PvE Brewmaster Monk Tank Rotations & Cooldowns

Brewmaster Monks in Mists of Pandaria are known as one of the most difficult specializations in the game, requiring players to upkeep multiple effects, manage two different resources, and consistently use active mitigation tools to survive in combat.

Brewmaster Monk Basics & Resource Management

The Brewmaster Monk is a new specialization that plays fairly differently than other tanks, behaving much more like a DPS/Tank Hybrid, rather than a conventional tank. Brewmaster Monks have two separate resources, Energy and Chi. Those behave similarly to other Generators & Spenders, with some abilities generating Chi whilst others spend it. What truly makes Brewmaster Monks difficult to play is not their Resource Management, but rather the multitude of abilities in their kit and the way those synergize. Unlike other specializations that have a much more defined rotation, Brewmaster Monks function on a spell priority list, followed by many spells they use for active mitigation. In addition, their self-healing is different, being largely dependent on the Healing Spheres that automatically spawn. This forces them to move consistently in an encounter to pick up the spheres. Furthermore, besides their standard overloaded kit, every Talent choice they use that doesn’t function as a passive effect complicates their playstyle even more. Luckily, Brewmaster Monks have many off-GCD abilities, meaning they can make their gameplay a bit easier to comprehend and execute.

Important Effects That You Must Maintain

• Tiger Palm – Makes your attacks ignore 30% of the target’s Armor and empowers your next Guard effect with Power Guard. 
• Shuffle – Increases your Parry Chance by 20% and Stagger by 20%.
• Elusive Brew – Increases your Dodge Chance by 25%. Easier to maintain consistently on a Critical Strike Chance build!

Chi Generators Spell Priority List

1. Keg Smash The strongest default Chi generator in a Brewmaster’s kit! The ability generates 2 Chi at once, and consumes 40 Energy, but has an 8-second cooldown. This ability should be spammed on cooldown whenever you’re below 4 or 5 Chi.
2. Chi Brew This talent is the second-strongest Chi generator in your kit, and functions based on charges. The ability should be used either during the pre-pull or when you must instantly gain 2 Chi whilst Keg Smash is on cooldown. It should not be used if you already have 15 stacks of Elusive Brew. This ability is also off-GCD, meaning it can be used with other Chi generators.
3. Jab This is your bread and butter spammable ability with no cooldown! As a Brewmaster Monk, you consistently use Jab whenever your other Chi generators are on cooldown. The only exception is when you need to use Expel Harm instead, and you don’t have Energy for both abilities.
4. Spinning Crane Kick This is the standard AoE spell for Brewmaster Monks, generating 1 Chi whenever it damages 3 targets. This spell will be spammed in any AoE/Cleave scenario you don’t take its upgraded version, Rushing Jade Wind! 
5. Expel Harm Chi generator that acts as a no-cooldown primary self-healing tool in situations where your HP is low, and as a 15-second self-heal in all other situations. This ability takes the number one spot in terms of priority whenever Desperate Measures is active!
6. Crackling Jade Lightning A long-range attack that has its uses during transition phases. It can also be used to pull mobs from afar whenever your other long-range abilities are on cooldown. 

Chi Spenders Spell Priority List

1. Blackout Kick This is the primary Chi spender in your kit, having the highest priority whenever you can afford to spend your pooled Chi! The effect is the only way of triggering Shuffle, with the buff’s duration being stacked on top of itself whenever you use it. You will spam this ability as much as possible whenever you don’t need to activate Purifying Brew.
2. Purifying Brew Yet another one of your top priority Chi spenders, Purifying Brew is the only way for you to remove Stagger. The ability can be used whenever, but it is optimal to use it whenever your Stagger bar reaches either Moderate Stagger or Heavy Stagger. Most Brewmaster mains prefer only to use it when they reach Heavy Stagger, but beginners should consider using it as much as possible, especially when their healers are not used to Monk tanking.
3. Guard This is the main absorption tool in your kit. It should be used on cooldown as much as possible, since it also empowers all your self-healing tools.
4. Breath of Fire This is your standard AoE Chi spender. You should only use it whenever you don’t need to refresh Shuffle‘s duration with Blackout Kick. This ability is powerful in both AoE and Cleave scenarios. The spell is also a Disorient, meaning you can keep it for a well-timed CC in case you don’t need to deal additional damage.
5. Touch of Death In terms of priority, this spell comes in last, as you will only use it as a one-time execution tool during any encounter. Nonetheless, it is extremely powerful, as it can instantly kill any target that has a lower Health Pool than you.

Self-Healing

As we previously stated, Brewmaster Monks have a unique self-healing mechanic compared to the other classes. Due to the Gift of the Ox passive, Brewmasters automatically spawn Healing Spheres on the ground that only they can see, which heal them for a considerable amount whenever they pick them up. This, however, can cause a bit of an issue, especially for bosses that deal Cleave Damage, as the spawn points are not always right next to the Brewmaster, but rather in a circular area. Brewmasters who wish to make the best of their self-healing will have to move consistently and potentially reposition bosses. This can often be an annoyance, especially for Melee groups in raid environments, with many Brewmasters choosing not to even bother picking up all the spheres that spawn. Alternatively, they can also spawn up to 3 Healing Spheres without any cost, but this consumes valuable GCDs.  Another way Brewmaster Monks heal is through Expel Harm, which should always be used on cooldown for some extra healing since it also generates Chi. The ability is especially strong whenever Desperate Measures is active, providing Brewmaster Monks with survivability on par with Blood Death Knights.

Single Target & AoE Rotation Examples

Single-Target

1. Place your Summon Black Ox Statue in a convenient spot.
2. Cast Chi Wave while moving towards the target.
3. If you choose the Chi Brew talent, use it right before reaching the target. Reuse Chi Brew during the encounter whenever needed.
4. Cast Dizzying Haze as you approach the target.
5. Alternatively, use Clash to engage.
6. Cast Keg Smash immediately after reaching the target to debuff it and generate Chi. Recast Keg Smash on cooldown as your top priority Chi Generator.
7. Cast Blackout Kick instantly after acquiring 2 Chi to activate Shuffle. Recast Blackout Kick constantly to upkeep Shuffle and increase its duration whenever you don’t need to use Purifying Brew.
8. Cast Tiger Palm right after the initial Blackout Kick. Recast Tiger Palm when the buff is about to expire & before activating Guard.
9. Spam Jab to generate Chi whenever Keg Smash is on cooldown.
10. Cast Purifying Brew to remove Stagger whenever you reach Heavy Stagger. Remember that you can simultaneously use Purifying Brew with another ability since it’s off-GCD!
11. Cast Guard whenever it’s available to pre-mitigate damage & empower self-healing Only cast the spell when Power Guard is active!
12. Cast Elusive Brew whenever you reach 15 stacks Cast Elusive Brew while at 5-10 stacks if you take too much damage
13. Cast Expel Harm on cooldown if you need to self-heal Spam Expel Harm on repeat while at low HP to benefit as much as possible from Desperate Measures
14. Recast Chi Wave on cooldown whenever out of Energy/Chi.
15. Prioritize using Invoke Xuen, the White Tiger, while you are at maximum Vengeance and have other offensive buffs active!
16. Prioritize using Dampen Harm/Diffuse Magic/Fortifying Brew when you need to soak high amounts of damage.
17. Use Touch of Death to execute enemies.

Area-of-Effect

1. Use Summon Black Ox Statue
2. Engage with Chi Wave if you use the talent.
3. Engage with Chi Burst instead if you opt for it.
4. Repeat the first steps from the Single-Target rotation (Cast Dizzying Haze as you approach, cast Keg Smash, and instantly use Blackout Kick).
5. Cast Tiger Palm right after the initial Blackout Kick. Recast Tiger Palm when the buff is about to expire & before activating Guard.
6. Spam Spinning Crane Kick or Rushing Jade Wind as your main AoE damage when Keg Smash is on cooldown
7. Use Breath of Fire if you don’t need to refresh Shuffle in the next 2-3 seconds.
8. Recast either Chi Wave or Chi Burst on cooldown.
9. Repeat the same priorities from the Single-Target rotation for Purifying Brew, Guard, Elusive Brew, and Expel Harm.
10. Prioritize using Dampen Harm/Diffuse Magic/Fortifying Brew when you need to soak high amounts of damage.
11. Use Touch of Death to execute enemies.

Cooldowns

Crowd Control

• Spear Hand Strike – Your basic interrupt that you will use against spell casters!
• Provoke – Taunts the target! Can be used to AoE Taunt if you use the ability on your Summon Black Ox Statue.
• Disable – A slow effect that persists and refreshes itself as long as the Monk stays close to the affected target. This is especially useful for kiting mobs in any form of PvE environment!
• Clash – Forces both you and the target to charge at each other, stunning all targets in a 6-yard radius where the effect occurs. This spell is especially useful for pulling, as it allows you to chain it together with other CC whilst generating high Threat.
• Leg Sweep – An AoE Stun that has a circular radius. Extremely useful in both raid and dungeon environments for stopping dangerous mob groups.
• Ring of Peace – An AoE Silence/Disarm that persists around a friendly target, including the Monk! Extremely useful against dangerous mobs that have spammy abilities.  
• Grapple Weapon – Single-Target Disarm ability that enhances your performance for a short duration. This ability can be especially useful if used together with other cooldowns!

Defensives

• Zen Meditation – An anti-nuke ability that can be used to either block one heavy melee attack or have up to 5 harmful spells redirected to you during the effect. While the effect is active, the spells are redirected automatically. However, if a single melee attack hits you during the process, the effect stops immediately, meaning the redirection will not occur anymore. 
• Dampen Harm – An ability that reduces any damage taken by half its original amount if it exceeds 20% of your HP. However, the ability only has 3 charges, meaning you must time it well.
• Diffuse Magic – This is your go-to defensive spell against Magic Damage, offering a 90% Magic Damage reduction for 6 seconds.
• Fortifying Brew – The most potent defensive cooldown in your kit besides Diffuse Magic/Dampen Harm, it increases your HP, Stagger amount, and reduces all damage taken by 20% for 20 seconds. 
• Elusive Brew – A spammable ability that is effective based on your Critical Strike Chance, allowing you to increase your Dodge Chance considerably. Unlike other tanking specializations that have either a cooldown or charges for similar abilities, Brewmaster Monks can have a consistent uptime on this effect if they choose to stack Critical Strike Chance.
• Nimble Brew – A defensive cooldown that can be used to remove Fear, Stun, Root, and Horror effects, making you more resilient to them after. 

Utility

• Avert Harm – A similar ability to the one Paladins possess! It allows Brewmaster Monks to redirect damage taken by their allies to themselves. However, it is considerably stronger against Physical Damage since all the transferred damage can be Staggered.
• Detox – An ability that can remove all Magic, Poison, and Disease effects from a target.
• Legacy of the Emperor – A buff that can enhance allies, granting a 5% increase in Strength, Agility, and Intellect.

Mobility

• Roll – Your bread and butter movement ability! Brewmaster Monks use this spell to traverse long distances quickly during any PvE encounter!
• Transcendence/Transcendence Transfer – A teleport ability that can be used to reposition during an encounter quickly. Extremely useful for avoiding deadly mechanics!
• Tiger’s Lust – The most potent movement speed bonus in your kit! You’ll use it to escape from some mechanics or quickly reposition.