Way of the Blademaster

Once built upon the teachings of a monastery worshipping a deity of hunting and tactics, this performative style of combat has since been adopted by those of high class such as royalty, knights, nobles and their closest servants.

With dedicated forms of breathing and footwork even a blade can arc gracefully across the air, splitting winds and sundering stalwart guards. Practitioners of this form of swordplay move with speed and precision, often standing between allies and stronger foes.

 

Flowing Bladework

Starting at 3rd level, due to your specialised training, you gain the following benefits:

• Sword Prowess. You gain proficiency with the scimitar, rapier and longsword, which count as monk weapons for you.
• Fluid Defense. When you use ki during your urn, you gain temporary hit points equal to half your monk level, rounded up, which last until the beginning of your next turn.
• Illimitable Technique. When a monk feature requires you to have a free hand or make an unarmed strike, you don't need a hand free, provided you have a monk weapon in at least one hand, and you can make a weapon attack with your monk weapon instead of an unarmed strike, provided you still use your Martial Arts die for damage when you do so.

Sword Arts

Also when you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you have learned how to use your Ki to fuel special techniques called Sword Arts.

• Ki Points. Sword Arts require the use of Ki as shown by each art's description.
• Actions Required. A Sword Art will usually denote what type of action it requires, if not, then it takes no action but the art will mention what triggers it. However, you can only use one sword art per trigger. You can use only one sword art per turn.
• Level Prerequisite. Some Sword Arts have a level prerequisite, you must have the necessary monk level to choose one of those Sword Arts.
• Martial Arts Dice. Some Sword Arts will use your Martial Arts die for their effects as denoted in the Sword Art's description.
• Sword Form Training. You can burn a number of Sword Arts into your muscle memory after each long rest. The amount is equal to your Wisdom modifier + half your monk level, rounded down.

Sword Art Save DC. If a Sword Art forces a saving throw, you use your Ki Save DC.

Agile Interposition

Prerequisite: 6th level, Ripple Stance

When an ally is being hit by an attack within 30 feet of you, you can spend 1 Ki point as a reaction to move up to half your movment speed towards them and use your Deflect Missiles or Flowing Guard, if you have it, to reduce damage against that ally if they are then within 5 feet of you. You can't return or counter the attack when you do this.

Artful Disarm

When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack using a monk weapon or an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 Ki to attempt to disarm them. The creature must make a Strength saving throw, dropping an item or weapon they are holding of your choice on a failure.

Blade Brake

Prerequisite: 6th level

When you would forcefully be moved against your will, such as via a spell or a shove, you can spend 1 Ki point as a reaction to dig your sword into the ground. If you do so, you get pushed half the distance, unless the distance was 10 feet or less in which case you don't get pushed.

Blossoming Petals

Prerequisite: 17th level, Severing Winds, Flowering Vortex

As an action you can spend 6 Ki points to strike with the speed and force of a storm wind. Choose up to 5 creatures within 30 feet of you, you then teleport between them and make one melee weapon attack with a monk weapon or unarmed strike. On a hit, the creature takes damage equal to 4 rolls of your martial arts die + your Dexterity modifier. You can end your action where you started or within 5 feet of one target you hit.

Cascading Deflection

Prerequisite: 11th level

When you use Deflect Missiles or Flowing Guard, if you have it, you can use them against ranged and melee spell attacks respectively. When reducing damage from a spell to 0 with Deflect Missiles, when you spend 1 Ki point to return the attack, make a melee weapon attack regardless of range, with your monk weapon or unarmed strike. The damage dealt, if any, is equal to your weapon's normal damage, but the damage type is the same as the spell you deflected.

Flashing Blade

As an action, you can spend 1 Ki point to make four consecutive slashes in a square shape or a spinning slash. When you do so, each creature within 5 feet of you must make a Dexterity saving throw, on a failure they take slashing damage equal to your Martial Arts die + your Dexterity modifier, taking half damage on a success.

This attack can disperse the winds around you up to a 20-foot radius.

If you have the Extra Attack feature, you can use this Sword Art in place of one of your attacks, provided that you still pay the Ki cost.

Flickering Avoidance

Prerequisite: 6th level, Sidestep

When you succeed on a Dexterity saving throw, you can spend 1 Ki point as a reaction to move up to half your speed without provoking opportunity attacks as you somersault backwards, twisting your body in an arc across the air.

Flow of Battle

Your training allows you to quickly evaluate the combat abilities of others by reading their Ki. As a bonus action, you can spend 1 Ki point to take the Search action targeting one creature you can see wihtin 30 feet (DC equals 8 + its Challenge Rating).

If you have hit that creature with a weapon attack within the last minute, you can add your Monk level to your roll. On a success, you learn one characteristic of your choice about the target, chosen from the following table:

Armor Class	Highest Ability Score
One Special Sense	Lowest Ability Score
One Resistance, Immunity or Vulnerability	One Trait or Action from its stat block

On a failure, you do not learn anything about the creature, and you cannot use this feature on that creature again until you finish a long rest, or you hit it with a weapon attack.

Flowering Vortex

Prerequisite: 11th level, Flashing Blade

When you take the Attack action, you can spend 3 Ki point to replace one of your attacks with three arcing cuts, forming a trap of blade strikes around your foes. Each creature within a 15-foot cone of you must make a Dexterity saving throw or take slashing damage equal to 1 roll of your Martial Arts die + your Dexterity modifier or half as much on a success. On a failed save creatures have disadvantage on the next Strength of Dexterity saving throw they make until the beginning of your next turn

Flowing Guard

You can use your reaction to deflect a weapon strike when you are hit by a melee weapon attack. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your monk level.

If you reduce the damage to 0, you can punish the attack with one of your own. You can spend 1 ki point to make a melee weapon attack using a monk weapon or unarmed strike against the attacker, as part of the same reaction.

Graceful Steps

When you roll Initiative, a Dexterity (Acrobatics), or a Charisma (Performance) check, you can spend 1 Ki point to add a roll of your Martial Arts die to the result.

Ki Sight

Prerequisite: 17th level, Sense Ki, Flow of Battle

Your ability to read another's Ki allows you an unmatched ability to notice faults in a creature's deception. When you spend Ki to enhance your Sense Ki, for the duration you gain Truesight instead of Blindsight.

Knock Back

When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack with a monk weapon or unarmed strike, you can spend 1 Ki point to attempt to shove them. The creature must make a Strength saving throw, getting knocked 10 feet back on a failure. On a success, they don't get knocked back.

Masterful Sweep

When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack with a monk weapon or unarmed strike, you can spend 1 Ki point to attempt to trip them. The creature must make a Strength saving throw or a Dexterity saving throw (their choice), getting knocked prone on a failure. On a success, they aren't knocked prone.

Ripple Stance

As a bonus action on your turn, you can spend 1 Ki point to grant the benefits of your Patient Defense feature to an ally of your choice within 5 feet of you as you interpose your sword to parry incoming attacks.

Sense Ki

Prerequisite: 11th level, Tactical Insight

You can read the Ki of your surroundings. You gain Blindsight out to a range of 15 feet. You can also spend 1 Ki point as an action to focus your senses and increase the range of your Blindsight to 30 feet for 1 minute.

Severing Winds

Prerequisite: 11th level, Zephyr Step

When you take the Attack action, you can spend 2 Ki points to stride forward faster than the wind. You replace one attack to teleport up to 30 feet away in a straight line. All creatures in this line must make a Dexterity saving throw or take slashing damage equal to 2 rolls of your Martial Arts die + your Dexterity modifier or half as much on a success. On a failed save, creatures are knocked prone.

Sidestep

As a reaction, you can spend 1 Ki point to force disadvantage against an opportunity attack that targets you. If it misses, you have advantage on your next attack against that foe.

Sundering Flux

Prerequisite: 11th level, Flashing Blade

As a bonus action on your turn, you can spend 1 Ki point to reduce your speed by half and ignore any bonuses a creature has to its Armor Class when making a melee weapon attack against it until the beginning of your next turn with your monk weapons. On a hit, the creature's Armor Class is reduced by 2 until the beginning of your next turn, further hits don't reduce the Armor Class further.

Swift Reposition

Prerequisite: 6th level

As a bonus action, you can spend 1 Ki point to swap places with an ally, provided that they are willing and are within 5 feet of you. This movement does not provoke opportunity attacks.

Tactical Insight

When you make a Wisdom (Insight), Wisdom (Perception) or an Intelligence (Investigation) check, you can spend 1 Ki point to add a roll of your Martial Arts die to the result.

Thousandfold Lotus Bloom

Prerequisite: 6th level, Flashing Blade

When you take the Attack action on your turn, you can spend 2 Ki to replace one attack with a thousand cuts, bleeding your foe in the form of a blooming red lotus flower. Make a melee weapon attack with your monk weapon, on a hit you deal slashing damage equal to 1 roll of your martial arts die and the creature has to make a Constitution saving throw.

On a failure, the creature begins bleeding, taking slashing damage equal to 1 roll of your martial arts die at the beginning of each of its turns for 1 minute. On a success it instead takes half that damage at the beginning of each of its turns for 1 minute. While bleeding, the creature can use an action on its turn to stop the bleeding.

Zephyr Step

Prerequisite: 6th level

When you use Step of the Wind, your movement leaves a trail of wind in your wake that stills the movement of enemies, forcing enemies you move within 5 feet of on this turn to make a strength saving throw, or have their movement speed halved until the beginning of your next turn.

Critical Focus

Beginning at 6th level, your focus becomes razor sharp and your sword strikes more deadly.

• Ki-Infused Blade. Your monk weapons count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to non-magical attacks.
• Severance. When you spend 1 or more ki points as part of your turn, your melee weapon attacks with monk weapons score a critical hit on a roll of 19 or 20 on the d20 until the beginning of your next turn.

Unwavering Resolve

At 11th level, your heightened focus and awareness of the ki that flows in your body and soul like a lake, allows you to push your body to its physical limits more often.

You can pick one Sword Art of prerequisite of monk level 6 or below that you know and choose it as your signature Sword Art, when you do so it costs 1 less Ki point to use, to a minimum of 0, if it uses your Martial Arts die, roll a d6 in its place. At 14th level you can choose a second signature Sword Art, and a third at 17th level.

Trueblade

Finally at 17th level, your sword strikes true, phasing through guards. Your melee weapon attacks with monk weapons can't have disadvantage forced on them. Moreover, the first time each round that you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack with a monk weapon, you regain 1 Ki point.