Tactics on the battlefield | Monk Diablo III Guide

Last update: 01 February 2017

While playing on the Normal difficulty setting it's best to focus on inflicting as much damage as possible. Combining Cyclone Strike with Wave of Light is best when running in between larger groups of monsters and eliminating them quickly or knocking them back if things start turning for worse. Blinding Flash/Serenity and Breath of Heaven/Mantra of Healing offer good protection when going against bosses and champions. I also encourage you to use the Normal setting to test all other skills and runes in case you may find something else you like.

Once you've advanced to the Expert difficult setting you should start investing in Vitality and in additional bonuses which increase health regeneration and the overall speed of your attacks. Those are crucial aspects in creating a good build and also to distinguish yourself from the Barbarians that only think about increasing strength and dealing massive damage.

When I was forming my build on the higher difficulty levels it became crucial to pay attention to how long each of the skills lasts and to choose and use them wisely. For example, it's not a good idea to use Mantra of Healing and Serenity + Peaceful Repose one after the other (unless it got really dangerous). It's best to keep activating the skills so that the recharge of Serenity is available at the same time when you have enough spirit power. The same deal applies to other combinations.

I absolutely recommend against using the Cyclone Strike, unless your character is strong enough, for you to complete the game with one hand on the keyboard and clicking casually. To attract strong enemies that deal high DPS may be reckless, unless you like playing with the Wave of Light + Explosion of Light to push them away.

Since the moment I've advanced to level 60 I started to avoid very large groups of monsters. It doesn't mean that I don't like getting surrounded by a bunch of demons. On the contrary, this is when this build works best, allowing me to inflict major damage to all opponents and to maintain a high number of life points at the same time. When it gets messy I wait for the Serenity to kick in and then I use the Wave of Light. This combination gives me a few seconds of freedom which I can use to move away from the enemy units or to the target the weakest beings in order to quickly eliminate them. Encounters with champions are an entirely different thing - in this case it's much better to move away from the battlefield once in a while. Sadly retreating also means that the value of the spirit power will drop down to zero.

When playing as a team it's crucial to remain close to each other. If you have the option to communicate with other gamers via a headset, then I recommend introducing the Inner Sanctuary to the build. Assuming you've coordinated your actions properly, you can gain a few additional seconds during which players using classes that attack from the distance won't lose any health points and will be allowed to deal with the surrounding monsters. The key to success however is to keep Monk close to them.

In the cooperative modes it's extremely important to have at least one mantra in the build. Mantras add bonuses to your allies and the only exception is one of the runes of the Mantra of Conviction. The most important and practical mantra in my opinion is the Mantra of Healing, however if you're accompanied by another Monk, then you may choose a different mantra to offer a larger variety of bonuses to your team.