blacksoft wrote:
Good write-up. Thank you.
As for the build mentioned earlier could easily replace warlock for arcane archer 7 and assassin 1 (for nine levels).
I just really liked the theory of inv - manyshot - HIPS - manyshot - inv - manyshot - HIPS.
But if gold is not really a concern, I guess, then having better ac and HP are easily better selling points.
Oh, Arcane Archer would definitely be a good fit, I think. That's where the bow can start to get an edge, I think.
Also consider that any build that uses Blackguard instead of Cleric makes the following tradeoffs, which is good or bad depending on your preferences:
PROS:
1. Blackguard does not lose any BAB. Cleric does at level 1.
2. Blackguard gets +CHA to all saves. Nice.
3. Blackguard gets more HP than Cleric.
CONS:
1. You need 4 Blackguard levels vs. 3 Cleric levels.
2. Cleric can effectively get 2 bonus feats from its domains, which can go toward Blind Fight, Luck of Heroes, Toughness... Or it could get Evasion, or what-have-you. Blackguard does not.
So there's arguments to be made for either making a cleric or a blackguard. Good and evil alignments both have solid options.
If you don't want Barbarian levels AND want to be Good, you can take 4 Paladin instead of Blackguard for similar results. But Barbarian offers so much of a damage boost via its rage that... well, crap. Why wouldn't you want to go Barbarian?
Rage only lasts so long and only has so many uses. It is a nice perk for builds that cannot keep rage up and running, but should not be what allows them to do what they need to do.
Fair point, but you don't need Rage up 100% of the time. You need rage up when you need that extra damage.
Think of it like in P&P: the wizard only has access to so many spells per day. So, the wizard needs to figure out how many spells to use in each fight. Not every fight needs a high level spell; perhaps a well placed Grease or Force Wall or Create Pit will do the trick, or a Fireball to clear out mooks. The Wizard only brings out the 7th/8th/9th level spells when they're necessary - unless the wizard can rest every encounter for some reason.
Likewise, the Barbarian doesn't need to be constantly throwing a fit. The Barbarian just needs rage operable during tougher fights. With 11 levels of Barbarian we have 3 rage uses; 2 more from Extra Rage I (from amulet); and our rage lasts 5 extra rounds due to Extend Rage I (amulet as well). With a +4 item we have 20 CON when raging, meaning 15 rounds of rage per use. 15x5=75 rounds of rage per rest.
There will be sufficient uptime with 75 rounds so long as the player uses their rage smartly.