Monk

Monk is a character class in Baldur's Gate 3.

“

Some reach enlightenment by languid meditation - others do so in the heat of battle. Monks manipulate ki to empower their own strikes and debilitate their foes.

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Overview

Monks are unarmed combatants capable of spending Ki Points to perform special abilities. Monk's key ability scores are Wisdom, Dexterity, and Constitution, and their core ability is Unarmed Strike.

Subclasses

The Monk Subclasses are:

•  Way of the Four Elements
•  Way of the Open Hand
•  Way of Shadow
•  Way of the Drunken Master

Class Progression

Monk Class Progression

Level	Proficiency Bonus	Features	Ki Points	Martial Arts	Unarmoured Movement
1st	+2	Unarmoured Defence,  Martial Arts: Dextrous Attacks,  Martial Arts: Deft Strikes,  Martial Arts: Bonus Unarmed Strike,  Flurry of Blows	2	1d4	-
2nd		Unarmoured Movement,  Patient Defence,  Step of the Wind: Dash,  Step of the Wind: Disengage	3		+ 3 m / 10 ft
3rd		Choose a subclass,  Deflect Missiles	4	1d6
4th		Feat,  Slow Fall	5
5th	+3	Extra Attack,  Stunning Strike (Melee),  Stunning Strike (Unarmed)	6
6th		Ki-Empowered Strikes, Subclass feature,  Improved Unarmoured Movement	7		+ 4.5 m / 15 ft
7th		Evasion,  Stillness of Mind	8
8th		Feat	9
9th	+4	Advanced Unarmoured Movement, Subclass feature	10	1d8
10th		Purity of Body,  Improved Unarmoured Movement	11		+ 6 m / 20 ft
11th		Subclass feature	12
12th		Feat	13

Note: Proficiency bonus is based on character level, not class level. It is included in the table for convenience.

Class information

Attributes

Hit points

At level 1: 8 +  Constitution modifier

On level up: 5 +  Constitution modifier

Key abilities

 Dexterity for bonuses to attack and damage rolls of unarmed strikes and monk weapons as well as Ki saving throw DCs.

 Constitution for more Hit Points.

 Wisdom for improved Armour Class. For Way of the Four Elements abilities, also improves Ki attack rolls and saving throw DCs.

Monk weapons

Monk weapons are melee weapons the Monk has Proficiency with, and which do not have the Two-Handed property. Versatile weapons count as Monk weapons even if they are wielded with both hands. Monks can use Dexterity for those weapons, even if they do not have the Finesse property. Some Monk abilities, such as  Martial Arts: Bonus Unarmed Strike, are limited to Monk weapons.

Spellcasting ability

 Wisdom for the effective use of items, scrolls, and equipment.

Starting Proficiencies

Saving throw proficiencies

 Strength,  Dexterity

Equipment proficiencies

Simple weapons,  Shortswords

Skills with proficiency (Choose 2)

 History,  Insight,  Religion,  Acrobatics,  Stealth,  Athletics

You receive a bonus to every Skill that you are Proficient in. At character level 1 the Proficiency Bonus is +2.

Starting Equipment

Quarterstaff, Monastic Robes, Monastic Boots

Multiclass Proficiencies

Equipment proficiencies

Simple weapons,  Shortswords

Level progression

Through experience, you acquire new power. You gain the following traits.

Level 1

 Ki Points: 2

Recharge: Short rest

You can spend these points to fuel various Monk abilities. Ki abilities which incorporate an unarmed attack use the higher of Dexterity or Strength for attack rolls and save DCs. This includes all offensive abilities outside of the Way of the Four Elements subclass.

Way of the Four Elements Monks use Wisdom for their offensive abilities which do not incorporate an unarmed attack (this includes abilities like Fist of Unbroken Air which have a punching aesthetic but do not technically cause you to make an unarmed attack). Some of these abilities imitate the effects of spells but they are not considered spells: for example, they can be used while Silenced and a multi-class Monk/Barbarian can use them while raging.

Martial Arts

 Martial Arts: Dextrous Attacks

Attacks with Monk Weapons and unarmed attacks scale with your Dexterity instead of your Strength if your Dexterity is higher.

 Martial Arts: Deft Strikes

Attacks with Monk Weapons and unarmed attacks deal 1d4Bludgeoning damage, unless their normal damage is higher.

 Martial Arts: Bonus Unarmed Strike

After making an attack with a Monk Weapon or while unarmed, you can make another unarmed attack as a  Bonus action.

 Unarmoured Defence

Your reflexes are as effective as any armour. While not wearing armour or a shield, you add your Wisdom Modifier to your Armour Class. This feature does not stack with Mage Armour, nor the Barbarian version of Unarmoured Defence (Barbarian).

 Flurry of Blows

Using a  Bonus action and a  Ki Point, punch twice in quick succession. Equivalent to two normal unarmed attacks.

Level 2

 Ki Points: 3

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

 Unarmoured Movement

Your Movement Speed increases by 3 m / 10 ft while you are not wearing armour or using a shield.

 Patient Defence

When activated with a  Bonus action and a  Ki Point, Attack Rolls against you have Disadvantage, and you have Advantage on Dex saving throw.

Step of the Wind

 Step of the Wind: Dash

Use a  Bonus action and a  Ki Point to double your Movement Speed. Jump no longer requires a bonus action.

 Step of the Wind: Disengage

Use a  Bonus action and a  Ki Point to disengage. Jump no longer requires a bonus action.

Level 3

 Ki Points: 4

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

Martial Arts: Deft Strikes

Damage from attacks with Unarmed/Monk Weapons deal 1d6Bludgeoning (previously 1d4) unless their normal damage is higher.

Select a subclass

Way of the Four Elements	Way of the Open Hand	Way of Shadow
Harmony of Fire and Water Select 3 subclass spells from:  Blade of Rime  Chill of the Mountain  Fangs of the Fire Snake  Fist of Four Thunders  Fist of Unbroken Air  Rush of the Gale Spirits  Shaping of the Ice  Sphere of Elemental Balance  Sweeping Cinder Strike  Touch of the Storm  Water Whip	Flurry of Blows: Topple  Flurry of Blows: Stagger  Flurry of Blows: Push	Shadow Arts: Hide  Shadow Arts: Pass Without Trace   Shadow Arts: Darkness   Shadow Arts: Darkvision  Shadow Arts: Silence   Minor Illusion

 Deflect Missiles

Use your  Reaction to reduce the damage from a ranged weapon attack by 1d10 + your Dexterity Modifier + your monk level. If the damage is reduced to 0, you can use a Ki Point to return the missile back to the sender.

Level 4

 Ki Points: 5

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

• Choose a Feat.

 Slow Fall

When you fall, you can use your reaction to gain Resistance to Falling damage.

Level 5

 Ki Points: 6

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

Stunning Strike

 Stunning Strike (Melee)

Spend a  Ki Point to deal your Weapon Damage and possibly  Stun the target.

 Stunning Strike (Unarmed)

Spend a  Ki Point to deal your Unarmed Attack Damage and possibly  Stun the target.

Subclass features:

Way of the Four Elements	Way of the Open Hand	Way of Shadow
-	-	Cloak of Shadows

 Extra Attack

You can make an additional free attack after making an unarmed or weapon attack

Level 6

 Ki Points: 7

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

 Improved Unarmoured Movement

Your movement speed increases by 4.5 m / 15 ft (previously 3 m / 10 ft) while you are not wearing armour or using a shield.

 Ki-Empowered Strikes

Your unarmed attacks count as magical for the purpose of overcoming enemies' Resistances and Immunity to non-magical damage.

Subclass features:

Way of the Four Elements	Way of the Open Hand	Way of Shadow
Select 1 spell from the Monk spell list. New Spells:  Clench of the North Wind   Embrace of the Inferno  Gong of the Summit	Manifestation of Body  Manifestation of Mind  Manifestation of Soul  Wholeness of Body	Shadow Step

Level 7

 Ki Points: 8

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

 Evasion

Your agility lets you dodge out of the way of certain spells. When a spell or effect would deal half damage on a successful Dexterity Saving Throw, it deals no damage if you succeed, and only half damage if you fail.

 Stillness of Mind

If you are  Charmed or  Frightened, you automatically cast  Stillness of Mind to remove the condition.

Level 8

 Ki Points: 9

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

• Choose a Feat.

Level 9

 Ki Points: 10

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

Martial Arts: Deft Strikes

Damage from attacks with Unarmed/Monk Weapons deal 1d8Bludgeoning (previously 1d6) unless their normal damage is higher.

Subclass features:

Way of the Four Elements	Way of the Open Hand	Way of Shadow
Improved Elemental Casting Select 1 subclass spell from the Monk spell list	Ki Resonation: Punch  Ki Resonation: Punch (bonus action)  Ki Resonation: Blast	-

 Advanced Unarmoured Movement

Difficult Terrain doesn't slow you down and you can  Jump an additional 6 m / 20 ft while you are not wearing armour or using a shield.

Level 10

 Ki Points: 11

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

Improved Unarmoured Movement

Your movement speed increases by 6 m / 20 ft (previously 4.5 m / 15 ft) while you are not wearing armour or using a shield.

 Purity of Body

You are Immune to Poison damage and can't be  Poisoned or affected by disease thanks to the purifying ki flowing through your meridians.

Level 11

 Ki Points: 12

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

Subclass features:

Way of the Four Elements	Way of the Open Hand	Way of Shadow
Select 1 subclass spell from the Monk spell list New Spells:  Flames of the Phoenix  Mist Stance   Ride the Wind	Tranquillity	Shadow Strike  Shadow Strike: Unarmed

Level 12

 Ki Points: 13

You gain an additional Ki Point to fuel your monk techniques.

• Choose a Feat.

Notable monks

• Phase
• Prelate Lir'i'c

See also

• List of features and items that interact with unarmed strikes
• List of all Monks

External links

• Monk on the Forgotten Realms Wiki