| Kithyrynthastrus al'Vanos |
Hello everyone!! I am new to Pathfinder and am about to start playing a campaign. I have already talked with my DM the only restriction I know of so far is
#1: Gaining a size category follows the Enlarge Person spell - so +2 STR I think??
I want to play a Large Minotaur Barbarian. the only way I have read to do this(for some reason I don't understand) is to use the Half-Minotaur template. A full blood Minotaur is Medium sized for characters?? How does one be half blooded and be bigger.....but rules are rules I suppose.
I am contemplating making an Elf/Half-Minotaur for the size increase while getting the Dex and Int bonus from elf to minimize the penalties.
I have permission to use what I call Chained Axes. Basically 2 great axes with a spiked chain attached to them (very much like Kratos from god of war except they are great axes) so I will be dual wielding. I was told there will be a Dex check until I take an appropriate feat?? I don't know what feat that would be.
My basic goal is to be an invincible tank. I don't think this is possible to work straight out of the gate so I can work at it as I level up. I am pretty set on my race. That said if this set up cannot possibly work then I am certainly up for suggestions ofc. Thank you for reading this massively long text and sorry for said text lol. Look forward to all of your expertise
| Chess Pwn |
so 1st, this seems VERY heavily house-rules game, so who knows what advice is actually applicable to you.
2nd do you have a class your thinking of?
3rd what do you mean by "an invincible tank". Does this just mean AC? or does it include Touch AC, saves, self-healing, damage, lots of HP, DR, energy resistances?
4th you really need to find out how things will work in your modified game, having a DEX check for using a weapon isn't something in the normal game, so it's sounding very hard to be able to give you useful advice.
| Kithyrynthastrus al'Vanos |
Ummmmmm that's a lot to take in....
Barbarian for class.
As for invincible tank.. If I have to take a hit I want to be able to take that hit. Just shrug them off as if they tickle. Does having a massive AC mean you never get hit at all? Ofc I would like a plenty big hp pool as well.
As for that Dex check. he said its because if I want to throw it. Swigning like normal is STR. throwing is Dex. I implied I wanted to be able to entangle/trip my opponents with them hence the reasoning for them being chained together
| Dasrak |
I definitely do not understand the concept of touch AC... ignores armor shield and natural armor..
I believe I have a lot to read lol.
Armor Class represents the combination of your ability to avoid damage from attacks, generally through dodging them and using armor or shields to deflect the blow. Some attacks cannot be deflected (such as magical rays) and these hit your touch AC. Armor and shields don't increase your touch AC, since the attacker needs only touch you or something carried by you to deliver the spell payload.
| Darksol the Painbringer |
Hello everyone!! I am new to Pathfinder and am about to start playing a campaign. I have already talked with my DM the only restriction I know of so far is
#1: Gaining a size category follows the Enlarge Person spell - so +2 STR I think??I want to play a Large Minotaur Barbarian. the only way I have read to do this(for some reason I don't understand) is to use the Half-Minotaur template. A full blood Minotaur is Medium sized for characters?? How does one be half blooded and be bigger.....but rules are rules I suppose.
I am contemplating making an Elf/Half-Minotaur for the size increase while getting the Dex and Int bonus from elf to minimize the penalties.
I have permission to use what I call Chained Axes. Basically 2 great axes with a spiked chain attached to them (very much like Kratos from god of war except they are great axes) so I will be dual wielding. I was told there will be a Dex check until I take an appropriate feat?? I don't know what feat that would be.
My basic goal is to be an invincible tank. I don't think this is possible to work straight out of the gate so I can work at it as I level up. I am pretty set on my race. That said if this set up cannot possibly work then I am certainly up for suggestions ofc. Thank you for reading this massively long text and sorry for said text lol. Look forward to all of your expertise
1. Enlarge Person has specific clauses that govern being large-sized compared to other standardized Large-sized creatures, same with Reduce Person and other Polymorph effects. Those clauses should have no bearing on you unless you are actually affected by those effects. Otherwise, you have an increased CMB/CMD, but penalties to AC/Attacks (not Combat Maneuvers), as well as a reduced Stealth skill.
2. If the GM wants to make you a Minotaur, he certainly can. Same goes with Half-Minotaur or what have you. Regardless, it all depends on what the GM says. (He can always just say no, and in my opinion, it's likely. Just remember that if the template the GM gives you increases your CR, you'll most likely be adjusted in terms of "level" compared to the rest of the group, usually you being lower level than the rest of the party, to compensate for the increased standard power level. In my opinion, though, it's not worth it. Lacking class features for something that's only marginally powerful in the early game isn't worthwhile.
3. Again, assuming the GM gives you the template. If he does, I think it'd be a horrible idea. Pathfinder rewards specialization, even if it's at the cost of other, relatively-insignificant attributes. Elves don't give you anything that you'd want, and the penalties you get for being Minotaur or Half-Minotaur (or whatever it is that puts a damper on your mental faculties) are penalties you don't really care about. Characters like Dwarves (Constitution and Wisdom are valuable for you), Humans (feat, skill point, and flexible bonus score of your choice), Half-Orcs (cool flavor choice, also solid power level and options), Half-Elves (if you really wanted to be an Elf so bad, this would be better for you), and several others, are infinitely better for your character concept.
4. GM allowing you to dual-wield Great Axes? You ought to give that man a high-five. I wish I could TWF with something that's normally a two-handed weapon, with one hand, without compensating for class features. That being said, I believe he's referring to throwing them (which is highly unorthodox, since they'd only have 10 feet range, and you'd suffer a -4 penalty for throwing them because they aren't designed to be thrown). Either that, or the Dexterity requirement for the TWF feat.
**EDIT** Just realized that you made a lot more posts...I'll respond to them individually with follow-ups.
| Darksol the Painbringer |
Ummmmmm that's a lot to take in....
Barbarian for class.
As for invincible tank.. If I have to take a hit I want to be able to take that hit. Just shrug them off as if they tickle. Does having a massive AC mean you never get hit at all? Ofc I would like a plenty big hp pool as well.
As for that Dex check. he said its because if I want to throw it. Swigning like normal is STR. throwing is Dex. I implied I wanted to be able to entangle/trip my opponents with them hence the reasoning for them being chained together
Barbarian is a solid choice. Rage is awesome. Rage Powers are awesome. Fast Movement is also awesome. Uncanny Dodge and its equivalents are meh. But, with the proper archetype (Invulnerable Rager), you get constant Damage Reduction, as well as resistance to Cold or Fire (your choice). Great for shrugging off hits the bad guys throw at you. Also, with your HP and DR, having AC isn't that big of a deal.
Then I was correct on what he was getting at. But, I would clarify if he means whether you're trying to use the chain to entangle/trip enemies or if you're trying to throw axes at enemies. If he means the former, there's no Dexterity check, it'd be a Combat Maneuver check, using your CMB (which is much more favorable, though Trip sucks in the long run). If it's the latter, then he'd be correct; Ranged attacks (such as with throwing an axe or shooting a bow) use your Dexterity modifier for the attack roll bonus. If the bow is Composite, or you're using a Throwing weapon, you add your Strength bonus to the damage roll total.
---
For determining the different AC types, it's simple.
Normal AC includes all bonuses. Standard bonus types include Armor, Shield, Dodge, Dexterity, Deflection, Natural Armor, Sacred/Profane, and Insight. From there, you calculate your total AC. Then, you make adjustments to determine the other two AC types.
Flat-Footed AC does not include Dexterity or Dodge bonuses.
Touch AC does not include Armor, Natural Armor, or Shield bonuses.
When you're adding up the different AC values, you simply subtract the bonuses (if any) you're receiving from the type corresponding to the AC value. For example, if I have a Dexterity of 12, my Flat-footed AC would not include the +1 Dexterity bonus added to my normal AC.
Of course, there are some exceptions, but they're usually called out in the relevant abilities. Also, you can be both Flat-footed, and be affected by a Touch attack. In such a case, you would subtract all of the relevant benefits (Dodge, Armor, Shield, etc).
If the GM is allowing a Large-sized Minotaur, this means you'll have higher CMB/CMD, lower AC/Attack/Stealth, and 10 feet natural reach (the latter being the biggest boon until you get into the higher levels, in which case you'll only be keeping up).
Ozy is correct; you need to use weapons appropriately sized for you, otherwise you suffer penalties to your attack rolls. Large Battleaxes do the same damage and have the same multiplier as Medium Greataxes. (It actually has slightly better minimum damage, since it's 2D6, and not 1D12.) With that being said, you should have 15 Dexterity to qualify for Two-Weapon Fighting/Double Slice if you plan to actually use both axes.
For attribute allocations, they're decent. You don't need that much Intelligence (a 10 is a little much for a Barbarian, who gets 4+ Skill Points per level), dumping it to 10 (after racials) to get 15 Dexterity is a major boon, since it qualifies you for the Two-Weapon Fighting and Double Slice feats; if you're expecting to be good with two battle axes, this is crucial.
If you don't do that, then you're best off using a single Two-handed weapon (i.e. Large Greataxe), and sparing yourself the feats to be applied elsewhere (extra Rage Powers, Power attack, etc. are awesome).
**EDIT**
Another big thing with wielding two weapons at once; if you don't use at least one Light weapon, you're effectively suffering double the Two-weapon Fighting penalties. This means that you should use a Battleaxe and a Handaxe, suffering -2 across the board, instead of two Battleaxes, suffering -4 across the board.