D&D 3E/3.5 3.5 - Some Questions - Monk, Drunken Master, Vow of Poverty

[Ragmon]

Hello again.

General info:
- Gestalt - |Monk 10 - Fighter 6/Drunken Master 4| - race:"that lawful planetouched in MM2" - Lawful Neutral.
- High powered campaign, tho we have low powered equipment since we level too fast cause we have a home-brew (link) version the Concordant Killer and its OP as hell.
- Thinking of taking Vow of Poverty at level 15, for purely metagaming reasons. (And yes I know that I need to change alignment first).

Questions:
I.a. Vow of poverty:
1. Would the character be able to drink alcohol?
2. Could I carry other peoples stuff, you know like a pack mule? If not what if I am carrying a person (and is unconscious), would that break the vow?
3. Could I haul items around for the porous of selling it and donating the money?
4. Could I own slaves, ignoring alignment for the sake of argument? (just a question for "teh lolz")
5. What is the rule on using items?
- Example 1: picking up a golden rod to jam a mechanism.
- Example 2: picking up a magical rod to jam a mechanism.

I.b. Vow of Poverty and Improvise Weapon
1. Would using chairs and tables in combat break the Vow?

II. Improvised Weapon
1. So if I use any item below Artifact quality I break it if I roll a 1 on attack?
2. Would a dead small creature count as a small or large shield?
3. Would the creature need to be dead to count as an object or unconscious is enough, or what if its "held" as the spell.

III. Monk:
1. So I have the outsider Type, not native. So my question from Perfect Self would I only gain the DR 10/magic?
2. Could a monk sunder/break a Brilliant Energy weapon?
3. Would you allow this: A monk charges and uses abundant step to reach the target. (I would allow it, cause it so damn cool).
4. If I have Superior Unarmed Strike would my Unarmed Damage increase beyond 2d8 (the DMG at at the Epic entry states that a monks Unarmed Strike dmg does not increase beyond level 16).
4.b. If this is correct is the dmg indicated at monk level 20 just for the Monks belt?

IV. Misc:
1. I was thinking of adding Thief Acrobat for my last 4 levels but it would not fit the "fluff" part as much. So I would ask for a general opinion before I mention this to the DM.
Would you allow, say not call it Thief acrobat but Monk Acrobat and just give it a bit different fluff description wise?
How it would look: (|Monk 20 - Fighter 6/ Drunken Master 10 / Thief Acrobat 4 (gestalt)).

 

[Sekhmet]

Questions:
1: Yes, so long as another character buys it and gives it to you freely. You may not own it, but you can drink it.
2: You can carry things for other players, but you may not equip any of it, nor treat it like it is your's.
3: Yes, your share of loot should be carried by you, so that you can be sure that it goes to the right place. Again, you can't equip any of it.
4: No, you may not own slaves.
5: In both your examples, you're okay, but your DM may (and arguably so) warn you against it.

I'm fairly lax with VoP rules, as they often get in the way of simple, necessary events. Like your rod/mechanism example - if you're the only one available to perform the task, I wouldn't strip away your feat for picking up a glorified stick and putting it in a gear.

6: Yes. Chairs and tables are not simple weapons.

Improvised Weapons: Skipping the first question.
2: Neither, it would grant you a small amount of cover (if you're roughly 6', and it is roughly 4', I'd give you 75% cover.
3: All three of those conditions would work.

Monk queries.
1: I'm confused by the wording of the question, as Native Outsiders don't gain more or less DR than Outsiders. Yes, you gain 10/magic.
2: Yes, you'd break the hilt/handle/shaft, etc.
3: No, Abundant Step is a standard action.
4/4b: Use the source (PHB) for determining your monk's damage at level 20, rather than the DMG. Monks go up to 2d10 at level 20.
At level 16, with Superior Unarmed Strike, your Monk's unarmed damage is 2d10. You won't gain anymore damage, because that is where the table ends. I wouldn't take this feat if you are planning to get to 20 Monk. (I wouldn't go to 20 Monk)

 

[Ragmon]

Questions:
Monk queries.
1: I'm confused by the wording of the question, as Native Outsiders don't gain more or less DR than Outsiders. Yes, you gain 10/magic.
2: Yes, you'd break the hilt/handle/shaft, etc.
3: No, Abundant Step is a standard action.
4/4b: Use the source (PHB) for determining your monk's damage at level 20, rather than the DMG. Monks go up to 2d10 at level 20.
At level 16, with Superior Unarmed Strike, your Monk's unarmed damage is 2d10. You won't gain anymore damage, because that is where the table ends. I wouldn't take this feat if you are planning to get to 20 Monk. (I wouldn't go to 20 Monk)

1. Well it states for spell and such the monk counts as an outsider (charm person, hold person does not work and so on). Since my character is already an outside and these effects already don't effect me, I would only gain the DR 10/magic.

2. I meant like using Boots of speed to hit someone, then I roll a 1 on attack and it breaks. I was thinking of say the Lich made an impregnable phylactery (tho not an artifact), then I use it as an Improvised weapon to attack the wall and eventually I will roll a 1 and it will break. It would not matter how enhanced the phylactery was the Drunken Master rules state that on a 1 it breaks.

3. Aww you would not allow it?!...but its cool.

4/4b. Dang it i was afraid that you would say that.

What about the last point?

 

[Sekhmet]

I wouldn't consider any magical item to break on a roll of a 1, regardless of it's caliber.
The entries state clear examples of simple, wooden objects (chairs, ladders, farm implements, etc) as the basis for the skill.

 

[Ragmon]

I wouldn't consider any magical item to break on a roll of a 1, regardless of it's caliber.
The entries state clear examples of simple, wooden objects (chairs, ladders, farm implements, etc) as the basis for the skill.

Improvised Weapons (Ex): While bottles and tankards are a drunken master’s preferred improvised weapons, he can use furniture, farm implements, or nearly anything else at hand to attack his foes.

This is my concern (the underlined part), it leaves the players with a very loose interpretation with what can be used as an improvised weapon.

But to be within the strict interpretation of the rules, lets say the Drunken Master uses a magical mug (ever full mug or something). Would the Drunken Master destroy the magical item?

 

[Sekhmet]

Again, I wouldn't allow a magical item to be broken on a roll of a 1.
The rules leave it open to anything whatsoever. The Tarrasque? Roll a 1. Vecna? Roll a 1. The Sword of Kas? Roll a 1! Who cares that it is actually a weapon, you were using it by swinging the hilt at people. Improvised!

Be reasonable, and use the examples as guidelines.

 

[Ragmon]

Again, I wouldn't allow a magical item to be broken on a roll of a 1.
The rules leave it open to anything whatsoever. The Tarrasque? Roll a 1. Vecna? Roll a 1. The Sword of Kas? Roll a 1! Who cares that it is actually a weapon, you were using it by swinging the hilt at people. Improvised!

Be reasonable, and use the examples as guidelines.

I did not wish to abuse the rules I just wanted so discuss the bad wording on the ability.

 

[Wyvernhand]

On top of being mechanically crappy, VoP is exceedingly easy to fall. Can you carry a mountain of gold to an orphanage to donate it to the starving children's retirement fund? Yes. Could you carry the money there in a Bag of Holding? Nope. Heck, just being in possession of a Bag of Holding that has anything in it (dust, water, AIR) is considered "utilizing" the item with a one way ticket to Fallsville. The same could be said of being the recipient of someone's buffing wand, or riding along on someone's magic carpet. You aren't directly in control, but you are still receiving direct benefits from an item as if you were in possession of it.

And no, you couldn't actually accept someone else's booze. There is an example in VoP that explicitly states that you can not "borrow" someone else's swag, benefit from it, and then give it back (or not, in the case of potions or booze). It doesn't matter who's it is, you can't benefit from it or by the RAW, you fall. Its a very slippery slope once you start trying to quantify what is and isn't benefiting from something.

 

[dragonfriend7738]

On top of being mechanically crappy, VoP is exceedingly easy to fall. Can you carry a mountain of gold to an orphanage to donate it to the starving children's retirement fund? Yes. Could you carry the money there in a Bag of Holding? Nope. Heck, just being in possession of a Bag of Holding that has anything in it (dust, water, AIR) is considered "utilizing" the item with a one way ticket to Fallsville. The same could be said of being the recipient of someone's buffing wand, or riding along on someone's magic carpet. You aren't directly in control, but you are still receiving direct benefits from an item as if you were in possession of it.

And no, you couldn't actually accept someone else's booze. There is an example in VoP that explicitly states that you can not "borrow" someone else's swag, benefit from it, and then give it back (or not, in the case of potions or booze). It doesn't matter who's it is, you can't benefit from it or by the RAW, you fall. Its a very slippery slope once you start trying to quantify what is and isn't benefiting from something.

Misconception correction:
Quoted from the sourcebook:
"You may carry enough food to sustain you for one
day in a simple (nonmagic) sack or bag. You may carry and use a
spell component pouch. You may not use any magic item of any
sort, though you can benefit from magic items used on your
behalf—you can drink a potion of cure serious wounds a friend
gives you, receive a spell cast from a wand, scroll, or staff, or ride
on your companion’s ebony fly. You may not, however, “borrow” a
cloak of resistance or any other magic item from a companion for
even a single round, nor may you yourself cast a spell from a
scroll, wand, or staff."

So, if your fighter buddy wants to buy you a round at the tavern, and you haven't taken the Vow of Abstinence, then you're in the green. You just can't buy your own drinks, because you can't have money to spend on yourself.

Also, if your DM is alright with it, you could theoretically carry loot on your person, provided that you and everyone else is aware that the loot is destined to be donated to whatever charity you've dedicated yourself to and in no way will ever be used on your behalf. That way you're basically becoming a sentient cart and preventing the party from 'accidentally' making part of it disappear.

 

[dragonfriend7738]

I'm looking at making an Exalted Vow of Poverty Monk character right now as well, so I've been studying up on the ramifications of the vow.

First off, taking the Vow of Poverty at Level 15 is only possible after you've taken the Sacred Vow feat- which shouldn't be a problem. If you do so, you instantly gain all the benifits of a Lv15 VoP character, sans the bonus exalted feats between level 1 and level 15.

Between that, what I posted above, and what Sekhmet stated in Post#2, I think all your questions have been answered.

Also, if it's alright with the DM, since you're taking classes in Drunken Master, you could probably add your booze to your 'daily rations' that you carry on your person, provided that someone else buys it for you.