Kyamsil
First Post
Hi all.
This is a prestige class that I have been working on for some time. It is being custom made for my Monk6/Monk of the Enabled Hand 3 (Dragon Magazine 299, p. 48-50). My character is just about to get up in level. I plan on taking levels in this prestige class as soon as I reach Monk6/MotEH5.
My DM likes the prestige class so far, but hasn't made a final decission on it. As he knows that I am trying to make my own prestige class, he has woven certain plots in the Oriental Adventures campaign we are playing that will end with my character founding his own monastery/martial arts school or something like that.
I would want some feedback on the prestige class. Thanks. Enough rant, here it is:
Chi Master
“By using only the power of Chi I can humble brutes like you”
Chi Masters are martial artists who have achieved perfection of at least an style or technique and who focus themselves in the abilities granted by their Ki (or Chi).
Almost all Chi Masters start off as monks. To be able to handle the advanced powers of ki that this class gives, the future chi master must have advanced earlier in a monk prestige class that gives emphasis to a fighting style. There are Drunken Masters who see chi as the force behind their alcohol based abilities. There are also Monks of the Enabled Hand who want to immerse themselves in the powers of chi they touch during their career.
Chi masters tend to be overconfident of their abilities and eager to teach others of their findings on spiritual fulfillment. They also tend to be either tournament martial artists who like to show themselves or contemplative isolationists who care little for the world at large.
Hit Die: d8
Requirements:
To qualify as a chi master, a character must meet the following criteria:
Alignment: Any lawful (only lawful beings have the discipline to pursue their path)
Base Attack Bonus: +7
Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist (or Stunning Attack class ability)
Other: - Must have mastery in at least one style of martial arts.
- Must have multiclassed in at least one monk prestige class and “master” that class style by having at least 5 levels in that prestige class.
Class Skills
The chi master’s class skills are Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex)
Skill Points at each level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All the following are class features of the Chi Master prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Chi masters gain no proficiency in any armor or weapons, through they retain any knowledge gained from former classes. To be able to use their abilities, however they must refrain from using any armor or shield.
Student of Perfection: The chi master prestige class levels stack with monk levels to calculate the unarmed damage, speed and AC bonus.
Chi Channeling: Chi masters are legendary in their versatility in using their chi based abilities. They can focus their chi reserve in whatever form they are trained on with ease. Since they gain this ability they add their Chi Master level to the appropiate class level for each ability that uses chi to power up special unarmed attacks (such as the monk stunning attacks or the Monk of the Enabled Hand’s Lung Shoo) for the purposes of calculating their available number of uses per day and the save DCs or class level bonus to opposed checks of those attacks if applicable. This only applies to those abilities whose daily number of uses is related to class level.
Starting at 3rd level, the Chi Master is trained to better focus his chi when using his chi abilities. This gives the ability to give up an additional chi use to increase the save DC provoked by the use of the chi ability by an amount equal to the Wisdom bonus of the Chi Master. This can be done only once per attack. The extra use spent must be from the same chi ability. If the chi ability has no saving throw, apply this bonus instead to any opposed roll you make when using the ability. If the chi ability doesn’t have a saving throw and is not handled by an opposed roll you cannot improve that chi ability.
Fateful Touch of the Ancient Oak (Ex): Starting at 2nd level, a chi master may touch an opponent and remain touching him to read his ki flow thus anticipating his body movements and react accordingly. To be able to do this the chi master must start a grapple and once grappling use a special grapple action to “stick” to his opponent. You have the option of using the sticking grapple action in such a way that while using this ability you and your opponent are not considered to be grappling or to maintain the grapple as normal. However, to be able to move away from a sticking chi master the opponent must win at an opposed grapple check even if the opponent don’t have any of the usual penalties for being grappled. While sticking, the chi master gains a bonus to AC and to opposed rolls against the stick opponent equal to half his chi master level. Those bonuses last until the contact is broken by a grapple check or by the opponent or chi master moving away and stack with any other bonuses.
Also, starting at 9th level he has such an expertise on reading chi energies that he doesn’t have to use any special grapple action to stick to his opponents with Fateful Touch of the Ancient Oak. As long as he has gotten a hold on an opponent he is considered stick to it no matter if he elects to conduct the grapple normally or just become stick to the opponent without him counting as grappled.
Rapid Stunning (Ex): A Chi Master gains the benefit of this feat at 2nd level. His ability to access his chi energy is trained so hard that the extra number of stunning or equivalent abilities he can use each round increases by one for each three class levels she achieves thereafter. This is the equivalent of saying he gains Rapid Stunning feat again at 5th and 8th level.
Tsunami Grows from the Pond (Su): At 4th level the chi master can infuse his fists and feet with pure chi energy as a free action. When doing so, he enters a sort of battle trance that improves his fighting skills considerably. When using Tsunami Grows from the Pond, the Chi Master selects a kind of special material from the following list: silver, cold iron, adamantine, jade. During this state, his unarmed strikes count as if they were made with a ghost touch weapon of said material for all purposes (silver has -1 to damage, adamantine can ignore hardness of less than 20 and so on). Also, he deals unarmed damage as if he were a size category larger than he is. This heightened status is exhausting for the body and soul as it burns excessive chi energy. It can be used only once per day per two class levels (rounded down), once per encounter and it lasts for 3 + Wisdom bonus rounds each time. The character is fatigued (as with barbarian rage) during the rest of the encounter, but at 10th level, this no longer applies.
Dragon Hiding in Grasshopper (Ex): The Chi Master of 5th level or higher has so much control over his Chi flow that he can fight as if he were stronger than he may seem. From then on, the Chi Master is always treated as if he were one size category larger than he really is when this would give him a size bonus on opposed checks (trip, disarm, bull rush, grappling, etc...) but he actually doesn’t grow so he has not the standard penalties associated with being larger (Hide checks, AC and attack bonus penalties, etc...). Also, the flow of chi on his fists and feet is so plentiful that they are iron hard. He can select to do slashing or piercing damage instead of bludgeoning damage with his unarmed attacks, but when doing so he can’t deal nonlethal damage.
Master Tames the Brute (Ex): From 6th level on, the Chi master has such control of their stunning effects that he can decide wether the required save will be a Fortitude or Will saving throw. The chi master gains no knowledge of the save bonuses of his opponents however. Additionaly, any stunning or related effect lasts for 1d4 rounds instead of only 1 round. The opponent gets another save of the same type and with the same save DC to dismiss the effect each round after the first, adding +2 to the saving throw for each previously failed save (for that instance of stunning attack).
Additionally if the combined monk level of the Chi master is higher than the character level or hit dice of an opponent immune to stunning effects he can stun them as if they had no such ability. If the immunity is derived from creature type (elemental, undead, plant...) the duration of any such stunning effects is limited to only 1 round at best.
Ring the Golden Bell (Su): With the rush of air from a single precise strike, a Chi Master of 7th level or higher can extinguish a candle flame from several feet away. Legendary masters developed this ability to the point that they could ring a thousand-pound bell using only a finger strike from 20 feet away. A number of times per day equal to 1 + Wisdom bonus you may inflict unarmed strike damage with a successful ranged attack. This attack has a range of 5’ plus 5’ per point of Wisdom bonus. Normal cover modifiers apply.This attack can deliver any effect your unarmed strike can normally deliver, such as a stunning attack.
Angry Monkey Strikes the Spheres (Ex): A Chi Master of 8th or higher level knows how the chi flows through natural creatures. This coupled with the hardness and power of his unarmed strike means that he can deliver vicious blows aimed to the most vulnerable areas of the body. Once a day per class level he can deliver an automatic critical hit (he stills has to roll to hit and a miss ruins the attempt) with an unarmed strike. If the normal attack roll results in a critical hit, he deals triple damage instead of double damage. Also, if he is using any sort of chi ability (like stunning attack) in the strike that has resulted in a critical threat, he gets an insight bonus equal to his Wisdom bonus on the roll to confirm the critical hit. If the Chi Master has any ability or magic effect that does something special on a critical hit it doesn’t work by using this ability unless it results on an actual critical hit.
Blindsight (Ex): Beginning at 9th level a Chi Master has such a awareness for chi flowing around him that he gainst the equivalent to Blindsight with a 30’ radius. He doesn’t have to make Spot or Listen rolls to notice creatures within this range. Undead and other unnatural creatures are also detected due to the disturbance they cause in the surrounding chi flows. Also objects and constructs are also detected because of the change in the amount of chi on them. As usual for Blindsight this ability doesn’t allow to read or distinguish color.
Chi Flow (Healing Touch) (Su): Through manipulation of ki and pressure points, a Chi Master can heal himself and others, as well as cure a variety of ailments. This requires some knowledge of the neccesary pressure points to heal the chi flow on them, so each effect has a prerequisite number of ranks in the Heal skill. With a touch and as a full round action he can do one of the following: heal hit points equivalent to a day’s rest (Heal 4 ranks), neutralize poison (Heal 8 ranks), cure blindness or deafness (Heal 4 ranks), cure disease (Heal 6 ranks), remove paralysis or cancel a hold spell (Heal 4 ranks). This ability is usable once a day per 2 Chi Master class levels.
Venerable Master (Ex): The flow of chi through the Chi Master body becomes so pure that he becomes immune to the ravages of time. Effectively he gains the Timeless Body (Ex) monk ability.
Code of Conduct: They can’t use any sort of weapon, even martial art ones. They can’t also wear any sort of armor or use any sort of shield. Failure to do so results in them losing their class abilities until they refrain from using them and for 24 hours thereafter.
Also, they have a code of conduct that they must follow to be able of advancing in their mastery.Chi masters may not decline a martial arts duel if there aren’t exceptional circumstances. If they get word of a tournament where they may learn something they must attend and participate if possible. They must strive to learn more martial arts when the opportunity presents itself, traveling to search a nearby master they have heard from if at all possible. They must teach their style to students that come looking for them and are deemed worthy by the chi master. They must treat all opponents as honorable ones unless their actions prove that they are dishonorable in their presence. They must protect any students or teachers they have as if they were of their own family. If they break this code of conduct they may not advance in this class until they redeem themselves in a suitable way (winning a tournament if they didn’t present themselves to a previous one, avenging the death of a student or master, etc) or receive an atonement spell.
Level BAB For Ref Will Special
1 +0 +2 +2 +2 Chi Channeling (daily uses), Student of Perfection
2 +1 +3 +3 +3 Fateful Touch of the Ancient Oak, Rapid Stunning
3 +2 +3 +3 +3 Chi Channeling(empower)
4 +3 +4 +4 +4 Tsunami Grows from the Pond
5 +3 +4 +4 +4 Dragon Hiding in Grasshopper
6 +4 +5 +5 +5 Master Tames the Brute
7 +5 +5 +5 +5 Ring the Golden Bell
8 +6 +6 +6 +6 Angry Monkey Strikes the Spheres
9 +6 +6 +6 +6 Blindsight
10 +7 +7 +7 +7 Chi Flow (Healing Touch), Venerable Master
This is a prestige class that I have been working on for some time. It is being custom made for my Monk6/Monk of the Enabled Hand 3 (Dragon Magazine 299, p. 48-50). My character is just about to get up in level. I plan on taking levels in this prestige class as soon as I reach Monk6/MotEH5.
My DM likes the prestige class so far, but hasn't made a final decission on it. As he knows that I am trying to make my own prestige class, he has woven certain plots in the Oriental Adventures campaign we are playing that will end with my character founding his own monastery/martial arts school or something like that.
I would want some feedback on the prestige class. Thanks. Enough rant, here it is:
Chi Master
“By using only the power of Chi I can humble brutes like you”
Chi Masters are martial artists who have achieved perfection of at least an style or technique and who focus themselves in the abilities granted by their Ki (or Chi).
Almost all Chi Masters start off as monks. To be able to handle the advanced powers of ki that this class gives, the future chi master must have advanced earlier in a monk prestige class that gives emphasis to a fighting style. There are Drunken Masters who see chi as the force behind their alcohol based abilities. There are also Monks of the Enabled Hand who want to immerse themselves in the powers of chi they touch during their career.
Chi masters tend to be overconfident of their abilities and eager to teach others of their findings on spiritual fulfillment. They also tend to be either tournament martial artists who like to show themselves or contemplative isolationists who care little for the world at large.
Hit Die: d8
Requirements:
To qualify as a chi master, a character must meet the following criteria:
Alignment: Any lawful (only lawful beings have the discipline to pursue their path)
Base Attack Bonus: +7
Feats: Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist (or Stunning Attack class ability)
Other: - Must have mastery in at least one style of martial arts.
- Must have multiclassed in at least one monk prestige class and “master” that class style by having at least 5 levels in that prestige class.
Class Skills
The chi master’s class skills are Balance (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Heal (Wis), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), Tumble (Dex)
Skill Points at each level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All the following are class features of the Chi Master prestige class.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Chi masters gain no proficiency in any armor or weapons, through they retain any knowledge gained from former classes. To be able to use their abilities, however they must refrain from using any armor or shield.
Student of Perfection: The chi master prestige class levels stack with monk levels to calculate the unarmed damage, speed and AC bonus.
Chi Channeling: Chi masters are legendary in their versatility in using their chi based abilities. They can focus their chi reserve in whatever form they are trained on with ease. Since they gain this ability they add their Chi Master level to the appropiate class level for each ability that uses chi to power up special unarmed attacks (such as the monk stunning attacks or the Monk of the Enabled Hand’s Lung Shoo) for the purposes of calculating their available number of uses per day and the save DCs or class level bonus to opposed checks of those attacks if applicable. This only applies to those abilities whose daily number of uses is related to class level.
Starting at 3rd level, the Chi Master is trained to better focus his chi when using his chi abilities. This gives the ability to give up an additional chi use to increase the save DC provoked by the use of the chi ability by an amount equal to the Wisdom bonus of the Chi Master. This can be done only once per attack. The extra use spent must be from the same chi ability. If the chi ability has no saving throw, apply this bonus instead to any opposed roll you make when using the ability. If the chi ability doesn’t have a saving throw and is not handled by an opposed roll you cannot improve that chi ability.
Fateful Touch of the Ancient Oak (Ex): Starting at 2nd level, a chi master may touch an opponent and remain touching him to read his ki flow thus anticipating his body movements and react accordingly. To be able to do this the chi master must start a grapple and once grappling use a special grapple action to “stick” to his opponent. You have the option of using the sticking grapple action in such a way that while using this ability you and your opponent are not considered to be grappling or to maintain the grapple as normal. However, to be able to move away from a sticking chi master the opponent must win at an opposed grapple check even if the opponent don’t have any of the usual penalties for being grappled. While sticking, the chi master gains a bonus to AC and to opposed rolls against the stick opponent equal to half his chi master level. Those bonuses last until the contact is broken by a grapple check or by the opponent or chi master moving away and stack with any other bonuses.
Also, starting at 9th level he has such an expertise on reading chi energies that he doesn’t have to use any special grapple action to stick to his opponents with Fateful Touch of the Ancient Oak. As long as he has gotten a hold on an opponent he is considered stick to it no matter if he elects to conduct the grapple normally or just become stick to the opponent without him counting as grappled.
Rapid Stunning (Ex): A Chi Master gains the benefit of this feat at 2nd level. His ability to access his chi energy is trained so hard that the extra number of stunning or equivalent abilities he can use each round increases by one for each three class levels she achieves thereafter. This is the equivalent of saying he gains Rapid Stunning feat again at 5th and 8th level.
Tsunami Grows from the Pond (Su): At 4th level the chi master can infuse his fists and feet with pure chi energy as a free action. When doing so, he enters a sort of battle trance that improves his fighting skills considerably. When using Tsunami Grows from the Pond, the Chi Master selects a kind of special material from the following list: silver, cold iron, adamantine, jade. During this state, his unarmed strikes count as if they were made with a ghost touch weapon of said material for all purposes (silver has -1 to damage, adamantine can ignore hardness of less than 20 and so on). Also, he deals unarmed damage as if he were a size category larger than he is. This heightened status is exhausting for the body and soul as it burns excessive chi energy. It can be used only once per day per two class levels (rounded down), once per encounter and it lasts for 3 + Wisdom bonus rounds each time. The character is fatigued (as with barbarian rage) during the rest of the encounter, but at 10th level, this no longer applies.
Dragon Hiding in Grasshopper (Ex): The Chi Master of 5th level or higher has so much control over his Chi flow that he can fight as if he were stronger than he may seem. From then on, the Chi Master is always treated as if he were one size category larger than he really is when this would give him a size bonus on opposed checks (trip, disarm, bull rush, grappling, etc...) but he actually doesn’t grow so he has not the standard penalties associated with being larger (Hide checks, AC and attack bonus penalties, etc...). Also, the flow of chi on his fists and feet is so plentiful that they are iron hard. He can select to do slashing or piercing damage instead of bludgeoning damage with his unarmed attacks, but when doing so he can’t deal nonlethal damage.
Master Tames the Brute (Ex): From 6th level on, the Chi master has such control of their stunning effects that he can decide wether the required save will be a Fortitude or Will saving throw. The chi master gains no knowledge of the save bonuses of his opponents however. Additionaly, any stunning or related effect lasts for 1d4 rounds instead of only 1 round. The opponent gets another save of the same type and with the same save DC to dismiss the effect each round after the first, adding +2 to the saving throw for each previously failed save (for that instance of stunning attack).
Additionally if the combined monk level of the Chi master is higher than the character level or hit dice of an opponent immune to stunning effects he can stun them as if they had no such ability. If the immunity is derived from creature type (elemental, undead, plant...) the duration of any such stunning effects is limited to only 1 round at best.
Ring the Golden Bell (Su): With the rush of air from a single precise strike, a Chi Master of 7th level or higher can extinguish a candle flame from several feet away. Legendary masters developed this ability to the point that they could ring a thousand-pound bell using only a finger strike from 20 feet away. A number of times per day equal to 1 + Wisdom bonus you may inflict unarmed strike damage with a successful ranged attack. This attack has a range of 5’ plus 5’ per point of Wisdom bonus. Normal cover modifiers apply.This attack can deliver any effect your unarmed strike can normally deliver, such as a stunning attack.
Angry Monkey Strikes the Spheres (Ex): A Chi Master of 8th or higher level knows how the chi flows through natural creatures. This coupled with the hardness and power of his unarmed strike means that he can deliver vicious blows aimed to the most vulnerable areas of the body. Once a day per class level he can deliver an automatic critical hit (he stills has to roll to hit and a miss ruins the attempt) with an unarmed strike. If the normal attack roll results in a critical hit, he deals triple damage instead of double damage. Also, if he is using any sort of chi ability (like stunning attack) in the strike that has resulted in a critical threat, he gets an insight bonus equal to his Wisdom bonus on the roll to confirm the critical hit. If the Chi Master has any ability or magic effect that does something special on a critical hit it doesn’t work by using this ability unless it results on an actual critical hit.
Blindsight (Ex): Beginning at 9th level a Chi Master has such a awareness for chi flowing around him that he gainst the equivalent to Blindsight with a 30’ radius. He doesn’t have to make Spot or Listen rolls to notice creatures within this range. Undead and other unnatural creatures are also detected due to the disturbance they cause in the surrounding chi flows. Also objects and constructs are also detected because of the change in the amount of chi on them. As usual for Blindsight this ability doesn’t allow to read or distinguish color.
Chi Flow (Healing Touch) (Su): Through manipulation of ki and pressure points, a Chi Master can heal himself and others, as well as cure a variety of ailments. This requires some knowledge of the neccesary pressure points to heal the chi flow on them, so each effect has a prerequisite number of ranks in the Heal skill. With a touch and as a full round action he can do one of the following: heal hit points equivalent to a day’s rest (Heal 4 ranks), neutralize poison (Heal 8 ranks), cure blindness or deafness (Heal 4 ranks), cure disease (Heal 6 ranks), remove paralysis or cancel a hold spell (Heal 4 ranks). This ability is usable once a day per 2 Chi Master class levels.
Venerable Master (Ex): The flow of chi through the Chi Master body becomes so pure that he becomes immune to the ravages of time. Effectively he gains the Timeless Body (Ex) monk ability.
Code of Conduct: They can’t use any sort of weapon, even martial art ones. They can’t also wear any sort of armor or use any sort of shield. Failure to do so results in them losing their class abilities until they refrain from using them and for 24 hours thereafter.
Also, they have a code of conduct that they must follow to be able of advancing in their mastery.Chi masters may not decline a martial arts duel if there aren’t exceptional circumstances. If they get word of a tournament where they may learn something they must attend and participate if possible. They must strive to learn more martial arts when the opportunity presents itself, traveling to search a nearby master they have heard from if at all possible. They must teach their style to students that come looking for them and are deemed worthy by the chi master. They must treat all opponents as honorable ones unless their actions prove that they are dishonorable in their presence. They must protect any students or teachers they have as if they were of their own family. If they break this code of conduct they may not advance in this class until they redeem themselves in a suitable way (winning a tournament if they didn’t present themselves to a previous one, avenging the death of a student or master, etc) or receive an atonement spell.
Level BAB For Ref Will Special
1 +0 +2 +2 +2 Chi Channeling (daily uses), Student of Perfection
2 +1 +3 +3 +3 Fateful Touch of the Ancient Oak, Rapid Stunning
3 +2 +3 +3 +3 Chi Channeling(empower)
4 +3 +4 +4 +4 Tsunami Grows from the Pond
5 +3 +4 +4 +4 Dragon Hiding in Grasshopper
6 +4 +5 +5 +5 Master Tames the Brute
7 +5 +5 +5 +5 Ring the Golden Bell
8 +6 +6 +6 +6 Angry Monkey Strikes the Spheres
9 +6 +6 +6 +6 Blindsight
10 +7 +7 +7 +7 Chi Flow (Healing Touch), Venerable Master
