Our Path of Exile 2 Monk Guide shares details about this unique and new class. Monks in PoE 2 are mobile, dynamic fighters who are skilled at melee combat. However, it’s not the only distinctive feature that they can offer. Let’s discuss the Monk gameplay basics, crowd control options, and Ascendancy classes, and outline active and passive abilities. Besides, we share the list of available weapons for Monks in PoE 2. For more classes to play, inspect our Best Class Guide.
Path of Exile 2 Monk Overview
Path of Exile 2 Monk is a class for players who yearn for fast and heavy melee combat with versatility. The Monks quickly adapt to threats by effectively fusing elemental damage with agile movements. With that in mind, Monks can be your very first choice if you are looking for a dynamic and involving game. To prove this point, we offer a list of things in which PoE 2 Monks excel:
- Elemental Attacks: Ice slows and allows you to apply CC on your enemies, and Wind attacks provide unparalleled mobility;
- Weapon Flexibility: Mastery of the Quarterstaff unlocks devastating combos; the ability to go Unarmed brings powerful and thematic abilities to the fore;
- Tactical Adaptability: Seamlessly switch between AoE skills for groups or precision for single-target strikes.
If you like fast-paced, high-skill combats with rich mechanics and depth, then Monk is your go-to class. Want to explore the class, but hate the grind? We offer you to try a League Starter Build to kickstart your journey in the new league as a Monk without wasting time.
Path of Exile 2 Monk Changes
Monk is a new class in Path of Exile 2, hat wasn’t available in the original PoE, so there can’t be any changes to a newly added class. Since the introduction of Path of Exile 2 Monks the only changes they received is the addition of Ascendancy classes, which we are going to discuss further in this dedicated guide.
Additionally, not related strictly to Monk’s class, crowd control effects in PoE 2 were reworked compared to the original game, and it may affect the actual Monk’s gameplay.
Path of Exile 2 Monk Basics
Let’s have a moment to outline the Basics of PoE 2 Monk Gameplay. First and foremost we should note that Monks have INT/DEX attributes, and utilize Power Charges to unleash their deadly attacks. Power Charges refresh when you use certain Skill Gems, for instance, Culling Palm. When you have Power Charges, you’ll see orbs floating around your character, indicating that you can use the charges. Aside from that, Monks can control and slow down the enemies with their freezing spells.
Also, Path of Exile 2 Monk is all about moving. You can dance around the enemy and hit it with your powerful attacks in melee combat. You can retreat using Wind Blast or Wave of Frost just to come back empowered and take the monster down. An Ascendancy of your choice will allow even more flexible and active gameplay. By the way, Leveling Gear is a good option if you want to test the class, but do not want to care about getting geared up or want to skip the grind.
Path of Exile 2 Monk Crowd Control
So, what is so interesting about Monk’s CC abilities? In Path of Exile 2 crowd control system was reworked. Previously you had a 50/50 chance for CC proc: it either works or not. Now, using your PoE 2 Monk CC spells will accumulate the “charge” on the enemy, ensuring that it will eventually be stunned (=freezed).
Basically, crowd control is central to the PoE 2 Monk’s playstyle. Through elemental effects, Monks disable enemies while dishing out damage. Here are some of the core crowd control tools:
- Freeze and Chill: Glacial Cascade’s wave of frost and Shattering Palm’s ice bomb are just two of the skills that make enemies slow down or stop in their tracks. Freeze is quite powerful against bosses once stacked. Chill makes the action speed of the enemies slower, making it easy to maneuver and set up your combos.
- Shock: Skills like Falling Thunder apply shock, thereby increasing the damage enemies take. Shock synergizes with AoE setups to provide really devastating group damage.
- Knockbacks and Mobility: Skills such as Wind Blast can knock enemies back and give some breathing room during melee-intense fights. This can combine very well with fast-dash skills such as Killing Palm strike for re-engagement.
Path of Exile 2 Monk Ascendancy Classes
Speaking about the ways to enhance your gameplay and empower your character, we can not but mention the concept of Ascendancy in PoE 2. There are two Path of Exile 2 Monk Ascendancy classes:
- The Invoker — “The Invoker wields the elements with ease and can use that power to become an Elemental Avatar. The Invoker is also a master of the Spirit allowing him to use many abilities without lifting a finger”.
The major skills of the Path of Exile 2 Monk The Invoker are:
| Skill | Modifiers |
|---|---|
| I am the Thunder… | Gain 10% of Damage as Extra Lightning Damage 25% chance of Shocking Enemies to create a Shocked Ground |
| I am the Blizzard… | Gain 10% of Damage as Extra Cold Damage On Freezing Enemies create Chilled Ground |
| Faith is a Choice | Grants Skill: Meditate |
| …and Scatter Them to the Winds | Grants Skill: Elemental Expression Trigger Elemental Expression on Melee Critical Hit |
| …and I Shall Rage | Grants Skill: Unbound Avatar |
- The Acolyte of Chayula — “The Acolyte of Chayula exchanges mastery of Spirit for Darkness, a resource that can be utilized to both absorb and deal damage. Summoning power from the Breach, he trades elemental affinity for Chaos”.
For Path of Exile 2 Monk The Acolyte of Chayula you’ll get the following skills:
| Skill | Modifiers |
|---|---|
| Embrace the Darkness | Remove all Spirit Base Maximum Darkness is 100 For each Life or Energy Shield lost to Damage, reserve 1 Darkness instead if possible Darkness Reservation lasts for 10 seconds +5 to Maximum Darkness per Level |
| Grasp of the Void | Grain 1% of Damage as Extra Chaos Damage per 20 Unreserved Darkness |
| Ravenous Doubts | Mana Leech is an instant |
| Consuming Questions | You cannot Recharge Energy Shield Mana Leech effects also Recover Energy Shield |
| Waking Dream | Grants Skill: Into the Breach |
| Chayula’s Gift | +10% to Maximum Chaos Resistance Chaos Resistance is doubled |
Ascendancy is a tough process of overcoming a series of challenges. You’ll face many trials before becoming an Ascendant, and your Monk should be prepared for any encounter. Therefore, you can use Power Leveling for your character in advance, and step on the path of a fighter looking for Ascendancy.
Path of Exile 2 Monk Abilities
Path of Exile 2 Monk Abilities can be classified as Passive and Active. Passive Abilities can be found on a Passive Skill Tree — a net of more than 1,500 interconnected skills. As an INT/DEX class, Monks start their way on the top right part of the tree. Active Skills are granted by the Skill Gems that you are going to obtain throughout the game.
Let’s have a look at the list of Path of Exile 2 Monk Abilities sorted by tier:
Tier | Gems |
|---|---|
| 1 | Falling Thunder, Glacial Cascade, Killing Palm, Frozen Locus |
| 3 | Staggering Palm, Tempest Bell, Vaulting Impact |
| 5 | Wind Blast, Ice Strike, Tempest Flurry |
| 7 | Wave of Frost, Siphoning Strike, Storm Wave, Freezing Mark |
| 9 | Charged Staff, Mantra of Destruction, Hand of Chayula |
| 11 | Whirling Assault, Shattering Palm |
| 13 | Flicker Strike |
Path of Exile 2 Monk Skill Gems
We have gathered all known Path of Exile 2 Monk Skill Gems in the table below. In terms of skills, Skill Gems grant you Active Skills that you will use in combat. Additionally, they give you damage improvement and extra attributes:
| Name | Description | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Falling Thunder | Infuse a staff with electrical energy, then slam the ground to deal damage in a large area in front of you. Consumes any Power Charges you have to fire lightning projectiles forwards from the impact. | Tier: 1 (Monk) Level: 2 Cost: 6 Mana Attack Speed: 60% of base Attack Damage: 147% Requires: Level 3 Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Glacial Cascade | Sweep a Quarterstaff upwards, releasing a thin wave of frost that deals damage in a series of small bursts. The final burst of the wave then surges out further with a large spike of ice. Any Frozen enemies hit by the final burst also take another, more powerful hit. | Tier: 1 (Monk) Level: 4 Cost: 17 Mana Attack Speed: 75% Attack Damage: 46% Requires: Level 12, 14 Dex, 14 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Killing Palm | Dash to an enemy and strike them with an unarmed Attack, Culling enemies if their life is low enough. Each enemy killed by this strike grants a Power Charge. Enemies around you that can be Culled will be highlighted. This skill is always performed Unarmed, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. | Tier: 1 (Monk) Level: 7 Cost: 12 Mana Attack Speed: 90% of base Attack Damage: 147% Requires: Level 22, 30 Dex, 30 Int Requires: Unarmed, Quarterstaff |
| Frozen Locus | Leap backward and strike the ground with your staff to call forth an Ice Crystal, which creates Chilled Ground around it and can be damaged by you and your enemies. If the Crystal is destroyed it is an icy explosion that deals Attack damage but does not use your weapon’s damage. | Tier: 1 (Monk) Level: 1 Cost: 13 Mana Attack Speed: 70% of base Attack Damage: 100% Requires: Level 1 Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Staggering Palm | Dash to an enemy and strike them with an unarmed Attack. Heavy Stunning an enemy grants you a Buff that causes your Quarterstaff and Unarmed Attacks to also fire Projectiles for a short duration. This skill is always performed Unarmed even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. | Tier: 3 (Monk) Level: 2 Cost: 6 Mana Attack Speed: 65% of base Attack Damage: 66% Requires: Level 3 Requires: Unarmed, Quarterstaff |
| Tempest Bell | Build Combo by successfully Striking Enemies with any skill. After building five stacks of Combo, create a Bell that can be Hit by your skills, creating a damaging shockwave. Elemental Ailments applied to the Bell cause its shockwaves to deal extra damage of the corresponding type. | Tier: 3 (Monk) Level: 3 Cost: 18 Mana Cooldown Time: 0.50 sec Attack Speed: 120% of base Attack Damage: 100% Requires: Level 6, 10 Dex, 10 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Vaulting Impact | Leaps forward and Slams the ground, sending out a Stunning shockwave that is especially potent against Dazed enemies. | Tier: 3 (Monk) Level: 7 Cost: 25 Mana Attack Damage: 213% Requires: Level 22, 30 Dex, Int 30 Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Wind Blast | Strike enemies at range by generating a gust of wind as you swing. Enemies will be Knocked Back based on how close they are to you. | Tier: 5 (Monk) Level: 6 Cost: 10 Mana Attack Speed: 75% of base Attack Damage: 115% Requires: Level 21, 20 Dex, 20 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Ice Strike | Perform a fast icy strike. Using this Attack three times in quick succession causes a final strike that is slower and more powerful. | Tier: 5 (Monk) Level: 3 Cost: 8 Mana Attack Speed: 140% of base Attack Damage: 79% Requires: Level 6 Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Tempest Flurry | Perform a series of aggressive strikes, ending with a powerful Shocking blow. | Tier: 5 (Monk) Level: 4 Cost: 9 Mana Attack Speed: 140% of base Attack Damage: 79% Requires: Level 12, 14 Dex, 14 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Wave of Frost | Flip backward while sending a freezing wave of ice to damage an area in front of you. | Tier: 7 (Monk) Level: 6 Cost: 19 Mana Attack Speed: 55% of base Attack Damage: 77% Requires: Level 21, 20 Dex, 20 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Siphoning Strike | Dash to a target and Strike them with your Quarterstaff. If the target is Shocked, consume the Shock to release a Lightning shockwave around the target and grant you a Power Charge. | Tier: 7 (Monk) Level: 3 Cost: 7 Mana Attack Damage: 145% Requires: Level 6 Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Freezing Mark | Marks a target, making them more susceptible to being Frozen. When the Marked target dies, a Cold nova erupts from their corpse. This nova does not use your Weapon Damage and instead uses its own base Attack Damage. | Tier: 7 (Monk) Level: 7 Cost: 53 Mana Cast Time: 0.50 sec Requires: Level 22, 30 Dex, 30 Int |
| Charged Staff | Consume all Power Charges to infuse your Quarterstaff with electricity for a duration, adding Lightning damage and a Lightning shockwave to your Quarterstaff Attacks. Reusing the skill while the buff is active grants additional duration and damage up to a cap. | Tier: 9 (Monk) Level: 6 Cost: 17 Mana Cast Time: 0.75 sec Requires: Level 21, 20 Dex, 20 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Hand of Chayula | Dash to an enemy and Strike them with an unarmed Attack, applying socketed Curses and Marks with increased effect. This skill always Strikes with your bare fist, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. | Tier: 9 (Monk) Level: 9 Cost: 29 Mana Attack Speed: 90% of base Attack Damage: 122% Requires: Level 31, 40 Int, 40 Int Requires: Unarmed, Quarterstaff |
| Whirling Assault | Advance while hitting enemies around you with a series of spinning strikes. | Tier: 11 (Monk) Level: 11 Cost: 59 Mana Attack Damage: 80% Requires: Level 41, 52 Dex, 52 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
| Shattering Palm | Dash to an enemy and strike them with an Unarmed Attack, attaching a chunk of ice to their body. When that enemy takes enough damage from Hits or dies, the ice explodes, dealing high Cold damage in an area around them. This skill is always performed Unarmed, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. | Tier: 11 (Monk) Level: 11 Cost: 19 Mana Attack Speed: 90% of base Attack Damage: 70% Requires: Level 41, 52 Dex, 52 Int Requires: Unarmed, Quarterstaff |
| Flicker Strike | Teleport to an enemy and strike them. Consumes Power Charges to perform additional teleporting strikes on nearby enemies. | Tier: 13 (Monk) Level: 13 Cost: 50 Mana Attack Speed: 50% of base Attack Damage: 177% Requires: Level 52, 66 Dex, 66 Int Requires: Quarterstaff |
Path of Exile 2 Monk Weapon
Though Monks can deal with their opponents using their bare hands, they still can carry a specific sort of PoE2 Monk Weapons — Quarterstaff. Different types of Quarterstaves grant various effects. You’ll most likely change them while looking for an optimal one to use in combat. Also, the crafting system will allow you to add the best affixes to your gear and weapon.
But remember, that the system of items and crafting in PoE 2 is rather complicated. We offer you to obtain PoE 2 Currency beforehand to have the ability to add and remove modifiers and affixes from your gear.
There are several PoE 2 Monk Weapons options available:
| Weapon | Description | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Barrier Quarterstaff | 13% Chance to Block Spell Damage | Physical Damage: 17-28 Critical Strike Chance: 10.00% Attack per Second: 1.40 Requires: Level 34, 87 Dex, 32 Int |
| Crescent Quarterstaff | N/A | Physical Damage: 19-39 Critical Strike Chance: 10.00% Attacks per Second: 1.50 Requires: Level 20, 37 Dex, 16 Int |
| Long Quarterstaff | 16% increased Range | Physical Damage: 9-18 Critical Strike Chance: 10.00% Attack per Second: 1.40 |
| The Blood Thorn Wrapped Quarterstaff | Adds 3 to 9 Physical Damage Reflects 14 Physical Damage to Melee Attackers +18 to Strength 20% chance to cause Bleeding on Hit | Physical Damage: 11-23 Critical Strike Chance: 10.00% Attacks per Second: 1.40 |
| Wrapped Quarterstaff | N/A | Physical Damage: 7-12 Critical Strike Chance: 10.00% Attacks per Second: 1.40 |
4.9To sum up, Path of Exile 2 Monk is a versatile choice for players who enjoy dynamic playstyle and want to engage in face-to-face combat more. Choosing one of the available Ascendancies will add customization to your character, and it can be even further enhanced via a vast amount of Passive Skills. Do not forget to collect Skill Gems and equip the best weapon to make your game truly enjoyable.
