Drunken Master Monk

[Ardantis]

I'm interested in the Monk right now, and I've noticed that, due to MAD, stat ups are usually better than feats at most levels. Even a variant human monk is unlikely to have more than 2 feats in order to accommodate ASI boosts to Dex and Wis.

I'd imagine the "quintessential" 5e Open Hand Monk would probably take Mobility and later Mage Slayer, and play as a skirmisher early and eventually become a tactical assassin of spellcasters.

What feats do you think a drunken boxing inspired monk might take? And which of the three Traditions would he hail from?

[Sigreid]

They don't have to be MAD, and can get fine with just Dex and Wis. For feats I personally would really only go for mobile and maybe tough (or whatever they're calling the hp one now.

[Ardantis]

Well, I'd say since they want Dex and Wis at 20, they're multiple ability dependent.

Mobility maybe is right for a Drunken Boxer, and Tough reflects his alcoholic hardiness.

[Sigreid]

Well, I'd say since they want Dex and Wis at 20, they're multiple ability dependent.

Mobility maybe is right for a Drunken Boxer, and Tough reflects his alcoholic hardiness.

Fair enough on the MAD, I just don't think it's as bad as all that.

[DracoKnight]

Well, I'd say since they want Dex and Wis at 20, they're multiple ability dependent.

Mobility maybe is right for a Drunken Boxer, and Tough reflects his alcoholic hardiness.

I agree with the Mobile feat...also Tough. If you don't go Tough, I'd go Tavern Brawler. I know Monks are already proficient in their Unarmed Strikes, but if you're going for the drunken fighter, it would make sense that they can grab an improvised weapon from somewhere around them and use it to the same level of effectiveness as their weapons.

[ThermalSlapShot]

Having two primary scores (one physical and one mental) and one secondary score (con) isn't really MAD.

Everyone needs at least three scores. Beyond that would be MAD as the standard is three.

Wizards need Int/Dex and really want Con... or switch Dex/Con

Fighters need (Str or Dex)/Con and really want Wis Int or Cha.

Now if you are MC Sorcerer and Monk, then you become MAD as you go beyond the standard 3 score system and need Charisma along with Dex, Wis, and Con.

If you went MC Monk/Druid, you aren't MAD as you still fall under the 3 score system.

[Falcon X]

Look here:
http://middlefingerofvecna.blogspot.com/2015/05/class-pack-1.html

It's got a pretty good working Drunken Fist, but good flavor even if you don't go with it.

[Once a Fool]

Perhaps a feat is the way.

Drunken Boxer
You are an expert in fighting with seemingly off-balance maneuvers and attacks meant to provoke your enemies into becoming actually off-balance. You can do this while sober or drunk. In addition, years of physical conditioning have given you a cast-iron gullet.

Your Constitution is raised by 1, to a maximum of 20.
You have resistance to damage from ingested poisons.
If you have the Poisoned condition, you may use a bonus action to remove its effects until your next turn.
While you have the Poisoned condition, you may, as an action, spend any number of Hit Dice to heal, as if during a short rest. Doing so immediately removes the Poisoned condition.
Anytime you could make an attack, you may instead take a defensive stance that allows you to use a reaction to impose disadvantage on the next opposed ability check or melee attack against you. Using your reaction in this way ends the stance.

Notes:
There seems like a lot of feat here to also grant an ability score increase. But, fundamentally, this is a very circumstantial feat. Aside from the Con increase, only the last bullet point can be used without being poisoned, at all--and it comes at a fairly high cost.

Bullet point two is a nifty little perk that helps give the feat some broad appeal. Still pretty niche, though.

The next point is one of the two most necessary for a drunken boxing feel--it simply gives the ability for s drunk character to do things--although it does cost a bonus action, which, for a monk, is a big deal. Although, note, also, that this feat is not class-specific.

Fourth: I wanted to capture some of the old drunken master flavor, here--and provide incentive for a character to actually get drunk, while also providing a means to end the condition. I don't personally see the problem with allowing access to the full range of HD, here, as they are already a self-limited resource, but limiting the ability to a specific maximum number of HD per use should also work just fine.

And, finally, the imposed disadvantage. This is the other ability most necessary for a drunken boxing feel. In this implimentation, it can be done every round, but only against one roll per round, and only by expending an attack and a reaction (of which, incidentally, monks have a few). Trading an attack to make a single attack probably miss seems a fair trade to me and being able to make an opposed check probably succeed is a strong option--particularly since, as a reaction, it can be done on anyone's turn--even the feat-user's.

This feature is, therefore, a good option for those with Grappler and Shield Master, which both grant bonus action opposed checks. And Open Hand Monks can use a flurry to trip someone (Dex save, though, no opposed check on that one), followed by a grapple vs. disadvantage. Likewise with several Battle Master maneuvers. Synergies abound.

Note that the reaction activation keeps a raging barbarian from using the ability, so no advantaged barb vs. disadvantaged foe, but it does extend the barbarian's ability to successfully oppose checks while not raging.

[PoeticDwarf]

My monk rolled, not that high (like 3 times 14, one 13 one 12 and one 10) so I'm now walking around, I'm a 14 monk 1 druid variant human with:
STR 12
DEX 18 (lv. 16 I go for 20)
CON 16 (belt of dwarvenkind and resillent in CON, what is now useless but helped me the first 13 monk levels)
INT 10
WIS 16 (18 at lv. 19 monk)
CHA 14 (because I hate playing a boring character)
I'm a outlander

I also have the alert feat, mobile is nice, but alert helped me way too many times.

The feat for a drunken monk can be magic initate (there are always nice spells for roleplaying).
A level in barbarian can be nice for that monk.