To answer your question – the tortle natural armor and the monk’s unarmored defense do not “stack” or in any way combine with each other – as with all AC calculations, you select which one you want to use.
Can Tortles wear armor?
Nothing prevents tortles from wearing armor, merely benefiting from it as written.
Does Mage armor stack with unarmored movement?
No. Being under the effect of Mage Armor does not count as wearing armor (indeed, the spell ends if you put on armor).
Can monk wear armor?
From Martial Arts, PHB pg 78: You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only monk weapons and you aren’t wearing armor or wielding a shield: From Unarmored Movement, PHB pg 78: Starting at 2nd level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield.
Can a Tortle use unarmored defense?
No, because it’s not actually armor. An unarmored Tortle Monk is not wearing armor, so it gets the benefit of Unarmored Movement.
What armor can a monk wear?
Like druids and rogues, monks use leather armor and can’t use shields, but can use off-hand items. Monks can use the following weapons: fist weapons, one-handed axes, one-handed maces, one-handed swords, polearms, and staves.
Can Tortles swim?
Tortle have a 10 ft swim speed. Tortle have a +8 racial bonus on any Swim check to perform some special action or avoid a hazard. They can always choose to take 10 on a Swim check, even if distracted or endangered. It can use the run action while swimming, provided they swim in a straight line.
Can Tortles use unarmored defense?
Can a monk benefit from Mage armor?
Mage armor is a magical force with no weight to it. It is not real armor. Unarmored Defense for a monk means being able to freely move, so mage armor does not interfere with Unarmored Defense.
Does mage armor work with a shield?
Mage armor works with a shield. Shields are grouped with armor in the equipment rules in the Player’s Handbook, but various game features distinguish between the armor you wear and a shield you wield.
Can a monk use a shield?
In the PHB, it says that monks can’t use a shield with their unarmored defense, but DDB lets monks use a shield.
Can monks wear bracers?
Although not explicitly stated, bracers of armor don’t interfere with a monk’s special abilities, the armor bonus coming as it does from a pair of magic armbands. (The DMG’s NPC monks (118-9) even have bracers and don’t suffer because of them, for example.)
Does a Tortle’s natural armor interfere with the monk’s movement?
It means a tortle monk will have a slightly higher than average AC for a monk, but with their Wisdom bonus not adding to that 17, it should be fine. A tortle’s alternate AC calculation (AC 17) is no different from a Warforged’s +1 AC bonus — that is to say, neither of them are armor, and neither of them have any effect on Unarmored Movement.
Can you use unarmored defense and tortle’s natural armor?
A tortle’s natural armor is an AC calculation. Unarmored Defense is an AC calculation. You cannot use more than one AC calculation at a time. Therefore, you cannot use Unarmored Defense and a tortle’s natural armor at the same time.
What is the base AC of a tortle monk?
For example, the monk class says (when not wearing armor) “AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier.” The Tortle entry says you have a base AC of 17 and that Dex does not change this number. Does your AC become 10 + Wis? 17 + Wis?
Can a monk use unarmored defense in beast form?
Likewise, a Monk using unarmored defense has an AC of 10 + Dexterity Modifier + Wisdom Modifier. He does not simply add Wisdom to his AC. Your Druid can use Unarmored Defense in beast form, but he has to choose between that and the fixed AC of the form. For a brown bear, his options are:
