... instead of good old Stunning Fist? Or some other status condition mechanic? I was surprised to see them get Punishing Kick when Stunning Fist lets you stun/stagger/sicken/nauseate/paralyze opponents all which says ki manipulation to me. Anybody got the skinny? or at least a plausible theory? or amusing one, I'll take those too?
.."This is Sparta?"
Perhaps they thought it might be advantageous for the monk to have a chance to render someone prone and subject to more attacks on movement?
Personally, I want to make a fighter with Punishing kick just so I can play a Spartan.
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The HGM can still select Stunning Fist as a feat, they just don't get it automatically.
Yeah, I get that they can do both. I just don't understand the why of swapping in Punishing Kick. Pushing an opponent away has some tai chi chuan aspects to it (not a kick specifically, but the game mechanics are about the same) which makes sense, but a person who steals Ki, I would think would be about weakening an opponent, sapping their energy. Bruce Lee's flying sidekick seems out of place.
...I was thinking of it more as a "Door Opener Boot", but I can see what you mean.
.."This is Sparta?"
Perhaps they thought it might be advantageous for the monk to have a chance to render someone prone and subject to more attacks on movement?
Personally, I want to make a fighter with Punishing kick just so I can play a Spartan.
lol
I will from now on call Punishing Kick: Spartan Kick.
The other thing to remember when taking the Stunning Fist feat is: you only gain the stunning ability, and attempts monk level times a day, you do not gain the additional abilities a vanilla monk would get.
As to why the Hungry Ghost Monk gets it, I cant think of a specific reason. So they can kick people claiming that their ki stealing is madness?
hehehe
Well, good question.
Myself, reading it for the first time, I just assumed that the Master that invented the Hugry Ghost techniques mastered the punishing kick too.
Other schools know the kick, but don't master it the same way.
Of course, the kick technique by itself is not related to the ki-vampirism of the HGM.
I thought it fit thematically with the whole "need to dominate and play with foes" aspect of the HGM. That, and I'd say it's weaker than stunning fist, and overall the HGM is stronger than the base monk, so maybe it's a balancing act.
Isn't it obvious? It is to kick puppies.
You can't call yourself a bad ass without kicking puppies.
Isn't it obvious? It is to kick puppies.
You can't call yourself a bad ass without kicking puppies.
LOL, best answer yet.
@ minstrel
I think you probably have something there. The extra Ki points is a big deal. I think the pushback effect in punishing kick might have been seem to fit better if they had been described as a Tai Chi push or something, but it works as is.
Sweep the leg.
Sweep the leg.
Put 'em in a body bag!
Totally fits the flavor of the hungry ghost.
My best guess? It has to do with what other variants can be combined with HGM. By including that particular change, you can't have a Hungry Ghost Monk of the Four Winds, or Lotus, or Weapon Master, etc.
Why they want to place said limit, I'm not sure...
Personally, I'd allow any monk (of any variation) to pick one of the monk strike feats (stunning, punishing, elemental, serenity, perfect) at 1st level, and gain whatever advancements that one would be entitled to. Picking up another one gets him the uses, but none of the expansions that would come with level.
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... instead of good old Stunning Fist? Or some other status condition mechanic? I was surprised to see them get Punishing Kick when Stunning Fist lets you stun/stagger/sicken/nauseate/paralyze opponents all which says ki manipulation to me. Anybody got the skinny? or at least a plausible theory? or amusing one, I'll take those too?
The iconic Hungry Ghost monk uses punishing kick all the time. That's why.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akuma_(Street_Fighter)
Sweep the leg.
You got a problem with that?
I just assumed the various Monk archetypes were chosen to represent the new alternate Monk feats.
The name "Punishing Kick" implies a certain aggressiveness or mercilessness that coincides with stealing the essence of others - his design screams "pull no punches".
Meanwhile you have the standard Monk whose class features are more focused on his perfection of mind and body, and Stunning Fist uses that to overcome his opponents, winning by being a superior being.
Four Winds seems like a "brimming with potential" class to me that manifests itself outwardly in anything from energy to physical changes of the body.