Monk Preview

[boolean]

Tatsumaki Senpukyaku is pretty much in there already as Three Winds Kick (17th lvl encounter power). It fits perfectly.

I will also take a Hadouken as an at-will power.

Easiest method I can see would be to use Hybrid classing to make a Monk|Avenger, taking Radiant Vengeance as your Avenger at-will power.

If your character has a decent Constitution or Charisma you could do the same with Warlock or Sorcerer. Dragon Frost would have the advantage of having a built-in push effect.

 

[Gunpowder]

Plenty of other role-playing games exist and don't have those sorts of restrictions.

In contrast, 4e's "strong" class system sometimes reminds me of Henry Ford's comment about the Model T: "Any customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants so long as it is black."

-- 77IM

Are those other role-playing games point buy? I assume so. Point buy works quite well for some systems but D&D has always used classed based design, classes are well ingrained in the identity of D&D. 3.X is the closest to point buy D&D has gotten. Maybe they chould have gone point buy system but can you imagine the backlash if they dropped the concept of classes? If was bad enough when gnomes weren't in the pbh and no one even likes gnomes.

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Plenty of other role-playing games exist and don't have those sorts of restrictions.

In contrast, 4e's "strong" class system sometimes reminds me of Henry Ford's comment about the Model T: "Any customer can have a car painted any colour that he wants so long as it is black."

-- 77IM

Maybe. Maybe those games also have other problems. Sometimes, restrictions are good. There is a reason to have class systems, and it is not to give every character the ability to be everything he wants. The goal is to put you into a specific position, to have a unique set of abilities that sets you apart from the rest, and that allows you to focus on these.

Some "restriction-free" games I know use point buy systems, and end with the problems of having jack of all trades and masters of none against highly specialized, optimized characters. And in most such games, the highly specialized character is more fun to play because he can reliably achieve his characters shtick.

Restrictions can also be considered a necessity of role-playing - you are not any character, you are a specific one. You have your specialties and you have your weak areas.
It is definitely a part of having a game - games always create restrictions, because otherwise there is no challenge in playing them.

Of course you can ask "should every Rogue be able to sneak attack"? I say the character class might have that limitations. A character in general doesn't need that ability, and if you play a "roguish" concept that doesn't need this ability, than maybe you need a different class to represent your character.

The real restriction in D&D 4 is that no matter what you play, you have considerable combat abilities. If you want to play a pacifist or just someone generally incompetent in battle, you can't do that in D&D 4. Heck, even in D&D 3 you got hit points, saving throw increases and Base Attack Bonus, no matter what you did. You couldn't get 10 ranks in Craft (Basketweaving) without gaining 11 hps (4 starting, +7 per level you need to get to 10 ranks).

 

[jbear]

I don't miss the Ki power source. It was always a one-class pony.

But I wish they had made monks Martial instead of Psionic. Psionics developed a very distinct flavor over the course of 3e (it featured crystals and bending spoons and some pretty freaky stuff involving ectoplasm) and I don't think monks fit with that very well.

A Martial power source fits better with the source material for monks (they are even called MARTIAL artists). In the kung-fu and wuxia genres, martial artists use their extreme training to perform feats bordering on the supernatural. I know some people would not like the idea of a Martial character flinging fireballs, but I'm fine with it, especially at mid to high levels, and in a fantasy setting. At least, it seems to fit better than Psionic to me.

-- 77IM

Or you could see it the other way around: they are called martial ARTISTS.

I think when someone can levitate through sheer concentration, a fine line has been crossed, a step towards a world of bending spoons...

If you want to take this into perspective using the kung fu genre, without looking any further than the flying aerial battles which are iconic, the martial ARTIST bends the laws of reality in a way that goes beyond physical training.

 

[Vyvyan Basterd]

They don't. I didn't list any that require a class feature. I even excluded some that put you into a rage as the effect because I don't know the rage rules that well.

The rage powers are valid because the power puts you into the rage and only ends at the end of the encounter or if you enter another rage.

Another benefit of the power swap feats is that they allow you to re-choose the power you are swapping every time you level. This isn't part of retraining, it's a feature of those feats.

With that in mind I have some multiclass options that would fit an infernal warlock very well, IMO:

[sblock=Infernal Warlock/Barbarian]Half-Elf Warlock (Infernal)
Str 13
Con 18
Dex 11
Int 12
Wis 10
Cha 16

Dilettante: Pressing Attack (Barbarian)
Feat: Berserker’s Fury [Multiclass Barbarian]
8th Level Feat: Acolyte Power [Instinctive Charge, Barbarian Utility 6]
10th Level Free Power Swap for AcP [Heart Strike, Barbarian Utility 10]
10th Level Feat: Adept Power [Black Dragon Rage, Barbarian Daily 9]
15th Level Free Power Swap for AdP [Flameheart Rage, Barbarian Daily 15]
16th Level Free Power Swap for AcP [Great Stomp, Barbarian Utility 16]
19th Level Free Power Swap for AdP [Storm Drake or Winter Pheonix Rage, Barbarian Daily 19]
22nd Level Free Power Swap for AcP [Untouched, Barbarian Utility 22]
25th Level Free Power Swap for AdP [Ash Hammer or Stone Tempest Rage, Barbarian Daily 25]
29th Level Free Power Swap for AdP [Rage of the Primal Beast or Winter Ghost Rage, Barbarian Daily 29]

The Utilities are useful for getting into close combat and/or control.

The Daily attacks all do half damage on a miss and put you in a rage that has a benefit that lasts through the end of the encounter (since you don't have another rage to enter to end the first one). The rages I would consider give bonuses to all attacks (not just melee) or defenses or effect enemies.

The initial multiclass feat is a definite benefit. An extra trained skill and +2 to all damage rolls (not just melee) 1/day for the duration of an encounter.

The other two feats depend on how you want to play your Infernal Warlock. One more feat to pick up a high damage brutal weapon would make the dailies more effective for sure (since they all still do half damage plus the EoE effect).[/sblock]