Are monks very rogue like?

[Kitomi]

I'm looking for some beta opinions, my guild is looking for a healer for our raids starting MoP, I've signed up for the AP so I'll hopefully be in it soon enough to try it for myself.

Now I've always played a rogue as my main, and a shaman as my alt healer. Though i'm happy to re-adjust to a new type of healer I'd like to know if combat wise a Monk (in windwalker) plays much like a rogue at all?

[Ultima]

Ish.

You will have Energy, Combo Points and Finishers. The system at the moment is actually quite nice in that you are not waiting for Energy regen and in theory has a demanding play style similar to Frost DKs and Feral Druids in ICC in that you are global locked. Or at least, that's the plan.

[Tobley]

I'm looking for some beta opinions, my guild is looking for a healer for our raids starting MoP, I've signed up for the AP so I'll hopefully be in it soon enough to try it for myself.

Now I've always played a rogue as my main, and a shaman as my alt healer. Though i'm happy to re-adjust to a new type of healer I'd like to know if combat wise a Monk (in windwalker) plays much like a rogue at all?

I don't personally think so.
Because your abilities cost differing amounts of Chi and the ones that use Chi don't use energy (unlike rogue) there's a very different feel to combat.
For example, while a rogue may be pooling energy to use a finisher or another combo generator, a monk is hitting a Chi ability.

While you are spending Chi, you are generating energy.
You are rarely waiting to use an ability unlike rogues.

[Neichus]

For example, while a rogue may be pooling energy to use a finisher or another combo generator, a monk is hitting a Chi ability.

While you are spending Chi, you are generating energy.
You are rarely waiting to use an ability unlike rogues.

That about sums it up. Monks are very aggressively spammy while Rogues tend to sit and wait more (especially Assassination). DPS Monks also put even Warriors to shame in the mobility department; Roll with two charges, flying kick, spec'able Chi Torpedo, and the equivalent of the Warlock teleport ability in one class.

However, they also look weak in the defensive cooldown department. If a mechanic can be avoided by movement, Monks will be able to do it. However, being able to mitigate damage is another thing entirely. Base class abilities seem to be light, with only a couple of long cooldowns that the raid will also have dibs on (see: Meditation). They can do a bit of self-healing with talents and Expel Harm, but they have absolutely nothing on Feint and Cloak of Shadows.

They also seem to be lacking much in the way of major DPS cooldowns. They're either ONFULLBLAST or they're not. The plus side of this is that their target switching is seamless and they have essentially no ramp up time. But the downside is that, at least as of now, they don't have any sort of cooldown that will increase their damage for a sustained burn.

[the_axi]

They play more like Warriors than anything really, ability wise they feel like a mix of Rogues and Paladins.

Windwalkers ain't very developed right now however, so it's hard to give a definite answer.

[DemoBytom]

While you are spending Chi, you are generating energy.
You are rarely waiting to use an ability unlike rogues.

This is the impression I got from my (limited) monk testing - it's really fast paced and "button mashing" playstyle. Think they (at least kind of) achieved what they promised - a little Tekken-ish button mashing feeling. You rarely ever wait for resources since both energy and chi complement each other, unlike rogue who uses both energy and combo points on one move.

[Tobley]

I'd really like it if they added something like combos.
In any fighting game, combinations of certain buttons do something different than the usual ones.

If executed in quick succession:
I can just imagine like.. Jab Palm Jab. - something that does more damage than Tiger Palm on a target higher than 50% hp.

Or of course, Sit, Forward, Palm - Kameameha!

[alaronmonk]

The Warden class in LOTRO has something like this, where there are only three basic attacks, and you use them in various combinations to queue up abilities. Really cool and different (even though LOTRO is general was a turnoff for me).

[The Madgod]

I'd really like it if they added something like combos.
In any fighting game, combinations of certain buttons do something different than the usual ones.

If executed in quick succession:
I can just imagine like.. Jab Palm Jab. - something that does more damage than Tiger Palm on a target higher than 50% hp.

Or of course, Sit, Forward, Palm - Kameameha!

When I was playing my Brewmaster earlier, I felt like I WAS doing combos, honestly, though not in the way you're saying it. More in terms of fluidity of attacks in combination. DH, DH, DH, BoF. TP, TP, KS, BK. Mind, I'm only level 20 and I was fighting leveling mobs, but it was fun and felt quick and powerful.

[Zik3l]

Yes, and No.

I have played a rogue for 7 years. I never thought I would enjoy another class as much, but I'm seriously considering a Main switch to Monk in Mop.

It depends how you look at it. These days rogues are V close to GCD locked with haste levels. Monk doesn't feel too different if you consider it as a 4CP class with multiple finishers one after another (Rogues need legendaries to do that!).

[movagelada]

so monks have finisher combos?

[Zik3l]

Not exactly, but you spend your resources a lot more as a monk. Much closer to GCD capped. I dread to see what happens if haste effects energy regen for them.

[Damerflinn]

Having raided with my rogue this last tier, and played all the specs of monk in the beta i'd say no not really.

They are close. And I imagine that when it is a fully developed class it will be much close because of more offensive and defensive cds. (There are already one for offense, and at least one for defense and maybe more as I didn't really look too hard at DPS monk). But I think that they are close, with just enough of a difference to distinguish the classes from one another.

If you are looking for PvP though, I'm thinking that the Monk will not compete with the rogue. I actually didn't copy my rogue over, to see whats changed, but unless the rogue has really been broken from the dominance we saw this last expac, then at this point no they won't be comparable. As of now the Monk doesn't really have anything on the rogue outside of no ramp up time what so ever. But in the case of both the rogue and the monk, I haven't spent any time looking into PvP so far.

[Verain]

Having finally gained access to the beta (I was out of town and could not download), I can say that the windwalker feels pretty similar to a cross between sub and combat, with a ludicrous amount of mobility and not much reliance on white damage. Still, my experience is still early on, and I haven't done a lot yet.


An earlier post said that "rogues tend to wait around", and I don't know what that is a reference too- combat is almost GCD locked for the whole fight (and is for much of it), and sub doesn't wait more than a couple seconds at a time, and often just spams. Only mutilate has to wait, and I suspect we'll see some mechanic where the monk has to wait too.

I like all the Street Fighter moves though. Vega's backflip, Ryu's Hurricane Kick, all excellent.