Cheese + Great Cleave?

[JohnnyMayHymn]

[Thought exercise, all official books/web enhancements allowed]

I've been playing Neverwinter Nights and Great Cleave is working out well with my cheaty-faced, 50's-in-all-stats monk build that I made for a speed run. (monk is only for the speed boost) He just runs up to a group of monsters and one hit kills everything within reach.

So, my question is, how can I get this kind of efficiency out of Great Cleave in a pnp game?  I'm thinking a Hood, flyby attack, or Ghost, and some kind of reach weapon?

What would you guys recommend?  I don't usually play melee types except for Wildshape.

[brujon]

The problem with great cleave in PbP & PnP is it's diminishing returns. The more high level you become, the harder it becomes to face groups of easy to kill minions. Great cleave is also limited by reach, and magic is more efficient in killing groups of monsters that are spaced out...

[Unbeliever]

If you're willing to depart from D&D's mechanics, Star Wars Saga Edition has a feat called follow through.  It lets you move your speed after killing an enemy with a melee attack, and if you have cleave you can then use it after the movement.  You could also fold this into Supreme Cleave or something. 

I found that it turned cleave, a feat I've never taken in D&D except as a prereq, into something enormously fun.

The other thing is what Brujon touches on -- mobs are a lot more common in computer games than pen and paper RPGs.  It's easier for a computer to handle (and easier to program than a bunch of new enemies) than it is for a DM to run them.  But, if the DM does run them then cleave isn't all that bad. 

Besides that, you're on the right track -- having a huge amount of a single attack damage makes cleave's extra shot more valuable. 

[Maat Mons]

The streetfighter alternative class feature (Cityscape web enhancement) for barbarian might be up your ally:

At 19th level, the barbarian acquires a "cleaving charge." If he drops an opponent on a charge attack, and he has at least 10 feet of movement remaining, he can immediately make a new charge attack against a second foe. If he drops that foe and still has movement remaining, he can charge a third, and so on until he either fails to drop a foe, or runs out of movement. All the other standard rules for a charge attack still apply, including the fact that he must have at least 10 feet of distance to make the charge.

Even if he somehow gains the ability to make multiple attacks on a charge (such as with the lion's charge spell from the Spell Compendium), he must drop the foe on the first attack to use this ability. Similarly, he cannot use this ability and Cleave or Great Cleave in the same round.

[JohnnyMayHymn]

19th lvl is a little high, especially 19 levels of barbarian, but yea that's the kind of stuff I'm looking for...

Maybe if I add titan bloodline... is ghost incompatible with hood?

[ClayQ]

Supreme Cleave + Press the advantage (White Raven Stance) for a 10ft step between cleaves once per round, Not sure but there might be a way to build on this. Supreme cleave can be found from FBeserker and Knight protector both Complete Warrior)

Reach obviously, anything that adds to this.

Tactical Soldier 7 [Minatures Handbook] (bit spendy on the levels but....) For the Delayed Cleave, if someone kills the last mob you hit and you still threaten it you can make a cleave attack as an AoO. Level 2 of the PrC also gives you Sidestep feat from the same book allowing you to take a free 5-foot step when making an AoO, not limited to one per round).

[awaken_D_M_golem]

Sure.

When you kill a cheese with Great Cleave
you can immediately try to kill another cheese.
 
iirc - you need Precision damage to slice up
cheese in such a way it impresses the ladies.

[Amechra]

I remember working on a Tactical Soldier build that came out of Dvati; each Dvati kept next to each-other, and as one killed something, they both got Cleave attacks.

I know someone made a really nice Cleave base homebrew PrC somewhere...

There are methods (I would need to look 'em up, but...) that can increase your 5' steps to get you 20' of movement that can include a π/2 turn (look, I prefer radians to degrees, but... 90 degrees.)

[ClayQ]

Elocater 7th Gets Capricious step allowing you two 5ft steps per round.

[Tr011]

There are methods (I would need to look 'em up, but...) that can increase your 5' steps to get you 20' of movement that can include a π/2 turn (look, I prefer radians to degrees, but... 90 degrees.)

Tumble DC 40 (OA) or Sparring Dummy of the Master (A&EG) allow you to make 10ft-steps. Press the Advantage (white raven 5) from ToB let's you make additional 5ft. steps, while RAI/RAW is pretty unclear if it's 1/round or after every step (then you had your 20' steps).

Btw: Thunderous Throw (Bloodstorm Blade 2 from ToB) let's you make ranged attacks like melee attacks. That way you could kill guys that are far away with your full attack while getting melee attacks against enemies within your reach. Should be pretty fun coupled with those 20ft. steps.

[JohnnyMayHymn]

That's it, bloodstorm blade + hulking hurler and great cleave 

[ClayQ]

Don't forget the 2 or 3 level dip for supreme cleave.