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About this mod
There are several Way of the Kensei Monk subclass mods on Nexus - I have not tried them, and none are 5e RAW representations, so here you go. Acknowledgements for everyone who made this subclass for BG3 before me,
- Requirements
- Permissions and credits
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At Level 3, this mod adds a toggle for the Kensei that allows them to make unarmed attacks while holding a melee weapon, without having it be a separate spell. Toggle on = attack with and use animations of unarmed attacks when you make a melee attack | Toggle off = normal attack with weapon behavior.
Way of the Kensei
Monks of the Way of the Kensei train relentlessly with their weapons, to the point that the weapon becomes like an extension of the body. Founded on a mastery of sword fighting, the tradition has expanded to include many different weapons.
A kensei sees a weapon much in the same way a calligrapher or a painter regards a pen or brush. Whatever the weapon, the kensei views it as a tool used to express the beauty and precision of the martial arts. That such mastery makes a kensei a peerless warrior is but a side effect of intense devotion, practice, and study.
Source: Xanathar's Guide to Everything
Path of the Kensei
When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, your special martial arts training leads you to master the use of certain weapons. This path also includes instruction in the deft strokes of calligraphy or painting. You gain the following benefits:
- Kensei Weapons. Choose two types of weapons to be your kensei weapons: one melee weapon and one ranged weapon. Each of these weapons can be any simple or martial weapon that lacks the heavy and special properties. The longbow is also a valid choice. You gain proficiency with these weapons if you don't already have it. Weapons of the chosen types are monk weapons for you. Many of this tradition's features work only with your kensei weapons. When you reach 6th, 11th, and 17th level in this class, you can choose another type of weapon – either melee or ranged – to be a kensei weapon for you, following the criteria above.
- Agile Parry. If you make an unarmed strike as part of the Attack action on your turn and are holding a kensei weapon, you can use it to defend yourself if it is a melee weapon. You gain a +2 bonus to AC until the start of your next turn, while the weapon is in your hand and you aren’t incapacitated.
- Kensei's Shot. You can use a bonus action on your turn to make your ranged attacks with a kensei weapon more deadly. When you do so, any target you hit with a ranged attack using a kensei weapon takes an extra 1d4 damage of the weapon’s type. You retain this benefit until the end of the current turn.
- Way of the Brush. You gain proficiency with your choice of calligrapher's supplies or painter's supplies.
IMPLEMENTATION: Kensei Weapons is Rules as Written. I included Darts and Slings since they were in the data files, but they don't actually exist in the base game (maybe through other mods or sometime in the future). If you want Monk Damage Dice to scale with any of the two-handed options in the list (i.e. shortbows), you MUST use Script Extender. Agile Parry is Rules as Written. Kensei's Shot is Rules as Written. You will not see the damage bonus on the weapon tooltip, but it will show in the combat log. Way of the Brush has no purpose in BG3, so instead you gain proficiency in Performance. You must use Improved UI to be able to see the skill selection on Level Up (other CC UI mods may conflict and break it).
One with the Blade
At 6th level, you extend your ki into your kensei weapons, granting you the following benefits.
- Magic Kensei Weapons. Your attacks with your kensei weapons count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.
- Deft Strike. When you hit a target with a kensei weapon, you can spend 1 ki point to cause the weapon to deal extra damage to the target equal to your Martial Arts die. You can use this feature only once on each of your turns
IMPLEMENTATION: Magic Kensei Weapons is Rules as Written. Deft Strike is Rules as Written - implemented as a toggle so it can stack with interrupts like Sneak Attack. The first attack you land while the toggle is on will gain Deft Strike... turn it off/on strategically as needed. You will not see the damage bonus on the weapon tooltip, but it will show in the combat log.
Sharpen the Blade
At 11th level, you gain the ability to augment your weapons further with your ki. As a bonus action, you can expend up to 3 ki points to grant one kensei weapon you touch a bonus to attack and damage rolls when you attack with it. The bonus equals the number of ki points you spent. This bonus lasts for 1 minute or until you use this feature again. This feature has no effect on a magic weapon that already has a bonus to attack and damage rolls.
IMPLEMENTATION: Rules as Written. Sharpen the Blade will target the weapon in your active weapon set and the hand indicated by the toggle on your hotbar (i.e. if you want to Sharpen your offhand dagger, make sure your melee set is active, and turn the hotbar toggle to Off Hand, then cast). You will not see the damage bonus on the weapon tooltip, but it will show in the combat log.
Unerring Accuracy
At 17th level, your mastery of weapons grants you extraordinary accuracy. If you miss with an attack roll using a monk weapon on your turn, you can reroll it. You can use this feature only once on each of your turns.
IMPLEMENTATION: Rules as Written, but I couldn't restrict Thrown weapons exactly the way it should be due to some game limitations with Interrupts and Throw spells - it will still work though.
SPECIAL THANKS AND CREDITS: Thank you to DiZ91891 for the SE solution for twohanded weapons and scaling monk damage, and to drkekyll for their amazing 5eE Monk Rework version of Kensei that helped me figure several things out with this subclass.
