Full Build Friday - Michael Myers

Sorry about the misleading hint for the build last week, but I had a change of plans. I originally intended to post this build the closest Friday I could get to Halloween before I realized that today is the release of Halloween Ends! It was the perfect opportunity to post this build and I couldn't miss out on it. As always, this build is conceptualized entirely in a vacuum, with choices made in an attempt to fit the character. These choices might not hold up in a campaign with different themes and should be adjusted accordingly.

Let's get into the build for Michael Myers from the Halloween franchise!

MICHAEL MYERS

CHARACTER Michael Myers

SOURCE Halloween

BUILD GOALS

o Michael Myers, sometimes known as the Shape, is the primary antagonist of the Halloween movie series, except for Halloween II: Season of the Witch

o One of the archetypal slashers, Michael is unspeaking and racked up his first kill at the young age of six when he murdered his sister

o He was subsequently institutionalized and kept there for fifteen years before he managed to escape and return to his hometown where he murdered several residents before he was seemingly killed

o However, he survived six shots and a fall over a balcony, disappearing in the seconds it took for people to look away and then back

o Michael is an eerily calm killer who favors the use of a chef’s knife as his primary weapon, but he has picked up a host of different weapons, some not even meant to be used as such, to carry out his kills

o Aside from being a highly proficient killer, Michael is a master at stealth, will lay traps for victims, and will leave corpses to unnerve other targets

o In Dead by Daylight, Michael’s perks all cause him to gain an obsession with one survivor

o Save the Best for Last gains stacks that reduce cooldown on successful attacks when he hits targets other than his obsession

o Play With Your Food gains stacks when he chases his obsession but they escape. These stacks give him Haste

o Dying Light gains stacks when he hooks survivors other than his obsession, with each stack making it more difficult for the survivors to perform skill checks

o From the same game, his Evil Within power allows him to stalk targets to charge it up. At its base, he moves slow but is undetectable. Once he gets to stage 2, he’s faster. If he stalks up to stage 3, his attacks down targets in a single hit and he is substantially faster

LEVEL 1

Ancestry & Heritage: Versatile Human

o Ability Boosts & Flaws: +Strength, +Charisma

o Ancestry Feat: Gloomseer

o General Feat: Weapon Proficiency

Background: Prisoner

o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Charisma

o Skill Increase: Stealth (trained), Underworld Lore (trained)

o Background Feat: Experienced Smuggler

Class & Subclass: Ruffian Rogue

o Class Ability Boost: +Strength

o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (trained), Athletics (trained), Deception (trained), Intimidation (trained), Medicine (trained), Occultism (trained), Society (trained), Survival (trained), Thievery (trained)

o Class Feat: You’re Next

o Skill Feat: Intimidating Glare

Details

o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Charisma (Str 18, Dex 12, Con 12, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 16)

Despite how inhuman Michael acts, part of the terror of him is that he is in fact a human. The human ancestry lets him pick up Gloomseer so that he can navigate the darkness he favor and the versatile heritage allows him to pick up Weapon Proficiency. His class makes him trained in all simple weapons so this feat will make him trained in all martial weapons, which qualifies him for a feat down the line even if it doesn’t grant him scaling proficiency. After his first kill at six, Michael spent most of his life in an asylum, which makes prisoner an appropriate choice. Reliant upon brute force and surprise attacks, Michael fits the bill of a ruffian rogue, taking advantage of the terror he inflicts upon those with his acts and unnerving presence. You’re Next stands in for the kills that he conducts in open view of others or almost with how he poses bodies to strike fear into his next victims and Intimidating Glare covers his lack of a voice.

LEVEL 2

o Class Feat: Weapon Improviser Dedication

o Skill Feat: Intimidating Prowess

o Skill Increase: Intimidation (expert)

o Gear: psychopomp mask

LEVEL 3

o General Feat: Toughness

o Skill Feat: Terrifying Resistance

o Skill Increase: Stealth (expert)

o Gear: +1 dagger, ring of discretion, psychopomp mask

LEVEL 4

o Class Feat: Dread Striker

o Skill Feat: Shadow Mark

o Skill Increase: Athletics (expert)

o Gear: doubling rings, +1 dagger, necklace of knives, psychopomp mask

LEVEL 5

o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Constitution, +Charisma (Str 19, Dex 14, Con 14, Int 10, Wis 10, Cha 18)

o Ancestry Feat: Darkseer

o Skill Feat: Hefty Hauler

o Skill Increase: Survival (expert)

o Gear: +1 striking dagger, doubling rings, bracelet of dashing, necklace of knives, ring of discretion, psychopomp mask

While Michael always favors his knife, he has used a variety of weapons over the years to conduct his brutal killings, and the Weapon Improviser Dedication fits that concept neatly. A fun aspect of it is that improvised weapons are all simple weapons, which means that Michael can sneak attack with any improvised weapon he gets his hands on. Dread Striker represents the way he takes advantage of the terror of his victims to strike them when they’re vulnerable. He naturally progresses down the line of more Intimidation feats, Terrifying Resistance working well for his survivability and some of the beliefs that his kills and the fear he creates makes him something more, but Shadow Mark fits nicely for his target of picking and ruthlessly stalking a target, always in the background. Picking up his Darkseer ancestry feat grants him the darkvision that needs to conduct his hunts. As the rogue class is a little behind in HP compared to most martial classes, Toughness is an important pick for the murderous juggernaut that is Michael Myers.

LEVEL 6

o Class Feat: Improvised Pummel

o Skill Feat: Experienced Tracker

o Skill Increase: Medicine (expert)

o Gear: +1 hide, +1 striking dagger, lifting belt, doubling rings, Jack’s tattered cape, necklace of knives

LEVEL 7

o General Feat: Diehard

o Skill Feat: Battle Cry

o Skill Increase: Intimidation (master)

o Gear: lesser dread armor rune, +1 hide, fearsome weapon rune, +1 striking dagger, doubling rings, skinsaw mask

LEVEL 8

o Class Feat: Makeshift Strike

o Skill Feat: Swift Sneak

o Skill Increase: Stealth (master)

o Gear: boots of bounding, lesser dread armor rune, shifting weapon rune, +1 hide, +1 striking dagger, demon mask

LEVEL 9

o Ancestry Feat: General Training – Incredible Initiative

o Skill Feat: Terrified Retreat

o Skill Increase: Athletics (master)

o Gear: +1 resilient hide, boots of bounding, wounding weapon rune, lesser dread armor rune, fearsome weapon rune, +1 striking dagger

LEVEL 10

o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 20, Dex 14, Con 16, Int 10, Wis 12, Cha 19)

o Class Feat: Surprise Strike

o Skill Feat: Terrain Stalker – Underbrush

o Skill Increase: Survival (master)

o Gear: mask of the banshee, +1 resilient hide, wounding weapon rune, boots of bounding, lesser dread armor rune, +1 striking dagger

Since improvised weapons count as simple weapons, doubling rings should transfer over to whatever improvised weapon he picks up as long as he has a hold on his knife. But for instances where he doesn’t have his knife, such as maybe picking up a two-handed improvised weapon, Improvised Pummel is a good way to bump up the effectiveness of such weapons. Along that route, he picks up Makeshift Strike so that he can pick up and Strike with an improvised weapon in a single go of it. Surprise Strike allows him to take advantage of his rogue class in conjunction with improvised weapons, leaving victims unused to his viciousness or adaptability as prime targets. Naturally, Michael picks up Diehard to represent that classic ability of a slasher to survive anything and delves deeper into Intimidation and Stealth feats as well as Experienced Tracker to keep pace with his prey. After the ability to terrorize, track, and stalk his prey, Michael takes up Athletics to delve into the physicality of the character.

LEVEL 11

o General Feat: Fast Recovery

o Skill Feat: Rapid Mantel

o Skill Increase: Medicine (master)

o Gear: +2 striking dagger, armbands of athleticism, mask of the banshee, +1 resilient hide, boots of bounding, wounding weapon rune

LEVEL 12

o Class Feat: Shattering Strike

o Skill Feat: Cat Fall

o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (expert)

o Gear: +2 resilient hide, +2 striking dagger, greater demon mask, armbands of athleticism, greater rhinoceros mask, wounding weapon rune

LEVEL 13

o Ancestry Feat: Bounce Back

o Skill Feat: Quick Jump

o Skill Increase: Acrobatics (master)

o Gear: +2 greater striking dagger, +2 resilient hide, greater doubling rings, greater clandestine cloak, armbands of athleticism, mask of the banshee

LEVEL 14

o Class Feat: Head Stomp

o Skill Feat: Combat Climber

o Skill Increase: Society (expert)

o Gear: keen weapon rune, +2 greater striking dagger, moderate dread armor rune, +2 resilient hide, greater clandestine cloak, greater demon mask

LEVEL 15

o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Constitution, +Wisdom, +Charisma (Str 21, Dex 14, Con 18, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 20)

o General Feat: Feather Step

o Skill Feat: Scare to Death

o Skill Increase: Intimidation (legendary)

o Gear: +2 greater resilient hide, keen weapon rune, boots of speed, +2 greater striking dagger, greater doubling rings, implacable armor rune

Shattering Strike represents the sheer savagery of some of Michael’s attacks, dealing horrifically grievous wounds to his victims even as he destroys his instruments. Head Stomp is mostly representative of a specific but spectacular kill featured in Halloween (2018) that I took the chance to include and because the frightened condition can run out, meaning that he needs more ways to make his targets flat-footed. With his focus on Strength and Athletics over Dexterity and Acrobatics, Rapid Mantel helps him catch himself from falling, which is a consistent problem he seems to have. But when that fails, he has Cat Fall since those falls never seem to bother him too much. Bounce Back represents his ability to come back from seemingly lethal wounds without much issue.

LEVEL 16

o Class Feat: Vicious Debilitations

o Skill Feat: Legendary Sneak

o Skill Increase: Stealth (legendary)

o Gear: dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient hide, boots of speed, keen weapon rune, +2 greater striking dagger, moderate dread armor rune

LEVEL 17

o Ancestry Feat: Stubborn Persistence

o Skill Feat: Continual Recovery

o Skill Increase: Survival (legendary)

o Gear: +3 greater striking dagger, dragonscale amulet, greater corrosive weapon rune, +2 greater resilient hide, keen weapon rune, boots of speed

LEVEL 18

o Class Feat: Powerful Sneak

o Skill Feat: Powerful Leap

o Skill Increase: Athletics (legendary)

o Gear: belt of giant strength, +3 greater striking dagger, speed weapon rune, dragonscale amulet, +2 greater resilient armor, boots of speed

LEVEL 19

o General Feat: Fleet

o Skill Feat: Titan Wrestler

o Skill Increase: Society (master)

o Gear: +3 greater resilient hide, belt of giant strength, dread blindfold, +3 greater striking dagger, dragonscale amulet, greater corrosive weapon rune

LEVEL 20

o Ability Boosts: +Strength, +Dexterity, +Intelligence, +Wisdom (Str 22, Dex 16, Con 18, Int 12, Wis 16, Cha 20)

o Class Feat: Enduring Debilitation

o Skill Feat: All of the Animal

o Skill Increase: Crafting (trained), Medicine (legendary)

o Gear: +3 major striking dagger, +3 greater resilient hide, titan’s grasp, dread blindfold, bloodthirsty weapon rune, speed weapon rune

Even those that escape death at the hands of Michael often bear grisly wounds that make them easier prey for him down the line, which makes Vicious Debilitations an appropriate fit that reinforces the choice of the ruffian racket. The brutality of Michael feels like it transfers over well into the general idea of Powerful Sneak while Enduring Debilitation represents the crippling injuries that he inflicts on his victims. Most skill feats at this juncture are just filling in slots though All of the Animal is an idea that came late and references how he survives out of the asylum – by catching neighborhood animals and savagely devouring them. Stubborn Persistence is mostly just based on making Michael more inhuman to the point where he doesn’t even need rest.

FREE ARCHETYPE SUGGESTIONS: Aside from the obvious choice of the Weapon Improviser Dedication for a free archetype, the Fighter Dedication adds some considerable benefits to the build. Intimidating Strike and Shatter Defenses are particularly fitting, with the former potentially trapping targets in a frightened state. Fearsome Brute also works nicely but can’t be picked up until he reaches 20th level as a rogue, so Opportunist is another solid feat choice. From those freed up feats, Michael can grab Brutal Beating, take Head Stomp earlier, Ambushing Knockdown that will mesh nicely with Head Stomp, and Bloody Debilitations.

BUILD CONCLUSION

This build creates Michael Myers as a sort of prototypical slasher who relies on stealth and terror to strike unsuspecting victims and brutally dispatch them. Rogue reflects this aspect of an ambusher with ruffian in particular playing into his reliance upon the fear and terror of his targets. Michael can keep his taciturn nature with Intimidating Glare removing the verbal component. A hefty investment into Constitution along with the Toughness and Diehard feats serve as his ability to survive grievous wounds such as being shot while Cat Fall helped him survive the subsequent fall. With the rogue class, Michael makes good use of the dagger as his primary weapon but thanks to the Weapon Improviser Dedication, he can pick up mundane items such as light bulbs, workman hammers, and fireman rescue tools to wield as weapons. Since improvised weapons are simple weapons, he can even sneak attack with them since ruffians can sneak attack with any simple weapon they get their hands on. His habit of posing victims or making kills to unnerve adversaries plays well into You’re Next. The ability to inflict frightened is built rather heavily into his kit, which works well for the DbD version of him with his Dying Light perk. The stalking aspect of it, which is pulled from the films, is captured in the Shadow Mark skill feat. I was even able to include a reference to one of his specific kills with the Head Stomp class feat!

Lemme know what you think and if there's any other particular builds you'd like to see.

If you want to join in on the discussion of these builds and the ones I do for monsters or just hang out with a bunch of fellow TTRPG nerds, check out the Discord server. We also have a Twitter where we try to post teasers for the blog and are trying to get some milestones made up for. For next week, I have a build that should be a dream to put together.

Have a fantastic Friday!