D&D MONKS, BUT GOOD, Part 1: Overview, In-Depth Guide to Monks in Pathfinder 2e (Rules Lawyer)
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- Опубликовано: 9 июл 2024
- This is the 1st of my three-part series, where I look at how Pathfinder 2e makes a powerful and fun monk to play. This doubles as a showcase about PF2, and to inform the design of other TTRPGs including D&D!
"D&D Monks, But Good" series: • "D&D Monks, But Good" ...
Link to Treantmonk's criticism of the D&D 5e monk: • Monks Suck in D&D
CORRECTION: Healer's gloves are (surprise) on your HANDS. Which is the same slot used by (surprise) your HANDWRAP of mighty blows. Alas! In the upcoming combat demo, we'll need to imagine the gloves as just being a use of Battle Medicine. Thanks to hawktitan for the correction.
0:00 Intro
1:06 Problems with D&D 5E monk
2:30 Monk overview
6:34 Build advice
8:15 Drunken master
11:55 Crane monk
14:46 Ki monk
17:26 Weapon monk
20:08 Zen archer
22:42 Outro
Also see my "D&D Fighters, But Good" series!:
• "D&D Fighters, But Goo...
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Игры
CORRECTION: Healer's gloves are (surprise) on your HANDS. Which is the same slot used by (surprise) your HANDWRAP of mighty blows. Alas! In the upcoming combat demo, we'll need to imagine the gloves as just being a use of Battle Medicine. Thanks to hawktitan for the correction.
The battle medic's baton from Treasure Vault is a neat substitute, or just expanded healers tools if you just want that +1.
An order of monks dedicated to the healing arts devising a way of combining the two would be an easy bit of homebrewing.
To quote a Monk player who came directly from 5e: "I never knew I could have so much fun as a martial class."
The Monk is the poster child of why changing to a 3 equal action economy was such a good idea for PF2.
Entering Stance, Flurry of Blows, Raise shield, Skill Actions, the Stunned Condition - they can all cost 1 Action.
With DnDs old system it is a nightmare to decide which of the 3 actions to take for either of them. But 3 equal Actions? Any one will do.
Totally agree.
At the same time, I'm shocked (shocked!) that they didn't at least adopt Bonus Action to enter a stance to make monks' unarmed fighting more interesting and to at least give it more variety. (Stances have been a think in D&D/Pathfinder ever since Paizo introduced them in Ultimate Combat in 2011.) But alas, Bonus Action is needed for monk's DPR loop still...
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG Imagine if the 3 primary Ki abilities at level 2 were a single BA and a point to use as a stance. Always dashing, always disengaging, or always FoBing.
Then at levels 5, 11, and 17, Monk gets the damage scaling and burst potential it desperately needs by allowing you to spend 1 additional point for 1 additional unarmed strike with FoB.
(This would probably also change to a long rest point pool instead of a short rest)
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG The eternal problem of the Main/Bonus/Move action system.
"Is X action to cheap or too expensive for this? How will that affect all the other options for X action?"
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG The new D&D 🐉 Players Handbook 6th edition 2024, has done great changes to the monk. 5 edition Monks are good, better than 3rd edition Monks.
Can't wait to play this new version, I want to see if they change the character sheets. I have been wanting to play a monk in Pathfinder 2 edition, but I can't find people and make Time.
Im just glad Larian with Baldurs Gate 3 are allowed to homebrew improvements on the Monk. Gotta STILL do the same for the new " improved " Monk in 5e second edtion 🤔
The biggest thing I appreciate with Pathfinder's monks is how your attributes accurately reflect your style, and how it always still feels viable. You can build a beefy, big-biceps monk and they'll *feel* like that. Monks built primarily with dex, str, or wis will all feel viable and will feel different in a way that actually reflects your attribute allocation.
In 5e monks typically just dump strength because of how MAD they are and STR doesn't help them actually fight, since dex to damage is a default.
reasons why 5e's best stat is Dex in almost all cases:
My takeaways from playing monks:
More than anything I feel its the class feat system of P2e is what allows martials to really shine.
Stances defiantly feel like the sub-class analogue for monks and to a certain degree fighters.
Monks make fantastic paramedics due to their mobility and preference for the wisdom stat.
Monks that use a defensive stance (crane and especially mountain) really want a good initiative as you can get sniped on the first turn before getting in to your stance.
"Lets go over the Ki features of the monk" had me chuckle
the most fun monk idea we had was an automaton monk with the energy beam feat, which is an unarmed ranged attack, so you can flurry of blow with it :D
I played that once! It's as neat as it sounds. Unfortunately it's only a d4 fo it's best used with ki strike.
@@ZonsoAvaluneAutomatons can upgrade it to d6’s with a later ancestry feat too
Lazer monk
Back when I did videos bashing Taking20's take a very much pondered a video where I redid the battle but didn't announce beforehand the ranger was going to be swapped out until the turn started. Then reveal the woodland hunter gimmick the example player wanted could have been a monastic archer monk with the ability to anoint his bow with positive energy or the natural elements.
Just to show off the array of choices that aren't an illusion (but technically can be if you archetype into an illusionist, which is a potential path to take a hunter)
I love the monk's versatility.
5e pidgeon-holes them into dex-based melee fighters with mystical powers.
PF has so several option for fully mundane or STR based monks.
I love it.
The best thing about not needing Wis is that it works well with multiclassing. I theorycrafted a Monk/Wizard that used abjuration to stack on the defense and uses a save spell as a “third action”.
It can be even better than that! Monks get auto scaling equal to a Magus/Summoner in either Divine or Occult spellcasting when they take their first ki spell feat. My first character was actually a monk with a cleric multiclass who took advantage of this. Once Treasure Vault came out I equipped him with the Jolt Coil spellheart so he could Electric Arc and follow it up with two electrified punches (because spellhearts add energy damage to melee attacks). This actually lasts until the end of your next turn so it applies to TWO flurries (and a stand still reaction attack if you've got it). The only downside is you need the Basic Spellcasting Benefits feat to use spellhearts on a monk.
This is perfect! I'm in the process of converting my Way of Shadow monk to PF2e format! Thanks for the video!
ive made a martial revamp for 5e, if you want it i can share with you for ideas
As someone who was introduced to TTRPGs through D&D 5e, I just joined my first Pathfinder game as a catfolk monk (wrestler dedication) and I'm having a blast! 10/10, would recommend.
Hope to see this done for the barbarians once the remaster is in full motion.
Great work with this ones mate.
If you're trying to get more eyeballs with that provacative ensemble...it TOTALLY worked and I'm here for it!
More skin, less rules lawyering!
Well, more skin at any rate. 😜
One thing that didn't get mentioned during the third action section is shields, monks make up some of the best shield users in the game because shields don't compete with weapons as much for the monk as they do for other classes, and monks have that open action economy that makes raising a shield every turn trivial. Of the builds presented, the drunken master and ki monk should have AT LEAST a buckler, but a +2 shield is usually even better (or a fortress shield if you wanna get spicy). Remember that you can still make unarmed fist attacks with other body parts if both your hands are full (for example, a shield in one hand and an enemy grappled in the other) so headbutt your way to victory!
It's a... pet peeve of mine how good shields are on monks lol. It doesn't fit the fantasy for the monk for me personally. In fact I want to homebrew a "raise shield" action for monks that is them simply defending with one free hand to get a +2 circumstance to AC.
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG I have long been an advocate for the "Mountain Stronghold" feat to be baseline for monks as well for much the same reasons :P
I played a Drunken Master Monk in D&D 5E. I didn't think it was weak and I was happy with my time spent with it.
While I wasn't playing with an optimized party, I had a blast with my DM monk....after level 6.
Before then it was a nightmare and I dropped constantly because without Ki monks are useless
The variety of the monks already make this super interesting!
I've been hoping and waiting for an all monk party combat video for ages! Can't wait to see part 2!
Gonna have to remember this video next time a player is considering monk (in any game system)
Nice show off of the variety
As strange as it sounds, PF2 Monk's cool Stance System reminded me of DnD Star Druid's 3 forms, Star Forms even interchangable around lv 10.
Keep pumping these videos out! I love them!
Rules Lawyering the Rules Lawyer.
You can't get Healers Glove and Handwraps of Mighty Blows as they occupy the same slot by RAW.
Alas! I thought for some reason it took your arms slot, like bracers. Adding a correction. In the upcoming combat demo we'll need to imagine the gloves as just being a use of Battle Medicine
I love my Goblin Monk with wrestler archetype lol Shes such a fun character!
Ronald out here explaining monks while showing off his his own monk guns!
Haha maybe I should do this for a Gunslinger series ;P
Aw, perfect timing, just rulling up a level 4 monk for an abomination vaults campaign!
I like how pathfinder 2e monk allows you to make a Hulk Hoganesque strength based pro-wrestler.
I hope to see the same kind of thing for Rangers.
I love PF2 monks for their versatility and breakage from some established DnD specific cliches. While in PF1 you absolutely needed WIS, or eventually CHA with Scaled Fist archetype, here you can have Monks in 5 flavours. DEX monk, STR monk, WIS monk, CHA monk or even INT monk are all somewhat viable. Monks unarmed defence is now given by their proficiency, so WIS is not necessary, non-offensive spells don't need high (or even positive) modifier, so again. With monk's better spellcasting proficiency progression than what spellcasting archetypes offer, your divine/occult Witch/Sorc, Bard, Cleric, etc offensive spells can be somewhat more effective than usual with archetypes. With CHA it plays well with deception and/or intimidation. Those might not all be the best options out there, but there is substantial cool factor.
my favorite monk is the creature.
pick an ancestry with a cool or fun or thematic unarmed strike (or one with unarmed attacks with grapple or trip). EG Leshy seedpod, or automaton laser. or tengu beak (my personal favorite). and grab and tear your enemies apart like you're a wild animal.
It is worth remembering that monks in pf2e arent locked out of shields like they are in 5e. Which means that a str monk with mountain stance and tower shield st lvl 1 can get highest lvl1 ac in the game at 21 iirc, been a while since i did that math.
Now that Treasure Vault has introduced the fortress shield you can get a +3 for only one action (or a +4 if you wanna spend 2 actions). Monks have the speed to handle the -10 penalty quite nicely so I think they make better fortress shield users than just about anyone else.
I've been thinking about how I'd do the 5e Monk better than WotC's playtest, just on principle. The Warlock too, because it's the other design that stands out as awful.
And what I pretty quickly realized is that half my ideas (ie basically anything involving Stunning Strike or Deflect Missiles) were basically recreating the flexible attack system from 13th Age from scratch. Which is weird because I only started looking up 13th Age for the first time in like 7 years of not thinking about it for completely unrelated reasons, after I did most of my brainstorming (I was actually inspired by PF2e critical specializations and recently learning that the OD&D Monk had an early version of them where you'd stun if you beat AC by 5+, and then just kept expanding on the mechanic).
Anyway, yeah, turns out 13th Age has a ton of amazing house rule fodder for your D&D or PF game (their ritual rules are genius as well, to say nothing of the utter brilliance of the Escalation Die, and the Icon rules are nifty too if you can figure out how to use them effectively), and I shouldn't have given up on it after the one 3-shot I played almost a decade ago.
13th age need more love! I really like their Monk class. Those stances makes me shout their names when I roll for the attack
Good stuff! You may want to update the video summary to be Monks instead of Fighters!
Despite the monk often being regarded as weak in 5e I loved playing one, probably second to sorcerer as my most played classes in 5e. After playing in in PF2e though I can't go back to 5e's monks. I'll homebrew a revised monk based on PF2e's one before I return to it; it's not just that PF2e's one is balanced, which is nice, it's the overall design approach that just feels so much better.
hah! i too love the ability to slowly glide down as a leaf leshy =D
Ki strike + heavenseeker archetype + monk special material features + weapon runes + jyoti's feather = enough damage types to give your gm an aneurysm
Unarmed builds basically require ghost touch to attack incorporeal enemies because unarmed is not a weapon and can't use most of the usual ways around it. Monks also have no built in way
Yay for drunken master monk
On the topic of other unarmed options, automaton for flurry of eye lasers is also a thing
Ancestral weaponry also expands the weapon options to less orthodox things. The followup to monastic weaponry
I have a PF1 Society monk named Bodhidharma that used to mop up.
I've been playing a monk with the vampire dedication in my first pathfinder campaign. Flavor-wise I'm just a vampire, but I felt like monk gave me a lot of vampire-like abilities. I went strength based monk to synergize with the vampire bite ability and kinda regret that. Vampire bite suuuuucks, cuz you get more from drinking from higher level enemies but higher level enemies have very high fortitude save dc's so not only do you often fail grapples, but you risk critically failing...which sucks cuz you're burning an attack action on it and you can't drop your vampire teeth or gorilla stance arms to avoid the crit failure.
I like being a vampire for flavor, but I kinda wish I just ignored the grapple side of things when building the character. I kinda just demoralize or stride, stunning strike flurry of blows, and raise shield pretty much every turn. I feel like I could have built something more fun and with more options if I realize how unsatisfying grappling was going to be.
Have there been any updates to Elemental Fist damage with the new Planes of Metal and Wood?
Love your videos think they are really informative. I think you figured Helen's stats wrong on that as it is only possible to get an 18 in the stat by choosing a boost in 1st level, Ancestry, Background, and Class. You can't double up on any step. Otherwise I think you show case the class perfectly. Thanks for the content.
Those stats are possible because of the four free boosts she got at Level 5
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG my apologies. You are correct. I was just thinking initial stats. Thanks again.
I really like the last one elven (zen) archer who is also a werewolf? Kinda cool
7:33 You think you coined the term "3rd action", in a _3 action_ system, 3 years after it was released...?
You don't think anyone else came up with that little gem in the 48 months between the 2e playtest and your video?
Wait, I'm confused by the Weapon Monk's stat array - how are you getting those ability modifiers, I can't find a valid combination for 8 WIS, 16/18 STR, 16 DEX and 14 CHA at level 1 for a Dwarf. Given Dwarves have a Wisdom Boost and a Charisma Flaw... unless you're using the old 2 flaws for one boost rule that was errata'd out of the core rules a while back?
These are 5th-level characters, so it's possible with the 4 free boosts they get at Level 5
SETSUNA SHY!
Question.
Wolf stance says that when the target is flat footed you gain trip trait on your wolf jaw unarmored attacks...
So... In nost stances i am supposed to be unable to trip or shove people if i don't have such traits?
What's more confusing is => wolf stance says that i CAN use wolf jaw unarmored attacks (not "you acn only use such attacks, as some other stances say)... So... I thought that means that i can use my arms as if i am not in the stance too, and hence i definately dont need shove/trip traits.
But it grants you them...
I m confused. Please help
You can always Trip, Grapple, Shove, etc. with a free hand.
The trip trait lets you apply Potency Runes to your check, and use the reach of your weapon. It also lets you avoid the Critical Failure effect by instead "dropping the weapon" which probably doesn't extend to unarmed attacks because you can't drop a limb
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG oh, now i get it!
Thanks.
I ve played only 1-2 lvl (with no runes and etc) sessions yet and i really appreciate your help.
Goodluck... Eh, forgot your name. Okay then, - Goodluck You, Yes You!))
Also I thought this was a monk video but you're showing off some guns with that tank top (jk).
I am new to pf2e but monk is really up there on my to try list. Currently playing a precision ranger with a hawk and it feels great.
In 5e, most martials don't really work out of the box. Even fighters are incredibly weak without the bog standard feat selection of CBE+SS or PAM+GWM. Basically imagine pf2e power attack being mandatory on any martial, as well as a feat that gives you a third attack in a system without MAP. There's not much that competes.
Monk features don't play nice with these feats, because they require unarmed attacks or monk weapons. There is more substantially more power in these feats than said class features, so you build a better monk by ignoring many monk features. This often leads to the question: why not play a fighter or barbarian instead? Don't get me wrong, there's some very fun, if jank builds monk can do, gunk being the most famous where you take the gunner feat with sharpshooter and play a highly mobile rifleman who uses ki to enhance accuracy. Which is cool, but not what the class fantasy is about.
Why the sturdy shield on the crane monk, does he have shield block somehow?
yes (it's a General Feat available to all characters)
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG must have missed that ❤️
Did your Crane Monk forget to, uh
Take Shield Block? I don't think I saw it
Hi Ron, can I ask how you got Helen's attributes to be +4 STR, +4 DEX, +3 CHA, -1 WIS at level 5? I just can't figure it out. I'm going to write this out for the sake of clarity, sorry for the length, I just want to make sure everyone understands what we're talking about.
Dwarves get +1 CON, +1 WIS, +1 free (I assume DEX) and -1 CHA, meaning:
STR 0
DEX +1
CON +1
INT 0
WIS +1
CHA -1
Guard background gives +1 STR or CHA (I assume CHA), +1 free (I assume DEX), bringing us to:
STR 0
DEX +2
CON +1
INT 0
WIS +1
CHA 0
Monk will boost STR or DEX (I assume DEX), making it:
STR 0
DEX +3
CON +1
INT 0
WIS +1
CHA 0
4 free ability boosts at level 1 (I assume STR, DEX, CON, CHA) will bring us to:
STR +1
DEX +4
CON +2
INT 0
WIS +1
CHA +1
4 free ability boosts at level 5 (I assume STR, DEX, CON, CHA) will bring us to:
STR +2
DEX +4 (raised to 19)
CON +3
INT 0
WIS +1
CHA +2
If you had taken a voluntary flaw to boost CHA, it would be at +3 by level 5, assuming you had taken a flaw to your INT (making it -1) and your WIS (making it 0). But how can your WIS be -1? Did you take the voluntary flaws twice by accident? And of course, STR is still only +2, not +4 at level 5, if you had taken voluntary flaws twice and got two free boosts, it could still only be +3 by level 5. I just don't seem to find a way to balance the boosts to get the same numbers?
Voluntary Flaws allows you to put both flaws into a score that gains a boost at the Ancestry step.
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG I know, that's why I don't understand how Helen got from +1 WIS from her Dwarven ancestry to -1. How did she lose 2 points there? You've seen my numbers, have I made an error somewhere?
On the other hand, it is just a curiosity. I appreciate the fact that PF monks are much better than D&D ones and far more fun to play.
"The enemy becomes flat-footed or off-guard IS THE NEW TERM."
Yes, they've confirmed this on their streams and the new book Rage of Elements uses this term
Ron I've been looking over the rules and I can't see a way to add Dex to hit with staves. The staff is imo the most iconic monk weapon but in 2E it seems you can't make it finesse (or use dex for any monk weapon that isn't inherently finesse)
Yep... sounds like a balance choice to maintain the staff's identity for all characters is what I"m guessing.
But it is possible to get a +4 STR and +3 DEX at Level 1 if you want to (you're AC would be decent at 18)
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG yes you get enough boosts to be fine with both high str and dex anyway, however con is still important and it gives you less budget to get less in the rp stats like int wis and cha. It feels more restrictive to build a basic class fantasy than 5e does. I'm interested to see how the combat tests go
You don't have to have high charisma/intel/wisdom to RP, you just need it if you need to roll high. It's ok to be as efficient in diplomacy than, say a Sorcerer with max Cha, but don't lock yourself out of the social part of the game just because you're not "the best" to it
@Clairem5347 I would argue the Monk design philosophy in D&D is even more restrictive than PF2e. The 5e Monk is so ridiculously MAD and the ruleset is so stingy with ability boosts that trying to put points into anything besides Dex, Con, or Wis creates a horrendously unoptimized mess of a Monk.
My favorite class fantasy for a Monk is to play a character that is in both peak mental AND physical form. That to me implies a very high Strength score. For a 5e Monk, putting ASIs into Strength, let alone making it my highest ability acore, results in a Monk that suffers from low health, low AC, and an inability to effectively use the Monk class features. In fact, the most optimized Monk for Point Buy in 5e is to completely dump Strength because allowing players to add their Dexterity modifier to damage makes attempting to use a finesse weapon (i.e. Monk strikes) with Strength modifier flat out obsolete to the alternative.
The Whipstaff works as a dex variant of the regular staff! I believe it has finesse and agile as well as a lot of weapon traits to boot
How do you get 2 plus 4s and minus to wisdom?
At level 1, start with a +4 (an 18) in one ability score, a +3 (a 16) in a second, and take both the optional +1 to two ability score modifiers instead of the normal dwarven ancestry boosts, since you don't want the negative to charisma from being a dwarf for that build, and a voluntary flaw in wisdom (otherwise a dwarf starts with at least a +1 wisdom and -1 charisma). Then, at level 5, increase your +4 (an 18) to a +4 (a 19), and your +3 to a +4
Standard/traditional Dwarven boosts and flaws, put +4 in one stat and +3 in the other at Level 1.
At Level 5, distribute your 4 free boosts so that your +3 becomes a +4
Don’t monks get access to bows if you take the Monastic Archer feat? Why are you taking the elven weapon feats then?
Does Intimidating Glare not become pretty much redundant with Intimidating Prowess?
Also while a hidden feat might make your next video surprise more fun it does nothing to help this video when shown to new players as ways to build a Monk in PF2.
Nice call out on the Leshy Seedpod; I had not realised that would work with Flurry of Blows.
Good point, and I looked it up.
In most situations, yes. Intimidating Glare does let you replace a verbal/auditory Demoralize with a purely visual one, however.
As for the hidden feat, this series isn't meant to be a an optimization/build guide. (The feat is arguably not optimal in this case in fact)
I think you left the description from the fighter series 😅
I did! But I thought I'd updated it about an hour ago... (and it shows the new description as I check it now)
@@TheRulesLawyerRPG Seems all fixed on my end as well now!
Thanks for your great videos:)
What I always found weird, and what I think gets exemplified by the play style of the 2e monk, is that people act like the only ‘control’ ability in the 5e monk is stunning strike.
Like, come on, you can replace any attack with a shove, disarm, trip, or grab. I’ve had so much fun in 5e just bullying add’s by shoving them all together so that the wizard can aoe them, or shoving them off high ledges, or into each other.
In 2e that’s the play style and everyone just accepts it while decrying the 5e monk. Translate your skills!
(In other news I love the 2e monk, it’s everything I do in 5e but with fancy stances and things)
Shove, disarm, grapple, *and* trip are all dependent on athletics and therefore strength, which *most* dexterity monks choose to be a dump stat because they can use dexterity to hit and to add to their damage.
Shoving some a distance and Tripping are often ignored in 5e because movement is free - they can walk up to you or stand up and you blew one of your attacks.
Not to say they're useless, but there's a reason why many 5e players resort to "I attack" (the other commenter points out the STR investment in Athletics which is one reason I'm sure)
I've taken a look at PF2e Monks and while they're good, they're also entirely the wrong flavor I want from a Monk. I don't like the insistence on Stances or Unarmed Strikes. There aren't any sufficient options for a single-weapon specialized Monk (i.e. Kensei swordsman), nor are there any good options for over-the-top anime. Where are the options for Martial/Immortal fantasy with swords?
Even with the Stances, there's no variability in the flavor. They're almost all animal themed, which draws almost exclusively from Shaolin Five Animals. But there are other Kung Fu styles with different focuses and specialties. Take a look at Avatar's usage-Tai Chi and flowing attacks (and Chen-style Tai Chi alternates between slow and fast), Hung Gar with the grounded stances, Baguazhang and circlewalking. Wing Chun and centerline with simultaneous offense/defense. Xingyiquan with explosive bursts of powers.
There's no mention of Internal (soft) vs External (hard) styles-think Tai Chi vs Shaolin. There's no variety showcasing the different aspects each style has (even just flavor-wise)-Tai Chi (returning attacks, soft power), Xingyiquan (explosive bursts of power), Baguazhang (circlewalking), Shaolin (jumps and kicks), Northern Praying Mantis (lots of locks and attacks from weird angles to vital spots), Hung Gar (low and stable horse stance), Bajiquan (elbow/shoulder strikes), Wing Chun (centerline, simultaneous attack/defense), Liuhebafa (flowing attacks using different body parts), Changquan (aggressive, long-range attacks and counters), Southern Praying Mantis (close-range?, Toph from Avatar), Bak Mei (close-range hand strikes, Sifu game); even fictional styles like Drunken Fist (Jackie Chan) or Buddha Palm. There's none of the broader philosophocal elements of Daoism or a focus on refining the self spiritually and mentally.
I actually like 5e's Monk flavor-wise, it has _some_ elements of that over-the-top anime-like feeling. The ribbon abilities Timeless Body and Tongue of the Sun and Moon actually feel cool, even if they're largely useless in play. Empty Body lets you astral projection. A number of the subclasses draw directly from anime in flavor (or can be interpreted as such)-Sun Soul = Dragonball, Ascendant Dragon = Fairy Tail, Four Elements = Avatar, Kensei = any swordsman anime like Rurouni Kenshin, Astral Self = Jojo, Shadow = ninjas/Naruto, etc. I want that variety and versatility of flavor, not the insistence on unarmed Shaolin animal stances.
You can simulate a lot of that, though it requires dips into archetypes for some stuff.
Example 1: Wing Chun
Grapple Action: Represents the trapping of the style.
Trip Action: Represents the trapping of the style.
Fluffy: Represents the rapid punches.
Stunning Fist: Represents the striking of vital points along the centerline.
Crane Style: Represents the deflection that Wing Chun tries to do to get access to a foe's center line.
Crane Flutter: Represents greater deflection and a Wing Chun master's ability to immediately take advantage of an opening.
Fluffy of Maneuvers: Represents a Wing Chun user's ability to quickly trap and impair a foe.
@@Kingneo0053 That doesn't really represent Wing Chun, it doesn't feel like a cohesive system.
The distinct actions work against the nature of particular styles, in this case Wing Chun. It's not really a distinct Grapple or Trip action, but rather those are elements that flow into and react to each other, and occur at a much faster pace than PF2e's distinct actions.
Crane Stance for example, limits you to Crane Wing attacks, which is antithetical to the flexibility of attacks that a simpler system like Wing Chun encompasses, while also failing because of the very fact that it's a stance that you have to enter.
Yeah, even Pathfinder 1e's default monk wasn't good. They had to refine the class to make it work, which they did with their Unchained Monk. But man, I've never run a character with a higher AC than my Unchained Monk.
That said, for the system, 2e Monks are plenty tanky and survivable, though I wish they had higher perception, it's just an aspect of the class I always imagine.
pretty monkish clothes
I'm pretty disappointed he didnt invest I to a martial arts kimono, or at least put on a bathrobe for that iconic V cut of martial arts kimonos.
@@The_Yukki First of all you don't use kimono in any martial art. In Japanese martial arts you use gi which is training clothes as opposed to a kimono which is ceremonial clothes.
Secondly most martial arts are not Japanese in orgin and not all Japanese martial arts even use gi.
Thirdly, gi has never been depicted in Golorian.
@@aevum6667 pardon, gi is what I meant, forgot the word in the moment and despite knowing what a kimono is, my brain jumped to what gi is called in my native language, which is... kimono.
I was more going for the fact that gi and the "orange wrap that only covers half the chest that I'm sure has an actual name" are the two iconic martial arts looks. And with how strict yt policy is about nip slips, I doubt the latter would work.
As for gi in golorion. 1e monk iconic art looks a bit like his top is a gi, but I'm digging for more official art.
with Baldurs gate 3 coming out now larian can work on a pathfinder game lol.
I don't understand flurry of blows as you can already DO 3 things without it and if you attack you still get negatives to hit so seems pointless
The combat demo should make the value of FoB clear
Kind of a shame that outside of Bows and Staves a lot of the Monk weapons are just worse than Unarmed Strikes
Monks start with 19! AC? I don’t think anyone can touch them with 121645100408832000 AC.
Shields on monks just feels... off
There is no point to give WOTC any help with these videos. Learn about modular character creation and narrative sub classes. It eliminates the "RULES LAWYER" in RPGs.
Not trying to help WOTC. I'm trying to help designers make cool monks in TTRPG generally, and help players discern what good design decisions are =D
I really don't value the opinion of a UFO conspiracy theorist and anti-lgbt+ activist when it comes to making critical thinking assessments @stargatemind
Lol stahhhp it. Pathfinder is just 3.5 rebranded, so any way you slice it...D&D.