D&D 3E/3.5 Why be a 3.5 monk?

[BENINHB]

A spiked chain isn't as good for a monk as it is for most other classes. Not to say that it's not good for a monk but a large benefit of a spiked chain is that it is a reach weapon that also threatens adjacent. A monk already has adjacent covered with Improved Unarmed strike (and it does more damage than a spiked chain too). I would save yourself the feat on Exotic Weapon Proficiency and instead use a Reach/Trip weapon like a Guisarme. Its great to trip people with an AoO and then 5ft step and flurry with your unarmed strike on your turn while they are prone and taking that -4AC.

Are Psionics allowed?? Psychic Warrior would give martial weapon proficiency, powers like Expansion, Hustle, Psionic Lions Charge, and more, also you get bonus feats like a Fighter in case you still want that spiked chain.

Cleric or Ranger are also good. Anything that gets you a spell list so you can use items like wands and scrolls. A monk can use any part of there body for there unarmed strikes, not just punches, so you can have a wand or scroll in each hand and it will not impair your fighting ability at all.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

You'd need to multiclass to get guisarme or even longspear proficiency, or spend a feat. There might be variant monk weapon styles in dragon mag to get a reach weapon, though.

In any case, being proficient isn't enough, you need to also be able to treat it as a monk weapon, or else you can't flurry with it. And if you flurry, you can't mix in non-monk weapons. And if you're not flurrying so you can use the reach weapon, why are you playing a monk to begin with? There is a dragon mag feat for any one weapon and an Eberron feat specifically for longspear iirc to treat that weapon as a monk weapon. But now you're spending even more of your precious feats if the DM even allows those sources.

The best way to optimize a monk is to bail out after level 1, 2, or 6, pimp the hell out of your unarmed damage, and multiclass into nice prestige classes or swordsage (or druid, but then you're really not a "monk" anymore so much as a wildshaper with some kung fu). Sad but true.

 

[Dandu]

You'd need to multiclass to get guisarme or even longspear proficiency

It's ridiculous that you have to jump through hoops to get simple weapon proficiency, considering that Shaolin monks have been using spears for centuries, along with halberds, broadswords, and other martial weapons.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

Not just get proficiency, you need to jump through even more hoops to make the weapon count as a special monk weapon to use with your class's primary means of attacking.

 

[Dandu]

And yet real life 2nd level monks can flurry with spears and halberds just fine.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6VEYar6qtw&feature=related"]And yet real life people with two levels in Monk can flurry with spears and halberds just fine.[/ame]

See, they're getting off lots of attacks and hardly hitting each other. Definitely flurrying!

 

[kitcik]

Just give monks simple weapon proficiency and let them flurry with any simple weapon? They could use a sickle.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

See, they're getting off lots of attacks and hardly hitting each other. Definitely flurrying!

You forgot the fact that they're also doing such pitiful damage that the blows that do land barely even stagger the other guy for a split second. Definitely flurrying indeed!

 

[TanisFrey]

Just give monks simple weapon proficiency and let them flurry with any simple weapon? They could use a sickle.

What do you think the Kama was developed from??

The Chinese version of a Sickle.

 

[DumbPaladin]

Could one of the potential fixes for the Monk then simply be proficiency with all simple weapons and one martial or exotic weapon, plus all the monk weapons? I know there are a ton of other problems with the class, but taking out some of the weapon issues would seem to help ...

 

[Eman Resu]

quarter staff is a Monk wep, right? If so this is a 2 handed weapon with reach potential and as a 2 hander it gives +4 to trip and disarm right?