Gunbreaker PvP Guide for FFXIV

The Gunbreaker is one of four Tanks who much like the Warrior specialises around heavy brawling. The Key difference is that the Gunbreaker sustains through active combat to stack shielding which can be combined with damage reductions and a counter ability. The Strong AoE abilities are made all the more lethal with with Limit Break that will not only CC targets but increase the damage they take whilst reducing the damage that they deal perfect for large grouped up team fights.

As of Patch 7.1 the Gunbreaker has become much more beginner friendly as the old janky Junction system has been removed and those abilities once accessed through the Junction system are now freely available. For those of you with a aggressive play style who enjoy diving in for a good brawl with the capabilities to survives and deal serious damage the Gunbreakers current version just might be for you.

Note: This guide is focused on PVP as a whole; Frontline, Crystalline Conflict and Rival wings all play differently to one another, however the fundamentals and understanding of a role translate across all game modes.

Strengths

• An Amazing Single Target Rotation which applies three separate sets of shields giving Gunbreakers good survivability.
• The Only tank to have triple dash with there Rough Divide allowing you never to miss a opportunity and give chase relentlessly.
• Fated Circle A powerful AOE ability that allows you to deflect damage when struck over the next 10s before following up with a mass Heavy CC.
• Access to damage reduction with a auto heal that goes off at 50% that can be used on yourself or party members.
• Relentless Rush is a powerful Limit Breake reducing your damage taken, while at the same time increasing the damage enemy players taken.
• The Role actions Rampart and Rampage shine with the Gunbreaker allowing you to become unkillable or to deal insane amounts of damage.

Weaknesses

• Limit Break cannot be negated by CC effects but is vulnerable to Knock-back effects pushing you out off your effective range.
• Your best CC Mass Stun is locked behind the second phase off your Limit Break.
• Generally weak to CC spam as you to build shields to become a pain for the enemy team CC spam prevents you from using your shield combo's.
• Long single-target rotations make killing targets with a lot of mobility a struggle.
• Gunbreakers do not have the same Survivability potential as a Paladin if caught out alone you are very easily over powered with little chance of escape.
• No ranged abilities with ranged enemies being your biggest weakness as you need to avoid taking poke damage as much as possible when engaging.

4.

Skill Selection

Every job has access to a few common actions, but their utility differs between jobs.

Recuperate Standard-issue Elixir Guard Purify Sprint

3.1.

Recuperate

Recuperate – This is your most important healing ability. MP in PVP is only used for this ability. With a max of 10,000 MP, recup will consume 2,500 and heals you for 15,000 HP. The amount of healing received can be increased and reduced by healing up or down status effects, such as Summon Seraph to increase or Biolysis to decrease. You gain 500 MP per 3 seconds passively, something to keep in mind!

3.2.

Standard-issue Elixir

Standard-issue Elixir – This is your second-most important healing ability. Elixir allows you to gain back all your HP and MP, resetting yourself for the next fight! The listed cast time is 4.5 seconds, which means the cast is actually snapshotted as complete after 4 seconds, after which you can move and opponents can no longer cancel your Elixir. You'll see moments where you get hit, and the position will still finish.

When not under pressure, make sure to top up your resources for the next fight. As with the animations counted in the death timer, you will be out for 20~ seconds instead vs a 4 second Elixir!

3.3.

Guard

Guard – Grants 90% damage reduction and immunity to most crowd-control debuffs for up to 4 seconds. Using another action cancels this guard early. Damage over Time effects that have been applied before Guard will always tick for the full amount and wont be negated with Guard!

Per Patch 7.1, there have been multiple abilities added that work against Guarded targets. Where Shield Smite and Chain Stratagem half the defensive bonus of Guard (90% → 45%), there are also abilities that simply ignore guard when dealing damage; Drill, Assassinate, Enchanted Riposte, Disesteem, Wreath of Fire, Serpent's Tail and Chaotic Spring

Damage per ability is now tight to animations, compared to pre-7.1 where the damage would register when pressed. This means Guard is more reactive than it has been before, but it's also possible now to start ability animations that will hit the moment your Guard ends. Beware of your surroundings and what the enemy is doing!

3.4.

Purify

Purify – Cleanses all common crowd-control debuffs and provides a 2-second immunity to further crowd control, draw in and knockback effects. Use this to prevent yourself from getting CC-chained to death. As of patch 7.35 Purify is now a cost of 2500 MP with every use and can be recast every 4s.

With the amount of crowd-control abilities, try not to be trigger-happy when using Purify. Taking a stun with no follow up from the enemy team, doesn't bring you in danger! If you have no defensives ready against a crowd-control heavy enemy team, it's recommended to play defensively before making another engage.

3.5.

Sprint

Sprint – Toggle for increased movement speed. This is a GCD and using any other action cancels the buff, so be smart in using it. Sage is a fragile job, as it has the lowest HP out of any job. If you are using off-global abilities repeatedly while running away or chasing, you should try to late-weave them if you can afford to, to avoid canceling too much of the Sprint duration.

A Gunbreakers most basic combo consists of Keen Edge, Brutal Shell, Solid Barrel and Burst Strike which all share a 5 yalm reach dealing 5,000, 6,000, 7,000 and 8,000 damage in sequence. A full rotation will play into one of the Gunbreakers main actions Continuation that grants access to certain abilities, in this case a full Keen Edge rotation combo's into Hypervelocity for a instant 4,000 damage follow up that also generates a 8,000 barrier.

Unlock most roles whose basic rotation serves little purpose a Gunbreakers is rather handy to obtain a bonus shield before moving into the main combo's to generate even more shields. This can utilised to great effectiveness on Frontline maps such as Shatter and Secure since you can attack the Ice and Drones to ready that free bonus shield before engaging the enemy teams. The Gunbreakers true power right now is how unkillable they have become take any opportunity you can to maximise shields up time and you will dominate in PvP.

Fated Circle is your go to AoE ability and is how you would now access the effects Nebula from the old junction system. A 6 yalm wide AoE dealing 8,000 damage to all struck granting Nebula for 8s along side dealing a counter attack each time you suffer damage for the next 10s for 4,000 per counter attack.

Using Fated Circle readies your instant follow up the Fated Brand granting access to further shielding and a mass CC effect. Fated Circle does not need to deal damage in order to access the Nebula counter attack effect some scenarios you will give up the damage just to have Nebula activate before you engage, whilst other times you can hang back with Nebula activate as the counter attack can rack up quite a lot of damage.

Fated Brand is Fated Circle follow up with the same 6 yalm radius dealing 4,000 damage to everyone struck. Any target struck with receive Heavy+ 75% for the next 3s often times forcing enemy players to give up 2000 MP. Regardless of weather or not you land the attack you will also obtain a 8,000 barrier lasting 6s.

The CC effects and Bonus shields are the reason as to why sometimes you would cast Fated Circle before engaging so as when you dive into a crowed you can instantly drop CC and shield up which is a amazing opening to combo into your Limit Break Relentless Rush which greatly benefits when your targets are slowed.

The Gnashing Fang combo is a six part rotation for single targets that will also build your shields for engaging larger croweds starting with the Gnashing Fang into Jugular Rip, Savage Claw, Abdomen Tear, Wicked Talon ending with Eye Gouge.

The rotation is effectively a 1-2 combo you repeat three times, the first strike is pure damage with the follow up being damage and shields Gnashing Fang and Jugular Rip deal 11,000 damage and grant a 6,000 barrier. Actions 3-4 Savage Claw into Abdomen Tear deal 12,000 damage including a 6,000 barrier ending with Wicked Talon and Eye Gouge dealing 13,000 alongside one final 6,000 barrier.

This constant stream of shielding is why Gunbreakers in Frontline now have become a true menace for there survivability as you can also combine damage reductions from Heart of Corundum and Rampart to tank through almost any scenario.

The Blasting Zone is your main single target instant follow up ready to use at any moment with a very fast animation applying damage to your target almost instantly. With a 5 yalm reach you deal 5,000 damage which scales up to 10,000 as your target drops to 50% HP.

With A Battle High Five in Frontline that 50% damage bonus changes this damage to 10,000 up to 15,000 almost on par with the Smite action DPS have access to and is best used with your explosive Burst combo's for jumping those squishier ranged roles.

Rough Divide is your very powerful gap closer which as of the most recent patch can hold up to 3 charges. You can jump any target within a 20 Yalm reach dealing a extra 2,000 damage in the process that very same target increases your own Damage dealt and Healing done by 10% while also increasing movement speed by a extra 25%.

This 1 extra charge and Bonus 25% movement speed has now allowed you as the Gunbreaker to keep maximum uptime while also allowing you to have two dashing for the main fight with always one final dive at the ready to jump a fleeing target. The bonus 10% damage you obtain for 7s alone is reasons to engage every target you can with your dash as that very same 10% stacks with BH which ranges from 10% up to 50% bonus damage.

Heart of Corundum can be cast upon both yourself or a targeted party member applying a 10% reduction in damage taken for the next 10s that also will auto Heal for 12,000 should the player drop under 50% HP.

Playing Solo this is amazing for yourself combined with shields you are extremely hard to kill but its also a very powerful ability to combo with a Dark Knight going in for there Salted earth pull give them Heart of Corundum or perhaps a whitemage and other Squishy targets getting dove in the backline, A good read on the situation can be the difference in saving a party member.

The Gunbreaker is blessed with one of the most powerful yet hardest to use Limit Breaks in PvP the Relentless Rush and Terminal Trigger. This two part Limit break rotation begins with Relentless Rush a 6 yalm radius ability unleashing a flurry of strikes over a 4s period. Each strike deals 4,000 damage to any player stuck with each strike apply 1 stacks of Relentless Shrapnel up to a maximum of 5 stacks, each stack increases that players damage taken by 5% for the next 6s allowing for a maximum 25% increase to damage taken. During the first 4s of your Limit Break you take 25% less damage from all sources.

Drop Rampage before using your Limit Break and enemy targets can taken up to 50% bonus damage from all sources provided you can land all 5 stacks of Shrapnel. It is up to you as the Tank to decide how long you stay active sometimes its only safe going for 1 to 3 stacks which is a more common fact in Crystalline Conflict whereas during Frontline with a team you can push for the full 5 stacks.

During any stage while using your Limit Break you can Re-trigger to activate your Terminal Trigger for a quick 12,000 and Stun for every play hit. This base damage will already be increased by your Shrapnel Stacks and weather or not you added the damage boost from Rampage before hand.

This limit Breaks biggest weakness is knock-back no CC can stop the LB while active even when hit by Silence or Imp however knock-backs place you far enough away that your slow moment will not allow you to catch up. However there is a small piece of tech you can use in such situation if knocked away trigger Terminal Trigger and instantly Relentless Rush dash to a enemy player as Terminal Trigger has a animation long enough for you to jump onto a target right as the damage and CC Stun lands amazing for catching players of Guard which will take some time and practice to master.

Your Role Actions consist of Rampage, Rampart and Full Swing full swing can be a fun pick due to its 30 yalm knock back and the ability to remove Guard from players under its effect. The best use requires high ground with maps such as Secure and Shatter and can be rather difficult to land as the Warrior using your draw in or stun before hand to line your target up is often met with Purify preventing you from landing a successful knockback.

Secondly is Rampart which will reduce damage taken by 50% while increasing healing via actions by 25% for 15s. This is the perfect choice for the beginner Warrior increasing your already amazing self sustain even further. For a more experienced Warrior Rampart is the role action you would switch too when your team fail to back you up.

the Third and best option is your Rampage with a 10 yalm radius you increase all targets damage taken by 25% for the next 10s, this combined with the Warriors already explosive AoE capabilities you become a one man army able to deal 60-70% of most players HP within seconds. Once your Battle High in Frontline builds both your damage and healing increase meaning you would have less need to use Rampart.

One final note for Warriors choosing between Rampage and Rampart, the 25% bonus healing via actions from Rampart with only effect your Recuperate since Rampage also means you deal 25% more damage. This means for example with Bloodwhetting healing active the results are the same if you did 5,000 to a target Ramparts 25% extra healing would heal for 6250, whereas dealing 25% more damage to a 5,000 hit would also be a 6250 heal with the bonus payoff then enemies take more damage from all sources Rampart for the Warrior is solely a defensive boost.

Your Role Actions consist of Rampage, Rampart and Full Swing full swing can be a fun pick due to its 30 yalm knock back and the ability to remove Guard from players under its effect. The best use requires high ground with maps such as Secure and Shatter and can be rather difficult to land as the Gunbreaker as your CC is locked behind your Limit break and to catch them by surprise you typically dash in with Rough Divide which can be tricky enough since you need to engage from the correct angle.

Secondly is Rampart which will reduce damage taken by 50% while increasing healing via actions by 25% for 15s. This is a perfect choice for the Gunbreaker as Ramparts defensive and healing bonuses on top of large amounts of shield generation can straight up make you unkillable even in times when you are trapped 1v24. The Rampart is also a very good safety pick to combine with your limit break as this combines ramparts defensive bonus with your limit breaks so long as you are not knocked away this is the best way to land there entire limit break.

the Third and best option for all out raw damage Rampage with a 10 yalm radius you increase all targets damage taken by 25% for the next 10s, this combined with the Gunbreakers Limit Break Relentless Rush target can take up to 50% more damage from all sources becoming a walk over for your team. Rampages bonus damage alone is very strong with the Gunbreakers already DPS like damage as your BH grows making it a valid strategy to use someone on singled targets like a pesky Dark Knight whose Battle High you want to keep low.

This first rotation is worth noting as it is a great way to start off with a bonus shield which works best on Shatter and Secure when you can attack the objective to gain this bonus shield safely.

1. Rough Divide
2. Keen Edge
3. Brutal Shell
4. Solid Barrel
5. Burst Strike
6. Hypervelocity

This second rotation is how you would maximise shield generation with you single target combinations allowing you to out sustain every other role in those 1v1s.

1. Rough Divide
2. Keen Edge
3. Brutal Shell
4. Solid Barrel
5. Burst Strike
6. Hypervelocity
7. Gnashing Fang
8. Jugular Rip
9. Savage Claw
10. Abdomen Tear
11. Wicked Talon
12. Eye Gouge
13. Blasting Zone

This third rotation is how you would maximise the damage from your AoE abilities through quickly diving in dropping damage with enough defensive's to survive and fall back to safety.

1. Heart of Corundum
2. Rough Divide
3. Rampage
4. Fated Circle
5. Fated Brand

The Gunbreakers mass Heavy can be very effective sometime worth a quick jump into the crowd to land that one effect.

1. Fated Circle
2. Heart of Corundum
3. Rough Divide
4. Rampage
5. Fated Brand

If you prefer the safer approach to your limit break this rotation would be your rotation of choice.

1. Rampart
2. Heart of Corundum
3. Fated Circle
4. Rough Divide
5. Relentless Rush
6. Terminal Trigger
7. Fated Brand
8. Blasting Zone

If your aiming for that huge bonus damage of up to 50% to enemy damage taken by all sources the rampage play is your go to.

1. Heart of Corundum
2. Fated Circle
3. Rough Divide
4. Rampage
5. Relentless Rush
6. Terminal Trigger
8. Fated Brand
9. Blasting Zone

This final Limit Break rotation is a way to solo combo against a singled out target great for clutch up moments and taking down a tough to kill role.

1. Heart of Corundum
2. Rough Divide
3. Rampage
4. Gnashing Fang
5. Jugular Rip
6. Relentless Rush
7. Terminal Trigger
8. Savage Claw
9. Abdomen Tear
10. Wicked Talon
11. Eye Gouge
12. Blasting Zone