Way of the Shifting Flow (5e Subclass)
Way of the Shifting Flow[edit]
Monastic tradition
Followers of the Way of the Shifting Flow hold that murder corrupts one’s karma, and that mercy should be considered for even one’s bitterest enemies. When forced to fight, these monks turn a creature’s own life energy against them. A creature’s ki collects in nodes on the body called chakras, which serve to disperse and regulate the creature’s energy.Initiates can sense the flow of ki, and when they strike at a creature’s chakra points, the creature loses control of its fighting energy. The most powerful of these monks need not kill a vanquished foe, for such monks can remove a vanquished foe’s ability to fight...permanently.
- Disrupt Ki
Starting when you choose this discipline at 3rd level, your attacks pinpoint your enemies’ chakras, disrupting their offensive capabilities. Whenever you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to disrupt that creature’s ki until the end of its next turn.
While a creature’s ki is disrupted, it suffers the following penalties:
- It cannot spend ki points or superiority dice.
- It has disadvantage on attack rolls.
- Its save DCs are reduced by 5.
- Block Ki
Starting at 6th level, when you use Disrupt Ki, you may instead spend 2 ki points to make the effect last longer. While the target’s ki is disrupted, it must make a Constitution saving throw at the end of each of its turns. The target’s ki remains disrupted until it succeeds on the saving throw.
- Demanifestation
Starting at 11th level, you become so attune at tracking the flow of mystical energy, that you can manipulate your ki to disrupt magic. You learn detect magic if you do not already know it, and may cast it at will. Additionally, you may spend 4 ki points to cast either dispel magic or remove curse as an action, or counterspell as a reaction.
- Sever Energy
Starting at 17th level, you gain the ability to permanently damage a creature’s chakras. When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you can spend 5 ki points to sever creature’s connection to magical and fighting energy. The creature must a Constitution saving throw.
On a failure, the target’s ki is severed, which means:
- The creature cannot make attacks.
- The creature also cannot cast spells or use magical capabilities that require a save or make an attack. Any attempt to use these offensive capabilities automatically fail, and the creature loses any actions involved.
- If the creature causes damage by other means, it takes twice as much psychic damage in return.
The creature’s ki is severed permanently, unless you restore the creature’s ki within three days. If you and the creature are on the same plane, you may restore its ki as an action, which ends the effect harmlessly. The creature’s ki can also be restored by a wish or miracle spell cast within a week.
On a success, instead the creature’s ki is disrupted, and it must make a Constitution saving throw at the end of each of its turns, and it has disadvantage on such saving throws. The target’s ki remains disrupted until it succeeds on the saving throw.
You must wait three days or restore the creature’s ki to use this feature again.
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