[3.5] Need help deciding what to do now that I'm in this far.

[Chew13acca]

Hey all. Long time lurker/first time poster. I'm posting because I want some ideas/input on what to do now that I've gotten my character this far.

So yes, I know Monk is a very weak class when you get mixed up with people who start to min/max, but I love the fluff and mental picture of just... punching stuff.

I'm currently level 9. Stats were rolled (yes I got insanely lucky)
STR 15
DEX 18 (17+ Ability point at lvl 8)
CON 14
INT 12
WIS 22 (17 +1 at lvl 4 + Periapt of Wisdom +4)
CHA 11

Feat choices:

1:Expeditious Dodge (RotW)
1B: Stunning Fist
2B: Combat Reflexes
3: Mobility
6: Spring Attack (There is a houserule/custom magic item that makes this good which I'll explain.)
6B: Deflect Arrows (Houseruled in that I could take it instead of other options)
9: Imp. Natural Attack

Because I was falling behind (my DM decided to create a magic item for me: Anklets (which she doesn't view as taking up a slot) which give me an extra move action. As she sees it, I'm capable of doing a Full-Round Action and a move action, and thus can Flurry of Blows while Spring Attacking. These anklets also give me bonus AC (touch) equal to (Speed Enhancement/10), as well as the same bonus to Attack rolls *only*. I have a 29 AC, 26 Touch, provided I move.

Yeah. This may/may not be broken, but it's a surprisingly good fix. (Side problem: Entering AMF or taking off the Anklets hasn't been attempted yet, but it has been hinted by the DM that exhausted would be a kind version of the status hit I'd get.)


So to the main point of the thread:
This campaign going up to epic level (no defind end point, but anywhere from 21 to 25 has been rumored.), and I want to figure out where to go from here.

11 seems like a good final level of monk, since I'd pick up Greater Flurry.

My DM may let monk damage continue to scale after 20.



That's pretty much what I have right now. All books are open game, abilities are subject to DM discretion, retraining is out. However, PrC's I may not have preq's for can be RP'd (mostly looking at Fist of Zuoken, but I'll take any ideas).



Thank you all very much for your time, and I hope I've made a good impression with my first post.

[The Glyphstone]

That build has Scout written all over it. Definitely once you finish out Monk, and maybe even before that if you can get a homebrewed "Ascetic Scout"-style feat.

[PinkysBrain]

11 seems like a good final level of monk, since I'd pick up Greater Flurry.
Unless you are playing with fractional BAB/Saves I'd pick up 12 too then.

Glyphstone, something which doesn't progress his speed needs to be really really good to compensate, a bit of precision damage I don't think qualifies ... since there is no scout/monk multiclassing feat to make the speed bonuses stack I don't think scout is a great idea. He gets a lot more mileage out of Fist of Zuoken ...

Without Fractional BAB/saves I think I'd go with something like Monk 12/Fist of Zuoken 4/Full BAB manifester PrC ... this way you end up with BAB 16, which gets you that final attack (always nice).

[The Glyphstone]

First, Scout does progress his speed, it gets Fast Movement +10ft at 3rd level, which stacks with the Monk's unnamed/untyped bonus to speed. With Monk 11 or 12, he's getting a lot of attacks, and the guaranteed precision damage that the Scout levels will supply to all of them will up his damage output far more than the tiny bit of psychic power that FoZ will give him. a simple Monk's Belt or the Superior Unarmed Strike feat will both keep his punch damage up to par without the need to waste levels of Fist.


Getting a 12th level of monk before leaving the class is something I do agree on though, for the BAB bonuses. If you can talk your DM into making a Monk/Scout multiclass feat (for example, one that allows levels to stack for Monk speed boost and Skirmish effects, a complementary pair that isn't too powerful), you're absolutely golden.

[Zaq]

Actually, both the Monk and the Scout give enhancement bonuses to speed. Unfortunate, really. I love the Scout anyway, and if you have a move action and full attack Skirmish will indeed be death in a box, but it won't make you faster if you're already a monk.

If you're really into quick and mobile fighting, you might consider the Dervish prestige class from Complete Warrior, if you pick up Versatile Unarmed Strike from PHB2 to get your fists to count as slashing weapons. With Flurry and high-level BAB you'll get a bunch of attacks per round, and Perform is even a Monk class skill so you can get plenty of ranks and have your dance last a long time. Might not be your style, but it synergizes with a high-level monk decently well.

You might consider feats that let you stack your Monk levels with other levels, such as Ascetic Stalker or Ascetic Knight, just to get a jump start on whatever else you're doing.

Scout is probably your best bet overall, really. There's also PrCs that increase your unarmed damage in silly ways, like Frost Rager or Fist of the Forest, but for mobile fighting (especially with so many attacks) skirmish is a really deadly mechanic. Plus, it increases your AC, which as a monk can be (though isn't necessarily) weaker than strictly necessary. Be sure to grab Improved Skirmish from Complete Scoundrel once you take the minimum number of Scout levels.