First off, I’m not exactly sure the lore channel is the perfect fit for this, but I will touch in lore, so It certainly isn’t completely off topic.
As you might have noticed, I’m a bit too invested in the monk class, I can’t help it, martial arts are my thing, So I was thinking, and the way this class has been implemented is very unique in terms of storytelling inside the game.
The obvious, Monk is the only class out of the 4 classes added to the game post vanilla that isn’t a hero class, and this had some ramifications. Monks also are probably one of the least popular classes overall, and I think some of that may be connected to this whole deal.
Consequences of not being a hero class:
No unified starting zone expanding upon the class, which means that unlike DKs at the time, or in the near future, DHs and Evokers, Monks would be the only class in the game without an unique experience upon character creation, sharing the same starting experience as every other class, which is the racial starting zone.
This means lore had to be changed, all those starting zones were locked to a point in time, which most of them being locked to Cataclysm, and in the Draenei case, even before that, locked to their intro in TBC, so Monks were retrofitted into past events, but since they didn’t exist prior to that, barely any content was made do suit them, suddenly Alliance and Horde had pandarens in their ranks teaching other faction members how to punch and kick, with exception of the Draeneis that really had to come up with Mojo just being in Azuremyst during the Exodar crash. So the pandaren starting zone, since all Alliance and Horde Monk trainers had to be there during Cataclysm and all of them came from the Wandering Isle, had to have happened also before Cataclysm, and talking about Pandaren starting zone, while you can make pandarens of several classes, seems to be a zone made specifically for monks, which makes me think that maybe what we have with evokers now (single class and race combo with a starting zone specific for both race and class) is what Monk initially was, Pandarens were monks, monks were Pandaren, the starting zone was unified, but this is basic speculation.
Monks were also not given the spotlight that a Hero class starting zone does give to a class, no momment to “hype up” the class. As a death Knight, you did terrible things for the scourge, and the whole thing culminates in the battle with Morgraine giving Tirion the Ashbringer to fend off the Lich King, you join the alliance, before reaching the king, people are throwing food, talking bad stuff. As a Demon hunter, you have epic momments conquering a legion zone, the zone ends with you killing two wardens in a single blow each, before being overpowered by Maiev, only to be released later as she says that she needs your help, and then escaping the Warden prison and helping your faction right after as there are legion members infiltrated in their ranks. Dracthyr evokers are directly tied into the events that lead to the first raid and are hyped to be this super elite group of soldiers made to serve Neltharion. Monks got none of that.
On the positive side, one of the best bits of class fantasy for monks came because monks were not a hero class and had to level up the traditional way, and I’m talking about the training dailies, and I think this is what sold me most on the class, It is a shame nowadays a new monk won’t even get the quest to go to the peak of Serenity, so only if you know you can do that you will do. While the quest itself was simple, It was a very nice way to do class fantasy right, and when I was leveling my first monk in bfa, it made the class special.
Monks are also the first class added since vanilla that isn’t tied to an antagonist, and as such, is not also tied to corrupt members seeking power beyond what they have.
Overall I have more to say, but, this is just some ramblings in how Monks ended up the way they are in lore, and how this could have affected public perception of the class over the years.
