Monk weapon question

[Decurion]

Hey everyone, I don't know if anyone remembers me but I used to post on here a while ago in anticipation of getting the game over the summer, which never happened, but now I've finally got it! Yay...and stuff. Anyway, I'm playing a Monk and I had a question. I have this totally badass doublebladed sword which i have that dwarf upgrade for me in chap one to the uthgart tribal blade. I really want to use it but I've been holding off on getting the exotic weapon proficiency feat until ask someone this. Would it be better just to stay unarmed and or should I start using the sword.

Thanks a heap, Decurion

Edit: Oh, and P.S. - Whats the deal with henchmen, they all give me something to like...hang onto or something, but does it lead to a quest? And how long do the quests take to start.

[ 10-19-2003, 02:29 PM: Message edited by: Decurion ]

[Stratos]

Welcome back, Decurion!

If a Monk fights with anything except unarmed or with kamas he'll loose his attack damage as well as the number of hits per round to that of a, say, Cleric. In other words not good at all. The Monk is the class that by default get's the highest number of attacks per round and he also does a good deal of damage. A lv. 20 Monk would have 5 attacks per round and do 1-20 points of damage wihout any weapons equipped or strengh modifier, and with those he would do even more damage. If he, on the other hand, equip any weapon except for gloves and kamas the same lv. 20 Monk would only have 3 attacks per round and do the damage the weapon does + strenght.

As you can see, a weapon wielding Monk is not a good choice. On top of that the two-handed sword is probably the worst choice for a Monk as it requires the Exotic Weapon feat as well as being a double weapon meaning it will act as a dual-wielding weapon. To dual wield effectively you need at least two extra feats; Two weapon fighting and Ambidexterity. To add insult to injury you can't use Stunning Fists and Quivering Palm while wielding a weapon. AND you only fight as good, or bad, a Cleric or Rogue does which is substantially worst than a Monk. In other words: fight unarmed with gloves or with kamas. If you want to use any other weapon you really should pick another class.

On the last question; Yes, you should hang on to the items your henchmen gives to you. When they first join you they will give you a token to prove their allegience to you. By talking to them and asking about them you'll be given a quest to solve. You have to talk to them several times until they reveal their quests, if they don't say anything new then wait until you've leveled up and try again. Your journal should keep track of any useful information. When you've finished each quest the henchmen gives you an item which you can then use. Keep these items as well as they will eventually become stronger in the following chapters.

I could be wrong on this, but I believe that you need to solve a henchmans quest in the chapter your in at the moment to be able to hire them in the next chapter. This supposedly is the case for all chapters.

Hope this helps.

[ 10-19-2003, 03:18 PM: Message edited by: Stratos ]

[robertthebard]

totally correct on the monk stuff, unarmed or kamas. however, from experience, you don't need to finish a henchman's quest in order to keep the same one, but some of the items are kinda cool, so...
Minor henchman spoiler
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If you have Linu, and don't finish her quest in chapter one, you will be able to hire her, but she won't give you any other quests. i've only used Linu, and Tomi, so i can't say about any of the others, but i do know that about her, as for Tomi, he gave me the quest in chapter 2, even tho we didn't do his chapter one quest.

[Stratos]

Don't forget that the items the henchmen give you will upgrade as the game progresses. It's worth to leave your current henchman for awhile while doing the quests of the others to gain their items.

[Decurion]

Thanks a lot guys, that helps me out a lot. By the way, I was wondering...is there a kensai equivalent in NWN?

Decurion

[Micah Foehammer]

Originally posted by Decurion: Thanks a lot guys, that helps me out a lot. By the way, I was wondering...is there a kensai equivalent in NWN? Decurion

Not in NWN or SoU, but the Hordes expansion pack is going to add a Prestige Class that looks pretty similiar. [img]smile.gif[/img]