Regarding your spiked build, I think it doesn't pay off to lose Lightning Punches. -2 AP is too good. I'd rather invest one more point into INT, take Armor Sloping and Nimble to qualify for LP and go the STR route.
Since Combo was nerfed I was neglecting it but I got a new idea for a build around that feat which abuses the Combo mechanics:
If you land three consecutive damage dealing unarmed or fist weapon attacks against a single target in a single turn, the third attack will deal 100% bonus damage and have 20% chance to stun the target for 1 turn.
Now this is the idea: On a STR based build metal gloves and the Power Fist give most bang for the buck because of huge STR bonus (it's even better then for sledgehammers), but metal gloves are slow and this penalizes all mechanics that need punch spamming (Combo, Cheap Shots, Wrestling, Taste for Blood, Bone Breaker).
So what if one would wield metal gloves in one slot and bare fists in the other and make best of both paths? Let's say you take 10 DEX (which is a sweetspot for this build) then together with Lightning Punches and tabbis you'll hit for 5 AP with bare fists and 10 AP with the metal gloves. As you can see those numbers fit so well withing any AP pool.
With 50 AP you have these possibilities:
a.) 10 times with the bare fists which is too weak.
b.) 5 times with metal gloves which is good damage but too few hits.
c.) 4 times with bare fists and 3 times with metal gloves which gives best damage with most hits: 5+5+10+5+5+10+10=50
The combo would look like this: Two hits with bare fists and third always with the metal gloves. This way you make sure that on every third hit you get 100% bonus weapon damage on the strong gloves (besides the stun chance), so by replacing first metal glove punch with two regular hits you don't lose any damage. You actually gain alot because those two bare fist hits can be seen as free damage which is actually pretty good with 15-16 STR, Force Emission and Corporal Projection (Telekinetic damage +5% for each point of strength above 5). 7 vs 5 hits also makes a better chance to proc the buffs/debuffs/abilities I mentioned above. Even Bone Breaker becomes worthwhile because there is a pretty good chance for it to proc on one or both hits before metal gloves. VS extremly tough opponents like some bosses you could focus on buff debuf first: 8 hits with bare fists and final hit with metal (Combo damage applies) you're very likely to score good TfB, Wrestling, Bone Breaker, stun buffs/debuffs.
This is the complete build:
10+++++/10/6/3/3/3/5+
01 - Recklessness
01 - Sprint
02 - Nimble
04 - Lightning Punches
06 - Quick Tinkering
08 - Cheap Shots
10 - Expose Weakness
12 - Combo
14 - Critical Power
16 - Armor Sloping (+1 INT here)
18 - Wrestling
20 - Taste for Blood
22 - Corporal Projection
24 - Bone Breaker
If you happen to come across a TiChrome bar early (rare but possible) rush Armor Sloping and craft a TiChrome metal armor with a sturdy vest for extra hitpoints. It's a long road until a bladed super steel armor.
