Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 newbis Jul 13, 2009 21:18:16	I need input on a build for monk who will be in an arena type style combate with encounters of overpowering to unbeatable. I have lost in the past with the whole group being killed. that said here rules and build thoughts books corebooks inculding monsters 1, and books with complete in name (except psionics), no flaws and no buy back levels. the build so far: human fighter 2/monk2/tattoo monk 1/ninga 3/dervish 5 str 16-----22 after mod dex 13 con 18 int 16 wis 18-----28 after mod cha 12 DM aloted us 120000 gold to buy items using DMG for adding class and skill to itme for cost lowering I did the following: wis mod: to be 28 1. periapt of wisdom +6 placing monk class/dipolmacy 10 skill --21600gp 2. ion stone incandescent blue wis +2 --9000 gp 3. level points +2 str mod: to be 22 1. ring of divine power with monk class/ religion 10 continues effect, persistance spell divine power CL 21 given +6 str / hit points +21 --29400 dex mod: to be 14 1. level point +1 not sure on items monk belt boosting my monk level 5 gaunlets of the talon one making my attacks slashing(dervish requirment) plus addk 5 more monk levels and ghost touch,+4 to grapple boots of speed more attack and movement +30 why on class fighter: human +3 feats for level 2 monk : because he killed my monk last time (revenge!!) and monk belt +gaunlets of talon = monk 12 levels AC/movement/increase unarmed damage tattoo spider con damage +1 / 2nd possible dmg +1 again down side limited to stunning attacks ninga:ghost step + 2d6 dmg with flat footed dervish: trying to get full attack after move only reason I took the class and spring attack IM hoping for feed back on build suggestion read many threads srd:wizard-D&d wiki min/max monk yet another monk build monk damage I find with book restriction that many feats or class limit me in this build looking for fresh insight
#2 dandu Jul 13, 2009 21:31:19	Ranger(Favord Enemy: Arcane Spellcasters)1/Monk2/Fighter2/Spirit Lion Totem Barbarian1/Ranger1/Deepwarden2/Fist of the Forest3/Kensai8 Oh, and your Boots of Speed provide an enhancement bonus to movement. Doesn't stack with your monk bonus.
#3 hogarth Jul 13, 2009 21:52:28	My suggestion: Monk 1/Druid 5/Master of Many Forms 7 Master of Many Forms is great for an unarmed combatant, especially level 7 when you get the Ex special qualities of what you imitate.
#4 newbis Jul 13, 2009 22:28:22	Ranger(Favord Enemy: Arcane Spellcasters)1/Monk2/Fighter2/Spirit Lion Totem Barbarian1/Ranger1/Deepwarden2/Fist of the Forest3/Kensai8 the spirit lion totem barbarian is from Unearthed Arcana I am unable to use this book and the deepwarden is from races of stone I cant use this book either.
#5 dandu Jul 13, 2009 22:29:24	Spirit Lion Totem is actually from Complete Champion.
#6 newbis Jul 13, 2009 22:48:03	My fault Dandu, I didnt know source was in complete champion as well thanks for feedback
#7 sofawall Jul 14, 2009 1:26:20	You're thinking of Lion Totem. Dandu specifically said Spiritual Lion Totem. They're completely different.
#8 -ktkenshinx- Jul 14, 2009 9:15:23	How much time are you allowed to use to prepare before your battles? I ask because it is important in considering your choice (if any) of spellcasting class. If you have, say, one or two rounds to buff yourself up, then a level of Cleric or Wizard for some spells (Enlarge Person, for instance) would be invaluable. If, on the other hand, you would have to cast these in the middle of the battle, this would substantially weaken the value of the dip. Also, what sort of enemies would you be fighting? Are they huge mean monsters? Or are they other humanoids (or humanoid shaped creatures) who are in a similar predicament to your character's? -ktkenshinx-
#9 tharivol266_dup Jul 14, 2009 9:44:43	Monk6/assassin4/enlightened fist9/swordsage 1 with a monks belt you are hitting like a level 20 monk with enlightened fist you are also casting as a level 8 assassin i believe(afb) assassin has goodies like improved invisibility and true strike, not to mention that you can use them with enlightned fist stuff to juice your punches swordsage gets you that one stance that adds 2d6 sneak attack. i played this with catfolk and pounce, flying kick, stunning fist(maxed out) improved nat attack, and very unoptimized gear but was able to do several hundred damage a turn
#10 dreamweaver Jul 14, 2009 14:43:04	Ok, for better or for worse, here we go. Slight modification to a build I've used before, I think possibly worse, but only because of your limitation on books, hence magic item restrictions. Monk 11/Fist of the Forest 1/Barbarian 1 Class reasons: Fist of the Forest: adds Con to your AC and since your gonna want to have high hitpoints anyway, your gonna have a high Con. Barbarian: as pointed out, Complete Champion acf of Lion Spirit Totem for swapping out +10 ft of movement for a full attack at the end of a charge (i.e.: pounce!). Monk: mainly because you wanted a monk, but also because of EVERYTHING ELSE IT GIVES YOU IN A RESTRICTED ENVIRONMENT!!! Can't disarm you of your weapon (unless they chop your arms and legs and, well, head off, can you say Black Knight?!). Wisdom bonus to AC (don't know where you got that awesome stat array, but your Wisdom, Con, and Dex in my build will be huge!). Bonus monk bump to AC. Advancement even further of the monk abilities via item in DMG (i.e.: Monk's Belt). Nice large number of attacks thanks to Greater Flurry. Etc... Ok so this is what I'm looking at: Str 16 Dex 18 -> 27 after mods Con 18 -> 24 after mods Int 13 Wis 16 -> 22 after mods Cha 12 Feats: Monk: Stunning Fist, Combat Reflexes, Improved Trip, Improved Unarmed Strike Human: Great Fortitude (qualify for Fist of the Forest) 1st: Power Attack (qualify for Fist of the Forest) 3rd: Weapon Finesse 6th: Two Weapon Fighting 9th: Improved TWF 12th: Weapon Focus (unarmed strike) Skills: Balance: 5 ranks, total bonus +15 Escape Artist: 16 ranks, total bonus +24 Handle Animal: 4 ranks, total bonus +5 (qualify for Fist of the Forest) Jump: 6 ranks, total bonus +27 Listen: 16 ranks, total bonus +22 Spot: 16 ranks, total bonus +22 Survival: 4 ranks, total bonus +10 (qualify for Fist of the Forest) Tumble: 5 ranks, total bonus +15 Skill Tricks: total skill points spent 12 for 6 tricks (don't like being held against will) Easy Escape Quick Escape Escape Attack (invisible people can be annoying) Clarity of Vision (don't want difficult surfaces causing problems for my charge) Nimble Charge (love charging people around corners or not in straight lines) Twisted Charge For levels 4, 8, and 12 stat bump Dex. Magic Items (all at 70% cost due to restriction of needing levels in monk) Monk's Belt (obvious) Boots of Haste (may not give more speed, but a bonus attack, bonus to hit, bonus to AC, and bonus to reflex saves are all good in my book) Gloves of Dex +6 Periapt of Wis +6 (could be made into a headband since that is still connected to mental stats, then could use amulet of health for the Con boost) Shirt of Con +6 (amulet of health if see above, however, shirt is still connected to physical improvements) Ring of Sustenance Ring of Protection +3 Bracers of Armor +2 Total Cost: 118,650 gp Leaves 1,350 gp to spend on other things, like, say, healing potions or such to start with. Ok, nitty gritty time. Hps: 162 (assumes max at first level with half hd +1 +con modifier for remaining levles) AC: 39 = 10 +2 (armor, bracers) +8 (dex) +3 (deflection, ring) +7 (con) +6 (wis) +3 (misc. armor bonus from monk equivalent level of 16+) Touch: 37 Flat-Footed: 31 Initiative: +8 Speed: 70 ft as move equivalent BAB/Grapple: +10/+13 Full Attack (using TWF): primary: +17/+17/+17/+12 secondary: +17/+12 Damage: primary: 2d8+3 /20 x2 secondary: 2d8+1 /20 x2 Fort Save: +20 Reflex Save: +17 Will Save: +13 Typical Combat, likely to last 10 rounds or less: 1 rnd: Likely to win initiative, free action activate boots of speed for haste, swift action rage, charge opponent (up to 140 feet away) and full round attack AC: 40 = 10 +2 (bracers) +8 (dex) +3 (ring) +9 (con) +6 (wis) +3 (misc. monk) -2 (rage) +1 (dodge from Haste) Touch: 38 Flat-Footed: 32 Fort Save: +22 Reflex Save: +18 Will Save: +15 Attack w/Haste and Rage: primary: +18/+18/+18/+18/+13 secondary: +18/+13 Damage w/Rage: primary: 2d8+5 (avg. 14 per hit) secondary: 2d8+2 (avg. 11 per hit) Depending upon whether you think you need the full bonus to your to hit or not, you might use power attack for say +5. Attack w/Haste and Rage and Power Attack for 5: primary: +13/+13/+13/+13/+8 secondary: +13/+8 Damage w/Rage and Power Attack: primary: 2d8+10 (avg. 19 per hit) secondary: 2d8+7 (avg. 16 per hit) Additional Notes: Your attacks are treated as Magic and Lawful for purposes of bypassing Damage Reduction. You have Improved Evasion. Possible Modification: If you think the to-hit is high enough without the Weapon Focus +1, you might swap that for Improved Natural Attack from the Monster Manual. It would let you treat your natural weapons (from Improved Unarmed Strike/Monk) as if they were one size catagory larger for purposes of damage (i.e. instead of 2d8, you'd do 3d8 base damage). Well, that's about it. My normal full progression for this guy usually doesn't involve the Barbarian level (which you switch to, say, Neutral along the Law/Chaos alignment). Instead, I use the Belt of Battle from the Magic Item Compendium and simply use a charge to get an additional move or all 3 to get me into the mix right away. Usual class levels are: 12 Monk/1 Fist of the Forest/6 Fighter. Oh, and I like to use the Zenythri race (+1 LA) whose favored class is Monk. Some nice stat bumps, a few good abilities (including true strike 1/day), etc... I usually end up filling out the TWF tree, going Melee Weapon Mastery Bludgeoning along with Crushing Strike and Robliar's Gambit to maximize my Combat Reflexes. Hey, I don't care if they try to hit me or not, as long as I can throw fists back at them every time they try. Also, I like to make a magic item using Greater Might Wallop from (I think) the Draconomicon as if cast by a 16th level caster. Now my fist is colossal size and instead of doing 2d8 base, I do 8d8 base (avg. 36), 16d8 if I crit. :D Ah well, but now I'm rambling. I tried to keep this to a level 13 character since that is what you seemed to indicate in your post.
#11 _v_ Jul 14, 2009 15:26:25	1. periapt of wisdom +6 placing monk class/dipolmacy 10 skill --21600gp 2. ion stone incandescent blue wis +2 --9000 gp Did you (or the DM) change the Ioun Stone? if not, then it costs 8000gp and doesn't stack with the Periapt of Wisdom.
#12 zambayoshi78 Jul 14, 2009 19:41:08	I may be mis-remembering here, but doesn't a monk lose his class abilities if he becomes non-lawful (e.g. to take a barb level)? There is a feat or something called Ordered Chaos which lets you get around that IIRC...
#13 dreamweaver Jul 14, 2009 21:05:00	No, Zambayoshi78, that is not the case. From the SRD: "A monk who becomes nonlawful cannot gain new levels as a monk but retains all monk abilities." The problem would be if a Barbarian ever became Lawful. From the SRD: "A barbarian who becomes lawful loses the ability to rage and cannot gain more levels as a barbarian. He retains all the other benefits of the class (damage reduction, fast movement, trap sense, and uncanny dodge)." Now, if this was a character that was to continue and grow through normal game play, gaining experience and what not, I might not suggest the build I did as you could never further advance in Monk. However, this is an arena style match up so I assume characters can be created without thinking of advancing them beyond the suggested level. Otherwise, I'm sure the subby would've mentioned that for possible suggested builds by others on the CO board.