WF and Monks

[Yaga_Nub]

I've asked different people this question and have gotten different answers so I'll just post it here.

Does composite plating count as armor which will negate the wisdom AC modifier for monks?

When unarmored and unencumbered, the monk adds her Wisdom bonus (if any) to her AC. In addition, a monk gains a +1 bonus to AC at 5th level. This bonus increases by 1 for every five monk levels thereafter (+2 at 10th, +3 at 15th, and +4 at 20th level).

These bonuses to AC apply even against touch attacks or when the monk is flat-footed. She loses these bonuses when she is immobilized or helpless, when she wears any armor, when she carries a shield, or when she carries a medium or heavy load.

[Aspenor]

I've asked different people this question and have gotten different answers so I'll just post it here.

Does composite plating count as armor which will negate the wisdom AC modifier for monks?

I believe it will, yes. Not 100% on that.

[Tenkari_Rozahas]

well, hopefully composite doesnt negate that bonus, or else a lot of people are going to be angry until turbine comes out with the unarmored body feat.

[woodspider]

Does it for rog?

[MrCow]

Well, here is the blurb from the Races of Eberron book on Warforged as Monks:

Monk is a good class choice for a warforged character. Monks do not normally wear armor, so the armor bonus inherent to the race is a great advantage. You can choose to increase that advantage with Adamantine Body or Mithral Body, but both of those feats cause you to take penalties to skills important to most monks. Consider taking Cold Iron Tracery or Silver Tracery. These feats allow your unarmed strikes to overcome types of damage reduction that you must normally find monk weapons of the right material to defeat. Unlike your natural slam attack, your unarmed strikes do not deal 1-1/2 times your Strength bonus in extra damage. If you wish to do that, you must forgo your unarmed strike damage and monk abilities, making only a single slam attack.

When a warforged monk gains the wholeness of body ability, he can use that ability to repair damage he has taken.

So, from this quote, it is stated in a round-about way that composite plating is counted like being unarmored for the purpose of monk abilities.

[Eladrin]

Composite Body does not count as wearing armor for the purpose of feats and abilities.

Unlike Adamantine Body and Mithral Body, which specifically state that they count as wearing heavy or light armor for the purpose of class abilities, Composite Body does not. (Though Bards can ignore the arcane spell failure incurred from Composite Body as if it were light armor.)

It's a little confusing.

[Yaga_Nub]

Well, here is the blurb from the Races of Eberron book on Warforged as Monks:

Monk is a good class choice for a warforged character. Monks do not normally wear armor, so the armor bonus inherent to the race is a great advantage. You can choose to increase that advantage with Adamantine Body or Mithral Body, but both of those feats cause you to take penalties to skills important to most monks. Consider taking Cold Iron Tracery or Silver Tracery. These feats allow your unarmed strikes to overcome types of damage reduction that you must normally find monk weapons of the right material to defeat. Unlike your natural slam attack, your unarmed strikes do not deal 1-1/2 times your Strength bonus in extra damage. If you wish to do that, you must forgo your unarmed strike damage and monk abilities, making only a single slam attack.

When a warforged monk gains the wholeness of body ability, he can use that ability to repair damage he has taken.

So, from this quote, it is stated in a round-about way that composite plating is counted like being unarmored for the purpose of monk abilities.

Composite Body does not count as wearing armor for the purpose of feats and abilities.

Unlike Adamantine Body and Mithral Body, which specifically state that they count as wearing heavy or light armor for the purpose of class abilities, Composite Body does not. (Though Bards can ignore the arcane spell failure incurred from Composite Body as if it were light armor.)

It's a little confusing.

Well now I'm a little bit more confused because the source book makes it seem as if a WF could take mithral body or adamantine body and still have the wisdom AC bonus but take a hit to skills. Is that the way it will be implemented or am I reading that incorrectly?

[rimble]

Well now I'm a little bit more confused because the source book makes it seem as if a WF could take mithral body or adamantine body and still have the wisdom AC bonus but take a hit to skills. Is that the way it will be implemented or am I reading that incorrectly?

I don't have my Eberron book here, but the rulebooks notoriously suck. The real 'rules' section, i.e. under the Warforged race entry and Monk class entry, take precedence over 'fluff' text of someone expounding on the virtues of Warforged. Those people frequently FREQUENTLY make mistakes. Rules blocks take precedence. In this case the rules blocks say Mithral is Light and Adamantine is Heavy, and that Monks can't wear those.

[WeaselKing]

Composite Body does not count as wearing armor for the purpose of feats and abilities.

Unlike Adamantine Body and Mithral Body, which specifically state that they count as wearing heavy or light armor for the purpose of class abilities, Composite Body does not. (Though Bards can ignore the arcane spell failure incurred from Mithril or Composite Body as if it were light armor.)

It's a little confusing.

Fixed that for you Eladrin.

[Yaga_Nub]

Fixed that for you Eladrin.

There is ASF on comp body as well.

[WeaselKing]

There is ASF on comp body as well.

True I hadn't thought about that I will refix it.

[MysticTheurge]

Well now I'm a little bit more confused because the source book makes it seem as if a WF could take mithral body or adamantine body and still have the wisdom AC bonus but take a hit to skills. Is that the way it will be implemented or am I reading that incorrectly?

The guy who wrote the Warforged section of Races of Eberron didn't really know what he was talking about.

He also claims that a warforged barbarian in adamantine body (which counts as heavy armor) keeps his abilities which require medium or lighter armor, which is simply not true either.

I wouldn't take anything from that section of that book at face value.

Rules blocks take precedence. In this case the rules blocks say Mithral is Medium and Adamantine is Heavy, and that Monks can't wear those.

Mithral Body is light, actually. (It's effectively a mithral breastplate.) Not that monks can wear it still, but it matters for other people like Rogues and Rangers.

[rimble]

Mithral Body is light, actually. (It's effectively a mithral breastplate.) Not that monks can wear it still, but it matters for other people like Rogues and Rangers.

Yup yup, fixed to prevent confusion.

[ccheath776]

Composite Body does not count as wearing armor for the purpose of feats and abilities.

Unlike Adamantine Body and Mithral Body, which specifically state that they count as wearing heavy or light armor for the purpose of class abilities, Composite Body does not. (Though Bards can ignore the arcane spell failure incurred from Composite Body as if it were light armor.)

It's a little confusing.

I had this question answered a while back eladrin by WOTC on their PNP forums.
The official answer was that it was up to the DM. The second part stated that the literal interpretation was that the Armor counts as armor for class ability so if a WF chooses adamantine armor they do not get their wisdom bonus. But they also said it coule be interpreted that the armor is part of the warforged and coulde be considered a natural part of them so it would be assumed that they could ignore this rule and therefore you would be able to see an adamantium wearing WF Monk with all the wisdom bonuses that go with it.

So the bottom line is that you as devs will have to the ones to decide since your the DM. I will tell you that in my PNP sessions I allow the wisdom bonuses for WF's wearing adamantium armor. But thats just a table rule. Decide on your own.

[ccheath776]

I believe it will, yes. Not 100% on that.

Then they need to change that as Composit body is the lowest a warforged can go in DDO.
So if they go by the rules then no WF can be a monk and get their wisdom bonus. Thats not really acceptable. They have bent other rules for DDO I am sure they can bend this one a bit.

[flynnsane]

WF will be able to be monks, not to worry. They'll interpret the rule to allow monks in composite body, but not Mithral or Addy.

Now, if they'd just give WF their Slam attack....

[MysticTheurge]

I had this question answered a while back eladrin by WOTC on their PNP forums.
The official answer was that it was up to the DM. The second part stated that the literal interpretation was that the Armor counts as armor for class ability so if a WF chooses adamantine armor they do not get their wisdom bonus. But they also said it coule be interpreted that the armor is part of the warforged and coulde be considered a natural part of them so it would be assumed that they could ignore this rule and therefore you would be able to see an adamantium wearing WF Monk with all the wisdom bonuses that go with it.

Do you have a link to this?

The rules seem pretty clear on this. Mithral Body counts as light armor for the purposes of class abilities and Adamantine Body counts as heavy armor for the purposes of class abilities. This means that monk class abilities which don't function in armor, won't function for a warforged with Mithral or Adamantine Body.

How do you interpret the rules in the Mithral and Adamantine Body descriptions to mean anything other than what they flat-out say?

[Aesop]

I've asked different people this question and have gotten different answers so I'll just post it here.

Does composite plating count as armor which will negate the wisdom AC modifier for monks?

No

I believe there is a WotrC FAQ and if I read the whole thread MT probably already posted on this to confirm that Composite Plating will not affect either Monk nor Druid in their class ability aspect (note Mithriil and Adamantine Body will however bork your character)

Aesop