Why not play a monk?

[fischsemmel]

Just curious if there is any reason, other than "because I want to" or "because X is a less common class," to play a pal/sk/rang/rog instead of a monk.

Sounds like monks do nearly the damage of a rogue (while being more versatile in their damage dealing... slow 2h vs 2 1h, decent even without weapons, not needing to be behind the NPC, etc.), while tanking as well as (or better than?) a pal or sk, and with the great utility of mend and better bw and feign and sneak. And then there is fact that the monk class requires less xp than other hybrids.

Seems like the only saving grace for a SK is playing an ogre for the ridiculous stats and stun resist, and that the only reason to play a paladin or ranger is to be unique. I guess rogues have a very slight leg up on monks for damage-dealing and in the exp department... but at what cost?

[falkun]

Monks are OP through Velious. Them and shaman. Live up your prime if you want to.

[Szeth]

The reason you play an sk ranger or paladin isnt to do the most dps or to soak up damage the best.

Hybrids are the only tank type with "snap aggro" Try racing for a Trak, only to have no hybrids to train the inevitable juggs.

[Dekrastius]

Monks are a great class, and eventually they will surpass anyone and I mean ANYONE at pulling. SK's are fine and fun, but when you're on a raid and their FD fails - not ok. Monks are hard to solo unless you know what youre doing.

Major skills include - Bind Wound and Mend... In order to survive you have to use these but also be prepared to die... Monks without a healer or a MT are pretty hard to sue as tanks due to the weight limitations.

Another KEY to monks is training... Train everything from level 1 to its max... 2hb, 1hb, fists, bind wound, mend, safe fall, everything. The only good monk is a maxed monk. Also do your best later in the game to get some haste items. Monks can be so much fun. I played one, 1999-2003 and I loved it more than any other class... So difficult and so fun. At lvl 50 - 55 I was soloing in Sol B. If you can learn mob pathing and you can learn to pull effectively - you will be an unbelievable tool to any group. I could pull anything in Sol B that wasn't raid related... even than, I could pull the fire giants for groups without much distress. Its a very tedious task to solo though... you fight to 20% life hit mend to stay alive, take the kill, bind wound, feign death and heal back up waiting for Mend to repop... then do it all again. It is only advised for someone who is very patient and very loyal to the class.

Monks can be heavily dependant on groups unless you know where to fight... Be prepared to fight a lot of blue mobs for the sake of staying alive and getting exp. Or find groups and be a great puller to bring in the exp.

Just be prepared to deal with the weight requirements... your AC drops dramatically if you go overweight even 1 pound... Its a rewarding class though - I assure you. I wish you luck.

[webrunner5]

Yeah a Monk is one of the greatest classes on Eq. But the weight thing on this server is a killer. They need 4 100% weight reduction bags and a good haste item to be decent. And that is big plat. Not counting a Tstaff down the road. So a great class but one of the most expensive to equipt I think.

And if you are not comfortable pulling or not too good at knowing the zones I would not even consider one. But you can learn it. A Monk and a Necro are the real true basic classes of early EQ. And still 2 of the best.

[godbox]

Originally Posted by Dekrastius [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Monks are a great class, and eventually they will surpass anyone and I mean ANYONE at pulling. SK's are fine and fun, but when you're on a raid and their FD fails - not ok. Monks are hard to solo unless you know what youre doing.

Dekrastius resists your harmtouch.

[fischsemmel]

Originally Posted by Dekrastius [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

Its a rewarding class though - I assure you. I wish you luck.

Haha, no need to wish me luck. I'm one of the people who refuses to play a monk for my own reasons... even though I really like the idea of pure melee classes but dislike the idea of being SO group-dependent like warriors and rogues.

Edit - I am a bit confused by people who are saying that monks are expensive though, as if trying to make a monk who is tolerable to solo is more expensive than doing the same thing with any non-caster. Tstaff and fungi for a solo monk? Yeah, that's a lot of money for most people. But you could spend 3x that on a warrior and still be shit without a healer, or 3x that on a rogue and still be shit without a tank AND a healer.

[godbox]

to post above

you COULD spend that much or more on any class but you can see same results for way less cash twink with war rogue ect even if you wanted to drop a bunch of cash what u gonna buy a rapier for what 13K? thats alot less than a tstaff. Monks are more limited by gear choices thats just straight up fact. But ya monks can make great use of lower end gear as well its just people want the best of best (at least for your primary wep) on 1999 and best of best for monk is fing way more expensive in general.

not saying monks are weak or useless untwinked there great untwinked but youll stay untwinked since you cant farm much til you get those 100% reduce bags.

thats my 2cents sorry bout the rant im bored as shit at work

[fischsemmel]

Originally Posted by godbox [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

sorry bout the rant

If you think that was a rant, you must be one of the people who opted out of the R&F forums.

[Dekrastius]

I agree with Webrunner... I'd suggest starting a class that can potentially make money... IE a Druid that can kite Hill Giants to earn some cash. If you have money and can equip.... Monks are devastating. This is where the line is drawn.. Back when I played my monk in the live days, there was plenty of farming and items out on the market which caused prices to drop. That doesn't seem possible with P'99. Best of luck in your decision.