S-TIER | BUILD MOINE ONE SHOT LEVELING (@Spud The King) | SAISON 5

Build Video

Build Overview

This Invoker Monk leveling build is a true powerhouse for Path of Exile 2 Season 0.5. Spud The King has crafted a leveling routine that turns the Monk into a one-shot machine against campaign bosses, while maintaining very high clear speed on mob packs. The final combo, unlocked from Act 2 onward, rests on four pillars: Storm Wave applies Shock, Siphoning Strike consumes that Shock to generate power charges, Infernal Cry amplifies the next attack, and Falling Thunder unleashes all the accumulated power with additional fissures thanks to the power charges.

The build revolves around the Invoker ascendancy, whose shocked ground ensures enemies remain shocked permanently, enabling a very strong crit synergy: more damage from shock, more fissures from power charges, higher crit chance from the passive tree, and even more damage from Wyvern Attack which converts power charges into lightning damage bonuses. All of this on a quarterstaff upgraded act by act, without ever needing to chase any specific item.

Spud emphasizes the flexibility: while Invoker remains the strongest ascendancy for leveling, the Acolyte of Chayula and Martial Artist versions are perfectly viable with this same routine. This is exactly the kind of build that makes an excellent league starter: cheap to gear, fun to play, and scales into endgame without changing its fundamentals.

Pros / Cons

Gem Setup by Stage

This build offers 5 progression stages from leveling to the final build. Select a stage to see the corresponding gem setup.

Act 1 Act 2 Act 3 Act 4 Interludes

Act 1

7 skills • 15 gemmes

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Cloche tempétueuseTempest Bell

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Soutien : RageRage I

Terre geléeFrozen Locus

Paume meurtrièreKilling Palm

Act 2

7 skills • 15 gemmes

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Cri infernalInfernal Cry

Vague orageuseStorm Wave

Bombe de givreFrost Bomb

Soutien : RageRage I

Critiques névralgiquesPinpoint Critical

Act 3

9 skills • 24 gemmes

Déchirure

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Cri infernalInfernal Cry

Vague orageuseStorm Wave

Marque du tireur d'éliteSniper's Mark

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

Critiques névralgiquesPinpoint Critical

Mantra de destructionMantra of Destruction

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Act 4

9 skills • 25 gemmes

Déchirure

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Cri infernalInfernal Cry

Vague orageuseStorm Wave

Marque du tireur d'éliteSniper's Mark

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

Critiques névralgiquesPinpoint Critical

Mantra de destructionMantra of Destruction

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Interludes

9 skills • 25 gemmes

Déchirure

Héraut du tonnerreHerald of Thunder

Cri infernalInfernal Cry

Vague orageuseStorm Wave

Marque du tireur d'éliteSniper's Mark

Danseur du ventWind Dancer

Critiques névralgiquesPinpoint Critical

Mantra de destructionMantra of Destruction

Grondement de tonnerreFalling Thunder

Recommended Gear

The strength of this build is that it doesn’t rely on any specific unique item chase. All progression comes from the quarterstaff, upgraded four times throughout the acts, and from rare armor pieces with simple but effective mods. Here are the slot-by-slot priorities:

• Quarterstaff (main weapon): follow the four tiers — Refined Arms in Act 1, Crackling Quarterstaff at level 16 in Act 2 (guaranteed added lightning damage), Slicing Quarterstaff in Act 3, then Hefty Quarterstaff in Act 4 and endgame. Prioritize added elemental damage, increased physical damage, and +1/+2 to all skills.
• Talisman (second weapon slot): a very basic, cheap talisman is enough. It unlocks Wyvern Attack, the buff that nearly doubles your damage as soon as you have power charges. It’s the most cost-efficient investment in the build.
• Armor (helm, chest, gloves, boots): prioritize maximum life on every piece — that’s what prevents one-shots. If you can pick up some armor on top, that’s a bonus, but don’t get stuck on it since you’re not leveling strength.
• Jewelry (rings, amulet, belt): maximum life + attributes (based on gem requirements) + elemental resistances. No unique required before endgame.
• Flasks: don’t forget the Greylord cauldron to upgrade your life and mana flasks starting in Act 1.

Gameplay Tips

• Final rotation (Act 2+): Storm Wave to apply shock, then Siphoning Strike to consume the shock and gain power charges, then Wyvern Attack to convert charges into lightning bonuses, and finally Infernal Cry + Falling Thunder for the burst. On bosses, add Snipers Mark before Falling Thunder to boost crits.
• Killing Palm: use it on all low HP enemies (blue bubble) — guaranteed kill + power charge generation. Essential throughout the entire leveling process.
• Frost Bomb before every boss: applies an elemental resistance reduction that stacks with shock for massive damage.
• Permanent Herald of Thunder: as soon as you unlock the first spirit gem in Act 1, activate Herald of Thunder and never turn it off. The buff auto-triggers on shocked enemies and clears packs for free.
• Critical hit in the skill tree: grab notable Essence of the Storm early to guarantee shock, then push toward crit nodes. With the ascendancy that ignores resistances on crit, you no longer need any penetration.
• Wyvern Attack is worth it even on bosses: use Killing Palm on adds or Wing Blast to stun priority bosses, then combo Wyvern → Falling Thunder to delete them.
• Do not take keystone Hollow Palm Technique: it’s a trap. A well-rolled quarterstaff carries far better, especially from Act 2 with the level 16 Crackling Quarterstaff.

Act 1: Surviving as a Fragile Melee

Act 1 is the trickiest phase of the build. The Monk is as squishy as a Sorceress, but you have to fight in melee range. Spud explains his technique: use Frozen Locus to create ice spikes, shatter them with Falling Thunder for massive AoE damage, and rely on Killing Palm to finish weakened enemies while generating power charges.

The boss synergy is still limited at this stage. Against bosses that summon adds (such as Mr. Rust King at Red Veil), chain: Killing Palm on adds for power charges, Frost Bomb for resistance reduction, then Falling Thunder to finish the boss with bonus fissures. The rage generated by basic attacks adds another 30% damage once the bar is full.

Key areas not to miss: Greylord (cauldron + first support gem), Red Veil (Refined Arms = free quarterstaff upgrade), Green Jungle (second support gem), Cemetery (Senior’s Tomb = third support gem), Hunting Grounds (buy the talisman to unlock Wyvern Attack), and of course the Freight Turn area for the skull gem that unlocks your first spirit gem.

The Final Combo: The Routine That One-Shots Bosses

From Act 2 onward, after the ascendancy points, you respec into the build’s definitive rotation. This is the sequence that transforms the Monk into a boss-killing machine: Storm Wave applies shock in an AoE, Siphoning Strike consumes that shock to deal amplified damage and generate power charges, then you cast Wyvern Attack to convert the power charges into a massive lightning damage bonus.

Then comes the boss burst: Infernal Cry to amplify the next attack, and Falling Thunder which consumes the power charges into multiple fissures. If you play Invoker, the shocked ground under the boss keeps it permanently shocked, allowing you to spam Siphoning Strike without ever needing to re-shock. With a lucky crit, some bosses disappear in a single full combo — hence the build name « One Shot ».

For longer fights, add Snipers Mark before Falling Thunder to boost the crit multiplier on the next attack, and use Wind Dancer as a permanent buff to benefit from evasion + Maim/blind support on approaching enemies.

Invoker Ascendancy: The Cornerstone of the Build

Spud tests all three Monk ascendancies and concludes that Invoker is the strongest for leveling and transitioning into endgame. The reason comes down to two ascendancy passives: Magnitude of Shock, which increases the potency of shock applied, and above all the shocked ground, which creates a persistent shock zone on the ground.

This mechanic is what makes the rotation infinite. When you shock a boss, the ground beneath it becomes shocked ground. As long as it stays in that area (which is the entire fight), it remains permanently shocked without you needing to re-shock at all. The result: Siphoning Strike consumes shock for power charges without interruption, and the Invoker continuously benefits from the damage multiplier against shocked enemies.

The following ascendancy points go into critical hit: higher crit chance, but more importantly crits that ignore enemy resistances. Combined with power charges (which already boost crit chance) and shocked ground (which guarantees the damage buff): the table is set for combos that delete bosses in a single attack, without needing to invest in any penetration.

Quarterstaff Progression: 4 Tiers to Hit

No unique item chase needed for this build. The damage curve comes directly from quarterstaff progression, which you replace at specific tiers. Spud insists: hitting these tiers almost always doubles your DPS instantly.

• Act 1 — Refined Arms: guaranteed drop in Red Veil. It’s a free upgrade that matches the best rolled quarterstaff from the previous tier. If you pick up some currency, apply it here.
• Act 2 level 16 — Crackling Quarterstaff: guaranteed added lightning damage on purchase. This is when your DPS nearly doubles in one go. If you find a good roll with increased physical damage and levels to all skills, don’t hesitate to invest.
• Act 3 — Slicing Quarterstaff: an intermediate tier that comfortably carries you through the Trials of Chaos and the Doryani boss fight.
• Act 4 — Hefty Quarterstaff: the last upgrade before endgame. Well-rolled, it lets you start endgame maps without needing to swap weapons immediately.

Currency investment is optional. Spud notes that you can clear the entire campaign with quarterstaffs dropped naturally. But if you find an interesting base, don’t hesitate to throw Exalted Orbs at it until the prefixes are filled — the return on investment is massive.

Skill Tree