Way of the Psychometabolic Monk

[Foxydono]

I have made a homebrew monastic monk tradition called: 'Way of the Psychometabolic Monk'. This Monk uses psychometabolic disciplines to change, enchance or otherwise alter his own body. Let me know what you think!

Way of the Psychometabolic Monk

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When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you learn magical disciplines that harness the power of your own body. You know two psychometabolic disciplines of your choice, which are detailed in the “Psychometabolic Disciplines” section below. You learn one additional psychometabolic discipline of your choice at 6th, 11th and 17th level. Whenever you learn a new psychometabolic discipline, you can replace one psychometabolic discipline that you already know with a different discipline, but you cannot know more than one 17th level discipline.

Each discipline has a passive and an active component. Active abilities use ki points to use. A passive ability does not require ki, but you can only have one passive ability active at any given time. You can change/choose your passive ability as a bonus action during your turn. If you choose another passive ability, the old one stops working.


Psychometabolic Disciplines

Afterimage
Active: As a bonus action, you can spend one 1 ki point to create an afterimage which acts the same as the spell ‘mirror image’ until the start of your next turn.
Passive: Your movement speed is increased by 10 feet.

Elemental Control
Active: By spending 1 ki point you can, as a reaction, capture incoming energy like the absorb elements spell. You may choose to spend extra ki points using this ability, dealing an extra 1d6 points of damage for each extra ki point spend, up to a maximum of 5 ki points.
Passive: You can breathe normally in any environment and you have advantage against saving throws against harmful gases and vapors.

Body Equilibrium
Active: As a reaction, you can spend 1 ki point to rebalance your body. Until the start of your next turn, you have a +5 bonus to AC. The effect acts like a shield spell, but it does not avoid the damage from a magic missile.
Passive: You can levitate like the levitation spell.

Heightened Senses
Active: As a bonus action, you can spend 1 ki point to sharpen your mind. Your senses become so keen that you are granted blind sight for up to 30 feet and you gain advantage on perception checks until the beginning of your next turn.
Passive: You cannot be surprised.

Chemical Simulation
Active: As an action, you can spend 1 ki point to create a chemical reaction within your body that releases a fog cloud with a radius of 20 feet surrounding you. This acts as a fog cloud and lasts for one minute and doesn’t require concentration.
Passive: You gain a breath weapon doing poison damage. This acts like the dragons’ breath spell and it has a recharge of 5 rounds before it can be used again.

Mind Link (6th level required)
Active: As an action, you can spend 2 ki point to establish a telepathic link with any intelligent willing creature (Intelligence five or greater) you can see for one hour. This is a two-way communication and language is not a barrier, but the creature must be able to understand at least one language. Distance or sight form no barrier when a telepathic link has been established. You can spend one extra ki point for each additional creature you want to form a telepathic link with.
Passive: You create a magical zone that guards against deception in a 15-foot-radius Sphere centered around you. This area acts like the Zone of Truth spell.

Biofeedback (6th level required)
Active: By spending 2 ki point you can, as a reaction, half the damage of an (multi)attack made against you. This can be done after you know whether the attack(s) hit or missed, but before the damage is rolled.
Passive: You gain a +2 bonus to your AC if unarmored.

Expansion and Reduction (6th level required)
Active: As an action, you can spend 2 ki points to change your size and weight like the enlarge or reduce spell for 1 minute without needing to concentrate.
Passive: Your body adapts when someone is trying to hold you back. You cannot become entangled or restrained. This acts like the freedom of movement spell.

Adrenaline Control (6th level required)
Active: As a bonus action, you can spend 2 points to control the production of adrenalin running through your system for one minute. You can give yourself a temporary physical boost on demand. When you increase your adrenaline, you gain 1d4+1 points, which you can add directly to your Strength, Dexterity or Constitution scores however you choose. You enjoy all the normal bonuses for high attributes (max 24).
Passive: your attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20.

Psychic Health (11th level required)
Active: As an action, you can spend 3 ki points to use your psychic powers to cure yourself or another person you are touching. This acts as a greater restoration spell.
Passive: When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Constitution 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.

Chameleon Power (11th level required)
Active: As an action, you make yourself invisible by blinding in naturally with the environment by spending 3 ki points, this acts like the greater invisibility spell and lasts for up 1d6+1 rounds and doesn’t require concentration.
Passive: You have advantage on stealth checks and you can hide as a bonus action.

Confusing Gaze (11th level required)
Active: As an action, you can spend 3 ki points to turn your gaze into a weapon. Every creature that starts its turn within 30 feet of you must make a wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the creature can’t take reactions until the start of its next turn and must roll a 1d6 to determine what is does during that turn: On a 1 to 4 the creature does nothing and on a 5 or 6, the creature takes no action but uses all its movement to move in a random direction. Unless surprised, a creature can avert its eyes to avoid making a saving throw. If a creature chooses to do this, attacks against you are made with disadvantage.
Passive: You create an invisible, magical eye within 30 feet of you. The eye hovers in the air and you receive visual information from the eye which can look in any direction and has normal and darkvision up to 30 feet. As a bonus action you can move the eye 30 feet in any direction. This acts like the arcane eye spell and the eye dissipates when you switch to another passive.

Upside Down (11th level required)
Active: As an action, you can spend 4 ki points to alter the gravity of the area surrounding you until the start of your next turn. This acts like the reserve gravity spell.
Passive: You can make yourself immovable. A tremendous amount of force is required to uproot you from your spot. A successful DC 30 Strength check is required for every 10 feet you are moved. This power has nothing to do with weight. You will not crash through the floor because you made yourself immovable. You instead attach yourself to the fabric of the universe. This ability acts like that of an immovable rod.

Dimensional Rift (17th level required)
Active: Your mind has become so strong that you can create a dimensional rift that connects to another place of existence by spending 6 ki points as an action. This works like a gate spell, but doesn’t require concentration or material component. After the dimensional rift closes, you suffer one level of exhaustion.
Passive: You can see through any illusion and you get true sight up to 60 feet.

Mind over Body (17th level required)
Active: As an action, you can blast the mind of a creature you can see within range by spending 5 ki points. This acts like the feeblemind spell.
Passive: You are immune to psychic damage and any effect that would sense your emotions or read your thoughts, like the mind blank spell.

Spirit Bomb (17th level required)
Active: As an action, you can create a spirit bomb by spending 6 ki points until the start of your next turn. This bomb is created by tapping into the energy of all the (living) things surrounding you, including yourself. Before you initiate this power, you must decide on how many hit points you will sacrifice as a toll for creating such a field, the loss is inevitable and can only be regained through a long rest. You cannot sacrifice temporary hit points. You can shoot this bomb up to a 120 foot at a point you can see. Every creature within a 20-feet radius of this point must make a constitution saving throw. Those who fail their save, lose the same number of hit points as you sacrificed as radiant damage and become stunned until the start of your next turn. Those who succeed only take half the damage (rounded down). Undead creatures suffer twice as much damage from the spirit bomb.
Passive: You create an invisible 10-foot sphere of anti-magic that surrounds you. This sphere acts like an antimagic field. You cannot use ki points while this sphere is up.

Shinigami (17th level required)
Active: As an action and by spending 6 ki points, you can make a deadly attack. By channeling negative energy into someone’s mind, the target dies if it has less than a hundred hit points. This acts like the power word kill spell.
Passive: Whenever damage reduces you to 0 hit points, you can make a Constitution saving throw (DC 15 or half damage taken, whichever is higher). On a success, you instead drop to 1 hit point. You cannot use this feature if you are reduced to 0 hit points by radiant damage or by a critical hit. Additionally, you can speak with the dead, provided it isn’t an undead creature. The corpse knows only what it knew in life, including the languages it knew. Answers are usually brief, cryptic, or repetitive, and the corpse is under no compulsion to offer a truthful answer if you are hostile to it or it recognizes you as an enemy.

[Nifft]

I like this idea.

However, it's a lot of different buffs, and I don't like how easily one could "Buff Nova" with this class.

Here's my suggestion:

- Break up each ability into one active ability and one passive buff.
- Active abilities cost Ki.
- Passive buffs cost Concentration (so you can have exactly one up at a time, but you can swap them around at will).

For example:

Heightened Senses: As a minor action, you can spend 1 Ki point to sharpen all five of your normal senses, granting yourself Truesight until the beginning of your next turn.
Passive: While you Concentrate, you have low-light vision, and advantage on Perception checks.

Body Equilibrium: You can spend 2 Ki points as a reaction to avoid taking any damage from a fall, no matter what distance.
Passive: While you Concentrate, you can walk on quicksand, water, or any similar liquid surface. You could walk on lava without sinking, but you would still take damage from the extreme heat.

Biofeedback (5th level required): You can spend 1 Ki point as a reaction to halve the damage of an attack.
Passive: While you Concentrate, you can control the flow of blood running through your own body. Thus, you suffer two fewer points of damage from every attack which causes physical injury.

Dissipating Touch (5th level required): You can spend 1 Ki point as a minor action to increase the damage of your unarmed strikes by +1d6 until the start of your next turn.
Passive: Your body burns through anything that tries to hold you back. While you Concentrate, you have Advantage on any roll to avoid becoming entangled or restrained.


... etc.

[Foxydono]

I like this idea.

However, it's a lot of different buffs, and I don't like how easily one could "Buff Nova" with this class.

Here's my suggestion:

- Break up each ability into one active ability and one passive buff.
- Active abilities cost Ki.
- Passive buffs cost Concentration (so you can have exactly one up at a time, but you can swap them around at will).

I have changed all the monk abilities. It was quite hard to think of appropriate passive abilities sometimes, but I tried. Let me know what you think of it now. And thanks for the feedback!

[Nifft]

I have changed all the monk abilities. It was quite hard to think of appropriate passive abilities sometimes, but I tried. Let me know what you think of it now. And thanks for the feedback!

I like a lot of these. I'll give it a more careful read later, if I have time.

Double Pain looks too strong.

The Suspended Animation one seems kinda lame. I know 1e Monks could do stuff like that, but I felt that it was lame back then, too. The Passive is good though.

[Foxydono]

I like a lot of these. I'll give it a more careful read later, if I have time.

Double Pain looks too strong.

The Suspended Animation one seems kinda lame. I know 1e Monks could do stuff like that, but I felt that it was lame back then, too. The Passive is good though.
I changed double pain. It was a strange complicated power anyway. It's a lot less complicated now and still quite useful with a bit of knowledge about the creature you are fighting. I'm not sure how to 'buff' suspended animation. I made the drawback for waking up less severe and now you can be in suspended animation quite a bit longer than before. It still is quite situational, but it could be fun to play :)

[Foxydono]

I reworked most of the abilities. They are a lot more straight foreward now and I think it would be a fun character to play! Is there any active or passive ability that is too strong or overpowered? Keep in mind that you can only have one active ability up at a time and that the amount of disciplines the monk can learn is quite limited.

[Lalliman]

This is really cool. In fact, I wish the core monk worked this way.

I do have some criticisms.

1. The use of the term 'concentrating' for the passive abilities is confusing, considering that concentration is a specific mechanic that isn't actually being used here. You could just take that out and write it as "Passive: You cannot be surprised." or whatever the effect is. The reader (if they paid attention) will know that you only get one of these benefits at once.

2. The passive of Elemental Control has some strange implications. If you activate it and choose 'extreme heat', can you swim through lava at your full movement speed without taking damage?

3. Body Equilibrium is misleadingly worded. One could argue that, as written, using it automatically avoids damage from the triggering attack, and also provides +5 AC for a round. You should avoid using fluff text that can be misinterpreted as rules text.

4. The passive of Mind Link seems like a real nightmare for the DM, and is potentially extremely powerful in a game with major social elements.

5. Expansion and Reduction says you double or halve your size and weight. Enlarge/Reduce actually multiplies or divides your weight by eight, because becoming twice as large in all dimensions makes you 2 x 2 x 2 = 8 times as heavy. Just a little nitpick on the flavour text.

6. The passive of Chameleon Power is really powerful if the DM runs the game in the expected way. The design of 5e assumes that almost no one will have magic weapons even at high level. So depending on your DM, this might actually make you straight-up twice as durable.

7. Spirit Bomb mentions a 20 yard radius. Is that supposed to say feet?

[Foxydono]

This is really cool. In fact, I wish the core monk worked this way.

I do have some criticisms.
Thanks and I'm always looking for constructive criticism, so this is very helpful!


1. The use of the term 'concentrating' for the passive abilities is confusing, considering that concentration is a specific mechanic that isn't actually being used here. You could just take that out and write it as "Passive: You cannot be surprised." or whatever the effect is. The reader (if they paid attention) will know that you only get one of these benefits at once.
i thought some of the passive abilities might be too strong when a character starts multiclassing. So to prevent abuse I made the passive abilities require concentration. But you are probably right that I am making it too complicated so I changed it like you suggested.


2. The passive of Elemental Control has some strange implications. If you activate it and choose 'extreme heat', can you swim through lava at your full movement speed without taking damage?
That was the idea, yes! But that would make it rather strong and unique, so I nerfed it a little. It should be less weird now.


3. Body Equilibrium is misleadingly worded. One could argue that, as written, using it automatically avoids damage from the triggering attack, and also provides +5 AC for a round. You should avoid using fluff text that can be misinterpreted as rules text.
I changed the wording. No automatic avoiding damage. Although anyone who would interpret it like that would be stretching the wording quite a bit.


4. The passive of Mind Link seems like a real nightmare for the DM, and is potentially extremely powerful in a game with major social elements.
You are right, it was too powerful. I gave it a new passive power.


5. Expansion and Reduction says you double or halve your size and weight. Enlarge/Reduce actually multiplies or divides your weight by eight, because becoming twice as large in all dimensions makes you 2 x 2 x 2 = 8 times as heavy. Just a little nitpick on the flavour text.
Ah, yes. I removed some of the flavor text to avoid confusion!


6. The passive of Chameleon Power is really powerful if the DM runs the game in the expected way. The design of 5e assumes that almost no one will have magic weapons even at high level. So depending on your DM, this might actually make you straight-up twice as durable.
You are again correct. I gave this discipline an adjusted version of the mirror image passive ability and I changed the mirror image passive entirely.



7. Spirit Bomb mentions a 20 yard radius. Is that supposed to say feet?
Yes, good find!

[Lalliman]

i thought some of the passive abilities might be too strong when a character starts multiclassing. So to prevent abuse I made the passive abilities require concentration. But you are probably right that I am making it too complicated so I changed it like you suggested.
Oh, that was actually intended to use concentration? I thought it was just flavour text. Yeah it's better like this, I think. Using concentration would make it very vulnerable to being interrupted, since the monk will only have a Con save of like +2 until level 14.

The rest looks good now!

[nickl_2000]

If only one can be active at a time, you should probably put in there how you switch between the current passive ability that you are using. For example, you may switch between them as a bonus action.

There are certainly combat ramifications to those passive abilities.


Also, there are a few you should look at again. For example this one

Shinigami (17th level required)
Active: As an action and by spending 6 ki points, you can make a deadly attack. By channeling negative energy into someone’s mind, the target dies if it has less than a hundred hit points. This acts like the power word kill spell.
Passive: You do no longer age and you can speak with the dead, provided it isn’t an undead creature. The corpse knows only what it knew in life, including the languages it knew. Answers are usually brief, cryptic, or repetitive, and the corpse is under no compulsion to offer a truthful answer if you are hostile to it or it recognizes you as an enemy.


The flavour text of "you no longer age" is really pointless if it isn't always on. I only age at certain times a day? That's kind of weird.

[Lalliman]

If only one can be active at a time, you should probably put in there how you switch between the current passive ability that you are using. For example, you may switch between them as a bonus action.
It already says that. Second paragraph below the image.


The flavour text of "you no longer age" is really pointless if it isn't always on. I only age at certain times a day? That's kind of weird.
I guess the idea here is that you have it active basically all the time unless you happen to need a specific other effect. It doesn't say you can't benefit from it when sleeping, for instance. You don't age 95% of the time, thus lengthening your lifespan by twenty times. I didn't think it was particularly weird. It's just a thematic ribbon.

[Foxydono]

Also, there are a few you should look at again. For example: The flavour text of "you no longer age" is really pointless if it isn't always on. I only age at certain times a day? That's kind of weird.

I did change a couple of passive abilities:

Mink link: You create a magical zone that guards against deception in a 15-foot-radius Sphere centered around you. This area acts like the Zone of Truth spell.

Adrenaline control: your attacks score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20.

Psychic Health: When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Constitution 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.

Confusing gaze: You create an invisible, magical eye within 30 feet of you. The eye hovers in the air and you receive visual information from the eye which can look in any direction and has normal and darkvision up to 30 feet. As a bonus action you can move the eye 30 feet in any direction. This acts like the arcane eye spell and the eye dissipates when you switch to another passive.

Shinigami: Whenever damage reduces you to 0 hit points, you can make a Constitution saving throw (DC 15 or half damage taken, whichever is higher). On a success, you instead drop to 1 hit point. You cannot use this feature if you are reduced to 0 hit points by radiant damage or by a critical hit. Additionally, you can speak with the dead, provided it isn’t an undead creature. The corpse knows only what it knew in life, including the languages it knew. Answers are usually brief, cryptic, or repetitive, and the corpse is under no compulsion to offer a truthful answer if you are hostile to it or it recognizes you as an enemy.

I'm not sure about the shinigami passive. In the origional text it said DC 5 + dmg taken, but at 17th level if you get hit, you usually take 40+ dmg, so that would mean an impossible DC. I think like this it will still be relevent at higher levels. Also, the arcane eye might be a bit strong and weird since its a passive with an active component. Amy suggestions or does it look ok?