PoE 2 Martial ArtistS
Monk ascendancy · verified 2026-07-04 · DEXINT · added in patch 0.5.0
community tier · patch 0.5.4b (editorial)
The gear-and-rune powerhouse monk that transforms its gloves into Fists of Stone, tattoos five extra rune sockets onto its body, and stacks three Hollow Techniques for monstrous melee damage.
You build and spend Combo rapidly to keep Energy Shield recharging (via Martial Adept), while Hollow Techniques add summoned clones, ghostly Bells, and resonance damage on top of your attacks. Way of the Stonefist supercharges your gloves and Runic Meridians gives huge rune flexibility to patch stats and scale damage. The result is an aggressive, self-sustaining melee bruiser that snowballs with gear.
Strengths
- Runic Meridians grants five extra rune-only sockets, solving stat problems and adding massive build flexibility
- Way of the Stonefist upgrades your gloves into stronger Fists of Stone modifiers (and ignores their requirements)
- Combo spending drives near-constant Energy Shield recharge, making a melee class surprisingly tanky
- Three Hollow Techniques (Form, Focus, Resonance) layer clones, Bells, and crit resonance for high burst
Weaknesses
- Reward scales heavily with gear and runes, so the ceiling requires investment to reach
- Combo-dependent sustain and damage means dropping the loop weakens both offense and defense
Current standing (S-tier): [editorial] Widely rated the strongest Monk ascendancy in 0.5: best-in-class flexibility from Runic Meridians, dual offense/defense from Way of the Stonefist, and top league-start value (community consensus, aoeah / rpgstash 0.5 tier lists). (community tier · patch 0.5.4b — editorial rank, community meta consensus (maxroll · mobalytics · game8 0.5 tier lists), editorial — checked 2026-07-03)
Key Martial Artist notables
What each ascendancy notable actually does for the build — effect directions, not raw numbers (exact values shift every patch; check in game before committing points).
Way of the Stonefist
Transforms equipped gloves into Fists of Stone, upgrading their modifiers into more powerful versions (and ignoring glove attribute requirements).
Runic Meridians
Grants five additional rune-only sockets across your body (helmet, two body, gloves, boots) for major stat and damage flexibility.
Martial Adept
Gaining Combo grants extra Combo, and spending Combo reduces your Energy Shield recharge delay, driving near-constant ES sustain.
Way of the Mountain
Immobilizing enemies grants Mountain's Teaching stacks that boost attack damage, cap incoming small hits, and raise stun threshold while maintained.
Martial Master
Lets you build Combo across weapon sets and gain Combo from all attack hits, smoothing the Combo economy.
Best Martial Artist skills (0.5.4b)
Falling Thunder
Flicker Strike
Tempest Flurry
Ice Strike
Hollow Form
Tempest BellHow to unlock Martial Artist
Unlock via your first Ascendancy Trial in Act 2 (Trial of the Sekhemas or Trial of Chaos); 8 points total across the trials. See the full points & trials table + tracker → for exactly which run grants points 3–8, or the respec guide if you want to switch into Martial Artist from another Monk ascendancy.
Want Martial Artist online today?
Timesaver pros run the Trial of the Sekhemas and Trial of Chaos on your character — all 8 ascendancy points on your Monk, your build, usually same-day.
FAQ
- When was Martial Artist added?
- It was added in patch 0.5.0 as the Monk's third ascendancy, alongside the Huntress's Spirit Walker.
- Why is Runic Meridians so strong?
- It tattoos five extra rune-only sockets onto your character, letting you fix resistances/attributes and stack damage runes far beyond a normal build.
- How does Martial Artist stay tanky as a melee class?
- Martial Adept ties Energy Shield recharge to Combo spending, so fast Combo builds keep ES recharging almost constantly.
Other Monk ascendancies
Back to all Monk ascendancies, the ascendancy hub and full tier list.
Notables and effects verified against patch 0.5.4b (2026-07-02) — qualitative effect directions only; exact values change between patches. Tier ranks are editorial community-meta consensus, never game facts. Ascendancy art is in-game artwork © Grinding Gear Games, used for identification. Last verified 2026-07-04. Timesaver.gg is not affiliated with Grinding Gear Games. Source notes: High. Notables cross-confirmed on Fextralife + Mobalytics/Maxroll. Patch-add (0.5.0) confirmed on IGGM/EZG/Maxroll. Effects qualitative by design.