War Hammer Dive Bruiser PvP Build for New World

This build focuses on crowd-control and using that to your advantage to take out a single enemy at a time. When used properly, both weapons synergize perfectly to allow for a flurry of abilities that will leave an enemy staggered, stunned, or knocked down, over and over again. This prevents them from moving and its additive damage sources will surely kill them. It does not have high burst damage, but it can certainly pick up kills.

• Leaping Strike — This will be used to initiate a CC combo, or to just get yourself into combat. It will deal a large amount of damage if you hit an enemy from behind, and add a slowing effect. This can also be used for a quick escape.
• Shield Bash — This is needed for any chain CC combos. It is powerful ability for locking down a priority target, or interrupting abilities due to its quick casting speed.
• Shield Rush — This will provide a stagger that initiates a CC chain and quick damage. It also will add an AoE slowing effect. So when used on a clump, it can result in great utlity to secure several kills.

• Reverse Stab — This will do a large burst of damage, stagger the target, and reset cooldowns. It should always be used after your two other abilities are on cooldown. It is best to try and use it on a target who is stunned or affected by CC.

This build can result in higher burst damage and ability cooldown reduction, but it can be difficult to land Reverse Stab unless the target is stunned or CC'd.

• Wrecking Ball — This is a great tool for defensiveness and crowd-control. When it is used it will apply a Fortify buff that will help with survivability. Additionally, it has a unexpectedly large AoE knockdown effect that is essential for starting any kind of crowd-control combo.
• Shockwave — In most cases, this should be used as soon as a target is knocked down by Wrecking Ball. Not only with it provide a massive AoE stun. Every target will be debuffed and rended as long as you use its perk. This makes all targets extremely vulnerable.
• Path Of Destiny — This is perfect for free AoE damage and it does stagger, so you can use it to interrupt healers or other players. It is primarily used to catch targets who are running away because of its stagger and its slowing debuff. It can also be used defensively with its perk to provide quick healing.

This split prioritizes scaling your War Hammer damage. It can be nice to have Dexterity in most dive Sword builds because of the mobility and damage scaling, but this has no benefit to the War Hammer. Since this is your primary damage source, it is best to purely focus on Strength.

If you would prefer, you can increase your Constitution to 200 or lower it to 100.

Slot	Perks	Gem	Weight	Attribute	Source
Sword	Attunement Perk Keenly Empowered Empowering Leaping Strike	Runeglass of Ignited Opal**	-	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Shield	Keen Vicious Keenly Jagged	-	Round Shield	Strength or Constitution	Crafted/BoE
War Hammer	Sundering Shockwave Thwarting Strikes or Keenly Jagged Attunement Perk or Chain Damage Perk	Runeglass of Ignited Opal**	-	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Helmet	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Chest	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Gloves	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Pants	Refreshing or Freedom*** Resilient Shirking Energy	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Boots	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Amulet	Health Stamina Recovery Slash Protection	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Strength or Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Ring	Mortal Empowerment Keen Awareness Hearty	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Strength or Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Earring	Refreshing Toast Purifying Toast Refreshing***	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Strength or Constitution	Crafted/BoE

*: The ability perks you need to make sure are in your build are Empowering Leaping Strike, Sundering Shockwave, and Penetrating Wrecking Ball to maximize damage. Depending on your build choices, you may also need Contagious Reverse Stab. You can use Fortifying Shield Rush and Leeching Path Of Destiny for more defensiveness if you wish. If you do not use a perk, fill that slot with a viable defensive passive.

**: Your Opal Runeglass on your weapons can be any variation of elemental damage, the same goes for your Attunement and Chain Damage perks. It is best practice to match your Attunement or Chain with the type of DoT damage your Opal does.

***: Freedom, Elemental Aversion, and Refreshing, are all viable options. When using Freedom you should stack 3 or 5 times. Any combination of these perks is viable.

For more specific information on optimizing your gems in PvP and PvE please refer to our dedicated guides.

When you are looking to have higher damage output and burst down multiple targets within a clump should use Brutal Heartrune of Detonate. You just need to play safely after activating it.

If you are wanting to push through choke points, doorways, or want a more defensive option, Stalwart Heartrune of Stoneform is great to have some independent burst healing if you do not have a healer. For max defensiveness, Cunning Heartrune of Stoneform is the better option.

Your Heartrune will be used similarly in PvP and PvE scenarios. As such, please refer to our Sword guide or War Hammer guide for tips on how it can be used most effectively.

• Open on a target with Leaping Strike and attempt to hit them in the back.
• Use Shield Rush to do damage, slow, and stagger the target.
• Use Shield Bash to do damage and stun the target.
• Swap to War Hammer and use Wrecking Ball.
• Use Shockwave.
• Heavy or light attack with your War Hammer.

• Open on a target with Leaping Strike and attempt to hit them in the back.
• Use Shield Bash to do damage and stun the target.
• Use Reverse Stab to do damage and stagger the target.
• Swap to War Hammer and use Wrecking Ball.
• Use Shockwave.
• Heavy or light attack with your War Hammer.

• Open on a target with Wrecking Ball.
• Use Shockwave.
• Swap to Sword and Shield and use Leaping Strike.
• Use Shield Rush (Use Shield Bash if you are using Reverse Stab).
• Use Shield Bash (Use Reverse Stab if selected).
• Heavy attack from behind the target.

When using the Sword or War Hammer in PvP and PvE there are many similar aspects that go into gameplay decisions and rotations. To learn more about how you can improve your gameplay, use certain secondary weapons, or additional information on specific abilities, please refer to the Gameplay section of the Sword page or War Hammer page.

For more information on the most frequently asked Sword and Shield or War Hammer questions please refer to the FAQ section of the Sword, or War Hammer, for answers on PvP and PvE topics!