Aasimar Monk Build Guide

Levels 1-4

Start with a stat array of STR 12, DEX 15, CON 13, INT 10, WIS 14, CHA 8. Put your +2 racial bonus into Dexterity (17) and +1 into Wisdom (15). At level 1, rely on your Spear wielded with two hands for 1d8 damage, using your bonus action for a 1d4 Unarmed Strike. At level 3, select the Way of Mercy subclass. This perfectly synergizes with your Aasimar identity; Hand of Healing provides in-combat Ki-based healing, while your racial Healing Hands saves the day when you're out of Ki. At level 4, take a split Ability Score Improvement: +1 DEX and +1 WIS. This elegantly caps your Dexterity at 18 and Wisdom at 16, immediately boosting your AC to 17, your attack rolls, and your Hand of Harm save DC.

Levels 5-10

Level 5 is your massive power spike. You gain Extra Attack, Stunning Strike, and your Martial Arts die increases to a d6. More importantly, your Unarmored Movement hits +10 feet, meaning your Radiant Soul flight speed is now 40 feet. Use your flight to bypass frontline tanks and Stunning Strike the enemy backline spellcasters. At level 6, Way of Mercy gives you Physician's Touch and Hand of Harm, letting you poison enemies with no saving throw if you hit with an unarmed strike. At level 8, take the ASI to max your Dexterity to 20, pushing your AC to 18 and maximizing your hit chance.

Levels 11-16

At level 11, Way of Mercy grants Flurry of Healing and Harm, letting you heal an ally and poison an enemy in the same Flurry of Blows bonus action. Your Unarmored Movement jumps to +20 feet (a 50-foot fly speed during Radiant Soul). At level 12, use your ASI to boost Wisdom to 18, increasing your Stunning Strike DC. Level 14 grants Diamond Soul, giving you proficiency in all saving throws. While this makes your Celestial Resistance slightly less unique, automatically taking half damage from necrotic/radiant sources before saves are even applied is still incredibly potent. At level 16, cap your Wisdom at 20.

Levels 17-20

At level 17, your Martial Arts die becomes a d10, and you unlock Hand of Ultimate Mercy, allowing you to cast True Resurrection essentially for 5 Ki points. Paired with your Aasimar lore, you are functionally an angel of life and death. Level 18 brings Empty Body; spending 4 Ki for invisible, resistance-to-everything (except force) combat makes you nearly unkillable. Combine Empty Body with Radiant Soul flight, and you are an invisible, flying terror dealing guaranteed radiant damage on top of your d10 unarmed strikes.

Mobile

Take Mobile if you find yourself surrounded too often. Adding 10 feet of movement stacks with Unarmored Movement, giving you a base 60-foot fly speed at level 11 while Radiant Soul is active. More importantly, the free disengage allows you to dive-bomb an enemy from the air, strike them, and fly 30 feet back up out of melee range without provoking opportunity attacks.

Tough

Monks suffer from a d8 hit die, and with a starting CON of 13, your HP at level 11 is a fragile 69. Tough adds 2 HP per level, effectively turning your d8 hit die into a d12. Take this at level 12 or 16 instead of maxing Wisdom if your party lacks a dedicated frontline tank and you are taking too much aggro.

Crusher

If you prefer an odd Constitution score, taking Crusher (+1 CON) rounds out your 13 CON to 14. Because your Unarmed Strikes deal bludgeoning damage, you can knock an enemy 5 feet once per turn. If you are flying via Radiant Soul, you can position yourself directly above an enemy, punch them 5 feet into the air, and force them to take 1d6 falling damage and land prone, granting you advantage on your subsequent Extra Attacks.

Tier 1 (Levels 1-4)

Start with a Spear and no armor. Purchase a few Darts for ranged options, though your 40-foot base speed by level 2 usually negates the need for ranged weapons. Seek out a Dragonhide Belt, +1 as soon as possible; the +1 to your Ki save DCs is vital for early Stunning Strike attempts, and recovering Ki as an action is a lifesaver in dungeon crawls.

Tier 2 (Levels 5-10)

Upgrade to a Dragonhide Belt, +2. Hunt for an Eldritch Claw Tattoo; the +1 to unarmed attack and damage rolls is great, but the 15-foot reach activation is phenomenal when paired with your Celestial Revelation flight, letting you strike from the air completely out of retaliatory melee reach. Bracers of Defense are also critical here, bumping your AC from 18 to 20.

Tier 3 (Levels 11-16)

An Amulet of Health is the perfect fix for your low 13 Constitution, instantly boosting your HP pool and your Constitution saving throws. A Ring of Free Action ensures you cannot be paralyzed or restrained, which is the quickest way a flying Monk plummets to their death.

Tier 4 (Levels 17-20)

The ultimate Monk item is the Gloves of Soul Catching. Adding 2d10 force damage to every single Unarmed Strike, combined with your Radiant Soul extra damage, skyrockets your DPR. The ability to heal yourself for that force damage dealt means you will out-sustain almost any monster in the manual.

As a Striker and Skirmisher, your job is to bypass the meat shields and eliminate high-value targets (spellcasters, archers) using your massive movement speed and Stunning Strike. Because you lack the HP to be a primary tank, you need a sturdy frontline to hold the line while you operate on the flanks or in the air.

A Grave Domain Cleric is a phenomenal partner. Their Path to the Grave feature creates vulnerability to all damage from the next attack. When you hit a cursed target, your weapon damage, Martial Arts die, and the flat proficiency bonus radiant damage from Radiant Soul are all doubled in one massive burst. Additionally, their ranged healing frees you up to use Healing Hands offensively or save it for emergencies.

A Path of the Totem Warrior (Wolf) Barbarian provides a massive boost to your Flurry of Blows. Since you make up to four attacks per turn by level 5, having constant advantage on all of them while adjacent to the Barbarian dramatically increases your chance to hit, your chance to crit, and your odds of landing a Stunning Strike.

Peace Domain Cleric 1

A single level dip into Peace Cleric requires 13 Wisdom, which you easily meet. Emboldening Bond scales with your proficiency bonus, allowing you to add 1d4 to attack rolls and saving throws. This stacks beautifully with your Aasimar combat loop and costs no Ki. You also gain access to Bless and Healing Word, allowing you to save your Aasimar Healing Hands for when you are out of spell slots.

Fighter 2

Taking two levels of Fighter gives you the Unarmed Fighting Style, instantly upgrading your unarmed strikes to a d8 (surpassing your Martial Arts die until level 11). More importantly, Action Surge lets you unleash a devastating turn. You can activate Radiant Soul as a bonus action, take the Attack action, Action Surge for another Attack action, forcing four Stunning Strike saves in a single round.

• Activating Radiant Soul in melee round 1: Radiant Soul takes a bonus action to activate. If you are already adjacent to an enemy, activating it wastes the bonus action you could have used for Flurry of Blows. Turn it on before combat or while closing the distance.
• Wasting an action on Healing Hands mid-combat: Healing Hands requires an Action to touch a creature. If you are a Way of Mercy Monk, Hand of Healing only costs a bonus action (via Flurry of Blows). Save the Aasimar racial heal for out-of-combat or when you are completely out of Ki.
• Ignoring Wisdom for Feats: Monks live and die by their Ki save DC. If you leave your Wisdom at 15 to take feats like Sentinel or Mage Slayer, enemies will consistently pass their Stunning Strike and Hand of Harm saves. Cap DEX, then immediately pump WIS.
• Staying grounded during Boss Fights: Your Celestial Resistance to radiant and necrotic is great, but your best defense is not getting hit. If you fight a boss with no ranged attacks, fly 10 feet in the air and use a Spear or Eldritch Claw Tattoo to attack with reach. Don't fight on the ground if you don't have to.