Enlightened Fist

Enlightened fists are the perfect blend of material and spiritual power. Anything one of these warriors sets out to do, they do well and all enlightened fists are unified by their astonishing levels of insight into the world around them. This does not mean all enlightened fists share the same values however. Their motives and beliefs are extremely complex or obtuse, founded upon strong philosophical principles about the nature of existence. One could be found serving as a counselor to virtuous dragons one day and on the front lines in a hellish conflict the next. To become an enlightened fist is to understand— oneself, one’s goals, and one’s place in the universe. 

To advance as an enlightened fist, you must meet the following prerequisites:

• Monk Level 20 – Only monks of the highest order possess the level of discipline and physical mastery to even attempt the techniques enlightened fists must master.

• Slay an Epic Foe – At the DM’s discretion, you may be required to defeat a mighty opponent of tremendous power. This enemy must be the greatest threat you have ever faced and represent a tremendous achievement in your adventuring career. DMs are encouraged to make this foe a creature of great power that pushes your character to its limits. The creature need not be defeated singlehandedly but should always be of considerable challenge.

• Epic Trial: Enlightened Soul – A monk wishing to become an enlightened fist must complete a grueling test of body and spirit. You must seek out a place of meditation that is in harmony with your alignment, background, and other aspects of your character. Such a place may be an ancient temple of an evil god, a field of frozen flowers upon an icy mountaintop, or a lake of fire on an elemental plane. Once there, you can begin to contemplate the complex nature of your ki and your purpose in wielding it. Will it be a weapon to shatter evil, or a tool to subjugate the world around you? As you contemplate your existence, you begin to master your ki on every physical level. Each breath you take flows with mystical energy and your heartbeats resound with power. After a year and a day of this process, you emerge with a clarity of purpose others are incapable of understanding as an enlightened fist. 

As an enlightened fist, you gain the following class features. 

Hit Points 

Hit Dice: 1d8 per enlightened fist level 

Hit Points per Level: 1d8 + your Constitution modifier per enlightened fist level 

Ability Score Improvement 

When you reach 21st level, and again at 23rd, 25th, 27th, and 29th level, you can increase one ability score of your choice by 2, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 1. You can’t increase an ability score above 30 using this feature. 

Epic Feat 

When you reach 21st level, and again at 25th and 29th level, you may select one Epic feat from the Epic feat list detailed in section 3. You may forgo taking an Epic feat to instead increase an ability score of your choice by 4, or you can increase two ability scores of your choice by 2. You cannot increase an ability score above 30 using this feature. 

Battle Meditation 

Beginning at 21st level, you can tap into the infinite ki of the universe and draw it into your body. If you take no other actions and do not spend any movement on your turn, you may take an action to regain ki points up to your maximum. Once you use this feature, you can’t use it again until you finish a long rest. You can use this feature twice between long rests starting at 25th level and three times between long rests starting at 29th level. 

Epic Monastic Training 

At 21st level, you continue your training in the techniques of the monk. The number of ki points you have continues to increase as you advance as an enlightened fist. Your enlightened fist level determines how many ki points you have, as shown in the Ki Points column of the enlightened fist class progression table. Additionally, you can roll 1d12 in place of the normal damage of your unarmed strike or monk weapon. This die changes as you gain levels as an enlightened fist, as shown in the Martial Arts column of the enlightened fist class progression table. 

Flowing Power 

At 22nd level, your ki can flow through your body effortlessly using a technique called “flow.” When you take a bonus action, you may immediately spend 2 ki points to regain the use of your bonus action until the end of that turn. You may use this feature once per turn. As you advance as an enlightened fist, you gain additional uses of this feature per turn, as shown in the Flowing Power column of the enlightened fist class progression table. Additionally, when you would spend ki points as a part of taking your action or casting a spell with a casting time of an action, you may do so as a bonus action instead. If you would cast a spell as a bonus action using ki points instead of spell slots, you are not prevented from casting additional spells that turn, as long as any additional spells cast in this manner are cast using ki points instead of spell slots. 

First Lesson of the Enlightened Fist 

When you reach 22nd level, you can learn mysterious techniques of the enlightened fist, developed by ancient enlightened fists who mastered the secrets of ki. You gain one of the following features of your choice:

• Karmic Reversal. When you use your reaction via your Deflect Missiles feature to reduce the damage you take from a ranged weapon attack, you may spend 1 or more ki points. You reduce the damage of the attack by 10 additional points for each ki point spent. If you reduce the damage of the attack to 0 with this feature, you regain the use of your reaction at the end of that turn.

• Seven-Sided Strike. As an action you may spend 4 ki points to make a single melee weapon attack and record the final result of the attack and damage rolls. Each creature of your choice within 120 feet of you that you are aware of with an AC lower than the result of that attack roll takes the damage equal to the amount dealt by the attack. 

Second Lesson of the Enlightened Fist 

At 24th level, as your mastery of ki grows you unlock more techniques of the enlightened fist. You gain one of the following features of your choice:

• Mystic Strikes. As a bonus action, you can expend up to 3 ki points to grant your unarmed strikes and spell attacks a bonus to attack and damage rolls. The bonus equals the number of ki points you spent and lasts for 1 minute or until you use this feature again.

• Raging Ki Death Blow. As an action, you make a single weapon attack. If the attack hits, you must spend all of your ki points. The attack deals an additional 15 damage per ki point spent in this manner. 

Epic Monastic Tradition 

When you attain 26th level, you are an undisputed master of your monastic tradition, a pinnacle of your craft to which all monks who follow your tradition aspire. Other members of your tradition are considered friendly toward you unless they are an enemy. You gain the following features according to the monastic tradition you selected when you were advancing as a monk. 

Way of Shadow 

You can transform your body into deadly shadows that can pierce a creature’s body. At the start of each of your turns, you may spend 8 ki points to turn your body into a mass of ki-infused shadows. Until the end of your turn, you can move through other creatures and objects as though they were difficult terrain and have Epic advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) ability checks. If you deal damage to a creature while inside its space while using this feature, record that damage. At the end of your turn, each creature you damaged while inside its space takes additional necrotic damage equal to the damage you recorded that turn. If you end your turn inside an object, you are moved to the nearest unoccupied space and take 1d10 force damage for every 5 feet moved. 

Third Lesson of the Enlightened Fist 

At 28th level, you learn some of the last lessons the enlightened fist has left to teach you. You gain one of the following features of your choice. 

• Radiant Spirit Spell Shield. When you are targeted by a spell, you may use your reaction to spend ki points equal to half the spell’s level (rounded down) to attempt to deflect the spell back at its caster. If the spell is an Epic spell, you must spend 5 ki points to attempt to deflect a tier 1 Epic spell, 7 ki points to attempt to deflect a tier 2 Epic spell, and 10 ki points to attempt to deflect a tier 3 Epic spell. After you spend the necessary ki points, you must make a melee weapon attack as a part of that action to strike the magic. If the final result of the attack roll is greater than the caster’s spell save DC, the spell is reflected back at the caster and the caster becomes the target instead of you. On a failure, you are affected by the spell normally. 

• Roaring Dragon Style. When you take the Dodge action, you may spend 3 ki points to gain the following benefits until the start of your next turn.

  • When you use your reaction to make a successful weapon attack, you regain the use of your reaction at the end of that turn.

  • Your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier + your proficiency bonus. 

The Final Lesson 

At 30th level, you learn one final technique as an enlightened fist, granting you nearly limitless ki, granting you the following benefits. 

• Ki Enlightenment. At the start of each of your turns you gain 12 ki points, up to your maximum.