Monk: Difference between revisions

Moving with the silence of the night, a black-clad Ursan steps into a shadow beneath an arch and emerges from another inky shadow on a balcony a stone’s throw away. She slides her blade free of its cloth-wrapped scabbard and peers through the open window at the tyrant prince, so vulnerable in the grip of sleep.<br>

Monks make careful study of a magical energy that most monastic traditions call ki. This energy is an element of the magic that suffuses the multiverse—specifically, the element that flows through living bodies. Monks harness this power within themselves to create magical effects and exceed their bodies’ physical capabilities, and some of their special attacks can hinder the flow of ki in their opponents. Using this energy, monks channel uncanny speed and strength into their unarmed strikes. As they gain experience, their martial training and their mastery of ki gives them more power over their bodies and the bodies of their foes.<br>

Small walled cloisters dot the landscape of the world, tiny refuges from the flow of ordinary life, where time seems to stand still. The monks who live there seek personal perfection through contemplation and rigorous training. Many entered the monastery as children, sent to live there when their parents died, when food couldn’t be found to support them, or in return for some kindness that the monks had performed for their families.<br>

The majority of monks don’t shun their neighbors, making frequent visits to nearby towns or villages and exchanging their service for food and other goods. As versatile warriors, monks often end up protecting their neighbors from monsters or tyrants.<br>

For a monk, becoming an adventurer means leaving a structured, communal lifestyle to become a wanderer. This can be a harsh transition, and monks don’t undertake it lightly. Those who leave their cloisters take their work seriously, approaching their adventures as personal tests of their physical and spiritual growth. As a rule, monks care little for material wealth and are driven by a desire to accomplish a greater mission than merely slaying monsters and plundering their treasure.

You gain the following benefits while you are wielding only Monk Weapons and you aren’t wearing [[Armor and Weapons#Heavy Armor|Heavy Armor]] or wielding a [[Armor and Weapons#Shields|Shield]]:

Your training in the art of weaponry as given you skills most monks overlook the use of. You gain Proficiency with [[Armor and Weapons#Martial Weapons|Martial Weapons]], [[Armor and Weapons#Light Armor|Light Armor]], and [[Armor and Weapons#Medium Armor|Medium Armor]]. [[Armor and Weapons#Martial Weapons|Martial Weapons]] also count as Monk Weapons for you. Additionally, [[Armor and Weapons#Martial Ranged Weapons|Shortbows]] and [[Armor and [[Weapons#Martial Ranged Weapons|Longbows]] also count as Monk Weapons.<br>

You can channel draconic power to magnify your presence and imbue your unarmed strikes with the essence of a dragon’s power. Choose a Dragon type and an associated Damage Type. The Damage Type and color associated with each dragon is used by features you gain later. Amethyst (Force), Black (Acid), Blue (Lightning), Bronze (Lightning), Copper (Acid), Crystal (Radiance), Deep (Psychic), Emerald (Psychic), Faerie (Psychic), Gold (Fire), Green (Poison), Iron (Thunder), Moonstone (Radiant), Red (Fire), Sapphire (Thunder), Shadow (Necrotic), Silver (Cold), Topaz (Necrotic), Turtle (Fire), White (Cold).<br>

Additionally, if you fail on a Strength or Charisma (Intimidation) or Charisma (Persuasion) Check, or fail on a Saving throw against being [[Conditions#Charmed|Charmed]] or [[Conditions#Frightened|Frightened]] you can use your Reaction to reroll the Check or Save, as you tap into the mighty presence of dragons. Once this Reaction changes the result of a Check, you can’t use it again until you finish a Long Rest unless you spend 1 Ki Point to use it again. You only expend the Ki Point using this feature if you change the result of the Check.

Once you create this aura, you can’t create it again until you finish a Long Rest, unless you spend 3 Ki Points to create it again.

You can administer even greater cures with a touch, and if you feel it’s necessary, you can use your knowledge to cause harm.<br>

Your mastery of life energy opens the door to the ultimate mercy. As an Action, you can touch the corpse of a creature that died within the past 24 hours and spend 5 Ki Points. The creature then returns to life, regaining a number of Hit Points equal to 4d10 + your Wisdom Modifier. If the creature died while subject to any of the following Conditions, it revives with them removed: [[Conditions#Blinded|Blinded]], [[Conditions#Dazed|Dazed]], [[Conditions#Deafened|Deafened]], [[Conditions#Paralyzed|Paralyzed]], [[Conditions#Poisoned|Poisoned]], and [[Conditions#Stunned|Stunned]]. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a Long Rest.

You can manipulate your enemy’s Ki when you harness your own. Whenever you hit a creature with an Attack from your Flurry of Blows feature, choose one of the following effects to impose on the target:

Monks of the Way of Shadow follow a tradition that values stealth and subterfuge. These monks might be called ninjas or shadowdancers, and they serve as spies and assassins. Sometimes the members of a ninja monastery are family members, forming a clan sworn to secrecy about their arts and missions. Other monasteries are more like thieves’ guilds, hiring out their services to nobles, rich merchants, or anyone else who can pay their fees. Regardless of their methods, the heads of these monasteries expect the unquestioning obedience of their students.