Human civilization has been at war against the forces of Chaos and other militant races for millennia, often against races and creatures that are bigger, stronger, more aggressive and more numerous. But human kingdoms still exist and indeed thrive against all odds in Bretonnia, the Empire, Ind, Cathay and Nippon. More miraculous are the bulwarks of humans that make their stand each year against hordes of Beastmen, Greenskins, and Undead in places where it seems they should be quickly overwhelmed. Places like Kislev and Norsca, where the forces of Chaos swarm in uncounted numbers, and are held back by peoples barbarous and hard. Places like Araby, where the Scorpions grow large and hungry and the dead walk as often as the living. The strength of the humans is their ability to adapt to a situation as well as stand resolute in the face of long odds through discipline. Discipline allows the Kislevites to withstand a siege in the dead of a long winter, knowing that the Chaotic Marauders will soon tear themselves apart.
But this sort of discipline is easy to achieve in a walled city that knows the business of war. It is another thing to train in oneself. Dotting the wilderness between Settlements wherever men are found, are walled keeps of many sorts. Some are the holdings of one lord or another, built to keep trade routes open and busy. Others are outposts built to secure an area for military campaigning. Still others, however, function as monasteries. These monasteries serve different purposes in different cultures, and the resident monks and nuns serve different deities in different lands. However, they all have one thing in common. They serve as bastions of Order itself, and thus present the ultimate affront to the Lords of Chaos.
It is interesting how similar these monasteries are in nature. Many have completely different origins, yet all end up serving a similar function in their respective societies. While adherents of Chaos (as Monks see Wizards) learn to harness the Winds of Magic to cast spells and change the world, monasteries teach their members how to train and harness their natural abilities. Monks work to hone their body and mind so that they do not need many other tools. And if a Wizard gains power from the corrupting forces that permeate the world, and if Clerics draw power from their gods, then Monks learn to recognize that latent power that everyone has. Recognize it, and hone it to sharpness. This power they call ki.
Monks are noted for their martial prowess, their ability to fight effectively even without arms and armor, and their seemingly supernatural abilities. Monks themselves, however, know that nothing they do is supernatural. Knowledge is power, and Monks know the greatest power of all, for they know themselves. Welcome to an introspective journey, the Path of Discipline.
Monk start with the following profile:
| Wounds | Roll 3d6, drop the lowest die Reroll all dice once if result is 6 or less |
| Move | 4 |
| Weapon Skill | 3 |
| Ballistic Skill | 5+ |
| Strength | 3 |
| Toughness | 3 |
| Initiative | 3 |
| Attacks | 1 |
| Willpower | 4 |
| Pinning | 3+ |
| Save vs. Death | 14 |
| Save vs. Spell | 15 |
Quarterstaff or Bo: (1d6+Strength) Damage, +1 Toughness. Quarterstaves can be spun and either end can be used to attack with. The Monk can therefore make an extra Attack each round with this weapon as long as all attacks are at -1 to hit, though the Toughness bonus would then be lost for the rest of the Turn. A staff is a Monk's favored weapon since it can double as a walking stick and allow him to traverse the countryside unhindered in peasant garb and yet be ready for action at any time.
Headband of Ferocity: This headband made of wild boar leather lets the Monk keep going when he would normally collapse of his wounds. The wearer can act normally even when reduced to 0 Wounds, but still dies as normal if he cannot heal himself or be healed before the next Turn starts.
Unarmed Fighting
An unarmed Monk is still a force to be reckoned with! The damage for
an Initiate Brother is still only 1d6 (no Strength bonus), but he gets an extra
+2 Attacks when fighting with no weapons. Furthermore, there are many
skills that a Monk can only utilize if he is fighting unarmed. Unarmed
damage will increase as the Monk gains Battle-levels as shown in the chart at
the end of these rules.
Evade 6+
The Monk has a chance to evade any kind of attacks (melee, ranged, magical)
that don't hit Automatically as long as there is a free adjacent square for him
to move to. If the Monk is prone, immobilized or penned in, he obviously
cannot make this roll.
Stunning Attack
If the Monk is fighting unarmed, he may try to stun most
Monsters. A Monk can attempt this Once per Adventure for each
Battle-level he has. A stunning attack must be called in advance, at which
time the Monk attacks bare-handed. If he misses, the attempt is wasted and
lost. If he hits, he tries to roll a 4,5 or 6. If he succeeds, the
attack still does normal damage as well as stunning the Monster. The
Monster will be stunned for one full Turn and other Warriors are +2 to hit it.
Monks do not wear armor or shields, and use mainly simple weapons, such as Maces, Crossbows, Daggers, Javelins, Spears, Staves, Throwing Axes and Throwing Stars. A Monk can use magic items as long as they do not require arcane knowledge to activate, but will not deign to rely on blessed items that are dedicated to a god they don't worship. (Some Monks are religious and some are not - it is assumed that the Monk is not unless roleplay dictates otherwise.) Due to their limited use of Treasure, a Monk does not have to abide by the BDEW designations and instead must stick to what seems appropriate to the class.
A Monk may possess no more than two magic weapons and three other magic items at any time. The Monk will seek to bestow unusable magic items (and treasure beyond what is sufficient for their modest needs) on religious institutions and other good causes.
The archetypical Monks are much less concerned with the materialistic goals that many humans have. Therefore Gold is of much less value than normal. The Monk can carry no more Gold on him than half the amount he would need to train to the next level. (For example, a Battle-Level 2 Monk can carry no more than 2000 Gold at any one time.) However, at Monasteries and tranquil locations such as the Pool of Dreams and Chapels Monks can convert Gold to Experience, which can be used to train to the next Battle-level, but cannot be spent or lost. (This means that it will be useful to keep track of both your character's Gold and Experience amounts.)
When visiting settlements, a Monk may visit all the standard locations such as the various traders and the following special locations: The Alchemist, Gambling House, Temple, Fighting Pit, Alehouse (no modifier), and a Monastery. The Monastery can be found on an 8+. Monks, although proud, will often make a conscious attempt to behave in a humble fashion at all times, and tend not to get into TOO much trouble in settlements.
Monks may not hire or retain any henchmen or disciples until they attain the rank of Master (Battle-level 5).
The Monk will often belong to a specific monastic order, which he can choose upon character creation. But monks in general are more tolerant than their zealous clerical kin and will often welcome a fellow acolyte regardless of background or faith, as this is a good way for all to learn to grow and share knowledge. Therefore monasteries tend to be quite tranquil places, as is expected of a place in which most spend their time in meditation and pursuit of various disciplines. Even evil monks are often tolerated, as they are likely to be a force for order and certainly not a disciple of any Chaos deity! Monks train at Monasteries if they have the necessary Gold and/or Experience, and may also do the following:
- Convert Gold to experience points- it cannot be spent
but cannot be lost to hazards, either.
- Donate Magical Items to his cause- he gets the experience
points for such a gift.
- Donate an appropriate amount of Gold to attain the use of
the following possessions:
Three-section staff
Three-equal length sections of staff, joined by chain, rope or leather.
This weapon does 1d6+1 damage and the Monk can get three Attacks per round
regardless of what his profile says.
Donation: 500 gold
Stock roll: 9
Flaming Fists Potion
The quaffer's hands burst into flame, adding +1d6 damage to his unarmed
attacks for the duration of one battle.
Donation: 150g per flask
Stock roll: 7 for each 1d3 flasks
Ring of Magical Armor
Grants +2 Toughness to the wearer.
Donation: 1,200 gold
Stock roll: 11
Belt of Mighty Prowess
This wide, adamantine-studded leather belt grants the wearer +3 to his
Strength stat.
Donation: 10,800 gold
Stock roll: 12
Vest of False Life
While wearing this vest, the Monk gains 10 Wounds. When he takes it
off, he loses those 10.
Donation: 1,200 gold
Stock roll: 11
Sandals of the Tiger's Leap
These sandals allow the wearer to make devastating flying kicks. On a
charge, the Monk can perform a flying kick. Treat this as an unarmed
attack that does double the normal damage dice. (For example, Miko, a BL 5
Monk would fly into battle, and make a single attack for 6d6 Wounds of damage,
without adding Strength and modified for Toughness and Armor.)
Donation: 350 gold
Stock roll: 10
Monks train differently than other Warriors. Their entire focus is discipline, so their training is certainly not in a willy-nilly fashion. Rather, ancient texts are made available, complete with diagrams that explain how to develop seemingly arcane talents through the harmony of mind, body, and spirit. The texts must be translated, the underlying philosophy meditated upon, and the physical techniques drilled during the seven days the Monk trains to the next Battle-level. The Monk has two chances to learn a skill at each of his Battle-levels, but the skills are not easy to learn and take an application of Willpower. Therefore, the skills are listed in order of difficulty. Some also have prerequisites which must be met in order that they can be made available.
To learn a skill, simply choose whichever you would like to try to learn. Then make a Willpower test at the difficulty level listed for the skill. For example, say you would like your Monk to learn a skill rated at Diff. 7. Simply Roll 1d6 and add the Monk's Will score. If the number equals or beats the difficulty he has succeeded in learning this new skill! If he fails, he may pick a second skill to try to learn. If the Monk fails both times, then he is lacking either the discipline or the aptitude to incorporate a new ability at this time and must wait until the next time he trains to a new Battle-level. If the Monk succeeds on his first try with a natural 6, then he not only learns the new skill, but he also gets to try to learn a second (with no second tries) skill this level, so great is his concentration!
The Monk can increase his Evasion ability by 1 each time he successfully works on this skill. So a Monk that takes this skill 2 times has the ability to Evade 4+.
Once per Turn when the Monk is hit by a missile weapon (except bullets and the like), he can try to deflect it and take no damage. To do so, he must succeed at an Initiative test at Difficulty 7. If the shooter or his bow has a magical bonus to attack, the Difficulty of the test is raised by that amount.
The Monk can improve the strength of his mind to ward against mind-affecting spells such as Confusion. When hit by such a spell, the Monk can either improve an existing chance to save by 2, or make a save against effects (on a 5 or 6) that automatically affect everyone else.
Monks with this ability can halve the damage they take from falling into pits and the like, as long as they are reasonably near a wall.
Through intense internal focus, the Monk learns complete control over his immune system. He then gains complete immunity to all diseases except for magical ones such as Tomb Rot, lycanthropy and vampirism. A Monk can be infected with a normal disease that is cast like a spell, (for instance if a Greater Daemon of Nurgle were to cast upon him), but he would be able to cure himself in the time it takes to travel to a settlement. (Any loss of statistics may be permanent, however.)
The Monk gains the ability to replace any of his normal Attacks with a Trip attack once per Turn. (This doesn't work against Large Monsters and spiders of course!) If the Monk hits, simply make an opposed Strength check (both Monk and Monster roll 1d6 and add their Strength) with the Monk adding +2 to the roll. If the succeeds, the Monster falls Prone for the rest of the Turn!
The Monk is actually able to mend his own Wounds by forcing his body to work faster! The Monk is able to cure up to 4 times his current Battle-level in Wounds each Dungeon. This does not have to be done all at once, and the healing can be rationed out over time.
A Monk with this ability can Jump up to three Squares horizontally or vertically without having to make an Initiative test. If the Monk wishes to Leap further, he must make an Initiative test following the normal rules but treating Square 4 as Square 2.
A Monk with this ability is now putting all their spirit into their attacks. All the Monk's unarmed attacks count as Magical when attacking Ethereal and Daemonic Monsters. In addition, the Ignore Pain ability is no longer useful against the Monk's unarmed attacks.
A Monk with this ability is in such control of his own metabolism that he gains immunity to Poison and Disease of all kinds. Fatal Damage is still possible.
A Monk with a Diamond Soul can use his Save vs. Spell to completely shrug off and resist enemy spells. Simply make the roll on the leveling chart on a d20 and the Monk will resist a spell cast upon him. (The Monk may not be immune to the physical effects of spells cast on others.)
This fabled technique, also known as Dim Mak, is the ability to hit a pressure
point on an opponent that sets up potentially fatal vibrations. The Monk
with this ability can use it once per Dungeon to try to kill an opponent
instantly. He must announce the intent before rolling to hit with an
empty-hand attack. If the blow strikes successfully and causes actual
Wounds, the Monster must make a Toughness save at Difficulty (the Monk's
Battle-level) or die instantly. Monks with this ability can also set up a
delayed death touch, in which they successfully hit and then will the victim to
die at a later time. If the Monk does not will the victim to die within 24
hours, then the vibrations set up within the target's body will fade away
finally.
The Quivering Palm technique cannot be used without a good working knowledge of
the human(oid) body, and therefore the Monk cannot use it on Daemons, Chaos
Spawn, animals, or any other Monsters that he doesn't have a complete knowledge
of their pressure points and anatomy.
A Monk with this ability gets the ability to be Ethereal 1 for 1 Turn per Dungeon per Battle-level. The time spent can be used all at once or rationed over the course of an adventure.
The Monk is in such perfect control of his body that he now appears to be indestructible and other-worldly. The Monk that has perfected himself gains the ability Ignore Pain 6. The Monk's body is being damaged but is literally repairing itself instantaneously!
| Level | Title | M | WS | BS | STR | Damage d6 | T | Wounds | I | A | Skills | Luck | WP | Escape Pinning | Save vs. Death | Save vs. Spell |
| 1 | Grasshopper | 4 | 3 | 5+ | 3 | 1 | 3 | 1d6+7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5+ | 10 | 12 |
| 2 | Disciple | 4 | 3 | 5+ | 3 | 1 | 3 | 2d6+7 | 4 | 1 | Special | 1 | 3 | 5+ | 9 | 10 |
| 3 | Disciple | 4 | 4 | 4+ | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2d6+7 | 4 | 2 | Special | 1 | 4 | 5+ | 9 | 10 |
| 4 | Disciple | 4 | 4 | 4+ | 4 | 1 | 4 | 3d6+7 | 5 | 2 | Special | 2 | 4 | 5+ | 7 | 10 |
| 5 | Master | 4 | 5 | 4+ | 4 | 2 | 4 | 3d6+7 | 5 | 2 | Special | 2 | 4 | 4+ | 6 | 8 |
| 6 | Master | 4 | 5 | 3+ | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4d6+7 | 5 | 2 | Special | 2 | 4 | 4+ | 6 | 8 |
| 7 | Master | 4 | 5 | 3+ | 4 | 2 | 4 | 4d6+7 | 6 | 3 | Special | 3 | 5 | 4+ | 5 | 6 |
| 8 | Master | 4 | 6 | 3+ | 4 | 2 | 4 | 5d6+7 | 6 | 3 | Special | 3 | 5 | 3+ | 4 | 6 |
| 9 | Grand Master | 4 | 6 | 2+ | 4 | 3 | 4 | 6d6+7 | 7 | 3 | Special | 3 | 6 | 3+ | 4 | 4 |
| 10 | Superior Grand Dragon Master of the Four Seasonal Winds | 4 | 7 | 2+ | 4 | 3 | 4 | 7d6+7 | 7 | 3 | Special | 3 | 6 | 2+ | 2 | 4 |
| Battle-Level | Damage | Attacks |
| 1-2 | 1d6 | 3 |
| 3-4 | 2d6 | 3 |
| 5-6 | 3d6 | 3 |
| 7-8 | 4d6 | 3 |
| 9 | 5d6 | 3 |
| 10 | 6d6 | 4 |
I've always enjoyed the fantasy atmosphere of Monks, whether it be in games, or in classic Chinese action films. I've played Colen McAlister's Monk in WHQ, and enjoyed myself. However, I always find myself missing the atmosphere that makes the Monk a unique creature in the fantasy multiverse. So this is the first of a series of Monks I plan on introducing; this being the basic template, adapted pretty much straight from Dungeons and Dragons, Colen McAlister's original, and all the MUDs I used to play back in the day. Specific styles/schools/sects of Monks will be introduced down the road, with this as the basic template. Hopefully then all Monks will be fun to play as well as balanced and useful additions to any party.
To give the Monk a more unique atmosphere, I introduced the discipline concept. The player can choose which skills he wants, and has a chance to end up with more than the average fighter-type. No more random rolling to see which skill you learn. This is balanced slightly by depending on the Willpower stat, which goes up every other Battle-level. It still will not be wise to try to get the best skills right away. Also, some extremely useful skills have prerequisites, a new concept to Warhammer Quest, but a useful balancing tool.