Windwalker Monk DPS Spec, Builds, and Talents in Battle for Azeroth (BfA) 8.0.1

Table of Contents

• +Introduction
  • 1. Class Overview
  • 2. Patch 8.0.1 Changes for Windwalker Monk
  • 3. Strengths
  • 4. Weaknesses
  • 5. Windwalker Monk Viability in the Current Patch
  • 6. Contents
  • 7. Changelog
• +Easy Mode
  • 1. Foreword
  • 2. The Basics of Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Talent Choice for Windwalker Monks
  • 4. Stat Choice for Windwalker Monks
  • 5. Basic Rotation for Windwalker Monks
    • 5.1. Single Target
    • 5.2. Multiple Target
  • 6. Cooldowns for Windwalker Monks
  • 7. Changelog
• +Spell Summary
  • 1. Introduction
  • 2. Main Resource of Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Basic Abilities for Windwalker Monks
    • 3.1. Movement for Windwalker Monks
    • 3.2. Survival for Windwalker Monks
  • 4. Important Procs for Windwalker Monks
  • 5. Cooldowns for Windwalker Monks
  • 6. Changelog
• ×Builds and Talents
  • 1. Talent Choices for Windwalker Monk
  • 2. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 4. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 5. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 6. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 7. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 8. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 9. PvP Talents (War Mode)
    • 9.1. Windwalker Monk War Mode Talents
      • 9.1.1. General PvP Talents
      • 9.1.2. Windwalker Monk PvP Talents
  • 10. Changelog
• +Azerite Traits and Armor
  • 1. Choosing Azerite Gear as a Windwalker Monk
  • 2. Choosing Azerite Traits as a Windwalker Monk
    • 2.1. Outer Ring Traits
      • 2.1.1. Windwalker Monk and Uldir Traits
      • 2.1.2. Generic
    • 2.2. Middle Ring Traits for Windwalker Monk
    • 2.3. Inner Ring Traits for Windwalker Monk
  • 3. Relative Strength of Azerite Traits for Windwalker Monk
    • 3.1. DPS Azerite Trait Ranking for Windwalker Monk
      • 3.1.1. Single-Target
      • 3.1.2. 3 Targets (Mythic+, etc.)
  • 4. Find Azerite Armor By Trait/Power
  • 5. Changelog
• +Rotation, Cooldowns, and Abilities
  • 1. Single Target Rotation for Windwalker Monks
  • 2. Multiple Target Rotation for Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Cooldowns for Windwalker Monks
  • 4. Optional Read: Mastering Your Windwalker Monk
    • 4.1. Energy and Chi
      • 4.1.1. Energy
      • 4.1.2. Chi
    • 4.2. Mastery: Combo Strikes
    • 4.3. Afterlife Procs
    • 4.4. Detailed Cooldown Usage for Windwalker Monks
      • 4.4.1. Storm, Earth, and Fire
      • 4.4.2. Touch of Karma
      • 4.4.3. Tier 1 Talents
      • 4.4.4. Whirling Dragon Punch
      • 4.4.5. Serenity
    • 4.5. Azerite Traits and Rotation
      • 4.5.1. Swift Roundhouse
      • 4.5.2. Meridian Strikes
    • 4.6. Roll and Transcendence for Windwalker Monks
      • 4.6.1. Roll
      • 4.6.2. Transcendence
      • 4.6.3. Open Palm Strikes
  • 5. Changelog
• +Mythic+ Tips
  • 1. Windwalker Monk in Mythic+
    • 1.1. Windwalker Monk Mythic+ Rotation
    • 1.2. Windwalker Monk Utility
    • 1.3. Touch of Death
    • 1.4. Detox
      • 1.4.1. Atal'Dazar
      • 1.4.2. Freehold
      • 1.4.3. Kings' Rest
      • 1.4.4. Shrine of the Storm
      • 1.4.5. Siege of Boralus
      • 1.4.6. Temple of Sethraliss
      • 1.4.7. The MOTHERLODE!
      • 1.4.8. The Underrot
      • 1.4.9. Tol Dagor
      • 1.4.10. Waycrest Manor
  • 2. Mythic+ Talents for Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Mythic+ Affixes
    • 3.1. Tier One Affixes
    • 3.2. Tier Two Affixes
    • 3.3. Tier Three Affixes
    • 3.4. Seasonal Affix
  • 4. Changelog
• +Common and Worst Mistakes
  • 1. Managing Resources
    • 1.1. Energy
    • 1.2. Chi
  • 2. Not Knowing How To Sim Yourself
  • 3. Analyzing Your Mistakes as a Windwalker Monk
  • 4. Changelog
• +Frequently Asked Questions
  • 1. Battle for Azeroth Frequently Asked Questions
    • 1.1. Can I Use a Two-Handed Weapon?
    • 1.2. Should I Switch Weapons During an Encounter?
    • 1.3. Should I Aim for Specific Secondary Stat Caps?
    • 1.4. When Do I Ignore Combo Strikes?
  • 2. Changelog
• +Boss by Boss Strategies
  • 1. Disclaimer
  • 2. Subtlety Rogue in Uldir
    • 2.1. Talent Cheatsheet
  • 3. Taloc
    • 3.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on Taloc
    • 3.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on Taloc
  • 4. M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 4.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on M.O.T.H.E.R.
    • 4.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on M.O.T.H.E.R.
  • 5. Fetid Devourer
    • 5.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on Fetid Devourer
    • 5.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on Fetid Devourer
  • 6. Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 6.1. Suggested Talents for WindwalkerMonk on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
    • 6.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on Zek'voz, Herald of N'Zoth
  • 7. Vectis
    • 7.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on Vectis
    • 7.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on Vectis
  • 8. Zul, Reborn
    • 8.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on Zul, Reborn
    • 8.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on Zul, Reborn
  • 9. Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 9.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on Mythrax the Unraveler
    • 9.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on Mythrax the Unraveler
  • 10. G'huun
    • 10.1. Suggested Talents for Windwalker Monk on G'huun
    • 10.2. Windwalker Monk Playstyle on G'huun
  • 11. Changelog
• +Stat Priority
  • 1. The Basics of Stats for Windwalker Monk
  • 2. Getting a Better Understanding of Windwalker Monk Stats
  • 3. Changelog
• +Gems, Enchants, and Consumables
  • 1. Gems for Windwalker Monks
  • 2. Enchants for Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Consumables for Windwalker Monks
  • 4. Changelog
• +Macros and Addons
  • 1. Macros
    • 1.1. Generic Macros for Monks
      • 1.1.1. Detox Mouseover Macro
      • 1.1.2. Tiger's Lust Mouseover Macro
    • 1.2. Specific Macros for Windwalker Monks
      • 1.2.1. No Fists of Fury Cancelling Macro
  • 2. Addons
    • 2.1. Generic Addons for Monks
      • 2.1.1. ElvUI
      • 2.1.2. Boss Mods: Deadly Boss Mods or Bigwigs
      • 2.1.3. GTFO
      • 2.1.4. Parrot or Mik's Scrolling Battle Text
      • 2.1.5. Weak Auras
      • 2.1.6. Recount / Skada / Details!
      • 2.1.7. Grid and GridClickSets (Optional)
      • 2.1.8. Omen Threat Meter
    • 2.2. Specific Addons for Windwalker Monks
  • 3. Changelog
• +Gear and Best in Slot
  • 1. Best in Slot List for Windwalker Monks
  • 2. Trinkets
  • 3. Best in Slot Set List for Windwalker Monks from Dungeons
  • 4. Best in Slot Set List for Windwalker Monks from Uldir
  • 5. Changelog
• +Simulations
  • 1. Disclaimer Page
  • 2. Changelog

General Information

On this page, we present the viable talent choices for Windwalker Monks in World of Warcraft Battle for Azeroth 8.0.1. We detail what each of the talents do and in which situations they should be taken.

The other pages of our Windwalker Monk guide can be accessed from the table of contents on the right.

About Our Author

This guide has been written by Pandanaconda, one of the main theorycrafters of the spec. He is a co-founder of the Monk resource site Peak of Serenity, in charge of the Windwalker pages.

1. Talent Choices for Windwalker Monk

Level	Choices
15	✘ Eye of the Tiger	? Chi Wave	✔ Chi Burst
30	✔ Celerity	✔ Chi Torpedo	✔ Tiger's Lust
45	✘ Ascension	✔ Fist of the White Tiger	✘ Energizing Elixir
60	? Tiger Tail Sweep	✔ Good Karma	? Ring of Peace
75	? Inner Strength	? Diffuse Magic	? Dampen Harm
90	✘ Hit Combo	✔ Rushing Jade Wind	✔ Invoke Xuen, the White Tiger
100	? Spiritual Focus	✔ Whirling Dragon Punch	✔ Serenity

Talents can be freely changed when out of combat and in a rested XP area (such as an inn or a capital city). Moreover, Tome of the Tranquil Mind and Codex of the Tranquil Mind can be used to temporarily allow players to change talents anywhere, as long as they are out of combat.

2. Tier 1 (Level 15) Talents for Windwalker Monks

✘ Eye of the Tiger

? Chi Wave

✔ Chi Burst

• Eye of the Tiger causes Tiger Palm to also apply both a buff (to yourself) and a debuff (to the target) called Eye of the Tiger. On you, it is an 8-second HoT, while on the target it is an 8-second DoT (dealing Nature damage). The DoT may only be active on one target at a time.
• Chi Wave is an active ability with a 15-second cooldown. It is essentially a chain-heal that bounces to the 7 nearest targets (within 25 yards). The bounces target allies and enemies alternatively. Each target that the wave bounces to is healed or damaged (Nature damage), depending on their alignment. The healing portion of Chi Wave is a smart heal, in the sense that it prefers healing low health players.
• Chi Burst is an active ability with a 30-second cooldown. It heals all friendly targets, and damages all hostile targets in a 40-yard line in front of you. It grants 1 Chi per enemy hit, up to 2 Chi.

In this tier, we recommend Chi Burst for AoE situations, and Chi Wave for strictly single target.

3. Tier 2 (Level 30) Talents for Windwalker Monks

✔ Celerity

✔ Chi Torpedo

✔ Tiger's Lust

• Celerity passively increases the number of charges of Roll by 1, and reduces its cooldown by 5 seconds.
• Chi Torpedo replaces Roll. It causes you to roll a moderate distance in front of you (further than Roll), increasing your movement speed by 30% for 10 seconds. This effect stacks up to 2 times.
• Tiger's Lust is an active ability with a 30-second cooldown, which removes all roots and snares from the target, and grants them 70% increased movement speed for 6 seconds. It can be used either on yourself or on an ally.

In this tier that revolves around movement, the choice depends on your preference and on the requirements of the encounter.

Tiger's Lust is a great choice for a movement speed boost, and this should probably be your default choice, as it is not linked to Roll and is therefore more versatile.

All three options fill different needs and preferences. Due to the large amount of mobility available to Monk specialisation, you can usually use any of the talents.

Tiger's Lust can be used on allies which can be a life-saver for some slower specialisation. It will also occasionally remove some slow debuffs applied during encounters, linked to other effects.

4. Tier 3 (Level 45) Talents for Windwalker Monks

✘ Ascension

✔ Fist of the White Tiger

✘ Energizing Elixir

• Energizing Elixir is an active ability with a 1-minute cooldown. It instantly restores all of your Energy and Chi.
• Ascension increases your maximum Chi by 1 and your Energy regeneration by 10%. It is not worth using in any scenario currently.
• Fist of the White Tiger gives you a strong Chi builder with a good damage component.

Fist of the White Tiger is the strongest choice in this row for all situations.

5. Tier 4 (Level 60) Talents for Windwalker Monks

? Tiger Tail Sweep

✔ Good Karma

? Ring of Peace

• Tiger Tail Sweep reduces the cooldown and improves the range of Leg Sweep.
• Good Karma doubles the absorb shield from Touch of Karma, making it the only damage increase in this talent row. This is your default choice.
• Ring of Peace places a ring on the ground which will knock away any enemy inside of it or entering it. This is occasionally game breaking in some encounters.

Only Good Karma affects your performance, therefore it is your default pick in this row. However, the utility provided by the other two will occasionally be worth much more than the slight damage and survivability boost.

6. Tier 5 (Level 75) Talents for Windwalker Monks

? Inner Strength

? Diffuse Magic

? Dampen Harm

• Inner Strength reduces the damage you take for a few seconds whenever you spend Chi. This will overall increase your effective health throughout the fight, reduce the healing you will require and decrease the chances of getting killed instantly in high level dungeon runs.
• Diffuse Magic reduces any magical damage you take.
• Dampen Harm reduces physical damage you take based on how large each hit is.

None of the talents in this row will affect your performance. You will use all three of them in different circumstances. By default, if you do not know what sort of damage you will be facing, or when you will use defensives, pick Inner Strength until you get a better idea.

7. Tier 6 (Level 90) Talents for Windwalker Monks

✘ Hit Combo

✔ Rushing Jade Wind

✔ Invoke Xuen, the White Tiger

• Rushing Jade Wind is a toggle effect. While it is active, you spend 3 energy per second to deal significant AoE damage around you. Activating this is on the global cooldown. Rushing Jade Wind will use the amount of mastery you had when you activated it initially.
• Invoke Xuen, the White Tiger is an active ability with a 2-minute cooldown. It summons a pet, Xuen, for 20 seconds. The pet control bar allows you to choose what Xuen will do, although by default he attacks your primary target and uses Crackling Tiger Lightning every second to deal damage to 3 enemies within 10 yards. It is usually used in combination with your Touch of Death.
• Hit Combo causes each successive attack that triggers Mastery: Combo Strikes grants 1% increased damage, stacking up to 6 times. The buff lasts for 10 seconds, with each new application refreshing its duration. However, the buff fades immediately when you use a series of attacks that would not trigger Combo Strikes (so, using the same attack twice in a row).

We recommend Invoke Xuen, the White Tiger for single target focused content, and Rushing Jade Wind for extended AoE.

When talented into Rushing Jade Wind, do not use it on single target situations. However, activate it slightly before other targets appear.

8. Tier 7 (Level 100) Talents for Windwalker Monks

? Spiritual Focus

✔ Whirling Dragon Punch

✔ Serenity

• Spiritual Focus reduces the cooldown on Storm, Earth, and Fire whenever you spend Chi.
• Whirling Dragon Punch is an active ability with a 24-second cooldown. It deals damage to all nearby enemies, but it can only be used while both Fists of Fury and Rising Sun Kick are on cooldown.
• Serenity is an active ability with a 90-second cooldown. For 12 seconds, you deal 20% increased damage (and your healing is also increased by 20%). Moreover, all abilities that cost Chi are free of cost and have a 50% reduced cooldown. Currently, it also makes both Fist of the White Tiger and Rushing Jade Wind free.

Serenity and Whirling Dragon Punch are extremely strong talents with very important impact on gameplay. Currently, they are overall very close in value for single target purposes; however, occasionally both may shine.

We recommend you read our section about Serenity in our rotation page, as this cooldown is very different from the rest of our spells.

Spiritual Focus will reduce the cooldown on Storm, Earth, and Fire by around 22 seconds, depending on your haste and the situation. This does not make it compete on single target with the alternatives, however, this may occasionally be an exception in encounters where burst cooldowns are valued much more than usual.

9. PvP Talents (War Mode)

In Battle for Azeroth, there will be the option to go into "War Mode". Enabling War Mode provides the following benefits:

• PvP talents enabled in the outdoor world.
• 10% increase in World Quest rewards at maximum level.
• 10% more experience gained while leveling.
• Earn Conquest Points which can reward gear every week.

With the benefits of enabling War Mode for leveling and PvE content, it is recommended to enable the feature to maximize your leveling and rewards at maximum level. However, you will make yourself available for open world PvP, and the possibility to be "ganked" while leveling or doing World Quests exists.

9.1. Windwalker Monk War Mode Talents

In this section we will rank the PvP talents best for leveling and doing solo / small group PvE content. Below is a ranking of both General PvP Talents and Windwalker Monk-specific PvE talents.

9.1.1. General PvP Talents

1. Adaptation is likely your most passive choice since it will automatically remove loss of control effects over 5 seconds. It is recommended for leveling to take this PvP talent.
2. Gladiator's Medallion is an on-use ability that removes all movement impairing effects and all loss of control effects.
3. Relentless is also a passive ability but it does not automatically remove crowd control abilities but instead reduces the duration.

9.1.2. Windwalker Monk PvP Talents

1. Fast Feet increases your movement speed by 15% for 3 seconds after being attacked. Additionally, it reduces the duration of snares by 20%.
2. Control the Mists makes Vivify an instant cast every 10 seconds, reduced by using Chi spenders.
3. Fortifying Brew increases your maximum health by 20% and reduces incoming damage by 20% for 15 seconds.
4. Disabling Reach increases the range of your Disable to 10 yards.
5. Eminence reduces the cooldown of your Transcendence: Transfer by 5 seconds.
6. Grapple Weapon grants you an additional spell which prevents your target from using their weapons for 6 seconds.
7. Heavy-Handed Strikes causes Fists of Fury to reduce damage done by the target by 20% for 2 seconds, stacking up to 3 times.
8. Ride the Wind causes Flying Serpent Kick to increase the movement speed of allies in its path by 30%. This applies to yourself. Also increases Flying Serpent Kicks cooldown by 10 seconds.
9. Tiger Style causes Leg Sweep to summon an effigy of Xuen when it hits at least 3 targets.
10. Tigereye Brew generates stacks of Tigereye Brew whenever you spend 3 Chi. Using these stacks makes your attacks bypass armor but deal slightly less damage for 2 seconds per stack.
11. Yu'lon's Gift causes Flying Serpent Kick to remove any snares. However, this does not work on daze (the slow from being dismounted).

Fast Feet, Control the Mists, and Fortifying Brew are the three talents that will benefit you the most when doing PvE content. They grant you sustainability as well as mobility.

10. Changelog

• 17 Aug. 2018: Added War Mode talents.
• 13 Aug. 2018: Updated for Battle for Azeroth launch.

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