Request Advice For Rebuilding My Light Path Monk For Epic Level

[TheKeeper1981]

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NOTE October, 31, 2010:

As of last night, October 30, 2010, Oryara Kenna Kanja of Khyber, the human light path monk spoken of, below, finally reached level 20. I'm quite pleased, as she's my first level 20 character.

But the real news is that, after doing some reading, I have a few tantative ideas regarding how to rebuild my light path monk as I lesser reincarnate her. These ideas will be listed, below, after the original post.

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Heyla and well met!

I'm a level 18 light path monk who is planning to Lesser Reincarnate once I hit level 20 in order to make her more effective when doing quests on epic level. I've spent some time reading a thread on building an epic-ready monk, as well as listened to a lot of useful advice from people on the advice channel on things to consider when I'm building for epic level. That being said, I'm thinking that I may need a bit more information that may not be as easy to accquire from chat and simple reading.

My human monk, Oryara Kenna Kanja on the Khyber server, is a 32 point build. I've currently invested a +2 tome for every one of my stats except for intelligence. With the exception of the +2 charisma tome, all of my tomes were bought through the DDO Store, which is why I'm only LRing my monk, rather than TRing her. Oryara runs with my husband, a cleric, and my best friend, a tempest ranger. She tends to play the role of tank in the trio. They tend to depend on me to hit hard and fast, while survivng the big hits the mobs will deliver (especially since, for some strange reason, my best friend seems to be so easily vulnerable to attacks). Because of this, I'm thinking that, obviously, I need to focus on building strength and constitution. That being said, I'm still unsure of other things, as well.

For one thing, there have been plenty of times when our group seems to depend on my ability to survive a trap going off, as well as my ability to survive the onslaught of a caster's attack. Their saves simply aren't as good, even with the protections in place, so I'm thinking I still can't quite ignore my dexterity stat. In addition, shouldn't I still be trying to get at least a base of 18 dex in order to get the highest tier of wind stance?

I'm still trying to figure out how useful Stunning Fist is now that handwraps can add to its DC. And even so, shouldn't I at least have a decent level of wisdom for the AC bonus? I've learned that, no matter what I do, I'm going to get hit and hard on epic level. That being said, I've also been informed that a "respectable" amount of AC will at least keep me alive long enough for my husband to throw necessary heals at me. So wouldn't a little investment into wisdom help me towards achieving that? (At the very least, I figure I shouldn't leave the stat at 8.) Oh, and what, exactly, would amount to a respectable amount of AC?

And speaking of heals, I'm pretty torn between going dark path or staying light path. Self-heals will definitely take the pressure off my husband, but if I go for the DPS that I hear dark paths are capable of, I know that it's just as much of a relief if I can take down the mob hard and fast. I'd like to hear from others' experiences on which would be a better choice, especially in our group of three (plus hirelings and/or players we will likely PUG with; can hirelings be used on epic level?). And speaking of being able to hit fast and hard...

I've seen a lot of people give praise to power attack, but I still find myself wondering if it's worth the trade off? I lose five to my attack bonus in order to be able to hit harder, but would that matter if I find myself missing more often? So, I'm left feeling unsure about this particular choice of feat.

My current build has the following stats:

STR:16 (+2 tome and +6 stat item = 24)
DEX:14 (+2 tome, +6 stat item, + 4 wind stance, +1 human adapt. enhance., and + 2 bonus stat points = 29)
CON:14 (+2 tome and +2 stat item = 18 - wind stance = 16)
INT:12 (+6 stat item = 18, as needed; every now and then, I do)
WIS:14 (+2 tome, +2 bonus stat points, +3 monk wisdom, and +6 stat item = 27)
CHA:8 (+2 tome and +6 stat item = 16)

I'm thinking that I'll likely reduce intelligence to 10 and add that to dexterity. From there, I'll put 2 bonus points into strength, 2 into constitution, and then 1 into dexterity (we get 5, right?). I figure that will get constitution and dexterity to 18, and will give me a bit of extra strength boost. Other than that, I was wondering if everything else is good as it is? Should I reduce wisdom down, further, and add those points to either strength, dexterity, or constitution? Any other advice that you may have to contribute?

Thank you so much for your help and advice!
TheKeeper1981

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EDIT October 31, 2010
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I've done some research, reading up on a few threads, some of which are listed, below:

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=210181
http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=214991
http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php...ght=epic+build

I've done some thinking and, after really examining my play style and actually testing the waters by doing Under the Big Top on epic to earn the Epic Dungeon Tokens needed to upgrade both my Cloak of Night and my Wraps of Endless Light, I've discovered that playing the support monk really, truly seems to suit me very well, strangely enough. So I'm thinking I want to try the Rockan Robin build (http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=210181) for my human light monk. I have a few questions before I do, though.

I know there's a really good reason I want to keep my monk good-aligned, like there's a piece of a equipment I have that requires it, but I really can't recall what it is. That being said, I'm thinking that I may not be able to rely on litany for my +1 bonuses. In all honesty, I'm more concerned that this will affect me, adversely, in terms of strength, and I was thinking of putting one of the 5 bonus ability points into strength, to make up for that +1 loss. The Rockan Robin build seems based on the idea of a +1 exceptional wisdom bonus, so I'm thinking I can compensate for wisdome's loss by upgrading my Jidz-Tet'ka, but I'm not quite sure how realistic this sounds. Am I better off trying to, say, obtain a +3 tome in the areas of both wisdom and strength? For dex, I'm, once again, hoping to be able to upgrade my Spectrals to compensate for not having litany.

As a human, I get an extra feat. I'm thinking that I'll probably put that feat for more toughness. Actually, my monk currently has the toughness feat, twice, plus all of the animal paths, and two levels of racial toughness (couldn't get the third without getting greater human adaptability, as human adaptability was put into dexterity), and with wind stance, I'm barely over 400 hit points, so getting that extra bit of toughness sounds like a really good idea.

Now, I've noticed that UMD is always touted as a must, but other than using wraps that are race specific, I can't really see where the payoff is. Potions seem to cost as much as wands, so I'm thinking UMD isn't for using healing wands. What's so important that people emphasize UMD so much? I was thinking that I was better off investing fully into jump and balance, as that would mean I wouldn't have to rely on other people's buffs. I would really appreciate if someone can explain this, as I'm genuinely confused in this particular area.

Finally, I'm noticing people talk about being able to hit for a large number of hit points. I'm looking at my own poor monk and realizing she doesn't seem to approach said numbers, so I'm thinking that there's some piece of equipment or some feat or something that' I've overlooked.

Oryara's Current Weapon Set:

+1 Holy Handwraps of Stunning +10 with Frost
+1 Holy Burst Handwraps of Pure Good with Frost
+4 Acid Handwraps of Pure Good with Frost
Devout Handwraps (+2 Metalline Hadnwraps of Pure Good)
Epic Handwraps of Endless Light
+3 Anarchic Handwraps of Pure Good (I recall reading that these are good for creatures like the boss at the end of VoN 3, and that seemed to hold true)
+1 Acid Handwraps of Stunning +10 with Frost
+3 Force Handwraps of Pure Good with Frost
Snowstar
+ Holy Retunring Shuriken of Greater Gnoll Bane
+2 Flaming Burst Returning Shuriken of Maiming

Armor:

Dragon Touched Veestments with +5 Resistance and +5 Protection (Working on getting the +4 insight sovereign rune)

Accessories:

Minos Legens
+13 spot goggles (yea, I know, an upgrade is needed)
+6 Wisdom Necklace (will switch out for silver flame necklace, to protect from drain)
Jidz-Tet'ka (will switch out for +6 str if I need silver flame necklace)
Spectral Gloves
+10 inner focus ring
+6 str ring (will switch out for +5 wis ring if I need silver flame amulet)
+6 con belt
+6 dex boots (I know; I just haven't figured out what to fill this slot with)
Epic Cloak of Night
Dusk Heart (for improved false life; I hope to upgrade it to epic)

Is there anything anyone would recommend I add to it to help me?

I do plan on getting the Shintao Monk accessory set, as well as another ToD ring (I can wear two different rings, right?)

I plan on upgrading my Spectrals, Jidz-Tet'ka, and Dusk Heart.

Any other recommended equipment?

Thanks for the help!

TheKeeper1981

[Droconos]

The question comes down to how you are focusing your build.

Strong sustainable dps? Go darkside, pump strength, have a high dex, leave wisdom moderate (14ish) and keep constitution about the same. Alternately you could pump constitution to get more HP and use a heavy fort item to keep from getting knocked down with critical hits, leaving Dex and Wis low, blowing away your chances at AC, but becoming a lot less raid item dependent at later levels.

Versatility? Rockan Robin build basically. Stunner full wisdom that stays in wind stance. With the human setup you can switch between light and darkside as needed just so long as you took one of the pre req feats for Lightside (dodge is a no brainer for darkside) I would go with Luck of heroes. +1 stacking saves is nice and unlocks the flexibility to change back and forth between Ninja and Shintao.

Either way you won't have much use for charisma, and int can be either 8 or 10 depending on how dependent you are on skills/what equipment you carry.

[TheKeeper1981]

The question comes down to how you are focusing your build.

Strong sustainable dps? Go darkside, pump strength, have a high dex, leave wisdom moderate (14ish) and keep constitution about the same. Alternately you could pump constitution to get more HP and use a heavy fort item to keep from getting knocked down with critical hits, leaving Dex and Wis low, blowing away your chances at AC, but becoming a lot less raid item dependent at later levels.

Versatility? Rockan Robin build basically. Stunner full wisdom that stays in wind stance. With the human setup you can switch between light and darkside as needed just so long as you took one of the pre req feats for Lightside (dodge is a no brainer for darkside) I would go with Luck of heroes. +1 stacking saves is nice and unlocks the flexibility to change back and forth between Ninja and Shintao.

Either way you won't have much use for charisma, and int can be either 8 or 10 depending on how dependent you are on skills/what equipment you carry.

Does this mean that Stunning Fist is now effective at the epic level? And what do you mean by sustainable DPS? I haven't heard that term, before. I have to look up the build you mention, but it sounds more like something I'm looking for, as my role needs to be versatile in our 3-person group.

Thank you for taking the time to answer!

--EDIT--

I found the Rockan Robin thread. In addition, after speaking with my friend, it turns out that I was given bad information, earlier today, when someone told me that Stunning Fist is still useless on epic and that wisdom should be dumped. So, I've got a lot to think about.

Looks like the trade off for Power Attack isn't as bad as I thought, so I'm putting that in my feats list for when I LR. Still doing a lot of reading to see what would best suit me, though.

=D

--EDIT 2--

Well, the Rockan Robin thread was incredibly informative, answering a lot of my questions, especially the one concerning the term "sustainable DPS." If I understood things correctly, lgiht path monks can put out a respectable amount of DPS. However, when using their ki strikes to help provide support such as healing, some of that DPS can be lost as they are unable to use their best ki strikes as often. Dark path monks can continue to pour on the damage, which is why they tend to be enormously popular.

I'm going to try to see how well I can adapt Rockan Robin to my own particular monk, and place my adaptation in my first post in the hopes I can get some advice on any trouble spots I may be having. (I admit, I'm not exactly the world's best character builder, and I'll likely still have a few misunderstandings about certain things and will need clarification.) Because I run with a static 3 person group, I'm thinking that I might still be better off going light path, as we may not always be in a position in which we can rely on another light path monk to provide some of the useful buffs we'll need, such as grasp of the earth dragon and aligning the heavens, that last being especially important to my husband, who plays a cleric. If the situation turns out that playing dark path might be better, in the long run, well, thankfully, DDO is now more flexible and forgiving, allowing me to change my build.

[TheKeeper1981]

Heyla!

I just wanted to say that, after doing some research and trying things out at level 20, I have a better idea of what I want out of my monk. I've posted my ideas and extra questions in the first post, as I figure it would be easier to find, that way!

Thank you for taking the time to help and advise!
TheKeeper1981

[DarkFlash]

At least in epic Offering of Blood my 3 stunning skills worked pretty well. (Kukan-Do, Stunning Fist & Stunning Blow)
And im a "gimped" 28pt dex based healing-amp-monster.
Ofc I had "+1 stunning10 of shocking/icy burst wraps". (iirc DC's were 41will, 36fort and 26fort)

Its always fun when a wiz can heal you with scrolls and Healing Ki finisher heals 80-120HP ^^ (Healing amp +100% & potency)
That is why I love DDO korea epic teams :P

EDIT: And if you really are light human monk, I recommend to take some healing amps http://ddowiki.com/page/Healing_Amplification
I only use the DT Tempest20% amp with the human/monk amps to get +102,8% healing amp.
(Your husband shouldnt have hard time healing you when you get 128HP/tick from the clerics aura^^)
With potency50% its +204,2%. (Only affects Healing Ki finisher)


And remember: When you have over +100% amp, the Curse of Healing heals double! (Same goes for dream edge vampirism, meaning that you get 4-6 HP/hit with dream edges... But that really drops your DPS so I wouldnt recommend it... But if you can get VORPAL Dream Edges...)

EDIT2: To boost your DPS, use Greater Bane wraps. (I have over 9 sets, from "holy GEOB" to "GhumanB+something". Nothing beats soloing Dreaming dark quests on hard with the GHumanB set.)

EDIT3: For more info about healing-amp builds, check the Solar Phoenix http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php...ighlight=solar

[TheKeeper1981]

I do have Monk Improved Recovery III, as well as Human Improved Recovery I. I really couldn't figure out, when redoing my enhancements, how to get more levels in Human Improved Recovery without skipping either the Shintao Monk prestige class or skipping out on higher levels of Void Strike. I really did want as much healing amplification as possible, to help take the pressure off my husband.

After speaking with a friend, I had discovered exactly what people mean by AC not making a difference on epic level quests. I hadn't realized that AC only affects whether or not a mob hits you, while only damage reduction reduces the amount of damage you receive. I had thought that AC also helps to reduce damage, with DR serving as a bonus. Heh. Silleh me. So I'm actually working on making two other types of DT armor, one with the healing amplification you recommended, and one that focuses on helping to add to my DPS. We're going to see which one seems to help me and my group, the best. So, thank you, very much, for your suggestion, as it's helped me figure out what my gear should look like if I'm going to play around in quiests at the epic level.

I will keep an eye out for bane wraps, as well, as I can see how that can really help with DPS if you're facing a whole lot of the same type of mob.

Thank you, again, for your advice! It's given me a lot to think about!