Monk

**Monk** is a character class available to players in the *13th Age* fantasy tabletop roleplaying game ruleset. The druid was introduced to the *13th Age* ruleset as a class, amongst others, in the *13 True Ways* supplement published by Pelgrane Press. Utilizing their bodies as weapons, monks are the martial artists and hand-to-hand combatants of fantasy RPGs. Monks in *13th Age* fall under the 'control' role of characters while using ki and combos of attacks to inflict conditions on foes.

In *WovenRealm,* Emi was a monk when she joined the Emerald Caravan. They utilized their martial arts that they had learned as a guardian for a Felpurr caravan.

## Playstyle

### Role

Monks in d20 fantasy RPGs often are effective at dealing damage with their unarmed strikes while also causing their enemies to loose balance and suffer debuffs. Monks are meant to control the battlefield while also focusing down an enemy to help bring them down quickly. By not wearing armor, monks are a bit more fragile than other characters who find themselves in the frontlines and rely on mobility to evade harm.

### Ability Scores

Strength or Dexterity are important to monks since those ability scores will make them more effective with their unarmed attacks. Wisdom is also helpful for monks, seeing that it influences the number of ki points that fuel their abilities available to a monk. Dexterity, Constitution, and Wisdom affect a monk's armor class while not wearing armor, making those three ability scores worth investing in for monks.

### Play Style

The primary playstyle of the monk is focusing on their martial arts and making unarmed attacks. They adopt different forms that open up combos that increase in damage and effect as you make additional attacks. Monks gain AC for making attacks, so they are rewarded for being aggressive in combat and unleashing. Ki can be used to adjust probability in the monk's favor. The monk is recommended for players looking for an in-depth mechanical experience, and it shows with the monk having a relatively higher complexity in its play. Monks also rely on mobility to move from enemy to enemy while also evading harm.

### Narrative & Background

Monks are the martial artists of these realms and taking hints from their touchstone inspiration, may also be seeking some form of enlightenment. There is a spiritual bend to many monks given their basis as well. The ruleset suggests the following background: holy acolyte, mountain sanctuary guard, traveling circus acrobat, river guide, spider-cult assassin, tunnel vermin exterminator, bodyguard, farmer, hallucinogenic mushroom farmer, wild mountain ginseng harvester, traveling tournament organizer, civil rights organizer.

## In Campaign

During their time with the Emerald Caravan, Emi was a monk.

## Notes & Trivia

* Monk has a clear *Dungeons and Dragons* analogue where they are also the martial artist and unarmed combatants of those games.
* The inspiration for the class originally comes from monastics found in east Asia, especially in sects of Buddhism that practice martial arts as a form of meditation or for defense. Over time, elements of martial arts films and other media that takes inspiration from eastern myth and folklore have come to also inspire and influence the monk class.
* As the only class that receives real and tangible mechanical benefits for fighting unarmed, many monks are not played with the spiritual bend of the original touchstone and instead focus on the martial arts aspect of the monk. Some other interpretations are seen in the backgrounds such as acrobats, ninja assassins', and even Boxer Rebellion type revolutionaries.