Monk Stance Duration

[Valo56]

This is obviously a rather self-serving suggestion, and I'm not sure if DM's are even considering changes to this aspect of Monk Stances.

It's not that I think Monk Stances need a buff, they don't. They're awesome thematically and mechanically, and a welcome boon to monks who would otherwise require magical aid or loot to be of much use.

All that said, I think a tweak to Monk Stances may be a good thing. At present it's a flat 5 minute duration, and 10 minute cooldown, allowing for 5-on and 5-off.

While this is a significant boon, I think it may be interesting to allow for certain ways for stances to be prolonged beyond their 5-minute duration.

Perhaps acquiring additional scrolls of the same stance could increase its duration by one minute each? Given how rare they are, I find it unlikely we'll see many (any?) monks running around with permanent stance bonuses, though perhaps limiting it to 2 or 3 extra minutes would be wise anyway, without DM intervention.

Alternatively, require Concentration checks after 5 minutes and every 3-5 rounds thereafter to keep the bonuses going, or a skill check based on the stance in question. Swallow the Pain for instance might require Discipline, while a more speed-oriented buff may require tumble checks. These DC's  should be exceedingly high (starting at 20-25 and raising to 50+ after two minutes) and near impossible to keep beating permanently.

Or, have all Monk Stances last 3 minutes, plus 5 rounds per level. Thus a level 6 monks gets a respectable 6 minutes, a level 10 monk gets 8 minutes.

In the end, I just think it would be nice to see more experienced and powerful monks getting more out of their stances, though this suggestion may be a bit premature as the system only recently came out. :)

[Paha]

Not likely.