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justduelist
2017-09-25, 03:37 AM
Concept: A martial artist with magic integrated so thoroughly into their body that they become enchanted by various affects and more in tune with the magics of the world as the become stronger

so this is the starting point. I hope its easy enough to read and that its not too far outta balance.

Way of the Enchanted

Magic Arts
At 3rd level, your body, senses, and martial arts is furthered enhanced by your magic granting you the following benefits:

When you hit a target with an unarmed strike; you may cast one cantrip that deals damage against the target. The target is denied any Dexterity Save and is considered to have an AC of 0 for any nessessary attack roll made by the cantrip.

Pick one cantrips that can deal damage from any spell list; you learn these spell and may only cast them as part of your unarmed strike. You gain one additional cantrip at 6th level, 9th level, 12th level, 15th level, and 18th level.

You gain one 1st level Divination spell that you may cast at will without any spell components. You gain one additional 1st level Divination spell, that you may cast at will without any spell components, at 7th level, 11th level, 16th level.

Spellcasting Ability:
Spell save DC = 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier
Spell attack modifier = your proficiency bonus + your Wisdom modifier
You lose all features granted by Way of the Enchanted if you enter a field of Anti-Magic.

Unnamed Feature 1
At 6th level, you learn to channel more powerful spells through your unarmed strikes.
You learn one 1st level spell, from any spell list, that negatively affects a single target. You may cast this spell when you hit a target with your unarmed strike as described in the Magic Arts feature at a level equal to or lower than ¼ your Monk level by spending ki points equal to the level you cast it at.
You gain one additional spell of 1st level or higher as you gain levels in this class. You can only select a spell with a spell level equal to or lower than ¼ your Monk level. You gain these spells at 10th level, 14th level, and 19th level.

Unnamed Feature 2
At 11th Level, you learn ways to directly counter magical affects.
If you are targeted by a spell; you may cast Counterspell as a 3rd level spell, without any material components, by spending 1 ki point. If you do so against a spell higher than 3rd level; you have disadvantage on your ability check. If you enter a field of anti-Magic you may also cast Counter Spell in this manner. if you succeed you do not lose any of the features granted to you by Way of the Enchanted but the anti-magic field will remain..

If you hit a target with an unarmed strike; you may cast Dispell Magic, without any material components, at a level equal to ½ your monk level (rounded up) by spending ki points equal to the level you cast it at.

Unnamed Feature 3
At 17th level; you gain further supernatural abilities.
You can see the true form of any shapechanger or creature concealed by illusion or transmutation magic while the creature is within 30 feet of you and within line of sight.
You no longer need to breath or sleep. You can gain the benefit of a long rest if you perform no more than light activity for 8 hours.

Lalliman
2017-09-25, 04:30 AM
Cool idea, but I see one massive problem right off the bat. The cantrip that you cast upon punching someone has no action cost, so you can cast it with every single hit. That means at level 5, you can basically cast Fire Bolt four times per turn with Flurry of Blows, each dealing 2d10 damage in addition to the damage of the punch.

There's a few ways to fix this feature (requiring a bonus action and/or ki cost) but it's ultimately awkward to balance because cantrips scale in power with level. They're designed to be used instead of multiple attacks, not alongside them. I would suggest eschewing the cantrip mechanic and just letting you add custom made elemental effects.

For example: When you hit a target with an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki to apply one of the following effects to the attack.
- Burning Strike: The target takes 1d10 extra fire damage.
- Frozen Strike: The target takes 1d8 extra cold damage and its speed is reduced by 10 feet until the start of your next turn.
- Shocking Strike: The target takes 1d8 extra lightning damage, and can't take reactions until the start of its next turn.

I don't know how balanced these are, since they'll give great nova potential, but it's an idea. Maybe limit to once per turn.

If you do want to somehow keep the cantrip-based effect, you really need to exclude Eldritch Blast from the possibilities, since that one renders all other cantrips obsolete.

Also, about the Divination spells: While most Divination spells are pure utility and thus are fine as at-will abilities, Hunter's Mark is also a 1st level Divination spell. Hunter's Mark is an incredibly powerful spell on a monk and definitely shouldn't be so easily available.

I rarely play casters so I can't really give input on the higher level features. You'll need someone else's view on that one.