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Thread: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
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2021-12-20, 06:53 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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- Jun 2011
[3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I have loved the concept of the monk ever since I first heard of it, as crazy kung fu “weeaboo fighting magic” appeals to me greatly. That being said, the monk has an unfortunately well-earned reputation of being quite a stinker. Now, a million monk fixes have been made in the past, and I’m sure a good handful of the good ones would be the ideal “true monk fix” for those wanting such a thing.
But I’m not here to “fix” the monk. I am here to break the monk.
Ponder me this: what would happen if the most popular low-tier class in the game became a nightmare to DMs everywhere? What if the monk could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the likes of Batman wizards and CoDZillas?
What if … the monk were a tier 1 class?
Well, let’s find out.
Changelog
SpoilerJan 17, 2022:- Retooled class by modifying how Ki and Martial Arts class features work.
- Removed Flurry of Blows and Abundant Step as spells and reintegrated them into the Ki class feature.
- Martial Mystic is changed to Mystic Martial Arts and retooled to help integrate changes.
- Timeless Body changed to include old features found in Celestial Soul.
- Added Transcendent Metamagic homebrew feat.
- Slight retool of spell list.
Dec 26, 2021: Added fluff text to help solidify the theme of the T1 monk and help differentiate it from the vanilla monk.
Dec 25, 2021 (Merry Xmas!): Restructured spell list to follow a more uniformed theme. Added new spells Acrobatic Surge, Focused Surge, and Spiritual Sustenance. Added new monk-based usages of spells Shillelagh, Spiritual Weapon, and Scrying.
Dec 24, 2021: Added Restoration, Planar Ally spells (lesser, normal, and greater) to spell list. Changed Transcendent Spirit spells to include a boost to skill rolls and cut back on temp HP. Changelog Added.
Dec 20, 2021: First Creation
The Elephant in the Room (A.K.A. “Why would you DO this??”)
SpoilerOkay, okay. Some of you may be asking why in the blue blazes would I ever want to add yet another tier 1 monstrosity to the rule-bloated maelstrom that is 3.5 D&D.
Short answer: Because I wanna.
Longer answer: Because I have a hard bias towards the monk. As I said earlier, the “weeaboo fighting magic” schtick is my jam. Yes, I could do the whole unarmed swordsage thing or find a nice monk fix to play, but I want to powergame. I love powergaming. All the groups I play with are cool with it and we have a ball finding out ways to bend the system until it snaps. That being said, I want to do all that nonsense AND play a monk. Is that too much to ask?
Besides; all the popular kids have long ago moved on to 5e where the tier 1 insanity of yesteryear was put to rest. Only the geezers and neckbeards bother playing 3.5 nowadays, so I figure now is the best time to introduce this monstrosity since it’s no longer on the cutting edge where it could do potential damage in the hands of a starry-eyed fresh new player.
Some of you may be asking “why change the monk like this? Why not play a Shaman? It’s the closest thing to a monk-like spellcaster, right?” And yes, you’re technically correct, but correct in the same way as asking “why bother fixing the vanilla monk when you can just play an unarmed swordsage?”
Why not indeed? Why play fighter when you can play a warblade? To be fair, though, I will admit that shaman isn’t exactly what I’m looking for. It’s got some awesome things, don’t get me wrong (animal companion, hello?) but I want to make something that I would want to personally play. That’s pretty much the long and short of it.
Design Goals for the Tier 1 Monk
Spoiler- First and foremost, the class has to be a tier 1. The T1M needs to play and feel every bit as powerful, cheesy, and toe-steppingley versatile as his natural-spell-slinging druid and nightstick-DMM-spamming cleric brethren.
- Though the T1M isn’t meant to be the same as the vanilla combat-focused monk, it should still feel monk-ish. Like, “wise man atop the snowy mountain meditating on the secrets of the universe” type of thing. If anything, the T1M should feel kind of like a Jedi, but more of a Yoda Jedi than an Anakin Skywalker Jedi.
- Despite being a tier 1 class, the monk shouldn’t feel unreasonably broken to the point where you’d have to be an idiot not to choose the monk over the other tier 1 classes. For example, a reasonable veteran player should be able to compare the monk to the cleric, acknowledge the monk’s level of power, yet still choose the cleric over the monk because “eh, I like the warpriest aesthetic more than the wise master aesthetic” or something like that.
- To further extrapolate on the above point, the T1M, despite being a tier 1 class, needs to feel like it wouldn’t stand out in a lineup with the other classes, particularly when a noob player looks over the other classes for the first time.
Quick anecdote: When I was in college I knew a guy who had a very poor grasp on power structure amongst the classes. He was convinced the TOB classes were “overpowered” because they could use their maneuvers on an encounter basis as opposed to a daily basis. Furthermore, he actually banned (yes, outright BANNED) warlocks from his games because Eldritch Blast had infinite uses and he saw that as “broken”.
You could give the T1M full BAB, a d12 hit dice, 8 skill points a level, and all good saves but as soon as you take away his spellcasting, he won’t hold a candle to a cleric, druid, or wizard, and yet THAT GUY would swear up and down the campus that this hypothetical class would be “too broken”. So as I’m building out the chassis of this class, I want to make sure it’s a class that THAT GUY wouldn’t bat a grotesquely misinformed eyelash at. - As you can tell, I’m using the cleric and druid specifically as benchmarks for the T1M, as the class is meant to be a divine caster, so deviations from the wizard’s design philosophy is acceptable to me.
- Lastly, this whole thing isn’t meant to be taken too seriously. I mean, I’m making a tier 1 class for crying out loud. Who does that? Anyway, I do appreciate full PEACH, but mostly I just want to see what you guys think about something like this as a thought experiment. If anything, I'd love to hear from people who have CoDZilla experience if they want to give this class a spin.
The Tier 1 Monk in Dungeons and Dragons (A.K.A. “The Fluff”)
SpoilerMONK
All beings throughout the planes of existence exert a spiritual cosmic energy. It grows with life, surrounds it, and enables it to flourish. Some harness this energy through divine worship, others through a deep primal connection, and others still through scholastic study.
And then there are those who ally themselves with this strange magic through spiritual contemplation and martial transcendence. These warrior-philosophers are known as monks. Monks meditate upon and train with this spiritual energy to not only transcend the mortal limits of their own minds, bodies, and souls, but those of other entities and even the very world around them. Good monks cultivate life, use their own preternatural abilities to protect the innocent, and shape the very world around them into a better place for all. Evil monks desecrate life, terrorize the populace with their destructive power, and warp the landscape around them into a hell on earth. Whether it is to serve or to conquer, by the power of life force itself a monk ensures his will be done.
Adventures: Monks adventure for a cause. Whether that cause be just, vile, greedy, or curious, monks are compelled by spiritual force to act upon the world. Regardless of motive, monks have a strong drive to better themselves and their understanding of spiritual power and adventuring provides the ideal proving grounds for such an undertaking.
Occasionally monks are ordered by their monastic superiors to venture out into the world to complete a specific task or a broader forwarding of a more complex agenda. On rare occasions, a monk may leave a specific monastery against the wishes of the superiors in order to fulfil a selfish desire or even atone for the monastery’s perceived wrongdoings.
Characteristics: Monks cast divine spells similarly to clerics and druids, though they get their spells through spiritual energy as opposed to deities or primal nature. Their spells are oriented toward combat and manipulation, and specialize on transforming and boosting the abilities of themselves and others.
In addition to spells, monks channel spiritual energy into a personal pool of magic known as Ki. Ki is mainly used to boost the monk’s own abilities and ascend them further beyond the mortal realm.
Monks have extensive martial arts training. Though they do not wield the most powerful weapons or wear the heaviest armor, they train in esoteric combat styles that surpass the skills of average warriors. Sufficiently advanced monks can even blend their martial arts training with their spellcasting, allowing for impressive displays of martial might.
Alignment: A monk can choose any alignment except neutral. The path of the monk requires diligence and dedication beyond the norm. Achieving optimum spiritual connection to the life force of the very cosmos leaves no room for indifference. Monks must stand for good, evil, law, chaos, or any combination thereof.
Though lawful monks are more common, given law’s natural propensity toward discipline, a sufficiently zealous student of chaos can easily find his way through the practice of the monk philosophy.
Religion: A monk’s first and foremost reverence is the spiritual life force of the cosmos, and from this very life force he gains all his magical power. Despite this, some monks see the gods as inspiring examples of the final destination of their philosophy, a being so in tune with cosmic life force as to embody fundamental aspects of it via domains. Such revered gods tend to include Hieroneous (god of valor), Kord (god of strength), Hextor (god of tyranny), and even Erythnul (god of slaughter).
Background: A monk typically trains in a monastery. Many monks were children when they first joined, whether sent by their parents to live a better life or tragically orphaned before being adopted by their monastery. Some monks join during their young adult years, drawn by the mystical teachings of spirit and life force the monasteries offer, or drawn by the prospect of being a master of such teachings. Life in the monastery is very focused to the point where a monk may feel a stronger connection to said monastery than even his own family or village.
Whether from large cities or small rural areas, monasteries are meant to teach the spiritual way to those who are interested and worthy, and thus location disparity bears little effect on how one monastery views another. Monasteries instead base their views and judgement upon other schools of differing alignment, particularly along the good/evil axis. Despite this, within these good or evil schools, one can find students of both lawful and chaotic alignment coexisting amicably– at least for the good-aligned monasteries.
A monk tends to feel a strong connection to his school, particularly to the monks who taught him and gave him his ranked monk’s dan. Some monks, however, feel only a connection to spiritual life force itself or even his own personal mastery of said life force.
Races: Monasteries are found primarily among humans, who yearn for the learnings of spiritual life force for various reasons ranging from curiosity to raw ambition. Thus, many monks are humans, and many are half-orcs and half-elves who live among humans.
Elves are capable of single-minded, long-term devotion and have a natural love for magic, and so some of them leave the forests to become monks.
The monk tradition is generally alien to dwarf and gnome culture, though a rare ambitious or curious few take to learning of the spiritual ways.
Halflings typically have too mobile a lifestyle to commit themselves to a monastery, but those who’s natural bravery and inclination for a path beyond the mortal realm outstrip their wanderlust manage to stomach the lifestyle in exchange for the path it yields.
The savage humanoids do not have the stable social structure that allows monk training, but the occasional orphaned or abandoned child from some humanoid tribe winds up in a civilized monastery or is adopted by a wandering master.
The evil subterranean elves known as the drow have a small but successful monk tradition dedicated to unlocking the secrets of the spiritual way so that they may wield it in their favor.
Other Classes: The monk appreciates the martial dedication of fighters and barbarians, though tends to view their single-minded focus on the physical to be a missed opportunity. He views the tricky and theatrical nature of the rogue and bard to be a weak mimicry of the spiritual way, though appreciates their ability to accomplish tasks when it counts. The monk shares the passionate pursuit of mystical knowledge with wizards, though typically sees their unbalanced focus on the mental aspects of study at the expense of physical and spiritual practice to be unusual. He appreciates the strong spiritual connection clerics and druids have to their respective purviews, and good/lawful monks particularly admire the righteous dedication paladins have for their cause. Sorcerers fascinate the monk due to their innate connection to magic, but puzzle him at the same time due to their inability to mold or improve upon it in any significant way.
Role: The monk’s strengths lie in his ability to support his allies through increasing their combat and skill capabilities, controlling the battlefield, and by providing offensive capabilities via his spells and Ki abilities. He has the capacity for healing, though not to the extent of the cleric.
Abilities: Wisdom determines how powerful a spell a monk can cast, how many spells he can cast per day, and how hard those spells are to resist. To cast a spell, a monk must have a Wisdom score of 10 + the spell’s level. A monk gets bonus spells based on Wisdom. The Difficulty Class of a saving throw against a monk’s spell is 10 + the spell’s level + the monk’s Wisdom modifier.
Since a monk wears light armor, a high Dexterity score greatly improves his defensive ability, and a high Strength score improves his melee combat capability.
The Monk
Saves Spells Per Day Level BAB Fort Ref Will Special 0th 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 1st +0 +0 +2 +2 Martial Arts, Ki 3 1 — — — — — — — — 2nd +1 +0 +3 +3 Martial Clarity 4 2 — — — — — — — — 3rd +2 +1 +3 +3 Uncanny Dodge 4 2 1 — — — — — — — 4th +3 +1 +4 +4 Courageous Mind 5 3 2 — — — — — — — 5th +3 +1 +4 +4 Evasion 5 3 2 1 — — — — — — 6th +4 +2 +5 +5 Purity of Body 5 3 3 2 — — — — — — 7th +5 +2 +5 +5 Mettle 6 4 3 2 1 — — — — — 8th +6/+1 +2 +6 +6 Wholeness of Body 6 4 3 3 2 — — — — — 9th +6/+1 +3 +6 +6 Bonus Feat 6 4 4 3 2 1 — — — — 10th +7/+2 +3 +7 +7 Celestial Mind 6 4 4 3 2 2 — — — — 11th +8/+3 +3 +7 +7 Mystic Martial Arts 6 5 4 4 3 2 1 — — — 12th +9/+4 +4 +8 +8 Diamond Body 6 5 4 4 3 3 2 — — — 13th +9/+4 +4 +8 +8 Bonus Feat 6 5 5 4 4 3 2 1 — — 14th +10/+5 +4 +9 +9 Resilient Mind 6 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 — — 15th +11/+6/+1 +5 +9 +9 Timeless Body 6 5 5 5 4 4 3 2 1 — 16th +12/+7/+2 +5 +10 +10 Diamond Soul 6 5 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 — 17th +12/+7/+2 +5 +10 +10 Bonus Feat 6 5 5 5 5 4 4 3 2 1 18th +13/+8/+3 +6 +11 +11 Celestial Soul 6 5 5 5 5 4 4 3 3 2 19th +14/+9/+4 +6 +11 +11 Transcendent Infusion 6 5 5 5 5 5 4 4 3 3 20th +15/+10/+5 +6 +12 +12 Perfect Self 6 5 5 5 5 5 4 4 4 4
Alignment: Any Non-Neutral
Hit Die: d8
Class Skills: The monk’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Heal (Wis), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge (arcana) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Knowledge (the planes) (Int), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), and Tumble (Dex).
Skill Ranks At 1st Level: (6 + Int) x 4
Skill Ranks At Each Additional Level: 6 + Int
Design Notes
SpoilerBeing a caster means the need for some caster-based skills peppered into the mix. To aid with this, I gave the monk some more skill points to play around with and knocked the fortitude save progression down a peg to compensate.
In regards to the alignment, I’m taking a page out of the TOB Crusader’s book and making it so that a monk needs to stand for some kind of cause or philosophy in order to reach true monkish mastery. I know the classic wise master trope would be to go the neutral route in order to “let go of all earthly ties” or whatever, but the druid is already the neutral class.
Class Features
The following are class features of the monk.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency
A monk is proficient with the club, crossbow (light or heavy), dagger, handaxe, javelin, kama, longsword, nunchaku, quarterstaff, sai, scimitar, short bow, short sword, shuriken, siangham, sling, and spear.
A monk is proficient with his unarmed strike and is treated as if he has the Improved Unarmed Strike feat for all intents and purposes. Additionally, he is proficient with any natural weapon he gains through shapeshifting into another creature.
A monk is proficient with light armor but not shields.
Design Notes
Spoiler(In regards to Weapons) I added a couple of new weapons into the monk weapon mix because I feel like things such as scimitars, spears, and a good short bow are weapons a practical martial artist should train with. Also, keep in mind that one of the most famous shaolin monk weapons is the dual broadswords (hence the scimitar).
(In regards to Unarmed Strikes) What’s a monk that can’t punch? A nobody, that’s what! Also now that monks can cast spells, it seems only logical that they’d train how to throw hands (or claws) in a polymorphed body.
(In regards to Armor) What? A monk in armor? Yep. Frankly I just felt like it fit better for this particular iteration of the monk. Besides, the other divine casters get armor so I don’t feel guilty about it.
Spellcasting
A monk casts divine spells, which are drawn from the monk spell list. His alignment may restrict him from casting certain spells opposed to his moral or ethical beliefs which include Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells. A monk must choose and prepare his spells in advance (see below).
To prepare or cast a spell, the monk must have a Wisdom score equal to at least 10 + the spell level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a monk’s spell is 10 + the spell level + the monk’s Wisdom modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a monk can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. His base daily spell allotment is given on Table: The Monk. In addition, he receives bonus spells per day if he has a high Wisdom score. He does not have access to any domain spells or granted powers, as a cleric does.
A monk prepares and casts spells the way a cleric or druid does, though he cannot lose a prepared spell to cast a cure spell or a summon nature’s ally spell in its place (but see Spontaneous Casting, below). A monk may prepare and cast any spell on the monk spell list, provided that he can cast spells of that level, but he must choose which spells to prepare during his daily meditation.
Spontaneous Casting
A monk can channel stored spell energy into specific spells that he hasn’t prepared ahead of time. He can "lose" a prepared spell in order to cast any Transcendent Spirit spell of the same level or lower.
Chaotic, Evil, Good, and Lawful Spells
A monk can’t cast spells of an alignment opposed to his own or his deity’s (if he has one). Spells associated with particular alignments are indicated by the chaos, evil, good, and law descriptors in their spell descriptions.
Monk’s Dan
A monk’s dan is the divine focus a monk uses to cast spells. The default dan is a belt colored in such a way as to signify a monk’s rank in his monastic training, though some monk schools use other articles of clothing, jewelry, or other accoutrements as a dan. The monk merely needs to wear the dan on his person to make full use of it in his spellcasting.
Design Notes
Spoiler(In regards to Spells) Nothing terribly special here (except the whole “monks are full casters now” thing). Just pulled it straight from the cleric/druid entry. And for those of you wondering what “Transcendent Spirit” spells are, they’ll be explained later.
(In regards to Monk's Dan) If clerics use holy symbols and druids use twigs with funny little leaves on it for their respective divine focuses, then what do monks get? Their cool belts, of course! Yeah, yeah, Mr. Miyagi from Karate Kid once said that belts are for holding your pants up and nothing more, but I bet HE couldn’t summon a celestial brown bear with HIS black belt!
Martial Arts (Ex)
Unarmed Strikes and Natural Weapons
At 1st level, whenever the monk makes natural attacks or unarmed strikes, such attacks may be made with any appendage interchangeably or even from elbows, knees, feet, tails, jaws, tentacles, crown of the head, shoulder, or other similar protruding extremities. This means that a monk may even make such strikes with prehensile appendages carrying objects of any sort.
A medium-sized monk deals 1d6 damage plus his full Strength bonus on an unarmed strike by default. If a monk possesses a natural weapon that deals more damage, including the option of applying strength and a half on damage (such as from a slam attack), he may choose to use that damage instead.
Usually a monk’s unarmed strikes and natural attacks deal lethal damage, but he can choose to deal nonlethal damage instead with no penalty on his attack roll. He has the same choice to deal lethal or nonlethal damage while executing any sort of combat maneuvers, such as tripping or grappling.
A monk may treat his unarmed strikes and natural attacks as “free hands” for the purpose of special abilities that require “a free hand to initiate”, such as the Deflect Arrows feat, even if the unarmed strike or natural attack is otherwise not prehensile. This does not work if the monk is rendered completely immobile or helpless.
A monk’s unarmed strikes and natural attacks are treated both as a manufactured weapon and a natural weapon for the purpose of feats, class features, weapon enchantments, and spells and effects that enhance or improve either manufactured weapons or natural weapons. A monk treats his unarmed strikes and natural attacks as masterwork weapons.
Monk Weapons
The club, crossbow (light or heavy), dagger, handaxe, javelin, kama, longsword, natural weapon, nunchaku, quarterstaff, sai, scimitar, short bow, short sword, shuriken, siangham, sling, spear, and unarmed strike are all considered monk weapons.
When armed with any number of monk weapons in one or both (or more, given the current form) hands, a monk may attack interchangeably as desired, thus a monk may apply nothing less than his full Strength bonus on damage rolls and take no penalty to attack rolls, and is treated as having the Two-Weapon Fighting feat for all intents and purposes. Despite this, a monk is still limited to how many extra attacks he can make if he does not possess the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting or Greater Two-Weapon Fighting feats.
Additionally, a monk wielding monk weapons may attempt a special attack, such as a bull rush, disarm, grapple, overrun, sunder, or trip without provoking attacks of opportunity.
Monk weapons are a very special classification of weapons. Even if a monk gains proficiency in a weapon not listed above through other means, he cannot treat it as a monk weapon.
Abundant Step
A monk gains a bonus to all movespeeds he possesses equal to 10ft per monk spell level he is capable of casting, so a 1st level monk who is only capable of casting 1st level monk spells only adds 10ft to his movement, while a 5th level monk capable of casting 3rd level monk spells adds 30ft to his movement.
This speed bonus also applies to temporary modes of movement, such as a fly speed granted by the Fly spell, but only if the monk himself imbued the new movement in the first place, therefore new movements granted onto the monk by another caster or magical creature cannot be enhanced.
This bonus to his movement cannot exceed the base value of each respective movespeed, so a 13th level monk capable of casting 7th level monk spells that possesses a base land speed of 30ft and also happens to be under a self-imbued Fly spell can only enhance his land speed by an additional 30ft (to a maximum of 60ft) and can only enhance his temporary fly speed by an additional 60ft (to a maximum of 120ft) despite being capable of giving himself a theoretical 70ft movement bonus.
Flurry of Blows
A monk can move a number of feet equal to his Abundant Step bonus speed while making a full-round attack so long as he does so while wielding monk weapons. If he possesses feats or features such as Shot on the Run, Spring attack, or the like, he can intersperse his movement freely between each and every attack as he sees fit.
Design Notes
Spoiler(In regards to Unarmed Strikes and Natural Weapons) The unarmed strike doesn’t change damage for the rest of the T1M’s career, so the versatility of unarmed strikes working interchangeably with potential natural attacks gained from shapechanging was added to fit the new class abilities better.
(In regards to Monk Weapons) This part is the first half of my attempt at retooling Flurry of Blows. As this ability is currently written, a monk can always dual-wield his unarmed attacks, meaning he always has access to a form of FOB. Additionally, a trained martial artist should know how to trip and grapple and disarm without getting smacked in the face, but it felt too cheesy (even for a tier 1 class) to just dump a whole slew of “improved bull rush/grapple/trip/etc” feats at first level, so the “no provoking AoO” seemed like a good compromise.
(In regards to Abundant Step) Originally this was made as a spell, but the whole fast movement thing is so classic monk I decided to add it into the main chassis, albeit a bit differently. I engineered it in this manner mainly so that the main monk table wouldn’t be cluttered with extra columns breaking down speed bonuses and whatnot.
(In regards to Flurry of Blows) Here we have the other half of the retooled FOB. This, again, used to be in spell form but it was probably better to reintegrate it into the main chassis. The whole thing about being able to move and flurry is actually based on Jiriku’s famous monk homebrew made way back when.
Ki (Ex or Su)
At 1st level a monk gains a well of spiritual willpower called ki that can be used to enhance his abilities. A monk’s pool of ki points is equal to his Wisdom bonus plus his monk level (minimum 1 ki point). This ki pool replenishes each morning after 8 hours of rest or meditation; these hours do not need to be consecutive.
Though ki itself is extraordinary in nature, certain powers it can grant a monk are supernatural. Each individual ki ability will distinguish whether it’s extraordinary or supernatural in nature.
Enhanced Abundant Step (Ex)
A monk may spend 1 ki point as a Free Action to treat any and all Balance, Climb, Jump, and Tumble checks below a 10 on a d20 roll as a 10. This ability lasts a number of minutes equal to his monk level, or until he ends it with another Free Action.
Enhanced Flurry of Blows (Ex)
A monk may spend 1 ki point as a Free Action to make a single monk weapon attack as a Swift Action using his highest BAB. This ability lasts a number of minutes equal to his monk level, or until he ends it with another Free Action.
Martial Clarity (Ex)
At 2nd level a monk can spend ki as a Free Action to add his Wisdom bonus to a number of the following attributes equal to the amount of ki points spent for one minute per monk level or until he ends the effect as another Free Action.
- AC (including touch and flat-footed AC)
- All saving throws
- All attack rolls made with monk weapons
- All ability checks, including checks used to bull rush, disarm, grapple, overrun, sunder, or trip
- The DC of all spells cast
- All skill checks and caster level checks
A monk is limited to how many ki points he can spend on this ability and thus how many attributes he can boost per activation. This limit is equal to the level of monk spells he is able to cast, so a 2nd level monk who is only capable of casting 1st level monk spells can only spend 1 ki point on Martial Clarity and thus can only benefit from 1 attribute boost, while a 5th level monk capable of casting 3rd level monk spells can spend 3 ki points to boost 3 attributes.
Design Notes
SpoilerIt’s time for our first helping of stinky cheese! If a druid gets a cool attack dog AND the ability to change into another attack dog herself, then a monk gets to be a SAD panda (and I mean a reeeallly SAD panda). Because of the potential of this ability, I wanted it to scale somewhat so a quick dip wouldn’t be enough for you to rock it for very long and for as many attributes.
Uncanny Dodge (Ex)
At 3rd level, a monk can react to danger before his senses would normally allow him to do so. He retains his Dexterity bonus to AC (if any) even if he is caught flat-footed or struck by an invisible attacker. However, he still loses his Dexterity bonus to AC if immobilized.
Courageous Mind (Ex or Su))
At 4th level, a monk can ignore Fear effects. This particular use of Courageous Mind is an extraordinary ability.
A monk may choose to still accumulate levels of fear for the sake of reversing their effects. Any time he is subject to specific levels of fear, he gains the following benefits by spending the appropriate amount of ki as a Free Action.
- By spending 1 ki point, a monk becomes Encouraged instead of Shaken. He gains a +2 bonus on attack rolls, saving throws, skill checks, and ability checks.
- By spending 2 points, a monk becomes Emboldened instead of Frightened. In addition to the bonuses from being Encouraged, a monk gains a +2 bonus to AC (including Touch and Flat-Footed AC) and all damage rolls.
- By spending 3 ki points, a monk becomes Galvanized instead of Panicked or Cowering. In addition to the bonuses from being Encouraged and Emboldened, a monk gains a +2 on the DCs to all spells he casts, and all bonuses gained are doubled when dealing with the source of the fear effect (when applicable).
These reversal bonuses last for one minute per monk level or until he ends it as another Free Action. If this ability is active during a lesser fear effect and more intense fear effects take place, the monk can pay the difference in ki as a Free Action to gain the new reversal bonuses. This particular use of Courageous Mind is a supernatural ability.
Design Notes
SpoilerI wanted to do something more creative than just “fear immunity” for this one. I actually stole this same idea from an old paladin homebrew I saw on this sight about 10 or so years ago. It was cool enough that I remembered it all these years later and wanted to use it.
Evasion (Ex)
At 5th level, if a monk makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, he instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if a monk is wearing light armor or no armor. A helpless monk does not gain the benefit of evasion.
Purity Of Body (Ex or Su)
At 6th level, a monk can ignore the negative effects of all diseases. This particular use of Purity of Body is an extraordinary ability.
A monk may spend 1 ki point as a Free Action while under the effect of a disease to metabolize it and gain a +2 bonus to his Constitution. This bonus lasts for one minute per monk level or until he ends it with another Free Action, at which point the disease is entirely purged from his body.
A monk may only benefit from one use of this ability regardless of the amount of diseases he has accumulated. If he has accumulated multiple diseases and activates this particular use of Purity of Body, all diseases are purged at the end of the effect. This particular use of Purity of Body is a supernatural ability.
Mettle (Ex)
At 7th level, if a monk makes a successful Will or Fortitude save against an attack that normally would have a lesser effect on a successful save (such as any spell with a saving throw entry of Wil half or Fortitude partial), he instead completely negates the effect. An unconscious or sleeping monk does not gain the benefit of Mettle.
Wholeness Of Body (Ex or Su)
At 8th level a monk may heal an additional amount of hit points equal to his Wisdom modifier whenever he receives any sort of magical healing. This particular use of Wholeness of Body is an extraordinary ability.
Additionally, a monk can spend 2 ki points as a Free Action to gain Fast Healing equal to his Wisdom Modifier for one minute per monk level or until he ends it with another Free Action. This particular use of Wholeness of Body is a supernatural ability.
Design Notes
SpoilerSince cure spells are now on the menu, fast healing seemed the logical alternative to vanilla WOB.
Bonus Feat
At 9th level, then again at 13th and 17th level, a monk gains a bonus feat. These can be any Metamagic feat, or any feat with Improved Unarmed Strike, Two-Weapon Fighting, or any monk class feature as a prerequisite.
Celestial Mind (Ex or Su)
At 10th level a monk can communicate with any creature capable of speaking a language. This particular use of Celestial Mind is an extraordinary ability.
Additionally, a monk can spend 1 ki point as a Free Action to emulate the Detect Thoughts spell, as well as telepathically communicate with any creature capable of speech at a range of 10ft per monk level. This ability lasts one minute per monk level or until he ends it with another Free Action. The DC for this effect is 10 + ˝ Monk Level + Wisdom bonus. This particular use of Celestial Mind is a supernatural ability.
Design Notes
SpoilerTongue of the Sun and Moon always seemed like a goofy and out-of-place ability for a vanilla monk to have, but it is a legacy ability. Also, a wise master trope (especially one capable of casting spells) should have the ability to literally read minds and communicate telepathically.
Mystic Martial Artist (Ex or Su)
At 11th level a monk’s Martial Arts ability is enhanced. He gains the following features.
Monk Spell Weapons (Su)
A monk may treat certain spells he can cast as monk weapons for all beneficial purposes, and may cast these monk weapon spells as part of an attack roll instead of their usual casting time. Additionally, he may add his Wisdom bonus to the damage rolls.
In order for a spell to qualify as a monk weapon, it must meet the following criteria.
- It must be a single-target spell
- It must target a creature’s AC
- It must have a casting time no greater than 1 Standard Action
- It must deal hit-point damage.
- It must have an Instantaneous duration.
- If it allows for multiple chances to strike a creature’s AC per casting (such as Scorching Ray), only one instance of attack is allowed per cast
Ki Efficiency (Ex)
A monk can now activate a number of ki-based abilities simultaneously equal to his Wisdom bonus in one Free Action, though he must pay the ki point price for each effect individually as normal.
Greater Abundant Step (Ex)
While under the effect of Enhanced Abundant Step, a monk may use his Move Action to teleport a distance equal to his greatest available movespeed, including the bonus brought upon by Abundant Step, and new forms of movements granted by temporary spells and effects, such as a newly gained fly speed from the Fly spell.
If the monk possesses feats or features such as Shot on the Run, Spring attack, or the like, he can intersperse his teleportation distance freely between attacks.
If the monk uses this ability, his Enhanced Abundant Step prematurely stops at the beginning of his next turn.
Greater Flurry Of Blows (Ex)
A monk who activates Flurry of Blows may now make two monk weapon attacks as a Swift Action using his highest BAB.
Additionally, a monk using Flurry of Blows may make a full-round attack as a Standard Action, and all attacks using monk weapons that round use the monk’s highest BAB.
If he possesses feats or features such as Shot on the Run, Spring attack, or the like, he can intersperse his movement freely between each and every attack as he sees fit.
If the monk uses this particular instance of this ability, his Flurry of Blows prematurely stops at the beginning of his next turn.
Design Notes
SpoilerTime for another helping of stinky cheese! What’s more cheesy than casting spells? Casting multiple spells in a single round, of course! Sure, it’s just single-target damage spells (and admittedly you’ll be burning through your spell slots to pull this off), but now you can throw some hands during a full-round attack and pepper in a Shocking Grasp to go Tekken on a poor hapless orc and Electric Wind God Fist him to oblivion.
Also, you can see that the beefed-up Abundant Step resembles the Dimension door trick the vanilla monk got. Additionally Flurry of Blows allows you to make your full attack as a standard action, which again was yoinked from elsewhere.
Hey, sue me. It was just too good to pass up.
Diamond Body (Ex or Su)
At 12th level, a monk can ignore the negative effects of all poisons. This particular use of Diamond Body is an extraordinary ability.
A monk may spend 1 ki point as a Free Action while under the effect of a poison to metabolize it and gain a +2 bonus to his Wisdom. This bonus lasts for one minute per monk level or until he ends it with another Free Action, at which point the poison is entirely purged from his body.
A monk may only benefit from one use of this ability regardless of the amount of poisons he has accumulated. If he has accumulated multiple diseases and activates this particular use of Diamond Body, all poisons are purged at the end of the effect. Diamond Body and Purity of Body can be active simultaneously.
This particular use of Diamond Body is a supernatural ability.
Resilient Mind (Ex or Su)
At 14th level a monk can ignore effects that attempt to exercise mental control over him, such as charm and compulsion effects that grant the caster ongoing control over the subject, such as the Dominate Person spell.
This particular use of Resilient Mind is an extraordinary ability.
Additionally, a monk may spend 2 ki points as a Free Action to gain the ability to ignore any and all unwanted mind-affecting effects for one minute per monk level or until he ends the ability with another Free Action.
If the monk is currently under a negative mind-affecting effect, even if under a compulsion that robs him of free will that is somehow not subject to the base protection of Resilient Mind, he may activate the ki-enhanced version of the ability and cease the unwanted effect, though he must spend 3 ki points to do so.
This particular use of Resilient Mind is a supernatural ability.
Design Notes
SpoilerA wise master is the embodiment of willpower, so when some clown wants to tell you what to do you should have the ability to tell them to shove it where the sun don’t shine without screwing yourself out of beneficial mind-affecting buffs.
Timeless Body (Ex)
At 15th level a monk no longer takes penalties to his ability scores for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any such penalties that he has already taken, however, remain in place. Bonuses still accrue, and the monk still dies of old age when his time is up.
Additionally, A monk no longer needs to eat, drink, sleep, or breathe in order to sustain himself, and may ignore any and all sleep effects.
Design Notes
SpoilerI decided to add the whole “don’t need to eat” gear to Timeless Body in order to give it some kind of immediate and tangible mechanical benefit.
Diamond Soul (Ex or Su)
At 16th level a monk treats any and all ability drain as ability damage instead, and ability damage is healed at a rate of a number of points per day equal to his Wisdom modifier (minimum 2 points per day), with full bedrest doubling that amount.
Additionally, a monk treats severe energy drain (caused by effects such as the Energy Drain spell) into milder energy drain (caused by effects such as the lower-level Enervation spell).
This particular use of Diamond Soul is an extraordinary ability.
A monk can spend 2 ki points as a Free Action to ignore ability penalties, ability damage, ability drain, and energy drain effects for one minute per monk level or until he ends the ability with another Free Action. Negative levels inflicted by energy drain and ability penalties are suppressed for the duration of this ability, but ability damage and ability drain remain.
This particular use of Diamond Soul is a supernatural ability.
Design Notes
SpoilerSpell resistance is a trap. I know some monk fixes place addendums excluding beneficial spells, but I personally believe that being able to ignore having your abilities and levels screwed with follows the spirit of spell resistance (resisting bad juju) without biting you in the ass.
Celestial Soul (Ex or Su)
At 18th level a monk begins to ascend beyond mortal limits. He gains Blindsight out to 60ft and may ignore any and all unwanted polymorphing and petrification effects. This particular use of Celestial Soul is an extraordinary effect.
A monk can also spend 3 ki points as a Free Action to gain the following attributes for one minute per monk level or until he ends it with another Free Action.
- A monk body glows brilliantly, shedding light as if under the effect of a Daylight spell. This light can be suppressed and reactivated as a Free Action.
- A monk is not subject to paralysis or stunning
- A monk is not subject to critical hits or flanking
This particular use of Celestial Soul is a supernatural effect.
Design Notes
SpoilerSince Etherealness is a monk spell now, something needed to replace Empty Body. What better way to replace the ability than to gain one where you exceed your meager mortal coil and obtain a celestial-like form? After all, Yoda once said “Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter.”
Transcendent Infusion (Su)
At 19th level a monk treats all his spontaneous castings of Transcendent Spirit spells as Supernatural abilities. This means that they no longer need spell components, are not subject to spell resistance, counterspells, or to being dispelled by Dispel Magic. They also do not provoke attacks of opportunity and no longer require Concentration checks.
Design Notes
SpoilerI wanted something that would set the monk apart from the other tier 1 casters, something that had the same usual cheese you get from tier 1 but with a unique flare, so I decided to go with supernatural spellcasting, as it fits the whole “ascend beyond limits” motif I’m going for.
Perfect Self (Su)
At 20th level all ki abilities cost 1 ki point less to a minimum of 0, and the duration of all Ki abilities increases to 24 hours.
Design Notes
SpoilerAnd now some of your beefier monk abilities are effectively permanent. Enjoy your candy (and cheese).Last edited by The_Ebolanator; 2022-01-17 at 02:52 AM.
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2021-12-20, 06:54 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
- Join Date
- Jun 2011
Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
The Monk's Spell List and Descriptions
The Monk's Spell List
SpoilerWhat does every Tier 1 class have in common? What grants ultimate power in D&D 3.5? Why, ‘tis the spells, of course! Here we have the spell list of the monk. Right now this list only pulls from the PHB, but if this little experiment gains traction and there’s enough popular demand, I’ll look into expanding the list from other popular books.
My approach in choosing spells
SpoilerWhen I first made this spell list, I looked up the “best” ones based on what I could find from multiple forums and tier 1 class handbooks. I did this mainly to ensure that the T1 monk was indeed a tier 1 class. The cold harsh truth of the matter is simply that spells are THE key to tier 1 power. If you don’t have the right spells to exploit, you’re not a tier 1. Period. Do not pass “Go”, do not collect 200 dollars.
With that said, it has been pointed out that the monk needs a theme to his spells. Well, to do that, first I must lay some groundwork. I believe the three tier 1 core classes all have one thing in common: They are all, for lack of a better term, a “servant” of some kind.
They are students, liaisons, shepherds, representatives, etc. of a greater power, and I do mean GREATER power. Druids are the liaisons of the primal forces of nature itself, clerics are the liaisons of the gods themselves, and wizards are liaisons of the very building blocks of the universe as we know it.
So if druids serve the natural, clerics the divine, and wizards the fundamental, then what do monks serve? In this case, I want T1 monks to serve the spiritual. Not spiritual in the way that druids and clerics are spiritual in their beliefs, but rather monks are servants of the spirit of living things. Whether it's the fighting spirit of disciplined warriors, the mental spirit of genius thinkers, the emotional spirit of great performers, or even the esoteric spirit of supernatural beings, T1 monks draw from the life force of the tangible world.
As I was building this class, a word kept popping up over and over: Transcend. The monk is meant to connect with the spirit of all creatures and amplify them beyond their natural limits. In a way, a monk is a sort of fusion between the cleric and wizard. He understands both the divine connection of the supernatural and the fundamental connection of the mortal world.
So what exactly does this mean for the spell list? Well, I’m gonna come clean. First and foremost I’m looking to make sure that the monk gets his grubby little paws on as many tier 1 spells as possible.
But secondly, the spells need to come from some kind of transcendent spiritual source. Yes, I want me some of that good stuff, but I’ll do my best to make it fit the theme.
- A monk can cast spells that buff, heal, mend, and transform, allowing targets of these spells to change and transcend their natural limits.
- A monk can cast spells that probe and affect the minds of others, allowing him to understand others or exact his disciplined willpower upon less capable minds.
- A monk can cast spells that summon fantastic and otherworldly entities, as he possesses a strong connection to their spiritual essence.
- A monk can cast weaponized spells, as the monk himself is a trained martial artist.
If there’s any spells you see that don’t seem to fit the theme, or any spells you DON’T see that should be there, I’m all ears. However, keep in mind that this iteration of the monk has to be thought of as a separate entity from the vanilla monk.
The big thing to keep in mind is that the T1 monk is not just “the fast punchy guy” anymore. So yes, he is capable of casting certain non-punchy spells like summoning and healing. Also for now I'm only pulling from the PHB spell list until the spell themes are solidified. Then I'll expand.
0-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerAcid Splash
Cure Minor Wounds
Daze
Detect Magic
Detect Poison
Guidance
Know Direction
Mage Hand
Mending
Message
Prestidigitation
Purify Food and Drink
Ray of Frost
Read Magic
Resistance
1st-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerBane
Bless
Burning Hands
Charm Person
Chill Touch
Color Spray
Command
Competence Surge*
Comprehend Languages
Cure Light Wounds
Detect Secret Doors
Endure Elements
Enlarge Person
Expeditious Retreat
Identify
Lesser Restoration
Magic Weapon
Minor Transcendent Spirit*
Protection From Chaos
Protection From Evil
Protection From Good
Protection From Law
Ray of Enfeeblement
Reduce Person
Resistance
Sanctuary
Shield
Shillelagh**
Summon Monster 1
True Strike
*New Monk Spell
**New Monk Usage of Spell
2nd-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerAlter Self
Bear Endurance
Blindness/Deafness
Blur
Bull Strength
Cat Grace
Cure Moderate Wounds
Darkness
Darkvision
Detect Thoughts
Eagle Splendor
Fox Cunning
Glitterdust
Heroism
Hold Person
Invisibility
Levitate
Make Whole
Minor Image
Mirror Image
Moderate Transcendent Spirit*
Owl Wisdom
Pyrotechnics
Resist Energy
Scorching Ray
See Invisibility
Shield Other
Spider Climb
Spiritual Weapon**
Summon Monster 2
Summon Swarm
Touch of Idiocy
Undetectable Alignment
*New Monk Spell
**New Monk Usage of Spell
3rd-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerArcane Sight
Cure Serious Wounds
Daylight
Darkvision
Deeper Darkness
Dispel Magic
Displacement
Fireball
Fly
Haste
Hold Person
Improved Transcendent Spirit*
Lightning Bolt
Locate Object
Magic Circle Against Chaos
Magic Circle Against Evil
Magic Circle Against Good
Magic Circle Against Law
Magic Vestment
Meld Into Stone
Protection From Energy
Ray Of Exhaustion
Searing Light
Slow
Spiritual Sustenance*
Stinking Cloud
Stoneshape
Suggestion
Summon Monster 3
Water Breathing
Water Walk
Windwall
*New Monk Spell
4th-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerArcane Eye
Air Walk
Charm Monster
Confusion
Cure Critical Wounds
Death Ward
Dimension Door
Dimensional Anchor
Discern Lies
Dismissal
Enervation
Freedom of Movement
Greater Invisibility
Greater Magic Weapon
Greater Transcendent Spirit*
Lesser Planar Ally
Mass Enlarge Person
Polymorph
Resilient Sphere
Restoration
Spell Immunity
Summon Monster 4
Tongues
*New Monk Spell
5th-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerAtonement
Baleful Polymorph
Break Enchantment
Cone of Cold
Dominate Person
Feeblemind
Flame Strike
Greater Command
Commune
Hold Monster
Mass Cure Light Wounds
Mass Minor Transcendent Spirit*
Overland Flight
Passwall
Plane Shift
Prying Eyes
Raise Dead
Righteous Might
Scrying**
Spell Resistance
Summon Monster 5
Telekinesis
Telepathic Bond
Teleport
Wall Of Force
Wall Of Stone
Waves of Fatigue
*New Monk Spell
**New Monk Usage of Spell
6th-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerAcid Fog
Antimagic Field
Chain Lightning
Control Water
Disintegrate
Freezing Sphere
Greater Dispel Magic
Greater Heroism
Heal
Legend Lore
Mass Bear Endurance
Mass Bull Strength
Mass Cat Grace
Mass Cure Moderate Wounds
Mass Eagle Splendor
Mass Fox Cunning
Mass Moderate Transcendent Spirit*
Mass Owl Wisdom
Mass Suggestion
Move Earth
Planar Ally
Repulsion
Summon Monster 6
True Seeing
Wall of Iron
Wind Walk
*New Monk Spell
7th-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerBanishment
Blasphemy
Control Weather
Dictum
Ethereal Jaunt
Finger of Death
Greater Restoration
Greater Teleport
Holy Word
Mass Cure Serious Wounds
Mass Hold Person
Mass Improved Transcendent Spirit*
Prismatic Spray
Regeneration
Summon Monster 7
Waves of Exhaustion
Word of Chaos
*New Monk Spell
8th-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerAntimagic Field
Cloak of Chaos
Discern Location
Greater Planar Ally
Greater Prying Eyes
Greater Spell Immunity
Holy Aura
Mass Charm Monster
Mass Cure Critical Wounds
Mass Greater Transcendent Spirit*
Mind Blank
Moment of Prescience
Polymorph Any Object
Power Word Stun
Prismatic Wall
Shield of Law
Summon Monster 8
Unholy Aura
*New Monk Spell
9th-Level Monk Spells
SpoilerAstral Projection
Divine Transcendent Spirit*
Dominate Monster
Energy Drain
Etherealness
Foresight
Gate
Mass Hold Monster
Prismatic Sphere
Shapechange
Spellweave*
Summon Monster 9
Time Stop
*New Monk Spell
**New Monk Usage of Spells
Spoiler- Shillelagh: A monk may use any monk weapon that deals bludgeoning damage, and is not limited to a club and quarterstaff.
- Spiritual Weapon: The summoned weapon takes the form of a glowing facsimile of yourself wielding whatever monk weapon you’re actually wielding at the time, including unarmed strikes or natural weapons. If you’re currently under the effect of the Martial Clarity Ki ability and you have chosen your attack and/or damage rolls to be enhanced, this spell’s attack and/or damage rolls are enhanced as well.
- Scrying: A monk’s focus for this spell is a circlet with a brilliantly cut gemstone at the forehead costing no less than 500 gp.
New Monk Spell Descriptions
SpoilerThe Transcendent Spirit Spells
SpoilerIf a cleric can spontaneously cast healing spells, and a druid can spontaneously cast summoning spells, then a monk can spontaneously cast buff spells. Clerics are known for popping Divine Power and becoming martial death machines, what with their buff to BAB and whatnot. Now imagine being able to do that with not only BAB, but temp HP and saves and giving it to your whole party. If Mulan’s “Be a Man” were a spell, it would be the transcendent spirit spells.
Another thing you may notice is that these spells aren’t exclusive to monks. Since clerics and druids spontaneously cast spells available to other classes, it only seemed fair that the monk spontaneous spell list should be available to other classes.
Divine Transcendent Spirit
School: transmutation
Level: monk 9
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S, DF
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Duration: 10 minutes/level
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: yes (harmless)
Description:
You each creature in a group with the following boons.
- The target gains temporary hit points equal to 6 x your caster level
- The target maximizes the ranks of twelve skills (even untrained skills) of its choice, and all maximized skills can take a 10 on the roll regardless of the situation.
- The target’s base attack bonus progression equals its character level, which may grant the target additional attacks.
- The target Fortitude, Reflex, and Will save progressions become high.
- The target may roll two d20s and take the more favorable result whenever the situation arises
Greater Transcendent Spirit
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 5, monk 4, paladin 4
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S, DF
Range: touch
Target: creature touched
Duration: 10 minutes/level or 1 round/level (see text)
Saving Throw: Will negates(harmless)
Spell Resistance: yes (harmless)
Description:
You imbue a creature touched with the following boons that last 10 minutes per caster level.
- The target gains temporary hit points equal to quadruple your caster level
- The target maximizes the ranks of eight skills (even untrained skills) of its choice
A creature may choose to activate the following additional boons as a Free Action. Once these new abilities are activated, any remaining 10-minute increments of the spell immediately convert to 1 round per caster level.
- The target Fortitude, Reflex, and Will save progressions become high
- The target’s base attack bonus progression equals its character level, which may grant the target additional attacks
Greater Transcendent Spirit, Mass
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 9, monk 8
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Description:
This spell functions like Greater Transcendent Spirit, except it affects multiple creatures.
Improved Transcendent Spirit
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 4, monk 3, paladin 3
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S, DF
Range: touch
Target: creature touched
Duration: 10 minutes/level or 1 round/level (see text)
Saving Throw: Will negates(harmless)
Spell Resistance: yes (harmless)
Description:
You imbue a creature touched with the following boons that last 10 minutes per caster level.
- The target gains temporary hit points equal to triple your caster level
- The target maximizes the ranks of six skills (even untrained skills) of its choice
A creature may choose to activate the following additional boons as a Free Action. Once these new abilities are activated, any remaining 10-minute increments of the spell immediately convert to 1 round per caster level.
- The target chooses two saving throw progressions amongst its Fortitude, Reflex, or Will saves to increase from low to high
- The target’s base attack bonus progression increases one step (from poor to average, or from average to good), which may grant the target additional attacks
Improved Transcendent Spirit, Mass
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 8, monk 7
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Description:
This spell functions like Improved Transcendent Spirit, except it affects multiple creatures.
Minor Transcendent Spirit
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 2, monk 1, paladin 1
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S, DF
Range: touch
Target: creature touched
Duration: 10 minutes/level or 1 round/level (see text)
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: yes (harmless)
Description:
You imbue a creature touched with the following boons that last 10 minutes per caster level.
- The target gains temporary hit points equal to your caster level
- The target maximizes the ranks of two skills (even untrained skills) of its choice
A creature may choose to activate the following additional boons as a Free Action. Once these new abilities are activated, any remaining 10-minute increments of the spell immediately convert to 1 round per caster level.
- The target chooses one saving throw progression amongst its Fortitude, Reflex, or Will saves to increase from low to high.
Minor Transcendent Spirit, Mass
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 6, monk 5
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Description:
This spell functions like Minor Transcendent Spirit, except it affects multiple creatures.
Moderate Transcendent Spirit
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 3, monk 2, paladin 2
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S, DF
Range: touch
Target: creature touched
Duration: 10 minutes/level or 1 round/level (see text)
Saving Throw: Will negates(harmless)
Spell Resistance: yes (harmless)
Description:
You imbue a creature touched with the following boons that last 10 minutes per caster level.
- The target gains temporary hit points equal to double your caster level
- The target maximizes the ranks of four skills (even untrained skills) of its choice
A creature may choose to activate the following additional boons as a Free Action. Once these new abilities are activated, any remaining 10-minute increments of the spell immediately convert to 1 round per caster level.
- The target chooses one saving throw progression amongst its Fortitude, Reflex, or Will saves to increase from low to high.
- The target’s base attack bonus progression increases one step (from poor to average, or from average to good), which may grant the target additional attacks.
Moderate Transcendent Spirit, Mass
School: transmutation
Level: cleric 7, monk 6
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Description:
This spell functions like Moderate Transcendent Spirit, except it affects multiple creatures.
Miscellaneous Spells
SpoilerCompetence Surge
School: transmutation
Level: monk 1
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S
Range: touch
Target: creature touched
Duration: 1 minute/level
Description:
The subject gets an enhancement bonus equal to your caster level on a number of skills of your choice equal to your Wisdom modifier.
Design Notes
SpoilerFollowing in the buffing philosophy of the tier 1 monk, you can reach out and touch somebody and magically make them better at stuff. Who needs a school teacher when you can have a monk?
Spellweave
School: universal
Level: monk 9
Casting Time: 1 standard action (see text)
Components: DF (see text)
Range: see text
Target: see text
Duration: see text
Saving Throw: see text
Spell Resistance: no (see text)
Description:
When casting this spell, you can duplicate the effects of any spell of 8th level or lower. Any dice involved in the spell is maximized (or minimized if it’s somehow more beneficial), and in the case of dice determining randomized results (such as the Prismatic spells or Confusion spell), you may choose the results that occur. If a duplicate spell has a casting time more beneficial than a Standard Action, you may use that casting time instead.
A Spellweave duplicate spell allows saving throws as normal, but eliminates the chance for spell resistance and uses the save DC for a 9th-level spell. A Spellweave duplicate spell also eliminates the need for verbal and somatic components, but if a duplicated spell has an XP cost or a material component that costs more than 100 gp, you must provide those components.
Design Notes
SpoilerWish and miracle are cool spells but they feel very wizard-y and cleric-y, so just giving the monk one of those spells didn’t feel right. Instead, what if a monk could (again with this motif) “ascend beyond mortal limits” with his spellcasting and basically cast any non-9th-level spell in the game? Yes, wish and miracle can do the same thing, but they have lower level limits on their spell mimicking capacity, and they also have the added bonus of being able to do extra things beyond just mimicking spells. Spellweave specifically has one job: duplicate a spell and make it better. That’s all it does because that’s all it needs to do.
Spiritual Sustenance
School: transmutation
Level: monk 3
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Components: V, S
Range: close (25 ft. + 5 ft./2 levels)
Target: one or more creatures, no two of which can be more than 30 ft. apart
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates(harmless)
Spell Resistance: yes (harmless)
Description:
Each targeted creature has its hunger and thirst immediately and fully satiated.
Design Notes
SpoilerA cleric performs miracles for starving villages via Create Food and Water. A monk helps them forget they were starving in the first place.Last edited by The_Ebolanator; 2022-01-17 at 02:46 AM.
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2021-12-20, 06:55 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
- Join Date
- Jun 2011
Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
New Monk Feats and Items
Feats
SpoilerMonk Weapon Training
Prerequisite: Proficiency in chosen weapon, Martial Arts class feature
Benefit: Choose a weapon you’re proficient in. That weapon is now treated as a monk weapon for all beneficial purposes.
Normal: Only specific weapons listed in the monk’s Martial Arts class feature are treated as monk weapons, even if you gain proficiency in a new weapon through other means.
Special: You can take this feat multiple times. Each time you take it you choose a new proficient non-monk weapon to turn into a monk weapon.
Design Notes
SpoilerBecause sometimes you want to flurry with a full blade. Now you can, you’ll just have to pay for it.
Transcendent Metamagic
Prerequisite: Any metamagic feat, ability to spontaneously cast Transcendent Spirit spells, Ki class feature
Benefit: Any time you spontaneously cast a Transcendent Spirit spell, you may apply any metamagic feat you know on top of it, paying for the increased spell level difference in an equivalent amount of ki points without increasing the spell's casting time.
Normal: Spontaneously casted instances of Transcendent Spirit must be cast at their appropriately heightened spell level, and doing so increased the casting time to a Full-Round Action.
Design Notes
SpoilerClerics have their Divine Metamagic schtick and druids have their Natural Spell nonsense. What goofy crap can the monk pull? Spontaneous metamagic on their buff spells, that’s what!
Honestly, I don’t know if this is equivalent to the tier 1 madness that is the DMM Cleric or Natural Spell Druid, but I’d like to think it’s at the very least nothing to sneeze at.
Way of the Dragon
Prerequisite: Mystic Martial Artist class feature
Benefit: You augment specific spells you can cast that meet the following criteria.
- The spell must target an area-of-effect (lines, cones, spreads, bursts, etc)
- The spell must deal fire, acid, lightning, sonic, or cold damage
- The spell must trigger a reflex saving throw from its victims
These specific spells gain the following augmentations
- You may prepare the spell so that it deals different damage from its normal type chosen among fire, acid, lighting, or cold.
- The spell deals an additional amount of damage dice equal to your Wisdom bonus.
Design Notes
SpoilerI would be remiss if I didn’t at least try to add some kind of “Dragon Ball Z” power into the tier 1 monk. What better way to do that than to pimp out your basic blast spells?
Magic Items
SpoilerDan of Martial Might (White, Blue, Purple, Brown, Black)
Price:
- White; 6,000 gp (+1)
- Blue; 24,000 gp (+2)
- Purple; 54,000 gp (+3)
- Brown; 96,000 gp (+4)
- Black; 150,000 gp (+5)
Aura: Faint evocation; CL 5th
Weight: -
Construction Requirements: Craft Wondrous Item, greater magic fang, creator’s caster level must be at least three times the belt’s bonus.
Description:
This belt grants an enhancement bonus of +1 to +5 on attack and damage rolls with unarmed attacks and natural weapons and also allows weapon enchantments to be placed upon the wearer’s unarmed attacks and natural weapons as if they were manufactured weapons.
Special: A monk can use a Dan of Martial Might as his divine focus and free up his belt slot for another item if he so wishes.
Design Notes
SpoilerI was always a bit peeved at the fact you couldn’t enchant your unarmed strikes as easily as you could a sword or bow. Yes, there’s the amulet of mighty fists, but it takes up quite an important body slot, and it doesn’t really allow for easy additions of other enchantments. This is meant to alleviate that somewhat.Last edited by The_Ebolanator; 2022-01-20 at 03:26 AM.
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2021-12-20, 06:56 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Reserved just in case.
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2021-12-23, 01:30 AM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
The issue I have here is that this doesn't actually stand out among Tier 1 classes for much. It keeps usage limitations to everything it uses, it maintains that Spells Are Your Answers, and it actually makes sure to eliminate any "freebies" of the original that might provide for a difference. No scaling Martial Arts to not need spells for damage, no scaling Fast Movement to remove spell expenses in round-to-round tactical mobility, no scaling AC to be guarded from truly unexpected assailants. Hell, you even got rid of the strong Fortitude save!
One thing I considered for my own Monk fix (that never saw the light of day and has no surviving draft) was concentrating basic mobility effects into a single class feature, with a single value for additional movement, automatic jump height, and ignored fall damage. Rather than exponentially raising it to always-on strategic mobility, I actually reduced the value from the existing Monk. To make room for a Swift Action half-move, no questions asked about speed source. If you got ahold of a 100 ft. Fly speed, you get to move 50 ft. on a Swift and may Flurry at either end.
Speaking of Flurry of Blows, retaining it verbatim as a class feature would work wonders here as something for the spontaneous buffs to affect. But it could be more buff friendly! For example, having an extra attack whenever you make a Jump check to move, getting to apply an extra attack to standard actions, innate bonus attacks of opportunity, the feature's got plenty of room. It could be generalized to any source of attacks with the Jump being under the mobility effect, possibly shifted to an additional -1 for each previous time.
As for the spontaneous buffs themselves, I do not like them. Both because that is an indescribably ridiculous amount of temp HP, and because it's boring linear improvements. If they're supposed to be sharable, I'd look at having some be set-to values for things that normally take a lot of investment to participate in, so a Monk who's great at stealth can bring the party along with, or one that's fulfilling face activities can let the party "properly" chime in. Otherwise, decent variety of bulk expense utilities, so you basically never need to prepare a spell for a fight or simple travel.
Again, fine with spells, if you want to chuck a pile of utilities in the list then fine, but I'd greatly prefer to look at a t1 Monk that still plays as a Monk. We already have Wu Jen and Sha'ir for different flavors of t1 full caster, Psionics for a whole other subsystem that operates somewhat similarly, and Artificer doubles down on preparations. What we don't have is a t1 class that sticks to spells as occasional utilities first and foremost, handling all the typical day-to-day adventuring needs without foresight.Last edited by Morphic tide; 2021-12-23 at 01:32 AM.
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2021-12-23, 03:24 AM (ISO 8601)Ettin in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
As you noticed this class is quite lacking in long term ally spells like planar binding or simulacrum or planar ally or contract or those druid spells to talk with animals.
Originally Posted by Morphic tide
But lacking that T1 tool is not in itself quite identity defining.
Making the spontaneous spell of the class more than just "make target really tanky" as you suggested would help the class to differentiate itself from clerics more.
Making its baseline fighting ability high would maybe make it more similar to wildshaping druids although thematically it would be different due to not being based on assuming the might of others.Last edited by noob; 2021-12-23 at 03:29 AM.
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2021-12-23, 04:53 AM (ISO 8601)Halfling in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Once I saw the spells my :) turned into a :(
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2021-12-24, 03:30 AM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
That's true. I initially eliminated some of the freebies by design by using the druid as a benchmark (as clerics have no class features after getting turn/rebukes), but now that you mention it, even druids get free Venom Immunity and some things here and there. I could look into making some of the Ki-activated abilities innate, and then have the Ki expenditure boost them even further. Originally Posted by Morphic tide
Yes, there's no scaling AC, but the class does have light armor proficiency, and using the Martial Clarity Ki power lets you add your Wis to your AC on top of any armor you're wearing. I figured that was a good trade-off since you can now enchant your armor AND benefit from Wis to your AC (among everything else as Martial Clarity progresses). Unless you think a monk SHOULD have scaling AC on top of enchantable armor and Wis.
As far as getting rid of the fortitude saves, I did that on purpose because I'm mimicking the cleric and druid's chassis that gives them the d8 hit dice, the average BAB, and only two good saves. In fact, technically the monk has more chassis "points" than the others by having 6 skill points as opposed to 4 or even the cleric's 2. But if you insist that the monk have even more chassis point more than the other two divine casters, then I guess I could give the class all good saves.
The thing though is I need to draw the line somewhere. Like, why not just give the monk a full BAB, a d12 hit dice, and 8 skill points a level? It's not like those would matter in the grand scheme of tier 1 classes. After all, a wizard has low EVERYTHING (except will saves) and still is considered a tier 1, so what's the harm in maxing out the chassis? But I don't want to do that because it would feel like the class has some major chassis bloat and was built without considering the other core classes alongside it.
Yeah, in hindsight the temp hp was more than it should've been. I'll be trimming that down. Originally Posted by Morphic tide
The skill idea is actually pretty neat. To be honest I kind of prefer the TS spells to be "boring and linear" (though I prefer to call them "intuitive") because the cure spells are like that as well. Granted, the summon nature's ally spells can be pretty crazy given the things a druid can summon (especially in the later levels), but I think I can merge the two ideas by adding something where you can also choose a set of skills to gain ranks in. That way you can pull the whole "enhance the uncouth barbarian's table manners" and "give the louder-than-the-nine-hells clanky-armor-clad paladin some ranks in Move Silently so she can shut her proverbial cake hole" schtick you mentioned. So the spell may be "boring" in description, but in practice it can be super-versatile.
Okay, so it seems like your big thing is that you want a tier 1 monk that's as close to a vanilla monk as possible. Fair enough. Ultimately that's not the direction I'm taking, but if enough wailing and gnashing of teeth accumulate on this thread I'll either pivot or just make the class a not-monk. Originally Posted by Morphic tide
I know I got rid of a permanent mobility feature and replaced it with spells, but that was on purpose. I very much ascribe to the "spells are your answer" philosophy because most (if not all) tier 1 shenanigans start and end with spells. If popular demand says otherwise, though, I can put it back in. I might make a change to it so that it's a simple but versatile ability that scales so people don't just dip for it.
Now, as far as Flurry goes, I figured the Martial Arts description more than made up for it by the simple fact that RAW the T1 monk is always dual-wielding his unarmed strikes, and therefore can always two-weapon fight with NO penalty on the attack and damage rolls. In fact, the way I worded it makes this ability objectively better than vanilla Flurry of Blows, especially at the early levels.
The only thing you miss out on is the extra hit you gain when you get Greater Flurry, but you can immediately gain that right back either by getting Improved Two-Weapon Fighting as a feat (granted I'll concede that you need the BAB and Dex to qualify for it), or just pop a Moderate Transcendent Spirit on yourself, get a full BAB, and treat yourself as if you had that extra hit all along. Yes, this follows the "rely on spells" philosophy, but even without the spell or feat, you're only missing out on one attack roll at most.
Now, if you want to flurry on the run without it being a spell, then there may be a way to make it a Ki power, but I just personally feel it works better as a spell for now, and I don't think I can get away with making it a permanent feature without risking that chassis bloat I mentioned earlier. Again, if enough consensus adds up then I'll see how I can change it.
Hmm, you know, I totally forgot about the Planar Ally spells. I'll just go ahead and put those in on the next edit. Originally Posted by noob
I'm going to experiment putting in the skill boosts into the Transcendent Spirit spells to make it more than just the "tanky" spell. Also I'm gonna trim down the temp HP.
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2021-12-24, 03:37 AM (ISO 8601)Bugbear in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I recommend checking out Shaman. This is good don't get me wrong, but if you want a class with monk martial arts and casting, along with, no joke, a druid animal companion and a paladin's divine grace that stacks with divine grace, then i think you would like it.
Native Sha'ir enthusiast. NO GENIE WARLOCK DOESNT COUNT!
Rate my homebrew: https://forums.giantitp.com/showsing...&postcount=323 Originally Posted by Sparky McDibben
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2021-12-24, 07:19 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Oh yeah, I'm familiar with Shaman. Within the existing system it's the best bet if you want to play a spellcasting not-monk kind of like how an unarmed swordsage is the best melee not-monk. Originally Posted by Jervis
This is mostly a what-if build, and though I'm deviating from key components found in the vanilla monk, I want to try my hand at making a more monk-adjacent tier 1 caster. Shaman is great but it feels like more of an amalgamation of other things, what with the animal companion stuck in and all that.
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2021-12-24, 08:54 PM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
When I read that the Tier 1 Monk had spells I figured I'd be in for an absolutely buck-wild monk-focused spell list, but reading the list you've got here it just seems like a thematically incoherent retread of the Wizard and Cleric's greatest hits. I have no doubts that it hits T1, but they way that it gets there leaves a little to be desired. I think this class would really shine with a more curated spell list.
Also, it might be helpful to take a look at the Kathodos, a phenomanally well-designed class that feels like a T2 Monk with a lot of elemental theming. The only thing that really separates T1 and T2 are the numbers of game-breaking tricks they can access, so even if you build for Tier 2 you're not going to be out of place in a party of Wizards, Clerics, and Druids.~The meteorite is the source of the light, and the meteor's just what we see,
and the meteoroid is a stone that's devoid of the fire that propelled it to thee.
And the meteorite's just what causes the light, and the meteor's how it's perceived,
and the meteoroid's a bone thrown from the void that lies quiet in offering to thee.~
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Extended Sig thisaways.
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2021-12-24, 11:09 PM (ISO 8601)Ettin in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Yeah, my biggest complaint here is lack of any real thematic cohesion to the spell list. I'm not at all opposed to the idea of a spellcasting monk, I just think the spells should feel monk-y, you know?
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2021-12-25, 05:49 AM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I had some concerns going down the level 1 spells. Originally Posted by Eurus
Enlarge Person, Reduce Person, Jump, Endure Elements. Sure, that makes sense. Control over the body and whatnot. A bit weird that they're all targeted rather than self-only, but OK.
Burning hands, Color Spray, Cure Light Wounds. These aren't quite as thematic slam-dunks as the previous, but I could see them all as some sort of consequence of channeling Qi. They wouldn't be out of place in some Wuxia films.
Silent Image. Uh... This one's a bit more of a stretch, but I guess it's like some naruto jutsu?
Summon Monster I. ?????
I've tackled this theme before, sort of. I've made both tier 3 and tier 2 mundane classes (the Professional and the Wuxia fighter). I agree that it's, while not impossible, certainly impractical to hit tier 1 without spellcasting. This is simply because Tier1 tends to encompass "enough power to do anything," and the easiest way to do that is with access to certain TO-complete optimization linchpins like Planar Binding. Doing so without any spells (or powers) requires essentially writing a bunch of class features that say "you can do anything," but broken up into 20 discrete chunks. And a spell list takes a lot less time and a lot less digital ink.Last edited by bekeleven; 2021-12-25 at 05:50 AM.
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2021-12-25, 10:11 AM (ISO 8601)Dwarf in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I feel a couple of Wu Jen spells would be ideal for the Monk Spell list.
Fire Shuriken, Metal Skin, Giant Size and Earthbolt for example would fit well, even Transcend Mortality.
Unlike a Wu Jen though, the Monk has no chance to utilise TM with the Jade Phoenix Mage's Emerald Emmolation.
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2021-12-25, 01:17 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
True. I've combed through the list and made an initial pass at curating the spells around a theme. I'm trying to gun for making the T1 monk a spiritual liaison of both mundane and mystical entities and theming the spells around that. Originally Posted by Eurus
Yes. I want to make the T1 monk more than just a kung fu guy that does crazy flips, so he can now share his supernatural skills with others. Originally Posted by bekeleven
Again, yes. Precisely what you just said. Think of them as your "Dragon Ball Z" powers. Originally Posted by bekeleven
Eh, I'll give you that one. Doesn't really fit the new theme. Originally Posted by bekeleven
Believe it or not, yes. As I said, I want the T1 monk to be more than just the kung fu flippy guy. Having a connection to all life means having the ability to call upon the aid of other lifeforms to help you and your homies curb stomp the orcs causing a ruckus in the next town over. Originally Posted by bekeleven
And therein lies the rub. Spells are practically mandatory for tier 1 power level, and to get your hands on the spells that do the true tier 1 heavy lifting, you have to be a class themed around having access to those tools. Unfortunately, a vanilla monk will never be seen as a class that is thematically allowed to use said heavy lifting tools. You'll always be the "fast punchy guy". No more, no less. Originally Posted by bekeleven
Ergo it is imperativefor the T1 monk to be seen as more than just aforementioned fast punchy guy. The T1 monk (as of right now) is meant to be a student of the spirit of all things. I guess you can call it an "avatar-esque" class. So yes, the T1 monk can cast Color Spray and Summon Monster I and buff targets other than himself. Frankly, it's the only way he can ever hope to be tier 1.
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2021-12-25, 02:04 PM (ISO 8601)Ettin in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Maybe it would help if you wrote some more fluff to explain what this monk is conceptually and how they fit into the setting, then? If you're trying to move away from the existing monk fluff, you kinda need to explain the new fluff. Originally Posted by The_Ebolanator
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2021-12-25, 03:35 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
That's a good point, I'll be sure to put that in some time soon-ish. Originally Posted by Eurus
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2021-12-25, 04:20 PM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Have you never heard of Sun Wukong? The shape-shifting clone-spamming month-long-voyage-jumping foundation of Wuxia who's functionally immortal in at least three ways? Originally Posted by The_Ebolanator
The Monk's flavor is mastery of the self. In such a fashion that more than doubling the speed of a normal man, killing a man a week after slapping them, turning invisible, and teleportation are already abilities they possess.
When you are talking about a starting point of personally doing that, there is a lot of the legwork handled by just "more of that", the rest not far once you include "more of me" on a chassis that has competence beyond spells.
"Fast punchy guy" is a perfectly valid answer to the majority of combat. Stunning Fist is plenty of precedent for translating that into battlefield control if demanded.
The issue is that you're overfitting. You're focused on how t1 does things, not what it is t1 is doing. Color Spray is easily replaced with advancing on Stunning Fist. Flurry of Blows is doing very similar things to Scorching Rays.
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2021-12-26, 07:53 PM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
That may be, but the truth of the matter is that spells can do all that, and they're already in the game. This T1 monk is not really meant to be the vanilla monk or extrapolate on specifically what the vanilla monk is known to do. Maybe at the end of the day I shouldn't have named this class the "monk". but rather the "INSERT_NAME_HERE: A monk-like tier 1 what-if class for funzies" Originally Posted by Morphic tide
What you describe does sound interesting, but breaking down all the legacy monk abilities, restructuring them from the ground up, and retooling them so they have the same wide versatility and power level as 50+ books worth of spells, all for the sake of one class is just too much work. At that point I might as well do some kind of martial maneuver overhaul project that can at least work for multiple classes, or even just build a whole new gaming system. it's simply a better shorthand for me to use an existing system in the game that multiple classes share and everyone already intuitively knows how to use and simply curate the list to fit a specific aesthetic.
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2021-12-26, 10:56 PM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I'm actually referring to retooling those abilities to operate in the space of Wild Shape specifically. That class feature of the Druid, with just good movement modes and good statlines, is close to making a t3 class on its own and actually does a lot of the lifting for Druid to hit t1 in core, with a good deal of the rest being that they get their Summon Nature's Ally options without having to prepare spells for the matter. Seriously, look at how much Eggynack's Druid handbook has on Wild Shape and Summon Nature's Ally. Originally Posted by The_Ebolanator
We already have Cleric for spell-reliant beatstickery. We already have suites for Wizards to get in on that. Druid already does the "turn into/call up something to deal with it" as its bulk answers with doing so absent preparation. Your design ultimately doesn't have a point, because it doesn't differ from the existing competition in any substantial way like Sha'ir or Wu Jen or Artificer do. T1 classes can run over campaigns, but they have practical differences in how they do so that cause them to retain flavors.
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2021-12-28, 02:24 AM (ISO 8601)Ogre in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I must say that that I really enjoyed reading your design notes. Your transparency and humour were a delightful and thought-provoking read!
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2021-12-30, 01:51 AM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
I see. Then if I'm interpreting what you've been saying correctly, are you suggesting inserting the "fast punchy guy" legacy role of the monk (which I interpret as the high mobility/acrobatics and FOB/stunning fists), into the build and treating it as (for lack of a better term here) a "super saiyan" transformation? Kind of like a combat-focused equivalent of Wild Shape? Originally Posted by Morphic tide
If so, then I can do something like that. Honestly that's what I was originally aiming for when changing all the immunities into ki powers (and adding the SAD boost with Martial Clarity). I originally had the Abundant Step and FOB proper as spells, but I can rework them back into ki powers.
That said I'm still sticking to my guns with the "Spells Are Your Answer" philosophy, but I'm fine with having a juiced-up monk slinging spells the same way a Natural Spell druid does when turned into a dire bear or whatever.
Why thank you, glad you enjoy! I figure building a tier 1 class (particularly out of a contentious-but-ravenously-loved legacy core class) is a ludicrous task in and of itself, so I might as well have fun with it. Originally Posted by rferries
Last edited by The_Ebolanator; 2021-12-30 at 01:54 AM.
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2022-01-17, 02:56 AM (ISO 8601)Pixie in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Alrighty, did some big retooling in order to integrate some of the legacy monk abilities that I initially made into spells back into the main chassis. Also I did other tweaks and added some gear.
Let me know what you happy campers think, y'hear?
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2022-02-02, 03:57 AM (ISO 8601)Bugbear in the Playground
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Re: [3.5] The Tier 1 Monk
Making the monk tier 1 by giving it spellcasting feels Boring to me.
And not particularly thematic; When I think stereotypical Xian Xia hero, I don't think of vancian spellcasting.
I'd put the emphasis on inherent power; abilities that are always active and grow in strength as the monk gains levels.
I'd also make the recovery interval for any limited abilities one encounter rather than one day to further differentiate the class from the spellcastersI am rel.
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