Soulknife (Monk Archetype)

[Hawk Diesel]

As I was driving home, I found my mind wandering to the soulknife and I realized that it would seem to fit as a monk archetype. So a few critiques/feedback I'm specifically seeking on this are on balance, and wording. Sometimes I know I can be wordy, but I like the current 5e style being simple, concise, and clear. Anyways, here's what I got. Have at it!

Monk Archetype: Soulknife

Mind Weapon
Beginning at 3rd level you can change the damage dealt by your unarmed strike. As a bonus action, you may choose bludgeoning, slashing, or piercing damage types. This change lasts until you use another bonus action to change the damage.

Empowered Strike
Beginning at 3rd level, you can imbue your unarmed strike with pure ki energy, increasing the viciousness of the attack. When you hit a creature with an unarmed strike, you can spend 1 ki point to deal psychic damage equal to your Wisdom modifier to the target in addition to the unarmed strike’s damage.

Blade Wind
Beginning at 6th level, you can cause your mind weapon to splinter and strike each of your foes and then instantly reform in your hands. As an action you can make a single attack with your unarmed strike and apply the attack to each enemy within reach. If the attack is successful against any targets, they take damage as if struck by your unarmed strike, except the damage is considered psychic damage.

This action may be combined with Empowered Strike, but you must spend the ki cost for each target you wish to apply the damage to.

Mental Bastion
At 6th level, you are resistant to psychic damage.

Soul Sight
Beginning at 11th level, you can attune your vision to see what others cannot, and feel what cannot be felt. As a bonus action, you can spend 6 ki points to gain truesight out to 10 feet. In addition, while this ability is active, your unarmed strike can damage ethereal creatures normally. This ability lasts for 1 minute.

Perfect Mind Weapon
Beginning at 17th level, your unarmed strike is much more difficult to block. As a bonus action, you can enter a stance that lasts until the start of your next turn. During this time, you may add your Wisdom bonus to all attacks made with your unarmed strike.

EDIT: I cut out most of the descriptive language, since it was clunky. So for now, I'm just sticking with the mechanics for the time being to try and balance it out.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

Looks good. Reply to this so I'll have a reminder to look at it again when I'm less tired, eh?

 

[THEMNGMNT]

I agree that the monk is a solid chasis for the soulknife. I have just a few suggestions.

For Mind Weapon, perhaps the damage should be either bludgeoning or psychic. In other words, your mind or your body. I don't particularly understand why or how piercing or slashing would be applicable.

For Blade Wind, you might also consider giving the monk a ranged attack. I could see a thrown soulknife with a range of 60 feet being both flavorful and useful.

For Soul Sight, 6 ki points seems expensive for something with a range of 10 feet. Also, if the soulknife is dealing psychic damage, shouldn't it already be effective against ethereal or intangible creatures?

 

[Hawk Diesel]

For Mind Weapon, perhaps the damage should be either bludgeoning or psychic. In other words, your mind or your body. I don't particularly understand why or how piercing or slashing would be applicable.

Yea that seems like it would make more sense. I just thought the visuals were interesting of having a quasi-real weapon form around your limbs, and I also thought it appropriate to act as a stepping stone to dealing straight psychic damage (one of the least resisted damage types). But then I look at the Radiant Soul monk and both want to capture something similar while creating something unique.

For Blade Wind, you might also consider giving the monk a ranged attack. I could see a thrown soulknife with a range of 60 feet being both flavorful and useful.

This was another place where I wanted to create something unique without stepping on the Radiant Soul's abilities.

For Soul Sight, 6 ki points seems expensive for something with a range of 10 feet. Also, if the soulknife is dealing psychic damage, shouldn't it already be effective against ethereal or intangible creatures?

The way I calculated this was in comparing the Way of the Four Elements monk abilities. Each of the abilities that were equivalent to a level 5 spell cost 6 ki points. True Seeing is a level 6 spell. So I reduced the duration and the range to bring it more in line with a level 5 spell, and gave it the same ki cost.

As for the Ethereal/Intangible creatures, my understanding is that normally they are only affected by magical force (i.e. force effects).

 

[Xeviat]

I'd give them a ranged attack; they can step on the Radiant Soul's toes a little, they're the same class. Give it to them at 3rd level, just let them use their melee attack at range, no ki cost (that's how Radiant Soul should have been too, as strong as a cantrip like eldritch blast).

Your cost for Soul Sight seems right, but it seems a little early. At what level does the Four Elements monk get to use 5th level spells; I thought that wasn't until level 17.

I don't really like perfect mind weapon, though.

 

[Hawk Diesel]

I'd give them a ranged attack; they can step on the Radiant Soul's toes a little, they're the same class. Give it to them at 3rd level, just let them use their melee attack at range, no ki cost (that's how Radiant Soul should have been too, as strong as a cantrip like eldritch blast).

My understanding is that that is how the Radiant Soul works. You do not need to spend Ki points in order to use it at range. When used at range, the damage becomes radiant, and you can spend Ki points to Flurry with it, but otherwise it is written (I believe) just like you said.

Your cost for Soul Sight seems right, but it seems a little early. At what level does the Four Elements monk get to use 5th level spells; I thought that wasn't until level 17.

Yep, you're right on that.

I don't really like perfect mind weapon, though.

That's fair. I just thought it would be cool and make sense for a soulknife to use their mental stats to improve their use of martial abilities. My thought process was that they use a bonus action to do this (reducing their attacks in that round by 1-2 depending on if they would attempt to flurry). This way, they are sacrificing the number of attacks they get in order to improve their accuracy.

 

[Xeviat]

That may balance out, giving up 1 or two attacks for accuracy. Run the numbers.