Dragon Monk v0.2b

For reasons not entirely understood, both Tiamat and Bahamut will guide unwitting humanoids with draconic ancestry to seek specialized training at temples, wizards' towers, and schools of combat. At some point in their training, their draconic heritage emerges, combining many of the benefits that come with a sorcerous background with the specialized training they receive. One of these sorcerer hybrids is the Dragon Monk. While the majority are found in Kara-Tur, they can be found throughout Toril devoting themselves to rigorous martial training. The result is a sorcery that relies less on instinct and more on an internal understanding of self as draconic offspring.

Class Features

As a dragon monk, you gain the following Class Features.

Hit Dice: 1d6 per dragon monk level

Hit Points at 1st Level: 6 + your Constitution modifier

Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d6 (or 4) + your Constitution modifier per dragon monk level after 1st

Starting Proficiencies

You are proficient with the following items, in addition to any proficiencies provided by your race or background.

Armor: none

Weapons: simple Weapons, shortswords

Tools: none

Skills: Choose two from Arcana, Deception, Insight, Intimidation, Persuasion, and Religion

Saving Throws: Dexterity, Wisdom

Starting Equipment

You start with the following items, plus anything provided by your background.

• (a) a Shortsword or (b) any simple weapon
• (a) a Component pouch or (b) an arcane focus
• (a) a Dungeoneer's Pack or (b) an Explorer's Pack
• 10 darts

Alternatively, you may start with 4d4 x 10 gp to buy your own Equipment.

Spellcasting

Draconic blood flows through your veins, granting you an increasing mastery over arcane magic as you more fully understand yourself and the innate power in your bloodline. The ki that you were taught during your martial training has an expanded role: fueling both martial arts abilities and sorcerer spells alike. See chapter 10 for the general rules of spellcasting and chapter 11 for the sorcerer spell list.

Cantrips

At 1st level, you know three cantrips of your choice from the sorcerer spell list. You learn an additional sorcerer cantrip of your choice at 10th level.

Spell Slots

The Dragon Monk table shows how many sorcerer spell slots you have to cast your spells of 1st level and higher. To cast one of these sorcerer Spells, you must expend a slot of the spell's level or higher. You regain all expended spell slots when you finish a Long Rest.

For example, if you know the 1st-level spell Burning Hands and have a 1st-level and a 2nd-level spell slot available, you can cast Burning Hands using either slot.

Spells Known of 1st Level and Higher

You know two 1st-level Spells of your choice from the sorcerer spell list.

You learn an additional sorcerer spell of your choice at each level except 12th, 14th, 16th, 18th, 19th, and 20th. Each of these Spells must be of a level for which you have Spell Slots. For instance, when you reach 3rd level in this class, you can learn one new spell of 1st or 2nd level.

Additionally, when you gain a level in this class, you can choose one of the dragon monk Spells you know and replace it with another spell from the dragon monk spell list, which also must be of a level for which you have Spell Slots.

Spellcasting Ability

Wisdom is your spellcasting ability for your sorcerer spells, since the power of your magic relies on your understanding of your nature as the descendant of dragons. You use your Wisdom whenever a spell refers to your spellcasting ability. In addition, you use your Wisdom modifier when setting the saving throw DC for a sorcerer spell you cast and when making an attack roll with one.

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

Spell Attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier

Spellcasting Focus

You can use an arcane focus as a spellcasting focus for your sorcerer Spells.

Sorcerous Origin

Your sorcerous origin is Draconic Bloodline.

Your choice grants you features when you choose it at 1st level and again at 6th, 14th, and 18th level.

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

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.
• 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.

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 and sorcery effects. You start knowing four such features: Flexible Casting, 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 Long Rest, at the end of which you draw all of your expended ki back into yourself.

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

Flexible Casting

You can use your ki points to gain additional Spell Slots, or sacrifice Spell Slots to gain additional ki points. You learn other ways to use your ki points as you reach higher levels.

Creating Spell Slots. You can transform unexpended ki points into one spell slot as a Bonus Action on Your Turn. The created Spell Slots Vanish at the end of a Long Rest. The Creating Spell Slots table shows the cost of creating a spell slot of a given level. You can create Spell Slots no higher in level than 5th.

Converting a Spell Slot to ki points. As a Bonus Action on Your Turn, you can expend one spell slot and gain a number of ki points equal to the slot's level.

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 Dragon Monk levels as shown in the Dragon Monk table.

Metamagic

At 3rd level, you gain the ability to twist your Spells to suit your needs. You gain one of the following Metamagic options of your choice. You gain another one at 11th level.

You can use only one Metamagic option on a spell when you cast it, unless otherwise noted.

Careful Spell

When you Cast a Spell that forces other creatures to make a saving throw, you can protect some of those creatures from the spell’s full force. To do so, you spend 1 ki point and choose a number of those creatures up to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of one creature). A chosen creature automatically succeeds on its saving throw against the spell.

Distant Spell

When you Cast a Spell that has a range of 5 feet or greater, you can spend 1 ki point to double the range of the spell.

When you Cast a Spell that has a range of touch, you can spend 1 ki point to make the range of the spell 30 feet.

Empowered Spell

When you roll damage for a spell, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll a number of the damage dice up to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of one). You must use the new rolls.

You can use Empowered Spell even if you have already used a different Metamagic option during the casting of the spell.

Extended Spell

When you Cast a Spell that has a Duration of 1 minute or longer, you can spend 1 ki point to double its Duration, to a maximum Duration of 24 hours.

Heightened Spell

When you Cast a Spell that forces a creature to make a saving throw to resist its effects, you can spend 3 ki points to give one target of the spell disadvantage on its first saving throw made against the spell.

Quickened Spell

When you Cast a Spell that has a Casting Time of 1 action, you can spend 2 ki points to change the Casting Time to 1 Bonus Action for this casting.

Subtle Spell

When you Cast a Spell, you can spend 1 ki point to cast it without any somatic or verbal Components.

Twinned Spell

When you Cast a Spell that Targets only one creature and doesn’t have a range of self, you can spend a number of ki points equal to the spell’s level to target a second creature in range with the same spell (1 ki point if the spell is a cantrip).

To be eligible, a spell must be incapable of targeting more than one creature at the spell’s current level. For example, Magic Missile and Scorching Ray aren’t eligible, but Ray of Frost is.

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.

Extra Attack

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

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.

Purity of Body

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

Draconic Soul

At 13th level, whenever you make a saving throw and fail, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll it and take the second result.

Perfect Soul

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

Sorcerous Origins

Different dragon monks claim different origins for their innate magic, such as a draconic bloodline.

Draconic Bloodline

Your innate magic comes from draconic magic that was mingled with your blood or that of your ancestors. Most often, dragon monks with this origin trace their descent back to a mighty dragon monk of ancient times who made a bargain with a dragon or who might even have claimed a dragon parent. Some of these bloodlines are well established in the world, but most are obscure. Any given dragon monk could be the first of a new bloodline, as a result of a pact or some other exceptional circumstance.

Dragon Ancestor

At 1st level, you choose one type of dragon as your ancestor. The damage type associated with each dragon is used by features you gain later.

You can speak, read, and write Draconic. Additionally, whenever you make a Wisdom check when interacting with dragons, your proficiency bonus is doubled if it applies to the check.

Draconic Resilience

As magic flows through your body, it causes physical traits of your dragon ancestors to emerge. At 1st level, your hit point maximum increases by 1 and increases by 1 again whenever you gain a level in this class.

Additionally, parts of your skin are covered by a thin sheen of dragon-like scales. When you aren’t wearing armor, your AC equals 13 + your Dexterity modifier.

Elemental Affinity

Starting at 6th level, when you Cast a Spell that deals damage of the type associated with your draconic ancestry, you can add your Wisdom modifier to one damage roll of that spell. At the same time, you can spend 1 ki point to gain Resistance to that damage type for 1 hour.

Dragon Wings

At 14th level, you gain the ability to sprout a pair of dragon wings from your back, gaining a flying speed equal to your current speed. You can create these wings as a Bonus Action on Your Turn. They last until you dismiss them as a Bonus Action on Your Turn.

You can’t manifest your wings while wearing armor unless the armor is made to accommodate them, and clothing not made to accommodate your wings might be destroyed when you manifest them.

Draconic Presence

Beginning at 18th level, you can channel the dread presence of your dragon ancestor, causing those around you to become awestruck or Frightened. As an action, you can spend 5 ki points to draw on this power and exude an aura of awe or fear (your choice) to a distance of 60 feet. For 1 minute or until you lose your Concentration (as if you were casting a Concentration spell), each hostile creature that starts its turn in this aura must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be Charmed (if you chose awe) or Frightened (if you chose fear) until the aura ends. A creature that succeeds on this saving throw is immune to your aura for 24 hours.

References