The Savage Monk

The Testament of Blood was a time-honored tournament that drew warriors from all schools, and all disciplines. From the isolated mountaintops of the Yasurai, to the rushing river fighters of the Montak lands, champions came to test their skills and strength against one another. Every four years, the sands of the arena were spattered with sweat as the finest students of the established forms met, and battled.

It was the tournament known as the Year of the Beast that changed it all, though.

The fighter who came to the arena was lean and muscular, with ragged hair and stained, torn clothes. He did not speak any language known by those in attendance, but he made it clear he had come to fight. Many of those present thought it was a jest, but after the first match no one laughed any longer. The Beast fought with the brutal savagery of a jungle animal. Faster than a great cat, with cables of muscle and calloused hands that broke bone with every grapple. He followed no single style, and imitated no old masters, so there were no counters to his assaults. In time, the Beast was the one champion left standing.

When his last opponent fell, though, the Beast simply turned and left the arena. There was no savoring his victory, and some onlookers said he did not fully comprehend what it was he'd just done. But there was a kind of purity to that, as well. An utter lack of self-importance and pride. The Beast had swept all before him, but he had no more regard for what had happened than the river had for those it had drowned, nor the winter for those it froze.

While others wandered off to try to find the Beast, either to learn from him or challenge him themselves, there was wisdom to be found in his wake. Perhaps the lessons he taught were unintentional, but they were there all the same for those who sought to learn.

A Savage Style

When we picture a monk, we tend to imagine individuals who live lives of routine and discipline. Those who study the styles and arts laid down by earlier founders, and who seek to understand philosophies that reveal deeper meanings in the world around them.

A savage monk is, in many ways, both the opposite and the pinnacle of this practice.

Savage monks do not observe nature, and then translate its lessons into human thoughts and human tongues. They seek to become one with nature, and to live the lessons it teaches them. They watch the birds of the air, and the beasts of the earth, and learn their ways. From the goring tusks of the boar, to the tearing claws of the raptor, to the stealthy slither of the serpent, a savage monk learns the ways of the world without the burdens of pride, or the chains of expectations. They live in the moment, and exist in the world as it is rather than as it was, or as it might yet be.

For those playing in Pathfinder, perhaps the best way to realize the idea of the savage monk in their mechanics is to embrace the Style Feats. Many of these styles are based on animals, and depending on the region a savage monk hails from their combat methods should be shaped by things found in the wilds of their region. One might even use the archetype Master of Many Styles to combine different style feat trees together, allowing one to become a kind of savage chimera, utilizing many different abilities and benefits at once.

A savage monk goes beyond the style of their fighting, though. It's in their outlook, and their philosophy. As I mentioned in 5 Tips For Playing Better Monks, it's important to lay out the philosophical steps that one follows. For example, a savage monk with a wolf-style might have creeds like, "One never abandons their pack," thus explaining why they are always on adventures with their chosen companions. A savage monk with a boar-style might have a requirement that they dig their own food from the ground, while one who patterns themselves after stags may have codes of conduct around being challenged by others. The nature of their strictures is part of the fun of making one, after all.

How did they come to be what they are? Perhaps the savage monk was raised by beasts, and thus knows the ways of beasts. Perhaps they abandoned a more traditional monastic path, and are considered half-mad at best, but they are still a powerful individual who may help the local community in times of danger. A savage monk may have a "time in the wilderness" where they spend seasons learning and reconnecting with the heart of their philosophy, returning to civilization only when they have reaffirmed the lessons of the wilderness within themselves.

Whichever setup one uses, at its core, a savage monk is a combination of seeming opposites. One the one hand is a deep understanding of an aspect of the world, and the supernatural benefits one gains from embracing a philosophical path. On the other hand, leaving behind the trappings of civilization to become one with the natural world seems chaotic and violent... but there is an order to the world beyond the firelight.

A savage monk, if nothing else, understands the Law of The Jungle.

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