Fighter Build Advice

[Grayface]

Hello friends,

This is my fighter that I am currently playing in a PbP Emerald Spire campaign. I am really enjoying the game and the character but as I am not even close to an expert on build ideas/feat knowledge/general optimization, I wanted to solicit some feedback and suggestions from the community here.

Do you see any major pitfalls in my build?
Anyway to boost my AC/survivability without losing damage output?
Any advice on reworking the character?

A few points of note:

I am currently level 6 - Fighter 5/UnBarb 1.

My party role is front-line meat shield. My design goal thus far has been to maintain a decent AC while being able to dish out good damage so that the bad guys stay focused on me.

I've been made aware that Exotic Weapon Prof is a lame choice. I picked it at level 1 to have a larger weapon die than what most get out of a 1h weapon. It has worked out because the loot is rare in Emerald Spire and I actually found a masterwork Bastard Sword early on, which I had enchanted and now use primarily. I will likely train out of this based on incoming advice.

I multiclassed into UnBarbarian for level 6. It has been helpful so far (the bonus movement, the extra hit/damage, perception/acrobatics as class skills, raging will save bonus), but I'm open to debate on its effectiveness. I opted for UnBarb over Barb because of the Temp HP change, and the fact that I don't 2h my weapon often so the bonus 1.5 x strength doesn't apply.

[Lilith Knight]

I only briefly looked over it so my advice won't be super in depth but off the top I'd trade out intimidating prowess for either cleave or shield of swings, maybe bloody assault if you really like bleed damage.

Those options can help your DPR or AC depending on what you prefer. I haven't read any unchained so I can't help you with that part.

[Darksol the Painbringer]

I'm presuming that this is for the future, since I doubt you will be able to change much of this (unless retraining is allowed).

Damage Die is usually irrelevant for melee types like the Fighter. A whole 1-2 damage isn't going to compare to having more chances to crit, or by having a higher critical multiplier (such as X3 or X4). If you were going to spend an EWP feat, I would've chosen the Falcata. 19-20/X3 multiplier is practically one of the best there is, and its damage dice is no weaker than a Longsword. The X3 Multiplier will give you an extra multiple to your total damage when you crit; unless you're only doing 1 damage per round on a critical hit, then the increased damage dice can't possibly be better. I can already tell that you want to specialize in criticals, based on having a Keen weapon (which, by the way, under normal rules requires that it be a +1 to make Keen).

Variant Multiclassing would've accomplished the UBarb dip better. You would've only had Rage, and have one less feat, but what makes Barbarians so damn good is the Rage Powers, which a 1 level dip wouldn't accomplish. You do get access to Rage Powers at 11th level; unfortunately, you won't be able to access the Beast Totem chain for Pounce, so spending feats to work towards that will be a waste. There's still Reckless Abandon, allowing you to sacrifice AC for to-hit, and scales the same as Power Attack (meaning you're sacrificing AC instead of to-hit for your increased damage), and is great for effectively helping execute enemies. Sure, you'd lose the Fast Movement, but honestly, if you're getting buffed with Haste every combat (like a respectable party Wizard should be doing), there's not much of a point.

Look at the Weapon Master's Handbook and the Armor Master's Handbook for expanded and powerful Fighter options, most especially the Advanced Weapon Training. (By the by, you could still have your increased damage dice with one of the options there, meaning you can have your cake and eat it too.)

Speaking of Advanced Weapon Training, I'm surprised you didn't pick up a Fighter archetype. Mutation Warrior, Tactician, Weapon Master are all good options for you to pick. It's a little late to pick them now, but they are something to consider if retraining is available.

Since you only want "Decent" AC, your AC target number should equate to 15 + your level in terms of AC. 21 AC at 6th level is fairly decent, and with a shield, fairly easy to accomplish. With a little investment, you can easily surpass this basic number, presuming +1 Armor and Shield, along with a +1 Ring of Protection and a +1 Amulet of Natural Armor.

You'll want some high to-hit for consistent damage; having your full BAB, a magic weapon (+2 bonus, usually), and a perfectly high strength will get you there. This should put you at ~12 to hit, not factoring in Weapon Training, Weapon Focii, etc. Which should put you at +14/+9, or +12/+7 for Power Attack. Rage adds an extra 2 to those numbers, as well as Flanking.

For damage, your magic weapon (+2 bonus), strength (can be 1.5x for two-handing), Power Attack, Weapon Training, Weapon Specializations, and average weapon damage will put you at ~18.5 damage per swing, or 37 damage on a critical hit. This is increased by 2 while Raging (and doubled on a critical hit).

With a Falcata, your normal damage will drop to ~17.5 damage per swing, but your critical hit damage spikes up to 52.5 damage, and you'll have the same chance to critical as with your Bastard Sword (with the same Rage scaling). Pretty damn good for a sword-and-board.