my lovely cavalier is almost set.
order of the sword super destroyer.
but, ofc, one cant expect to charge always.
what special stuff can be added both to your charges, and to when you are attacking?
ofc, as the feats are limited, i will need to pick, but first i want ot cover all options known.
as cavalier have mighty charge, a free trip, bull rush, sunder or disarm is an option. a bad one without feat aid but this opens up some things:
1) greater bull rush & quick bull rush
when i charge, its a free action so ALL can also AOO the opponent (and kill whatever is left of it). with quick bull rush, its a nice thing to do as 2-4 attacks from allies > my own single attack,
2) greater trip chain
trip is a good thing. but as we are lvl 11 already, i think i wont enjoy it much, so little foes are trip-able.
3) dazing assult:
wow! -5 to attack, can be added to charging, with DC of 21 or daze. wow.
4) 1 level dip into a thug, and get either enforcer or Cornugon Smash , this will add some shaken or even fear-lock the foe.
can be used on any attack, even spring attacks .
5) critical chains : dont like those.
6) dip into a maneuver master monk and add dirty trick.
anything else?
A nice reach build obviously builds off of the lance. Power attack and combat reflexes are the basic choices.
I like lunge on reach though. It helps to encourage more AoO's through proper positioning.
Normally, when you attack something, it ends up 10' away. It just needs a 5' step to reach you, and that means it gets to full attack.
With lunge, you can end your turn with the enemy 15' away. That means that a lot of enemies would have to move 10' to get to you. That means an AoO, and the enemy most likely loves their full attack. That is good both offensively and defensively.
It also means that you can full attack anything in a 45' wide circle prior to mounted skirmisher. Obviously this is less important for a mounted charger than most reach builds, but hey, it could be difficult terrain that prevents a charge. Altogether, lunge gives you enough options to consider picking it up.
Also, do not forget- the new fortuitous weapon property lets you get an iterative in on an AoO. For just a +1 to weapon price, you get the better part of a full attack. A must have for reach builds.
EDIT- oh, and since gnomes are popular for mounted chargers- having a racial SLA qualifies you for arcane strike (nice little damage boost). Riving strike is a feat that further builds off that, and causes anything you hit with arcane strike to take a -2 to saves against spells. Combine that with Cornugon Smash for a total of -4, and your Save or Die wizard will love you. With this, even if your damage sucks when not charging, you can be a massive help as a debuffer.
lemeres wrote: A nice reach build obviously builds off of the lance. Power attack and combat reflexes are the basic choices.
I like lunge on reach though. It helps to encourage more AoO's through proper positioning.
Normally, when you attack something, it ends up 10' away. It just needs a 5' step to reach you, and that means it gets to full attack.
With lunge, you can end your turn with the enemy 15' away. That means that a lot of enemies would have to move 10' to get to you. That means an AoO, and the enemy most likely loves their full attack. That is good both offensively and defensively.
It also means that you can full attack anything in a 45' wide circle prior to mounted skirmisher. Obviously this is less important for a mounted charger than most reach builds, but hey, it could be difficult terrain that prevents a charge. Altogether, lunge gives you enough options to consider picking it up.
Also, do not forget- the new fortuitous weapon property lets you get an iterative in on an AoO. For just a +1 to weapon price, you get the better part of a full attack. A must have for reach builds.
EDIT- oh, and since gnomes are popular for mounted chargers- having a racial SLA qualifies you for arcane strike (nice little damage boost). Riving strike is a feat that further builds off that, and causes anything you hit with arcane strike to take a -2 to saves against spells. Combine that with Cornugon Smash for a total of -4, and your Save or Die wizard will love you. With this, even if your damage sucks when not charging, you can be a massive help as a debuffer.
nice on the lunge part - will deeply consider it.
as for gnome, i think i rather be a human & undersize mount.
why ?
more skills, more free skill focus, more str, more items (as small weapons are rare.)
as for it difficult terrain that prevents a charge. there isnt really.
mount took: power attack, acrobatic step (ignore 20') and spring attack for position.
i took wheeling charge so allies also arent an issue...
Ah, but acrobatic step has to be from the animal companion, doesn't it? (hopefully so, for my argument's sake, since everything falls apart otherwise).
And it needs to take nimble moves first.
And neither of those feats are on the list that animal companions can take by default. So you need +3 Int before you can grab those feats.
So you have to wait until level 8 to pull that off. Cavaliers can take lunge as early as level 6 (due to their bonus feat). So, while it is just two levels, there is enough there that it can be relevant.
666bender wrote: we start at lvl 11...
ah, missed that since it was in #2.
Well then... my defensive little tirade has been deflated.
If you use a small race or take the feat allowing a medium sized creature to use a medium sized mount then your charging chances increase.
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