Way of the Chainweaver (5e Subclass)

Way of the Chainweaver

Monk Subclass

A Chainweaver specializes in channeling their ki through chain and whip-like weapons in order to restrain and manipulate foes during combat. A Chainweaver is a master of finesse and skill, utilizing their weapons with the same level of efficiency and precision as their limbs. In combat, a truly skilled Chainweaver can prevent their foes from ever being able to move or strike.

Path of the Chainweaver

When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, your special martial arts training leads you to master the use of chain and whip-like weapons. These can include spiked chains, flying blades, whips, nine-section whips, meteor hammers, flying talons, kusarigamas (chain kamas), kusarifundos, specialized wires, kyoketsu-shoges, or other similar weapons. You are now proficient with these weapons, and they become your Chainweaver weapons, which grant the following benefits:

• You gain proficiency with these weapons if you don't already have it, and they are now monk weapons for you.

• These weapons have the finesse and extended reach property, granting them an attack range of up to 20 feet.

• When making a grapple attack, you can utilize your Chainweaver weapon to assist you in grappling the target, allowing you to make the attack using a DEX (Acrobatics) check.

Chain Arts

Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you can now use your Chainweaver weapons instead of your arms or legs when using Flurry of Blows, and can now impose one of the following effects whenever you hit a creature with one of the attacks granted by your Flurry of Blows:

• Asphyxiate: A grappled or restrained target must succeed on a Dexterity Throw or take damage equal to your Martial Arts die at the end of each of its turns until it is no longer Grappled / Restrained. You can spend ki points to increase the damage dealt by this feature by additional damage die for each ki point spent. Until you or the target end the effects of this feature, you cannot attack with the Chainweaver weapon used to activate it.
  When you unlock the "Wire Sutures" feature, you can activate this feature with the same weapon used to activate "Wire Sutures"

• Heave: The target must succeed on a Strength saving throw or be pulled up to 20 feet in your direction. A prone creature has disadvantage on its saving throw.

• Trip: The target must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or be knocked prone.

Puppeteer

At 6th level, you have gained further mastery with manipulating your ki, granting you the following benefits:

Magic Chainweaver Weapons

Attacks with your chainweaver weapons count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.

Tripwire

By spending 1 ki point, you can take 1 minute placing cords or wires infused with your ki to create a trap to restrain a creature that triggers it. This feature functions identically to the "Snare" spell, with the added benefit that you can activate the spell by using a tripwire that extends up to 20 feet, instead of the standard circle with a 5-foot radius.

If this feature is never triggered, you can disarm the tripwire in order to regain the ki point spent.

Wire Sutures

On a successful attack with your Chainweaver weapons, you can spend 2 ki points to attempt to restrain a target from up to 20 feet away. The target must succeed on a Strength saving throw contested by your ki save DC or be restrained. A Large or Larger creature has advantage on this saving throw.

While restrained by this feature, the target takes piercing damage equal to your Martial Arts Die at the start of each of its turns. A creature restrained by your Chainweaver weapon or one that can touch the creature can use its action to make a Strength check against your ki save DC. On a success, the target is freed.

In order to maintain this feature, you must remain within 20 feet of the creature, and you cannot attack with the Chainweaver weapon used to make the attack until the target breaks free.

Chainsaw

At 11th level, are able to use your ki to create tiny serrations on your Chainweaver weapons that vibrate at extremely high speeds, causing your weapons to become even deadlier. As a bonus action, you can spend up to 3 ki points to grant the Chainweaver weapon(s) you are wielding a bonus to attack and damage rolls when you attack with them. The bonus equals the number of ki points you spent and lasts for 1 minute.

Soulthreads

At level 17, your mastery with Ki has become so great that you can now maintain the ki you have infused in your Chainweaver weapons, even when you have stopped wielding them. You no longer need to be wielding your Chainweaver weapons in order to keep targets under the effects of your features

Additionally, if a target breaks free from your grapple or restraints, you can spend 1 ki point to force your target to reroll their saving throw.

---

Back to Main Page → 5e Homebrew → Character Options → Subclasses