D&D (2024) Playtest 8 Monk Discussion

[Vikingkingq]

Porting an idea I had about the 4E Monk over on Reddit, what do people think about these improvements to the playtest 6 version?

• The Elementalism cantrip could be significantly improved, much closer to Gust, Control Flames, Mold Earth, and Shape Water rolled together. That feels a lot more "bendery" than the current version and gives the 4E some utility that's often lacking in the Monk's kit. Heck, make it a 4E exclusive if you're worried about it becoming a must-pick for other spellcasters.
• I could certainly see minor riders added to your elemental damage as a way to make it more evocative without overly straining the power budget: Cold damage could slow a target by 5ft, Fire damage could ignite flammable objects, Lightning could add 5ft to your pull, "Earth" could make a square difficult terrain.
• Finally, I've never liked Acid as the fourth element type. It's not very evocative of "Earth" as a concept. Magical Bludgeoning is a bit clunky as a name, but it's how spells like Earth Tremor, Erupting Earth, Bones of the Earth, etc. represent "Earth damage."

 

[Weiley31]

When the Monk's new Deflect comes in clutch during the critical point of the campaign:

 

[Kurotowa]

When the Monk's new Deflect comes in clutch during the critical point of the campaign:

Look. I love Evo Moment #37 as much as the next FGC fan, but Deflect Attacks is limited to one Reaction a round. You're not going to parry five attacks from a high level Multiattack or Flurry of Blows with just Deflect Attacks. If I had to pin that to a Monk mechanic, it'd actually be Patient Defense. Some Monks might want to narrate their Dodge as ducking and weaving, but for others a series of open hand parries is more suitable.

Patient Defense to Dodge, Deflect Attacks for the one attack that still rolls high, and the Temp HP from Heightened Discipline absorbs any spillover. If the DM wanted to narrate that as something akin to Evo Moment #37, I'd be happy.

 

[Clint_L]

Been play testing my level 10 monk some more, and I cannot overstate how much more fun this class is now.

You may be surprised to read this, given my many comments about the class, but I am not normally a monk enthusiast.*** In fact, this is the first monk I have played for any length of time in decades. I chose monk at the start of our new campaign because my spouse had played one in the previous campaign and had a lot of complaints, so I wanted to see what it felt like (to be fair, I had warned them in advance that most players didn't love the monk). And Mercy monk had come out, which seemed to address some of the monk's key problems.

So while playing it with the 2014 rules, I found monk to be okay, specifically because Mercy is really good. It's one dimensional, but given that our party has a barbarian tank and good ranged attackers, my monk was free to act as a roving skirmisher and she was okay in that role. I kept wanted to take some levels in rogue to make her a lot better and more interesting (cunning action alone would do wonders, not to mention expertise), and debated taking a level or two in cleric, but decided to try to just go pure monk. And I would rate the Mercy monk, specifically, as a solid B tier, but kind of boring.

This new monk is amazing. Ironically, Mercy feels a lot less powerful, but that's a good thing - the basic monk stuff is strong enough that I don't have to lean on Mercy's features (good timing, since we've been taking on demons and undead lately). Instead of being a character that was basically being carried by the group, since they covered all the key roles, my monk now opens up a ton of new opportunities in combat. No one on the battlefield is safe, basically. It's just so fun to be able to play a monk the way I always imagined the class.

WotC really nailed it with this latest version.

***Through my decades of playing D&D, my perennial favourite classes have been ranger and paladin. I stopped playing paladin years ago, though, because they feel broken in 5e, to the extent that I felt like I was stealing the glory all the time.

 

[Bill Zebub]

I've been largely ignoring 5e (and 5.5e) for a while now, but just checked in to see what's new, and I gotta say I really like the new Monk. I hate weapon specialization so I'm glad that's gone. I love the higher damage, better defenses, more Ki, and more things that can be done without Ki Discipline.

What's not to love?

 

[mellored]

What's not to love?

I wouldn't mind a few out of combat used for discipline points.

Holding your breath, or tolerating extreme temperatures for instance.

But it's still a great improvement as it.

 

[Bill Zebub]

I’m imagining the monk in a Santa sweater, trapped in a corner at the monastery’s holiday party by THAT PERSON (and if you don’t know who I mean, it’s probably you), spending Ki points like crazy while enduring a 30 minute diatribe about an ex-significant other.

 

[ECMO3]

I like the 2014 Monk with Tasha's improvements better overall. There are some nice improvements on this Monk in terms of the Bonus actions that don't require DPs, but the DP recharge is way overpowered, they nerfed the most powerful Monk feature (stunning strike) and they are now bloated with too many attacks.

The current Monk really lends itself to abuse with a 1-level dip to get weapon mastery. With mastery and dual wielding nick weapons a Monk/Fighter at level 2 can make 3 attacks a round. At level 6 she can FOB and make 5 attacks.

 

[Clint_L]

I wouldn't mind a few out of combat used for discipline points.

Holding your breath, or tolerating extreme temperatures for instance.

Yeah, a few unique flavour abilities that work out of combat would be great, and could also be tailored to the sub-classes. Things that won't cause power creep, but will enhance the cool factor and versatility. Your suggestions are great, as well as things like feigning death and other aspects of bodily control. Plus, Astral Self and Timeless Body should return.

 

[Clint_L]

Monk's level 10 now. Holy moly. It's pretty fun being able to spend a bonus action to be able to pick up the half-orc barbarian and carry him right across the table and into combat with the BBEG, bypassing all of the obstacles and minions on the way. Getting three attacks per Flurry of Blows allows the damage to keep pace with others, but it feels different - she doesn't hit as hard, but she hits often. And, yeah, between deflect attack and temp HP from patient defence as needed, she is a more than capable tank despite a relatively low HP pool.

It's...just so much fun to play her right now.