Build Advice: Mobile Tower Shield User

[Saleem Halabi]

So, I was messing around and hit upon a concept I wanted to try. Someone who uses a tower shield and a mount for high mobility and high defensive potential. I was wondering if anyone had any advice for ways to make this work better.

My design goals for this one that can't really be changed (without a super compelling reason)

1. PFS Legal
2. Makes full use of Mobile Bulwark Style
3. Rides a mount

With that in mind this is what I have so far:

Class: First Mother’s Fang Knight of Arnisant Cavalier 2/Fighter 2/Cavalier 8
Race: Nagaji

Str – 18 (+4)
Dex – 14 (+2)
Con – 14 (+2)
Int – 10 (+0)
Wis – 12 (+1)
Cha – 9 (-1)

Feats
1C1- Shield Focus
1C1 - Combat Expertise
1 – Power Attack
2C2 – (Combat Exp): Improved Dirty Trick
3 – Boon Companion
3F1 - Mobile Bulwark Style
4F2 – Mobile Bulwark 2
5 – Mounted Combat
7 – Mobile Bulwark 3
8C6 – Mounted Shield
9 – Greater Dirty Trick
10C8 – (Combat Exp) Superior Dirty Trick
11 –???

Mount: Constrictor Snake:

Size Large
Speed 40 ft.
Climb 20 ft.
Swim 20 ft.
AC +2 natural armor
Attack bite (1d4)

Str 15
Dex 17
Con 13
Int 1
Wis 12
Cha 2

Special Attacks: grab
Special Qualities low-light vision, scent.

Advancement
1F - Narrow Frame
2F - Power Attack
4 - +1 AC, Constrict (d4), Attribute Increase
5F - Dirty Fighting
8F - Improved Grapple

4th-Level Advancement: Size Large; AC +1 natural armor; Attack bite (1d4); Ability Scores Str +8, Dex -2, Con +4; Special Attacks constrict 1d4.

I am not super happy with the Dirty trick line of feats, and I kinda wonder if I should be incorporating vital strike in there since my attacks will mostly be standard actions. My current action economy is as follows:

Mount: Move
Mount: Standard Action Attack+Grab
Me: Standard Action Attack
Me: Move Action: Gain Total cover along one edge (Large edge due to space sharing with mount)
Me: Immediate: Mobile bulwark or Mounted combat to negate one attack vs me or mount.

Any thoughts?

[avr]

Without Int 3+ your mount is very restricted in which feats it can take. Dirty Fighting isn't on the allowed list. It's much easier to start with Int 2 (i.e. Not a reptile) if you want to get to Int 3.

Mobile Bulwark Stronghold (MB3) isn't PFS-legal.

Vital strike with a one-handed weapon sounds like it's going to be disappointing. Have you considered a bad touch cleric with a cavalier and/or fighter dip instead? Alternately going for a character with spirited charge at least lets you double more than the damage die.

[Saleem Halabi]

avr wrote:

Without Int 3+ your mount is very restricted in which feats it can take. Dirty Fighting isn't on the allowed list. It's much easier to start with Int 2 (i.e. Not a reptile) if you want to get to Int 3.

Mobile Bulwark Stronghold (MB3) isn't PFS-legal.

Vital strike with a one-handed weapon sounds like it's going to be disappointing. Have you considered a bad touch cleric with a cavalier and/or fighter dip instead? Alternately going for a character with spirited charge at least lets you double more than the damage die.

Wow. How did I miss that with mobile bulwark 3. Good catch. It doesn't totally invalidate the build, but it is a pretty big blow to effectiveness.

Snake comes as part of the First Mother's Fang archetype, which gives Tons of bonus feats, and gets rid of some stuff I wasn't really interested in. I could take it or leave it, but I felt it added some nice flavor.

Spirited charge seems like something I should definitely take. Thanks for pointing that out.

I was planning on using a lance as my weapon. Are there any others that do the increased damage from the back of a charging mount?

[avr]

I'm not aware of any other weapon which natively doubles damage on a mounted charge, though the Qadiran horselord archetype lets you do the same with any one-handed slashing weapon. That's obviously incompatible with FMF.