dwarf tank who can fight

[hockeyrama]

My goal is to make a good tank, who can fight and switch between twf with dual dwarven axes and intimi mode (shield with a dwarven axe). The goal here is flexibility. I know it is hard to make one that can do everything. I tried to add gear but the planner does not allow for dt armor as a choice so i had to do the best the planner has. Basically, i would have dual min 2 dwarven axes, levik's set (bracers and shield), minos, smoke 2 gs with 45hp (not sure what slot), Dt armor with resistnace +5, protection +5 and leviks). Not sure of other items. My thinking is to make the toon with not alot of tomes and once I get to level 20 TR and take advantage of the gear when it is available.
To use the levik's well i don't need tower enhancements as the stalwart gives the bonus for it and the armor bonus comes from the different armor mastery options and the stalwart.
I need to know what other gear to get.
Wants:
high hp
good dps
high intimi
high ac


Character Plan by DDO Character Planner Version 3.5.1
DDO Character Planner Home Page (http://www.rjcyberware.com/DDO)

Level 20 True Neutral Dwarf Male
(20 Fighter)
Hit Points: 372
Spell Points: 0
BAB: 20\20\25\30\30
Fortitude: 16
Reflex: 9
Will: 8

Starting Feat/Enhancement
Abilities Base Stats Modified Stats
(32 Point) (Level 1) (Level 20)
Strength 15 23
Dexterity 15 17
Constitution 16 19
Intelligence 12 13
Wisdom 8 8
Charisma 12 13

Tomes Used
+1 Tome of Strength used at level 3
+1 Tome of Dexterity used at level 3
+1 Tome of Constitution used at level 3
+1 Tome of Intelligence used at level 3
+1 Tome of Charisma used at level 3
+2 Tome of Dexterity used at level 7

Starting Feat/Enhancement
Base Skills Modified Skills
Skills (Level 1) (Level 20)
Balance 2 11
Bluff 1 1
Concentration 3 4
Diplomacy 1 1
Disable Device n/a n/a
Haggle 1 1
Heal -1 -1
Hide 2 3
Intimidate 5 39
Jump 6 20
Listen -1 -1
Move Silently 2 3
Open Lock n/a n/a
Perform n/a n/a
Repair 1 1
Search 1 3
Spot -1 -1
Swim 2 6
Tumble 3 4
Use Magic Device 2 15

{\b {\ul Notable Equipment }} \par Levik's Defender \par Levik's Bracers \par Minos Legens \par Stalwart Necklace \par Vile Blasphemy \par Cinder's Band \par Gyroscopic Boots of Striding \par Sandstorm Goggles \par Mantle of the Worldshaper \par Vorne's Belt \par Gnawed Ring \par Bloodstone \par Mummified Bat \par Spectral Gloves \par Charismatic Ring of Intimidation \par Full Plate of the Defender \par Festival Mask \par \par Level 1 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Toughness
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Two Weapon Fighting


Level 2 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Oversized Two Weapon Fighting


Level 3 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Bullheaded


Level 4 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Combat Expertise


Level 5 (Fighter)


Level 6 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Force of Personality
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Shield Mastery


Level 7 (Fighter)


Level 8 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Improved Shield Mastery


Level 9 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Skill Focus: Intimidate


Level 10 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Improved Two Weapon Fighting


Level 11 (Fighter)


Level 12 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Greater Two Weapon Fighting
Feat: (Selected) Skill Focus: Use Magic Device


Level 13 (Fighter)


Level 14 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Power Attack


Level 15 (Fighter)
Feat: (Selected) Weapon Focus: Slashing Weapons


Level 16 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Weapon Specialization: Slashing Weapons


Level 17 (Fighter)


Level 18 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Greater Weapon Focus: Slashing Weapons
Feat: (Selected) Greater Weapon Specialization: Slashing Weapons


Level 19 (Fighter)


Level 20 (Fighter)
Feat: (Fighter Bonus) Superior Weapon Focus: Slashing Weapons
Enhancement: Fighter Armor Class Boost I
Enhancement: Fighter Armor Class Boost II
Enhancement: Fighter Armor Class Boost III
Enhancement: Fighter Armor Class Boost IV
Enhancement: Fighter Extra Action Boost I
Enhancement: Fighter Extra Action Boost II
Enhancement: Fighter Haste Boost I
Enhancement: Fighter Weapon Alacrity
Enhancement: Dwarven Armor Mastery I
Enhancement: Dwarven Armor Mastery II
Enhancement: Dwarven Axe Attack I
Enhancement: Dwarven Axe Damage I
Enhancement: Dwarven Constitution I
Enhancement: Dwarven Constitution II
Enhancement: Fighter Armor Mastery I
Enhancement: Fighter Armor Mastery II
Enhancement: Fighter Stalwart Defender I
Enhancement: Fighter Stalwart Defender II
Enhancement: Fighter Stalwart Defender III
Enhancement: Fighter Dwarven Waraxe Specialization I
Enhancement: Fighter Dwarven Waraxe Specialization II
Enhancement: Fighter Item Defense I
Enhancement: Fighter Item Defense II
Enhancement: Racial Toughness I
Enhancement: Racial Toughness II
Enhancement: Fighter Intimidate I
Enhancement: Fighter Intimidate II
Enhancement: Fighter Intimidate III
Enhancement: Fighter Intimidate IV
Enhancement: Fighter Strength I
Enhancement: Fighter Strength II
Enhancement: Fighter Toughness I
Enhancement: Fighter Toughness II
Enhancement: Fighter Toughness III

[tkneip1874]

looks very similar to a build i am leveling up. only big difference is i took 2 lvls of paladin for bonus to saves. i also took force of personallity (dont remember if you took it). i know from experience that will save is main problem for intimi tanks (gr command spell comes to mind....). just my 2 cp..

[hockeyrama]

i took force of personality. Problem is here I can't show the full bonuses as it does not allow you to add your gear. So a charisma item +6, the +5 resistances form the dt armor would boost the will save.

[fullpozzy]

didnt see head of good fortune in gear. charisma needs to be alittle higher for intim. if u can get umd high enough then go with gs incite bonus on axes(+4 to ac) and chaos bracers(+2 dodge) over leviks, gives +6 over a +5 over full leviks set. try to get all +2 tomes. a gs charisma skill items is also very usefull for intim. if u pick up dodge feat u get a +1 to ac. light and dark sheild from IQ has stability for true neutral recommend that and get it unlocked also. If done right you should be able to get in the 80's for ac and do a respectable amount of dps along with getting intim into the low 70's

[Astraghal]

The problem I have found with these kinds of builds is that in order to get AC to a high enough level to really matter, you have to sacrifice an awful lot of dps potential.

For AC to matter against elite high end mobs you will need every feat, enhancement, gear, potion and scroll possible to get your AC high enough to only get hit on a 20. Unless you get a chattering ring, you will need to have insight on your weapon.

The only use in having a really high AC is if you can get and keep aggro. The only way you can do this is to have high intimidate, which means having a decent CHA score, which in turn means less build points in STR and CON. Even with a decent CHA score, you will still be falling short of the highest numbers needed to intimidate all mobs on a 1 without using every feat, enhancement, gear and potion avialable in the game.

So even using a dwarven axe for glancing blows with the fighter capstone for doublestrike, you will never be doing a lot of dps in s&b mode.

10 base
15 armor
09 shield
02 ritual
08 dexterity (assuming 17 after tome + 9 from tod ring)
05 deflection
04 insight
03 dodge
02 tod set
02 chaosgarde
01 feat
03 stalwart III
05 CE
04 stance
----------
73

03 barkskin pot
02 recitation scroll
01 haste pot
----------
79

After all that you will probably still be getting hit on more than just a 20 in elite amrath quests with 79 self-buffed AC. While swinging back, you will still be getting hit hard when you have the aggro of a few mobs. Even if you shift insight to your dt armor and wear a chattering ring, the best dps you can hope for is procs on a vorpal.

After you have taken all the feats and enhancements required to attain that kind of AC, you will have little left over for dps. You will be doing half the dps of other non-tanking build melees and once you get into epic your AC will be almost totally worthless.

AC is broken in DDO, I would not recommend an AC build as anything other than a fun theme. Sure, it's great for the few situations it's useful in, but it's extremely situational, too much so for the grind involved.

Maybe they will fix AC in DDO one day, make stalwart give 6 instead of 3, make the set give 4 instead of 2, add greensteel shields with 12-15 base AC, make AC give additional DR etc. Until they do, AC builds are always going to be a sub-optimal choice.

[hockeyrama]

I go the idea form the build by watching how effective a good tank is in quests like VOD and how useful it is anytime a tank pulls a mob so that my rogue can swing away for free. I have seen many builds and some of the tanks can and do pull aggro very well and are able to sustain it with minimal healing from any clerics. Unlike cannonfodder I won't be able to stand in epic and shield block for 5 minutes and barely take any damage. However, I would think that I could get high enough to intimidate almost anything on elite (possible amarath exceptionals). With the dual axes and I spent the enhancements for specialization and wep focuses, I will still should do pretty good dps when I am not the tank (like epic when the sorc grabs aggro with FW). I have seen some players pull this type of stuff off so that why I trying to see what I can do. I went dwarf so I can save a feat on khopesh to use the axes and be close to dps (I know khops are better) and to get a bit more hp then human and some dwarf bonuses are good in certain situations (giant fighting bonus is one). I also like the concept of a dwarf with an axe swinging away.

I guess what I need to figure out before starting this toon is:
1: should I mix in a different class, monk, rogue, pally for evasion or self healing off scrolls or wands?
2: what would be the ideal gear setup for this build in tank-turtle-intimi mode and another set for swinging away dps mode? (please be as specific as you can, I will grind it out if I have to, but include gear you can grind and not stuff bought from ddo store, also if it things you can buy from vendors with a high level toon like my level 20 rogue then mention what I should buy for this fighter (thinking haste pots, and the like for solo situations,). If possible even mention what quests the gear drops to make it easier to get.
3: How high should I focus on getting the AC in those two modes vs ability to intimi in turtle and dps in attack mode?
4: what should be my long term goals with this toon? (should I just use his first life to get specific gear then Tr to make him epic ready or more effective in this dual role (tank, dps).
5: How can I make him so that he will be able to do both roles very effectively in everything up to elite in his first life?
6: unlike many other builds like this I added points to get my umd up; should i still do this and how high should i get it and focus on it.

History:
I have played many different toons but have not tried many fighters. I have seen fighters who can do what I am saying here, they tank when needed and dps when needed. I have also seen the benefits to a party when someone can do this exceptionally well.

[Bolo_Grubb]

http://forums.ddo.com/showpost.php?p=2680689&postcount=5

There is the build I used as a template for what you seem to want. I thought it worked very well

[LuckyLuke2]

I have played many different toons but have not tried many fighters. I have seen fighters who can do what I am saying here, they tank when needed and dps when needed. I have also seen the benefits to a party when someone can do this exceptionally well.

I went for a multi-class tank/dps mix, an elven TWF khopesh F12 (Stalwart Defender) / Rgr 6 (Tempest) / Rog 2

Pros :
- 2 free TWF feats to compensate the loss of fighter extra feats
- evasion + high reflex save
- more skillpoints/level allowing to get high/maxed intimidate/balance/umd
- can still reset fighter enhancements to kensai for more dps

Cons :
- fewer hp's than a full fighter
- not a lot of flexibility regarding feat selection
- no Stalwart III so less skilled at turtling up

With dual Min2's, Lit2's or Triple's Pos'ses you can basically kill every mob in the game fast, but you're bound to run a LOT of Shrouds. AC wise you'll still be mid'70ish selfbuffed which is not too shabby.

Even with the usual vorpal/paralyser/smiter/disruptor/banisher weapon setup you're going to make a decent killing machine imho, (I know I am for the time being).

[hockeyrama]

http://forums.ddo.com/showpost.php?p=2680689&postcount=5

There is the build I used as a template for what you seem to want. I thought it worked very well

That is a very good template and will help alot. The main difference is he went with greataxe wehn not in turtle mode and I decided to go with 2 dwarven axes. The basic components are teh same. If you ge the right gear and plan ahead looks like you can dps and turtle. Will be awhile to get the gear but I think it is viable. I think I will plan it out again, double check against everything I have been shown and then just try it. Once I get to 20 and see how he worked, or did not work, I cna TR and you get some feats that will help the turtle mode anyway and try agian after getting some experience.

I like the dual axes because it allows you to get multiple bonus form shroud (like adding charisma to wep so the ump stays high, instead of using a item slot). Also dual weps do nice damage and I can focus on dwarven axes bonus and so get the bonus when using one axe or two.

[fullpozzy]

You dont have to TR if something doesnt work quite right. Lesser reincarnate to fix or adjust instead of TR'ing just to fix mistake. I greater reincarnated Svaunt once and lesser once to get him were I wanted him so I could play him at 20 until my next toon was at a decent level.

Tanking and DPS on the same toon takes more practice and knowing your limitations of your toon with the gear you have.

[hockeyrama]

True, I will have to see how it goes. I was thinking that Tr gives me some bonuses that will help as the fighter bonuses from Tr help his intimi. However, I hope I ge to figure out the gear good enough to actually do what I want the first time through.

[Quikster]

This (http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=245032) is my set up. Its a double tr, with 1 fighter past life feat which helps. Its a human version with khops but more or less the same gear will be needed. I have a lot of epic gear I use on him which helps with slot consolidation. It can easily be adjusted to dwarf, and performs very well in all content.

[hockeyrama]

update
Level 12 already
Has no real problems when tanking anything even a higher level quest. Intimi is in the mid-high 40's depending on situation needs. Ac low 50's again depending on the need and buffs avail. Hitpoints at 326 non-raged or buffed (not including false life items or aid as well). Blocking dr is at 24 (could be higher but some feats are in for intimi, umd, gtwf and so on. Actually the only weakness I find is when he pulls aggro from casters. If not getting well buffed in a raid or party he can take alot of damage fairly easy from magic and traps. OUtside of that he can tank almost everything I have run into and does fairly good damage in dps mode.

[hockeyrama]

Level 13 update after using stone of change on my armor and shield.
wearing
helm minos or +13 intimi helm (switch out minos and gfl belt when go pure intimi)
gfl belt or heavy fort disease immunity (won't need to switch at level 15 as I have a +11 intimi ring mlk 15 and may rarely need to switch out for the extra intimi but not often)

dusk heart or voice trinket
cloak +6 charisma
goggles ravens sight +4 reflex and +2 except wis
necklace +5 protection or golden cartouche (+3 umd)
con +5 ring
striding +25% striding ring (swap out ff ring)
+6 dex boots (swap out ff boots or ring when needed)
chaosguarde bracers
+5 strength gloves
+5 mithral plate tower and +5 mithral plate shield (both have +1 alchemical dodge)

Weps:
seeker +10 dual wields with many weps
paras, vorps, met of pure good, greater dragon bane, geob, anarchaic burst of pure good for portals, smiters, greater construct, disrupters, giant stalkers, a few others basically everything a tank would want.

Ac:
55 normal
56 ship buffed
59 barkskin pot
62 stalwart defender stance

intimi mode 51 intimi (have ship buffs and gh clickie)
non-intimi mode still get almost everything (dual wield with heroism pot when gh runs out) basically my dual wield running around with minos mode
that gives a 38 intimi

hp- these are base no aid, false life clickie or gh counted
max mode with ship buffs, dwarven stance (when I hit a big boss )
382
no ship buffs and no dwarven stance (like after a beholder and I saved my gh which i often do)
356

intimi mode with ship buffs and dwarven stance
332
no stance
306
blocking dr is 27