Quote Originally Posted by Blue Jay View Post
I haven't actually participated in this thread yet, but I've been lurking the whole time.

I'm curious about the comparison between the ogre and the centaur. I would have pegged the two as pretty equal for use in melee builds, but you felt the centaur was worth a higher starting ECL. The standout ability for the centaur seems to be the damage benefits with the lance; then I guess a series of minor comparison points favor the centaur (monstrous humanoid is somewhat better than giant, ogre's mental stats and Dex suffer, increased carrying capacity, etc). On the other hand, the ogre has a few things going for it: reach, more natural armor, and slightly better Strength. Most of the other stuff is pretty equivalent.

I mean, I agree that the centaur is the better option overall, but do you think the difference is dramatic enough to warrant a difference in starting ECL?
I agree the two seem pretty close, but Races of Faerun has a rule that puts centaurs majorly ahead.

Quote Originally Posted by RoF, page 132
Racial Feats: None, but centaurs can acquire the Spirited Charge and Trample feats (ignoring the prerequisites) and apply the benefits to their own melee attacks.
That's right: Spirited Charge without prerequisites. That means that for the low, low, cost of one feat, centaurs can take what's essentially Headlong Rush, but better.

Sure, a normal character could take spirited charge, but that means getting a mount which cost money to purchase, equip and maintain, and can easily be killed, controlled, or incapacitated. Not to mention that this normal character would have spent two reasonably useless feats on the prerequisites already.