You've made a mistake with kensei's 'sharpen the blade'. It specifically points out it doesn't stack with a magic weapon that already has a bonus to attack an damage.
What would be interesting, is if it stacks with a defender weapon that has had all it's bonuses reduced to count as +AC. So technically while it's adding a bonus to AC, it wouldn't have a bonus to attack or damage. A defender rapier (finesse) combined with the defensive duelist feat could add a hefty situational bonus to AC. Let's say +3 to AC, +3 for defensive duelist (based on a mid-level proficiency bonus of a character) and +2 for the kensei agile parry. You could ramp up your AC by +8. An expensive combo, but effectively. Requires more investment than a wizard simply casting shield for +5, but likely worth the effort.
This really needed to be updated on the front page. I was about to point out the same thing.
I have a beastmaster ranger build with a Pteranadon beast companion (the character is a halfling) and 4 levels of monk dip, so far.
I get a bit of use, once a combat, out of Water Whip by flying 30 feet above a creature, Water Whip it 25 feet into the air and then letting gravity take it's majestic, yet impartial course (and it falls prone anyway, unless it also has 4 levels of monk or Feather Fall - extra 'bang for buck' :) ).
In summary, Way of the Four Elements can RULE if you think it through!
I didn't realise that Invisibility could be cast by our wizard on me and my mount & using Water Whip would not end that spell (can you say 'Invisible Death from Above'?)
I could even follow up with a midair dismount and invisibly Slow Fall myself to the ground without damage & not falling prone on landing (unlike the creature I just Water Whip-ped!)
Invisibility would end when you us the water whip on them, it would be considered an attack. Still a very solid opener, especialy if there is any drops in the terrain, drag em off a balcony or something.
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"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Invisibility would end when you us the water whip on them, it would be considered an attack.
Water Whip isn't referred to as an attack and doesn't involve any attack rolls. It's not an attack.
But don't the WotFE abilities count as spells? If something directly damages an enemy there is no way it is intended to not break invisibility. I mean yeah interpret as you see fit but that just don't make no sense sir. To each their own.
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"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
The ones that let you cast spells do indeed count as spells. Water Whip, Fist of Unbroken Air and Fangs of the Fire Snake don't cast spells, yet they're not attacks either.
If something directly damages an enemy there is no way it is intended to not break invisibility.
I agree, the Invisibility spell probably isn't intended to let you damage creatures directly. It didn't let you do that in prior editions and similar effects released later like the Fade Away racial feat break if you force a target to make a saving throw. This was probably a lack of foresight combined with the fact that sometimes the devs make things that ought to be attacks into Dex saves so that the effect ignores AC.
If you want to house rule Invisibility to avoid that loophole, go for it. But it's still important to know what is or isn't an attack for the purposes of other rules as well.
The ones that let you cast spells do indeed count as spells. Water Whip, Fist of Unbroken Air and Fangs of the Fire Snake don't cast spells, yet they're not attacks either.
If something directly damages an enemy there is no way it is intended to not break invisibility.
I agree, the Invisibility spell probably isn't intended to let you damage creatures directly. It didn't let you do that in prior editions and similar effects released later like the Fade Away racial feat break if you force a target to make a saving throw. This was probably a lack of foresight combined with the fact that sometimes the devs make things that ought to be attacks into Dex saves so that the effect ignores AC.
If you want to house rule Invisibility to avoid that loophole, go for it. But it's still important to know what is or isn't an attack for the purposes of other rules as well.
*solemn nod in agreeance."
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Feats For this section I won't bore you with a review of all the feats, I'll just note down a lot of the useful ones, if its not here, assume its not worth looking at. Alert : +5 initiative to what is already going to be a good Dex mod is nice if you feel going first is important, depends on how many rounds your average combat takes. Athlete : This isn't a great feat, but if your wanting to round off an odd Dex mod its not the worst to pick if your not expecting the campaign to last to level 9. DualWielder : This is basically just a +1 AC for if your Dex is maxed. Goes to red if your DM says you can't do unarmed attacks with your feet. Healer : Lets you be a low level healer, either take it early or never. Inspiring Leader: If you have good charisma and want to burn a feat, I guess this is decent. Most people should just ignore though. Lucky : Lucky is better for you than most martial classes with the monk's focus on save or statuses. Mage Slayer : Your mobility lets you get into wizard's faces and stay there. Being able to force as many concentration checks as you are able to makes it a feat worth thinking about. Magic Initiate : This is blue for the reason of Warlock. Grabbing Hex means an extra 1d6 on each hit, cantrips are just gravy. Mobile : While Drunken Master is a great in class solution to the issues with monk, Mobile provides a way of doing so for those that don't want to use the archtype on it. Observant : As a monk you will have high wisdom, meaning you will likely have good perception. If your DM doesn't use passive perception you can safely ignore this feat. Resilient : Is your campaign going to reach level 14? If the answer is no, then its blue, otherwise it loses it's value. Ritual Caster : As a monk there aren't a lot of rituals you really need to grab, but that doesn't mean there aren't any you might be willing to grab for utility. Savage Attacker : Your fists don't count as weapons. Sentinel : Your the one darting in and out, not the enemy. Skulker : This isn't a good feat, some of you might think it is useful, but its not darkvision. Tough : For when you want to get more than putting two points into Con for health. Weapon Master : Martial weapons from this aren't monk weapons, I guess you can grab longbow.
Question1: is Defensive Duelist good for Monk? +2 ~ +6 AC as a reaction for one melee seen good. The weapon chooses maybe a little more limit.
Personally I'd say I'm not a big fan of either feat for most monks and allow me to explain why for both.
Defensive Duelist is competing with a lot of good options that probably do more for you than it can. I'll use the simplest comparison as an example, "I can now spend my reaction to gain somewhere between 2-6 AC for a single attack scaling with my level" Vs. "I can now have a +1 to everything dexterity applies to forever, such as my attack bonus, my ac, my dex saves, my initiative, and all the dex skills I'm likely constantly using". The second one also applies to Wisdom of course, as well as any other feat available. Is the option to spend your reaction comparable to extra movement speed and the free disengage from Mobile? What about the +5 to your initiative from alert as well as always giving you a turn during an ambush situation? Free attacks on enemy casters and bonuses to your saves? This is sort of the issue with how a lot of these feats have basically no requirements and so are all directly competing with each other for your very limited amount of feats.
Charger ends up suffering worse than Defensive Duelist though and even worse for monks than I think it is for other martials who might make use of it. You don't get a way to spend an action you are unlikely using often, but instead simply buff an action option you often don't really use as a monk. This obviously depends on the campaign and the DM's style of combat but for me a lot of combats tend to either start with enemies within your buffed movement range or far enough away where you might not be able to dash up to them in a single turn anyway. You only get the bonus if you actually dash and use the special bonus action and the damage isn't too bad (basically equivalent to an extra 1d8 of damage), but you can also always just spend a ki for a bonus action dash and then make two attacks with your main action instead which likely averages to more damage and better consistency in actually landing the hit.
A follow-up question: If I have Mobile, Mage Slayer, Duel Wielder and Observant already, is it worth getting the Defensive Duelist? The Observant would give my elf monk a total +12 bouns in the Perception check, so I don't think the surprise attack will likely happen to our group. The only opportunity cost is +5 initiative Alert in this case.
If you were to already have that many feats, I would say taking a stat bonus to a general increase is better. Having both Wisdom and Dexterity be as valuable as they are means you want to take those to 20 before you would take Defensive Duelist in a white room scenario. If the dm is mostly just throwing only a big attack or two your way rather than a lot of them that reaction +6 AC (Which it would likely be with all those feats) is decently worthwhile.
Why is a hill dwarf better than a flying SCAG tiefling?
This really needed to be updated on the front page. I was about to point out the same thing.
You cant choose Glaive or Greatsword with Kensei monk. They need to LACK the heavy property....wand both of those have it
I have a beastmaster ranger build with a Pteranadon beast companion (the character is a halfling) and 4 levels of monk dip, so far.
I get a bit of use, once a combat, out of Water Whip by flying 30 feet above a creature, Water Whip it 25 feet into the air and then letting gravity take it's majestic, yet impartial course (and it falls prone anyway, unless it also has 4 levels of monk or Feather Fall - extra 'bang for buck' :) ).
In summary, Way of the Four Elements can RULE if you think it through!
I didn't realise that Invisibility could be cast by our wizard on me and my mount & using Water Whip would not end that spell (can you say 'Invisible Death from Above'?)
I could even follow up with a midair dismount and invisibly Slow Fall myself to the ground without damage & not falling prone on landing (unlike the creature I just Water Whip-ped!)
Invisibility would end when you us the water whip on them, it would be considered an attack. Still a very solid opener, especialy if there is any drops in the terrain, drag em off a balcony or something.
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
Water Whip isn't referred to as an attack and doesn't involve any attack rolls. It's not an attack.
But don't the WotFE abilities count as spells? If something directly damages an enemy there is no way it is intended to not break invisibility. I mean yeah interpret as you see fit but that just don't make no sense sir. To each their own.
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
The ones that let you cast spells do indeed count as spells. Water Whip, Fist of Unbroken Air and Fangs of the Fire Snake don't cast spells, yet they're not attacks either.
I agree, the Invisibility spell probably isn't intended to let you damage creatures directly. It didn't let you do that in prior editions and similar effects released later like the Fade Away racial feat break if you force a target to make a saving throw. This was probably a lack of foresight combined with the fact that sometimes the devs make things that ought to be attacks into Dex saves so that the effect ignores AC.
If you want to house rule Invisibility to avoid that loophole, go for it. But it's still important to know what is or isn't an attack for the purposes of other rules as well.
*solemn nod in agreeance."
"Where words fail, swords prevail. Where blood is spilled, my cup is filled" -Cartaphilus
"I have found the answer to the meaning of life. You ask me what the answer is? You already know what the answer to life is. You fear it more than the strike of a viper, the ravages of disease, the ire of a lover. The answer is always death. But death is a gentle mistress with a sweet embrace, and you owe her a debt of restitution. Life is not a gift, it is a loan."
although it would be really cool.
Question1: is Defensive Duelist good for Monk? +2 ~ +6 AC as a reaction for one melee seen good. The weapon chooses maybe a little more limit.
Question2: is Charger good for Monk?
Personally I'd say I'm not a big fan of either feat for most monks and allow me to explain why for both.
Defensive Duelist is competing with a lot of good options that probably do more for you than it can. I'll use the simplest comparison as an example, "I can now spend my reaction to gain somewhere between 2-6 AC for a single attack scaling with my level" Vs. "I can now have a +1 to everything dexterity applies to forever, such as my attack bonus, my ac, my dex saves, my initiative, and all the dex skills I'm likely constantly using". The second one also applies to Wisdom of course, as well as any other feat available. Is the option to spend your reaction comparable to extra movement speed and the free disengage from Mobile? What about the +5 to your initiative from alert as well as always giving you a turn during an ambush situation? Free attacks on enemy casters and bonuses to your saves? This is sort of the issue with how a lot of these feats have basically no requirements and so are all directly competing with each other for your very limited amount of feats.
Charger ends up suffering worse than Defensive Duelist though and even worse for monks than I think it is for other martials who might make use of it. You don't get a way to spend an action you are unlikely using often, but instead simply buff an action option you often don't really use as a monk. This obviously depends on the campaign and the DM's style of combat but for me a lot of combats tend to either start with enemies within your buffed movement range or far enough away where you might not be able to dash up to them in a single turn anyway. You only get the bonus if you actually dash and use the special bonus action and the damage isn't too bad (basically equivalent to an extra 1d8 of damage), but you can also always just spend a ki for a bonus action dash and then make two attacks with your main action instead which likely averages to more damage and better consistency in actually landing the hit.
Thanks for the answer.
A follow-up question: If I have Mobile, Mage Slayer, Duel Wielder and Observant already, is it worth getting the Defensive Duelist? The Observant would give my elf monk a total +12 bouns in the Perception check, so I don't think the surprise attack will likely happen to our group. The only opportunity cost is +5 initiative Alert in this case.
If you were to already have that many feats, I would say taking a stat bonus to a general increase is better. Having both Wisdom and Dexterity be as valuable as they are means you want to take those to 20 before you would take Defensive Duelist in a white room scenario. If the dm is mostly just throwing only a big attack or two your way rather than a lot of them that reaction +6 AC (Which it would likely be with all those feats) is decently worthwhile.
Nice but by now outdated. Would be cool to see an updated guide with all the new optional abilities, subclasses & feats.