#atuikakura

 (art by PhoenixLu on DeviantArt)

 The Monastery of the Unblinking Flame, one of the three Houses of Perfection in Jalmeray, seeks to emulate the element of fire in their arts to create a unique style. After all, fire can deal grievous harm, but it itself is immaterial, unable to be touched.

With this in mind, disciples of the style learn to be agile and deceptive in their maneuvers, while also striking powerfully when they get the chance. Getting into the school means outwitting an efreeti in the initiation trial, which sets a pretty high bar.

Those that succeed oftentimes become brazen disciples, learning to deceive and befuddle their foes in combat, and even emulate some of the fiery power of the efreet.

An efreet-linked monk archetype is not a bad idea, and could easily be adapted to most settings as well, I feel.

In any case, this archetype is officially available to both standard and unchained monk without any homebrewing required.

 These monks are adapt at deception, and can even lead off their strikes with a feint to open a foe up.

They also gain a different set of potential techniques that they pick up as part of their monk training, particularly those that improve their agility, ability to deceive, perform various combat maneuvers to befuddle foes, and learn the elemental efreeti fighting style.

Using raw cunning, rather than confidence, these monks are quite adept at deceiving others with their words and with disguises.

Their trickery reaches into the supernatural when they learn to channel ki into a riddle or logical paradox, temporarily befuddling the mind of the listener.

While most monks at their zenith transcend mortality and become an avatar of law, brazen disciples become decidedly more efreeti-like, becoming immune to fire but vulnerable to cold, and even able to grant minor wishes.

Interested in a monk that fights like a feint-focused combatant? This archetype has you covered. You could focus on the efreeti style for extra fire damage, go for the Unblinking Flame variant of Perfect Style to gain bonuses on the ambush and on feints, or even both, switching up depending on what you wish to do. In either case, the strategy with this archetype is to control the fight and remove your foes offensive and defensive advantages with combat maneuvers and feinting.

 We’ve seen “sneaky” monk archetypes before, but unlike others we have covered, this one feels like the deceptive element is out of a general respect as a valid fighting style, rather than being purpose-built for killing or other illicit activity. How it’s practitioners actually use it is another story.

  Stories tell of an aged master of martial arts living in seclusion, a syrinx warrior who long became disillusioned with the continued brutality of his people. Those who seek him out might be able to learn his fiery style, flickering like a flame in and out of reach.

 With the flow of time, whole worlds change. Oceans become deserts, and occasionally, the reverse. Though the monastery of the Efreeti Fist now rests beneath the waves, the style remains with those who fled the region. Still, there might be relics central to the style hidden in the ruins. Unfortunately for any explorers, it is guarded by a magical sea cucumber-like monster called an atuikakura.

Atuikakura is a Japanese yōkai that resembles a giant sea cucumber. It is said to live deep underwater, and is therefore never seen.

Occasionally, it will latch onto a piece of detritus and move about Uchiura Bay, where it lives. Despite its reclusive nature, it is said to be very dangerous to ships, which it can badly damage when it starts to thrash if it is startled.

Image source.

Monster master list.

Atuikakura by by Matthew Meyer, creator of Yokai.com and author of The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons.

Atuikakura is, of course, a woman’s lost undies that grew into a ship-sinking sea cucumber.

 Thieves heavily define the rogue class, but the distinction between each one varies by how they steal. Burglars break into homes and buildings to pillage their contents, highwaymen and pirates ambush transports on land and sea, and con artists develop elaborate ruses to take their marks for all they are worth.

Today’s subject is something of a cousin to the con artist, for a sharper comes up with schemes to take money, but they are often more short-lived and less elaborate. These are the ones running rigged games of chance, distracting a mark to steal from them, or concocting stories of injury to bilk someone of their money in recompense, and so on.

Unlike more elaborate thieves, such schemes are less thoroughly thought out than others, leading to most ending with. “And then I book it once they’re on to me”. As such, this sort of rogue is very unlikely to be friendly with any paladins or lawful folk in the group, as they tend to prey upon the naïve and those that are easily convinced of the false premise behind their plans.

Still, having a sharper can net the party a bit of extra gold, or pull the wool over a foe’s eyes at just the right time.

 As one might expect, these ne’er do wells are master of deception, both verbally and in terms of concealing their movements.

Additionally, they are quite skilled at stealing items even in the middle of combat.

Bold as they are, sharpers often play it by ear, and oftentimes rely on a bit of luck and capitalizing on it to succeed. And perhaps those that survive long enough truly do have a bit of extra luck. In its most basic form, this simply makes them harder to be put out of commission by nasty effects.

However, by pressing their luck, (and thereby making them more vulnerable to various effects), they can take advantage of a situation to take what might be failure and turn it into success.

Naturally, the rogue talents associated with this archetype focus primarily on a silver tongue, deft fingers, and the ability to get away when the chips are down.

Useful for the classic lying sneak rogue, the real boon of this class comes from the save bonus which can be reduced to grant rerolls. As such, while I highly recommend building to complement their focus on deception, don’t forget to also focus on defensive abilities to keep getting off scott free, and other customization depending on the build you have in mind.

 Like many rogues, sharpers may have difficulty getting involved with your typical heroic group. Indeed, many might make better antagonists. However, even self-serving thieves can have a side that recognizes the need to step up and fight for what is right. Many might be reluctant companions, but their character arc will also likely revolve around learning to trust others.

  The party rogue was formerly a member of a gang of card sharps and con artists, the same group that is now harassing the party. However, it becomes quickly clear that something has changed with the gang, and that they are being manipulated by an even greater foe.

 Caught deceiving a matriarch, Velmis was sentenced to painful fleshwarping and exile. Now a drider, he wanders through various underworld cities, keeping his skills as a sharper focused in order to survive, though his arachnid bulk does help when those are not enough.