Tattooed Monk (CW) - Worth it?

[Dannyalcatraz]

I'd only take Tattooed Monk if it fit the character concept

- though it would be cooooool on a Warforged (you know- with the tatoos carved into it).

 

[brehobit]

I think a tattooed monk with a VoP would be very nice. Some of the tatoos would help make up for the lack of magic items. As good as a pure monk? I think so. Esp if you have a high wisdom. Consider:

VoP 5 monk/7 tattooed monk. Take Crab (DR 8/magic), Chameleon (alter self 4/day, duration 7 hours each. Depending on the world, this could buy you flight and/or natural armor). And then either Arrowroot (with a 20 wis you could heal upto 35 points a day as a non-provoking MOVE action.) or wasp (haste as a move action for 7 rounds 4 times/day) and finally Phoenix (SR 22).

While a lot of the above can be done with magic items (flight, natural armor, haste) or other people's spells the abilities are really very nice. And for a VoP monk, the only way to get some of these things (flight) without anyone else helping. The real problem is what to do once you hit 9th level in TM. If you aren't going past level 12-15, no worries. But otherwise this character will suck against a monk of the same level starting at level 15 or so. Don't know if there is another good PrC to take here....

 

[Klaus]

Uh...you only get 5 tattoos. Crab gives you up to 10/magic, which is what the monk gets at 20th level...you get it earlier, at least. Phoenix gives you SR at about the same level as a straight monk, but it caps out at 25, rather than 30...poor tattoed monk... :\

The haste tatoo is a good one though, and the poison one is cool. Other personal favorites are Tiger, (+1 at/+1d6 dam for several rounds) the one that gives a dodge bonus to AC, and Monkey (gives up to +5 in 9 different skills) Most of the tatoos are hooey though. I remember someone on the wizards boards suggesting that it be redone as a 5 level class, which I thought was an interesting idea.

The dragon OA update version of the TM is exactly the same as the CW version, except that it gets to add TM levels to monk levels to determine flurry/greater flurry, which was apparently overlooked in the CW version.

Me = Bad at Math... Thanks!

Thanks for the Flurry/Greater Flurry explanation.

Tattooed Monk does get a better BAB than a straight up monk... Hmm...

DannyAlcatraz -> I thought of that too! A warforged Runecarved Monk with a Battlefist would be mighty cool, in a Hellboy kind of way!

 

[Bill Muench]

While the Tattooed Monk isn't uber-powerful, it can be a lot of fun. In the home game that I was playing in until it went on hiatus, I was aiming towards a Dejy (pseudo-Native American in Kalamar) Rgr3/Mnk2/Tattooed Monk. Great saves, lots of bonus feats, and very good defenses if you take the right tattoos. Chameleon can't be overstated, since it is an Alter Self ability that lasts for 1 hour/level. Crab is good if you're in a low-magic world (such as Kalamar). Ocean is just nifty (no more sleeping, eating, or drinking), Unicorn (IIRC - the reroll one) is useful at higher levels with lots of save or die effects being thrown around.

All in all, good but not silly.

 

[Satori]

Wow...I guess there are a lot of like-minded gamers out there (like-minded with me, anyway). I'm currently playing a L/E Dark Elven Tattoo'd Monk! Let me explain (or completely ignore me).

We found that the Tattooed Monk PrClass seemed rather bizarre, with a strange balance. It was either pathetic and underpowered, or easily abused as a "dip" class (some of the tattoos are horrendously overpowered, while others are laughable). So we redid it.

We used the errata on GFB, instated certain level requirements on some tattoos (bye bye Damage Resistance), and added a bonus "Martial Arts" Feat at even levels. Essentially, we made the Tattooed Monk a very combative warrior/monk with some special "Perks" in the form of tattoos. We figured that a PC would lose many HUGE benefits of the Monk class in favor of more combative feats and some cool tattoos...without multi-classing fighter and losing their monkish flavor.

As for the Drow part...

I'm a recovering Drizzt Fanboy with 10 years of Drow Free play, and I'm getting over my current "Drow Hatred". I went from Drow obsessed, to Drow hate, to rather ambivalent. I still find my blood pressure rising when someone wants to play a Drow Ranger, though.

Well...the DM for our current campaign felt that a Dark Elven "guide" was needed for an adventure that takes place in/around the Undermountain (mongrel/hybrid FR campaign), and that I was the only player "mature" enough to play it (we stripped the PC of ALL Dark Elven abilities...bye bye faerie fire, bye bye spell resistance. I was more interested in balance and rp opportunities anyway). The group is lead by a "Sentinel" Sun Elf Paladin Variant, and focuses on "Demon Hunting".

Wait, I have a point...

I was supposed to play a "Scout/Ranger" type...but I changed the concept because I grew tired of swallowing my own bile.

As such, we created a Monastery located around Skullport modeled after the "Monastery of the Black Lotus" from the "Crimson Contracts" pdf (BEAUTIFUL WORK, whoever wrote that. Perhaps the greatest piece of freelance, assassin based DnD content I've ever read. I stayed up late reading it, and highly recommend it for those with a strong stomach and an interest in Assassin-y stuff).

My PC hails from that Monastery, and is currently under contract to the Rogue PC. Unlike most "rebel" dark elves played, I find that I actually enjoy playing a female-phobic, grumbling character with a twisted sense of honor.

Once some more play testing is done, I'll let you guys know how our revised Tattooed Monk works. If it seems viable and balanced, I'll put together an actual revision.

 

[Corsair]

The only tatoo I REALLY REALLY wanted was Ocean, to play a bodyguard-type character.

 

[EvilBen]

I am working on an Eberron Warforged monk 7/shadow dancer 3/ Tat monk 10 (currently at monk 6...). With the right tats and the Warforged immunities, works out to be pretty close to a straight monk with a twist (shadow dancer stuff).

 

[Enamel_32]

That sounds downright interesting.