Fighting-Monk

Description

This priest belongs to an order devoted in large part to the study of fighting styles, especially barehanded martial arts. These monks live and study in monasteries devoted to their orders. If, for example, they are priests of the god of War, these monks do not live and study in ordinary temples of that god; they have their own secluded monastery away from the normal temples.
These monks do not confine their war-training to the monasteries, however, They travel the wide world in order to learn the secrets of life, the world, magic and the gods. As an order, they sometimes volunteer their services to rulers in times of war, and act as elite forces against the enemy.
These monks are most appropriate for an oriental-flavored campaign and the DM may wish to decide that they cannot be used in his campaign. Before you create a Fighting-Monk character, consult your DM and ask if he is allowing the Fighting-Monk kit in his campaign.
In order to be a fighting-monk, the character must have a Dexterity of 12 or more.
If a fighting-monk wants to abandon this kit, he must go through a difficult process in order to do so. He must not use any of his unarmed combat techniques for three whole experience levels' worth of time. Once he's reached that third experience level, he has forgotten his unarmed combat techniques and may resume the wearing of armor, and, if he renounced some of his spheres of influence when he became a fighting-monk, may now resume those lost spheres.
As an example, a fighting-monk priest at 5th level decides to renounce his allegiance to the fighting-monk order. He adventures normally, still not wearing armor but otherwise performing as a normal priest of his priest-class. He abstains from using his unarmed combat techniques. At 8th level, he has abandoned his fighting techniques and may once again wear the armor appropriate to his priest-class.
If a character forgets himself and uses unarmed combat techniques during this process, he must "start over." It will be three experience levels from his current level, from the time he made the slip, until he can resume his priest-class.

Barred

A priest of any priesthood which starts out with Poor Fighting Abilities is barred from this choice.

Role

In the campaign, this priest is the philosophical warrior whose principal duty is self-enlightenment. He is less concerned with the ordinary priestly duties (such as guidance, marriage, community service) than those priests, but will still perform them; he just won't go out of his way to look for them, nor will he normally volunteer for them (NPCs must ask his help in these matters). Such characters are usually wanderers, which help make them appropriate for adventuring parties. They do periodically return to their monasteries, to pass on the learning they have acquired on the road, and to brush up on their fighting-skills; the rest of the time they spend out in the world.

Weapon Proficiencies

Required

See under "Special Benefits," below. Otherwise, the priest may take any weapon proficiencies which his specific priest class allows him; he may not take any the class does not allow him.

Non-weapon Proficiencies

Bonus Proficiency

Tumbling

Recommended

Riding (Land-Based), Artistic Ability (any), Dancing, Reading/Writing, Religion.

Equipment

See "Special Hindrances" below.

Special Benefits

The principal benefit of being a Fighting-Monk is that the character receives two free weapon proficiency slots which he must use to take Specialization in one of the three styles of Unarmed Combat (Punching, Wrestling, or Martial Arts). These were described in greater detail in The Complete Fighter's Handbook, but that information also appears here. in the "Equip- ment and Combat" chapter. The Fighting-Monk is the only priest who can specialize in an Unarmed Combat style. He can specialize in any or all of the three styles, but he may only specialize in one of them at first experience level.
As a second benefit, regardless of what it says for the priest 's class, the Fighting-Monk has a Non-weapon Proficiency Group Crossover with all five Proficiency Groups (General, Priest, Rogue, Warrior, and Wizard). No proficiency he takes will cost double the usual number of slots.
The last of the Fighting-Monk's benefits is this: He doesn 't have to spend all his starting Weapon Proficiency slots at first level. He can save his unspent proficiencies, and they do not "go away." Later, he can spend them at a rate of one proficiency per experience level to improve his martial arts or buy new martial arts.

Special Hindrances

This priest cannot wear any sort of armor. Additionally, if he's a priest-class with Medium Combat Abilities, he must "give up" some of his Spheres of Influence. He may have no more than three Major Accesses (one of which must be All) and two Minor Accesses. The player may choose from the accesses he currently has which ones the character loses and which he keeps.
Additionally, the priest may never own more things (weapons, treasure, money, etc.) than he can carry on his back.

Wealth Options

The Fighting-Monk gets the usual 3d6x10 gp as starting money.

Races

No special limitations. Humans, elves and half-elves seem visually more suited to this kit than dwarves, gnomes, and halflings, but the DM can allow those races to take this kit if he so chooses.

[Complete Priest's Handbook]