Drunken Master, Tome (3.5e Prestige Class)

Drunken Master
""Listen, you uppity orc-spawned barely-brained lout, I've had a really bad couple of decades, and only two things makes me feel better. One comes in a bottle. The other is fighting. And you, trying to come in here and be the big man, just broke all the bottles. Except the one in my hand... *Dook...dook...dook* ...Ready f'...f'...f'...for yer whippin', m'boy?""

Sometimes, a man suffers or sees an event so terrible, all he can do is start drinking. And drink. And drink. And drink. Sometimes, he's the kind of drunk that enjoys a fight. And even more rarely, he's the kind of drunk whose alcohol consumption lets him push his body to extraordinary feats. Someday, maybe he'll extricate himself from the bottle, but right now, he goes into fights with a noticeable sway and big grin.

This is intended to be used with Tome classes and under Tome Rules, such as those found in the Dungeonomicon (3.5e Sourcebook) and Races of War (3.5e Sourcebook), although the PHB Rogue works out interestingly.

Becoming a Drunken Master
There are very few people who seek to become a true Drunken Master. That path means a hangover most mornings, and bruises and broken bones you don't remember acquiring, and stabbing pains from your liver. However, sometimes, the world goes so bad, all a warrior can do is find a town and just start drinking. Often in silence, often staring at the drink for a long time before he actually drinks it. He'll participate in bar fights, because they let him forget for a little while, but it's only a temporary reprieve. However, when he does fight, he throws himself whole-heartedly into the fight, performing feats that no one would attempt while sober and allowing the alcohol to push his body past its normal physical limits.

{| class="dragon monstats" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" ! Alignment: ! Base Attack Bonus: ! Race: ! Skills: ! Patron: ! Special:
 * + style="font-size: larger; white-space: nowrap;" | Entry Requirements
 * Any, but usually tending towards Neutrality and Chaos.
 * +3
 * Any
 * 8 Ranks in Tumble
 * Drunken Masters are often heard invoking the names of deities, especially those responsible for revelry and alcohol. They aren't praying, though.
 * You have to be an alcoholic and not care if you live or die.
 * -}

{| class="zebra d20" Hit Die: d8 ! rowspan="2" | Level ! rowspan="2" | Base Attack Bonus ! colspan="3" | Saving Throws ! rowspan="2" | Special ! Fort || Ref || Will

Class Skills (4 + Int modifier per level) Class Skills: The Drunken Master’s’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are Balance (Dex), Climb (Str), Concentration (Con), Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Escape Artist (Dex), Gather Information (Int), Hide (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Jump (Str), Listen (Wis), Move Silently (Dex), Perform (Cha), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spot (Wis), Swim (Str), and Tumble (Dex).
 * 1st || +1 || +2 || +2 || +0
 * class="left" | Drink Like a Devil, Fighting Style
 * 2nd || +2 || +3 || +3 || +0
 * class="left" | Gulp It Down, Drunken Habit
 * 3rd || +3 || +3 || +3 || +1
 * class="left" | Drink Like Two Devils, Drunken Habit, Liquid Power
 * 4th || +4 || +4 || +4 || +1
 * class="left" | *Dook Dook Dook*, Drunken Habit, Fighting Style
 * 5th || +5 || +4 || +4 || +1
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, Drunken Habit
 * 6th || +6 || +5 || +5 || +2
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, More Liquid Power
 * 7th || +7 || +5 || +5 || +2
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, Master Fighting Style
 * 8th || +8 || +6 || +6 || +2
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, Drunken Habit
 * 9th || +9 || +6 || +6 || +3
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, I Remember Now
 * 10th || +10 || +6 || +6 || +3
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, Grandmaster Fighting Style.
 * - class="noalt"
 * colspan="42" class="skill" |
 * 8th || +8 || +6 || +6 || +2
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, Drunken Habit
 * 9th || +9 || +6 || +6 || +3
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, I Remember Now
 * 10th || +10 || +6 || +6 || +3
 * class="left" | Drunken Habit, Grandmaster Fighting Style.
 * - class="noalt"
 * colspan="42" class="skill" |
 * - class="noalt"
 * colspan="42" class="skill" |

Class Features
The Drunken Master's alcohol consumption allows him to push his body past its ordinary limits. He can do all sorts of things when he's drunk that he can't while he's sober.

All of the following are class features of the Drunken Master.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: The Drunken Master takes no penalty with improvised weapons, and gains no armor proficiency.

 : A Drunken Master may spend either move or standard action to drink a tankard of ale, a glass of wine, or a mouthful of liquor. Doing so gives him a +2 bonus to a physical stat of his choice, at the price of a -2 mental penalty of his choice. This lasts for 1 hour for each ‘drink’ the Drunken Master has consumed, and he may consume a number of drinks equal to half his character level plus his unenhanced Constitution modifier.

 : As the Dungeonomicon (3.5e Sourcebook) Monk’s Armored in Life, except only when under the effects of Drink Like a Devil. Levels of Drunken Master stack with levels of Monk for determining the armor bonus, but if the character does not have Armored in Life, he gains that ability--when drinking.

 : At levels 1 and 4, the Drunken Master gains a Fighting Style, as the Dungeonomicon (3.5e Sourcebook) Monk does. If he does not already have a Slam attack, he gets one. He may only use these fighting styles when under the influence.

They are not very pretty. Each time you get a Drunken Habit, pick one of the below as long as you meet the requirements before getting this Habit.

Mean Drunk : You’re a mean drunk. When under the influence, you hit even harder than you do when you’re sober. You gain +1d6 bonus damage as long as you’ve had a drink. It applies to melee and thrown attacks and Attacks of Opportunity (If using Races of War AoO rules, it applies to AoO's granted by BAB, but not to those granted by feats). Mean Drunk can be taken more than once, and the bonus damage stacks, but may be taken only up to a number of times equal to one-half class level (Maximum +5d6).

Noxious Breath : The Drunken Master may, as a standard action, breathe in the face of a target whose face is within five feet of his. Doing so forces a Fort save, DC 10 + ½ character level + Number Of Drinks He’s Had In The Past Hour. If it fails, the target is nauseated for one round. If passed, the target is instead sickened for one round. If the target has Scent, it takes a penalty to his Fort Save equal to the Survival bonus granted by Scent.

Vile Breath : The DC on your Noxious Breath goes up by 2. Also, Mettle can’t get someone off the hook this time. Requirement: Noxious Breath

Evil Breath : The DC on your Noxious Breath goes up by 3. You may take this three times. The bonus stacks. Requirement: Vile Breath.

Painkiller : When the Drunken Master adds Painkiller to his list of Liquid Powers. Painkiller makes you take half-damage for 5 rounds. Requirement: Liquid Power.

Recuperating Coma : If a Drunken Master is afflicted by abilty damage, ability drain, disease, poison fatigue, exhaustion, blindness, deafness, curse, or negative level he may opt to enter a Recuperating Coma. He keels over and stays asleep until all his drinks have worn off (One hour per drink). Each hour, he is cured of one affliction (a disease’s or poison’s effects are considered a single affliction, as are fatigue and exhaustion). If he is completely cured of afflictions before he wakes up, he is healed as though by a Cure Critical Wounds each hour. Requirement: Liquid Power.

''Where’d He Go Now? :'' If you’re under the influence of at least 4 drinks, you sometimes don’t remember how you got somewhere. If no one’s paying attention to you, you may move forty feet as a free action once a minute, even through walls, locked doors, or thin air, and you won’t remember how you got there, and no one will have seen you do it. “Paying Attention” is defined as actively watching, listening to, or being engaged in combat. Things that can break attention to allow the Drunken Master an opportunity to use this power include looking away momentarily, speaking to someone else, or being attacked by someone else.

Funny Drunk : If the Drunken Master fails a skill check or misses someone he’s attacking, he does so in a way that is classic physical comedy. Those watching, including the target, must make a Will save versus Tasha’s Hideous Laughter (DC 10 +1/2 character level + Number of Drinks Consumed In The Past Hour).

Really Loose : For every two drinks the Drunken Master has active, his Loosen Up bonus increases by 1.

I did what? : You may expend a Drunken Habit to gain a bonus Skill or Combat feat which can only be used while you’re drunk. You may take this twice, selecting a new feat each time.

Drunken Savant : Select three skills. Each drink you have gives you a +2 enhancement bonus to those skills.

Dodgy Drunk : When something attacks you and misses, you may take a 5-foot step. Requirement: Really Loose.

 : At second level, when consuming alcohol, you may take in a drink as a swift action rather than a move action.

 : At third level, if you spend a move or a standard action to consume a drink, you instead get the effects of two drinks. This may be used in conjunction with Gulp It Down.

 : At level 3, the Drunken Master reacts to alcohol in strange ways. Choose two out of Bull’s Strength, Cat’s Grace, Bear’s Endurance, or Cure Moderate Wounds. From now on, when the Drunken Master takes a drink, he may instead receive the benefit as if he’d drunk an appropriate potion.

 : At fourth level, if you spend a full-round action drinking, you gain 5 drinks.

 : At level 6, the Drunken Master adds another Liquid Power to his repertoire. The bonuses also increase to +6, except for Cure Moderate Wounds, which becomes Cure Critical Wounds. He may use Drink Like Two Devils or *Dook Dook Dook* in conjunction with this ability, and divide up the bonuses between drinks and Liquid Powers as he chooses.

 : At level 7, The Drunken Master gains a Master Fighting Style. He may likewise only use it when drunk.

 : At level 9, The Drunken Master gains a degree of clarity that makes him all the more terrifying, and may use certain of his abilities even while not drunk. He may use any of his Fighting Styles, his Master Fighting Style, Mean Drunk, Noxious Breath (and its improvements), Funny Drunk, and Where’d He Go Now?, his bonus feats, and Loosened Up becomes Armored in Life. For Noxious Breath’s DC while sober, use the Monk’s Constitution modifier. For Funny Drunk’s DC, use his Charisma modifier.

 : The Drunken Master gains a Grandmaster Fighting Style. Thanks to I Remember Now, he may use it at any time.

Playing a Drunken Master
First, your character didn't get like this because he thought it was fun. Why is he drinking like he is? Why does he go into battle totally ignoring the very real possibilty of harm or death? It's a very real possibility he bitterly hates himself and his circumstances.

Playing a Drunken Master allows you to be a little silly. Where'd He Go Now is a particular example of this, following the cinematic/cartoonish tradition that the loopy person in the group does strange and inexplicable things. Meanwhile, it's a useful failsafe ability for getting one party member free so he can free the rest, in the event of being captured and thrown in jail.

You want to acquire a magical item that produces endless quantities of booze, similar to a Decanter of Endless Water. I suggest you use the same price as a Decanter, but remove the different levels of production and just say it's a bottle of booze which never goes empty.

Combat: The Drunken Master goes right into the middle of combat, causing all sorts of havoc. If he so chooses, he can be nearly untouchable and damnably hard to hurt seriously.

Advancement: You could branch into the Dungeonomicon Monk (which inspired a lot of this class), or you could go back to your previous class.

Resources: Drunken Masters who meet each other often have some sympathy for one another, and will offer shelter for a night if it's in his power to do so. A Drunken Master who decides to go sober may give his Bottle of Endless Booze to someone else.

Drunken Masters in the World
Most cities have a few Drunken Masters in the rougher sections of the city.

""I'ma...I'ma cut you, bitsch!"" ~Lo Tan, Human Drunken Master

NPC Reactions: Highly disciplined or aescetic characters can't help but feel some disgust and contempt for these sad figures. Normal people feel a little sorry for them, once they see how a Drunken Master lives. Some people admire how the Drunken Master's movements look uncontrolled, but actually put him the best position to strike back at his enemies.

Some martially-inclined characters may want to test their skills against a strong Drunken Master, and one who lives in a city and favors a bar may attract people wanting to prove themselves the stronger.

Drunken Master Lore
Characters with ranks in Knowledge (Local) or familiarity with exotic fighting styles (Knowledge (Martial Lore) or Knowledge (History) ''(Especially Military or Warrior history) ) can research Drunken Masters to learn more about them. When a character makes a skill check, read or paraphrase the following, including information from lower DCs.

Drunken Masters in the Game
PC: Maybe a dramatic failure or terrible loss drives a character to start drinking hard. Maybe he's already a Drunken Master and decides to tag along for the adventure.

NPC: Drunken Masters are there to be interesting fights in towns. For some real fun, pitch the party against one a few levels higher than the party average.

Adaptation: If the PCs are involved in trouble in a bar, there may be a Drunken Master present.

Sample Encounter: The PCs are in town, and decide to relax at a bar. A large, brutish patron takes offense to one of the PCs, and is gearing up to fight them when he is swiftly taken down (non-lethally) by Lo Tan, a late-middle-aged, skinny, gray-haired, bleary-eyed man with a scrubby beard. Lo Tan had been sleeping off his drink, and the noise awoke him. And now he's determined to eject the party as well, just for being involved in the ruckus. The PCs may notice how the room goes quiet at this. Lo Tan, if possible, will use *Dook...Dook...Dook* in conjunction with More Liquid Power, right before he attacks. He won't make any threatening move until he attacks the PCs.

EL 11: Lo Tan, Human Dungeo-Monk 5/Drunken Master 6, CR 11.

Master Lo Tan is the bouncer at a bar called the Bunch of Grapes. A short, wiry man of late middle years, with balding gray hair and a fu man chu mustache, he looks pretty rough—bleary eyed unless he’s going into a fight. He’s a former monk whose monastery died from a magical plague. Lo Tan journeyed to the nearest town to try to find shelter, and eventually found his way to the rough section of town, where he got taken on as a bouncer. Decades of bar fights have sharpened his combat skills further, though his deceased brother monks and masters surely pity him as they look on from the afterlife. His combat skill, capacity for liquor, and habit of never, ever killing have earned the respect of the city’s rowdier drinking population, who call him Master Lo Tan.

Str 14

Dex 16

Con 12

Int 13

Wis 15

Cha 11

HP 64

Attack bonus: BAB 11 + 2 Str.

Attack: Slam (can be a punch or a kick or whatever) + 14 (+17 with Liquid Power Cat’s Grace, increases with further Dexterity increases).

Damage: 2d6 (Slam) + 2d6 (Mean Drunk) + 3. May inflict non-lethal damage when he wants to, and almost always does.

Unmodified AC: Touch 22.

Flat-footed: 19.

Master Lo Tan's AC can get quite high if he's feeling defensive. His defenses are stronger than his actual attacking power. Here's a breakdown of the various bonuses he can draw.

Modifying his AC

10 (Base)

+6 (Armored in Life)

+3 Deflection (Ring of Deflection +3)

+3 (Loosen Up)

+3 (Dodge bonus from Dex)

+3 (Further Dodge from Liquid Power Cat’s Grace)

+4 (Further Dodge when using Lucky Monkey Dance or Drunken Monkey Dance)

+1 For each Drink he puts towards Dexterity.

Total: 32 before actual Drinks.

Spell Resistance: 16 (5 + Character level).

Feats: Weapon Finesse, Combat Reflexes, Combat Expertise, Improved Natural Weapon, and Improved Trip.

Skills: Escape Artist 14, Jump 14, Listen 14, Tumble 14, Sense Motive 14, (Before modifiers, which can vary).

Special: Abundant Leap cuts Master Lo Tan's jump DCs is half. Therefore, DCs previously out of his reach are now within it. Even if he gets a 1 on his Jump check, he can still jump 30 horizontal feet. Of course, it's problematical to be using this ability indoors (especially with a low ceiling), but it's recommended that Lo Tan be allowed to do short hops as move actions to jump from table to table.

Level, Ability (Feat)

1 Armored in Life, Fatal Strike, Willow Step, Reversing Monkey Dance, (Weapon Finesse, Combat Reflexes)

2 Rain of Flowers, Abundant Leap

3 Lucky Monkey Dance, (Combat Expertise)

4 Diamond Soul

5 Swift Ghost Walk

6 Drink Like a Demon, Loosened Up, Stinging Star Strike. (Improved Natural Weapon)

7 Gulp It Down, Noxious Breath

8 Drink Like Two Devils, Liquid Power

9 *Dook...Dook...Dook*, Drunken Snake Bite (Improved Trip)

10 Mean Drunk +1d6

11 Mean Drunk +2d6 More Liquid Power

Abilities:

Weapon and Armor Proﬁciency: Monks are proﬁcient with all simple weapons, as well any weapon deﬁned as a special monk weapon, such as the sai, the nunchuka, the kama, the shuriken, and the triple staff. Monks are not proﬁcient with any armor or shields of any kind.

Armored in Life : A Monk has a special Armor bonus whenever they are not using armor or shields that he is not proﬁcient in. This Armor Bonus applies against Touch Attacks and Incorporeal Touch Attacks, and has a value of +4. Every even numbered class level, the Armored in Life bonus increases by 1. If the Monk wears armor which he is proﬁcient in (for example: normal clothing) that has an enhancement bonus, that enhancement bonus applies to his Armored in Life Armor Bonus.

Willow Step : A true monk does not seek to outrun the ﬁst, but to anticipate it. If a Monk would be allowed to add his Dexterity modiﬁer to a Reﬂex Save or Armor Class, he may add his Wisdom bonus (if positive) instead.

Fatal Strike : A Monk has a natural weapon Slam in addition to whatever else he is capable of doing. As a natural slam attack, if he uses no other natural or manufactured weapons he adds his Strength and a half to damage and may make iterative attacks if he has sufﬁcient BAB. If the slam is used with other weaponry, it becomes a secondary natural attack, suffers a -5 penalty to-hit, and adds only half his Strength modiﬁer to damage. A monk’s slam attack does a base of 1d8 damage for a medium sized monk and does more or less damage as appropriate if the Monk is larger or smaller than medium size.

Rain of Flowers : Any time a 2nd level Monk inﬂicts lethal damage, he may elect to inﬂict non-lethal damage instead. Any time a Monk inﬂicts non-lethal damage, he may elect to inﬂict lethal damage instead.

Abundant Leap : At 2nd level, a Monk’s ability to jump is unbounded by his height. In addition, the DC for any jump check is divided by two.

Diamond Soul : At 4th level, the Monk gains Spell Resistance equal to 5 + his character level.

Fighting Styles:

He may activate one of these as a swift action. Its effects last for 1 round. There is no limit on the number of times a he may use these (And remember that he can't use one for during a round in which he uses Gulp It Down.)

Reversing Monkey Dance: +4 Dodge Bonus to AC/AoO Trip or Disarm attempts against attackers (Usually makes trip attempts).

Lucky Monkey Dance: +4 Dodge Bonus to AC/ +4 bonus to saves.

Swift Ghost Walk: +30 ft speed/ No AoO’s for movement, pass through occupied squares as if unoccupied.

Stinging Star Strike: Penetrate DR and Hardness/ Fort Save (DC 17) versus Stunning. (Only useable when he's had a drink).

Drunken Snake Bite: Any weapon / 2 Con Damage. (Only useable when he's had a drink)

Liquid Power: He may use a drink to emulate the effects of Bull’s Strength or Cat’s Grace.

More Liquid Power: He adds Cure Moderate Wounds to the list, except that it’s now Cure Critical Wounds. Also, Bull’s Strength and Cat’s Grace give him +6 to their respective stats now, and he may use this ability with *Dook...Dook...Dook*

Drunken Habits: Gulp It Down-May take a drink as a swift action.

Drink Like Two Devils—May take two drinks as a move action.

*Dook…dook…dook*-Five drinks as a full-round action.

Noxious Breath—Fort Save vs. Nausea DC 17, Fortitude partial (sickened).

Painkiller—Liquid Power option. Takes half-damage for 5 rounds.

Mean Drunk +2d6.

Possessions: Ring of Deflection +3, bottle of booze (which contains about 12 total drinks in it), the clothes on his back, a little money, the complete and total respect and fear of bar-fighters across the city.

Tactics: Lo will always use Rain of Flowers, retaining enough of his monkly sense of mercy to avoid killing. Therefore, the party could lose to him without losing anything other than a little pride. A useful encounter for a party that's getting a little full of itself.

He won’t make any threatening moves until he’s used *Dook…Dook…Dook* in conjunction with More Liquid Power. Of the 5 drinks he gets from it, they’re used like this:

1 Potion of Bull’s Strength (+6 Str from More Liquid Power)

1 Potion of Cat’s Grace (+6 Dex from More Liquid Power)

1 Painkiller

+4 Con at the expense of -2 Wis and -2 Charisma.

This leaves him with the following stats and effects of interest:

20 Str (Slam attack does 6 damage from Str).

22 Dex (+3 to Attack and Dodge Bonus to AC)

16 Con (+22 HP).

13 Int

13 Wisdom

9 Charisma.

And considered to be under the effects of 2 drinks, which activate the following:

Mean Drunk +2d6

Noxious Breath (DC 17)

His last two fighting styles

He then attacks, using Rain of Flowers to inflict all damage as non-lethal damage. He activates a Fighting Style—He prefers Reversing Monkey Dance--and moves in to attack, going for whoever the drunken brute was challenging first. As this is in the middle of a tavern, he has access to various tankards and bottles, usually within arm’s reach, or the reach of a 5-foot-step, and may grab one to give himself a drink (using Gulp it Down) in the middle of a fight, though he can’t use a Fighting Style during a round in which he does this. Common reasons for him taking a drink include:


 * His attacks have missed more than he likes (three times in a row is about his limit), in which case he improves his Dexterity Score at the price of Wisdom or Charisma.


 * He’s taken more than a little damage and needs to cure it (In which case he uses Liquid Power to score himself a Cure Critical Wounds, usually in Conjunction with Gulp It Down, or, if he needs it, one of the higher ones).


 * The fight’s lasted long enough that the duration of his Liquid Powers has worn off, in which case he’ll seek to use *Dook ...Dook…Dook…* to reestablish them.


 * Painkiller has worn off (five rounds)


 * He’s gotten a free moment, so he uses a drink to increase one of his stats and the DC on Noxious Breath, which he will use on anyone who looks like they have a poor Fort save.


 * He’s thirsty.