PoE 2 Martial Artist Guide

The Martial Artist is the third ascendancy class for the Monk in Path of Exile 2, unlocked with the Return of the Ancients (Patch 0.5) update. He trained for decades and emerged as a master of three of the seven Hollow techniques. The other four techniques remain unmastered. He does not discuss this.

His identity: summon bells, shatter them for AoE punishment, channel clone armies that fight for you, and transform your gloves into weapons that would embarrass most swords. Alongside the Invoker and Acolyte of Chayula, Martial Artist rounds out the Monk's options: and by most accounts, it does so loudly.

Ascension Trials begin in Act 2. Complete them, choose your path, and accept the consequences.

The Path of Exile 2 Monk ascendancy choice matters enormously. Invoker leans elemental. Acolyte leans chaos. Martial Artist leans into your face at high PoE 2 item boost.

Core Skills

Hollow Focus

Summons ethereal bells around you automatically. Hitting them detonates a shockwave. Bells are always cullable, always primed for stun, always crit. A perfect murder machine that just exists near you uninvited.

Hollow Resonance

Straps a permanent bell to your back. It rings on every critical hit, dealing AoE damage. Because a bell on your back seemed reasonable.

Hollow Form

Channel to summon clones of yourself. Clones perform a socketed attack, then vanish. Spend Power Charges to triple the clone count. A spectacle that also clears screens.

Wolf Form

Yes, there's a wolf. A meditating wolf. For those three people who wanted shapeshifting. They got it. It's a wolf that meditates.

For the Hollow Form setup, slot in attacks with wide AoE: clones inherit the skill's geometry and cover large portions of the map. The interaction between Hollow Form clones and Hollow Focus bells is not an accident: clones hit bells, bells explode. That is the build.

The Hollow Palm technique passive (found on the regular skill tree, not the ascendancy) turns bare fists into actual weapons. Martial Artist pairs with it naturally and without shame.

Ascendancy Passives

The Runic Meridians PoE 2 node deserves specific attention in the Runes of Aldur League: you are getting five free upgrade slots during the exact league where runes are the primary crafting mechanic. GGG planned this. You should exploit it.

Way of the Stonefist: Explained Slowly

When you equip gloves, they transform into the Fists of Stone base type. Every prefix and suffix on those gloves upgrades to a more powerful related modifier. You unequip them, they revert. The transformation is not permanent, which is the only mercy in this system.

The implicit on Fists of Stone: +3 Evasion Rating per item level and +1 maximum Energy Shield per item level. On a high-level pair of gloves, this alone approaches body armour territory. The showcase revealed gloves hitting 1,100 Evasion and 350 Energy Shield simultaneously.

It works on Unique gloves. All of them. Including the ones you were saving. The Way of the Stonefist glove transformation interaction with mirror-tier gear will make the trading economy entertaining to observe from a safe distance.

Community consensus: prioritize high-rolled gloves with prefixes that align with your damage type. The transformation amplifies what is already there: weak affixes become less-weak PoE 2 unique item boost.

Endgame Builds

Build 1: Snowbound Executioner (Bell Freeze)

Staff-based. Uses Shattering Palm and Herald of Ice to freeze everything, generate Mountain's Teaching stacks constantly, and trigger bell shockwaves across the entire screen. Against bosses, swap to Ice Strike and deploy Tempest Bell for concentrated punishment. Cooldown reduction keeps Hollow Resonance on a short leash, firing as often as physics allows.

• Primary clear: Shattering Palm + Herald of Ice
• Boss tool: Ice Strike + Tempest Bell
• Defense layer: Way of the Mountain stacks via freeze immobilize
• Gloves: Way of the Stonefist: the build showcased this with genuinely monstrous rolls

Build 2: Hollow Palm Unarmed Clone Engine

No weapons. The Hollow Palm Technique keystone makes fists count as weapons. Staggering Palm fires avalanches of projectiles to power Whirling Assault. Way of the Mountain does heavy lifting on survivability thanks to constant stun output. The centerpiece is Hollow Form with Power Charges.

During clear, Killing Palm generates Power Charges organically. For bosses, the Martial Artist best build logic here leans on Ailith's Chimes and Culmination to maintain a charge engine that keeps Hollow Form clones in permanent overdrive.

• Primary loop: Staggering Palm → Whirling Assault → Hollow Form clones
• Charge engine: Killing Palm + Ailith's Chimes + Culmination
• Boss kill: Hollow Form with triple clones from Power Charge consumption

The Hollow Form clone + Hollow Focus bell interaction works in both builds. Clones hit bells. Bells explode. You watch. This is the loop.

Invoker has been the dominant Monk ascendancy through prior leagues. The Martial Artist vs Invoker PoE 2 debate is currently leaning toward Martial Artist for league start due to Runic Meridians patching stat deficiencies, Way of the Stonefist solving the gear slot defensively, and the Runes of Aldur League making the extra rune sockets immediately valuable PoE 2 mirror service boost.