Unorthodox Monks of Golarion

Monks of Shelyn

Part performer, part eternal celebrant, part deadly serious combatant, the order of Monks in service to Shelyn are easily identified by their signature weapon style, which revolves around the use of the glaive, the favored weapon of their goddess. Travelling in troupes of up to a half-dozen, usually accompanying missionary Clerics and Adepts of the faith, the Shelyn Monks precede the entourage into a community performing breath-taking feats of athleticism, using the weapons that are said to never leave their hands to vault into the air and engaging in ritualized mock combats that instill lessons about the triumph of the beautiful over that which is bleak. The Monks perform these combination morality plays and ritualized combat performances clad in revealing garments, to show off their exercise-hardened physiques, attempting to impress their viewers not just with the technical beauty of their combat arts, but also with the sensual beauty of their toned and sculpted bodies. Men and women alike wear their hair long (although the men are clean-shaven), often in wild unruly manes that flow behind them as they step through the motions of their dance, but sometimes in elegant braids that whirl and snap in the air as they move.

The most impressive demonstrations, sometimes involving a dozen or more Shelyn Monks moving in a carefully choreographed display, is during the annual Salute to the Dawn, held at night, in the dead of winter. The Monks attach triangular pennants of colorful and exotic feathers to special rings on the back of their glaive-blades, and these pennants are lit by continual flame. As the Monks whirl through the celebratory motions of the performance, their glaives spin faster and faster, until it seems that each Monk is surrounded by a snapping, hissing ring of fire!

While the Monks may sometimes be dismissed as entertainers or 'pretty people,' they are quite serious in defending the faith, and the faithful, from attacks by followers of Zon-Kuthon, as the genesis of their order lay in an organized resistance movement to that dark faith in Nidal, and after their expulsion from that land, they have taken their mission to Lastwall and Mendev, where they are an unorthodox, but welcome sight in the endless battles against orc and demon alike.

Sidebar – The 'flame pennants' are only used for ritual displays and to impress onlookers. Even the scant weight of the silk and feathers is enough to create drag and slow the weapon’s passage through the air and confer a -2 circumstance penalty to attack rolls. Removing or attaching such a banner is a standard action that provokes an attack of opportunity. Cost 150 gp, weight ½ lb.

Shelyn Monk (General Feat)
Prerequisites: Monk level 1, LG or LN, patron deity Shelyn
Your training in the favored weapon of your patron deity allows you to treat the glaive as a ‘special monk weapon,’ and use it as part of a Flurry of Blows. At the completion of this training, you are also awarded a finely-crafted (but not masterwork) glaive, at no cost.

Additionally, while wielding a glaive, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Balance, Climb, Jump and Tumble checks, due to your specialized training in using the haft of the weapon to ‘vault’ obstacles, catch onto protrusions and swing your body around corners.

Cloud-Parter]
Said to have been the first weapon of it’s kind, wielded by the legendary founder of the Shelyn Monks, this ornately decorated weapon is a +2 flaming keen glaive that functions as a silver weapon for the purposes of penetrating damage reduction. It has the traditional fiery pennant of colorful feathers trailing from it’s blade, but these feathered ribbons are a permanent illusion and do not hinder the weapons function.

Monks of Shelyn

Nice. I like it. Will you be doing any more Unorthadox Monks of other Religions?

Shelyn Monk (General Feat)

Prerequisites: Monk level 1, LG or LN, patron deity Shelyn
Your training in the favored weapon of your patron deity allows you to treat the glaive as a ‘special monk weapon,’ and use it as part of a Flurry of Blows. At the completion of this training, you are also awarded a finely-crafted (but not masterwork) glaive, at no cost.

Additionally, while wielding a glaive, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus to Balance, Climb, Jump and Tumble checks, due to your specialized training in using the haft of the weapon to ‘vault’ obstacles, catch onto protrusions and swing your body around corners.

I don't see why this can't give you a Masterwork Glaive. The Trait (Half-Feat) Rich Parents gives you 900gp to start with, so I don't mind a Feat giving you a Masterwork Weapon (300ish gp) as well as an additional benefit.

Also, I am assuming this is a 3.5 Feat as Balance, Jump & Tumble would all be Acrobatics otherwise.

Nice. I like it. Will you be doing any more Unorthadox Monks of other Religions?

Thanks! Not sure yet. An order of sadomasochistic Spiked Chain wielding Monks of Zon-Kuthon sure does sound fun, 'though! Then again, the Scarred Lands setting already did that with the Chardunite orders, so I might have to look for something more 'unorthodox,' like crossbow-toting Monks of Abadar or Urgathoan ascetics who believe that starving and mortifying their flesh can give them the strength and resilience of the undead...

I don't see why this can't give you a Masterwork Glaive. The Trait (Half-Feat) Rich Parents gives you 900gp to start with, so I don't mind a Feat giving you a Masterwork Weapon (300ish gp) as well as an additional benefit.

Also, I am assuming this is a 3.5 Feat as Balance, Jump & Tumble would all be Acrobatics otherwise.

Correct on the 3.5 assumption. I figured it was easier to assume that anyone playing Pathfinder could adjust it in their head to say 'Acrobatics,' than to write it out twice.

Given that Monks only start with like 5 - 20 gp, and the glaive costs about 10 gp, I felt that a free glaive was pretty much needed. But a free Masterwork glaive didn't feel quite right, since the Feat was giving a few other bonuses. I'd considered saying that it gave a free MW glaive, but required the Monk to pay the 310 gp for it when he trained up to 2nd level (since it's not like Monk's have a whole lot to spend their split of party treasure on), but that sounded like a pain in the butt. I'd rather not introduce a mechanic in the game that requires book-keeping later. In either case, it felt particularly un-Monk-ly to hand out an *expensive* item. Given the ascetic and lawful nature of these orders, either having it be a relatively cheap item (normal glaive), or requiring paybeck (MW, payback at 2nd level) would better fit the 'feel' of a Monkly order, IMO.

Great stuff, man.

Thanks! Not sure yet. An order of sadomasochistic Spiked Chain wielding Monks of Zon-Kuthon sure does sound fun, 'though! Then again, the Scarred Lands setting already did that with the Chardunite orders, so I might have to look for something more 'unorthodox,'

First thought that popped in my head(after spiked chains) was "body piercings, all over, pointy going in and out, deadly embrace and all that". But that would require heavy dependency on grappling rules. And you know how that can go...

It is hard to top spiked chains in the field of being a danger to yourself and others. I want to throw in something like purposefully broken bones allowed to grow out of the skin and used like punching daggers or such, but that's a bit "out there".

I want to throw in something like purposefully broken bones allowed to grow out of the skin and used like punching daggers or such, but that's a bit "out there".

OOOO, Marrow from X-Men.

Great stuff, man.

Thanks!

It is hard to top spiked chains in the field of being a danger to yourself and others. I want to throw in something like purposefully broken bones allowed to grow out of the skin and used like punching daggers or such, but that's a bit "out there".

Sounds like the Osteomancer, from the Dragon Compendium, a transmutation wizard that specialized in reshaping his / her bones. (A PrC that, IMO, was five to seven levels too long. It would have made a very lean and mean 3 level PrC.)

We also need the Monks of Cool, and of course, Yen Buddhists.

The monk I'm currently playing is of the Eternal Autumn school, whose clothing and fighting style make them appear to be tumbling autumn leaves blowing across the battle field. This is usually pulled off by liberal use of ki powers and the jump spell provided by a few levels of ranger.

Fantastic post by the way:)
I played a monk during the Curse of the Crimson Throne campaign with our group on Sundays, who also is a worshipper of Shelyn. And I tell you this fits just perfectly, though I don't have the prof with Glaive yet. Maybe I can talk with my DM and make an arrangement:)

This is a thing of beauty.

Interesting Monk concepts are always fun....

Shelyn Monk = Aesthetic Ascetic?

Interesting Monk concepts are always fun....

Shelyn Monk = Aesthetic Ascetic?

Pretty much. Also has a bit of a drunken master thing going on, since Monks of Shelyn would be capable of some surprising discipline, but would also tend to be outgoing and sensual and more into celebration and less into self-denial. Shaved heads would be right out!

Glad people liked the idea. It just sort of showed up as I was trying to sleep, as so many ideas tend to do... :)

hear hear on different monk concepts:)

My monk I mentioned previously I went with a greek olympian/wrestler design. After working with my Dm we came up with a different set of monk weapons as well. nothing major just traded around a few here and there.

This is a modified version some ideas I had from a previous thread plus some notes from Hank Woon and Mairkurion.

European Military Monastic Order.

Templar of Asmodeus

Drop: - Monk Weapons, ki Strike, Slow Fall, Improved evasion, Quivering Palm, Tongue of Sun and Moon,

Gain: - Martial Weapons, Medium Armor (still usable with AC bonus),Power Attack, Endurance, Die-Hard, Toughness, Great fortitude.

Bonus Feats Choose from

1st - Improved Shield Bash, Improved Overrun
2nd - Cleave, Deflect Arrows (must be equipped with shield), Improved Sunder.
6th - Great Cleave, Weapon Focus

Skills - Drop Stealth and acrobatics and replace with treat injury and
Knowledge history and Knowledge Geography.

Arabic version of a Monk

Katapeshian Murabitun – Order of “Monks” devoted to the protection of pilgrims and the holy sites.

Drop: - Monk Weapons, ki Strike, Quivering Palm, Tongue of Sun and Moon,
Gain: - Martial Weapons, Light Armor (still usable with AC bonus), Dodge, Combat Reflexes, Combat Expertise.

Bonus Feats Choose from

1st - Improved Feint, Quick Draw
2nd - Mobility, Deflect Arrows (must be equipped with weapon), Improved Trip
6th - Spring Attack, Weapon Focus, Weapon Finesse

There's a lot of truth in what you say, but there is a shift here from internal to external. The idea behind the monastic monks is one of seclusion from temptation/distraction so one might achieve some sort of spiritual enlightenment (which rationalizes the whole "perfect body" type stuff). I think the external orders (i.e., becoming extensions of their gods' wills) are more in the lines of clerics/paladins.

But, you do bring up a good point, and that is that what makes a monk a monk (rather than a martial artist) is that they are tied to a specific ideology/philosophy that guides their thoughts/actions (whereas a martial artist can just be more of an athlete/fighter type, unrestrained by any such considerations).

The other way you can look at the Athlete is from the Ancient Greek perspective. Athletics was part of worship as well as the philosophies of perfecting the physical and mental self (a lot of people forget that there were Arts competitions that ran alongside the Athletic competitions especially at the Delphic Games).

The "perfect" ancient Greek athlete could be seen as the equivalent of the Monk in their dedication to their Art be it Pankration (Combination of Wrestling and Boxing), running, javlin, or Discus, as well as following a particular philosophy and worshiping the gods.

The Greek Athlete fits the mould of D&D monk very well except for abstaining from “Getting it on”.

I think the ancient Greek, though, in some ways is the antithesis of the monk, who forsakes society and the trappings of civilization. The ancient Greek warrior was supposed to be the model citizen, after all--a perfect representative of the polis.

And as far as a pancrase fighter, this again is an internal vs. external example, I think. Pancration is a form of competition--exerting your will over another. A monk, on the other hand, hopes to exert his will over himself.

I was referring more to the "professional" athlete (rather than the citizen warrior) that would train year round to win glory at the Ithsmian, Nemean, Pthyian, Olympic and so on games. But you are right the Greeks did not seek to perfect themselves for themselves but for the polis and for how others would see them.

I suppose in reality the western ideal of a monk divorces the physical aspect of eastern mysticism and concentrates on the perfection of the soul for “God” rather than the eastern pursuit of internal self perfection for the self.

The monk for D&D therefore is nothing more than Caine from the movie Kung Fu – an out of place foreigner confounding the locals with their inscrutable wisdom and wicked kung fu moves.

It is true that the militant orders were monks, in a broad sense. But these "monks of war" were also nobles/knights, something that one gave up upon entering the ordinary orders of monks, whether secular, religious, mendicant, or hermetic. It seems like a Western-style fantasy game should use terms in their default meaning, and more accurate (and more exotic) terms for those elements coming in from exotic cultures.

I agree - especially in the case where it is ambiguous like the monk.

One of the main faults of D&D that Pathfinder RPG can fix is rigidness of classes. I hope that they release a book of variant classes (They can call it Alternate Paths)with feats and abilities that you can swap in - hopefully with non spell using paladins and rangers.

European Military Monastic Order.

Templar of Asmodeus

Drop: - Monk Weapons, ki Strike, Slow Fall, Improved evasion, Quivering Palm, Tongue of Sun and Moon,

Gain: - Martial Weapons, Medium Armor (still usable with AC bonus),Power Attack, Endurance, Die-Hard, Toughness, Great fortitude.

Bonus Feats Choose from

1st - Improved Shield Bash, Improved Overrun
2nd - Cleave, Deflect Arrows (must be equipped with shield), Improved Sunder.
6th - Great Cleave, Weapon Focus

Skills - Drop Stealth and acrobatics and replace with treat injury and
Knowledge history and Knowledge Geography.

I see the flavor you're going for, but I would be EXTREMELY leery of allowing medium armor (mithril full plate) and the monk armor bonuses...

You forgot to add Shield Proficiency.

Instead of Martial weapons, choose a limited number, similar to the rogue's list.

Arabic version of a Monk

Katapeshian Murabitun – Order of “Monks” devoted to the protection of pilgrims and the holy sites.

Drop: - Monk Weapons, ki Strike, Quivering Palm, Tongue of Sun and Moon,
Gain: - Martial Weapons, Light Armor (still usable with AC bonus), Dodge, Combat Reflexes, Combat Expertise.

Bonus Feats Choose from

1st - Improved Feint, Quick Draw
2nd - Mobility, Deflect Arrows (must be equipped with weapon), Improved Trip
6th - Spring Attack, Weapon Focus, Weapon Finesse

Again, add a specific list of martial weapons. Scimitar and Falchion come to mind.

Anytime you add armor to a monk, I would say remove either the wisdom to AC bonus (medium armor), or the AC bonus (light armor), BOTH heavy armor.

Also, if you remove monk weapons, then they can't flurry of blows with a weapon, since that's based upon the monk weapons list. You should modify the monk weapon list instead.

Drunken Monks...of Cayden?? heh

We do need a shield based monk, since real life Shaolin monks use shields.

I see the flavor you're going for, but I would be EXTREMELY leery of allowing medium armor (mithril full plate) and the monk armor bonuses...

That doesn't have to be a problem, but a sidebar of sorts will likely be needed.

The plan, at least for now, is to have mithral armors encumber you like one category lower, but still count as their normal category for the final PF RPG. So, mithral full plate still counts as heavy, even though you treat it as medium for all other things.

Xaaon of Korvosa wrote:

I see the flavor you're going for, but I would be EXTREMELY leery of allowing medium armor (mithril full plate) and the monk armor bonuses...

That doesn't have to be a problem, but a sidebar of sorts will likely be needed.

The plan, at least for now, is to have mithral armors encumber you like one category lower, but still count as their normal category for the final PF RPG. So, mithral full plate still counts as heavy, even though you treat it as medium for all other things.

That's a good thing to hear actually...

Though I'd prefer encumbrance linked to actual weight carried rather than armor worn.