Monk
Monk
hit dice:
1d8 per monk level
hit points at 1st level:
8 + your Constitution modifier
hit points at higher levels:
1d8 (or 5) + your Constitution modifier per monk level after 1st
armor proficiencies:
None
weapon proficiencies:
Simple Weapons, Shortswords
tools:
Choose one type of artisan's tools or one musical instrument
saving throws:
Strength, Dexterity
skills:
Choose two from Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Religion, and Stealth
starting equipment:
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:
- (a) a short sword or (b) any simple weapon
- (a) a dungeoneer's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
- 10 darts
spellcasting:
class features:
Unarmored Defense
Beginning at 1st level, while you are wearing no armor and not wielding a shield, you r AC equal 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier.Martial Arts
At 1st level, your practice of martial arts gives you mastery of combat styles that use unarmed strikes and monk weapons, which are shortswords and any simple melee weapons that don't have the two-handed or heavy property. You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only monk weapons and you aren't wearing armor or wielding a shield:- You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your unarmed strikes monk weapons.
- You can roll a d4 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike or monk weapon. This die changes as you gain monk levels as shown in the Martial Arts column of the Monk table.
- When you use the Attack action with an unarmed strike or a monk weapon on your turn, you can make one unarmed strike as a bonus action. For example, if you take the Attack action and attack with a quarterstaff, you can also make an unarmed strike as a bonus action, assuming you haven't already taken a bonus action.
Ki
Starting at 2nd level, your training allows you to harness the mystic energy of ki. Your access to this energy is represented by a number of ki points. Your monk level determines the number of points you have, as shown in the Ki points column of the Monk table. You can spend these points to fuel various ki features. You start knowing three such features: Flurry of Blows, Patient Defense, and Step of the Wind. you learn more ki features as you gain levels in this class. When you spend a ki point, it is unavailable until you finish a short or long rest, at the end of which you draw all your expended ki back into yourself. You must spend at least 30 minutes of the rest meditating to regain your ki points. Some of your ki features require your target to make a saving throw to resist the features effects. The saving throw is calculated as follows: Ki save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus = your Wisdom modifierFlurry of Blows
Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn, you can spend 1 ki point to make tow unarmed strikes as a bonus action.Patient Defense
You can spend 1 ki point to take the dodge action as a bonus action on your turn.Step of the Wind
You can spend 1 ki point to take the Disengage or Dash action as a bonus action on your turn, and your jump distance is doubled for the turn.Unarmored Movement
Starting at 2nd level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield. This bonus increases when you reach certain monk levels, as shown in the Monk table. At 9th level, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on y our turn without falling during the move.Monastic Tradition
When you reach 3rd level, you commit yourself to a monastic tradition: the Way of the Open Hand, the Way of Shadow, or the Way of the Four Elements, all detailed at the end of the class description. Your tradition grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 11th, and 17th level.Deflect Missiles
Starting at 3rd level, you can use your reaction to defect or catch the missile when you are hit by a ranged weapon attack. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifiers + your monk level. If you reduce the damage to 0, you can catch the missile if it is small enough for you to hold in one hand and you have at least one hand free. If you catch a missile in this way, you can spend 1 ki point to make a ranged attack with the weapon or piece of ammunition you just caught, as part of the same reaction. You make this attack with proficiency, regardless of your weapon proficiencies, and the missile counts as a monk weapon for the attack, which has a normal range of 20 feet and a long range of 60 feet.Ability Score Improvement
When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can't increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.Slow Fall
Beginning at 4th level, you can use your reaction when you fall to reduce any falling damage you take by an amount equal to five times your monk level.Extra Attack
Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.Stunning Strike
Starting at 5th level, you can interfere with the flow ki in an opponent's body. When you hit another creature with a melee weapon attack, you can spend 1 ki point to attempt a stunning strike. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the end of your next turn.Ki-Empowered Strikes
Starting at 6th level, your unarmed strikes count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.Evasion
At the 7th level, your instinctive agility lets you dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a blue dragon's lightning breath or a fireball spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw and only half damage if you fail.Stillness of Mind
Starting at 7th level, you can use your action to end one effect on yourself that is causing you to be charmed or frightened.Purity of Body
At 10th level, your master of the ki flowing through you makes you immune to disease and poison.Tongue of the Sun and Moon (Universal Language)
Starting at 13th level, you learn to touch the ki of other minds so that you understand all spoken languages. Moreover, any creature that can understand a language can understand what you say.Diamond Soul
Beginning at 14th level, your mastery of ki grants you proficiency in all saving throws. Additionally, whenever you make a saving throw and fail, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll it and take the second result.Timeless Body
At 15th level, your ki sustains you so that you suffer none of the frailty of old age, and you can't be aged magically. You can still die of old age, however. In addition, you no longer need food or water.Empty Body
Beginning at 18th level, you can use your action to spend 4 ki points to become invisible for 1 minute. During that time, you also have resistance to all damage but force damage. Additionally, you can spend 8 ki points to cast the astral projection spell, without needing material components. When you do so, you can't take any other creatures with you.Perfect Self
At 20th level, when you roll for initiative and have no ki points resining,you regain 4 ki points.subclass options:
Monastic Traditions
Three traditions of monastic pursuit are common in the monasteries scattered across the multiverse. Most monasteries practice one tradition exclusively, but a few honor the three traditions and instruct each monk according to his or her aptitude and interest. All three traditions rely on the same basic techniques, diverging as the student grows more adept. Thus, a monk need choose a tradition only upon reaching 3rd level.Way of the Open Hand
Monks of the Way of the Open Hand are the ultimate masters of martial arts combat, whether armed or unarmed. They learn techniques to push and trip their opponents, manipulate ki to heal damage to their bodies, and practice advanced meditation that can protect them from harm.Open Hand Technique
Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you can anipulate your enemy's ki when you harness your own. Whenever you hit a creature with one of the attacks granted by your Flurry of Blows, you can impose one of the following effects on that target:- It must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or be knocked prone.
- It must make a Strength saving throw. If it fails, you can push it up to 15 feet away from you.
- It can't take reactions until the end of your next turn.
Wholeness of Body
At 6th level, you gain the ability to heal yourself. As an action, you can regain hit points equal to three times your monk level. You must finish a long rest before you can use this feature again.Tranquility
Beginning at 11th level, you can enter a special meditation that surrounds you with an aura of peace. At the end of a long rest, you gain the effect of a sanctuary spell that lasts until the start of your next long rest (the spell can end early as normal). The saving throw DC for the spell equals 8 + your Wisdom modifier + your proficiency bonus.Quivering Palm
At 16th level, you gain the ability to set up lethal vibrations in someone's body. When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you can spend 3 ki points to start these imperceptible vibrations, which last for a number of days equal to your monk level. The vibrations are harmless unless you use your action to end them. To do so, you and the target must be on the same plane of existence. When you use this action, the creature must make a Constitution saving throw. If it fails, it is reduced to 0 hit points. If it succeeds, it takes 10d10 necrotic damage. You can have only one creature under the effect of this feature at a time. you can choose to end the vibrations harmlessly without using an action. Way of the Shadow Monks of the Way of Shadow follow a tradition that values stealth and subterfuge. These monks might be called ninjas or shadow dancers, 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. Shadow Arts Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you can use your ki to duplicate the effects of certain spells. As an action, you can spend 2 ki points to cast Darkness, Darkvision, Pass Without Trace, or Silence, without providing material components. Additionally, you gain the Minor Illusion cantrip if you don't already know it. Shadow Step At 6th level, you gain the ability to step from one shadow into another. When you are in dim light or darkness, as a bonus action you can teleport up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space you can see hat is also in dim light or darkness. You then have advantage on the first melee attack you make before the ned of the turn. Cloak of Shadows By 11th level, you have learned to become one with the shadows. When you are in an area of dim light or darkness, you can use your action to become invisible. You remain invisible until you make an attack, cast a spell, or are in an area of bright light. Opportunist At 17th level, you can explore a creature's momentary distraction when it is hit by an attack. Whenever a creature within 5 feet of you is hit by an attack made by a creature other than you, you can use your reaction to make a melee attack against that creature.Way of the Four Elements
You follow a monastic tradition that teaches you to harness the elements. When you focus your ki, you can align yourself with the forces of creation and bend the four elements to your will, using them as an extension of your body. Some members of this tradition dedicate themselves to single element, but others weave the elements together. Many monks of this tradition tattoo their bodies with representations of their ki powers, commonly imagined as coiling dragons, but also as phoenixes, fish, plants, mountains, and cresting waves.Disciple of the Elements
When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you learn magical disciplines that harness the power of the four elements. A discipline requires you to spend ki points each time you use it. You know the Elemental Attunement discipline and one other elemental discipline of your choice, which are detailed in the "Elemental Disciplines" section below. You learn one additional elemental discipline of your choice at 6th, 11th, and 17th level. Whenever you learn a new elemental discipline, you can also replace one elemental discipline that you already know with a different discipline. Casting Elemental Spells. Some elemental disciplines allow you to cast spells. To cast one of these spells, you use its casting time and other rules, but you don't need to provide material components for it. Once you reach 5th level in this class, you can spend additional ki points to increase the level of an elemental discipline spell that you cast, provided that the spell has an enhanced effect at a higher level, as Burning Hands does. The spell's level increases by 1 for each additional ki point you spend. For example, if you are a 5th-level monk and use Sweeping Cinder Strike to cast Burning Hands, you can spend 3 ki points to cast it as a 2nd-level spell (the discipline's base cost of 2 ki points plus 1). The maximum number of ki points you can spend to cast a spell in this way (including its use ki point cost and any additional ki points you spend to increase its level) is determined by your monk level, as shown in the Spells and Ki Points table.Spells and Ki Points
Monk Levels | Maximum Ki Points for a Spell |
5th-8th | 3 |
9th-12th | 4 |
13th-16th | 5 |
17th-20th | 6 |
Elemental Disciplines
The elemental disciplines are presented in alphabetical order. If a discipline requires a level, you must be that level in this class to learn the discipline. Breath of Winter (17th Level Required). You can spend 6 ki points to cast Cone of Cold. Clench of the North Wind (6th Level Required). You can spend 3 ki points to cast Hold Person. Elemental Attunement. you can use your action to briefly control elemental forces nearby, causing one of the following effects of your choice:- Create a harmless, instantaneous sensory effect related to air, earth, fire, or water, such as a shower of sparks, a puff of wind, a spray of light mist, or a gentle rumbling of stone.
- Instantaneously light or snuff out a candle, a torch, or a small campfire.
- Chill or warm up to 1 pound of nonliving material for up to 1 hour.
- Cause earth, fire, water, or mist that can fit within a 1-foot cube to shape itself into a crude form you designate for 1 minute.
Level | Proficiency Bonus | Martial Arts | Ki Points | Unarmored Movement | Features |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | +2 | 1d4 | - | - | Unarmored Defense, Martial Arts |
2nd | +2 | 1d4 | 2 | +10 ft. | Ki, Unarmored Movement |
3rd | +2 | 1d4 | 3 | +10 ft. | Monastic Tradition, Deflect Missiles |
4th | +2 | 1d4 | 4 | +10 ft. | Ability Score Improvement, Slow Fall |
5th | +3 | 1d6 | 5 | +15 ft. | Extra Attack, Stunning Strike |
6th | +3 | 1d6 | 6 | +15 ft. | Ki-Empowered Strikes, Monastic Tradition feature |
7th | +3 | 1d6 | 7 | +15 ft. | Evasion, Stillness of Mind |
8th | +3 | 1d6 | 8 | +15 ft. | Ability Score Improvement |
9th | +4 | 1d6 | 9 | +15 ft. | Unarmored Movement Improvement |
10th | +4 | 1d6 | 10 | +20 ft. | Purity of Body |
11th | +4 | 1d8 | 11 | +20 ft. | Monastic Tradition feature |
12th | +4 | 1d8 | 12 | +20 ft. | Ability Score Improvement |
13th | +5 | 1d8 | 13 | +20 ft. | Tongue of the Sun and Moon (Universal Language) |
14th | +5 | 1d8 | 14 | +25 ft. | Diamond Soul |
15th | +5 | 1d8 | 15 | +25 ft. | Timeless Body |
16th | +5 | 1d8 | 16 | +25 ft. | Ability Score Improvement |
17th | +6 | 1d10 | 17 | +25 ft. | Monastic Tradition feature |
18th | +6 | 1d10 | 18 | +30 ft. | Empty Body |
19th | +6 | 1d10 | 19 | +30 ft. | Ability Score Improvement |
20th | +6 | 1d10 | 20 | +30 ft. | Perfect Self |
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