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rubycona
2009-09-05, 03:12 PM
Hey, all.

Yes, yes, I know monks are underpowered. But it seems that every game I play, my character always manages to get stripped naked, with all my items destroyed (oozes, for instance) Thus, monk has become my favorite class.

Anywho, I was looking through a bunch of books, trying to decide what equipment to get. I've got 45K gold to my name, and an 11th level half dragon / half elf monk. I've just resigned my DM role, and am joining the party.

Thing is, I can't seem to find much of anything for monks. Just wondering if any of you know good books to look through for equipment that I might have missed (I've got a LOT of books), or if there's any items that you can think of off hand that would be particularly nice.

Dex, str, and wis increasing items I've already got on my shopping list, I was more looking for things that supplement monk abilities in more concrete ways.

Don't worry about it too much; I can always just spend the gold on stuff like a nice periapt of wisdom.

Thanks for any suggestions you guys can think of :D

Edit: For note, I'm playing 3.5.

Edit2: Now I know about warforged. Very cool, must keep in mind for the future, but I've already got my character set as a half dragon, half elf monk. (was introduced, but not actually built)

Admiral Squish
2009-09-05, 03:20 PM
Personal fave for monk-ness: Go with a awarforged. You can enchant their plate, buy a battlefist, and you get a bunch of nifty immunities. One I'm currently playing has an adamantine battlefist and an armbow, he seems to be pulling his weight so far.

However, some DMs don't get along with composite plating. Some say it's armor, others don't. All I know is it really helps close the power gap between monks and other classes.

Mongoose87
2009-09-05, 03:32 PM
Amulet of Magic Fists never hurts, if yo ucan get your wisdom on a different slot, nor does a Monk's Belt, though I don't know the prices of either.

Eldariel
2009-09-05, 03:32 PM
Casters are generally better for itemless games than Monks since they can fly, Dispel, Teleport and so on on their own power, while Monks really can't (they have Abundant Step once per day, but...).

Anyways, Monk equipment:
- Necklace of Natural Attacks [Savage Species] (must-have; if you can't have this, you gotta go with Amulet of Mighty Fists which is WAY overpriced - note that Unarmed Strike is a single natural weapon; you need magical weapons to hit incorporeals and to hit, period - also, to pierce DR; get something like Metalline [MiC] on the Necklace to penetrate any metal-based DRs)
- Boots of Speed [DMG]
- Fanged Ring [Savage Species]
- Winged Anything [DMG/MiC/whatever] - just something that grants flight
- Bracers of Armor [DMG] (after Mage Armor doesn't go high enough anymore; until then, you obviously should rely on Mage Armor and perhaps buy a Pearl of Power I for the caster)
- All stat-boosters; you literally need Str, Dex, Con & Wis so all of those should be boosted as possible.
- Some item to Teleport with to get out of Forcecages and the like; Boots of Big Stepping [MiC] is a good one.
- Generally any overall useful items like Belt of Battle [MiC], Rod of Cancellation [DMG], etc.
- Other defensive items + Cloak of Protection.


Yeah, it's a lot. Can't get it all, of course, so prioritise criticals like Natural Attack upgrades, flight and such.

Forbiddenwar
2009-09-05, 03:41 PM
Doesn't flight require a certain environment? if you playing a dungeon crawl with ceilings 10 feet off of the floor, what good is flight?

Also, can't a monk use dimensional door to get out of force cages? (freeing up a item on your shopping list?)

Pharaoh's Fist
2009-09-05, 03:43 PM
Doesn't flight require a certain environment? if you playing a dungeon crawl with ceilings 10 feet off of the floor, what good is flight?
Unless your entire adventure takes place in the Black Hole of Calcutta, flight will come in handy at some point.


Also, can't a monk use dimensional door to get out of force cages? (freeing up a item on your shopping list?)
Once per day.

rubycona
2009-09-05, 03:48 PM
Whee, nice! I've got some stuff to look up, obviously.

For note, I've not given all the relevant info, since we tend to house rule a lot of alterations. IE, in our game, monks are proficient with unarmed attacks. :P And the new DM kindly decided I could get wings (Yay!) despite being a medium creature.

Obviously, not a very rules lawyery sort of game. Thanks again! :D

OverdrivePrime
2009-09-05, 03:52 PM
See if you can pay a wizard and a druid to cast a couple spells (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/equipment/goodsAndServices.htm#spell) for you.
20th level druid: cast greater magic fang (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/magicFangGreater.htm). Assuming you can find one, this runs you 600 gold.
11th level wizard: cast permanency (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/permanency.htm). This runs you 8,050 gold.

Even if you've got a cruel DM who makes you do this 4 times to cover all of your limbs with a +5 enhancement bonus, you're still better off than a fighter buying a +5 sword. And there aren't rules for disarming you. :smallamused:

rubycona
2009-09-05, 03:58 PM
See if you can pay a wizard and a druid to cast a couple spells (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/equipment/goodsAndServices.htm#spell) for you.
20th level druid: cast greater magic fang (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/magicFangGreater.htm). Assuming you can find one, this runs you 600 gold.
11th level wizard: cast permanency (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/permanency.htm). This runs you 8,050 gold.

Even if you've got a cruel DM who makes you do this 4 times to cover all of your limbs with a +5 enhancement bonus, you're still better off than a fighter buying a +5 sword. And there aren't rules for disarming you. :smallamused:

*hits head* I so should have thought of that! Awesome! I really, really like that idea (going along with the whole hate-being-disarmed-and-useless-thing-that-always-happens-to-me-EVERY-SINGLE-GAME!!!) This is perfect.

Kylarra
2009-09-05, 04:00 PM
*hits head* I so should have thought of that! Awesome! I really, really like that idea (going along with the whole hate-being-disarmed-and-useless-thing-that-always-happens-to-me-EVERY-SINGLE-GAME!!!) This is perfect.The downside is that if it gets dispelled, you're out all that gold.

Forbiddenwar
2009-09-05, 04:01 PM
*hits head* I so should have thought of that! Awesome! I really, really like that idea (going along with the whole hate-being-disarmed-and-useless-thing-that-always-happens-to-me-EVERY-SINGLE-GAME!!!) This is perfect.

only problem with this is it can be dispelled, and if you ever enter a AMF its gone forever, so you have to repay each time you encounter a spell caster.

rubycona
2009-09-05, 04:05 PM
only problem with this is it can be dispelled, and if you ever enter a AMF its gone forever, so you have to repay each time you encounter a spell caster.

But antimagic fields only suppress magical effects, they don't destroy them. It specifically states (at least, in the Rules Compendium that I was looking over earlier) that any magical effect that has a duration continues to exist in the antimagic field; it just doesn't do anything until the item/character/etc is moved or until the antimagic field goes down.

Also, permanency can only be dispelled by a caster who's got a higher caster level than the person who cast permanency. Which means, if I get a 20th level caster (instead of the 11th) for a bit higher of a gold fee, odds are pretty damn low that it'll get dispelled any time soon.

Arakune
2009-09-05, 04:06 PM
Don't take monk, it's useless. Take Psychic warrior instead if you must. Much better and can do a lot of monk-ish stuff.

Now for the advice: bracers of armor, gloves of dexterity, that belt that gives +6 to everything, amulet of natural armor +X, ring of <whatever> or ring of protection +N.

Try to get some kamas to make trip attempts too.

Ninjad! Sort of.

rubycona
2009-09-05, 04:09 PM
Don't take monk, it's useless. Take Psychic warrior instead if you must. Much better and can do a lot of monk-ish stuff.

Come now, I started the thread with the admission that monks are underpowered. It's not like I don't know they're less capable. It's a casual, for laughs sort of game anyway, and my DM's given me a number of concessions to bring my character more up to par.

Emy
2009-09-05, 04:32 PM
Come now, I started the thread with the admission that monks are underpowered. It's not like I don't know they're less capable. It's a casual, for laughs sort of game anyway, and my DM's given me a number of concessions to bring my character more up to par.

You could always... combine monk and psychic warrior. It's actually a great combination, as long as you only take a couple levels of monk.

woodenbandman
2009-09-05, 04:36 PM
Even if you've got a cruel DM who makes you do this 4 times to cover all of your limbs with a +5 enhancement bonus, you're still better off than a fighter buying a +5 sword. And there aren't rules for disarming you. :smallamused:

...

...

I just figured out how you lose limbs in DnD. You get disarmed with an opposed attack roll at a -4 penalty to you (since you're wielding a light weapon).

rubycona
2009-09-05, 05:02 PM
...

...

I just figured out how you lose limbs in DnD. You get disarmed with an opposed attack roll at a -4 penalty to you (since you're wielding a light weapon).

That would make me very sad.

Tiki Snakes
2009-09-05, 05:05 PM
That would make me very sad.

I think personally I'd get a sick satisfaction out of having a character so awesomely disfigured as to lose a limb.

Had a goblin lackey lose a hand, fluffing a pick-lock attempt the other week, and was secretly overjoyed. My Drow Warlord now has not only a goblin rogue minion, but a one-handed goblin rogue minion. We're going to make him a hook, or something. So cool.

Anyway, yes. I second creative multi-classing advice. Splashing a bit of various psionic types in there does, I understand, excellent things for a monk, without straying from it's essential flavour.

rubycona
2009-09-05, 05:18 PM
While I can appreciate feat, race, or multi-class suggestions... that's not what I came here for. I've already decided on those (including multiclassing into an altered Tattooed monk). I did find it mildly annoying to be told not to take monk, because it's useless, when I'd already addressed that point (that it's underpowered)... I didn't feel I should go into detail on the alterations my DM made to my character to help balance things out, because I didn't think it was all that relevant to what items my character needs, as a general rule. (For instance, he's given me D12 hit dice for all my class levels nominally because I'm a half dragon, but that doesn't change the fact that rings of protection are good for me)

Regardless of all that, I really do appreciate the tips on items I've thus far received. I've plenty to spend my money on, and not quite enough gold. Isn't that always the case, though? Hehe.

Thanks again for everyone's suggestions :D

AslanCross
2009-09-05, 05:51 PM
Magic Item Compendium has the Raiment of the Stormwalker, which if I'm not mistaken is a very good Monk item set.

There's also the Tunic of Thurrinak (Eberron Explorer's Handbook) which simultaneously gives Natural Armor and Deflection AC bonuses.

EDIT: My bad---Raiment of the Stormwalker is a druid set. >_o

Anyway, Ki Straps (MIC, 5000 GP) increase the DC of your Stunning Fist.

The Tunic of Thurrinak, while expensive (depending on which version you get), gives various amounts of Natural Armor and Deflection bonuses. The +2 version is worth 20k. It's a Torso body slot item, so you can still wear it with a robe.

Since you can flurry with quarterstaffs, the Quarterstaff of Battle (MIC, 24600) might be good as it can knock opponents away and also deflect ranged attacks. A very Monk-ish weapon, IMO---if you want to fight with a weapon.

T.G. Oskar
2009-09-05, 06:15 PM
Anyways, Monk equipment:
- Necklace of Natural Attacks [Savage Species] (must-have; if you can't have this, you gotta go with Amulet of Mighty Fists which is WAY overpriced - note that Unarmed Strike is a single natural weapon; you need magical weapons to hit incorporeals and to hit, period - also, to pierce DR; get something like Metalline [MiC] on the Necklace to penetrate any metal-based DRs)
- Boots of Speed [DMG]
- Fanged Ring [Savage Species]
- Winged Anything [DMG/MiC/whatever] - just something that grants flight
- Bracers of Armor [DMG] (after Mage Armor doesn't go high enough anymore; until then, you obviously should rely on Mage Armor and perhaps buy a Pearl of Power I for the caster)
- All stat-boosters; you literally need Str, Dex, Con & Wis so all of those should be boosted as possible.
- Some item to Teleport with to get out of Forcecages and the like; Boots of Big Stepping [MiC] is a good one.
- Generally any overall useful items like Belt of Battle [MiC], Rod of Cancellation [DMG], etc.
- Other defensive items + Cloak of Protection.


Yeah, it's a lot. Can't get it all, of course, so prioritise criticals like Natural Attack upgrades, flight and such.


There's also the Tunic of Thurrinak (Eberron Explorer's Handbook) which simultaneously gives Natural Armor and Deflection AC bonuses.

Anyway, Ki Straps (MIC, 5000 GP) increase the DC of your Stunning Fist.

The Tunic of Thurrinak, while expensive (depending on which version you get), gives various amounts of Natural Armor and Deflection bonuses. The +2 version is worth 20k. It's a Torso body slot item, so you can still wear it with a robe.

Since you can flurry with quarterstaffs, the Quarterstaff of Battle (MIC, 24600) might be good as it can knock opponents away and also deflect ranged attacks. A very Monk-ish weapon, IMO---if you want to fight with a weapon.

Those are very good options. If you want more:
--Scorpion Kama. Part of an item set, it allows you to deal your unarmed strike damage instead of the kama damage. This is nice if you somehow get TWF, plus it goes well with Weapon Finesse.

--Gloves of the Balanced Hand. TWF feat without the use of a feat slot. Mix with the above weapons for extra effect.

--Ghost Shroud. It has turned a bit bad since Libris Mortis, but the MIC version isn't so bad; it's like combining a Ring of Protection and it makes all weapons have the Ghost Touch property. Now, find a way to become incorporeal and attack without having anyone attack you.

--Ring of Freedom of Movement. I find it odd that Eldariel didn't mentioned that...FoM makes you excellent at any binding situation, except when you are on an AMF (but that's why you're also proficient in Escape Artist, don't you?)

--Rod of Viscid Globs. In case the Wizard forgot to have a permanent Freedom of Movement (or you somehow disarm the ring? That would be awesome), and for annoying factor. It's near-infinite Tanglefoot Bags, and that makes it pretty nice.

--Crystal of Arrow Deflection. If you have a weapon, this is a replacement for Deflect Arrows (at least, for the greater one). It is perfectly useful for all ranged attacks, and that means rays and orbs from blasty wizards.

--Headband of Conscious Effort. 1/day you can replace your Fort save with a Concentration check. If somehow you have a huge Concentration check, this makes it worthwhile.

--Caduceus Bracers. An odd choice, but it's perfect to replace your points of Wholeness of Body into a very washed down Lesser Restoration.

--Blindfold of True Darkness. Useful against virtually anything, since it's Blindsight. So if someone is invisible, or defending with a Blur/Displacement/Mirror Image spell, it makes it go away.

Totally Guy
2009-09-06, 02:34 AM
This thread is also very useful for me as I've just found out we're creating characters for a one off mega session.

What's the wealth of a 10th level character so that I might outfit him accordingly?

Sir Giacomo
2009-09-06, 04:46 AM
Level 10: 49,000 gp iirc.

Otherwise, good items have already been suggested...you may wish to check out the core list of my level 10 monk in my sig (monk guide).

One of the things I'd suggest is getting UMD and taking longer-lasting buffs from wands. As per MiC (and strongly also suggested by DMG) you can also get partially charged wands quite cheaply for more versatility.
Also, I second getting some permanent enhancements to your monk (get a ring of counterspell- dispel magic, though, which may help you vs targeted dispels).

- Giacomo

ericgrau
2009-09-06, 12:39 PM
45k is about a level behind on WBL, but oh well.

For stats boost mostly str and maybe con. For AC (including dex & wis) spread among what gives you the cheapest +1. Spread among bracers of armor (or ask the wizard for a mage armor), ring of protection, amulet of natural armor, dusty rose prism ioun stone and stats. The last +1 on a +3 item, for example, costs you the difference between the +2 and the +3 item; use that for your comparisons. If you're out of body slots for stat items, check out the other ioun stones. A source of haste like boots of speed or a party wizard is uber; get one. Magical monk weapons usually aren't worth bothering with, but masterwork ones can be handy. Check out the special attack applications listed in their descriptions. Stock up on potions: potions of enlarge person help your special attacks, invisibility helps scouting, mobility potions like spider climb combine well with your speed, etc. Ditto for elixers and other wondrous items for mobility and for other utility uses.

rubycona
2009-09-08, 12:33 AM
Awesome, lots of great stuff here :)

Ended up focusing on mostly defensive stuff (since the party is, unfortunatley, lacking a tank. Or rogue. I'm a monk who disarms traps with reflex saves! :D Whooo! *cries* No cleric, either. Which is great. Really. Yeah.)

I decided to go with Necklace of Natural Weapons with Metalline, Bracers of Armor +3, Ring of Prot +3, the ioun stone of +2 wis. And the rest of it went to pots like enlarge person (great for blocking passages! Our wizard was happy >.>) and healing pots, since our druid doesn't like healing spells O.o Yeah.

Yay for 41 AC :D

And, thanks again to you all, I'll be able to get a lot more stuff with my share of the loot. Thanks again :D

Eldariel
2009-09-08, 12:39 AM
You have a Wizard?! Instead of getting Bracers of Armor +3, ask him to cast Mage Armor on you. If he insists on something in return, get him a Pearl of Power I (costs 1000gp). That way, you get +4 Armor for hours/level and only need to pay 1000 for it.

By the way, I'm very curious as to how you got 41 AC on level 11/14 :o List, please? :smallbiggrin: