All Quarterstaff (Monk) skills in Path of Exile 2, explained

Path of Exile 2’s Monk skills allow them to deal incredible damage in short order. However, they lack the durability of classes like the Warrior. They’re easily one of the better bossing classes available right now due to the sheer strength of their single-target damage.

They’re mobile, fast, can crowd-control with the greatest of ease thanks to ice magic, and so much more. Some might think they’re a boring class, but they certainly effective, if nothing else.

The Monk class also has some really interesting Ascension options in Path of Exile 2, in the Acolyte of Chayula, and Invoker. These can completely change up how they feel and play, and only obliterate enemies faster. If you’re thinking of trying the Monk, here are the baseline skills they have at their disposal.

All known Monk skills available in Path of Exile 2

Monk skills in Path of Exile 2 can be devastating if put together correctly. They have the power to cull/execute weak enemies, and keep you nice and mobile. Many of the bosses in the game flood the screen with AOE/large attacks, so being able to stay on the move and still deal damage is going to be incredibly important to your overall survival.

Monk's damage has the potential to be incredible in Path of Exile 2 (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 1

Falling Thunder: Infuses your Quarterstaff with electrical energies, then Slams the ground to deal damage in a large cone in front of you. Consumes your Power Charges to fire Lightning Projectiles forwards from the impact. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Slam, Projectile, Lightning)
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 always Strikes with your bare fist, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Physical)
Glacial Cascade: Sweep your Quarterstaff upwards, releasing an icy fissure which deals damage in a series of bursts culminating in a large spike. Frozen enemies hit by the final spike are dealt heavy damage but the Freeze is Consumed. Ice Crystals hit by the final spike explode. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Cold, Payoff)
Frozen Locus: Leap backward and crack the ground with your staff to call forth an Ice Crystal, which creates Chilled Ground around it and can be damaged by you and enemies. If the Crystal is destroyed, it causes an icy explosion that deals Attack damage but does not use your weapon’s damage. (Tags: AoE Melee, Cold, Duration, Nova)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 3

Staggering Palm: Dash to an enemy and Strike them with an Unarmed Attack. Heavy Stunning an enemy with this Skill grants you a Buff that causes your Quarterstaff and Unarmed Attacks to also fire Projectiles for a short duration. Enemies which are Primed for Stun will instantly be Heavily Stunned. This skill always Strikes with your bare fist, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Projectile, Physical, Duration)
Tempest Bell: Build Combo by successfully Striking Enemies with other skills. After reaching maximum Combo, use this skill to cause the Bell on your staff to grow to massive size as you drop it on the ground. The Bell damages enemies on impact and 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, and Hits which would have caused Knockback increase the area of effect of the shockwaves. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Sustained, Duration, Nova)
Vaulting Impact: Leaps forward and Slams the ground, sending out a Stunning shockwave that is especially potent against Dazed enemies. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Slam, Travel)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 5

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. (Tags: AoE, Melee)
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. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Cold)
Tempest Flurry: Perform a series of aggressive Strikes. When used in quick succession, the third use Strikes three times and the fourth use performs a Final Strike that calls down a powerful Shocking bolt. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, LIghtning)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 7

Wave of Frost: Flips backwards and sends forth a Freezing wave in front of you. (Tags: Attack, AoE, Melee, Cold)
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. (Tags: Attack, AoE, mark, Cold, Duration, Nova)
Siphoning Strike: Dash to a target and Strike them with your Quarterstaff. If the target is Shocked, consumes the Shock to release a LIghtning shockwave around the target and grant you a Power Charge. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Lightning, Payoff)
Storm Wave: Sweep your Quarterstaff, projecting a bolt of LIghtning through the ground in a long wave ahead of you. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Lightning)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 9

Charged Staff: Consume all Power Charges to infuse your Quarterstaff with Electricity, adding Lightning damage and a Lightning shockwave to your Quarterstaff attacks. Reusing this skill while the Buff is active adds to the Buff’s duration and damage. (Tags: Attack, Buff, AoE, Duration)
Mantra of Destruction: Build Combo by successfully Striking Enemies with other skills. After reaching max Combo, use this skill to Empower your next Quarterstaff Attack, causing it to deal additional Chaos damage. Each kill with the Empowered Attack grants Purple Flames of Chayula for a duration. (Tags: Chaos, Duration)
Hand of Chayula: Dash to an enemy and Strike them with an unarmed Attack, applying socketed Curses and Marks with reduced effect. This skill always Strikes with your bare fist, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Chaos, Meta)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 11

Whirling Assault: Advance while hitting enemies around you with a series of spinning Strikes. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike)
Shattering Palm: Dash to an enemy and Strike them with an Unarmed Attack that manifests in a wave of cold, coating nearby enemies in shards of ice. Dealing enough damage to these enemies will shatter the shards, causing an icy explosion that deals Attack damage. This skill always Strikes with your bare fist, even if you have a Quarterstaff equipped. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Cold, Nova)

All skills unlocked by Uncut Gem Level 13

Flicker Strike: Teleport to an enemy and Strike them. Consumes Power Charges to perform additional teleporting Strikes on nearby enemies. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike)
Gathering Storm: Flips backward and Channels to charge your Quarterstaff with Lightning. Releasing dashes towards the target location, damaging enemies along the way. Releasing with perfect timing performs a Lightning-infused dash that releases shockwaves from enemies you dash through and leaves a trail of Shocked Ground in your wake. (Tags: AoE, Melee, Strike, Lightning, Channelling, Travel)

Not all Monk skills in Path of Exile 2 are challenging to use (Image via Grinding Gear Games)

As you progress deeper into Path of Exile 2, you can also improve your skills, provided you have spare Uncut Skill Gems. Depending on the level of the Uncut Skill Gem, that changes what skills it can level for you. If you have a Level 5 Uncut Skill Gem, for example, it can improve the level of any skill you have, Levels 1-4.

Monk feels like it will be a tricky class to play in Path of Exile 2, if you want to master it. It has several movement-based skills, and channeling skills that, if you release at the perfect time, deal more damage and have increased benefits.

It will take practice, but it’s worth doing. Perhaps a bit more challenging than, say, Path of Exile 2's Ranger class, but the Monk’s ability to destroy single-targets may wind up being superior. We’ll have to see how Early Access shakes out.

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Edited by Abu Amjad Khan