Comprehensive Monk Guide
About the Guide
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Last Upate: 2/10/2018
Race and Stat Considerations
| Race | Strength | Constitution | Dexterity | Agility | Discipline | Aura | Logic | Intuition | Wisdom | Influence | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aelotoi | -5 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | -5 | +20 |
| Burghal gnome | -15 | 10 | 10 | 10 | -5 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 0 | -5 | +25 |
| Dark elf | 0 | -5 | 10 | 5 | -10 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 5 | -5 | +15 |
| Dwarf | 10 | 15 | 0 | -5 | 10 | -10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -10 | +15 |
| Elf | 0 | 0 | 5 | 15 | -15 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | +20 |
| Erithian | -5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 10 | +25 |
| Forest gnome | -10 | 10 | 5 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | -5 | +25 |
| Giantman | 15 | 10 | -5 | -5 | 0 | -5 | -5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | +10 |
| Half elf | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | -5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | +15 |
| Half krolvin | 10 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -10 | 0 | -5 | -5 | +5 |
| Halfling | -15 | 10 | 15 | 10 | -5 | -5 | 5 | 10 | 0 | -5 | +20 |
| Human | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | +15 |
| Sylvankind | 0 | 0 | 10 | 5 | -5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +15 |
What the UAF
Most monks are going to make use of Unarmed Combat (UAC). There are two factors that determine success with a UAC attack, Unarmed Factor (UAF) and Multiplier Modifier (MM). A monk's stats, specifically Strength and Agility, only have an impact on UAF. The UAF formula makes use of truncated STR bonus / 2 and truncated AGI bonus / 2. With that in mind the races provide the following total UAF increase, in descending order:
| Race | STR Mod | AGI Mod | UAF Mod |
|---|---|---|---|
| Half-Krolvin | +10 | +5 | +7 |
| Elf | 0 | +15 | +7 |
| Giantman | +15 | -5 | +5 |
| Half-Elf | 0 | +10 | +5 |
| Dwarf | +10 | -5 | +3 |
| Aelotoi | -5 | +10 | +3 |
| Human | +5 | 0 | +2 |
| Dark Elf | 0 | +5 | +2 |
| Sylvan | 0 | +5 | +2 |
| Forest Gnome | -10 | +10 | 0 |
| Erithian | -5 | 0 | -2 |
| Halfling | -15 | +10 | -2 |
| Burghal Gnome | -14 | +10 | -2 |
AgiDex
While a majority of monks make use of UAC, others have found a build utilizing Two-Handed Weapons or Polearms quite viable. For those builds one important factor is AgiDex, or the sum of the bonuses of a character's Dexterity and Agility. This combined total helps reduce the Roundtime of a physical attack by a specified amount:
| Agility + Dexterity |
Roundtime reduction |
|---|---|
| 8 - 22 | 1 |
| 23 - 37 | 2 |
| 38 - 52 | 3 |
| 53 - 67 | 4 |
| 68 - 82 | 5 |
| 83 - 97 | 6 |
| 98 - 112 | 7 |
| 113+ | 8 |
| Roundtime reductions above 5 are not achievable without enhancive items. | |
Pairing that table with the stat table above we can break it down to see each races theoretical maximum AgiDex, before enhancives:
| 5 RT Reduction | 4 RT Reduction | 3 RT Reduction |
|---|---|---|
| Halfling | Aelotoi | Erithian |
| Burghal gnome | Dark elf | Human |
| Elf | Forest gnome | Dwarf |
| Half-elf | Giantman | |
| Sylvankind | ||
| Half-Krolvin |
This is important because weapons have a minimum RT, and a base RT. By taking the base RT and subtracting the AgiDex bonus we can find the unencumbered swing RT.
Strength
Strength bonus adds directly to melee AS. Any weapon using monk is going to want a decent Strength stat and will want to pair that with a decent AgiDex possibility. The table below shows the Strength stats of races compared to their AgiDex capability:
| 5 RT Reduction | STR Mod | 4 RT Reduction | STR Mod | 3 RT Reduction | STR Mod | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halfling | -15 | Aelotoi | -5 | Erithian | -5 | ||
| Burghal gnome | -15 | Dark elf | 0 | Human | 5 | ||
| Elf | 0 | Forest gnome | -10 | Dwarf | 10 | ||
| Half-elf | 0 | Giantman | 15 | ||||
| Sylvankind | 0 | ||||||
| Half-krolvin | 10 |
Other Racial Factors
Bear in mind that there are many other mechanical factors to consider when selecting a race. Not to mention all the role playing decisions. The weaker races, such as halflings and gnomes, tend to have much better maneuver defense than bigger, stronger races. As a trade off they also tend to have terrible encumbrance, while bigger races are able to carry quite a bit more. Elven races have bonuses to resisting disease and a small one to poison, but are slightly weaker against warding spells. Dwarves are less resistant to disease but also resistant to poison and have a bonus to warding off elemental magic, a major monk weakness. Halflings are slightly more resistant to poison, disease, and elemental magic than dwarves. Half-krolvin have natural heavy crit padding against cold attacks and suffer less from cold weather effects.
The races of Elanthia all have their pros and cons. They are well balanced and any one could make an excellent monk. Take into account the full picture, including mechanics and their cultural backgrounds, before you decide on a race for yours. Then you can likely pick a Half-Krolvin for that sweet UAF boost!
Skills
Physical Skills
- Armor Use Monks do not wear armor.
- Shield Use Monks do not use shields.
- Brawling Raises UAF.
- Weapon Use Raises AS with a particular Weapon.
- Two Weapon Combat Allows the monk to parry with both hands for extra DS.
- Combat Maneuvers +.5 UAF and Melee AS per rank and access to combat maneuvers.
- Multi-Opponent Combat Reduces penalties from force-on-force and allows for mstrike.
- Ambush Assists in aiming physical attacks.
- Physical Fitness HP growth, Stamina, Maneuver defense
- Dodge Generates evasion DS, a monk's primary defense.
Magical Skills
- Arcane Symbols Allows the use of and improves durations from scrolls.
- Magic Item Use Allows the use of and improves the durations from magic items.
- Harness Power 3 mana per training up to your level, 1 per after that.
- Spell Aiming Weapon training for bolts, which monks also do not use.
- Mana Control Allows the sharing of mana and improves your own mana regen. As the mental/spirit square monks have somewhat cheaper access to those two.
- Spell Research Learn spells and make those you already know better.
- Lores Incremental improvements to specific spells related to that lore.
General Overview of Minor Mental Spells
Monks are the most magical square. That means they do not really have their own spell list but are expected to train in spells. Fortunately no one else is really using the Minor Mental list right now.
Buffing Spells
- Iron Skin (1202) Makes the caster's skin like armor. Monks gain a bonus to the AsG provided based on their monk levels.
- Foresight (1204) Generic DS bonus.
- Mindward (1208) Mental TD bonus.
- Dragonclaw (1209) UAF bonus and able to hit magical creatures with UAC.
- Brace (1214) Ability to PARRY physical attacks with bare hands.
- Premonition (1220) Generic scaling DS bonus.
Group Focus Spells
Focus spells provide a bonus with no set duration to the monk's group but each monk many only run one focus spell at a time.
- [[Mind Over Body (1213) Reduces stamina costs of abilities.
- [[Focus Barrier (1216) Large group DS boost.
Attack Spells
The minor mental list has several attack spells but only a few of them apply to a monk.
- Powersink (1203) Increases the time it takes for a target to prepare a spell.
- Force Projection (1207) Attempt to knock down a single target and inflict RT.
- Mental Dispel Dispel a single spell from target.
- Vertigo (1219) Warding spell that causes RT and knockdowns.
Miscellaneous Spells
- Soothing Word (1205) Removes negative emotion effects from a target (i.e. rage, fear, calm)
- Provoke (1235) Increase the spawn rate of creatures in an area.
Lores
Even though monks are a square they do get some benefits from lores. The primary benefits to a monk are found in Mental lores, specifically Mental Lore, Transformation or Mental Lore, Telepathy. While other spiritual and mental lores provide some benefit they are not generally worth spending points on.
Transformation lore provides the following benefits:
- Iron Skin (1202) Increases the AsG of Iron Skin by 1 every 5 * Seed 1 summation ranks.
- Dragonclaw (1209) Increases the UAF bonus by a Seed 1 summation.
- Brace (1214) Increases the chance to disarm an attacker by 2% per Seed 3 summation.
Telepathy lore provides the following benefits:
- Soothing Word (1205) 25 ranks grants the ability to remove sheer fear from a target and provide immunity to it for 30 seconds.
- Confusion (1211) Improves the chances for the target to perform a more favorable action every 20 skill.
- Mind Over Body (1213) Increase the stamina cost reduction by 5% per skill/10 on a Seed 3 summation.
- Provoke (1235) Increases the generation rate for sentient creatures in the area by 1 per 15 ranks.
Training
This is broken down into Core Training, and Discrete Training.
- Core training includes skills you train in a certain amount each level for that build.
- Discrete Training includes skills that you want to hit a breakpoint on.
Common Core Training
Core training for ANY bard:
- 2x Dodging (3/3)
- 2x Physical Fitness (6/0)
- 2x Combat Maneuvers (15/9)
- 1x Perception (0/2)
Total: (10/30)
Common Discrete Training
Unarmed Monk
For the most part, when it comes to monks, everybody is kung-fu fighting. All the cool kids are, in fact, as fast as lightning, due to Burst of Swiftness. In all seriousness the release a monks prompted a whole new combat system to be created and they are designed to take advantage of it. While it could be argued that rogues are the best UAC users, monks make a pretty strong case.
Unarmed Monk Core Training
| # | Cost | Skill |
| 2x | 3/3 | Dodging |
| 2x | 6/0 | Physical Fitness |
| 2x | 15/9 | Combat Maneuvers |
| 2x | 6/3 | Brawling |
| 1x | 0/2 | Perception |
| .5x | 1/1 | Two Weapon Combat |
| .33x | 0/2 | Harness Power |
| 31/20 | Total |
Unarmed Monk Discreet Training
| # Ranks | Cost | Skill | Notes |
| 56 | Spell Research | To learn 120 and 1235, plus one rank to gain some extra points of TD and DS from spells. | |
| 50 | 2/0 | Climbing | By level 100, train this as needed to make climb checks prior to that. |
| 50 | 2/0 | Swimming | By level 100, train this as needed to make swim checks prior to that. |
Optional Additional Training
A list of the most common skills to use your additional training points on.
| # | Cost | Skill | Notes |
| 3x | 4/4 | Dodging | Monks gain roughly .75 offensive DS per dodge rank, making the difference between 2x and 3x at cap an amazing 75 DS. This is a huge buff to survivability. |
| 55 ranks | 5/2 | Multi Opponent Combat | UAC mstrike is impressive and gains the benefit of an extra free jab on fresh targets. |
| 30 ranks | 3/2 | Ambush | Useful, especially at higher levels, to target attacks at critical spots once the critter is tiered up. |
| 5-75 ranks | 0/12 | Mental Lore, Transformation | Increases the AsG of Iron Skin (1202) at 5, 15, 30, 50, and 75 ranks. |
| 6-30 Ranks | 0/12 | Mental Lore, Telepathy | Increases the stamina reduction of Mind Over Body (1213) by 5% each at 6, 15, and 30 ranks. |
| 25 ranks | 0/8 | Mental Mana Control | Share with other mental casters, gain a use of MANA SPELLUP. |
| 25 ranks | 0/8 | Spiritual Mana Control | Share with other mental casters, gain a use of MANA SPELLUP. |
| 0/6 | Arcane Symbols | For scroll reading. | |
| 0/7 | Magic Item Use | For magic items. |
Spell Training
Monk spell training is best done in bursts. It can be good to pick up multiple ranks of spells, even at the cost of letting core skills slide a bit, to reach a specific spell.
- Minor Mental to 1220 and Minor Spiritual to 103 - By early 30s
- Minor Spiritual to 120 - By 60s
- Minor Mental to 1235 - By cap
Combat Maneuvers
As a square, monks have access to a large variety of combat maneuvers. There are more useful maneuvers than any monk will ever have the points to train in. There is one monk only maneuver that stands above everything else and should typically be the first taken by any monk. That maneuver is Perfect Self, which provides +2 per rank to every single stat, up to +10 total. Unfortunately, this maneuver requires 3 ranks in both Surge of Strength and Burst of Swiftness as prerequisites. They are both good maneuvers on their own right and the benefits of Perfect Self would make them worth it even if they were not.
Perfect Self cannot be maximized before level 30, due to the cap on points for a single skill per level. A monk that is 2x in combat maneuvers will find that there are more CM points available than can be spent on Perfect Self and its prerequisites. Those points are best spent in a few key areas, as are the next few after maximizing Perfect Self.
The other "must have" maneuvers for an unarmed monk are:
- Punch Mastery/Grapple Mastery/Kick Mastery: These skills increase the monk's MM with the requisite skill by 5 per rank over 3 ranks. As the unarmed monk's primary attacks one or all of these should be trained.
- Combat Mobility: This simple, two rank maneuver will provide a 50/100% chance to stand up automatically when attacked while not stunned but knocked over.
- Evade Mastery: Improves the chance to outright dodge an attack for someone wearing robes by 9% per rank, up to 27% total.
- Rolling Krynch Stance: Allows the monk to carry over their attack tier from one foe to another if done in quick succession.
From there it is personal preference but other greats include:
- Combat Focus: A generic +2 TD per rank to help cover a monk's greatest weakness
- Ki Focus: Gives a 33/66/100% chance to automatically tier up on the next UAC attack used.
- Inner Harmony: Shake off negative status effects every 30 seconds, rank 3 should be the goal to immediately remove a status upon switching into this stance from Krynch.
- Feint: Make something flinch to open them up to a bigger attack.
For those that do not want to think about it:
- Surge of Strength - 3 ranks (12 points)
- Burst of Swiftness - 3 ranks (12 points)
- Perfect Self - 5 Ranks (30 points)
- Punch Mastery - 3 Ranks (24 points)
- Kick Mastery - 3 Ranks (24 points)
- Grapple Mastery - 3 Ranks (24 points)
- Rolling Krynch Stance - 3 Ranks (24 points)
- Combat Mobility - 1 Rank (5 points)
- Evade Mastery - 3 Ranks (24 points)
- Combat Focus - 4 Ranks (20 points)
- Feint - 1 Rank (2 points)
- Total Points - 201