The Monad Depths return once again inPersona 3 Reload, a staple part of the entry that’s made its way into every remake of the vanilla game so far. And in P3R, Monad has changed in a big way in that it’s no longer the end-game dungeon it was, but that doesn’t mean it’ll be easy.

Waiting inside the Monad Doors you’ll find throughout Tartarus are Shadows much stronger than others on the floor where the Door spawns, and in exchange for beating it, you’ll have access to a variety of rewards. Just don’t come unprepared – Monad Shadows aretough.

a monad passage before activating it with the major arcana cards persona 3 reload monad p3r

Updated on June 01, 2025:Now that we’ve pushed up through the whole of Tartarus, we’re updating our Persona 3 Reload Monad Passage guide to include information on each of the strong Shadows you’ll face in each Monad Passage, as well as helpful hyperlinks to other content that may help you in battle.This guide contains spoilers for Persona 3 Reload after your July final exams at school, and from there forward.

The Monad Depths have always been a highlight of the original Persona 3 story, but prior to Persona 3 Reload, getting there was no simple task. In some iterations of the game, Monad was an end-game grind before facing Nyx, while in others, it was an optional challenge, but regardless, youused to have to defeat The Reaperbefore going to Monad.

leaving monad persona 3 reload monad doors monad depths p3r

Persona 3 Reload changed thismechanic around - youdonotneed to defeat The Reaper in P3Rbefore you’re allowed to head into the Monad Depths, which is a good thing, since theybegin appearing in the Yabbashah blockof Tartarus when you first infiltrate, which can be as early as immediatelyafter the July Full Moon operation.

But just because you no longer have a tough litmus test ahead of venturing in doesn’t mean Monad will be easy - the Monad Shadows aresome of the tougher fights in the game, but as a reward for your bravery and training to beat these mini-bosses, you’ll berewardedhandsomely after every Monad battle in P3R with things likeyen, costumes, weapons,andMajor Arcana cards.

a stairwell leading down into the monad depths persona 3 reload monad passage p3r

When you first find a Monad Door, Fuuka will highlight alarge black door with a glowing red symbolthat’s located someplace on the floor. Run through thatfloor of Tartarusuntil you find the door, at which point Fuuka will no longer let you leave the area without investigating this initial door.

Inside this door, you’ll find thatFuuka can’t navigate for you, but she warns that she’s feeling a pretty intense Shadow presence.Go further insideto find the Shadow she’s talking about, whichputs up quite a fightto introduce you to the concept of Monad in P3R.

the protagonist running in to fight a monad shadow persona 3 reload p3r monad depths

But, your fight isn’t for naught -defeating Shadows in Monad Doorsoffer a wealth of awesome rewards. Not only will you automatically havescanned the current floor of Tartarus and the one directly above it, but be sure to check thetwo treasure chestsjust past where the mini-boss Shadow was.

There, you’ll find not only a regular reward like cash or Skill Cards, but there will also be aNihil treasure chestthat glows green nearby as well. These chests offer Nihil items that can betraded in atMayoido Antiquesfor powerful gear and armor.

the protagonist in a monad door staring down the hall at a shadow persona 3 reload mona depths p3r

Monad Doors respawn every night, always with a tough enemy and cool prizes, so it’s always worth it to venture in whenever you’re in Tartarus doing some grinding or searching forMissing Persons.

Finally, after you’ve gotten through the Monad doors in a block of Tartarus, you’ll have access to aMonad Passagethat will spawn quite high up in the current block of Tartarus andremain on the floor where it spawns, even if you leave Tartarusfor the night and come back on another day.

Thefirst Monad Passageyou’ll encounter is on91Fofthe Yabbashah blockof Tartarus.

Fuuka remarks that these doors are different, and they are - theyreact toMajor Arcana cardsyou’ve collected, and they won’t unlock until you approach with the said card in your inventory. Major Arcana cards are most typically won when youdefeat a Full Moon boss, but you’ll find that you alsoreceive them as rewardsfromMonad Passages.

That’s because inside, you’re up against at least a fewextremely tough fights within Monad Passages, markedly tougher than any other Shadows in the current block of Tartarus.

It helps tocome to the Monad Passage witheveryone’s Theurgycharged. Just be mindful to use any charged Theurgy attacks early in battle, since you’lllose half your charged Theurgy gauge each time you’re KOedin battle, rendering all work you did leading up to the fight moot if you get KOed before you can use it.

Thankfully, Theurgy attacks ignore normal affinities, which is good, since the Monad mini-bosses often have affinity charts that make them fairly difficult to deal any meaningful damage to, sothe more often you’re able to use your Theurgy attacks in Monad fights, do it!

If you don’t feel prepared or find that you’re not succeeding in the fight, you can always choose tocome back later if you’re under-leveled or not prepared yetwhen you stumble on the door. The good thing about Monad Passages is thatthe Passage stays on the same floor of Tartarus when you leave.

Should you leave Tartarus and resume the expedition another night, you’ll see theteleporter marked with the Monad Passage floor- it has a red Monad symbol beside the floor number. These will typically beright before the border floors, and there’ll be a teleporter nearby to provide easy access should you need to leave and come back.

Fuuka also double-checks before you trigger the fight that you’re ready to take the mini-boss fight on, so you’ll never accidentally stumble into these more difficult fights. You also have the option to turn around if you’re not quite ready.

However, after you’ve tested your mettle and proven victorious in these fights, you’ll receive a wealth ofextremely valuable rewards, including but not limited toother Major Arcana cardsfor arcana not represented by the Full Moon Shadows.

There may also be Twilight Fragment chests inside, in addition to a Nihil chest containing a prototype you should bring to the owner of , so it’s always best to come prepared, but you can always double back for these rewards after the fight -Monad Shadows do not respawn.

One of the best parts of the change in how the Monad Depths work in P3R is thatdoors spawn on the same floor of Tartarus every night, even if you leave and come back another time. Because of this, it makes it that much easier for us to tell you in this section of our Monad guide exactlywhere you’ll find each door, what kind ofShadow you’ll fightinside, and what kind oflootyou’ll get after.

Any damage type not listed in the affinities column in the table below deals normal damage.

-

Null:Slash, Electric, Light, and Dark

Strong:Fire and Electric

Repel:All physical damage

Strong:Slash, Strike, Ice, and Electric

Strong:Slash, Strike, Fire, and Wind

Null:Wind, Light, and Dark

Null:Light and Dark

197

Strong:All damage types

Null:Fire, Ice, Electric, and Wind

Repel:Light and Dark

Weak:Fire and Ice

Repel:Wind and Electric

Weak:Wind and Electric

Repel:Weak:Fire and Ice

Null:Slash and Dark

Repel:Slash and Strike

Drain:Ice, Electric, and Wind

Drain:Fire, Ice, and Electric

Drain:Fire, Electric, and Wind

Drain:Fire, Ice, and Wind

255

Strong:Fire and Ice

Repel:Slash and Electric

Repel:Slash and Fire

Repel:Slash and Dark

Drain:Ice and Wind

Shadow of the Void

All damage hits normally.

These battles are often against the Guardians from previous versions of Persona 3, fun nods to older, inspirational content.