War Hulking Hurler (3.5e Optimized Character Build)

Introduction

A war hulking hurler.

References

• Complete Adventurer (CAd)
• Complete Warrior (CW)
• Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (FRCS)
• Miniatures Handbook (MH)
• Monster Manual or Races of the Wild (RotW)
• Monster Manual IV
• Planar Handbook
• Player's Guide to Faerûn (PGtF)
• Player's Handbook
• Races of the Dragon (RotD)

Game Rule Components

Race

Centaur^RotW

Templates

Lolth-touched^MM4

Classes

• Barbarian
• Hulking hurler^CW
• War hulk^MH

Feats

• Brutal Throw^CAd
• Cleave
• Natural Heavyweight^PlH
• Point Blank Shot
• Power Attack
• Weapon Focus

Items

• Belt of giant strength +6
• Hammer of thunderbolts
• Manual of gainful exercise +5
• Runes^{PGtF FRCS}

Spells

• Greater mighty wallop^RotD
• Righteous might
• Divine power

Hulking Hurler Class Features

• Really throw anything^CW
• overburdened heave^CW

Progression

This build uses the elite ability score array: Str 15, Dex 14, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 8. All ability score increases are dumped into Str.

ECL	Class/HD/LA	Feats	Special
1st	monstrous humanoid	Power Attack
2nd	monstrous humanoid		+2 Str (17)
3rd	LA		+2 Str (19)
4th	monstrous humanoid	Cleave	+2 Str (21)
5th	LA		+2 Str (23)
6th	monstrous humanoid		Large size
7th	Lolth-touched^MM4 template LA		+6 Str (29)
8th	barbarian		rage (33 str)
9th	war hulk^MH	Point Blank Shot	+2 Str (31/35)
10th	war hulk^MH		+2 Str (33/39)
11th	war hulk^MH		+2 Str, ability score increase (36/40)
12th	war hulk^MH	Weapon Focus (50-lb rock)	+2 Str (38/42)
13th	hulking hurler^CW		really throw anything^CW
14th	war hulk^MH		+2 Str (40/44)
15th	war hulk^MH	Brutal Throw^CAd	+2 Str, ability score increase (43/47)
16th	war hulk^MH		+2 Str (45/49)
17th	war hulk^MH		+2 Str (47/51)
18th	war hulk^MH	Natural Heavyweight^PlH	+2 Str (49/55)
19th	war hulk^MH		+2 Str, ability score increase (52/56)
20th	hulking hurler^CW		overburdened heave^CW

Highlights

At this point you have a character with a 52 Str (56 with rage) and Brutal Throw^CAd allows the centaur to use Str bonus instead of Dex bonus for thrown weapons. The class feature really throw anything (Ex) allows the centaur to throw any object that would be considered a light load suffering only a −2 penalty to attack. Overburdened heave (Ex) allows the centaur to throw anything that is considered a medium load, as a full-round action. Natural Heavyweight^PlH doubles the centaur's carrying capacity.

What's a light load for a raging centaur with a 56 Str? A medium bipedal creature's encumbrance with that Strength score is 19,584 lbs (306 × 64), but because a centaur is a large quadruped, it's triple: 58,752 lbs, and because he has Natural Heavyweight^PlH it's doubled to 117,504 lbs. An improvised weapon of that size does [3 + (weight/200 lbs round up)]d6 points of damage, (see Complete Warrior, page 159) which comes out to be 591d6, and a 56 Str adds 23 more points of damage (2091.5 average).

If the centaur decides to use a full-round action for overburdened heave, he can hurl an improvised weapon up to 235,008 lbs doing 1179d6+23 (4149.5 average) points of damage.

Munchkin-Size Me

You can use the standard point buy to max out strength instead of getting the elite ability score array. (+3 = 59)

Belt of giant strength +6 (= 65)

Manual of gainful exercise +5 (= 70)

A rune^{PGtF FRCS} of righteous might will give a +4 size bonus to strength and increases your size to huge. (= 74)

A rune^{PGtF FRCS} of divine power will increase your BAB by 10. (It, also, gives a +6 enhancement bonus to Strength—which overlaps with the belt of giant strength—and at least 7 temporary hit points.)

At this point 2,863,104 lbs is a light load. So you can throw an improvised weapon doing 14319d6+32 points of damage (50148.5 average; damage reduction? What's that?), and your attack bonus is (+17 BAB, +32 Str, −2 size, −2 improvised thrown weapon =) +45. Anything with an AC less than 48 can only be missed on a natural 1.

Overburdened heave: 28635d6+32 (100254.5 average)

add iron golem arm +12 ac d2 25/+2 +4 con and +12 str ( 92str (when raging)) 4 a +3 lv adust (can be taken at amy time)(give a gauntlet of rust to immune to rusting)

Side Notes

Limitations

Though runes are usable by anyone, they are twice as expensive as scrolls, and if you get reusable runes from a character with enough levels in the runecaster^{PGtF FRCS} PrC, they're even more expensive.

From the levels in war hulk, Intimidate is the only mental stat-based skill in which the centaur can have ranks.

The Lolth-touched^MM4 template changes the centaur's alignment to chaotic evil.

DM Counters

Restrict the number of high-tonnage objects available to throw. Alternatively, don't allow PCs into the War Hulk class; it's intended as a way of advancing monsters.

Also effective is the use of illusory and/or decoy enemies to draw the Hurler's supply of ammunition. Finally, such throws are highly impractical anywhere with a low ceiling. In some cases, the projectile may not even fit in your dungeon.

Miscellaneous

If you can get your hands on a hammer of thunderbolts (shouldn't be easy) and gauntlets of ogre power (fairly easy at high levels), you'll get an extra +2 to Strength and a +5 weapon that does 6d6 base damage (after size increase from righteous might). Find an 8th-level caster to cast greater mighty wallop^RotD and the weapon will do Colossal sized damage. So with all the bonuses you'll be doing 12d6+38 points of damage (80 average). Your enemies will have to make fortitude saves with every hit to avoid death from massive damage (barring damage reduction).

There is also the Gloves of Taarnahm the Vigilant (PGtF, 10,000 gp) Gives any weapon you are holding throwing and returning weapon qualities. If you were to include that improvised weapons gained this, then you won't have to worry about ammunition, provided you're able to catch the damn thing when it comes back.

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