D&D 5E Pesky odd stat and decision paralysis.

[Cyan Wisp]

Wow, thanks for all the excellent responses! I want to be a back-line mole with high mobility who locks down specific threats. Being just where the enemy doesn't want me - it is why I chose monk! After much consideration of the advice given, I will take...

4th: Athlete. I like the "drop prone" idea, fast climbing and better jumping. Quite ninja-esque. It also give me 18 Dex. So, it evens out my score and gives me a bunch of nice movement options to boot.
8th: Mage Slayer. I'm convinced. I can always use Shadow Step where possible and Step of the Wind when I can't. I will probably be encountering more casters by then, too.
12th: Wis+2.

It just seems cooler to take feats. Again, thank you for all of your insights. Many brains make light work!

 

[EzekielRaiden]

Yeah, I suspect that Athlete will prove more useful than Mobile for a Wood Elf Monk. I mean, even at level 2, you're already +20 ft over any other character, and moving 10 five-foot squares a round(!!) is already...pretty heavy-duty. If Mobile gave +1 Dex (and, to be honest, I'm not sure why it doesn't) I could see it, but since it doesn't...yeah. If Climbing is a big deal in your campaign, Athlete could be huge--being able to climb 50 feet a round at level 2 could be incredibly useful.

Personally--and I want to reiterate that this is just my own preferences talking--I don't really see the allure of Mage Slayer, unless you find yourself facing either (a) a BUTTLOAD of casters, or (b) nearly every "big bad" type is a caster. Otherwise, forcing disadvantage on enemy Concentration or getting 1 melee attack against a caster seems...I dunno. I feel like +2 Dex or +2 Wis is just categorically better, since the former makes all your baseline stuff better (+1 AC/Init/atk/dam), while the latter makes all your Monk tricks better.

I guess what I'm saying is: DO you face enough Mages that being awesome at Slaying them will actually do something for you? If not, don't even think about it in terms of fluff vs. power, think about it in terms of "will it matter?"

 

[Guest 6801328]

As somebody who has Mage Slayer, let me just say that even if it doesn't come up often it's really immensely satisfying to get a reaction attack when somebody casts. I'm not sure you can quantitatively compare that joy to an across the board +1 stat boost.

Having Advantage on saves versus them (while you're standing next to them) is quite nice, too.

 

[FormerlyHemlock]

As somebody who has Mage Slayer, let me just say that even if it doesn't come up often it's really immensely satisfying to get a reaction attack when somebody casts. I'm not sure you can quantitatively compare that joy to an across the board +1 stat boost.

Having Advantage on saves versus them (while you're standing next to them) is quite nice, too.

Interestingly, it also gives you Advantage on certain saves against friendly fire, like dropping a Fireball or Evard's Black Tentacles on your own position.

 

[TacoSupreme]

I would do +1dex/+1wis and consider taking resilient wisdom at a later level.

 

[Cyan Wisp]

Yeah, we are playing Out of the Abyss. I don't know what's coming (and don't want to, thanks!), but I'm pretty sure there'll be lots of magic being thrown around by the usual Underdark denizens (drow, duergar, derro, etc.)

 

[dmnqwk]

If you wish to take both Observant AND Athlete, you will end up requiring either a 3rd feat, or wasting a +1 on an ability score which is neither odd nor likely to increase further.

I would recommend you choose which of Observant and Athlete you want the most (I would pick Observant if you are proficient in Perception, Athlete if you are not.)

At 4th level I would go for Observant, setting both Dex and Wis to odd, then fixing them to 18 each at level 8.
For 12th 16th and 19th you only need 2 ASIs leaving you free to pick Mage Slayer, if you even wish to Max the attributes.

Personally, I would probably take Skilled at 12th, because you can never go wrong with more skills (and by that time proficiency bonuses are a large part of the check).

 

[Cyan Wisp]

If you wish to take both Observant AND Athlete, you will end up requiring either a 3rd feat, or wasting a +1 on an ability score which is neither odd nor likely to increase further.

I would recommend you choose which of Observant and Athlete you want the most (I would pick Observant if you are proficient in Perception, Athlete if you are not.)

At 4th level I would go for Observant, setting both Dex and Wis to odd, then fixing them to 18 each at level 8.
For 12th 16th and 19th you only need 2 ASIs leaving you free to pick Mage Slayer, if you even wish to Max the attributes.

Personally, I would probably take Skilled at 12th, because you can never go wrong with more skills (and by that time proficiency bonuses are a large part of the check).

Thanks for the input. Nice idea and very tidy.

I'm not sold on Observant in my current campaign. As a DM, I use Passive Perception all the time, but my current DM has never asked for it in 4 levels. Always active Perception checks.

I really like the suite of features for Athlete (even if the climbing one becomes a little redundant at 9th) and it does the same trick of making everything even.

 

[Plaguescarred]

I'd take Athlete at L4 and then ASi at L8 so that i have a Dex 20 by then.