TWF VS Kensei (Wolf form)

[Smokewolf]

Would it be worth swapping from Ranger (Tempest / TWF) for Fighter (Kensei)?

Granted i realize the benifits of TWF would be lost but is it possible that the added crit-multi(s) amd battle meditation would make up the difference?

Thanks in advance!

Resin

[Krelar]

None of the kensai crit stuff works in wolf form. The melee power does though.

I've done 8 fighter/2 ranger/10 druid before. Very nice single target DPS, AOE is bad though without dance of death. You can keep the extra 20 MP from opportunity attack up almost constantly.

[Smokewolf]

None of the kensai crit stuff works in wolf form. The melee power does though.

Then please explain what this build is doing: Woodchipper

as it appears that this build is using crit multi's from both fighter and monk with wolfform.

[unbongwah]

as it appears that this build is using crit multi's from both fighter and monk with wolfform.

It's not: it's using One w/Blade so it can be centered with 1H axes, allowing it to use both monk stances and LD Headman's Chop. Note that it's an older build which predates the Kensei overhaul: so Strike w/No Thought provided no crit bonuses back then (it's just there for the extra doublestrike); and it comes from a time when OwB required Keen Edge (which never worked in wolf form) and Gtr Weap Focus feat (min ftr lvl 8), neither of which is necessary now for OwB. [Although if you want Weapon Master, you still need GWF / ftr 8.] Its final crit profile today is 18/x3 19-20/x7 in Fire stance; used to be 17-18/x3, but then U28 nerfed crit range bonuses. EDIT: the extra crit range pre-U28 came from IC:Blunt doubling wolf-form crit range to 17-20 (now it's just 18-20); had nothing to do with Keen Edge.

Woodchipper is a non-exploit-y alternative to ranger-based builds since it takes no TWF feats and obviously doesn't use DoD. Well, less exploit-y: it takes advantage of SWF in wolf form (which I'm still not sure if that's WAI); and it benefits indirectly from the TWF bugs since it still gets the 20% offhand proc chance with zero TWF feats.