My first Monk - Opinions please!

[zagnabbit]

And yes your Viscious Stomp will trigger when you drop someone adjacent, even if it's mid-flurry. That's a cool combo.

[Bandavaar the Brave]

Yea, I had a look at the Unarmed Fighter before anything else, actually.

I didn't ever really like the idea of a Monk, but then after I decided the Unarmed Fighter abilities didn't suit my character, the Martial Artist Monk Archetype fit almost perfectly.

I don't see the Martial Artist as a Monk at all. I just see them as a fighter who specialises in hand to hand combat, so it works out okay for me.

My preferred classes are Fighters and Barbarians but I hate the Fatigue that comes with Rage, so generally have more fun with a Fighter.

Scorpion Style - I looked at this but decided it wasn't what I was going for as my character wouldn't care if the opposition could move at full speed or 1/6th of its speed. He just cares about destroying it.

Enforcer - This would be good, but I already have a -2 in Charisma, so it wouldn't be a good choice for me.

Weapon Focus - Weapon Focus only gives you a +1 to hit, which won't help me a huge amount in the long run, but if in some other situation I went for it, I'd probably take weapon specialisation and greater weapon specialisation to accompany it. :)

Punishing Kick - I kind of want this feat, but pushing it back into a safe spot isn't really all that fun for me. I just want to pick things up and throw them, trip them, hit them or drop them off of ledges. Plus, I'd have too much of a hard time deciding on what to get rid of in place of this.

Snapping Turtle - They are nice as I'd really like a boost to AC, but unfortunately I don't have enough space for the whole entire feat tree. If the rules allowed me to swap Dodge, Mobility and Spring Attack for this, then I would, but sadly they don't, so I figured by level 19 or 20, Dragon Style would be best, sheerly for the little bit of extra damage each round and let's not forget being able to move freely over rough terrain and through the squares of allies!

I will need to make myself more familiar with Grappling and Tripping rules, but I get the basics of it and my GM is fairly knowledgeable when it comes to Pathfinder. It seems pretty easy to work out though.

As for Stunning Fist, it doesn't actually seem to use your Wisdom, but Quivering Palm needs your Wisdom for its DC.

Neckbreaker is pretty fun for Con damage (if they have no Str or Dex left) and Combat Reflexes seems like a fun idea because it allows me to get those two AoO's in one round. :D

As for Power Attack, by level 20 I can't turn down 12 extra damage with every hit, which is why I'm so adamant I want it. I won't be using it all of the time, but if the party manages to debuff an enemy well, it's perfect for finishing it off quicker.

I like that I now have Power Attack and Combat Expertise on my list, as it allows me to be pretty diverse. If I can hit something a lot (even with the eventual minus 6 to attack at) and need to drop it quicker, that's what Power Attack is for and if I'm up against something seriously deadly, I can use Combat Expertise to raise my AC. It gives me options and brings a good deal of tactics to the table. :)

Thanks a lot for your input though!

[Archaeik]

Stunning Fist

Spoiler:

Benefit: You must declare that you are using this feat before you make your attack roll (thus, a failed attack roll ruins the attempt). Stunning Fist forces a foe damaged by your unarmed attack to make a Fortitude saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 your character level + your Wis modifier), in addition to dealing damage normally. A defender who fails this saving throw is stunned for 1 round (until just before your next turn). A stunned character drops everything held, can’t take actions, loses any Dexterity bonus to AC, and takes a –2 penalty to AC. You may attempt a stunning attack once per day for every four levels you have attained (but see Special), and no more than once per round. Constructs, oozes, plants, undead, incorporeal creatures, and creatures immune to critical hits cannot be stunned.

Special: A monk receives Stunning Fist as a bonus feat at 1st level, even if he does not meet the prerequisites. A monk may attempt a stunning attack a number of times per day equal to his monk level, plus one more time per day for every four levels he has in classes other than monk.

Monk SF

Spoiler:

At 1st level, the monk gains Stunning Fist as a bonus feat, even if he does not meet the prerequisites. At 4th level, and every 4 levels thereafter, the monk gains the ability to apply a new condition to the target of his Stunning Fist. This condition replaces stunning the target for 1 round, and a successful saving throw still negates the effect. At 4th level, he can choose to make the target fatigued. At 8th level, he can make the target sickened for 1 minute. At 12th level, he can make the target staggered for 1d6+1 rounds. At 16th level, he can permanently blind or deafen the target. At 20th level, he can paralyze the target for 1d6+1 rounds. The monk must choose which condition will apply before the attack roll is made. These effects do not stack with themselves (a creature sickened by Stunning Fist cannot become nauseated if hit by Stunning Fist again), but additional hits do increase the duration.

You do indeed use your wisdom for Stunning Fist DC.
The monk gets to substitute effects based off level. The target still gets a saving throw.

Since you want wisdom anyway, it shouldn't be an issue.

[Bandavaar the Brave]

Ah ok, well I already start with a +2 Wisdom modifier, so if I find a headband of intelligence, I should be set. :)

I only read what it said about Stunning Fist in the Monk section, not the feat section, so I guess that's how I missed the Wisdom DC text.

Thanks Archaeik!