Monks use rigorous combat training and mental discipline to align themselves with the multiverse and tap into internal reservoirs of power. Different Monks conceptualize this power in various ways: as breath, energy, life force, essence, or self, for example. Whether channelled as a striking display of martial prowess or as a subtler focus of defence and speed, this power infuses all that a Monk does.
hit dice:
1d8
hit points at 1st level:
1d8
hit points at higher levels:
1d8
armor proficiencies:
None
weapon proficiencies:
Simple weapons and Martial weapons that have the Light property
tools:
Choose one type of Artisan’s Tool or Musical Instrument
saving throws:
Strength and Dexterity
skills:
Choose 2: Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Religion, or Stealth
starting equipment:
Choose A or B:
- (A) Spear, 5 Daggers, Artisan’s Tools or Musical Instrument (same as above), Explorer’s Pack, and 11 gp
- (B) 50 gp
spellcasting:
None
class features:
Level 1: Martial Arts
Your practice of martial arts gives you mastery of combat styles that use your Unarmed Strike and Monk Weapons, which are the following:
- Simple Melee Weapons
- Martial Weapons that have the Light property
You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only Monk Weapons and you aren’t wearing armour or wielding a Shield:
Bonus Unarmed Strike: You can make one Unarmed Strike as a Bonus Action.
Dexterous Attacks: You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for the attack and damage rolls of your Unarmed Strikes and Monk Weapons. In addition, when you choose the Grapple or Shove option, you can use your Dexterity modifier instead of Strength to determine the saving throw DC.
Martial Arts Die: You can roll a d6 in place of the normal damage of your Unarmed Strike or Monk Weapons. This die changes as you gain Monk levels, as shown in the Martial Arts column of the Monk table.
Level 1: Unarmoured Defence
While you aren’t wearing any armour or wielding a Shield, your base Armor Class equals 10 plus your Dexterity and Wisdom modifiers.
Level 2: Monk's Focus
Your self-discipline and martial training allow you to harness a well of extraordinary energy within yourself. Your access to this energy is represented by a number of Focus Points. Your Monk level determines the number of points you have, as shown in the Focus Points column of the Monk table.
You can spend these points to fuel certain Monk features. You start knowing three such features: Flurry of Blows, Patient Defence, and Step of the Wind, each of which is detailed below.
When you spend a Focus Point, it is unavailable until you finish a Short Rest or Long Rest, at the end of which you regain all your expended points.
Some features that use Focus Points require your target to make a saving throw. The saving throw DC equals 8 plus your Proficiency Bonus plus your Wisdom modifier.
Flurry of Blows: You can spend 1 Focus Point to make two Unarmed Strikes as a Bonus Action.
Patient Defence: You can take the Disengage action as a Bonus Action. Alternatively, you can spend 1 Focus Point to take both the Disengage and the Dodge actions as a Bonus Action.
Step of the Wind: You can take the Dash action as a Bonus Action. Alternatively, you can spend 1 Focus Point to take both the Disengage and Dash actions as a Bonus Action, and your jump distance is doubled for the turn.
Level 2: Unarmoured Movement
Your speed increases by 10 feet while you aren’t wearing armour or wielding a Shield. This bonus increases when you reach certain Monk levels, as shown on the Monk table.
Level 2: Uncanny Metabolism
When you roll Initiative, you can regain all expended Focus Points. When you do so, roll your Martial Arts die, and regain a number of Hit Points equal to your Monk level plus the number rolled.
Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a Long Rest.
Level 3: Deflect Attacks
You can use your Reaction to deflect melee and ranged attacks against you that deal Bludgeoning, Piercing, or Slashing damage. When you do so, the total damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 plus your Dexterity modifier plus your Monk level.
If you reduce the damage to 0, you can spend 1 Focus Point to redirect some of the attack’s force. If you do so, choose a creature within 5 feet of you if the attack was a melee attack or 60 feet of yourself that isn’t behind Total Cover if the attack was a ranged attack. That creature must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take damage equal to two rolls of your Martial Arts die plus your Dexterity modifier. The damage is the same type dealt by the attack.
Level 3: Monk Subclass
You gain a Monk subclass of your choice: Warrior of Mercy, Warrior of Shadow, Warrior of the Four Elements, or Warrior of the Open Hand. Subclasses are detailed after this class’s description.
A subclass is a specialization that grants you special abilities at certain Monk levels. For the rest of your career, you gain each of your subclass’s features that are of your Monk level and lower.
Level 4: Ability Score Improvement
You gain the Ability Score Improvement feat or another feat of your choice for which you qualify.
As shown on the Monk table, you gain this feature again at levels 8, 12, and 16.
Level 4: Slow Fall
You can use your Reaction when you fall to reduce any damage you take from the fall by an amount equal to five times your Monk level.
Level 5: Extra Attack
You can attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn.
Level 5: Stunning Strike
Once per turn when you hit a creature with a Monk Weapon or an Unarmed Strike, you can spend 1 Focus Point to attempt a stunning strike. The target must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the target has the Stunned condition until the start of your next turn. On a successful save, it's speed is halved until the start of yor next turn and the next attack roll made against it has Advantage.
Level 6: Empowered Strikes
Whenever you deal damage with your Unarmed Strike, it can deal your choice of Force damage or its normal damage type.
Level 7: Evasion
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.
You don’t benefit from this feature if you have the Incapacitated condition.
Level 9: Acrobatic Movement
While you aren’t wearing armour or wielding a Shield, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during the movement.
Level 10: Heightened Focus
Your training has pushed your body and mind to new levels. Your Flurry of Blows, Patient Defence, and Step of the Wind gain the following benefits:
Flurry of Blows: You can spend 1 Focus Point to use Flurry of Blows and make three Unarmed Strikes with it instead of two.
Patient Defence: When you spend a Focus Point to use Patient Defence, you gain a number of Temporary Hit Points equal to two rolls of your Martial Arts die.
Step of the Wind: When you spend a Focus Point to use Step of the Wind, you can choose a willing creature within 5 feet of you that is Large or smaller. You move the creature with you until the end of your turn. The creature’s movement doesn’t provoke Opportunity Attacks.
Level 10: Self-Restoration
Through sheer force of will, you can remove one of the following conditions from yourself at the end of each of your turns: Charmed, Frightened, or Poisoned.
In addition, forgoing food and drink doesn’t give you levels of Exhaustion.
Level 13: Deflect Energy
You can now use your Deflect Attacks feature against attacks that deal any damage type, not just Bludgeoning, Piercing, or Slashing.
Level 14: Disciplined Survivor
Your physical and mental discipline grant you proficiency in all saving throws.
Additionally, whenever you make a saving throw and fail, you can spend 1 Focus Point to reroll it and take the second result.
Level 15: Perfect Focus
When you roll Initiative and have 3 Focus Points or fewer, you regain expended Focus Points until you have 4.
Level 18: Superior Defence
At the start of your turn, you can spend 3 Focus Points to perfectly bolster yourself against harm for 1 minute or until you have the Incapacitated condition. During that time, you have resistance to all damage except Force damage.
Level 19: Epic Boon
You gain an Epic Boon feat or another feat of your choice for which you qualify. Boon of Irreversible Offense is recommended.
Level 20: Body and Mind
You have honed your body and mind to new heights. Your Dexterity and Wisdom scores increase by 4. Your maximum for those scores is now 25.
subclass options:
A Monk subclass is a specialization that grants you special abilities at certain levels, as specified in the subclass. This section presents the following subclasses: Warrior of the Elements, Warrior of the Open Hand, and Warrior of Shadow.
Warrior of Shadow
Monk Warrior of Shadow DnD 2024 Warriors of Shadow practice stealth and subterfuge, channeling their reservoirs of power to harness the power of the Shadowfell. They are at home in darkness, able to draw gloom around themselves to hide, to leap from shadow to shadow, and even to take on a wraithlike form of living shadow.
Level 3: Shadow Arts
Through rigorous training, you have learned to draw on the power of the Shadowfell, gaining the following benefits:
Darkness: You can spend 1 Focus Point to cast the Darkness spell without any spell components. You can see within the spell’s area when you cast it with this feature. While the spell persists, you can move its area of darkness to a space within 60 feet of you at the start of each of your turns.
Darkvision: You gain Darkvision with a range of 60 feet. If you already have Darkvision, its range increases by 60 feet.
Shadowy Figments: You know the Minor Illusion cantrip and use Wisdom as the spellcasting ability for it.
Level 6: Shadow Step
While entirely within Dim Light or Darkness, you can use a Bonus Action to teleport up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space you can see that is also in Dim Light or Darkness. You then have Advantage on the next melee attack you make before the end of the turn.
Level 11: Improved Shadow Step
You can draw on your connection to shadow to empower your teleportation. When you use your Shadow Step, you can spend 1 Focus Point to remove the requirement that you must start and end in Dim Light or Darkness for that use of the feature. As part of this Bonus Action, you can make an Unarmed Strike immediately after the teleportation.
Level 17: Cloak of Shadows
As a Bonus Action while entirely within Dim Light or Darkness, you can spend 3 Focus Points to shroud yourself with magical darkness for 1 minute, until you have the Incapacitated condition, or until you end your turn in Bright Light. While shrouded in darkness, you gain the following benefits:
Invisibility: You have the Invisible condition.
Partially Incorporeal: You can move through creatures and objects as if they were difficult terrain, but you take 1d10 Force damage if you end your turn inside a creature or an object.
Shadow Flurry: You can use your Flurry of Blows without spending any Focus Points.
Warrior of the Elements
Monk Warrior of the Elements DnD 2024The tradition of the Four Elements encompasses Monks who tap into the power of the Elemental Planes through their practice of martial arts. Some of these Monks focus on a single element, learning to wreathe their fists in fire and cause explosive bursts of flame, or to wield mighty gusts of icy wind. Others weave the elements together and learn a variety of techniques to harness the appropriate elemental force for each particular circumstance.
Level 3: Elemental Attunement
At the start of your turn, you can spend 1 Focus Point to imbue yourself with elemental energy. The energy lasts for 10 minutes or until you have the Incapacitated condition. You gain the following benefits for the duration:
Elemental Strikes: Whenever you hit with your Unarmed Strike, you can cause it to deal your choice of Acid, Cold, Fire, or Lightning damage rather than its normal damage type. When you deal one of these types with your Unarmed Strike, you can also force the target to make a Strength saving throw. On a failed save, you can move the target up to 10 feet toward or away from you, as elemental energy swirls around it.
Reach: When you make an Unarmed Strike, your reach is 10 feet greater than normal, as elemental energy extends from you.
Level 3: Manipulate Elements
You have attuned yourself with the elemental forces of the multiverse. You know the Elementalism cantrip.
Level 6: Elemental Burst
As a Magic action, you can spend 2 Focus Points to cause environmental energy to burst in a 20-foot-radius sphere centered on a point within 120 feet of yourself. Choose a damage type: Acid, Cold, Fire, or Lightning.
Each creature in the sphere must make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed save, a creature takes damage of the chosen type equal to three rolls of your Martial Arts die. On a successful save, a creature takes half as much damage.
Before or after you take this action, you can make one Unarmed Strike as a Bonus Action.
Level 11: Stride of the Elements
When you use your Elemental Attunement feature, you gain a Fly Speed and Swim Speed equal to your Speed for 10 minutes.
Level 17: Elemental Epitome
When you use the Elemental Attunement feature, you also gain the following benefits for the duration:
Damage Resistance: You gain resistance to one of the following damage types of your choice: Acid, Cold, Fire, or Lightning. At the start of each of your turns, you can change this choice.
Destructive Stride: When you use your Step of the Wind, your Speed increases by 20 feet until the end of the turn. For that duration, any creature of your choice takes damage equal to one roll of your Martial Arts die when you enter a space within 5 feet of it. The damage is the same type you chose for this feature’s damage resistance. A creature can take this damage only once per turn.
Empowered Strikes: Once on each of your turns, you can deal extra damage to a target equal to one roll of your Martial Arts die when you hit it with an Unarmed Strike. The damage is the same type you chose for this feature’s damage resistance.
Warrior of the Open Hand
Warriors of the Open Hand are masters of unarmed combat. They learn techniques to push and trip their opponents and manipulate their own energy to protect themselves from harm.
Level 3: Open Hand Technique
Whenever you hit a creature with an attack granted by your Flurry of Blows, you can impose one of the following effects on that target:
Addle: The target can’t make Opportunity Attacks until the start of its next turn.
Push: The target must succeed on a Strength saving throw, or you push it up to 15 feet away from yourself.
Topple: The target must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw, or it has the Prone condition.
Level 6: Wholeness of Body
You gain the ability to heal yourself. As a Bonus Action, you can roll your Martial Arts die. You regain a number of Hit Points equal to the number rolled plus your Wisdom modifier (minimum of 1 Hit Point regained).
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum of once), and you regain all expended uses when you finish a Long Rest.
Level 11: Fleet Step
You can easily stride out of harm’s way. When you take a Bonus Action other than Step of the Wind, you can also use Step of the Wind as part of that Bonus Action.
Level 17: Quivering Palm
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 4 Focus 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. Alternatively, when you take the Attack action on your turn, you can replace one of the attacks with this action. To use this action, you and the target must be on the same plane of existence. When you use this action, the target must make a Constitution saving throw, taking 10d12 Force damage on a failed save or half as much damage on a successful one.
You can have only one creature under the effect of this feature at a time. You can end the vibrations harmlessly without using an action.
Level | Prof. Bonus | Class Features | Martial Arts | Focus Points | Unarmored Movement |
---|
1 | +2 | Martial Arts, Unarmored Defense | 1d6 | - | - |
2 | +2 | Monk's Focus, Unarmored Movement, Uncanny Metabolism | 1d6 | 2 | +10 ft. |
3 | +2 | Deflect Attacks, Monk Subclass | 1d6 | 3 | +10 ft. |
4 | +2 | Ability Score Improvement, Slow Fall | 1d6 | 4 | +10 ft. |
5 | +3 | Extra Attack, Stunning Strike | 1d8 | 5 | +10 ft. |
6 | +3 | Empowered Strikes, Subclass Feature | 1d8 | 6 | +15 ft. |
7 | +3 | Evasion | 1d8 | 7 | +15 ft. |
8 | +3 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d8 | 8 | +15 ft. |
9 | +4 | Acrobatic Movement | 1d8 | 9 | +15 ft. |
10 | +4 | Heightened Focus, Self-Restoration | 1d8 | 10 | +20 ft. |
11 | +4 | Subclass Feature | 1d10 | 11 | +20 ft. |
12 | +4 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d10 | 12 | +20 ft. |
13 | +5 | Deflect Energy | 1d10 | 13 | +20 ft. |
14 | +5 | Disciplined Survivor | 1d10 | 14 | +20 ft. |
15 | +5 | Perfect Focus | 1d10 | 15 | +25 ft. |
16 | +5 | Ability Score Improvement | 1d10 | 16 | +25 ft. |
17 | +6 | Subclass Feature | 1d12 | 17 | +25 ft. |
18 | +6 | Superior Defense | 1d12 | 18 | +30 ft. |
19 | +6 | Epic Boon | 1d12 | 19 | +30 ft. |
20 | +6 | Body and Mind | 1d12 | 20 | +30 ft. |