I somewhat agree with Hieronymous. The Monk really doesn't have an identity in D&D outside of combat. This is in part because they have been mulit-stat-dependent from their inception in earlier editions and in part because the pop culture understanding of (Asian) martial arts plays primarily to action movies from Hong Kong. As far as the main English-speaking audience of D&D is concerned, a Monk is really just a somebody who "does" kung fu. Nevermind that there are over a dozen unarmed or minimally-armed fighting styles if you just look at two countries: China and Japan. In the original East Asian context, most monks are like religious figures. You could say that their counterpart in West European culture would be the priest or nun. Monks that specialized their training in combat were relatively few. People who really took their unarmed fighting experience to the next level were mostly people who did not consider themselves "monks" because most became soldier and spies. Their identity was tied up with the jobs that earned them a title, land, or affiliation with a powerful family. Then, when those occupations became highly regimented and specialized due to modernization and the introduction of mass-produced firearms, unarmed fighting became a cultural refuge, a way of maintaining family tradition or a method for the poor to learn self-defense.
I apologize for being a bit long-winded, but this is a round-about way of saying that the "identity" issue of the Monk in D&D is related to the poorly-defined images of the martial arts master in the West European cultural imagination, which in turn is limited by the fact that media about martial-arts practicing people has been a relatively narrow genre.
This contributes little directly to the discussion of "the Monk" in D&D, but I felt it was important to be clear that context in which we are having this conversation is itself informed by the types of images which get commercialized and which are easier to sell to cultures that still often regard "the Orient" as strange, separate and exotic. Because otherwise, the Monk might very well have been folded into the Fighter, Rogue, and/or Cleric classes a long time ago.
To be fair, classes are primarily just a construct for mechanics (and the majority of it being combat focused) in DnD. Whether you're a spy or a soldier or whatever is a matter of your background instead.
Thats fair too....I think a lot of people forget that like 90% of class mechanics are related to combat. The game is at its heart a dungeon crawler.
I'm not particularly hung up about the movement speed outside of combat. The speed itself is the most uninteresting thing about it, really. What I'm hung up about is people dismissing anything the Monk has to offer just for their narrative of it being a mediocre fighter outside of combat. It's just not true, plain and simple.
I have no narrative I'm invested in, this is simply observations from experience. Ironically, you seem very keen on continuing the victimization narrative of the monk which I find quite a bit insulting because it means you're ready to assume people talk negatively about the monk just to have something to shit on instead of out of a desire to have a meaningful conversation about the their shortcomings and what could be done. Frankly, it's quite tiresome.
As for the movement speed, I was referring to the whole package that you're hung up on, including the stuff that comes at 9th level. Which again is quite late in the game so not exactly relevant to discussing what the average experience with a monk is like.
Non-Alchemist Artificers, Bards, Druids, Rogues and Rangers all manage to have abilities that excel outside of combat (without even getting into spells) while still being impressive inside of combat. So while, yes, most class abilities are combat oriented, many classes manage to come out of the deal with good combat and out of combat abilities. The monks don't really get either.
My fix? I would give them one expertise and Ki abilities that lets them get the effects of the Observant feat for an hour or base Charisma skills off of Wisdom.
My fix? I would give them one expertise and Ki abilities that lets them get the effects of the Observant feat for an hour or base Charisma skills off of Wisdom.
Now that I think about it, magical guidance (sorcerer) probably makes more sense on a monk than it does a sorcerer.
Ki Focus (Optional) When you reach 5th level, you can tap into your inner wellspring of ki to enhance mind and body in order to turn a failure into a success. When you make an ability check that fails, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll the d20, and you must use the new roll, potentially turning the failure into a success.
Edit: if you want to get flavorful you can change it to be more like a enhanced focus, you stand still, close your eyes, and all your senses of both self and surroundings improve. I'm sure at least one of you has seen a scene like that before: Monk closes his eyes, music dims and you can hear the faint wind, then last second they dramatically open their eyes and do some seemingly impossible task.
My fix? I would give them one expertise and Ki abilities that lets them get the effects of the Observant feat for an hour or base Charisma skills off of Wisdom.
Now that I think about it, magical guidance (sorcerer) probably makes more sense on a monk than it does a sorcerer.
Ki Focus (Optional) When you reach 5th level, you can tap into your inner wellspring of ki to enhance mind and body in order to turn a failure into a success. When you make an ability check that fails, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll the d20, and you must use the new roll, potentially turning the failure into a success.
Edit: if you want to get flavorful you can change it to be more like a enhanced focus, you stand still, close your eyes, and all your senses of both self and surroundings improve. I'm sure at least one of you has seen a scene like that before: Monk closes his eyes, music dims and you can hear the faint wind, then last second they dramatically open their eyes and do some seemingly impossible task.
I really, really dislike that Sorcerer feature. Putting it on the Monk unaltered, it's very slightly less irritating to me personally. Imposing some thematic limitations improves it. But I think it wouldn't be a turn-failure-into-success, it would be a gain-advantage-or-a-bonus. So really it's a pretty different feature.
"Centering yourself, you can find the true path to overcoming many obstacles. By meditating for a minute (I want it to be longer than an action, but a minute seems too long; idk) you can give yourself advantage on the next ability check you make using artisan's tools, a musical instrument, or a Monk skill, with which you are proficient."
I see no strong reason to make it cost ki. This is a neat feature, kind of hard to use, but not impossible. You could make it crazier by letting it apply to a weapon attack, or crazier still by changing it from advantage to, say, a d4. (You can usually get advantage in other ways. This would stack on top of that. If you can't get advantage then it's weaker.)
Personally I think the Monk doesn't really need much at lower levels; the class actually starts out quite strong, but its core progression slows over time. That said, keep in mind that increased Ki points means a Monk can be using Ki every round without much concern for running out.
I don't know about Step of the Wind not costing Ki as the Monk is already fast; your average double-dashing Rogue can do 90 feet in a turn, but your average Monk can single-dash up to 80 feet from 2nd level, and only gets faster from there; when we double dash we make the Rogue look like an out of shape gelatinous cube.
Personally my main fixes would be:
Allow Unarmored Defence to use either Dexterity or Strength (to allow for Strength based Monks).
Change save proficiencies from STR/DEX to DEX/WIS. This is a boost since it would mean two common proficiencies, but gives some inbuilt defence against charm/fear from an earlier level, to be built upon by other features for near immunity.
Allow the use of a glaive or pike with Dedicated Weapon and Kensei Weapon; this allows for better use of Polearm Expert, but with the built-in tradeoff being that you may be out of range to use Martial Arts/Flurry of Blows etc. Only the Kensei would be getting proficiency with their feature though, other Monks would need to obtain somehow (training, feat etc.).
Martial Arts damage should increase to d8 at 9th level, d10 at 13th and d12 at 17th (increases every four levels rather than weirdly slowing down).
When you use Martial Arts or Flurry of Blows, you may replace one unarmed strike with an attacking using an off-hand weapon (as for two-weapon fighting). Given the light requirement and the fact that martial arts die will eliminate any damage difference this is only a minor boost without magic weapons, but makes a twin weapon Monk more viable.
Diamond Soul should be moved to 9th level alongside the unarmored movement improvement, but initially only granting INT/CHA save proficiency. At 14th it would level up to all save proficiencies with the 1 Ki re-rolls as normal.
Clarify Stillness of Mind. The way I believe it's supposed to work is that the Monk needs to be aware they are charmed, or that something is wrong, before they can consciously take an action to end it, but far too many players/DMs treat it as an action to just "nope" ever being charmed/frightened. It should never be that easy, as the whole reason charm/fear are dangerous is because they override your character's normal behaviour (and characters don't even know they are charmed).
Have Purity of Body function like Stillness of Mind; i.e- action to clear one disease, poison or the poisoned condition. This action can be used when incapacitated (for the nastier poisons).
Add an Ability Score Increase at 10th level (this is why Purity of Body is no longer full immunity).
Add a new ability at 13th level called Counterstrike or such; when an enemy misses you with a melee attack you may spend one Ki to make an Unarmed Strike against them as a reaction. This keeps Monk attacks scaling (up to 5 in a round) and combos well with Patient Defence which normally trades attacks for defence, plus since it makes you less likely to be hit (great on a relatively squishy d8 hit die martial) it would make the attack more likely for 3 in a round even while in patient defence mode.
Add an Improved Purity of Body at 15th level (to go alongside the usually pointless Timeless Body) expanding Purity of Body to also allow removing the blinded*, deafened*, paralyzed or stunned condition when it affects the player directly (i.e- can't cancel blindness/deafness caused by a lingering area effect).
I know it looks like a lot, but really the Monk is IMO fine in lower tiers of play, it's the higher tiers that most players don't make it to where they have a lot of features that feel like wasted levels since they're just too situational. For example, many campaigns will never have you worry about ageing, and it's usually not that hard to get food and water so Timeless Body is a bit weird as the only feature for an entire level.
In general what WotC need to be looking at for each class is ensuring that every level improves the class' combat potential. Once they've done that they can then scatter in out-of-combat abilities to ensure everyone has some things they can be good at when not fighting.
Blue indicates additions to my original post.
THIS!^
And;
Flurry of Blows should be an addtional attack that doesnt use up a bonus action, still needs the requirement of making an attack action and spending Ki, but frees up the bonus action for other options.
Alternativley make Flurry of Blows follow Proficiency bonus scaling, allowing a high level Monk to actually do a 7 page Ora Ora Ora.
The bonus action unarmed strike should function more like Ki Fueled attack,I.E as long as you spent KI points to do something you can bonus action unarmed strike, this would synergize well if flurry blows didn't use a bonus action, increasing the amount of attacks from 4 to 5.
Allow Martial Arts to work with Medium armor and under, this allows Monks with low Wis and Dex to still have survivibilty.
Turn Paitent Defense into Defensive Dualist, fold in the dodge action into step of the wind.
Deflect Missles should be backwards, you spend Ki points to catch the projectile and throwing it back should be free.
A Ki feature that lets you reduce an enemy's saving throw roll.
Bump Perfect Self to give 10 Ki points instead of 4.
Remove the Heavy or Special restriction for Kensei Monks.
Give Four Elements Monk Cantrips.(Gust, Thunderclap, Ray of Frost, Produce Flame, Mold Earth and Thornwhip)
Let Long Death, Kensei and Shadow Monks utilize Flurry of Blows in a unique way like the rest of the subclasses.
Okay I think I figured out how to make these three subclasses utilize flurry of blows in a unique way; Long Death can choose deal Necrotic damage when attacking with their Unarmed Strikes, Shadow Monks would be able to bonus action unarmed strike/Flurry of Blows after casting a cantrip/minor illusion and Kensei trigger Agile Parry with their Flurry of blows.
What would you all think if they gave the core monk the Open Hand Technique from the Open Hand subclass? I think it should be the default for all monks anyway.
In return, the Open Hand monk gets a Deflect Missiles type ability, but for melee attacks against them, for the cost of one Ki? Maybe as a part of redirecting the attack they reduce damage and are able to do damage to the attacking target equal to their martial arts die or unarmed strike? So basically for the cost of one Ki, and a reaction, do some damage reduction and a counter attack
Edit: I know someone had a similar idea for this type of feature but thought it might be a good trade off for giving all monks Open hand technique.
I'm honestly way more interested in pumping up a Monk's out of combat abilities. Monks have a pretty strong connotation to harmony and balance for me, but the fact that when you build one you essentially build someone that is only good decent for a life of fighting seems decidedly non-monk.
Monks should be able to excel in multiple fields outside of combat instead of being the rogue's sad cousin.
I somewhat agree with Hieronymous. The Monk really doesn't have an identity in D&D outside of combat. This is in part because they have been mulit-stat-dependent from their inception in earlier editions and in part because the pop culture understanding of (Asian) martial arts plays primarily to action movies from Hong Kong. As far as the main English-speaking audience of D&D is concerned, a Monk is really just a somebody who "does" kung fu. Nevermind that there are over a dozen unarmed or minimally-armed fighting styles if you just look at two countries: China and Japan. In the original East Asian context, most monks are like religious figures. You could say that their counterpart in West European culture would be the priest or nun. Monks that specialized their training in combat were relatively few. People who really took their unarmed fighting experience to the next level were mostly people who did not consider themselves "monks" because most became soldier and spies. Their identity was tied up with the jobs that earned them a title, land, or affiliation with a powerful family. Then, when those occupations became highly regimented and specialized due to modernization and the introduction of mass-produced firearms, unarmed fighting became a cultural refuge, a way of maintaining family tradition or a method for the poor to learn self-defense.
I apologize for being a bit long-winded, but this is a round-about way of saying that the "identity" issue of the Monk in D&D is related to the poorly-defined images of the martial arts master in the West European cultural imagination, which in turn is limited by the fact that media about martial-arts practicing people has been a relatively narrow genre.
This contributes little directly to the discussion of "the Monk" in D&D, but I felt it was important to be clear that context in which we are having this conversation is itself informed by the types of images which get commercialized and which are easier to sell to cultures that still often regard "the Orient" as strange, separate and exotic. Because otherwise, the Monk might very well have been folded into the Fighter, Rogue, and/or Cleric classes a long time ago.
To be fair, classes are primarily just a construct for mechanics (and the majority of it being combat focused) in DnD. Whether you're a spy or a soldier or whatever is a matter of your background instead.
My point was that various iterations of Monks could have just been designed as sub-classes of Fighter, Rogue and maybe Ranger subclasses at the beginniing of 5E. Open Hand Monks are almost Battlemaster Fighters with less armor and ASI until Level 14. Shadow Monks are basically a combo of Assassin and Arcane Tricksters, just with a different set of tricks. Drunken Master is a spell-less, version of Hunter Ranger.
I'm honestly way more interested in pumping up a Monk's out of combat abilities. Monks have a pretty strong connotation to harmony and balance for me, but the fact that when you build one you essentially build someone that is only good decent for a life of fighting seems decidedly non-monk.
Monks should be able to excel in multiple fields outside of combat instead of being the rogue's sad cousin.
How about give Monks 1 utility cantrip and 1 utility 1st Level Spell, but flavor it as a non-spell abilities?
Examples:
Pick one of the follow at level 2:
Friends (Jedi Mind trick);
Mending (years of living in frugality have taught you to make-do with improvised methods for fixing things);
Guidance (you know what to say to inspire confidence)
Spare the Dying (reflavor as a survival-level stabilization of Ki technique)
Pick one of the following at Level 5:
1st Level Spells
Sleep (for use mostly on NPCs)
Disguise Self (actually just proficiency with the Disguise kit)
Detect Magic ("it's just intuition")
Alarm (but with only the option that you are aware of the the intrusion)
Comprehend Languages (why wait until 13th level?)
Detect Poison and Disease
Command (a more powerful version of the Jedi Mind Trick)
The monk has a d8 life dice and this makes him definitely not a first line fighter and his ability to run is a clear indication. So the Monk would be compared more to a Rogue than a Warrior or Ranger, but beware the Rogue has a system of one very powerful attack and the Monk has a system of many weak attacks. So you agree with me that the monk is a hit and run combatant like the Rogue, but being in that logic I found the first problem with the Monk.
1) Here comes the first problem, the monk runs very fast, but what if when he decides to run he takes an opportunity attack? Unfortunately he does not have a system as easy as the Rogue to disengage from the opponent without repercussions or without having to decrease the number of attacks and the reserve of ki. So you agree with me that "Step of the Wind" is only in case you are surrounded by a large number of enemies. As a solution to this problem I would add in "Martial Arts" at level 1 the ability to push an opponent you hit by 5 feet once per turn (like the Crusher feat). This simple ability would solve the biggest problem of the monk at lower levels.
So many people complain that the monk has a lot of useless abilities. This is a problem that you must with your master. The monk shines in unexpected situations, but it's up to the master to make them happen. I have to say that few enemies would be so dumb as to attack a monk with a ranged weapon, but the master has to sacrifice some of his actions to make the monk shine. The role of the Master is to entertain the group, after all it is a game. Remember, this isn't only the Master's fault, the Monk can use his ability to run on walls and jump on enemies from above without losing hit points or even make surprise attacks by jumping from impossible places. Then it is always up to the Master to explain how the territory is, but in the end it's up to the player to know how to exploit the ability of the Monk.
2) The second problem is that the Monk's unarmed attacks do not receive weapon bonuses. This is not a serious problem since at low level the monks do a lot of damage since they are the first to be able to make more attacks, but it would not be bad if at level 8-11 the monk could acquire the ability to use the bonus of his magic weapon on his unarmed attacks too. This ability could also be added on the DC of the monk's ability.
I would also try to add more specific items for the monk. Like martial arts books that give certain powers.
Tactics Martial art Book (1th level)
Choose between Patient Defense and Step of the Wind. For the chosen features you don't need to spend 1 ki point.
Push Martial art Book (1th level)
Once per turn, when you hit a creature with an attack that deals bludgeoning damage, you can move it 5 feet to an unoccupied space, provided the target is no more than one size larger than you.
Migthy Martial art Book (1th level)
The damage die of your martial arts goes up by a higher die number. 1d4 -> 1d6 / 1d6 -> 1d8 / 1d8 -> 1d10 / 1d10 -> 2d6
Kick Martial art Book (6th level)
Your unarmed attack have reach 10 feet.
Martial art Book +1/+2/+3 (6th level)
You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with your unarmed strikes. The power increases as you gain monk levels. At 11th level, this increases to +2, and at 17th level, this increases to +3.
Ki control Martial art Book (6th level)
Your ki pool increases by a number equal to your wisdom modifier. These Ki points are not calculated by this feat for receiving a new book. Additionally, when you score a critical hit you regain 1 ki.
Footwork Martial art Book (6th level)
Your speed increases by 10 feet. When you make a melee attack against a creature, you don’t provoke opportunity attacks from that creature for the rest of the turn, whether you hit or not.
Extreme Flurry of blow Martial art Book (11th level)
Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn, you can spend 1 ki point to make three unarmed strikes as a bonus action. The power increases as you gain monk levels. At 17th level, this increases to four unarmed strikes as a bonus action.
Difence Martial art Book (11th level)
When you are wielding a monk weapon or you are unarmed and another creature hits you with a melee attack, you can use your reaction to add your proficiency bonus to your AC for that attack, potentially causing the attack to miss you.
Power Martial art Book (11th level)
You gain a bonus to unarmed damage rolls equal to your proficiency bonus on all the creatures you have the advantage of. Additionally, once per long rest you may change a normal hit from a unarmed attack into a critical hit.
Bracers of attack Martial art Book (11th level)
If you are wearing Bracers of defense, now they can also be used to attack. You can adds the Bacers bonus +2 AC to unarmed attack damage.
3) When you reach higher levels the Monk unfortunately loses in his damage power. His damage power is purely based on his dexterity, his martial arts die, and the number of attacks. From 5th level the number of attacks is fixed on 3 + 1 (+ reaction). Looking at the Rogue also seems correct to me, but when I think that the Rogue only needs one critical in his turn with the possibility of choosing which attack he uses his sneak attack, I get a little anger. The Monk's critic is useless, while the Rogue critic can double the damage of his sneak attack + his weapon. Don't forget that there is the "Elven Accuracy", "Improved Critical" of the Champion Warrior, the the Warlock "Hexblade's Curse" and the "Versatile Trickster" of the Arcana Trickster. Without having to count the possibility of making magical attacks (green-flame blade) that are also multiplied by the critic. (sneak attack + weapon + magic attack) X2. Unfortunately, Monk does damage using a lot of attacks and the magic attack is only for one attack.
As it comes to damage, the 5e version has given much advantage to single but powerful attacks and for those with many attacks has given the possibility to use 3 main talents "Great Weapon Master" and "Sharpshooter". Unfortunately the monk can not use them in a practical way and above all can not afford it since it is a MAD class and receives few opportunities to increase its characteristics.
There are several ways to solve this problem: 1) add 1 or 2 more attacks when using "Flurry of Blows". (liv 11-17) 2) for each enemy you have advantage, add your proficiency bonus to the damage. 3) add a counter attack as reactions so as to add more attacks to the monk and perhaps give an additional reaction (this is like a master of martial-arts)
example: You can use your reaction to attack a prone enemy. You can use your reaction to attack an enemy that failed to hit you. You can use your reaction to attack an enemy ....
4) Another problem is the monk's usefulness to the group. Thinking of the Rogue with all his skills, I get a little envious. The usefulness of a monk in a group is:
1) attack enemies in the rear such as caster and archers. 2) Stun opponents so that your group will beat them to death. 3) maybe the ability to jump off a ravine without getting hurt? It could be useful for a discovery or exploration mission.
I can say that the monk is useful during fights, but practically useless outside....
Monks are martial arts masters who develop their bodies and senses to the extreme limits. They should sense the positive energy and the negative energy around them. Poficiency in Insight. Spells like (Darkvision, Detect Evil and Good, Absorb elemnts, Longstrider, guidance, invisible mage hand...) could give an image to the monk.
The monk for me is at the base a master of martial arts and one of the subclsses that struck me most is definitely "way of the open hand". This is because it gives a good image of a master of martial arts and above all reveals a possible uniqueness in the fighting style of the monk, that is a combatant who imposes saving throws to the opponent, and not with magic, but with his martial arts causing negative conditions to his enemies. As a base we have the classic saving throw of the stun attack that touches the constitution, then we have the 3 famous techniques of the style "open hand" that impose saving throws on strength and dexterity. From my point of view the monk should not stop only at these 3 types of saving throws.
Another interesting thing about the monk is his ability to use his reaction for the skills "Deflect Missiles" and "Slow Fall". This makes us realize that a martial arts master can use his reaction more effectively and should become a quality of the monk. Unfortunately, "Deflect Missiles", "Slow Fall", " opportunity attacks" are skills that are rarely used unless the master specifically wants them. So I remind all masters that it is also your fault that people say that the monk is weak, it is also up to the master to make these poor monks shine once in a while.
From my point of view a master of martial arts should have several possibilities of reaction. More precisely, he should impose the situation to activate his reaction.
When I have to create a Monk, very often I feel almost obliged to choose the human variant race, clearly to take a feat. I recommend the "Mobile", or even better "Crusher" feat. At 5th monk level take 3 ranger levels for "Hunter mark" and "Druidic warrior" combat style for the speels "Create bonfire" and "Guidance". "Create bonfire" combined with "Crusher" feat and the open hand martial arts synnergy could have good results. (haven't tried yet).
The monk has a d8 life dice and this makes him definitely not a first line fighter and his ability to run is a clear indication. So the Monk would be compared more to a Rogue than a Warrior or Ranger, but beware the Rogue has a system of one very powerful attack and the Monk has a system of many weak attacks. So you agree with me that the monk is a hit and run combatant like the Rogue, but being in that logic I found the first problem with the Monk.
1) Here comes the first problem, the monk runs very fast, but what if when he decides to run he takes an opportunity attack? Unfortunately he does not have a system as easy as the Rogue to disengage from the opponent without repercussions or without having to decrease the number of attacks and the reserve of ki. So you agree with me that "Step of the Wind" is only in case you are surrounded by a large number of enemies. As a solution to this problem I would add in "Martial Arts" at level 1 the ability to push an opponent you hit by 5 feet once per turn (like the Crusher feat). This simple ability would solve the biggest problem of the monk at lower levels.
So many people complain that the monk has a lot of useless abilities. This is a problem that you must with your master. The monk shines in unexpected situations, but it's up to the master to make them happen. I have to say that few enemies would be so dumb as to attack a monk with a ranged weapon, but the master has to sacrifice some of his actions to make the monk shine. The role of the Master is to entertain the group, after all it is a game. Remember, this isn't only the Master's fault, the Monk can use his ability to run on walls and jump on enemies from above without losing hit points or even make surprise attacks by jumping from impossible places. Then it is always up to the Master to explain how the territory is, but in the end it's up to the player to know how to exploit the ability of the Monk.
2) The second problem is that the Monk's unarmed attacks do not receive weapon bonuses. This is not a serious problem since at low level the monks do a lot of damage since they are the first to be able to make more attacks, but it would not be bad if at level 8-11 the monk could acquire the ability to use the bonus of his magic weapon on his unarmed attacks too. This ability could also be added on the DC of the monk's ability.
I would also try to add more specific items for the monk. Like martial arts books that give certain powers.
3) When you reach higher levels the Monk unfortunately loses in his damage power. His damage power is purely based on his dexterity, his martial arts die, and the number of attacks. From 5th level the number of attacks is fixed on 3 + 1 (+ reaction). Looking at the Rogue also seems correct to me, but when I think that the Rogue only needs one critical in his turn with the possibility of choosing which attack he uses his sneak attack, I get a little anger. The Monk's critic is useless, while the Rogue critic can double the damage of his sneak attack + his weapon. Don't forget that there is the "Elven Accuracy", "Improved Critical" of the Champion Warrior, the the Warlock "Hexblade's Curse" and the "Versatile Trickster" of the Arcana Trickster. Without having to count the possibility of making magical attacks (green-flame blade) that are also multiplied by the critic. (sneak attack + weapon + magic attack) X2. Unfortunately, Monk does damage using a lot of attacks and the magic attack is only for one attack.
As it comes to damage, the 5e version has given much advantage to single but powerful attacks and for those with many attacks has given the possibility to use 3 main talents "Great Weapon Master" and "Sharpshooter". Unfortunately the monk can not use them in a practical way and above all can not afford it since it is a MAD class and receives few opportunities to increase its characteristics.
There are several ways to solve this problem: 1) add 1 or 2 more attacks when using "Flurry of Blows". (liv 11-17) 2) for each enemy you have advantage, add your proficiency bonus to the damage. 3) add a counter attack as reactions so as to add more attacks to the monk and perhaps give an additional reaction (this is like a master of martial-arts)
example: You can use your reaction to attack a prone enemy. You can use your reaction to attack an enemy that failed to hit you. You can use your reaction to attack an enemy ....
4) Another problem is the monk's usefulness to the group. Thinking of the Rogue with all his skills, I get a little envious. The usefulness of a monk in a group is:
1) attack enemies in the rear such as caster and archers. 2) Stun opponents so that your group will beat them to death. 3) maybe the ability to jump off a ravine without getting hurt? It could be useful for a discovery or exploration mission.
I can say that the monk is useful during fights, but practically useless outside....
Monks are martial arts masters who develop their bodies and senses to the extreme limits. They should sense the positive energy and the negative energy around them. Poficiency in Insight. Spells like (Darkvision, Detect Evil and Good, Absorb elemnts, Longstrider, guidance, invisible mage hand...) could give an image to the monk.
The monk for me is at the base a master of martial arts and one of the subclsses that struck me most is definitely "way of the open hand". This is because it gives a good image of a master of martial arts and above all reveals a possible uniqueness in the fighting style of the monk, that is a combatant who imposes saving throws to the opponent, and not with magic, but with his martial arts causing negative conditions to his enemies. As a base we have the classic saving throw of the stun attack that touches the constitution, then we have the 3 famous techniques of the style "open hand" that impose saving throws on strength and dexterity. From my point of view the monk should not stop only at these 3 types of saving throws.
Another interesting thing about the monk is his ability to use his reaction for the skills "Deflect Missiles" and "Slow Fall". This makes us realize that a martial arts master can use his reaction more effectively and should become a quality of the monk. Unfortunately, "Deflect Missiles", "Slow Fall", " opportunity attacks" are skills that are rarely used unless the master specifically wants them. So I remind all masters that it is also your fault that people say that the monk is weak, it is also up to the master to make these poor monks shine once in a while.
From my point of view a master of martial arts should have several possibilities of reaction. More precisely, he should impose the situation to activate his reaction.
When I have to create a Monk, very often I feel almost obliged to choose the human variant race, clearly to take a feat. I recommend the "Mobile", or even better "Crusher" feat. At 5th monk level take 3 ranger levels for "Hunter mark" and "Druidic warrior" combat style for the speels "Create bonfire" and "Guidance". "Create bonfire" combined with "Crusher" feat and the open hand martial arts synnergy could have good results. (haven't tried yet).
1) I would add in "Martial Arts" at level 1 the ability to push an opponent you hit by 5 feet once per turn (like the Crusher feat). This simple ability would solve the biggest problem of the monk at lower levels.
2) I would also try to add more specific items for the monk. Like martial arts books that give certain powers.
3) An identity: They should sense the positive and the negative energy (ki) around them. Proficiency in Insight. Spells like (Darkvision, Detect Evil and Good, Absorb elemnts, Longstrider, Zephyr Strike, guidance, invisible mage hand...) could give an image to the monk?
4)At higher levels monk loses his advantage to the point that it becomes just player who stuns enemies so that your allies slaughter them. Even with the increased of the ki pool, this doesn't help if it can't be used effectively. One solution is to evolve " flurry of blows". For example: At 11th level the monk when using "flurry of blows" can decide to use 2 ki points to make 3 attacks and at 17th level 3 ki points to make 4 unarmed attacks as a bonus action. This is simply a proposal, by this I do not mean that the monk class is to be changed.
I'm honestly against just giving out spells left and right. Not everything needs to do magic or use the spell mechanics in this game. I know it's WotCs cheap solution for everything because they can't think of other proper interesting mechanics apparently but I'm already annoyed that this is what happened to one of the Ranger's core mechanics as well.
Just going to double down on this. None of the other martials needed this kind of treatment, so I don't think the does monk either. Rogues, since they seem to be the best comparison here, have absolutely zero spells in their base class. Neither does any other martial. So it's certainly possible.
I mean, I can see the argument and some monk subclasses do indeed use spells like four elements and shadow, as well as the monk Empty Body, but would still prefer it be separate for the most part cause that's the way it currently is.
3) ...They should sense the positive and the negative energy (ki) around them.
I had a idea for a replacement feature for the Monk "can sense all languages" feature, cause you know, nobody likes that feature. You could have it be a sort of Sense Emotion or something along those lines. Makes sense, since ki is tied to meditation and calmness, so being able to sense other peoples calmness/lack of might be vaguely similar.
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if I edit a message, most of the time it's because of grammar. The rest of the time I'll put "Edit:" at the bottom.
I'm honestly against just giving out spells left and right. Not everything needs to do magic or use the spell mechanics in this game. I know it's WotCs cheap solution for everything because they can't think of other proper interesting mechanics apparently but I'm already annoyed that this is what happened to one of the Ranger's core mechanics as well.
Just going to double down on this. None of the other martials needed this kind of treatment, so I don't think the does monk either. Rogues, since they seem to be the best comparison here, have absolutely zero spells in their base class. Neither does any other martial. So it's certainly possible.
I mean, I can see the argument and some monk subclasses do indeed use spells like four elements and shadow, as well as the monk Empty Body, but would still prefer it be separate for the most part cause that's the way it currently is.
3) ...They should sense the positive and the negative energy (ki) around them.
I had a idea for a replacement feature for the Monk "can sense all languages" feature, cause you know, nobody likes that feature. You could have it be a sort of Sense Emotion or something along those lines. Makes sense, since ki is tied to meditation and calmness, so being able to sense other peoples calmness/lack of might be vaguely similar.
I'm trying to figure out what the monk's strengths are. The Rogue receives 4 basic skills of which 4 expertise while the monk receives only two and 0 expertise, and then it seems clear to me that I am looking for its uniqueness compared to the Rogue where it is clear that consists in its strong skills.
It's not that the monk's abilities are bad, it's that they are too specific and unless the master pushes the story so that they are used this almost never happens. Practically having them and not having them is the same thing ...
I said neither the Fighter nor Rogue needed spells to fix their main identity.
The identity of a Eldritch Knight yeah that needs spells, but I wasn't discussing that.
Edit: I specifically said "base class" as well. And I mentioned the subclasses argument in my post.
Rogues, since they seem to be the best comparison here, have absolutely zero spells in their base class. Neither does any other martial. So it's certainly possible.
I mean, I can see the argument and some monk subclasses do indeed use spells like four elements and shadow, as well as the monk Empty Body, but would still prefer it be separate for the most part cause that's the way it currently is.
Note that "other martial" is building upon "have absolutely zero spells in their base class"
I see Arcane Trickster & Eldritch Knight as equivalent to Four Elements. Fighters & Rogues & Monks don't have spells, but EK/AT/FE do have spells. If this works for Rogue/Fighter, than you can make it work for monks.
Ok. So with all this talk about identity out of combat how would you fix this (or hope WotC fixes it in 2024)?
Would giving them more skills help? Right now you get to choose two at level 1.
Or giving them access to more/different skills to choose from?
Or would giving new or rearranging current features for earlier access help?
EZD6 by DM Scotty
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397599/EZD6-Core-Rulebook?
Thats fair too....I think a lot of people forget that like 90% of class mechanics are related to combat. The game is at its heart a dungeon crawler.
I have no narrative I'm invested in, this is simply observations from experience. Ironically, you seem very keen on continuing the victimization narrative of the monk which I find quite a bit insulting because it means you're ready to assume people talk negatively about the monk just to have something to shit on instead of out of a desire to have a meaningful conversation about the their shortcomings and what could be done. Frankly, it's quite tiresome.
As for the movement speed, I was referring to the whole package that you're hung up on, including the stuff that comes at 9th level. Which again is quite late in the game so not exactly relevant to discussing what the average experience with a monk is like.
Non-Alchemist Artificers, Bards, Druids, Rogues and Rangers all manage to have abilities that excel outside of combat (without even getting into spells) while still being impressive inside of combat. So while, yes, most class abilities are combat oriented, many classes manage to come out of the deal with good combat and out of combat abilities. The monks don't really get either.
My fix? I would give them one expertise and Ki abilities that lets them get the effects of the Observant feat for an hour or base Charisma skills off of Wisdom.
Now that I think about it, magical guidance (sorcerer) probably makes more sense on a monk than it does a sorcerer.
Edit: if you want to get flavorful you can change it to be more like a enhanced focus, you stand still, close your eyes, and all your senses of both self and surroundings improve. I'm sure at least one of you has seen a scene like that before: Monk closes his eyes, music dims and you can hear the faint wind, then last second they dramatically open their eyes and do some seemingly impossible task.
if I edit a message, most of the time it's because of grammar. The rest of the time I'll put "Edit:" at the bottom.
I really, really dislike that Sorcerer feature. Putting it on the Monk unaltered, it's very slightly less irritating to me personally. Imposing some thematic limitations improves it. But I think it wouldn't be a turn-failure-into-success, it would be a gain-advantage-or-a-bonus. So really it's a pretty different feature.
"Centering yourself, you can find the true path to overcoming many obstacles. By meditating for a minute (I want it to be longer than an action, but a minute seems too long; idk) you can give yourself advantage on the next ability check you make using artisan's tools, a musical instrument, or a Monk skill, with which you are proficient."
I see no strong reason to make it cost ki. This is a neat feature, kind of hard to use, but not impossible. You could make it crazier by letting it apply to a weapon attack, or crazier still by changing it from advantage to, say, a d4. (You can usually get advantage in other ways. This would stack on top of that. If you can't get advantage then it's weaker.)
Okay I think I figured out how to make these three subclasses utilize flurry of blows in a unique way; Long Death can choose deal Necrotic damage when attacking with their Unarmed Strikes, Shadow Monks would be able to bonus action unarmed strike/Flurry of Blows after casting a cantrip/minor illusion and Kensei trigger Agile Parry with their Flurry of blows.
What would you all think if they gave the core monk the Open Hand Technique from the Open Hand subclass? I think it should be the default for all monks anyway.
In return, the Open Hand monk gets a Deflect Missiles type ability, but for melee attacks against them, for the cost of one Ki? Maybe as a part of redirecting the attack they reduce damage and are able to do damage to the attacking target equal to their martial arts die or unarmed strike? So basically for the cost of one Ki, and a reaction, do some damage reduction and a counter attack
Edit: I know someone had a similar idea for this type of feature but thought it might be a good trade off for giving all monks Open hand technique.
EZD6 by DM Scotty
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397599/EZD6-Core-Rulebook?
I'm honestly way more interested in pumping up a Monk's out of combat abilities. Monks have a pretty strong connotation to harmony and balance for me, but the fact that when you build one you essentially build someone that is only
gooddecent for a life of fighting seems decidedly non-monk.Monks should be able to excel in multiple fields outside of combat instead of being the rogue's sad cousin.
My point was that various iterations of Monks could have just been designed as sub-classes of Fighter, Rogue and maybe Ranger subclasses at the beginniing of 5E. Open Hand Monks are almost Battlemaster Fighters with less armor and ASI until Level 14. Shadow Monks are basically a combo of Assassin and Arcane Tricksters, just with a different set of tricks. Drunken Master is a spell-less, version of Hunter Ranger.
How about give Monks 1 utility cantrip and 1 utility 1st Level Spell, but flavor it as a non-spell abilities?
Examples:
Pick one of the follow at level 2:
Friends (Jedi Mind trick);
Mending (years of living in frugality have taught you to make-do with improvised methods for fixing things);
Guidance (you know what to say to inspire confidence)
Spare the Dying (reflavor as a survival-level stabilization of Ki technique)
Pick one of the following at Level 5:
1st Level Spells
Sleep (for use mostly on NPCs)
Disguise Self (actually just proficiency with the Disguise kit)
Detect Magic ("it's just intuition")
Alarm (but with only the option that you are aware of the the intrusion)
Comprehend Languages (why wait until 13th level?)
Detect Poison and Disease
Command (a more powerful version of the Jedi Mind Trick)
The monk has a d8 life dice and this makes him definitely not a first line fighter and his ability to run is a clear indication. So the Monk would be compared more to a Rogue than a Warrior or Ranger, but beware the Rogue has a system of one very powerful attack and the Monk has a system of many weak attacks.
So you agree with me that the monk is a hit and run combatant like the Rogue, but being in that logic I found the first problem with the Monk.
1) Here comes the first problem, the monk runs very fast, but what if when he decides to run he takes an opportunity attack?
Unfortunately he does not have a system as easy as the Rogue to disengage from the opponent without repercussions or without having to decrease the number of attacks and the reserve of ki. So you agree with me that "Step of the Wind" is only in case you are surrounded by a large number of enemies. As a solution to this problem I would add in "Martial Arts" at level 1 the ability to push an opponent you hit by 5 feet once per turn (like the Crusher feat). This simple ability would solve the biggest problem of the monk at lower levels.
So many people complain that the monk has a lot of useless abilities. This is a problem that you must with your master. The monk shines in unexpected situations, but it's up to the master to make them happen. I have to say that few enemies would be so dumb as to attack a monk with a ranged weapon, but the master has to sacrifice some of his actions to make the monk shine. The role of the Master is to entertain the group, after all it is a game. Remember, this isn't only the Master's fault, the Monk can use his ability to run on walls and jump on enemies from above without losing hit points or even make surprise attacks by jumping from impossible places. Then it is always up to the Master to explain how the territory is, but in the end it's up to the player to know how to exploit the ability of the Monk.
2) The second problem is that the Monk's unarmed attacks do not receive weapon bonuses. This is not a serious problem since at low level the monks do a lot of damage since they are the first to be able to make more attacks, but it would not be bad if at level 8-11 the monk could acquire the ability to use the bonus of his magic weapon on his unarmed attacks too. This ability could also be added on the DC of the monk's ability.
I would also try to add more specific items for the monk. Like martial arts books that give certain powers.
Choose between Patient Defense and Step of the Wind. For the chosen features you don't need to spend 1 ki point.
Once per turn, when you hit a creature with an attack that deals bludgeoning damage, you can move it 5 feet to an unoccupied space, provided the target is no more than one size larger than you.
The damage die of your martial arts goes up by a higher die number. 1d4 -> 1d6 / 1d6 -> 1d8 / 1d8 -> 1d10 / 1d10 -> 2d6
Your unarmed attack have reach 10 feet.
You have a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls made with your unarmed strikes. The power increases as you gain monk levels. At 11th level, this increases to +2, and at 17th level, this increases to +3.
Your ki pool increases by a number equal to your wisdom modifier. These Ki points are not calculated by this feat for receiving a new book. Additionally, when you score a critical hit you regain 1 ki.
Your speed increases by 10 feet. When you make a melee attack against a creature, you don’t provoke opportunity attacks from that creature for the rest of the turn, whether you hit or not.
Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn, you can spend 1 ki point to make three unarmed strikes as a bonus action. The power increases as you gain monk levels. At 17th level, this increases to four unarmed strikes as a bonus action.
When you are wielding a monk weapon or you are unarmed and another creature hits you with a melee attack, you can use your reaction to add your proficiency bonus to your AC for that attack, potentially causing the attack to miss you.
You gain a bonus to unarmed damage rolls equal to your proficiency bonus on all the creatures you have the advantage of. Additionally, once per long rest you may change a normal hit from a unarmed attack into a critical hit.
If you are wearing Bracers of defense, now they can also be used to attack. You can adds the Bacers bonus +2 AC to unarmed attack damage.
3) When you reach higher levels the Monk unfortunately loses in his damage power. His damage power is purely based on his dexterity, his martial arts die, and the number of attacks. From 5th level the number of attacks is fixed on 3 + 1 (+ reaction). Looking at the Rogue also seems correct to me, but when I think that the Rogue only needs one critical in his turn with the possibility of choosing which attack he uses his sneak attack, I get a little anger. The Monk's critic is useless, while the Rogue critic can double the damage of his sneak attack + his weapon. Don't forget that there is the "Elven Accuracy", "Improved Critical" of the Champion Warrior, the the Warlock "Hexblade's Curse" and the "Versatile Trickster" of the Arcana Trickster. Without having to count the possibility of making magical attacks (green-flame blade) that are also multiplied by the critic. (sneak attack + weapon + magic attack) X2. Unfortunately, Monk does damage using a lot of attacks and the magic attack is only for one attack.
As it comes to damage, the 5e version has given much advantage to single but powerful attacks and for those with many attacks has given the possibility to use 3 main talents "Great Weapon Master" and "Sharpshooter". Unfortunately the monk can not use them in a practical way and above all can not afford it since it is a MAD class and receives few opportunities to increase its characteristics.
There are several ways to solve this problem:
1) add 1 or 2 more attacks when using "Flurry of Blows". (liv 11-17)
2) for each enemy you have advantage, add your proficiency bonus to the damage.
3) add a counter attack as reactions so as to add more attacks to the monk and perhaps give an additional reaction (this is like a master of martial-arts)
example:
You can use your reaction to attack a prone enemy.
You can use your reaction to attack an enemy that failed to hit you.
You can use your reaction to attack an enemy ....
4) Another problem is the monk's usefulness to the group. Thinking of the Rogue with all his skills, I get a little envious. The usefulness of a monk in a group is:
1) attack enemies in the rear such as caster and archers.
2) Stun opponents so that your group will beat them to death.
3) maybe the ability to jump off a ravine without getting hurt? It could be useful for a discovery or exploration mission.
I can say that the monk is useful during fights, but practically useless outside....
Monks are martial arts masters who develop their bodies and senses to the extreme limits. They should sense the positive energy and the negative energy around them. Poficiency in Insight. Spells like (Darkvision, Detect Evil and Good, Absorb elemnts, Longstrider, guidance, invisible mage hand...) could give an image to the monk.
The monk for me is at the base a master of martial arts and one of the subclsses that struck me most is definitely "way of the open hand". This is because it gives a good image of a master of martial arts and above all reveals a possible uniqueness in the fighting style of the monk, that is a combatant who imposes saving throws to the opponent, and not with magic, but with his martial arts causing negative conditions to his enemies. As a base we have the classic saving throw of the stun attack that touches the constitution, then we have the 3 famous techniques of the style "open hand" that impose saving throws on strength and dexterity. From my point of view the monk should not stop only at these 3 types of saving throws.
Another interesting thing about the monk is his ability to use his reaction for the skills "Deflect Missiles" and "Slow Fall". This makes us realize that a martial arts master can use his reaction more effectively and should become a quality of the monk. Unfortunately, "Deflect Missiles", "Slow Fall", " opportunity attacks" are skills that are rarely used unless the master specifically wants them. So I remind all masters that it is also your fault that people say that the monk is weak, it is also up to the master to make these poor monks shine once in a while.
From my point of view a master of martial arts should have several possibilities of reaction. More precisely, he should impose the situation to activate his reaction.
When I have to create a Monk, very often I feel almost obliged to choose the human variant race, clearly to take a feat. I recommend the "Mobile", or even better "Crusher" feat. At 5th monk level take 3 ranger levels for "Hunter mark" and "Druidic warrior" combat style for the speels "Create bonfire" and "Guidance". "Create bonfire" combined with "Crusher" feat and the open hand martial arts synnergy could have good results. (haven't tried yet).
The monk has a d8 life dice and this makes him definitely not a first line fighter and his ability to run is a clear indication. So the Monk would be compared more to a Rogue than a Warrior or Ranger, but beware the Rogue has a system of one very powerful attack and the Monk has a system of many weak attacks.
So you agree with me that the monk is a hit and run combatant like the Rogue, but being in that logic I found the first problem with the Monk.
1) Here comes the first problem, the monk runs very fast, but what if when he decides to run he takes an opportunity attack?
Unfortunately he does not have a system as easy as the Rogue to disengage from the opponent without repercussions or without having to decrease the number of attacks and the reserve of ki. So you agree with me that "Step of the Wind" is only in case you are surrounded by a large number of enemies. As a solution to this problem I would add in "Martial Arts" at level 1 the ability to push an opponent you hit by 5 feet once per turn (like the Crusher feat). This simple ability would solve the biggest problem of the monk at lower levels.
So many people complain that the monk has a lot of useless abilities. This is a problem that you must with your master. The monk shines in unexpected situations, but it's up to the master to make them happen. I have to say that few enemies would be so dumb as to attack a monk with a ranged weapon, but the master has to sacrifice some of his actions to make the monk shine. The role of the Master is to entertain the group, after all it is a game. Remember, this isn't only the Master's fault, the Monk can use his ability to run on walls and jump on enemies from above without losing hit points or even make surprise attacks by jumping from impossible places. Then it is always up to the Master to explain how the territory is, but in the end it's up to the player to know how to exploit the ability of the Monk.
2) The second problem is that the Monk's unarmed attacks do not receive weapon bonuses. This is not a serious problem since at low level the monks do a lot of damage since they are the first to be able to make more attacks, but it would not be bad if at level 8-11 the monk could acquire the ability to use the bonus of his magic weapon on his unarmed attacks too. This ability could also be added on the DC of the monk's ability.
I would also try to add more specific items for the monk. Like martial arts books that give certain powers.
3) When you reach higher levels the Monk unfortunately loses in his damage power. His damage power is purely based on his dexterity, his martial arts die, and the number of attacks. From 5th level the number of attacks is fixed on 3 + 1 (+ reaction). Looking at the Rogue also seems correct to me, but when I think that the Rogue only needs one critical in his turn with the possibility of choosing which attack he uses his sneak attack, I get a little anger. The Monk's critic is useless, while the Rogue critic can double the damage of his sneak attack + his weapon. Don't forget that there is the "Elven Accuracy", "Improved Critical" of the Champion Warrior, the the Warlock "Hexblade's Curse" and the "Versatile Trickster" of the Arcana Trickster. Without having to count the possibility of making magical attacks (green-flame blade) that are also multiplied by the critic. (sneak attack + weapon + magic attack) X2. Unfortunately, Monk does damage using a lot of attacks and the magic attack is only for one attack.
As it comes to damage, the 5e version has given much advantage to single but powerful attacks and for those with many attacks has given the possibility to use 3 main talents "Great Weapon Master" and "Sharpshooter". Unfortunately the monk can not use them in a practical way and above all can not afford it since it is a MAD class and receives few opportunities to increase its characteristics.
There are several ways to solve this problem:
1) add 1 or 2 more attacks when using "Flurry of Blows". (liv 11-17)
2) for each enemy you have advantage, add your proficiency bonus to the damage.
3) add a counter attack as reactions so as to add more attacks to the monk and perhaps give an additional reaction (this is like a master of martial-arts)
example:
You can use your reaction to attack a prone enemy.
You can use your reaction to attack an enemy that failed to hit you.
You can use your reaction to attack an enemy ....
4) Another problem is the monk's usefulness to the group. Thinking of the Rogue with all his skills, I get a little envious. The usefulness of a monk in a group is:
1) attack enemies in the rear such as caster and archers.
2) Stun opponents so that your group will beat them to death.
3) maybe the ability to jump off a ravine without getting hurt? It could be useful for a discovery or exploration mission.
I can say that the monk is useful during fights, but practically useless outside....
Monks are martial arts masters who develop their bodies and senses to the extreme limits. They should sense the positive energy and the negative energy around them. Poficiency in Insight. Spells like (Darkvision, Detect Evil and Good, Absorb elemnts, Longstrider, guidance, invisible mage hand...) could give an image to the monk.
The monk for me is at the base a master of martial arts and one of the subclsses that struck me most is definitely "way of the open hand". This is because it gives a good image of a master of martial arts and above all reveals a possible uniqueness in the fighting style of the monk, that is a combatant who imposes saving throws to the opponent, and not with magic, but with his martial arts causing negative conditions to his enemies. As a base we have the classic saving throw of the stun attack that touches the constitution, then we have the 3 famous techniques of the style "open hand" that impose saving throws on strength and dexterity. From my point of view the monk should not stop only at these 3 types of saving throws.
Another interesting thing about the monk is his ability to use his reaction for the skills "Deflect Missiles" and "Slow Fall". This makes us realize that a martial arts master can use his reaction more effectively and should become a quality of the monk. Unfortunately, "Deflect Missiles", "Slow Fall", " opportunity attacks" are skills that are rarely used unless the master specifically wants them. So I remind all masters that it is also your fault that people say that the monk is weak, it is also up to the master to make these poor monks shine once in a while.
From my point of view a master of martial arts should have several possibilities of reaction. More precisely, he should impose the situation to activate his reaction.
When I have to create a Monk, very often I feel almost obliged to choose the human variant race, clearly to take a feat. I recommend the "Mobile", or even better "Crusher" feat. At 5th monk level take 3 ranger levels for "Hunter mark" and "Druidic warrior" combat style for the speels "Create bonfire" and "Guidance". "Create bonfire" combined with "Crusher" feat and the open hand martial arts synnergy could have good results. (haven't tried yet).
1) I would add in "Martial Arts" at level 1 the ability to push an opponent you hit by 5 feet once per turn (like the Crusher feat). This simple ability would solve the biggest problem of the monk at lower levels.
2) I would also try to add more specific items for the monk. Like martial arts books that give certain powers.
3) An identity: They should sense the positive and the negative energy (ki) around them. Proficiency in Insight. Spells like (Darkvision, Detect Evil and Good, Absorb elemnts, Longstrider, Zephyr Strike, guidance, invisible mage hand...) could give an image to the monk?
4)At higher levels monk loses his advantage to the point that it becomes just player who stuns enemies so that your allies slaughter them. Even with the increased of the ki pool, this doesn't help if it can't be used effectively. One solution is to evolve " flurry of blows". For example: At 11th level the monk when using "flurry of blows" can decide to use 2 ki points to make 3 attacks and at 17th level 3 ki points to make 4 unarmed attacks as a bonus action. This is simply a proposal, by this I do not mean that the monk class is to be changed.
5)The monk for me
https://www.dndbeyond.com/subclasses/1150025-way-of-the-grand-master
Just going to double down on this. None of the other martials needed this kind of treatment, so I don't think the does monk either. Rogues, since they seem to be the best comparison here, have absolutely zero spells in their base class. Neither does any other martial. So it's certainly possible.
I mean, I can see the argument and some monk subclasses do indeed use spells like four elements and shadow, as well as the monk Empty Body, but would still prefer it be separate for the most part cause that's the way it currently is.
I had a idea for a replacement feature for the Monk "can sense all languages" feature, cause you know, nobody likes that feature. You could have it be a sort of Sense Emotion or something along those lines. Makes sense, since ki is tied to meditation and calmness, so being able to sense other peoples calmness/lack of might be vaguely similar.
if I edit a message, most of the time it's because of grammar. The rest of the time I'll put "Edit:" at the bottom.
So the arcana trickster (http://dnd5e.*******.com/rogue:arcane-trickster) and Eldritch Knight(http://dnd5e.*******.com/fighter:eldritch-knight) don't exist according to you?!
I'm trying to figure out what the monk's strengths are. The Rogue receives 4 basic skills of which 4 expertise while the monk receives only two and 0 expertise, and then it seems clear to me that I am looking for its uniqueness compared to the Rogue where it is clear that consists in its strong skills.
It's not that the monk's abilities are bad, it's that they are too specific and unless the master pushes the story so that they are used this almost never happens. Practically having them and not having them is the same thing ...
I said neither the Fighter nor Rogue needed spells to fix their main identity.
The identity of a Eldritch Knight yeah that needs spells, but I wasn't discussing that.
Edit: I specifically said "base class" as well. And I mentioned the subclasses argument in my post.
Note that "other martial" is building upon "have absolutely zero spells in their base class"
I see Arcane Trickster & Eldritch Knight as equivalent to Four Elements. Fighters & Rogues & Monks don't have spells, but EK/AT/FE do have spells. If this works for Rogue/Fighter, than you can make it work for monks.
if I edit a message, most of the time it's because of grammar. The rest of the time I'll put "Edit:" at the bottom.