So, this is a real issue for me. Never mind the fact that, for many characters, Combat Expertise is nothing more than a feat tax for those wanting access to an assortment of Improved and Greater maneuver feats. However, the Int 13 requirement is also restrictive to certain build CONCEPTS. Allow me to expound:
I'm creating an Ogrekin (Human) Mad Dog Barbarian. His back story (taking the animal companion out of the equation, for the meat of this) is that he was discovered by some unsavory circus folk. By day, he was the feature attraction in their sideshow/freak show. But by night, he was forced into more brutal forms of entertainment, as an underground fighter. Threats to his pet "Kitty" were his only real motivation for such participation.
He's the gentle (but simple-minded) giant concept. Surely, he's strong, powerful, and knows how to handle himself, but he prefers not to hurt people, when he can avoid it. I wanted to shift him in the direction of battlefield controller. Feats like Combat Reflexes, Improved/Greater Trip, Improved Unarmed Strike, and Vicious Stomp were examples of the direction I want to go with him.
Herein lies the problem. He's simple but (supposed to be) well trained. He has a whopping 5 intelligence! How the heck can I get my hands on ANY combat feat, such as Improved Trip/Dirty Trick/etc, when the rules say he's not smart enough to learn how to do these things?
Main Question:
Does anyone know of a reasonable way (I don't mind dipping into another class/archetype in order to achieve these means) to bypass the INT 13 prerequisite of most of the combat feats I want to give this noble simpleton?
And this also brings another point. I don't mind not having those feats, and only performing those maneuvers with Attacks of Opportunity. So...
Related Question:
Does anyone know if performing an attack type which, un-feat-ed, normally provokes an attack of opportunity AS an attack of opportunity would incur an attack of opportunity from the target of said attack? And do un-feat-ed combat maneuvers only incur an attack of opportunity from the target, or do all adjacent enemies get an AoO against you for taking such actions?
Certain actions make sense as incurring AoOs from all adjacent, such as firing a ranged weapon, reloading a crossbow/firearm, and casting spells. Combat maneuvers, however, seem a tricky wicket to me, as I would logically think they should only incur AoO from the target of the maneuver, and not the bystanders. Also, I feel it wouldn't make any sense to incur an AoO from the target while performing an AoO against them, as this could lead to a potentially ridiculous loop:
A: I punch B (don't have IUS).
B: A just incurred AoO. I punch him with my AoO (don't have IUS).
A: I have Combat Reflexes. B just incurred AoO. I punch him with this AoO.
B: I also have Combat Reflexes. I punch A with the AoO B just incurred.
A: I.... (ad nauseum until one of them is out of Combat Reflexes AoOs.)
The cycle isn't endless, but hypothetically, if you have two fighters with Combat Reflexes and a 30 Dexterity, they could each pull of 11 attacks of opportunity against one-another from one simple unarmed strike, turning into a fast-paced slap fight on one character's initiative (whoever incurred the first AoO).
TL/DR
Is there a reasonable way to get Improved Dirty Trick/Trip/Steal/etc without either A) Int 13+ OR (better) B) Int 13+ and Combat Expertise.
Can you incur an AoO from a target by performing an AoO against them with an untrained combat maneuver?
Who ever takes Combat Expertise for any reason other than as a feat tax with which to qualify for other feats in the tree?
I give you:The Swashbuckler and The Daring Champion.
You do have a Cha of 13+, right?
You know what makes this even sadder?
The Ogre Hook, the quintessential ogre weapon, has the Trip feature...
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Alternatively, the new Brawler class from the Advanced Class Guide gets this at first level:
Brawler's Cunning: If the brawler's Intelligence score is less than 13, it counts as 13 for the purpose of meeting the prerequisites of combat feats.
And the brawler class seems right up this particular concept's alley, even if it's just a dip.
Alternatively, the new Brawler class from the Advanced Class Guide gets this at first level:
Brawler's Cunning: If the brawler's Intelligence score is less than 13, it counts as 13 for the purpose of meeting the prerequisites of combat feats.
And the brawler class seems right up this particular concept's alley, even if it's just a dip.
OMG!!! How the heck did I miss this!? I've been eyeballing these hybrid classes the past couple of days, but I totally missed this! You, mechaPoet, found EXACTLY what I was looking for!
Plus, just about everything about the Brawler class fit this character perfectly! It'll probably just be a dip, but this is awesome! Thankyouthankyouthankyou!!!
LOL I was going to suggest brawler when I read this OP. Nicely done, Mechapoet.
And, now that I see the Wild Child archetype, I'm hard-pressed to not simply rework him as a Wild Child Brawler, instead of the Mad Dog Barbarian! Hahaha!
Edited to correct "war dog" to "Mad Dog".