Professional Build Suggestions: Warrior

As one of the most experienced warriors in the guild (500k+ EXP and counting), I feel this is the one class I feel qualified to write about-- so I'm going to before anyone else does. :)

Warriors are, believe it or not, probably the most varied class because of the wide range of weaponry and skills available. Your first decision is whether you want to be a PvE warrior or PvP. Then, decide on a style of play-- tank, damage dealer, farmer, status inflictor, etc. Here are a couple of suggested PvE builds:

Build 1: Solo Griffon Farmer Whammo (War/Monk)
Axe Mastery 7+2=9 (rune + helmet)
Tactics 8+1=9 (rune)
Healing Prayers 9
Smiting Prayers 12
3 pieces of Gladiator's Armor (+6 energy)
1 piece (boots or gloves) Ascalon or Knight's Armor

Skills:
Cyclone Axe
Bonetti's Defense
Gladiator's Defense
Vigorous Spirit
Balthazar's Aura
Live Vicariously
Mending
Healing Breeze

This is a build meant for taking out 6-12 melee mobs at once.
Step 1: Put on Mending and Live Vicariously. This should leave you with above 10 energy.
Step 2: Gather mobs, careful to try to avoid gathering anything that disrupts.
Step 3: Add Vigorous Spirit.
Step 4: Cyclone Axe, which will give you enough adrenaline to activate Bonetti's.
Step 5: Bonetti's will give you enough energy to activate Balth's Aura. Your energy should refill while casting it. Immediately activate Glad's defense to put out 45 damage per second to any enemies attacking you in melee range.
Step 6: Cyclone Axe ---> Bonetti's. Repeat as necessary until the cast time for Balth's Aura recycles. Recast Vig Spirit as necessary.
Step 7: Balth's + Glad's again = dead mobs! Enjoy your treasure and 1k experience!

Build 2: Aftershock W/E (damage dealer)
Hammer Mastery 8+2=10 (rune + helm)
Earth Magic 11
Tactics 8+1=9 (rune)
Strength 8+1=9 (rune)

Skills:
Counter Blow
Devastating Hammer
For Great Justice!
Flurry
Aftershock
Armor of Earth
Rez Signet
(your choice-- if you are grouping with a minion master, I strongly suggest I Will Avenge You!)

Hammers build adrenaline horribly slowly, as they hit at about half the speed of axes or swords. The combo of Flurry and For Great Justice will help that out, as you'll be getting 2 adrenaline per strike, and be striking 33% faster. Once you've built up adrenaline, unleash a knockdown attack (Counter Blow if they are attacking, Devastating if they're not) and Aftershock, your damage dealer. If you become a target of attack, Armor of Earth will greatly reduce the damage they are inflicting.

Build 3: Inigo Montoya (Sword Spiker W/anything)
Swordsmanship: 15 (11 + superior rune + helm)
Strength: 11 (10+ rune)
Other: 10 (depending on secondary)
Flurry
For Great Justice
Sever Artery
Gash
Galrath's Slash/Hundred Blades (I prefer Galrath's)
Final Thrust
Rez Signet
(your choice, probably a defensive skill like Endure Pain)

Again, use the combo of Flurry and For Great Justice to build up adrenaline very quickly. Sever Artery makes them bleed, then hit in succession Gash, Galrath's/HB, and Final Thrust. Assuming the Galrath's/HB put them down below 50% health, Final could finish them off. Unfortunately, this build makes you VERY easy to kill. Fortunately, in PvP, warriors are the last target.

Build #4: Stance Tank/HP King (W/Mo or Me)
Tactics 8+2 (rune + helmet)
Strength 9+1 (rune)
Protection Prayers/Illusion Magic 10
Weapon 8+1 (rune)

Skills:
Bonetti's Defense
Defensive Stance
Gladiator's Defense (E)/Mark of Protection (E)
Rez Signet
Endure Pain
Vital Blessing/Illusion of Weakness
Weapon skill of choice
Weapon skill of choice

Start out by throwing Vital Blessing or Illusion of Weakness on yourself. I prefer IoW for the following reasons:

1. IoW doesn't cause a -1 energy regen because it's not an "enchantment".
2. Because it's not an enchantment, it can't be stripped.
3. Typically, IoW will provide a slightly higher HP "boost".

The reasons you would take Vital Blessing are:

1. If you take Mark of Protection in this build, then you have to be a W/Mo, and you take VB by default.
2. Combined with Endure Pain, VB can get you close to 1000 visible HP, which is good for bragging rights.

Anyhow, the build: this is a keep it simple PvE tank build. Simply cycle through your three stances, keeping one active at all times. You'll evade/block 75% of enemy attacks, deal a little damage if you use Glad's, get energy back if you use Bonetti's, and have extra armor with Defensive. If things get hairy, Endure Pain can give you a temporary 200+ HP so that your monk can keep you alive. The problem you'll run into with this skill is that when it ends, you'll likely drop to 1 HP, and then die really quickly because the monk will not know that you have a "false" 200+ HP.
 
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Thanks for the info and sharing your experience with us Bill! Gracias!

I was reading about a good Warrior Necro combo: Spinal Shivers + Axe Skills + an Axe that does cold damage.

All your energy goes into keeping Spinal Shivers up (whenever opponent is hit with cold dmg, if opponent was using a skill/spell, that opponent is interupted and you lose X energy) and the rest of your skills are for adrenaline-based axe attacks. Kind of an alternate to a "shutdown" Warrior/Mesmer. Have you seen that in use much at the higher levels?
 
Shagz, that's an interesting thought, and I could see it working with a sword as well since you could throw Hamstring on there and keep them from getting away from you. I haven't done much PvP'ing as a warrior, and that build seems more like a PvP build than anything else. It sounds like it should work though.

Another option for disruption is Dwarven Battle Stance (Elite), which is specific to hammers, but every attack interrupts any action. It's a great complement to the stance tank I edited in above.
 
Indigo Montoya!!!! I love that movie I love Princess Bride lol and those who have not seen it CLASSIC must see. Yes it is a chick flick but a good one with sword fighting! (one of the best sword fights of all time)
 
I remain a big fan of the W/E build, and I think the build you outlined is superb because it takes advantage both of Aftershock (which is great when paired with hammer knockdown abilities) and Armor of Earth (which makes this build very, very tough to kill).

One rarely-mentioned build, though, is the W/Me, which has all kinds of possibilities. An Inspiration build would allow for +40 to armor courtesy of either Physical or Elemental Resistance (and as stances they cannot be shattered, unlike Monk and Elemental enchants). Mesmer stances can last a minute or more... far longer than any comparable warrior stance. Likewise, the Mantras all have application for the warrior and last a long time. And, of course, there is always illusionary weaponry, which ignores armor and does fixed damage against those high-armor foes.
 
And, of course, there is always illusionary weaponry, which ignores armor and does fixed damage against those high-armor foes.
**That's** why that skill is so special!! It ignores armor! I didn't understand what the big deal was.

Shagz, that's an interesting thought, and I could see it working with a sword as well since you could throw Hamstring on there and keep them from getting away from you.

The problem with Hamstring is that it costs 10 energy to cast, and you really need that energy to keep Spinal Shivers running (costs you everytime your opponent tries to do something); run out of energy and spinal shivers stops. That's why all Axe Skills because they only use adrenaline, no energy.
 
Shagz said:
**That's** why that skill is so special!! It ignores armor! I didn't understand what the big deal was.

Yeah. At it's peak, it does a steady 34 damage per hit. This isn't a good number versus most caster foes, but against high-armor warriors or anyone with earth armor this is a nasty enchant to throw at 'em.
 
Inigo Montoya!!!! I am looking for the 6-fingered man.

Did you guys know that he's the same guy that does the Crestor commercials? It's that drug that lowers your cholesterol.
 
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