Way of Enlightenment
By focusing on their minds and bodies, honing both to near perfection, monks of the Way of Enlightenment recognize that psionic energy and ki are two sides of the same coin. Such monks tap into the psionic potential that rests within themselves, turning that energy further inward to fortify their bodies and sharpen their minds.
Psionic Disciplines
3rd-level and higher Way of Enlightenment feature
You learn psionic disciplines that harness the power of your psychic energy. A discipline requires you to spend ki points each time you use it.
You know the Far Hand discipline and two other psionic disciplines of your choice. You learn one additional psionic discipline of your choice at 6th, 11th, and 17th level.
Whenever you gain a level in this class, you can also replace one psionic discipline that you already know with a different discipline.
Casting Psionic Spells. Some psionic disciplines allow you to cast spells. See chapter 10 of the Player's Handbook for the general rules of spellcasting. To cast one of these spells, you use its casting time and other rules, but you don't require components in order to cast it.
Some disciplines below list a level requirement in order to learn them. If a discipline requires a level, you must be the level in this class to learn the discipline.
Psionic Disciplines
Each section below is presented in alphabetical order.
Apprentice Disciplines
The following disciplines have no level requirement in order to learn them.
Far Hand. As an action, you can cast the mage hand cantrip, and the hand is invisible when you cast the cantrip with this discipline.
Mental Fortress. When you are subjected to an effect that would move you, knock you prone, or both, you can use your reaction to be neither moved nor knocked prone.
Mental Reserves. When you use your Patient Defense feature, you gain temporary hit points equal to your Wisdom modifier plus half your monk level until the end of your next turn.
Overpowering Strike. When you hit a creature with a melee weapon attack, you can spend 1 ki point to disorient the creature with a sliver of psychic energy. The first time the creature makes a saving throw before the end of your next turn, it must roll a d4 and subtract the number rolled from the save.
Psychic Barrier. You can spend 2 ki points to cast shield.
Adept Disciplines
The following disciplines require you to be 6th level or higher in order to learn them.
Phase Shift. You can spend 3 ki points to cast blur.
Psychic Strike. When you make an attack using your Flurry of Blows, you can change the damage type to psychic damage. Additionally, once per turn when you hit with a melee weapon attack, you can spend 1 ki point to deal extra psychic damage to the target equal to your Martial Arts die plus your Wisdom modifier.
Tap the Life Well. When you are reduced to 0 hit points, you can use your reaction and spend 3 ki points to be reduced to 1 hit point instead.
Telekinetic Grip. You can use your Wisdom modifier in place of your Strength modifier when making Strength checks and Strength saving throws. Shoving or grappling a creature doesn't require you to touch them, but you can only have up to two creatures grappled at the same time.
Teleport. When you use your Step of the Wind feature, you can choose to teleport to an unoccupied space you can see within 30 feet of you instead of Dashing or Disengaging.
Expert Disciplines
The following disciplines require you to be 11th level or higher in order to learn them.
Inevitable Strike. When you attack a creature with one of the attacks granted by your Flurry of Blows, you can spend 1 ki point to cause the attack to automatically hit the target.
Meditative Solace. You can use your Stillness of Mind feature as a bonus action. You can also use it whenever you use your Patient Defense feature.
Step Between the Worlds. You can spend 4 ki points to cast blink.
Telekinetic Deflection. When you use your Deflect Missiles feature, you needn't have a hand free in order to catch and throw the missile. Additionally, it no longer costs ki to attack with the missile as part of the reaction.
Temporal Strike. When you stun a creature with your Stunning Strike, you can spend 2 ki points to move the creature forward in time for 1 round. A target moved forward in time vanishes until the end of your next turn. When the effect ends, the target reappears in the space it left or in an unoccupied space nearest to that space if it's occupied, and the target remains stunned until the end of your next turn after the target reappears.
Master Disciplines
The following disciplines require you to be 17th level or higher in order to learn them.
Change Gravity. You can spend 6 ki points to cast reverse gravity. The spell only lasts until the end of your next turn, but the spell doesn't require concentration to maintain it. Additionally, you can orient the area in any direction and creatures and objects fall toward the end of the area.
Mental Equilibrium. When you use your Patient Defense feature, you also gain advantage on Intelligence, Wisdom, and Charisma saving throws until the end of your next turn.
Paralyzing Strike. When you stun a creature with your Stunning Strike, you can spend 3 ki points to paralyze the creature for the duration instead.
Telekinesis. You can spend 5 ki points to cast telekinesis.
Third Eye. You can spend 5 ki points to cast true seeing.
Way of the Soul Knife
Monks of the Way of the Soul Knife are deadly assassins and bounty hunters. They use their psionic talents to manifest psionic blades that tear through their enemies' bodies and psychic auras. Their talents extend beyond combat, as their ability to perceive auras allows them to track down foes and see through their deceptions.
Soul Knife
3rd-level Way of the Soul Knife feature
You can use your psionic energy to manifest blades that disrupt your foes' minds.
Your unarmed strikes deal your choice of psychic, piercing, slashing, or bludgeoning damage each time you hit.
In addition, you can use a bonus action to increase the reach of your unarmed strikes by 30 feet until the end of your turn.
Psychic Slash
3rd-level Way of the Soul Knife feature
When you channel ki into your attacks you augment your soul knives to inflict devastating psionic attacks. Whenever you hit a creature with one of the attacks granted by your Flurry of Blows, you can impose one of the following effects on that target:
Astral Slide. The target must make a Charisma saving throw. On a failed save, you teleport the target up to 10 feet to a destination you can see.
Life Drain. You gain temporary hit points equal to half the damage dealt by your attack.
Recall Agony. The target must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or become frightened of you until the end of your next turn.
Aura Sight
6th-level Way of the Soul Knife feature
You gain the ability to perceive the auras of other creatures.
As an action, select a creature that you can see. That creature makes a Wisdom saving throw, though it has no knowledge that you forced it to attempt this saving throw. On a failed save, you learn the creature's Intelligence score, its Wisdom score, and its current attitude and intentions toward you or one other creature, object, or location of your choice.
In addition, for the next 24 hours or until you use this ability again, you can use an action to determine the creature's distance and direction from you. If a creature succeeds on its saving throw against this ability, you cannot use this ability against that creature again until you complete a long rest.
Spectral Blades
11th-level Way of the Soul Knife feature
You can cause your blades to phase through physical objects and defenses. Once during your turn, you can choose to forego one unarmed strike in place of forcing a creature within the reach of that attack to make a Dexterity saving throw. On a failed saving throw, it takes your unarmed strike's damage, or half that damage if it succeeds.
Bladewind
17th-level Way of the Soul Knife feature
You can use your action and expend 1 to 10 ki points to strike multiple foes at once with a devastating flourish of soul knives. Each creature of your choice within 10 feet of you must make a Dexterity saving throw, taking 1d10 psychic damage per ki point spent on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one.
Psychic Warrior
Awake to the psionic power within, a psychic warrior is a fighter who augments their physical might with psi-infused weapon strikes, telekinetic lashes, and barriers of mental force. Many githyanki train to become such warriors, as do some of the most disciplined high elves. In the world of Athas, renowned gladiators in the arenas of the Sorcerer-Kings are often psychic warriors, and in Eberron, the psionic kalashtar view membership in this knighthood as a special honor.
As a psychic warrior, you might have honed your psionic abilities through solo discipline, unlocked it under the tutelage of a master, or refined it at an academy dedicated to wielding the mind's power as both weapon and shield.
Far Hand
3rd-level Psychic Warrior feature
You can use your action to cast the mage hand cantrip, requiring no components. The hand is invisible when you cast the cantrip with this ability.
Telekinetic Adept
3rd-level Psychic Warrior feature
Your study of psionics grants you telekinetic powers. You can use this feature to activate any of the following abilities:
- Forceful Strike. Immediately after you deal damage to a target with a weapon attack, you can deal additional force damage equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1) to the target. If the target is Large or smaller, it must also make a Strength saving throw (DC 8 + your proficiency bonus + your Intelligence modifier). On a failed save, you can also push the target a number of feet backwards equal to five times your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 5 feet).
- Protective Field. As a bonus action, you can create a protective field of telekinetic force. The field emanates from you in an aura out to a number of feet equal to five times your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 5 feet), and it disappears at the end of your next turn. While the field persists, you and any ally in the area is protected by half cover.
- Telekinetic Lift. As a bonus action, you can use telekinesis to lift yourself or a willing creature within 30 feet of you into the air. The target gains a flying speed equal to its current walking speed until the start of your next turn. When the effect ends, the target falls if it is still aloft, unless it can stop the fall nothing else is holding it aloft.
You can use this feature a number of times equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest. You also regain one expended use whenever you use your Second Wind or Action Surge feature.
Psychic Cleaver
7th-level Psychic Warrior feature
You gain the ability to channel additional psionic power when you use your Action Surge feature. Until the end of your turn, if you deal damage to a creature, that creature takes an additional 1d10 psychic damage. A creature can take this additional damage only once during your turn.
Mental Fortitude
7th-level Psychic Warrior feature
Your use of psionic power grants you proficiency in Wisdom saving throws. If you already have this proficiency, you instead gain proficiency in Intelligence or Charisma saving throws (your choice).
Psionic Resilience
10th-level Psychic Warrior feature
Your psionic energy grants you extraordinary fortitude. At the start of each of your turns, you gain temporary hit points equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 0) if you have at least 1 hit point.
Psychic Storm
15th-level Psychic Warrior feature
Your aggression translates into an aura of disruptive psychic energy. When you take the Attack action on your turn, all hostile creatures within 10 feet of you take psychic damage equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1).
Telekinetic Mastery
18th-level Psychic Warrior feature
Your ability to use telekinesis is matched by few. The abilities granted by your Telekinetic Adept feature gain the following upgrades:
- Forceful Strike. This ability now forces Huge or smaller creatures to make the Strength saving throw. On a failed save, a target is also knocked prone.
- Protective Field. The field's radius is doubled.
- Telekinetic Lift. When you use this ability, you can target two additional creatures within range.
Additional Psionic Content
Want more psionics content? If so, take a look at the following links:
- Psion Class: a full class and psionic power system inspired by 4th edition
- Psionic Character Options: races and feats for psionic characters
- Edited Official Psionicists: edited stat blocks for psionic monsters
Note that both the second and third links require you to reference the first link.
Lurk
A lurk rogue uses psionics to complement their physical abilities. They channel psychic energy in ways that allow them to erase themselves from the minds of others and to disable their opponents via deadly psychic attacks.
Cloud Mind
3rd-level Lurk feature
You can use your action to erase your visage from the minds of others. Until the start of your next turn, you are invisible to all creatures that are more than 15 feet away from you. If you use your action again in this manner at the beginning of your next turn, the invisibility continues without interruption. This invisibility ends early if you target, damage, or otherwise affect any creature with an attack, a spell, or another ability.
Mental Misdirection
3rd-level Lurk feature
You can cast the minor illusion cantrip, requiring no components.
Psi-Bolstered Knack
9th-level Lurk feature
When your nonpsionic training fails you, your psionic power can help: if you fail an ability check using a skill or tool with which you have proficiency, you can reroll the check and take the second result, potentially turning failure into success.
When rerolling a check with this feature allows you to succeed, you expend one use of it. You have a number of uses equal to your Intelligence modifier (minimum of once). You regain all expended uses when you finish a long rest.
Psychic Shroud
9th-level Lurk feature
A veil of psychic energy prevents you from leaving tracks. While you are invisible via the Cloud Mind feature, you leave behind no tracks or other traces of your passage.
Mental Assault
13th-level Lurk feature
When you use your Sneak Attack, you can change the type of the extra damage to psychic. When you do so, the target must succeed on an Constitution saving throw (DC 8 + your Intelligence modifer + your proficiency bonus) or be incapacitated until the start of your next turn. While incapacitated, the creature cannot see anything more than 30 feet away from it. The save automatically succeeds if the target is immune to being stunned.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Erase Memory
17th-level Lurk feature
You can use your psionic abilities to erase your presence from the memories of others. As a bonus action, choose one creature within 60 feet of you. The creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving throw (DC 8 + your Intelligence modifer + your proficiency bonus) or have your presence removed from any of its memories from within the past hour.
For example, if the creature encountered you and your party half an hour ago, it will only recall encountering the rest of your party, and will have no recollection of your presence. If your presence is essential to a memory (e.g. it is a memory of you attacking the creature), the memory is erased entirely.
Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.