Monk

Monk

Monk

Monks are disciplined and agile warriors who have dedicated themselves to the mastery of martial arts and harnessing their inner ki energy. Through years of rigorous training and meditation, they attain extraordinary physical and mental abilities. Monks possess unparalleled speed and mobility, enabling them to move swiftly across the battlefield and evade attacks with incredible grace. Their unarmed strikes are deadly, as they use their body as a weapon, and they gain additional benefits as they advance in levels, such as the ability to make multiple attacks and stunning opponents with their strikes.

Monks also harness the power of ki, a mystical life force within themselves and the world. They can spend ki points to perform stunning feats, such as dodging with almost supernatural agility, becoming invisible, or unleashing a flurry of blows in rapid succession. Moreover, Monks gain access to unique traditions known as Monastic Traditions, which offer diverse focuses for their training. With their exceptional speed, unmatched martial prowess, and mastery of ki, Monks are extraordinary adventurers capable of achieving the seemingly impossible.

Class Features

As a monk, you gain the following features.

Hit Points

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

Proficiencies

Weapon: Simple Weapon, shortswords

Tool: Artisan's Tool, Musical Instrument. Choose one type of artisan’s tools or one musical instrument

Saving Throw: Strength, Dexterity

Skills: You have 2 of the following skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Religion, Stealth.

Starting Gold

You start with 5d4 x 10 gold pieces (GP) unless you choose to take the equipment below

Starting Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

  • (a) shortsword or (b) any simple weapon
  • (a) dungeoneer's pack or (b) explorer's pack
  • (10x) dart

Monk Features Table

LVL Pro+ Features Martial Arts Ki Points Unarmored Movement
1st +2 Unarmored Defense, Martial Arts 1d4
2nd +2 Ki, Unarmored Movement 1d4 2 +10 ft.
3rd +2 Monastic Tradition, Deflect Missiles, Monastic Tradition Feature 1d4 3 +10 ft.
4th +2 Slow Fall, Ability Score Improvement 1d4 4 +10 ft.
5th +3 Extra Attack, Stunning Strike 1d6 5 +10 ft.
6th +3 Ki-Empowered Strikes, Monastic Tradition Feature 1d6 6 +15 ft.
7th +3 Evasion, Stillness of Mind 1d6 7 +15 ft.
8th +3 Ability Score Improvement 1d6 8 +15 ft.
9th +4 Unarmored Movement improvement 1d6 9 +15 ft.
10th +4 Purity of Body 1d6 10 +20 ft.
11th +4 Monastic Tradition Feature 1d8 11 +20 ft.
12th +4 Ability Score Improvement 1d8 12 +20 ft.
13th +5 Tongue of the Sun and Moon 1d8 13 +20 ft.
14th +5 Diamond Soul 1d8 14 +25 ft.
15th +5 Timeless Body 1d8 15 +25 ft.
16th +5 Ability Score Improvement 1d8 16 +25 ft.
17th +6 Monastic Tradition Feature 1d10 17 +25 ft.
18th +6 Empty Body 1d10 18 +30 ft.
19th +6 Ability Score Improvement 1d10 19 +30 ft.
20th +6 Perfect Self 1d10 20 +30 ft.

Class Features at Level

Level 1

Unarmored Defense

While you are wearing no armor and not wielding a shield, your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier.

Level 1

Martial Arts

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 and 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 this turn.

Certain monasteries use specialized forms of the monk weapons. For example, you might use a club that is two lengths of wood connected by a short chain (called a nunchaku) or a sickle with a shorter, straighter blade (called a kama). Whatever name you use for a monk weapon, you can use the game statistics provided for the weapon.

Level 2

Ki

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 of 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 feature’s effects. The saving throw DC is calculated as follows:

Ki save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Flurry of Blows

Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn, you can spend 1 ki point to make two 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.

Level 2

Unarmored Movement

Your speed increases by 10 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield.

Level 3

Monastic Tradition

You commit yourself to a monastic tradition, such as the Way of the Open Hand. Your tradition grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 11th, and 17th level.

Level 3

Deflect Missiles

You can use your reaction to deflect 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 modifier + 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.

Level 3

Monastic Tradition Feature

Your Monastic Tradition grants you abilities at this level.

Level 4

Slow Fall

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.

Level 4

Ability Score Improvement

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. Alternatively, you can choose to take one Feat instead of the ability score increase.

Level 5

Extra Attack

You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Level 5

Stunning Strike

You can interfere with the flow of 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.

Level 6

Ki-Empowered Strikes

Your unarmed strikes count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.

Level 6

Monastic Tradition Feature

Your Monastic Tradition grants you abilities at this level.

Level 7

Evasion

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.

Level 7

Stillness of Mind

You can use your action to end one effect on yourself that is causing you to be charmed or frightened.

Level 8

Ability Score Improvement

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. Alternatively, you can choose to take one Feat instead of the ability score increase.

Level 9

Unarmored Movement improvement

While you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during the move.

Level 10

Purity of Body

Your mastery of the ki flowing through you makes you immune to disease and poison.

Level 11

Monastic Tradition Feature

Your Monastic Tradition grants you abilities at this level.

Level 12

Ability Score Improvement

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. Alternatively, you can choose to take one Feat instead of the ability score increase.

Level 13

Tongue of the Sun and Moon

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.

Level 14

Diamond Soul

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.

Level 15

Timeless Body

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.

Level 16

Ability Score Improvement

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. Alternatively, you can choose to take one Feat instead of the ability score increase.

Level 17

Monastic Tradition Feature

Your Monastic Tradition grants you abilities at this level.

Level 18

Empty Body

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.

Level 19

Ability Score Improvement

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. Alternatively, you can choose to take one Feat instead of the ability score increase.

Level 20

Perfect Self

When you roll for initiative and have no ki points remaining, you regain 4 ki points.

Monastic Tradition

Traditions of monastic pursuit are common in the monasteries scattered across the multiverse. Most monasteries practice one tradition exclusively, but a few honor more traditions and instruct each monk according to his or her aptitude and interest. All 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 Cosmic Fist
Subclass of Monk

Way of the Cosmic Fist

Monks who follow the Way of the Cosmic Fist are often considered enigmatic, even among other monks. They seek to… More
Way of the Open Hand
Subclass of Monk

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.… More
Way of the Serene Mind
Subclass of Monk

Way of the Serene Mind

Monks who follow the Way of the Serene Mind believe that true mastery comes from inner calm and clear thinking,… More

Credits: SRD 5.1