Is there much lore around Undead Monks? Any major characters or anything in books, short stories, etc.?
No, although a monk is the only one that seem to acknowledge the Forsaken’s struggle against the darkness, which is perfect in regards to intriguing Forsaken lore. Its in the same lane as the Cult of Shadows’ balance philosophy if you ask me.
It could be awesome:
https://media.mmo-champion.com/images/news/2013/april/fanart-1303-full.jpg
I definitely like this kind of lore over the mad scientist gimmick, but it could work hand and hand.
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There isn’t really any race-specific Monk lore at all.
Aside from Pandaren, obviously.
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Not much in game other than many Forsaken deal with dark thoughts and radical negative mood swings due to the nature of their resurrection and the discipline and inner peace that Monks strive for can help with that.
Also since Monks use chi, or life force as a form of healing their magic does not cause the Forsaken the same searing pain as Light based healers like Priests and Paladins. It makes it a bit easier on them.
Also this is out of game lore, but Buddhist monks would sometimes attempt Sokushinbutsu, practicing asceticism to the point of death. They essentially enter a state of mummification while still alive, although according to Buddhist priests they are not dead, but in a deep meditative trance.
This kind of philosophy and thinking on death and worldly pleasures might be both appealing to the Forsaken and make the undead more acceptable to teachers of the Monk class.
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Find three more of them and we can get another heart container. 
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Sadly non-pandaren monks’ lore and really existence in general has been weirdly portrayed since day one. Instead of trying to logically tie it into the Tushui and Huojin picking factions and therefore training newbies of other races in their martial disciplines, they decided to choose arguably the least logical path of just retconning it into seeming like something that’s always been around alongside the other player classes.
So honestly how a given player race conceptualizes it could be significantly affected by when you think such races being monks became a “thing” or when the specific individual did so. Did they train as monks under a wandering pandaren adventurer in the vein of Chen from the Wandering Isles (as represented by in-game monk trainers when they still sold abilities to players), did they start training during or after the time of Mists of Pandaria when mainland Pandaren monks became accessible to the world, did they train under Tushui or Huojin teachers who’d joined their given faction, or is it a mix of all three?
There are, after all, some marked philosophical differences between how the two disciplines of the Wandering Isle think, and further differences between them and the mainland Pandaren. Huojin are made out to be brash and emotionally driven while Tushui are contemplative and reserved. Yet mainland pandaren tend to view Wandering Isle pandaren in general as overly passionate and reckless, instead favoring a balance between the two philosophies over adherence to one extreme or the other.
Before one can fully classify how an undead (or any other non-pandaren player race) applies their cultural mindsets and ideologies to monk training, one arguably has to decide what sort of monk training they received from whom, when they received it (given the events affecting their people at that time) and what about its particular philosophical approach drew them onto that path and kept them there.
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i would like to specifically know if the chi energy, aka spirit energy, would actually harm a forsaken monk.
light harms them because it clashes with the necromantic energy that improperly binds their soul to their corpse. necromantic death energy is the opposite of life, so chi should hurt them as well since it would be two opposite powers interacting.
I don’t think it would burn like the light, but the light has a seconder effect which could be Life’s primary effect. When asked about the Forsaken’s prolonged use of the light: There are reports, however, that some Forsaken have slowly experienced a sharpening of their dulled senses of touch, smell, etc., as well as an increase in the flashes of positive emotions that have otherwise become so rare since their fall into undeath. Unfortunately, this may be the cause of the Forsaken priesthood’s increased attempts at self-destruction; regaining these senses would force the priests to smell their own rotting flesh, taste the decay in their mouths and throats, and even feel the maggots burrowing within their bodies… - cdev
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That’s what I did with mine.
He’s an Apothecary but when deployed in Pandaria he became enamored with the more disciplined and clinical nature of their martial combat. His thorough knowledge of anatomy also came in handy when dealing precise strikes.
I see a Garrison Follower in my Garrisons named Charles Norris who seems to be an Undead Monk. He must have died from suicide and been raised - who else could kill Charles Norris but himself?
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