The Foundation of the Fist

[Glenburg]

Hello fellow Eorzeans! K’leytai Khen here with a brief Monk guide that will give you a solid foundation of playing the job. Just a little background on myself, I’ve played Monk since 2.0 and took the try, fail, and adjust approach, correcting mistakes as I went. I’m confident in my ability to educate and explain the various fundamentals of Monk.

This isn’t by any means a perfect Monk guide, as it serves as a reference point towards building a solid foundation. With that being said, this guide was created with the beginner Pugilist to the veteran Monk in mind. Without further ado…Enjoy!

General notes:
• Numbers in () indicates the level, the skill is available.
• MNK - Monk / LNC - Lancer
• DPS/DOTS - Damage Per Second / Damage Over Time Skills
• OGCD/GCD - Off Global Cooldown / Global Cooldown
• B4B/IR - Blood for Blood (34 LNC) / Internal Release (12)
• DK/TwS/DM/ToD - Dragon Kick (50) / Twin Snakes (18) / Demolish (30)/ Touch of Death (15)
• GL! - Greased Lightning!
• AOE - Area of Effect
• DPS Check: A phase during a boss fight, where you must kill all enemies, before the boss casts an AOE that’ll otherwise wipe the entire party.

Realm Reborn (2.0)/Universal

1) Maintain attack rotations/positioning

• Ensures you get optimal damage, from each attack
• PUG/MNK's weaponskills will specify the "rear(back)" or "flank" for positioning (See image below)
• Your auto-attack contributes to your overall DPS, so avoid frivolous movement during rotations.
  
  

2) Maintain Greased Lightning Stacks

• Maintaining Greased Lightning’s attack/speed buff is key to Monk’s overall DPS.
• Greased Lightning levels: I (default), II (20), and III (40)
• Once an enemy is defeated, continue your rotation on another enemy.

3) Maintain and apply DOTS consistently - Touch of Death and Demolish

• Only apply TOD, once your GL! stacks are max (Optimal DPS)
• Apply DM as early as your first rotation (Extra damage during rotations)
• Reapply DOTS whenever the skill’s timer runs out/near zero. (DM - 5 secs/TOD - 3 secs)
• Dragon Kick isn't a DOT, but it's very beneficial to reapply it's debuff effect.
• Best-case scenario; GL, ToD, DM, and DK are always active.

4) Obtain your cross-class skills, Invigorate (22 LNC) and Blood for Blood (34 LNC)

• Invigorate is vital during long fights, where TP runs low.
• It’s a life saver if you accidentally sprint and lose all your TP.
• Blood for Blood is a great DPS enhancer, for 20 seconds.

5) Alternate between OGCDs and GCDs

• OGCDs are your instant skills (ex. Internal Release, Blood for Blood, etc.).
• GCDs are any attack(s) with the game’s universal cooldown, of 2.5 seconds.
• Never use two OGCDs in a row; risks loss of DPS and GL!
• Bad Example: DK > B4B > IR > TwS > DM
• Good Example: DK > B4B > TwS > IR > DM

6) Always use OGCDs, when available (After GL! stacks are max)

• Using skills often is an overall increase to DPS, while sitting on them is a decrease.
• Incorporate the rules of #5 while doing so.

7) Utilize Perfect Balance (50), mastering when to use it

• Quickly gain three GL! stacks
• Setup advanced rotations/advantageous situations, much faster
• Don't be afraid to utilize outside of boss fights; really helps with huge mobs.

8) Utilize Fists of Earth, Wind, and Fire

• Fire (40): This is your BnB, as its key to your overall DPS (Especially, during DPS checks).
• Wind (34): Great for boss mechanics, dodging AOEs, and saving GL! stacks, from far enemies.
• Earth (22): Great for full screen, boss AOEs, reducing damage, and helping healers

9) Food (Optional but beneficial)

• Foods containing Critical Hit Rate, Accuracy, and/or Determination are great choices.

Heavensward (3.0)

10) Utilize Form Change (52) to obtain Coeurl form, outside of combat

• This is most helpful, before engaging a boss.
• You gain a free level of Greased Lightning; who doesn’t love freebies!
• Following-up with Perfect Balance will only require two Coeurl form attacks, for Greased Lightning III

11) Maintain five stocks of Meditation (54) /replenish during periods of inactivity

• Forbidden Chakra (54) is a powerful OGCD/addition to your overall DPS.
• Purification (58), like Invigorate, helps in moments of low TP.
• Always build Meditation, if given the opportunity; both skills are extremely useful.

12) Utilize Tornado Kick (60), when GL3 will be lost, due to boss mechanics

• Instead of losing out completely, you get a 330 potency, guilt free; attack.
• Important when fighting bosses that tend to disappear, jump, or turn invulnerable, during different phases of their fight(s) (Ex. Ravana, Bismarck, Nunyenunc)

And last but not least…..Have fun!!!

A Special Thanks to everyone who contributed to my Monkhood (You know who you are)

Also, in Stormblood.....Who rule the world!?.......MONKS!