Step 2. Get a jar full of 500+ ants. Rig a plunger as the lid (kinda like a butter churn)
Step 3. Right before combat jam the crap out of it, killing all 500 ants inside the jar and turning them into ant-butter.
Step 4. Convince your GM that each ant is technically a creature and therefore you should gain temp hit points per creature as per your ability
Touch of Death
Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, your study of death allows you to extract vitality from another creature as it nears its demise. When you reduce a creature within 5 feet of you to 0 hit points, you gain temporary hit points equal to your Wisdom modifier + your monk level (minimum of 1 temporary hit point).
PS - I can see this dialogue as NPCs gather along the roadside to watch him stride by: "It is The Great Ant Monk of Tambiki! Look! He carries so many jars of ants from his belt and upon his bandolier! I heard he once defeated an ancient red dragon by himself. He just wore it out until it gave up."
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Playtesting Fugare Draconis, an epic tale of adventure, loss, and redemption
As mentioned above, they won't add together as desired. So in your above example of killing 500 ants, as every ant is killed the Temporary Hit Points gained (let's call it 6 for reference) will overwrite the previously gained Hit Points, in the end resulting in your monk having 6 Temporary Hit Points after killing all of them. If your GM allows the ants to count as creatures, then you could theoretically kill an ant on each of your turns after losing some of your health, as a means of resetting the Temporary Hit Points back to 6 again. One use of the Bonus Action attack as a Monk, assuming your GM is feeling generous.
The goblin archer, having heard tales of this invincible monk, lowers his rickety shortbow to fire a shot toward his enemy’s belt, shattering the jar. The monk runs screaming back into the forest as five hundred ants swarm through his robes.
...and for generations, goblin elders sat around the campfire telling young whelps of how Grabnock the eagle-eyed defeated the legendary monk with 5000 hitpoints.
Yup. Here it is:
Step 1. Be a Way of the Long Death monk.
Step 2. Get a jar full of 500+ ants. Rig a plunger as the lid (kinda like a butter churn)
Step 3. Right before combat jam the crap out of it, killing all 500 ants inside the jar and turning them into ant-butter.
Step 4. Convince your GM that each ant is technically a creature and therefore you should gain temp hit points per creature as per your ability
It's called winning D&D.
Playtesting Fugare Draconis, an epic tale of adventure, loss, and redemption
PS - I can see this dialogue as NPCs gather along the roadside to watch him stride by: "It is The Great Ant Monk of Tambiki! Look! He carries so many jars of ants from his belt and upon his bandolier! I heard he once defeated an ancient red dragon by himself. He just wore it out until it gave up."
Playtesting Fugare Draconis, an epic tale of adventure, loss, and redemption
Temporary hit points are not cumulative.
Noooo, my dream, my lovely dream! :P
Playtesting Fugare Draconis, an epic tale of adventure, loss, and redemption
The goblin archer, having heard tales of this invincible monk, lowers his rickety shortbow to fire a shot toward his enemy’s belt, shattering the jar. The monk runs screaming back into the forest as five hundred ants swarm through his robes.
...and for generations, goblin elders sat around the campfire telling young whelps of how Grabnock the eagle-eyed defeated the legendary monk with 5000 hitpoints.
"Not all those who wander are lost"
I was thinking you were going to say, "and for generations the goblins did feast upon the ants in the jars. :D
Playtesting Fugare Draconis, an epic tale of adventure, loss, and redemption