the build i have so far is:
Race: Orc
STR 22
DEX 16
CON 18
INT 8
WIS 16
CHA 8
I'm taking the Unbreakable Archetype
Feats
1 Power Attack
2 Furious Focus
3 Weapon focus Earth Breaker
4 Weapon Specialization
5 Intimidating Prowess
6 Deathless Initiate
7 Ironhide
8 Greater Weapon Focus
9 Deathless Master
10 Dazzling Display
11 Shatter Defenses
12 Greater Weapon Specialization
13 Deathless Zealot
14 Improved Sunder
15 Greater Sunder
At this point I'm just going to fill in what I think might be good but I've already achieved my character concept
16 Gory Finish
17 Flanking Foil
18 Improved Initiative
19 Deadly Finish
20 Hammer the Gap
So 16-20 are replaceable if you have something better
And this is for a home campaign so that's why the stats are so powerful.
YOu have none of the critical feats or Assault feats, which is kind of strange. Dazing Assault is esp powerful.
Shatter Defenses is a nice feat if you have sneak attack. You don't. It doesn't help the rogue with you.
Deathless zealot is basically a Fortification in a feat, which is good. Deathless Master lets you not lose hp at -1 hp or less...which kind of sucks and should be lost. The latter is required for the former, which also sucks. Deathless Initiate is just as bad.
The fact is, two of those feats only kick in if you are below 0 HP, which means almost never, or only when close to dying and you are desperate to be healed, i.e. not when YOU want them.
Thematic? Sure, fine. In the game? Ugh. You are only going to use them when the numbers put you between 0 hp and dead. Ideally, you never, ever want to be in that area. Zealot is the only one that's actually good for you, all the time.
I will also note that while the Sunder feats are cool and thematic, they also encourage the DM to do the same to you.
It only takes about 30 HP dmg to cleave most magic armor, shields and swords. Do you really want the DM doing that back to you and the party? It may be metagaming, but Sunder is something you only want to bring out when it's cool to do, and forget about it the rest of the time. Having your +2 Furious GiantBane sword sundered in the middle of the fight against the giants sucks really, really bad.
This build looks a lot like the one that I posted in your previous thread. Use cornugon smash as your main intimidate method, shatter defences is there so that you qualify for deadly stroke which is very powerful. With the two-handed archetype you will become even stronger. the flavor is part of the RP mainly, no need to go unbreakable just for this.
I left dazing assault out because I feel that it works best with a reach weapon when you can attack multiple enemies easier.
so I was looking at the archetypes a little more because this character still didn't have the feel I had in mind for the concept... I really liked the idea of the unbreakable but the build didn't work the way it should so now I'm thinking that I should sword and board with the Armor Master. I know that S&B is feat intensive and I'm not really sure where to start.
EDIT: if you have any ideas on how to make a fighter into "you can TRY to kill/hurt me but it won't work" Juggernaut I'm open to your thoughts.
An invulnerable rager can be the "you can TRY to kill/hurt me but it won't work" Juggernaut you are looking for. DR=1/2 level and more if you burn some rage powers. Could go stalwart crane style build dipping a level in Unbreakable Fighter and Master of Many Styles monk to get the proper crane style feats (you only need/want the first) and the endurance/diehard you need for stalwart to add to the barbarian for an extra 4-8 DR. It does just about as much damage as a fighter with eventually better defenses.
I find it reeeeeally strange that you're taking Iron Will at 19 and 20. It's usually something taken at, oh, level ONE.
If you're taking shatter Defenses to lead into Deadly Stroke, that's fine, then.
Dazing Assault is your Standard Action super-attack. If you can't get off a full attack, you Dazing Assault and make them save or be half-stunned. It's really strong, and a great use of a standard action.
But, an invulnerable rager makes a much better tank then a fighter, if only because they get Superstitious to really compound the anti-magic vibe.
Invulnerable Rager is a barbarian archetype Beemer, so it isn't a fighter but it gets better defense than a fighter overall, and if you take beast totem line, pounce.
I will also second Invulnerable rager for the berserker feeling, along with a small dip in unbreakable fighter for easier access to the Stalwart and Improved Stawart feats.
You dip at about 5th lvl, when stalwart becomes available. Aelryinth, you dip in order to take endurance and diehard as bonus feats and qualify for stalwart. Half-Orcs can take endurance for free, but then diehard is an additional feat tax. make sure you have Combat Expertise and Power Attack by then. You need Reckless Abandon and Beast Totem asap in order to offset the penalties.
Rage Powers
2 Superstition
4 Beast Totem Lesser
6 Beast Totem
8 Reckless Abandon
10 Beast Totem Greater
12 Come and Get Me
14 Quick Reflexes
16 Increased DR
18 Increased DR
20 Increased DR
2 Superstition
4 Beast Totem Lesser
6 Beast Totem
8 Reckless Abandon
10 Beast Totem Greater
12 Come and Get Me
14 Quick Reflexes
16 Increased DR
18 Increased DR
20 Increased DR
Critique away
A fine build. Some points:
Don't take vital strike, after greater beast totem you will full-attack almost all the time.
Dazzling display and shatter defences ain't worth it as you cannot qualify for deadly stroke. Take Cornugon Smash instead and maybe furious focus and Dreadful Carnage.
Go for the unbreakable fighter dip at 5th lvl, so that you can have Stalwart and Improved Stalwart on time. Make sure to have Combat Expertise until the 5th lvl. These are the feats that will give you the true berserker feel, allowing you to stack massive amounts of DR/-.
Dazing Assault has great synergy with come and get me, as you may daze multiple enemies before they attack you.
With 16 Dex and Come and Get me, Quick Reflexes is not enough. Take Combat reflexes instead.
I suggest that you incorporate in your build Witch hunter, Spell Sunder and Improved Sunder, as the damage boost of the first one and the utility of the latter are amazing.
Ghost rager is another rage power that is situationaly very useful.
Rage Powers
2 Superstition
4 Beast Totem Lesser
6 Beast Totem
8 Reckless Abandon
10 Beast Totem Greater
12 Come and Get Me
14 Quick Reflexes
16 Increased DR
18 Increased DR
20 Increased DR
Better, but I still see no stalwart, which is really a shame. It is easy to put it in your build too. I am writing from the phone so I will not present a sample, but if you ditch weapon focus, stand still and pushing assault you can make room for combat expertise, stalwart and improved stalwart. Also, even if you do not want spell sunder, you should really take witch hunter, it is almost always free damage.
Of course. But I still believe that it totally worth it.
Please remind me again the stat creation process. Also, with Combat Reflexes and 16 Dex, Quick Reflexes is not needed. It is not a bad investement, it can have its uses, but there are better rage powers to take in its place.
Final saves assuming +6 stat item and +5 cloak of resistance
+22 Fort, +16 Will, +16 Ref (+2 vs charm and compulsion effects, +7 vs fear effects)
jk
For your barbar you should consider the feat Extra Rage power. Seriously just grab Power attack ( and maybe intimidating prowess) and then go to town on rage powers. You don't want weapon focus. One of the biggest perks of being a barbar is that you don't care what weapon you are using.
Cornugon Smash seems like a great feat, but look at the source it is from and ask yourself (why in God's name is my character using feats from this book?)
It is a perfectly fine array. It is easy to have Int 13 (or 14 to avoid odd numbers) in order to qualify for Combat Expertise too. Just drop Wisdom at 10 (with Superstition you will increase pretty fast your Willsave anyway) and drop Int or Cha to 8 (it depends on if you are fine with one less skill-point. If you are not, a -1 on Intimidate will not mean much when you take Intimidating Prowess with such a high Strenght).
I think the orc and half-orc are among the best tank races you can actually get, and they work phenomenally either as fighters or as barbarians.
My suggestion is an Armor Master I built a while ago, a totally unkillable monster of a half-orc.
You can go full blooded Orc with this build and be just as effective. I remind you tho that this guy was PURE tank:
http://paizo.com/threads/rzs2pri4?Armor-master-fighter-advice#8
I suggest with Half-Orc, should you choose him, to take the following alternate racial trats:
Replace Intimidate with Shaman's Apprentice (Gain endurance as a bonus feat)
Replace Orc Ferocity with one of the following: Sacred Tattoo (+1 Luck Bonus to all saving throws), Bestial (+2 Bonus on perception checks), or Beastmaster (+2 bonus on handle animal checks, plus whips and nets are martial weapons, which can both be used to great effect in debilitating enemies, as they're normally exotic weapons).
Replace Weapon Familiarity with Chain Fighter (better exotic weapons, though you'll still probably use a 1-hand weapon anyway because Armor masters get bonuses with shields).
Now, normally I'd suggest possibly getting something like Eldritch Heritage feats, but as an armor master, your abilities will be more focused on something else: two weapon fighting and shield bashing.
Stats should be allocated primarily towards strength, con, and dex, with Willpower following up as the final.
Feats:
I suggest following several different feat trees for your character if you go half-orc:
Deathless Route (Required feats Endurance, Diehard, Deathless Initiate, Ironhide, Deathless Master, Deathless Zealot) You won't fall down and enemies will have to re-roll successful criticals against you. Combined wiht Armor Master and their natural fortification abilities, you are insanely hard to take down by a critical specialist or weapon master. Not only that, but you already meet the constitution requirements.
Weapon Focus Route (Required Feats Weapon Focus, Weapon Specialization, Greater Weapon Focus, Greater Weapon Specialization)
(you'll want to go with a one handed weapon because of your shield. Now, whichever route you go you'll have to pick a weapon that matches your style. I always like Battleaxe. Simple, effective, damaging, and a great critical multiplier. But you might want higher critical chances and go longsword or scimitar. Or you might want more damage overall and go dwarven waraxe or bastard sword. Will cost you a feat or a trait, but that's your choice.)
Beyond that, as a half-orc, you'll be a front line fighter, so sticking around as long as possible is always necessary for you. The extra other feats you may want are as follows, as well as some obvious choices:
Power Attack, Resilient Brute, Tenacious Survivor, and Fight On.
Fight On grants you some temporary hit points when you hit zero or go below into negatives. It activates before Diehard and the early deathless stuff. Resilient Brute converts a successful critical against you (which will be extremely rare BTW) into half-damage half-nonlethal. Can be a major lifesaver if you're close to death. Tenacious Survivor guarantees that if you should die, a bit of healing and you'll pop back up again. With some negative levels yeah, but that can be removed by some work from a healer. It means that you won't have any of that other nastiness of having to pay for a resurrection spell etc.
Power Attack is self explanatory.
Now, if you go this route, you'll have the following feat requirements:
Deahtless Route - 5 feats (normally 6 but you take endurance as a bonus feat)
Shield Bash - 4-5 feats (depending on bashing finish)
Weapon Focus- 4 Feats
Power Attack, Resilient Brute, Tenacious Survivor, Fight On, Improved Critical, Critical Focus - 6 feats
So, 19 or 20 feats if I'm not mistaken.
You essentially have your unkillable tank. Your strategy will simply be to wade into the action, supported by spellcasters, and hit people until they are dead. You will not fall down, you will not falter, and even when brought into negative hit points, you will still keep going just as if you were at full health. You will even be able to have more hit points (as the half-orc stabilize bonus is useless with the Deathless tree I think, so you can simply take the normal HP bonus at each level).
Equipment: Anything that increases strength and constitution is a major plus. Anything that increases your saves is a major plus.
Other than that, for your magic weapon you'll want the following:
Example: Battleaxe: Adamantine, either +1 Furyborn of Speed, or if you can, a +5 of Speed. This guy is going to walk right up the someone and hit them until they die, so the more hits the better.
For your shield you'll want the following:
Example: Heavy Mithral Spiked Shield (with Adamantine spikes if possible), +X Bashing, . Bashind is a major + as it increases the damage by 2 sizes. Normally, I'd say this applies to the shield itself, but according to the NPC codex, it applies to the Spikes (dwarven barbarian with a bashing spiked shield did 2D6 damage, so it can be a nasty weapon. If your GM will allow it, you can enhance the spikes with Speed as well, so when you attack with your shield, you just keep whacking.
For your armor you'll want the following:
Example: Adamantine Full Plate, +X, and Expeditious, so you can get stuck in as quickly as possible. Other options would be Titanic if you wanted, for the size bonuses, but that's not necessary. For armor, you'll simply want as high a + as possible, and Adamantine no matter what. Damage Reduction stacks, so it's damn necessary.
Normally, other people would suggest Stalwart Defender. I don't. To get those bonuses, you give up too much offense, which the Armor Master is already lacking. plus, while they'll stack with your normal DR bonus from wearing armor, they won't stack with teh Adamantine Bonus, so in my opinion it would be a waste of at least two feats (Combat expertise and Stalwart Defender).
Beyond that? Boots of Speed or Boots of Striding and Springing. I'd prefer striding and springing personally because you won't benefit from the added effects of haste due to your weapon already having Speed on it. Amulet of Natural Armor is always a solid choice, and anything that can increase your will saves.
