Tuotilo's Palm Upgrades

[2MuchWatching]

Hey guys,

Long time forum lurker and recent member here. I'm sorry if this was asked before but I couldn't find anything. I'm playing single class monk (again :D) in party with regular companions. What enchantments do you usually pick for Tuotilo's Palm shield? It seems in my last game i was bad and left it without any upgrades.

[Boeroer]

I personally would always pick

• Balanced Shield: +1 Deflection per Wound, +1 Reflex per Wound instead of
• Outward Spikes: 20% Chance on being missed by a Melee attack to strike back instantly

Because Outward Spikes is not a Full Attack like Riposte but pretty weak actually.
Also defense bonuses have increasing returns - and having +10 deflection and +10 reflex (which stack with everything) is pretty great.

The other options "Precision Striker" is not strictly better than "Pugilist" but I'll still take the first. Note that Tuotilo's bash itself counts as unarmed attack so it profits from both. I often use Swift Flurry and Precision Striker can help with that. Also helps to apply afflictions more reliably and helps to crit with Stunning Surge more often.
+10% additive dmg bonus from Pugilist is not breathtaking. It simply means +1.65 dmg per hit with Monk/Monastic fists and +0.9 dmg per hit with Tuotilo's Palm.
To me +5 ACC is more useful in general. But as I said there's not that much of a difference. 

[2MuchWatching]

Sounds good to me. Thanks for your insight

[dgray62]

As Boeroer noted, monks should always select Balanced Shield. The only reason to take Outward Spikes if you are using it with a non-monk (fighter, barb, cipher, etc.) with Monastic Unarmed Training. And I agree that the ACC boost from Precision Sticker is better than the small boost to damage from Pugilist. You'll probably end up doing better DPS with the former, as you note.

[2MuchWatching]

Good to know. Thanks. I don't use the shield much tbh. I usually switch to it when I feel like i am taking a bit too much of a beating. The Balanced Shield enchantment should help

[dgray62]

Balanced shield is great for monks. You get a big boost in tankiness at the expense of only a slight dip in DPS. It's definitely worth having for the more challenging battles.

[2MuchWatching]

Yeah agreed. I sometimes don't pay too much attention to tactics so its good to have some "oh sh--!" options

I dunno what I must've been doing for so long. I restarted the game so many times trying to find a good build to fit in the front row next to tank. Monk fits perfectly and is so much fun. I made a run with no subclass first and I'm now into the last third with a Nalpazca, it seems almost exactly the same so far.