D&D 5E Monk Tortle

Beleriphon said:

Just promise me you'll yell "SKADOOSH" when you use flurry of blows, at least once.

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All the time!

I think TMNT are kensai monks.
They all have a chosen weapon. They use them.

Blue said:

So, for example, every elf in a martial class (and some others) deserves a freebie because their elven weapon training overlaps?

If I multiclass into a class that grants armor/weapon proficiencies (all but sorcerer & wizard), should I be expecting a "make-up" bennie for already having them? It's a conscious choice just like my race/class combo.

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I give 'make-up' benefits pretty much whenever suggested. If it is a trivial thing that was lost, I don't bother to suggest it to the player, but I do suggest it when the absence will be felt.

This game is all about having fun. Giving the player something minor that sets them apart from the stock rules is fun. Why not do it?

So, if there is a Mountain Dwarf Forge Domain Cleric - Yes, I'd give them a little something extra because of the race/class overlap. I don't consider the class/subclass to be an additional overlap - the grave cleric ability expands upon the cleric weapon/armor designation, it does not duplicate it - but I might give the dwarf expertise in smith's tools, or a bonus forge domain spell.

Any DM worthy of the title (imo) will work with the players to realize their dream character as long as the players understand the DM has valid reasons to veto certain things because of unavailability in the campaign or they plan on the introduction of it at a certain point. That said, the book itself says fun should overrule rules.

I had forgotten about this thread when I read Tasha's, but it provides a different light on the second half of the conversation, I'd say.

jgsugden said:

You do not have a PHB? Putting aside AC and attack elements...

Deflect Missiles (damage you an reduce, ranged attack roles if you spend the Ki)
Evasion is highly impacted.
Certain Tradition Abilities.

Also, the traditional things that are important to a melee combatant - high initiative to get into position, for example.

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Evasion subtracts half damage from all Dex-saves. It isn't that impacted by your dex save chance.

Deflect missiles damage reduction is slightly weakened. Going from 16 to 10 dex makes it 9.5 instead of 6.5 average at level 1. By level 5, it is 13.5 vs 10.5. By level 10 it is 20.5 vs 15.5. So you reduce about 30% more damage with a high-dex monk.

The ranged attack, unless the weapon is a melee one with the has the thrown property or darts (which are ranged thrown weapons with the finesse property, permitting using strength with them), loses accuracy.

What you get out of it, of course, is athletics. Which is shoving, grappling and jumping.

NotAYakk said:

Evasion subtracts half damage from all Dex-saves. It isn't that impacted by your dex save chance.

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You're looking at the mouth outside context. For example, in last week's game, my monk charged into a battle against a coven of hags protected by a front line of baddies. He took 6 lightning bolts. He took no damage. Drawing that fire and walking away unscathed was a huge benefit to the party.

Deflect missiles damage reduction is slightly weakened. Going from 16 to 10 dex makes it 9.5 instead of 6.5 average at level 1. By level 5, it is 13.5 vs 10.5. By level 10 it is 20.5 vs 15.5. So you reduce about 30% more damage with a high-dex monk.

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Less than 30%, because you're often not needing that full amount of reduction. However, when you do reduce it all, that enables the throw back as a reaction, which is a damage accelerator. Making a lot of attacks is what this class loves to do.

The ranged attack, unless the weapon is a melee one with the has the thrown property or darts (which are ranged thrown weapons with the finesse property, permitting using strength with them), loses accuracy.

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Yes, in some situations, the strength throw back is at reduced hit and damage.

What you get out of it, of course, is athletics. Which is shoving, grappling and jumping.

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I've played a 12 strength monk for a good amount of time, now. He is open hand, so shoving is not really that hard to do with his flurry of blows. Grappling isn't something he does often - stunning is generally a superior outcome to grappling someone. And I can't think of any instance in which my jump distance fell within 8 feet of being too short... and if it did, I'd just use the Ki point to triple my jump. Athletics is also useful for climbing until you hit level 9 and can just walk up that wall.

Dexterity saves are more common that strength saves, and the AC capabilities (being able to get to 18, 19 or 20 at higher levels) is not insignificant in a longer game.

A strength build Tortle monk is certainly playable. However, if I planned to play a strength based monk, I would be more likely to start out as a dex build with athletics as a skill, and then seek out a strength magic item down the road. I do recall one 12th level monk that found a 27 strength belt taking a level of rogue to gain expertise in athletics, but I don't recall him actually making much use of it.

You could dual-class 'em too for fun...even have a semicomplete party...

Paladin (leads)
Artificer (does machines)
Rogue (cool but rude)
Bard (party dude)

Kensei Tortle Monk and take Mobile at 4th. Hit and run. Speed will eventually let you hit and move so far away that it takes creatures their Move and Action to catch you. When you are out of range you use your Bow to shoot from range before moving back into Melee combat. Yes, there are trade offs but WotC gives so many options that can be explored to make for 'fun' characters. I have all four tortles spec'd up for a game I plan on running along with Casey and April. I borrowed advice from Reddit. They are not damage optimized characters. They are made to be run to play.

Blue Orange is close to what I have spec'd.