Monk: Way of the Blade Dancer

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Overview & Creation

THIS BLOCK IS A WORK IN PROGRESS AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANY TIME. ADDITIONALLY IT IS ONLY COMPLETE UP TO LEVEL 8.  

As they surrounded her, Irelia averted her eyes, looking to the pieces of the Xan crest scattered on the ground. From deep within her soul, she felt a strange rhythm begin to beat. The shards of metal began to twitch, to twist, moving seemingly on their own, and Irelia felt the serene joy of the ancient dances once more... They shattered her spirit; But she became sharpest at the break.

You have trained under the blade dancers of Navori and learned to make silk dance, then you graduated to sticks, then to stones, then blades. With sweeping motions of your feet, hands and body you cause your weapons to flow like silk around you and cut into foes that stand in your path.

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Class Features

Silken Blades

Beginning at 1st level you gain the ability to spend a short rest focusing on up to your max (as shown in the Max Dancing Weapons column of the Monk Table) of simple or martial melee weapons that aren't heavy. These weapons must be all of the same type. While attuned in this way you are proficient with that weapon if you weren't before. Through careful dance choreography you can conduct the weapons to move through the air in a 5ft radius sphere around you. This radius increases to 15ft at level 6. Whenever you take the attack action on your turn you may consume your bonus action to also make separate attacks with each of the weapons against any target within the blade range. Dexterity is the modifiers for these attacks. If the weapons have the thrown property you may throw it using it's normal range, however, it must re-enter your blade range in order to regain control of it. If your speed is reduced to 0 you lose control of the weapons.  

Parry

Starting at 1st level when being attacked with a melee weapon you may choose to parry the attack with one of your blades. When you parry an attack in this way you reduce the incoming damage by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier and you cannot use that blade to attack or parry until the end of your next turn.  

Ki

Starting at 3rd level, your training allows you to harness the mystic energy of ki. Your access to this energy is represented by a number of ki points. Your monk level determines the number of points you have, as shown in the Ki Points column of the Monk table. You can spend these points to fuel various ki features. You start knowing two such features: Patient Defense, and Step of the Wind. You learn more ki features as you gain levels in this class. When you spend a ki point, it is unavailable until you finish a short or long rest, at the end of which you draw all of your expended ki back into yourself. You must spend at least 30 minutes of the rest meditating to regain your ki points. Some of your ki features require your target to make a saving throw to resist the feature’s effects. The saving throw DC is calculated as follows: Ki save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier  

• Patient Defense You can spend 1 ki point to take the Dodge action as a bonus action on your turn.
• Step of the Wind You can spend 1 ki point to take the Disengage or Dash action as a bonus action on your turn, and your jump distance is doubled for the turn.

 

Ability Score Improvement

When you reach 4th level, and again at 8th, 12th, 16th, and 19th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature. Using the optional feats rule, you can forgo taking this feature to take a feat of your choice instead.  

Deflect Missiles

Starting at 5th level, you can use your reaction to deflect a missle that passes through your blade range. When you do so, the damage the target would take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your monk level. If you reduce the damage to 0, you can redirect the missile if it is small enough for you to hold in one hand. If you redirect a missile in this way, you can spend 1 ki point to make a ranged attack with the weapon or piece of ammunition as part of the same reaction. You make this attack with proficiency, regardless of your weapon proficiencies, and the missile counts as an attuned weapon for the attack, this attack has a range of 20 feet and a long range of 60 feet.  

Ki-Empowered Blades

Starting at 6th level, attacks made with your attuned blades count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.  

Evasion

At 7th level, your instinctive agility lets you dodge out of the way of certain area effects, such as a blue dragon’s lightning breath or a fireball spell. When you are subjected to an effect that allows you to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail.  

Stillness of Mind

Starting at 7th level, you can use your action to end one effect on yourself that is causing you to be charmed or frightened.  

Slow Fall

Beginning at 8th level, you can use your reaction when you fall to catch yourself with your blades and reduce any falling damage you take by an amount equal to five times your monk level.

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Starting Equipment

You start with the following equipment, in addition to the equipment granted by your background:

• (a) a shortsword or (b) any simple weapon
• (a) a dungeoneer’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack
• 10 darts

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