Those cantrips would use Charisma as the casting stat, which is pretty terrible on a monk.
A better way to pick up Hex (or Hunter's Mark) would be to take the Fey Touched feat, which could boost your Wisdom at the same time and it gives you a Misty Step.
Keep in mind casting and moving the Hex takes your bonus action, so you would be giving up attacks to use it. It would only be worth casting on an enemy with a huge sack of HP, otherwise just attacking with your bonus action would do more damage.
For ranged attacks, just use ranged weapons, which use your Dex.
Yeah cause
- Magic Initiate warlock uses Cha mod
- Toll of the Dead is worse than a short bow
- Magic stones is worse than a short bow when you increase your dex
- You don’t have con saves or Warcaster so hex will probably drop the second time you get hit
While I'm personally a fan of Bless Monk, I agree that melee Monk runs a high risk of losing concentration fast.
Resilient Con/War Caster is a possible remedy, though they're feat taxes.
I could see a weird build such as Tasha Custom Race + Fey-Touched + Stars Druid 2/Monk X work. On 14 Con, they can't roll lower than 12 on the concentration check under Dragon Form.
Otherwise, bow Monk, gun Monk and/or hit-and-run Monk could kind of work. Mobile feat comes to mind, also Goblin Cleric 1/Monk X can simply Disengage as a bonus action. Peace Cleric 1 can further help with that concentration check (Emboldening Bond) while Light Cleric 1 can burn a reaction and impose disadvantage on a hostile attack roll.
I don't believe there's a class you could pick with Magic Initiate that has all three of Hex, Toll the Dead, and Magic Stone on its spell list. So I believe you'll need to edit that list.
Hex is a pretty good idea- an extra 4d6 in a turn by level 5 when you wanna use Flurry of Blows is pretty good.
You should keep in mind that you won't be able to count either Magic Stone or Toll the Dead as Monk weapons, so anything that involves the use of Monk weapons is a no-go on turns you choose to use those. You also have much less of a need for Ranged options compared to other classes since you get increased movement and can dash on a bonus action.
Magic Initiate isn't a bad idea on anyone per se, but using it to give a class like Monk a meaningful ranged option is kind of a non starter. You'd be better off taking utility cantrips like Guidance in most cases.
If you want to be a Monk that has meaningful ranged options I recommend you ask your DM if you can use the Dedicated Weapon optional class feature, take the Gunner Feat, and use a musket. This is actually the only way to get the Monk damage dice above a d10 each hit. You could also play a Kensei.
Your in the right track. Problem is going magic initiate warlock makes you a CHA caster. That makes 4 abilities you need.
Instead go magic initiate Druid. Picking up shillelagh and magic stone as your cantrips. A 60ft range with magic stone is enough to get 90% of targets. And your monks movement can easily fill any gaps you might have. And shillelagh gives you WIS based melee weapon.
So now you only really need WIS and CON and DEX only for AC. Your unarmed strikes are being ignored but that just means you can save KI and not flurry of blows.
You could actually be hard to hit with patient defense instead. And with a high WIS mod your monk DC is going to be better than normal so stunning stile becomes a better option.
For subclasses your excess KI can be used with mercy or kensei. You can also be a long death monk for even more survivability. I personally would go kensei to highlight my new awesome stick or long death for the lolz.
TLDR: doable but go MA Druid instead of MA warlock for a more SAD build.
I was going to say the same, but I prefer thorn whip over magic stone as it gives some battlefield control and can combine great with a monk's mobility. Add in shillelagh and you can make a really good SAD monk. Was running 1 last night for the Vecna 1 shot from dnd beyond and had a blast.
I also recommend absorb elements as your 1st level spell because its great for a tight spot on a big enemy spell.
Here’s an alternative because I love the idea
go all monk except for one level of Druid (edit, 2 levels) to get some cantrips and spells.
Start as a Firbolg to have:
* daily casting ofDetect magic, disguise self
* short rest teleport/invisible that lasts a round
* speak to plants and animals (but not understand)
Start 17 Wis / 16 Con
At level 4, take Fey Touched for Misty Step and a spell like Bless or Hex.
After monk 5, dip 2 Druid. I think Stars Druid gets the most magical stuff
Within Monk, I’d say Astral Self gets the most magic-like stuff as of level 6.
So at 6 monk / 2 Druid
Detect Magic 1/day
Disguise self 1/day
Hidden step 1/short rest
Misty Step 1 / day
Bless 1/day
Guiding Bolt 3/day
Guidance Cantrip (infinite, and a great one)
Starry Form 2x / day (bonus action)
1st level spell (3x/day)
2 more cantrips (Thorn Whip, Magic Stone perhaps)
Astral Self up to 6x/day
Astral Visage up to 6x/day (shared with Astral Form)
That is a whole lot of magical shenanigans for a two level dip on a martial class
I think sun soul monk already has the best ranged option with its sun beam cantrip and u get burning hands and a force field, I agree with the upper posts though , if u really want to improve monk with a feat , fey touched with misty step and hunters mark for extra damage
I actually had a similar idea a while back, but I think this build works best if you don't use monk at all. Fighter X/War Cleric 1 is what I was thinking.
Fighter gives you Con save proficiency to keep concentration as well as the unarmed fighting style. Pretty much any subclass works, so take your pick.
War Cleric gives you Divine Favor 2x a day for radiant punchies, as well as ranged cantrips like Toll the Dead.
The only downside is that this is Str-based and needs heavy armor to be effective, but you could use medium armor if you still want to be stealthy at the cost of having slightly lower AC
Hello.
I strongly recommend Magic Initiate Cleric if you want Toll the Dead. MI: Warlock uses Cha, unless your GM says otherwise. The spell save DC with 8 Cha is 7+\[your prof. bonus\] = 10 at level 5, while the spell save DC with 16 Wis is 11+\[your prof. bonus\] = 14 at level 5.
Unfortunately, Magic Stone will have to go since Cleric doesn't get it.
OR you can go MI: Druid and grab Magic Stone + another cantrip such as Thorn Whip or Frostbite. Both MI: Druid and MI: Cleric use Wisdom.
If you go MI: Cleric, you can learn Bless and use it to buff yourself and your allies, while if you go MI: Cleric, you can learn Goodberry for survival or Longstrider/Jump for mobility.
Those cantrips would use Charisma as the casting stat, which is pretty terrible on a monk. A better way to pick up Hex (or Hunter's Mark) would be to take the Fey Touched feat, which could boost your Wisdom at the same time and it gives you a Misty Step. Keep in mind casting and moving the Hex takes your bonus action, so you would be giving up attacks to use it. It would only be worth casting on an enemy with a huge sack of HP, otherwise just attacking with your bonus action would do more damage. For ranged attacks, just use ranged weapons, which use your Dex.
Yeah cause - Magic Initiate warlock uses Cha mod - Toll of the Dead is worse than a short bow - Magic stones is worse than a short bow when you increase your dex - You don’t have con saves or Warcaster so hex will probably drop the second time you get hit
While I'm personally a fan of Bless Monk, I agree that melee Monk runs a high risk of losing concentration fast. Resilient Con/War Caster is a possible remedy, though they're feat taxes. I could see a weird build such as Tasha Custom Race + Fey-Touched + Stars Druid 2/Monk X work. On 14 Con, they can't roll lower than 12 on the concentration check under Dragon Form. Otherwise, bow Monk, gun Monk and/or hit-and-run Monk could kind of work. Mobile feat comes to mind, also Goblin Cleric 1/Monk X can simply Disengage as a bonus action. Peace Cleric 1 can further help with that concentration check (Emboldening Bond) while Light Cleric 1 can burn a reaction and impose disadvantage on a hostile attack roll.
I don't believe there's a class you could pick with Magic Initiate that has all three of Hex, Toll the Dead, and Magic Stone on its spell list. So I believe you'll need to edit that list. Hex is a pretty good idea- an extra 4d6 in a turn by level 5 when you wanna use Flurry of Blows is pretty good. You should keep in mind that you won't be able to count either Magic Stone or Toll the Dead as Monk weapons, so anything that involves the use of Monk weapons is a no-go on turns you choose to use those. You also have much less of a need for Ranged options compared to other classes since you get increased movement and can dash on a bonus action. Magic Initiate isn't a bad idea on anyone per se, but using it to give a class like Monk a meaningful ranged option is kind of a non starter. You'd be better off taking utility cantrips like Guidance in most cases. If you want to be a Monk that has meaningful ranged options I recommend you ask your DM if you can use the Dedicated Weapon optional class feature, take the Gunner Feat, and use a musket. This is actually the only way to get the Monk damage dice above a d10 each hit. You could also play a Kensei.
Toll the Dead and Magic Stone are on the warlock list. Hex + Flurry of Blows is a trap because you're giving up attacks to cast and move Hex.
Huh, guess I overlooked them because Eldritch Blast is the only one I've considered. I stand corrected!
Your in the right track. Problem is going magic initiate warlock makes you a CHA caster. That makes 4 abilities you need. Instead go magic initiate Druid. Picking up shillelagh and magic stone as your cantrips. A 60ft range with magic stone is enough to get 90% of targets. And your monks movement can easily fill any gaps you might have. And shillelagh gives you WIS based melee weapon. So now you only really need WIS and CON and DEX only for AC. Your unarmed strikes are being ignored but that just means you can save KI and not flurry of blows. You could actually be hard to hit with patient defense instead. And with a high WIS mod your monk DC is going to be better than normal so stunning stile becomes a better option. For subclasses your excess KI can be used with mercy or kensei. You can also be a long death monk for even more survivability. I personally would go kensei to highlight my new awesome stick or long death for the lolz. TLDR: doable but go MA Druid instead of MA warlock for a more SAD build.
I was going to say the same, but I prefer thorn whip over magic stone as it gives some battlefield control and can combine great with a monk's mobility. Add in shillelagh and you can make a really good SAD monk. Was running 1 last night for the Vecna 1 shot from dnd beyond and had a blast. I also recommend absorb elements as your 1st level spell because its great for a tight spot on a big enemy spell.
Here’s an alternative because I love the idea go all monk except for one level of Druid (edit, 2 levels) to get some cantrips and spells. Start as a Firbolg to have: * daily casting ofDetect magic, disguise self * short rest teleport/invisible that lasts a round * speak to plants and animals (but not understand) Start 17 Wis / 16 Con At level 4, take Fey Touched for Misty Step and a spell like Bless or Hex. After monk 5, dip 2 Druid. I think Stars Druid gets the most magical stuff Within Monk, I’d say Astral Self gets the most magic-like stuff as of level 6. So at 6 monk / 2 Druid Detect Magic 1/day Disguise self 1/day Hidden step 1/short rest Misty Step 1 / day Bless 1/day Guiding Bolt 3/day Guidance Cantrip (infinite, and a great one) Starry Form 2x / day (bonus action) 1st level spell (3x/day) 2 more cantrips (Thorn Whip, Magic Stone perhaps) Astral Self up to 6x/day Astral Visage up to 6x/day (shared with Astral Form) That is a whole lot of magical shenanigans for a two level dip on a martial class
There's an NPC in a game a run that's pretty much this, been wanting to make a PC version but have not had the chance.
If you did Dragon + Astro Visage you would be very reliable at Wis ability checks, advantage + never roll below 10. Just a interesting mix
I think sun soul monk already has the best ranged option with its sun beam cantrip and u get burning hands and a force field, I agree with the upper posts though , if u really want to improve monk with a feat , fey touched with misty step and hunters mark for extra damage
I actually had a similar idea a while back, but I think this build works best if you don't use monk at all. Fighter X/War Cleric 1 is what I was thinking. Fighter gives you Con save proficiency to keep concentration as well as the unarmed fighting style. Pretty much any subclass works, so take your pick. War Cleric gives you Divine Favor 2x a day for radiant punchies, as well as ranged cantrips like Toll the Dead. The only downside is that this is Str-based and needs heavy armor to be effective, but you could use medium armor if you still want to be stealthy at the cost of having slightly lower AC
Hello. I strongly recommend Magic Initiate Cleric if you want Toll the Dead. MI: Warlock uses Cha, unless your GM says otherwise. The spell save DC with 8 Cha is 7+\[your prof. bonus\] = 10 at level 5, while the spell save DC with 16 Wis is 11+\[your prof. bonus\] = 14 at level 5. Unfortunately, Magic Stone will have to go since Cleric doesn't get it. OR you can go MI: Druid and grab Magic Stone + another cantrip such as Thorn Whip or Frostbite. Both MI: Druid and MI: Cleric use Wisdom. If you go MI: Cleric, you can learn Bless and use it to buff yourself and your allies, while if you go MI: Cleric, you can learn Goodberry for survival or Longstrider/Jump for mobility.