15

Stunning Fist requires BAB +8, but monks famously get it as a bonus feat, ignoring that requirement. Unfortunately, I cannot afford to lose BAB because I am playing E6 and want to take take a feat that requires BAB +6.

Do any full-BAB classes also get Stunning Fist as a bonus feat, or is there any other approach to getting it as a full-BAB E6 character? Even better would be to get the superior uses per day of a monk while at full BAB. Also acceptable is a means to count as having Stunning Fist for prerequisites, though this is less desirable.

Any material published by Wizards of the Coast, as well as any 3.5e Dragon or Dungeon material, is acceptable. No alternatives that do not, RAW, qualify as Stunning Fist prerequisites are acceptable. Pathfinder material is likewise unacceptable (otherwise unchained monk is an obvious answer I am already aware of). Shenanigans to get divine power and claim it for meeting the BAB requirements are also frowned upon.

KRyan
  • 350,913
  • 58
  • 915
  • 1,459

1 Answers1

1

Late 3E Was A Crazy Time, Which Haunts Us Still.

The easiest way to get stunning fist is to meet the pre-reqs. So let's do that:

  1. Be a full-BAB character (say, fighter for simplicity). Pick up stay pre-reqs and improved unarmed strike.

  2. Climb to sixth level. On the way, pick a few things up:

    • A. Medium-term polymorph. Like, a few days. PAO is good, but not strictly necessary. It is critical that you be //rideable//.

    • B. A friend. Your friend is going to take a level in the Windrider prestige class. Sometime while you are a horse or whatever, he needs to spend three days training you as a mount. His chosen mount.

  3. When you pick up your sixth level, you want to be a dragon, outsider, or magical beast. Because you once toted a Windrider around, you get 2 bonus HD. That comes with saves, feats, and BAB. Those types get full BAB=HD, so at sixth level, you have 8 BAB.

Enjoy your new fist.

Depending how you interpret the 3.5 update to the Oriental Adventures Samurai, you may be able to get stunning fist there instead: OA Dragon-clan samurai can select stunning fist as a bonus feat, without the usual "for which he qualifies" rider.

V2Blast
  • 49,864
  • 10
  • 220
  • 304
fectin
  • 13,709
  • 1
  • 38
  • 84
  • 2
    This results in a level 8 character. There's no official rule I can point to, because E6 isn't an official variant, but I can't imagine any DM ever allowing this in an E6 game. "You can't be higher than 6th level" is the central tenet of E6. – A_S00 Aug 22 '19 at 04:23
  • There aren't a lot of games at all where I would expect this to fly. Bonus HD as a re-allocable status effect is… broken and weird. However, that's just what it is. E6 doesn't cap your caster level at 6, it doesn't cap your BAB at 6, etc., just your level. And here you have a level 6 character who happens to have 8 hit dice. – fectin Aug 22 '19 at 14:56
  • 1
    I've asked a new question about whether these HD should count toward your character level; it's much less clear than I thought I remembered. I'd like to see an answer from you if you've got one in mind! – A_S00 Aug 22 '19 at 19:59
  • 2
    This is madness. "I'm qualified to punch because I used to be a horse". – J. Mini Aug 24 '19 at 21:30
  • 1
    @J.Mini The monk’s improved horse stance lets his chi flow from the Earth. – fectin Sep 16 '19 at 03:53