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EDER, M HUMAN FIGHTER
Why He's Included and How to Use Him
Eder definitely isn't evil, but he's also willing to overlook a lot of the more reprehensible choices the evil party makes.
There's plenty of ways to play a fighter, including a two-handed damage dealer. In this playthough, I have him as a sword-and-shield tank that takes the utmost advantage of the Disengagement concept. The linchpins are modal ability that threatens to knock Prone any enemy that tries to Disengage from him, and any abilities or items that I can get my hands on that will increase the number of enemies that he can Engage. The end result is a main front-line tank that can keep multiple enemies locked down around him, but has to take a small hit to his Deflection bonus to do so. Even so, that penalty is minor in the grand scheme of things.
Location
He can be recruited at #6 in Gilded Vale after completing the Visions and Whispers quest.
Personal Quest
Fragments of a Scattered Faith
Stats
Skills
Athletics: This skill is important for any character on harder settings, even squishy spellcasters. It helps any character go longer between camping, which is especially crucial during the Hard or Path of the Damned settings. It also provides bonus Health and Endurance.
Survival: Eder is a combat-oriented character, so developing this skill for the resting bonuses makes sense.
Abilities
1st Level - Knock Down: His default first-level ability, and I can't do anything about it.
3rd Level - Defender: A modal ability that allows Eder to keep two more Enemies engaged. The concept here is to have Eder lock down as many enemies as possible, and thereby decrease the odds of enemies making their way to Aloth.
5th Level - Vigorous Defense: A once per Encounter power that allows Eder to increase all Defenses by +20 for 15 sec. I have Eder use the Hold Ground AI script, so he'll activate this each fight the moment he's in close quarter combat with two or more enemies.
7th Level - Overbearing Guard: Any Engaged enemy that tries to Disengage from him now also risks being knocked Prone. It is this ability, in combination with abilities or talents that increase the number of enemies he can keep Engaged, that allows him to keep several enemies locked down around him and away from Aloth and Durance. The fear of getting knocked Prone will discourage many enemies from attempting to Disengage from him, and should they try, getting knocked Prone accomplishes lock down anyway.
9th Level - Fearless: Renders Eder immune to the Frightened and Terrified afflictions. In such battles, at least Eder can be relied on to keep fighting without any Accuracy penalties.
11th Level - Critical Defense: It turns a percentage of Critical Hits into Hits and a percentage of Hits into Grazes. This is a key ability for any Fighter-tank build since it will reduce the amount of damage sustained over the course of the battle.
13th Level - Weapon Specialization (Noble): It allows Eder to increase his damage with his Measured Restraint: rapier.
15th Level - Triggered Immunity: Should he lose at least 10% of his Endurance from a single attack, he will automatically become immune to the damage type from that attack (e.g. Slashing, Corrosive) for a short duration. It is a passive ability that augments his tank role.
Talents
2nd Level - Weapon and Shield Style: Confers welcome bonuses to both Deflection and Reflexes.
4th Level - Wary Defender: Confers a +5 bonus to all Defenses besides Deflection when Eder uses the Defender modal.
6th Level - Superior Deflection: Provides a +5 bonus to Deflection, which is sensible for any character that relies on a shield.
8th Level - Hold the Line: Increases by +1 the number of enemies that he can keep engaged, and thus increasing the number of enemies he can keep locked down around him.
10th Level - Rapid Recovery: Eder is already a very functional character who is doing his job admirably, so any choices that are left amount to tweaks. Here I increase the rate of Endurance regeneration slightly.
12th Level - Weapon Focus (Noble): Improves his Accuracy with his Measured Restraint: rapier.
14th Level - Weapon Mastery (Noble): It allows Eder to increase his damage with his Measured Restraint: rapier by 10%.
16th Level - Bonus Knock Down: He still uses Knock Down sometimes, but this is admittedly a filler talent at this point.
Inventory
Measured Restraint: Looted from a hidden corpse at #10 in the second level of Endless Paths. This is the perfect weapon for an Overbearing Guard-based Fighter build. It is the only weapon that increases the number of enemies subject to Disengagement attacks, and with an additional Accuracy bonus that increases the chances of Disengagement attacks knocking their targets Prone.
Redshield: Purchased from Larha at #3 in Galawain's Maw. I added the Legendary Quality enchantment to it. Besides the usual Deflection bonus for Eder personally, it also projects a passive aura that imposes a -3 Accuracy penalty on all nearby enemies that stacks with all other Deflection bonuses and enemy penalties to Accuracy.
The Wind's Arm: Looted from Brynlod after pursuing the bounty on him. I equip it as a secondary weapon, and then add the Shocking Lash and Kith Slaying enchantments. It provides an option to passively inflict a hefty -20 concentration penalty on all enemies within a 2m radius should he not be able to reach enemies in tight quarters, although that will be admittedly rare.
White Crest Helm: Purchased from Korbal in the Main Hall of Durgan's Battery during part 2 of the White March expansion. Higher Intellect will expand the debuff aura of his Redshield and the duration of his Prone attacks while he has Overbearing Guard active.
Cloak of the Tireless Defender: It's the natural choice for Eder since it will enhance his Constant Recovery ability.
He Carries Many Scars: Looted from the undead Lord Raedric as a reward for The Champion of Berath quest. I added the Legendary Quality enchantment to it. The Endurance regeneration will enhance what he already enjoys through Constant Recovery. The Damage Reduction, especially the bonus Damage Reduction that will kick in should he happen to lose enough Endurance, will only augment his tank role.
Gauntlets of Accuracy: Obtained from the chest in Lord Raedric's study at #13 in Raedric's Keep, as an item from the Raedric Hold - Main Floor - Desk section of the Random Drop List. Attack Speed is not a priority for Eder, who operates as a tank. The priority is instead to keep numerous enemies locked down around him under threat of getting knocked Prone by Disengagement Attacks. I therefore prefer to maximize his Accuracy, to not only increase his chances of landing Disengagement Attacks, but also increase the chances of those attacks knocking their targets Prone.
Ring of Deflection: Looted from a hidden corpse near the entrance to the Grisly Cave at #14 in Dyrford Crossing. The +9 bonus to Deflection is perfectly consistent with Eder's tank role.
Ring of Changing Heart: Looted from Warleader Darzir after defeating him in Stalwart Village. It offers a limited ability to use Dominate, but its chief benefit from my perspective is a +3 bonus to Resolve, which in turn raises Deflection. It is therefore perfectly consistent with Eder's tank role.
Girdle of Eotun Constitution Found in a Grisly Cave at Dyrford Crossing, as an item from the "Ogre Cave Hidden, near the Ogre" section of the Random Drop List. More Health and Endurance always benefits a dedicated tank.
Boots of Stability: Obtained from the bone pile at #16 in the third level of Endless Paths, as an item from the Endless Paths - 3rd Ogre section of the Random Drop List. The resistances to Prone and Push will help Eder maintain his front-line tank position in front of the spellcasters.
