8th	War Mind 3	+	+	+	+				1.18	1.41	N/A	N/A
9th	War Mind 4	+	+	+	+	Disciple of Darkness		You're barely able to afford a +1 aptitude keen weapon.	1.43	2.41	N/A	N/A
10th	War Mind 5	+	+	+	+		Sweeping Strike	Build starts to work in many situations	1.432	2.412	8.72	Diverges2
11th	Disciple of Dispater 1	+	+	+	+				1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
12th	Disciple of Dispater 2	+	+	+	+	Optional Feat			1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
13th	Disciple of Dispater 3	+	+	+	+				1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
14th	Disciple of Dispater 4	+	+	+	+				1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
15th	Disciple of Dispater 5	+	+	+	+	Optional Feat			1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
16th	Disciple of Dispater 6	+	+	+	+				1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
17th	Disciple of Dispater 7	+	+	+	+				1.43	2.41	8.7	Diverges
18th	Disciple of Dispater 8	+	+	+	+	Exotic Weapon Proficiency (Whip)		Finally, triple threat range	1.82	8.16	Diverges	Diverges
Requires two flaws: shaky and one other This is a threat range of 15-20, so it's also the behaviour of a whip-dagger after reaching Disciple of Dispater 8. Without triple threat range, a keen whip-dagger would be 1.25 / 1.64 / 2.44 / 4.55.

Other Components

<- anything not covered by the previous sections ->

Highlights

<- How and why this build works, also a place to show off just what the build can do ->

Tactics

If there aren't two opponents next to each other, summon a distracting ember next to one, and sweep both enemies or an enemy and an ember with an attack. Do non-lethal damage so you don't kill your ember. You slaughter creatures occupying two squares.

Further Optimization

• Increase attack bonus or number of attacks in a full round attack to get started more easily.
• Become large to threaten more squares
• Find a way to move as a free or immediate action without moving or add attacks that prevent opponents from moving.
• Convince your DM to let Disciple of Dispater's expanded threat range and 3.5 Improved Critical stack even though they don't, get a 12-20 critical, and diverge against non-critical immune foes without needing a sweep or an ember, and diverge against crit-immune foes even using a whip and ember.

Side Notes

Limitations

DM Counters:

• Movement. Sweeping Strike can't be used if the war mind has moved more than 10' since the end of his last turn. This can be overcome a little bit by a 5' step, a 15' reach, and perhaps picking up another 5' of free movement somewhere, like Stalking Shadow. Movement+critical immunity is very bad for the war mind.
• One square wide halls with no space to summon ember. This is overcome eventually using a whip-dagger, but not if the foe is immune to criticals.
• Arenas or pits of exactly two adjacent five-foot squares.
• Immunity to non-lethal damage. This is overcome eventually
• Immunity to critical hits. This is eventually overcome using an ember, but not if there is no space to put one. Blood in the Water never gets a bonus from the Ember, so immune foes actually completely prevent bonus acquisition.
• Anything that counters melee

Variants

• Take warblade later to get slightly better maneuver options and 2 fewer hitpoints.
• Drop 8 levels of Disciple of Dispater for 7 of Psychic Weapon Master. Requires a tremendous number of feats, has a smaller threat range of 8 instead of 9, and only has an expanded threat range on a single weapon, so no whip daggers.

Miscellaneous

<nowiki>

---

Back to Main Page → 3.5e Homebrew → Character Optimization