You’re standing in front of a giant, ancient dragon. The Fighter is clanking in heavy plate, the Wizard is sweating over spell slots, and you? You’re just wearing a bathrobe.
Well, basically.
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The dungeons and dragons monk is the strangest bird in the player’s handbook. It’s a class built on a paradox. You have the highest mobility in the game, yet you're often forced to stand still to do your best work. You’re a martial artist in a world of magical nukes. It’s weird. It’s often misunderstood. Honestly, most people play it like a worse version of a Rogue, and that’s why they end up frustrated.
The Ki Point Trap and Why You’re Always Out of Gas
Let's talk about Ki. It’s the engine. It’s also the most annoying resource management mini-game in 5th Edition.
At level 2, you have two points. That’s it. You use Patient Defense once and Flurry of Blows once, and suddenly you’re just a guy hitting things with a stick. It feels bad. According to lead designer Jeremy Crawford in various Sage Advice segments, the Monk is designed around the "Short Rest" economy. If your Dungeon Master doesn't let the party take a breather after every two fights, you aren't playing a Monk; you’re playing a victim.
The math is brutal.
A level 5 Monk has 5 Ki points. If you use Stunning Strike every turn—which you probably do because it’s the best thing you have—you’re empty in two rounds. You have to be stingy. You have to be a tactical jerk. Don’t spend Ki on damage. Spend it on control. A stunned enemy loses their entire turn, and in the action economy of D&D, that’s worth way more than an extra 1d6+4 damage.
The Mobility Myth
Everyone talks about "Unarmored Movement." You get fast. Really fast. By level 20, you’re zooming across the map like a caffeinated squirrel.
But here’s the thing: speed is useless if you have nowhere to go.
If you use your movement to run straight into the middle of four orcs, you’re going to die. You have a d8 hit die. You’re as squishy as the Cleric but without the shield. The real secret to the dungeons and dragons monk isn't running to the fight; it’s running through it. You are the ultimate backline harasser. Your job isn't to tank the boss. Your job is to run past the boss, ignore the opportunity attacks (or use Step of the Wind to disengage), and punch the enemy Wizard in the mouth until they stop concentrating on that Hypnotic Pattern spell.
Subclass Reality Check
Not all Monks are created equal. Way of the Four Elements is, quite frankly, a mess. It costs too much Ki for spells that aren't even that good. If you want to feel like Aang from Avatar, you're usually better off multiclassing or just playing a Druid with some flavor.
On the flip side, Way of Mercy (introduced in Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything) changed the game. It actually gives you something to do with your Ki that feels impactful without being a gamble. You can heal. You can poison. It’s efficient. Then you have Way of the Kensei, which tries to make you a swordmaster, but often just turns you into a math problem where you’re trying to figure out if holding your sword or putting it away gives you a better AC bonus. It's clunky.
The Problem with Ability Scores
The Monk is "MAD." That’s shorthand for Multiple Ability Score Dependent.
You need Dexterity for your attacks and AC.
You need Wisdom for your AC and your Stunning Strike DC.
You need Constitution because, again, you have a d8 hit die and you’re standing in melee range of monsters that want to eat your face.
If you roll for stats and get three 16s? You’re a god. If you use Point Buy? You’re struggling. You’ll likely start with a 16 in Dex and Wis, meaning your AC is a 16. That’s okay at level 1. It’s terrifyingly low at level 8. This is why many players feel the dungeons and dragons monk falls off in the mid-game. While the Fighter is getting a third attack and the Paladin is adding 1d8 to every swing, you’re just desperately trying to get your Wisdom high enough so the boss actually fails a saving throw once in a while.
Deflect Missiles is Actually the Most Fun Feature
There is no better feeling in D&D than a DM rolling a Nat 20 on a longbow shot against you, only for you to catch the arrow and chuck it back. It’s the peak Monk fantasy.
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Actually, it's one of the few ways Monks can deal decent damage out of turn. Use it. Bait the archers. Stand in the open. Make the DM think they have a clear shot. It's one of the few times your reaction is actually better than the Rogue’s Uncanny Dodge because you aren't just mitigating damage—you're redirecting the momentum of the entire combat.
How to Actually Build One That Works
If you want to be effective, stop trying to be a damage dealer. You aren't a Barbarian. You aren't a Rogue with Sneak Attack. You are a "Controller" who happens to use their fists.
- Pick the right race. Tabaxi is great for bursts of speed. Wood Elf is the classic for a reason (that extra 5 feet matters). If your DM allows Custom Lineage from Tasha’s, take the Mobile feat immediately.
- The Mobile Feat is mandatory. Seriously. If you don't have this feat, you have to spend Ki to Disengage. If you have the feat, you hit someone and just walk away. It saves you dozens of Ki points over the course of a campaign.
- Multiclassing is a trap. Most of the time, anyway. Monks scale with their level because their Ki pool is tied to it. Taking a three-level dip into Ranger or Fighter sounds cool, but now you have three fewer Ki points and your Stunning Strike DC is lower. Unless you have a very specific "Gloomstalker/Shadow Monk" build in mind, stay the course.
The 2024 Revision Context
We have to acknowledge the elephant in the room: the 2024 Player's Handbook (the "One D&D" updates). Wizards of the Coast realized Monks were struggling. The new version of the dungeons and dragons monk is significantly buffed.
They changed "Ki" to "Focus Points," which is just a name change, but they also gave Monks more ways to use their bonus actions and, crucially, made "Unarmed Strikes" more viable. If you’re playing the legacy 2014 rules, you’re playing on Hard Mode. If you’re using the 2024 rules, you’re finally the powerhouse the flavor text always claimed you were.
Tactical Next Steps for Your Next Session
Stop being the first one into the room. Let the Paladin take the hits. Wait for the lines to form.
Look for the "Concentration" casters. If the enemy Shaman is maintaining a Spike Growth or a Hold Person on your friends, that is your only target. Use your high movement to get behind them. Use your four attacks (Extra Attack + Flurry of Blows) to force four separate Concentration checks. Even with a low DC, the math is on your side. They will fail.
Focus on your "Stunning Strike" timing. Don't use it on the mook with 10 HP. Save it for the creature with the "Multiattack" that’s about to wreck your Wizard.
Finally, talk to your DM about magic items. Monks are notoriously hard to shop for. You don't need a +1 sword. You need Bracers of Defense or an Insignia of Claws. If you don't have these by level 10, your math is going to fall behind the rest of the party. Don't be afraid to ask for items that actually help you scale.
The dungeons and dragons monk isn't a broken class; it's just a specialized one. Stop playing it like a frontline soldier and start playing it like a tactical surgical strike. You’ll have a lot more fun, and your party might actually survive the next dragon encounter.
Check your character sheet right now. If your Wisdom is lower than your Dexterity, prioritize getting that DC up at your next Ability Score Improvement. A Monk who can't land a stun is just a very fast person who hits like a wet noodle. Flip the script, focus on control, and watch your DM start to hate how easily you shut down their boss fights.