Complete My Front Line

[iamarook]

I recently returned to the Deadfire after a year away, and y'all, I've spent like dozens of hours trying to nail down a custom party for PoTD. (I know it's not terribly difficult after you leave Tutorial Island, but part of the fun for me is the optimization.)

So far, here's what I've got:

1. Assassin/Devoted (MC) specializing in sabres for single-target damage; 19 Mig, 6 Con, 19 Dex, 18 Per, 3 Int, 13 Res (for RP purposes). I've had so much fun with this build.
2. Ascendant/Assassin for ranged damage and CC; 19 Mig, 3 Con, 18 Dex, 18 Per, 16 Int, 4 Res. Obviously, pretty squishy, but I'm giving her Rogue's Smoke Veil as a panic button.
3. Unbroken/Goldpact Knight for tanking; 19 Mig, 16 Con, 3 Dex, 10 Per, 10 Int, 20 Res. He's just there to get hit and stop bad guys from hitting the rest of the party.
4. Troubador/Priest of Eothas for healing, buffing, and debuffing; 18 Mig, 3 Con, 18 Dex, 10 Per, 18 Int, 10 Res. Eternal/burst heals + buff auras/casts = very nice synergy.

I've played up to level 11 with a party consisting of these four plus one other melee character, a dual-sword-wielding Berserker/Devoted (20, 18, 16, 10, 10, 4) that I thought would handle his own in getting-hit-and-surviving and damage-dealing. He wasn't particularly impressive at either; his total damage was about half of each of the two assassins', and he got downed the most of anyone in the party.

So, I'm looking for suggestions for a front-line build to fill the empty front-line spot in my party. Here's what I'm looking for:

• Survivability. The guy should be able to take a hit and not fall over.
• Decent damage. It doesn't need to be amazing; it should be noticeable.
• Low-magic, if possible. This is more for flavor/RP purposes than anything.

Any suggestions?

Edited May 16, 2019 by iamarook

[Purudaya]

Have you considered adding in a streetfighter/monk? Great single-target DPS, especially if you go Helwalker on the monk side. The extra incoming damage shouldn't be a concern as you'll be able to stun-lock most enemies by spamming stunning surge (refund resource on crit). Max perception and dexterity, dump resolve to 7-8, invest a few points in intellect and might (you'll get +10 to both from the Helwalker passive and turning wheel). Dual Sabres, swift flurry, thunderous blows, enduring dance, stunning surge, turning wheel, heartbeat drumming, tough, persistent distraction, deep wounds, and deathblows are the must haves. Confounding blind is also helpful for increasing crit chance and devastating blow is a great boss finisher.

Both swift flurry and heartbeat drumming proc extra attacks and can proc off of each other. Given that you'll have almost unlimited full attacks via stunning surge, you'll often deal 2-3 extra hits per attack (all doing sneak attack+deathblows damage due to persistent distraction). Hit Enduring Dance at the beginning of combat to generate wounds quickly to get the +10 might and intellect (harder hits, longer-lasting stunning surges), then use thunderous blows situationally to increase PEN (otherwise, avoid spending wounds to keep bonuses up). If you do get overwhelmed or run up against enemies immune to stun, switch over to Duality of Immortal Presence: Body for a quick +10 CON. Focus as much equipment as possible on maximizing accuracy/crit chance and you'll have a great time.

Bonus: open combat with blunderbusses using the powder burns modal to trigger Heating Up right off the bat (your low RES will help to keep you flanked longer).

 

Edited May 16, 2019 by Purudaya

[zendingo]

Monks are great and can be combined with almost anything to make an effective dps character. One of my favorites in a melee heavy party is a helwalker/kind wayfarer. The extra might and int from helwalker sublclass and duality of mortal presence makes the heals from white flames extemely effective in a huge radius. You really wouldn't even need a separate healer or tank with this character in your party, you do almost all the healing you need with your main dps ability and you get it at level 1. Just give him gear that increases might, (remember cap is 35 so you may not need much depending on if it's your PC), healing, and power level. You can use your fists as weapons. I use it as my main tank, healer, and dps all in one.

[Enoch]

Personally, I'd add a Stalker/Bloodmage melee Geomancer.  But if "low magic" is a requirement, yeah, you can't go wrong with a single-classed Monk.  I'm also fond of an off-tank morningstar Barbarian with Brute Force and the Barbaric Roar and Spirit Frenzy upgrade lines, but if your playstyle made the Brute ineffective, a pure Barb might not do much better.

[Purudaya]

4 hours ago, Enoch said:

Personally, I'd add a Stalker/Bloodmage melee Geomancer. 

Could you please share the specifics of this build? I haven't seen stalkers get much love and would be curious to see what synergies/benefits it provides over other wizard/martials

Edited May 17, 2019 by Purudaya