A variant of the Way of the Long Death, monks that follow this path understand the deep meaning of the concept of death. They have furthered their knowledge to guide their understanding of martial arts, perfecting a deadly fighting style.

Lessons of the Dead

When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you've learned much of the past through the deceased. You gain proficiency in the Investigation and Religion skills, and you gain proficiency with the war scythe, which can be considered a monk weapon for you.

Reaping the Rewards

Also at 3rd level, your study of death allows you to extract energy from another creature as it nears its demise. When a creature is reduced to 0 hit points in rounds equal to your Wisdom modifier after you have hit them with a melee weapon attack, you regain 1 ki point per creature.

Grim Presence

At 6th level, you gain the ability to unsettle or terrify those around you, for your soul has been touched by the shadow of death. As an action, each creature within 30 feet of you that can see you must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be frightened of you for turns equal to half your monk level.

A creature can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, with disadvantage if you are within line of sight, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature's saving throw is successful or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to your Grim Presence for the next 24 hours.

As a reaction, when a creature within 10 feet of you makes an attack roll, you can spend make the creature roll with disadvantage. Once you've used this ability, you cannot do so again until you finish a short or long rest, or spend another ki point.

Mastery of Death

Beginning at 11th level, you use your familiarity with death to escape its grasp. When you are reduced to 0 hit points, you can expend 1 ki point (no action required) to have 1 hit point instead.

Touch of Perfected Death

At 17th level, your mastery over death allows you to wither away creatures painlessly. For 2 actions, you can touch one creature within 5 feet of you and expend 3 ki points. The creature must make a Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the target dies and can be restored to life only by a wish spell. If it succeeds, the target takes 10d10 necrotic damage.

If you reduce the target's hit points to 0 with this feature after they succeed in their Constitution saving throw, you gain temporary hit points equal to the hit points that creature lost (minimum of 1 temporary hit point).

This feature can be countered by spells such as death ward, counterspell casted at 9th level or if it succeeds a DC 19 check, and similar spells.