How desirable are monks for grouping and raids

Namaste · 04-20-2009, 01:11 AM

I am trying to figure out which class I want to play and am curious how desirable monks are for groups and raids on a scale of 1-10. 10 being the most desirable.

I am looking for a class that has decent soloability and is highly desirable for grouping so I can get to experience as much content as possible.

Caethre · 04-20-2009, 05:56 AM

Namaste wrote:

I am trying to figure out which class I want to play and am curious how desirable monks are for groups and raids on a scale of 1-10. 10 being the most desirable.
I am looking for a class that has decent soloability and is highly desirable for grouping so I can get to experience as much content as possible.

(( I always believe that one should play what one enjoys, not what one thinks someone else might need. However, since you have asked what is needed...

However, you ask for two things that are by and large opposites of eachother - the classes that are strong soloers tend to be the DPS/Hybrid classes, which are therefore played by far more people, and therefore are ten-a-penny and are in low demand for groups/raids - the classes that are in massive demand due for groups/raids are played by less people, mostly down to them being poorer solo classes. Not a hard and fast rule, but a guideline.

Monks are a Hybrid/DPS class with average soloing ability, better than some, not as good as others. However, if you spend any time in the world channels like 70-79, you should have noted that messages like:

"Group (or raid) forming for zone X, need just a monk"

are not exactly commonplace. As in, basically, never. You won't see this for rangers, necromancers and a few other classes either. I'm not saying they don't get groups, because they do, but they are not a high demand class at all.

On the other hand, you will see countless times every single day, calls for bards (either type), enchanters (either type), a main plate tank, and healers. These are in more demand for groups. At the moment, bards and enchanters especially have almost non-stop calls for them in groups and raids these days. That does not mean it will be the same in six moths time, by the way.))

circusgirl · 04-21-2009, 03:00 AM

If you're a skilled player and go through the trouble of obtaining seperate sets of gear for dpsing AND for tanking, you can go LFG to fill either spot, and significantly increase your chance of getting a group just by responding to the folks asking for tanks and for dps. We're not as good at filling those rolls as a pure dps or a plate tank though, so you really have to work hard on gearing yourself up.

As far as raids go, you have generally speaking one brawler (either bruiser or monk) per raid, so your raid desireability is 0.5. Compare this to plate tanks and we're about equal, since generally a raid wants 2 of the 4 plate tanks, also 0.5. When you compare this with coercers (1), illusionists (2), dirges (4), troubs (1-2), healers (6 needed, 6 classes, so 1 overall), swashbucklers (1 minimum), brigands (1 minimum), and then the T1 dps plus rando summoners for the rest of the slots (wizard, warlock, assassin, ranger, conjy, & necro for four remaining slots is 1.5 overall) monks don't turn out too well on the raid desireability front.

Basically, as a monk, if you want to raid, you either have to go for low-standard pick-up raids where min/maxing is not important, or be really, really, really good at your class. As in--be better than other monks and bruisers.

Turb · 04-21-2009, 08:49 AM

The problem with being a monk is that you compromise. There are naturally better tanks and better dps, and whichever you do you have a lot of ground to make up to be competitive. On the plus side, you have some flexibility, and you can solo OK.

But I changed from monk to brigand as I can pump out the same dps but add so much more to a raid; I no longer feel like a passenger. Brigs even get a handy FD on INT line, which is a nice spec to have for non-raid content.

If you want to be in demand, then bard/chanter is the way to go. Illu and coercer are both capable of soloing well, so long as SOE haven't made the target immune to your control abilities. Many raids run with three illusionists... it's not unusual for 7 or 8 of 24 slots to be taken by these 4 buffing classes.

Morgane · 04-21-2009, 10:03 AM

I agree with everyone above. If you roll a Monk and get yourself properly geared up with a decent amount of AA's then you will almost always find a group but you'll have to work at it. You won't usually get /tells in a zone asking for your Monkliness to join their group. And if a Dirge or an Illy is available for TSO instances and there's only one slot left in the group, you're out.

But as the one guy said up there, it's all about compromise. We are PRETTY good at DPS and PRETTY good at tanking but we're not the best at either. We solo very well. We look very cool. SMILEY

Queen Alexandria · 04-21-2009, 12:05 PM

The problem is no longer how well you play your class but the stigma attached to it. If you want to raid avoid monk at all cost since it will bring you heartache. So many times have I run into instances where groups refuse to let me tank because they say my survivability is low compared to plate class. I disagree but the group has already made up their minds and will not change on a dime because of your opinion. I have seen raids decide on other classes and not even have any brawlers because the benefits are mediocre in comparison. This is by far the biggest problem thus far, our raid buff is beneficial but not earth shattering... it does not guarantee us a spot in a well balanced raid because our benefits are not immediately seen. I hope this helps, I personally think every raid should have a brawler, but non brawlers disagree on average and thats what makes it hard for us. As far as solo ability... I think were awesome at it SMILEY

Couching · 04-21-2009, 03:02 PM

If you are willing to tank for group instances, it's very easy to get a spot in crushbone at least. However, you need to keep the reputation. Any tank, including plate tank, with bad reputation has hard time to get a spot.

For raid, it's very hard to get a spot as dpser because our dps is not even exceptional of all fighters, not to say, we are far behind real dpsers.

Honestly speaking, you better not pick up monk since the chance to get in a raid or join a raiding guild is tiny.

Troy · 04-24-2009, 03:31 PM

Zenaide@Mistmoore wrote:

The problem is no longer how well you play your class but the stigma attached to it. If you want to raid avoid monk at all cost since it will bring you heartache. So many times have I run into instances where groups refuse to let me tank because they say my survivability is low compared to plate class. I disagree but the group has already made up their minds and will not change on a dime because of your opinion. I have seen raids decide on other classes and not even have any brawlers because the benefits are mediocre in comparison. This is by far the biggest problem thus far, our raid buff is beneficial but not earth shattering... it does not guarantee us a spot in a well balanced raid because our benefits are not immediately seen. I hope this helps, I personally think every raid should have a brawler, but non brawlers disagree on average and thats what makes it hard for us. As far as solo ability... I think were awesome at it

I agree - the brawlers have a stigma attached that is hard to overcome. This the fault of the Devs for their lack of 'whatever' when they made our class. There are other classes that also get over-looked for raiding, so brawlers are not alone.

I can't tell you how many times my guild sticks me in the last group with little or no fighter support. We are fighters and we need exactly the same support classes in a raid that any plate fighter would have. I have to become vocal with the raid leader to remind him I am a fighter.

We actually do bring unique abilities to a raid - a MT that 'knows' about our avoidence buff (esp if you AA enhanse it) always wants it. Many of our CAs do melee stuns/stifles/dazes/knockback-downs that inturrupt the next hit(s) from a mob (even with epics). If you look at ACT after a raid - if you sort by Number of Hits, you will see we almost do 2X the hits of our rogue cousins and almost equal to the MT, (which I believe is the reason our CAs have such low damage compared to other fighter class CAs). So we are doing something in a raid. As for MTing in a raid - guilds will always take a plate over a leather wearer - it's the logical thing to do.

Monks are awesome in soloing. We kick butt with mobs. In RoK instances, with a good Df/Of mixed spec - we can tank any of those zones and I wish more monks would make groups and MT thur VoES and Maidens just to start educating the masses that we do actually rock.

I have learned that if you want to play post 80 and raid - be vocal with your guild/raid leaders. Concentrate on your unique abilities - advertise them - and forget about whats broken.

So if you honestly want to make a monk - do so. You will have a lot of fun with the class all the way up the level ladder. If you plan on using the class for raiding, you will hit a lot of walls - as many have people stated here.

So on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give monks a 2.5 for raids, a 10 for pre-80 content.

Errolflynn · 06-09-2009, 08:51 AM

The perception of brawler tanking capability is still a problem. I tanked COA:Sebilis last night on my alt Monk for our MT's 79 alt Brigand (nice reversal there). We had a few spaces left so called out in chat if anyone wanted to join, a 78 Bruiser joined, first thing he said was don't we need a plate tank. My Monk is well geared with Myth, VP and TSO raid gear so the zone was a cakewalk even if I don't usually tank, it's just the principle of the matter, even fellow Brawlers questioning our tanking capabilities.

But I did enjoy totaly trashing the zone.

foomonk · 06-09-2009, 04:56 PM

My Monk was created 2 weeks after the game came out. I am still plying him today. Why do I still play him? The reason is he is fun to play. Devastating Fist and FD make doing the solo content easy and fun. I like that these guys rock for harvesting. I do not have to be in a group to have a good time. If I want to be in a group I bring alot to the table. I can tank fine when I need to. I like the DPS route though. If you know how to play your class and get your raid leaders to put you with the right support folk you can do at least 4k DPS. What it boils down to is what is fun for you. I like the versitlity of our class. Is it the most desired, no. Is it the most fun. It is for me. SMILEY

Ebarel · 06-16-2009, 08:37 AM

Namaste wrote:

I am trying to figure out which class I want to play and am curious how desirable monks are for groups and raids on a scale of 1-10. 10 being the most desirable.
I am looking for a class that has decent soloability and is highly desirable for grouping so I can get to experience as much content as possible.

trying to answer your question (and i have l80 monk myself)

1-2

There are always some "needed" classes. You need 1-3 tanks (depending on zone) you need at least 1 manareg per group (chanters/bards) you need healers (definitely need shaman/cleric) you need at least one brigand etc. I also assume that you are talking about a raid fighting encounters which are close to their limits. Will a raidleader chose the classes that fit best into the available slots? If he knows what he is doing, yes. So unfortunately none of the classes that bring something special or most dps to the raid are overlooked. that applies to summoners as well as to leather tanks, rangers or druids in many cases for healers.

Why? because it will be easier or more likely to beat the encounter with a better setup. if you can set up your raid to make 150k dps, would you design it to make only 100k? Thats why leaders chose the best (available) setup possible. There are no spots for classes that bring no real extra benefit/buffs and no top-dps. Imho the strategy is easy: make the raid put out maximum damage with the ability to stay alive. that leaves little room for "filler spots". Sad (for my monk or Conjurer) but only too true.

Auxillery · 06-16-2009, 08:42 AM

Monks are desirable to me i have a monk buddy whos running me though lv 60 mobs (hes lv 64) and he doesnt die i would say they are awesome if you pair them up with a mage/healer or sk/pally.

Fwedewi · 07-10-2009, 03:27 PM

Despite everything being said on these forums, monks can tank well and can DPS well. To achieve this however you have to be willing to put some work in and get good gear and learn some tricks to counter the problems other fighter classes don't have. Once you manage that however you will become indispensable to your raid force and people will actively seek you out to group with you.

When I play my brigand in raids I actually hear complaints that people feel their characters are seeming more sluggish than usual due to the lack of our raid wide haste/cast speed buff. Our main tank loves to have altruism (many tanks dislike it) and with our awesome avoidance its my avoidance buff rather than any other tank's that he wants. Time and again the combination of peel and our short duration defensive buffs have saved a raid from an almost certain wipe. Having said that, I should mention that I had a nightmare persuading our raid leader to let me play a monk on raids.

The problem isn't that we're not a good class, its that we are not generally percieved to be a good class. If I try to get into pick up groups where people don't know me I have a hard time with people saying stuff like 'we only need a tank sorry' or 'we've only got room for melee dps'.

The problem is that there are a lot of monks out there that haven't had enough time and effort put into them. If you don't want to spend a lot of time in front of the computer or if you want a monk as a second character to potter about with, you will not become desirable for grouping or raiding. Sadly unless you can get the gear needed to counter the aggro problems and obtain the mythical weapon to put your mitigation close to that of a plate tank, you will struggle.

So our desirability is somewhere between 2 and 9 depending how much work you are willing to put in.

04-20-2009, 05:56 AM	#2
Caethre Loremaster Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,167	Namaste wrote: I am trying to figure out which class I want to play and am curious how desirable monks are for groups and raids on a scale of 1-10. 10 being the most desirable. I am looking for a class that has decent soloability and is highly desirable for grouping so I can get to experience as much content as possible. (( I always believe that one should play what one enjoys, not what one thinks someone else might need. However, since you have asked what is needed... However, you ask for two things that are by and large opposites of eachother - the classes that are strong soloers tend to be the DPS/Hybrid classes, which are therefore played by far more people, and therefore are ten-a-penny and are in low demand for groups/raids - the classes that are in massive demand due for groups/raids are played by less people, mostly down to them being poorer solo classes. Not a hard and fast rule, but a guideline. Monks are a Hybrid/DPS class with average soloing ability, better than some, not as good as others. However, if you spend any time in the world channels like 70-79, you should have noted that messages like: "Group (or raid) forming for zone X, need just a monk" are not exactly commonplace. As in, basically, never. You won't see this for rangers, necromancers and a few other classes either. I'm not saying they don't get groups, because they do, but they are not a high demand class at all. On the other hand, you will see countless times every single day, calls for bards (either type), enchanters (either type), a main plate tank, and healers. These are in more demand for groups. At the moment, bards and enchanters especially have almost non-stop calls for them in groups and raids these days. That does not mean it will be the same in six moths time, by the way.)) __________________ Countess Felishanna Silorielenwe [92/320 Templar\|92 Sage](Koada`Dal) Lady Lorianna Ardinwena [92/320 Monk\|92 Carpenter](Koada`Dal) Lady Suzanna Narinyaare [92/320 Conjuror\|92 Woodworker](Koada`Dal) Lady Annaelisa Lorinfinlinde [92/320 Fury\|92 Tailor](Koada`Dal) Lady Silvianna [92/320 Illusionist\|92 Jeweler](Koada`Dal) Jennianna [92/320 Dirge\|92 Weaponsmith](Koada`Dal) Aurielle [92/320 Wizard\|92 Alchemist](Koada`Dal) Valerianna [92/320 Guardian\|92 Armourer](Koada`Dal) Sarahanna [92/320 Swashbuckler\|92 Provisioner](Koada`Dal) Katherianna [92/286 Beserker\|92 Sage](Koada`Dal) Guildleader of The True Path - A roleplay-based guild (level 77) on Antonia Bayle

04-21-2009, 08:49 AM	#4
Turb General Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 1,117	The problem with being a monk is that you compromise. There are naturally better tanks and better dps, and whichever you do you have a lot of ground to make up to be competitive. On the plus side, you have some flexibility, and you can solo OK. But I changed from monk to brigand as I can pump out the same dps but add so much more to a raid; I no longer feel like a passenger. Brigs even get a handy FD on INT line, which is a nice spec to have for non-raid content. If you want to be in demand, then bard/chanter is the way to go. Illu and coercer are both capable of soloing well, so long as SOE haven't made the target immune to your control abilities. Many raids run with three illusionists... it's not unusual for 7 or 8 of 24 slots to be taken by these 4 buffing classes. __________________

04-21-2009, 12:05 PM	#6
Queen Alexandria Loremaster Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 221	The problem is no longer how well you play your class but the stigma attached to it. If you want to raid avoid monk at all cost since it will bring you heartache. So many times have I run into instances where groups refuse to let me tank because they say my survivability is low compared to plate class. I disagree but the group has already made up their minds and will not change on a dime because of your opinion. I have seen raids decide on other classes and not even have any brawlers because the benefits are mediocre in comparison. This is by far the biggest problem thus far, our raid buff is beneficial but not earth shattering... it does not guarantee us a spot in a well balanced raid because our benefits are not immediately seen. I hope this helps, I personally think every raid should have a brawler, but non brawlers disagree on average and thats what makes it hard for us. As far as solo ability... I think were awesome at it __________________

04-24-2009, 03:31 PM	#8
Troy Loremaster Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 100	Zenaide@Mistmoore wrote: The problem is no longer how well you play your class but the stigma attached to it. If you want to raid avoid monk at all cost since it will bring you heartache. So many times have I run into instances where groups refuse to let me tank because they say my survivability is low compared to plate class. I disagree but the group has already made up their minds and will not change on a dime because of your opinion. I have seen raids decide on other classes and not even have any brawlers because the benefits are mediocre in comparison. This is by far the biggest problem thus far, our raid buff is beneficial but not earth shattering... it does not guarantee us a spot in a well balanced raid because our benefits are not immediately seen. I hope this helps, I personally think every raid should have a brawler, but non brawlers disagree on average and thats what makes it hard for us. As far as solo ability... I think were awesome at it I agree - the brawlers have a stigma attached that is hard to overcome. This the fault of the Devs for their lack of 'whatever' when they made our class. There are other classes that also get over-looked for raiding, so brawlers are not alone. I can't tell you how many times my guild sticks me in the last group with little or no fighter support. We are fighters and we need exactly the same support classes in a raid that any plate fighter would have. I have to become vocal with the raid leader to remind him I am a fighter. We actually do bring unique abilities to a raid - a MT that 'knows' about our avoidence buff (esp if you AA enhanse it) always wants it. Many of our CAs do melee stuns/stifles/dazes/knockback-downs that inturrupt the next hit(s) from a mob (even with epics). If you look at ACT after a raid - if you sort by Number of Hits, you will see we almost do 2X the hits of our rogue cousins and almost equal to the MT, (which I believe is the reason our CAs have such low damage compared to other fighter class CAs). So we are doing something in a raid. As for MTing in a raid - guilds will always take a plate over a leather wearer - it's the logical thing to do. Monks are awesome in soloing. We kick butt with mobs. In RoK instances, with a good Df/Of mixed spec - we can tank any of those zones and I wish more monks would make groups and MT thur VoES and Maidens just to start educating the masses that we do actually rock. I have learned that if you want to play post 80 and raid - be vocal with your guild/raid leaders. Concentrate on your unique abilities - advertise them - and forget about whats broken. So if you honestly want to make a monk - do so. You will have a lot of fun with the class all the way up the level ladder. If you plan on using the class for raiding, you will hit a lot of walls - as many have people stated here. So on a scale of 1 to 10, I would give monks a 2.5 for raids, a 10 for pre-80 content.

06-09-2009, 04:56 PM	#10
foomonk Loremaster Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 21	My Monk was created 2 weeks after the game came out. I am still plying him today. Why do I still play him? The reason is he is fun to play. Devastating Fist and FD make doing the solo content easy and fun. I like that these guys rock for harvesting. I do not have to be in a group to have a good time. If I want to be in a group I bring alot to the table. I can tank fine when I need to. I like the DPS route though. If you know how to play your class and get your raid leaders to put you with the right support folk you can do at least 4k DPS. What it boils down to is what is fun for you. I like the versitlity of our class. Is it the most desired, no. Is it the most fun. It is for me. __________________

04-20-2009, 01:11 AM	#1
Namaste Lord Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 7	I am trying to figure out which class I want to play and am curious how desirable monks are for groups and raids on a scale of 1-10. 10 being the most desirable. I am looking for a class that has decent soloability and is highly desirable for grouping so I can get to experience as much content as possible.

04-21-2009, 03:00 AM	#3
circusgirl Loremaster Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,424	If you're a skilled player and go through the trouble of obtaining seperate sets of gear for dpsing AND for tanking, you can go LFG to fill either spot, and significantly increase your chance of getting a group just by responding to the folks asking for tanks and for dps. We're not as good at filling those rolls as a pure dps or a plate tank though, so you really have to work hard on gearing yourself up. As far as raids go, you have generally speaking one brawler (either bruiser or monk) per raid, so your raid desireability is 0.5. Compare this to plate tanks and we're about equal, since generally a raid wants 2 of the 4 plate tanks, also 0.5. When you compare this with coercers (1), illusionists (2), dirges (4), troubs (1-2), healers (6 needed, 6 classes, so 1 overall), swashbucklers (1 minimum), brigands (1 minimum), and then the T1 dps plus rando summoners for the rest of the slots (wizard, warlock, assassin, ranger, conjy, & necro for four remaining slots is 1.5 overall) monks don't turn out too well on the raid desireability front. Basically, as a monk, if you want to raid, you either have to go for low-standard pick-up raids where min/maxing is not important, or be really, really, really good at your class. As in--be better than other monks and bruisers.

04-21-2009, 10:03 AM	#5
Morgane Server: Everfrost Guild: Bloodforged Legacy Rank: Bloodforged Loremaster Join Date: Feb 2007 Posts: 654	I agree with everyone above. If you roll a Monk and get yourself properly geared up with a decent amount of AA's then you will almost always find a group but you'll have to work at it. You won't usually get /tells in a zone asking for your Monkliness to join their group. And if a Dirge or an Illy is available for TSO instances and there's only one slot left in the group, you're out. But as the one guy said up there, it's all about compromise. We are PRETTY good at DPS and PRETTY good at tanking but we're not the best at either. We solo very well. We look very cool.

04-21-2009, 03:02 PM	#7
Couching Server: Crushbone Guild: Pwn Pwn Pwn Rank: CEO Loremaster Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 1,370	If you are willing to tank for group instances, it's very easy to get a spot in crushbone at least. However, you need to keep the reputation. Any tank, including plate tank, with bad reputation has hard time to get a spot. For raid, it's very hard to get a spot as dpser because our dps is not even exceptional of all fighters, not to say, we are far behind real dpsers. Honestly speaking, you better not pick up monk since the chance to get in a raid or join a raiding guild is tiny.

06-09-2009, 08:51 AM	#9
Errolflynn Server: Befallen Guild: The Council Rank: High Council Loremaster Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: UK Posts: 429	The perception of brawler tanking capability is still a problem. I tanked COA:Sebilis last night on my alt Monk for our MT's 79 alt Brigand (nice reversal there). We had a few spaces left so called out in chat if anyone wanted to join, a 78 Bruiser joined, first thing he said was don't we need a plate tank. My Monk is well geared with Myth, VP and TSO raid gear so the zone was a cakewalk even if I don't usually tank, it's just the principle of the matter, even fellow Brawlers questioning our tanking capabilities. But I did enjoy totaly trashing the zone.

06-16-2009, 08:37 AM	#11
Ebarel Loremaster Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 190	Namaste wrote: I am trying to figure out which class I want to play and am curious how desirable monks are for groups and raids on a scale of 1-10. 10 being the most desirable. I am looking for a class that has decent soloability and is highly desirable for grouping so I can get to experience as much content as possible. trying to answer your question (and i have l80 monk myself) 1-2 There are always some "needed" classes. You need 1-3 tanks (depending on zone) you need at least 1 manareg per group (chanters/bards) you need healers (definitely need shaman/cleric) you need at least one brigand etc. I also assume that you are talking about a raid fighting encounters which are close to their limits. Will a raidleader chose the classes that fit best into the available slots? If he knows what he is doing, yes. So unfortunately none of the classes that bring something special or most dps to the raid are overlooked. that applies to summoners as well as to leather tanks, rangers or druids in many cases for healers. Why? because it will be easier or more likely to beat the encounter with a better setup. if you can set up your raid to make 150k dps, would you design it to make only 100k? Thats why leaders chose the best (available) setup possible. There are no spots for classes that bring no real extra benefit/buffs and no top-dps. Imho the strategy is easy: make the raid put out maximum damage with the ability to stay alive. that leaves little room for "filler spots". Sad (for my monk or Conjurer) but only too true.

06-16-2009, 08:42 AM	#12
Auxillery Server: Nagafen Guild: Legends of Firiona Vie Rank: Knight (4 wks, 20k Status) Loremaster Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 128	Monks are desirable to me i have a monk buddy whos running me though lv 60 mobs (hes lv 64) and he doesnt die i would say they are awesome if you pair them up with a mage/healer or sk/pally. __________________

07-10-2009, 03:27 PM	#13
Fwedewi General Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 17	Despite everything being said on these forums, monks can tank well and can DPS well. To achieve this however you have to be willing to put some work in and get good gear and learn some tricks to counter the problems other fighter classes don't have. Once you manage that however you will become indispensable to your raid force and people will actively seek you out to group with you. When I play my brigand in raids I actually hear complaints that people feel their characters are seeming more sluggish than usual due to the lack of our raid wide haste/cast speed buff. Our main tank loves to have altruism (many tanks dislike it) and with our awesome avoidance its my avoidance buff rather than any other tank's that he wants. Time and again the combination of peel and our short duration defensive buffs have saved a raid from an almost certain wipe. Having said that, I should mention that I had a nightmare persuading our raid leader to let me play a monk on raids. The problem isn't that we're not a good class, its that we are not generally percieved to be a good class. If I try to get into pick up groups where people don't know me I have a hard time with people saying stuff like 'we only need a tank sorry' or 'we've only got room for melee dps'. The problem is that there are a lot of monks out there that haven't had enough time and effort put into them. If you don't want to spend a lot of time in front of the computer or if you want a monk as a second character to potter about with, you will not become desirable for grouping or raiding. Sadly unless you can get the gear needed to counter the aggro problems and obtain the mythical weapon to put your mitigation close to that of a plate tank, you will struggle. So our desirability is somewhere between 2 and 9 depending how much work you are willing to put in.