Monks of the Way of Kensei train relentlessly with their weapons, to the point that the weapon becomes like an extension of the body. A kensei sees a weapon in much the same way a painter regards a brush or a writer sees parchment, ink, and quill. A sword or bow is a tool used to express the beauty and elegance of the martial arts. That such mastery makes a kensei a peerless warrior is but a side effect of intense devotion, practice, and study.
Source: Unearthed Arcana 24 - Monk
Path of the Kensei
When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you learn to extend your knowledge of the martial arts beyond the standard array of monk weapons. You gain the following benefits:
- You gain proficiency with three martial weapons of your choice. A martial weapon is considered a kensei weapon for you if you’re proficient with it.
- Whenever you wield a kensei weapon, you choose whether to use Dexterity or Strength for the attack and damage rolls of the weapon, and you choose whether to use your Martial Arts damage die in place of the weapon’s damage die.
- When you take the Attack action on your turn and hit a target with a kensei weapon, you can use a bonus action to pummel the target, dealing an additional 1d4 bludgeoning damage to that target and to any other target you hit with the weapon as part of the Attack.
- If you make an unarmed strike as part of the Attack action on your turn and are holding a kensei weapon, you can use that weapon to defend yourself. You gain a +2 bonus to AC until the start of your next turn while you are not incapacitated and the weapon is in your hand.
One with the Blade
At 6th level, you extend your ki into the weapons you hold, granting you the following benefits.
Magic Weapons. Your attacks with your kensei weapons count as magical for the purpose of overcoming resistance and immunity to nonmagical attacks and damage.
Precise Strike. You can focus your attention on a single target in battle to understand and overcome its defenses. As a bonus action, pick one creature you can see within 30 feet of you. The next weapon attack you make against that creature during the current turn adds double your proficiency bonus to the attack roll, rather than your normal proficiency bonus. Once you use this ability, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Sharpen the Blade
At 11th level, you gain the ability to augment your weapons with the strength of your ki. As a bonus action, you can expend up to 3 ki points to grant a weapon you touch a bonus to attack and damage rolls while you wield it. The bonus equals the number of ki points you spent. This bonus lasts for 1 minute.
Unerring Accuracy
At 17th level, your mastery of weapons grants you extraordinary accuracy. On each of your turns, you can reroll one weapon attack roll you make that misses.
