Let's build a character that just won't die...

[Petty Alchemy]

I saw your post Bandw2, but my point is that there's different possible takes on the matter. The druid fulfills one of those takes, but may not accomplish the intended purpose.

[666bender]

Scaffold Kane wrote:

A level of maneuver master monk to pick up Crane Style, a level of Unbreakable Fighter for Endurance and Die Hard, and Invulnerable Rager straight down the board. At 5th level, take Stalwart (feat). Take the superstition rage power. Preferably human to pump up your saves with superstition. Then take the Defensive Strategist trait so you can't be caught flat-footed for going after an enemy and so you can go into a rage to avoid some horrendous effect using a Headband of Havoc.

At level 8, for example, you can have a decent AC (not fantastic really, but you can invest), DR 7/- (3/- for barbarian and 4/- for fighting defensively in Crane Style). Your saves will be boosted by 5 (or 6 if you use the Headband of Havoc to boost it) against spells, spell-like abilities, and supernatural abilities. All just for taking a -2 to attack (which rage replaces) and having to be buffed before the rage.

Compared to, say, a typical CR 10 dragon, you mitigate half (or a little better) the damage it can do with melee assuming each attack lands, your base saves are +9/+4/+4, so you avoid its breath and stuff the vast majority of the time. Which I might advocate a second level of monk for Evasion and some other cool stuff, but that's for another discussion.

I could draw up a build, but you get the idea. This character is a tough cookie to crack. And the best part? DR focus makes it so that healing is less necessary. Just keep raging, my superstitious friend. Oh, and if you're having trouble with the monk into barbarian thing, your other trait can be Adopted (Enlightened Warrior).

how?

maneuver master = lawful.
barbarian = not.

[Charon's Little Helper]

666bender wrote:

how?
maneuver master = lawful.
barbarian = not.

It's metagaming - but doable. Make the character lawful when taking the monk levels - then they 'suddenly' decide to no longer be lawful which lets them take the barbarian levels. Monks don't lose anything when no longer lawful - they just can't take more levels in Monk.

[Eltacolibre]

Charon's Little Helper wrote:

666bender wrote:

how?
maneuver master = lawful.
barbarian = not.

It's metagaming - but doable. Make the character lawful when taking the monk levels - then they 'suddenly' decide to no longer be lawful which lets them take the barbarian levels. Monks don't lose anything when no longer lawful - they just can't take more levels in Monk.

Beyond morality (Mythic) can help with that.

[Luthorne]

I was playing around with a similar idea awhile back. Human with the Heart of the Wilderness (ARG) alternate racial trait, Racial Heritage (APG) for Orc, Endurance, Dieheard, Deathless Initiate (UCom), Deathless Master (UCom), class was Alchemist with Lingering Spirit (UM) discovery, taking mutagens to boost Constitution and discoveries to boost mutagen, as well as Preserve Organs (UM) and Mummification (UM), shoot for a very high Constitution. Plenty of helpful buffs amongst alchemist extracts, and eventually you can turn into a troll via giant form I to snag regeneration (or use deathless (MA)) to otherwise avoid dying.

Edit: Amusingly, with Ragdoll Mutagen (ARG) and Mummification (UM), you can fall any distance and take no damage. I have a mental image of someone falling down a mountainside... "Oof! Ow! Erk!" before finally planting their face in the dirt, standing up, brushing off their clothes... "I'm fine! Really!"

[DeathlessOne]

The Human Diversion wrote:

Is there a pathfinder version of the 3.5 mettle feat? That was pretty darn cool, it was basically evasion for will and fort saves.

I know of two instances. One exactly what you are looking for, the other to a lesser degree:

Stalwart class ability that Inquisitors gain at 11th level. This is Mettle reborn into Pathfinder.

Resilience class feature of the Ironskin Monk (hobgoblin). This is for Fort saves only but Ironskin Monk gets both Resilience and Evasion as class abilities.

[shroudb]

666bender wrote:

how?
maneuver master = lawful.
barbarian = not.

for starters i think he meant master of many styles and not maneuver master.

as for alignment, there is a race trait for aasimars that allows one to be a neutral good or neutral monk instead of lawful (enlightened warrior?) you can probably pick it up with adopted social trait with another race.

edit:
as for barbarian, pick up dragon totem rage powers alongside superstition for some stacking dr/-.

[Scaffold Kane]

Yep. I addressed that at the bottom of my post. Adopted (Enlightened Warrior) trait allows you to be a neutral monk.

[Scaffold Kane]

666bender wrote:

Scaffold Kane wrote:

Oh, and if you're having trouble with the monk into barbarian thing, your other trait can be Adopted (Enlightened Warrior).

how?

maneuver master = lawful.
barbarian = not.

See? There.

And yes, I definitely meant Master of Many Styles.