Danny Phantom: Ghostly Gamer Chapter 08 (Early Preview) (Patreon)

Chapter 08: Way of the Monk

Danny scrolled through his character options, his eyes lingering on the martial classes. “I don’t know how comfortable I am using a sword of all things yet. Maybe if things get dicey, I can give it a try later. Do they have barefist under fighters?” he muttered to himself, mentally bookmarking the option for later inspection.

He recalled his mom with a wry smile. “Considering Mom is a ninth-degree black belt, this might be the most familiar to start with to get training. Besides, I guess Monk is the closest to my current style.” The memory of her offering to teach him came flooding back—those early lessons where he’d stubbornly quit around the fourth session, complaining it was too hard and that he wouldn’t ever need it to fight ghosts that didn’t exist. How wrong young Danny had been. Not only were ghosts real, but high school bullies had a way of becoming painfully real, too.

Danny hovered over the Monk class selection. He was accustomed to fighting unarmed, his quick strikes and lightning-fast reflexes his primary weapons. The idea of channeling his inner Ki, much like his ecto-energy sounded cool. It was as if the Monk class was everything he’d been doing all along—but now, he could tap into even more potential.

With a decisive nod to himself, he pressed his finger against the Monk selection. A prompt flashed across his screen:

Would you like the System to automatically re-distribute your stat points?

“Uh, sure?” Danny replied, half-expecting nothing to change, but the system worked its magic.

As soon as Danny confirmed his choice, a rush of energy coursed through his body, like an electric current buzzing beneath his skin. His vision blurred momentarily as the System interface flickered, numbers and symbols shifting as his stats realigned.

Re-distributing Stat Points…Optimizing Dexterity and Wisdom…

Danny barely had time to process what was happening before a wave of lightness settled into his limbs. His body felt more balanced. His weight instinctively shifting to the balls of his feet.

Monk Class Selected!

Level 2 Monk Granted

Immediately, Danny was flooded with multiple windows.

Note: Proficiency grants stat bonuses that grow as you level.

Monk Proficiencies

Armor: Light – Your training focuses on agility and awareness rather than physical protection.

He crossed his arms, nodding to himself. “Yeah, no surprises there. I wasn’t expecting to stomp around in full plate armor.”

The weapons part was interesting, though. He had assumed monks were all about punching and kicking, but this let him use some weapons—mostly lighter ones. “Guess that means I can mix it up if I need to,” he mused. “Still not sold on using a sword, but having options doesn’t hurt.”

Tools: Choose one type of artisan's tools and one musical instrument.

Danny glanced at the last line, rubbing the back of his neck. Artisan’s tools? He wasn’t exactly a craftsman, but it could be useful. As for a musical instrument… well, might as well go with it.

He opened the selection prompt.

Choose one type of artisan’s tools:

Calligrapher’s Supplies

Carpenter’s Tools

Cook’s Utensils

Glassblower’s Tools

Leatherworker’s Tools

Mason’s Tools

Painter’s Supplies

Potter’s Tools

Smith’s Tools

Tinker’s Tools

Weaver’s Tools

Woodcarver’s Tools

Choose one musical instrument:

Drum

Flute

Lyre

Lute

Horn

Pan Flute

Violin

Danny tapped Lute image since it was the most like a guitar. Now for the artisan’s tools. He wasn’t sure what would be the most useful, but Tinker’s Tools caught his eye. He’d spent enough time in their lab to have a basic understanding of how gadgets worked. Plus, with how many ghost-tools he used, knowing how to tweak or repair things might come in handy.

Tinker’s Tools and Lute selected!

A brief sensation passed through him—like a small mental download of how to handle both items. Not enough to make him a master craftsman or musician, but just enough that he wouldn’t be fumbling around if he needed to use them.

“Woah. That’s different than before…” Danny considered testing out the Lute, but decided to save it for later.

Monk Saving Throw Proficiencies: Strength, Dexterity

Strength – Your sheer physical resilience allows you to resist forces that would overpower others.

Dexterity – Your reflexes and agility help you dodge incoming attacks, traps, and sudden dangers.

Constitution – Determines your endurance against exhaustion, poison, and other bodily afflictions.

Intelligence – Reflects your ability to resist mental intrusions or comprehend complex patterns.

Wisdom – Governs awareness and resistance to illusions or mind-affecting influences.

Charisma – Determines your ability to withstand magical influences that target force of will or presence.

Danny tilted his head as he read through it. “So… I’m better at shaking off getting thrown around and dodging stuff. Makes sense, I guess. Fighting ghosts has already been a crash course in both.”

He flexed his fingers, testing how his body felt after the System had locked in the changes. It was subtle, like his body just knew how to react faster.

Weird but cool.

Still, he noted the other saving throws. He wasn’t exactly weak in those areas, but they weren’t his strong suits either. Constitution? He could handle getting tossed around, but prolonged exhaustion or poison? Not so much. Intelligence? He wasn’t dumb, but resisting mental intrusions? Probably not his best defense.

Danny made a mental note of Wisdom and Charisma too. If the System was telling him these stats mattered, he’d have to figure out ways to cover his weak spots just in case.

He crossed his arms, nodding to himself. “Alright, Strength and Dexterity are my best bets for defense. But if a ghost tries messing with my head… I might need a backup plan.”

Skills (Choose 2)

Acrobatics (Dexterity) – Your agility and balance allow for swift, controlled movement, flips, and parkour-like maneuvers.

Animal Handling (Wisdom) – Governs interactions with animals, calming creatures, or understanding their behavior.

Athletics (Strength) – Measures raw physical ability, including climbing, swimming, and feats of strength.

History (Intelligence) – Reflects knowledge of past events, civilizations, and legendary tales.

Insight (Wisdom) – Helps determine someone’s intentions, detecting lies or hidden motives.

Religion (Intelligence) – Covers knowledge of deities, rituals, and supernatural forces.

Stealth (Dexterity) – Your ability to move silently and stay unnoticed, whether sneaking past enemies or blending into the shadows.

He knew a few of them from before, but now he was getting a better description of everything.

Danny scrolled through the skill options, mulling over his choices. He needed to pick two proficiencies—ones that would complement his fighting style and, ideally, help him survive whatever crazy situations his new abilities threw at him. Some of the options were obvious, while others… not so much.

"Okay, let’s think about this," he muttered, tapping his chin. He considered his options carefully. Acrobatics caught his eye first. Given how often he found himself flipping, dodging, and maneuvering through both ghost fights and Dash-related ambushes, it was a no-brainer. If this skill helped him move even better, it was worth taking. He selected it immediately. If he was going to fight like a Monk, he’d need to be even more nimble than before.

The second choice was trickier. Stealth was tempting—he was already good at sneaking around, but an extra skill boost could only help. Insight might be useful for reading people, but he wasn’t sure how much it’d help in a fight. Athletics was solid, but his ghost powers already gave him an edge in strength when needed. In the end, Stealth won out. 

Acrobatics and Stealth Selected!

A brief sensation passed through him, like his muscles had just been fine-tuned. He instinctively shifted his stance, feeling lighter. If he had to guess, he could probably pull off some insane parkour now. 

He grinned, shifting into a stance before launching into a quick backflip, landing effortlessly. “Oh yeah, that’s way better.”

Then he narrowed his eyes and carefully stepped forward, deliberately testing his footsteps. Even without turning intangible, he was moving quieter. Not totally silent, but definitely better than before.

Artisan's tools and a random musical instrument have been added to your inventory.

A shortsword and a random simple weapon have been added to your inventory.

A dungeoneer’s pack and an explorer’s pack have been added to your inventory.

10 darts have been added to your inventory.

His inventory materialized in his mind’s eye, a list of items neatly categorized. He focused on the musical instrument first, and with a thought, a small, wooden flute appeared in his hands.

“A Lute?” He turned it over, running his fingers along the polished surface. “Lucky that it matches what I chose, I guess? I’ll take it.”

Setting the flute aside, he checked his weapons. The shortsword appeared in his grip next—a sleek, lightweight blade, clearly well-crafted but a little too sharp for his liking. He was still iffy about using actual weapons, but maybe it’d be good to have just in case. With a quick mental command, he swapped it for the other weapon, watching as the shortsword vanished and a sturdy wooden quarterstaff took its place.

“Okay, now this I can work with.” Danny spun the staff in his hands, testing its weight. It felt natural, almost like an extension of himself. A little old-school, sure, but he’d take that over swinging around a sword any day.

He materialized the explorer’s pack first, rummaging through it to find a bedroll, rations, a waterskin, some rope, and other travel essentials. The dungeoneer’s pack had similar gear but also included torches, a crowbar, and some pitons.

Finally, he focused on the darts. They popped into his hand—small, lightweight throwing weapons, perfect for quick, ranged strikes. He tested the grip, then flicked one forward with a sharp wrist motion. It embedded into the wall across his room with a quiet thunk.

“…Yeah, that’ll work.”

Monk Class Features (Level 1)

Unarmored Defense - Beginning at 1st level, while you are wearing no medium or heavy armor and not wielding a shield, your Armor Class increases with your Dexterity and Wisdom.

Dedicated Weapon - At 1st level, you can train yourself to use a variety of weapons as monk weapons, not just simple melee weapons and shortswords. You can become proficient in any one weapon during a long rest, as long as it lacks the heavy or special property. This weapon is considered a monk weapon for you. You may only have 1 dedicated weapon at a time.

Martial Arts - At 1st level, your practice of martial arts gives you mastery of combat styles that use unarmed strikes and monk weapons, which are shortswords and any simple melee weapons that don't have the two-handed or heavy property.

You gain the following benefits while you are unarmed or wielding only monk weapons and you aren't wearing heavy armor or wielding a shield:

You can use Dexterity instead of Strength for athletics checks and the accuracy and damage of your unarmed strikes and monk weapons.

Increase the damage of your unarmed strike or monk weapon. This modifier increases as your Monk Class levels up. 

When using a weapon with the Versatile property used in two hands, damage increases.

You can make one unarmed strike as a bonus action.

Danny whistled low, absorbing all the new information. "Alright, so... no large armor, but it’s harder to hurt me," he muttered, flexing his fingers. "Guess I should work on dodging even more."

Unarmored Defense and Unarmored Movement were perfect. He was already fast and agile, but now his speed and mobility were being pushed even further. His reflexes had been fine-tuned to a level he hadn’t even realized was possible. If this meant his natural dodging ability actually counted toward his defense, then perfect.

Then there was Dedicated Weapon. That one had potential. He could pick any qualifying weapon and train with it to make it a monk weapon. He glanced at his inventory, specifically at the quarterstaff he’d received. It was already a solid choice, but this meant he had some flexibility if he ever found something better.

But Martial Arts? That was the real game-changer. Faster, more precise strikes, using Dexterity instead of raw Strength, and an extra hit? His fists were already quick, but now they were stronger.

Danny smirked, rolling his shoulders as a familiar confidence settled in. "Yeah... I think I can work with this."

Monk Class Features (Level 2)

Ki - Starting at 2nd level, your training allows you to harness the mystic energy of ki. Your access to this energy is represented by a number of ki points. Your monk level determines the number of points you have, as shown in the Ki Points column of the Monk table.

You can spend these points to fuel various ki features. You start knowing three such features: Flurry of Blows, Patient Defense, and Step of the Wind. You learn more ki features as you gain levels in this class.

When you spend a ki point, it is unavailable until you finish a short or long rest, at the end of which you draw all of your expended ki back into yourself.

Some of your ki features require your target to make a saving throw to resist the feature's effects. The saving throw DC increases with your proficiency bonus and your Dexterity.

Flurry of Blows - You can spend 1 ki point to make two unarmed strikes as a bonus action. Spend Ki points to deliver a rapid series of unarmed strikes. These attacks are fast and precise, designed to overwhelm your opponent. Perfect for taking down enemies in close combat.

Patient Defense - You can spend 1 ki point to take the Dodge action as a bonus action on your turn. Focus your Ki to enter a defensive stance, allowing you to dodge incoming attacks with ease. Use this to avoid powerful attacks and create openings for counterattacks.

Step of the Wind - You can spend 1 ki point to take the Disengage or Dash action as a bonus action on your turn, and your jump distance is doubled for the turn. Enhance your speed, allowing you to dash or disengage as a bonus action. When you activate this skill, your speed increases, and you can escape or close in on targets quickly.

Unarmored Movement - Starting at 2nd level, your speed increases by 10 feet while you are not wearing medium or heavy armor or wielding a shield. This bonus increases when you reach certain monk levels, as shown in the Monk table.

Danny exhaled slowly, feeling a strange energy pulsing within him. His ecto-energy was there, but this Ki stuff was just as in tune.

He stared at his hands, flexing his fingers as if he could physically feel the shift inside him. He had always thought of his ghost powers as the only kind of energy running through his body. But this… this felt like it had always been there, just waiting for him to tap into it.

Looking back at the window, he saw Flurry of Blows—and his grin widened.

"Wait, wait—so I can already hit fast, and now I get to throw in extra punches just because? Oh, that’s insane," Danny muttered, his excitement rising. "Ghosts are gonna hate this."

The thought alone made him giddy. His movements had always been fast in a fight, but now? Now he could be untouchable.

And then there was Unarmored Movement—a permanent speed boost just for existing. No more struggling to close the gap on an enemy. No more playing catch-up.

“Fenton, you just leveled up.”

#

Danny soon came downstairs, still feeling the lingering excitement from his recent Monk class selection. Now, he just needed a way to test them. As he reached the bottom step, he stopped short at the sight of his mom in the living room, mid-swing, as she punched a training dummy dressed up like a ghost.

With perfect form, Maddie delivered a swift combination of punches and a roundhouse kick, sending the dummy spinning on its base. Danny couldn’t help but blink in surprise, a newfound appreciation for her skills settling in.

“Morning, Mom,” he greeted.

“Good morning, Danny!” Maddie replied brightly, not missing a beat as she reset her stance for another round.

Danny watched for a moment, his jaw dropping as he remembered just how skilled his mother was. “I keep forgetting you’re a ninth-degree black belt.”

Maddie turned to him, lowering her hands with a grin. “I kept offering to teach you, you know, but you were always more interested in TV and video games back then.”

Danny scratched the back of his neck, feeling a bit sheepish. “Yeah, I guess I was… but I don’t suppose that offer’s still on the table?”

Maddie halted mid-punch, her eyes widening before her face broke into a delighted smile. “Are you being serious, Danny?” She paused, searching his face for any hint of a joke. “What changed your mind?”

Danny gave her a small, determined nod. “Well, with all the ghosts running around, I figured it would be smart to learn how to defend myself better. I mean, I can’t always count on the Fenton gear to save me.”

Before he could say anything else, Maddie closed the distance and wrapped him in a tight hug. “Oh, Danny, you don’t know how long I’ve been waiting to hear that! We’re going to get started right away.” She pulled back, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “I’ll prepare some training equipment and set up a routine for us.”

Danny smiled, caught up in her enthusiasm. “Sounds good. I’ll grab a light breakfast first.”

“Perfect,” Maddie said, practically glowing. “Finish up, and we’ll get started. Today’s the day you start learning some real self-defense!”

As Danny headed toward the kitchen, he couldn’t help but feel eager. He was excited to tap into the skills his mom had to offer, finally.

#

In the bright morning light filtering through the living room, Maddie stood across from Danny, her stance firm and focused, yet her expression brimming with pride. She had set aside an area for them to train, clearing space and even setting down a thick mat for safety.

Before they even got started, new windows appeared. However, this time, one just had three symbols: A green circle, an orange triangle, and a purple star.

The other window seemed to give more detail.

System-Assisted Combat Protocols Activated