View Single Post
  #8  
Old 04-23-2015, 02:24 PM
Danth Danth is offline
Planar Protector


Join Date: Oct 2009
Posts: 3,322
Default

Old computing saying: garbage in, garbage out.

Detroit: Your arithmetic is correct but you have the wrong value for the Iksar penalty. They have a 20% racial penalty, not 40%. As such you want 1.2 (monk class) times 1.2 (Iksar racial), or a 44% total penalty. It's still higher than a standard hybrid modifier , though only marginally so. As a side note, Iksar Necromancers also have a 32% penalty--not too much less than a hybrid--although nobody much cares since Necromancers hardly ever group anyway.

Prior to about level 22, Monks will solo more easily than Shadow Knights, even with bad gear. Shadow Knights can't fear until 15, and because the level 15 snare is so poor fear-kiting doesn't become practical until level 22. From 22 through the 30's I feel Shadow Knights have a somewhat easier time solo thanks to fear kiting with a lot of zones to pick from. At 40+ the places for good fear kiting become a lot more limited, and at 50+ there are only a couple places to do so effectively. Damage output is low enough that experience rates are charitably described as slow. Monk damage output scales a lot better past level 50 so they end up pulling ahead again, especially in conjunction with better equipment. That being said, neither class solo's terribly well at 50+ compared to any of the typical solo classes.

Long-term, it's worth remembering that the Kunark-Velious era was the heyday for the Monk class. Hybrids, including the Shadow Knight, also see improvements with Velious-era class changes, but the Monk remains the more powerful class overall. Folks who stick with hybrids tend to be the folks who want to play one in the first place and who are okay with giving up some raw power. Most players who have no preference between the Monk and the Shadow Knight will enjoy the Monk more overall.

Danth