This build generates pretty good DPS against groups and single targets, while remaining tough and survivable. It also keeps up the [Into the Fray] party-wide buff that we all know and love. (In fact, that's key to its damage.) One thing it does not do -- [Knight's Valor]!
Because of this, this GF really works more like a durable DPS class than like a tank. In a party, I think it would fit better into a DPS slot than trying to be the party's only tank. You'd probably want a traditional GF or a Devotion OP tanking.
Paragon Path
Swordmaster
Ability Scores
Put all discretionary ability upgrade points into STR (for the raw damage) and CON (for the hit points).
Feats
Here are the feats: http://nwcalc.com/index.html#/gf?b=29do ... &h=0&p=smr
Powers
Here are the key powers that make the build work:
- Weapon Master's Strike
- Crushing Surge
- Tide of Iron
- Into the Fray
- Line Breaker's Assault
- Enforced Threat
- Lunging Strike
- Knight's Challenge
- Combat Superiority (remember, when you take the Conqueror feat that buffs it, you only need to put one point into it to get the full benefit -- any additional points are wasted, so save them for something else!)
- Steel Blitz
Shield Warrior's Wrath - Fighter's Recovery
I'm going to paint with broad strokes here for the sake of brevity, and also because I'm not 100% sure what the optimal choice in every one of these categories would be.
I generally took offensive campaign boons while I was testing the build on the preview server, and even so, I did not feel too squishy. Emphasizing offense over defense in boon selection is probably the way to go, methinks. Some suggestions that seemed to work well for me:
- Elvish Fury
- Rampaging Madness
- Rousing Warmth (maybe Winter's Bounty would be good, too, but you're already gaining plenty of AP from shielding hits)
- Feats that boosted power, crit, armor pen, AP generation, combat advantage bonus, stamina, etc.
I'm not going to make any suggestions here, mostly because I suspect that anyone who tries this out is going to be respeccing an existing character and not building a new one from scratch. I will say that this build performed well using a 100% defensive GF's gear (Elven Ward, etc.) and without any weapon or armor enchantments.
Playstyle (a.k.a. putting it all together)
Here's what worked well against groups:
- Weapon Master's Strike
- Crushing Surge
- Into the Fray
- Line Breaker's Assault
- Enforced Threat
- Lunging Strike
- Combat Superiority
- Steel Blitz
- Fighter's Recovery
Against tough single targets like Frost Giants, I made the following substitutions:
- Tide of Iron instead of Weapon Master's Strike
- Knight's Challenge instead of Enforced Threat
- Lunging Strike instead of Line Breaker's Assault
- Shield Warrior's Wrath instead of Steel Blitz
Conclusion
I'd love to see people try this out and give some feedback. Go forth and conquer!
