Another common question...

[Dalthenn]

So, my monk is nearing lvl 62 and I'll be waring my newly mastercrafted gear. Here are my questions (not unique, but some of the answers in this forum are just not for my play style) First off, I don't tank with this character at all (if I wanted to tank, I'd play my 70 guardian); second, I'm not a full time raider (maybe once a week, if any), and third, I group most of the time - so I'm after the most DPS I can get from - AAs, weapons, etc, etc. #1. What AA line combo (fighter and monk) do you guys recommend for the most DPS (again, I refuse to tank with this toon - yes, I know monks are not true dps, but one can always dream :p ) #2. What weapon(s) do you guys recommend (combined with the AA line) for max. dps (dual weild or two hander). If you can name the weapon(s) and who drops it would be awesome - preferably quested weapons as I'm not much of a raider. #3. As I near lvl 70, is there monk gear that drops off any instances/quests? Just so that I can either save platinum or learn what zones I need to "farm". Thanks for the time.

[Morrolan V]

<p>A lot of this information is elsewhere in this forum, but I'll try summarize <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /></p><p>1. AA build: Spend your points in the brawler tree first, then the monk tree.  Max zone-wide DPS build is 4-4-8 STA/WIS/INT.  Max burst DPS comes by going to the end of Wis (Crane Flock), combined with 4-4-8 Int.  With the other points, you can go ahead and cap out Int or get a few points in Mantis Star.  Particularly since GU36, which dropped the reuse on crane flock from 5 minutes to 3, I really prefer that build - lets you pick your spots for a LOT of DPS, at only a small cost for sustained damage.  As to the monk tree - pretty straightforward, take the enhancements to the damage skills, starting with the damage %, then the recast, then the power cost/to hit bonuses.</p><p>2. Weapons: You say you raid once/week.  I HIGHLY recommend going on some labs raids and getting one or both of the twin calamaties.  At this point, that zone is easily handled even by three group pickup raids.  If not that, Soulspur, the end weapon from the infiltrating the sanctum line, is a good one to have.  You can also save up and buy a fist of bashing -- they are usually available for under 10 plat.  Also, do not neglect adornments.  Unless you generally run in a group with a bard or chanter, I recommend one phantom handle (power tap) and one damage adornment. </p><p>3. General equipment: Legendary equipment that is considerably better than crafted gear drops all over KoS and EoF.  Run the instances in KoS a few times or search the broker -- the KoS legendary gear tends to be very cheap now.  The best non-raid gear you can get is the class-specific legendary gear from EoF.  The chest drops from the final name in Unrest, the pants from the sage in Castle Mistmoore, the shoulders from the butler in Mistmoore Catacombs, the forearms from Valdoon in the Crypt of Valdoon, the gloves from the cathedral ring event in Kaladim and the boots from the final name in Obelisk of Blight.  That set also has nice set bonuses.  Again, though, you can get considerably better gear (relic, excarnate, and jewelry) from running labs a few times.  Do the Marr line and get the cloak.  The DPS/STR proc on the cloak is a very nice boost for monks.  Again, don't neglect adornments.  They are pricey (fabled) but the +10 DPS adornments for neck and ranged items are critical for monks.</p><p>P.S. One more thing - do the signature quest for the Ivy Shrouded Earring of Tunare.  +8 DPS on the earring is very nice.</p>