EyePatchNotes's page

I just wish there was a feat you could take to get extra modifications for the Constructed Pugilist without having to take more levels in it. Being able to grab the Shielding Limb and Tight Grip mods would be handy, but definitely not worth going 10 levels into it.

Shield bonuses are relatively easy to come by, though usually with action investment. A permanent, two-feat drop would be Shield Focus into Unhindering Shield, which has the side benefit of putting shield-only enhancements on the table. A Horacalcum constructed limb grants a +1 bonus to attack rolls, handy when a Monk's progression allows you to eventually sidestep having adamantine. More gold sinks for a build that can afford them never hurt.

Regarding Knockout, a Constructed Strangler 2, Tetori 15 gets Quivering Palm, a similar enemy-ending effect with properly scaled DC. I forgot about that part. Silver lining?

The Construced Pugilist/Strangler Brawler would be at least a 2 level dip to get you +2d6 sneak damage on your grapples, penalty reductions, and that sweet grappling arm,

These are the Brawler's spicy contributions,

4 would get you knockout, and 6 would get you a 2nd modification to your limb.

and these are my points of contention. Constructed Strangler 4 gets, what was it, +2 grapple CMB/CMD beyond the norm? I find these bonuses fairly dismissable as the Tetori has a similar progression track. As stated above, I do not find that Knockout is a compelling ability, especially when it delays Monk progression by two levels. A lot can happen in two levels, and anti-magic techniques are always welcome sooner.

Knockout is certainly a good ability, or at least I appreciate it, but not in this particular concept. I was trying to find an angle for Constructed Pugilist for a while, so this helps me a lot actually. Cheers for that.

You do realize that the same can be said for Grapple? Any creature 2 size categories larger than you, any insubstantial creature, swarms, oozes, most plants, and any enemy that can gain the benefit of Freedom of Movement. Then there are the flying creatures. They aren't immune, but it could be very difficult to grab them if you don't fly. Also some creatures just have an insane CMD for no good reason.

Grapple characters are already building themselves into a pit, by my count. Having a list of enemies immune to grapple is one more reason not to put two more class levels into an ability that has a lower applicability and success rate.

And apparently grapple lacks the size stipulation of other combat maneuvers. I was surprised to find that out recently, but no complaints here.

Brawler (Constructed Pugilist / Strangler) 4 / Monk (Tetori) X is one of the ultimate grapplers IMHO.

...lets you apply dimension lock to those you grapple so they can't teleport out of your grip, ghost touch grapples so you can wrestle ghosts, form lock shapeshifters so they can't wriggle out of your grip.

I do like the swift action Dimensional Anchor, but it turns on a bit late at 17th-level (if going Brawler 4) for my tastes. Then again, a Phase Locking weapon can reproduce this effect earlier and be sold later.

Constructed Strangler feels like a two-level dip to me. Negating grappled penalties and grappling at 40 feet are hard-to-replicate abilities, but the 1/day Knockout and grapple bonuses are lower priority. Knockout also scales poorly without Brawler levels, stalling at DC (12 + Str or Dex modifier). Optimistically around DC 20 at 13th-level or so, and has to deal with a fair list of immune enemies.

You can fix a lot of problems with this build by using Brawler and Barbarian dips instead of Rogue.

But as always, no matter what you do, a Druid wild shaped into a Giant Octopus is always better than every other grappler, without even trying.

And here's what happens when you do try

Snakebite Striker is incompatible with both Strangler (Class Skills) and Verdant Grappler (Maneuver Mastery). While Snakebite Striker replaces only Maneuver Trainings after the first, Verdant Grappler alters the Maneuver Training class feature as a whole.

The broad strokes are sound enough, but there seems to be a lot of prep time involved between Wild Shape and whatnot. I would need more time to look into the mechanics, but the conflicting archetypes would need to be addressed first anyway.

Anticipate Dodge This requires brawler level 4th, or monk level 4th, so you can't get it.

/cevah

Anticipate Dodge has its prerequisites listed in a particular way:

Dodge, Mobility; base attack bonus +7, brawler level 4th, or monk level 4th.

Notably, there is a semicolon dividing Dodge and Mobility from the rest of the prerequisites. Due to the semicolon, the prerequisites can be interpreted as:

(Dodge), (Mobility), (BAB +7, Brawler 4, or Monk 4)

I believe the intent is that a character needs to satisfy one of the last three conditions, but that is hard to portray with only commas.

The Penitent Constable's charge certainly works, but the Kidnapper's bonus would not. The language used for Clean Capture means that you reduce the same penalty that Expert Captor lets you ignore; Clean Capture in particular adds nothing to the build.

Moreover, while the Rogue's slower BAB progression is off-set by Abductor's scaling bonuses, I consider this is shoring up a weakness rather than scaling a strength. A full BAB class with bonuses to grapple would carry more weight, at least without clever use of Rogue Talents.

I would recommend looking into feats and effects that modify charges, such as Dragon Style that makes charging easier or Vigilant Charger that makes charging more flexible.

The ring is, to put it bluntly, nonsense. Have an 11th-level Pathfinder Chronicler give you a move action instead, whether through party synergy or Leadership.

EDIT: Links and new information.