Monk
Monks are masters of martial arts, harnessing the power of the body in pursuit of physical and spiritual perfection. Through discipline and training, they learn to channel ki to perform extraordinary feats.
Multiclassing Prerequisites: Dexterity 13, Wisdom 13
Class Table
| Level | Proficiency Bonus | Features | Martial Arts | Ki Points | Unarmored Movement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | +2 | Unarmored Defense, Martial Arts | 1d4 | - | +0 ft |
| 2 | +2 | Ki, Unarmored Movement, Monastic Tradition | 1d4 | 2 | +10 ft |
| 3 | +2 | Deflect Missiles, Monastic Tradition feature | 1d4 | 3 | +10 ft |
| 4 | +2 | Ability Score Improvement, Slow Fall | 1d4 | 4 | +10 ft |
| 5 | +3 | Extra Attack, Stunning Strike | 1d6 | 5 | +15 ft |
| 6 | +3 | Ki-Empowered Strikes, Monastic Tradition feature | 1d6 | 6 | +15 ft |
| 7 | +3 | Evasion, Stillness of Mind | 1d6 | 7 | +15 ft |
| 8 | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d6 | 8 | +15 ft |
| 9 | +4 | Unarmored Movement improvement | 1d6 | 9 | +20 ft |
| 10 | +4 | Purity of Body | 1d6 | 10 | +20 ft |
| 11 | +4 | Monastic Tradition feature | 1d8 | 11 | +20 ft |
| 12 | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d8 | 12 | +20 ft |
| 13 | +5 | Tongue of the Sun and Moon | 1d8 | 13 | +25 ft |
| 14 | +5 | Diamond Soul | 1d8 | 14 | +25 ft |
| 15 | +5 | Timeless Body | 1d8 | 15 | +25 ft |
| 16 | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d8 | 16 | +25 ft |
| 17 | +6 | Monastic Tradition feature | 1d10 | 17 | +30 ft |
| 18 | +6 | Empty Body | 1d10 | 18 | +30 ft |
| 19 | +6 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d10 | 19 | +30 ft |
| 20 | +6 | Perfect Self | 1d10 | 20 | +30 ft |
Class 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
- Armor: None
- Weapons: 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, Stealth
Equipment
You start with:
- (a) a shortsword or (b) any simple weapon
- (a) a dungeoneer’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack
- 10 darts
Unarmored Defense
While you are not wearing any armor and not wielding a shield, your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier.
Martial Arts
Your practice of martial arts gives you mastery of combat styles that use unarmed strikes and monk weapons (shortswords and any simple melee weapons that don’t have the two-handed or heavy property).
- You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your unarmed strikes and monk weapons.
- You can roll your Martial Arts die in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike or monk weapon.
- 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.
The Martial Arts die increases as you gain monk levels (see table).
Ki (2nd level)
You gain a pool of ki points equal to your monk level. You can spend these points to fuel various ki features. You regain all expended ki points when you finish a short or long rest.
You know the following ki features:
- 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.
Unarmored Movement (2nd level)
Your speed increases by the amount shown in the Unarmored Movement column while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield. At 9th level, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during the move.
Monastic Tradition (3rd level)
Choose a monastic tradition that shapes your practice of the martial arts. You gain features at 3rd, 6th, 11th, and 17th levels.
Common examples include:
- Way of the Open Hand
- Way of Shadow
- Way of the Four Elements
- Way of the Kensei
- Way of the Sun Soul
- Way of the Drunken Master
- Way of the Long Death
- Way of Mercy
- Way of the Astral Self
- Way of the Ascendant Dragon
Deflect Missiles (3rd level)
You can use your reaction to deflect or catch a missile when you are hit by a ranged weapon attack. Reduce the damage by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your monk level. If you reduce the damage to 0, you can catch the missile if it’s small enough to hold and you have a free hand. If you do so, you can spend 1 ki point to make a ranged attack with the weapon or piece of ammunition as part of the same reaction.
Ability Score Improvement (4th, 8th, 12th, 16th, 19th level)
Increase one ability score by 2, or two ability scores by 1. You can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.
Slow Fall (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 (5th level)
You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
Stunning Strike (5th level)
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 (6th level)
Your unarmed strikes count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.
Evasion (7th level)
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 on a success and only half damage on a failure.
Stillness of Mind (7th level)
You can use your action to end one effect on yourself that is causing you to be charmed or frightened.
Unarmored Movement Improvement (9th level)
You can move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during the move.
Purity of Body (10th level)
You are immune to disease and poison.
Tongue of the Sun and Moon (13th level)
You learn to touch the ki of other minds. You can understand all spoken languages and any creature that can understand a language can understand what you say.
Diamond Soul (14th level)
You gain proficiency in all saving throws. Additionally, when you make a saving throw and fail, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll it and take the second result.
Timeless Body (15th level)
Your ki sustains you so that you suffer none of the frailty of old age. You can’t be aged magically, and you don’t need food or water.
Empty Body (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. Additionally, you can spend 8 ki points to cast astral projection without material components (self only; your body remains behind).
Perfect Self (20th level)
When you roll initiative and have no ki points remaining, you regain 4 ki points.