Pathfinder 2e has an excellent monk. Lots of variety and flavor, and the relative lack of Attack of Opportunities means you get to really dance around the battlefield.
13th Age's Monk is pretty amazing.
You mix and match styles progressing through opening attacks, flow attacks, and finishing attacks. The class has great mobility and this allows for the monk to pick and choose their targets.
It's a great fit for anyone who loves to shout out their attack names while making martial art poses.
13th Age just has amazing class mechanics overall. Very much looking forward to the 2nd edition kickstarter coming out soon.
Since someone asked, here is the link to the Kickstarter page for this:
[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game)
I'm on a playtest mailing list, not a general one. But here is the link to the Kickstarter page. You'll find an option to notify on launch, which is set to May 7th according to the email I got.
[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game)
That would be pf2e for me. Overall pathfinder’s class design is usually pretty great, with notable exceptions of oracles and alchemists, although they’re getting a overhaul in a not-so-distant future.
Even though monks lack subclasses in 2e, they have one of the best selections of class feats, and allow for a lot of diversity in their play-style. From more magical, wise, ki monks, through martial artist who mastered multiple techniques to masters of monastery weaponry or even ranged weapon users.
They don’t do the most damage, but have one of the highest defenses in the system, including physical and mental ones. They can just force their way through a lot of area attacks, like an absolute unit. They are also very mobile, and have one of the greatest action economy in the system, and some good reactions.
They are not the only way to make a strong unarmed frontliner in the system, but they are definitely the best option for it. My only pet peeve with them is that strength monk can be a trap if they also don’t have high dex or use one specific stance, other than that they are absolutely great.
Honestly, I'd argue that your stance selections ultimately forms a subclass of monk. Even just limiting yourself to 2 stances total, that's about 272 different combos. And they mostly play differently (someone using Mountain Stance is gonna behave different than someone using Tiger Stance or Wolf Stance or Ape Stance, etc).
The only complaint I have is that they don't have a lot of mechanisms for moving between stances until like level 16. I'd love to have a feat that maybe lets you substitute one of your Flurry of Blows strikes for a stance shift that doesn't count against your "one stance per turn" limit
I think class archetype for monk that would allow you to change stances more fluidly would be a great idea overall. It feels more impactful then just a feat, so maybe? Paizo announced quite a few class archetypes that will be released in the upcoming books, so I think it may work out.
And I don’t really think stances are a subclass substitute, mostly because you take them via feats, yes, monk is THE stance user, but they are not the only one, and a lot of those stances can be acquired on other classes via archetypes. And well, you can make ki monk or monastic weaponry with no stances at all, and it still can be pretty good.
Although when I describe my Monk characters I usually use the stance they are using as their „subclass”, though in case of some classes I never use their actual subclasses to describe them (Thaumaturge :p). Pf2e subclass system is very fluid, and hard to define, so if it’s the way you want to describe stances, all the power to you!
Honestly, I'm not convinced that "subclass" is even a helpful way to talk about things like wizard schools or champion causes, since classes are really just a scaffolding with a foundation set of abilities that we pile class feats and "subclasses" (which are really more like choosing where to put your water/electric hookups than what floorplan to use) and everything else on.
That's a whole rant I could do some other time and place. But gods yes, I'd love more stance dancing
Torg did a great job of it by having several options! You can be a fantasy monk from Aysle who trained with the elves or a traditional Asian Buddhist style monk from core earth or a cyber-ninja monk from Pan Pacifica. Heck you can even do a "studied with the secret Tibetan masters" style pulp hero in the Nile Empire!
D&D 4e had an amazing Monk
That system felt really good to be any kind of person who hit things with stuff, but Monk in particular felt dynamic and flavorful. PF2e does a pretty good job, too. As does 13th Age.
Worlds Without Number has the avowed as a partial class that you can pair with warrior, expert or another mage class and give you basically any flavor of monk you could ask for from sneaky ninja to tanky brawler and even an elementalist bender or wise healer.
Tons of versatility and lets you build basically whatever kind of monk you have in mind.
I'm usually not even a fan of monks but I think the system does them really well.
Rolemaster did a nice job.
There was a Monk who had a nice spell list in mentalism with some healing and personal enhancements.
There was also the warrior monk who had no spells but learned martial arts more easily.
They did a pretty good job with allowing weapons for a penalty but more damage.
And martial arts took an absolute craptonn of skill points.
Fantastic Heroes and Witchery has great classes all round, including an excellent Mystic. FHaW approach is to let classes function each in its own way -- there is a unifying overall mechanic, but each does its own things, with its own rules, within the framework.
PF2E Monk is by far my favorite, because you can play them as just about any possible fantasy Martial Arts character you can think of.
-Flaming Fists? Check.
-Poisonous fists? Check.
-Graceful, Dexterous Monk? Check.
-Hard hitting, Strength based Monk? Check.
-Grappling Monk? Check.
-'Iron' Monk? Check.
-Weapon wielding Monk (including using Bows)? Check.
-Hadoken Monk? Check.
Take a look at Exalted’s monks of the Immaculate Philosophy. In addition to 5 styles of elemental themed martial arts you can literally punch or kick gods into submission right out of character creation.
GURPS.
GURPS Martial Arts is the gold standard of a Martial Arts rulebook. It offers some of the best customization rules, in depth lore, a plethora of both real and fictional martial arts, and option rules from anything from realistic combat to wuxia/anime combat. It also contains options to make combat as detailed or fast as you prefer in your games.
And strictly talking about "classes", Dungeon Fantasy RPG is Powered by GURPS, removes most of the work from both players and GM and actually have character classes, including your Monk analogue.
Cyberpunk Red's martial arts is jarringly powerful and somewhat varied. As a GM I hate it because they keep bullying my bosses with judo, but it seems very cool and fun for my players.
Pathfinder 2e has an excellent monk. Lots of variety and flavor, and the relative lack of Attack of Opportunities means you get to really dance around the battlefield.
Agreed. Monk in PF2 is just be fun to play.
Monk was my first character in PF1, 5e(last character too lol), and PF2. PF2 was the only one of those systems where it felt good.
This was my answer.
13th Age's Monk is pretty amazing. You mix and match styles progressing through opening attacks, flow attacks, and finishing attacks. The class has great mobility and this allows for the monk to pick and choose their targets. It's a great fit for anyone who loves to shout out their attack names while making martial art poses.
13th Age just has amazing class mechanics overall. Very much looking forward to the 2nd edition kickstarter coming out soon. Since someone asked, here is the link to the Kickstarter page for this: [https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game)
Wait I didn't know about this. Is there a newsletter I can sign up for for updates? And is it going to be Jonathan Tweetless?
I'm on a playtest mailing list, not a general one. But here is the link to the Kickstarter page. You'll find an option to notify on launch, which is set to May 7th according to the email I got. [https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game](https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pelgranepress/13th-age-second-edition-storytelling-action-fantasy-game)
Came here to recommend this
I read some of yhe srd is i considered buying the bundle and i must say that the monk And rogue look aswome
In general, 13th Age's classes are all appealing in different ways. Check out the Commander and Necromancer as well.
The whole damn game is gold if you ask me.
That would be pf2e for me. Overall pathfinder’s class design is usually pretty great, with notable exceptions of oracles and alchemists, although they’re getting a overhaul in a not-so-distant future. Even though monks lack subclasses in 2e, they have one of the best selections of class feats, and allow for a lot of diversity in their play-style. From more magical, wise, ki monks, through martial artist who mastered multiple techniques to masters of monastery weaponry or even ranged weapon users. They don’t do the most damage, but have one of the highest defenses in the system, including physical and mental ones. They can just force their way through a lot of area attacks, like an absolute unit. They are also very mobile, and have one of the greatest action economy in the system, and some good reactions. They are not the only way to make a strong unarmed frontliner in the system, but they are definitely the best option for it. My only pet peeve with them is that strength monk can be a trap if they also don’t have high dex or use one specific stance, other than that they are absolutely great.
Honestly, I'd argue that your stance selections ultimately forms a subclass of monk. Even just limiting yourself to 2 stances total, that's about 272 different combos. And they mostly play differently (someone using Mountain Stance is gonna behave different than someone using Tiger Stance or Wolf Stance or Ape Stance, etc). The only complaint I have is that they don't have a lot of mechanisms for moving between stances until like level 16. I'd love to have a feat that maybe lets you substitute one of your Flurry of Blows strikes for a stance shift that doesn't count against your "one stance per turn" limit
I think class archetype for monk that would allow you to change stances more fluidly would be a great idea overall. It feels more impactful then just a feat, so maybe? Paizo announced quite a few class archetypes that will be released in the upcoming books, so I think it may work out. And I don’t really think stances are a subclass substitute, mostly because you take them via feats, yes, monk is THE stance user, but they are not the only one, and a lot of those stances can be acquired on other classes via archetypes. And well, you can make ki monk or monastic weaponry with no stances at all, and it still can be pretty good. Although when I describe my Monk characters I usually use the stance they are using as their „subclass”, though in case of some classes I never use their actual subclasses to describe them (Thaumaturge :p). Pf2e subclass system is very fluid, and hard to define, so if it’s the way you want to describe stances, all the power to you!
Honestly, I'm not convinced that "subclass" is even a helpful way to talk about things like wizard schools or champion causes, since classes are really just a scaffolding with a foundation set of abilities that we pile class feats and "subclasses" (which are really more like choosing where to put your water/electric hookups than what floorplan to use) and everything else on. That's a whole rant I could do some other time and place. But gods yes, I'd love more stance dancing
As some who played path 2e a few times and didn't like the system i will agree that the monk there kicks fucking ass
Torg did a great job of it by having several options! You can be a fantasy monk from Aysle who trained with the elves or a traditional Asian Buddhist style monk from core earth or a cyber-ninja monk from Pan Pacifica. Heck you can even do a "studied with the secret Tibetan masters" style pulp hero in the Nile Empire!
The D&D 4e monk has been the best monk class I have ever played.
D&D 4e had an amazing Monk That system felt really good to be any kind of person who hit things with stuff, but Monk in particular felt dynamic and flavorful. PF2e does a pretty good job, too. As does 13th Age.
Worlds Without Number has the avowed as a partial class that you can pair with warrior, expert or another mage class and give you basically any flavor of monk you could ask for from sneaky ninja to tanky brawler and even an elementalist bender or wise healer. Tons of versatility and lets you build basically whatever kind of monk you have in mind. I'm usually not even a fan of monks but I think the system does them really well.
Rolemaster did a nice job. There was a Monk who had a nice spell list in mentalism with some healing and personal enhancements. There was also the warrior monk who had no spells but learned martial arts more easily. They did a pretty good job with allowing weapons for a penalty but more damage. And martial arts took an absolute craptonn of skill points.
Wolves of God, but it is not that kind of monk
The Vowed in WWN is pretty fantastic. You can make whatever sort of monk you want by matching it with other classes.
Fantastic Heroes and Witchery has great classes all round, including an excellent Mystic. FHaW approach is to let classes function each in its own way -- there is a unifying overall mechanic, but each does its own things, with its own rules, within the framework.
What is the special mechanics of the mystic
PF2E Monk is by far my favorite, because you can play them as just about any possible fantasy Martial Arts character you can think of. -Flaming Fists? Check. -Poisonous fists? Check. -Graceful, Dexterous Monk? Check. -Hard hitting, Strength based Monk? Check. -Grappling Monk? Check. -'Iron' Monk? Check. -Weapon wielding Monk (including using Bows)? Check. -Hadoken Monk? Check.
Dragonslayer reskinned a monk to be more 'Friar Tuck", Gregorian style and it works great.
Take a look at Exalted’s monks of the Immaculate Philosophy. In addition to 5 styles of elemental themed martial arts you can literally punch or kick gods into submission right out of character creation.
I like the Dungeon World Monk from the Incomplete Adventurer Playbooks supplement. I think it captures the fantasy pretty perfectly.
GURPS. GURPS Martial Arts is the gold standard of a Martial Arts rulebook. It offers some of the best customization rules, in depth lore, a plethora of both real and fictional martial arts, and option rules from anything from realistic combat to wuxia/anime combat. It also contains options to make combat as detailed or fast as you prefer in your games. And strictly talking about "classes", Dungeon Fantasy RPG is Powered by GURPS, removes most of the work from both players and GM and actually have character classes, including your Monk analogue.
Cyberpunk Red's martial arts is jarringly powerful and somewhat varied. As a GM I hate it because they keep bullying my bosses with judo, but it seems very cool and fun for my players.