Monk (Final Fantasy XI)

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With their bodies that double as deadly weapons, monks attack enemies with explosive strength.
Official Description

Template:See Also Monk is a basic job in Final Fantasy XI available to players. It is also a common job among beastmen and the job type for all mandragora in the game. Monks excel in hand-to-hand combat; sometimes with their bare fists, but usually by equipping various knuckles and similar hand-to-hand weapons. Monks wear light armor and have very high hit point totals.

In terms of the races of Vana'diel, the Galka, and the Elvaan stand out as the preeminent monks. High strength for Elvaan make them favorable, while Galka's naturally high HP can make for some ridiculously high HP totals. Combined with high vitality, Galkas make for quite strong monks. The race least suited to being monks is probably the Tarutaru due to their low HP and weaker physical characteristics.

Becoming a Monk

Monk is a basic job that players can choose to level without having completed any quests. A player choosing to start as a Monk will receive a White Belt, the first in a series of 4 belts that can be earned.

Monk Abilities

For a more in-depth description, see the Monk abilities page

Job Ability	Level	Recast	Duration	Description
Hundred Fists	1	1:00:00	0:00:45	Speeds up Attacks.
Boost	5	0:00:15	0:03:00	Enhances the power of your next attack.
Dodge	15	0:05:00	0:02:00	Enhances evasion.
Focus	25	0:05:00	0:02:00	Enhances accuracy.
Chakra	35	0:05:00	—	Cures certain status effects and restores a small amount of HP to user.
Chi Blast	41	0:03:00	—	Releases chi to attack an enemy.
Counterstance	45	0:05:00	0:05:00	Increases chance to counter but lowers defense.
Footwork	65	0:05:00	0:05:00	Makes kicks your primary mode of attack.
Mantra	75 (Only unlocked with Merit Points)	0:10:00	0:03:00	Increases the max HP of party members within area of effect.
Formless Strikes	75 (Only unlocked with Merit Points)	0:10:00	0:03:00	While in effect, melee attacks will not be considered physical damage. No effect on weapon skills.
Perfect Counter	79	0:01:00	0:00:30	Allows you to counter the next attack directed at you.
Impetus	88	0:05:00	0:03:00	Enhances attack and critical hit rate with each successive melee attack you land.
Inner Strength	98	1:00:00	0:00:30	Increases your maximum HP.

Job Trait	Levels	Tier	Description
Martial Arts	1 / 16 / 31 / 46 / 61 / 75 / 82	VII	Reduces delay for Hand-to-Hand attacks.
Subtle Blow	5 / 25 / 45 / 65 / 91	V	Reduces amount of TP gained by enemies when striking them.
Counter	10 / 81	II	May cancel target's attack with an attack of your own.
Max HP Boost	15 / 35 / 55 / 70 / 86 / 96	VI	Increases your maximum HP.
Kick Attacks	51 / 71 / 96	III	Occasionally adds kick attacks.
Invigorate	75 (Only unlocked with Merit Points)	Varies	Adds a Regen effect when using Chakra.
Penance	75 (Only unlocked with Merit Points)	Varies	Adds an effect to Chi Blast that inhibits an enemy's TP accumulation.
Tactical Guard	77 / 87 / 97	III	Grants bonus TP when guarding against an attack.
Skillchain Bonus	85 / 95	II	Improves skillchain damage.

Skill Ratings

Combat Skill	Rank	Caps by Level
Combat Skill	Rank	49	99
Hand-to-Hand	A+	150	424
Club	C+	139	378
Staff	B	144	398
Throwing	E	124	300
Guard	A-	150	417
Evasion	B+	144	404
Parrying	E	124	300

Gameplay

Monks are a very high damaging, versatile job. While they basically do only one type of damage, bludgeoning, and have a relatively low skill for a main weapon, they have access to a great deal of Speed, Strength, and Accuracy bonuses that more than make up for any lack of accuracy naturally.

Strengths

Monks do very good damage versus average and low defense creatures and extremely high damage versus Skeletons.
High HP total.

Weaknesses

Monks struggle against high Defense enemies such as Crabs.
Monks do not have a Weapon Skill that can create distortion until late in the game, which is a player preference-created stigma associated with the job.
Monks have relatively low defense.

Subjobs

Warrior

Until reaching level 70, almost all Monks found in Vana'diel will probably be using Warrior as a subjob. There are many reasons why Warrior is so highly favored, including the fact that Berserk will drastically increase damage over time and it stacks with Monk's Boost ability for extra Weapon Skill damage. Provoke makes them good at being a "SATA" partner or as an off-tank if things go wrong. Double Attack provides an extra increase in damage.

Ninja

After level 70, the Ninja subjob takes off in popularity, if only because of the advent of "Bones Parties" and other "TP-Burn" style parties where rather than having a tank, hate can bounce between party members freely, all of whom have blink through Utsusemi.

Thief

A few Monk players prefer a moderate drop in damage over time to do more so-called "spike damage", which refers to damage dealt in an an instant, usually because of Sneak Attack and/or Trick Attack. To facilitate this, the player must use Thief as a subjob.