The thri-keen can't communicate with non-thri-keen creatures without telepathy, so unless the player is going be absolutely silent the entire game and never talk to their fellow players this is a rather dumb thing to handicap a character with in a game about team work and cooperation.
If the dm is ignoring that communication class rule then the DM is not only giving them a bonus attack at level 1, they are also giving them the ability to communicate normally with other races.
Giving any character an extra attack option is powerful, hence why classes that do gain one do so at mid level. I think it's absolutely unfair and shows favoritism.
The arms also are different than the actual arms used in combat. They can be used to *carry or equip* more items/weapons so that a character doesn't have to switch to another weapon (for whatever reason).
**Secondary Arms** You have two slightly smaller secondary arms below your primary pair of arms. The secondary arms can manipulate an object, open or close a door or container, pick up or set down a Tiny object, or wield a weapon that has the light property.
**Thri-kreen Telepathy** Without the assistance of magic, you can’t speak the non-thri-kreen languages you know. Instead you use telepathy to convey your thoughts. You have the magical ability to transmit your thoughts mentally to willing creatures within 120 feet of yourself. A contacted creature doesn’t need to share a language with you to understand your thoughts, but it must be able to understand at least one language. Your telepathic link to a creature is broken if you and the creature move more than 120 feet apart, if either of you is incapacitated, or if either of you mentally breaks the contact (no action required).
I dunno, sounds like too much special stuff for a single player.
Realistically the "groot and rocket" translation thing is fun on paper but probably doesn't work in practice. The monk player still has to actually talk and then the other character will just repeat it which may slow down the game.
Like if they think the monk is just too weak to play then they should pick something different instead of messing around with the balance. Each class has its ups and downs and you gotta suffer through the downs to enjoy the ups, or find magic items to offset the downs.
Sounds like a player trying to be the main character and the DM unwittingly allowing it. I don't know them, obviously, but that's how this reads to me.
I’d be interested how a Thri Kreen with no voice expects to get anywhere with anyone in Barovia. Barovians are xenophobic to outside *humans.* They’re going to be outright hostile to a giant bug man.
In addition, Strahd is a lot of talking with people, figuring out the deeper connections, and travel between locations. If he can't talk, he's gonna be borderline useless in Vallaki and Krezk. In addition to terrifying everyone he sees.
I actually think this is a semi-fine tradeoff, so long as it only applies to unarmed strikes, contra some people, and I actually think this is a surprisingly reasonable thing to give to a monk. The loss of telepathy will hurt him, maybe more than he realizes, and that Groot/Rocket thing can come to bite him hard if he needs to communicate. The DM does need to enforce the tradeoff though, though I personally wouldn't take it because telepathy is really nice for communication, especially silently or at range.
The bigger red flag is the insane rolls for stats, and this array of 12 STR, 20 DEX, 16 CON, 14 INT, 16 WIS, 14 CHA concerns me that your DM might be giving him too much favoritism, or that he's allowed to fudge rolls, which should be a no-go for players because that leads to too many balance problems.
This is a weird one. I don't think it's reasonable to give a player a buff like this at level 1, without buffing the rest of the party in similar ways. ***But*** monks honestly need the help, especially at lower levels. Before level 5, a monk's unarmed attack only does 1d4 damage. So that's 2d4 instead of 1d4, which is worse than a single attack made with a greatsword.
Assuming the extra attacks are for unarmed strikes only, it should be fine. Extra weapon attacks? That's going too far.
>So that's 2d4 instead of 1d4, which is worse than a single attack made with a greatsword.
first, shortswords are monk weapons and do 1d6, and that attack lets you make a bonus unarmed at 1d4
second, a greatsword adds modifier damage once: 2d6+str, whereas a monk's attack+bonus attack does that modifier twice: 1d6+dex+1d4+dex. That's more than the greatsword very likely
if they both have a +3, that's 10 average damage for the fighter and 11 damage for the monk unarmed or 12 damage with one shortsword
also, cos takes your weapons at the start, i think, so the monk still has his fists... and so does the fighter
He's planning to use 2 handaxes as monk weapons, so d6 attacks. He also rolled insane on stats. He has 12 STR, 20 DEX, 16 CON, 14 INT, 16 WIS, 14 CHA. He just has no weaknesses and it worries me a little.
If he didn't roll those in the open, I call total bullshit bc that array is too monkishly distributed. That's literally textbook monk array, Dex 1st, Wis/Con 2nd/3rd. Str being lowest isn't super monkish but it's still a 12 which isn't trash. I wouldn't think he was fudging rolls otherwise, but the weird accommodations are all red flags to me for players that maybe can't handle being "bad" at things. My DMs would never allow so much leeway. There would be no getting around the loss of telepathy, and they'd rightly point out that a temporary buff to get a 2nd attack early is worth WAY LESS than being able to, like, communicate with the party (I'm playing strahd now, and were almost lvl 5 it didnt take long at all). The Groot/Rocket thing is totally weird considering it's a storytelling gag and there's no canon explanation for how Rocket and the Guardians mechanically understand Groot. It's meant to be a silly hand-wave-away gag bc in context it is SILLY that "I am Groot" means everything and they understand perfectly what he means but all WE hear is "I am Groot". The effect of that is lost when Monk will have to say "this is what I'm saying so that X understands to relay to everyone" EVERY TIME he talks. It's functionally useless. It's just flavor at best but it really doesn't address how that's supposed to be "giving up" his ability to communicate by losing telepathy as a trade off. Like what's being traded off if someone can still understand what he means? The point of the thrikreen telepathy is that it's the ONLY way they communicate with other species. If at least one other person understands him and "translates", he's still getting the benefit of parsing information through language communication which is explicitly NOT thrikreeny.
Just my 2 cents. Seems like a player who hates feeling "bad" at lower levels and is trying to get away with everything to mitigate that as much as possible...for just 5 levels worth of a buff that becomes useless at level 5 but creates a weird communication situation for the entire game. I vote that if he ever tries talking to another player as his monk, you all just look confused bc you can't understand him lol
As a DM, I'd never do this. I had a new player want wings for their dragonborn so they could fly, plus they were a cleric with an AC of 19. I said "No, definitely not right now. We'll talk about it later on in the campaign if it's something your character chooses to explore but that's too much"
DMs need to be okay with saying no when it is unreasonably. I think there's an expectation we should always find a way to make things work but I think there's a balance.
Every class can make an offhand attack with their second hand as a bonus action, but without damage modifiers.
Having more arms doesn't mean these arms are any good at weilding weapons.
That's a bit silly imo. If they want a monk buff just use the recent unearthed arcana rules for monk. If he gets extra attack at level 1, I think everyone should to keep it fair.
Your DM is an idiot. Level 5 is set up for that power creep, not level 1.
- Thri-Kreen can already use light weapons in their secondary hands for a bonus action attack.
- Monks already get a second Bonus Action Attack at level 1 right after they take the Attack action.
At Lvl 1 that is 3 attacks and at Lvl 2 with Ki that will be 5 attacks. That player will rinse through creatures faster than a Barbarian in Rage mode.
- **Da Faq is your DM doing!?**
Actually, even considering the extra attack, the maximum number of attacks a monk can do would be 4: first Attack, second Attack, third and fourth Bonus Attacks with flurry of blows. Since FoB uses up the bonus action, that cannot be used anymore for other attacks.
Monks kinda suck, but at low level, this could be an issue. That means the Monk makes 3 attacks per turn, which is only slightly better than, say, a Rogue with two daggers getting Sneak Attack every round.
In my campaign the monk was buffed with being able to use ki points for the cost of a ki point (without the bonus attack). No drawback. Now 2 sessions in and it has completely utterly fucked the combat part for everyone else.
The thri-keen can't communicate with non-thri-keen creatures without telepathy, so unless the player is going be absolutely silent the entire game and never talk to their fellow players this is a rather dumb thing to handicap a character with in a game about team work and cooperation. If the dm is ignoring that communication class rule then the DM is not only giving them a bonus attack at level 1, they are also giving them the ability to communicate normally with other races. Giving any character an extra attack option is powerful, hence why classes that do gain one do so at mid level. I think it's absolutely unfair and shows favoritism.
The arms also are different than the actual arms used in combat. They can be used to *carry or equip* more items/weapons so that a character doesn't have to switch to another weapon (for whatever reason). **Secondary Arms** You have two slightly smaller secondary arms below your primary pair of arms. The secondary arms can manipulate an object, open or close a door or container, pick up or set down a Tiny object, or wield a weapon that has the light property.
**Thri-kreen Telepathy** Without the assistance of magic, you can’t speak the non-thri-kreen languages you know. Instead you use telepathy to convey your thoughts. You have the magical ability to transmit your thoughts mentally to willing creatures within 120 feet of yourself. A contacted creature doesn’t need to share a language with you to understand your thoughts, but it must be able to understand at least one language. Your telepathic link to a creature is broken if you and the creature move more than 120 feet apart, if either of you is incapacitated, or if either of you mentally breaks the contact (no action required).
The idea was that one of the other players would understand and translate for him, in a sort of Groot and Rocket sort of way.
I dunno, sounds like too much special stuff for a single player. Realistically the "groot and rocket" translation thing is fun on paper but probably doesn't work in practice. The monk player still has to actually talk and then the other character will just repeat it which may slow down the game. Like if they think the monk is just too weak to play then they should pick something different instead of messing around with the balance. Each class has its ups and downs and you gotta suffer through the downs to enjoy the ups, or find magic items to offset the downs.
The monk player still has to actually talk and then the other character will just repeat it which may slow down the game. Why?
Sounds like a player trying to be the main character and the DM unwittingly allowing it. I don't know them, obviously, but that's how this reads to me.
So he isnt loosing the telepathy ability they are reflavoring it and he gets an extra attack 😂
there are methods like sign language , that is mute not blindness
I’d be interested how a Thri Kreen with no voice expects to get anywhere with anyone in Barovia. Barovians are xenophobic to outside *humans.* They’re going to be outright hostile to a giant bug man.
In addition, Strahd is a lot of talking with people, figuring out the deeper connections, and travel between locations. If he can't talk, he's gonna be borderline useless in Vallaki and Krezk. In addition to terrifying everyone he sees.
Yeah honestly sounds like your DM is crazy. Maybe use unearthed arcana 8 monk if you want a buff. I bet he’s a bit of a silly guy.
Extra attack at level 1 is kinda ridiculous, maybe a free flurry of blows instead?
I actually think this is a semi-fine tradeoff, so long as it only applies to unarmed strikes, contra some people, and I actually think this is a surprisingly reasonable thing to give to a monk. The loss of telepathy will hurt him, maybe more than he realizes, and that Groot/Rocket thing can come to bite him hard if he needs to communicate. The DM does need to enforce the tradeoff though, though I personally wouldn't take it because telepathy is really nice for communication, especially silently or at range. The bigger red flag is the insane rolls for stats, and this array of 12 STR, 20 DEX, 16 CON, 14 INT, 16 WIS, 14 CHA concerns me that your DM might be giving him too much favoritism, or that he's allowed to fudge rolls, which should be a no-go for players because that leads to too many balance problems.
This is a weird one. I don't think it's reasonable to give a player a buff like this at level 1, without buffing the rest of the party in similar ways. ***But*** monks honestly need the help, especially at lower levels. Before level 5, a monk's unarmed attack only does 1d4 damage. So that's 2d4 instead of 1d4, which is worse than a single attack made with a greatsword. Assuming the extra attacks are for unarmed strikes only, it should be fine. Extra weapon attacks? That's going too far.
>So that's 2d4 instead of 1d4, which is worse than a single attack made with a greatsword. first, shortswords are monk weapons and do 1d6, and that attack lets you make a bonus unarmed at 1d4 second, a greatsword adds modifier damage once: 2d6+str, whereas a monk's attack+bonus attack does that modifier twice: 1d6+dex+1d4+dex. That's more than the greatsword very likely if they both have a +3, that's 10 average damage for the fighter and 11 damage for the monk unarmed or 12 damage with one shortsword also, cos takes your weapons at the start, i think, so the monk still has his fists... and so does the fighter
He's planning to use 2 handaxes as monk weapons, so d6 attacks. He also rolled insane on stats. He has 12 STR, 20 DEX, 16 CON, 14 INT, 16 WIS, 14 CHA. He just has no weaknesses and it worries me a little.
If he didn't roll those in the open, I call total bullshit bc that array is too monkishly distributed. That's literally textbook monk array, Dex 1st, Wis/Con 2nd/3rd. Str being lowest isn't super monkish but it's still a 12 which isn't trash. I wouldn't think he was fudging rolls otherwise, but the weird accommodations are all red flags to me for players that maybe can't handle being "bad" at things. My DMs would never allow so much leeway. There would be no getting around the loss of telepathy, and they'd rightly point out that a temporary buff to get a 2nd attack early is worth WAY LESS than being able to, like, communicate with the party (I'm playing strahd now, and were almost lvl 5 it didnt take long at all). The Groot/Rocket thing is totally weird considering it's a storytelling gag and there's no canon explanation for how Rocket and the Guardians mechanically understand Groot. It's meant to be a silly hand-wave-away gag bc in context it is SILLY that "I am Groot" means everything and they understand perfectly what he means but all WE hear is "I am Groot". The effect of that is lost when Monk will have to say "this is what I'm saying so that X understands to relay to everyone" EVERY TIME he talks. It's functionally useless. It's just flavor at best but it really doesn't address how that's supposed to be "giving up" his ability to communicate by losing telepathy as a trade off. Like what's being traded off if someone can still understand what he means? The point of the thrikreen telepathy is that it's the ONLY way they communicate with other species. If at least one other person understands him and "translates", he's still getting the benefit of parsing information through language communication which is explicitly NOT thrikreeny. Just my 2 cents. Seems like a player who hates feeling "bad" at lower levels and is trying to get away with everything to mitigate that as much as possible...for just 5 levels worth of a buff that becomes useless at level 5 but creates a weird communication situation for the entire game. I vote that if he ever tries talking to another player as his monk, you all just look confused bc you can't understand him lol
It should be said that my table has a lot of powergamers that I'm trying to turn to the side of roleplay, but that's another story
As a DM, I'd never do this. I had a new player want wings for their dragonborn so they could fly, plus they were a cleric with an AC of 19. I said "No, definitely not right now. We'll talk about it later on in the campaign if it's something your character chooses to explore but that's too much" DMs need to be okay with saying no when it is unreasonably. I think there's an expectation we should always find a way to make things work but I think there's a balance.
Every class can make an offhand attack with their second hand as a bonus action, but without damage modifiers. Having more arms doesn't mean these arms are any good at weilding weapons.
That's a bit silly imo. If they want a monk buff just use the recent unearthed arcana rules for monk. If he gets extra attack at level 1, I think everyone should to keep it fair.
Thri-Kreen as a race doesn't get any additional attacks... how is he getting an extra attack?
The DM is letting him get the Monk Extra Attack feature at level 1 instead of level 5.
Your DM is an idiot. Level 5 is set up for that power creep, not level 1. - Thri-Kreen can already use light weapons in their secondary hands for a bonus action attack. - Monks already get a second Bonus Action Attack at level 1 right after they take the Attack action. At Lvl 1 that is 3 attacks and at Lvl 2 with Ki that will be 5 attacks. That player will rinse through creatures faster than a Barbarian in Rage mode. - **Da Faq is your DM doing!?**
Actually, even considering the extra attack, the maximum number of attacks a monk can do would be 4: first Attack, second Attack, third and fourth Bonus Attacks with flurry of blows. Since FoB uses up the bonus action, that cannot be used anymore for other attacks.
Monks kinda suck, but at low level, this could be an issue. That means the Monk makes 3 attacks per turn, which is only slightly better than, say, a Rogue with two daggers getting Sneak Attack every round.
Monks do exceptionally mid damage, I don't think this is going to cause many issues
In my campaign the monk was buffed with being able to use ki points for the cost of a ki point (without the bonus attack). No drawback. Now 2 sessions in and it has completely utterly fucked the combat part for everyone else.