Base Class: Monk
Based on a Giant in the Playground Post:
This Monastic Order is an ancient academic, meritocratic, and pseudo paramilitary organization mostly consisting of polymaths: teachers, philosophers, scientists, engineers, physicians, diplomats, and warriors. The J'ehdi moral value system views purity of thought and detachment of emotions as essential to enlightenment. J'ehdi philosophy emphasized self-improvement through knowledge and wisdom, adherence to a strict morality, and selfless service through acts of charity, citizenship, and volunteerism. The J'ehdi denounce emotions as the root of mortal suffering; they believe fear, anger, and love cause sentient beings to lash out in conflict and impede rational action to do what is right. Their key identifying traditional monk weapon is the radiant saber, a gleaming weapon whereupon a brilliant radiant energy is channeled into a blade by a hilt containing a focusing crystal and a user's ki.
Living Ki Attuned
The J'ehdi becomes Attuned to the life forces that connect and bind us all - an ethereal energy field that connects every living being - you gain the following benefits:
-Choose Force Powers at levels 3, 6, 11, and 17.
-You learn the mage hand cantrip if you did not know it already.
Radiant Blade
As a bonus action on your turn, you can manifest a gleaming blade of radiant force from a specially prepared hilt, which you are proficient with and counts as a monk weapon. The blade has BOTH the finesse and versatile properties, and deals 1d6 radiant damage on a hit. Your unarmed strike, martial arts, and flurry attacks can be made with the Lightsaber or with your unarmed strike, individually for each attack, as you prefer. Any features, skills, and abilities which benefit your unarmed strike can also be used with your Radiant Ki Blade.
Life Force Ki Powers
Life Force Ki Powers:
At each of levels 3, 6, 11, and 17 the J'ehdi chooses two powers from the Powers list. He chooses an innate power and a trained power. Innate powers are abilities that the J'ehdi has a natural affinity for, but has not practiced enough to become fully proficient in their use. Trained powers are originally innate powers that have been mastered by the J'ehdi, and as such have a lower cost and a higher save DC (if applicable).
Powers do not need to be innate originally before selection, but Innate powers can be promoted to Trained.
List in options below:
Alter Perceptions
(Ki cost: 2 innate / 1 trained, Wis save)
Distract an enemy. Make a Wisdom check (+proficiency if trained). The result is the Wis save DC.
Empathy
(Ki cost: 1 innate, cannot be trained)
Make a Wisdom check against a target's charisma check. If your wisdom roll is higher, you are successful, you learn the general attitude and mood of a creature, and gain advantage on your next social or opposed ability check against it in the next minute.
Enhance Senses
(Ki cost: 3 innate / 2 trained)
Initial benefit: Gain advantage on perception, investigation and intuition checks. Requires Concentration.
Secondary benefit: If you pay twice the cost and sacrifice the initial benefit, you instead gain blindsight. This benefit requires both concentration and the expenditure of one force point every round.
- Blindsight: A creature with blindsight can perceive its surroundings without relying on sight, within a specific radius. Creatures without eyes, such as oozes, and creatures with echolocation or heightened senses, such as bats and true dragons, have this sense.
Fear
(Ki cost: 3 innate / 2 trained)
Make a Wisdom check (+proficiency bonus if trained). The result equals the target's Charisma save DC. If successful, the target is frightened as long as you maintain concentration. The target gets a new save at the end of each of its turns.
Friendship
(Ki cost: 1 innate / 0 trained)
You cast the Friends cantrip.
Hurl Object
(requires Move Object to be trained, replaces Move Object) (Ki cost: variable, see Move Object)
When you use Move Object, you may throw the item with enough force and velocity to deal damage. Make a ranged spell attack. On a hit, the target takes 3d6 damage for each point of force required to move the object (not for each point spent to move the object). If the object hurled is a living creature, it takes the damage as well. If used on or against a living creature, this becomes a dark side power.
Imbue Radiant Blade
(Ki cost: 1 permanent Ki point) (level 6 required)
Your Radiant Ki Blade gains a +1 to attack and damage rolls. You can gain this Power up to three times each level and the effects of doing so do stack, but you may not take this power more than once at any given level. The first time you take this power you must learn it as a trained ability. Each subsequent time it may be taken as an innate ability if you choose to add more.
Ki Heal
(Ki cost: 3 innate / 2 trained)
Heal a creature (including yourself) of 1d8 + Wisdom modifier hit points, plus an additional 1d8 for each point spent above the initial cost.
Ki Illusion
At level 3, you can cast Minor Illusion. (Ki cost: 2 innate / 1 trained)
At level 6, you can cast Silent Image. (Ki cost: 3 innate / 2 trained)
At level 11, you can cast Major Image. (Ki cost: 5 innate / 3 trained)
These illusions only affect a single target of your choice.
Ki Lightning
(Ki cost: 2 innate / 1 trained)
You cast Witch Bolt. Each additional point spent counts as an extra spell level.
Ki Strike
(Ki cost: 3 innate / 2 trained)
Make an Intelligence check (+proficiency if trained). The result equals the target's Strength save DC. Up to four adjacent targets take 3d4 damage, are pushed 10 feet, and fall prone. On a successful save, the targets take half damage and are not pushed or knocked prone. If used against intelligent living targets, this becomes a dark side power.
Ki Telepathy
(Ki cost: 2 innate / 1 trained)
You can create a mental link with any creature that you have met who is on the same plane and planet. Through this link you can send emotions and a five word message to the target.
Ki Visions
(must be chosen as a trained ability)
The DM gives a premonition to the player.
Mind Trick
(Ki cost: 3 innate / 2 trained)
Cast the spell Suggestion, except with the following restriction. Make a Wisdom check (+prof if trained). The result equals the target's Charisma save DC.
Move Object
(Ki cost: 2 innate / 1 trained)
You can lift and move an object weighing 10 lbs or less. Each time you double the current cost increases this limit by a factor of 10, becoming 100 lbs at a cost of 4/2, 1000 lbs at a cost of 8/4, etc. If used against a living creature, the target gets a Wisdom save to negate the effect. Make an Intelligence check (+proficiency if trained). The result equals the save DC.
Prolonged Ki
(must be chosen as a trained ability)
You may choose to spend Hit Points to power your Powers instead of Ki. The Hit Point cost is equal to three times the untrained (or innate) Ki cost, regardless of whether you are trained in the Power being used or not.
Telekinetic Grip or Crush
(Ki cost: 4 innate / 3 trained)
Make an Intelligence check (+proficiency if trained). The result equals the target's Constitution save DC. If successful, the target is grappled (at range, this supersedes the general rule about grapple range) and takes 2d6 damage each round that you Concentrate, plus an additional 1d6 for each single point spent above the initial cost. The target gets a new save at the end of each of its turns.
Ki Power Increase (6th, 11th, and 17th Level)
Ki Powers:
At each of levels 3, 6, 11, and 17 the J'ehdi chooses two powers from the Powers list. He/she chooses an innate power and a trained power. Innate powers are abilities that the J'ehdi has a natural affinity for, but has not practiced enough to become fully proficient in their use. Trained powers do not have to originally be innate powers that have been mastered by the J'ehdi, and as such have a lower cost and a higher save DC (if applicable).
Ki Power Increase (6th, 11th, and 17th Level)
Ki Powers:
At each of levels 3, 6, 11, and 17 the J'ehdi chooses two powers from the Powers list. He/she chooses an innate power and a trained power. Innate powers are abilities that the J'ehdi has a natural affinity for, but has not practiced enough to become fully proficient in their use. Trained powers do not have to originally be innate powers that have been mastered by the J'ehdi, and as such have a lower cost and a higher save DC (if applicable).
Ki Power Increase (6th, 11th, and 17th Level)
Ki Powers:
At each of levels 3, 6, 11, and 17 the J'ehdi chooses two powers from the Powers list. He/she chooses an innate power and a trained power. Innate powers are abilities that the J'ehdi has a natural affinity for, but has not practiced enough to become fully proficient in their use. Trained powers do not have to originally be innate powers that have been mastered by the J'ehdi, and as such have a lower cost and a higher save DC (if applicable).
I was thinking about light side/dark side when I saw the different powers (lightning vs heal, for example). I figured it would be up to the player to pick powers based off of knowledge of the franchise and off of the alignment they would choose. And that the powers could also be learned like spells or that you'd only be able to have so many applied, like an artificer's attuned items.
And I was thinking about the saber also, and wrote up a comment before reading this. Seems that the Sun Blade magic item, though a rare item, would be fitting for this subclass.
Would you be willing to create a variant, or just an updated version, changing Radiant Blade to Sun Blade? It seems more "canon", IMO.
Question: Why do the Force Abilities not just run off your save DC (8+Wis+Prof), and your spell attack (Wis+Prof)? In 5e, you don’t really ever roll against someone else’s DC except if it’s AC, and attacks are supposed to be based off of the classes main stat, and in the case of monks, that’s STR/DEX and WIS. I’d suggest these edits. You should also consider taking away innate v trained, just have them set as a learned power and “cast” as what you know. Either that, or you know a number of innate abilities equal to your wisdom, and learn two trained at the levels listed. It might also be helpful to add a power like “surge” which doubles your acrobatics and athletics proficiency bonus, or just makes it trained for the duration. Also, minor illusion shouldn’t cost a ki, and should have a DC to “disbelieve” all of the illusions.
Radiant is the damage listed for ‘energy’ in 5e, think of it like a hot blast of plasma that contained in a beam.
You can display the radiant blade as an attack by creating a custom action.
Also the mage hand doubles if you already get it from your race, and why does minor illusion cost ki points when it doesn't for shadow monks? surely this subclass can be improved and balanced to be more equal to the other subclasses. I know I'm asking alot, sorry, but I really want to play this subclass and don't know how to make my own
I absolutely love this subclass. I just have some feedback for you to help you improve, keep up the good work.
Is there a way you can adjust it so that we can easily mark/note which of our Force Abilities is innate and/or trained. Also, dark side power and force points are mentioned throughout the powers section but don't have any application. And, finally, is there a way to display the lightsaber as a weapon without having to create a custom magic item? also shouldn't it do force damage not radiant?