Theory crafting the celestial monk

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30 running r6 American r10 Chinese
American like to talk before they do, the Chinese just get it done. Lol 6000 hp tanking bard and 4 alchy s, would be 5 but I’m on my Henshin tank. Can tank doom reapers and pull aggro off the tank. I’m so surprised. I guess it’s the fear. The fear of getting hit and immediately dying. That’s most players experience of r10. So it takes some play and some balls to tank if you don’t know you can take the hits. So don’t freak out and use hyperbole, just stand there and see what happens. Most players have better defenses than they know. So much I see the ranged pull aggro and go running around, when he could prob just stand there and let everyone dps it fast. But no, melee have to chase **** around while the archer can’t shed aggro. It’s really a ****ing mess how some play. But one tank and all casters make for some serious explosions. But it all dies fast, so that you don’t have to even worry about getting hit. And that’s r10. That’s r10 by r10 players. Meaning when the lfm says dps, that’s means caster dps. Even tho I run with them and I was def piking as a monk. But they know me as a dps caster so it’s all good. Just like if you got your group pulling you through r1 legendary at 20. Can you pike harder? Hey at least I dps boss. God, caster is so much easier. Tank is relatively boring, but necessary. Finding I can tank as a Henshin seriously helps my pugs.
But really. Losing the drifting lotus to charges, when it’s ki activated. ****. ****. ****. Losing the dire charge. I don’t even use dire charge. I forget it on my hot bar due to due drifting lotus. A knockdown a stun, aoe swings. What else. Frog. Never use it. Just for old baba and totems and who runs baba anymore. But it’s the best choice for wisdom build. Again, need more feats, wider selection to diversify builds. Oh no let’s level gate all the good stuff because that’s all that’s working? Instead of new stuff again to diversify. And EIN. this will quit me as a monk. I can’t even understand giving this to any other class. Bard. Are you ****ing kidding me? A bard chanting the lotus sutra 1000 times might become a monk. But to EIN you should be grandmaster.of flowers. And the lotus is a flower. Pretty central to the emptiness teachings. But that’s real world and this is fantasy. I mean my Henshin has sla, ki shout and incinerating wave. Maybe 6e we can do away with classes? Just pick and choose abilities. And since there’s no random in rolling a character, you all get same amount of points to spend. Now, who gets to weight the abilities? Obviously a DM. but how do we know what’s balanced. And how to pick outliers and exploits. And how not to pick all the good stuff. Unless it’s all the same and nothings better than anything else. We were talking pizza on the voodoo show, and it’s like you have 5/5. And these changes are going to give you 3/3. Well the game is going towards 1/1. Where it’s all interchangeable. You’re doing all the same damage, it’s just a slight variation on theme. Flava flav.
So trinity. Three diverse options. 15 classes. So like x5 diversity. With more diversity there is less individuation. So in psycho terms, there is further branching to find even more individuation. But it’s diminishing returns. You have to go to further and further extreme to find uniqueness. So that in pushing diversity, you over diversify and homogenize. We still have boys and girls. Not much more simpler than that. But what kind of boy or girl seems now to have infinite diversity, so much that even the distinction of boy or girl is not obvious. That is also where ddo seems to be going.
Ya maybe I should rag on the d20.
But really the word here is paradigm. Paradigm shift. Or pair a dimes. Or a pair d10. For percentile dice. Because even tho this game rolls a d20. That is way to limiting in what we now call a game. Back in the day, on a tabletop, rolling a d20 was a cool and easy thing. And the tables accorded to d20 percentile breakdown. But ddo has grown to such proportion that it does not follow any d20 convention. It follows d100 convention. So, change the icon to pair a dimes.
And call it 6e, since rules don’t matter and we’re all just making this stuff up. And any good DM fudges everything (unless it’s hardcore and he rolls the dice in front of you)
Done.

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https://imgur.com/WoksNvg

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tonites practice,
tanking 2 doom reapers

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the before


the after

and in update 51 i lose 5 more WIS

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Next. Ran raids over weekend. Got in some with high lords and brotherhood. I run around the server a lot. I like knowing players, but I know lot just run in channels and rarely find the lfm. In the last 4 months filled up lots ppl on friends list, so I have a much better measure of groups running. Still mostly solo, still looking the more hardcore on Sarlona but we just have it regular. The old guilds get together for updates and do some r1, but I haven’t found any regular r1 runs. I would prob have to be very selective for that stuff. Maybe. Maybe make that the goal. Ahh but it’s summer too.
Nah. Better to just be +1 for now. I’ve a feeling the winds may shift yet again. Not sure for Ill or better. I’m thinking there will be major shakeout over next year. Basically throwing it up in the air, or at the wall, and seeing what sticks. Major item nerf, then total rework of epic. That will make a lot leave and maybe some come back. Seems the studio is going strong, staying busy and churning out work. They have systems plans for stuff. Idk, the lag? You think losing the top end will reduce lag. Likely. Maybe. Maybe too many computations, with big numbers? You know,on dps wise, I see barbs do some big chunks. Meaning they’re getting big crits like 30-50k. Because I see the hp bar move big when I’m melee next to them. I haven’t ran a barb. 100 ac kinda scares me big. And even tho kil began as a barb, I can’t see myself gearing for it. I’m HOW, NOT strength builds. Tho I think I saw a half orc monk doing shintao str. But I would never. Losing the top end…
Well, it will be better through epics, Ie squished so that 21-29 isn’t off from 29. Since my cc21 gear is about as good as 30 gear now. Chop chop. No more just 30 game. Ya. I have 2000 hp reaper at 22. I’m just about as good as at 30. That’s what they just did.
No more climb to 30. The frustration will be behind the level gating. The 30 game will prob be fine, but not having higher tier at lower level will make epics a slog. I’ll lose petals, drifting lotus and EIN. the lotus is huge loss. Primary cc. I’m losing the dire charge to another tree. The EIN is a 3 min oh **** button. Primary for emergency or bad situations. Or if you just want to flash it in the first room, and impress your friends. Gone until 30. So no epics. Lotus went to charger but spender for stun. And petals I could live without, but seeing it as a ki dump at 30 I could agree with. So basically the game changers are gone from epics. The epic moments. Which I’ve earned over 9 years of play.
See the problem in Monty haul is it’s just gets bigger and bigger until it’s ludicrous. Then it crashes. Godkiller. That’s when you get away from the basic rules, and some common framework of number system. It’s just outrageous fun.
And when you go back to a more traditional game, then you have huge big stories to tell. And sometimes, you do it again. We play these games to give a larger than life perspective in our own lives. Super champion in ddo. Hey everyone plays games now, being a gamer is more like a given. An extension of the viewing experience transformed into the interactive experience. This goes back to avatara, and bringing magic into the world. What, or who are you? What do you want to be in this world? Or in a fantastical world setting. There is more magic in this mundane (ha autocorrect to mu dance ) world than you may imagine, and using gaming as a bridge to transform the archetype is truly what is upon us.
Reroll
Back to shintao to see final stats on that build. Had 3 sagas, rolled them some explorer, 2122, put on 21 gear go to town r1. Ya the stat squish, I’m running +10 at 21 at 30 it’s +14 so there hardly gonna be any gain in epics. Sets them up for middling gear in mid epics, more progression change. Oh ya but points into 3 tier 3s. Maybe, but I don’t think so. It’s just gonna be filler. So the stat squish makes the +1 and +2 more valuable, so even this they lose some serious top end, the advantage will still be more to vets. But it should make it better for newer player to be gear wise valid at cap. Idk I think new player is a strawman. There are lotta first lifers I see running around tho…
Mostly gonna do slayers and whatever. I only have docks some cogs and gatekeepers to do.
I should reroll by this next week. Or weekend, but slower on 3rd reroll.
Oh pictures. Yes, my years of hacking paid off. I figured if I just kept clicking I would figure it out. Just new computer and full win10 and haven’t used all the right click stuff yet. Learning my way around admin. So I had to imgur then dump pics there then copy paste link to forums image icon. Then I get them to display. So now I’ll be screenshotting moments!
Paparazzi!

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20-26
Def a slog third round. No fresh spinach. Slayer still is a time sink. Shroud only 300k…ran wheloon that was fresh rolled to 26.
26 lgs hand wraps and star. Will be able to r1 30 stuff. Many won’t let you come until you have 29 gear. But some do, and I do if I know them. And know they can contribute.
Dps notes. Yes the chore of melee. Just too much clicking. My finger get tired. It’s like ****ing chopping wood. In the meantime everything just about dies from 2 buttons from the sorc and alchy, next mob. Ya, it’s so bad I can’t charge ki. I pretty much just run thru the quest trying to kill stuff, no change with casters. Only hard champs or bosses much get my dps. Oh yes I try, but it’s defeating when you’ve got a tgt and you’re attacking and the blasts just come in and it’s all dead. Left standing there whiffing air. That’s melee. Or maybe, since I have ki shout pulling aggro off said casters so they don’t jump around like beans. But that’s de facto high reaper. As shintao just jade reapers pull any aggro you can and dps bosses. And I’m telling you caster dps is pretty easy boss dps. I’ve never ran out of mana on my alchy so it’s a full burn on bosses. Still purple damage with de buff. Melee loses dps to fort and doesn’t have ez button spell to just bypass it.
But I am tough. Ha 3000 hp in reaper with lgs. Don’t take much damage. And have heals to counter it. Funny I did die, I’m pushing the Zerg part of the build. Part of tank is Zerg and grab aggro and mob it tight for casters. I’m doing this on my monks now. Just grabbing huge mobs. Sometimes I’m so far ahead group isn’t caught up and I’m soloing like 15 mobs. I have the whirlwind and lotus but it’s not like aoe with Henshin. Single tgt and it’s not really fast. Seems my Henshin did better dps. Even single tgt. Oh what I was saying. I died, and forgot I had Phoenix. Think I was 25 or 6 .because I switched over builds but not mentality.
Shintao is much more ki use. And not enough to build. I’ve found ive had to switch to fire to build ki then back to water. On the Henshin more ki generation too, and it’s like always maxed.
So, made change to ED. Dropping 2 points wisdom. I had 2 pt into enlightenment on Henshin didn’t need the 3rd for passive. But on shintao I do. Also, I didn’t notice the tier4 that gives 1w. So two spots on tree give 1w. So I dropped 2 pts wisdom for those 4 add points. At 27 took completionist, so it’s a wash. Gonna lose the wisdom in u51 anyways. Sayanora.
Oh it’s a tier5.
Since I’m prob gonna quit playing monk after this.
The QP is doing pretty good. It almost always requires trance to get it high enough to be reliable. At least trash mobs. Don’t try it on champs really, jade them if no reaper spawn. But it’s really the mudra ryote. That art of both hands. Stunning fist and qp. But it’s a slower game. You have to be next to the tgt facing it and then hit it. Usually qp one stun fist another and dps it. Maybe jade a third. But it’s hella effort to play single tgt melee instakill. ***** moving. ESP reaps they run by and don’t aggro so it’s effort. Not just tgt mob and aoe wait for them to die caster style. I mean I enjoy that it requires effort. But it’s not really rewarded in general game play. Well, you go high priority tgts. Because you’re super jumpy and fast and you just jump over stuff and tag it kill it and jump to next tgt.
But truth is, it’s rare to see monks using EIN, much less them stunning and qp. I see some. Many really do not know the play style. And unlike what is said, it’s not a lot of buttons. It just the timing of a few buttons and hitting a tgt in front of you. Also dismissing strike eapxtra earth attack and finisher. And the smite and baby jade. So lot of situation single buttons to push. But not a lot of buttons. Only on bosses do you get cycle time. Anything else dies too fast.
Ya so my understanding is that qp is op. But none know the style. I am amused when ppl see tgts disappear in front of me. I wonder if they know. A 6 sec instakill. You just gotta have the ki and hit the tgt. It’s a slow style tho. Requires tremendous positioning and maneuver. It’s tough on the wrist. I like it because it requires what I would call skill, but really is of the old 10 game where everything was slower.
I guess it’s because ppl like big numbers. And monk is not that. It’s fast little attacks.

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29
Put on the gear. Some things don’t seem to be jiving. Hp are ok, to hit looks right, damage seems off 50. Prr is way less. Didn’t realize there is so much diff between the two builds. Dps is 15w. Took imp martial and pl monk for 1.5. The direwolf is up .5 from pinnacle. So 15w and 50% dodge both got achieved. I did ap a bit diff. Did ED a bit diff. Maxing as best I can.
But I’d rather the Henshin. So much filler in the tree but it actually just the best stuff less the de buff strikes that I never cycle. Except the fire one.
Ya, truth is I haven’t been back in either of these builds to really map it out. And I won’t. This is final look for these builds. They’re being nerfed and destroyed. Too bad I still had some way to go…
Again, the game changer in these builds and play was the fix of ki shout. Thank Lynn, but years passed and it was broken. Really lessened the play style.
Ie last nite at 29 was tanking sully in a LN VOD. this on the shintao. Couldn’t have done it without ki shout. But can do it. And can prob do it LH on the Henshin. Just never went there. Don’t know how the nerfs will figure this. Just finding it. Ha monks tanking raids. Oh ya also found out orthons aren’t to be feared either. I know just LN, but good to test.
30 this morn. After Sharn c1 and raids yesterday, was 100k short. The EE WPM did it.



Edit
Ya Zerg had it a while and I had it a while
I had it to start then we shared
Mostly to keep him from bouncing around
My joke to start we see who can pull it off

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30
Ok looking over the build.
Took 1ap out of Henshin, gave it to +10mp in ninja. That gives me 7 more boosts of prowess.
And. Put ancient tactics on hot bar stances. Couple swaps on this build. The direbear wolf belt. Bear for defense wolf for offense. And then ancient tactics and DOUBLESTRIKE. The ds goes from 76 to 67. Still good with 4 boost of 30% from reaper. So 100 either way really. The tactics add fist 107 to 113. Qp 81 to 87. Ha that’s a bug.(edit I’ll take it since the falconry assassinate doesn’t seem to add, fix that too Lynn) But the issue is, I ran r4 Sharn yesterday, and my stunning fist was not landing. And the dc was 100. Without boost. And that’s not the case. So Sharn has high dc. So…I realize this is changing, but for now. At 30 took tactics from LD. For the +6 add to everything. The shintao is much more the DC build. All the extra strikes need it for no fail or better in high r.
Haha. Beta testing. Get ready for a whole nother round of super hot fixes.
Also. Ok remember I said how filigree vary the build by 25% or so. So that’s the diff here. Wis would be same either build around 109, since I lost the 2 from ED, but the ring has a +2 raid filigree. And I’m not sure the duality piece of filigree is matched to the ring. So lost some mp. That’s why I had prepped another ring, for swap. But current ring has some good augments on it. Would cost to double up…checked it’s good. Just swap one +5mp for the +2 wis.
Oh yes the other thing. Seems I attack slower. I noticed this more at the upper end. That normally on auto attack I would have blinding fast rotation animations. Now it seems 25% slower? Def seems, is? Slower. The 48 nerfs? I stepped out of melee and wasn’t able to test it. Well I said slower attacks. Wonder if this was all melee. Or twf?? Idk. Today in locket. Super super slow mo attacks. And I wasn’t debuffed either I was checking. Not sure what they did, but twf wraps is way slower than I remember.
Still testing. Had a 17k crit on giant boss last nite. Highest I had. When adding mp prowess boost. Pretty sure it was pretty debuff since my base hits were 3k.
Tonite. Ran some r5 fey. Build def has 2-3 sec kill dps. Trance boost qp kills stunning fist champs jade reaps has great cc has great defense. Ran a LH vod to test against the orthons this build again got chewed up a bit I tried to tank them but can heal thru it. Wasn’t tanking so I just dps tonite.
I want to say one other thing. I rarely need to use meld on this build. Really I haven’t used it all this past level 20-30. It just sits there. The build has good enough basic defense that to begin with you don’t get hit and when you do, like r6, it’s manageable. Not like another hit and you’re dead, like you can just self heal through it. So much that you get lazy about healing, since you don’t need to very often. Sometimes I get ganked, but most the time, paying attention, you pretty easy survive, when others are dying. Most of the time I have full hp bar even melee. Of course I get heals esp now that I’m tanking. Oh the casters love that ****, when you have aggro and of course they’ll toss heals if they can, no damage to them.
But it’s not a solo build, because I don’t solo. But it’s def a winning melee build if you like all the things about melee other than big numbers. Heh, or was. Who knows where it will be in the future.



ya this was a LN run. we got easy untill last part where we didnt have super dps and had one dance session

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tanking LN VOD this morning
or trying to
kind of messy start, but im able to pull and keep aggro
just we had zrrging dps so it was more faster pussycat full speed ahead
so, the swap
direwolf for direbear, and omniscience for insightful commands
brings ac up prr up

again, this is all lynns fault, fixed ki shout





oh heres another
my reward for tanking last nite
dropped for someone and was passed

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30
Running some raids some mid r for test and get back in saddle.
Tonite was fey chests. Had a fey in dnd but got blanked. Just LN. but then after had a friend find one in make believe r10. But as usual it was guarded by a doom and the eles. It was me another baby monk and the sorc. I EIN the eles and grabbed the doom, but shintao isn’t as tank as Henshin, and I didn’t switch to defense on the item swap. See that’s time playing the build. I’m still learning my timing again. Anyway the doom took me down even with meld, but second time defenses held and we got him down. With the add of an alchy that joined. Ya, that’s the trick, you can tank when there’s 4 casters behind you dpsing.
Anyway, pulled Titania, but faerie helm was in there and we did some trades. And I got a mythic1 faerie helm. How nice. That means I go back to alchemist, since that was the replacement helm I was looking for.
I still have final screenshots to post, but u50 maybe not 2 weeks, so I have time to tr back to Henshin. Gonna be slog but I got big slayers yet to cap. Will need to run some saga rxp for turn in.
Also, capped my epic martial pl. so running any martial destiny other than for serious runs will be working divine. Figure I can do that r1 through epic then go back to gmof at cap.
I was also thinking burning my +20 heart to reroll alchy. I’ve never used one and now would be the reroll.
Also, bought a wish for halfling. I have 2 left to do. 1 for the dex, then roll a Halfling toon for fun as something for the racial ap. Then shifter and tie fling.

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30 stats for shintao

















reroll back to alchy
thx ssg