Way of the Aural Lance & School of Auramancy 5e Subclasses for Monk and Wizard Created by Tyler Stercula Published by

What is the Aura? There are artifacts buried in this world, across every plane, in every reality, that are seldom seen and even less understood. These artifacts, some scholars say, are anchors--pieces of concentrated reality--that serve to bind the planes together. Others, namely the theologians, have suggested they are the bones of long-dead gods, still emanating unknowably divine energy. Others yet have abandoned theory crafting altogether and embraced praxis. The monks, the first to discover the existence of the Aura, did so by evolving how they conceived of Ki. They learned to channel their Ki into a concentrated force of Will--an as yet intangible force that grasps at the edges of the truth of what these artifacts seem to be. In addition to wayfinding, will, it seemed, went hand-in-hand with their study of martial arts. Many monks pilgrimaged across the planes, following their force of will and relying on it to protect themselves against powerful enemies. They uncovered dozens upon dozens of these artifacts, or pieces thereof. However, only more answers awaited them. And so the monks sought the aid of wizards, those experts whose knowledge of rigorous methods of testing and discerning truths might prove useful where meditation is not. These experts quickly set to work and found these particular artifacts--statues, weapons, armor, medallions, buildings, stones, crystals--had effects as multitudinous as the forms in which they came. Namely, these artifacts carried some fundamental property that emitted a field that they called the Aura. This field was unlike the conventional field of magic that underlies reality, which was at that point fairly comprehensively studied and understood. Whether merely as thanks for sharing these ancient secrets with them, or perhaps as a bribe for their continued involvement, these proto-Auramancers devised a tool for the monks to harness their Ki, to channel their will, and control the Aura. This tool is the Aural Lance, a weapon that has devastated nations long forgotten and secured dominions that last even today. Interestingly, once the first lance was invented, there was no need for replication. Random Tables and Game Mechanics You may find that some of the elements of the random tables featured in these subclasses contain elements that blur the line between roleplay and mechanics. While this is intentional, it may be frustrating for players and DMs to reconcile some of these elements without properly communicating about them beforehand. These tables are merely suggestions for ways you can customize your characters and their stories. Please use them as inspiration. Always talk with your DM to ensure your character fits within the game world they have created for you. In fact, replication was impossible, as the original schematic was mysteriously lost. However, the Aura responded to this innovation. From its own fabric, it has either entirely created or aided monks in the construction of every lance built since. How the Aura responded intelligently to a technological innovation is not understood--neither by the monks who wield it nor the wizards who created it. The wizards, however, have never stopped pursuing a complete understanding of this essential force of nature. They devoted an entire scholastic effort to this undertaking: the School of Auramancy. Because the nature of the Aura is to disrupt conventional magic, the very force from which most wizards derive their power, this field of study is looked down upon by most mages. But, that disruption has proven a useful check for nations to wield against unruly and megalomaniacal mages who become nuisances. Monastic Tradition: Way of the Aural Lance “Lancers, these weapons are both your tethers and your carving tools. Shape the Aura around you to the break first your enemy’s will; their bodies will soon crumble in kind.” -- Master Rohxa Vess The Way of the Aural Lance is a monastic order in renaissance. Members of this tradition use specialized devices called “lances” to channel their Ki into manipulating the newly rediscovered pseudo-arcane field known as The Aura. While some monks hone their Ki to become masters of a wide arsenal of weapons, Aural Lancers rely upon their body’s innate relationship with the Aura to augment their martial prowesses and manipulate battlefields to their advantage--all by using a single tool. Historically, Aural Lancers have been known as “disruption agents.” They were sent behind enemy lines with only their lances in hand to cause chaos amongst their foes’ ranks. Unlike their monastic brethren of other orders, lancers rely on their strength of body and will to defend against attacks. They infuse their musculature with the fabric of the aura to avoid and even absorb damage. Lance Origin When the secrets of the Aura were lost, the monastic tradition faded into legend. Over the years, a select number of devotees, ancient masters, and eccentrics passed down what little lore was saved to those deemed worthy. Catalyzed by the momentum of a technological revolution centered around the Aura, these lore masters have revitalized the ancient tradition and seek new pupils worthy of their wisdom.

Your character’s relationship to their tool defines their relationship to the Aura. That relationship is often determined by its origins. Perhaps your master saw an untapped potential in you and gifted you a storied artifact, or maybe you sought out forbidden knowledge and constructed your own from the instructions of an ancient tome. Lance Origin d6 Origin 1 Your lance was gifted to you by an anonymous benefactor with a cryptic note. 2 You discovered your lance while investigating ancient ruins under your monastery. 3 Your lance was handed down to you by your master, who treated it like a precious heirloom. 4 You constructed your lance with scraps of ancient technology while on a vision quest in an exotic environment. 5 Your lance was seized from a member of your monastery who betrayed your order. 6 Your lance constructed itself from the ethereal fabric of the Aura before your very eyes during a deep meditation. Lance Essence An Aural Lancer’s weapon is just as much an extension of themselves as their own fist or foot. Through these tools, lancers channel project their spirits into the physical realm and exact their will on the world. Your lance may change its appearance to reflect your growth in power and experience. As such, every Aural lance is unique to its wielder; there are no two exactly alike. A lance may take on the characteristics of its origin, like being wrapped in mystical spiked vines from the forest in which it was found, or frozen ice crystals reminiscent of the snowy peak on which it was constructed. Lance Essence d6 Origin 1 Essence of Fire. Your lance is cut with smoldering runes that are hot to the touch. It emits dim light for five feet and can always be seen emanating a faint dark smoke. 2 Essence of Marble. Your lance is a polished spear of magical white marble. It is sharpened to a fine point and entirely without any discernible grip points. Any creature who tries to make an attack with this lance without Aural Lance proficiency has disadvantage. 3 Essence of Darkness. Your lance is made of a mysterious onyx material that magnetically attracts any shadow in its vicinity. In dim light or darkness, this lance becomes nearly invisible to creatures without darkvision. 4 Essence of Brilliance. Your lance is made of a translucent crystalline substance that disperses light. In daylight, your lance casts a mesmerizing rainbow 15 feet in any direction you choose. 5 Essence of Wind. Your lance is hollow like the bones of a bird. It has the light property and creates a musical whistle when exposed to the wind. 6 Essence of Void. Your lance seems to deter direct observance. Its presence is like a hole in the fabric of reality itself, populated only by specks of white that shift depending on one’s perspective. This lance is frigid to the touch and can be used to lull willing participants into a meditative trance for 1 minute. Way of the Aural Lance Features Monk Level Features 3rd Strength of Body, Novitiate 6th Intermediate, Vaulter 11th Specialist, Armored Lance 17th Aural Rebuke

Strength of Body At 3rd level, your connection to the Aura empowers your natural defenses. You can rely on your physical prowess instead of your agility to protect you from harm. You may substitute your Strength modifier for your Dexterity modifier when calculating Armor Class based from the Unarmored Defense class feature. Novitiate When you choose this tradition at 3rd level, you extend your study of Ki to harness and manipulate the Aura via a specialized martial weapon, granted to you by your benefactor. Aural Lance. You receive an artifact known as an Aural lance that has the following properties: Aural lance Name Cost Damage Weight Properties Aural Lance Variable 1d8 piercing 5 lb. Reach, versatile (1d10) You are proficient with this weapon and it is considered a monk weapon. The means by which you receive this weapon must be resolved with your DM. Terrain Manipulator. By channeling your Ki through your Aural lance, you learn to manipulate the Aura around your opponents. You may spend a Ki point as an attack action to create one of the following effects on a point you can see within 30 feet: Push. All creatures in a 5 foot radius must make a Dexterity saving throw or be pushed 10 feet directly away. If the creature collides with a solid surface or object, they suffer 1d10 bludgeoning damage.

Pull. All creatures in a 10 foot radius must make a Strength saving throw or be pulled toward that spot. Objects weighing less than twenty pounds automatically fail their saving throws. If more than one creature of object is pulled by this effect, they suffer 1d10 bludgeoning damage. Intermediate When you reach 6th level, you may spend additional Ki points to empower your Aural manipulations. Spending 1 Ki point increases the effective radius and manipulation distance by an additional 5 feet, and increases any damage by 1d10. You may spend up to a maximum of 3 additional Ki points on a given effect. This number increases by 1 at level 11 and 17. For example, if you spend 2 additional Ki points on the Push manipulation, all creatures within a 15 foot radius make saving throws, are pushed 20 feet away, and suffer 3d10 bludgeoning damage on impact. In addition, you learn the following terrain manipulations, each of which costs 2 Ki points: Ground. All creatures in a 10 foot radius must make Constitution saving throws or be knocked prone and suffer 1d10 bludgeoning damage. Grounded creatures are considered grappled until the end of your next turn. Suspend. All creatures in a 10 foot radius must make Constituion saving throws or be lifted 5 feet from the ground and is weightless until the end of your next turn. Suspended creatures are considered restrained until the end of your next turn. If the creature is hit by an attack while it is suspended, it is pushed 5 feet in the opposite direction. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity. Vaulter Starting at 6th level, you can use your Aural lance to clear great distances in a single bound. If jump using your lance to propel you forward, you increase your maximum jump distance by a number of feet equal to your strength score. This can be added to the bonus granted by Step of the Wind. Specialist At 11th level, you learn to see all creatures’ Aural tethers. When you reach this level, you may specify any number of creatures that are exempt from your Terrain Manipulations. Additionally, you learn to confine your own tether to your lance. You can now use a bonus action to dismiss your lance into the fabric of the Aura as well as summon it in the same way. Armored Lance When you reach 11th level, you can use your action to channel the Aura to cause your lance to grow an iridescent buckler that you may remove. This buckler aids your ability to deflect incoming attacks and increases your armor class by +2. While the buckler is attached to your lance, your weapon loses the Reach property and gains the Heavy property. The buckler may be dismissed as a Bonus Action. Aural Rebuke Starting at 17th level, you learn to interpolate between the physical, spiritual, and arcane fields that pervade reality. Whenever you are hit by a melee or ranged attack by a creature within 60 feet of you, you can spend Ki points to use your reaction to exact the effects of any known terrain manipulation on that creature. Using an effect in this way reduces its initial area of effect to 0 feet. The Ki cost is equal to one less than the cost of the chosen effect. This rebuke may be empowered by spending additional Ki points, which will increase the manipulation by the standard increments. Arcane Tradition: School of Auramancy “There is nothing more terrifying than an opponent who dedicates their study to dismantling your every effort.” -- Archwizard Cirithis Soldin The School of Auramancy may have formally grown as a response to the rise of powerful mages, but it did so only in the way that the plague necessitates a plague doctor. One is a check on the other, and vice versa. History has seen numerous moments of an arcane meritocracy threatening control over entire nations, but none such moments was as swift in dismantling that threat than the rise of Auramancy.

Students of this school learn to pierce the conventional fields of magic--on which so many other wizards and solely rely--and touch the Aura, the pseudo-arcane field that runs contra to its more historically studied counterparts. Auramancers specialize in altering, negating, and returning incoming spells and other magical effects. These wizards are often shunned by their peers for studying a type of magic considered perverse by most established mages. This is for good reason, too, as Auramancers are suspected of being tapped as spies to infiltrate and neutralize highly skilled arcane targets. Rival Mage You may decide that your studies of the Aura has created conflict between you and your peers. This may result in a deep-seated rivalry between you and another mage from some point in your past. Perhaps this mage spoke out against your divergent studies whilst you were both in school together. Maybe your rival started as a close ally, but grew to resent your unique pursuit. Your rival might even be another Auramancer, bent on proving themselves to be the better option for adventuring contracts. At your DM’s discretion, this rival can be as involved or isolated from your experiences at the table as you wish. Rival Mage d6 Rival 1 You and your rival started your relationship as close friends but grew apart as your studies diverged. 2 You and your rival are related and you have been vying for attention and affection since you were children. 3 Your rival is your former teacher, whose tutelage you shunned when you started studying Auramancy. 4 You and your rival were once romantically involved, but some incident caused a schism. 5 Your rival is a bounty hunter that has been pursuing you for years, even to this day. 6 You do not know the name of your rival, only the telltale signs of their involvement in various attempts to undermine you at every turn. Auramantic Mark When Auramancers first learn to cast through the Aura, these wizards often augment themselves in some fundamental way. Derived from the same ancient technology that emits the Aura in the first place, these augmentations allow Auramancers to more easily and repeatedly tap into the Aura. Many of this school’s detractors say that Auramancers lose some of their soul when these augmentations take hold. In fact, there may indeed be some truth to that view. While this arcane surgery should be a delicate one, it is often rushed and self-administered, leaving some sort of scar or mark. Auramantic Mark d6 Mark 1 Mark of the Crystal Fish. You have a number of tiny crystals embedded in the skin on the backs of your hands that glow whenever you cast a spell. These crystals may also dimly glow in the presence of strong magical effects. 2 Mark of the False Eye. You have an ethereal orb in place of one of your eyes that has to be covered with an eyepatch to avoid scrutiny. This False Eye allows you to glimpse the effect that others have on the Aura around them. 3 Mark of the Stone-hearted. Your heart has an ancient runestone attached to it that tints your blood with iridescence. This also helps you maintain a constant body temperature, making it harder for you to feel the effects of environments with extreme heat and cold. 4 Mark of the Phantom Limb. You have replaced your arm with a prosthetic made of special wood and metal salvaged from an ancient weapon. This arm retains some sensory function and may even have a tool attached to the end, instead of a hand. 5 Mark of the Burrowing Crown. You have permanently affixed a circlet to your head that reaches into the recesses of your brain. This circlet helps you see the truth in others’ minds and may aid in your attempts to see through deception. 6 Mark of the Synthetic Mimic. You have coated your larynx with a mysterious liquid that causes your voice to sound tinny and artificial, like that of a Warforged. You may have an easier time replicating noises and voices that you have heard on your travels. School of Auramancy Features Wizard Level Features 2nd Scalar Inversion 6th Mage's Bane, Environmental Mediation 10th Aural Superiority 17th Field Specialty

Aural Caster Starting when you choose this school at 2nd level, you cast your spells by manipulating the Aura, rather than traditional magic fields. You may now cast spells without an arcane focus, but you must still prepare and learn spells using your spellbook. Instead, you draw on the substance of the Aura to fuel your spells. Scalar Inversion At 2nd level, you specialize in making traditional magic a servant of the Aura and learn to bend its fields. You may use your reaction to invoke a Scalar Inversion against any spell or spell effect that you can see within 60 feet. Doing so allows you to switch the damage type of a given spell or spell effect with another damage type in the same field. Your DM decides how non-damage-causing effects (such as ones that impart conditions) are altered by this ability, if at all. The effect of this ability only lasts until the end of your next turn. Any spells with durations besides “Instantaneous” resume their normal damages and effects once this ability ends. For example, if a mage casts Cone of Cold at you and your party, you may use your reaction to invert the Entropic field, thereby turning the spell’s damage type to Fire, perhaps saving your party’s injured fire-resistant tiefling warlock from suffering too much damage. Or, for another example, you may use your reaction to invert the Corrosive Field of a friendly sorcerer’s Cloudkill spell to temporarily bypass a devil’s poison damage immunity. You can use this ability a number of times equal to twice your Intelligence modifier (minimum of 1). You regain uses upon completing a long rest. As you gain Wizard levels, more fields open themselves to your will. Each field has its level requirement noted in parentheses next to it. (2nd level) (Special) Void Field: Minor Counter. This is a specialized field that all Auramancers learn to manipulate first. You may cast the 3rd level spell Counterspell by expending a use of your Scalar Inversion ability. However, it is considered a 1st level spell, and any spellcasting ability check you may make as a result has a higher base DC (equal to 12 + the spell’s level). This DC may be reduced by expending multiple Scalar Inversion uses at once, to a maximum of 3 uses in total, in order to reach the base DC found in the spell’s description

Minor Counter. This is a specialized field that all Auramancers learn to manipulate first. You may cast the 3rd level spell Counterspell by expending a use of your Scalar Inversion ability. However, it is considered a 1st level spell, and any spellcasting ability check you may make as a result has a higher base DC (equal to 12 + the spell’s level). This DC may be reduced by expending multiple Scalar Inversion uses at once, to a maximum of 3 uses in total, in order to reach the base DC found in the spell’s description (2nd level) Entropic Field: Cold and Fire damage.

Cold and Fire damage. (2nd level) Physical Field: Bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage.

Bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing damage. (6th level) Ionic Field: Thunder and lightning damage.

Thunder and lightning damage. (6th level) Corrosive Field: Acid and poison damage.

Acid and poison damage. (10th level) Corporeal Field: Force and psychic damage.

Force and psychic damage. (10th level) Soul Field: Necrotic and radiant damage. Mage's Bane When you reach 6th level as a Wizard, you learn to suffuse your Scalar Inversions with the Void Field. Whenever you use a Scalar Inversion to change the nature of a spell or spell effect, you can also remove the arcane potency from those spells. Any damage from a targeted spell is no longer considered magical for the purposes of resistance and immunity. Environmental Mediation At 6th level, you learn to create an Inversion field around yourself to nullify environmental effects like weather and extreme temperature. By expending 2 uses of your Scalar Inversion ability, you create an Aural bubble with a radius of 5 feet centered on yourself that lasts for 1 hour or until it is dismissed. This does not alter the terrain you walk on nor any damage you may take from any source besides latent environmental effects. Aural Superiority At 10th level, you learn to use the Aura to force arcana into non-magical elements of the world, thus opening them to your Field Manipulations. You may now use your Scalar Inversions to affect not only spells and spell effects, but non-magical effects and damage as well. Whenever a creature makes a non-magical attack or creates a non-magical effect that you can see within 60 feet of you, you may use an appropriate Scalar Inversion. This does cause the effect to be considered magical, regardless of whether or not that would be advantageous to you. Field Specialty Starting at 14th level, you may select any field that you can manipulate (besides the Void Field) using your Scalar Inversion ability to be your specialty. As your specialty, this field can now be invoked during any Scalar Inversion that you do. If your Scalar Inversion is used on a field within your specialty, you may do so without expending a use of your ability. If your Scalar Inversion is used on a field besides your specialty, you must expend a total of 5 uses to do so. For instance, choosing to specialize in the Corrosive Field means that a Dwarven Auramancer may spend 5 uses of their Scalar Inversion ability to turn the fire damage of an incoming Fireball into, say, poison damage, to which their race has resistance. You may change which field counts as your specialty every time you gain a new Wizard level.

Legal Notice Open Game License OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a The following text is the property of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. and is Copyright 2000 Wizards of the Coast, Inc ("Wizards"). All Rights Reserved. Definitions: (a)"Contributors" means the copyright and/or trademark owners who have contributed Open Game Content; (b)"Derivative Material" means copyrighted material including derivative works and translations (including into other computer languages), potation, modification, correction, addition, extension, upgrade, improvement, compilation, abridgment or other form in which an existing work may be recast, transformed or adapted; (c) "Distribute" means to reproduce, license, rent, lease, sell, broadcast, publicly display, transmit or otherwise distribute; (d)"Open Game Content" means the game mechanic and includes the methods, procedures, processes and routines to the extent such content does not embody the Product Identity and is an enhancement over the prior art and any additional content clearly identified as Open Game Content by the Contributor, and means any work covered by this License, including translations and derivative works under copyright law, but specifically excludes Product Identity. (e) "Product Identity" means product and product line names, logos and identifying marks including trade dress; artifacts; creatures characters; stories, storylines, plots, thematic elements, dialogue, incidents, language, artwork, symbols, designs, depictions, likenesses, formats, poses, concepts, themes and graphic, photographic and other visual or audio representations; names and descriptions of characters, spells, enchantments, personalities, teams, personas, likenesses and special abilities; places, locations, environments, creatures, equipment, magical or supernatural abilities or effects, logos, symbols, or graphic designs; and any other trademark or registered trademark clearly identified as Product identity by the owner of the Product Identity, and which specifically excludes the Open Game Content; (f) "Trademark" means the logos, names, mark, sign, motto, designs that are used by a Contributor to identify itself or its products or the associated products contributed to the Open Game License by the Contributor (g) "Use", "Used" or "Using" means to use, Distribute, copy, edit, format, modify, translate and otherwise create Derivative Material of Open Game Content. (h) "You" or "Your" means the licensee in terms of this agreement. The License: This License applies to any Open Game Content that contains a notice indicating that the Open Game Content may only be Used under and in terms of this License. You must affix such a notice to any Open Game Content that you Use. No terms may be added to or subtracted from this License except as described by the License itself. No other terms or conditions may be applied to any Open Game Content distributed using this License. Offer and Acceptance: By Using the Open Game Content You indicate Your acceptance of the terms of this License. Grant and Consideration: In consideration for agreeing to use this License, the Contributors grant You a perpetual, worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive license with the exact terms of this License to Use, the Open Game Content. Representation of Authority to Contribute: If You are contributing original material as Open Game Content, You represent that Your Contributions are Your original creation and/or You have sufficient rights to grant the rights conveyed by this License. Notice of License Copyright: You must update the COPYRIGHT NOTICE portion of this License to include the exact text of the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any Open Game Content You are copying, modifying or distributing, and You must add the title, the copyright date, and the copyright holder's name to the COPYRIGHT NOTICE of any original Open Game Content you Distribute. Use of Product Identity: You agree not to Use any Product Identity, including as an indication as to compatibility, except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of each element of that Product Identity. You agree not to indicate compatibility or co-adaptability with any Trademark or Registered Trademark in conjunction with a work containing Open Game Content except as expressly licensed in another, independent Agreement with the owner of such Trademark or Registered Trademark. The use of any Product Identity in Open Game Content does not constitute a challenge to the ownership of that Product Identity. The owner of any Product Identity used in Open Game Content shall retain all rights, title and interest in and to that Product Identity. Identification: If you distribute Open Game Content You must clearly indicate which portions of the work that you are distributing are Open Game Content. Updating the License: Wizards or its designated Agents may publish updated versions of this License. You may use any authorized version of this License to copy, modify and distribute any Open Game Content originally distributed under any version of this License. Copy of this License: You MUST include a copy of this License with every copy of the Open Game Content You Distribute. Use of Contributor Credits: You may not market or advertise the Open Game Content using the name of any Contributor unless You have written permission from the Contributor to do so. Inability to Comply: If it is impossible for You to comply with any of the terms of this License with respect to some or all of the Open Game Content due to statute, judicial order, or governmental regulation then You may not Use any Open Game Material so affected.