Battle-Soul?

[Barnitis]

I play a Battle-Cleric-18/Fighter-2 Human 2HF, which I enjoy very much.

I finally convinced a friend to un-dock from Everquest II and play DDO,
so I need to start a character.
We both have VIP accounts.

I hope not to re-level another battle cleric, since I've done it.
I have seen the "caster with a sword" builds from Impaqt and Sirgog, and
was wondering if there is a great build with these features:

Human
32 point
Melee Strong

Maybe a FvS-18/Fighter-2 conceptually like my Battle-Cleric? OR
another melee strong build which I can follow?
I would consider 2 Weapon fighting instead if necessary.

Thank you.

[Impaqt]

I play a Battle-Cleric-18/Fighter-2 Human 2HF, which I enjoy very much.

I finally convinced a friend to un-dock from Everquest II and play DDO,
so I need to start a character.
We both have VIP accounts.

I hope not to re-level another battle cleric, since I've done it.
I have seen the "caster with a sword" builds from Impaqt and Sirgog, and
was wondering if there is a great build with these features:

Human
32 point
Melee Strong

Maybe a FvS-18/Fighter-2 conceptually like my Battle-Cleric? OR
another melee strong build which I can follow?
I would consider 2 Weapon fighting instead if necessary.

Thank you.

Whats up with the Warforged hate?

WF simply make the best battle caster builds. Self healing and buffing magic are crucial due to the stigma the builds face. Until you prove to enough people you know how the play the build, its gonna be difficult to pug.

If its strictly for running duo with your buddy, sure, do a human. Stats will be similar to what you do as a WF.

[Barnitis]

not WF hate, but love of the Human Race )

I am in a good guild, so no problem with grouping once we get up a few levels.

Are there any posts which compare Battle Clerics to Melee-Souls?
What would the main differences be?

[voodoogroves]

I'm actually doing something a little wonky with a new FVS I started. Human. Follow me, as it is not ... conventional.

Plan is something like this:

1 Toughness, Extend
3 Weapon Prof. Great Axe (swap to Greatsword when have SoS)
6 Empower Healing (swap for straight up empower maybe)
9 Maximize
12 Quicken
15 Improved Crit (if have SoS, if not delay this)
18 Power Attack


Plan is to swap Great Axe for Greatsword if/when I get a Sword of Shadows. For right now I'm using Carnifex primarily with some special-case axes and staves thrown in; plan is to get the Sora Kell set upgraded from Update 8 and see how that plays. Right now I've got her parked at 10 I think.

She should work fine; she has thus far at least.

[Raoull]

Whats up with the Warforged hate?

WF simply make the best battle caster builds. Self healing and buffing magic are crucial due to the stigma the builds face. Until you prove to enough people you know how the play the build, its gonna be difficult to pug.

If its strictly for running duo with your buddy, sure, do a human. Stats will be similar to what you do as a WF.

Really? Now with a battle-arcane, sure. But a battling Divine?

Humans can get pretty close to WF hps (30/40 down), but can heal themselves way better. (no healing minus, healing bost, Soverign host 1000hp heal, unlimted CLW at 20...)

Free feat will deal with the WP issue (or at later levels, perhaps UMD master's touch). They do lose the power attack bonuses and the FS bonuses, but those don't seem like a deal breaker.

WF hate does seem to put them substantially ahead for a tank role, but other than that they don't seem too far off. And humans seem to be more versitale, with the better UMD. (That, and they are just a LR away from becoming an offensive casting specialist rather than a melee, which WF is much worse at.)


Mind you... this is all from theory, I'm playing a clonk right now. But my plan is to TR him into a THF FS... and I was thinking human. (Today... other days I think WF.) So I'd actually like to know. It is quite likely my analysis is faulty, but I'd like to know why.

[Twerpp]

I consider empower healing a must on my WF FvS, I guess a human would have the advantage of not needing that...

but it's a useful feat for all healers.

That's the only advantage I can think of for a human melee FvS.

[TEcarson]

I have a capped FvS Lord of Blades build (don't have the link handy...sorry), and it has been a blast!

With Leap of Faith and Banishment I can tick of 7 minute runs of Raiding the Giants Vault for loot, etc, while waiting for friends to log on.

WF +FvS +Greatswords throughout life worked very nicely.

[sirgog]

The main issue is that humans are pushed toward using Longswords as FvS's, and while a WF FvS can wield a Greatsword with none of the two-handed fighting feats, dualwielding longswords with none of the two-weapon fighting feats just sucks.

It's very hard for a FvS to manage the feats for TWF.

[flynnjsw]

Really? Now with a battle-arcane, sure. But a battling Divine?

Humans can get pretty close to WF hps (30/40 down), but can heal themselves way better. (no healing minus, healing bost, Soverign host 1000hp heal, unlimted CLW at 20...)

Free feat will deal with the WP issue (or at later levels, perhaps UMD master's touch). They do lose the power attack bonuses and the FS bonuses, but those don't seem like a deal breaker.

WF hate does seem to put them substantially ahead for a tank role, but other than that they don't seem too far off. And humans seem to be more versitale, with the better UMD. (That, and they are just a LR away from becoming an offensive casting specialist rather than a melee, which WF is much worse at.)


Mind you... this is all from theory, I'm playing a clonk right now. But my plan is to TR him into a THF FS... and I was thinking human. (Today... other days I think WF.) So I'd actually like to know. It is quite likely my analysis is faulty, but I'd like to know why.

My suggestion would be to read the following 2 builds and see if you can find where they are gimped compared to the same build but Human.

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=268346

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=211596

[Impaqt]

Really? Now with a battle-arcane, sure. But a battling Divine?

Humans can get pretty close to WF hps (30/40 down), but can heal themselves way better. (no healing minus, healing bost, Soverign host 1000hp heal, unlimted CLW at 20...)

Free feat will deal with the WP issue (or at later levels, perhaps UMD master's touch). They do lose the power attack bonuses and the FS bonuses, but those don't seem like a deal breaker.

WF hate does seem to put them substantially ahead for a tank role, but other than that they don't seem too far off. And humans seem to be more versitale, with the better UMD. (That, and they are just a LR away from becoming an offensive casting specialist rather than a melee, which WF is much worse at.)


Mind you... this is all from theory, I'm playing a clonk right now. But my plan is to TR him into a THF FS... and I was thinking human. (Today... other days I think WF.) So I'd actually like to know. It is quite likely my analysis is faulty, but I'd like to know why.

Huh? I didnt see where it was a Favored soul we were talking about.. Just linked from "New Posts" to get here.. when I see 'Battle Caster" I assume Arcane. I think every FvS should be able to melee to some degree...

ANyway.. Human Melee capable? thats easy

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php...light=Superior

Still prefer Warforged for a more melee focused build for the Greatsword Proficiency, Hit Points, and Power attack enhancments

[Raoull]

The main issue is that humans are pushed toward using Longswords as FvS's, and while a WF FvS can wield a Greatsword with none of the two-handed fighting feats, dualwielding longswords with none of the two-weapon fighting feats just sucks.

It's very hard for a FvS to manage the feats for TWF.

Yeah... TWF is pretty much impossible for a pure divine. You really need the extra feats from monk/fighter. But the favored weapon thing doesn't seem so huge to me. And with the human free feat, you have the same non-proficiency feats as a WF. (And, as someone else pointed out, empower healing isn't so key.)

My suggestion would be to read the following 2 builds and see if you can find where they are gimped compared to the same build but Human.

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=268346

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=211596

I've definitely read up on some of this stuff. I really like the Soul Survivor, but one of the main points of that is hate tanking, which I acknowledge is way better on a WF than a human.

The second one... well, for 1, I question the dex. 8 dex and 18 str seems better. AC is not going to cut it, but maybe he really like his REF save higher.... And a human can have basically the same stats (or actually the same with a 34 point build).

He also states "I noticed no real difference between 15dr vs 13dr at end game". This to me speaks to the one big advantage of WF FSs, the higher DR. Featless, 13 vs. 10. However I've head that more mobs can break admantine DR than the silver/cold iron... but I have no idea on that.

It seems to me, that the advantages are:
WF: better DR, slightly better damage (well, when tohit isn't an issue, probably "better damage"), slightly better HPs
Hum: better UMD, better healing (especially self healing)

Maybe the WF comes out somewhat ahead, but human seems reasonable to me.

[voodoogroves]

And really, since it came up in the other topic, a WF FVS is more optimized for melee - that's kind of a fact.

Practically speaking though, a FVS of any variety with enough STR and not a super gimped build can probably level to 20 just fine without using their bonus weapons just by smacknig things with a staff and / or killing with spells. Or spending a feat on weapon prof.

It will not be AS good. It will still be pretty good though ...it's a freaking Favored Soul. Blade Barrier, last I checked, works even if you're carrying a salmon in your hand.