Martial Artist

Class Features

As a martial artist, you gain the following class features.

Hit Points

Hit Dice: 1d8 per martial artist level

Hit Points at 1st Level: 8 + your Constitution modifier

Hit Points at Higher Levels: 8 + your Constitution modifier per martial artist level after 1st

Proficiencies

Armor: None

Weapons: Simple weapons, shortswords

Tools: Choose one type of artisan’s tools or one musical Instrument

Saving Throws: Strength, Dexterity

Skills: Choose two from Acrobatics, Athletics, History, Insight, Religion, and Stealth

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 pirate’s pack or (b) an explorer’s pack

• (a) 10 darts or (b) two daggers

Unarmored Defense

Beginning at 1st level, while you are wearing no armor and not wielding a Shield, your AC equals 10 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom modifier.

Martial Arts

At 1st level, your practice of Martial Arts gives you mastery of Combat styles that use unarmed strikes and martial artist Weapons, which are shortswords and any simple melee weapons⁠ that don’t have the Two-Handed or heavy property.

You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only martial artist Weapons and you aren’t wearing armor or wielding a shield:

• You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for the Attack and Damage Rolls of your unarmed strikes and martial artist Weapons.

• You can roll a d6 in place of the normal damage of your Unarmed Strike or martial artist weapon. This die changes as you gain martial artist levels, as shown in the Martial Arts column of the Martial Artist table.

• When you use the Attack action with an Unarmed Strike or a martial artist weapon on Your Turn, you can make one Unarmed Strike as a Bonus Action. For example, if you take the Attack action and Attack with a Quarterstaff, you can also make an Unarmed Strike as a Bonus Action, assuming you haven’t already taken a Bonus Action this turn.

Certain martial arts schools use specialized forms of the martial artist Weapons. For example, you might use a club that is two lengths of wood connected by a short chain (called a nunchaku) or a Sickle with a shorter, straighter blade (called a kama). Whatever name you use for a martial artist weapon, you can use the game statistics provided for the weapon.

Unarmored Movement⁠

Starting at 2nd Level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you are not wearing armor or wielding a Shield. This bonus increases when you reach certain martial artist levels, as shown in the Martial Artist table.

Ki

Starting at 2nd Level, your training allows you to harness The Spiritual energy of ki. Your access to this energy is represented by a number of ki points. Your martial artist level determines the number of points you have, as shown in the Ki Points column of the Martial Artist table.

You can spend these points to fuel various ki features. You start knowing three such features: Swift Barrage, Shifting Body, and Whirlwind Step. 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

• Swift Barrage. Immediately after you take the Attack action on Your Turn, you can spend 1 ki point to make two unarmed strikes as a Bonus Action.

• Shifting Body. You can spend 1 ki point to take the Dodge action as a Bonus Action on Your Turn.

• Whirlwind Step. You can spend 1 ki point to take the Disengage and Dash action as a Bonus Action on Your Turn, and your jump distance is doubled for the turn.

Soul Weapon

Also at 2nd level, you train yourself to use a variety of weapons as martial artist weapons, not just simple melee weapons and shortswords. Whenever you finish a short or long rest, you can touch one weapon, focus your ki on it, and then count that weapon as a martial artist weapon until you use this feature again.

The chosen weapon must meet these criteria:

• The weapon must be a simple or martial weapon.

• You must be proficient with it.

• It must lack the heavy and special properties.

Martial Arts School

When you reach 3rd Level, you commit yourself to a school of martial arts: Six Powers, Fish-Man Karate, or New Kama Kenpo, all detailed below. Your school grants you features at 3rd Level and again at 6th, 11th, and 17th level.

Deflect Projectile

Starting at 3rd level, you can use your reaction to deflect ranged attacks that deal bludgeoning, piercing, or slashing damage. When you do so, the damage you take from the attack is reduced by 1d10 + your Dexterity modifier + your martial artist level.

If you reduce the damage to 0, you can spend 1 ki point to redirect the attack toward another creature. If you do so, choose a creature within 60 feet of yourself that isn't behind Total Cover. That creature must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or take damage equal to two rolls of your Martial Arts die. The damage is the same type dealt by the attack.

Ki-Fueled Attack

Also at 3rd level, if you spend 1 ki point or more as part of your action on your turn, you can make one attack with an unarmed strike or a martial artist weapon as a bonus action before the end of 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. Alternatively, you can take a feat. As normal, you can’t increase an ability score above 20 using this feature.

Slow Fall

Beginning at 4th level, you can use your reaction when you fall to reduce any falling damage you take by an amount equal to five times your martial artist level.

Heart Chakra

At 4th level, you have complete control over your heart chakra. As an action, you can spend 2 ki points and roll a Martial Arts die. You regain a number of hit points equal to the number rolled plus your proficiency bonus.

Extra Attack

Beginning at 5th Level, you can Attack twice, instead of once, whenever you take the Attack action on Your Turn.

Stunning Strike

Starting at 5th Level, you can interfere with the flow of ki in an opponent’s body. When you hit another creature with a melee weapon Attack, you can spend 1 ki point to attempt a Stunning Strike. The target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be Stunned until the start of your next turn.

Focused Aim

Beginning at 5th level, when you miss with an attack roll, you can spend 1 to 3 ki points to increase your attack roll by 2 for each of these ki points you spend, potentially turning the miss into a hit.

Solar Plexus Chakra

Starting at 6th level, through control over your solar plexus chakra, your Unarmed Strikes can deal Force damage or its normal damage type (your choice).

Evasion

At 7th level, your instinctive agility lets you dodge out of the way of certain area Effects, such as an exploding missile. 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.

Stomach Chakra

Starting at 7th level, through control over your stomach chakra, if you spend at least 1 minute resting, you can give yourself all the benefits of a Short Rest. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a Long Rest.

Acrobatic Movement

At 9th level, while you aren't wearing armor or wielding a Shield, you gain the ability to move along vertical surfaces and across liquids on your turn without falling during the movement.

Root Chakra

At 10th level, through control over your root chakra, you can use a Bonus Action to remove one of the following conditions from yourself: Charmed, Frightened, or Poisoned. In addition, forgoing food and drink doesn't give you levels of exhaustion.

Throat Chakra

Starting at 13th level, through control over your throat chakra, you gain the ability to communicate using your mind and spirit to connect with others and understand their intent. You gain telepathy up to 30 feet.

Deflect Energy

At 13th level, you can now use your Deflect Missiles feature against a ranged attack that deals any type of damage.

Crown Chakra

Beginning at 14th level, through control over your crown chakra, you gain proficiency in all Saving Throws. Additionally, whenever you make a saving throw and fail, you can spend 1 ki point to reroll it and take the second result.

Sacral Chakra

At 15th level, through control over your sacral chakra, when you roll Initiative and have 3 Ki Points or fewer, you regain expended Ki Points until you have 4.

Third Eye Chakra 

Beginning at 18th level, through control over your third eye chakra, you can use your action to spend 3 ki points to perfectly brace yourself against harm for 1 minute or until you are incapacitated. During that time, you have resistance to all damage except force damage. 

Death Chakra 

At 20th level, if you drop to 0 hit points, you can spend 4 ki points, roll four Martial Arts dice, and add the dice together. Your number of Hit Points instead changes to the total rolled. Each time you use this feature after the first, the ki point cost increases by 2. When you finish a Short Rest or Long Rest, the Ki Point cost resets to 4.