The incredible Hulk

[Bear-racade]

Hey guys,

after watching avengers on DVD again last night I cant help but wanting to play "The Hulk".
My Idea so far (as I also always wanted to play a goliath):

Goliath racial substitution barbarian 1/ Wolf totem barbarian 2/ Swordsage 1+

Now I went for swordsage because of the nice feel of Tiger Claw, Setting Sun and Stone Dragon.
All very flavourful. This way I can use Feat to become more efficient and use the maneuvers to really become the Hulk in playstyle.

My Group contains only people who don't optimize (AT ALL!).
There's the barbarian with PA but nothing else of this "chain", there's a druid who lacks any kind of experience or imagination, there's a sorcerer who seldomly takes things outside of core.
Playing a normal crusader (even gimped) I get looked at like I am some kind of evil powergamer (which I am, but only at heart ^^).

So this is why I went for a themed build.
On paper it sounds nice, but between losing a level through goliath and an initiator level through two level of barbarian I gotta question if a character like this will be useful even in this group setting.

It's 28 point buy, no flaws.
My Idea:

Str: 18 (+4)
Dex: 12 (+1)
Con: 16 (+3)
Wis: 14 (+2)
Int: 10 (0)
Cha: 10 (0)

Feats:
1. Adaptive Style
2. Improved Trip*
3. Improved unarmed strike*, weapon focus (Unarmed strike)*, Extra Rage (+2 rage/day)
6.
9.
12.Superior unarmed strike
15.Improved natural attack

(* means bonus feat)

The racial substitution at level one nets me mountain rage (size increase)
Goliaths may make standing jump checks like running ones.
Powerful build gives me + on every opposed check where size matters
Wolf totem 2 gives me Improved trip without preq.
Swordsage gives me maneuvers, stances and unarmed striking.
And can even wear light armor whilst gaining wis to AC (Thats how my DM reads it).

Now I thought about knockback, but its too feat heavy for my taste (plus I feel like PA is not as useful in this build).
Maybe rather extended or extra rage?

Does anyone of you have any ideas?
I'm worried about my defenses too, though I gotta say that throwing the enemy and (since it counts as a trip attempt) hitting him afterwords as long as hes no further away than 10 feet, feels quite nice.

Thanks for reading.

[zugschef]

i'd use psychic warrior and the expansion power for a size increase over two categories.

[Bear-racade]

Uh, I never thought about this one.
Would have to go half-giant for it due to XP penalties, but it is a idea worth thinking about.

thanks

edit: Wow... they gain barely any PP at all... That would be hard to pull of

[kitcik]

Warblade not swordsage.

1) The Hulk is constantly shrugging stuff off with his Iron Heart Surge.
2) Adaptive Style is for wusses. HULK WANT POWER ATTACK.

If you're going flavor > optimization, the Hulk should definitely have AWESOME BLOW.

[Bear-racade]

Yeah, but the setting sun maneuvers are really perfect.
Throwing people around like they are puppets? CHECK !

Also as for awesome blow: I'd prefer knockback for that. Which I will get later on. Works better for the prereqs too

[sirpercival]

Yeah, but the setting sun maneuvers are really perfect.
Throwing people around like they are puppets? CHECK !

That would be dungeoncrasher.

Alternatively, reflavor Horned Juggernaut to trigger when you get mad.

[ksbsnowowl]

True Hulkness is achieved with a Goliath Barb X/Warhulk

When you are not raging, you do not qualify for Warhulk, and can use any mental-stat skills you want.  When you Rage, you get big, strong, and dumb.

[Yirrare]

So, I see you plan to go unarmed strike... The variant barbarian class City Brawler (DR349 p.92) looses martial weapons, medium armour and shields for Improved unarmed strike, TWF (with unarmed only) and less penalty with improvised weapons (which feels very hulk to me...).

I know you can take this with the level of tiger totem barbarian, but I am not sure how it works with racial subs. If you can, pick up all the three variants, as they would go very nicely with your intended build. That would give you pounce, mountain rage, imp. unarmed strike, TWF and better with improvised weapons. All in one level.

Best Regards
Yirrare

[Bear-racade]

Thanks guys, that really sounds awesome

[awaken_D_M_golem]

Near the end of the 2003 Hulk (Bana), there's
the electric wire that feeds his dad's power.
That sounds like Shambling Mound to me,
although that sounds like the Abomination.
Whatever ... idk what the d&d equivalent is to
the energy well with the cooling effect.
Hulk survived.  Hulk go smash somethin' else.

[caelic]

I've always preferred Wildshape ranger into Master of Many Forms for Hulkiness.  Using a War Troll as the base chassis works nicely.  Start with a Changeling, and it doesn't even have to look like a troll--you can get the whole range of gray Hulk, green Hulk, et cetera.

Of course, that's a higher level build, and better approximates the "Professor" era of the Hulk where he had Banner's brain.

[midnight_v]

You could make it something like this by heliomance:

"Don't Make Me Angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry" - Bruce Banner

Bruce Banner, Level 20 Wood Elf
Stats pre-adjustment: STR 18 DEX 10 CON 16 INT 10 WIS 10 CHA 8
Stats post adjustment: STR 25 DEX 12 CON 14 INT 8 WIS 10 CHA 8

1: Ranger 1: Great Fortitude (Level 1), Improved Unarmed Strike (Flaw), Endurance (Flaw)
2: Barbarian 1
3: Barbarian 2: Frozen BerserkerFrostburn (Level 3)
4: Fighter 1: Power Attack (Fighter Bonus)
5: Fist of the ForestComplete Champion 1
6: BerserkDeities and Demigods 1: Intimidating RageComplete Warrior (Level 6)
7: Fighter 2: Cleave (Fighter Bonus)
8: FrostragerFrostburn 1
9: Bear WarriorComplete Warrior 1: Destructive RageComplete Warrior (Level 9)
10: Frenzied BerserkerComplete Warrior 1
11: WildrunnerRaces of the Wild 1
12: Wildrunner 2: Instantaneous Rage (Level 12)
13: WarshaperComplete Warrior 1
14: Warshaper 2
15-18: Bear Warrior 2-5: Open feat x2
19: Fist of the Forest 2
20: Fist of the Forest 3

Skills from 1st to 10th level: Qualifying for Wildrunner was a pain.

Spoiler 
1: Handle Animal 2 ranks, Hide 4 ranks, Intimidate 1 rank CC, Knowledge (Nature) 4 ranks, Move Silently 4 ranks, Survival 4 ranks
2: Survival 3 ranks
3: Handle Animal 1 rank, Knowledge (nature) 0.5 ranks CC, Survival 1 rank
4: Handle Animal 1 rank
5: Intimidate 1 rank
6: Intimidate 1 rank
7: Intimidate 1 rank
8: Knowledge (nature) 0.5 ranks CC
9: Hide 1 rank CC, Move Silently 0.5 ranks CC
10: Move Silently 0.5 ranks CC

Total:
Handle Animal 4 ranks
Hide 5 ranks
Intimidate 4 ranks
Knowledge (nature) 5 ranks
Move Silently 5 ranks
Survival 8 ranks

Exactly enough to qualify for Wildrunner at 11th level having qualified for all the other PrCs on the way.


I've not bothered to sort out equipment.

Forms of rage:
Rage
Feral Trance
Battle Fury
Frostrage
Bear transformation
Primal Scream

Stats while raging: 59 STR 24 DEX 28 CON 32 INT 10 WIS 8 CHA
Naked AC normally: 13: 10 +3 CON
Naked AC while raging: 28: 10 +7 DEX +9 Natural Armour +11 CON -2 Rage -2 Battle Fury -4 Frenzy -1 Size

Full attack routine: Unarmed Strike +41/+41/+36/+31/+26 2d8+1d4+26 plus 2 claws +36 1d8+24 plus bite +36 2d6+24 plus gore +36 1d8+24 plus Improved Grab, Grapple modifier +46

Wait... no.

I just re-read this:

My Group contains only people who don't optimize (AT ALL!).
There's the barbarian with PA but nothing else of this "chain", there's a druid who lacks any kind of experience or imagination, there's a sorcerer who seldomly takes things outside of core.
Playing a normal crusader (even gimped) I get looked at like I am some kind of evil powergamer (which I am, but only at heart ^^).

So this is why I went for a themed build.
On paper it sounds nice, but between losing a level through goliath and an initiator level through two level of barbarian I gotta question if a character like this will be useful even in this group setting.

  This is my opinion of course but... you can't really play somethin sufficiently hulky that you feel lik the hulk and not be called broken by a group like that. Which really kind sucks, but if they're still at the level of optimization in which hey think The Gimped Crusader is evil/powergamey stuff. . .
  Playing  character that even superficially resemble the hulk interms of what the hulk is, could be uhm, misconstrued.

 Mostly, because you're planning on making the hulk in a party with an unoptimized barbarian, that might make your friend  when he rages and you rage, and you rage SOOO MUCH HARDER! POWERTHIRST! etc etc.
  I mean you see what I'm saying right? This is one of those things where I find myself saying the differnce between optimization and "bad stuff" that optimization is about having all the knowledge and the ability, to find  a sweet spot not just to over power.



"Having 300 when you need 100 once
Is not optimal.
Having 100 whenever you need 100
Is" From the tao of optimization - by  tsuyoshikentsu

[zook1shoe]

Frenzied Berserker sounds like a good hulk to me.... Cant die despite how much damage you take

Then your frenzy subsides long after all the baddies are torn to pieces

[midnight_v]

Frenzied Berserker sounds like a good hulk to me.... Cant die despite how much damage you take

Then your frenzy subsides long after all the baddies are torn to pieces

Hmm... did I mention that? Oh, its in the build above. Yea I agree. Execially if you take goliath rage.