Currently going not-munchkin defense oriented monk.
Start with Yuan-ti Pureblood, 8/16/13/12/16/11 Kensai 5, War Mage 2 and then if there's no better options, probably to Kensal 8, War Mage 5. and have 7 levels of tier 3-4 to get pounded on by the DM.
Excluding the obvious magical item like Cloak of Displacement, Bracers of Defense, etc... What are some other ways to get a increase in AC that this build can go for? Bladesinger is out , +def from the Bladesinger is going to top out at +2 anyway and I don't see much of an advantage also losing the +4 to saving throws for the other minimal gains from that subclass. Is there anything I've missed explicitly that can help improve this build's AC or saving throws?
ASIs to DEX then WIS, then over to feats, with Resilient Con being the first choice.
I do want to avoid rubegoldberg -esque setups and stuff that takes multiple turns to get going. So none of that 'my party casts x on me, stuffs me in a y, and now im invincible to z' type gimmicks.
1 level of Peace Cleric will grant you quite a lot of extra tankiness. You get Shield of Faith for +2 AC and Emboldening Bond for better saves.
Sadly, Shield of Faith and Haste share concentration, and of the two, Haste is the better option by a mile. Emboldening Bond is ok-ish, but does require an action. And I do like using my action to run up and punch things... IF I did splash 1 level of Cleric, it would probably be Twilight, because I am a sucker for Advantage on my Initiative. Light cleric with Warding Flare is another option. But still steps into that overcrowded Reaction Space. I do live my level 1 cleric splashes, because Guidance is the bees knees, and ritual Detect Magic, is great. Augury and level 2 often gets some extra bonuses. But otherwise I don't think Cleric really does much for me that I couldn't already get with continuing down the Wizard path.
The Tough feat might be an even better investment than Resilient Con. It is a +2 per level, and Resilient Con will get you at best +1 and Con save proficiency. And Monks get proficiency in every saving throw at level 14, so Tough is a much better feat than Resilient Con for a Monk. Now, if you take Tough and still have an odd Con score at your next ASI/Feat, you can always take Crusher to get a +1 to Con and some CC.
I'm not sure I'll be able to get to level 14 in Monk. And in no situation that I can think of does an extra few HP beat getting half that HP + con prof if I dont go to level 14 in monk, expecially if i want to try and keep Haste up when (if) something hits me.
1 level of Peace Cleric will grant you quite a lot of extra tankiness. You get Shield of Faith for +2 AC and Emboldening Bond for better saves.
Sadly, Shield of Faith and Haste share concentration, and of the two, Haste is the better option by a mile. Emboldening Bond is ok-ish, but does require an action. And I do like using my action to run up and punch things... IF I did splash 1 level of Cleric, it would probably be Twilight, because I am a sucker for Advantage on my Initiative. Light cleric with Warding Flare is another option. But still steps into that overcrowded Reaction Space. I do live my level 1 cleric splashes, because Guidance is the bees knees, and ritual Detect Magic, is great. Augury and level 2 often gets some extra bonuses. But otherwise I don't think Cleric really does much for me that I couldn't already get with continuing down the Wizard path.
The Tough feat might be an even better investment than Resilient Con. It is a +2 per level, and Resilient Con will get you at best +1 and Con save proficiency. And Monks get proficiency in every saving throw at level 14, so Tough is a much better feat than Resilient Con for a Monk. Now, if you take Tough and still have an odd Con score at your next ASI/Feat, you can always take Crusher to get a +1 to Con and some CC.
I'm not sure I'll be able to get to level 14 in Monk. And in no situation that I can think of does an extra few HP beat getting half that HP + con prof if I dont go to level 14 in monk, expecially if i want to try and keep Haste up when (if) something hits me.
Your original post didn't mention Haste, so that's good to know. You would be better off with Resilient Con, in that case. If you are going wizard have you considered Abjuration for the ward? I guess that depends on how far you want to take Wizard.
1 level of Peace Cleric will grant you quite a lot of extra tankiness. You get Shield of Faith for +2 AC and Emboldening Bond for better saves.
Sadly, Shield of Faith and Haste share concentration, and of the two, Haste is the better option by a mile. Emboldening Bond is ok-ish, but does require an action. And I do like using my action to run up and punch things... IF I did splash 1 level of Cleric, it would probably be Twilight, because I am a sucker for Advantage on my Initiative. Light cleric with Warding Flare is another option. But still steps into that overcrowded Reaction Space. I do live my level 1 cleric splashes, because Guidance is the bees knees, and ritual Detect Magic, is great. Augury and level 2 often gets some extra bonuses. But otherwise I don't think Cleric really does much for me that I couldn't already get with continuing down the Wizard path.
The Tough feat might be an even better investment than Resilient Con. It is a +2 per level, and Resilient Con will get you at best +1 and Con save proficiency. And Monks get proficiency in every saving throw at level 14, so Tough is a much better feat than Resilient Con for a Monk. Now, if you take Tough and still have an odd Con score at your next ASI/Feat, you can always take Crusher to get a +1 to Con and some CC.
I'm not sure I'll be able to get to level 14 in Monk. And in no situation that I can think of does an extra few HP beat getting half that HP + con prof if I dont go to level 14 in monk, expecially if i want to try and keep Haste up when (if) something hits me.
Your original post didn't mention Haste, so that's good to know. You would be better off with Resilient Con, in that case. If you are going wizard have you considered Abjuration for the ward? I guess that depends on how far you want to take Wizard.
That has a lot of drawbacks compared to the flat ac bonus from war wizard's reaction.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
2014 5E mostly
3.5 maybe.
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Currently going not-munchkin defense oriented monk.
Start with Yuan-ti Pureblood, 8/16/13/12/16/11 Kensai 5, War Mage 2 and then if there's no better options, probably to Kensal 8, War Mage 5. and have 7 levels of tier 3-4 to get pounded on by the DM.
Excluding the obvious magical item like Cloak of Displacement, Bracers of Defense, etc... What are some other ways to get a increase in AC that this build can go for? Bladesinger is out , +def from the Bladesinger is going to top out at +2 anyway and I don't see much of an advantage also losing the +4 to saving throws for the other minimal gains from that subclass. Is there anything I've missed explicitly that can help improve this build's AC or saving throws?
ASIs to DEX then WIS, then over to feats, with Resilient Con being the first choice.
I do want to avoid rubegoldberg -esque setups and stuff that takes multiple turns to get going. So none of that 'my party casts x on me, stuffs me in a y, and now im invincible to z' type gimmicks.
2014 5E mostly
3.5 maybe.
1 level of Peace Cleric will grant you quite a lot of extra tankiness. You get Shield of Faith for +2 AC and Emboldening Bond for better saves.
Sadly, Shield of Faith and Haste share concentration, and of the two, Haste is the better option by a mile. Emboldening Bond is ok-ish, but does require an action. And I do like using my action to run up and punch things... IF I did splash 1 level of Cleric, it would probably be Twilight, because I am a sucker for Advantage on my Initiative. Light cleric with Warding Flare is another option. But still steps into that overcrowded Reaction Space. I do live my level 1 cleric splashes, because Guidance is the bees knees, and ritual Detect Magic, is great. Augury and level 2 often gets some extra bonuses. But otherwise I don't think Cleric really does much for me that I couldn't already get with continuing down the Wizard path.
I'm not sure I'll be able to get to level 14 in Monk. And in no situation that I can think of does an extra few HP beat getting half that HP + con prof if I dont go to level 14 in monk, expecially if i want to try and keep Haste up when (if) something hits me.
2014 5E mostly
3.5 maybe.
Your original post didn't mention Haste, so that's good to know. You would be better off with Resilient Con, in that case. If you are going wizard have you considered Abjuration for the ward? I guess that depends on how far you want to take Wizard.
EZD6 by DM Scotty
https://www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/397599/EZD6-Core-Rulebook?
That has a lot of drawbacks compared to the flat ac bonus from war wizard's reaction.
2014 5E mostly
3.5 maybe.