Monstrous Compendium Vol. 1: Spelljammer Creatures
Frozen Sick
D&D Beyond Basic Rules
Basic Rules (2014)
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Kinetic Vanguard is a psionic Fighter subclass for players who like their combat decisions to feel meaningful. Every act in the game is a choice and I want to celebrate the freedom of choice that TTRPGs give. My design philosophy has always been "Let the player choose".
The core hook is Overload: before you roll, you declare how hard you're pushing. Hit and the full effect lands — but you take HP damage in return. Miss and nothing fires, nothing costs.
You pick one of three disciplines at 3rd level and that's your lane for the whole campaign. Cryokinesis is your lockdown path — ice, slow, CC, make things stop moving. Pyrokinesis is the nova path — stack fire, build to a big turn, leave a crater. Psychokinesis is the control path — shove, pull, float, reposition everything on the board. They play very differently at the table and that's intentional.
Beyond the discipline stuff, there's a universal toolkit that every Vanguard gets — a teleport step, a psionic shield, and a set of Advanced Training picks at higher levels that let you customize your late-game a bit. The whole thing is self-contained and runs off a short-rest Psi pool, so it doesn't step on the rest of your party.
It's been through a lot of revisions and playtesting at this point and I'm pretty happy with where it landed. All three disciplines have their own player-facing cheatsheets if you want a quick-start read before diving into the full doc as well as a DM quick review cheatsheet. Would love to hear what you think.
It has occurred to me that I have lost a lot of links to old versions because well I did not know any better. So without further ado, I am posting the links I have recovered here. This is a WIP until I get them all in
v1.x PDFs
0
v2.x PDFs
v2.7–v2.9 — complete coverage needed from here
v2.7.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1eTV3R-fqdLXnQaByBwpjedVhJgOkEUM6/edit
v2.7.1 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/11VBpeYlEfTmI18On78nY1AjhyxuSrXFY/edit
v2.8.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1wSpBENUIUJw2nw3aN7sw1aO0SKbiW1Kv/edit
v2.8.1 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/14WPgsDqjYSVQ7JV3Zv-OD6nogV7KIdcz/edit
v2.8.2 ✓
v2.9.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gR3yaHInN1SV_CEJPsn_8f29FYCO0VQk/edit
v3.x v3.0 ✓
v4.x v4.2.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1DgjoJCVroXoTDJq1wl7xcLez6lXV8dPS/edit
v4.8.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tFYhyTzA8BVZ57w4Bq5meiJ2PqA8u7kc/edit
v4.8.1 ✓ ·
v4.8.2 ✓
v5.5–v5.12 v5.5 ✓ ·
v5.8.0 ✓ ·
v5.9.0 ✓ ·
v5.10.0 ✓ ·
v5.11.0 ✓ ·
v5.12.0 ✓ ·
v5.12.1 ✓
v5.13–v5.20
v5.13.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SlMWezRceDRi3TqBmKpS7vcOAOz9L0yo/edit
v5.14.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/11HGskIn_OYvlqeGhLPDiJP5VZa5bSlg_/edit
v5.14.2 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mkcHo7sEkH8r1k1ScxUDJnbRqkmQTOWO/edit
v5.15.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/14WeA33LdpPvTD_NgyItYeGneRMIG7-BL/edit
v5.16.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pcSwkvYV85rRcWF9SI6xd8XDbiRRMgzA/edit
v5.17.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1v1WfvfajmN3I6WdqEFIBa62wzYrcoODq/edit
v5.17.1 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FnLTVm5eaQWzbWttma3ZRzP99Mx1qsd6/edit
v5.18.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sYfWKHg80TW-oThQukWPt9ctwOrbsTY8/edit
v5.19.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1l8XQ7FghjZh4FPpBYNQJ1PHT7UGglfGN/edit
v5.19.1 ✓ ·
v5.19.2 ✓
v5.20.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Kbw6LxcQfr-PlM92gvAm5-RpVPhJ8L6o/edit
v5.21–v5.24 v5.21.0 ✓ · v5.22.0 ✓ · v5.23.0 ✓ · v5.23.1 ✓ · v5.24.0 ✓ · v5.24.1 ✓ · v5.24.2 ✓ · v5.24.3 ✓
v5.25–v5.26
v5.25.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1vUrD-Ty1XTTuQWv_YeGaBDYg_W1VQbFm/edit
v5.25.1 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1TI-yyofXt8UJVGF7RoBACpv69Z4wjC26/edit
v5.26.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1X3P_qGAMeRbhOTB_1esp_l8NrR642II5/edit
v5.27–v5.32 v5.27.0 ✓ · v5.27.1 ✓ · v5.27.2 ✓ · v5.27.3 ✓ · v5.27.4 ✓ · v5.28.0 ✓ · v5.28.1 ✓ · v5.28.2 ✓ · v5.29.0 ✓ · v5.29.1 ✓ · v5.30.0 ✓ · v5.31.0 ✓ · v5.32.0 ✓
v5.33–v5.37
v5.33.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OlOGKyYB26OLjsW0JRfLHiUpFB4kH3xS/edit
v5.34.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1tTsFSg38yHPlpHMm1j5y5yg_J3GjN_Hy/edit
v5.35.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fKKMqJMkpL13rIkS7kxS5j-oZ_8ozIeC/edit
v5.36.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/18UqryqVrGolpL62S4DF2iB3wofbDTbZL/edit
v5.37.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SrqO2vQS9FUi0FjvCBP-iDPpgFnCwEiv/edit
v5.37.1 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1mDcI6tmHVQ9jxdOc8g65OhPc-HW3p5q4/edit
v6.0–v6.2
v6.0.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1rXWIQtM4MKMcy37OspSbBeEt2xsGEP1r/edit
v6.1.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/14xDknsV_DoYf-xk2grdYB651KIM50tDB/edit
v6.1.1 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bO2CLrifEhk2T2oTFfnZk8-JjfQUsMhL/edit
v6.2.0 ✗ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-BH7SAl3SeCvrzwdYNrgmkjStYGzst8t/edit
v6.3–v7.2 v6.3.0 ✓ · v6.3.1 ✓ · v6.3.2 ✓ · v6.3.3 ✓ · v6.4.0 ✓ · v6.4.1 ✓ · v6.5.0 ✓ · v6.6.0 ✓ · v7.0.0 ✓ · v7.1.0 ✓ · v7.1.1 ✓ · v7.2.0 ✓
I also found the changlog summary from 1.5 to 2.6.7 here
I have created a "lite" version of this class for easier table integration, 3.0, here.
I have also backported some of the enhancements from 3.0 to 2.x, 2.7.0, here.
A few corrections to post after integrationg 3.0 into 2.x, I give you 2.7.1, changelogs are inline.
2.8.0 is out, with it a few notable additions:
Cross-Discipline Training (10th) — individual feature selection: Renamed from Dual-Pathing. Now grants one pick from the 3rd-level tier and one from the 7th-level tier, chosen freely across all disciplines. Previously you had to take both features as a package from a single discipline — now a Cryo can take Frozen Ground + Blazing Step, or a Pyro can take Deflection Screen + Kinetic Blast. Swap rule unchanged: replace either pick individually on any level-up.
Cross-Discipline Training II (20th) — individual feature selection: Renamed from Dual-Pathing II. Grants a second 3rd-level pick and a second 7th-level pick, again freely chosen. At 20th a Vanguard holds four cross-discipline features total alongside their full primary toolkit. No duplicates allowed; no Overload on any borrowed feature.
I also added some helpful notes and a play guide as well.
Now your character can grab abilities from all three disciplines for true synergistic power.
Enjoy!
2.8.1 is out.
Chnagelog is pretty short this time, just adding two features per CDT unlonk instead of just 1.
2.8.2 is out.
Changelog:
This subclass seems much more complex than even some 5e classes. Perhaps try making a separate subclass for each discipline?
Any sufficiently widespread magic is indistinguishable from technology.
The second funniest thing to make a D&D party do is explain morality
Try your hand at the Ultimate Skill Build Challenge!
I probably nitpick and scrutinize too much
I see your point, it is a wide class. And I did try cutting it down to just "the essentials" with version 3.0; however, gutting the class like that removed a lot of the fun and soul from it. Constructively speaking, aside from pulling the disciplines out and making separate cookie cutter classes for each, what would you change?
Genuinely looking forward to your thoughts. -Nix
2.9.0 is out and introduces a fundamental change in blood tax math.
Tier 2 blood tax is no longer a flat d8, it now scales with the amount of Psi points that you are spending, nd4 damage where n is the number of Psi points spent, minimum 1d4. This allows smaller utility skills like blazing step to cost less on a consistent basis while making big flashy moves like Firestorm appropriately more expensive to higher level characters.
4.2.0 is out. CHnagelogs attached.
To be honest, I'm not interested in a 10 page subclass. It seems like a bit much.
4.8.0 is now out.
Changlelogs are in document, sorry for the lack of interim posts. Enjoy!
5.5.0 is out, and will likely be the final development of this class. It has been theorycrafted and playtested. Enjoy.
I lied, of course, 5.8.0 is now out. Enjoy.
5.9.0 is now out. This fixes a major headache with Overload mechanics, I hope this now plays more streamlined. Enjoy!
5.13.0 is out, this reverts the overload lockout behavior during suppression, spam away! Other changes have also been rolled in as well.
v5.10.0
Psionic Extra Attack — removed. The 11th-level feature allowing replacement of a feat-granted bonus action attack (Polearm Master, TWF) with a Manifested Strike was cut. Physical fighting styles and ranged psionic attacks have no thematic coherence together; the interaction was deemed incoherent.
Telekinetic Shove — cost simplified. Changed from conditional 0–1 Psi (free under Psionic Instinct, 1 Psi otherwise) to a flat 1 Psi with a note that Instinct covers the first activation each turn. Same math, no mid-turn bookkeeping about which code path you're on. Matches the cost model of Glacial Spike and Ember Lance.
Hover — restructured. The dual Overload blocks (one for hover mode, one for Kinetic Bonus Damage) were split. Kinetic Bonus Damage is now its own labeled subsection with its own Overload chain. Eliminates Blood Tax ambiguity and the confusing dual-header format.
Implosion — direction clarified, Shove interaction reworded. "You choose the pulling direction" was removed — an implosion collapses inward, period. Target now saves against Prone only (crushed inward); surrounding creatures are pulled toward the target's position. The Shove/Implosion tactical note fixed the "same hit" error (they are each once per turn, triggered on separate hits) and clarified the intended play pattern.
Recovery Suppression — sentence reordered. "Multiple same-turn Overloads permitted" now leads; "no subsequent-turn Overloads while suppressed" follows. Previous ordering buried the permission after the prohibition, causing players to assume all further Overloads were locked out.
Psionic Arsenal damage type clause — removed. "Borrowed features use your primary Discipline's damage type" was cut from Psionic Arsenal, Psionic Arsenal II, and the Section 05 intro. Arsenal features now deal their native damage type — Thought Spike stays psychic regardless of your discipline. Removes an ambiguous edge case and keeps Arsenal picks thematically distinct from discipline tools.
v5.11.0
Discipline Mastery — rewritten. Previous text merely restated that the 3rd-level feature was still free at 18th level — no meaningful upgrade. New version: Psionic Instinct's free once-per-turn coverage extends to any Discipline on-hit feature costing 2 Psi or fewer (covers 7th- and eligible 10th-level on-hit tools, including Blazing Eruption). Features costing 3+ Psi (Frost Cage, Mind Crush) and area/standalone features still cost Psi normally.
Also added Second Wind Nova: once per short rest, declare an Overload while Recovery Suppression is active; suppression resets from that turn. (Removed in v5.12.1 — see below.)
Blazing Eruption — converted from Bonus Action AoE to on-hit trigger. Was: Bonus Action, target a point within 60 ft, 15-ft sphere Dex save. Now: triggers on a Manifested Strike hit, once per turn — psionic fire erupts from the impact, affecting creatures within 15 ft of the target (target excluded), push direction directly away from the target. As a 2 Psi on-hit feature it now falls within Discipline Mastery's Instinct coverage at 18th level.
v5.12.0
Thought Spike — removed. The on-miss consolation mechanic (psychic damage equal to Psionic Ability modifier on a standard miss, with Overload riders) required players to track mid-miss whether the attack was standard or Overloaded before deciding whether it applied. Acceptable friction at a dedicated table; higher friction for Arsenal borrowers who don't live in those rules. Entry tier Arsenal now has two picks: Deflection Screen and Psionic Step.
Spreading Flames — tier resolution simplified. Was: eruption tier inherited from the Pyrokinesis feature used on the killing blow specifically. Now: eruption tier equals the highest Overload tier used on any Pyrokinesis feature this turn. T2 anywhere this turn = T2 eruption. Eliminates the need to reconstruct which hit landed the kill in a multi-attack turn with mixed Overload states.
Blazing Eruption T1 — wording tightened. "The radius increases" updated to "the burst radius increases" to read naturally for an on-hit trigger. No mechanical change.
v5.12.1
Discipline Mastery — Second Wind Nova removed. Stacked with Psionic Apex's Overload Mastery to produce three consecutive Overload turns per short rest, one of them free — an unintended nova ceiling. Overload Mastery alone already delivers two clean nova turns. Feature tag reverted to Passive.
Feature table — 10th row corrected. "Discipline 10th Feature" was accidentally stripped from the 10th level row during Psionic Extra Attack removal. Restored.
Spreading Flames — Blazing Eruption added to qualifying features. T1 and T2 Effects previously listed only Ember Lance and Flare. Blazing Eruption is now an on-hit Pyrokinesis feature and added to both qualifier lists.
Implosion — target wording tightened further. "Including the target" was still ambiguous. Rewritten: surrounding creatures are pulled toward the target; the target itself is crushed inward and saves against Prone only.
Cold Supremacy — redundant sentence removed. The sentence following the Overload header restated its own label. Removed.
Design Notes — stale "Desperate" reference removed. "When to go Desperate" survived from before Desperate Overload was cut in v5.9.0. Updated to "when to conserve."
v5.13.0
Recovery Suppression — lockout removed, v5.5 model restored. The "while suppressed, you cannot Overload on a subsequent turn" restriction introduced in v5.9.0 is gone. Suppression now blocks healing only. Same-turn Overloads extend the window by one turn each; subsequent-turn Overloads reset the timer. Players who want to spam Overload can — at the cost of never recovering HP.
Steeled Mind — new 11th-level feature. Blood Tax psychic self-damage triggers Constitution saving throws to maintain concentration every time you Overload. Rather than carve a raw exception for Blood Tax damage, a new passive at 11th level adds your Proficiency Bonus to Constitution saving throws made to maintain concentration. Fills the slot vacated by Psionic Extra Attack (removed v5.10.0). Particularly valuable for Cryo and Psychokinesis builds relying on Frozen Ground, Hover, and Mass Levitation.
Net feature count change: −3 removed (Psionic Extra Attack, Thought Spike, Second Wind Nova), +1 added (Steeled Mind). One major mechanical revert (suppression lockout). One major conversion (Blazing Eruption: standalone → on-hit). One major rewrite (Discipline Mastery). Multiple clarity and wording fixes throughout.
5.14.0 is out and here is the changelog:
Recovery Suppression — removed entirely. The healing denial window is gone. Blood Tax still costs HP on a hit — that is the only cost. If your table wants to spam Overload every turn and the cleric wants to keep patching you up, that is a legitimate strategy. Removes the most fiddly tracking mechanic in the subclass without softening the core risk-reward loop.
Blood Tax — hit-only. Blood Tax now only fires on a hit. Declare Overload before the roll as normal; if you miss, you get no power boost and pay no HP — the declaration costs nothing. Standalone feature Overloads (Deflection Screen, Hover) still pay at activation since they involve no attack roll. A miss is a whiff, not a punishment.
Tier 2 damage bonus — increased to +2×PB. Tier 2 Overload now adds twice your Proficiency Bonus to damage instead of once. Blood Tax self-damage is unchanged (still +2×PB on a hit, 3×PB total with Tier 1). The T2 damage bonus at 11th level goes from +4 to +8, making the Tier 2 decision feel meaningfully more powerful relative to its cost.
5.14.2 is now out and contains only a few smaller clarifications:
Spreading Flames — hit-only tier tracking. Eruption tier now matches the highest Overload tier that actually landed a hit this turn. A missed T2 declaration does not qualify — whiffing T2 then killing with a plain hit gives a base eruption, not T2. Consistent with hit-only Blood Tax (v5.14.0).
Declaration package — all-in pre-roll. The MS, all riders, and all Overloads are declared together as a single package before the roll. You cannot see a hit land and then decide to Overload a rider. Hit: entire package resolves, full Blood Tax per Overload declared. Miss: nothing fires, no cost. Psychic Resistance applying to Blood Tax reviewed and held — Overload Mastery already covers the designed tax relief.
Errata and clarity pass (Grok audit). Six fixes: Overload Mastery wording updated to "die steps and damage bonuses" to cover both tiers correctly. 2d20kh crit clarified — double all damage dice (e.g. 4d20kh). Flare restructured to match Cold Supremacy/Kinetic Bonus Damage layout — Base and Overloads lead, passive benefits follow. Discipline Mastery tightened from a long exclusion list to a clean rule with examples. Hover Overload now notes Blood Tax fires on activation (standalone feature). Spreading Flames truncation confirmed non-issue.
5.15.0 is now out.
This update mostly resolves nitpicks and clarity issues.
Enjoy!