A Build For a Bleak Walker Crusader or a Templar

[Cyrus_Blackfeather]

Hey guys,

 

So, I've been brainstorming an idea for a Bleak Walker Paladin as a tank for PotD. I'm trying to decide between a Templar or a Crusader. I opted to list the pros and cons of each, followed by a build that I was intending to run. Then I was hoping to get some feedback from you guys regarding which you think would play better. 

 

Crusader -

 

Pros: Much more defensive, access fo Disciplined Strikes/Barrage to improve accuracy. Interrupts, Armored Grace and Mob Stance to deal with heavy armor recovery time, and some really nice passives to boost damage with proficient weapons. 

 

Cons: No AoE to speak of until later (And that's on kill).

 

Templar - 

 

Pros: Can run debuffing/damaging Priest spells while Xoti buffs, Magran Priests apparently get the most class specific dialogue choices of any class in the game. I'd have a nice AoE heal that also dealt with Vessels, which are fairly common earlier on. I get Scion of Flame for Penetration on fire attacks.

 

Cons: I miss out on all of the cool stuff that Fighter has, and there's quite a lot of that. 

 

The Build: 

 

Race - Human

Culture - Deadfire (For extra dialogue checks)

Background - Mercenary 

Active Skills: Athletics/Alchemy

Passive Skills: Insight/Intimidate

 

Stats:

 

Might - 18 (7 points + 1 Human racial)

Constitution - 14 (4 points)

Dexterity - 10 (9 + 1 Deadfire Culture)

Perception - 16 (6 points)

Intellect - 10

Resolve - 10 (9 + 1 Human racial)

 

I'm open for recommendations regarding this build. I'm really nervous having such a low Resolve, but that doesn't seem to be the "Charisma" score of this game anymore, now that we can invest into Intimidate, Bluff, Diplomacy, etc. Deep Faith seems to have my defenses pretty well covered, my main concern is bolstering my hit points. 

 

TL;DR: What do you guys think of this build for either a Crusader or a Templar Bleak Walker, and which do you think would be a more enjoyable experience overall? Now that the disposition system has changed, I'm looking forward to playing a character that isn't necessarily a nice person most of the time. 

[Voltron]

Not to in anyway bash your build idea or anything but Crusader is totally unkillable and untouchable. You have superior AOE dmg once you grab Cleave, paladin single target super burst to start Cleave, warrior charge, rapid recovery, unbending, lay on hands, +21 defenses from Paladin passive, -25% recovery on armors, +20 defenses from fighter active, Disciplined strikes. Grab Bleak Walker if for party for more dmg, Kind Wayfarer for AOE heal for party and being totally unkillable or shieldbearer for being even more unkillable.... There is no wrong choice for crusader.

 

The only reason I didn't cover still Crusader because there is nothing to cover. It's probably most OP melee hybrid in game in terms of having absolutely no downsides from start to end of the game. From level 1 to 20 he is just unstoppable. He does not require specific gear or items, he just goes through game.

So all I can say is: with Crusader just go what you want, go dual wield Devoted for Scordeo Sabre + Fin's Fortune for most OP stuff or just go sword for early Modwyr, Duskfall and whisper of yearwood. If you want being more broken- just grab Nature Godlike.

You just can't go wrong with Crusader, not a chance.

Edited May 26, 2018 by Voltron

[Jmerc]

Crusader is stronger, there's no question, though we'll see if that changes with the balance patch. Templar is certainly good enough for any difficulty as well, Im sure it can POTD solo if thats what youre into (frankly any Paladin multiclass probably can), but Crusader will be superior in any setting. Im tempted to suggest Arcane Knight if you want Paladin/caster but that might not be thematically what youre looking for, however one of the big draws of Magran templar are fire spells and im pretty sure multiclassing Wizard just does that better and earlier. You lose priest buffs/heals, but tbh when I ran Templar I didnt find myself using those much. I did love the free aoe heal though.

 

Anyways you don't need con that high, just 10 is fine, and resolve can pretty safely be dropped very low. Paladin's defenses are very, very strong so don't sweat it, just make sure you take deep faith and don't screw up your alignment. Another thing about Templar, you have to track 3 positive and 3 negative attitudes, whereas for Crusader it'll be 2 and 2, so that can make a minor difference. 

[Cyrus_Blackfeather]

Crusader is stronger, there's no question, though we'll see if that changes with the balance patch. Templar is certainly good enough for any difficulty as well, Im sure it can POTD solo if thats what youre into (frankly any Paladin multiclass probably can), but Crusader will be superior in any setting. Im tempted to suggest Arcane Knight if you want Paladin/caster but that might not be thematically what youre looking for, however one of the big draws of Magran templar are fire spells and im pretty sure multiclassing Wizard just does that better and earlier. You lose priest buffs/heals, but tbh when I ran Templar I didnt find myself using those much. I did love the free aoe heal though.

 

Anyways you don't need con that high, just 10 is fine, and resolve can pretty safely be dropped very low. Paladin's defenses are very, very strong so don't sweat it, just make sure you take deep faith and don't screw up your alignment. Another thing about Templar, you have to track 3 positive and 3 negative attitudes, whereas for Crusader it'll be 2 and 2, so that can make a minor difference. 

 

I don't really want to go too crazy and drop stats for roleplay reasons (And to give myself just a wee bit of challenge by not min/maxing for PotD). Though if I can drop Constitution safely I might pump Dexterity a bit just to attack slightly faster. 

 

Also, I don't mind if they tweak it slightly, though I hope when they tune PotD they focus more on making the encounters harder rather than just nerfing everything. 

 

So with that in mind, how about... 

 

Might - 19 (8 + 1 Human Racial)

Constitution - 10

Dexterity - 13 (2 + 1)

Perception - 16 (6 points)

Intellect - 10

Resolve - 10 (9+1) 

 

I might drop Dex for more Perception, but I dunno. I know this build is going to be super powerful, but honestly what I want most out of it is roleplay. Bleak Walker seems like it'd be a really interesting character to play, especially keeping to those particular dispositions. 

[Cyrus_Blackfeather]

Oh, also. Sabers or Swords? I'm leaning towards swords for multiple damage types/Devoted penetration bonuses/Enchantments that just seem more fun. Plus Modwyr is a sword that's in love with you. That's absolutely incredible. 

[Voltron]

Oh, also. Sabers or Swords? I'm leaning towards swords for multiple damage types/Devoted penetration bonuses/Enchantments that just seem more fun. Plus Modwyr is a sword that's in love with you. That's absolutely incredible. 

 

Sabres are stronger and have Scrodeo Sabre which is broken on anything which can hit a lot of times (like Fighter) but Swords are more versitile and strongest ones are available super early in game (like Modwyr or Duskfall or Whisper of Yearwood).

[Jmerc]

 

Crusader is stronger, there's no question, though we'll see if that changes with the balance patch. Templar is certainly good enough for any difficulty as well, Im sure it can POTD solo if thats what youre into (frankly any Paladin multiclass probably can), but Crusader will be superior in any setting. Im tempted to suggest Arcane Knight if you want Paladin/caster but that might not be thematically what youre looking for, however one of the big draws of Magran templar are fire spells and im pretty sure multiclassing Wizard just does that better and earlier. You lose priest buffs/heals, but tbh when I ran Templar I didnt find myself using those much. I did love the free aoe heal though.

 

Anyways you don't need con that high, just 10 is fine, and resolve can pretty safely be dropped very low. Paladin's defenses are very, very strong so don't sweat it, just make sure you take deep faith and don't screw up your alignment. Another thing about Templar, you have to track 3 positive and 3 negative attitudes, whereas for Crusader it'll be 2 and 2, so that can make a minor difference. 

 

I don't really want to go too crazy and drop stats for roleplay reasons (And to give myself just a wee bit of challenge by not min/maxing for PotD). Though if I can drop Constitution safely I might pump Dexterity a bit just to attack slightly faster. 

 

Also, I don't mind if they tweak it slightly, though I hope when they tune PotD they focus more on making the encounters harder rather than just nerfing everything. 

 

So with that in mind, how about... 

 

Might - 19 (8 + 1 Human Racial)

Constitution - 10

Dexterity - 13 (2 + 1)

Perception - 16 (6 points)

Intellect - 10

Resolve - 10 (9+1) 

 

I might drop Dex for more Perception, but I dunno. I know this build is going to be super powerful, but honestly what I want most out of it is roleplay. Bleak Walker seems like it'd be a really interesting character to play, especially keeping to those particular dispositions. 

 

 

Fair enough, in that case however I'll let you know when I ran a 10 resolve character I think I failed most of the conversation resolve checks anyways, im not sure what resolve number you need to pass them is. Or maybe you just want to feel like your character isn't a resolveless coward, which I admit annoys me a bit about my 3 resolve characters

 

If you're going crusader, fighter has good ways to buff perception/accuracy so you can favor dex a bit. You might want to consider slightly higher intellect for the disciplined barrage/vigorous defense skill trees and (if you want to use them) paladin exhortations. 

[Cyrus_Blackfeather]

 

 

Crusader is stronger, there's no question, though we'll see if that changes with the balance patch. Templar is certainly good enough for any difficulty as well, Im sure it can POTD solo if thats what youre into (frankly any Paladin multiclass probably can), but Crusader will be superior in any setting. Im tempted to suggest Arcane Knight if you want Paladin/caster but that might not be thematically what youre looking for, however one of the big draws of Magran templar are fire spells and im pretty sure multiclassing Wizard just does that better and earlier. You lose priest buffs/heals, but tbh when I ran Templar I didnt find myself using those much. I did love the free aoe heal though.

 

Anyways you don't need con that high, just 10 is fine, and resolve can pretty safely be dropped very low. Paladin's defenses are very, very strong so don't sweat it, just make sure you take deep faith and don't screw up your alignment. Another thing about Templar, you have to track 3 positive and 3 negative attitudes, whereas for Crusader it'll be 2 and 2, so that can make a minor difference. 

 

I don't really want to go too crazy and drop stats for roleplay reasons (And to give myself just a wee bit of challenge by not min/maxing for PotD). Though if I can drop Constitution safely I might pump Dexterity a bit just to attack slightly faster. 

 

Also, I don't mind if they tweak it slightly, though I hope when they tune PotD they focus more on making the encounters harder rather than just nerfing everything. 

 

So with that in mind, how about... 

 

Might - 19 (8 + 1 Human Racial)

Constitution - 10

Dexterity - 13 (2 + 1)

Perception - 16 (6 points)

Intellect - 10

Resolve - 10 (9+1) 

 

I might drop Dex for more Perception, but I dunno. I know this build is going to be super powerful, but honestly what I want most out of it is roleplay. Bleak Walker seems like it'd be a really interesting character to play, especially keeping to those particular dispositions. 

 

 

Fair enough, in that case however I'll let you know when I ran a 10 resolve character I think I failed most of the conversation resolve checks anyways, im not sure what resolve number you need to pass them is. Or maybe you just want to feel like your character isn't a resolveless coward, which I admit annoys me a bit about my 3 resolve characters

 

If you're going crusader, fighter has good ways to buff perception/accuracy so you can favor dex a bit. You might want to consider slightly higher intellect for the disciplined barrage/vigorous defense skill trees and (if you want to use them) paladin exhortations. 

 

 

If it's anything like the Perception checks, you probably need something like 15+ Resolve to pass most of those checks. Honestly, I'm mostly doing it for flavor reasons. Having average stats is okay, but when you drop things down to five or below it starts to get a little too min-maxy and I want to try to avoid that where I can. It's also why I hope that when they do tune PotD they don't tune it with min/maxers in mind. It should be challenging but accessible to different character builds - as long as you're not, say, building a 3 Might 18 Resolve Priest of Eothas/Barbarian multiclass or something. 

 

Drat, I never really thought about Intellect. The issue is that there's so many stats that are important/worth keeping up for multiple reasons, either so that you can roleplay with them or so that they can provide a significant benefit in combat. Here's some more builds I've considered. Unbuffed, mind you. 

 

Godlike Variant (Either Nature or Death for RP potential)

Might - 18 (

Constitution - 10

Dexterity - 9 (+1)

Perception - 17 (6 + 1)

Intellect - 14 (3 + 1)

Resolve - 9

 

If I tried that as a Human, it'd be...

 

Might - 19

Constitution - 10

Dexterity - 9 (+1)

Perception - 16 (6)

Intellect - 13 (3)

Resolve - 9 (+1)

 

Assuming it's really okay for me to drop Constitution that low on a tanky character. Granted, my starting health was still pretty low even with 14 points invested in it. There's also...

 

High(er) Resolve Variant

Aedyr Background

 

Might - 19 (8 +1)

Constitution - 10

Dexterity - 10

Perception - 16 (6)

Intellect - 10

Resolve - 12 (+2)

 

Then I'd buff Resolve a little more using things like Boots of the Stone. 

[Cyrus_Blackfeather]

Honestly, I don't know. I really want to be a tank type character since I've never done that before in this sort of game. I also want to have high Might because of how Engagement works (Gotta do more damage than the rest of the party to keep the enemies focused on me), and high Perception (To hit things and to serve as a scout). After that, I'm not sure which stats would be best to emphasize though I DO know that I don't want to drop anything down to 3 or anything ridiculous like that. 

 

Still not sure what weapon to pick for my Devoted subclass. Modwyr looks like an awesome sword, honestly, but then there's sabres that are just as good looking, if not a little more. Is the damage difference really that noticeable in the end or are we only talking about a couple of points per hit? 

 

Right now, if I do anything, I'm probably going to either go for the more defensive build with Constitution or the Human build that emphasizes Intellect so that Disciplined Barrage lasts a little longer. Other than that, I'm really not sure.