D&D 5E How Good/Bad are Monks?

[FrogReaver]

Interesting debate! Now I am considering dipping into Battlemaster Fighter for 3 levels (I'm already level 11 so I feel like I have enough ki... I'll be sad to miss out on proficiency in every single saving throw at level 14, though).


Re: Stunning Strike vs. superiority die: Remember that Stunning Strike allows a Constitution saving throw; some of the guys you'd really like to stun have very high Con. A superiority die is just straight up +1d8! That's pretty tempting.

more ki for more stuns and flurry of blows + those other abilities is better than superiority dice.

It's not like superiority dice is a bad option though.

 

[GrumpyGamer]

Monks can be a lot of fun; I like them with one level of caster to add a bit more to their kit, but this is not required. The optimized caster level would likely be Arcana priest from SCAG for access to the melee cantrips and a Wis caster stat.

 

[smbakeresq]

I actually played an Open Hand monk, very underrated IMO. All of the open hand stuff is stackable with stuns, so pushing stunned creatures off ledges or into lava is quite fun, stunned means they fail all the saving throws associated with Open Hand technique. If you hit with both attacks you can then impose 2 conditions. There is also no size limit on the creature you can knock prone. If creature isn't stunned then the no reactions condition lets everyone move around as they please.

 

[Zardnaar]

Hell hath frozen over. I made it to level 3 with an Open Hand monk. I actually enjoyed the class despite having a GWF Barbarian in the part putting my damage output to shame. have not got the kewl stuff yet and ki was limited. Still not a massive fan of the concept (asian kung fu master) but mechanically it was fun/effective enough.

 

[Azurewraith]

Hell hath frozen over. I made it to level 3 with an Open Hand monk. I actually enjoyed the class despite having a GWF Barbarian in the part putting my damage output to shame. have not got the kewl stuff yet and ki was limited. Still not a massive fan of the concept (asian kung fu master) but mechanically it was fun/effective enough.

Pfft let's see gwm knock some one prone

 

[Zardnaar]

Pfft let's see gwm knock some one prone

I knocked em prone and she of course uses advantage to offset the -5/+10.

 

[Azurewraith]

Naturally. Reckless attack would of done the same anyway. Just think your more of a Swiss arnt knife thr barbarian is just a hammer

 

[Zardnaar]

Naturally. Reckless attack would of done the same anyway. Just think your more of a Swiss arnt knife thr barbarian is just a hammer

True but not having to grant advantage to your enemies is also nice. We figured out the knock em down and hit em hard thing with the shield master feat a few weeks after 5E landed.

 

[Tawek]

Interesting debate between Flamestrike and FrogReaver.
You both make good points.

I think I'd lean towards Flamestrike's multiclass Monk/BM simply for fun reasons. The extra BM options, especially the superiority dice, would add variety.

 

[Dausuul]

Monks are strongly dependent on the number of short rests given per long rest. I would not recommend one at all if short rests aren't given very often.

This is really the critical point.

If you can get ~2 short rests per long rest, the monk is a solid combatant, with decent-if-not-spectacular damage plus some very potent control and debuff abilities. If you can't get your rests in, though, you will feel (and be) outclassed, particularly since everyone else at the table is playing a "long rest" class.

If you notice you're coming up short on rests (heh), it might be worth talking to the DM about it. I will take the opportunity to plug my favorite house rule here: Short rests are 5 minutes, but you're only allowed 2 per day. It does wonders to keep monks and warlocks on the same footing as other PCs, without requiring the DM to change how they design adventures.