MC HammerMC Hammer, level 30
Warforged, Fighter, Kensei, Demigod
Fighter Talents: Two-handed Weapon Talent
Kensei Focus: Kensei Focus Mordenkrad
Divine Spark: Divine Spark Constitution
Divine Spark: Divine Spark Strength
Rattling Exploit: Cruel Reaper
FINAL ABILITY SCORES
Str 28, Con 28, Dex 13, Int 10, Wis 15, Cha 12.
STARTING ABILITY SCORES
Str 16, Con 16, Dex 11, Int 8, Wis 13, Cha 10.
AC: 44 Fort: 44 Reflex: 34 Will: 38
HP: 252 Surges: 18 Surge Value: 63
TRAINED SKILLS
Intimidate +23, Athletics +27, Endurance +29
UNTRAINED SKILLS
Acrobatics +14, Arcana +15, Bluff +16, Diplomacy +16, Dungeoneering +17, Heal +17, History +15, Insight +17, Nature +17, Perception +17, Religion +15, Stealth +14, Streetwise +16, Thievery +14
FEATS
Level 1: Armor Proficiency (Plate)
Level 2: Weapon Proficiency (Mordenkrad)
Level 4: Weapon Expertise (Hammer)
Level 6: Warforged Tactics
Level 8: Toughness
Level 10: Potent Challenge (retrained to Reckless Attacker at Level 11)
Level 11: Hammer Rhythm
Level 12: Armor Specialization (Plate)
Level 14: Weapon Focus (Hammer)
Level 16: Grit
Level 18: Paragon Defenses (retrained to Martial Resolve at Level 22)
Level 20: Potent Challenge (retrained to Epic Resurgence at Level 21)
Level 21: Bludgeon Mastery
Level 22: Uncanny Dodge
Level 24: Robust Defenses
Level 26: Martial Mastery
Level 28: Triumphant Attack
Level 30: Rattling Exploit
POWERS
Fighter at-will 1: Brash Strike
Fighter at-will 1: Cleave
Fighter encounter 1: Passing Attack
Fighter daily 1: Villain's Menace
Fighter utility 2: Boundless Endurance
Fighter encounter 3: Parry and Riposte (retrained to Sweeping Blow at Level 7)
Fighter daily 5: Bedeviling Assault
Fighter utility 6: Unbreakable
Fighter encounter 7: Come and Get It
Fighter daily 9: Stop Thrust
Fighter utility 10: Defensive Resurgence
Fighter encounter 13: Anvil of Doom (replaces Passing Attack)
Fighter daily 15: Quicksilver Stance (replaces Villain's Menace)
Fighter utility 16: Bolstering Stride
Fighter encounter 17: Harrying Assault (replaces Sweeping Blow)
Fighter daily 19: Devastation's Wake (replaces Stop Thrust)
Fighter utility 22: Unyielding
Fighter encounter 23: Skullcrusher (replaces Come and Get It)
Fighter daily 25: Reaper's Stance (replaces Bedeviling Assault)
Fighter encounter 27: Cruel Reaper (replaces Harrying Assault)
Fighter daily 29: Force the Battle (replaces Devastation's Wake)
ITEMS
Bloodclaw Mordenkrad +6, Soulforged Tarrasque Plate Armor +6, Brooch of Vitality +6, Shadow Band (epic tier), Strikebacks (heroic tier), Ring of the Dragonborn Emperor (paragon tier), Counterstrike Guards (paragon tier), Eye of Awareness (epic tier), Belt of Mountain Endurance (paragon tier), Solitaire (Aquamarine) (paragon tier), Skygliders (epic tier), Tattoo of Vengeance (paragon tier), Transporting Throwing hammer +4, Potion of Recovery (epic tier), Elixir of Flying (epic tier), Handy Haversack (heroic tier)
"Hammertime, a more offensively oriented MC Hammer build"
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Hammertime, level 30
Warforged, Fighter, Kensei, Eternal Defender
Fighter Talents: Two-handed Weapon Talent
Kensei Focus: Kensei Focus Mordenkrad
FINAL ABILITY SCORES
Str 30, Con 22, Dex 12, Int 10, Wis 16, Cha 12.
STARTING ABILITY SCORES
Str 18, Con 13, Dex 10, Int 8, Wis 13, Cha 10.
AC: 44 Fort: 45 Reflex: 34 Will: 39
HP: 246 Surges: 15 Surge Value: 61
TRAINED SKILLS
Intimidate +23, Athletics +28, Endurance +26
UNTRAINED SKILLS
Acrobatics +14, Arcana +15, Bluff +16, Diplomacy +16, Dungeoneering +18, Heal +18, History +15, Insight +18, Nature +18, Perception +18, Religion +15, Stealth +14, Streetwise +16, Thievery +14
FEATS
Level 1: Armor Proficiency (Plate)
Level 2: Weapon Proficiency (Mordenkrad)
Level 4: Weapon Expertise (Hammer)
Level 6: Warforged Tactics
Level 8: Toughness
Level 10: Potent Challenge (retrained to Reckless Attacker at Level 11)
Level 11: Hammer Rhythm
Level 12: Armor Specialization (Plate)
Level 14: Weapon Focus (Hammer)
Level 16: Grit
Level 18: Paragon Defenses (retrained to Martial Resolve at Level 22)
Level 20: Potent Challenge (retrained to Epic Resurgence at Level 21)
Level 21: Bludgeon Mastery
Level 22: Uncanny Dodge
Level 24: Robust Defenses
Level 26: Martial Mastery
Level 28: Triumphant Attack
Level 30: Marked Scourge
POWERS
Fighter at-will 1: Brash Strike
Fighter at-will 1: Cleave
Fighter encounter 1: Passing Attack
Fighter daily 1: Villain's Menace
Fighter utility 2: Boundless Endurance
Fighter encounter 3: Parry and Riposte (retrained to Sweeping Blow at Level 7)
Fighter daily 5: Bedeviling Assault
Fighter utility 6: Unbreakable
Fighter encounter 7: Come and Get It
Fighter daily 9: Stop Thrust
Fighter utility 10: Defensive Resurgence
Fighter encounter 13: Anvil of Doom (replaces Passing Attack)
Fighter daily 15: Quicksilver Stance (replaces Villain's Menace)
Fighter utility 16: Bolstering Stride
Fighter encounter 17: Harrying Assault (replaces Sweeping Blow)
Fighter daily 19: Devastation's Wake (replaces Stop Thrust)
Fighter utility 22: Unyielding
Fighter encounter 23: Skullcrusher (replaces Come and Get It)
Fighter daily 25: Reaper's Stance (replaces Bedeviling Assault)
Fighter encounter 27: Cruel Reaper (replaces Harrying Assault)
Fighter daily 29: Force the Battle (replaces Devastation's Wake)
ITEMS
Bloodclaw Mordenkrad +6, Soulforged Tarrasque Plate Armor +6, Brooch of Vitality +6, Shadow Band (epic tier), Strikebacks (heroic tier), Ring of the Dragonborn Emperor (paragon tier), Counterstrike Guards (paragon tier), Eye of Awareness (epic tier), Belt of Mountain Endurance (paragon tier), Solitaire (Aquamarine) (paragon tier), Skygliders (epic tier), Tattoo of Vengeance (paragon tier), Transporting Throwing hammer +4, Potion of Recovery (epic tier), Elixir of Flying (epic tier), Handy Haversack (heroic tier)
The purpose of MC Hammer is pretty simple: to make a highly resilient defender who can also fill in as a pseudo-striker. With the advent of Martial Power, things changed around a bit, and for a long time I did not update him because it seemed that they'd never fix Dual Strike. But now that Dual Strike has been fixed, the two-handed weapon fighter is once more a viable archetype.
MC Hammer is a defender. This means that his goal is to get the attention of enemies. He does this in a few ways.
Firstly, he is big and dangerous; he deals a great deal of damage with that hammer of his. Typically, the best thing for MC to do is to find whoever is going to cause the most trouble for the weakest member of your party and pound the tar out of them. He has lots of hit points, decent armor class, and some self-healing capabilities; while he has little healing at first level, as he increases in level he quickly picks up a fair amount of defensive utility powers which increase his survivability. Because he deals lots of damage, he draws attention, and his marks ensure that anyone who doesn't pay attention to him when attacked by him will pay dearly for it.
Secondly, for much of his career he has the power Come and Get It, a power he acquires at level 7. This power draws in nearby enemies, then marks them all with an attack. The best thing to do after this is, in the next round, to use another close burst power which marks them all again. In this manner, he can attract as much attention to himself as possible; he has the most healing surges of anyone in the party, most likely, can absorb the most punishment, and has the biggest healing surges. His allies should come in and flank the enemies, and once MC runs out of area of effect powers, he should work on picking off the enemies one at a time, contributing his considerable damage to the task.
Thirdly, he has some pretty potent debuffs in paragon and epic tier. Particularly, he has Anvil of Doom and Skullsplitter. These both rob enemies of their turns if you hit with them (Anvil of Doom absolutely, Skullsplitter simply giving them severe penalties), which means that you should endevour to do so; use them when the leader gives you a to-hit bonus, and use them on the enemy who you most want not to do anything. The latter also does considerable damage (often in the 80s, sometimes even more), something well worth keeping in mind.
MC is a pretty straightforward character, and due to his toughness, he's fairly forgiving. As such, he's a good choice for a newer player, one who isn't too familiar with the system, as he is likely to be fairly effective even if you make mistakes, and have some impact on the battlefield. To get the most out of him, you should learn how to evaluate threats, and figure out what can wait and what needs to be dealt with now, and whether the rest of the party should leave you to hold someone off on your own while they kill other bad guys, or whether you should all focus in on one foe (typically the latter is ideal, but sometimes you do need to sort of split up in battle).
The choices I made in designing him reflect his purpose. He wears plate mail and has feats which improve his hit point total and healing (Toughness and Grit). However, a lot of his focus is on the offensive end of things, and as such he has a whole suite of offensive feats. Mostly, they are pretty straightforward choices - whatever brings the most to him offensively or defensively, with feats which add a lot of damage being high picks. His powers, likewise, are pretty much the strongest and most straightfoward, and are almost all staples - he focuses on stances for his dailies, as many of them are very overpowered, though I'm not emphasizing them quite as much as some would because of my interpretation of damage rolls (if you are interested in the topic, look up the thread on the subject on this very forum - we should not repeat it here), which decreases the value of several of them down to actually reasonable levels - hence why he does not have Rain of Steel. If you play that you DO add in your static bonuses to such things, then you should take Rain of Steel, or at least retrain into it in paragon tier once you've gotten a sufficiently large static bonus.
....
You do not have to build MC Hammer exactly as presented, obviously, and a wide variety of races and builds can do a good job of fulfilling the "big guy with the hammer" fighter archetype. As follows are a few important guidelines:
1) Your strength should be between 18 and 20 unless you are a dwarf, in which case, your strength can be 16.
2) Your constitution should be your next highest attribute.
3) Your wisdom should start out at 13, so that you qualify for Uncanny Dodge at epic - it is a great defensive feat and it also makes one of your at-wills even better. If you are a dwarf, you can potentially qualify for it even earlier.
"Racial options"
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Due to the values of MC hammer, a few races are particularly well-suited for the archetype. These include:
1) Warforged. Arguably the best for the job because of their racial bonuses to strength and constitution, their racial feat which gives them a bonus to hit, and their racial power which synergizes well with the toughness of MC.
2) Goliaths. A great race for the build as well due to their bonuses to strength and constitution, their racial power of shrugging off damage is also great for MC, making them more resilient. Unyielding Stone is a wonderful feat which you should take as soon as it is available, as it will save you a lot of pain. Goliath Greatweapon Prowess is an alternative to Weapon Focus (hammer) and Weapon Proficiency (Mordenkrad) - if you do choose to go this way, you can save yourself a feat for the cost of a couple points of damage on your strongest powers, as on most everything else it will be the same (or better, at lower levels). Ancient Stone is a feat worth considering at epic, as it allows you to shrug off all the more damage. Markings of the Victor is not a bad choice either if you want to lead off a battle with a very accurate Anvil of Doom or similar nasty debuff, but you'll probably not have space for it.
3) Dwarves. Dwarves make for EXCELLENT hammermen. While they are not as offensively capable as other races due to their lack of a racial bonus to strength, their ability to use healing surges as a minor action makes them the most resilient of all, and a properly outfitted dwarf is nearly impossible to kill. They also are very difficult to move around the battlefield and are resistant to being knocked prone, both very advantageous traits for a defender to have. A key item for them is the Cloak of the Walking Wounded, and the Backbone Belt is also handy - both make their healing surges even better, and can make them all the more unkillable. They have a large number of racial feats which are very synergistic with this build. First and foremost is Dwarven Weapon Training, which replaces Weapon Proficiency (Mordenkrad) and Weapon Focus, rolling them together into a single great feat. Dwarven Durability is a huge boost to their toughness, and Devoted Challenge makes it all the more dangerous to even think about trying to get away. Their racial bonus to wisdom also makes Marked Scourge a more attractive option. Dodge Giants is an interesting defensive option, particularly at higher levels, and notably its bonus stacks with everything - if you fight lots of large foes (and that is likely at upper paragon and epic), it is often a good choice. They are the only race who can get away with having 16 strength, simply because they are such little tanks.
4) Orcs. A race from the monster manual, they're great hammerers. They have the appropriate racial modifiers - to constitution and strength - and have a nearly ideal racial power, an encounter power which they can attack with which heals them when they hit with it. The trouble with them is their complete lack of any sort of racial feats or support, and as they are a race from the back of the monster manual, as well as a typical "monster race", they may not be allowed. Their only other racial feature is their ability to run and charge further than anything else, which is nice, but they don't even have racial skill bonuses.
5) Minotaurs. Originally MC Hammer was a minotaur, and they remain a solid choice, even without the oversized trait they once had. Their goring charge racial power lets them get stuck in and knock someone prone, making them easier prey for the other characters to follow you in, and they, like Warforged, have a bonus to strength and constitution. Their ability to make an attack when they get reduced to 0 hp is also wonderful, as it means that even if they ARE felled, they can still get in a few more licks. Sadly, their racial feats aren't particularly helpful for this build - minotaurs make great characters, but oddly, their best feat encourages them NOT to be fighters. Even so, they do make pretty solid ones.
6) Longtooth Shifters. A slightly more unorthodox racial choice, they are still capable. They can get away with slightly lower constitutions than other such characters because of their innate encounter regeneration which means that, outside of an encounter, you should always be healing up from above your bloodied value, and it often means you'll only need one heal to be put back up to full. This regeneration seems small, but it adds up and keeps you alive, and as you can use it every encounter, it pays off. It also bolsters their damage slightly. Their biggest downside is their lack of other racial abilities, though their skill check bonuses to Athletics and Endurance line up nicely. Beasthide Shifting is a decent feat to pick up in paragon tier, but you should retrain it when you're wearing plate which grants resistance, as you probably want to be doing in upper paragon and upper epic. Cliffwalk Shifting is a handy mobility enhancer, and it can be hugely advantageous in epic tier if you don't have a means of flying, as you can climb the walls and attack in that way.
Other races which are viable:
i) Bugbears. Their bonus to dexterity is mostly useless, save for bolstering your reflex defense and initiative slightly, but they have the oversized racial feature, which allows them to wield large mordenkrads and mauls - or even huge ones with the right feats. However, the developers have announced that they consider the trait to be overpowered, so except it to change in the future - these would be up in the first bunch if it weren't for that fact. Again, they are a monster manual race, and may not be allowed.
ii) Dragonborn. Dragonborn are great fighters, and this character is no exception. Sadly, the bonus to charisma is basically worthless here, as you need wisdom for Uncanny Dodge. Their Dragon Breath racial trait is a wonderful tool for multimarking, as well as for wiping out minions, and its status as a minor action makes it basically bonus damage you can tack on once per encounter. Their Draconic Heritage racial trait is also incredibly synergstic with MC Hammer, as the high constitution the build demands grants them bigger healing surges. Finally, Dragonborn Fury is a free attack bonus, though it is much more useful at higher levels, when you can be bloodied and have over a hundred hit points left, than it is at low levels, where you typically keep yourself a bit more healed up. Dragon Warrior is the best of their racial feats, and is well worth taking. The rest are more questionable; Empowered Dragon Breath upgrades the dice two sizes, for +2 damage/tier and Enlarged Dragon Breath and Hurl Breath allow you to hit more foes with it (but don't take both, just one or the other, and Enlarged Dragon Breath is probably better due to your status in melee). Problem is that you can only use it once (up to twice if you have Dragon Warrior) per encounter, so that +6 is all you're getting, probably doubled as you hit two enemies with it. Enlarged Dragon breath is slightly better, mostly because its greater size means you're going to hit (and mark) a third monster. Remember that you can aim the blast straight up, and it can be yet another way of keeping multiple monsters marked around you simultaneously. The feats are, to some degree, cumulative as well; Enlarged Dragon Breath and Empowered Dragon Breath both get better if you have the other, and both get much better if you have Dragon Warrior. However, they are far from must-haves; take them only if you want to. Note that the Ring of the Dragonborn Emperor works well on MC Hammer, and it synergizes well with the dragonborn's breath weapon, so if you do run a dragonborn, it is an item worth having if you have an extra ring slot.
iii) Genasi. The intelligence bonus is utterly worthless with them, but you can consider dumping dexterity instead of intelligence, or possibly even dumping charisma if you aren't planning on training intimidate. The elemental resistances of Genasi, as well as their random defense bonuses, are very nice, and the bonus to Endurance is at least helpful (though the Nature bonus probably won't be). Manifestation wise, Firesoul and Earthsoul are both great because they can mark multiple foes as an immediate action and as a minor action, respectively; the resistance to fire granted by Firesoul and the inherent saving throw bonus of Earthsoul are nice as well. Promise of Storm synergizes well with a lightning weapon if you have one, as well as with the shocking flame feat, and the resistance to lightning can be handy. Watersoul and windsoul have less to offer you; watersoul is only useful if the campaign is going to involve LOTS of water, and even then you probably don't want to be one, while windsoul is an okay backup manifestation for its cold resistance.
The number one reason to be a genasi is the shocking flame feat, which grants an untyped bonus to your damage as long as you're a fire or stormsoul genasi, which makes those more favorable - though earthsoul genasi are also nice. Manifest resistance is useful on every Genasi with inherent resistances, and it can help to make you nearly invincible to the element you're resistant to. Versatile Resistance is also useful on every Genasi, simply because it gives you resistance to everything - it is worth noting that if you are a stormsoul or earthsoul genasi, this feat does not overlap with any resistance you have, making it all the stronger. Extra Manifestation can allow you to have multiple resistances on tap. Genasi Frost Affinity is not very useful for a hammerer, as they want to use other manifestations mostly; it is only useful in a very thematic campaign. Primordial Surge is also nice, as it can basically act as a weaker secondary toughness, though it does not combo with the Earthshock trick below. Elemental Warrior is useful for firesoul genasi, and earthsoul genasi who do not use the Earthshock trick.
Earthsoul genasi can take the Earthshock Master feat at first level and tie Earthshock to dexterity; because they are very likely to miss, especially if you have an 8 in dexterity, the reliable keyword allows you to keep the Earthshock power. This in turn allows you to use normal attacks on the enemy you want to damage while simultaneously keeping multiple foes marked. Stoneguard is a decent if unexceptional feat, and might be worth taking if you can't find anything better to suit your fancy.
Any - Versatile Resistance (should always have this unless you have a lot of manifestations), Extra Manifestation (optional)
Earthsoul Genasi - Earthshock Master (optional but great trick), Primordial Surge + Elemental Warrior (optional combo, exclusive with the Earthshock Master trick), Stoneguard (optional)
Firesoul Genasi - Shocking Flame (always), Manifest Resistance (should have), Primordial Surge, Elemental Warrior
Stormsoul - Shocking Flame (always), Elemental Warrior, Primordial Surge
iv) Humans. Like most fighters, there's really little value in the third at-will power, though it does allow you to pick up Crushing Surge, which, while rarely worth using, might occaisionally be worthwhile if you just need to delay or are weakened. However, the bonus to all defenses is quite handy. Humans have a few very good racial feats - Action Surge is a wonderful feat which ensures that you'll hit with your strongest power when you spend an action point, while Timely Revival is a strong epic-level feat which can act as a self-ressurection tool and works well with a non-demigod.
"Feature options"
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Realistically, there are only two options as far as your features go: you can either go with fighter weapon talent with two-handed weapons, or you can go with battlerager vigor. The former puts your damage higher, while the latter makes you more resilient. I went with the former for the damage; while vigor will buy you a fair number of hit points, the build is fairly resilient as far as hit points go anyway, and often you simply lack the multiattacks necessary to really exploit BRV successfully, as only from level 7 to level 12 will you have three multiattack encounter powers.
"Paragon Path options"
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Kensei was chosen for this build because, more or less, it defaults to it, much as I despise it. Ultimate Parry and Masterstroke are both bad, the latter not even really being usable as your at-will power is nearly strictly better. However, that +1 bonus to attack and +4 bonus to damage, as well as the excellent Weaponsoul Dance daily, really outweigh what the other paths can provide, with one exception.
That exception is the Dreadnought. The dreadnought is wonderful; its encounter power is a double attack, which really helps to counterbalance the +1 to attack rolls provided by the Kensei. While not quite as good as that feature, its bonus to hit points and the ability to simply shrug off save ends conditions is better than the +4 bonus to damage that the Kensei provides, and unlike the Kensei it does not prevent you from using a ranged weapon effectively. Its utility power is much better than Ultimate Parry, though its daily is slightly worse. Its AP ability is stronger, as it gives foes two very bad options, and its random granting of resist 10 when you score a critical hit is also not present in Kensei, making it overall the better path. The trouble is that it suffers from overlap with platemail; you should wear tarrasque plate at upper epic, and even at upper paragon you can be wearing resist 2 all armor. Tarrasque plate makes the daily quite bad and the utility literally worthless. As such, the path is wonderful overall, but has some issues. It is a perfectly viable alternative to Kensei, though.
Other paragon paths are typically worse choices, but a few are at least viable.
Pit Fighter is a mediocre option, but it suffers from adding less damage than Kensei (or at best about as much) with one feature, trading off +1 to attacks for +1 to AC, and having a worse daily but better encounter power and utility power. If you have a high enough wisdom (at least a +3 bonus), it is worth considering, but I think on the whole it is an inferior option.
Firstborn of Moradin is not a bad choice for a dwarven hammerer; while Stonebones is unexceptional, mostly because few monsters have very effective criticals, Strength of the Earth and Dwarven Resurgence are both solid features which make you more resilient; unfortunately, the features offer nothing offensive. However, Recieve the Charge is a great encounter power, being a free extra attack when things move in to attack you (or are forced next to you by forced movement powers). Earthsense is a narrow power which is great against foes who enjoy using blinding powers, as well as ones who have concealment or invisibility innately, but it is pretty pointless oftentimes and many adventures it will be useless, as unless your DM puts in concealment themselves it will often go unused. Sadly, it is not really "worse" than Ultimate Parry, as when it is useful it is quite useful. Mountain Strike Stance is either a double attack or a crippling status ailment for a round which also enhances your defenses; it is not quite as good as Weaponsoul Dance, but it is still solid. Overall it is weaker than Kensei on the offensive front, but it is decent defensively.
"Original post, for the sake of posterity"
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MC Hammer
Race: Minotaur
Class: Fighter/Kensei/Demigod
Size: Medium
Speed: 5 squares
Strength: 16+2 = 18 base, 21 at 11th level, 26 at 21st level, 28 at 28th level
Constitution: 16+2 = 18 base, 21 at 11th level, 26 at 21st level, 28 at 28th level
Dexterity: 12, 13 at 11th level, 14 at 21st level
Intelligence: 8, 9 at 11th level, 10 at 21st level
Wisdom: 12, 13 at 11th level, 14 at 21st level
Charisma: 10, 11 at 11th level, 12 at 21st level
Hit points: 31 base, 106 at 11th level, 178 at 21st level, 232 at 30th level
Healing surges: 13 base, 14 at 8th level, 15 at 12th level, 17 at 21st level, 18 at 28th level
Healing surge value: 7 base, 26 at 11th level, 44 at 21st level, 58 at 30th level
AC: 18 at 1st level, 28 at 11th level (assuming +3 plate), 37 at 21st level (assuming +5 dwarven plate), 46 at 30th level (assuming +6 godplate, and they can’t gain a bonus from combat advantage to their attack rolls)
Fortitude: 16 at 1st level, 25 at 11th level (assuming +3 neckslot), 31 at 18th level (assuming +4 neckslot), 37 at 21st level (assuming +5 neckslot), 44 at 30th level (assuming +6 neckslot)
Reflex: 11 at 1st level, 19 at 11th level (assuming +3 neckslot), 22 at 12th level (assuming +3 neckslot), 29 at 21st level (assuming +5 neckslot), 35 at 30th level (assuming +6 neckslot)
Will: 11 at 1st level, 19 at 11th level (assuming +3 neckslot), 24 at 14th level (assuming +3 neckslot), 29 at 21st level (assuming +5 neckslot), 35 at 30th level (assuming +6 neckslot)
Weapon: Large Maul (2d8 damage, +2 proficiency)
Ranged Weapon: Large Throwing Hammer (1d8 damage, +2 proficiency, heavy thrown)
Base to-hit modifier:
1st: +7, +8 on opportunity attacks
11th: +17 (assuming +3 mordenkrad), +15 while power attacking, +18 on opportunity attacks
21st: +27 (assuming +5 mordenkrad), +25 while power attacking, +30 on opportunity attacks
30th: +34 (assuming +6 mordenkrad), +32 while power attacking, +37 on opportunity attacks
Selected average DPR against standard foe at level with at-will attack (according to DMG, AC 12+level).
1st: 11.1
6th: 13.4 (assuming magic mordenkrad +2)
11th: 20.775 (assuming magic mordenkrad +3 and Iron Armband of Power lv 6)
16th: 25.2 (assuming magic mordenkrad +4 and Iron Armband of Power lv 16)
21st: 40.2 (assuming magic mordenkrad +5, using a 2[W] attack and Iron Armband of Power lv 16)
26th: 40.1 (assuming magic mordenkrad +6 and Iron Armband of Power lv 26)
30th: 48.6 (assuming bloodclaw mordenkrad +6 and Iron Armband of Power lv 26)
Cruel Reaper at level 30: 97.2 DPR
Note: The Bloodclaw Mordenkrad is your best option with this character, and it stacks with Iron Armbands of Power. Every time you have a Bloodclaw Mordenkrad, you are capable of dealing much higher damage than indicated above (save at level 30 obviously).
Trained Skills: Athletics, Endurance, Intimidate
Skill bonuses: +2 to Nature, +2 to Perception
Feats:
Armor Proficiency (Plate) (1st)
Toughness (2nd)
Superior Weapon Proficiency (Mordenkrad) (4th)
Weapon Focus (Hammer) (6th)
Power Attack (8th)
-Improved Initiative (10th)
Hammer Rhythm (11th)
Armor Specialization (Plate) (11th, retrain Improved Initiative)
Combat Reflexes (12th)
Lightning Reflexes (14th)
Iron Will (16th)
Great Fortitude (18th)
- Improved Initiative (20th)
Bludgeon Mastery (21st)
Epic Resurgence (21st, retrain Improved Initiative)
Blind-Fight (22nd)
Triumphant Attack (24th)
Potent Challenge (26th)
Improved Initiative (28th)
Danger Sense (30th)
Powers:
Goring Charge (racial encounter power, and generally not very good, but occasionally handy)
At-Will Powers:
Cleave
Reaping Strike (retrain to Sure Strike at 12th level)
Encounter Powers:
Steel Serpent Strike (1st)
Sweeping Blow (3rd)
Come and Get It (7th)
Masterstroke (11th, Kensei power)
Anvil of Doom (13th, replaces Steel Serpent Strike)
Vorpal Tornado (17th, replaces Sweeping Blow)
Skullcrusher (23rd, replaces Come and Get It)
Cruel Reaper (27th, replaces Vorpal Tornado)
Daily Powers:
Comeback Strike (1st)
Rain of Steel (5th)
Thicket of Blades (9th)
Unyielding Avalanche (15th, replaces Comeback Strike)
Devastation’s Wake (19th, replaces Rain of Steel)
Weaponsoul Dance (20th, Kensei power)
Supremacy of Steel (25th, replaces Thicket of Blades)
Force the Battle (29th, replaces Unyielding Avalanche)
Utility Powers:
Boundless Endurance (2nd)
Unbreakable (6th)
Into the Fray (10th)
Ultimate Parry (12th, Kensei power)
Surprise Step (16th)
Act of Desperation (22nd)
Divine Regeneration (26th, Demigod power)
The purpose of MC Hammer is pretty simple: to achieve a very high DPR as a fighter. The Minotaur maul fighter is ideal for this as no other fighter can deal as much damage; the large maul deals the most damage of any weapon in the game, and the Minotaur is ideally suited for the role because he can wield the large maul and has a +2 bonus to both Strength and Constitution.
This build is very dedicated to getting as much damage in as possible, as well as to be a powerful tank in melee with tons of HP. As such, he basically threw away his intelligence and charisma, and his Dexterity and Wisdom are a bit low (particularly the latter), but sacrifices need be made and I think his end totals show it is worthwhile. His AC and Fortitude are very close to as good as they can get, within just a few points of the maximum values, and 232 hp is as high as it gets on a realitistic character (the absolute maximum is only 2 hit points more). He also has an impressive 18 healing surges, which is an enormous number and allows him to be healed a lot.
His real winning feature, though, is his high DPR. His average DPR is roughly comparable to a rogue of the same level, though it is a bit varied - Dragon's Fangs deals more damage than ANY rogue power does, and you acquire it at level 15. On the other hand, your at-will powers tend to suffer by comparison to the rogue, while your encounter powers are quite comparable and yours often will hit multiple targets whereas theirs is stuck with only one.
He is still a solid defender as well; foes who provoke opportunity attacks from him are pretty likely to be hit (as his to-hit chance is already high and his abilities add a decent bonus to his to-hit) and take even more extra damage once he picks up Potent Challenge, an excellent feat for someone who starts with a +4 constitution modifier and goes all the way up to +9 at 28th level. He punishes foes heavily for moving away from him, and deals so much damage it is hard to ignore him.
