New to 5e. H:Questions, W:answers

[Kazuel]

So as the title says, I’m new to 5e. I played a lot of 3.5 and no 4th. Right now I’m looking to jump into a game at 8th level and am looking at the monk. So my questions are,

1. Other than the PHB, what source books most benefit the monk?
2. Are there any pitfalls with monks I want to avoid?
3. Is there a class similar to the Duskblade from 3.5?
4. At levels with ability increase or feats is it, do you trade each ability increase for feats or do you trade both ability increases for 1 feat (hope this one made sense)
5. Generally speaking, are characters better off with ability increases or gaining feats?
6. Is there an SRD like 3.5 had?

Thanks in advance.

[Contrast]

1. In terms of player options, Xanathars Guide has probably the most outside the PHB. edit - It's worth saying you shouldn't be expecting 3.5 levels of splatbookness. For monks there are 3 additional subclasses in it /edit
2. 5E is usually pretty good at avoiding trap options but the 4E monk in the PHB is widely considered one of the worst subclasses. Monks can require spreading your stats a little thin if you want to be strong as well as agile - probably better to just leave str. Be careful about how and when you choose to engage and spend your Ki points or you'll haemorrhage hit points.
3. Didn't play 3.5 so no idea :smallsmile:
4. Both for 1 feat.
5. Depends entirely on char and what feats you're considering. I believe monks get good mileage out of mobile but otherwise you'll prolly want stats.
6. Nope, there's some basic rules (http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/basicrules) which they released but they've kept a much firmer grasp than in 3.5 (didn't want Pathfinder to happen again). You can buy access to a digital copy of stuff at DnDBeyond (https://www.dndbeyond.com/) but if you want everything it'll be expensive.

[lunaticfringe]

3. Eldritch Knight Fighters, Valor/Sword Bards, Bladesinging Wizards, Blade Pact Warlocks are all single class gish. Sorcerer/Paladins are popular multiclass gish. Those could all work. There aren't spell failure chance rules in 5e, if you are proficient you should have no problems.

[JackPhoenix]

1. There isn't much for monks outside PHB, except few subclasses. There's Long Death and Sun Soul in Sword Coast Adventure guide, the later got reprinted in Xanathar's Guide to Everything, and Kensei and Drunken Master got added in there.
2. As a monk, you're not tank. You are more resilient than wizards and most rogues, but you're skirmisher. And don't be surprised if your damage isn't on pair with paladins, barbarians or fighters... that also isn't the monk's role.
3. Let's see... Bladesinger will give you full wizard casting with some melee capability, paladin will give you smites to burn spell slots for extra damage, hexblade warlock can do both, it's worse caster than the Bladesinger, but better suited for melee. And it's got access to its own smite.
4. You either get ASI or feat. "+2 to one ability or +1 to two abilities" is one feature. However, there are some feats that give +1 to certain ability score along with other benefits (also known as half-feats)
5. Depends on character. Generally, monks are better off with ASIs than feats, as you have to use your ability scores to patch up the lack of armor.

[Keravath]

I think most of your questions have been answered. I don't know what a Duskblade is so I can't answer what class comes closest in 5e. In general 5e is more balanced character to character than the previous editions. There are no unplayably bad choices and very few notably better combinations ... most of those involve feats.

However, from a monk perspective ..
- the most important stats are dexterity and wisdom. Both contribute to your AC. Dex determines your initiative and to hit chances. Your wisdom controls the DC (difficulty class) of your ki effects (how likely an opponent is to resist them). Monk is one of the few classes that starts with 2 attacks. This will scale up to 3 attacks or 4 attacks when using ki at 5th level. The damage dice scale up as you level. The monk also receives speed increases.
- a monk hit points and AC are usually not comparable to a tank character since they don't use a shield or wear armor so the AC only goes up as stats go up .. this tends to make you more of a striker than front liner. Note however, that the mobile feat can be very good on a monk since they can run in, attack and back off without taking a opportunity attack from the person they attacked (they don't need to hit).
- finally, one ability that a monk has that no other character has is the ability to stun on a hit (when expending ki for it). A stunned creature can't do anything and attacks against it are at advantage ... this sets up all the other characters in the party to be particularly effective against the creature you have stunned.

Other than that, the various archetypes of monks have different advantages ... the open hand monk get some good control options as riders on their flurry of blows attacks, a shadow monk picks up a free teleport as a bonus action when in shadows ...

[Dalebert]

Shadow monks have lots of abilities that don't cost ki.

Long Death monks are really tough. I could see that as appealing to a new player. Also fairly ki-efficient.

Sun Soul have cool ranged attacks and radiant damage is nice. Fun if you want to be kind of zappy.

Open Hand monks are the most traditional seeming. They're all about enhanced martial arts. IMHO they're over-rated. A couple of their features are quite weak.

Elemental monks are broadly despised. Their abilities are ki-intensive and most will say just play a real Caster.

[Kane0]

So as the title says, I’m new to 5e. I played a lot of 3.5 and no 4th. Right now I’m looking to jump into a game at 8th level and am looking at the monk. So my questions are,

1. Other than the PHB, what source books most benefit the monk?
2. Are there any pitfalls with monks I want to avoid?
3. Is there a class similar to the Duskblade from 3.5?
4. At levels with ability increase or feats is it, do you trade each ability increase for feats or do you trade both ability increases for 1 feat (hope this one made sense)
5. Generally speaking, are characters better off with ability increases or gaining feats?
6. Is there an SRD like 3.5 had?

Thanks in advance.

1. Xanathar's Guide to Everything
2. Don't try to facetank, keep track of your Ki usage
3. Eldritch Knight Fighters (more fighter than caster), Bladesinger Wizards and Valor Bards (more caster than fighter), War Clerics and Hexblade Warlocks (close to even split)
4. You trade your whole Ability Increase for a feat. Some feats give you an ability increase anyways (sometimes called half-feats)
5. You don't *need* max stat as fast as possible, so if there is an interesting or important feat you're looking for you can delay your stat increases
6. Not really, unless you count D&D Beyond (which you pay for). There is the free sample starter PDF though.

[Kazuel]

Is Eldritch Knight Fighter In Xanathers?

[Mr.Spastic]

It is in the phb

[EggKookoo]

There's no SRD but there is a wiki (https://dnd5e.fandom.com/wiki/D%26D_5th_Edition_Wikia). You're at the mercy of the fans/authors keeping it up to date, of course.

[Naanomi]

Long Death monks are decent tanks, albeit ones that scare away foes from the party at least as much as you take blows for them

[Kazuel]

It is in the phb

Thanks. I hadn’t really looked at any class in any detail other than monk.

[Keravath]

Is Eldritch Knight Fighter In Xanathers?

The Eldritch Knight is an archetype of fighter found in the Players Handbook.

You will get most of the published character options with just the Players Handbook and Xanathars Guide to Everything ... there is other official content but that covers most of the main class and race options.

[gloryblaze]

There is actually an official, legal 5e SRD (https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/BookIndex) available on Roll20 as a searchable, cross-referenced compendium (and I think there's a PDF version out there too)

[Pex]

2. As a monk, you're not tank. You are more resilient than wizards and most rogues, but you're skirmisher. And don't be surprised if your damage isn't on pair with paladins, barbarians or fighters... that also isn't the monk's role.


I disagree, though maybe we're using dissimilar meanings of tank. I'm playing a Kinsei monk and doing well enough getting into enemy faces, staying there, and not be sorry for it. Toughness helps here, variant human. My AC is 17 with 18 DX and 16 WI at 5th level. With a Kinsei weapon I can get my AC to 19, and I can dodge as a bonus action if need be. I use a katana, which is really a long sword two-handed, so I do decent damage at 1d10 + 4. If I need more offense there's the normal bonus action of an unarmed strike or Flurry of Blows. I'm flexible going offense or defense as needed. Also nice to have Stunning Attack. For the Kinsei specifically I can also use a long bow when I need to keep my distance and an extra 1d4 damage per attack. Perhaps not all monks can tank nor necessarily should, but they can or at least the Kinsei monk can.

[thoroughlyS]

1. Other than the PHB, what source books most benefit the monk?
Volo's Guide to Monsters has more race options and Xanathar's Guide to Everything has more monastic traditions (subclasses).

2. Are there any pitfalls with monks I want to avoid?
Make sure to take mobile, so you can save ki points and bonus actions.

3. Is there a class similar to the Duskblade from 3.5?
Eldritch Knight. Can't recommend enough.

6. Is there an SRD like 3.5 had?
I am surprised at the lack of knowledge about the official 5e SRD (http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/systems-reference-document-srd).

[Spore]

1. Other than the PHB, what source books most benefit the monk?

That mostly depends on what archetype you want. I always enjoy the DMG to understand how traps work, what kind of rules are underlying in order to climb and be creative with environment. Because imho that is what rogues and monks want. They want environments to manipulate and move in.

Imho half of a monk's fun derives from climbing, jumping and using the environment to her advantage.


2. Are there any pitfalls with monks I want to avoid?

Never played a monk myself in 5e, but I read again and again that you don't stand still unless you are not pressured. If you are, then for god's sake spend the Ki for the dodge action.

And do yourself the favor and pick a race that gets a dex bonus. You should assume you are the scout (needing stealth, acrobatics), your main class features gives you dex to attack and damage, your defense relies on it too.

Also you are a short rest class. Make sure your party understands that. You can't do 5-6 fights without a short rest. You NEED your ki.



3. Is there a class similar to the Duskblade from 3.5?

Blade Warlock, Eldritch Knights. If you want heavy armor, con saves (also for concentration) and cantrips, Fighter 1 or 2/Warlock.


4. At levels with ability increase or feats is it, do you trade each ability increase for feats or do you trade both ability increases for 1 feat (hope this one made sense)

Only one feat per ASI.


5. Generally speaking, are characters better off with ability increases or gaining feats?

Generally ability increases are more general but some feats are beyond broken that you might want them instead.


6. Is there an SRD like 3.5 had?


Yes.

[EggKookoo]

There is actually an official, legal 5e SRD (https://roll20.net/compendium/dnd5e/BookIndex) available on Roll20 as a searchable, cross-referenced compendium (and I think there's a PDF version out there too)

Feels incomplete, though. I tried to find the Ranger spell list but it bumped me to a paywall.


I am surprised at the lack of knowledge about the official 5e SRD (http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/systems-reference-document-srd).

This might be more complete (I did find the Ranger spells, for example) but I suspect the OP is looking for something more akin to a wiki.

[Kazuel]

One final question for now. Is the Kensai Monk similar to the 3.5 Kensai PrC in that he enbues permanent magical properties into his weapons?

[Naanomi]

One final question for now. Is the Kensai Monk similar to the 3.5 Kensai PrC in that he enbues permanent magical properties into his weapons?
Barely any resemblance

[KorvinStarmast]

So as the title says, I’m new to 5e. I played a lot of 3.5 and no 4th. Right now I’m looking to jump into a game at 8th level and am looking at the monk. So my questions are,
1. Other than the PHB, what source books most benefit the monk?
Xanathar's Guide to Everything
2. Are there any pitfalls with monks I want to avoid?
You want to avoid forgetting to max out wisdom and dex. Wisdom defines your DC for saves versus your ki powers, dex for the usual attack and damage, and your unarmored AC is Dex mod + Wis mod. (And if you get your hands on some bracers of defense +2, grab them!) I suggest you start with a COnstitution of 14, dex of 16 and wis of 16 (for level 1) and for your ASI's boost those two for your level build. Up to you really, though you could go 16 Dex 20 Wis ... I'd suggest 20 dex for better to hit and slightly better damage bonus.
3. Is there a class similar to the Duskblade from 3.5?
For monk? No.
4. At levels with ability increase or feats is it, do you trade each ability increase for feats or do you trade both ability increases for 1 feat (hope this one made sense)
You either take a feat, or you increase your abilities, at levels 4 and 8.
5. Generally speaking, are characters better off with ability increases or gaining feats?
Yes. :smalltongue:
If you start out as a variant human, I suggest that you take the Mobile feat; your monk needs no other feats until you get your Wisdom and your Dex as high as you can stand them.
6. Is there an SRD like 3.5 had?
Sort of: but there is an SRD at WoTC home page that has one archetype of monk: open hand. (http://media.wizards.com/2016/downloads/DND/SRD-OGL_V5.1.pdf)

It's a solid monk archetype, has attacks that overcome magical immunities, and has stunning strike. At level 8, you are in great shape.

The other choice if you are interested in optimizing would be Wood Elf Monk, screw the feat, since that gives you proficiency in Long Bow for when you need ranged weapons. That works too.

[Contrast]

One final question for now. Is the Kensai Monk similar to the 3.5 Kensai PrC in that he enbues permanent magical properties into his weapons?

This is probably worth saying if you're coming from 3.5 to 5E - do not assume something is/works the same just because it has the same/a similar name. There's a lot of things that came from previous editions that work in similar but different ways - be wary of skimming and thinking you know how it works.

5E generally requires a lot less pouring over rulebooks is my understanding though so don't worry too much :smallbiggrin:

[Ninja_Prawn]

I am surprised at the lack of knowledge about the official 5e SRD (http://dnd.wizards.com/articles/features/systems-reference-document-srd).

This is very important if you're intending to publish under the OGL!

[RedMage125]

One final question for now. Is the Kensai Monk similar to the 3.5 Kensai PrC in that he enbues permanent magical properties into his weapons?

Kensei means "sword saint", and the Monastic Tradition does it's best to emulate that. The 3.5e PrC was attempting to update the 3.0 Weapon Master prestige class from Sword and Fist, combining it with concepts used for the 3.0 OA/Rokugan Samurai base class.

In 5e, the archetype of the unarmored weapon master (kind of like a wandering swordsman) is emulated well with this class. The monk picks 2 weapons, one melee and one ranged. These become treated as monk weapons, so you can use your DEX for attack and damage with them. The weapons are eventually CONSIDERED magical for purposes of bypassing resistance or immunity from non magical weapons, at the same level that the monks unarmed strike gets the same.

5e is balanced to work with few or even zero magic items that boost attack and damage rolls or add special ability riders. So there's no need for enhancing a weapon to be magical like a 3.5e Kensai. In fact, doing so would make it somewhat overpowered.

The kensei also makes a pretty good archer, as well. Using a longbow, for example, he can get a bonus action attack that gives him as many attack options at range that other monks get in melee. Along with Sun Soul (hadoken), this gives the monk good ranged options. But the Sun Soul must use a ki point to make the bonus action attack, while the kensei gets an extra weapon attack that does a little extra damage.

[Marywn]

I only have one thing to say:
W:DON'T BLOW ALL YOUR KI IMMEDIATELY.
I say this from personal experience

[GlenSmash!]

I only have one thing to say:
W:DON'T BLOW ALL YOUR KI IMMEDIATELY.
I say this from personal experience

Premature Ki expenditure can be embarrassing. Please consult an apothecary to find a solution that works for you.

[Marywn]

Premature Ki expenditure can be embarrassing. Please consult an apothecary to find a solution that works for you.
I have, but the Advil didn't work.

[lunaticfringe]

The kensei also makes a pretty good archer, as well. Using a longbow, for example, he can get a bonus action attack that gives him as many attack options at range that other monks get in melee. Along with Sun Soul (hadoken), this gives the monk good ranged options. But the Sun Soul must use a ki point to make the bonus action attack, while the kensei gets an extra weapon attack that does a little extra damage.

Nah. A Ranged Kensei (Not using a Hand Crossbow w/ Crossbow Expert) doesn't get a Bonus Action Attack with a Ranged Weapon. They get Kensei's Shot, you use a bonus action to add 1d4 damage to your Ranged Attacks for that turn. At 6th you get Deft Strike which means when you hit with Kensei weapon you can spend a Ki point to add your Martial Arts die to the damage roll.

Which is close enough unless you want a 3rd attack with Sharpshooter.

[RedMage125]

Nah. A Ranged Kensei (Not using a Hand Crossbow w/ Crossbow Expert) doesn't get a Bonus Action Attack with a Ranged Weapon. They get Kensei's Shot, you use a bonus action to add 1d4 damage to your Ranged Attacks for that turn. At 6th you get Deft Strike which means when you hit with Kensei weapon you can spend a Ki point to add your Martial Arts die to the damage roll.

Which is close enough unless you want a 3rd attack with Sharpshooter.

D'oh!

I was reading it on a pdf on my phone, and I must have mis-read that. My bad.

So that puts Ranged Monk options of Archer Kensei and Sun Soul fairly equal, then, at least in terms of number of attacks.