So I've been playing a DM-made-up-but-similar-to-Eberron setting with my RL group and this time I've deviated from the mage classes (I started with a bard, then was a cleric, then a paladin for like 4 games after my cleric died, this is my fourth character) to play what is essentially a samurai. Now, the samurai in the complete warrior or whatever book it is, SUCKS ARSE.

So in great conversation with my DM (who has played for like 20 years) and my group I've done a Monk/Fighter combo to get the neat stuff that Samurai have skills-wise and yet be a grr arse-kicking dd. I thought I'd share for others out there who like me may be kinda new to this but want to make something a bit different from the standard classes (yet still use the PHB).

Linliel's guide to being a cool samurai in D&D:

Take 2 lvls of monk. Throw all your skill points into things like knowledge (nobility), diplomacy, listen, spot, etc. All the stuff you can't get as a class skill for fighter but you can as monk and seem vaguely useful. I even took "Performance: Poetry", one rank, and now make up terrible haiku for my party, lol. Bash things with your fists for a couple of levels. Evasion is cool. Flurry of blows is cool. I took deflect arrows as my other monk feat because my DM gave me a neato helmet that lets me use it with a 2-handed weapon.

Throw the rest of your levels into fighter, and take the fun bash bash feats like two weapon fighting and cleave and what not. Get a katana (bastard sword) (d10 + str*1.5 when used as a 2handed weapon) and name it Amanomurakumo* I have a little wakizashi (short sword, d6) as well.

It's actually pretty fun. You get to do the whole diplomatic/intimidation thing that is (more traditional than FFXI but eh) Samurai without having your feats preset for you like the extension class does, plus you get a bunch of nifty skills to play around with that straight fighter doesn't get. I'm only lvl 3 Fighter/2 Monk atm but it's shaping up to be a pretty good damage dealer/tank which I am enjoying for a change! Buy a bunch of bulls strength potions if you can afford them, I run around and just whomp the crap out of things with these, lol.

If I had my charsheet in front of me I'd tell you more but I don't so you're probably lucky

* I didn't call my katana that, I swear! If you do you are officially lame. :bagel: