D&D 3E/3.5 Monk 3.5

[Dimwhit]

moderator/
If anyone wants to talk about the merits or otherwise of INA for monks or any restrictions on polearm plus unarmed threatening or variations thereof, could you please link to one of the older threads on those subjects and continue discussions there.

I'd like to not see this thread bogged down in old arguments once more.

Thanks.

I'd love to, but I think you guys have shut down those older threads...

 

[NilesB]

(with his Wis bonus, his AC was best in the party)

Then everyone else in the party had an unaccountably crappy AC, or he had twice the value in magic items as the rest of the party.

 

[Nail]

I'd love to, but I think you guys have shut down those older threads...

They have indeed.

That said, you can still find a few. There are even some that are quite long......

Please don't ressurect these. Let them R.I.P.

 

[Dimwhit]

They have indeed.

That said, you can still find a few. There are even some that are quite long......

Please don't ressurect these. Let them R.I.P.

Geez, only one of those is still open, and it's talking more about WotC editing incompetence than the INA feat. Bummer.

 

[Nail]

I could post more.......but it's hardly worth it. If you are interested in why INA can't be used by Mnks, those are the threads to read. There's no point debating this any more...the positions have become too entrenched.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Then everyone else in the party had an unaccountably crappy AC

In truth, there was no heavy armor junkie in the party.

, or he had twice the value in magic items as the rest of the party.

Nope- starting PC level was 3rd, and everyone got the same amount (2000gp) in magic items, which he spent on the Quiver of Ehlonna. He never got another magic item in the course of the campaign.

Stats were rolled (each stat = 4d6 drop lowest) in the presence of the DM- the 18 went to Dex, the 17 to Wis (and were his only stats over 14). With his racial stat mods, his starting AC was over 20, which increased as his stats and Monk/PrCl levels increased. Furthermore, his PsyWar powers included some that gave him AC bonuses- boosting him into the 30s quite early.

 

[NilesB]

Stats were rolled (each stat = 4d6 drop lowest) in the presence of the DM- the 18 went to Dex, the 17 to Wis (and were his only stats over 14). With his racial stat mods, his starting AC was over 20, which increased as his stats and Monk/PrCl levels increased.

What race was he with +8 or more to dex/wis?

Without racial mods He would have, at low levels, the same movement rating and a better AC if he put the 17 in dex the 18 in strength and played a barbarian in a breastplate.

 

[Ridley's Cohort]

Then everyone else in the party had an unaccountably crappy AC, or he had twice the value in magic items as the rest of the party.

Not necessarily. He could have begged for buffs from a spellcaster, or donated wands for the same purpose.

Mage Armor (+4), Protection from Evil (+2), Cat's Grace (+2), Owl's Wisdom (+2). A Monk's AC can really boost up with just low level spells. One of the attractions of the Monk/Sorceror type PC is you can add Shield (+4) on top of all that for a (up to) +14 boost to AC.

A lowish level Monk/Sorceror can potentially reach AC 31 with some simple boosts, not even counting things like Dodge, Mobility, Fighting Defensively, Combat Experise, racial Size modifiers, and racial stat mods.

Yes, those are extreme examples. But AC 25 is very easily in reach with a little help. And the upper limit is very high even for low to mid level PCs.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

Originally Posted by

Dannyalcatraz
Stats were rolled (each stat = 4d6 drop lowest) in the presence of the DM- the 18 went to Dex, the 17 to Wis (and were his only stats over 14). With his racial stat mods, his starting AC was over 20, which increased as his stats and Monk/PrCl levels increased.

NilesB
What race was he with +8 or more to dex/wis?

Without racial mods He would have, at low levels, the same movement rating and a better AC if he put the 17 in dex the 18 in strength and played a barbarian in a breastplate.

Well, we were discussing Githzerai and what makes them such good monks, and my last monk was of the race in question- so Dex +6, Wis +2, giving a Dex of 24 (+7) and a Wis of 19 (+4), for a total AC bonus of +11. 10 + 11=21. Factor in his Psi-like ability to do Inertial Armor 3xday, and he is at AC24 as a 1st lvl monk with a LA of +2. (In comparison, the Lvl3 Human Barbarian had a Dex of 17 and (as I recall) a breastplate, for an AC of 18, and carried a 2hd Sword- so no shield bonus for him.)

(As I recall, certain Anthropomorphic Animals with a +2LA have equivalent or better stat adjustments to Dex & Wis)

As he advanced in levels, he continued his AC lead because PsyWar levels got him powers like Force Screen for an additional +4AC and a Monk PrCl that had the same AC advancement as the Monk class. He was reaching AC30 before most of the PCs could pass AC22.

If greater offense than he usually delivered were needed, the PsiWar levels also got him Expansion (bumping his Size 1-2 categories), trading Str and additional Reach for Dex bonuses & AC- turning his already effective Bisento (1d12x2 S reach Polearm which he could use as a monk weapon due to the DCv1 Feat: Pole Fighter) into a fearsome weapon which threatened a huge area with LOTS of damage...while retaining his (reduced but still) multiple AoOs or his FoB.

Did he outdo the Barbarian? No. But his flexibility and durability made him invaluable since he did nearly as much damage and rarely took more than 1-2 melee hits per combat.

But even without the unusual build, its clear to see why a race with bonuses- and one is quite large- to both stats that factor into a Monk's AC AND an innate power that grants them additional AC bonuses would make an effective Monk.