Rockan Robin, pure monk build and philosophy

[Junts]

So here is a question for you anthios and some of the other monk enthusiasts is a low 40s stunning fist dc sufficient at the end game in update 9? Should a monk player shoot for higher dc for TOD and stunning fist or just stay with straight dps and not worry about maxing wisdom?

My monk has a 41 in both stunning fist and stunning blow and I dont really have complaints, but the dc of this build is substantially higher than that - 44-45+ - and it lands very reliably still.

I've seen this build landing quivering palm in epic. In addition to the stuns and the touches of death and the void4s.

[Anthios888]

So here is a question for you anthios and some of the other monk enthusiasts is a low 40s stunning fist dc sufficient at the end game in update 9? Should a monk player shoot for higher dc for TOD and stunning fist or just stay with straight dps and not worry about maxing wisdom?

40 is still a decent baseline for stunning but I would shoot as high as possible at this point. Stunning varies heavily from mob to mob.

More is not so essential that anyone at 40 is gimp or something, but with quivering palm also working as Junts mentioned, there is every reason to get wisdom as high as possible. I also get a lot of use out of unbalancing strike, curse of the void, dark punch, touch of death, and touch of despair.

I'm doing some TRs as of last week to grab past life paladin and two more fighter to get the DC even higher. The pure monk life I will land on will be a 20 monk half elf (rogue dill, no weapon finesse) but with levels in wisdom. I will probably try to grandmaster in both fire and wind stance, but fire is probably going to be the best bet for epic trash mobs, since spamming attacks -- stunning fist, quivering palm, touch of death -- is extremely ki intensive right now.

[Zildoran]

What starting stats would you use so I can qualify for Void IV? I'm considering a lesser reincarnate since they are going on sale. This is on a 34 point build with all +2 tomes.

[SpearKicker]

What starting stats would you use so I can qualify for Void IV? I'm considering a lesser reincarnate since they are going on sale. This is on a 34 point build with all +2 tomes.

Void IV requires: Void Strike III, Master of Thunder, Master of Stone, Master of Bonfires, Master of the Sea, and any one of Grandmaster of Storms, Grandmaster of Mountains, Grandmaster of the Sun, or Grandmaster of Oceans.

Since you have a +2 to all stats, you should start at a minimum 14 in STR, DEX, CON and WIS, and choose one of this to start at 16. You would probably have to lower a bit your wis to get a higher STR in order to qualify to VoidIV (tanking as base the sugested by Anthios at first post). This way your AC and stun DC would decrese a little though...

Hope this helps.

[Zildoran]

Yea, I was looking at a drop of 1 ac and 1 to dc's from lowering wisdom to 16 and keeping dex at 16 starting for gm wind stance. I'm just not sure this is worth it for Void IV and a bit more damage from str and being able to hop in master sun stance for ki gen to spam elemental strikes. I just wish I had known the requirements for void IV when I TR'd and it wouldn't be an issue right now...research fail on my part.

[WanderingGrump]

Do Light monks get the advantages of the sneak attack/damage bonus the Halfling Guile/Cunning enhancements give or does that only effect the Dark monks?

My fighter is TRing into a Wisdom based monk, but for the ToD raid and group party needs I am going light side because of that I wonder if halfling is the best race in that case. If the light monks don't get the SA bonus stuff then the Dwarven Tactics enhancements looks quite attractive to me for the boost to Stunning Fist/Blow.

Also a Shintao PrE question: From the other required feat list it appears to be that Luck of Heroes is about the most viable of them, is this the general consensus?

[Anthios888]

Do Light monks get the advantages of the sneak attack/damage bonus the Halfling Guile/Cunning enhancements give or does that only effect the Dark monks?

My fighter is TRing into a Wisdom based monk, but for the ToD raid and group party needs I am going light side because of that I wonder if halfling is the best race in that case. If the light monks don't get the SA bonus stuff then the Dwarven Tactics enhancements looks quite attractive to me for the boost to Stunning Fist/Blow.

Also a Shintao PrE question: From the other required feat list it appears to be that Luck of Heroes is about the most viable of them, is this the general consensus?

Halfling sneak attack is independent of your class enhancement, so you'll get it whether you're light or dark monk (or any other class for that matter).

I'd take luck of heroes for Shintao, since it's something that'll be a lot more versatile than the other options.

[Maelodic]

Is this build freemium friendly? I'm seeing a lot of gear from packs I haven't purchased yet but I really want to try out monk. I only have gianthold and vale...

Also, is the light path completely self-sufficient in healing? That'd be awesome.

[Anthios888]

Is this build freemium friendly? I'm seeing a lot of gear from packs I haven't purchased yet but I really want to try out monk. I only have gianthold and vale...

Also, is the light path completely self-sufficient in healing? That'd be awesome.

Every build is free-to-play-friendly. The gear was just suggestions for those not sure what kinds of gear to be looking for.

Likewise, every build can be completely self-sufficient in healing, because you can carry a number of potions to solve problems that come up. Either of these builds is great for avoiding damage and reducing the number of potions you'll end up using. If you mean self-sufficient without any consumable use, light robin could probably get by but I generally find that playstyle less fun because you are less able to try new things and make mistakes.

[Maelodic]

Every build is free-to-play-friendly. The gear was just suggestions for those not sure what kinds of gear to be looking for.

Likewise, every build can be completely self-sufficient in healing, because you can carry a number of potions to solve problems that come up. Either of these builds is great for avoiding damage and reducing the number of potions you'll end up using. If you mean self-sufficient without any consumable use, light robin could probably get by but I generally find that playstyle less fun because you are less able to try new things and make mistakes.

Alright thanks, when I get to the point that I can TR my wizard, this will probably be the build I'll be doing it in.

I know Wiz isn't a good TR choice, but as a freemium player, the no penalty for repeated quests will actually make leveling faster, and 34 point builds are good for any class.

[Anthios888]

as a freemium player, the no penalty for repeated quests will actually make leveling faster

Explain this?

[Maelodic]

Explain this?

Can't you repeat quests without penalty as a TR?

Example:
N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N

Last will give as much as first provided you are the same level.

[Anthios888]

Can't you repeat quests without penalty as a TR?

Example:
N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N/N

Last will give as much as first provided you are the same level.

Nope. Same penalty as everyone else.

[Maelodic]

Nope. Same penalty as everyone else.

Yeah, screw TRing then. Unlocking 32 pt builds and making a monk.

[goodspeed]

lol im sure a great many Tr's wish their be no penalty. Could farm delera's sun up to sun down.

[Wokzombie]

This really helped getting me started with my monks.
It's a great post, thank you.

[Scyo]

First: Thanks for this thread. I'm a rather new player, only about 3 weeks in the game who bought out of curiosity the monk class, because it seemed fun. And it turns out it absolutely is, love it so far

Now a question arises. I am a L3 light monk who likes to solo, and wants to take the Shintao enhancement. But when does it make sense to take it, and which feat should I drop to qualify for it?

The options I see here are dropping

- Dodge
- 2nd Toughness
- Improved Critical: Bludgeoning

while not knowing which one of these would have the biggest impact at later levels, if that even could be said. As far as I understand, the TWF feats, Power Attack and Stunning Fist are way more important than the rest, if not crucial. I would tend to drop Dodge, because 1 AC seems like nothing compared to the AC needed around Gianthold and such. To qualify I chose Luck of Heroes, or maybe Cleave (which breaks the attack chain, so I don't know if it's a useful choice).

Because Shintao works with Undead, I would like to have it right away when it's available. I know from my L8 Paladin that the pests are everywhere you go, especially in the adventure packs I own.

[Anthios888]

First: Thanks for this thread. I'm a rather new player, only about 3 weeks in the game who bought out of curiosity the monk class, because it seemed fun. And it turns out it absolutely is, love it so far

Now a question arises. I am a L3 light monk who likes to solo, and wants to take the Shintao enhancement. But when does it make sense to take it, and which feat should I drop to qualify for it?

The options I see here are dropping

- Dodge
- 2nd Toughness
- Improved Critical: Bludgeoning

while not knowing which one of these would have the biggest impact at later levels, if that even could be said. As far as I understand, the TWF feats, Power Attack and Stunning Fist are way more important than the rest, if not crucial. I would tend to drop Dodge, because 1 AC seems like nothing compared to the AC needed around Gianthold and such. To qualify I chose Luck of Heroes, or maybe Cleave (which breaks the attack chain, so I don't know if it's a useful choice).

Because Shintao works with Undead, I would like to have it right away when it's available. I know from my L8 Paladin that the pests are everywhere you go, especially in the adventure packs I own.

Dodge is here because it helps you qualify for ninja spy. If you are shintao, feel free to drop it.

I'd take Luck of Heroes on a Shintao in its place.

[Scyo]

Dodge is here because it helps you qualify for ninja spy. If you are shintao, feel free to drop it.

I'd take Luck of Heroes on a Shintao in its place.

Alright, I should have paid more attention to the Ninja Spy prerequisites. Thank you for the Info

[insaneuou]

hail anthios