Hey all,
Not intending to start one of THOSE monk threads, just some specific questions about Martial Artist monks. The archetype entry states, in part:
Martial Arts Master (Ex)
At 4th level, a martial artist may use his monk level to qualify for feats with a fighter level prerequisite when those feats are applied to unarmed strikes or weapons with the monk special quality.
This ability replaces slow fall.
Question: Do you read this to mean that those monk levels would STACK with fighter levels? So, for example would a Fighter (Brawler)4/Monk (Martial Artist)4 qualify for Greater Weapon Focus (unarmed attack)?
Follow-up question: Is it worth doing this, or is better to just go straight Martial Artist?
Clarification of purpose: What I'm aiming for is the Brawler's ability to get +1 to attack and +3 to damage at level 3, since my main concern is being able to do sufficient damage to be relevant in combat. However, the way I'm reading the Martial Arts Master ability makes me wonder if multi-classing this way would actually delay my ability to take "fighter-only" feats. Of course, the fighter bonus feats are also nice, as is the ability to have a +1 BAB at level 1 by starting out as fighter, since that means I can grab better feats at the beginning of the progression.
Thanks!
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Question: Do you read this to mean that those monk levels would STACK with fighter levels? So, for example would a Fighter (Brawler)4/Monk (Martial Artist)4 qualify for Greater Weapon Focus (unarmed attack)?
Yes, a 4th level fighter/4th level martial artist monk meets the 8th level fighter prerequisite for Greater Weapon Focus (unarmed attack) but not, say, Greater Weapon Focus (battleaxe).
If you took a feat like Disrupting Shot, you'd be able to use it with shuriken (because you'd qualify as a 6th level fighter) but not with a non-monk weapon like the longbow (you'd only qualify as a 4th level fighter, so you couldn't use the feat).
Follow-up question: Is it worth doing this, or is better to just go straight Martial Artist?
There are advantages and disadvantages to both options. I don't know that one is objectively better than the other. It depends on what you want.
Thanks for the input, Aberrant Templar. The fact that the levels stack makes it something to at least consider.
I'm assuming some people have already considered this multiclass option, as it's pretty obvious. I have never considered a Pathfinder monk before, but the Martial Artist piqued my interest. Thing is, he's essentially a BSF-type, which I'm okay with, but I want to be able to fill that role reasonably well. That means hitting a lot and doing a lot of damage. I'm trying to assess whether the Brawler's bonuses to hit and damage (and bonus feats) outweigh what I lose by delaying my monk progression. I can do the math, but I figured some folks had already done so...
Thanks again!