Psionic Monk

Post/Author/DateTimePost
#1

zombiegleemax

Jul 18, 2005 1:17:46
Does anyone have any suggestions on a variant monk or even ninja (from the complete adventurer) drawing its power from psionics rather than Ki with more flavor than just saying that is psionically based instead of Ki based. In other words, giving each Ki based class new powers based around psionics.
#2

Pennarin

Jul 18, 2005 1:33:42
Nytcrawlr will be able to answer that for you.
#3

nytcrawlr

Jul 18, 2005 1:36:29
Let me dig for my Psi-Monk writeup, unless of course Xlorep will be kind enough to post it for me since I know he has a copy.
#4

nytcrawlr

Jul 18, 2005 2:29:08
Ha, ha! Sweet!!!!

Google still has most of my site cached, which makes it much easier on me to get it all on multiply, mwuahahahaha!

Anyways, here is the Psi-Monk. I am going to add stuff later to it, namely fighting styles from UA like Xlorep did, but that will come later and won't neccessarily reflect the same ones he added.



Psi-Monk


Alignment: Any Lawful
Hit Die: d8
Class Skills: The psi-monk's class skills (and the ability for each skill) are Autohypnosis (Wis), Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Gather Information (Cha), Hide (Dex), Jump (Str), Knowledge (psionics), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), and Tumble (Dex).


Skill Points at 1st level: (4+Int modifier) x4.
Skill Points at Each Additional Level: (4+Int modifier).


Class Features

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Psi-monks are proficient with club, crossbow (light or heavy), dagger, handaxe, javelin, puchik, ko, quarterstaff, singing sticks, blowgun (greater), wrist razor, and sling. Psi-monks are not proficient with any armor or shields
When wearing armor, using a shield, or carrying a medium or heavy load, a psi-monk loses her AC bonus, as well as her fast movement and flurry of blows abilities.

AC Bonus (Ex): When unarmored, unencumbered, and retaining her psionic focus, the psi-monk adds her Wisdom bonus (if any) to her AC. In addition, a psi-monk gains a +1 bonus to AC at 5th level as long as she retains her psionic focus. This bonus increases by 1 for every five psi-monk levels thereafter (+2 at 10th, +3 at 15th, and +4 at 20th level).
These bonuses to AC apply even against touch attacks or when the psi-monk is flat-footed. She loses these bonuses when she is immobilized, helpless, loses her psionic focus, when she wears any armor, when she carries a shield, or when she carries a medium or heavy load.

Flurry of Blows (Ex): When unarmored, a psi-monk may strike with a flurry of blows at the expense of accuracy. When doing so, she may make one extra attack in a round at her highest base attack bonus, but this attack takes a –2 penalty, as does each other attack made that round. The resulting modified base attack bonuses are shown in the Flurry of Blows Attack Bonus column on Table: The Psi-monk. This penalty applies for 1 round, so it also affects attacks of opportunity the psi-monk might make before her next action. When a psi-monk reaches 5th level, the penalty lessens to –1, and at 9th level it disappears. A psi-monk must use a full attack action to strike with a flurry of blows.
When using flurry of blows, a psi-monk may attack only with unarmed strikes or with special psi-monk weapons (puchik, ko, quarterstaff, singing sticks, blowgun (greater), and wrist razor). She may attack with unarmed strikes and special psi-monk weapons interchangeably as desired. When using weapons as part of a flurry of blows, a psi-monk applies her Strength bonus (not Str bonus x 1-1/2 or x1/2) to her damage rolls for all successful attacks, whether she wields a weapon in one or both hands. The psi-monk can’t use any weapon other than a special psi-monk weapon as part of a flurry of blows.
In the case of the quarterstaff, each end counts as a separate weapon for the purpose of using the flurry of blows ability. Even though the quarterstaff requires two hands to use, a psi-monk may still intersperse unarmed strikes with quarterstaff strikes, assuming that she has enough attacks in her flurry of blows routine to do so.
When a psi-monk reaches 11th level and when she expends her psionic focus, her flurry of blows ability improves. In addition to the standard single extra attack she gets from flurry of blows, she gets a second extra attack at her full base attack bonus.

Unarmed Strike: At 1st level, a psi-monk gains Improved Unarmed Strike as a bonus feat. A psi-monk’s attacks may be with either fist interchangeably or even from elbows, knees, and feet. This means that a psi-monk may even make unarmed strikes with her hands full. There is no such thing as an off-hand attack for a psi-monk striking unarmed. A psi-monk may thus apply her full Strength bonus on damage rolls for all her unarmed strikes.
Usually a psi-monk’s unarmed strikes deal lethal damage, but she can choose to deal nonlethal damage instead with no penalty on her attack roll. She has the same choice to deal lethal or nonlethal damage while grappling.
A psi-monk’s unarmed strike is treated both as a manufactured weapon and a natural weapon for the purpose of spells and effects that enhance or improve either manufactured weapons or natural weapons.
A psi-monk also deals more damage with her unarmed strikes than a normal person would, as shown on Table: The Psi-monk. The unarmed damage on Table: The Psi-monk is for Medium psi-monks. A Small psi-monk deals less damage than the amount given there with her unarmed attacks, while a Large psi-monk deals more damage; see Table: Small or Large Psi-monk Unarmed Damage.

Bonus Feat: At 1st level, a psi-monk may select either Improved Grapple or Stunning Fist as a bonus feat. At 2nd level, she may select either Combat Reflexes or Deflect Arrows as a bonus feat. At 6th level, she may select either Improved Disarm or Improved Trip as a bonus feat. A psi-monk need not have any of the prerequisites normally required for these feats to select them.

Psi-Surge: At 1st level when she expends her psionic focus, she can increase her current unarmed damage to the next higher die (see tables for exact numbers). This effects lasts for the current round in which the psi-monk expended her psionic focus. She can then try to retain her psionic focus next round as per normal rules.

Evasion: At 2nd level or higher if a psi-monk retains her psionic focus, and makes a successful Reflex saving throw against an attack that normally deals half damage on a successful save, she instead takes no damage. Evasion can be used only if a psi-monk is wearing light armor or no armor, or loses her psionic focus. A helpless psi-monk does not gain the benefit of evasion.

Fast Movement (Ex): At 3rd level, a psi-monk gains an enhancement bonus to her speed as long as she retains her psionic focus, as shown on Table: The Psi-monk. A psi-monk who loses her psionic focus, in armor or carrying a medium or heavy load loses this extra speed.

Wild Talent: A psi-monk gains Wild Talent as a bonus feat. (This class feature provides the character with the psionic power he needs to maintain and expend his psionic focus, if he has no power points otherwise.).

Still Mind (Ex): A psi-monk of 3rd level or higher gains a +2 bonus on saving throws against spells and effects from the school of enchantment.

Psi Strike (Su): At 4th level, a psi-monk’s unarmed attacks are empowered with her psionic energy. As long as she retains her psionic focus, her unarmed attacks are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction. Psi-strike improves with the character’s psi-monk level. At 10th level, her unarmed attacks are also treated as lawful weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction. At 16th level, her unarmed attacks are treated as adamantine weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction and bypassing hardness.

Slow Fall (Ex): At 4th level or higher, a psi-monk within arm’s reach of a wall can use it to slow her descent. When first using this ability, she takes damage as if the fall were 20 feet shorter than it actually is. The psi-monk’s ability to slow her fall (that is, to reduce the effective distance of the fall when next to a wall) improves with her psi-monk level until at 20th level she can use a nearby wall to slow her descent and fall any distance without harm.

Purity of Body (Ex): At 5th level, a psi-monk gains immunity to all diseases except for supernatural and magical diseases as long as she retains her psionic focus.

Wholeness of Body (Su): At 7th level or higher, a psi-monk can heal her own wounds when she expends her psionic focus. She can heal a number of hit points of damage equal to twice her current psi-monk level each day, and she can spread this healing out among several uses.

Improved Evasion (Ex): At 9th level, a psi-monk’s evasion ability improves. She still takes no damage on a successful Reflex saving throw against attacks, but henceforth she takes only half damage on a failed save. A helpless psi-monk, or psi-monk that has lost her psionic focus does not gain the benefit of improved evasion.

Diamond Body (Su): At 11th level, a psi-monk gains immunity to poisons of all kinds as long as she retains her psionic focus.

Abundant Step (Su): At 12th level or higher, and while retaining her psionic focus, a psi-monk can slip magically between spaces, as if using the spell dimension door, once per day. Her caster level for this effect is one-half her psi-monk level (rounded down).

Diamond Soul (Ex): At 13th level, a psi-monk gains psionic resistance equal to her current psi-monk level + 10. In order to affect the psi-monk with a psionic power, a manifester must get a result on a caster level check (1d20 + manifester level) that equals or exceeds the psi-monk’s psionic resistance.

Quivering Palm (Su): Starting at 15th level and expending her psionic focus, a psi-monk can set up vibrations within the body of another creature that can thereafter be fatal if the psi-monk so desires. She can use this quivering palm attack once a week, and she must announce her intent before making her attack roll. Constructs, oozes, plants, undead, incorporeal creatures, and creatures immune to critical hits cannot be affected. Otherwise, if the psi-monk strikes successfully and the target takes damage from the blow, the quivering palm attack succeeds. Thereafter the psi-monk can try to slay the victim at any later time, as long as the attempt is made within a number of days equal to her psi-monk level. To make such an attempt, the psi-monk merely wills the target to die (a free action), and unless the target makes a Fortitude saving throw (DC 10 + 1/2 the psi-monk’s level + the psi-monk’s Wis modifier), it dies. If the saving throw is successful, the target is no longer in danger from that particular quivering palm attack, but it may still be affected by another one at a later time.

Timeless Body (Ex): Upon attaining 17th level, a psi-monk no longer takes penalties to her ability scores for aging and cannot be magically aged. Any such penalties that she has already taken, however, remain in place. Bonuses still accrue, and the psi-monk still dies of old age when her time is up.

Tongue of the Sun and Moon (Ex): A psi-monk of 17th level or higher can speak with any living creature.

Empty Body (Su): At 19th level and when retaining her psionic focus, a psi-monk gains the ability to assume an ethereal state for 1 round per psi-monk level per day, as though using the spell etherealness. She may go ethereal on a number of different occasions during any single day, as long as the total number of rounds spent in an ethereal state does not exceed her psi-monk level.

Perfect Self: At 20th level, a psi-monk becomes a psionic creature. She is forevermore treated as an outsider rather than as a humanoid (or whatever the psi-monk’s creature type was) for the purpose of spells, psionics, and magical effects. Additionally, the psi-monk gains damage reduction 10/psionic, which allows her to ignore the first 10 points of damage from any attack made by a nonpsionic weapon or by any natural attack made by a creature that doesn’t have similar damage reduction. Unlike other outsiders, the psi-monk can still be brought back from the dead as if she were a member of her previous creature type.


Ex-Psi-Monks
A psi-monk who becomes nonlawful cannot gain new levels as a psi-monk but retains all psi-monk abilities.
Like a member of any other class, a psi-monk may be a multiclass character, but multiclass psi-monks face a special restriction. A psi-monk who gains a new class or (if already multiclass) raises another class by a level may never again raise her psi-monk level, though she retains all her psi-monk abilities.

Note also that psi-monks are allowed to take any “psionic” type feat as long as it doesn’t deal with manifesting a power.


[b]Smaller or Large Psi-monk Unarmed Damage[/b]<br /> [b]Damage PS Damage Damage PS Damage[/b]<br /> [b](Small Psi-monk) (Small Psi-monk) (Large Psi-monk) (Large Psi-monk)[/b]<br /> [b]Level[/b]<br /> 1st-3rd 1d3 1d4 1d6 1d8<br /> 4th-7th 1d4 1d6 1d8 2d6<br /> 8th-11th 1d6 1d8 1d10 2d8<br /> 12th-15th 1d8 1d10 1d12 3d6<br /> 16th-19th 1d10 2d6 2d8 3d8<br /> 20th 1d12 2d8 2d10 4d8
#5

xlorepdarkhelm_dup

Jul 18, 2005 3:55:22
Let me dig for my Psi-Monk writeup, unless of course Xlorep will be kind enough to post it for me since I know he has a copy.

Umm... actually, no, I don't. I had only referred to your write-up.
#6

jon_oracle_of_athas

Jul 18, 2005 6:00:18
There's also the Psionic Monk prestige class in the Prestige Class Appendix vol I from athas.org. http://www.athas.org/releases/prc/Prestigeclasses3_5.pdf
#7

flip

Jul 18, 2005 8:00:30
There's also the fact that it really doesn't take much adaptation, simply a slight jiggling of the flavor.

heck, ki is practially "inwardly focused" psionic energy anyway. The idea is that you learn to route and focus and channel the bodies energies. So, the difference becomes that Monks focus their energy inwards, while psions focus it outwards. You don't even really need to change the name, Ki (or Chi) works just fine, though you could change it if you wanted to completely strip the oriental implications.