Originally posted by Mirk
@ lompo: not that pal3/ftrX or ftr4/palX dont earn their money. but:
as i said, i haven't tried it yet, but on paper pal2/mnk makes a great combo. it just won't be the "prototype" full-plate-and-packing-steel paladin. just examine the following char:
assimar pal2/mnkX
str 14
dex 14
con 14
int 6
wis 14
cha 18
(or some more min-maxing to your liking)
start as a paladin, multiclas after level 2.
at char level 3(!!!), this char will have evasion, backed by the paladine save bonuses, which can be enhanced by cha-buffing items and spells
he will be imune to fear as a level 2 pal, and to confusion via the early-available (and cheap) belt, and to charm via his Protection from Evil, or some item.
later in the game, he will become a lot more powerful, just think about this:
monk spell resistance + Holy Avenger spell resistance + great saves across the table + cha bonus to saves + GREATER evasion = put him into a group of enemies and start hurling fireballs... that's just standing there, not fighting...
oh, and that is without the elemental resistancies...
quivering palm+smite evil...
2*lay on hands, which may be backed by cha even for the monk ability, this remains to be checked...
did i miss anything?
not too shabby, eh?
Mirk I don't discuss that your pal/monk can be an interesting char. to play, is just that you are not building the most effective monk (because you are building a monk, ain't you?).
This is my reasoning: monks get a lot of bonuses as they progress, so you want to get them as soon as possible (as for spellcaster); take a pure monk (no ECL) at lev. 16 (end of normal mode): he has +3 bonus ac, is fist are considered +3 weapon doing 1-20 dmg and has 4 attack*rnd and he will be enjoing of spell res. for a long time (3 lev. ups); your monk will be lev. 13 (+2 pal), with +2 ac, his fist are +2 weapon doing 1-12 dmg for 4 attack*rnd (if you are using holy avenger (?) you'll have 2(!) attack*rnd), and you have just obtained the spell res.
What are you adv.?: some better saves due to paladinhood (plus the Aesimar bonus), the other bonuses are very lame (you don't get feared with such high saves, and you get immunity to disease both as pal and monk; smite evil is a once/day ability and is not so powerful with only 2 lev of pal.), but how much and at which cost?
your monk: 14/14/14/6/14/18
shield dwarf monk (but also other races can be good):16/18/20/6/18/2
if you cont in the racial save bonuses you have offset the paladin holy aura, plus you have higher ac (+5), hp (50-60), dmg and BAB.
Remember that you are building a tank!!
Last: spell res. don't protect you against dmg from fireball etc, but only from spell single directed (as finger of death or flame arrow), so in your strategy you monk is going to die very quickly.
But it can still be a fun char to play with.
