He's got a lot to kick about!
by Philip Meyers
| Special abilities | Note on quasi-psionic monk abilities | Other suggested changes | Upper-level advancement options | Rationale for rule changes |
| Dragon | The monk | - | Best of Dragon, Vol. III | Dragon 53 |
Of all the character classes in the
AD&D™
game, the class of monks is the
most difficult to qualify for. A monk must
have exceptional strength, wisdom, and
dexterity, and — if he or she wishes to
survive for very long — constitution.
The odds of rolling up such a character,
even using the various “cheating methods” listed in the Dungeon Masters
Guide, are not favorable. Given
this, one <Method V guaranetees entrance into any class>
would expect a monk to be a powerful
character indeed. At first glance this
would appear to be true. The Grand Master
of Flowers can reasonably claim to be
the most powerful fighter around, able
to
inflict 128 points of damage in a single
round. This superiority, however, is more
theoretical than real. In actual practice,
the monk is the weakest of the character
classes, not the strongest.
1. SUBCLASS = n/a
2. SOCIAL CLASS MINIMUM = <not noted,
but I would guess LLC>
3. ABILITY SCORE MINIMUMS
STRENGTH = 15
INTELLIGENCE = 6
WISDOM = 15
DEXTERITY = 15
CONSTITUTION = 11
CHARISMA = 6
COMELINESS = 3
4. POSSIBLE RACES & MAX. LEVEL ATTAINABLE
= human, 21
5. MULTI-CLASS POSSIBILITIES = none
6. HIT DIE TYPE = d6
7. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF HIT DICE = 22
8. SPELL ABILITY = none
9. ARMOR PERMITTED = none
10. SHIELD PERMITTED = no
11. WEAPONS PERMITTED = aklys, atlatl,
axe (hand), bo stick, caltrop, club, crossbow (any), dagger, garrot, javelin,
jo stick, knife, lasso, pole arm (any), sap, spear, staff, sword (falchion)
12. OIL PERMITTED = no
13. POISON PERMITTED = DM's option
14. ALIGNMENT = any Lawful
15. STARTING MONEY = 5-20
gp (5d4)
16. WEAPON PROFICIENCIES = 1, 1/2 levels
17. NON-PROFICIENCY PENALTY = -3
18. NON-WEAPON PROFICIENCIES
= 1, 1/2 levels
19. STARTING AGE = 21 + 1d4
20. COMBAT = C
21. SAVING THROWS = T
22. MAGIC ITEMS = See
below.
The sources of a monk’s weakness are
many. First, monks are severely handicapped
in AC. The Novice starts
at AC 10, is denied the use of any armor,
and receives no armor class adjustment
for dexterity. This situation fails to
improve for a long time — at 5th level the
hapless monk is a mighty AC 7.
As for HP, the average 1st-level
monk with a 16 constitution has 9 hit
points. The extra hit die at 1st level
is not
enough to allow the monk to keep up
with clerics, fighters, or even thieves,
for
very long. At 5th level the monk with a
16
constitution has an average 25 hit points,
where the cleric has 32½, the fighter
37½,
and the thief 27½. (No one should
play a
monk with a constitution of less than 16;
the figures will humiliate. the monk.)
The multiple attacks with open hands
that are supposed to be the monk’s forte
are still negligible at 5th level, becoming
appreciable only at 6th level, where the
monk receives 3 attacks every 2 rounds.
Fighters are, however, quick to catch up;
at 7th level they also acquire this ability.
The spell-like powers of monks are
laughable when compared to the spell
abilities of clerics or magic-users. Just
as the 6th-level magic-user is acquiring
a
second Fireball
with which to destroy
the enemy, the 6th-level monk is learning
to feign death.
The ability to stun or kill an opponent
is next to worthless at low and middle
levels because the monk’s chance of doing
it is so small, and because the monk’s
awful armor class and hit points prevent
the character from spending too much
time in melee. Also, monks advance
more slowly in level than any other character
class at middle and upper levels.
Practical experience with monk characters
reinforces the conclusion. In this
author’s experience, there seem to be
two ways for a monk character to survive
to reach upper levels. The first is for
the
monk to acquire a powerful magic item
that offsets one or more of the monk’s
weaknesses, like a Ring
of Regeneration, Bracers of
Defense AC 2,or a Cloak
of
Displacement. The other way is for the
monk to cower at the back of the party,
avoiding combat wherever possible. This
means the monk is generally useless
and, aside from opening a few locked
doors now and then, does nothing besides
siphon off XP from
more deserving characters. Neither of
these situations is wholly satisfactory.
Of course, one can always argue that,
once the monk finally does make it to the
upper levels, the long wait was worth it.
An 8th-level monk is just about competitive
with 8th-level characters in the other
classes, and is clearly superior to an
8thlevel thief, or even a 9th-level thief.
However, it is by no means certain that
the monk character will ever get to 8th
level, even should he or she honestly
earn the 200,001 experience points required.
This is due to the requirement
that a monk of this level or higher must
fight and defeat the present title holder
in order to advance in level. Thus, every
time the PC monk attempts
to advance in level beyond the 7th, the
character must ran a basic 50% chance
of losing and failing to achieve the level.
Worse still, the price of defeat is a full
level’s worth of XP, just as
if the monk had been energy-drained. A
wealthy fighter who has been struck by
a
wight can
pay a large sum for a Restoration spell.
The defeated monk has no
such option. In effect, this limits the
monk to 7th level, or at best means that
the monk will ultimately need 2 or 3 times
as many XP as listed,
since the luck of the die will invariably
cause the monk to be defeated a number
of times. Worst of all, the monk may have
to stand off challenges by NPC monks,
and who can say how many Superior
Masters will be out looking for the character
who finally makes it to Master of
Dragons?
In essence, then, the monk is a useless
character at lower and middle levels, and
is extremely difficult to maintain at upper
levels. The player with visions of Bruce
Lee or David Carradine dancing in his or
her head is in for a big letdown when
such a player tries to run a monk
character.
The idea of a character class of martial
artists is undeniably a good one, and
monks deserve a place in the AD&D
system. But how, then, can monks be made
competitive and (if possible) more interesting?
It is possible to cure the defects in the
present system without changing the nature
of monks at all, as the following
suggested system demonstrates.
First, in place of Tables
I and II on page
31 of the Players Handbook, use
the revised tables given herein.
MONKS TABLE I: EXPERIENCE POINTS AND LEVELS
MONKS TABLE II: MONKS ABILITY TABLE
| Level | Effective Armor Class | Move | Open hand attacks/round | Open hand damage | Special abilities |
| 1 | 6 | 15" | 1 | 1-4 | A |
| 2 | 5 | 15" | 1 | 1-6 | B |
| 3 | 4 | 16" | 1 | 2-7 | C |
| 4 | 3 | 16" | 3/2 | 2-7 | D |
| 5 | 3 | 17" | 3/2 | 2-8 | E |
| 6 | 2 | 17" | 3/2 | 3-9 | F |
| 7 | 2 | 18" | 2 | 3-9 | G |
| 8 | 1 | 18" | 2 | 2-12 | H |
| 9 | 1 | 19" | 2 | 3-12 | I |
| 10 | 0 | 20" | 5/2 | 3-12 | J |
| 11 | 0 | 20" | 5/2 | 4-13 | K |
| 12 | -1 | 21" | 5/2 | 4-16 | L |
| 13 | -1 | 22" | 3 | 4-16 | M |
| 14 | -2 | 23" | 3 | 5-17 | N |
| 15 | -2 | 24" | 3 | 5-20 | O |
| 16 | -3 | 25" | 3 | 4-24 | P |
| 17 | -3 | 26" | 4 | 4-24 | Q |
| 18 | -4 | 27" | 4 | 6-24 | R |
| 19 | -4 | 28" | 4 | 5-30 | S |
| 20 | -5 | 29" | 4 | 8-32 | T |
| 21 | -5 | 30" | 4 | 6-36 | U |
Special abilities
A: The ability to feign
death, as the
present monk ability D:
B: The mind-masking ability (resistance to ESP), as present monk ability B.
C: The Speak
with Animals ability,
present monk ability A.
D: The self-healing ability (present
monk ability E); plus immunity to disease
(present ability C), also including
immunity to Haste
and Slow spells.
E: Body
Equilibrium, as the psionic
ability, except that it can be used but
once per day, for 1 round per level of
the
monk. Also, the monk acquires Mind
Over Body, usable for up to 1 day per
level of the monk.
F: Empathy, as
the psionic ability, but
usable once a day.
G: Invisibility,
as the psionic power,
but usable once a day for 1 turn per level
the monk has achieved beyond the 6th.
H: Molecular Manipulation, as the
psionic power, usable against inanimate
objects only, once a day. Monks are limited
to the 8th level of mastery in this
power.
I: Resistance to charms, hypnosis,
etc.
as present monk ability G, plus 18 intelligence
for purposes of Telepathic and
Mind Blast attacks, as present ability
H.
J: Retarded aging, as though the
monk were using a Phylactery
of Long
Years, plus
immunity to poison (present
ability I), and immunity to Geas
and Quest
(present ability J).
K: Body Control, as the psionic ability,
once a day for a maximum of 1 turn per
level of the monk beyond the 10th.
L: The "Quivering Palm," present ability K.
M: Dimension
Door, once a day, as the
magic-user spell.
N: Speak with
Plants, as a druid, present
ability F.
O: Mind Bar, as the psionic ability,
100% chance of success, usable once a
week, maximum duration 1 hour per level
of the monk.
P: Object Reading, as the psionic ability, once a day.
Q: Dimension Walk, as the psionic
ability, 1 hour per 2 levels the monk has
achieved, usable once a day.
R: Astral
Projection, once a week, as
the cleric spell, but only the monk may
so travel.
S: A premonition of death or serious
harm occurs to the monk 1-4 turns before
the harmful event, 90% of the time.
T: The monk acquires the ability to
generate a Tower of Iron Will or an Intellect
Fortress about himself or herself,
duration 1 round per level of the monk,
usable once a day. The monk must concentrate
to use this power, and cannot
do anything else besides walking slowly.
If the monk's concentration is broken,
the defenses disappear.
U: Planeshift,
as the cleric spell, twice
a day.
Note on quasi-psionic
monk abilities
The powers in the above
list that refer
to the psionics
section of the Players
Handbook should be played as though
the monk were psionic with regard to
computing level of mastery, range, etc.
Instead of expending psionic strength
points to use the abilities, the monk
simply abides by the use restrictions
given above. If the monk character is actually
psionic, attack/defense totals and
modes may be used normally, but the
psionic monk never receives disciplines
other than those inherent in the class's
special abilities.
Other suggested changes
1: Open hand damage
done is halved,
rounding up, when the monk is attacking
a creature 10 feet or more in height, or
otherwise very large, and against creatures
with a natural armor class of 0 or
better.
2: A monk’s thieving abilities are limited
to Moving Silently, Finding (but not
removing) Traps, Hiding in Shadows,
Hearing Noises, and Climbing Walls.
3: Single combat as a means of advancement
is not required until the monk
reaches 12th level, and then only if the
title is occupied (see below). A monk
who loses a challenge loses 100,000 XP
and cannot challenge
again for 1 year.
4: At 10th level a monk’s hands and
feet become the equivalent of +1 weapons
for purposes of determining what
creatures they can do damage to. At 18th
level they become the equivalent of +2
weapons. (Moral: You can’t karate-chop
an iron
golem.)
Upper-level advancement options
Monks can be either lawful
good, lawful neutral, or lawful evil. The Players
Handbook makes no mention of separate
monastic orders for these alignment
types; it follows that all monks are part
of
one big brotherhood, whether they be
good or evil. In many respects, this does
not make a great deal of sense. For instance
(and this is a relatively minor
point), the title names for monks sound
like they were designed for lawful good,
or lawful neutral, monks only. An evil
Grand Master of Flowers? Hmmmm.
Either we must do away with evil
monks, which would be a loss, or the
system can be altered to more appropriately
account for them.
One solution to this problem is to allow
the existence of separate, parallel
monastic orders, at least three of them
and perhaps more. There could then be
more than one of each of the upper-level
monks, but only one per title per order.
Each order would then decide how to
solve the advancement problem. Lawful
neutral orders might opt for the present
system, as modified by “3” above.
Lawful evil orders might insist that
combat be to the death, thus solving the
problem of rematches constantly plaguing
upper-level figures.
LG orders might forbid advancement by combat,
requiring candidates to wait until vacancies occur.
When, for instance, the reigning Master
of Winter dies, all lower masters could
advance upon obtaining sufficient experience
points. A panel of masters would
decide whom to promote from among
the 3 Masters of Dragons and the
current Superior Masters.
Advancement by default should indeed
occur on a fairly regular basis in any
sort
of monastic order, if only because the
reigning Grand Master of Flowers is
probably close to death (being old), divine
ascension (being powerful), or both.
These odds are suggested for such events:
| Level | Title | Chance of vacancy
(per Year) |
| 12 | Master of Dragons | 3% |
| 13 | Master of the North Wind | 1% |
| 14 | Master of the West Wind | 1% |
| 15 | Master of the South Wind | 1% |
| 16 | Master of the East Wind | 1% |
| 17 | Master of Winter | 2% |
| 18 | Master of Autumn | 2% |
| 19 | Master of Summer | 4% |
| 20 | Master of Spring | 6% |
| 21 | Grand Master of Flowers | 10% |
Naturally, figures like these will vary
from campaign to campaign. Numbers
are given here only as an example of how
such a system should be set up. Note
that the chance given for each master
level should be rolled for once per year,
10 total rolls to be made. These chances
do not take into account possible deaths
resulting from challenge combats. The
DM will have to establish how often each
master will be challenged. The Masters
of Dragons could each be challenged as
often as 2-8 times per year in a LN order
as described above. There
would be relatively fewer challenges in
a
LE order.
In a LG order not advocating
advancement by combat, a DM might
contrive to say the Grand Master of
Flowers always rules for 1 year only, and
at the end of that time becomes a divine
being on one of the outer planes — insuring
a steady stream of vacancies.
A lawful good monk would never lose
experience points under this system.
Such a monk would either have his or her
total “frozen” at some point (say, 1 point
short of the level occupied by another),
or the DM could allow the monk’s total
to
continue to increase but deny the monk
the actual attainment of the new level
until a vacancy occurred. The monk
could then save up experience in advance,
but would be limited in this endeavor to a total 1 point short of 2
levels beyond the monk’s current level.
No matter how it is managed, there
must be some form of restriction on
monk advancement beyond the 11th level.
Unrestricted advancement in a campaign where XP are easy
to come by would mean the monk character
would become extremely powerful
too quickly and too easily. Also, monkish
combat has become a traditional many
players may be loath to give up.
Rationale for
rule changes
Certain salient points of this alternative
system need more explanation. It is
suggested that monks receive six-sided
dice for their hit dice instead of four-sided
dice. This is to cure the monk’s
HP disadvantage.
AC, attacks per round, and
damage per attack have been for low and
middle-level monks.
The new intermediate experience levels allow
the monk to rise as high as 11th
level before advancement by combat
becomes necessary. This is an important
change, for it allows the monk who has
been unsuccessful in challenging his or
her superiors to go on an upper-level
adventure. Also, it makes the rank of
Master a good deal more formidable,
and puts it on a par with the “name”
ranks of other classes, such as Master
Thief, Lord, or Wizard.
The new special abilities and powers
presume that the inner strength of monks
flows from the mind —that it is a sort
of
psionic power. After all, no degree of
skill or knowledge will let a human being
fall an unlimited distance when within
8’
of a wall and take no damage when hitting
bottom at terminal velocity.
Also, damage from open hand attacks
of upper-level monks is hard to explain
on the basis of physical skill alone. Can
you imagine Bruce Lee killing a purple
worm
in,? melee round with four mighty
karate chops? Present rules let highlevel
masters do just that. The halfdamage rule proposed above is designed
to partially cure this situation; even
so,
some form of magical mind-power is the
only way to account for the things monks
can do. Moreover, the present monk
powers closely resemble the related psionic
disciplines. The new powers given
above simply extend this principle, and
are designed to make the monk a reasonably
powerful and versatile character
even at low and middle levels.
The thieving abilities of Removing
Traps and Opening Locks were deleted
because it is not clear how or why monks
should have such abilities. For what purpose
does a monastic aesthetic learn to
pick locks? Surely not all monks are adventurers;
why then do these monks
learn skills usable nowhere else but on
an adventure?
In game terms, it is no longer necessary
to make the monk act as a second-rate thief so that the monk will have
something to do on an adventure. The
monk as redefined in this article is a
firstrate warrior and scout (if an Infravision
spell is used), and no longer needs such
additional abilities.
One monk too many
Dear Editor:
I’ve been a reader of DRAGON™
magazine
for about a year now, and I really enjoy
reading
everything it has to offer. Issue
#53, however,
had an article that I hope doesn’t become
a trend.
Philip Meyers’ article on monks for me was
a bit of a letdown. I don’t mind that he
thought
that the monk class was about the weakest
there is (I disagree), but I did not like
the
article as a whole. I would have rather
seen an
article about the fine art of playing a
monk
character in addition to, or instead of,
Mr.
Meyers’ article.
I think the subject of monks could have
been better handled by following in the
footsteps
of the kind of articles on paladins
in
DRAGON #51 or the articles on clerics
found
in issue #52. I enjoyed those articles
much <The Role of the Cleric, This
Land Is My Land...,
Sacrifice>
more because they told you the best way
to
play, not to change, the particular class
of
character to add to the enjoyment of playing
that kind of character.
I hope that future issues of DRAGON
magazine
will continue to publish the excellent
articles that have hooked me as a reader.
Malcolm B. Maynard
Delta, B.C., Canada
(Dragon #55)
‘A viable adventurer’
Dear editor:
There is no need to change the
monk character
class of ADVANCED
DUNGEONS &
DRAGONS.
While there are minor flaws in the
class, on the whole the monk is a viable
adventurer.
Increased hit points and armor class,
as proposed by Philip Meyers (issue #53),
are
designed to make the monk the fighting
machine
he was not originally intended to be.
Rather, the monk could use his limited
fighting
ability for defense, while using his superior
speed, agility, and dexterity as his primary
means of adventuring.
Played effectively, the monk can be a very
dangerous and formidable opponent. For
example,
I have a fourth-level monk in one campaign
who used his superior speed and agility
very destructively in one adventure. The
details
are too many to go into here, but the
monk managed to single-handedly wipe out
a
band of orcs
and a rampaging dinosaur all in
one fell swoop.
Mr. Meyers also states that the abilities
of
monks, compared on an ability-for-ability
basis
with other classes, are pitifully weak.
This
result is bound to be obtained when one
considers
all of the monk’s abilities separately.
However, when the many abilities are combined,
the monk becomes a deadly opponent
to be reckoned with.
Kevin Morgan
Colton, N.Y.
(Dragon #56)
‘Sorely needed’
Dear editor:
I’ve been playing AD&D
for over 3 years,
and have experimented with other systems
as
well, and must say that AD&D
is the best. The
article in DRAGON
#53 on monks was sorely
needed. I’m not sure who designed the class,
but as a practicing martial artist for
the past 8
years, it seemed a little off-center to
me. The
revision by Philip Meyers straightens out
many of the discrepancies between the monk
and other classes, as well as being a realistic
portrayal.
Ronald Breth
Wichita, Kan.
(Dragon #56)
Meyers on monks
Dear Editor:
In DRAGON #53
there are some changes in
the monk class. Special ability “S” says
the
monk will get a premonition of death 1-4
turns
before it happens. How does the DM go about
doing this?
Confused
The following reply was provided by Philip
Meyers, the author of the article in
question:
The original “premonition of death or
serious
harm” comes from page
163 of the
DMG, Table V, prime power Q under
artifacts
and relics. There are two problems inherent
in
this question: how to play the premonition
in
the case of a non-player character monk,
and
for a player character. The case of
the NPC is
the simpler one. If the party is about
to encounter
a NPC monk with the premonition
power, the DM must make a determination
of
whether the party has the power to kill
or
seriously harm the monk, and if it does,
whether the party is likely to attack
the monk,
or may even possibly attack the monk.
If the
party is sufficiently powerful and there
is a
reasonable chance the party will attack,
the
roll for the premonition should be made.
The
monk to whom the premonition occurs
will be
ready and waiting when the party arrives.
The case of the PC monk is more difficult,
because the DM cannot predict what a
player
character will do, and thus cannot predict
with certainty whether a dangerous situation
will arise in the future. The power
is therefore
only applicable when it appears to the
DM
that the PC monk is headed for a dangerous
encounter, and there is a substantial
chance
the encounter will occur. The character
should
always be able to avoid the encounter
if circumstances
permit, so that the event likely to
bring about death or serious harm never
happens. In any event, the premonition
is always
simply a vague feeling that great danger
is imminent, not a specific vision of
a future
event. For player character monks the
premonition
should not occur often, since a
monk of such high level is seldom in
great
danger, particularly when the monk is
surrounded
by similarly powerful companions.
-
|
|
|
|
|
|
1. SUBCLASS = n/a
2. SOCIAL CLASS MINIMUM = <not noted,
but I would guess LLC>
3. ABILITY SCORE MINIMUMS
STRENGTH = 15
INTELLIGENCE = 6
WISDOM = 15
DEXTERITY = 15
CONSTITUTION = 11
CHARISMA = 6
COMELINESS = 3
4. POSSIBLE RACES & MAX. LEVEL ATTAINABLE
= human, 17
5. MULTI-CLASS POSSIBILITIES = none
6. HIT DIE TYPE = d4
7. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF HIT DICE = 17
8. SPELL ABILITY = none
9. ARMOR PERMITTED = none
10. SHIELD PERMITTED = no
11. WEAPONS PERMITTED = aklys, atlatl,
axe (hand), bo stick, caltrop, club, crossbow (any), dagger, garrot, javelin,
jo stick, knife, lasso, pole arm (any), sap, spear, staff, sword (falchion)
12. OIL PERMITTED = no
13. POISON PERMITTED = DM's option
14. ALIGNMENT = any Lawful
15. STARTING MONEY = 5-20
gp (5d4)
16. WEAPON PROFICIENCIES = 1, 1/2 levels
17. NON-PROFICIENCY PENALTY = -3
18. NON-WEAPON PROFICIENCIES
= 1, 1/2 levels
19. STARTING AGE = 21 + 1d4
20. COMBAT = C
21. SAVING THROWS = T
22. MAGIC ITEMS = See
below.
The monk is the most unusual
of all characters,
the hardest to qualify for,
and perhaps,
the most deadly.
That is why the class is given out of alphabetical order at the end of the section pertaining to character classes.
With respect to combat, monks attack on the same table as clerics.
To be a monk, a character
must have the following minimum ability scores:
strength 15, wisdom
15, dexterity 15, and constitution 11.
Monks never gain any XP bonuses.
DEX gives them no AC adjustment.
ADQ:
Can a Monk character USE both
Gauntlets of Dexterity and
+3 gloves
(from DRAGON magazine)
at the
same Time? Will the effect
of one set
negate the other when worn
together?
ADA:
1st of all, the items which appear
in DRAGON Magazine
are NOT Official
unless otherwise stated.
Even the ones
which are stated to be official
are not in
final form. They are presented
as a rough
workup, and they will certainly
be
adjusted and redefined in
some ways
before inclusion in any revisions
of the
system. I can give you a
working rational
for items such as +3 gloves,
but there is
every chance that Official
work (if any) in
the future may contradict
this.
As a rule
ov thumb, ass ume that no
character may wear more than
one item
ov the same type on the same
part of the
body at the same Time. Thus,
while a
ring and gauntlets could
conceivably be
combined, gloves and gauntlets
are the
same type of item and could
not be used
together.
(Polyhedron #15)
ADQ: Are monks a subclass
of clerics?
Of thieves? Of both? Or neither?
ADA: The monk is a
character class in
and of itself, not a subcless.
(Polyhedron #17)
Monks are monastic aesthetics
who practice rigorous mental and physical training and discipline in order
to become superior.
Therefore they must always
be lawful in alignment, although they can be evil, good, or neutral
with respect to their approach
to lawfulness. A monk who for any reason loses
this lawful alignment loses
all monk abilities and must begin again
as a first level character.
NPC monks will be aligned as follows:
50% LG,
35% LN, 15% LE.
A brief study of CHARACTER
CLASSES TABLES I and II will reveal that the
monk appears to be quite
weak, even considering that at the topmost level
a monk can have 18, albeit
four-sided, HD (an average of 45 HP
without CON score additions,
if any) and has a good selection
of weapons to choose from.
Monks have no spell ability, cannot wear
armor or use a shield, and
not even flaming oil is usable by them. This seems to
make a weak character lass
indeed. But this impression is false, for monks
have their own special attack
and defense capabilities, certain other
powers, and most of the abilities
of the thief class and some clerical-type
capabilities as well. So,
while the class has drawbacks, it is very strong.
With respect to combat, monks
attack on the same table as thieves. <errata: clerics, not thieves!>
However, they add one-half
of a HP per level of xperience to the
amount of damage they score
wen they successfully attack an opponent
with a weapon. This simulates
their study and knowledge of weapons and
anatomy. A 1st level monk
scores x + 1/2 HP of damage,
where x equals
the damage done by the weapon
used and HP equals the #number# of HP
of damage. A 2nd level monk
does x + 1 when he or she scores a
hit, a 3rd level x + 11/2,
and so on all the way to Grand Master of Flowers
who scores x + 81/2
HP damage. Monks of median level and above
actually fight better without
weapons, using their open hands, despite the
weapon damage bonus they
receive.
Open hand combat damage is
shown on MONKS TABLE II below. In
+addtion+, the monk has a
chance to stun, or even kill, an opponent. An
opponent is stunned by a
monk for 1-6 (d6) melee rounds if the score of
the monk's "to hit" die score
exceeds the min. #number# required for a
hit by 5 or more, i.e. if
a 15 is required, a score of 20 would indicate a stun.
The "to hit" scores rolled
by the monk are never modified by any strength
ability bonuses. The chance
to kill is as percentage which equals the armor
class (AC) of the opponent,
modified by the number of experience levels
above seven which the monk
has attained. AC-1 is a negative chance for
killing, as an example, but
a monk of 9th level (two above 7th) would
allow a 1% chance of killing.
Note that 1) the monk must score a hit, and 2)
the hit must stun the opponent,
and 3) the percentile dice score must be
=equal= to or less than the
AC of the stunned opponent, modified by
the monk's levels over 7th,
in order to score a kill.
Open hand fighting also allows
the monk multiple attacks at such time as
the monk has attained the
4th or higher experience level.
Monks
make saving throws on the table used by thieves, but they gain
certain advantages: Non-magical
missiles (arrows, bolts, bullets, thrown
daggers, thrown javelins,
thrown spears, etc.) which would normally hit
can be dodged or knocked
aside if the monk is able to make his or her
saving throw against petrification
for each such potential hit.
In other
respects, if a monk makes
his or her saving throw against an attack form,
the monk will sustain no
damage from the attack, even if the attack form
was a fireball, for
instance. At 9th level (Master of the North Wind) or
higher, a monk who fails
to make his or her saving throw will sustain
but one-half the total potential
damage which the attack form could
deliver, if possible. That
is, a fireball would do 50% of total damage,
but
the gaze of a basilisk
would still petrify the monk.
At 1st level of experience,
a monk is as likely to be surprised as any other
character, i.e. 33 1/3%.
This chance goes down to 32% at 2nd level, and it
thereafter goes down 2% per
level, so there is only a 30% chance of
surprising a 3rd level monk,
a 28% chance at at 4th level, 26% chance at 5th
level, etc.
Monks have the following thief
abilities which they perform at identical
level of xperience to that
of a thief, i.e. a 1st level monk performs as a 1st
level thief, a 2nd level
monk as a 2nd level thief, etc. The abilities are:
1. Open
Locks
2. Find/Remove
Traps
3. Move
Silently
4. Hide
in Shadows
5. Hear
Noise
6. Climb
Walls
Although the chance of falling
while climbing walls is the same as that of
a thief of equal level, monks
can escape taking damage as follows:
-- At 4th level (Disciple), a monk can fall up to 20' if he or she is within 1' of a wall.
-- At 6th level (Master), a monk can fall up to 30' if he or she is within 4' of a wall.
-- At 13th level (Master of Winter), a monk can fall any distance if he or she is within 8' of a wall.
The monk must have an opportunity
to periodically make contact with the
wall during the descent.
The wall is used by the monk to slow the fall so
that no HP of damage are
sustained from the fall. Note that when
reference to a wall is made,
any similar surface, such as a tree trunk, cliff
face, and the like, are equally
useful to the monk.
The other abilities of monks are shown on the MONKS ABILITY TABLE below.
MONKS TABLE I: EXPERIENCE POINTS AND LEVELS
| Experience Points | Experience
Level |
4-Sided Dice
for Accumulated Hit Points |
Level Title |
| 0 -- 2,250 | 1 | 2 | Novice |
| 2,251 -- 4,750 | 2 | 3 | Initiate |
| 4,751 -- 10,000 | 3 | 4 | Brother |
| 10,001 -- 22,500 | 4 | 5 | Disciple |
| 22,501 -- 47,500 | 5 | 6 | Immaculate |
| 47,501 -- 98,000 | 6 | 7 | Master |
| 98,001 -- 200,000 | 7 | 8 | Superior Master |
| 200,001 -- 350,000 | 8 | 9 | Master of Dragons |
| 350,001 -- 500,000 | 9 | 10 | Master of the North Wind |
| 501,001 -- 700,000 | 10 | 11 | Master of the West Wind |
| 700,001 -- 950,000 | 11 | 12 | Master of the South Wind |
| 950,001 -- 1,250,000 | 12 | 13 | Master of the East Wind |
| 1,250,001 -- 1,750,000 | 13 | 14 | Master of Winter |
| 1,750,001 -- 2,250,000 | 14 | 15 | Master of Autumn |
| 2,250,001 -- 2,750,000 | 15 | 16 | Master of Summer |
| 2,750,001 -- 3,250,000 | 16 | 17 | Master of Spring |
| 3,250,001 & + | 17 | 18 | Grand Master of Flowers |
MONKS TABLE II: MONKS ABILITY TABLE
*Listings with a slash indicate
extra attacks after the appropriate number of rounds, i.e. 5/4 means 5
attacks per 4 rounds, with the additional attack coming
at the end of the round sequence.
Notes Regarding Special Abilities:
Each special ability is designated by a capital letter:
A. The ability to speak
with animals as druids do which begins at
3rd level of experience.
B. The ability to mask the
mind so that ESP has only a 30% chance
of success. This power begins
at 4th level, and with each level
of xperience which the monk
gains thereafter, the chance for
success of ESPing the monk's
thoughts drops by 2%, i.e. 28%
chance of success on a 5th
level monk, 26% on a 6th level, etc.
C. At 5th xperience level
a monk is not subject to diseases of
any sort, nor is he ever
affected by haste || slow spells.
D. The ability to USE self-induced
catalepsy to appear dead. This
can be done perfectly, as
the 6th (or higher) level monk is
able to lower his or her
body temperature and heart rate. The
monk is able to maintain
this state for twice the # of
turns (10 minute periods)
which equal his level, i.e. 12 turns at
6th level, 14 at 7th, etc.
E. At 7th level the monk gains
the ability to heal damage on his
or her body. The amount of
damage which can be healed is 2-5 HP
(d4 + 1), and this amount
increases by 1 HP
with each experience level
gained thereafter, i.e. 3-6 HP at 8th
level, 4-7 at 9th, etc. This
may be done once per day.
F. The ability to speak with plants as druids do. This power is attained at 8th level.
G. Beguiling, charms, hypnosis,
and suggestion spells have only
a 50% chance of affecting
a monk of the 9th level of experience.
That is the monk is 50% resistant
to such magic.
This resistance increases
by 5% per level thereafter, so that at
10th level such spells have
but a 45% chance of affecting the
monk, 40% at 11th level,
and so on. Saving throws apply if
resistance fails.
H. Telepathic and mind blast
attacks (see AD&D, MM, Mind
Flayer)
upon a monk of 10th or higher
level are made as if the character had an
18 INT, due to the monk's
mental discipline.
I. At 11th and higher levels
of experience monks are not
affected by poison of any
type.
J. Geas and quest spells have no effect upon monks of 12th or higher level.
K.
The last ability gained, and perhaps the most terrible power, is
that fabled attack which
enables the monk to set up vibrations
in the body of the victim,
and the monk can then control such
vibrations so as to cause
death
to occur when the monk stops
them.
1. It can
be attempted but once per week, and the monk
must touch
the intended victim within 3 melee rounds
or the
power is drained for one week.
2. It has
no effect on the undead or creatures
which can
be hit
only by magic weaponry.
3. The
victim cannot have more HD than the monk
using
the power, and in any event, the total HP of
the victim
cannot exceed those of the monk by more
than 200%,
or the power has no effect.
4. The
command to die (the control of the vibrations) must
be given
by the monk within a set time limit, or else the
vibrations
simply cease of their own accord and do no
damage
whatsoever. The time limit of death command
is one
day per level of experience the monk has gained
at the
time the power is used.
There are a number of strictures
which monk characters must abide by.
These restrictions apply
to 1) armor and weapons, 2) treasure, 3) magic
items usable, 4) STR ability
adjustments, 5) henchmen, and 6)
advancement in level, as
follows:
1. Armor,
as previously noted, cannot be worn.
Weapons
usable by monk characters are shown on CHARACTER CLASSES TABLE II;
weapons
not listed cannot be used.
2. Monks,
much like paladins (q.v.), may not retain more
than a small
fraction
of whatever they gain. A monk may possess no more
than two
magic weapons and three other magic items (see 3 below)
at any
time. While monks may retain money sufficient for their
modest
needs, and to support their henchmen (see 5 below), all other
treasure
and excess magic items must be bestowed upon (non player)
religious
institutions. (See also Followers hereafter.)
3. Magic
items usable by monks include all magical varieties of
weapons
listed (unless proscribed), rings, and those miscellaneous
magic
items which are usable by thieves. No other magic items of any
sort may
be employed by monks.
Q: Can a monk wear
bracers
of defense?
Would they affect his armor
class?
A: However, consider
the intent behind
the creation of the class.
These monks
rely on their discipline
totally, which in
turn allows them to gain
all those great
abilities. (Speak with
animals is very
useful in controlling horses,
for example.)
I tell players of monks that
the character
wouldn't WANT to use bracers;
it's contrary
to the Monk Philosophy, putting
faith in gadets rather than
self-control.
Sure, it's technically allowed
-- but they
won't WANT to. (The player
might, but
the character won't!)
<missing paragraph>
(Polyhedron #6)
4. Monks
do not gain any bonuses, either with respect to increasing "to
hit" probability
or to increase HP of damage, for STR ability.
5. Until
attaining the rank of Master, monks may not have any hirelings
or henchmen
at all. At 6th level of experience, monks may hire
persons
on a short-duration basis -- for the duration of a single
adventure
only. At this level, they may also acquire up to two
henchmen.
Henchmen may be fighters (but not paladins or rangers),
thieves,
or assassins. With each level of experience above the 6th
which
the monk attains, he or she may add one additional henchman,
until
the max. # est. by the monk's CHA score
is reached.
Monks will gain followers upon attaining 8th level; this is
discussed
hereafter.
6. There
can only be a limited number of monks above 7th level (Superior
Master).
There are three 8th level (Master of Dragons) and but one
of each
higher level. When a PC monk gains sufficient
XP to
qualify him || her for 8th level, the
commensurate
abilities are attained only temporarily. The monk must
find &&
defeat in single combat, hand-to-hand, w/o weapons or
magic
items, one of the 8th level monks -- the White, the Green, or
the Red.
The same must be done at the ninth or higher levels. The
loser
of these combats loses enough XP to place him ||
her at
the lowest # psb. to attain the level just beneath the
new level.
The monk character will know where to locate the higher
level
monks; and he or she must proceed immed. to do combat or
else lose
XP equal to the # which will place him ||
her at
the lowest # psb. to have attained the level just beneath
that of
the monk he || she should have sought out but did not.
That is,
the PC drops to 7th level in the above case and
must then
work upwards once again.
Followers:
When a monk PC attains the 8th level of
experience, he or she will
gain a number of monks as followers upon
defeating the monk which
held the 8th level position that the PC
has now gotten. He or she
will attract from 2-5 1st level monks if
the PC has a monastery or
monastery-like building to USE as
a HQ. These followers may
be worked upwards in levels of
experience. The PC will attract
1-2 additional monks of 1st
level for each additional
level of experience the player gains.
While followers of a monk
are as loyal as his or her other henchmen, they
automatically leave service
when they attain the level of Superior Master (7th).
All followers will be of the
exact same alignment as the monk PC.
If he or she changes alignment,
the current followers will
desert, but new ones can
still be gained by advancement in level.
The monastery or monastery-like
HQ of the monk can be that of
the character he or she defeated
to attain 8th or higher level, or it can be a
building specially constructed
by the monk PC after attaining
8th or higher level. In the
latter case, the monk may retain up to 250,000
gp value in treasure in order
to finance construction of the place.
He or she may also retain
sufficient funds thereafter to maintain the
place.
Note that monk followers require no support, upkeep, or pay of any sort.
ADQ: If a monk whose
listed AC is 2 is
surprised, does the AC become
10?
ADA: No. This is a
function of the
monk's special training.
The monk's
standard AC always applies,
even in
surprise situations, unless
the DM
adjudicates otherwise.
(Polyhedron #16)
ADQ: Which combat table
do monks
use, thieves' or clerics'?
ADA: Monks attack
as clerics, not
thieves.
(Polyhedron #16)
ADQ: What class is
the monk treated as
for certain psionic disciplines,
such as
Body Weaponry, Cell Adjustment,
and
Domination?
ADA: Treat the monk
character as a thief
of the same level for purposes
of determining
the effects.
(Polyhedron #16)
ADQ: Do monks get CON
bonuses on both 1st level
dice?
ADA: Yes. The CON
bonus is a
function of HD, not level.
(Polyhedron #16)
9th: Brother Milerjoi (location: A3)
Converting PH Monks to OA Monks
* PH monks attack as clerics and save as
thieves ; OA monks attack and save as thieves.
* PH monks have Open Hand Attacks Per Melee
Round and Open Hand Damage ;
* OA monks begin with one style of unarmed
combat and two of that style's special maneuvers (they gain additional
attacks and damage as they increase in level).
* PH monks add level x 0.5 to weapon damage.
OA monks get +1 damage per 2 levels.
* PH & OA monks have the same AC progression.
Note that the AC of an OA monk is that granted by his class or his martial
art, whichever is better.
* PH & OA monks have the same thieving
abilities (at the same chances). However, there is a very slight discrepancy
that starts showing up at level 5+.
* PH & OA monks differ in their saves
vs. magical attacks (most significantly is the once per day per level limit
of the OA monk)
* PH monks can automatically have a chance
to dodge missiles ; OA monks only have this ability if they choose it as
a martial arts maneuver
* Speak with Animals, gained at level 3,
uses the druid specifications for PH monks, and the shukenja specifications
for OA monks
* PH & OA monks differ in their ability
to mitigate falling damage (PH monks gain this at L4, OA monks gain this
in L6 : other differences as well)
* The 8th level ability to speak with plants
is goes by the druid specifications for the PH monk, and the shukenja specifications
for the OA monk
* The 9th level resistance to charms, hypnosis,
and suggestion doesn't mention beguiling for the OA monk (although this
could be included)
* 13th level PH monks gain the quivering
palm special ability, 13th level OA monks gain one special maneuver
* PH monks can only use a thieve's misc.
magic items, while OA monks can use any items usable by thieves, excepting
armor and forbidden weapons)
* PH monks may attract fighters, thieves
or assassins as henchmen ; OA monks can attract shukenja, bushi, or ninjas
as henchmen
* 8th level, attainment of : nearly identical
(note that the 3 OA Masters of Dragons might be named after Oriental Dragons)
* 8th level, building of a stronghold :
nearly identical (note that the PH mentions 250,000 gp, while OA does not
give a figure)
Question: I have just bought
the new DUNGEON MASTERS
SCREEN,
and it says that monks attack on the cleric’s table.
But in the PH
it says that they fight on the
thief's table. Which is it?
Answer: Monks attack on
the cleric’s table. A last-minute change by
the staff members who worked
on the DMG was
made, reasoning that it would
be better for the balance of the game
if monks attacked on the
cleric’s table. We realize the change is going to
cause some problems and we
are doing all we can to ease the con-
fusion. The monk, however,
still saves on the thief 's table.
One small point,,,,
It is not logical to be a
monk without religious affiliation.
that is a practical impossibility
in all cases, and totally unthinkable in a deity-active fantasy miliue 
Cheers,
Gary
1. SUBCLASS = n/a
2. SOCIAL CLASS MINIMUM = <not noted,
but I would guess LLC>
3. ABILITY SCORE MINIMUMS
STRENGTH = 15
INTELLIGENCE = 6
WISDOM = 15
DEXTERITY = 15
CONSTITUTION = 11
CHARISMA = 6
COMELINESS = 3
4. POSSIBLE RACES & MAX. LEVEL ATTAINABLE
= human, 17
5. MULTI-CLASS POSSIBILITIES = none
6. HIT DIE TYPE = d4
7. MAXIMUM NUMBER OF HIT DICE = 17
8. SPELL ABILITY = none
9. ARMOR PERMITTED = none
10. SHIELD PERMITTED = no
11. WEAPONS PERMITTED = aklys, atlatl,
axe (hand), bo stick, caltrop, club, crossbow (any), dagger, garrot, javelin,
jo stick, knife, lasso, pole arm (any), sap, spear, staff, sword (falchion)
12. OIL PERMITTED = no
13. POISON PERMITTED = DM's option
14. ALIGNMENT = any Lawful
15. STARTING MONEY = 5-20
gp (5d4)
16. WEAPON PROFICIENCIES = 1, 1/2 levels
17. NON-PROFICIENCY PENALTY = -3
18. NON-WEAPON PROFICIENCIES
= 1, 1/2 levels
19. STARTING AGE = 21 + 1d4
20. COMBAT = C
21. SAVING THROWS = T
22. MAGIC ITEMS = See
below.