Character Critique

[ElfMonkGuy]

Hi everyone,

I'm playing D&D again for the first time in a long time and I just thought I'd say a bit about what I'm going to be playing and see if it's viable at all. The game is 3.5 (which I'm glad for as I don't know how to play anything else) and I only have access to the Player's Handbook. I've decided to play an elven monk with an emphasis on archery.

My stats: Str 13, Dex 19, Con 13, Int 10, Wis 14, Cha 10

Planned Feat Progression:
1. Point Blank Shot, Stunning Fist
2. Deflect Arrows
3. Dodge
6. Improved Disarm/Trip (Not quite sure what I'd choose. Any suggestions?), Precise Shot
9. Mobility
12. Shot on the Run
15. Rapid Shot
18. Manyshot

I realize that monks aren't a very strong class, but I still enjoy playing as them and I was just looking for something that I don't normally do with the class. Don't let that stop you from giving me your opinions though. Thanks!

ElfMonkGuy

[gallagher]

go for improved disarm, and then enchant your arrows to have that ability that allows you to disarm people with ranged attacks. i believe it is in MiC.

there is also a feat in CW that goes as follows:
RANGED DISARM
you can disarm a foe from a distance
Prereqs - Dex 15, Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, BAB +5
Benefit - Choose one type of ranged weapon with which you are proficient. You can amke a disarm attempt with this weapon as long as your target is within 30ft.
Special - A fighter may select Ranged Disarm as one of his fighter bonus feats.

[Kol Korran]

i'm not that of a pro on builds either, but i suggest you get percise shot on level 3 intead of dodge (which is a fairly crappy feat anyway)- your friends are most likely going to melee whomever you might be attacking, so you'll be happy to reduce that annoying -4 to hit quickly.

at level 6 i'd suggest you get either rapidshot or multi shot (forgot which came before who).

on a general note though, i'd suggest to talk with your DM to maybe exachange the normal monk feats progression for the ranger's archery progression. it seems to fit you much better, and is quite thematic.

i'd argue that being an archery monk you have to get Zen archery, but with your wisdom you're better as you are. it just felt more "right", but doesn't quite work in play.

some items to consider:
- some good bow, preferably with some energy damage added? or brutal?
- braces of armor, amulet of natural armor
- Monk's belt, periapt of wisdom, gloves of dexterity.
all pretty common i think.

[gallagher]

also, if you can download or find somewhere the complete psionics book, they have a prestige class in there called soulbow. you may be interested in that one

[Critical]

Monk archer PHB only? Go ranger and don't do that kind of stuff if restricted only to PHB.

[Greenish]

also, if you can download or find somewhere the complete psionics book, they have a prestige class in there called soulbow. you may be interested in that one

Soulbow. That said, he doesn't have access even to whole core, so an expansion to psionics seems to be out of the picture.

[ElfMonkGuy]

Monk archer PHB only? Go ranger and don't do that kind of stuff if restricted only to PHB.

Well the reason I decided to play a monk archer was to focus on what I thought the monk's main strength was: speed. That's why I'm working towards Shot on the Run and Manyshot so that I can let off 2 or 3 arrows and get to wherever I'm needed.

If I'm caught in melee I hope that I can stun whatever is fighting me, but if that's not the case I can tumble out of battle and be helped out by Mobility if I fail my roll.

[Sinfire Titan]

Monk archer PHB only? Go ranger and don't do that kind of stuff if restricted only to PHB.

Yeah, not kidding. You can't use Flurry with an arrow, but the Ranger gets that as a class feature (Rapid Shot).


Don't use Monk for an Archer. You aren't even proficient with bows, and Elves are a horrible race to gain such proficiency when you could just refluff a Ranger.

[ElfMonkGuy]

Yeah, not kidding. You can't use Flurry with an arrow, but the Ranger gets that as a class feature (Rapid Shot).


Don't use Monk for an Archer. You aren't even proficient with bows, and Elves are a horrible race to gain such proficiency when you could just refluff a Ranger.

I realize that Ranger would be a stronger option, but I'm not really interested in the abilities or spells.

If it helps the rest of the party is made up of a gnome sorcerer, a halfling bard and crotchety, middle-aged human knight.

[jiriku]

Well, ok, yes, it's not very strong. And restricted to just the PHB, you're kind of stuck in a hole. But there are some things you can do here....

Let's assess your strengths. Archers need to be mobile. With no armor, speed increases, and slow fall, you've got mobility. Look for gear that adds to this strength, like boots of speed or boots of striding and springing.

Archery's real sticking point in 3.5 core is that it doesn't do much damage. You want to overcome that by shooting as many arrows as possible, and hitting with all of them. Learn Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, and Manyshot as quickly as possible. Dodge, Mobility, and Spring Attack can wait until later.

The monk's indifferent base attack bonus, combined with the penalties for firing multiple arrows, means you'll have an issue with accuracy. At mid-levels, try to compensate with bane arrows. Giantbane, animalbane, humanbane, etc arrows are fairly inexpensive, and a simple +1 bane arrow fired from your mighty longbow will deal 1d8+2d6+4 damage, or about 15-16 points on average. That's pretty good, especially when you use rapid shot to squeeze off two or three in a single round.

Also, put the maximum skill points possible into Hide and Move Silently. If you can ambush foes, you'll be attacking their flat-footed AC. That makes it easier to hit, at least for the first round.

[Sinfire Titan]

I realize that Ranger would be a stronger option, but I'm not really interested in the abilities or spells.

If it helps the rest of the party is made up of a gnome sorcerer, a halfling bard and crotchety, middle-aged human knight.

Then just don't use them. No one ever said you had to use your spells (which is really odd, because the Monk has almost as many SU abilities as the Ranger has magical abilities, discounting spell access).


It would be much easier to do so if you were able to use non-Core material. Is it the DM's choice or your own inability to access non-Core?

Edit: Jiriku, Boots fo Striding and Springing don't stack with the Monk's speed boost.

[ElfMonkGuy]

Thank you, jiriku. That's very helpful.

So it looks like my feats will be...
1. Point Blank Shot
3. Precise Shot
6. Rapid Shot
9. Manyshot
12. Dodge
15. Mobility
18. Shot on the Run

With my skills being Hide, Move Silently, Spot and Listen. Looks like I'll be the scout of the group as well!

[ElfMonkGuy]

Then just don't use them. No one ever said you had to use your spells (which is really odd, because the Monk has almost as many SU abilities as the Ranger has magical abilities, discounting spell access).


It would be much easier to do so if you were able to use non-Core material. Is it the DM's choice or your own inability to access non-Core?

Edit: Jiriku, Boots fo Striding and Springing don't stack with the Monk's speed boost.

It's just me. I'm making the character and relying on the d20srd so I suppose I have access to the majority of all three core rulebooks if that helps

[Sinfire Titan]

It's just me. I'm making the character and relying on the d20srd so I suppose I have access to the majority of all three core rulebooks if that helps

You also have UA, and you could get Complete Champion to ditch the Ranger's spells/day for Bonus Feats. There's an ACF in the SRD that gets rid of the Ranger's Animal Companion IIRC.


Trust me, 90% of your Monk class features will be useless to you if you use a bow. You're going to be a liability to the party.

[ElfMonkGuy]

Hmm, well I don't want to be a liability, but I only wanted to be an archer because I thought a Monk archer sounded interesting. What would you suggest given the party composition so far?

[Greenish]

It's just me. I'm making the character and relying on the d20srd so I suppose I have access to the majority of all three core rulebooks if that helps

SRD has psionics.

[arguskos]

Hmm, well I don't want to be a liability, but I only wanted to be an archer because I thought a Monk archer sounded interesting. What would you suggest given the party composition so far?

A rogue archer would be more effective than a monk anything, given your party. Possibly a Ranger as well, since you only have the one front-liner, and he might need support. You could also do a cleric or druid, since your party lacks a divine caster. Any of the above can be very fun and will be much more effective than a monk archer.

[Sinfire Titan]

Hmm, well I don't want to be a liability, but I only wanted to be an archer because I thought a Monk archer sounded interesting. What would you suggest given the party composition so far?

You have at least one character who is going to be sitting in the back lines, the potential for a second, and a Knight. If anything, you need a frontliner to go beside the Knight or else he will get swarmed and killed in one round by anything even remotely threatening at the high levels.


I'd say Wildshape Ranger, and have your bow as an emergency backup in case the enemy outnumbers you. If the Bard is doing his job right, your arrows will be able to drop multiple mooks each round. If the Wizard is doing his job right, he will be able to suppress enemy firepower.

You need to help the Knight more than you need to sit back and snipe people. That should be a job for when you go out scouting and are waiting for your party to get there.

[ElfMonkGuy]

You have at least one character who is going to be sitting in the back lines, the potential for a second, and a Knight. If anything, you need a frontliner to go beside the Knight or else he will get swarmed and killed in one round by anything even remotely threatening at the high levels.


I'd say Wildshape Ranger, and have your bow as an emergency backup in case the enemy outnumbers you. If the Bard is doing his job right, your arrows will be able to drop multiple mooks each round. If the Wizard is doing his job right, he will be able to suppress enemy firepower.

You need to help the Knight more than you need to sit back and snipe people. That should be a job for when you go out scouting and are waiting for your party to get there.

Hmm, a ranger that can transform into animals actually sounds pretty cool...

What kind of feats do you recommend, Sinfire Titan? Do you think I should focus on more melee stuff in order to help out the Knight?

[Coidzor]

So what level are you starting at in this campaign?

[ElfMonkGuy]

We'll be starting at the very beginning, level 1.

Edit: I should also add that the people I'm playing with aren't exactly...known for optimization. Our knight is starting out at age 50 with the appropriate modifiers as one example.

[Sinfire Titan]

Hmm, a ranger that can transform into animals actually sounds pretty cool...

What kind of feats do you recommend, Sinfire Titan? Do you think I should focus on more melee stuff in order to help out the Knight?

Take a look here for some tips.

[ElfMonkGuy]

Aw, I was interested in looking at some of the builds but the links don't work. Thanks for the link though!

[ElfMonkGuy]

Alright, I think I've decided to play a Human Ranger. I'm very intrigued by the Thrower character so I think I'm going to do that. A guy who fights with hand axes.