What to do when you can't/fail Intimidate.

[Althar]

If you can't intimidate a mob and/or are consistently failing an intimidate roll, how are you supposed to keep aggro when you have two or four DPSers in your group shoveling out three times the DPS as you? Currently I'm level 10 pure fighter, 20 or so Intimidate unbuffed and I've noticed on elite that I have trouble getting Intimidate to stick. I've tried using the defensive stance SD gives to compensate for the lack of DPS but it doesn't seem to be cutting it. Generally if I get an intelligent group they'll let me body-block, but this pretty much only happens if I run with guildies.

[BoBoDaClown]

If you can't intimidate a mob and/or are consistently failing an intimidate roll, how are you supposed to keep aggro when you have two or four DPSers in your group shoveling out three times the DPS as you? Currently I'm level 10 pure fighter, 20 or so Intimidate unbuffed and I've noticed on elite that I have trouble getting Intimidate to stick. I've tried using the defensive stance SD gives to compensate for the lack of DPS but it doesn't seem to be cutting it. Generally if I get an intelligent group they'll let me body-block, but this pretty much only happens if I run with guildies.

You need to get your intimidate up:

Level 10 = +13 ranks.
Item = 9 or 11? at his level. = + 9.
Charisma = assume 12 total = +1
Fighter Intimidate 3 = +3
Stalwart Defender 1 = +2

That's 28 unbuffed.

Skill Focus Intimidate = +3
Bull headed = Nice cos its will saves and intimidate = +2

= 33 Unbuffed.
Another 3 available via Deneith human enhancement if you are human.
= 36 Unbuffed

+1 from voice if you got the slot.

Now, you probably don't need all those feats and enhancements (I did on my halfling tank), but you get the point on how it can be raised above 20.

You are not going to out dps 'dps' toons while in 'tank' mode. Focus on getting your intimidate up, and popping a shot on those you don't hit with your intimidate.

However, to improve dps - pick up PA and use it if you are not getting hit (instead of CE), and try to pick up and damage enhancments and feats (if you have enough available) to increase damage on your dwarven axe or khopesh

Hope that helps.

[Borror0]

Always try to get sight aggro. It helps to land Intimidate on all the mobs and, in the event the monsters are immune to Intimidate, you'll have aggro until a DPSer hits the mob (and if they are intelligent they'll focus on the same mob so you'll still be tanking all but one).

As for failing, that should not happen except against powerful named boss.

In that case, it depends on the boss. Sometimes the answer is "take out your TWF/THF set and just add more DPS". Others, it's "wait 6s".