Windwalker Monk DPS Guide — Dragonflight 10.1

The Windwalker specialization is a melee DPS spec that focuses on using Energy, converting it into Chi, and using that Chi to deal damage. Windwalker is an incredibly mobile spec with a very strong presence in M+ and PvP but historically lags beyond other specs in Raids.

Strengths

• Windwalker Monks are a jack of all trades.
• Nearly unparalleled mobility potential.
• Strong burst and sustained stacked AoE and Cleave.

Weaknesses

• Windwalker Monks are a jack of all trades, master of none.
• Lack meaningful utility in many situations, like an immunity.
• Generally poor sustained single-target damage, but should be much better as Dragonflight rolls on.

We are maintaining a list of changes for Monks, so you can see what changes with every patch of Dragonflight.

The playstyle should feel mostly familiar for people who were familiar with it before the Pre-Patch, simply a little bit faster due to more resources. This cuts down on the downtime of the spec while spreading it out more evenly around the rotation. The Pre-Patch provided a small bridge between the playstyles of Shadowlands and Dragonflight, which may feel more different than some are used to.

In Dragonflight, without Calculated Strikes, the damage shifts more into other abilities in AOE, where Spinning Crane Kick becomes a lower priority than even Blackout Kick until higher target counts due to Shadowboxing Treads. However, because of Shadowboxing Treads, it should feel significantly easier for Windwalkers to maintain Mark of the Crane on multiple targets, having it nearly become automatic with minimal upkeep required.

In single-target, the spec will also feel similar, simply with the addition of Strike of the Windlord. There is more emphasis on Rising Sun Kick in Dragonflight, as many talents and abilities increase its damage or provide it a chance to reset, meaning it becomes an ability that you will want to use as often as possible for maximum damage. The other change for Windwalkers in Dragonflight is that Serenity has made a comeback in single target, as it further increases the power and frequency of Rising Sun Kick.

Windwalkers have not received any major changes, just small tuning. For a full breakdown of all Class Changes in Patch 10.1, check out our dedicated page below.

There are no major changes necessary for the transition from 10.0.7 to 10.1. All pages have received the necessary small tweaks.

Windwalker finished Shadowlands as one of the strongest specs in AOE situations and one of the weakest in single target situations. With the changes in the Pre-Patch, Windwalker should remain one of the strongest specs in AOE situations and become even slightly easier to maximize in that situation. For single target, Windwalker is also seeing a large boost in potential that should put it competitive with other specs in single target situations as well, an area that the spec has long struggled with.

Windwalkers are able to fill many needs in a group, whether it is high mobility, high survivability, high AOE damage, or high single-target damage. Windwalkers can balance some of these areas very easily in order to be viable in a variety of situations and content.

Windwalker's "niche" will remain high AOE damage and mobility, able to get to places faster than almost any other spec, and deal out high amounts of AOE damage in a short time frame. However, Windwalker's single target will also see a boost, and although the spec doesn't have an immunity, there are enough defensive abilities to handle most situations easily.

Lastly, Windwalkers have access to the same group buffs that Brewmasters and Mistweavers have in Close to Heart, Generous Pour, and the less useful Windwalking. While these won't make or break an encounter all the time, they certainly help.

If you want to play a Windwalker Monk but currently do not have one at max level, you can check out our leveling guide for tips on your journey.

Once you reach the max level, it can be somewhat overwhelming to completely change the way you play by suddenly implementing a large number of addons in a short space of time, especially if they have a heavy visual impact on your UI. We recommend using some of the more basic addons recommended on our Addons page below while leveling so that you have more time to get used to them during the easier phases of playing your class.

Windwalker Monk is a spec about managing resources and abilities with cooldowns at the same time. The primary concern for Windwalkers is to use Tiger Palm to convert Energy into Chi for abilities like Rising Sun Kick and Fists of Fury with as little of a delay as possible while not capping your Energy or Chi.

Windwalker will inherently have more resources than you can use on those two abilities, so Windwalkers need to learn how to adequately incorporate enough Blackout Kick into the rotation so as to not overflow with Chi, but not so much that you don't have the Chi necessary to cast Rising Sun Kick and Fists of Fury as soon as they are available.

The Windwalker Monk Mastery, Mastery: Combo Strikes, forces the Windwalkers to prepare and think several steps ahead, since they will want to avoid using Blackout Kick or Tiger Palm back to back, rather trying to weave them artfully between other abilities in order to get the maximum damage possible.

If you are a beginner to the spec, but would like to learn the basics of the class, recommend looking through the Spell Summary first, as well as the Easy Mode page linked below.

If you are already familiar with Windwalker, you can head to the Talents and Rotation pages to jump into the more complex, detailed information.

Gearing as a Windwalker is relatively simple; start by grabbing the highest item level pieces you can get. Once you have accomplished that, you will want to take a look at our dedicated Gear Guide for more information on how to optimize your character's gear for playing.

After your character's gear is taken care of, the next step is to maximize your damage through other means. One way to do this is through using consumables, gems, and enchants. For information about those additional aspects of maximizing your character, see our dedicated pages for what you need.

Leveling and "end-game" content generally look very different. Regardless of what type of content you are interested in, we have pages dedicated to providing you with the information that you need to be successful.

Everyone struggles from time to time, but what's important is how you overcome those struggles. Here are some pages with information and frequently asked questions or mistakes that players make that you may find helpful in improving your own performance.