Monk Wave of Light Build with LoD

Last updated on Sep 13, 2023 at 09:00 by Deadset 17 comments

Welcome to our build guide for LoD WoL Monk in Diablo 3. Here, you will learn everything you need to know to play this build at the highest level. This build is updated for Patch 2.7.6 and Season 29.

For more information regarding followers, we advise you to read our follower guide, which contains detailed advice on choosing the skills and the gear of your companion.

1.

Introduction

Based on the versatile powers of the Legacy of Dreams bonus, the LoD Wave of Light Monk unites multiple legendary powers into an explosive, bursty and durable whole.

2.

Quick Reference

2.1.

Skill Setup

The basic skill setup of the LoD Wave of Light Monk is displayed below. Read the dedicated Skills page for detailed information on choices, alternatives and build customization.

Active Skills
Left Mouse Button Wave of Light Icon Wave of Light Explosive Light Explosive Light Right Mouse Button Mystic Ally Icon Mystic Ally Air Ally Air Ally 1 Cyclone Strike Icon Cyclone Strike Implosion Implosion 2 Dashing Strike Icon Dashing Strike Blinding Speed Blinding Speed 3 Epiphany Icon Epiphany Desert Shroud Desert Shroud 4 Mantra of Salvation Icon Mantra of Salvation Agility Agility
Passive Skills
2.2.

Gear Setup

The required gear setup for the LoD Wave of Light Monk is listed below. Check the Gear page for detailed information on choices, alternatives, gemming, Kanai's Cube, and Paragon distribution.

2.2.1.

Season 29: Paragon Cap

Season 29 introduces a season-specific cap to stat benefits from Paragon levels, all while updating how Paragon point distribution is handled. For the duration of this Season, you can only assign 800 Paragon stat points to your character, removing the long-standing practice of main-stat stacking (with some gearing implications — see below) after you reach Paragon 800.

On top of that, you could only allocate 50 Paragon stat points to each of the four stats in a given Paragon category (Core, Offense, Defense, and Utility). In Season 29, you can allocate up to the full 200 points per category into any attribute, allowing you to more easily reach necessary build breakpoints (as outlined in the Gear page of the guide) for Cooldown Reduction, Resource Cost Reduction, etc.

With the changes to Paragon in mind, we recommend using the following Paragon distribution for this build:

  • Core: Movement Speed: 200 points.
  • Offense: Cooldown Reduction: 200 points.
  • Defense: Life and All Resistance: Allocate points to maximize survivability; for Monks, this is usually achieved by evenly splitting 100 points into Life (directly increasing your Health pool) and All Resistance (to complement the naturally high Armor stat of Dexterity-based characters).
  • Utility: Area Damage: 200 points.
2.2.2.

Season 29: Gearing Considerations

In terms of gear, keeping the Paragon cap in mind is paramount, as it stymies the traditional endless supply of main stat after Paragon 800. This means re-rolling mainstat off your gear is no longer desirable, and full equipment augmentation with your main stat is even more critical. Additionally, you should take a careful look at your build and consider if you can fit the following changes to strengthen your damage and survivability:

  • Guardian's Jeopardy: This is a craftable armor set, and the recipe for its creation drops from Bounty farming. Guardian's 2-piece provides a decent damage reduction bonus, but the true powerhouse of the set is the 3-piece bonus, which nets you an additional 100% of your main stats from equipped items. This is a tremendous benefit in an 800 Paragon capped Season. If the Guardian set can fit into the build with minimal sacrifices (other craftable sets, tertiary damage multipliers, etc.), consider its implementation. The available pieces are Guardian's Aversion Guardian's Aversion (Wrists), Guardian's Case Guardian's Case (Waist), and Guardian's Gaze Guardian's Gaze (Head). Of course, you can wear 2 pieces of the set and complete the full 3-piece bonus with a Ring of Royal Grandeur Ring of Royal Grandeur (found from Act I bounty caches).
  • Endless Walk:This is a jewelry set consisting of The Traveler's Pledge The Traveler's Pledge (Amulet) and The Compass Rose The Compass Rose (Ring), and is randomly found through farming, gambling Blood Shards, and/or Kanai's Cube recipes. The Endless Walk set is a nice compromise between damage bonuses (building up while stationary) and defensive bonuses (building up while moving). It can replace glass cannon choices like the Bastions of Will set (Focus Focus and Restraint Restraint) and Squirt's Necklace Squirt's Necklace with acceptable losses to DPS.
  • Unity Unity: A character wearing this ring, along with another Unity Unity on their follower plus an immortality relic for them (i.e., Enchanting Favor Enchanting Favor), will reduce their damage taken by 50%. Unity Unity can roll excellent offense-oriented stats and has an innate Extra Damage to Elites roll, which somewhat offsets losing all-out offense jewelry.
2.3.

Legendary Gems

2.4.

Kanai's Cube

3.

Changelog

  • 13 Sep. 2023 (gear page): Added Season 29 Paragon Cap and Gearing recommendations.
  • 13 Sep. 2023 (skills page): Skills and passives reviewed for Season 29.
  • 13 Sep. 2023 (this page): Added Season 29 Paragon Cap and Gearing recommendations.
  • 22 Feb. 2023 (gear page): Added Season 28 Altar of Rites recommendations.
  • 22 Feb. 2023 (skills page): Skills and passives reviewed for Season 28.
  • 22 Feb. 2023 (this page): Added Season 28 Altar of Rites recommendations.
  • 26 Aug. 2022 (gear page): Added Season 27 Angelic Crucible recommendations.
  • 26 Aug. 2022 (skills page): Skills and passives reviewed for Season 27.
  • 26 Aug. 2022 (this page): Added Season 27 Angelic Crucible recommendations.
  • 14 Apr. 2022 (gear page): Guide reviewed for Season 26.
  • 14 Apr. 2022 (skills page): Guide reviewed for Season 26.
  • 14 Apr. 2022 (this page): Guide reviewed for Season 26.
  • 08 Dec. 2021 (gear page): Guide revised and added Season 25 Soul Shard recommendations.
  • 08 Dec. 2021 (skills page): Guide revised for Season 25.
  • 08 Dec. 2021 (this page): Guide revised and added Season 25 Soul Shard recommendations.
  • 21 Jul. 2021 (gear page): Added Ethereal weapon recommendation for Season 24.
  • 21 Jul. 2021 (skills page): No changes required for Season 24.
  • 21 Jul. 2021 (this page): Added Ethereal weapon recommendation for Season 24.
  • 01 Apr. 2021 (gear page): Minor gear revision and added follower recommendation.
  • 01 Apr. 2021 (skills page): No changes required for Season 23.
  • 01 Apr. 2021 (this page): Minor gear revision and added follower recommendation.
  • 16 Nov. 2020 (gear page): Added S22 Cube recommendation.
  • 16 Nov. 2020 (skills page): No changes required for Season 22.
  • 16 Nov. 2020 (this page): Added S22 Cube recommendation.
  • 01 Jul. 2020 (gear page): No changes required for Season 21.
  • 01 Jul. 2020 (skills page): No changes required for Season 21.
  • 01 Jul. 2020 (this page): No changes required for Season 21.
  • 12 Mar. 2020 (gear page): No changes necessary for Season 20.
  • 12 Mar. 2020 (skills page): No changes necessary for Season 20.
  • 12 Mar. 2020 (this page): No changes necessary for Season 20.
  • 21 Nov. 2019 (gear page): Enriched the Gear page with additional explanations and improved stat table. Updated for Season 19.
  • 21 Nov. 2019 (skills page): Near Death Experience added as a final passive. Updated for Season 19.
  • 21 Nov. 2019 (this page): Guide revised and updated for Season 19.
  • 25 Sep. 2019 (gear page): Minor corrections to the item table.
  • 23 Aug. 2019 (gear page): Revised item recommendations for Season 18.
  • 23 Aug. 2019 (skills page): Reviewed for Season 18.
  • 23 Aug. 2019 (this page): Revised item recommendations for Season 18.
  • 16 May 2019 (gear page): Guide added.
  • 16 May 2019 (skills page): Guide added.
  • 16 May 2019 (this page): Guide added.
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