Has anyone managed to make the monk less oriental?

[Pbartender]

You know... I've always wanted to make a Dwarf or Half-orc pugilist. A real expert boxer... Or maybe a greco-roman style wrestler. But I run into that same problem. A carefully done Monk/Fighter might work, but even then you run into those funky Ki abilities pretty quickly.

 

[Darth K'Trava]

I'm in one game where the DM took out the monk, in addition to the other "Oriental-flavor" classes, as he didn't like the Oriental-flavor stuff. I don't see any problems with that. I've yet to have seen an effective monk in combat..... Usually they sucked in a fight but could do nifty stuff like evade most things and basically "run down the wall" and avoid injury that way.... or one that jumped from the roof of a temple to the wall and down into the street behind a bad guy who wondered "where'd she come from?!?!!"....

 

[Umbran]

I'm currently using the class mechanically as-is, but with a major flavor-text adjustment. The monks don't come from an "Oriental" land. They're the result of the remains of a human culture being left without much access to metals, but still having to defend themselves against humanoids. If you can't do lots of axes and swords and metal armor, you develop other means...

 

[jester47]

I have always disliked the monk, and I highly discourage it in my game. My argument against a lot of "oriental flavored" classes is the same. Basicly, in my opinion, monks and samurai are the same thing: fighters. Ninjas are assassins. Wujen are wizards. Looking at asian history, all I really see is that samurais, ninjas and monks are all just oriental variations on themes that you see in every other culture. Wanna be a monk? Be a fighter with hand to hand feats.

Who are the guys in the monestaries? Adepts.

Aaron.

 

[Tinner]

Take a look at the Elven Wardancer from the Warhammer RPG.
Lightly armed unarmored fighters that use dance as a means to confuse their enemies and synchronize their attacks.
Sounds like it might be a better mesh for you.

 

[Olibarro]

I think that without the Ki powers, a pugilist (fighter with feats designed around unarmed combat) will always come off weak vs. your typical armed and armored opponents. Realistically, the only way to make an unarmed assailant a viable warrior in typical D&D combat is to give him mystical abilities.

If you can do that without the "oriental" trappings that bother you, then you are on to something.

 

[Psion]

Goodman Games/Chainmail Bikini games "Beyond Monks" has a less "mystical" martial artist. Some of it's selectable abilities still smack of eastern mysticism, but since you have many to choose from, you can exclude those.

 

[MoogleEmpMog]

Personally, I think the monk works better as a "slowly transforming into a superhuman being" class than as either an occidental or oriental mythic hero class.

Essentially, the monk only works in any way if he's making a transition similar to the Dragon Disciple. He's not a martial artist (that would be a fighter with unarmed combat feats), he's some kind of freaky mystic who wants to turn himself into a modron. Or at least an inevitable.

 

[ThirdWizard]

The Oathsworn from Arcana Unearthed is an unarmed combatant who echews "tools" whenever possible. They also have the fun ability to use random objects laying around as weapons.

 

[Tonguez]

Yes

its called a Psychic Warrior

(because Psionic feats DO make a better Monk)