I'm pretty new to Pillars of Eternity. I really loved the sound of the monk class, so that was the first character I played, up to level 7. I played him as a sort of secondary melee, usually trying to keep at least one enemy engaged to build wounds, but not exactly tanking. My big problem was that I don't think this system really rewards monk playstyle - keeping 10 wounds is the best way to have high damage output through turning wheel and all the fast attacks, but doing so is a bit difficult and results in needing to rest more often.
So I'm trying something a bit wonky on a reroll, going with a ranged monk who uses wands and builds wounds through dangerous implement. So far basic testing shows it at least works in theory, but I'm wondering if anyone here can help me out with a few things.
1) Attack speed seems to be the biggest problem. Even with a wand, which the wiki says has a fast attack speed, and with swift strikes running, I find this guy only attacks about once per three seconds. The biggest delay is the yellow bar that ticks down between attacks. What can I do to reduce this? Is this considered reload time for implements, or does that mechanic only apply to ranged weapons like guns/bows/etc?
2) If it's just a matter of needing more attack speed (not only to do more dps, but also to build wounds faster), what sources should I be looking for? Right now I'm thinking of swift strikes, finding a wand with increased attack speed, chanter buff that I think increases ranged attack speed, and maybe some consumables. Any other ideas?
3) I went with max Dexterity as well to try to speed up attacks. Does this even help implement attack speed/recovery?
4) Wounds build pretty slowly, but at least they are under user control via Dangerous Implements. I think if I can get potions of deleterious alacrity of motion this will help even more in building wounds. Are there other reliable ways to do self damage that would help this concept work better? Maybe friendly fire from a wizard to get some stacks up right away?
Thanks for any help. So far I like this concept in a party with two tanks, a priest, a chanter, and a wizard. If it turns out to be a bad idea overall, I'm not against cheating to make it better (I don't want a zero challenge game, but I don't mind cheating to achieve a character that works the way I want it to). For instance I found out that Kalakoth's Minor Blights can actually be added as a weapon (wand), which as a permanent weapon works pretty well for any ranged character (perhaps a bit too well, so I haven't used it other than testing). With the burn version of it, combined with scion of flame and turning wheel, well it does very good damage in an AoE. My point is that no matter what I see a way to play this concept viably, even if it involves cheats. I'm just looking for ways to optimize it, especially regarding the attack speed.