With the release of Patch 8 forBaldur’s Gate 3, each and every class has received a new subclass to choose from. These offer a range of new playstyles, from the mixed elemental omens and summoned allies of the Shadow Sorcerer, to the radiant blasting of the Circle of Stars Druid, every class has gained even more flexibility.
The Monk’s new Subclass inBaldur’s Gate 3Patch 8 is the Way of the Drunken Master. This subclass disguises its careful and precise movements as drunken clumsiness, inflicts the Drunk condition on foes, and excels in defense. This guide will offer a strongDrunken Master buildthat takes advantage of equipment available in Act 3 to further empower the Monk with self-healing, supplementing their defensive prowess.
Best Drunken Master Monk Build in Baldur’s Gate 3
Race, Stats, Background, and Skills
While several races perform well with the Monk Class, and the Drunken Master in particular,this guide will be using a Lightfoot Halfling to get Halfling Luck, mitigating particularly bad rolls. Other good options would be the Gold Dwarf for Dwarven Toughness (and thematic benefits), or the Githyanki for Astral Knowledge and the spells from Githyanki Psionics.
8
16
20
14
16 (Or 14 if not using Gloves of Soul Catching)
18
12
For our background, we’ll be taking Urchin for proficiency with Sleight of Hand and Stealth, which can be useful for positioning before a fight and getting into dangerous places. Our other two skills will be athletics, to improve our jumps despite the low Strength stat, and Insight for reading people in dialogue.
Leveling Guide
At third level,we’ll be able to pick our subclass, and naturally, we’re taking Drunken Master.This gives us proficiency in the Performance Skilland immunity to the negative effects of being Drunk. In fact, the first time we drink alcohol each day, we’ll recover half our Ki Points immediately (rounded down).Flurry of Blows will also be replaced with Drunken Technique,which grants 3m/10ft extra movement and the benefits of the disengage action, while otherwise functioning identically to the normal Flurry of Blows.
At fourth level,we’ll be increasing our Dexterity from 16 to 18, and also gain Intoxicating Strike. This special attack costs an action and one ki point, and forces the target of the attack to make a Constitution Saving Throw against the Monk’s Spell Save DC. If they fail the saving throw, they become drunk and the Monk receives the “Life of the Party” condition. Drunk creatures have disadvantage on Dexterity and Charisma Checks, while the Life of the Party condition raises the Monk’s AC by 1 and adds their Wisdom Modifier as a bonus to their attack rolls against Drunk targets.
At sixth level,the Drunken Master gains the ability Leap to your Feet, which reduces the movement spent on standing up from prone to 1.5m/5ft. This is also the level where they gain Redirect Attack, which lets them spend a Ki Point when a melee attack misses them to immediately make an unarmed strike on their attacker.At level eight,we’ll take another Ability Score Improvement, taking our Dexterity from 18 to 20.
Ninth levelis when we get Sobering Realisation, an incredibly useful unarmed strike that deals an additional 2d6+Wis psychic damage and sobers up the target. It cannot be used unless the target is drunk, and using it will remove the Life of the Party condition, but the extra damage makes it very useful for finishing off foes.Eleventh levelis the last time we’ll get a subclass feature, this time in the form of Drunkard’s Luck. This ability allows you to negate disadvantage on an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check, in exchange for 2 Ki Points. You can use Drunkard’s Luck once per round.
Equipment
In the early game,we’ll be taking advantage of the Sparkstruck set to generate Lightning Charges and Corellon’s Grace to buff our unarmed strikes.Start out by grabbing the Watersparkers and the Sparkle Hands, completing Mol’s quest in the Druid Grove to get the Ring of Protection, and make it a priority to reach the Wizard Tower in the Underdark to retrieve the Sparkswall Ring as soon as possible.
You can pick up the Lifebringer as an early-game hat while you’re down there. The Moondrop Amulet from the Owlbear Nest is also helpful early on, giving you another way to disengage at low health if you’d rather not use Drunken Technique in that situation. When visiting Grymforge in Act 1, make sure to pick up the Protecty Sparkswall for better defense, and make sure to grab the Sentient Amulet to replace the Moondrop Amulet. As an alternative to the Protecty Sparkswall,you could buy the Graceful Cloth from Lady Esther on the Monastery Trailto boost your Dexterity early on, which would achieve the same effect.
After entering Act 2,we can acquire some other useful gear. The Cloak of Protection is excellent for further strengthening your defenses, andthe Flawed Helldusk Gloves will increase your unarmed damage while also applying bleed.You can also swap out the Watersparkers for the Acrobat Shoes, and the Lifebringer for the Hat of Uninhibited Kushigo (since the Drunken Master’s abilities use your Spell Save DCs).
The best equipment for this build is found in Act 3,beginning with the Boots of Uninhibited Kushigo,which allow us to add our Wisdom modifier to our unarmed strike damage. This act is also where we can pick up the Mask of Soul Perception as our final headgear, and either the Vest of Soul Rejuvenation or the Drunken Cloth as our end-game clothing (the former is better overall, but the latter is more thematically appropriate). We can also grab the Helldusk Gloves as our end-game gauntlets, or as a temporary option until we can beat a certain dangerous boss and replace them with the Gloves of Soul Catching instead. Taking the time to get the Gloves of Soul Catching is well worth it for the +2 Bonus to Constitution and reliable access to free healing.
We should make sure to grab the Amulet of the Drunkard to extend our Drunk conditionand gain healing each turn from being Drunk, and either the Cloak of Displacement or Mantle of the Holy Warrior to replace our Cloak of Protection. The former will impose disadvantage on enemies trying to attack you until the first time you get hit each turn, while the latter lets you imbue your attacks (and those of your allies) with radiant damage once per short rest (the former is better defensively, the latter is better offensively, so choose based on your current needs).
While Corellon’s Grace remains a great staff throughout the game, you may prefer to ditch the staff entirely so you can make unarmed strikes with your action as well as your bonus action. You could also utilize the Staff of the Ram to knock enemies back and stun them, instead. Finally, swap the Sparkswall Ring for the Ring of Blink, which is a useful tool for repositioning and avoiding damage if you end up overwhelmed, or After Death do Us Part, for a free revival on death at the cost of Shadow Possession. A third alternative would be the Ring of Regeneration to stack even more self-healing power into this build.
Playstyle
This build, once it’s at full strength, revels in being the center of attention in battle. Wading into the thick of it and using its high AC and excellent offensive power to keep the enemy’s attention while making sure they’re thoroughly drunk.By using Drunkard’s Technique and Sobering Realisation,they can reposition easily and finish off weakened foes with a burst of psychic damage. With their endgame gear focused on regeneration and defense, they can easily stay on the front lines and force enemies to go through them to reach their allies, especially if you have access to a decent chokepoint or can create one using allied spells.
Early on you’ll be a fair bit squishier, but you’ll be able to dish out a good amount of damage with the lightning charge setup we recommend, so as long as you bring another front-line fighter, you’ll be fine. You’ll start hitting your stride defensively once you get to sixth level.
