Want to make a woodsman who swings a battle axe in two hands. He needs to be woodsy and a survivalist, and needs to have enough skill points to make that happen. I see him as a bit superstitious, always wearing/carrying a charm wrapped around his hand. I could also see him going into a rage type focus/frenzy on occasion.
Some ideas:
1.) Ranger/Barbarian... Mostly Ranger, dash of Barbarian.
2.) All Ranger. No rage though.
3.) All barbarian. Few skills and not woodsy enough.
4.) Wild Stalker (Ranger archetype). IF it trades all Combat Feats away, this is really bad. However, if it only trades away the first one... Too bad there is no FAQ.
Any ideas, suggestions, or guidance on this would be nice...
Thanks everyone!
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Sounds like what you want to do is a barbarian pure and simple. Make him human and put a 14 in your int and your favored class option as +1 skill and youll get 8 skills/lvl. As your extra feat give him track. You can even take the suspicious barbarian archetype from UC.
Superstitious barbarian 2-4, ranger X. Favored enemy plants with a flaming, acid burst adamantine battle axe (tree bane!) and wand of lead blades on a weapon cord. Beaver animal comp.
Mostly ranger, one level of barbarian to allow raging. He's not mostly about the weapons and frenzy after all, after all. Enough levels of ranger would give him a few useful spells, depending on how powerful you want to make him.
I guess it depends on what you want out of being a woodsman. I think barbarian is better at working against nature but smashing things when needed. Rangers get skills that commune and work along side it such as wild empathy and the animal companion. I like falconer for a quick dip into ranger myself, if its ever really needed.
What skills are you looking for specifically though? Survival obviously. Perception is generally a given. Knowledge nature would be nice. Can you name three other skills that would necessarily justify the need for a base number of 6 skill points per level? Even with an int of 12, a human could get six skill points per level easily as a barbarian.
Unless you include some profession and craft skills, I have my doubts that there are many skills necessary for a woodsman that would need a ranger.
Barbarian has plenty of skill points for what you want.
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There is a Two-Handed Style for Rangers. It's in the APG.
That superstition you mention could just be how you fluff his spellcasting. Maybe he knocks on wood to ward away bad luck, and that's how he casts Endure Elements? Tugging his right ear and snapping a twig helps him Know Direction, and holding a pebble under his tongue while he says a prayer can Cure Light Wounds.
You don't even need barbarian levels for "rage-type focus". Hunter's Howl is a 1st-level ranger spell that fits what you're looking for pretty well.
Want to make a woodsman who swings a battle axe in two hands. He needs to be woodsy and a survivalist, and needs to have enough skill points to make that happen. I see him as a bit superstitious, always wearing/carrying a charm wrapped around his hand. I could also see him going into a rage type focus/frenzy on occasion.
Stealth, Perception, Survival, Knowledge: Nature, the end.
Any class can do this. "Woodsman" is a very low level concept.
You could also do a wild stalker ranger. Gets you rage, and several rage powers without disrupting your class progression.
Stealth, Perception, Survival, Knowledge: Nature, the end.
Any class can do this. "Woodsman" is a very low level concept.
Maybe Profession (trapper or woodcutter) if you want to go wild with the skills.
How many ranks in profession(Paladin) does it take to smite evil? I think Survival handles really well myself. Doesn't take a lot of ranks in that to represent life in the woods either.
It's that what a ranger is meant to be thematically?
How many ranks in profession(Paladin) does it take to smite evil? I think Survival handles really well myself. Doesn't take a lot of ranks in that to represent life in the woods either.
MrSnark
Paladin is not on the list of common Professions, while trapper and woodcutter are. Depending on the game, professions can be useful. For example, Profession (sailor) is almost required in the Skull & Shackles Adventure Path.
cheers
Erm... Was kidding. Didn't mean to be snarky or anything. Don't have to pick from common professions. Those are merely suggestions. I would love to see a list of uncommon professions, but I'm pretty sure that they wouldn't be that uncommon anymore if they were on a list. I've always thought woodsmanly things were in the survival skill myself.
I think ranger with one level of barbarian is an excellent concept. Melee oriented ranger (switch-hitter?) and barbarian go very well together.
In fact, I'm currently considering something like that for my next character: a dwarven ranger, high dex and str, two-handed weapon and a bow, and a level barbarian for some extra speed (I'm not quite as interested in the rage).
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Sounds like what you want to do is a barbarian pure and simple. Make him human and put a 14 in your int and your favored class option as +1 skill and youll get 8 skills/lvl. As your extra feat give him track. You can even take the suspicious barbarian archetype from UC.
Tracking is free in the survival skill now. No feat needed.
Track should not have been a feat in the first place. Also it just made things harder for the gm as they had less ways to write adventures and tracks can help move the plot forward for whole party.