FormerlyHemlock
Hero
Odd stats are one of the poor design decisions of 5E. The error is compounded by the fact that you have so many magical items (such as the Gauntlets of Ogre Power) which explicitly set stats to an odd number like 19. But under 5E rules, 19 is functionally identical to 18! (19 Str does let you carry 15 more pounds than 18 Str, but that will never matter in play.) Having so many odd stats built into the game, taunting players with their uselessness, is bad design. If a player invests in an extra point of stat, he should get something out of it.
I have three major house rules at my table, and one of them is "odd ability scores give you an extra +1 to ability checks, but not to attack rolls or saves". I want your shadow monk to feel different with Dex 19 than she did with Dex 18.
I have three major house rules at my table, and one of them is "odd ability scores give you an extra +1 to ability checks, but not to attack rolls or saves". I want your shadow monk to feel different with Dex 19 than she did with Dex 18.
That being said, Athlete is actually pretty interesting for a monk. You can think of it as "disadvantage to all ranged attackers," as long as you lie prone at the end of your turn. Because you're a wood elf shadow monk you're already really good at the ranged combat game--not so much in DPR terms as in survivability and your ability to solo monsters--and the fact that you can always stand up for 5' movement and then run to a new position means you're not really vulnerable to getting caught in melee.
However. I see more benefits overall to Mobile, and it's totally fun besides. The optimizer in me says you should go for Mobile and leave Dex at 17. You can take Athlete later to bump Dex to an odd stat while still getting some cool benefits; unless you've managed to talk your DM into giving some point to odd stats by then.
