Summary
While most RPGs tend to motivate their players by providing a large table of luscious loot or dangerously powerful magic spells, there’s an undeniable draw to the lone martial artist taking down combatant after combatant with nothing but finely-tuned reflexes, determination, and a mastery over their own body.
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There isno shortage of great beat ‘em ups or fighting games out there, but there’s something undeniably special about being given the choice to relinquish weapons and combat technology to take on a world of monsters with punches and kicks alone and walking the way of the empty palm.
1Final Fantasy 14
The Pugilist & Monk Jobs
Unarmed fighters have been around inFinal Fantasyfor quite some time. InFinal Fantasy 14, pugilists master the art of stances, switching between them to efficiently convey close-range damage to their target. Their class upgrade, the monk, excels on the battlefield by opening chakras, helping them to manipulate their body’s internal aether flow and unlocking devastating moves.
Monks tend to go light to give them an edge in speed, and while theydon’t use traditional weapons, they rely on fist weapons to bolster their moves. While the monk has a reputation for being a flexible melee choice inFF14and will appeal to players who enjoy more active and movement-oriented player styles, it does suffer from RNG reliance for damage and still comes saddled with a few redundant skills. That being said, when the rotation lines up right, Monk really kicks.
Yes, there are guns, lasers, and flaming chainsaw swords to choose from to rip apart enemies. But little else is as satisfying as turning an enemy into exploding blood sausages with a single, well-placed fist mallet to the heart. While it is possible to go full “muscle scientist” and strap on a power suit while throwing punches,Fallout 4offers several useful perks in the pursuit of pugilist perfection while wandering the wastes.
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Thepost-apocalypse setting and martial arts have gone hand in hand since ancient times, and theFalloutseries has always been happy to continue the tradition. For example, the Iron Fist perk is essential to any unarmed build, and the Strength perk “Rooted” (level 9) is also incredibly useful, as hand-to-hand combat plants the player in place momentarily while their fisticuffs’ animation plays out. Of course, there are also a variety of unarmed gloves and gauntlets to enhance punching.
To become proficient hand-to-hand fighters inPath of Exile, players must have as much discipline and willpower in real life as their characters have in-game. Building a viable unarmed build before getting the “Hollow Palm Technique” passive skill (obtained with the “One With Nothing” cluster jewel or Replica Perfect Form zodiac leather) is near impossible, although there are a few gloves that enhance unarmed attacks (such as “the Facebreaker”).
Once gaining the Hollow Palm Technique, being unencumbered (meaning no weapons or gloves equipped) grants around double attack speed and extra damage based on the character’s Dexterity stat. Additionally, the base damage of unarmed attacks is different between classes, the optimal class being the Marauder.
The brainstorming sessions at Blizzard while they were coming up with ways to implement their unarmed fighter in their third entry in the primarily loot-driven action RPG series must have been something. Since monks famously abstain from hand-held weapons of any kind, what would replacethe incremental gear stat increase grind drivecommon to the other melee classes inDiablo 3, such as the demon hunter and barbarian?
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Monk players will still have an incentive to look for higher-quality loot. However, rather than use it, the monk will strap the weapon to their thigh, “channel” their new weapon’s stat increases, and continue their usual pummeling of enemies with their bare knuckles, with the exception of this being staves and knuckle dusters, of course.
BothThe Elder Scrolls 3: MorrowindandOblivionprovide the opportunity for players to create their Tamriel-renowned martial arts master. Unarmed attacks damage both health and stamina (unlikeMorrowind, which takes down Stamina first and then deals HP damage). Hand-to-hand attacks have an advantage over traditional martial weapons in that they connect with ghosts, unlike the standard iron or steel weapons (silver, Daedric, or enchanted weapons can still puncture the pesky poltergeists).
Unfortunately,Skyrimdid away with the hand-to-hand skill, relegating the whole skill toa single, gauntlet-related perk in the heavy armor treedespite there being many opportunities for a bare-fisted, usually-ale-induced tavern brawl. Although it shouldn’t be on their heads every time a classic mechanic is omitted, it’s nothing that theSkyrimmodding community can’t fix.
In bothPillars of Eternityand the sequel,Deadfire, the monk is an incredibly versatile option for any type of player looking to scratch their melee itch. As well as being able to specialize in high damage, high defense, or a balance of both, monks are great at crowd control and quickly taking down high-priority targets (such as a backline enemy caster).
The monk’s main ability ischanneling the damage they take and pouring it back onto their attacker. The more “Wounds” the monk collects from combat, the more dangerous they become. Additionally, successive hits build up their resource resonance, opening up devastating attacks that completely bypass damage deduction.
Given that theBaldur’s Gateseries is based on the iconic tabletop role-playing game,BG3wouldn’t feel complete without adding this D&D staple. Monks spend ki points to activate special abilities, just like in the tabletop game. Their key stats are dexterity, wisdom, and constitution.
Although they fit the role of a weaponless fighter,certain gloves give monks an advantage in combat. Monks can go on to specialize their ki-channeling abilities by following the “Way of the Empty Palm” (doubling down on physical perfection), the “Way of the Four Elements” (the monk’s take on the elemental mage), and the “Way of the Shadow” (the ninja monk).
