Please review: making a brawler...

[nocturnix]

i want to play around with an ambushing brawler since ive heard they destroy.

here is what i rolled up tonight. looking for some feedback, as i know very little about brawling and the stats involved.

My goal for this char (not long term, just for fun) is to be an ambushing brawler, with the ability to buff and cast spells (hence the ranger profession).

Let me know what you think of the stat placement, and race...

Name: Wombat Race: Sylvankind Profession: Ranger (not shown)
Gender: Male Age: 0 Expr: 135 Level: 0
Normal (Bonus) ... Enhanced (Bonus)
Strength (STR): 100 (25) ... 100 (25)
Constitution (CON): 50 (0) ... 50 (0)
Dexterity (DEX): 90 (30) ... 90 (30)
Agility (AGI): 80 (20) ... 80 (20)
Discipline (DIS): 50 (-5) ... 50 (-5)
Aura (AUR): 60 (10) ... 60 (10)
Logic (LOG): 40 (-5) ... 40 (-5)
Intuition (INT): 80 (15) ... 80 (15)
Wisdom (WIS): 80 (15) ... 80 (15)
Influence (INF): 30 (-10) ... 30 (-10)

I maxed strength for high AS at low level as this is just a fun char, and im not planning on taking him to cap.

[thefarmer]

I just wanted to comment on the sheer weirdness (My opinion) of a sylph named Wombat that brawls..

Other than that, rangers don't have that many spells that'll help your brawling.

[nocturnix]

Also should I be training in shields as well? Im not sure of the mechanics of brawling.

Do I dual wield brawling weapons, or hold shield and brawling weapon? Seems kind of funny imagining a brawler holding a fist scythe and a shield, no?

If not, do i pick up dual wield?

[nocturnix]

What about ambushing? They have some good hiding and ambushing related skills?

[Latrinsorm]

Brawling weapons are pretty piss-poor, but you can generally find creatures without armor in the lower levels, so you should do ok.

[Insodus]

I'm guessing he's planning on going for the purely crit kill philosophy, like with dagger rogues. Sai's are pretty insane at ambushing eyes.

With that said, this plan would only be worth it if you plan to Fu also.

[The Ponzzz]

1x shield (medium shield), 1x dodge, hiding and ambushing if you got the points will help. Voln fu is about the only reason I could see you doing this. If no Voln, it just doesn't make sense.

[nocturnix]

I'm guessing he's planning on going for the purely crit kill philosophy, like with dagger rogues. Sai's are pretty insane at ambushing eyes.

With that said, this plan would only be worth it if you plan to Fu also.

Exactly my plan.

Ambushing the eyes from hiding
and
Voln fu for open combat/undead.

Its more of an experiment than anything. just looking for strange/fun/origional combinations.

I am having a blast with my THW haste wizard, which, obviously is a much more common path than what I am proposing here. But i have had a blast with it nonetheless.

So i figured i'd experiment with something else, such as this.

obviously it has its limitations, but then, so does pretty much any training path.

[nocturnix]

Exactly my plan.

Ambushing the eyes from hiding
and
Voln fu for open combat/undead.

Its more of an experiment than anything. just looking for strange/fun/origional combinations.

I am having a blast with my THW haste wizard, which, obviously is a much more common path than what I am proposing here. But i have had a blast with it nonetheless.

So i figured i'd experiment with something else, such as this.

obviously it has its limitations, but then, so does pretty much any training path.

That being said, maybe i should name him Eyesnatcher, or Oneeye, or Eyeman, or Eyeless :)

[Belnia]

Small shield will be better for you. With the phantom Dodge ranks from Mobility, you'll effectively have more dodge than shield ranks. The small shield would result in more DS, accordingly.

Use fist-scythes for dealing actual semi decent damage with the weapon itself. Sais are for ambushing. Look for a nice flaring set. Fire/Lightning isn't bad, as long as you're careful of water-logged rooms with the lightning. The fire will mess up trolls.

Camouflage is your friend for ambushing. Sounds is good for more DS pushdown. I'd suggest Feint or Dirt Kick for combat maneuvers. Feint is still awesome for reducing stance, and Dirt Kick, on a successful hit will reduce the perception of the target, making it easier to hide infront of them and get more DS pushdown.

In all honesty, rogues and warriors have more fun maneuvers that a brawler can take advantage of. Sucker punch, twin hammerfists, haymaker, etc.

[Donquix]

if you'd like to commission a forged perfect sai or two, feel free to message me :)

[nocturnix]

Small shield will be better for you. With the phantom Dodge ranks from Mobility, you'll effectively have more dodge than shield ranks. The small shield would result in more DS, accordingly.

Use fist-scythes for dealing actual semi decent damage with the weapon itself. Sais are for ambushing. Look for a nice flaring set. Fire/Lightning isn't bad, as long as you're careful of water-logged rooms with the lightning. The fire will mess up trolls.

Camouflage is your friend for ambushing. Sounds is good for more DS pushdown. I'd suggest Feint or Dirt Kick for combat maneuvers. Feint is still awesome for reducing stance, and Dirt Kick, on a successful hit will reduce the perception of the target, making it easier to hide infront of them and get more DS pushdown.

In all honesty, rogues and warriors have more fun maneuvers that a brawler can take advantage of. Sucker punch, twin hammerfists, haymaker, etc.

Can someone please explain the mechanics of how shields work and why a small shield would be better in this case than any other shield?

[Stunseed]

If you're going to dodge, use a smaller shield.

If you want to block, train less in dodge and use a larger shield.

Doing both is a waste of TP's.

[Latrinsorm]

All shields have a dodge penalty: 22%, 30%, 38%, and 46% going up the ladder. Shields also have size modifiers for block DS, and the way it works out is that if you have more dodge than shield ranks (phantom or otherwise) then you're best off with a small shield.

I'd go with what Stun said as far as rangers are concerned, but I would point out that warriors can get both dodge and shield just fine. :D

[nocturnix]

My training grace period ends in 4 days, please provide me with some criticism/advice/feedback. Tell me what im doing wrong!


Name: XX Race: Sylvankind Profession: Ranger (not shown)
Gender: Male Age: 0 Expr: 121653 Level: 10
Normal (Bonus) ... Enhanced (Bonus)
Strength (STR): 100 (25) ... 100 (25)
Constitution (CON): 55 (2) ... 55 (2)
Dexterity (DEX): 95 (32) ... 95 (32)
Agility (AGI): 83 (21) ... 83 (21)
Discipline (DIS): 53 (-4) ... 53 (-4)
Aura (AUR): 63 (11) ... 63 (11)
Logic (LOG): 45 (-2) ... 45 (-2)
Intuition (INT): 83 (16) ... 83 (16)
Wisdom (WIS): 83 (16) ... 83 (16)
Influence (INF): 35 (-7) ... 35 (-7)
Mana: 37 Silver: 691


XXXXX (at level 10), your current skill bonuses and ranks (including all modifiers) are:
Skill Name | Current Current
| Bonus Ranks
Armor Use..........................| 58 12
Shield Use.........................| 54 11
Combat Maneuvers...................| 40 8
Brawling...........................| 102 24
Ambush.............................| 78 17
Physical Fitness...................| 50 10
Dodging............................| 30 6
Harness Power......................| 50 10
Survival...........................| 50 10
Stalking and Hiding................| 90 20
Perception.........................| 30 6
Climbing...........................| 40 8

Spell Lists
Minor Spirit.......................| 3

Spell Lists
Ranger.............................| 9
Training Points: 7 Phy 19 Mnt
(Use SKILLS BASE to display unmodified ranks and goals)

[nocturnix]

Trying to pick my Cmans...

being that I will be mostly ambushing, or voln-fu....heres what I'm thinking:

Dirtkick? (does this work on undead?)
Shield Bash (opener)
Shadow Mastery
Or headbutt (opener)

Which would you reccommend?

[thefarmer]

I'd wouldn't worry about Cmans. I doubt you'll have enough stamina to run them all consistantly until past title.