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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lord Pendragon" data-source="post: 2107305" data-attributes="member: 707">You know, it's odd but for me, the Western "monk" is the stronger archtype.  i.e. the brown-robed, tonsured "Friar Tuck" image of a monk.  The line of brown-robed and hooded individuals chanting in unison as they walk into the chapel -type "monk."This type of monk certainly fits into a Western medieval fantasy setting, like a duck to water.The issue comes up when we look at the Monk class, which emphasizes Eastern flavor in the names and descriptions of its special powers.  "Ki" techniques..."Tongue of the Sun and Moon" etc. etc.  Reading the class description, someone is bound to (and intended to) get the the feeling that the class is based on the Eastern "Shao-lin" monk archtype.The solution here, for me as a DM, is to make it clear to the players that there is a very real distinction between in-game terminology and meta-game terminology.  If I introduce a PC or NPC as a "warrior" that doesn't mean he has levels in the Warrior Class.  If I describe a man as a "powerful looking fighter" that doesn't mean he has levels in the Fighter Class.  He could be anything from a Barbarian to a Ranger to a Bladesinger, to a Bard.Naturally, smart players will figure out a character's actual class levels by observing their abilities, which is perfectly fine.  But I warn them not to assume an individual's abilities based on the names of classes, which are simply too general to put any stock into when referred to in-character.So the key for your game is to make this distinction to the other player.  Explain to him (or ask the DM to explain to him,) that when he was introduced as a monk, it was a decription of how he fits into the game world--as a brown-robed pilgrim who appears to have come from a monastery.  Not necessarily that he's a member of the monk class.  And that he (your character) has no Asian/Shao-lin trappings whatsoever.Regarding the other PC...well, it's up to the DM to determine if a "Shao-lin"-type monk is appropriate for his game.  Since he is actually playing the Monk class, an Asian-themed monk certainly fits with his class abilities, and with a bit of finangling can be explained away as a foreigner in a distant land, story-wise.  Though it's also certainly possible to play the Monk-class and re-flavor it to resemble a tonsured-monk that's trained in unarmed combat as well, such as a Knight Templar or other monastic-knight order.  This is something that that individual player would need to work out (or has worked out) with the DM.</blockquote>

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