Post by Delfestra Ruinvorn on May 7, 2007 16:03:10 GMT
My Lash of Hatred, Malavaine Ruinvorn, made with this build has beaten Nessus 7 times. 5xD with 2 wins to spare. And now has been reincarnated with Pharlan, which I have posted on Page 4 of this thread.
(Kudos to MishimaYukio, who was with me in the test chamber working on this)
I went 12 ranger / 28 BG. For maximum vulnerability infliction.
Also, I chose strength tank - so I can tank pit fiends. And you know what? I can. Beating them into -30% vulnerability and then slapping them with a cold smite makes a big differance. It is also extremely satisfying. Difference was 291 on the one I hadn't hit, and 400something on the one I had. Tested on the two Pit Fiends standing next to each other in Dis's room. At about level 56
Oh yes, did I mention that you get a free BG smite with each build purchased?
Now, its also made with Fallen Angel - because I like the sexy wings. Baseborn Titan is also potentially viable, but you'd have to change things around since you'd need an extra feat.
Hound Archon would work well too, but I refuse to be a dog head.
Stats: Starting (With subrace)
STR 17(17)
DEX 8(8)
CON 14(14)
INT 8(8)
WIS 11(16)
CHA 15(17)
You MUST have a 17 charisma after stat adjustment to make this work.
Yes, your int sucks, but you will have enough skillpoints for full discipline and 30 tumble at 60, 21 at 40 - even taking it cross class.
Blackguard Spells: With 16 wisdom base, which you get for the subrace plus starting as a ranger, you have 3 uses of crit immunity per rest. At 18 wisdom, from demi stat bonus, you get a 4th. 20 wisdom, from double demi, still 4 crit immunity uses...but a 5th Death's Kiss at level 1.
Feats:
Ranger levels: 1-11. Max Discipline and Hide.
1 - Exotic Weapons, Weapon Focus Whip (class prereqs), Favored Enemy #1
3 - Toughness
5 - Favored enemy #2
6 - Power Attack (cleave prereq)
9 - Cleave (BG Prereq)
10 - Favored enemy #3
12 - Improved Crit - Whip
Blackguard levels: 12-20. Max Disciple, nothing else.
15 - Blind Fighting
18 - Extra smiting (GREATLY reduces the smite timer)
Free Feats: Divine Might / Divine Shield (Fallen Angel Subby)
You MUST take all stat point increases into CHARISMA from 1-20. This will give you a 22 charisma at level 20. You will need 25 for great smite.
------------------
Epic feats: BG at 21, 22, and then 24-40
a total of 7 open feats, and 6 BG feats
You would be wise to take your 12th ranger level at level 23, and max hide skill then. This maximizes the conceal you can get from Camoflague, because you don't have a hide-dump level anyplace. Also, you must take the 12th level then so that you can qualify for Lash of Hatred status before level 24, as the quasi requires.
YOU MUST TAKE Great Charisma 1 and 2 as your first two epic feats, and then one last charisma point at 24. This gives you the 25 charisma you need for Great Smite 1-10.
Stat points at 28/32/36/40 - All now into Strength.
Next, take Great Smite 1-10 with your next 10 epic feats. You get access at this point to it at both open levels and BG specific levels, so you can in fact get all 10 by level 40. This is important.
And you will have 1 epic feat remaining before level 40. Take Epic Weapon Focus - Whip.
Your stats at 40 are as follows:
Str - 21
Dex - 8
Con - 14
Int - 8
Wis - 16
Cha - 25
-------------------------
A word on epic spell focus tomes. With this build template, you'd can read an Epic Enchant spell focus tome and get +13 GMW from BG spells and a +13 Bladethirst for yourself. Then, if you wish, use one of the variants below for LL feats and pick up Legendary Enchant Focus - for +14 Bladethirst for yourself, and +14 GMWs for the party.
Legendary Levels:
Congrats! Upon hitting level 41, since you've taken Great Smite 10, your strength goes up TEN POINTS once you enter the Legendary Level altar. You were worried about it, weren't you?
7 feats in LLs:
- Armor skin: A definate must. Your AC is pretty bad as a strength tank, and you will only have 6 out of a possible 8 from tumble at level 60. You need armor skin.
- Legendary Spell Focus-Enchantment: Another excellent idea. By getting an Wonderous Tome for Enchant, you have free Epic Spell Focus Enchant. If you have done this, then and only then can you get LSF-Enchant. +14 Bladethirst is a highly significant improvement over +13, and you should be self sufficient if you can.
- Legendary Weapon Focus - Whip: AB is your friend. This gives you more AB, stacks with EWF Whip, and is enhanced further by Epic Prowess if you take that.
Now, with the other 4 - you have some flexibility.
Your strength is an odd number at start, so you should ONLY choose to have Great Strength 1, or 3.
You could take great str 1 and then get Great Cleave, Overwhelming Critical, Devastating Critical. Crazy damage when you hit.
You could take great str 3 and then get epic prowess, to add another +3ab (1 from str, 1 from epic prowess, 1 from lwf whip's enhancement of epic prowess)
A word on Epic Fiend: The DMs may eventually get around to adding the upgrade for the pet, but you can get a pandect from Minauros to give you this feat.
Since BG is your Control Class, you'll get +4 STR and +4 CHA automatically in LLs, no matter what you do. However, ALL your LL stat increases should be taken with Strength points.
Final stats:
Str: 48 (60) (This is Grt Str 3. Grt Str 1 would be 46/58. Not counting str artifact.)
Dex: 8 (20) +5 to reflex, and you hit the AC armor cap anyway.
Con: 14 (26) (ends around 1020 hps. If you go Grt Con 2 variant, add 40)
Int: 8 (20) Int does nothing for you. Don't worry about it
Wis 16 (28) +9 to Willsaves, and spell slots for Bladethirst/Camoflauge.
Charisma 29 (41) +15 divine smite/shield, and to saves. If you went with another charisma point in LLs, it'd be 30/42 and +16.
A word on Favored enemies:
I went with Abberations, Outsiders, and Undead. You get three in this build. Outsiders is absolutely necessary. Abberations is great to have for a number of high level areas.
Undead...is decent. It was helpful leveling, and there are a few LL zones were some do appear. Enough to be useful, but hardly numerous. NOTE: Neg Energy Bladethirst bonus damage DOES NOT work on undead.
Dragons is a decent alternative, though there are few of them. Elementals, for about 2/3rds of the Black Pyramid creatures. Or constructs, but people tend to frown on meleers hitting those in Hell, despite its uses elsewhere. Or Monsterous Humanoids, if you like Rona.
Baseborn Titan:
If you go with Baseborn Titan, you could splash monk before taking Power Attack (and get free cleave/power attack) and so take Divine Might/Shield at 15 and 18 (need to be a BG with turning to get access to it) and take blind fighting at level 6 - and lightning reflexes or something useful at 9. (Extra Smiting free with Baseborn Titan iirc)
However, if you splash monk, you can't take Dev Crit...since Power Attack is a prereq for its prereqs, and you don't have that free from the monk level.
Baseborn Titan bases would do well to make sure they have 14 wisdom. To get the BG spells, especially access to Death Ward and its crit immunity, you need to have a least a 14 BASE wisdom.
(Kudos to MishimaYukio, who was with me in the test chamber working on this)
I went 12 ranger / 28 BG. For maximum vulnerability infliction.
Also, I chose strength tank - so I can tank pit fiends. And you know what? I can. Beating them into -30% vulnerability and then slapping them with a cold smite makes a big differance. It is also extremely satisfying. Difference was 291 on the one I hadn't hit, and 400something on the one I had. Tested on the two Pit Fiends standing next to each other in Dis's room. At about level 56
Oh yes, did I mention that you get a free BG smite with each build purchased?
Now, its also made with Fallen Angel - because I like the sexy wings. Baseborn Titan is also potentially viable, but you'd have to change things around since you'd need an extra feat.
Hound Archon would work well too, but I refuse to be a dog head.
Stats: Starting (With subrace)
STR 17(17)
DEX 8(8)
CON 14(14)
INT 8(8)
WIS 11(16)
CHA 15(17)
You MUST have a 17 charisma after stat adjustment to make this work.
Yes, your int sucks, but you will have enough skillpoints for full discipline and 30 tumble at 60, 21 at 40 - even taking it cross class.
Blackguard Spells: With 16 wisdom base, which you get for the subrace plus starting as a ranger, you have 3 uses of crit immunity per rest. At 18 wisdom, from demi stat bonus, you get a 4th. 20 wisdom, from double demi, still 4 crit immunity uses...but a 5th Death's Kiss at level 1.
Feats:
Ranger levels: 1-11. Max Discipline and Hide.
1 - Exotic Weapons, Weapon Focus Whip (class prereqs), Favored Enemy #1
3 - Toughness
5 - Favored enemy #2
6 - Power Attack (cleave prereq)
9 - Cleave (BG Prereq)
10 - Favored enemy #3
12 - Improved Crit - Whip
Blackguard levels: 12-20. Max Disciple, nothing else.
15 - Blind Fighting
18 - Extra smiting (GREATLY reduces the smite timer)
Free Feats: Divine Might / Divine Shield (Fallen Angel Subby)
You MUST take all stat point increases into CHARISMA from 1-20. This will give you a 22 charisma at level 20. You will need 25 for great smite.
------------------
Epic feats: BG at 21, 22, and then 24-40
a total of 7 open feats, and 6 BG feats
You would be wise to take your 12th ranger level at level 23, and max hide skill then. This maximizes the conceal you can get from Camoflague, because you don't have a hide-dump level anyplace. Also, you must take the 12th level then so that you can qualify for Lash of Hatred status before level 24, as the quasi requires.
YOU MUST TAKE Great Charisma 1 and 2 as your first two epic feats, and then one last charisma point at 24. This gives you the 25 charisma you need for Great Smite 1-10.
Stat points at 28/32/36/40 - All now into Strength.
Next, take Great Smite 1-10 with your next 10 epic feats. You get access at this point to it at both open levels and BG specific levels, so you can in fact get all 10 by level 40. This is important.
And you will have 1 epic feat remaining before level 40. Take Epic Weapon Focus - Whip.
Your stats at 40 are as follows:
Str - 21
Dex - 8
Con - 14
Int - 8
Wis - 16
Cha - 25
-------------------------
A word on epic spell focus tomes. With this build template, you'd can read an Epic Enchant spell focus tome and get +13 GMW from BG spells and a +13 Bladethirst for yourself. Then, if you wish, use one of the variants below for LL feats and pick up Legendary Enchant Focus - for +14 Bladethirst for yourself, and +14 GMWs for the party.
Legendary Levels:
Congrats! Upon hitting level 41, since you've taken Great Smite 10, your strength goes up TEN POINTS once you enter the Legendary Level altar. You were worried about it, weren't you?
7 feats in LLs:
- Armor skin: A definate must. Your AC is pretty bad as a strength tank, and you will only have 6 out of a possible 8 from tumble at level 60. You need armor skin.
- Legendary Spell Focus-Enchantment: Another excellent idea. By getting an Wonderous Tome for Enchant, you have free Epic Spell Focus Enchant. If you have done this, then and only then can you get LSF-Enchant. +14 Bladethirst is a highly significant improvement over +13, and you should be self sufficient if you can.
- Legendary Weapon Focus - Whip: AB is your friend. This gives you more AB, stacks with EWF Whip, and is enhanced further by Epic Prowess if you take that.
Now, with the other 4 - you have some flexibility.
Your strength is an odd number at start, so you should ONLY choose to have Great Strength 1, or 3.
You could take great str 1 and then get Great Cleave, Overwhelming Critical, Devastating Critical. Crazy damage when you hit.
You could take great str 3 and then get epic prowess, to add another +3ab (1 from str, 1 from epic prowess, 1 from lwf whip's enhancement of epic prowess)
A word on Epic Fiend: The DMs may eventually get around to adding the upgrade for the pet, but you can get a pandect from Minauros to give you this feat.
Since BG is your Control Class, you'll get +4 STR and +4 CHA automatically in LLs, no matter what you do. However, ALL your LL stat increases should be taken with Strength points.
Final stats:
Str: 48 (60) (This is Grt Str 3. Grt Str 1 would be 46/58. Not counting str artifact.)
Dex: 8 (20) +5 to reflex, and you hit the AC armor cap anyway.
Con: 14 (26) (ends around 1020 hps. If you go Grt Con 2 variant, add 40)
Int: 8 (20) Int does nothing for you. Don't worry about it
Wis 16 (28) +9 to Willsaves, and spell slots for Bladethirst/Camoflauge.
Charisma 29 (41) +15 divine smite/shield, and to saves. If you went with another charisma point in LLs, it'd be 30/42 and +16.
A word on Favored enemies:
I went with Abberations, Outsiders, and Undead. You get three in this build. Outsiders is absolutely necessary. Abberations is great to have for a number of high level areas.
Undead...is decent. It was helpful leveling, and there are a few LL zones were some do appear. Enough to be useful, but hardly numerous. NOTE: Neg Energy Bladethirst bonus damage DOES NOT work on undead.
Dragons is a decent alternative, though there are few of them. Elementals, for about 2/3rds of the Black Pyramid creatures. Or constructs, but people tend to frown on meleers hitting those in Hell, despite its uses elsewhere. Or Monsterous Humanoids, if you like Rona.
Baseborn Titan:
If you go with Baseborn Titan, you could splash monk before taking Power Attack (and get free cleave/power attack) and so take Divine Might/Shield at 15 and 18 (need to be a BG with turning to get access to it) and take blind fighting at level 6 - and lightning reflexes or something useful at 9. (Extra Smiting free with Baseborn Titan iirc)
However, if you splash monk, you can't take Dev Crit...since Power Attack is a prereq for its prereqs, and you don't have that free from the monk level.
Baseborn Titan bases would do well to make sure they have 14 wisdom. To get the BG spells, especially access to Death Ward and its crit immunity, you need to have a least a 14 BASE wisdom.