Monster Skills are skills or spells used by monsters. Some Monster Skills share similar appearance and function to a skill used by a playable class, while the rest are unique to monsters.
Elite monsters have random additional skill(s) known as monster traits and may be a passive ability or statistical difference rather than an active skill. They are also called monster affixes because of their similarity to item affixes, where keywords denote additional powers.
Diablo II[]
Monster skills may include combat spells and skills, but also self-affecting buffs or monster spawning abilities such as Lay Egg.
Some monster skills are modified versions of character skills such as Firebolt. However, some monsters (most notably Act Bosses) have unique abilities that are not available to players.
Diablo Immortal[]
Monster skills feature in Diablo Immortal, and are largely based on the ones seen in Diablo III (see below).
Diablo III[]
Diablo III introduces many new monster traits. Traits were called "affixes" particularly often among Diablo III discussions. Normal monsters do not have traits. A pack of Champion monsters each have the traits, which sometimes directly tie to each other. Rare or Unique monsters have traits as well, some of which are shared with their minions. Bosses, Rift Guardians, and some Unique monsters often have special, unique, or empowered versions of the typical traits, sometimes with a different graphical effect.
Diablo IV[]
Monster traits return in Diablo IV.
Damaging Skills
Fire — Apocalypse • Eruption • Fire Arrow • Fireball • Fire Bolt • Fire Hit • Firestorm • Fire Wall • Flame Circle • Grenade • Hydra • Incinerate • Incineration Nova • Inferno • Meteor • Minefield
Ice — Arctic Blast • Blizzard • Cold Touch • Fire Hit (Cold) • Freezing Charge • Frost Bolt • Glacial Spike • Hoarfrost • Ice Shards
Poison — Poison Bolt • Poison Breath • Poison Cloud • Poison Spit • Poison Spray • Poison Sting • Poison Strike
Lightning — Lightning • Lightning Arrow • Lightning Globe • Lightning Storm • Red Lightning Hose • Shocking Hit • Spark Defense • Thunderbolt
Physical — Bite • Blast Wave • Blow Dart • Charge (Berserk Charge) • Cleave • Corpse Cannon • Destructive Strike • Divebomb • Grab • Ground Spikes • Ground Tentacle • Leap • Javelin • Leech-life Ball • Pummel •Quake • Quill Dart • Slam • Snatch • Spine Dart • Strike • Swipe • Sweep • Whirlwind
Wind — Cyclone • Gust • Tornado
Magic — Beam • Blade Beam • Blast • Bomb • Bone Spirit • Cataclysm • Hellish Projectile • Nova • Slow Time • Tide • Torrent • Unholy Bolt • Volley • Wave
Non-damaging Skills
Indirect Attack — Blood Mana • Curses • Mana Rift • Minion Frenzy • Putrify • Spin Web • Stun • Vortex
Spawning — Bone Prison • Festering Appendages • Lay Egg • Minefield • Mystifying Growth • Revive • Summon Minion • Totem
Self-effect — Bone Armor • Burrow • Effigy • Fly • Frenzy • Heal • Shell • Teleport • Vile Effigy