Monk wi. Staff Disarm ?

[Wolffenjugend]

As a follow-up to my previous post, I noticed a couple things.

Monks (or any class) that disarms with unarmed strike suffer a -4 penalty b/c unarmed strike is a light weapon (bad!).

Using a staff to disarm grants a +4 bonus b/c its a large weapon and Improved Disarm grants another +4 bonus to disarm (+8 total, Good!)

My question involves switching between staff attacks and unarmed attacks interchangeably (b/c this monk is also a vampire and wants to use a slam attack to get its one energy drain per round). Hmmm, maybe an unarmed strike would also energy drain?

Can the monk/vampire interchange its attacks between staff and unarmed strikes? How does flurry of blows affect this? And what about Str modifier to dam? Normally, using a staff two-handed would grant +1.5x Str mod to dam but does this still apply if the monk is making unarmed strikes in the same attack sequence? (i.e. does switching to an unarmed strike mean attacks with the staff aren't two-handed? That would also negate the +4 disarm bonus...)

 

[Altamont Ravenard]

Any natural attack from the vampire will result in an energy drain attack. If the vampire monk kicks a character in the junk (because monk use their hands, feet, elbows, etc. to deliver their unarmed attacks), he'll drain 2 levels.

The monk can distribute his monk attacks (ie natural attacks and attacks made with monk weapons) how he very well pleases.

Also, even if the monk doesn't get the X1.5 STR bonus to his damage because he used both ends of the staff (for example), the staff is still wielded 2-handedly, and thus the monk would get his +4 bonus to disarm.

A 1st level monk can attack once with the staff (at X1.5 Str damage) and then kick with his extra attack.

AR

 

[Wolffenjugend]

Thanks for the quick response! A couple clarifications: that 1st-lvl monk using is using flurry, right? And when you refer to the monk using both ends of the staff (for example), are you referring to fighting with a double-weapon (staff)?

 

[silentspace]

Thanks for the quick response! A couple clarifications: that 1st-lvl monk using is using flurry, right? And when you refer to the monk using both ends of the staff (for example), are you referring to fighting with a double-weapon (staff)?

I think he is, but Flurry is better than Two-Weapon Fighting. (Unless Flurry can stack with Two-Weapon Fighting, which I don't think it can.)

You trip attack with your staff, then follow up with either an unarmed attack or a staff attack. Since you are flurrying, you don't get X1.5 Str bonus, even if the follow up attack is made with the staff wielded in both hands. This is an excellent technique, sort of a poor-man's Improved Trip.

 

[Altamont Ravenard]

Yes, the 1st-level monk in the example is using flurry of blows.

I must nevertheless correct myself: (3.5)

When using weapons as part of a flurry of blows, a monk applies her Strength bonus (not Str bonus x 1-1/2 or x1/2) to her damage rolls for all successful attacks, whether she wields a weapon in one or both hands. The monk can’t use any weapon other than a special monk weapon as part of a flurry of blows.
In the case of the quarterstaff, each end counts as a separate weapon for the purpose of using the flurry of blows ability. Even though the quarterstaff requires two hands to use, a monk may still intersperse unarmed strikes with quarterstaff strikes, assuming that she has enough attacks in her flurry of blows routine to do so.

A monk wielding a quarterstaff in a flurry of blows does not use X1.5 Str bonus.

As it stands, I'm not even sure what would happen to a monk using kicks and a quarterstaff for iterative attacks...

Sorry about the confusion.

AR

 

[Darklone]

Correct me if I am wrong, but the energy drain from a vampire does only work once per round with ONE of all those flurried attacks, right?

At least it's been that way in 3.0

 

[Altamont Ravenard]

Correct me if I am wrong, but the energy drain from a vampire does only work once per round with ONE of all those flurried attacks, right?

At least it's been that way in 3.0

Yes, as it is pointed out in another thread, the vampire's drain ability only works once per round.

AR

 

[MarauderX]

As a follow-up to my previous post, I noticed a couple things.

Monks (or any class) that disarms with unarmed strike suffer a -4 penalty b/c unarmed strike is a light weapon (bad!).

Using a staff to disarm grants a +4 bonus b/c its a large weapon and Improved Disarm grants another +4 bonus to disarm (+8 total, Good!)

That's why you want to carry the special monk weapons around, so you can disarm, trip, and do other things that unarmed attacks alone can't get done as well.

Can the monk/vampire interchange its attacks between staff and unarmed strikes? How does flurry of blows affect this? And what about Str modifier to dam? Normally, using a staff two-handed would grant +1.5x Str mod to dam but does this still apply if the monk is making unarmed strikes in the same attack sequence? (i.e. does switching to an unarmed strike mean attacks with the staff aren't two-handed? That would also negate the +4 disarm bonus...)

The flurry of blows and special monk weapons can be used interchangeably. You do not gain two-handed (x1.5) damage to the attacks of a flurry, no matter how you use it when weilding any special monk weapon.
What you need to do is indicate what you are using before you do it. For instance, you can use 1 attack with the staff for the disarm and the other for the slam energy drain. This would max out the drain and the disarm perfectly, but if you miss with the disarm you cannot suddenly try to disarm with your second attack, and vice versa.

 

[Altamont Ravenard]

but if you miss with the disarm you cannot suddenly try to disarm with your second attack, and vice versa.

Why not? Why can't a) the monk use his second attack to attempt another disarm if the 1st one was ineffective; and b) the vampire monk try to kick his opponent in order to drain him if the first attack didn't hit?

AR

 

[Wolffenjugend]

I can see an argument for having to declare all attacks beforehand when using a flurry of blows due to the speed of the attacks (I would house rule that way), but I don't think the rules specify that anywhere...