General Prestige Class : Enlightened Fist
Not all monks pursue metaphysical perfection to the exclusion of all other study. Some monks combine a rigorous discipline of academic study with martial arts and development of the body. For these monks, that study includes the practice of magic and the implementation of certain arcane tricks into their unarmed combat styles. These enlightened fists master the use of touch spells, creating new forms of combat where their fists strike with blinding speed, phenomenal power, and magical energy.
Most enlightened fists are monk/sorcerers or monk/wizards. Some focus heavily on one class or the other, while others seek to maintain balance between their arcane and physical training.
Enlightened fists are most common in metropolitan settings, where magical training is available and becomes an integral component of the monastic life. Enlightened fist NPCs often live in communities with ordinary monks, practicing magic primarily as a means of self perfection.
Adaptation: In the world of Eberron, enlightened fists can be found throughout Khorvaire. They are most common in Aundair, where arcane schools abound.
Some arcane fists could rise from divine backgrounds. In such cases, the requirements for the class would change from Knowledge (arcana) to Knowledge (religion) and would require the character to be capable of casting 2nd-level divine spells (instead of arcane spells). However, because divine spells are generally better at improving a character in melee, the caster level progression noted in the table below cannot go unmodified. Instead of gaining +1 level in spellcasting ability at every level except 1st and 6th, the divine enlightened fist should gain +1 level of existing divine spellcasting class at 2nd, 4th, 6th, 8th, and 10th level only.
Requirements
To qualify to become an Enlightened Fist, a character must fulfill all the following criteria:
- Skills: Concentration 8 ranks, Knowledge (arcana) 5 ranks, Spellcraft 5 ranks
- Feats: Combat Casting, Improved Unarmed Strike, Stunning Fist.
- Spells or Spell-like Abilities: Arcane caster level 3rd.
Class Skills
The enlightened fist's class skills are Balance, Climb, Concentration, Craft, Escape Artist, Hide, Jump, Knowledge (arcana), Knowledge (religion), Listen, Move Silently, Profession, Spellcraft, Spot, Swim, and Tumble.
Skill Points at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features
All the following are class features of the enlightened fist.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Enlightened fists gain no proficiency with any weapon or armor.
Spells per Day/Spells Known: Except at 1st level and 6th level, an enlightened fist gains new spells per day (and spells known, if applicable) as if she had also gained a level in an arcane spellcasting class to which she belonged before adding the prestige class level. She does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (such as the bonus feat sometimes gained by a wizard). If she had more than one arcane spellcasting class before becoming an enlightened fist, she must decide to which class to add each level for the purpose of determining spells per day and spells known.
Ki Strike (Su): An enlightened fist's unarmed attacks are empowered with ki. Her unarmed attacks are treated as magic weapons for the purpose of dealing damage to creatures with damage reduction.
Monk Abilities: An enlightened fist adds her class level to her monk level to determine her class-based AC bonus, her unarmed damage, her unarmored speed bonus, and the number of daily attempts of her Stunning Fist feat. If she has no monk levels, she gains the AC bonus, unarmed damage, and unarmored speed bonus of a monk whose level equals her enlightened fist level, but she can't add her Wisdom bonus to her AC.
An enlightened fist does not count her class levels for the purpose of determining when she gains any other monk class features, such as reduced penalties for flurry of blows attack rolls, bonus feats, evasion, or other special abilities.
Fist of Energy (Su): Once per round as a free action, an enlightened fist of 2nd level or higher can spend one of her daily stunning attempts to imbue her unarmed strikes with either electricity or fire. The enlightened fist chooses the energy type each time she activates. For 1 round, each of her unarmed strike that hits deals an extra 1d6 points of damage (electricity or fire, depending on the choice).
At 6th level and higher, an enlightened fist can cause her energy-imbued unarmed strikes to burst with flame or lightning on a critical hit. In addition to dealing an extra 1d6 points of energy damage, her unarmed attacks deal an extra 1d10 points of energy damage on a successful critical hit. If the enlightened fist's unarmed critical multiplier is x3, she adds an extra 2d10 points of energy damage instead, and if the multiplier is x4, she adds an extra 3d10 points of energy damage. An enlightened fist with monk levels can use this ability to channel energy through wielded monk weapons just as she can through her unarmed attacks.
Arcane Fist (Su): Beginning at 3rd level, an enlightened fist can spend one of her daily stunning attempts to cast and deliver a touch spell as part of an unarmed full attack action. She can choose to deliver the touch spell with any single unarmed strike attack she makes during the action.
Arcane Rejuvenation (Su): An enlightened fist of 5th level or higher can channel arcane energy to heal her own wounds. As a standard action, she can sacrifice one of her prepared spells or unused spell slots; doing this heals a number of hit points of damage equal to the spell's level.
Hold Ray (Ex): At 7th level or higher, an enlightened fist can cast any spell that produces a ray effect as a touch spell instead. The spell's range is reduced to touch, and its Effect entry is replaced with "Target: Creature touched." She can deliver the spell with a touch attack or with a normal attack, and she can hold the charge as with a normal touch spell. An enlightened fist can combine this ability with arcane fist (see above) to deliver a ray-effect spell as part of an unarmed full attack action.
Diamond Soul (Ex): At 9th level, an enlightened fist gains spell resistance equal to 10 + the total of her monk levels and enlightened fist levels.
Multiclassing Note: A monk who becomes an enlightened fist can continue advancing as a monk. Furthermore, the character's class levels in any classes that grant arcane spellcasting ability (such as sorcerer or warmage) do not prevent her from continuing to advance as a monk.
| Enlightened Fist | Hit Die: d8 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CL | BAB | Fort | Ref | Will | Special | Spells |
| 1st | +0 | +0 | +2 | +2 | Ki strike (magic), monk abilities | - |
| 2nd | +1 | +0 | +3 | +3 | Fist of energy | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 3rd | +2 | +1 | +3 | +3 | Arcane fist | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 4th | +3 | +1 | +4 | +4 | - | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 5th | +3 | +1 | +4 | +4 | Arcane rejuvenation | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 6th | +4 | +2 | +5 | +5 | Fist of energy (burst) | - |
| 7th | +5 | +2 | +5 | +5 | Hold ray | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 8th | +6 | +2 | +6 | +6 | - | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 9th | +6 | +3 | +6 | +6 | Diamond soul | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
| 10th | +7 | +3 | +7 | +7 | - | +1 level of existing arcane spellcasting class |
Source: Complete Arcane