Hello, everyone! Villain month continues this week with a new Monastic Tradition, one which strives to impose equality between those who would wield magic and those who cannot. Whether this attempt is genuine or not, though, I leave as an exercise to the reader.

Monastic Tradition – Way of Anathema

Some believe that the gifts of the gods were given in error, that for too long magic has enabled oppressors to walk among those not blessed with supernatural power. Monks who follow the Way of Anathema utilize their knowledge of anatomy and magic in order to disable foes who would wield it and to sway others to understand that this tyranny can ultimately be undone.

Pressure Point Strike

Starting when you take this monastic tradition at 3rd level, you have learned the necessary pressure points to disable foes in battle. You become proficient in the Medicine skill. Whenever you hit a creature with an attack granted by your Flurry of Blows feature, you can impose one of the following effects on that target:

• It must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be unable to cast spells until the end of its next turn.
• It must succeed on a Strength saving throw or its move speed is reduced to 0 until the end of its next turn.
• It has disadvantage on its next attack roll.

Rhetoric of Equity

At 6th level, you strengthen your companions’ resolve in the face of supernatural threats. Whenever a friendly creature that can see or hear you makes a saving throw, you may expend a ki point as a reaction to add your proficiency bonus to that saving throw.

Nullification

Beginning at 11th level, you have developed the ability to disrupt the flow of magic around you. You may expend 4 ki points to cast counterspell. If you do so, you may also expend additional ki points to increase the spell level by 1 for every 2 additional ki points spent.

Sever the Weave

At 17th level, you gain the ability to sunder someone’s connection to magical forces. When you hit a creature which can cast spells using spell slots with an unarmed strike, you may expend 3 ki points to redirect the flow of energy within the creature. The creature must make a Charisma saving throw. On a failure, it expends spell slots whose combined total is greater than or equal to your monk level. If it succeeds, the combined total of spell slot levels must be greater than or equal to half of your monk level. If a creature cannot expend this total level of spell slots, it takes 1d6 psychic damage for each level of spell slot it fails to expend.

You cannot use this ability again until you complete a long rest.