looking for monk optimization

[Unbeliever]

I am far from a Pathfinder maven, but something about that phrasing strikes me as extremely odd.  It's not that Natural Attacks "trigger" when you take a full attack action, but that there is a fairly complicated set of rules about what you can use during this specific action, and the Natural Attacks rules are part of it.  The way you said it sounds like Natural Attacks are just a thing that happens alongside a full attack.  It's not "every time you engage in a full attack action Natural Attacks happen." 

So, I think part of the rules difference is due to a very peculiar way of thinking about attacks.  That being said, the PF rules aren't quite as asinine here.  Basically, flurry is a special full attack action with limitations.  One of those limitations is that you can only use certain kinds of weapons with it, to wit "These attacks can be any combination of unarmed strikes and attacks with a monk special weapon."  The natural attacks thing is just an extension of that.  "Claw" or "Bite" or "Gore" are not "unarmed strike" or "monk special weapon."  Intuitively, you might think that a Claw is "unarmed," but "unarmed strike" is a term of art.  The Feral Combat Training feat changes this, by the way.

This does, it's worth noting, make the PF Monk's flurry kind of suck compared to things like two weapon fighting when you have available natural attacks.  A TWF'er could get main hand/off-hand/bite whereas a Monk would be stuck with flurry/flurry.  Although there are other trade-offs there, like a Monk not needing to have multiple weapons.

[Keldar]

I understand that Pathfinder Monks can't flurry with natural attacks.

I am curious as to what sort of backwards thinking is the reason for this. Flurry of Blows is a Class feature that is triggered when you perform the full-attack action. Natural attacks trigger when you perform a Full-Attack action. Why would FoB not work with NatAttacks?

Not trying to derail, It just seems to be some sort of fundamental rules difference that I can't quite comprehend.

Its Pathfinder, there is no logical thinking.  Just a couple guys who hate it when people play the game in a way they don't like.  For fucks sake Flurry of Blows is Two Weapon Fighting in Pathfinder, because reasons.  (Not that Flurry of Blows every actually worked quite right in any edition.  Read how full attack works, then read Flurry.)

Don't look for logic in Pathfinder, that way lies insanity.  Just accept the inane as inane and move on.


But hey, at least you can explicitly use multiple archetypes as long as they don't have conflicting trade outs.  So Quingong Hungry Ghost is  totally a thing.  Mostly because Quingong is the ultimate in archetype flexibility.

[Blightersbane]

pathfinder only (not 3.5) monk

my stats have been changed, we are 2nd level. I am allowed to tweak PC, and change things up for the 1st few levels according to DM, as we are new to PF and these pcs are a "feel out" of sorts.
str 16
wis 16
dex 14
con 11
int & cha 10

I am currently looking at Qinggong monk w/ Hungry Ghost. If I start HG do I need to stay and progress levels in it? I was interested in the Ki steal ability (sacrificing free fall) and nothing more. I wanted to progress in Qinggong monk.

Also, Im not to sure on the rules involving styles, if any. They cost a feat, right? I like the base monkey style as a feat and the base dragon style as a feat, can I have both? I think both offer the monk some "goodies" I just dont know of the later feats in either, I really just want the base bonuses from each.

monkey style: prone fighting at no penalty, nice. Wis mod as bonus to acrobatic checks, nice. Quick stand as a swift action w/ an acrobatic dc 20 check also nice. All this for 1 feat = awesome!

Dragon style: charge and ignore terrian and the 1 1/2 times str damage to 1st strike every round = nice!

Because my PC is kind of a VoP (involuntarily ) its a lowish magical campaign and the DM said theres no magic shops that cater to unknown clients and monk stuff is rare as it is...eg Im up a creek as far as magics go! But I did recieve a couple of advantages granted by DM.

#1) bonus 4 skill points, where I put them they will be considered in class from now on.
#2) 1 bonus combat related feat
#3) wep focus as a free feat do to my training w/ unarmed combat (grappling & striking)
#4) iron will as a free feat, also do to intense training
#5) 1 bonus feat of my choosing (I was thinking monkey style feat)

and I will recieve future bonuses...what? I dunno DM did not elaborate