I'd go either straight fighter or fighter/rogue. There's no real way to emulate Bronn while also getting good use out of sneak attack, so rogue being your core class isn't a great idea. Plus, he's shown to be using a variety of both ranged and melee weapons. I'd probably go for a fighter with 18 Str and 16 Dex and medium armor. If you want to be a bit of a switch hitter, grab a rogue dedication and quick draw. Feats like snagging strike would work well to show how he tends to fight dirty.
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
As for mental stats, I would emphasize Wisdom over the other two. Bronn's not particularly bright, but he has a good eye for picking the winning side. He's also fairly crass and tends to make his friends via his sword arm rather than his charm or force of personality.
I too like Fighter better than Rogue. But I don't think Bronn as a rogue would be bad, per se. He never seems to be doing typical rogue things like picking locks, but he is a survivor, and survivors have tricks up their sleeves. Additionally I could see a feinting rogue being considered a "dirty trick" duelist.
You might be able to build a good Bronn out of a Ranger too, emphasizing Hunt Prey and its utility in a duel (as opposed to a battlefield where you would have to spend many actions to Hunt, in a duel you Hunt only once and enjoy the benefits until the end of the fight). Hunt Prey could be a stand in for Bronn's proclivity for pressing advantages in a fight, whether that's considered fair or not.
I think Bronn has 3 basic things going on:
He's a survivor - make sure he has some way of getting out of trouble - rogue can do that, any high dex build would have extra AC to showcase that...
He's a good duelist who isn't afraid to fight dirty - any proper martial build of any class ought make for a competent duelist, so look to classes that give you something active you can do to gain an advantage - feint, hunt prey, even power attack could work..
He picks the winning side - At least decent Wisdom score, and probably skill feats that have to do with being capable of discerning how things are likely to go.
I agree with what everyone has posted above, it all seems very Bronn. I would max dexterity above strength though. Fighter with rogue dedication is how I would go. Quick Draw would be an excellent feat to take.