User:Harry138/builds/monk/pveonly

= Build:Mo/D Divine Wind Runner =

The Divine Wind Runner combines the power of the Monk's Divine Favor and the mobility and balance of the Dervish's Wind and Earth Prayers to successfully run a wide range of locations. This flexible build provides powerful spell denial, self healing, speed, balance, and condition removal.

Equipment

 * Full Radiant Insignias
 * Totem Axe or Rajazan's Fervor or equivalent weapon.
 * Divine Favor off-hand with health +30 core, and energy +5 while enchanted inscription.
 * If preferred, a halves skill recharge inscription (Forget Me Not) could be used to increase usage of Spell Breaker.

Usage
The power of this build comes from the long-lasting preventative action of Spell Breaker. At rest points, allow Spell Breaker to recharge while you heal yourself. Successful usage of this build is facilitated by smart gameplay; only use Spell Breaker when you (forsee you will) need it - do not try to keep it active all the time.
 * Begin your run by casting Blessed Aura. This constantly maintained enchantment will help to fuel your Enchanted Haste.
 * If desired, pre-cast Watchful Spirit so you may cancel it in the event of an emergency for a quick heal boost after taking damage. Although you do not need to stop to cancel Watchful Spirit, you will need to stop to recast for future uses.
 * Use Spell Breaker when passing through areas with casters. Even with an enchanting weapon and Blessed Aura, you cannot maintain this enchantment indefinitely.  It should last around 25 seconds, so know your area and plan ahead for the 20 second downtime.
 * Use Enchanted Haste and then Harrier's Haste immediately after Enchanted Haste expires. With 9 points in Wind Prayers, you can run constantly and with no energy downtime while cycling through these skills.  Note that both of these skills are stances and, as such, one will cancel the other.
 * Use Fleeting Stability just before entering a knockdown area. This is an enchantment and, as such, it will not interfere with your running stances. Beware of the self-knockdown effect after Fleeting ends.
 * Use Smite Hex as needed.
 * Use Mending Touch as needed.

Counters

 * Enchantment removal and hexes can be devastating. Avoid running through dense enchantment removal and hex areas without Spell Breaker active.
 * Excessive physical attacks can prove fatal as well. Taking a wrong turn or getting boxed in/body blocked can end your run.  Know the geography and spawn locations of enemies so that you can plan to circumvent them accordingly.

Variants
The build can be customized to conform to specific runs, enemies, and user preferences:
 * If knockdowns are not a concern, consider bringing Healing Touch instead of Fleeting Stability, lower your attribute rank in Earth Prayers to 0 and increase your attribute rank in Healing Prayers to 9. With your high rank in Divine Favor you will get 144 heal for 5 energy.
 * If knockdowns are not a concern, consider bringing Conviction for added armor.
 * If you choose to use conviction with this build, consider bringing Featherfoot Grace, as it is an enchantment running spell and will not conflict with your Conviction stance.
 * Watchful Healing can be used instead of Watchful Spirit, as a cheaper regen spell. Additionally, bring a "lose enchantment" skill to cancel Watchful Healing and gain its healing bonus.
 * Pious Restoration or Signet of Pious Light can be used to cancel Fleeting and Watchful Healing if you choose that skill as well.
 * If you're running with a team, consider using Dismiss Condition to assist your allies if needed.
 * If you are not concerned with hexes, replace Smite Hex with Signet of Devotion for self healing, ideally at rest stops or after breaking aggro.

Equipment

 * Max Radiant Armor with the above mentioned runes. Basically your normal prot gear, the minor smiting rune isn't even needed.
 * Whatever you want of enchanting. I prefer a staff of enchanting so I can do some additional damage myself. Another weapon of enchanting will also work but does less damage.

Usage

 * Maintain Blessed Aura, Balthazar's Spirit, and Essence Bond at all times.
 * Gather as many vermin as you feel like, you can tank an infinite number if used right.
 * Keep Fleeting Stability and Shield of Absorption up at all times, I find it smart to follow SoA with FS.
 * Use Mystic Regeneration to counter the health degen of the vermin.
 * Use Shield of Judgment to damage the vermin, follow it up with Balthazar's Aura. The knockdown for SoJ will allow BA to deal lots of damage without scattering the vermin. attack a vermin at all times so it keeps attacking you. Shreader should always be taken down first.

Counters

 * No real threats from Vermin, but Jade Brotherhood may be able to kill you.

Equipment

 * Due to the higher energy requirement of the build, an armor set with Radiant insignia would work the best. Blessed could also be used.
 * Take a Low energy set such as an weapon and offhand with -5 energy and switch to that set if E-denial is expected.
 * Take a Normal set such as a staff (20/20) healing prayers with +60 HP. Use this set for regular healing.
 * Take a High energy set such as a wand and off hand that both has a +15 energy -1 regen mod on them. Switch to this set during emergencies but quickly switch back to the normal set as soon as you cast the spell or spells you need.

Usage

 * In a PvE teamsetup, this monk works best with a full prot monk in the party.
 * Remember that all your healing prayers spells' healing capacity is boosted by 50% so be careful not to over-heal too much by healing party members with little damage.
 * Kite away from enemies and heal and protect yourself using Words of Comfort, Ethereal Light and Shield of Absorption. Use these spells on your self as needed.
 * Make sure you're not under fire when using Ethereal Light. However, the chances of it getting interrupted is low due to the 1/2 second activation time thanks to Healer's Boon.
 * Use Glyph of Lesser Energy then cast Heal Party as needed. Each casting will heal the entire party for 120 HP.  Unless you have a lot of energy, never use Heal Party with out using Glyph of Lesser Energy first!
 * Use Dwayna's Kiss on party members with enchantments and/or hexes on them to increase its efficiency. With the bonus from Healer's Boon it isn't unusual to see 300+ healing from Dwayna's Kiss on party members in areas with a fair number of hexes.  Dervishes and Elementalists usually reap the highest benefit from this spell as they use enchantments on themselves fairly consistently.
 * Using Shield of Absorption on party members right before using Dwayna's Kiss will reduce the damage they take and increase the healing from the spell.

Counters

 * This build is vulnerable to E-denial.
 * Enchantment removal isn't too much of a problem as HB recharges fast and only costs 5 energy.
 * Anti-spam and Anti-Caster hexes.

Variants

 * Replace Words of Comfort or a skill of your choice and...
 * Add Holy Veil as a hex removal in areas with more damaging hexes.
 * Add Dismiss Condition as a condition removal if you are expecting more debilitating conditions where removal is more of a priority.
 * Add Healing Whisper if no conditions are expected in a area.
 * Add Healing Touch as a high powered self heal.
 * Add Signet of Devotion as a zero cost small heal.
 * For people who have a different playing style and prefer to use no prot enchantments, replace Shield of Absorption with Holy Haste and change the resurrection spell to Renew Life. This allows for a 1.5 second resurrection, as well as powerful heal for party members within earshot. Glyph of Lesser Energy helps with the cost of this expensive resurrection spell.

Equipment

 * Superior Protection Rune, Superior Vigor Rune and Minor Divine Favor Rune
 * Use a 20% enchanting mod to increase the duration of your enchantments.
 * Sadi's Benediction would be an ideal staff.

Usage

 * 1) Maintain Blessed Aura to make all your enchantments last 50% longer in conjunction with the enchanting mod.
 * 2) Use Shield of Absorption and Reversal of Fortune for minor attacks.
 * 3) When an Ally is under heavy attack, use Glyph of Lesser Energy and Shield of Regeneration.
 * 4) * You have two energy-efficient options now. Either cast Shield of Regeneration on a different ally taking damage, or cast Aegis for party-wide protection.
 * 5) Cast Dismiss Condition as needed.

Counters

 * Interrupting Glyph of Lesser Energy.
 * Energy denial.
 * Enchantment removal.

Variants

 * Place some points into healing prayers and add Gift of Health for a spike heal.
 * For condition heavy areas, you can switch Aegis for Extinguish.

Attributes and Skills

 * You can use Watchful Healing, Mending or Watchful Spirit if you expect degeneration. Aftershock, Crystal Wave or Teinai's Crystals for additional damage. Grasping Earth for bosses that run when they are low on health. Rust is also useful when dealing with Warrior bosses. This requires you to lower Earth Magic by one and put the points into Water Magic.

Equipment

 * A Weapon of Enchanting. The Cities of Ascalon -50HP Grim Cesta can be used but won't make any difference.
 * Armor doesn't really matter, but 5 Superior Runes are required.

Usage

 * When you zone in, cast Blessed Aura and Balthazar's Spirit. Switch to your Protection Prayers headgear if you have one.
 * Before engaging enemies for the first time, cast Protective Spirit followed by either Shielding Hands or Healing Hands (if you use Shielding Hands before Protective Spirit, you'll take damage and likely die because Shielding Hands will reduce damage before the Protective Spirit effect, making it useless)
 * Whenever either of these enchantments start flashing, cast Protective Spirit followed by the other one. You should be able to tank an infinite number of mobs this way.
 * Get close to the boss, and use Glyph of Concentration followed by Sliver Armor. If you brought a damage skill in the optional slot, use it to speed up killing.
 * If you brought Watchful Healing, use Glyph of Concentration followed by Watchful Healing when they recharge.
 * If Shielding Hands recharges before it expires, do not re-use it. For some reason doing so will simply nullify the damage reduction from the spell, most likely causing you to die.

Counters

 * Enchant removal will devastate this build, don't try to farm areas with enchant removal.
 * Life stealing bypasses Protective Spirit, and is usually fatal.
 * Interruptions are not a problem as your protective skills are all 1/4 second cast, and you have Glyph of Concentration for Sliver Armor. You might have trouble if Glyph is interrupted however.
 * Heavy degeneration such as Burning, or long lasting degeneration can be dangerous. Make sure you bring a health regeneration skill if you expect to face degen.

Variants

 * Essence Bond can be used if you face energy problems, however you should be fine with just Balthazar's Spirit.


 * Exactly the same build can replace both Healing Hands and Shielding Hands for Stoneflesh Aura. However, this is harder to use with the longer casting time of Stoneflesh Aura. It is highly recommended to use Glyph of Concentration before casting any spell with a 1 second casting time or longer.

Prophecies:
2 current mobs


 * Skyward Reach
 * Hydras - (you may wish to use Ward of Stability to avoid knockdowns.)
 * Prophet's Path
 * Minotaurs - (better farmed in Elona Reach (Mission) - either avoid the traps near the start or go with 105 hp, Mending or Watchful Healing.)

Factions:
13 current bosses


 * Bukdek Byway
 * Kenshi Steelhand - Medium (Huge mob, higher chance of interrupts)
 * Jin, the Purifier


 * Wajjun Bazaar
 * Lian, Dragon's Petal - (try to pull as many nearby enemies as you can)
 * Shen, the Magistrate


 * Xaquang Skyway
 * Ghial the Bone Dancer - (Mending is recommended due to his use of Faintheartedness)
 * Orosen, Tranquil Acolyte - Pull his and the other two mobs in range; otherwise he can outheal your damage even if you use Aftershock.


 * Mount Qinkai
 * Hukhrah Earthslove
 * Arrahhsh Mountainclub - (only if the quest Return of the Yeti is active)
 * Chehbaba Roottripper
 * Tomton Spiriteater
 * These four Yeti Bosses can be done in one run with Watchful Healing to counter Poison and Glyph of Elemental Power to speed up killing.


 * Pongmei Valley
 * Arrahhsh Mountainclub - (Glyph of Elemental Power is recommended)


 * Archipelagos
 * Ssyn Coiled Grasp - Medium/Hard (Dazing will cause you to get interrupted frequently. To avoid this, use Glyph of Concentration for all of your spells. 105hp is also needed.)


 * Morostav Trail
 * Strongroot Tanglebranch (Watchful Healing is advised.)

Nightfall:
9 current bosses


 * Marga Coast
 * Bubahl Icehands - (Watchful Healing is recommended due to the Kuskale Blighters' use of Rotting Flesh)


 * Yatendi Canyons
 * Hajok Earthguardian (Insect)


 * The Floodplain of Mahnkelon
 * Jerneh Nightbringer - Hard (Avoid the corsairs on the way, they can kill you. Also attempt to cast your already maintained enchantments to set off the Ridgeback Kuskales' Agonizing Chop and the Beast Sworn Hekets' Disrupting Lunge. Watchful Healing is recommended due to his use of Rotting Flesh.)


 * Resplendent Makuun
 * Jishol Darksong - (To counter Blazing Finale, go with 105hp and Watchful Healing.)


 * The Mirror of Lyss
 * Riktund the Vicious - (105 hp is recommended. Watchful Healing is recommended due to the Cobalt Shriekers' use of Blazing Finale. Also gather the Rock Beetle and Rain Beetle because they have a very high attack rate.)
 * Yammiron, Ether Lord - Hard/Very Hard (105 hp is a must. Use the same setup as for Riktund the Vicious.  Be careful as to not aggro the Behemoth Gravebanes and Scytheclaw Behemoths due the massive degen they can cause with Suffering, Toxic Chill, and Wounding Strike.  This isn't for the faint of heart but there will be energy denial due the Roaring Ethers.  But this shouldn't be too much of a problem if they keep attacking you. Note that Roaring Ethers use Resurrection Signet.)


 * The Hidden City of Ahdashim
 * Shakor Firespear
 * Leilon, Tranquil Water
 * Yammirvu, Ether Guardian - Very Hard
 * To kill these go with 105hp and bring Watchful Healing against Burning. Switch out Glyph of Concentration for Glyph of Elemental Power.


 * Domain of Secrets
 * Exuro Flatus - Don't even need Healing Hands. Take Shockwave if you have it, else any other non-elite suitable earth skill.

Attributes and Skills

 * The Attributes listed above can be changed to fit your reaction time and/or computer speed. Because you only have about one second to click on SOA, the build above helps extend that time needed to click on it again. If your computer's (or your) reaction speed is not the best go with the current build. On the other side, if you are fast and your computer is as well, you can lower the Divine Favor down a point and add on to Earth Magic.


 * The most common choice for the optional slots is Essence Bond and Aftershock or Watchful Spirit (or any other regeneration skill). See the Variants section for other possibilities.

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor is recommended for a larger energy pool, max armor is not needed.


 * You will need five superior runes - at least one in Protection Prayers and one in Divine Favor, as well as one in the headpiece (see below) - to bring your health down to 105, The -50 hp Grim Cesta from the Cities of Ascalon quest is not needed, but can be used if you like.


 * Aquire two scalp designs, one for Protection Prayers with a Superior Protection Prayers and another for Divine Favor. (Note that both headpieces must have a superior rune) This is needed to achieve 15 Divine Favor to strengthen the power of Blessed Aura. This will be described more in the next section (Usage)


 * Any weapon / staff with an "Enchantments last 20% longer" modifier is needed. The Totem Axe and Rajazan's Fervor are common choices but any staff with the "Enchantments last 20% longer" mod will work as well. Kepkhet's Refuge is very useful if you are playing the 105 hp variant, as the halved casting and recharge can be very effective if it affects Sliver Armor or Shield of Absorption.


 * Hukhrah's Staff (or any other staff of Mastery in Divine Favor) is also helpful. This will also be explained in the Usage section.

Usage

 * First cast Balthazar's Spirit for energy gain.


 * Before you cast Blessed Aura, switch out your Protection Prayers scalp for the Divine Favor one bringing your Divine Favor up to 15. Cast Blessed Aura and then switch back to the Protection Prayers scalp, bringing your Protection Prayers back up to 14.


 * If you are using Hukhrah's Staff, equip it at the same time as the Divine Favor headpiece. Cast and re-cast Blessed Aura as many times as needed for the Divine Favor boost to kick in.


 * When all of the enchantments are cast start your run to your target. Before entering battle, cast Protective Spirit and Shield of Absorption. Keep them up at all times.


 * Aggro your enemies. You must continue to maintain Protective Spirit and Shield of Absorption; if the mobs contain interrupters, you will have to use Glyph of Concentration before SoA (which will always match exactly because of the recharge time).


 * To start damaging enemies activate Sliver Armor after Glyph of Concentration and SoA.


 * To avoid breaking aggro, hit the enemy targeted by Sliver Armor from time to time.

Counters

 * If Glyph of concentration gets interrupted and SoA afterwards gets interrupted, too, you will have to survive by healing with the Divine Favor bonus from spamming Protective Spirit. This can be really hard as you are going to aggro a lot of mobs to deal best possible damage with Sliver Armor.


 * Anything that counters a normal invincible monk will counter this one. These include health degeneration (to a certain point), enchantment removal, and damage that bypasses Protective Spirit.

Variants

 * Switch Balthazar's Spirit for Essence Bond, or put it in the optional slot. You should bring Blessed Signet if you do this to speed up energy regeneration, though when there are plenty of targets around attacking you (such as when farming Ghial the Bone Dancer) this becomes less necessary.


 * Mending, Watchful Spirit and Watchful Healing can help if you expect degeneration or monsters that can interrupt glyphs (e.g. Jade Brotherhood Mesmers if you are hexed).


 * If you are not afraid of being interrupted, swap out Glyph of Concentration for Glyph of Elemental Power or Glyph of Renewal.


 * Zealot's Fire and Shield of Judgment will both do constant damage; but due to the low smiting prayers, will not do much damage. If you bring Zealot's Fire, you must time when you cast your spells so there is at least a three second gap between them or your opponents will scatter. If you bring Shield of Judgment your energy flow will be slightly slowed, because the enemies will be knocked down and therefore attack you less often. This results in less activation of Balthazar's Spirit (or Essence Bond) and less damage dealing through Sliver Armor.


 * Fill the optional slot with any of the other skills mentioned on the Invincible Monk page. (Those mentioned above are some of the more important and/or useful skills found on that page.)


 * You can replace Shield of Absorption for Stoneflesh Aura, this will give you more room for error with casting time.


 * Also, Shield of Regeneration works if you time it right, as it will give you a +8...10 health regen as long as either Mending or Watchful Spirit is in the other optional slot


 * Shielding Hands is an easy way to avoid vulnerabilitiy if SoA can't be recast in time.

Using Spirit Bond
If you wanted to farm areas with health degeneration or life steal, the following build can be used. With the defensive power of SoA, and the massive healing from Spirit Bond, you can solo more bosses in more areas. This build uses the same attributes as the one listed above.

Armor:
 * Lowest armor, AL 15 or Starter armor will do.
 * 2 head pieces (as listed above) one for Divine Favor, one for Protection. Switch out when casting Blessed Aura.
 * One Vigor rune (the best you can afford) and the rest with Vitae ones (+10 health)

Weapons:
 * It is not needed, but recommended to acquire a -1 energy regeneration +15 energy offhand for either Protection, Divine Favor, or Earth Magic. This will help with the large amount of energy that will be used with this variant build.
 * Any weapon/off-hand can be used, as long as it does not subtract health.
 * Staves may be used as well if you like.

Usage:
 * The usage is the same as above with the following variant:
 * Cast Spirit Bond immediately after SoA to regain the Health lost until SoA has set the damage taken to 0. Also use Spirit Bond to recover from Degen.
 * Depending on degeneration keep Spirit Bond up as well as SoA and Prot. Spirit (which still have higher priority than Spirit Bond), but remember not to recast Spirit Bond before it has ended.

Bosses: (this variant build may also be used to solo all of the bosses listed below these)


 * Sun, the Quivering - Google Video
 * Xuekao, the Deceptive
 * Chung, the Attuned

Prophecies:
2 current mobs


 * Skyward Reach
 * Hydras - (due to the reduced number of enemies in this area, additional offensive skills such as Shield of Judgment are recommended)
 * Prophet's Path
 * Minotaurs - (better farmed in Elona Reach (Mission) - either avoid the traps near the start or go with 105 hp, Mending or Watchful Healing, additional damage is also suggested)

Factions:
15 current bosses


 * Bukdek Byway
 * Kenshi Steelhand - Medium (Huge mob, higher chance of interrupts)
 * Jin, the Purifier


 * Wajjun Bazaar
 * Lian, Dragon's Petal - (try to pull as many nearby enemies as you can)
 * Shen, the Magistrate


 * Xaquang Skyway
 * Ghial the Bone Dancer - (Mending is recommended due to his use of Faintheartedness)
 * Orosen, Tranquil Acolyte - Pull his and the other two mobs in range; otherwise he can outheal your damage even if you use Aftershock.


 * Mount Qinkai
 * Hukhrah Earthslove
 * Arrahhsh Mountainclub - (only if the quest Return of the Yeti is active)
 * Chehbaba Roottripper
 * Tomton Spiriteater
 * These four Yeti Bosses can easily be done in one run with 105hp, Glyph of Renewal instead of Glyph of Concentration and Watchful Healing to counter Poison.


 * Pongmei Valley
 * Arrahhsh Mountainclub - (Glyph of Renewal is recommended)


 * Maishang Hills
 * Sessk, Woe Spreader - (Bring along Watchful Spirit and Mending to counter Degeneration and Spam Protective Spirit for health gain. Oni may appear, but run past them. Interrupts are frequent while soloing him)


 * Archipelagos
 * Ssyn Coiled Grasp - Medium/Hard (Dazing will cause you to get interrupted frequently. To avoid this, use Glyph of Concentration for both Sliver Armor and SoA. 105hp is also needed.)


 * The Eternal Grove
 * The Scar Eater - Medium/Luck (Bring along Glyph of Elemental Power or Glyph of Renewal to speed up the killing. Bring Smite Hex or Spell Breaker as well, in case of Oni spawn. Regeneration Skills to counter Poison and Bleeding. This boss can only be soloed if the mobs around don't contain Skill Hungry Gakis as they create spirits of Disenchantment.)


 * Morostav Trail
 * Strongroot Tanglebranch (Watchful Spirit and Glyph of Renewal are advised.)

Nightfall:
10 current bosses


 * Marga Coast
 * Bubahl Icehands - (Watchful Healing is recommended due to the Kuskale Blighters' use of Rotting Flesh)
 * Chor the Bladed - (Watchful Healing and Mending are recommended due to the Mirage Ibogas' use of Conjure Phantasm and Crippling Anguish)


 * Yatendi Canyons
 * Hajok Earthguardian (Insect) - (Spell Breaker will make the way to him easier)


 * The Floodplain of Mahnkelon
 * Jerneh Nightbringer - Hard (Avoid the corsairs on the way, they can kill you. Also attempt to cast your already maintained enchantments to set off the Ridgeback Kuskales' Agonizing Chop and the Beast Sworn Hekets' Disrupting Lunge. Mending is recommended due to his use of Rotting Flesh.)


 * Resplendent Makuun
 * Jishol Darksong - (To counter Blazing Finale, go with 105hp and Watchful Healing.)


 * The Mirror of Lyss
 * Riktund the Vicious - (105 hp is recommended. Watchful Healing is recommended due to the Cobalt Shriekers' use of Blazing Finale. Also gather the Rock Beetle and Rain Beetle because they have a very high attack rate.)
 * Yammiron, Ether Lord - Hard/Very Hard (105 hp is a must. Use the same setup as for Riktund the Vicious.  Don't aggro the Behemoth Gravebanes and Scytheclaw Behemoths due the massive degen they can cause.  There will be energy denial due the Roaring Ethers.  But this shouldn't be too much of a problem if they keep attacking you. Note that Roaring Ethers use Resurrection Signet.)


 * The Hidden City of Ahdashim
 * Shakor Firespear
 * Leilon, Tranquil Water
 * Yammirvu, Ether Guardian - Very Hard
 * To kill these go with 105hp and bring Regeneration Skills or Condition removal against Burning. Switch out Glyph of Concentration for Glyph of Renewal.

Videos

 * Lian, Dragon's Petal - Google Video
 * Hajok Earthgaurdian - Google Video
 * Ghial the Bone Dancer - Google Video
 * Orosen, Tranquil Acolyte - Google Video
 * Ssyn Coiled Grasp - Google Video
 * Tomton Spiriteater - Google Video
 * Chehbaba Roottripper - Youtube Video
 * Chor the Bladed - Google Video
 * Riktund the Vicious - Google Video
 * Strongroot Tanglebranch - YouTube Video
 * Bubahl Icehands - YouTube Video
 * The Scar Eater - YouTube Video
 * Hukhrah Earthslove - Google Video
 * Jishol Darksong - Google Video
 * The Hidden City of Ahdashim: Shakor Firespear &  Leilon, Tranquil Water &  Yammirvu, Ether Guardian -YouTube Video

Note: All videos have been created BEFORE the latest update when SoA still had a casting time of 1/4 second!

Templates
Spirit Bond Variant

Equipment

 * Any weapon will do, a weapon that lengthens enchantments is recommended (such as a Totem Axe, Rajazan's Fervor or a Staff with Staff Wrapping Of Enchanting).
 * Any armor can be used, as long as it has maximum AL. However, most PvE healers prefer armor with Radiant Insignias.
 * Runes of Minor Divine Favor, Superior Protection Prayers, Superior Vigor

Usage

 * For minor heals, try to maintain an ally's health using Reversal of Fortune and Dismiss Condition.
 * Allies taking heavy damage should be enchanted with Protective Spirit.
 * Aegis should be used to defend the party. You should always precast Glyph of Lesser Energy before casting this.
 * Spamming Dismiss Condition on party members enchanted with Aegis provides excellent healing.
 * Use Glyph of Lesser Energy to remove the energy cost for your more expensive spells.
 * Prevent party wipes and resurrect allies to a safe location with Rebirth. Because it drains all of your energy, avoid using this skill in battle.
 * Remove harmful Hexes with Holy Veil.

Counters

 * Diversion is a major counter to this build.
 * Interrupts or anti-spamming spells hinder your output of healing spells.

Variants

 * Rebirth can be replaced with another resurrection spell of your choice, although this is the preferred spell in PvE. Resurrection skills can be replaced entirely if your party has other members that can Resurrect.
 * Shield of Absorption can replace Holy Veil or Rebirth.
 * For a different type of Condition removal, at the expense of the extra healing while under Aegis, consider taking Mend Condition or Mend Ailment.
 * Signet of Devotion can be used for an energy-free heal.

= Build:Mo/Me Barrier Bond Monk =

This is a versatile protection monk build to use if there is another healing monk in the party. It is primarily designed for PvE.

Equipment
Usually, monks should avoid using runes that reduce hit points. It is very important for a monk to have as much health as possible, thus being able to take more hits before going down. However, in most situations, the Life Bond monk does not get involved in combat, as the enchantments can be maintained from a greater distance than is needed to cast them. The bonder will usually stay as far behind the healing monk as the monks and casters stay away from the warriors. Normally a bonder will use one major or superior rune to boost either Protection or Divine Favor.

For elementalist-heavy areas use the chest piece with elemental resistance. For melee-heavy areas use the physical resistance chest piece and pants. Always use tattoos on hands and feet for extra energy.

Good equipment for this build will be anything that increases energy and anything with a +1 divine favor chance of 20%. Use of +1 items will not change the optimal skill allocations in the table below. No other mods available will be of much use to a bonder as all fast cast and recharge items effect spells only and blessed signet is not a spell. Good options include:


 * The Soulstone
 * Noss' Artifact
 * Rual's Focus

The Soulstone and Noss' Artifact also provide extra HP when enchanted. Rual's Focus provides the same amount of health while in a stance, Mantra of Inscriptions being a stance that will almost always be up.


 * Flint's Wand is a good, cheap way to get cold damage and 5 more energy. (Cold damage is useful when in a party with a necro that has Spinal Shivers, e.g. Sorrow's Furnace Farm.)

Kepkhet's Refuge or The Yakslapper are also a fairly good options, providing extra energy. However they do not increase rank in any skill.

Usage

 * Life Barrier + Life Bond are used on the tank(s) in the party to reduce the amount of damage they are taking and allow them to more effectively deal out damage. Life Barrier should be cast first, followed by Life Bond. Also, depending upon proficiency you should also bond the other members of your party with this priority: Non-Tanks taking damage, melee attackers, Monks, others.


 * Balthazar's Spirit and Blessed Signet are for energy management. Balthazar's is to be cast on yourself. Whenever damage is redirected to you from Life Bond, you still get +1 energy from Balthazar's Spirit, even if Life Bond reduces the damage to 0. The energy gained from these skills can often outstrip the energy degeneration from maintaining multiple enchantments. During a large battle, it is possible to maintain 12+ total enchantments, with Life Bond on every character, plus Life Barrier on the tank(s).


 * Mantra of Inscriptions is used to keep your signets recharging quickly.


 * Rebirth is generally the resurrection spell of choice for PvE. Party members often die in dangerous areas and would easily be killed again if resurrected at the place they died.  Rebirth can be used to teleport the body to the caster's safe location. Be warned however that using Rebirth will cause the caster to have 0 energy, which will make any maintained enchantments over the energy regen rate (usually 4) drop. The bonder should only use Rebirth if there is no other way of bringing a party member back up.


 * Ether Signet is a backup plan for when your energy drops under 8 and blessed signet isn't recharged.

Variants
The most commonly used skills are Life Barrier, Life Bond, Mantra of Inscriptions, Balthazar's Spirit, Blessed Signet, and Rebirth. This leaves two open skill slots, shown above as optional to use on utility spells and several options have been listed here:


 * For a more passive monk, use Watchful Spirit for regeneration and spike heals while remaining safely outside of spell range. Note that Watchful Spirit does not require any points in Healing for its Healing over time and makes for a great cover enchantment in areas where the enemies use enchantment removals.
 * Aegis and Guardian are excellent utility skills as well and can also serve as cover enchantments in areas with high enchantment removal. When using Aegis, Blessed Aura can be added to extend the duration of Aegis.  This leaves the bonder without self healing, so do this only if you are confident the healing monk can handle the load.
 * Vital Blessing can be used to great effect in small groups, where maintaining more than three enchantments on each party member is possible. Since Vital Blessing adds its health to the target's current health this can also serve as an emergency heal but if the enchantment is shattered or removed this can result in instant death.
 * Inspired Hex is an excellent utility skill to add to an open slot for this build. Besides the obvious benefits of hex removal it can also return energy.  This is most useful in areas where foes cast Rust or Ignorance so that Blessed Signet can continually be recast.
 * Signet of Devotion is a good direct healing spell which can be used on the bonder themselves or on other casters. Bonders use this skill to cover health lost through Life Bond as well as to help allied necromancers cover life sacrifice costs.  It costs no energy and benefits from Mantra of Inscriptions.
 * Reversal of Fortune can serve as a cover enchantment in areas where enchantment removal is prevalent as well as to provide supplemental healing for the group. When used as a healing skill the energy cost can be quite high because to heal effectively it must be cast several times in a row.  This also requires the bonder to be within spell range of the target being healed.  Despite these drawbacks this skill can be used to great effect in areas where aggro can be drawn to a single character.
 * Mend Condition can be put to good use in this build, especially if you have great Aggro control, resulting in not needing to remove conditions on yourself. Then, you would probably be using Mend Ailment, which has a slightly longer recharge time, and is inconsistent with the healing bonus.
 * Dismiss Condition may also be utilised effectively with almost guarenteed bonus healing due to the fact that it heals extra if the ally has an enchantment on him.
 * Life Attunement can be used to buff the bonders healing skills when no healing monk is available. This is also an excellent enchantment to maintain on tanks to make healing easier.
 * Early Prophecies variations: It's possible to run this build relatively early in the Prophecies campaign. Once Beetletun is reached, Blessed Signet can be captured, Life Barrier is found just outside of Beacon's Perch and Balthazar's Spirit and Life Bond are available from trainers.  Other skills need to be adapted for such an early-game build.  Vital Blessing, Inspired Hex, Guardian, Reversal of Fortune, and Signet of Devotion are all available at this point via quests and/or skill trainers.

Inspiration Magic vs. Divine Favor
Both Inspiration Magic and Divine Favor govern energy gain, and by extension the number of bonds that can be maintained. The trade-off presented here is between energy gain on use of Blessed Signet and the number of times Blessed Signet can be used. Since this is a protection build the table has been limited to high levels of Protection Prayers, it also assumes that a Superior Rune of Divine Favor is used as well. The optimal values are in bold. Simply select a desired level of Protection Prayers and use these values to optimize energy gain from Blessed Signet and Mantra of Inscriptions. Take note that neither type of +1 chance 20% item, Inspiration Magic or Divine Favor, will have an effect on the optimal attribute levels shown here.

= Build:Mo/Me Blessed Light Bond Monk =

Having Blessed Light as multi-purpose skill, this bonder sacrifices some energy management for better Hex and Condition removal via use of Blessed Light. The unconditional heal and increased self-healing make it very sustainable.

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor or Acolyte's Armor
 * Any weapon or focus item with 20/20 recharge on Divine Favor spells.
 * Any weapon or focus item with +1/20 chance on increased Divine Favor when using skills.

Usage
This build is played similiarly to any other bonding build.
 * Start by casting Life Bond on 4 members of the party. Then use Mantra of Inscriptions.
 * Follow up with Blessed Signet.
 * Cast Life Bond on the rest of the party and Balthazar's Spirit on yourself.
 * While your party is in combat, so long as they take physical damage, you will have a very steady supply of energy.
 * If your energy supply is high, use Blessed Light to remove hexes and conditions while healing your target.
 * Otherwise for healing your party, use Signet of Devotion.
 * Replace Life Bond as quickly as possible if removed.
 * When a party member is low on life, use Reversal of Fortune first, then Blessed Light for a quick and effective heal.
 * Use Blessed Signet whenever you are down to half of your energy. Keep Mantra of Inscriptions up all the time.
 * Self-sustained you can support Life Bond on up to 9 characters.

Counters

 * Ignorance is a major counter to this build.
 * Energy denial / skill denial / enchantment removal.
 * Damage spikes can render you helpless, especially if you're caught casting Blessed Signet.
 * Hexes like Rust can be devastating if not removed properly.

Variants

 * You may wish to replace Resurrect with a different resurrection skill such as Resurrection Signet, Sunspear Rebirth Signet, or even Light of Dwayna.

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor (or comparable armor) is recommended due to the need for a high energy pool.
 * Any weapon combination that lowers casting and recharge times of Protection Prayers will work well with this build. A couple of suggestions are:
 * Kepkhet's Refuge
 * Jayne's Staff
 * Several Runes of Attunement are suggested due to the need for a high energy pool.

Usage

 * Try to maintain Life Bond on as many party members as possible. Check allies frequently to see if anybody has had Life Bond removed, and re-apply if necessary. When energy drain becomes too burdensome, it may become necessary to remove bonds from party members and re-apply later.
 * Before battle, cast Mantra of Inscriptions and Scribe's Insight. Try to maintain these skills at all times.
 * Use Blessed Signet frequently, i.e. whenever it has recharged to mitigate energy loss due to bonds.
 * Use Reversal of Fortune and Shield of Absorption on party members who are under attack to help further mitigate damage.
 * Use Dismiss Condition for Condition Removal as well as a cheap heal.
 * Use Signet of Devotion as a no-cost heal. Note that Signet of Devotion will actually result in a net energy gain of three due to Scribe's Insight.

Counters

 * Energy Denial
 * Massive Enchantment Removal
 * Areas With High Amounts Of Elemental-Only Damage

Variants
The bonder can be a very personal build, with many, many variations.


 * Consider replacing Scribe's Insight with Signet of Removal for a relatively spammable, no cost condition and hex removal.
 * As long as you are careful about energy, Zealous Benediction will also work as a replacement for Scribe's Insight

Equipment

 * Full Ascetic's armor for a maximal energy pool.
 * 5 Superior runes, at least 1 Superior Protection Prayers and 1 Superior Divine Favor.
 * A Scythe with a 20% enchantment mod with the "I Have The Power" +5 energy inscription or similar bonus.

Usage
This build uses SOA and PS to tank and the Scythe's ability to attack more than one target, even with Illusionary Weaponry.
 * Use the maintained enchantments first. Switch to a +1 Divine Favor head gear when using Blessed Aura and keep using the +1 Protection Prayers head gear for fighting/tanking.
 * Before aggroing, cast PS>AV>SOA (Keep a Visage up at ALL times during an aggro).
 * Take the aggro and watch out for the nightmare. use power return to interrupt the spell cast by it and wand it with a backup staff/wand.
 * If a second nightmare pops, interrupt one and wand the second. if you die from the second nightmare, bad luck and try again.
 * When the aggro is under control and the mob has 0 energy and no adrenaline, cast IW and begin to slash away with the scythe. Make sure you attack the monster in the middle of the mob to hit the two beside it.
 * When dealing with mobs of 4+, just attack the same target until it is dead and the scythe will take care of the surrounding mob. If smites break, they will spam Reversal of Fortune, but DON'T WORRY, they won't be able to keep spamming it long enough to fully heal another smite.
 * If one smite won't die, switch to another smite.
 * Avoid coldfires at all times, this build has no way to kill them as interruption and slow is a pain.
 * You can counter the Dying Nightmares by just aggroing the Aatxe's and running behind the dead spirits the Aatxe won't hit you any more but the Dying Nightmares will use Rend Enchantments so you won't need to worry because the Aatxe's won't be hitting and you will just need to reenchant yourself and kill.

Counters

 * Death is a stand out counter.
 * A second nightmare popping up without you noticing, resulting in death.
 * Miscasting SOA, resulting in a death.
 * Bleeding at the beginning as it may degenerate your health quickly at 105 hp, resulting in death.
 * The recent changes to the skills Rend Enchantments and Shield of Absorption may have a significant effect on this builds stability. SoA is now fair game for Bladed Aatxe's interrupts, and Dying Nightmares are even more of a threat now with a 1 second cast time to Rend. More testing will be needed.(I suggest switching soa for Shielding Hands) resulting in death.

Attributes and Skills
Please see the Variants below.

Equipment

 * A Smiting Rod from Ornhelm Brightaxe or Arliss Vaughn.
 * A Jeweled Chalice from Mourn Drakespur or Bariel Darkroot.
 * Wanderer's or Censor's armor; Ascetic's is not recommended due to its lower AL and the fact that this build doesn't need the bonus energy.
 * Rune of Superior Vigor.
 * Extra runes of Attunement or Vitae.

Usage

 * Activate Mantra of Signets before battle.
 * In general, use skills in this order: Signet of Judgment, Bane Signet, Banish. Timing is important; try to keep the target constantly knocked down.
 * If the foe is a melee attacker, you may wish to lead with Bane Signet instead, and save Signet of Judgment for a caster foe.
 * Dangerous spellcasters are easily denied by leading with Leech Signet.
 * Interrupt with Leech Signet and Power Drain as necessary.
 * Use Smite Hex and Drain Enchantment as necessary.
 * Reactivate Mantra of Signets as soon as it recharges.
 * If there are spirits/minions, use Banish. It deals much higher damage to them.

Counters

 * This build can't (directly) heal itself or deal with Conditions, except for Ether Feast.
 * Any anti-Signet skill, such as Rust or Panic. However the latter is rare, and the former is easily counter-countered with Smite Hex, Inspired Hex, simple interruption, etc.
 * Anti-knockdown skills or foes that can't be knocked down.
 * Removal of Mantra of Signets via Wild Blow or such.

Variants

 * Ether Feast is a convenient self-heal that is worth considering.
 * Mantra of Inscriptions could replace Mantra of Signets, for a possibly better DPS and interrupt recharge; however, it doesn't allow for easy chain knockdowns.
 * If in an area where Smite Hex and/or Drain Enchantment are not needed, replace with Resurrect, Symbol of Wrath, or Smite.
 * If facing only Hexes, exchange Drain Enchantment for Inspired Hex.
 * If facing only Enchantments, exchange Smite Hex for Inspired Hex.
 * If facing primarily non-caster enemies, drop Power Drain and take both Mantra of Signets and Mantra of Inscriptions. Or swap in Resurrect, Symbol of Wrath, or Smite.
 * When appropriate, consider substituting in a Mantra. For example, versus the Mursaat, Mantra of Lightning may be useful.
 * Holy Strike is a dangerous but powerful skill. It is not recommended, because in most cases it is not worth the risk to get within touch range of foes.
 * If you have Factions, consider replacing Banish with Spear of Light.

Template


= Build:Mo/Me PvE WoH Monk =

This is a versatile healing build to use throughout the Prophecies campaign.

Equipment

 * For mage heavy areas use the Wanderer's vestments. For melee heavy areas use the vestments and leggings from the Judge's Armor set. Use Ascetic's Armor for the hands and feet.
 * Major or superior runes are generally a bad idea (except for vigor).

Usage
This is a versatile healing monk for use in most PvE situations. Some tweaking may be necessary, but this build includes many monk essentials: healing power, hex removal, condition removal, and a resurrection spell. Hex removal and condition removal can usually be swapped out if the particular area this monk is being used in is low on hexes/conditions.
 * Healing Touch is for self heals and should never be used on melee party members since monks should always stay at the back lines to avoid getting beat on. As an alternative, Heal Area is a good self healing spell that is also useful in a team with a Necro MM.
 * Word of Healing is a very nice spell used in emergencies when party members' health drops below 50%. Primary healing skill in this build.
 * Dwayna's Kiss should always be used on hexed and enchanted party members. Kiss is preferred over Orison of Healing for the hefty bonus gained with hexes and enchantments.
 * Orison of Healing as a basic healing spell for other team members when Word of Healing is recharging. Also acts as a backup self heal if Healing Touch is disabled or additional self-healing is needed.
 * Heal Party is very useful for areas with heavy health degeneration such as poison, burning or disease. Often attempts to mend these degeneration conditions can be futile with cases such as poison swamps or mobs spamming condition inducing spells across many party members. Healing Seed may be substituted for Heal Party if the party is warrior heavy.
 * Condition removal is essential and should always be included in a monk's skillbar. Mend Ailment can be used on self and others, making it an easy choice. An alternative to Mend Ailment is Mend Condition, which has the big advantage of having only 2 seconds recharge time. With the release of Nightfall, Dismiss Condition is a good alternative with a 3s recharge and bonus heal for enchanted allies, as well as being usable on youself.
 * Hex removal is another necessity since some hexes can shut down a character completely. If harmful hexes such as Backfire are placed on monks in the party and none are carrying hex removal they are useless for the duration of the hex and can often cause the downfall of a party. Inspired Hex / Revealed Hex has the advantage of giving the monk energy back if a hex is removed.
 * Rebirth is the resurrection spell of choice for PvE, hands down. Party members often die in dangerous areas and would easily be killed again if resurrected at the place they died.  Rebirth teleports the body to the caster's safe location. Be warned as this skill consumes your total remaining energy, do not use in combat.

Variants

 * In high level areas drop either Orison of Healing or Dwayna's Kiss and replace it with Protective Spirit. This helps to keep softer targets alive long enough to heal them while under heavy fire.  When doing this drop Healing Prayers down to 11+1+1 and put the remaining points into Protection Prayers.
 * If playing a pure Factions character, you may wish to switch out:
 * Inspired Hex for Revealed Hex.
 * Dwayna's Kiss for Signet of Rejuvenation.
 * To gain more frequent hex removal in exchange for poorer energy management, replace Inspired Hex with Remove Hex. Additionally, this change enables you to use the AP from Inspiration Magic elsewhere, and use the build with a non-Mesmer secondary.
 * Since no enchantments are used, an alternative for Mend Ailment is Holy Haste. Your skills will become practically uninterruptible due to the really fast casting time.
 * Healing Seed is extremely potent in right situations. However, its long recharge requires you to use it wisely.
 * Holy Veil can be used but is not nearly as effective for energy management as Inspired Hex.

Template


= Build:Mo/Me Tank Bonder =

Built on the Mo/Me Barrier Bond Monk but instead of using Life Barrier for protection, Protective Bond is used to prohibit damage spikes to tanks and any damage to the bonder. This build has been designed with Underworld foes in mind.

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor for larger energy pool.
 * Weapon and Focus of choice.

Usage

 * Cast Protective Bond, Life Bond and Essence Bond on the tank(s) or probable targets in the party (recommended 3) to reduce the amount of damage they are taking and prevent spikes. NOTE: Protective Bond first will result in you taking no damage, Life Bond first will lower the amount of times Protective Bond is needed, so less energy demand, but bonder may take damage.
 * Cast Life Bond on a couple of party members who are grabbing aggro.
 * Cast Balthazar's Spirit on yourself to receive energy every time Life Bond protects an ally.
 * Mantra of Inscriptions is used to keep your signets recharging quickly. Maintain it.
 * Blessed Signet and Boon Signet are for energy management.
 * Rebirth is for restarting the team in case of wipeout.

Variations

 * Take a risk that the enemy won't wipe out the whole team, and take Dismiss Condition or Revealed Hex instead of Rebirth.
 * Bring Ether Signet instead of Essence Bond if you plan to cast Life Bond primarily, then Protective Bond maybe just once or twice.
 * Replace Boon Signet with Mantra of Recall (if only chapter owned is Prophecies).
 * Replace Boon Signet with Scribe's Insight (if lacking Factions but own Nightfall).

Counters

 * Enchantment removal.
 * Energy denial.
 * Constant powerful attacks which will drain away energy needed for Protective Bond.
 * Health degeneration without another monk to mend.

Armor
It is essential to wear infused armor for the run to Marhan's Grotto or Thunderhead Keep where many Mursaat and Jades with Spectral Agony would instantly kill you without Infusion. Other than that, consider the following armor types for additional protection:
 * Acolyte's Armor for its +10 armor (while enchanted) bonus.
 * Wanderer's Armor for its +10 armor (vs. elemental damage) bonus.

Weapons
A weapon with 20% longer Enchantments is essential for lengthening the duration of Spell Breaker, and shortening the recast gap between 2x Spell Breaker. Divine Favor Skill Recharge bonus is helpful but not strictly required for this build to work. Options:
 * A weapon such as Gardock's Staff offers 20% Skill Recharge for Divine Favor and 20% longer enchantments.
 * A Totem Axe or a Rajazan's Fervor and the Divine Symbol from collector Cinder Linnwood in the Diviner's Ascent
 * The weaponsmiths Gertrud (Vasburg Armory) and Telamon (Leviathan Pits) also craft the same item.
 * There are also many other Divine Symbols available throughout the campaigns that provide beneficial bonuses.
 * A Holy Staff obtained from collector Rylan Paval in Skyward Reach, upgraded with:
 * a perfect Insightful Staff Head (+5)
 * a perfect Staff Wrapping of Enchanting (20%)

Usage
Maintain the following casting orders when running.

Enchantment Sequence

 * Activate Blessed Aura and Watchful Spirit (in this order).

Note: Watchful Spirit, though providing only a Health recovery of +2, can quick-heal you for 160 Hit Points (12 Divine Favor) or even 190 (Divine Favor of 16) when canceled by double-clicking on it. Recover your Energy bar after that. Therefore, in emergency situations (Avicara Rangers, Jade Bows) cancel this skill, if you need immediate health. Blessed Aura helps keep up Spell Breaker - your only insurance of not dying right away.

Running Sequence

 * Activate Serpent's Quickness, Spell Breaker, and Storm Chaser (in this order).

Note #1: With Serpent's Quickness you initate your running sequence. It will give Spell Breaker a minimal advantage to recover faster. Try to keep up Spell Breaker at any given moment. Blessed Aura (supported by your weapon with +20% longer enchantments), and Serpent's Quickness guarantee that Spell Breaker will get recharged within 18,5 secs or less if you delay the activation of Storm Chaser (which cancels Serpent's Quickness' Quick-Recharge-Skill ability) (See Bug: Serpent's Quickness under Specific Hints No. #6). Eventually, Storm Chaser will boost your speed for 18 secs, the same period of time Spell Breaker is being active (with Divine Favor of 16). If there aren't any Hex-casting enemies on your route, you, of course, are free not to use Spell Breaker.

Note #2: As soon as Spell Breaker fades away, recast it, and use Storm Chaser again. You can do the Running Sequence twice, without a gap between 2x Spell Breaker.

Variants

 * It is possible to use Dryder's Defenses instead of Dodge in order to start aggroing multiple Rangers (Jade Bows, etc.) since Dryder's Defenses is one of the evasion stances that is not tied to Expertise unlike Dodge.
 * Zojun's Haste can replace Dodge, as it is a Factions duplicate skill.
 * Holy Veil can replace Smite Hex, as both are generally one-second cast Hex removal skills, and you will not have to stop to remove a hex if you pre-cast it where needed.
 * Divine Intervention for fatal situations can replace Smite Hex but be aware of the missing hex remover in emergency situations (unforeseen aggroing) where you simply aggroed enemies w/o Spell Breaker being active. Be aware of the long skill recharge of 30 secs.
 * Healing Touch can replace Smite Hex when in need of healing, but don't want to cancel Watchful Spirit. With 16 in divine and 3 in Healing Prayers, Healing Touch will heal for about 25+102 HP for the cost of 5 energy.
 * Dodge can also be replaced with other running skills, such as Storm's Embrace or Natural Stride.
 * For users with Nightfall, Purge Conditions can be replaced with Mending Touch.

Major Running Principles

 * 1) Don't aggro too many groups.
 * 2) Evade and choose a direct pass through groups.
 * 3) It's better to aggro one group than two, even if the one group is much bigger.
 * 4) Avoid boss aggroing, because bosses have a different aggro radius. They won't give up chasing you as easily as all the other non-boss characters.
 * 5) Take your time for regeneration of your Health and Energy.
 * 6) If you are a paid runner, run your routes secure rather than fast.

Specific Hints

 * 1) It is vital to keep up Spell Breaker as long as possible. With a 20% longer enchantment item, Serpent's Quickness and Blessed Aura you should be able to keep up Spellbreaker for at least twice  in a row.
 * 2) Use Dodge for encountering Jade Bows due to its Dodge abilities, or in emergency situations if Storm Chaser is not available or for short distance sprints.
 * 3) Make use of your high Divine Favor attribute to gain health by using skills that you may not need at the moment like: Purge Conditions, Smite Hex before thinking of canceling Watchful Spirit.
 * 4) Smite Hex is there for emergency anti-hex situations. (E.g. you aggroed an Ice Imp but did not notice...)
 * 5) Storm Chaser gives you much energy for elemental attacks. Though, do not start the running sequence with less than 30 Energy (5 + 15 + 10).
 * 6) Although Storm Chaser should cancel Serpent's Quickness, it is still active and recharges Storm Chaser 33% faster, so that you can use Storm Chaser immediately again (1 sec gap in-between).
 * 7) Sometimes it's useful (e.g. Iron Mines to Grotto) to recast your already used Watchful Spirit even while running, and immediately cancel it again to boost up your health. Pay attention to your Energy bar, though. Spellbreaker, and a running skill has the first casting priority.

Possible Routes
Note: The second route can be a 100% guaranteed run. Use henchmen for attacking the Pinesouls and therewith luring the Azure Shadows (keep calling your targets). Use Watchful Spirit and Divine Intervention whenever needed. Take the middle way.
 * 1) Deldrimor War Camp -> Granite Citadel -> Copperhammer Mines
 * 2) Copperhammer Mines -> Iron Mines of Moladune
 * 3) Iron Mines of Moladune -> Marhan's Grotto -> Thunderhead Keep

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor for a larger energy pool, with a +1 Smiting Prayers scalp design. You will need to upgrade your armor so as to bring your health down to 55 hp (as seen on this section of the Invincible Monk page).


 * Any Axe of Enchanting. The bonus must be +20%. Also, a +5 Energy modifier (or the inscription "I Have the Power") helps to increase the energy pool even more. The Totem Axe is a good choice for this. A two-handed weapon cannot be used or your health will be more than 55.


 * Consider bringing a scalp design that provides a bonus in Divine Favor and/or a staff of Mastery in Divine Favor.

Usage

 * First cast Blessed Aura. If you are using a Divine Favor headpiece and/or a staff of Mastery in Divine Favor, equip them now to maximize its effect. Note that if you are using a staff of Mastery, it may take multiple castings for the Divine Favor boost to kick in. Be sure to re-equip the Smiting Prayers scalp and your axe/offhand combo after you are satisfied with your cast.


 * Then cast Strength of Honor and Balthazar's Spirit. This will provide you with added melee damage, Adrenaline for your Lacerating Chop, and help your energy management.

Note: These three enchantments can be cast in any order according to preference.


 * After all of the enchantments are cast, head towards your enemies (but see Choosing Enemies, below).


 * Before entering battle cast Protective Spirit and Shield of Absorption. (You should do this no more than two seconds before you do the next step.)


 * Aggro your enemies. You must keep up Shield of Absorption (near-)continuously. Depending on how high your Divine Favor attribute was when you cast Blessed Aura, you can have as little as .5 seconds to recast it - or you may have as many as 1.85 seconds. Note that if you miss a recast by a few seconds, the health gained from the Divine Favor Attribute alone and combined with the damage reduction from Protective Spirit will help prevent death, but don't take your time about recasting it. (Be aware that larger mobs mean faster death in this situation.)


 * Use Shield of Judgment for damage and Knockdown.


 * Use Lacerating Chop and Cyclone Axe for damage. The steady supply of Adrenaline should help recharge your Lacerating Chop fast and if you pair it with the Knockdown effect of Shield of Judgment your target will start to bleed. A good strategy is cycling your targets for the Lacerating Chop thus getting more to suffer from Bleeding. Use the Cyclone Axe as long as your energy management is comfortable to strike all adjacent opponents.


 * Cycling targets is in generel a good idea - the longer you have the more enemies the better is your energy management and the adrenaline gain on which your Lacerating Chop thrives.

Counters

 * Enchantment removal can be deadly if it hits Protective Spirit and/or Shield of Absorption. Because Necromancers and Mesmers have so many skills to do this, avoid them.


 * Most health degeneration will also kill you as you only have the raw Divine Favor Attribute as your healing. Again, avoid places with Necromancers or Mesmers. (Note that minor health degeneration may not necessarily be deadly as you will heal yourself every time you cast a spell on yourself due to the healing bonus from the Divine Favor attribute.)


 * If Shield of Absorption is interrupted, you could be in trouble. You will have to last ten seconds with only the healing boost from casting Protective Spirit on yourself - although Protective Spirit has a five second recharge.

Variants

 * Healing Breeze is useful when killing foes that cause -3 (or greater) health degeneration.


 * Zealot's Fire can provide relatively consistent AoE damage; you must be cautious as to how you time your spells so that there is at least three seconds between each of them, or you will cause your enemies to scatter.


 * Consider bringing Judge's Insight if farming undead, but beware that it can strain your energy management.


 * Consider changing the Axe skills to something causing various Conditions or one causing Interrupt to make you better suited at farming bosses. If centering on bosses, as oppossed to a mass of enemies, it might also be an idea to trade the Shield of Judgment in for another elite. Either an aggressive one to increase your damage or something to protect you from the bosses skills or spells. It doesn't really matter about the adrenaline cost, as your adrenaline is virtually infinite.

Warrior
 * Bonetti's Defense - for energy and +75% chance to block attacks, making you more resistant to melee interrupts such as Savage Slash.
 * Balanced Stance - to resist knockdowns and therefore some interruptions

Choosing Enemies
Only certain enemies will be effectively damaged by this build. Enemies that are knocked down by Shield of Judgment are preferred even if they do scatter; enemies such as the Mountain Trolls at Talus Chute can be knocked down and therefore will be vulnerable to this build. It is also possible to take out a range of other groups in the Chute including the Blessed Griffons, the Azure Shadows and any group of Tengu as long as they have no Avicara Guile as they can strip your enchantments.

Before you use this or any other build with Shield of Judgment to farm monsters, do some research to see if they can be knocked down or not. Shield of Judgment can cause scatter but the use of melee damage might be off-setting. And the added DPS of this build decreases the problem of scattering as they often die before getting away, or at least that they do not have to attack you to receive damage as with the builds depending on the Shield of Judgment alone. Your axe is your main damage dealer.

This build is also useful, and somewhat faster than less aggressive 55hp builds, on those monster that cannot be knocked down, but you'll forego the Bleeding and might consider another Adrenaline Axe Mastery skill in place of Lacerating Chop.

Also, when considering choosing an area, try to find an area with abundant melee attackers, who will be drawn close to your and the range of your axe.

Armor

 * Acolyte's Armor for its +10 armor (while enchanted) bonus - you will be under enchantments almost 100% of the time of your run.

Runes

 * Rune of Major or Superior Vigor

Weapons
Two weapon sets are optimal for this run, so that you can switch while running. This, of course, depends more or less on your personal style of running. One set for high energy, and faster recharge, and one for running through groups of Tundra Giants.

Weapon Set #1

 * Gardock's Staff

Weapon Set #2

 * Totem Axe or Rajazan's Fervor


 * Grognar's Defender

Note: The 20% longer enchantment mod helps to keep up the life-saving skill Divine Intervention longer which can be helpful when running through groups having this skill up.

General
The Running Sequence provides an almost constant speed boost. It is not gap-less, that is to say, there is a short pause between one Sprint and "Charge!" cycle. The Divine Favor Cycle provides the best quick-healing, and the Hex-Countering Mechanism the best anti-hex measurements.

Running Sequence

 * Use Sprint, and "Charge!" for a speed boost of 25%. Sprint and "Charge!" together do stack for a total boost of 33%.
 * Use Balanced Stance to counter knockdowns by Frost Wurms, Ice Golems, Tundra Giants, and Azure Shadows.

Note: Balanced Stance cancels Sprint and vice versa, for they are both stances. Never use them simultaneously if you don't want to lose either of them. Balanced Stance should be used with "Charge!" instead. Balanced Stance will outlast "Charge!" by 8 secs. Use Balanced Stance, wait 4-8 secs and activate "Charge!". It is better to be quicker in escape than in approach due to the aggro/ deaggro behavior of the NPCs.

Divine Favor Cycle

 * Activate Watchful Spirit (WS) when entering a new area.
 * Cancel Watchful Spirit whenever instant healing is necessary. Try to recast Watchful Spirit after that.
 * Use Divine Intervention (DI) as backup healing.

Note #1: Depending on your running abilities it is advised to use DI first before canceling WS in order to be still under the effect of the +2 health pips by WS.

Note #2 Your high Divine Favor attribute allows you to heal you from spells like Purge Conditions, and Smite Hex, too. Though, it might not be much healing but in case of little healing it is much better than canceling Watchful Spirit

Hex-Countering Mechanism
Note #1: Always use Smite Hex for removing a Hex before canceling Holy Veil. By not canceling Holy Veil first you make sure that the enemies still need twice as long to cast for their hexes.
 * Cast Holy Veil on yourself first as major hex-protecting mechanism.
 * Use Smite Hex as major hex-remover.

Note #2: For an extra hex remover cast Holy Veil and wait for it to recharge. By canceling it, recasting, and canceling it again, you can remove up to two hexes only with Holy Veil.

Conditions

 * Use Purge Conditions for an all-in-one conditions clean-up.

Note: Beware traps set by Pinesouls that cripple you for quite a long time. It is not unlikely that two traps are behind each other. Go on running crippled to check whether a second trap is about to ignite; only then use Purge Conditions to reduce the chance of getting trapped twice to a minimum. Alternatively, Mend Ailment can replace Purge Conditions for countering multi-traps.

Variants

 * Mend Ailment can replace Purge Conditions for countering multiple Barbed Traps.

Talus Chute
Due to the high damage output by the groups of Avicara, and the knockdowns by Azure Shadows, it is advised to modify the build for the final stage of the Droknar run. However, this is not needed if you have henchmen or real players as meatshields. Do not forget to put some attributes into Healing Prayers.
 * Activate Mending, Watchful Spirit, and Holy Veil (in this order).
 * Before encountering the first Azure Shadows cast Healing Breeze.
 * Activate Balanced Stance when the first Signet of Judgments are about to hit you.
 * Use "Charge!" in the first corner (left hand) near the Azure Shadow Boss.
 * Cancel Watchful Spirit whenever healing is required. Try to reapply it immediately.
 * Activate Divine Intervention as final life-saver skill when running through the groups of Avicara.

= Build:Mo/any 55hp Solo Monk =

The 55hp Monk is used to solo many popular farming locations containing Griffons, Hydras, Mountain Trolls, and Minotaurs. It is an enchantment heavy build, so it is not suitable for areas with disenchanting mesmers or necromancers.

This build is often called "55 Monk" because of its low health -- only 55 hp. The low health makes Protective Spirit, which limits damage to 10% of a character's maximum health, reduce all received damage to 5hp/hit, which is easily countered by the 8 pips of health regeneration granted by Healing Breeze (16 hp regained every second).

This build no longer works as described because of the Wednesday 25th of October monster AI update, whereby monsters that can be knocked down no longer kill themselves on Shield of Judgment (meaning Hydras can still be farmed with this build for they cannot be knocked down). If you run past the Mountain Trolls in the cave outside Droknar's Forge, use this build to farm the Tundra Giants, be sure to use a skill like Dolyak Signet against them so you can cast your healing skills and Shield of Judgment to prevent them from disrupting you with their stomps. This also works well with Sand Giants  in the Scar area of the Crystal Desert.

It does work in areas such as the zone with Hydras and Griffins outside of the Augury Rock. It is still effective only takes longer. In the Nightfall campaign of Guild wars the build works real well against the groups of  Tusked Hunters and Tusked Howlers outside Yohlon Haven

See the article Invincible Monk for a discussion of the concept of the build.

Equipment

 * Any 20% of Enchanting, preferably with extra energy. A Totem Axe or Rajazan's Fervor is ideal.
 * The off-hand item is the -50 Grim Cesta obtained via the Cities of Ascalon quest.
 * Ascetic's Armor offers the most energy which is beneficial to this build, all armor pieces have to have Monk superior runes: one of each with one extra to bring your health down to 105 (this doesn’t include health deduction with the -50 Grim Cesta). Keep in mind that you don't need high armor for the build, so any Ascetic's with maximum energy will do.

Usage

 * Cast the first 4 enchantments before the fight. You won't have any energy regeneration, so use Blessed Signet to regain energy out of combat.
 * Before aggroing mobs, cast Protective Spirit. You should not need Healing Breeze unless you have more than 3 foes that cannot be knocked down (such as hydras), or 5 that can be knocked down (such as forgotten).
 * The energy gained from Essence Bond and Balthazar's Spirit should be more than enough for all situations.
 * Blessed Aura and your weapon of Enchanting will prolong your Shield of Judgment, which is your core offensive spell.
 * The build is most successful against melee attackers and is least successful against spell casters (especially Mesmers). To use it for farming, find an area with a heavy concentration of melee attackers (such as the Blessed Griffons in Snake Dance or the Hydras in Skyward Reach) and take them on.

List of Soloable Bosses

Wajjun Bazaar
 * Lian, Dragon's Petal - (aggro as many as possible for energy benefit)Instead of Essense Bond bring Zealot's Fire for additional damage.

Variants

 * Monk
 * Replace Essence Bond with Zealot's Fire for more damage output. See the notes on casting in succession to avoid breaking aggro.
 * Replace Blessed Aura with Smite for more firepower. Note that if you are used to Blessed Aura, then getting used to the decidedly shorter durations of Healing Breeze, Protective Spirit and Shield of Judgment will take some time.
 * Replace Essence Bond with Strength of Honor while using a melee weapon to do more Damage.
 * Replace Essence Bond with Symbol of Wrath and use it right after Shield of Judgment tends to kill Mountain Trolls with one round of Shield of Judgment.
 * Replace Healing Breeze with Shield of Absorption for 0 damage (With Totem Axe and Blessed Aura, Shield of Absorption will come back soon enough to recast before it ends.
 * Use Watchful Spirit for more regeneration
 * Warrior, secondary
 * Replace Essence Bond with Bonetti's Defense for an excellent energy providing skill, though dodging will reduce the DPS average.
 * Replace Essence Bond with Balanced Stance to protect yourself against knockdowns, such as Meteor casted by Hydras. This will make Hydra-Farming a lot easier.
 * Replace Essence Bond with Dolyak Signet to securely eliminate knockdowns from monsters such as Tundra Giants
 * Elementalist, secondary
 * Replace Essence Bond with Aftershock. This works fine with the knockdown provided by Shield of Judgment and does not break aggro like Zealot's Fire.
 * Replace Shield of Judgment with Glyph of Renewal and use Sliver Armor for damage.
 * Replace Essence Bond with Bed of Coals.
 * Necromancer, secondary
 * Replace Essence Bond with Suffering. Use this after Shield of Judgment, when the enemy(s) are knocked down because of its 2 second cast time it's easier to interrupt. For large mobs, cast it into the center of the group.
 * Mesmer secondary, you could do one or more of the following:
 * Replace Essence Bond with Channeling to gain tons of energy from crowding foes (this works well in conjunction with Zealot's Fire).
 * Replace Blessed Aura with Arcane Echo to lengthen the effect of Shield of Judgment.
 * Replace Essence Bond with Mantra of Resolve against enemies with interrupts. This can be useful against Titans and Mountain Trolls.
 * Replace Balthazar's Spirit with Sympathetic Visage. This will deplete enemies' energy and cause spellcasting monsters such as Hydras to attack you more once they no longer have the energy to power their spells.
 * Ranger, secondary
 * Replace Essence Bond with Serpent's Quickness for back to back Shield of Judgment casting.
 * Replace Blessed Signet with Brambles to add damage and inflict bleeding when enemies are knocked down by Shield of Judgment. Remember that Brambles is Factions only.
 * Dervish, secondary
 * Mystic Regeneration based:


 * Benefits - more points in Divine Favor and Smiting Prayers means Shield of Judgment does more damage for a longer time. Mystic Regeneration is far better than Healing Breeze (0.25 cast, up to +16 health regen for 24 sec).
 * Replace Watchful Spirit with Mending if you don't have WS.
 * Replace Watchful Spirit with Fleeting Stability if getting knocked down is a problem ("only" get max +14 health regen though). Suggested: Protection Prayers at 9 and Earth Prayers at 6 for longer Fleeting Stability.
 * Additional equipment: a wand + the Grim Cesta in another weapon set. If an enemy runs away, switch to wand, attack it then switch back to usual set. Unless the AI has changed, it should run back to attack you.
 * Mystic Regeneration for healing.

Counters

 * Enchantment removal
 * Interrupting
 * The dazed condition
 * Life stealing
 * Degeneration
 * Shroud of Silence

Attributes and Skills

 * The optional slot may be used for enchantments with low energy requirement, like Vigorous Spirit, Shielding Hands or Dwayna's Sorrow. Or use a cheap healing spell that benefits from enchantments, like Dwayna's Kiss.

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor is recommended to maximize energy pool. This build is all about energy! Generally you don't care too much about Armor, because you will be acting mostly from safe distance, not in the middle of the fight.
 * Items with bonus "while enchanted" are good because this built is designed to be permanently enchanted.
 * Weapons with HSR/HCT bonus are not effective because these only affect spells, not signets, which is what you'll use most frequently. However, HCT on your res skill is useful,
 * A wand and an offhand focus with +15 energy / -1 energy regen is useful. Since energy regen isn't your main source of energy supply anyway, the additional -2 degen don't hurt you that much, but the additional +30 energy pool are a great help sometimes. Just be careful not to swap weapopns when you are below 30 energy, or you will lose all enchantments except four.
 * Since most of your healing is "passive" you are not required to fight near the front. This allows you to stay back, in safe distance, so you can put on several superior runes and reduce your max health without much risk.

Usage
As a bonder this build is quite different from a "normal" healer or protector build. You rely heavily on "passive" healing through maintained enchantments, so much of your healing/protection is "fire and forget". You provide basic protection for the party with Life Bond, which, as an important side-effect, provides you with energy supply when used in combination with Balthazar's Spirit. And you provide basic healing for the party with Mending.

Energy management is crucial for any bonder. The good thing is that when you need the energy most urgently - in heavy fights - you will also have the highest energy supply through Life Bond and Balthazar's Spirit. This allows you to cast additional enchantments and then use Boon Signet for additional healing and energy gain. Energy management is actually harder when the party is not under attack. You may have to cancel enchantments during such times, and re-apply later when needed.


 * Cast Balthazar's Spirit and Mending on yourself and keep it up at all times.
 * In addition, in Luxon or Kurzick explorable areas, consider getting a Holy Blessing from the Kurzick/Luxon Priest at the Resurrection Shrine.
 * Try to keep up Life Bond active on as many party members as possible, including pets and NPC allies. Check allies frequently to see if anybody had Life Bond removed, and refresh it if necessary. You should be able to maintain 10 or more enchantments quite easily solely by using Blessed Signet.
 * Use Blessed Signet frequently, whenever it has recharged. With Divine Favor 14 you gain up to 23 energy per use of Blessed Signet, this means with 8 maintained enchantments you utilize the maximum possible.
 * In times of high energy and heavy fighting, cast Mending on party members who are under heavy attack for additional healing. Remove Mending when the battle is less heated.
 * In times of low energy, use Boon Signet for additional energy supply and (merely as a side effect) some free healing. With Divine Favor 14 you can gain 6 energy per use of Boon Signet. This means with 3 enchantments on an ally you get maximum benefit.
 * In times of low energy, use Signet of Rejuvenation for more free healing.

Counters
This build is ineffective in areas with many Me or N foes who remove or exploit enchantments.

Variants
Many variants are possible, especially for energy supply, depending on the secondary profession of the bonder.

Attributes and Skills

 * Signet of Rejuvenation can be used for better energy management
 * A Hex Removal such as Smite Hex can be brought if some or multiple "critical" hexes are being used in the area

Equipment

 * Any armor is usable, though for PvE Radiant armor may be best
 * A 20/20 +5energy +30hp healing staff is recommended

Usage

 * Cast Holy Haste and recast it whenever necessary
 * Cast Dwayna's Kiss and Ethereal Light whenever needed
 * If multiple allies take damage, use Light of Deliverance
 * Use Light of Deliverance whenever you can't reach an ally in need of healing
 * Healing Touch and Light of Deliverance are your self heals, though the easily interruptable Ethereal Light can be used as one as well
 * Dismiss Condition whenever a "critical" condition appears on an ally such as Blind on a warrior or Dazed on an elementalist
 * Smite Hex whenever a "critical" hex appears on an ally such as Backfire on a caster, Empathy on a warrior or Vocal Minority on a paragon. Of course Scourge Healing is lethal when using Light of Deliverance and therefore this should have high priority when removing hexes
 * Use Restore Life on a fallen ally, however don't do this until you are sure you can spend some free seconds where no allies need healing. The last thing you want is more deaths because of a resurrection

Counters

 * Any spell caster counters (daze, backfire, etc.)
 * Scourge Healing can do major damage when being careless with Light of Deliverance

Variants

 * Orison of Healing can be used instead of Ethereal Light if you get interrupted a lot while using Ethereal Light
 * Words of Comfort can be useful instead of Ethereal Light if many conditions are used in that area
 * Mend Condition can be used instead of Dismiss Condition if you think you don't get conditions yourself or if few enchantments are being used
 * If no conditions are being used in a certain area, consider bringing another healing skill or another hex removal instead of Dismiss Condition
 * Any other hex removal skill such as Remove Hex or Inspired Hex (must become /Me) can be used instead of Smite Hex
 * If no hexes are being used in a certain area, consider bringing another healing skill instead of Smite Hex
 * Signet of Rejuvenation and possibly Signet of Devotion can be used for a better energy management in this build. Replace Dismiss Condition or Smite Hex by one of these signets, depending on what you need most, anti condition or anti hex
 * Resurrection Chant instead of Restore Life for a resurrect from some distance

= Build:Mo/any Light of Deliverance Hybrid =

This build concentrates on the excellent party-healing abilities of the Monk elite skill Light of Deliverance. Using additional skills from the Protection Prayers and other Healing Prayers line skills, an extremely efficient and dependable party healer is created.

Equipment

 * Any armor can be used with this build, providing it has maximum AL. However, most healers prefer the extra energy gained from the use of Radiant Insignias.
 * Runes of Minor Divine Favor, Superior Vigor, Minor Protection Prayers, Superior Healing Prayers.

Usage

 * Heal single targets with Orison of Healing and Dwayna's Kiss. Keep in mind each spell's bonus healing effects.
 * Targets taking damage should be enchanted with Shield of Absorption.
 * Cast Protective Spirit on targets taking high spike damage.
 * Spam Light of Deliverance when your entire party is taking damage. Note that the Divine Favor bonus will only be applied onto you.
 * Remove harmful conditions with Dismiss Condition, Mend Condition, or Mend Ailment.
 * Use Holy Veil, Smite Hex, or Remove Hex to remove Hexes.
 * Revive fallen party members with Rebirth. Note that this should not be used in-battle, as you should focus on healing your party.

Variants

 * The most common variant would be to include Healing Seed in the build.
 * Take Reversal of Fortune for a fast heal and damage reduction.
 * For a different type of hex removal, consider replacing Holy Veil with Smite Hex or Remove Hex.
 * You may also wish to use a different form of condition removal, by replacing Dismiss Condition with Mend Condition or Mend Ailment.
 * Rebirth, while the most commonly used and recommended skill for resurrection in PvE, is definitely not core to this build's functionality. Feel free to replace it with any of the forementioned variants, or with another resurrection skill like Restore Life, Resurrection Chant, Resurrect, or even a Resurrection Signet.
 * Words of Comfort can also be utilized with this build.
 * Signet of Devotion if experiencing energy management problems.
 * If you're taking high-energy cost variants, consider switching to the Elementalist secondary profession and take Glyph of Lesser Energy.

Attributes and Skills

 * See the Variants section for some skills to use in the optional slot.

Equipment

 * Ascetic's Armor for a larger energy pool, with a +1 Protection Prayers scalp design. You will need to upgrade your armor so as to bring your health down to 55 hp (as seen on this section of the Invincible Monk page).


 * Any Sword or Axe of Enchanting. The bonus must be +20%. Also, a +5 Energy modifier (or the inscription "I Have the Power") helps to increase the energy pool even more. The Totem Axe and Rajazan's Fervor are common choices for this. A two-handed weapon cannot be used or your health will be more than 55.


 * A 20/20 Insightful Protection Staff of Enchanting works just as well. Unlike using a sword or axe, the staff will help mitigate an enemy's death. Having 105hp doesn't adversely affect the builds effectiveness.


 * Consider bringing a scalp design that provides a bonus in Divine Favor and/or a staff of Mastery in Divine Favor.

Usage

 * First cast Watchful Spirit and Balthazar's Spirit. This will provide +2 health regeneration (in case Shield of Absorption slips) and energy management.
 * Then cast Blessed Aura. If you are using a Divine Favor headpiece and/or a staff of Mastery in Divine Favor, equip them now to maximize its effect. Note that if you are using a staff of Mastery, it may take multiple castings for the Divine Favor boost to kick in. Be sure to re-equip the Protection Prayers scalp and your sword/axe/offhand combo after you are satisfied with your cast.
 * Note: These three enchantments can be cast in any order according to preference.
 * After all of the enchantments are cast, head towards your enemies (but see Choosing Enemies, below).
 * Before entering battle cast Protective Spirit and Shield of Absorption. (You should do this no more than two seconds before you do the next step.)
 * Aggro your enemies. You must keep up Shield of Absorption (near-)continuously. Depending on how high your Divine Favor attribute was when you cast Blessed Aura, you can have as little as .5 seconds to recast it - or you may have as many as 1.85 seconds. Note that if you miss a recast by a few seconds, the health regeneration from Watchful Spirit combined with the damage reduction from Protective Spirit will help prevent death, but don't take your time about recasting it. (Be aware that larger mobs mean faster death in this situation.)
 * Use Shield of Judgment for damage. Your enemies should kill themselves by attacking you.
 * Use Blessed Signet for energy management - it can even be used in battle if you have a few seconds to spare.

Choosing Enemies
Only certain enemies will be effectively damaged by this build. Enemies that are knocked down by Shield of Judgment will scatter; enemies such as hydras cannot be knocked down and therefore will be damaged by this build. Before you use this or any other build with Shield of Judgment to farm monsters, do some research to see if they can be knocked down or not before deciding whether to bring Shield of Judgment.

Also, when considering choosing an area, try to find an area with abundant ranged attackers, such as Ranger or Paragon, who do not flee from damage as melee creatures do. Ice Imps and Siege Ice Golems are good enemies to farm outside Ice Caves of Sorrow.

Counters

 * Enchantment removal can be deadly if it hits Protective Spirit and/or Shield of Absorption. Because Necromancers and Mesmers have so many skills to do this, avoid them.
 * Major health degeneration will also kill you. Watchful Spirit will counter minor health degeneration, but even that inflicted by Bleeding or Faintheartedness can overwhelm it. Again, avoid places with Necromancers or Mesmers. (Note that minor health degeneration over Watchful Spirit may not necessarily be deadly as you will heal yourself every time you cast a spell on yourself due to the healing bonus from the Divine Favor attribute.)
 * If Shield of Absorption is interrupted, you could be in trouble. You will have to last ten seconds on the health regeneration from Watchful Spirit and the healing boost from casting Protective Spirit on yourself - although Protective Spirit has a five second recharge.

Variants

 * Watchful Spirit and Balthazar's Spirit can be easily replaced by Mending and Essence Bond, respectively, with absolutely no change in the way the build works. Additionally, either one could fill the optional slot.
 * Healing Breeze or Watchful Healing is useful when killing foes that cause -3 (or greater) health degeneration.
 * Zealot's Fire can provide relatively consistent AoE damage; you must be cautious as to how you time your spells so that there is at least three seconds between each of them, or you will cause your enemies to scatter.
 * If your enemies will scatter from Shield of Judgment (see below), consider bringing another elite or another damaging non-AoE spell instead of it. Spell Breaker is a good choice for defense.
 * Having only 55 max health is not necessary to maintain a nearly invulnerable monk - see the Mo/E SoA Sliver build, and look at the Spirit Bond variant of that build. It can be used to counter health degeneration, and to some extent, life stealing.
 * You may want to ensure survival by using Shielding Hands. Cast it before SoA wears off to stay invulnerable.


 * Additional skills are recommended depending on your secondary profession.

Warrior
 * Bonetti's Defense - for energy and +75% chance to block attacks, making you more resistant to melee interrupts such as Savage Slash.
 * Balanced Stance - to resist knockdowns and therefore some interruptions

Mesmer
 * Arcane Echo - for longer use of Shield of Judgment
 * Mantra of Resolve - to prevent interruptions (but not knockdowns)

Ranger
 * Brambles - for more damage from Shield of Judgment
 * Serpent's Quickness for quicker recharge time on all skills cast while it is active

Necromancer
 * Spiteful Spirit for a different skill with a faster recharge and more damage output.
 * Spoil Victor for farming most melee bosses (assassins, dervishes, and warriors)

Dervish
 * Fleeting Stability - to prevent knockdown

Elementalist
 * Sliver Armor - to do tremendous damage once surrounded by masses of monsters
 * Glyph of Concentration - to avoid interrupts
 * Ward of Stability - to prevent knockdown
 * Grasping Earth - to keep monsters from fleeing

Equipment

 * Any armor is usable with this build, but you may wish to switch to Ascetic's armor for maximum Energy if you're expecting to spam your heals a lot.
 * Any focus and offhand combination, or staff, can work with this build. A 20/20 Focus and Offhand can prove to be valuable, but not required.

Usage

 * Orison of Healing, Word of Healing, and Dwayna's Kiss are your main heals. Spam them if necessary, but be aware that long periods of heavy healing without pauses can drain you, although not immediately. Note each spell's special effects.
 * Orison of Healing is the most basic heal. Use this one if the target is not affected by Hexes/Enchantments, or if target is above 50% health.
 * Dwayna's Kiss is very efficient at healing targets with Hexes or Enchantments on them. It is generally used on the main tank upon aggroing the next group of enemies, providing Healing Seed has expired or was removed.
 * Word of Healing is your main spike heal. A single cast of this can easily bring a party member from below 50% health to near-full health. Its 4 second recharge is comparitively longer than the recharge of Orison of Healing, so don't waste casting this on a party member above 50% health.
 * Healing Touch is an extremely useful self heal. Use it whenever you think your health is low. If someone in your party has lost quite a bit of health but is not in any particular danger, you may wish to heal them with this skill as well.
 * Use Remove Hex to remove any Hexes that affect your party. But remember: your main job is to keep your party alive. It is often better to let the hex die off itself rather than taking the time and energy to remove it. This should be used against serious hexes, rather than easily spammable ones like Life Siphon
 * Healing Seed and Rebirth are your only skills which cost more than 5 Energy to use, so use them wisely.
 * You should not be resurrecting in-battle with Rebirth. If you want to do so, you may want to switch to Resurrect or Resurrection Chant, or even Restore Life.
 * Healing Seed should be placed on the main tank upon right before they aggro the next group of monsters. It can also be used in-battle to protect a party member under heavy attack/pressure.

Counters

 * Energy Denial can pose a problem, but is not of immediate threat to this build.
 * Skills that increase recharge time such as Diversion and Distracting Shot can be devastating if more than one primary healing skill is struck by it.
 * If facing large groups of enemies or high-damage dealing enemies, the removal of Healing Seed can mean certain death for a tank, if not covered. This is not a large problem in most areas, though.

Variants

 * Some skills to consider to place into the optional skill slot:
 * Mend Ailment, Mend Condition, or Dismiss Condition (only if you want a rather fast condition removal w/o heal) for Condition removal.
 * Holy Veil for additional Hex removal.
 * Infuse Health for a stronger and faster Spike heal.
 * Healing Breeze for better counters againts heavy degeneration, or to cover small amounts of damage.
 * Heal Area or Karei's Healing Circle can be beneficial if your party contains any Minion Masters.
 * Remove Hex can be replaced by Holy Veil, if you think you will need a cover Enchantment for Healing Seed.
 * Use Smite Hex in place of Remove Hex if you dislike the two-second cast time for Remove Hex, and don't want the awkward double-click removal of Holy Veil.
 * Ethereal Light can be used in place of Orison of Healing if you don't think you will be attacked.
 * Replace Rebirth with an alternate resurrection skill of your choice. You may even want to eliminate Resurrection as a whole.
 * Heal Party is an excellent healing skill, and can be incorporated to this build. However, spamming this can be dangerous to your energy pool. One or two casts can heal your party effectively without putting too much pressure on energy usage.
 * Holy Haste can be used to reduce the cast time of healing prayers if you don't plan on using any enchantments like Healing Breeze.
 * Vigorous Spirit is a good heal over time for other party members, especially tanks. It also synergies well with Dwayna's Kiss.
 * Replace Healing Touch with Signet of Devotion so that you can continue to heal even if you are getting low on energy.