S-TIER | BUILD MOINE MARTIAL ARTIST LEAGUE STARTER (@Scorpius) | SAISON 5

Build Video

Build Overview

This guide by Scorpius offers a complete roadmap for playing the Monk Martial Artist as a league starter in Path of Exile 2 0.5, from the very beginning of leveling all the way through endgame. Rather than a static build centered around a single skill, this is a true evolving journey: you start with one of four leveling options, then progressively transition to more powerful setups as skills and ascendancy nodes unlock.

The backbone of the build relies on Hollow Palm Technique, which allows you to strike bare-handed without depending on your equipped weapon. In practice, you chain four starter options from levels 1 to 22 (Glacial Cascade, Grenades, Twister or the Lightning Arrow / Lightning Rod duo), then switch to Storm Wave at level 22: this skill effortlessly clears packs, while Siphoning Strike, Falling Thunder and Charged Staff handle bosses. At level 41, you then choose between notable Whirling Assault (simpler, less gear-dependent) or Ice Strike paired with Shattering Palm for higher damage output.

The ultimate goal is a one-button endgame Ice Strike build, powered by double Tempest Bell and the Way of the Stone Fist ascendancy, built to chain tier 15+ maps and tear through breaches. The 0.5 improvements to evasion and bells make the whole setup particularly comfortable for a league start.

Strengths / Weaknesses

Skill Gem Setup by Step

This build offers 9 progression steps from leveling to the final build. Select a step to see the corresponding gem setup.

Glacial 1-22 Grenades 1-22 Twister 1-22 LA/LR 1-22 (HPT) Stormwave 22+ (HPT) Ice Strike 41+ (HPT) Whirling 41+ (Endgame) Ice Strike + BELLS (Endgame) Whirling Assault + BELLS

Glacial 1-22

5 skills • 10 gemmes

Déferlement de glaceGlacial Cascade

Terre geléeFrozen Locus

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Bondissement

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Grenades 1-22

10 skills • 15 gemmes

Tir à l'arbalèteCrossbow Shot

Carreaux à fragmentationFragmentation Rounds

Grenade explosiveExplosive Grenade

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Grenade assourdissanteFlash Grenade

Contagion

Bondissement

Coup d'aileWing Blast

Déchirure

Grenade suffocanteGas Grenade

Twister 1-22

5 skills • 12 gemmes

Taillade tourbillonnanteWhirling Slash

TrombeTwister

Crocs de givreFangs of Frost

Tir de barrageBarrage

ParadeParry

LA/LR 1-22

5 skills • 12 gemmes

Flèche de foudreLightning Arrow

Flèche paratonnerreLightning Rod

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Tir de barrageBarrage

(HPT) Stormwave 22+

13 skills • 45 gemmes

Vague orageuseStorm Wave

Frappe siphonnanteSiphoning Strike

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Bâton chargéCharged Staff

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Vague orageuseStorm Wave

Frappe siphonnanteSiphoning Strike

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Bâton chargéCharged Staff

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

(HPT) Ice Strike 41+

7 skills • 29 gemmes

Frappe de glaceIce Strike

Paume fracassanteShattering Palm

Cloche tempétueuseTempest Bell

Bondissement

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Héraut de la glaceHerald of Ice

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

(HPT) Whirling 41+

6 skills • 21 gemmes

Assaut tourbillonnantWhirling Assault

Paume stupéfianteStaggering Palm

Cloche tempétueuseTempest Bell

Mantra de destructionMantra of Destruction

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Héraut de la cendreHerald of Ash

(Endgame) Ice Strike + BELLS

10 skills • 53 gemmes

Frappe de glaceIce Strike

Paume fracassanteShattering Palm

Bâton chargéCharged Staff

Cloche tempétueuseTempest Bell

[DNT] Whip

[DNT] Whip

Sensibilité aux élémentsElemental Weakness

Héraut de la glaceHerald of Ice

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

(Endgame) Whirling Assault + BELLS

8 skills • 42 gemmes

Assaut tourbillonnantWhirling Assault

Cloche tempétueuseTempest Bell

Mantra de destructionMantra of Destruction

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Bâton chargéCharged Staff

Sensibilité aux élémentsElemental Weakness

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

Recommended Equipment

Thanks to the Hollow Palm Technique, this build is almost entirely weapon-independent: Scorpius points out that once you reach endgame, weapons are barely a concern, freeing up room to optimize the rest of your gear. The build’s detailed equipment grid can be found further below.

• Gloves: converted via the Way of the Stone Fist ascendancy (the Stone Fist node transforms their mods — a dedicated conversion guide accompanies the build).
• Weapons: the « whips » visible in the planner are placeholders, pending integration of the new Tempest Bell bells from 0.5.
• Stat priorities: evasion, life, and resistances first — evasion having been buffed in 0.5.
• Chase items (optional): Headhunter and notable Ingenuity can push the build further, but the author deliberately tested without them to demonstrate the strength of the base.
• Runes: the Runic Meridian node opens up rune options to experiment with depending on drops.

Gameplay Tips

• Leveling: for the fastest progression, Scorpius recommends Grenades (fastest in his opinion), then Twister, Lightning Arrow and finally Glacial Cascade — but all four can clear the campaign without any issues.
• Level 22 transition: switch to Storm Wave as soon as it unlocks; sweep packs with Storm Wave and keep Siphoning Strike, Falling Thunder and Charged Staff for bosses.
• Level 41 transition: prioritize notable Whirling Assault for the end of the campaign and early maps (simpler, less RNG), then switch to Ice Strike + Shattering Palm when you’re aiming for maximum damage scaling.
• Boss: the Tempest Bell buffed in 0.5 handle the majority of boss fights, even without a full ascendancy.
• Ascendancy: take Stone Fist first, then Runic Meridian, the two bells, the combo node and finally the mountain.
• Loot filter: use a universal filter (such as Filterblade) to make sure you don’t miss anything at league start.

The Four Leveling Starters (Levels 1–22)

One of the greatest strengths of this league starter guide is that it doesn’t lock you into a single playstyle during the early levels. Scorpius offers four distinct starters, all playable from 1 to 22, and confirms that every single one is perfectly capable of completing the entire campaign if that’s what you prefer: Glacial Cascade, Grenades, Twister, and the Lightning Arrow / Lightning Rod duo.

His personal speed ranking places Grenades at the top, followed by Twister, then Lightning Arrow, and finally Glacial Cascade. He himself plans to level with Grenades up to Level 22, as he considers it the fastest option. Each starter is documented in detail — gear, priorities, skills, gems — and the guide even incorporates the new quest rewards added in 0.5, act by act.

Hollow Palm and Storm Wave: The Level 22 Switch

Regardless of which leveling option you chose, the real turning point comes at Level 22 with the switch to Hollow Palm Technique and the adoption of Storm Wave, which unlocks at that point. The concept is deliberately simple and effective: you « sweep the ground » with Storm Wave, and everything around your character dies. For bosses, you keep alongside it Siphoning Strike, Falling Thunder, and Charged Staff.

In the planner, you’ll notice two sets of the same skills — these are actually upgrade tiers. For example, Siphoning Strike is first played with Elemental Armament and Concentrated Area, then you adjust the gems once the third support unlocks — and the same logic applies to every skill. Storm Wave is solid enough to finish the campaign and push into the first endgame maps, with the full tree provided for this path.

Whirling Assault or Ice Strike: The Level 41 Choice

At level 41, the build splits into two options: Ice Strike with Shattering Palm, or notable Whirling Assault. Scorpius personally leans toward notable Whirling Assault for the late campaign, as the skill is easier to manage, requires less effort, is less dependent on gear RNG, and scales much more straightforwardly. Since the Tempest Bell were buffed in 0.5, bosses are no longer a real concern.

The level 41 choice for Ice Strike is driven by the unlocking of Shattering Palm, which brings a significant damage boost to this setup. Both paths have their full skill tree to finish the campaign and reach the early maps. Worth noting: Flicker Strike exists as an option in the guide, but the author, who is not a specialist in it, refers readers to other creators for this variant.

Endgame Plan: Ice Strike, Double Bells and Ascendancy

Scorpius’s summary plan is crystal clear: Grenades for leveling, switch to Storm Wave at level 22, transition to notable Whirling Assault at level 41, keeping it all the way into the early endgame maps (tier 7-8). From there, once enough currency has been accumulated, you transition to the final goal: a one-button Ice Strike (Ice Crash) build with Shattering Palm and double bells, designed for tier 15+ maps and capable of destroying breaches with ease.

On the ascendancy side, the recommended priority order is Stone Fist first, then Runic Meridian for the runes, followed by the two bells, the combo node, and finally the mountain. A reassuring detail for a league starter: the author tested these builds in the worst-case scenario, without ascendancy and without key pieces like Headhunter, which confirms the solidity of the foundation even before any optimization.

Skill Tree