I re-post my impressions, as I wrote in another thread:
"His enormous experience makes him able to partially deflect blows that cannot be dodged. The blow lands, but with less strenght.
Moreover, his superior strenght and TRAINING (i.e., high level) makes him able to "absorb" part of the blow that could wipe a weaker soldier.
This scream high (at least, relatively speking) level fighter to me, with more d10 + con to HP.
BTW, Guts is awesome, but there is nothing he does that a warrior in pathfinder cannot do - even in his setting I didn't see so many save-or-suck to test his resistance to spells ;)"
Toward absorbtion and deflection... isn't that what's DR for?
Damn... I would never have guessed this topic or even the subject would be brought up! Definetely a huge fan of Berserk.
The creation and the story so far has kept me quite intensively along story and I enjoy to read the comical situation of the companies and combat scenes are quite good.
Hm... I guess that the Demon armor Gutts is wearing is increasing his his "Attack, Damage, HP, Movement, Initiative, etc"... by 3-4x times, which is quite incredible. This I would reflect to =Mighty or God-like Rage with almost no penalties. Disbenefits? = Rage (nicely fit the concept) seems to be from 3.5 with all of its tricks = lower ac, unable to recognize friends & foes, fighting till death,
Level appropriate I would say around lvl 6-10, maybe lvl 8. Feat issues Power Attack (seems like Furious Attack from APG is applicable for each hit), Combat Refleces, (Side Step and improvements) Penetrating Strike and improvements, Improved Critical. Demon armor seems to grant the Rage and other abilities. "Sword" (or maybe we should call it destroyer..) seems to be enchanted +5 with "xxx" . Vorpal Sword I say
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I re-post my impressions, as I wrote in another thread:
"His enormous experience makes him able to partially deflect blows that cannot be dodged. The blow lands, but with less strenght.
Moreover, his superior strenght and TRAINING (i.e., high level) makes him able to "absorb" part of the blow that could wipe a weaker soldier.
This scream high (at least, relatively speking) level fighter to me, with more d10 + con to HP.
BTW, Guts is awesome, but there is nothing he does that a warrior in pathfinder cannot do - even in his setting I didn't see so many save-or-suck to test his resistance to spells ;)"
Have you ever read Gygax's explanation of hit points in the AD&D 1e DMG?
The quote above echoes his words nicely, actually.
He added stuff about luck, fatigue and just the uncanny ability to not have your spleen where the sword hits you also.
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One detail from Berserk that stands out right now as something useful for themed-melee characters:
Guts' sword that he starts using is never switched out for a new, better, more magical one. It "levels up" along with him. What happens when he keeps killing demonic/demon-tainted beings? The sword becomes more effective against demons, because being used for that so many times has changed the fundamental nature of the weapon. Doesn't become flashier. It just cu...punches through them that much more. (it's a bit generous to say that slab of metal cuts anything. More like being hit with a cannonball...)
I wouldn't want to saddle fightin' types with "achievement feat" style bookkeeping, but perhaps there's something there that could be of use. A bit similar to Weapons of Legacy as well, but this seems a more subtle, organic thing.
Well true...
but that means then he was already at age of 10-15 lvl 10 fighter :P
Without magical sword and evolving stuff, he was owning guys with metal armors and steel balls (Even toe-to-toe with ... uff, what was that demon name, but was loosing quite fast in the end (fatigue, shaken)) in the "castle" before getting his hands to his current sword.
Hm.. that one scene when they preached gate of castle: 3 times thicker armor guy, 3 meter tall and Gutts (around 13-14?) just slashed through him with ease. Penetration strike with Power Attack?
EDIT: I admit you are right there. It fits better in that way, but there was also the time before the sword.
Hm.. I would say more like: Before owning the sword , he had levels in fighter and had to have those feats (okey, not necessarily) but then adjusting stats (I will do it but I will NOT claim them to be right)
Young age - penalties to stats + considering his... abilities, has to be 32, so: str:16(+2). Dex:14, Con:16, Int:14, Wis:14, Cha:12 - young age.
Quite superhuman (if the standard humans are 10 each: cha might be lower but I kept it like that due to how future will be, somekind of starting point)
Barbarian class(+ god like rage ability) comes from armor. I could see weapon to be bonded item (Bard Duelist?) or just bonded object with no disbenefits
Have you ever read Gygax's explanation of hit points in the AD&D 1e DMG?
The quote above echoes his words nicely, actually.
Glad to read it ;)
Toward absorbtion and deflection... isn't that what's DR for?
Well Guts does not simply shrug off the damage, his skin untouched or wounds rapidly closing. Actually, seems to die one moment from another.
Simply, he does not.
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I'd have to disagree. The ammount of bludgening damage alone that he's taken leads me to believe that he's got some form of DR.
Definately has Endurance, Toughness, Diehard, Great Cleave, Rapid shot, Greater Weapon Specialization, Rage, and Whirlwhind Attack.
I'm thinking he's an Invulnerable Rager Barbarian and Weapon Master Fighter.
He's also probably gestalt and epic.
JUST got this series as an early b-day present. Will be watching over the last week of the year and be back in the thread with opinions.