Base Class: Monk
Archery Fighting Style
Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.
Bow Arts
At 3rd level, you gain proficiency in the longbow and shortbow, which are considered monk weapons for you. Any ranged weapon attacks you make while within 5 feet of a hostile creature do not have disadvantage. Also, you can spend ki points to use the Flurry of Arrows and Soul Arrow features.
At 6th level, you can make a ranged weapon attack to deliver a Stunning Strike.
Flurry of Arrows.
Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn to make a ranged weapon attack or an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to make an additional ranged weapon attack as a bonus action.
At 17th level when you use this feature, the number of additional ranged weapon attacks increases to two.
Soul Arrow.
When you take the Attack action on your turn to make a ranged weapon attack, you can spend 1 ki point to replace all strikes of that Attack action with soul arrows (if you have access to an ability such as Action Surge, you must spend additional ki points for additional soul arrows). You must choose to use this feature before you take the Attack action. A soul "arrow" ignores partial cover and deals an extra martial arts die of radiant damage.
Infinite Creation.
At 3rd level, during the course of a long or short rest you may create up to 30 pieces of ammunition for your Dedicated Weapon. Unused ammunition disappears whenever you use this feature. This ammunition is held within a pocket dimension or is otherwise incorporeal until used with your dedicated weapon. Additionally, you may spend 1 ki point as a bonus action to use this feature again.
At 6th level, ammunition created with this feature counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.
Distracting Shot
Starting at 6th level, when a creature you can see within range makes an attack, you can make a ranged attack as a reaction to interrupt. Regardless of the result of your attack roll, you can choose to spend a ki point to force the creature to reroll it's attack, taking the lower of the two results.
Serenity of the Wind
By 11th level, you can listen to the wind to see the otherwise invisible. As a bonus action, you can spend 1 ki point to gain blindsight with a range of 120 feet for 1 minute.
At 17th level, you always have blindsight out to 30 feet.
Zen Archery
At 17th level, you can attack three times, instead of twice, whenever you take the Attack action on your turn with your Dedicated Weapon.
Archery Fighting Style
Starting when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you gain a +2 bonus to attack rolls you make with ranged weapons. You can't take a Fighting Style option more than once, even if you later get to choose again.
Bow Arts
At 3rd level, you gain proficiency in the longbow and shortbow, which are considered monk weapons for you. Any ranged weapon attacks you make while within 5 feet of a hostile creature do not have disadvantage. Also, you can spend ki points to use the Flurry of Arrows and Soul Arrow features.
At 6th level, you can make a ranged weapon attack to deliver a Stunning Strike.
Flurry of Arrows.
Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn to make a ranged weapon attack or an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to make an additional ranged weapon attack as a bonus action.
At 17th level when you use this feature, the number of additional ranged weapon attacks increases to two.
Soul Arrow.
When you take the Attack action on your turn to make a ranged weapon attack, you can spend 1 ki point to replace all strikes of that Attack action with soul arrows (if you have access to an ability such as Action Surge, you must spend additional ki points for additional soul arrows). You must choose to use this feature before you take the Attack action. A soul "arrow" ignores partial cover and deals an extra martial arts die of radiant damage.
Infinite Creation.
At 3rd level, during the course of a long or short rest you may create up to 30 pieces of ammunition for your Dedicated Weapon. Unused ammunition disappears whenever you use this feature. This ammunition is held within a pocket dimension or is otherwise incorporeal until used with your dedicated weapon. Additionally, you may spend 1 ki point as a bonus action to use this feature again.
At 6th level, ammunition created with this feature counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.
Distracting Shot
Starting at 6th level, when a creature you can see within range makes an attack, you can make a ranged attack as a reaction to interrupt. Regardless of the result of your attack roll, you can choose to spend a ki point to force the creature to reroll its attack, taking the lower of the two results.
Serenity of the Wind
By 11th level, you can listen to the wind to see the otherwise invisible. As a bonus action, you can spend 1 ki point to gain blindsight with a range of 120 feet for 1 minute.
At 17th level, you always have blindsight out to 30 feet.
Zen Archery
At 17th level, whenever you take the Attack action with your dedicated weapon, you make an additional attack as part of the Extra Attack feature (totalling 3 attacks).







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Posted Oct 13, 2022Please note that longbows have the Heavy Property and are thus unable to be marked as Dedicated Weapons. If you're really set on the range increase, ask your DM to wave the "heavy" rule for your ranged weaponry. If they're cool enough to let you play this subclass, they'll probably be fine with it. From there you can either make a homebrew item (shortbow with longer range OR longbow without Heavy property) or use a shortbow and write yourself a note to remember the range differences.
If you receive a magic item that provides bonuses to hit or to damage, please note that the bonuses won't be included in the buttons for your bonus action, reaction, or soul arrow attacks. Simply use the Attack action version to get all the proper modifiers or Customize Flurry of Arrows, Distracting Shot, and Soul Arrow as necessary (for example type "1" in "To Hit Bonus" and "Damage Bonus" if you have a +1 weapon).
This isn't playtested at all and is based on the Way of the Bow from Valda's Spire of Secrets by Tony Casper and Michael Holik. The main purpose of the changes were to 1. scale better 2. streamline their ideas 3. let monk players have fun.
DNDBeyond doesn't let me fix the published class, so here's the changes that I have made as I've thought about things and reread the way I wrote the initial descriptions:
Modification to Bow Arts: "At 6th level, you can make a ranged weapon attack to deliver a Stunning Strike." was supposed to say "At 5th level, you can make a ranged weapon attack to deliver a Stunning Strike." Essentially, things that you normally can do with an unarmed attack you can now do with a bow is the purpose of the Way of the Bow. DNDBeyond likes to be awful about changing published homebrew so keep this in mind as you play!
Modification to Flurry of Arrows --> Flurry of Creation: "Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn to make a ranged weapon attack or an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to make an additional ranged weapon attack as a bonus action. At 17th level when you use this feature, the number of additional ranged weapon attacks increases to two."
I finally realized that I wrote this completely incorrectly what it should read is: "Immediately after you take the Attack action on your turn to make a ranged weapon attack or an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to fire two Arrows of Creation as a bonus action. At 11th level when you use this feature, the number of additional ranged weapon attacks increases to three. Arrows of Creation are pieces of ammunition created using the subclass' feature Infinite Creation and deal a Martial Arts die + Wisdom modifier damage per hit."
Again, the purpose for this wording is to give your bow abilities all the same functionality as unarmed strikes. You are gain additional strikes as part of Flurry of Creation because you likely will not be within melee range to make use of the Martial Arts feature allowing an unarmed strike as a bonus action whenever the Attack action is taken and, frankly, monks kinda need the help when it comes to late game.
Modification to Infinite Creation: "At 3rd level, during the course of a long or short rest you may create up to 30 pieces of ammunition for your Dedicated Weapon. Unused ammunition disappears whenever you use this feature. This ammunition is held within a pocket dimension or is otherwise incorporeal until used with your dedicated weapon. Additionally, you may spend 1 ki point as a bonus action to use this feature again. At 6th level, ammunition created with this feature counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage."
The only change that needs to be made is to clarify the type of damage that the ambiguously named "pieces of ammunition" deal. The text above should instead read: "At 3rd level, during the course of a long or short rest you may create up to 30 Arrows of Creation. Unused ammunition disappears whenever you use this feature. Arrows of Creation are held within a pocket dimension or are otherwise incorporeal until used, dealing piercing damage. Additionally, you may spend 1 ki point as a bonus action to use this feature outside of a short or long rest. At 6th level, ammunition created with this feature counts as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage. Additionally, at 6th level, you are able to choose whether Arrows of Creation deal piercing or radiant damage."
Notice of Flaw: for some reason the Archery fighting style doesn't work correctly, so you may need to customize your ranged weapons. In particular, it isn't adding correctly with the Warlock, Pact of the Blade: Improved Pact Weapon Invocation. Unsure if other changes might also be ignored.
I hope you enjoy the build! I accept feedback, but can't promise that I'll incorporate it.