Fighter Stalwart Defender Preview

[Eladrin]

Today's preview is the Stalwart Defender, a prestige enhancement line that's very similar to the Defender of Siberys, yet does differ in some thematic ways. While they don't get the various holy abilities of the Defender of Siberys, they trade that for various other passive improvements.

Fighter Stalwart Defender I
Cost: 4 Action Points
Prereqs: Level 6 Fighter, Fighter Skill Intimidate 2, Fighter Armor Boost 1, Toughness, and any one of: Shield Mastery, Combat Expertise, Diehard, Dodge, or Least Dragonmark of Sentinel.
Benefit: While the flesh may be weak, you place your trust in the strength of steel. This prestige enhancement increases your armor class by 1, grants +2 to intimidate, increases your maximum dexterity bonus allowed by shields, and grants additional armor class and damage reduction when blocking with a shield. You may expend a use of Fighter action boost to to enter a defensive stance. When using a shield, you possess DR 2/-.

House Deneith runs the Defender's Guild. We thought it appropriate to let dragonmarked members of the house bypass some of the restrictions for the prestige enhancement line most closely associated with them.

Stalwart Defender I: Defensive Stance
You may expend a Fighter armor boost to become a bastion of defense, gaining a +2 Competence bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +1 Competence bonus on all saves, a +2 Dodge bonus to Armor Class, and produce 50% more hate with your melee attacks. While in this stance, you move at one quarter speed.

The Stalwart Defender is based on the Dwarven Defender prestige class from pen and paper, and may end up available to dwarves (similar to how elves can acquire the Arcane Archer prestige enhancement line). The various Defender prestige classes require a Lawful alignment - a restriction we've waived in DDO.

All Defensive Stances, however, whether they be from the Defender of Siberys or the Stalwart Defender, are not compatible with various "enrage" effects. (Rage effects do not permit "any abilities that require patience or concentration", which is pretty much a description of Defensive Stance.) Rather than kicking you out of your Defensive Stance if a friend casts Rage on you, we chose to instead make you immune to the Rage spell while in a Defensive Stance. If you're enraged when you enter Defensive Stance, the enrage effect will be removed.

Fighter Stalwart Defender II
Cost: 2 Action Points
Prereqs: Level 12 Fighter, Fighter Stalwart Defender I, Fighter Item Defense I, Fighter Armor Boost II, and any one of: Fighter Toughness II, Fighter Armored Agility II, Fighter Armor Mastery II, Fighter Tower Shield Mastery II, or Lesser Dragonmark of Sentinel.
Benefit: Your defensive mastery continues to grow. This prestige enhancement increases your armor class by 1, grants +2 to intimidate, increases your maximum dexterity bonus allowed by heavy armor and shields, and grants additional armor class and damage reduction when blocking with a shield. You may expend a use of Fighter action boost to to enter a defensive stance. When using a shield, you possess DR 4/-.

Stalwart Defender II: Improved Defensive Stance
You may expend a Fighter armor boost to become a bastion of defense, gaining a +3 Competence bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +2 Competence bonus on all saves, a +3 Dodge bonus to Armor Class, and produce 100% more hate with your melee attacks. While in this stance, you move at one third speed.

Fighter Stalwart Defender III
Cost: 2 Action Points
Prereqs: Level 18 Fighter, Fighter Stalwart Defender II, Fighter Item Defense II, Fighter Armor Boost III, and any one of: Fighter Toughness III, Fighter Armored Agility III, Fighter Armor Mastery III, Fighter Tower Shield Mastery III, or Greater Dragonmark of Sentinel.
Benefit: Your defensive mastery is complete. This prestige enhancement increases your armor class by 1, grants +2 to intimidate, increases your maximum dexterity bonus allowed by medium or heavy armor and shields, and grants additional armor class and damage reduction when blocking with a shield. You may expend a use of Fighter action boost to to enter a defensive stance. When using a shield, you possess DR 6/-.

Stalwart Defender III: Superior Defensive Stance
You may expend a Fighter armor boost to become a bastion of defense, gaining a +4 Competence bonus to Strength and Constitution, a +3 Competence bonus on all saves, a +4 Dodge bonus to Armor Class, and produce 200% more hate with your melee attacks. While in this stance, you move at half speed.

As with all of the previews, these are not necessarily final versions. Subject to change during testing.

[The_Phenx]

1st Methinks the intimitanks will be pleased....would still be nice if the point costs for fighters armor and shield mastery enhancements were brought to a reasonable level of cost.

[Balkas]

Passive DR while using a shield. Niiiiiiiiice.

Now we just have to wait and see what ye olde fighter capstone is.

[birminghampiper]

My intimitank will be loving this Awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Impaqt]

Will the DR stack with other forms of Passive DR? Like Adamantine Full Plate or GOlden Greeves? If not, Its WAY too low.....

TIer1: 25% of your Blocking DR is applied Passively
Tier 2: 50%
Tier 3 75%

Edit:
Its way too Low regardless... Why should someone carrying a Bucker have the Same passive DR as someone carrying a Tower Shield? I think the Percentage based on your Blocking DR is a WAY better alternative.... GIve my shield some real meaning. The small bumps to ac still dont get us anywhere near the monk splashes...

[Deathseeker]

The positive....S&B and Fighters finally get some serious AC / Defensive love!

The negative....this pretty much puts all S&B into this PrE. I can't see any reason you'd ever build a non-Defender S&B.

Net result...a big win for fighter S&B intimitanks, but restricts build variation somewhat in the process.

Overall Im much happier with it than without it, so its still a nice addition and a big plus!

[The_Cataclysm]

If this is allowed for non-fighter dwarfs, any hints on what the requirements will be like (besides I'm assuming the dragonmarks)?

[binnsr]

I like..

too bad my main intimitank is 7pal/7ftr/2rog .. not going to qualify for either of the tier II defensive PrE's

[vyvy3369]

I guess my first thought is this: Why does it give more bonuses to max dex of shields than heavy armor, when heavy armor is more restrictive?

[Deathseeker]

Eladrin, any insight into how this would interact with the Paladin version? If I take Stalwart Defender II and Defender of Syberis I, how do the two defensive stances work together? Can I only activate one at a time? Can I not do this because they Fighter Armor Boost or Pally Armor Boost and you can't take both?

How do you see these two lines working together?

[Garth_of_Sarlona]

Does the Fighter Stalwart Defender II dodge +3 bonus stack with the chattering ring?

Garth

[vyvy3369]

So to summarize, tack on 3 levels of armor boost enhancements to what most S&B Fighters probably already have, to gain:

• +4 Dodge AC in stance
• +3 AC (untyped?) all the time
• +4 Str & Con in stance
• +200% more hate
• DR 6/- effectively all the time
• +6 Intimidate all the time
• +3 Competence to Saves (do any of the Bard abilities give competence to saves?) in stance
• Undetermined bonus to AC & DR when blocking
• Presumably +1/+2 max dex to medium/heavy armor and +3 max dex to shields

[Eladrin]

Eladrin, any insight into how this would interact with the Paladin version? If I take Stalwart Defender II and Defender of Syberis I, how do the two defensive stances work together? Can I only activate one at a time? Can I not do this because they Fighter Armor Boost or Pally Armor Boost and you can't take both?

How do you see these two lines working together?

If you manage to get both of them, the Defensive Stances are on the same channel so you can only be in one or another. They do have prerequisites that prevent both of them being on one character, however.

Does the Fighter Stalwart Defender II dodge +3 bonus stack with the chattering ring?

It does. The DDO House Rule on identical dodge bonuses not stacking only applies to treasure effects.

[Garth_of_Sarlona]

Thanks for the quick replies Eladrin.

Garth

[moorewr]

I really like it for S&B intimidate fighters. It has, in fact, given my S&B intimitank fighter a new lease on life.. although, as aan Elf it is funny picturing him in a Dwarf racial Prestige Class. Extra Hate! As a resident of New Xoriat I heartily approve.

I was worried this would pigeonhole all fighters as Defenders.. but I can see a lot of people still wanting to go TWF, and I think there will be a good number of THF Kensai.

[Impaqt]

OK, If I dont get any response on my DR question how bout this....

Can you clarify... In all these PrE's.... Whats stacking and whats not..... It confusing to see +1 to AC +2 to Intim in Both Tier 1 and Tier 2 worded like this... DOes a Tier 2 windup with +2 to AC and +4 to Intim? Or ar the atual benefits to Tier 2 the extra Bump in the Stance and the Extra Dex in Heavy armor?

[vyvy3369]

I assume this holds true for Stalwart Defender as well?

increases the maximum dexterity bonus allowed by tower shields and medium or heavy armor by 1

These are cumulative. By tier three, the Paladin gets +3 to MDB of Tower Shields, +2 to Heavy Armor, and +1 to Medium Armor.

[Gratch]

Hmmm... some ac... will be interesting to see how much extra DR is given for blocking with a shield.

The current unknowns are: how much extra dex allowed on towers and armor for fighters... as well as how much extra ac (and dr for fighters) when blocking.

Stances appear to be the same. The fighters pick up some other passive benefits (mostly the dr when carrying a shield, plus intim, +1ac) whereas the Paly gets some turns, some turn abilities, an aura bump, and their glorious stand.

Comparison with the Paly defender class (ignoring prereqs):

Fighter Stalwart Defender I
AC +1, +2 intim, increases +? max tower shield dex, +? tower shield dr and ac when blocking, DR 2/- when carrying a shield.
Fighter Stalwart Defender I: Defensive Stance
+2 str/con, +1 saves, +2 dodge ac, 50% hate, 1/4 move rate

Paladin Defender of Siberys I
+2 turns, +? ac when blocking with a shield, +1 max dex bonus with a tower shield, magic circle ability
Paladin Defender of Siberys I: Defensive Stance
+2 str/con, +1 saves, +2 dodge ac, 50% hate, 1/4 move rate

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Fighter Stalwart Defender II
AC +1, +2 intim, increases +? max tower shield dex and armor dex allowed, +? tower shield dr and ac when blocking, DR 4/- when carrying a shield.
Fighter Stalwart Defender II: Improved Defensive Stance
+3 str/con, +2 saves, +3 dodge ac, 100% hate, 1/3 move rate

Paladin Defender of Siberys II
+1 LoH, +25% hate, +1 max dex bonus with a tower shield and heavy armor, and Mass Shield of Faith
Paladin Defender of Siberys II: Improved Defensive Stance
+3 str/con, +2 saves, +3 dodge ac, 100% hate, 1/3 move rate

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fighter Stalwart Defender III
AC +1, +2 intim, increases +? max tower shield dex and armor dex allowed, +? tower shield dr and ac when blocking, DR 6/- when carrying a shield.
Stalwart Defender III: Superior Defensive Stance
+4 str/con, +3 saves, +4 dodge ac, 200% hate, 1/2 move rate

Paladin Defender of Siberys III
increased defensive auras, +1 max dex bonus with a tower shield and heavy armor, and Glorious Stand
Paladin Defender of Siberys III: Superior Defensive Stance
+4 str/con, +3 saves, +4 dodge ac, 200% hate, 1/2 move rate

Defender of Siberys III: Glorious Stand
You may expend a turn attempt to make a glorious stand against your enemies. For a short duration of time, you gain DR 20/epic, take reduced damage from elemental and negative energy, receive double healing from positive energy, and are immune to secondary effects of attacks such as 'wounding' or 'vorpal'. Each time you take damage, you gain the effects of a Cure Light Wounds spell.

[WolfSpirit]

My Dual Weilder Warrior won't benefit from this. But such is the choice we make...
AND, I now wish I hadn't Gone 1 rogue, 3 Barb ~> Fighter on my UMD Inti-Tank...
Grrr...
Ah well, it won't break my build thats for sure!
There are benefits for 16 Fighter yes?
Kensi?
Maybe good enough at Tier 2 Defender...

[moorewr]

My Dual Weilder Warrior won't benefit from this. But such is the choice we make...
AND, I now wish I hadn't Gone 1 rogue, 3 Barb ~> Fighter on my UMD Inti-Tank...
Grrr...
Ah well, it won't break my build thats for sure!
There are benefits for 16 Fighter yes?
Kensi?
Maybe good enough at Tier 2 Defender...

I think Tier II Defender and Kensai are pretty tempting. Seems like they aren't too too front- or back-loaded. a 12f/6b/2r with Kensai, robes, and rage on tap can really bust up the joint.