Fighter vs. Monk

[Endur]

About level 16+, Monks get to be very nasty. Below that, Fighters are better because of the equipment advantage.

But even when the Monk is very nasty, a well-equiped fighter can still match him (i.e. if you think the 25th level Monk Half-Ogre is nasty, take a look at a 26th level Barbarian -- I had a 21st level Barbarian that could have given that Monk a very serious fight).

Where Monks shine though, is out of combat. They are much better than Fighters out of combat. They have better skills. They are better at resisting spells than fighters. And they are better at fighting in any sort of special area, i.e. fighting on a cliff edge, fighting while holding onto a rope, fighting while swimming, fighting anywhere except on the battlefield.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

Just stopping by to say two things:
1. If you're a community supporter, search the house rules forum for "Fists of Khomar" or "fighting styles" (or, if all else fails, just a heavy concentration of posts by Vrylakos, Killer Shrike, and Basilisk. It's a prestige class Killer Shrike designed for exactly the purpose you're looking at.

2. For all that the 26th level (ECL 27) half-ogre monk looks impressive, I have a strong suspicion that he'd get schooled by a well-constructed 27th level fighter. His attacks bonusses are lower than the typical 20th level fighter type statted up on the Fighter vs. PsyWar thread and, given a polymorph any object or similar spell, the fighter types ACs would be higher too. Since those were supposed to be the impressive bits about the half-ogre character, I'm not convinced he's all that.

2.5 That said, monks can be effective fighter types if they're designed to be that.

 

[Elder-Basilisk]

It's important to note that a lot of third party books make monks very dangerous.

A monk whose got access to feats and abilities from A Player's Guide to Arcanis, Monks and Paladins, Beyond Monk, the Art of the Fight, Quintessentail Monk I & II, is going to be devistating.

A fighter with feats and abilities from even just Player's Guide to Arcanis is going to be devastating too.