Unarmored Defense

Beginning at 1st level, while you are wearing no armor and not wielding a shield, your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier.

Martial Arts

At 1st level, your practice of martial arts gives you mastery of combat styles that use unarmed strikes and monk weapons, which are shortswords and any simple melee weapons that don’t have the two-handed or heavy property.

You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only monk weapons and you aren’t wearing armor or wielding a shield:

• You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your unarmed strikes and monk weapons.

• You can roll a d4 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike or monk weapon. This die changes as you gain monk levels, as shown in the Martial Arts column of the Monk table.

• When you use the Attack action with an unarmed strike or a monk weapon on your turn, you can make one unarmed strike as a bonus action. For example, if you take the Attack action and attack with a quarterstaff, you can also make an unarmed strike as a bonus action, assuming you haven’t already taken a bonus action this turn.

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

Ki

Starting at 2nd level, your training allows you to harness the mystic energy of ki. Your access to this energy is represented by a number of ki points. Your monk level determines the number of points you have, as shown in the Ki Points column of the Monk table.

You can spend these points to fuel various ki features. You start knowing three such features: Flurry of Blows, Patient Defense, and Step of the Wind. You learn more ki features as you gain levels in this class.

When you spend a ki point, it is unavailable until you finish a short or long rest, at the end of which you draw all of your expended ki back into yourself. You must spend at least 30 minutes of the rest meditating to regain your ki points.

Some of your ki features require your target to make a saving throw to resist the feature’s effects. The saving throw DC is calculated as follows:

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

Flurry of Blows

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

Patient Defense

You can spend 1 ki point to take the Dodge action as a bonus action on your turn.

Step of the Wind

You can spend 1 ki point to take the Disengage or Dash action as a bonus action on your turn, and your jump distance is doubled for the turn.

Unarmored Movement

Starting at 2nd level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield. This bonus increases when you reach certain monk levels, as shown in the Monk table.

At 9th level, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during the move.

Monastic Tradition

When you reach 3rd level, you commit yourself to a monastic tradition: the Way of the Open Hand, detailed at the end of the class description or one from another source. Your tradition grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 11th, and 17th level.

• [#Way of the Astral Self]Way of the Astral Self[/#] (UA) [Utility]

• Way of the Drunken Master (XGtE pg 33) [Utility]

• Way of the Four Elements (PHB pg 80) [Spell Utility]

• Way of the Kensei (XGtE pg 34) [Damage]

• Way of the Long Death (SCAG pg 130) [Tank]

• [#Way of Mercy]Way of Mercy[/#] (UA) [Damage+Support]

• [#Way of the Open Hand]Way of the Open Hand[/#] (PHB pg 79) [Utility]

• Way of the Shadow (PHB pg 80) [Utility]

• Way of the Soul Knife (UA) [Damage+Utility]

• Way of the Sun Soul (XGtE pg 35 / SCAG pg 131) [Damage]

• Way of Tranquility (UA) [Support]

Deflect Missiles

Starting at 3rd level, you can use your reaction to deflect or catch the missile when you are hit by a ranged weapon attack. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your monk level.

If you reduce the damage to 0, you can catch the missile if it is small enough for you to hold in one hand and you have at least one hand free. If you catch a missile in this way, you can spend 1 ki point to make a ranged attack with the weapon or piece of ammunition you just caught, as part of the same reaction. You make this attack with proficiency, regardless of your weapon proficiencies, and the missile counts as a monk weapon for the attack, which has a normal range of 20 feet and a long range of 60 feet.

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Using the optional feats rule, you can forgo taking this feature to take a feat of your choice instead.

Slow Fall

Beginning at 4th level, you can use your reaction when you fall to reduce any falling damage you take by an amount equal to five times your monk level.

Extra Attack

Beginning at 5th level, you can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.

Stunning Strike

Starting at 5th level, you can interfere with the flow of ki in an opponent’s body. When you hit another creature with a melee weapon attack, you can spend 1 ki point to attempt a stunning strike. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be stunned until the end of your next turn.

Ki-Empowered Strikes

Starting at 6th level, your unarmed strikes count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.

Unarmored Movement

At 6th level, your Unarmored Speed speed bonus increases to 15 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield.

Monastic Tradition Feature

[#Monastic Tradition]Monastic Tradition Feature[/#]

Evasion

At 7th level, your instinctive agility lets you dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a blue dragon’s lightning breath or a fireball spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.

Stillness of Mind

Starting at 7th level, you can use your action to end one effect on yourself that is causing you to be charmed or frightened.

Ability Score Improvement

[#Ability Score Improvement]Ability Score Improvement[/#]

Unarmored Movement Improvement

At 9th level, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during your move.

Purity of Body

At 10th level, your mastery of the ki flowing through you makes you immune to disease and poison.

Unarmored Movement

At 10th level, your Unarmored Speed speed bonus increases to 20 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield.

Monastic Tradition Feature

[#Monastic Tradition]Monastic Tradition Feature[/#]

Ability Score Improvement

[#Ability Score Improvement]Ability Score Improvement[/#]

Tongue of the Sun and Moon

Starting at 13th level, you learn to touch the ki of other minds so that you understand all spoken languages. Moreover, any creature that can understand a language can understand what you say.

Diamond Soul

Beginning at 14th level, your mastery of ki grants you proficiency in all saving throws.

Additionally, whenever you make a saving throw and fail, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll it and take the second result.

Unarmored Movement

At 14th level, your Unarmored Speed speed bonus increases to 25 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield.

Timeless Body

At 15th level, your ki sustains you so that you suffer none of the frailty of old age, and you can’t be aged magically. You can still die of old age, however. In addition, you no longer need food or water.

Ability Score Improvement

[#Ability Score Improvement]Ability Score Improvement[/#]

Monastic Tradition Feature

[#Monastic Tradition]Monastic Tradition Feature[/#]

Empty Body

Beginning at 18th level, you can use your action to spend 4 ki points to become invisible for 1 minute. During that time, you also have resistance to all damage but force damage.

Additionally, you can spend 8 ki points to cast the astral projection spell, without needing material components. When you do so, you can’t take any other creatures with you.

Unarmored Movement

At 18th level, your Unarmored Speed speed bonus increases to 30 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a shield.

Ability Score Improvement

[#Ability Score Improvement]Ability Score Improvement[/#]

Perfect Self

At 20th level, when you roll for initiative and have no ki points remaining, you regain 4 ki points.

Way of Mercy

Monks of the Way of Mercy learn to manipulate the life force of others to bring aid to those in need. They are wandering physicians to the poor and hurt. However, to those beyond their help—whether ailing or evil—they bring a swift end as an act of mercy.

Those who follow the Way of Mercy might be humble members of a religious order, administering to those in greatest need, making grim choices rooted in reality rather than idealism. Some might be gentle-voiced healers, beloved by their communities, while others might be masked bringers of macabre mercies.

The walkers of this way usually don simple robes with deep cowls, and they often conceal their faces with masks, presenting themselves as the faceless bringers of life and death. If you wear a mask, choose its appearance, or determine it randomly by rolling on the Merciful Mask table.

Implements of Mercy

At 3rd level, You gain proficiency in the Insight or Medicine skill (your choice), and you gain proficiency with the herbalism kit and the poisoner’s kit.

Hands of Healing

At 3rd level, Your mystical touch can mend wounds. As an action, you can spend 1 ki point to touch a creature and restore a number of hit points equal to a roll of your Martial Arts die + your Wisdom modifier.

When you use your Flurry of Blows, you can replace one of the unarmed strikes with a use of this feature without spending its ki cost.

Hands of Harm

At 3rd level, You use your ki to inflict wounds. When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to deal extra necrotic damage equal to one roll of your Martial Arts die. If the creature is incapacitated or poisoned, the creature takes necrotic damage equal to three rolls of your Martial Arts die instead. You can use this feature only once on each of your turns.

Noxious Aura

At 6th level, As a bonus action, you spend 1 ki point to turn your ki into an aura of toxic miasma. The aura extends 5 feet from you in every direction, but not through total cover. It lasts for 1 minute, until you’re incapacitated, or you dismiss it (no action required).

While your aura is active, ranged attacks have disadvantage against you. Any other creature that starts its turn in the aura must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or become poisoned until the end of your next turn and take poison damage equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of 0 damage).

Healing Technique

At 11th level, Your skill in manipulating your ki to heal increases. When you restore hit points to a creature using your Hands of Healing, you can also end one disease or a condition from the following list affecting the target: blinded, deafened, paralyzed, or poisoned.

Hand of Mercy

At 17th level, Your mastery of life energy opens the door to the ultimate respite technique. As an action, you can touch a creature, expend 4 ki points, and force the creature to make a Constitution saving throw (a creature can willingly fail this save). Unless the save succeeds, the creature enters a state of suspended animation for a number of days equal to your monk level or until you end the effect early (no action required). During this time, the creature is paralyzed, has immunity to all damage, and any curse, disease, or poison affecting it is suspended. The creature appears dead to all outward inspection and to spells used to determine the creature’s status.

You can have only one creature under the effect of this feature at a time.

Way of the Astral Self

Monks of the Way of the Astral Self have an internal struggle with their ki. They see their mystical energy as a representation of their true form, an astral self. This form has the capacity to be a force of good or destruction, with some monasteries training students to either temper their nature or embrace their impulses.

Arms of the Astral Self

At 3rd level, your mastery of your ki allows you to summon a portion of your astral self. On your turn, you can spend 2 ki points as a bonus action to summon the arms of your astral self for 10 minutes. These spectral arms hover near your shoulders. You determine the arms’ appearance based on the qualities of your character.

While your astral arms are summoned, you gain the following benefits:

• You can use your Wisdom modifier in place of your Strength modifier when making Strength checks and Strength saving throws.

• The arms are monk weapons and have a reach of 10 feet. The arms deal radiant or necrotic damage (your choice). When you attack with the arms, you can use your Wisdom modifier instead of your Strength or Dexterity modifier for the attack and damage rolls.

• Immediately after you use the Attack action with your astral arms on your turn, you can make one extra attack with your astral arms as a bonus action. The number of extra attacks increases when you reach certain levels in this class, increasing to two at 11th level and three at 17th level.

Visage of the Astral Self

Starting at 6th level, you can summon the visage of your astral self. On your turn, you can spend 1 ki point as a bonus action, or as part of summoning your astral arms, to summon this visage for 10 minutes. The spectral visage covers your face like a helmet or mask. You determine its appearance based on the qualities of your character.

While your visage is summoned, you gain the following benefits.

Wisdom of the Spirit. You have advantage on Wisdom (Insight) and Charisma (Intimidation) checks.

Astral Sight. You can see normally in darkness, both magical and nonmagical, to a distance of 120 feet.

Awakening of the Astral Self

Starting at 11th level, you tap into the greater power of your astral self. While you have both your astral arms and visage summoned, you gain the following benefits.

Deflect Energy. When you take acid, cold, fire, lightning, or force damage, you can use your reaction to deflect it. When you do so, the damage you take is reduced by 1d10 + your Wisdom modifier + your monk level.

Empowered Arms. Once on each of your turns when you hit a target with your astral arms, you can deal extra damage to the target equal to your Martial Arts die.

Word of the Spirit. When you speak through your visage, you can direct your words to a creature of your choice that you can see within 30 feet of you, making it so only that creature can hear you. Alternatively, you can amplify your voice so that all creatures within 600 feet can hear you.

Complete Astral Self

Starting at 17th level, your connection to your astral self is complete, allowing you summon it entirely. On your turn, you can spend 10 ki points as a bonus action to summon the arms, visage, and body of your astral self for 10 minutes. This spectral body covers your physical form like a suit of armor, connecting with the arms and visage. You determine its appearance based on the qualities of your character.

While your astral self is summoned, you gain the following benefits.

Armor of the Spirit. You gain a +2 bonus to AC while you aren’t incapacitated.

Astral Barrage. Whenever you use the Extra Attack feature to attack twice, you can instead attack three times using your astral arms.

Ki Consumption. When a creature within 10 feet of you is reduced to 0 hit points, you can use your reaction to regain ki points equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum 1).

Way of the Open Hand

Monks of the Way of the Open Hand are the ultimate masters of martial arts combat, whether armed or unarmed. They learn techniques to push and trip their opponents, manipulate ki to heal damage to their bodies, and practice advanced meditation that can protect them from harm.

Open Hand Technique

Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you can manipulate your enemy’s ki when you harness your own. Whenever you hit a creature with one of the attacks granted by your Flurry of Blows, you can impose one of the following effects on that target:

• It must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or be knocked prone.

• It must make a Strength saving throw. If it fails, you can push it up to 15 feet away from you.

• It can’t take reactions until the end of your next turn.

Wholeness of Body

At 6th level, you gain the ability to heal yourself. As an action, you can regain hit points equal to three times your monk level. You must finish a long rest before you can use this feature again.

Tranquility

Beginning at 11th level, you can enter a special meditation that surrounds you with an aura of peace. At the end of a long rest, you gain the effect of a sanctuary spell that lasts until the start of your next long rest (the spell can end early as normal). The saving throw DC for the spell equals 8 + your Wisdom modifier + your proficiency bonus.

Quivering Palm

At 17th level, you gain the ability to set up lethal vibrations in someone’s body. When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you can spend 3 ki points to start these imperceptible vibrations, which last for a number of days equal to your monk level. The vibrations are harmless unless you use your action to end them. To do so, you and the target must be on the same plane of existence. When you use this action, the creature must make a Constitution saving throw. If it fails, it is reduced to 0 hit points. If it succeeds, it takes 10d10 necrotic damage.

You can have only one creature under the effect of this feature at a time. You can choose to end the vibrations harmlessly without using an action.