In 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons, subclasses let players add some flair and personality to the꧟ standard classes. They are great for homebrewers, since they let players create character options with a strong theme without making a full class progression. However, there are certain things to consider when home෴brewing subclasses for different classes. Here are some tips for making a Monastic Tradition, either for personal use or publication.
Spending Ki
Monks have a unique resource called ki pointsꦍ that fuel their abilities. Monks have some passive abilities, but most activated abilities are used by spending a certain number of ki points. One of the complexities of the class involves managing ki points and deciding🐟 which abilities to use them on.
Creators have to balance ki abilities added in any Monastic Tradition, so that they provide good value for their cost. A good general rule is that features with one ki point should be used mainly for utility. If they are used in combat they should be approximately equivalent to one unarmed strike – think of Flurry of Blows allowing monks to make two unarmed strikes as a bonus action instead of one. Features that cost two ki points should be about equivalent to the power level of a 1st-level spell, and three-ki-point features should be on par with a 2nd-level spell.
Pay Attention To Wording
Monks are one of the most complex classes in D&D, and a lot of abilities have very specific wording to avoid unintentional conflicts with other abilities. For instance, monks’ fists are not finesse weapons, they are unarmed strikes that⛄ can attack using Dexterity rather than Strength. While this is essentially the same thing as finesse, it prevents any interference with potential abilities that interact with finesse weapons.
Creators should make sure to familiarize themselves with the wording of monk abilities and avoid making assump🃏tions.
Play To Strengths, Not Weaknesses
Monks have some of the most obvious weaknesses of any class. They are a melee class with a very limited set of weapon proficiencies, which include nearly no ranged options. There have been of𒐪ficial subclasses, such as the Way of the Kensei and Way of the Sun Soul, that attempt to fix these issues by adding more monk weapons or ranged options.
However, the monk class’s drawbacks are important for class balance, and these subclasses either have abilities that do not interact with other monk abilities or focus on making new options as effective as basic monk 💜punches instead of adding new flavor.
Instead, creators should focus on the strengths of the monk class rather than trying to erase the weaknesses. For instance, Monks can compensate for their lack of range with increased mobility. If a creator wanted to make a monastic tradition based around hunting a flying creature like dragons, it could include vertical movement abilities rather than ranged options. It is often better to expand on how the class plays rather than try to for🏅cefully fix the balanced drawbacks of the class.
Creators should keep these guideline🌳s in mind, and make sure they don’t make the subclass too strong or too weak at any given level. As for coming up with the flavor for the archetype, they’ll have to use their imagin💦ation for that.