I got approved to play this homebrew by my DM for an upcoming capaign, but I want to get some community opinions on balance for 5e - just to make sure the DM doesn't regret approving it. Here it is:
Way of the Soul Grip Monk (5e Homebrew)
The Soul Grip Monk is a master of wrestling and grappling arts, and harnesses the power of Ki to practice all forms of hand-to-hand combat with finesse. The Soul Grip monk uses Ki energy to extend the size and strength of their limbs and neutralize the physical resistance of their opponents in contests of strength. Dominating an opponent with skillful holds taps into the opponent’s own spiritual energy which the Soul Grip Monk can convert into enhanced attacks against the opponent.
3rd
Absolute Finesse: You may use Dexterity Acrobatics instead of Strength Athletics in Grapple and Shove checks, and similar contests in combat.
Ground and Pound: When you use Flurry of Blows (1 Ki), you may use a Grapple or Shove attack in place of one or both of the unarmed strikes granted by Flurry of Blows.
6th
Stunning Takedown: When you successfully initiate grapple on a creature, you may attempt a Stunning Strike (1 Ki). On a failed save, the target experiences the ordinary effects of Stunning Strike and will remain stunned after your next turn so long as it remains grappled. The target creature may make the saving throw once on each of its next turns after your next turn, on a successful save the creature is no longer stunned, breaks grapple, and ends its turn.
Human Shield: You are adept at protecting yourself bodily with the creatures unfortunate enough to be in your hold. You have an enhanced ability to create cover for yourself from attacks coming from the other side of a creature you are grappling, and may take Wisdom Insight checks to establish what, if any, cover a grappled creature provides. Additionally, If you are hit with an attack or spell that causes damage after using Patient Defense (1 Ki) on your last turn, you may use your reaction to have a creature you are grappling absorb damage inflicted by the attack up to the number of hit points the grappled creature currently has.
11th
Perfect Stance: You have Advantage on grapple checks when you initiate grapple on a creature, provided that you have all hands and legs free, are not effected by any condition, and are not equipped with armor or shield.
Carried by the Wind: Your limbs sail a spiritual wind to lighten your load. Whenever you use Step of the Wind (1 Ki) on your turn, your carrying capacity is doubled for that turn.
17th
Soul Grip: Use 4 Ki to extend Spiritual Energy from your limbs for one minute, allowing otherwise inconceivable feats of wrestling. You may grapple and shove creatures up to 2 sizes larger than you, and your grapple is Ki-empowered allowing you to grapple creatures otherwise immune from the grappled condition. For the duration of Soul Grip, your unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves have a Reach of 10 ft, and you have advantage on all rolls for unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves.
I like the idea of grapple, then stunning strike on an enemy that you are grappling becomes a take down. Take down's should include force damage. I competed in judo, and believe me, a hard take down hurts.
Ground and Pound - While flavorful, this doesn't seem to really do that much. Once you get Extra Attacks you can already Shove, Grapple, then FoB for two punches. This just lets you do it in a different order, or I suppose it lets you grapple and shove multiple creatures or get multiple chances to successfully grapple/shove one creature. Either way, I think this is situational enough to tack it on to Absolute Finesse and grant something else here.
Stunning Takedown - This is probably too much. Stun is already very powerful and extending its duration means the creature will probably never act again before it dies.
Suggested alternative - I might replace it with something that increases your chance to land Stunning Strike - maybe if something is grappled and prone, it has disadvantage on the CON save. Rather than making it more powerful, it just reduces the chances that it doesn't work, which is always frustrating.
Human Shield - The first half feels too complicated - creatures vary in the cover they grant and you need to make a check to figure it out? I feel like just making a grappled creature grant you cover would achieve what you're going for without a lot of extra stuff to remember/determine on the fly. The second half is just not going to happen often enough to build a feature around it. You have to have a creature grappled, you have to have used Patient Defense, you need to be attacked by a creature you're not grappling, and that creature needs to hit you despite the hindrances of cover and disadvantage. It's just too situational, and the better your defenses the less it will come up.
Suggested alternative - While you are grappling a creature, you can use your reaction to deflect a melee or ranged attack from a different creature with the same rules as Deflect Missiles. The grappled target takes half the damage you mitigated.
No objections to Perfect stance
Carried by the Wind - Again, this feels weirdly situational. How often do you need to carry something for one turn? If this is about being able to drag a grappled target better, I don't think this would do that. Instead you need to address the grappling rules directly.
Suggested alternative - Your speed is not halved when you move while grappling a creature. While this wouldn't directly upgrade SotW, it does work with it.
Soul Grip - My only complaint with this is that it comes too late. Especially for a small creature, the size limit on grapples is a huge limit on the fighting style and it's going to hurt long before 17th level. It's also expensive if you primarily just want to get your grapple to work against a huge creature.
Suggested alternative - I'd love to see a way to grapple things two sizes larger right out of the gate. Like when you make a grapple attack, you can expend a ki point to affect a creature one size larger than usual. I think this could be ok with the other stuff you have at level 3. Then maybe up it to two sizes for 2 ki later on.
For my revised Battlerager, I handled the size problem with this:
Giantslayer
10th-level Path of the Battlerager feature
Even the largest foes aren't safe from your savage embrace. When you succeed on a grapple check against a creature that is two or more sizes larger than you, instead of reducing its speed to zero you move into the target creature's space and cling to its body. As long as you maintain the grapple, you move with the target creature.
You can move around within the larger creature’s space, treating the space as difficult terrain, but you must first release the grapple to do so. If you end your turn within the target creature's space without successfully grappling it, or if your grapple is broken on another creature's turn, you immediately fall prone in an adjacent square.
The target creature can dislodge you as an action—knocking you off, scraping you against a wall, or grabbing and throwing you—by making a Strength (Athletics) check contested by your Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics) check (your choice). This ends the grapple.
This is basically just an easier way to initiate the Climb onto a Bigger Creature optional rules in the DMG, although those also give you advantage on attacks while you're on the creature. This can be a way to keep a grapple build viable without the weirdness of a medium monk locking down a gargantuan creature, but I think handwaving it "because ki" is valid as well.
I'm not sure where it might fit in, but one other concept I'd love to see in this would be a reversal move where a creature is grappling you and in one smooth action you reverse the grapple so that you're grappling it. Very martial-artsy. A bit situational based on the creatures you come across, but I have a barbarian player who loves to grapple and he ends up being grappled himself quite a bit.
Thank you for these incredibly helpful suggestions.
Human Shield: the language was the product of a negotiation with the DM, it was supposed to just grant cover when grappling, but DM said that kind of thing was too situational to set in stone. I like the idea of changing it to work more like deflect missile, that makes a lot of sense. I might take another crack at it with the DM.
Ground and Pound: Originally I wanted to just have the martial arts bonus action unarmed strike be able to be grapple or shove, but DM pointed out that that is a bit like giving the monk the Tavern Brawler and Shieldmaster feats for no cost. Fair enough, it's still useful enough at low levels that it is worth spending Ki on, and then situationally later on.
Stunning Takedown: Definitely the main deal with this build. My DM said it was okay because the target still makes a save against WIS, and the enemies can push their friends out of grapple to break stun, and a win on the save also breaks grapple. I don't know, it definitely saves Ki while doing your best class feature.
I I like the idea of being able to spend Ki to grapple larger creatures or eliminate grapple's movement reduction. I am going to try to work on that.
Here is a bit of a re-write based on your suggestions and others:
3rd
Absolute Finesse: You may use Dexterity Acrobatics instead of Strength Athletics in Grapple and Shove checks, and similar contests in combat.
Ground and Pound: When you use Flurry of Blows, you may use a Grapple or Shove attack in place of one or both of the unarmed strikes granted by Flurry of Blows.
6th
Stunning Takedown: When you successfully initiate grapple on a creature, you may attempt a Stunning Strike (1 Ki) where the target has disadvantage on the saving throw. So long as that creature remains stunned and in grapple it makes saving throws against Stunning Strike (1 Ki) at disadvantage.
Human Shield: You are adept at protecting yourself bodily with the creatures unfortunate enough to be in your hold. If you are hit with an attack or spell that causes damage while you are grappling a creature, you may spend 1 Ki to use your reaction to reduce your damage by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your monk level and have the grappled target suffer that damage instead. If you used Patient Defense (1 Ki) on your last turn, then you may use Human Shield as your reaction for not additional Ki cost.
11th
Perfect Stance: You have Advantage on grapple checks when you initiate grapple on a creature, provided that you have all hands and legs free, are not effected by any condition, and are not equipped with armor or shield. While in Perfect Stance you may spend 1 Ki to initiate Grapple on a creature 2 sizes larger than you, if successful and so long as it remains grappled, you may make shove and grapple checks against that creature as though it were the same size as you.
Carried by the Wind: Your limbs sail a spiritual wind to lighten your load. Whenever you use Step of the Wind (1 Ki) on your turn, your carrying capacity is doubled for that turn and you do not experience a reduction in movement speed while grappling.
17
Soul Grip: Use 4 Ki to extend Spiritual Energy from your limbs for one minute, allowing otherwise inconceivable feats of wrestling. You may grapple and shove creatures regardless of size, and your grapple is Ki-empowered allowing you to grapple creatures otherwise immune from the grappled condition. For the duration of Soul Grip, your unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves have a Reach of 10 ft, and you have advantage on all rolls for unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves.
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etyb
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I got approved to play this homebrew by my DM for an upcoming capaign, but I want to get some community opinions on balance for 5e - just to make sure the DM doesn't regret approving it. Here it is:
Way of the Soul Grip Monk (5e Homebrew)
The Soul Grip Monk is a master of wrestling and grappling arts, and harnesses the power of Ki to practice all forms of hand-to-hand combat with finesse. The Soul Grip monk uses Ki energy to extend the size and strength of their limbs and neutralize the physical resistance of their opponents in contests of strength. Dominating an opponent with skillful holds taps into the opponent’s own spiritual energy which the Soul Grip Monk can convert into enhanced attacks against the opponent.
3rd
Absolute Finesse: You may use Dexterity Acrobatics instead of Strength Athletics in Grapple and Shove checks, and similar contests in combat.
Ground and Pound: When you use Flurry of Blows (1 Ki), you may use a Grapple or Shove attack in place of one or both of the unarmed strikes granted by Flurry of Blows.
6th
Stunning Takedown: When you successfully initiate grapple on a creature, you may attempt a Stunning Strike (1 Ki). On a failed save, the target experiences the ordinary effects of Stunning Strike and will remain stunned after your next turn so long as it remains grappled. The target creature may make the saving throw once on each of its next turns after your next turn, on a successful save the creature is no longer stunned, breaks grapple, and ends its turn.
Human Shield: You are adept at protecting yourself bodily with the creatures unfortunate enough to be in your hold. You have an enhanced ability to create cover for yourself from attacks coming from the other side of a creature you are grappling, and may take Wisdom Insight checks to establish what, if any, cover a grappled creature provides. Additionally, If you are hit with an attack or spell that causes damage after using Patient Defense (1 Ki) on your last turn, you may use your reaction to have a creature you are grappling absorb damage inflicted by the attack up to the number of hit points the grappled creature currently has.
11th
Perfect Stance: You have Advantage on grapple checks when you initiate grapple on a creature, provided that you have all hands and legs free, are not effected by any condition, and are not equipped with armor or shield.
Carried by the Wind: Your limbs sail a spiritual wind to lighten your load. Whenever you use Step of the Wind (1 Ki) on your turn, your carrying capacity is doubled for that turn.
17th
Soul Grip: Use 4 Ki to extend Spiritual Energy from your limbs for one minute, allowing otherwise inconceivable feats of wrestling. You may grapple and shove creatures up to 2 sizes larger than you, and your grapple is Ki-empowered allowing you to grapple creatures otherwise immune from the grappled condition. For the duration of Soul Grip, your unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves have a Reach of 10 ft, and you have advantage on all rolls for unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves.
etyb
I like the idea of grapple, then stunning strike on an enemy that you are grappling becomes a take down. Take down's should include force damage. I competed in judo, and believe me, a hard take down hurts.
Absolute Finesse looks good to me.
Ground and Pound - While flavorful, this doesn't seem to really do that much. Once you get Extra Attacks you can already Shove, Grapple, then FoB for two punches. This just lets you do it in a different order, or I suppose it lets you grapple and shove multiple creatures or get multiple chances to successfully grapple/shove one creature. Either way, I think this is situational enough to tack it on to Absolute Finesse and grant something else here.
Stunning Takedown - This is probably too much. Stun is already very powerful and extending its duration means the creature will probably never act again before it dies.
Suggested alternative - I might replace it with something that increases your chance to land Stunning Strike - maybe if something is grappled and prone, it has disadvantage on the CON save. Rather than making it more powerful, it just reduces the chances that it doesn't work, which is always frustrating.
Human Shield - The first half feels too complicated - creatures vary in the cover they grant and you need to make a check to figure it out? I feel like just making a grappled creature grant you cover would achieve what you're going for without a lot of extra stuff to remember/determine on the fly. The second half is just not going to happen often enough to build a feature around it. You have to have a creature grappled, you have to have used Patient Defense, you need to be attacked by a creature you're not grappling, and that creature needs to hit you despite the hindrances of cover and disadvantage. It's just too situational, and the better your defenses the less it will come up.
Suggested alternative - While you are grappling a creature, you can use your reaction to deflect a melee or ranged attack from a different creature with the same rules as Deflect Missiles. The grappled target takes half the damage you mitigated.
No objections to Perfect stance
Carried by the Wind - Again, this feels weirdly situational. How often do you need to carry something for one turn? If this is about being able to drag a grappled target better, I don't think this would do that. Instead you need to address the grappling rules directly.
Suggested alternative - Your speed is not halved when you move while grappling a creature. While this wouldn't directly upgrade SotW, it does work with it.
Soul Grip - My only complaint with this is that it comes too late. Especially for a small creature, the size limit on grapples is a huge limit on the fighting style and it's going to hurt long before 17th level. It's also expensive if you primarily just want to get your grapple to work against a huge creature.
Suggested alternative - I'd love to see a way to grapple things two sizes larger right out of the gate. Like when you make a grapple attack, you can expend a ki point to affect a creature one size larger than usual. I think this could be ok with the other stuff you have at level 3. Then maybe up it to two sizes for 2 ki later on.
For my revised Battlerager, I handled the size problem with this:
This is basically just an easier way to initiate the Climb onto a Bigger Creature optional rules in the DMG, although those also give you advantage on attacks while you're on the creature. This can be a way to keep a grapple build viable without the weirdness of a medium monk locking down a gargantuan creature, but I think handwaving it "because ki" is valid as well.
I'm not sure where it might fit in, but one other concept I'd love to see in this would be a reversal move where a creature is grappling you and in one smooth action you reverse the grapple so that you're grappling it. Very martial-artsy. A bit situational based on the creatures you come across, but I have a barbarian player who loves to grapple and he ends up being grappled himself quite a bit.
My homebrew subclasses (full list here)
(Artificer) Swordmage | Glasswright | (Barbarian) Path of the Savage Embrace
(Bard) College of Dance | (Fighter) Warlord | Cannoneer
(Monk) Way of the Elements | (Ranger) Blade Dancer
(Rogue) DaggerMaster | Inquisitor | (Sorcerer) Riftwalker | Spellfist
(Warlock) The Swarm
Thank you for these incredibly helpful suggestions.
Human Shield: the language was the product of a negotiation with the DM, it was supposed to just grant cover when grappling, but DM said that kind of thing was too situational to set in stone. I like the idea of changing it to work more like deflect missile, that makes a lot of sense. I might take another crack at it with the DM.
Ground and Pound: Originally I wanted to just have the martial arts bonus action unarmed strike be able to be grapple or shove, but DM pointed out that that is a bit like giving the monk the Tavern Brawler and Shieldmaster feats for no cost. Fair enough, it's still useful enough at low levels that it is worth spending Ki on, and then situationally later on.
Stunning Takedown: Definitely the main deal with this build. My DM said it was okay because the target still makes a save against WIS, and the enemies can push their friends out of grapple to break stun, and a win on the save also breaks grapple. I don't know, it definitely saves Ki while doing your best class feature.
I I like the idea of being able to spend Ki to grapple larger creatures or eliminate grapple's movement reduction. I am going to try to work on that.
etyb
Here is a bit of a re-write based on your suggestions and others:
3rd
Absolute Finesse: You may use Dexterity Acrobatics instead of Strength Athletics in Grapple and Shove checks, and similar contests in combat.
Ground and Pound: When you use Flurry of Blows, you may use a Grapple or Shove attack in place of one or both of the unarmed strikes granted by Flurry of Blows.
6th
Stunning Takedown: When you successfully initiate grapple on a creature, you may attempt a Stunning Strike (1 Ki) where the target has disadvantage on the saving throw. So long as that creature remains stunned and in grapple it makes saving throws against Stunning Strike (1 Ki) at disadvantage.
Human Shield: You are adept at protecting yourself bodily with the creatures unfortunate enough to be in your hold. If you are hit with an attack or spell that causes damage while you are grappling a creature, you may spend 1 Ki to use your reaction to reduce your damage by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your monk level and have the grappled target suffer that damage instead. If you used Patient Defense (1 Ki) on your last turn, then you may use Human Shield as your reaction for not additional Ki cost.
11th
Perfect Stance: You have Advantage on grapple checks when you initiate grapple on a creature, provided that you have all hands and legs free, are not effected by any condition, and are not equipped with armor or shield. While in Perfect Stance you may spend 1 Ki to initiate Grapple on a creature 2 sizes larger than you, if successful and so long as it remains grappled, you may make shove and grapple checks against that creature as though it were the same size as you.
Carried by the Wind: Your limbs sail a spiritual wind to lighten your load. Whenever you use Step of the Wind (1 Ki) on your turn, your carrying capacity is doubled for that turn and you do not experience a reduction in movement speed while grappling.
17
Soul Grip: Use 4 Ki to extend Spiritual Energy from your limbs for one minute, allowing otherwise inconceivable feats of wrestling. You may grapple and shove creatures regardless of size, and your grapple is Ki-empowered allowing you to grapple creatures otherwise immune from the grappled condition. For the duration of Soul Grip, your unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves have a Reach of 10 ft, and you have advantage on all rolls for unarmed strikes, grapples, and shoves.
etyb