The crit commander build


Advice


character sheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B3oQlB72acoIeTFHbUM0TnNicnM/view?usp=shari ng

My name is inego Montoya, you kill my father, prepare to die. … yes the next build in this series is here, the crit commander

Class

Swashbuckler: The swashbuckler has a few good class features and a Panache pool….It’s a small pool but it refills on a critical hit (and dropping opponents to 0), which is what makes the swashbuckler the perfect candidate for the crit commander build. In addition you get to spend that panache point pool on deeds. Lets take a look at some of the important deeds.

Dodging Panache: lets you as an immediate action, before the results are reveal, attempt to doge an attack by moving 5 feet. This gives you a bonus to ac equal to your charisma modifier. If it misses, you avoid further attacks assuming you have moved out of range.
Menacing Panache: attempt a demoralize check on a successful melee attack? Yes please.
Seems like I’m forgetting something…… oh right!
Precise strike: add your level to damage rolls….. yes you heard that right. Oh and you can double it by spending a panache point. Also you get the base damage bonus without spending panache

In addition there’s a few other bonuses you get while you have at least 1 point of panache, like weapon finess with your swashbuckler weapons and improved critical.

Race

Elf: What elf? Yes. In addition to being one of the core classes, meaning even PFS society chracters can run this build, the favored class bonus is nice, ¼ panache, and when you start out with a base of 3, an extra 2 panache is helpful. The dexterity bonus is nice too.

Abilities: 10 you won’t need it but you don’t want to be reduced to a cripple lying on the floor by a single str drain.
Dexterity: 20 you’ll be adding your bonus to damage hitting with it, just max it out.
Con: 11 Never a dump stat, but not a core of the build.
Int: 10 also not a dump stat
Wis: 10 Never a dump stat
Cha: 16 used for panache, attack, defense, this is your secondary stat.

Skills

Intimidate: Used in conjunction with menacing panache.
Bluff: useful for feinting. Lying, getting past guards, getting women into bed. Avenging your father.
Acrobatics: because you need to get where you need to be.

Equipment

Katana: 18-20 base crit range and one handed slashing weapon. (what swashbucklers use piercing weapons…. We’ll get to that)
Leather armor: good ac bonus for the buck
Buckler: same
Belt of incredible dex: adds to AC, damage, and Attack rolls….. enough said.

Feats

Exotic weapon proficiency, weapon focus, Slashing grace: turns slashing weapon to slashing piercing for class abilities and adds dex to damage…. Mmmmmmm +5…. Add weapon specialization and +1 weapon that’s +10 then add in your precise strike that’s +19 +29 on a crit or +38 on a crit with using a panache point….. +38…. With improved critical from class bonuses that’s 15-20 ….. welcome to the crit commander.

Strategy

With at least 30 ac most of which is touch, you are looking pretty good in defense even with only 11 con. You can add more and avoid attacks so get in there. Attack, demoralize and maybe occasionally feint when you need it. (remember you don’t have improved feint) Use panache on crits to double that precise damage (it doesn’t automatically double), and jump out of the way of big nasty bosses. Attack away and don’t forget, you kill my father prepare to die (even though this build uses a katana, and not a rapier)

as always don't forget to check out my blog where i put all these up

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3105149385247943365#allposts


Feels like a glass cannon. AC is nice but not exceptional and hps will be low for a melee type. There are lots of thing that just hit you (spells for example). It might work if the team sports another melee type, possibly a tank but at that point I'd go for an unchained rogue.

I get you want an "Inigo Montoya" and so you chose a swashbuckler but at least choose an half-elf so you can get proficency with katana for free.


True but any character alone in melee is going to have A bad experience


worse saves in the game with poor CON and WIS.
low hp. DM will slay you ASAP.
also, precise strike isnt double on a crit.
option 1: drop DEX, add str 13 for power attacks.
dip 2 into monk master of styles or a unarmed fighter.
add Crane style for -2\+4 to AC.

option 2: go daring champion cavalier. take 1 swashbuckler level for the parry , if you want.
FORT > REF. and challenge is another 1 per lvl.
take order of the cockatrice and have +2 more ...or dragon and fast aid your allies.


You can use panache to double the precision damage.


What's a katana contributing here that a scimitar wouldn't? It's only a d8 versus a d6 (and a bonus to coup de grace, which is basically worthless (and might be slightly racist)).

Precise strike isn't multiplied by a crit. "This additional damage is precision damage, and isn't multiplied on a critical hit." Right there in the text.

Menacing Swordplay is a swift. Cornugon Smash is a free, and only requires Power Attack and 6 ranks in Intimidate. Level 6 instead of level 3, but still very accessible.

Your two neglected saves are the ones that will instantly kill you. They're also very, very bad. A Mummy (CR 5) has a 50% chance of paralyzing you, negating most of your defense. A level 5 spell (from a level 9 wizard/cleric/whatever) with the bare minimum stats will have a DC of 17. I hope you enjoy Watership Down. Even with Charmed Life it's a 40% chance.

You might want to add Sense Motive to the list of skills so you don't get feinted and thus lose your primary source of AC.

Your 30 AC seems to assume that Dodging Panache is up all the time, it costs panache and only works against one attack. That's very different.

Why is your weapon not Corrosive Burst or Icy Burst? If you're building around crits why aren't you using the weapon special abilities that benefit?


You can spenda panache point to double the precise strike damage. As for the scimitar for some reason it's not showing in my hero lab as 18_20 crit range


Also dodging panache works on all attacks provided you move out of reach.


As for the saves, yes every build is going to have bad saves. Save maybe a Dex based monk with high con. Nothing is impenetrable. This game works like a giant game of Rick pallet scissors


Also I didn't equip the cloak of resistance when I saved the pdf


Oh and ac 30 is without dodging panache with it is 33


Also charmed life (4 per day) adds cha mod to a save so total Ave of +10 when I need it


So that mummy, with a +14 to attack still needs to get lucky in that 1d 4 rounds I'm paralyzed 25% of the time just to hit. Even with me immobilized the need to roll well. Hope they're less than 20 feet away too cause they ain't that fast. And with 60 hp and ac 20 I need an average 1.5 rounds to kill them. But yeah


Inigo Montoya uses a rapier not a katana.


Can't use slashing grace with a resort which is bill as a rapier is a slashing weapons


Ugh auto correct...


You know you can 'edit' your posts so you don't have to post seven times or so in a row, right?


Not on this phone with these thumbs

Silver Crusade

Quote:
Use panache on crits to double that precise damage (it doesn’t automatically double)
Quote:
As a swift action, a swashbuckler can spend 1 panache point to double her precise strike's damage bonus on the next attack.

Using Precise Strike in this way is a swift action, not immediate, and has to be declared before the attack. Thus you can't decide to do this after confirming the crit.

Silver Crusade

Also, rapier is a piercing weapon. The fencing grace feat allows you to add your DEX to damage with a rapier (although it does require weapon focus).


That's neat. It's only weapon in game . Irl rapiers are classifiedas cut and thrust swords as opposed to some thing like a small sword which is thrust only


I missed Dodge and Nimble, so the AC does make sense.

Your saves already include the cloak of resistance though, and they're terrible. In the case of the mummy, if you're paralyzed you're helpless and can be coup de graced. Even if they don't do that, you lose 11 AC when you're paralyzed (maybe more? I don't think paralyzed counts as losing Dex to AC though). +14 versus AC 19 is a very good chance to hit. A mummy is not supposed to be a threat. 4 mummies is supposed to be an easy battle for your entire party, and they're almost guaranteed to completely take you out of the fight (and give you mummy rot). Charmed life is an immediate (so 1/round) and only works for one saving throw. You can't do that and Dodging Panache or Parry. You want Steadfast Personality to replace Wis with Cha for mind-affecting Will saves, at a minimum. I think any other class would have better Fort and/or Will saves, as they either have Fort or Will as a good save or supplement their saves with a class feature (or both). Maybe Rogue would be as bad? I think they have Rogue Talents for that now though. The problem isn't that you have weak saves. The problem is that your two weak saves will @#$%ing kill you if you fail them. Reflex saves are usually for half damage. Fort and Will saves are for turned to stone/flee in terror.

Doubling your precise strike damage doesn't change the fact it doesn't multiply on a crit. Unless you're saying that by getting a crit (and recharging panache) you can use it again. But doesn't that mean you're not spending it on Dodging Panache or Parry or any of the other deeds that use panache? You only crit 30% of the time (at best, assuming you confirm all the time), it's not something you can use every attack. By contrast, Smite and Challenge both also add level to damage, multiply on a crit, and work until the target dies.

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