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Hello,
I'm thinking of making a monk for Flurry of Blows and planning on being a Sohei monk to pick up the Polearm weapon group. From what I'm seeing I could dump wis since I lose stunning fist and monk is already pretty MAD'ish.
My current thoughts on stat build is either:
str16,dex14,con14,wis10,int10,cha8 - Human +2str for total of 18.
or
str17,dex12,con15,wis10,int10,cha8 - Human +2str for total of 19.
I think I like option #2 since at 4th level I'd raise str to 20 and 8th level I'd raise con to 16.
Ki Power for the +2atk/dmg later on at max level 11 doesn't seem that great and I don't really see much else that I can use my Ki Pool since stunning fist and it's upgrades are removed. Combined with Monks being pretty MAD, I feel like I'm better off dumping wis to 10 and spending the points elsewhere for better str and hp.
I'm planning on roleplaying my character as a scarred ex-samurai/monk character wielding a 2handed naginata or nodaichi. My objective with the build is to Flurry of Blows with a 2handed weapon which according to Sohei description in Ultimate Combat lets me do with any weapon in the Polearm Weapon Group once I pick that weapon group at level 6.
I'm envisioning my character as a light or medium armor warrior, that runs in and just multi-attacks for lots of damage.
I don't see much of a problem as both monks and fighters get 4 bonus feats by 11th level. Only difference is monk has a short selection but still offers some pretty good picks like Deflect arrow (which I can do while holding my weapon in 1hand till i'm in melee). I can still spend some regular feats gained for power attack and whatever else might be helpful.
I feel like I'm butchering the monk class here quite a bit but I feel like it's my best option to deal lots of melee attacks in 1 round with a 2handed weapon.
I'm also torn whether I should spend feats to learn medium armor proficiency (and possibly heavy armor proficiency) as I feel that burning 1-2feats (when I get 1 free feat as a human) isn't a bad option since I would think Medium armor would far outweigh the Wis AC bonus.
Give any advice and help me build a great 2handed fighter that is a whirling melee machine.
Expect table variation on whether the sohei can flurry in armor.
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I'm not trying to go for the most OP build but trying to figure out what setup would work best to do a lot of attacks at once. Looking at monk, I get 5 attack roll opportunities to hit and possibly crit whereas a fighter I'd have 3 per a full round attack.
I'd have lower hp, and probably a bit lower ac than a fighter, also lower specialization in my main weapon but seeing Sohei give me + initiative and react during surprise rounds + higher reflex/will saves, along with some other minor stuff seems like a not so bad tradeoff. (Also picking up Deflect Arrows, Combat Reflexes, Mobility, and one of the Improved maneuvers.) I also still have Improved Evasion, High Jump for those hard jump DC's, and Wholeness of Body to heal 2-4 times a day.
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@Bearded Ben,
I looked throughout the Core Book and nowhere does it say I have to be unarmored to FoB so I don't see how someone could deny me the option during a PFS game. I do see it stated that I have to be unarmored to gain my +AC and CMD bonus from +Wis though.
Also, as Sohei I'm not seeing much of a reason to have high wis unlike a base monk.
I would have to assume that Sohei would be the worst archetype made if they GIVE light armor proficiency for being Sohei and then go "Oh hey, yeah that free proficiency we gave you....well if you use it you can't do crap as a monk so pretty much the joke is on you!"
I don't mean to railroad the point of this post but if that's the case then they may as well throw Sohei out or just remake it all together because there comes a point where you'd just not be a monk but just a crappy version of a fighter only.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Monks are proficient with the club, crossbow (light or heavy), dagger, handaxe, javelin, kama, nunchaku, quarterstaff, sai, shortspear, short sword, shuriken, siangham, sling, and spear.
Monks are not proficient with any armor or shields.
When wearing armor, using a shield, or carrying a medium or heavy load, a monk loses his AC bonus, as well as his fast movement and flurry of blows abilities.
There is a line of thought (that not everyone buys, hence my table variation comment) that the sohei archetype removes that line when it replaces Weapon and Armor Proficiency, hence letting the sohei flurry in armor, but YMMV.
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Sohei is pretty poorly designed RAW/PFS rules. Try a Titan Mauler 2/TWF style Ranger 10. You TWF with 2h weapons as if they were 1h weapons. You can take it with barbar first for the jotungrip and rage buff, ranger first to skip the pre-req quickly, or alternate to get them in varying intervals. You do take a -6 with each attack unfortunately (-2 jotungrip, -4 TWF) so you will want feats like weapon focus and masterwork weapons to displace this.
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True, the Sansetsukon is 1d10 and 19-20/x2 crit. I was hoping for either the higher crit range from Nodachi or the x4 crit of the Naginata though. The biggest problem though is if I can't use armor and FoB in PFS then what would I switch to do multiple attacks.
The goal of my character would be 2handed polearm type weapons, less armor the better (but armored if I have to), and dashing in and whirling my weapon to attack many people at once or hitting 1 enemy many times.
The best description I could give of the character I'm trying to create would be a light armored human with a conical asian hat and fighting like one of the following videos:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9916LIYuZpc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzJis7VvORY
Are there any builds that would allow me attack many people at once or multiple times at once? The Sohei monk build seems out the window without being able to FoB with armor on.
Your a monk why do you want armor? wis/dex mods = ac combat expertise adds another +4 ac when in use (required for any improved cmb feat, your a monk cmb is your thing)
monks robes will add another 2 ac, potions of barkskin (+4-6 i think), if possible wand of mage armor (+4)
pick up a natural armor amulet, maybe some deflection bracers... you can also increase your AC by using ki pool.
and yes this would all stack except barkskin and natural armor (possibly the robes and mage armor but its still another 2 ac no matter)
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Thanks ArmouredMonk13, I'm looking more for 1 2handed weapon and doing as little multiclassing as possible as I want to roleplay the character being devoted to 1 style and 1 weapon, along with possibly being illiterate and facially scarred from past fights. Just a base idea of what I'm considering but I plan on pinpointing his style/mannerism more later.
So anything that uses 1 2handed weapon and no multiclassing (I'm a bit intimidated with keeping track of stat adjustments with barbarian rage also. I would think Barbarian/Ranger would get a bit complicated after the first few levels.) Also, characters retire at 12th level so the last level I'd get to play the character would be 11th.
I'm against any sort of monk not using dragon style.
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Any input on playing non mounted Dragoon or a Wood, or Battle, Oracle as a combat spear focused warrior?
Looking for build ideas, class suggestions/advice, and thoughts in general. Really wanting to play a spear/polearm type of character and PFS doesn't offer a ton of opportunities for mounted combat.
I would have to assume that Sohei would be the worst archetype made if they GIVE light armor proficiency for being Sohei and then go "Oh hey, yeah that free proficiency we gave you....well if you use it you can't do crap as a monk so pretty much the joke is on you!"
Like giving the monk spell resistance, then changing it so it nerfs buffs and heals as well as hostile spells? Or taking the ki-pool from the martial artist archetype, but leaving in abundent step so he gains a class ability he cannot use? Paizo did a great job with Pathfinder, but the monk is the one they dropped the ball on and they have pretty much admitted it.
However most tables rule the sohei can flurry in armour.
I don't mean to railroad the point of this post but if that's the case then they may as well throw Sohei out or just remake it all together because there comes a point where you'd just not be a monk but just a crappy version of a fighter only.
On the whole the sohei is one of the better monk archetypes. It works pretty well above 6th level, below that it's not actually too bad, it's just you don't get the weapon use you want.
My advice is decide what you want to be first, then decide how to realise it. You can make a viable build with the monk as your archetype, but the Dragoon, or polemaster fighter, will dish out more actual hits and damage on average, and they can work from 1st level instead of having to wait until 6th level.
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If my memory serves me correctly the Polearm archetype doesn't offer a whole lot. I just woke up and one of the first things that came to mind was multiclassing Dragoon and Battle Oracle.
Multiclassing from Dragoon to Wood Oracle seems pretty unappealing with only a few levels.
Dragoon/Battle Oracle idea:
With 7 levels in Dragoon I would pickup Spinning lance at 7th but miss out on Banner at 9th. With 4 levels in Oracle I'd get 2 Revelations in Battle (Probably Combat Healer and Surprising Charge).
I'd have a few 1st and 2nd level heals useable as swift actions, a swift action to move up to my speed which would allow me to full attack during my round. I would be at +10/+5 BaB at 11th level which doesn't seem bad. I would pickup heavy armor for free also and have a few spells to enhance my strength or heal in combat.
I was thinking also 10 levels Dragoon and 1 level of Battle Oracle would work also. Which I'd just probably swap out Combat Healer for Battlefield Clarity or War Sight (burning my Extra Feat from Human to pickup a 2nd Revelation). This would let me get 9th level Banner and Spear Training would improve from +1atk +2dmg to +2atk and +4dmg.
Max level would be 11th level and I get a 20pt stat buy, probably picking human but haven't decided completely yet.
Either of these builds seem beneficial or really bad?