The Dull Runner is a paladin from the order of the Bleak Walkers dedicated to burn rubber. With blinding speed he reaches the perfect position to shoot enemy casters down in order to bring a swift end to all spellcasting. If three nasty shots from his custom made arquebuses are not enough, he will quickly catch up and stamp the caster's forehead with a fat hammer. Known for his unnatural speed, but also his dullness and bullishness, most nobles will only call on him as a really, really last resort (since he's light on his feet, but slow off the mark). Besides his dopiness, the Dull Runner's behavior generally reinforces cruelty and brutality. The quickest resolution to a conflict is one in which the Dull Runner's arrival is announced and a shot in the crotch immediately follows. To ensure that people believe that no smart comment will ever be given by the Dull Runner, he avoids any dealings where he could be seen as clever given the right circumstances. For the Dull Runner, there are no right circumstances. The Dull Runner won't call off an attack even if his "employer" asks him to or turns forces on him - because he's just to fast to be stopped.
The Dull Runner isn't a sadist (at least, not most of the time), and while he's effectively a mercenary, the control that his employers exert over him is fairly limited because he's thick as a brick. Much like the arquebuses he's wielding, the Dull Runner should only be pointed at things you don't mind being completely shattered to pieces.
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The Dull Runner
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Difficulty: PotD; Version 2.03
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Class: Paladin (Bleak Walker)
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Race: Island Aumaua
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Background: Rauatai - Mercenary
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Stats:
MIG: 20
CON: 10
DEX: 15
PER: 15
INT: 3
RES: 15
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Skills: Stealth 7, Athl. 4, Lore 8, Surv. 7
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Talents (a=auto, r=recommended, !=important)
Armed to the Teeth (a)
Weapon Focus Soldier ®
Weapon & Shield ®
Appr. Sneak Attack or Scion of Flame or Fast Runner
Runner's Wounding Shot
Remember Rhakan Field
Intense Flames ®
Arms Bearer (!)
Abilities
Faith and Conviction (a)
Flames of Devotion (!)
Lay on Hands
Zealous Charge (!)
Reviving Exhortation
Sworn Enemy
Righteous Soul
Healing Chain
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Items (*=additional echantments by me; !=important, r=recommended):
Weapon set 1: arquebus (Exceptional*, Burning Lash*, Kith-Slaying*) ®
Weapon Set 2: arquebus (Exceptional*, Burning Lash*, Kith-Slaying*) ®
Weapon set 3: arquebus (Exceptional*, Burning Lash*, Kith-Slaying*) ®
Weapon Set 4: Shatterstar (Exceptional*, Burning Lash*) & Outworn Buckler;
later: Godansthunyr(Exceptional*, Burning Lash*, Durgan-Refined*) & The Last Tower(Durgan-Refined*) ®
Boots: Boots of Speed ® or Malina's Boots
Head: Waage's Hat of Leadership
Armor: Argwes Adra ® or Äru Brekr
Neck: Engwithan Adra Ban Amulet or Cape of Withdrawal
Belt: Coil of Resourcefulness
Rings: Ring of Deflection, Ring of Protection
Hands: Archer's Gloves
Quick slots: healing potions, summons, scrolls
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The Dull Runner uses Zealous Charge, Boots of Speed, The Last Tower(shield) and Fast Runner (optional) to stack his movement speed bonus up to +6 (+7) which makes him the fastest runner there is. He once even beat Fulmineo Prondroni in a race for the cold buffet. This way he can quickly position himself and shoot his arquebueses with Flames of Devotion (Burning Lash+Intense Flames+Remember Rakhan Field+Scion of Flame). With this setup the burn damage is even higher than the original damage from the arquebus itself. On top of that there's also some corrode damage. Because he has 4 Weapon slots - 3 arquebuses and ine melee setup, only 2 FoD strikes are not enough - so he also my shoot foes with a Wounding Shot that does 180% arquebus damage over time +25% burn + Scion of Flame. All arquebuses are also kith-slaying so that most of the time one shot is enough to kill an enemy kith caster. Damage easily goes up to >120 per shot. When his guns are fired, he switches to war hammer & shield and is a good tank that can easily hold the line against most enemies while doing ok damage. The Coil of Resourcefulness spares a talent point because we don't need to take quick switch. Talent points are rare in this build - but you an freely choose from the abilities since only few are really needed.
I just took abilities that need no INT to be good - like Healing Chain and so on. That's also the reason I quit Sacred Immolation: the duration is bad, the aoe is too small and the raw damage is quite high (because of high MIG).
This guy makes a good tag team with Fulmineo when it comes to clipping enemy casters and stretching out the battlefield. When light armored Prondroni ever gets into a pretty pickle, the Dull Runner comes for the rescue with his blinding speed, Lay on Hands and Healing Chain. And if everything fails, he will just revive the fallen. How cruel is that?
Last but not least, his outfit is all green (corrode) and golden (fire) and matches his theme. That's the reason I chose Argwes Adra: it fits beautifully to the Last Tower, so does Godansthunyr. The Outworn Buckler also looks nice because it's green. And you can have it very early. It's herald radius is pretty small because of the low INT though. The hats (Liripipe and Waage's) also look very neat because you can change their colors to green/gold - and nobody else wanted to wear them, so... For more ironic laughs use Liripipe of Thinking.
The Last Tower is a bit tough to get early, but it's possible: you have to switch on Zealous Charge and wear Boots of Speed and maybe also take Fast Runner. Put on a Cape of Withdrawal. Get some figurines. Go to Crägholt (even if you're to weak to fight the Torn Bannermen) and just run past them. Since you're superfast and your defenses are quite high that should be no problem. Try to avoid the drunken orlan and the brawlers - they are also very fast and sometimes manage to land disengagement attacks which hurts a lot. From time to time drop some summons to stop the Torn Bannermen to follow you forever (they will try). Run to the Tower and pull the Torn Bannermen with you. When they see the Death Guards and Alghuls, they will all attack each other and you can sneak away to the entrance of the tower. Be sure to drop summons so that nobody will chase you. If you're at the stairs and nobody followed you, wait until the combat ends and enter the tower. Go to the treasure room and pick the lock of the chest that contains the Last Tower (mechanics 10 minimum I think) - tadaa! You have it - and with it the title of the fastest man alive - since it's move speed bonus stacks with all the others. Well maybe some day there will be a barabrian with Wild+Powerful Sprint + Boots of Speed + Fast Runner and he will be faster... but he has to sleep a lot to be that fast all the time - so that's kind of lame.
Ok, this paladin build is different - but it's fun to play and absolutely viable for PoTD. Maybe there are other builds that are stronger, but this one gives you some tactical advantages because aof the speed and the huge alpha strike damage. Besides that, he's very sturdy for a dps oriented character - and he just looks awesome!
Have fun!
edit: maaan - to lazy to correct all the typos today. Maybe tomorrow...