 onk
Multi-class restrictions by Monk Order. The table below lists other known orders of monks, the deity they hold
as a patron (if any), alignment restrictions for the order, and the
character classes open to monks of that order for the purpose of
multiclassing freely. Playing an actual member of any official order requires DM approval: these are simply multi-class guidelines. Some deities have more than one associated order
of monks; these are listed sequentially. Not all monks have to be
associated with an order, but only those that are part of an order can multiclass freely. There are no known monk orders for other faiths.
|
Deity |
Order |
Alignment |
Multiclass Allowed |
Desciption |
| None, Velsharoon |
Long Death |
evil |
assassin, blackguard, fighter. |
|
| None |
Old Order |
usually neutral, sometimes good, rarely evil
|
rogue, sorcerer, shadowdancer (monk levels must be higher than
total of all other class levels). |
|
| Arvoreen, Cyrrollalee, Sheela, Urogalan, Yondalla |
Hin Fist |
neutral or good |
fighter, rogue, paladin |
|
| Azuth |
Shining Hand |
neutral |
wizard (if monk level exceeds
wizard level) |
|
| Bane |
Order of the Iron Gauntlet |
evil |
assassin, fighter |
A small sect within the Zhentarim, these
monks train in stealth and assassination. Currently they are
few in number but their leader has been recruiting widely.
|
| Deneir |
Zealots of the Written Word |
good |
cleric |
These monks accompany clerics of Deneir on quests,
assist in moneymaking efforts for the church, and are
as fond of recording information as any devout worshiper of
Deneir. |
| Grumbar |
Disciples of the Changeless Face |
neutral |
fighter |
This stoic and spartan order is obsessed
with preserving the knowledge of how things are
(from laws to traditions to manners of speech) so that change
can be detected and countered (which often involves beating into
a pulp someone who disagrees). |
| Ilmater |
Broken Ones |
good |
clerics, divine champions, divine
disciples, divine seekers, hierophants |
|
| Ilmater |
Disciples of St. Sollars (Monks of the
Yellow Rose) |
good |
ranger, shadowdancer, devine chapion
|
|
| Kossuth |
Disciples of the Phoenix |
good |
cleric |
This order (and the other two orders of Kossuthan monks)
is very insular and has a rigid tradition of study and fighting
style, as well as behavioral taboos. They are the most likely to
espouse the purifying and redeeming aspects of their deity's
element. |
| Kossuth |
Brothers and Sisters of the Pure Flame |
neutral |
cleric |
These monks seek a balance between the
purifying aspect and the destructive aspect of Kossuth's flame,
and are the mediators of the three orders. Most of them learn
Ignan to better communicate with fire elementals. |
| Kossuth |
Disciples of the Salamander |
evil |
cleric |
Some of these monks rival a Talosian fanatic's love of destructive fire, but most see it as
a necessary tool for renewal in the world. Many of them bear
brands of magical symbols on their bodies and decorate
themselves with fiery tattoos. |
| Lathander, Selune, Sune |
Sun Soul |
good or neutral |
any one other class (as
long as monk is the highest class level) |
|
| Loviatar |
Disciples of the White Rod |
evil |
cleric |
Monks of Loviatar prefer using their bare hands to
inflict pain rather than using weapons. When forced to use
weapons, they prefer nunchaku with white-bleached leather
wrappings on the hilts. |
| Luthic |
Runeclaws |
evil |
cleric, runecaster |
Because in many orc tribes females are not allowed to touch
weapons, unarmed combat has become a means for female worshipers
of Luthic to defend themselves against raiders from other
tribes. Some female orcs that are too old for childbirth
(particularly older wives of the chief) become runeclaws to
prove they are still useful to the tribe. |
| Mystra |
Flaming Star |
LN or LG |
wizards or sorcerors so long as
their monk level is higher than their other class |
|
| Oghma |
Children of the Passive Voice
|
neutral |
none |
These monks serve as guardians to libraries
and abbeys, and sometimes are sent to find lost stores of
knowledge. |
| Shar |
Dark Moon |
evil |
sorcerer (monk and sorcerer level must
be within two levels of each other) |
|
| Tiamat |
Serpent Guards |
evil |
assassin, divine champion, fighter, rogue |
These fanatics guard temples, serve as
minions to dragons, hunt dragonslayers, and assassinate
those who pry too closely into the activities of the church.
They are active in Unther and have been known to attack
Mulhorandi soldiers. |
| Yurtrus |
Brotherhood of the Scarlet Scourge |
evil |
cleric |
Monks of this strange orc order bleach their
hands white and grow their nails very long. Before combat they
dip their nails in a powder made of blood infected with the red
ache (see Disease in the DUNGEON MASTER's Guide), which lets
them infect their opponents. |
Playing a Monk by Foolish Owl
Monks seek to understand timeless and eternal
principles, the abstract ideals behind everything.
Deities are incarnations of
those abstract ideals, and thus worthy of
devotion and contemplation. But it is the ideals that matter,
not their personifications. Justice matters, and Tyr matters
only as an incarnation of that infinite, eternal principle. It's
worth noting that while most monastic orders are nominally
devoted to a deity, in some cases, it's not clear whether the
identity of the deity really matters, as with the Order of the
Long Death, or whether the deity actually exists at all, as with
the Old Order.
It's also worth noting that the powers that
monks obtain seem to come, not as gifts of the gods, but from
within, from their own profound self-discipline and
preternatural identification with their ideals.
Monks seek to overcome the limitations of
their own identity, and become living incarnations of the
eternal principles they believe in. In so doing, the mortal
world of history and conflict trouble them less and less. They
come to be in the world, but not of the world. They wander,
seeking tests to refine and prove themselves. A monk fights a
dragon, not because it's a test of his courage, but because it's
a test of how his devotion to the principle of Courage. The
dragon doesn't matter much, in itself.
The most wise and powerful of monks cease to
be entirely mortal. They become "outsiders," literally dwelling
in the world, but no longer part of the world.
Monks get along well with clerics who value
the same ideals they do. But they find the absorption of clerics
in worldly, temporal matters to be distracting. Druids, monks
scarcely understand at all. Druids are entirely wrapped up in a
chaotic, transient world, and ignore the abstract ideals that
matter more than life. Druids and monks can pass each other by
without even seeing each other, so to speak.
|
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