New character, opinions on what I did?

[Cicciograna]

Okay, I started a new campaign with a "somewhat experienced" friend (no real experience in 5th), and two complete newbies to the game. They play a Halfling Rogue, a Half Elf Bard and a Human "Accursed" (some kind of homebrew class relative to the Warlock).

We needed some kind of frontline fighter. I rolled a 6, 8, 9, 12, 13 and 16, decided to play a Ghostwise Halfling Monk, my final stats are 6, 18, 12, 9, 14, 8, for now fighting with a quarterstaff wielded two-handed.
All in all I'm somewhat satisfied with the package, despite the very bad scores, I'd say that for a Monk every stat out of Dex and Wis could be a dump stat (save Con, of course), and in general I like Monks in 5th Edition. I am particularly fond of the image of a small Halfling with Open Fist that punches big baddies around, slamming them prone.

Other opinions on what I could have done with those starting scores and the need for a frontliner?

[Man_Over_Game]

Okay, I started a new campaign with a "somewhat experienced" friend (no real experience in 5th), and two complete newbies to the game. They play a Halfling Rogue, a Half Elf Bard and a Human "Accursed" (some kind of homebrew class relative to the Warlock).

We needed some kind of frontline fighter. I rolled a 6, 8, 9, 12, 13 and 16, decided to play a Ghostwise Halfling Monk, my final stats are 6, 18, 12, 9, 14, 8, for now fighting with a quarterstaff wielded two-handed.
All in all I'm somewhat satisfied with the package, despite the very bad scores, I'd say that for a Monk every stat out of Dex and Wis could be a dump stat (save Con, of course), and in general I like Monks in 5th Edition. I am particularly fond of the image of a small Halfling with Open Fist that punches big baddies around, slamming them prone.

Other opinions on what I could have done with those starting scores and the need for a frontliner?

The stats overall are very low, which honestly means you'd be better off playing a build that was less dependent on stats. Which usually means a Strength build (because for Strength to cap out on AC doesn't require much investment). From an optimization perspective, Monk is one of the best classes...if you have high stats. In this case, it was probably one of the worst class choices someone could have made.

Ideally, a better example of something that uses the same stats, but has much less of a stat requirement, is the Ranger. Several Rangers aren't dependent on Wisdom (Gloomstalker, Hunter, maybe Horizon Walker), the Ranger has more HP, the Ranger has medium armor (doesn't need to max Dex to get high AC), and has plenty of resource options to spend for that aren't Wisdom dependent (like resource buffs).

If you do plan on sticking with Monk, I'd recommend a build that wasn't Wisdom dependent. Drunken Master, Kensei, something along those lines. That way, you can focus on maxing out your Dex and get more value out of your melee build. As-is, it's unlikely that you'll end up with a high score in Dex, Wis, AND Constitution, which is a bad place to be if you're the primary melee combatant. Also talk to your team about finding ways to improve your survivability, as you may take hits often (being the sole melee character with low AC) and hard (being a 1d8 character that can't afford investments into Con).

Scrap pretty much everything that I though you said. I had thought that the 18 was an 8. Missed the 1. So, with that being said:

I still think that, as a melee character, it'd be better to focus on utilizing armor, as that spreads out your stats a lot less. Good rule of thumb is, the heavier your armor, the fewer stats you need. In the Monk's case, he needs the most amount of stats to excel compared to any other melee combatant. Now, you can still succeed with an 18, a 14, and a 12, it just means that you won't have much HP (-1 HP compared to virtually any other melee class, and only a +1 Con mod), so you may have to rely heavily on your Patient Defense feature.

Additionally, because you're going to be stuck investing into both Wisdom and Constitution, it might still be best to focus on a defensive Monk subclass that doesn't use many stats. Open Palm is playable with those stats, but something like a Drunken Master would be more consistent.

Lastly, and I mean this well, I'd never recommend a Monk as a primary front liner. Their AC is gimmicky and often subpar, they lack durability options, and they have a 1d8 Hit Die. It's basically a Rogue that sacrifices non-combat versatility for combat versatility. You're about as much of a "tank" as a Swashbuckler. A Valor Bard is tankier than you. Monks do well at accomplishing things, but they are not good at taking hits.

For a similar playstyle, but with an emphasis on durability, I'd recommend a Dual-Wielding Ancestral Guardian Barbarian with the Mobile feat at level 4. Plays like a Monk, as durable as a Barbarian, would work wonderfully with those stats, and performs the "tank" archetype a lot better.

[Cicciograna]

The stats overall are very low, which honestly means you'd be better off playing a build that was less dependent on stats. Which usually means a Strength build (because for Strength to cap out on AC doesn't require much investment). From an optimization perspective, Monk is one of the best classes...if you have high stats. In this case, it was probably one of the worst class choices someone could have made.

Ideally, a better example of something that uses the same stats, but has much less of a stat requirement, is the Ranger. Several Rangers aren't dependent on Wisdom (Gloomstalker, Hunter, maybe Horizon Walker), the Ranger has more HP, the Ranger has medium armor (doesn't need to max Dex to get high AC), and has plenty of resource options to spend for that aren't Wisdom dependent (like resource buffs).

If you do plan on sticking with Monk, I'd recommend a build that wasn't Wisdom dependent. Drunken Master, Kensei, something along those lines. That way, you can focus on maxing out your Dex and get more value out of your melee build. As-is, it's unlikely that you'll end up with a high score in Dex, Wis, AND Constitution, which is a bad place to be if you're the primary melee combatant. Also talk to your team about finding ways to improve your survivability, as you may take hits often (being the sole melee character with low AC) and hard (being a 1d8 character that can't afford investments into Con).

Scrap pretty much everything that I though you said. I had thought that the 18 was an 8. Missed the 1. So, with that being said:

I still think that, as a melee character, it'd be better to focus on utilizing armor, as that spreads out your stats a lot less. Good rule of thumb is, the heavier your armor, the fewer stats you need. In the Monk's case, he needs the most amount of stats to excel compared to any other melee combatant. Now, you can still succeed with an 18, a 14, and a 12, it just means that you won't have much HP (-1 HP compared to virtually any other melee class, and only a +1 Con mod), so you may have to rely heavily on your Patient Defense feature.

Additionally, because you're going to be stuck investing into both Wisdom and Constitution, it might still be best to focus on a defensive Monk subclass that doesn't use many stats. Open Palm is playable with those stats, but something like a Drunken Master would be more consistent.

Lastly, and I mean this well, I'd never recommend a Monk as a primary front liner. Their AC is gimmicky and often subpar, they lack durability options, and they have a 1d8 Hit Die. It's basically a Rogue that sacrifices non-combat versatility for combat versatility. You're about as much of a "tank" as a Swashbuckler. A Valor Bard is tankier than you. Monks do well at accomplishing things, but they are not good at taking hits.

For a similar playstyle, but with an emphasis on durability, I'd recommend a Dual-Wielding Ancestral Guardian Barbarian with the Mobile feat at level 4. Plays like a Monk, as durable as a Barbarian, would work wonderfully with those stats, and performs the "tank" archetype a lot better.

Thank you for the suggestion, MOG, they were a really read. I thought I might play a Barbarian, actually, but I have kind of a dislike for the class, although it is certainly valid. I am aware that the frailty of the Monk goes against the idea of having him as a frontliner, I hope the other characters will help me out on this, especially because I admit that I'm really fond of the Monk class. And if I die, hey, at least I could roll some better stats :smallbiggrin:

[Quoz]

I think with a stat line like that, you may be well off to ignore your own stats, or at least sideline them for a combat. Go monk / moon druid.You dont even have to change a thing from your starting point, though maybe swapping Dex and Wis would play better in the long run.

You get cool animal forms, improved wild shape AC, and thanks to telepathy dont lose the ability to communicate with your team. Some GMs may have different interpretations on whether natural weapons work with martial arts bonus action attacks, so you may want to ask on that first.

You are an unparalleled scout - it's not that they won't see you when you crawl under the door as a mouse, it's that they probably won't care. Your go to combat form will probably be a bear, with more HP than any character at your level should have. And if you take additional monk levels you can use most of your Ki abilities in wild shape.