Rockan the Boat (halfling unarmed 14 fighter/8 monk)

[Anthios888]

Rockan the Boat Baby (halfling 12 Fighter Kensei/8 monk)

BUILD OVERVIEW

Here's a ninja build to confuse your mates. This self-proclaimed gimp build I made as a 2nd TR on my journey to a 36 point level 20 monk turned out to be kind of awesome. Let me start off by explaining that this is an unarmed fighting build that plays similar to a monk. It will have a lower armor class in exchange for robust HP, DPS, and healing dragonmarks.

Kensei gives some decent bonuses to hit and damage that help make up for not having the full monk fist progression. It was designed to blend well with monks, granting +1 extra ki on critical hits and +2 ki on-hit during power surges. Leveling AC is decent despite being a strength build, especially at lower levels. With 8 levels of monk combined with the past life: monk feat (improving your fists a tier), the base handwrap damage is 2d6 at level 20. Tack on holy burst, shocking burst, weapon flags and greater banes or weighted, and you've got yourself a very nice litle DPSer. I will post a comparative DPS analysis following the build.

When I looked at my own build, I said to myself, "Rocka?"

And I said, "Yeah?"

And I said, "Rocka, what are you thinking?! More than one toughness feat?"

I had never take toughness more than once and doing so was giving me a rush as I clicked that level-up screen. Every other build I have designed has so many goals to fit in and so few feats to do it in that it was never worth the trade-offs. Yet finally, in this little punchy fighter, everything essential already fit elegantly. I suppose you could do something like intimidate, but with the halfling racial bonuses to sneak attacks, that would drop my contributions, and I get tons more damage sneak attacking, and if anything, give me aggro I don't want. Another option would be to pick up dodge and combat expertise, but CE is not worth the build points or losing power attack.

Squeezing in the extra emphasis on HP bumps the character into a different category of dps tank than a regular monk. Being able to main tank Horoth or withstand some of the epic beatings is a very attractive feature that some may find more useful than those last 12 levels in monk. For someone looking for a good melee to grind epic content, this may be the boat rockan build for you.

Before I go any further, let me mention one crippling flaw in the design of this build. Weighted from handwraps is not correctly applying to stunning blow. This has been a known bug for a long time but there is no word yet as to when it might be addressed.

For those seriously considering this build, warforged offers a very nice alternative in terms of stunning and dps. Tacial tactics enhancements and the ability to start with 18 strength would net +4 DC on stunning as well as a decent chunk of extra HP. Power attack enhancements are easy to use thanks to the generous to-hit of a kensei monk. Halfling do have a couple more AC and healing dragonmarks, so that would be your trade off. Since there are several extra feats to play with, there's a lot of room to expand this to use something like improved trip instead of the extra HP.

And here's how I'm rockan' the boat:

Following is the 34 point build I currently have at level 17. 32 points could be easily accommodated by dropping dex and wisdom each by 1 point. (A 28 point without access to +2 tomes should start with 15 STR, 16 DEX, 14 CON, 8 INT, 11 WIS, 8 CHA)

STATS
46 STR 16 base + 5 levels + 2 tome + 3 enh +6 item +1 lotd + 1 exceptional + 2 rage + 2 yugo + 8 power surge
28 DEX 16 base + 2 tome + 2 enh +7 item +1 lotd
28 CON 14 base + 2 tome +1 lotd +6 item + 2 rage + 2 yugo +1 exceptional
11 INT 8 base + 2 tome +1 lotd
26 WIS 14 base + 2 tome + 2 enh +1 lotd +6 item + 1 exceptional
9 CHA 8 base +1 lotd

HIT POINTS
20 base + 10 argo + 120 fighter + 64 monk + 30 Greater False Life + 45 Greensteel + 20 minos + 60 enhancements + 180 con + 66 toughness + 20 yugo= 635 HP
80 double madstone = 715 HP madstoned

FEATS

• Level 1 (monk): Least Dragonmark of Healing, Toughness
  
• Level 2 (fighter): Two Weapon Fighting
  
• Level 3 (fighter): Stunning Blow, Weapon Focus: Bludgeoning
  
• Level 4 (fighter):
  
• Level 5 (fighter): Weapon Specialization: Bludgeoning
  
• Level 6 (monk): Lesser Dragonmark of Healing, Power Attack
  
• Level 7 (monk):
  
• Level 8 (fighter):
  
• Level 9 (fighter): Greater Dragonmark of Healing, Improved Two Weapon Fighting
  
• Level 10 (monk):
  
• Level 11 (monk):
  
• Level 12 (monk): Toughness, Past life: Monk
  
• Level 13 (fighter):
  
• Level 14 (fighter): Improved Critical: Bludgeoning
  
• Level 15 (fighter): Greater Two Weapon Fighting
  
• Level 16 (fighter): Greater Weapon Focus: Bludgeoning
  
• Level 17 (fighter):
  
• Level 18 (fighter): Toughness, Greater Weapon Specialization: Bludgeoning
  
• Level 19 (monk):
  
• Level 20 (monk):
  

FOOTNOTES

GEAR

The original Rockan Robin is a pure level 20 wisdom-based monk. Link here includes gear suggestions and more discussion on monks. Gear changes I would make would include dropping some of the wisdom/ac focus in favor of more guard effects. Insight 4 and chaosguardes would not be neccesary for the way I roll this character. Instead, I would also try to fit in a greater potency VII rune and 20% healing amplification on dragontouched.

PRESTIGE INFO

Fighter Kensai I

Cost: 4 AP Prereqs: Level 6 Fighter, Fighter Attack Boost II, Fighter Critical Accuracy II, any Weapon Specialization feat

Benefit: You are the unrivaled master of your chosen weapon. Your focus and training grant you a +1 bonus to Bluff, Concentration, Diplomacy, and Intimidate skills, Combat Feat DC's, saves against magic, and number of Action Boosts per day. If you possess a Ki bar, you gain 1 additional Ki on criticals and when meditating. You can select a single weapon type as your signature weapon.

Kensai Unarmed Mastery I

Benefit (One handed, ranged, or thrown weapons): You gain an additional +1 bonus to hit and damage, and +2 to confirm criticals and critical damage (before multipliers) when using handwraps.

Fighter Kensai II

Cost: 2 AP Prereqs: Level 12 Fighter, Fighter Kensai I, Fighter Attack Boost III, Fighter Critical Accuracy III, any Greater Weapon Specialization feat.

Benefit: Your focus and training improve, granting an additional +1 bonus to Bluff, Concentration, Diplomacy, and Intimidate skills, Combat Feat DC's, saves against magic, and number of Action Boosts per day. If you possess a Ki bar, you gain 1 additional Ki on criticals and when meditating.

Kensai Power Surge

Benefit: You may expend a Fighter attack boost to focus your energy and spirit, gaining a +8 Insight bonus to strength for a short period of time. If you possess the ability to generate Ki, you generate an additional 2 ki on successful attacks during your surge.

Kensai Unarmed Mastery II

Cost: 1 AP Prereqs: Level 12 Fighter, Fighter Kensai II, Fighter Unarmed Specialization I, Kensai Unarmed Mastery I, Greater Weapon Specialization: Bludgeoning

Benefit (One handed, ranged, or thrown weapons): You gain an additional +1 bonus to hit and damage, and +2 to confirm criticals and critical damage (before multipliers) when using a <weapon>.

Benefit (Two handed weapons): You gain an additional +1 bonus to hit, +2 to damage and to confirm criticals and +4 to critical damage (before multipliers), as well as improved glancing blows that have an increased chance of applying magical weapon effects when using handwraps.