Martens 3.0

[Marten]

UPDATED:

First, a Halfling, currently a Half-Orc, but the future is coming! Martens 3.0 Bladeforged Pure Monk.

After spending 3 days putting in all the ETRs and ITRs on Lamannia, this is how Martens will look before the end of this November on Sarlona!

The future of Martens! On Lamannia I ETRed and ITRed to his final build. Triple ETR Completionist, 3 heroic monk lives, 3 of each Iconic Shadar-Kai, PDK, and Bladeforged. Then the final monk life is Bladeforged. This is only a brief demo.

Martens 3.0 Demo Wiz King EE Part1


Martens 3.0 Demo Wiz King EE Part2

Martens 3.0 (GM Earth Solo or Tanking GM Wind for some grouping.)
Pure Bladeforged Monk:
36pt Build (Triple ED Completionist, 3xHPL Monk, 3xIPL PDK, 3xIPL Shadar-Kai, 3xIPL Bladeforged Paladin, and final life Bladeforged Pure Monk. Requires at least a +1 Heart to remove the Paladin level. Not required, but something I suggest is to buy a Tablet of Lawful Neutrality.)
Str - 18 +5 tome (3 lvl ups after lvls to Wis)
Dex - 13 +4 tome
Con - 12 +3 tome (will be a +5 before Nov)
Int - 8 +4 tome
Wis - 14 +5 tome (first 4 lvl ups)
Cha - 8 +4 tome

Feats: (I moved away from any feat that added to SF and QP, dropped SF and only use QP to charge EiN, which is rarely these days. When the dev that broke the monk is gone, maybe they will fix it.)
1 Cleave
1 (monk) Power Attack (Have to take first for Cleave to show in the Feats list.)
2 (monk) Precision (For better crits on raid bosses, replaced Stunning Firsts I used in quests.)
3 (monk) Path of Harmonious Balance
3 Past Life: Monk
6 Great Cleave
6 (monk) Deflect Arrows
9 Two Weapon Fighting
12 Improved Critical: Bludgeoning
15 Improved Two Weapon Fighting
18 Greater Two Weapon Fighting
21 Vorpal Strike
24 Overwhelming Critical
26 (EDF) Perfect Two Weapon Fighting
27 Improved Martial Arts
28 (EDF) Elusive Target (replacing Holy Strike or Guardian Angel, which replaced Tactician. I may go back to Holy Strike)

Skills:
Concentration (until I hit 30)
Repair (Max)
UMD (Max)
Left over skill point can go to Balance or Tumble. I picked Tumble since I stay in GMoF.

Enhancements:
3XXXX
X3XXX
-----
1XXXX
BF

XX11X
XX1X1
X2113
XX1X3
------
111XXX
NS

X1111
X11-1
X1-11
X131X
XX3XX
------
111111
Shin

ED:
GMoF
X-1-X
XX-3X
-32XX
XXXXX
-331X
13X3X
------
111111

Twists:*
1 Sense Weakness (T4)
2 Action Boost: Haste Melee Attack (T3)
3 Rej. Cocoon (T1)**
4 Endless Faith (T1)
* I added 1 Fate Point so I can go Tiers 4, 3, 2, 1 if I choose.
** May remove if it doesn't get used often and find a T2 dps feat to add.

Active Stances:
Doublestrike x3
Colors of the Queen x3
Enchant Weapon x3
Brace x3
Bladeforged x3
Meditation of War
Vorpal Strikes
Precision (Boss mobs)
Power Attack (Trash mobs)

Gear: (Some overlap due to solo vs group Docent)
Helm of the Black Dragon (EE, Con +8, Yellow Slot - Insightful Con +2, Green Slot - False Life +40)
Docent for solo runs - Flawless Black Dragonscale Docent (Blue Slot - Heavy Fortification)
Docent for group runs - Shadowscale Docent (Shadow Killer, currently empty Green and Blue Slots.)
Shadowsight (EE, Green Slot - Golem's Heart)
Jorgundal's Collar (EE, Green Slot PRR +16, Colorless Slot - Globe of True Imperial Blood)
Planar Focus of Prowess (Insightful Str +3)
Deadly X Cloak of Resistance +10
Supreme Tyrant Green Steel Bracers of Smoke (+65 HPs, 2xDisplacement)
Arkat's Cord (EE, Green Slot - Good Luck +2, Yellow Slot - Draconic Soul Gem)
Consuming Darkness (EE, Green Slot - Deathblock)
Skirmisher's Ring (Yellow Slot - Power +250)
Backstabber’s Gloves (EE, Yellow Slot - Fear Immunity)
Ogre Power +10 Shoes of Dodge 10%
Shadowfell Regalia (Fesstival Cold Resist +10)
Glowing Eyes - Infernal Fire (Fesstival Fire Resist +10)
Quiver of Poison (EH version)

Hot Swap Items:
Necklace of Mystic Eidolons (Green Slot - Globe of True Imperial Blood)
Skirmisher's Bracers (For Wind Stance to get Doublestrike to 41%)
Jeweled Cloak
Epic Phiarlan Mirror Cloak
Magestar
Pale Lavender Ioun Stone
Planar Focus of Erudition (+8 Int for runes)
Ring of the Djinn

Weapons:
Complete Thunder-Forged Handwraps - Blinding Fear, Wrath of Flames, Mortal Fear. (For trash mobs. Red Slot - Eye of the Inferno, Orange Slot Reconstruction +138)
Complete Thunder-Forged Handwraps - Touch of Flame, Dragon's Edge, 3rd Degree Burns. (For Boss mobs. Red Slot - Eye of the Inferno, Orange Slot Reconstruction +138)
Complete Thunder-Forged Handwraps - Touch of Shadow, Dragon's Edge, Burning Emptiness. (For Boss mobs. Red Slot - Eye of Righteousness, Orange Slot Reconstruction +138)
Complete Thunder-Forged Alloy Shuriken - Touch of Flame, Dragon's Edge, Burning Emptiness.

Questions & Answers:
Q - Seriously, what could possibly be the reason you dropped SF from the build? Stunning Fist >> Deflect Arrows.
A - This is not a questing build, this is a raiding build. I have Kukan-Do, to stun or pull with. If you read the build notes, you will see that I explain this build's focus and why no SF. Current end game is almost all undead, can't be stunned with SF. Not a single raid boss can be stunned with SF. Arrows are pinging off me like crazy, less healing needed. Precision + my wraps + Black Dragon Armor + Claw attack = 60+ Fort penetration which in turn = crits on red names, bosses, and constructs! Those crits + taking less damage > than SF.

Eagle Claw is up to 8%, Flawless Black Dragonscale Robe is 20%, Complete Thunder-Forged Handwraps' Dragon's Edge is 35%, and Precision is another 25%. That is 88% Armor-Piercing! Since they have never implemented red named, constructs, and bosses having more than 100% Fort, that = high chance to crit and sneak attack mobs where that is supposed to be all but impossible.

I took SF out a while ago, and have not looked back and have not missed it. As a result, a whole new aspect of the monk came to me. If I can't get my FUN fix from dodging and weaving through mobs while waiting to use a reliable QP that I built for, then I will get my FUN fix from standing face to face with a boss and critting it.

Q - How useful do you find kukan do? It's DC should be fairly abysmal compared to stunning fist.
A - I use Kukan-Do primarily to pull from a distance. I can get a stun off with it in EE quests, but it is not something I rely on, so when it works that is just bonus.

Q - Does Endless Faith actually grant Echoes of Power?
A - Yes, Endless Faith does grant Echoes of Power. I have tested it for myself. At Rank 3, even twisted, you receive: Endless Faith : Passive Bonus: Spell point pool increased by 10%. Echoes of power restore up to 30sp. Since Communion of Scribing is 25sp at rank 3, Endless Faith is a worth while insurance policy. However, it alone does not give you any spell-points, you will have to use an item or augment for that. I personally use an Augment of Power 250 and find that I rarely run low.

Q - Why is a Bladeforged worth a +1 Heart?
A - I heard it said, "unless you're a divine, there is no good reason to be anything other than a Bladeforged." Since I am no expert on every class I can't confirm that, but I can understand why it was said. All the Bladeforge attributes can be found, here.

But the parts that make it worth a +1 Heart for me are:

• Immune to Sleep, Hold Person, Energy Drained, Nauseated, Exhausted, and Paralyzed effects.
• Immune to ability score damage from Natural Poisons, and Natural Diseases but are vulnerable to those that [affect] wood or metal.
• Warforged gain a +10 racial bonus to saving throws against Magical Poisons and Magical Diseases and do not fail saving throws against them on a roll of a natural 1 (this makes you immune to Magical Poisons and Magical Diseases with a DC of less than 11+your Fortitude save). If you transform into a different type of creature, you will lose these benefits until you return to your Warforged form.
• Immunity to spells targeting a humanoid.
• A Warforged can remain underwater indefinitely (no oxygen bar displayed).
• A Warforged's plating also grants it a special feat which provides a stacking +25% Fortification. When the Warforged is the target of a sneak attack or critical hit, there is a 25% chance for the attack to be negated and the damage to be rolled normally. This effect stacks with Fortification.
• -10% Slashing damage. When you take Slashing damage, you gain +1 PRR for 3 seconds (up to +20 PRR).
• Improved Fortification : Your base fortification is increased to 50%.
• Repair Systems: Choose whether to embrace your construct nature, or strive for humanity.
• Mechanist: You gain +1/+2/+3 Repair skill and 10%/15%/20% more healing from Repair effects.
• Communion of Scribing: Spell Like Ability: Reconstruct. (Cooldown: 30/15/6 seconds. Cost: 35/30/25 SP)
• Fearsome Presence: Enemies damaged by your melee attacks are Shaken for 6 seconds. Repeated damage extends the duration.

None of this gives me more DPS directly, but it keeps me alive and at high functionality which does, indirectly, improve my DPS. I take much less damage and can self heal.

Q - How would this build be with the last life being human (or any other race not Bladeforged)?
A - You may have to tweak the starting stats. Important points are to have 23 Wis and Str by level 21 so you can take Vorpal Strikes and then Overwhelming Crit. You have to have 17 Dex by level 17 to qualify for GTWF. You would replace Repair with Heal and make sure you twist in Rej. Cocoon if you want some self healing. For a human's extra feat you may want to re-add Stunning Fists for questing or whatever makes you happy.

Q - What is your current build?
A - HOrc 36 point build with +5 tomes to Str and Wis and +4 to Dex:
If you don't have +5 tomes for Str and Wis, and at least a +4 for Dex, you will need to use you level ups to make sure Str/Wis = 23 before level 21 and that Dex=17 before level 17.

My current build starting stats: [36]
Str 18
Dex 13
Con 13
Int 6
Wis 18
Cha 6

Feats:
1 Cleave
1 (monk) Power Attack
2 (monk) Precision or Stunning Fist
3 (monk) Path of Harmonious Balance
3 Past Life: Monk
6 Great Cleave
6 (monk) Deflect Arrows
9 Two Weapon Fighting (TWF)
12 Imp Crit: Bludgeoning
15 Imp TWF
18 Greater TWF
Epic:
21 Vorpal Strikes
24 Overwhelming Crit
26 (ED) Perfect TWF
27 Imp Martial Arts
28 (ED) Holy Strike (or for more Def, Elusive Target)

Enhancements:
X3XXX
-----
11XXX
HO

XXXXX1
-------
1XXXXXX
HM

XX131
X31X1
XX111
XX1X3
------
111XXX
NS

X1111
X11-1
X1-11
X13X1
XX3XX
------
111111
Shin

Grandmaster of Flowers 5
X-1-X
XX-3X
-32XX
XXXXX
-331X
13X3X
------
111111

Twists:
(t4) Sense Weakness
(t3) Haste Boost, Combat
(t1) Rej. Cocoon

Q - Can you really hit 41% Doublestrike?
A - Yes, with Skirmisher's Bracers I can hit 41% and now with the Battlerager's Harness, I can even do better...

[Rogann]

Hurry up and roll a Shiradi caster already

[Maelodic]

I am excited to see what you've come up with.

[Munkenmo]

Given that you've accepted Quivering palm isn't that useful anymore why are you still pure?

2fighter = 2feats (and a lower dex investment), cheap hasteboost.
2wiz will net you mental toughness for an extra 20 reconstructs per shrine, another cleave, another source PRR.

googling munkenmo woodfist could give you an example of a 16/2/2 split.

I'm also surprised you haven't gone for power of the forge, it's an awesome action boost.

[moo_cow]

Given that you've accepted Quivering palm isn't that useful anymore why are you still pure?

2fighter = 2feats (and a lower dex investment), cheap hasteboost.
2wiz will net you mental toughness for an extra 20 reconstructs per shrine, another cleave, another source PRR.

googling munkenmo woodfist could give you an example of a 16/2/2 split.

I'm also surprised you haven't gone for power of the forge, it's an awesome action boost.

I have given up on qp as well, it's a useless ability as far as I'm concerned. 12/6/2 is a pretty good option again as well.

[Marten]

@Maelodic - This build does a tad less dps in quests, but can stand toe to toe with current endgame raid bosses. I'm happy with it.

@Rogann - I started a pure Sorc, oh about 5 years ago. It took me a year to get him to level 7, which was about the time the first incarnation of Exp crystals came out, you know, the ones you used on others, anyway that got him to 16. A few months ago a guildie who TRed invited me to a group and the only character at that level was the caster. He's 18 now... likely to stay that way as I do not play a caster well. I don't like being a burden on a group and I want my play time to be fun for me so I avoid casters.

@fTdOmen - You know me, it's kind of my thing - my build philosophy if you will, I only play pure classes. It goes back to my old PnP D&D days. I know that the current trend in DDO is multiclass. Maybe I will try it when I am ready to leave the game or the servers are closing.

If you look at the pic above, the left side top action bar I purposely left in the pic, all but two of them is a way to heal myself. This new build is designed for raid boss fights more so than quests, back to my roots so to speak. With Endless Faith, I don't need mental toughness for a 25sp slay and just for good measure I tossed in Cocoon, but if I am OOM and can't buy myself 12 seconds to get that 25sp back, then things are most likely beyond my saving.

The extra PRR, with diminishing returns, would net me maybe 1.5%. As I am already nearing the 48% mark the help would be marginal. The 45SR is more useful. 195% Fort doesn't hurt either and 113 AC helps, some.
I am sure I will find something to tweak between now and November.

[Maelodic]

@Maelodic - This build does a tad less dps in quests, but can stand toe to toe with current endgame raid bosses. I'm happy with it.

@Rogann - I started a pure Sorc, oh about 5 years ago. It took me a year to get him to level 7, which was about the time the first incarnation of Exp crystals came out, you know, the ones you used on others, anyway that got him to 16. A few months ago a guildie who TRed invited me to a group and the only character at that level was the caster. He's 18 now... likely to stay that way as I do not play a caster well. I don't like being a burden on a group and I want my play time to be fun for me so I avoid casters.

@fTdOmen - You know me, it's kind of my thing - my build philosophy if you will, I only play pure classes. It goes back to my old PnP D&D days. I know that the current trend in DDO is multiclass. Maybe I will try it when I am ready to leave the game or the servers are closing.

If you look at the pic above, the left side top action bar I purposely left in the pic, all but two of them is a way to heal myself. This new build is designed for raid boss fights more so than quests, back to my roots so to speak. With Endless Faith, I don't need mental toughness for a 25sp slay and just for good measure I tossed in Cocoon, but if I am OOM and can't buy myself 12 seconds to get that 25sp back, then things are most likely beyond my saving.

The extra PRR, with diminishing returns, would net me maybe 1.5%. As I am already nearing the 48% mark the help would be marginal. The 45SR is more useful. 195% Fort doesn't hurt either and 113 AC helps, some.
I am sure I will find something to tweak between now and November.

Are you planning on posting the build you came up with? I'd like to compare it to my own pure monk build.

[Marten]

@Maelodic - Yes, I will post my notes. Likely later this week. The secret ingredient is, there is no secret ingredient. Meaning, the build is almost the same as the Horc feat-wise. I did decide to play with the ED Feat of Guardian Angel, this time.

What the Kyber, servers are still down. Just from the notes I made on the back of this envelope, I can share this.

Martens
Pure Bladeforged Monk:
36pt Build (Triple ED Completionist, 3xHPL Monk, 3xIPL PDK, 3xIPL Shadar-Kai, 3xIPL Bladeforged Paladin, and final life Bladeforged Pure Monk. Requires at least a +1 Heart to remove the Paladin level. Not required, but something I suggest is to buy a Tablet of Lawful Neutrality.)
Str - 18 +5 tome (3 lvl ups after lvls to Wis)
Dex - 13 +4 tome
Con - 12 +4 tome (will be a +5 before Nov)
Int - 8 +4 tome
Wis - 14 +5 tome (first 4 levl ups)
Cha - 8 +4 tome

Feats: (I moved away from any feat that added to SF and QP, dropped SF and only use QP to charge EiN, which is rarely these days. When the dev that broke the monk is gone, maybe they will fix it.)
1 Cleave
1 (monk) Power Attack
2 (monk) Precision (for better crits on raid bosses, replaced Stunning Firsts I used in quests.)
3 (monk) Path of Harmonious Balance
3 Past Life: Monk
6 Great Cleave
6 (monk) Deflect Arrows
9 Two Weapon Fighting
12 Improved Critical: Bludgeoning
15 Improved Two Weapon Fighting
18 Greater Two Weapon Fighting
21 Vorpal Strike
24 Overwhelming Critical
26 (EDF) Perfect Two Weapon Fighting
27 Improved Martial Arts
28 (EDF) Guardian Angel (replacing Holy Strike, which replaced Tactician. I may go back to Holy Strike)

Skills:
Concentration (until I hit 30)
Repair (Max) (Heal if fleshie)
UMD (Max)
Left over skill point can go to Balance or Tumble. I picked Tumble since I stay in GMoF.

ED:
GMoF

Twists:*
1 Sense Weakness (T4)
2 Action Boost: Haste Melee Attack (T3)
3 Rej. Cocoon (T1)**
4 Endless Faith (T1)
* If I buy one Fate Point I can go Tiers 4, 3, 2, 1
** May remove if it doesn't get used often and find a T2 dps feat to add.

Will post Gear and Augs used later, if there is interest.

[Seikojin]

I would like to know the gear, just in case it makes a drastic difference, however, nice vid showing how she has her tell for breath.

[TeacherSyn]

@Maelodic - This build does a tad less dps in quests, but can stand toe to toe with current endgame raid bosses. I'm happy with it.

@Rogann - I started a pure Sorc, oh about 5 years ago. It took me a year to get him to level 7, which was about the time the first incarnation of Exp crystals came out, you know, the ones you used on others, anyway that got him to 16. A few months ago a guildie who TRed invited me to a group and the only character at that level was the caster. He's 18 now... likely to stay that way as I do not play a caster well. I don't like being a burden on a group and I want my play time to be fun for me so I avoid casters.

@fTdOmen - You know me, it's kind of my thing - my build philosophy if you will, I only play pure classes. It goes back to my old PnP D&D days. I know that the current trend in DDO is multiclass. Maybe I will try it when I am ready to leave the game or the servers are closing.

If you look at the pic above, the left side top action bar I purposely left in the pic, all but two of them is a way to heal myself. This new build is designed for raid boss fights more so than quests, back to my roots so to speak. With Endless Faith, I don't need mental toughness for a 25sp slay and just for good measure I tossed in Cocoon, but if I am OOM and can't buy myself 12 seconds to get that 25sp back, then things are most likely beyond my saving.

The extra PRR, with diminishing returns, would net me maybe 1.5%. As I am already nearing the 48% mark the help would be marginal. The 45SR is more useful. 195% Fort doesn't hurt either and 113 AC helps, some.
I am sure I will find something to tweak between now and November.

Martens, your builds were among my early inspirations on how the class works well without splashing things hither and yon. Glad to see you're still able to wow us with your ingenuity. We're not all min-maxing just yet. Some of us actually think in D&D terms, still, and that's never a bad thing. Thanks for sharing your builds and strategy.

[Marten]

@Spencerian - Thank you, your comments and sentiment is greatly appreciated.

I am working on a longer demo of this build, I hope to have it posted later tonight. If not tonight, then the day after next, as I have other obligations tomorrow.

[Marten]

Updated the OP.



Since I had to do some multi-tasking to get this done, the videos are not at my usual quality, but they should demonstrate this build. Everyone has that quest that gives them issues, for me that was Wiz King. Could do EN solo all day long, EH and I would need a Heal Bot, EE... even the Heal Bot couldn't help. So, my demo is Wiz King on EE, Solo.

[Marten]

[Dalsheel]

Seriously, what could possibly be the reason you dropped SF from the build?

I watched the demo and I kept waiting for the characteristic *ding ding* but it never came.

Stunning Fist >> Deflect Arrows

[Marten]

@IxidorGR - This is not a questing build, this is a raiding build.

I have Kukan-Do, to stun or pull with. If you read the build notes, you will see that I explain this build's focus and why no SF. Current end game is almost all undead, can't be stunned with SF. Not a single raid boss can be stunned with SF. Arrows are pinging off me like crazy, less healing needed. Precision + my wraps + Black Dragon Armor + Claw attack = 60+ Fort penetration which in turn = crits on red names, bosses, and constructs! Those crits + taking less damage > than SF.

When you think outside the box, you can play outside the box

[Munkenmo]

When you think outside the box, you can play outside the box

And then you get banned

Seriously though, how useful do you find kukan do? it's dc should be fairly abysmal compared to stunning fist.

[TeacherSyn]

@IxidorGR - This is not a questing build, this is a raiding build.

I have Kukan-Do, to stun or pull with. If you read the build notes, you will see that I explain this build's focus and why no SF. Current end game is almost all undead, can't be stunned with SF. Not a single raid boss can be stunned with SF. Arrows are pinging off me like crazy, less healing needed. Precision + my wraps + Black Dragon Armor + Claw attack = 60+ Fort penetration which in turn = crits on red names, bosses, and constructs! Those crits + taking less damage > than SF.

When you think outside the box, you can play outside the box

Impressive feat choice, and logical. Sometimes we all get too accustomed as thinking that Monks are just stun-bots. I should be more impressed that you can make the CHA DC-based Kukan-Do work well in EE.

[Marten]

@fTdOmen I may think and play outside the box from time to time, but I don't smash the box If I wanted a vacation from DDO I would post my true feelings about the QP change.

Frankly, two unrelated events led me to this move. After they broke QP and/or flat out had a dev lie to me by removing Combat Mastery bonuses from QP, it came to the point where I was going to walk away from the game or just nuke everything related to Combat Mastery. I'm still here and QP is only on my bar because its a free feat and to charge EiN. SF didn't make the cut. The last time a Dev lied to me, it was 2006, over Coyle Lovell and our discussion was so heated he called me at home. Less than a minute after that call ended, I closed my account and didn't look back for 3 years. The QP change has me at that level of ****ed.

I can feel your anger. It gives you focus... makes you stronger.

So, with those changes I changed my focus to my gear and during my research I learned that Armor-Piercing items stack. That was the light build moment for me. Eagle Claw is up to 8%, Flawless Black Dragonscale Robe is 20%, Complete Thunder-Forged Handwraps' Dragon's Edge is 35%, and Precision is another 25%. That is 88% Armor-Piercing! Since they have never implemented red named, constructs, and bosses having more than 100% Fort, that = high chance to crit and sneak attack mobs where that is supposed to be all but impossible.

I took SF out just over a month ago, have not looked back and have not missed it. As a result, a whole new aspect of the monk came to me. If I can't get my FUN fix from dodging and weaving through mobs while waiting to use a reliable QP that I built for, then I will get my FUN fix from standing face to face with a boss and critting the SOB until they take that away from me too!

[Munkenmo]

So, with those changes I changed my focus to my gear and during my research I learned that Armor-Piercing items stack. That was the light build moment for me. Eagle Claw is up to 8%, Flawless Black Dragonscale Robe is 20%, Complete Thunder-Forged Handwraps' Dragon's Edge is 35%, and Precision is another 25%. That is 88% Armor-Piercing! Since they have never implemented red named, constructs, and bosses having more than 100% Fort, that = high chance to crit and sneak attack mobs where that is supposed to be all but impossible.

Glad you managed to find a way to still have fun, I just got disheartened, it is great to see that Bards are going to have a 100+ DC insta kill though!

You should look into adding improved sunder, it'll also drop fortification and charge up EIN (or master blitz when you start running the bestamest ED).

[Alternative]

Wiz king EE mobs don't deal enough damage to really say much about a melee build survivality. I'd much rather see some wheloon/stormhorns, or even something like madstone without quicken would be a lot more impressive.