TEXT:  
  1 | Way of the Owlbear 
   
   
   
  
   
  2 | Way of the Owlbear 
   
  Way of the Owlbear 
  A Monastic Tradition 
   
  Disclaimer: I take no responsibility for your reactions to this fiercely wild monastic 
  tradition. Be sure to consult your Dungeon Master before use. 
   
  Cover Art: Provided by Wizards of the Coast Dungeon Masters Guild Art Resources 
   
  Page Background: Nimgyu 
  (Color, Saturation, and transparency adjusted) 
   
  Production and Layout: Jeff C. Stevens 
   
  Special Thanks: Andrew Bishkinskyi, Alex Clippinger, & Alan Tucker 
   
  Version 2a 
   
  Written By: Jeff C. Stevens 
  @jcorvinstevens 
  www.jeffstevensgames.com 
   
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon Master’s Guide, 
  D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and 
  other countries. All characters and their distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected under the copyright laws of 
  the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written 
  permission of Wizards of the Coast. 
   
  ©2016 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Boéchat 31, 2800 Delémont, CH. 
  Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK. 
   
  All other original material in this work is copyright [2020] by Jeff C. Stevens and published under the Community Content 
  Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild 
  
   
  3 | Way of the Owlbear 
   
  Way of the Owlbear 
  Monks of the Way of Owlbear revere the mighty 
  beast, practicing ancient traditions which slowly 
  transform them, giving them physical aspects of the 
  owlbear. The traditions are passed from generation 
  to generation, as the bonds of family are strong with 
  owlbears.  
   
  While many practitioners of this tradition study it in 
  their natural racial form, some choose to follow the 
  teachings to its end, permanently transforming into 
  an owlbear. 
   
  Coming of the Owlbear 
  When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you gain 
  darkvision to 60 ft. If you already have darkvision, 
  your range increases by 30 ft. 
   
  In addition, you can use your ki to gain the senses of 
  the owlbear. As a bonus action, you can spend 1 ki 
  point to gain Advantage on Wisdom (Perception) 
  checks made until the end of your next turn.  
   
  Lastly, you gain a Hoot & Growl ability. 
   
  Hoot & Growl: Once per short rest, you may target a 
  creature within 30 ft of you, hooting and growling at 
  it. The creature must succeed on a Wisdom saving 
  throw or be frightened of you for 1 minute, as per 
  the fear spell. The Save DC for this ability is 8 + your 
  proficiency bonus + you Wisdom modifier. 
   
  Fury of Fur & Feathers 
  At 6th level, you gain the ability to channel the 
  owlbear’s ferocity, using it in conjunction with your 
  other monk abilities and attacks. 
   
  As a bonus action, you can spend 2 ki points to enter 
  a battle fury until the end of your next turn.  
   
  While in this fury, you lose your 7th level Evasion 
  feature, and you gain the following benefits if you 
  aren’t wearing armor.  
   
  • 
  Your body doubles in all dimensions, and its 
  weight is multiplied by eight. This growth 
  increases your size by one category-- from 
  Medium to Large, for example. If there isn't 
  enough room for you to double in size, you 
  attain the maximum possible size in the 
  space available.  
  • 
  Until the fury ends, you also have 
  advantage on Strength checks and Strength 
  saving throws.  
  • 
  Your unarmed strikes become more lethal, 
  dealing 2 extra damage. 
  • 
  You have resistance to bludgeoning, 
  piercing, and slashing damage. 
   
  Aspect of the Owlbear 
  By 11th level, your studies and meditations have 
  transformed your body, giving you a permanent 
  characteristic of the owlbear. Choose one of the 
  following: 
  Body: A fine, yet tough layer of small 
  feathers and fur covers your entire body. Regardless 
  of the armor you wear, you gain +1 to AC and you 
  have resistance to cold damage. 
  Claws: Thick, sharp 1-inch claws protrude 
  from your fingers and toes. Your unarmed strike 
  melee attacks deal an additional 2 points of slashing 
  damage. In addition, you gain a climbing speed equal 
  to your base movement rate plus your monk 
  enhancements. 
  Bite: Your mouth transforms into a sharp 
  beak. You gain a beak attack, an extra attack which 
  you use when you take the attack action. Your new 
  beak attack deals 1d10 + your Strength or Dexterity 
  modifier piercing damage.  
   
  Final Form 
  At 17th level, choose one of the following: 
   
  Savage Protector. You protect your companions 
  with the rage of an adult owlbear protecting its 
  family. Whenever a creature within 5 feet of you is 
  hit by a melee attack made by a creature other than 
  you, you can use your reaction to make a melee 
  attack against that creature. 
   
  Ascension to the Owlbear. Your quest for personal 
  perfection through training and meditation have 
  made you one with this fantastic monstrosity, 
  permanently transforming you into an owlbear. 
  Your body transforms into an owlbear (see Owlbear 
  Traits). 
   
  
   
  4 | Way of the Owlbear 
   
  Owlbear Traits 
  Monks of the Way of the Owlbear who transform 
  into an owlbear retain all base monk features but 
  lose all other features of the Way of the Owlbear. 
   
  Your owlbear character has the following racial 
  traits.  
   
  Ability Score Increase: Monks transformed into 
  owlbears may retain their original ability scores. 
  However, you may decide to accept the full 
  transformation, removing your original racial 
  modifiers and replacing them with those below. 
   
  Your Strength score increases by 1, and your 
  Wisdom score increases by 2. 
   
  Alignment: Monks transformed into owlbears 
  retain their original alignment. 
   
  Size: Though natural-born owlbears are large 
  creatures, your original size is maintained.  
   
  Speed: Your base walking speed remains the same 
  and is enhanced by your monk abilities. 
   
  Battle Frenzy: Your ferocious instincts manifest, 
  giving you enhanced combat abilities. On your turn, 
  you can enter into a frenzied attack as a bonus 
  action. 
   
  While frenzied, you gain the following benefits if you 
  aren’t wearing armor.  
   
  • 
  When you make an unarmed attack, you 
  gain a +2 bonus to the damage roll. 
  • 
  You have resistance to bludgeoning, 
  piercing, and slashing damage. 
   
  Your frenzy lasts for 1 minute. It ends early if you are 
  knocked unconscious or if your turn ends and you 
  haven’t attacked a hostile creature since your last 
  turn or taken damage since then.  
   
  You can also end your frenzy on your turn as a bonus 
  action. 
   
  You may enter a battle frenzy twice per day, after 
  which you must finish a long rest before you can 
  battle frenzy again. 
   
  Hoot & Growl: Once per short rest, you may target 
  a creature within 30 ft of you. The creature must 
  succeed on a Wisdom saving throw or be frightened 
  of you for 1 minute, as per the fear spell. The Save 
  DC for this ability is 8 + your proficiency bonus + you 
  Wisdom modifier. 
   
  Imposing Presence: You have proficiency in the 
  Intimidation and Persuasion skills. If you already 
  have proficiency in these skills, you now have 
  expertise. 
   
  Keen Sight and Smell: You have advantage on 
  Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight or 
  smell. 
   
  Natural Armor: Though your body shape and 
  paws hinder you from wearing humanoid armor or 
  wielding shields, your thick fur and fine feathers 
  provide you with a base AC of 13 + your Dexterity 
  modifier. A monk transformed into an owlbear 
  retains their Unarmored Defense, giving you an AC 
  of 13 + your Dexterity modifier + your Wisdom 
  modifier. 
   
  In addition, you gain resistance to cold damage. 
   
  Owlbears may be fitted with barding.  
   
  Natural Weapons: Your new body allows you to 
  attack with your claws and beak. You choose which 
  natural weapon you use when you take the attack 
  action. 
   
       Claws: 2d8 + Dexterity or Strength modifier, plus 
  additional magical modifiers, as slashing damage. 
   
       Beak: 1d10 + Dexterity or Strength modifier, plus 
  additional magical modifiers, as piercing damage. 
   
  Unwavering Courage: You are immune to being 
  frightened. 
   
  Languages: You can speak and read all languages 
  you knew before your transformation. In addition, 
  you know the Owlbear language, which consists of 
  hoots, screeches, growls, purrs, and roars. Your paws 
  prevent you from utilizing writing implements. 
   
   
  
   
  5 | Way of the Owlbear 
   
   
  Designers Notes 
   
  Why I Did What I Did 
  This monastic tradition could have easily been 
  written as a Barbarian Totem or Druid Circle. I 
  chose to write it as a monastic tradition based 
  on the fact that many martial arts styles are 
  influenced by animals. 
   
  Coming of the Owlbear 
  This section gives the character a few of the 
  basic owlbear traits.  
   
  The darkvision and darkvision enhancement 
  seemed a good addition to a novice of this 
  tradition. 
   
  Rather than giving the character advantage to 
  Wisdom (Perception) checks, since they are a 
  novice in this tradition, I decided to have them 
  use a ki point to channel this aspect of the 
  owlbear.  
   
  Hoot & Growl. I had originally given the monk 
  the thaumaturgy cantrip. Andrew Bishkinskyi 
  convinced me to make this a new feature. 
   
  Fury of Fur & Feathers 
  Owlbears are known to be ferocious creatures. I 
  wanted to show this in the tradition. I chose to 
  use a modified version of the enlarge spell. 
   
  I chose to make this feature cost 2 ki points to 
  limit its usage at lower levels. Doing so allows 
  the Barbarian to shine while raging and causes 
  monks to use their ki points wisely. 
   
  Aspect of the Owlbear 
  I felt the teaching, practices, and meditations of 
  the tradition would channel the owlbear into 
  the monk. What better way to represent this 
  channeling than by giving the monk a choice of 
  how their body transforms. 
   
  I allowed for three choices, which I thought 
  were the most obvious representations of the 
  owlbear. 
   
  Final Form 
  With this section, I wanted to give the character 
  a choice in their progression. If they want to 
  continue adventuring as a monk, they can now 
  help protect their companions.  
   
  Or, they may choose to ascend to the form of 
  the owlbear. I’m not certain how many will 
  choose the ascension, but I thought it sounded 
  like a lot of fun. 
  
   
  6 | Way of the Owlbear 
   
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  Questions or comments? Email me from my website: www.jeffstevensgames.com 
   
   
  
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