Hi all,
After a looong break from VG (actually i played just a month or two after release) i'm coming back since some irl friends are having a good time in game.
I was going to play either DK or War, but i think i'm going to stay true to my first love with EQ that is : Monk.
I'm looking for a few advices to start up again.
First i'm going to play with my girl friend, she've played WoW with me and will be playing a healer.
We'll be duoing 99% of the time since i'll get scorched if i play without her ^^
So what healer class would work best with a monk ?(and we would like the same starting area)

Second, i hope joining the raiding sphere once i'll hit 50, i was wondering if monk FD pulling was working and/or required or if other classes where better at pulling (for dungeon situations or raid situations).
If they are really usefull, what monk path would be best suited for a puller ?

Third regarding weapons, what should i aim for ? unarmed ? hand to hand weapons (claws/ulaks) or two handed (martial sword, staff etc ?). Also, from what i saw, the raw DPS on these weapons is always lower than a comparable weapon for other classes. Is there a "hidden" bonus for monks or something ?

Fourth, what stats should i focus on ? I remember when i started EQ everyone said go Str agi and dex, untill they realised it was useless and instead to focus on stamina. Everyone seem to say Con is useless atm, but from some comments i've read regarding raids, people seem to think con is very usefull.
So ? what should i aim for ? regardding stats ?

And lastly, i know that this will be totaly subjective, but do you guys think it's worth playing a monk currently in VG, knowing that i like to be in charge of the pace of combat like i was with a monk in EQ and a war in Wow.
If i only have a DPS role with a monk, i'll be frustrated.(i'm talking here at level 50, as if i like VG i'll play a longer time at 50 than the sum of the playtime i had at every other level.)

Thanks for any answers

1) Id go for a cleric (preservationist) or shaman (bear) if i was douing and expecting the healer to do most of the healing and the monk most of the tanking.   Id try disciple if you dont mind that youd basicly be spliting/sharing the same gear.  Disciples will probably add the most dps but require someone to actually play the disadvantage would be they get hit just as beat up as we monks do, so if you lose agro the disciples gonna get just as hurt as we do.   Basicly the only thing id shy away from is a blood mage because they get hit hardest, and they tend to sit at low hp and monks generally arent geared towards gaining agro fast enough to save a blood mage.

2)FD pulling is working but its not finished yet, it will get better and more useful (or so we are told, change is still real slow here)  although its not required in regular groups, infact most regular groups are better off with bards or anyone with lull/pacify .  In raids it is really useful.  Best puller is a tie drunken/harmonious because they both get a second avoidance buff (find the center/magnificent drunken swagger)

3) dont go for unarmed.  i would say go hand wraps/bladestaff/martial staff for dps.  And use a martial sword for tanking/dou  ....claws/ulaks are the quest rewards for Raz and Pantheon, but neither are as good as the player made handwraps for the same level.

4) go str>dex>con for douing.  If your human id probably say 5str>5dex>4con per level.  Con adds tons of hp and resists at 50.  I think with just +80 i get 1500 extra hp.  So humans would probably get twice that.   If you feel its useless though go int for the extra dmg it adds

5) If you want to play a class to control the pace of combat tanks and classes with lull control it more on the group level.  Maybe after they finish fixing feign death and its more possible to split on a regular basis at lower levels well see but atm monks are dps.

6) ps - go harmonious monk or drunken.  Drunken has better agro control nd harmonious is just all around the most over powered monk.  Their attacks , debuffs, and buffs put them at the top

7) theres well over 12 + threads with all of these exact same questions and answers so next time spend a few minutes looking :-p