Monk, Alternative Variant (5e Class)

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W.I.P.

Monk, Alternative Variant

Alternative Universe

Welcome to the universe where every class is alternative. Each class has alternative features and ability to mimic its switched counterpart. Warlocks are divine spell casters granted by Gods. Clerics are eldritch spell casters created from deals with higher powers. Barbarians are calm and strike at perfect type. Monks are brutes that charge into battle. Wizards study the powerful meta magic while sorcerers specialize in a school of magic. Fighters are dirty fighters and rogues are master of the blade. Druids are charming meanwhile Bards are protector of nature. Artificers uncover the mysteries of nature and rangers study technology to improve themselves. Paladins learn the art of blood letting. Blood hunters gain divine powers.

Brute Monks

Monks from the Alternative universe are very similar to barbarian with monk features. Monks are strong people that use their muscles and fist to solve problems. They are no normal meat heads. Monks use ki to bash enemies into the ground. These powerhouses are something to fear.

Creating a Monk, Alternative Variant

When creating a monk character, think about where your character comes from and his or her place in the world. Talk with your DM about an appropriate origin for your barbarian. Did you come from a distant land, making you a stranger in the area of the campaign? Or is the campaign set in a rough-and-tumble frontier where monks are common?

What led you to take up the adventuring life? Were you lured to settled lands by the promise of riches? Did you join forces with soldiers of those lands to face a shared threat? Did monsters or an invading horde drive you out of your homeland, making you a rootless refugee? Or you might have been cast out from your people because of a crime you committed, a taboo you violated, or a coup that removed you from a position of authority.

Quick build

You can make a Monk, Alternative Variant quickly by following these suggestions. First, Strength should be your highest ability score, followed by Constitution. Second, choose the outlander background. Third, choose <!-elaborate on equipment choices->

Class Features

As a monk, Alternative variant you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d8 per monk, Alternative variant level
Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + Constitution modifier
Hit Points at Higher Levels: 1d8 (or 5) + Constitution modifier per monk, Alternative variant level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: Light armor, medium armor
Weapons: Simple weapons, longsword
Tools: Choose one type of artisan's tools or one musical instrument
Saving Throws: Strength, Wisdom
Skills: Choose two from Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Religion, and Stealth

Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) a longsword or (b) any simple weapon
• (a) a dungeoneer's pack or (b) an explorer's pack
• 3 javelins

Table: The monk, Alternative variant

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Brawl	Fury Points	Momentum	Features
1st	+2	1d4	—	—	Armored Defense, Brawl
2nd	+2	1d4	2	+10 ft.	Fury, Momentum Control
3rd	+2	1d4	3	+10 ft.	Primal Path, Block Weapons
4th	+2	1d4	4	+10 ft.	Ability Score Improvement, Slow Fall
5th	+3	1d6	5	+10 ft.	Extra Attack, Stunning Strike
6th	+3	1d6	6	+15 ft.	Fury-Empowered Strikes, Primal Path Feature
7th	+3	1d6	7	+15 ft.	Endure, Weaken the Mind
8th	+3	1d6	8	+15 ft.	Ability Score Improvement
9th	+4	1d6	9	+15 ft.	Momentum Control improvement
10th	+4	1d6	10	+20 ft.	Primal Path Feature
11th	+4	1d8	11	+20 ft.	Purity of Body
12th	+4	1d8	12	+20 ft.	Ability Score Improvement
13th	+5	1d8	13	+20 ft.	Tongue of the Sun and Moon
14th	+5	1d8	14	+25 ft.	Primal Path Feature
15th	+5	1d8	15	+25 ft.	Diamond Soul
16th	+5	1d8	16	+25 ft.	Ability Score Improvement
17th	+6	1d10	17	+25 ft.	Timeless Body
18th	+6	1d10	18	+30 ft.	Empty Body
19th	+6	1d10	19	+30 ft.	Ability Score Improvement
20th	+6	1d10	20	+30 ft.	Perfect Self

Armored Defense

Beginning at 1st level, while you are wearing light or medium armor and not wielding a shield, you can add your Constitution modifier, instead of your Dexterity, to your AC.

Brawl

At 1st level, your practice of martial arts gives you mastery of combat styles that use unarmed strikes and monk weapons, which are longswords 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 Strength instead of Dexterity 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.

Fury

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

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

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

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

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

Single Blow

When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack using Strength, you can spend 1 Fury point as a bonus action to force the target to make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the creature take damage equal to two rolls of your brawl die + twice your Strength modifier.

Reckless Offense

You can spend 1 Fury point as a bonus action to gain advantage on all attack rolls made until the start of your next turn. You must use your Strength for these attacks.

Step of the Wind

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

Fury

You can spend 1 Fury as a bonus action to gain the following benefits until the start of your next turn:

• You gain advantage on your Strength checks and saving throws.
• You have resistance to slashing, piercing and bludgeoning damage.
• You gain a bonus to your damage rolls based on Strength equal to your Brawl die.

Momentum Control

Starting at 2nd level, whenever an effect causes you to move unwillingly, you can reduce that movement by an amount equal to the amount shown on the Momentum column on the Monk, Alternative table.

In addition, once per turn, you can charge towards a creature and make an attack. On a hit, that creature is pushed back by an amount equal to the distance moved by you before making the attack, up to your Immovable number (10 feet when you gain this feature). At 9th level, when using this charge, you can push the target to any direction (including upwards).

Block Weapons

Starting at 3rd level, you can use your reaction to block or parry a weapon when you are hit by a melee attack with a weapon. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Strength modifier + your monk level.

If you reduce the damage to 0, you can parry the weapon if the attacker is Large sized or lower and you are wielding a weapon in two hands. If you parry a weapon in this way, you can spend 1 rage point to make a melee weapon attack against the attacker, as part of the same reaction.

Primal Path

At 3rd level, you choose a path that shapes the nature of your rage. Your choice grants you features at 3rd level and again at 6th, 11th, and 17th levels.

Primal Path Feature

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.

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 Fury 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.

Fury-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.

Endurance

At 7th level, 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.

Weaken the Mind

Starting at 7th level, you can use your action to cause a creature that gazes your eyes to sense fear or awe. Choose any creature you can see that is able to see you, and force that creature to make a Wisdom saving throw against your Fury save DC. On a failed save, the creature is charmed or frightened until the end of your next turn.

Purity of Body

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

Tongue of the Sun and Moon

Starting at 13th level, you learn to touch the rage 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 15th level, your mastery of rage grants you proficiency in all saving throws.

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

Timeless Body

At 15th level, your rage 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.

Empty Body

Beginning at 18th level, you can use your action to spend 4 Fury 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 Fury points to cast the astral projection spell, without needing material components. When you do so, you can't take any other creatures with you.

Angry Self

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

Primal Path

Rage burns in every monk’s heart, a furnace that drives him or her toward greatness. Different monks attribute their rage to different sources, however. For some, it is an internal reservoir where pain, grief, and anger are forged into a fury hard as steel. Others see it as a spiritual blessing, a gift of a totem animal.

You can choose the primal paths available to the Barbarian class, with the following changes:

• You gain the 10th level feature at 11th level.
• You gain the 14th level feature at 17th level.

Primal Traditions

Primal traditions are variants of the monastic traditions available to the monk class, with the appropriated thematic changes.

Way of the Clenched Fist

Clenched Fist Technique

Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you can manipulate and harness your own rage. Whenever you hit a creature with your Single Blow, 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.

Frailness of Body

At 6th level, you gain the ability to harm your enemies. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can cause additional damage equal to three times your monk level. You must finish a long rest before you can use this feature again.

Turbulence

Beginning at 11th level, you can enter a special state of boiling rage that surrounds you with an aura of violence when you finish a long rest. Whenever a hostile creature tries to take an action that is not an Attack action, it must succeed on a Wisdom save (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Constitution modifier) or that action is lost.

This effect lasts until you take an action on your turn that is not the Attack action.

Unflinching Fist

At 17th level, you gain the ability recover your own vitality by gritting your teeth and clenching your fist, tensing your muscles. When you are hit by a melee attack, you can spend 3 rage points to start this muscle tension, which last for a number of days equal to your monk level. The tension have no effect unless you are reduced to 0 hit points.

When you are reduced to 0 hit points,you can use your reaction to release the tension, regaining 10d10 hit points.

Multiclassing

You cannot multiclass into or out to a class with Primal Paths (like barbarian)

Prerequisites. To qualify for multiclassing into the Monk, Alternative Variant class, you must meet these prerequisites: Strength 13 and Wisdom 13

Proficiencies. When you multiclass into the Monk, Alternative Variant class, you gain the following proficiencies: simple weapon and longsword.

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