Monks are a relatively new class to 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Dungeons & Dragons, and as a unique class that doesn't use weapons, they aren't always the first choice for a multiclass character. The Monk is a class that stands well on its own. They rely on multiple attributes, their combat style is different from every other class, and they get some wonderful abilities at higher levels. Monks can choose a Monastic Tradition, which is their subclass, to determine their role in the party. Their most important ability score is Dexterity, but Constitution and Wisdom are also important. Keep in mind that you need a minimum ability score of 13 in the core stats in order to be able to multiclass a character.
D&D is about doing what you want, and sometimes you want to mix things up. As the lore and character creation possibilities expand, so do the options available for multi-class characters. A lot of creative players and ambitious Dungeon Masters have found new ways to customize one of role-playing's most mysterious classes. This guide will help you find the most viable multiclass for each class as a Monk.
Updated July 24, 2021 by Kristy Ambrose: When the Monk was first introduced to D&D, the class was met with some trepidation. Now, it's gaining in popularity as players discover just how versatile they really are. The Monk continues to go through some development as one of D&D's newer classes, and players are discovering that the Monk has a lot of interesting creative potential when it comes to multi-classing. We've expanded our guide to include some of the new classes that have also become fixtures in the D&D universe and how they multi-class with the Monk.
Artificer
- Source: Tasha's Cauldron of Everything
- Highest Ability Scores: Intelligence, Dexterity
- Ideal Race: Human, Aarakocra, Kenku
- Party Role: Damage, Healing
Artificer spellcasting doesn’t do much for Monks specifically, but taking a ranged cantrip helps shore up one of the Monk’s we😼aknesses, and the absorb elements spell synergizes well. It’s worth noting that these can be gained through the Magic Initiate Feat as well. There are no low-level infusions that benefit you other than a few utility items when you combine a Monk with the Artificer class. Almost all the effects of the Experimental Elixir gained by the Alchemist subclass are also good for a Monk, but the effect is randomized when you make it.
The Enhanced Weapon infusion is nice, but you’ll be making unarmed attacks for almost half of your attacks anyway, and at a certain point, your fists become as good as anything else. If you're a Human, you can decide to dual-class and take three levels, which is a big investment for a Monk.
Barbarian
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Scores: Consitution, Strength
- Ideal Race: Human, Bugbear, Goblin
- Party Role: Damage
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Barbarians rely heavily on Strength. Now, there’s no reason a Monk can’t haveꦕ a high Strength score, but Dexterity has the added bonus of boosting your AC. Using Strength to attack gives Monk-Barbarians +2 to damage when raging, which adds up considering how many attacks Monks make per turn, but forgoing that and still gaining the other benefits of raging is viable as well.
Unarmored Defense doesn’t stack, and you probably won’t have the hit points to back up Reckless Attack. If you invest three levels, Path of the Totem Warrior is a great subclass; the Bear Totem really b🙈oosts your defense, but the Eagle Totem works well with mobile Monks, too.
Bard
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Charisma, Dexterity
- Ideal Race: Dragonborn, Half-Elf, Human
- Party Role: Damage, Healing
Bards have very few ranged damage spells at low levels, but lots of utility spells. Bardic Inspiration is always good, but using it in co😼mbat replaces one or potentially two attacks. Mostly the things this multiclass gains are good but also not your job. Keep in mind they’re also powered by Charisma.
A Monk with a high Charisma isn't unusual, and both classes also rely heavily on Dexterity, so the combination makes some sense. Depending on your leveling strategy, you can choose both a Bardic College and a Barbarian Primal Path so the combination fits your party role.
Cleric
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Wisdom
- Ideal Race: Aarakocra, Kenku, Firbolg
- Party Role: Damage, Healing
Both Clerics and Monks use Wisdom, so that’s a good start to what's a plausible and logical equation for combining classes. Toll the Dead isn’t a bad ranged damage cantrip for Monks, and Command is a great spell to force flying creatures to land so you can reach them. 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Shield of F❀aith isn’t bad for Monks either.
There's also the Cleric's choice of Domain to consider, which will determine what role your Monk-Cleric will have in the party. Light Domain and Tempest Domain both have good 1st level abilities. You get diminishing returns past one level of Cleric, however.
Druid
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Wisdom
- Ideal Race: Human, Firbolg, Centaur
- Party Role: Damage
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:There’s a fun build you can do multiclassing into 💫Druid, but it requires a permissive DM. The rules are a bit fuzzy as to whether you can replace the damage dice of Wild Shape form attacks with your martial arts die, so your best chance to convince your DM is to turn into an ape, which actually makes fist attacks. To get an ape form, you have to take two levels of druid and take the Circle of the Moon subclass. Then, go and do your monkey stuff with a few ape hit points between attacks and your squishy monk bo𓆏dy.
For more stealth-based missions, you can turn into a baboon and still go to town on unsuspec൲ting enemies. This build works well with the Way of the Open Hand and Way of the Drunken Master Monk subclasses.
Fighter
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Scores: Strength, Consitution
- Ideal Race: Human, Centaur, Tortle
- Party Role: Damage, Healing
Several races that have a bonus to their Wisdom score also have a Strength bonus, plus the Fighter is one of the most versatile characters in D&D, so this combination makes a lot of sense if you're thinking about backstory and customization options. However, bear in mind that this is a Fighter that will have limited access to weapons, so choose your Feats and Skills wisely.
A Fighting Style that benefits Monks is Dueling, and that only applies to weapon attacks, not unarmed strikes. However, the Second Wind healing is always welcome, even if it doesn’t scale. The 2nd level ability Action Surge is great for when you need tw🧜o more attacks, either to do a little more damage or try to apply Stunning Strike more times.
Paladin
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Scores: Strength, Charisma
- Ideal Race: Dragonborn, Half-Elf, Triton
- Party Role: Damage, Healing, Defense
At 1st level, Paladins get the ability to detect a lot of creature types, whichꦯ is potentially interesting, and the Lay on Hands ability, which offers pitiful healing or the ability to cure a disease or poison, which you get immunity to. At the 2nd level, you can get the Dueling Fighting Style as well, plus spellcasting and Divine Smite. Divine Smite is just a bit of bonus damage on a single attack and doesn’t scale w𒉰ithout more spell slots.
The level 1 Smite spells are much better since they do bonus damage to deal bonus damageꦿ and apply conditions. They do take up your bonus action, though, instead of being part of the attack. The command spell gives a g🉐ood way for monks to deal with flying enemies, and divine favor is good for fighting crowds of enemies.
Ranger
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Scores: Dexterity, Wisdom
- Ideal Race: Human, Aarakocra, Kenku
- Party Role: Damage, Healing
Both of these classes depend on Wisdom and Dexterity but have little to offer the other in terms of complementary abilities. If you want to be a tracker, 168澳洲🌜幸运5开奖网:that’s what one level of Ranger offer🅷s Monks. If you take two levels of ranger, you get spellcasting, and the Hunter’s Mark spell is especially useful. Hunter’s Mark will help you take down large threats. If that’s what you want from the multiclass, there are better ways to get th🔥e equivalent spell hex by taking the ma♒gic initiate feat or warlock class levels.
Rogue
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Dexterity
- Ideal Race: Elf, Human, Halfling
- Party Role: Damage
Rogues get Expertise, which is decent for any kind of character build. Monks may want to improve Athletics for grappling or Stealth if they follow the Way of Shadow. They also get Sneak Attack, which is no💦t a great amount of damage, but every little bit co🔯unts. It doesn’t apply to your unarmed strikes, so make sure you use a dagger or similar as a Monk weapon.
2nd-level Rogues can disengage or dash as a bonus action without spending ki points. If you’re a Way of Shadow monk, taking the Assassin Rogue subclass can make your ambushes actually worth it w🧸ith automatic crits.
Sorcerer
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Charisma
- Ideal Race: Half-Elf, Tabaxi
- Party Role: Damage
The idea of a Monk with a high Charisma isn't that strange, and this type of character can inspire some interesting backstories. However, from a practical gaming point of view, Sorcerers offer some good blasting cantrips to Monks but not much else.
This can be mitigated by carefully choosing your early spells. If you take three levels of Shadow Magic, the ability to cast darkness that you can see through opens some interesting Way of Shadow combos. Plus, at that level, you can cast Shadow blade, which counts as a monk weapon but can do 2d8 psych🔥ic damage. It’s still a lot of levels for little benefit.
Warlock
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Charisma
- Ideal Race: Half-Elf, Human, Tabaxi
- Party Role: Damage, Healing
Here's another example where a class with high Charisma is a nice combination with the Monk. The Warlock class gives you the best blasting cantrip in the game, plus the Hex spell, which is great for a Monk.
168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Fiend is a good patron if you have a high Charisma and the Hexblade is good for any Monk. Make a pact with the Celestial if you want your Monk to be a healer. This seems simple, but it’s one of the better monk multi classes. You can take the second level in warlock if you want utility invocations and th🌺e abili♛ty to cast hex more often.
Wizard
- Source: D&D Player's Handbook
- Highest Ability Score: Intelligence
- Ideal Race: Human, Vedalken
- Party Role: Damage
This isn't exactly an easy combination and might not even make sense without a really weird backstory that you'll have to ask your Dungeon Master about. It might be perfectly normal in whatever adventure you're using. There aren't even very many races that have a bonus in both Intelligence and Wisdom, just to give you an idea of how the build is awkward from the start.
If you have an idea that you think can work, consider taking some 1st-level defensive spells and blasting cantrips if you really like the flav♉or. There’s nothing here that another class can’t provide better.