Outfitting a monk

Remove all ads!

New game because I screwed up the Kivan romance. This time, I'll have a monk as the PC. I have her prof points in Dart, Katana and Scimitar. For sure, she'll wear Ring of Gaxx, that Scarlet ninjo-to, bracers of AC until I get gauntlets of crushing. Should she also get the cloak of mirroring? Tips are appreciated since this is my first monk.

 

The monks' base ac decreases by 1 for every 3 levels and starts at 9. a fresh monk is level 7 or so, which means a total of 3 ac bonus on top the of dex boost which is a base ac of 3. bracers of ac 8 put an 18 dex character at ac of 4 (assuming no other modifers), meaning that a monk will have no use for them. by the time you find the stronger defense bracers, your monk wont need them.

Also, the scarlet ninja-to is generally not a good investment. It is only useful for a very weak monk, and if your monk is that weak then you are most likely very poor as well. it is more powerful then an early monks fists, but has fewer attacks. I prefer the fists because it helps rip through stoneskins and mirror images while your other fighter does the heavy damage.

cloak of mirroring may or may not be necessary, depending on your situation and your monks' level. at lvl 15 (I believe) monks get 3% mr per level, meaning they are safer from magic them most characters. A pre-15 monk still benefits from the cloak, but the cloak is only really important when fighting beholders which a regular fighter is probably better at killing.

 

In my experience (have finished with a Monk - SOA and TOB) - all you need to do is ensure that Monky boy has items to improve his ac and regeneration.

Before too long weapons are quite inferior to fists. Sure weapons have special effects but then so can the fists (palm is nice). And you gets lots of attacks.

 

Nevertheless, Scarlet is very useful to have around for fighting trolls and whatnot. I think it's worth buying.

 

If you're soloing, obviously he'll be doing all the fighting and getting all the great items, as well as levelling up quickly. But in a party (at first, anyway) he'll have to be used as a Kensai-like character, using stealth to reserve him until everyone is engaged, and maybe even saving Stunning Blow uses for when someone targets him. Once he gets to the higher levels, though, he can start tanking with his progressively lower AC.

Darts are a great idea for if your monk gets consistently hurt. Pick up the Crimson Dart from WK and you'll be set for the game. Sit back and huck 'em. (I actually once had the first few halflings in the Planar Sphere just stand there while my monk killed them with the Crimson Dart. ) I'd also suggest Single Weapon Style for when you're wielding the Scarlet Ninja-To. AC bonus and Critical bonus can't be beat.

One thing I'd like to emphasize regardless of party makeup is getting an Ioun Stone. Criticals will kill you, especially at early stages. The Mask of King Strohm (used as a plot device in Firkraag's Dungeon) also provides protection from criticals and is wearable by everyone, though it doesn't have the bonuses of Ioun Stones and likely won't even be gotten as soon as some Stones since most people tend to save Windspear for later.

As DBG stated, most Bracers of Defense won't have much effect, but you can liberate Keldorn's Armor early if you don't have Baldurdash. A monk will outgrow it after a time, though, as will he the Scarlet Ninja-To. In the meantime, though... And I positively love the poisoning effect of SNT for disrupting mages' spells, as well as the advantages of Single Weapon Style. (If you manage to hit them first, anyway. Stealth is good for that.)

 

ah yes, i had forgotten the poison damage on scarlet. for soloers then scarlet is indeed a good buy. for a party, save your cash for chaper weapons.

as an aside, does the scarlet kill trolls? i know acid damage does, but i though scarlet did poison which doesnt kill trolls.

 

Poisoning does kill trolls. I had it happen several times taking my monk through de'Arnise Keep.

 

I know that, eventually, fists will be better to attack with. I want a weapon or 2 as backup for when I need a higher enchantment. I've been upping her Hide and Move Silent skills.

I will probably give the cloak of mirroring to my bait NPC.

This is going beyond the game, but I'm wondering if a monk's fists are still considered unenchanted weapons even though they are +1/+2/+3 (depending on level)? Can a monk 'turn off' the enchantment? (As an aside, I know they can in 3.5e PnP games. Of course, my DM could be misinterpreting the rules. )

 

Scarlet or scimitar/katana are also good for fighting enemies that your fists can't hurt. I don't know if many enemies are immune to crushing damage, but still... Also, a point in longswords can be good. There are many longswords with valuable side effects - like my beloved dayblade - or additional elemental damage.

 

The PnP Fighting-Monk did not get enchantments. Instead, they still had their spells (though with fewer spheres than a cleric, I believe) to deal damage or heal their comrades when they came up against something that could not be harmed by normal weapons. The BG2 monk is a LOT closer to the 3e version than the 2e version.

 

The BG2 monk is almost identical to 1e -- except for use of weapons (monks had very specific weapons and did an extra ½ damage per every 2 or 3 levels).

The reason to get the Scarlett Ninja-To is to hit creatures which require magical weapons to hit. The fists are only +1 at 9th, +2 at 12th and +3 at 15th levels. The Scarlett Ninja-To gives an additional attack and is a +3 weapon. Once you get beyond 15th level you don't need it. You may want to put a point in slings for the sling of everard +5. Definately put one point in single handed weapon.

Items you need:
Mask of King Strohm or Ioun Stone (pale green is excellent).
Cloak of the Sewer (I usually give the cloak of mirroring to weaker NPC's).
Ring of Protection/Ring of Earth Control perhaps using the Ring of Gaxx later.
Gauntlets of weapon skill/expertise, then gauntlets of crushing.
Boots -- pretty much any except speed (avoidance really does quite well for a monk).
Belt -- I'm a big fan of the belt of inertial barrier, but high strength is good for a monk.

 

There should be a monk glove weapon type thing. Something that doesn't count as a weapon but helps increase damage like one.

 

Drew - As far as Trolls are concerned I think I had a X-Bow bougt outside watchers keep that fires endless firebolts.

That sorted them out.

 

Monk + crossbow = Monk - crossbow
IOW, they can't use them.

EDIT:
Could still work with a party, assuming someone can use a crossbow, but really, there are more than enough Fire Arrows in the game for the couple dozen trolls you encounter so using a regular bow is just as valid. Heck, you can even get in infinite number of them from the Captain of the Guard at de'Arnise Keep! (Assuming, of course, that Baldurdash hasn't closed off this exploit.)

[ July 07, 2006, 05:33: Message edited by: Felinoid ]

 

Hmmm.

Do monks get UAI?

Just have a picture in my head of my monk with a X-Bow.

Then again...it is late!

 

Only rogues get UAI. Monks aren't even close.

 

Are the gauntlets of crushing (+4 THAC0 and damage with fists) what you want?

 

Actually, I what I ment was something more along the lines of what brass nuckles are.

 

where are the gauntlets of crushing?
I have been through the game many times but have never come across.

 

You get them from siding with the Sahuagin King.