Making the CW samurai viable

[atemu1234]

Giving it one bonus feat every two levels from the fighter bonus feat list for the first ten levels makes it surprisingly playable.

[Thiyr]

That seems like a pretty marginal improvement over just two-handing the katana, especially given that you're going to be spending gold to enchant your wakizashi and don't benefit from Power Attack with it.

Psh. Wakizashi. Why use that when you can use another bastard sword! "But the samurai's two weapon fighting only works if you're using bastard sword and short sword!" And? Get yourself a Sunsword/Sun Blade (depending on available funds, DM generosity regarding the Sun Sword's unbonded state, and DM willingness to backprice the ability to wield a bastard sword as a shortsword to the +1 it seems to be priced at on the Sun Blade)! All the bastard sword! Plus, then you can use one of your free levels for another one in EWM, taking Twin EW Fighting to further reduce attack roll penalties.

At that point, you're getting 3x BAB to damage and two bonus attacks, one at highest, and one at first iterative, with all attacks taking a -1 penalty and your AC going through the floor (and a +2 to hit, so functional +1 compared to standing there). And each of your attacks could be argued to be getting 1.5x str to each weapon as well, due to Uncanny Blow (though that's arguable). (Bonus silly reading/going to add this to rules dysfunction thread if it isn't there already, Twin EW Fighting looks like it reduces -all- penalties to your attack rolls from TWF to a flat -1 when you're two weapon fighting that way. Greater TWF giving you a bonus at a mere -1? not bad)

What's that? Still not a big enough damage boost? Well, do you have two feats open? Of course you do! Take Neraph Charge and Craven! Suddenly that d6 of sneak dice from the first level of ronin matters! Even if you only hit with your first two iteratives/offhand hits, it's gonna sting. Not, like, Übercharger levels of pain, but at 20, assuming all your levels are full BAB classes that's gonna be 80 damage a swing, + STR (or 1.5x if your DM lets you read it that way), plus any dice. a 320+ damage opener is nothing to sneeze at: Enough to kill any CR 15 enemy or your average CR 19 enemy in one round, and enough to leave the average CR20 uncomfortably low on health. That's assuming the last two iterative attacks don't connect, or that there's no other sources of damage coming in. You're sitting at half that if you were just two-handing (plus or minus a bit, you're getting more from STR but not getting the benefit of multiple hits)