Arms Warrior Torghast Guide and Best Anima Powers — Shadowlands 9.2.5

This page will help give advice on navigating Torghast, Tower of the Damned, as an Arms Warrior. For more details on Torghast itself, check our dedicated pages.

Level	Choices
15	✓ War Machine	✗ Sudden Death	✓ Skullsplitter
25	✓ Double Time	✗ Impending Victory	✓ Storm Bolt
30	✓ Massacre	✓ Fervor of Battle	✗ Rend
35	✓ Second Wind	✓ Bounding Stride	✓ Defensive Stance
40	✗ Collateral Damage	✓ Warbreaker	✗ Cleave
45	✗ In For The Kill	✓ Avatar	✗ Deadly Calm
50	✗ Anger Management	✓ Dreadnaught	✗ Ravager

✔ War Machine

✘ Sudden Death

✔ Skullsplitter

Skullsplitter performs well early on, but Rage-generation-increasing powers are very common, which reduces its need considerably. On the other hand, War Machine is not particularly powerful, but will help reduce downtime and get through the activity much quicker.

✔ Double Time

✘ Impending Victory

✔ Storm Bolt

Double Time is usually the go-to talent, although Storm Bolt can be a very strong choice due to the amount of dangerous mobs inside Torghast. Impending Victory is less useful due to the amount of frequent Victory Rush procs and powers which allow its use without getting a kill, although the talent does increase its healing.

✔ Massacre

✔ Fervor of Battle

✘ Rend

Massacre is strong for the same reasons it is in Mythic+, as most targets do not live long enough for Rend to tick out; that may not be true against all bosses, however. That said, the Anima Power Voracious Culling Blade will eventually make Execute usable at any health percent, thereby replacing Massacre entirely, while Fan of Longswords and other Whirlwind Powers will make Fervor of Battle much better.

✔ Second Wind

✔ Bounding Stride

✔ Defensive Stance

Bounding Stride increases mobility and adds an offensive layer with Ancient Rubble or Blade of the Tideskorn and Resonant Throatbands, although Defensive Stance is the better defensive option when needed. Second Wind is something of a wild card, as it can provide extra healing when kiting dangerous mobs, but it is not typically needed.

✘ Collateral Damage

✔ Warbreaker

✘ Cleave

Warbreaker is the go-to choice due to the amount of multi-target inside Torghast.

✘ In For The Kill

✔ Avatar

✘ Deadly Calm

Deadly Calm is excellent for jumpstarting Rage generation, working best with Condemn or Voracious Culling Blade. However, it is easy to gain enough Rage generation from powers such as Brawler's Brass Knuckles that it is not needed, making Avatar a more universal choice.

✘ Anger Management

✔ Dreadnaught

✘ Ravager

Dreadnaught is the best choice across the board, due to the increased single target and constant AoE damage it provides.

Throughout your climb through Torghast, you will be offered up a variety of Anima Powers as you progress. Some of these are unique, while others can stack and making the right choice first time can be difficult. Because of that we have made a Tier List below that helps make quick decisions if you are struggling.

Remember though, do not follow the list blindly, there is a lot of different playstyles to explore within Torghast and trying things out is part of the enjoyment. None of the powers are necessary to complete a run, and picking a power that improves something you rarely use will ultimately be useless. After all, you might not run into the power that you are looking for each run!

For a complete list of Anima Powers available to Warriors, please refer to the pages linked just below.

• Scratched Knife
• Warlord's Resolve
• Unbound Fortitude (with Warlord's Resolve)
• Voracious Culling Blade
• Pridebreaker's Anvil
• Brawler's Brass Knuckles
• Smoldering Inertia

• Resonant Throatbands (with Blade of the Tideskorn and Glory of Skyhold)
• Fan of Longswords (with Hurricane Heart or Thorium Hairpin)
• Bloodstained Whetstone (with Hurricane Heart)
• Zovaal's Warbanner
• Spearheads of Eternity
• Spattered Soles (for mobility)

• Battlelord's Cypher
• Battlelord's Ultimatum
• Writhing Noose
• Edge of Hatred (without Voracious Culling Blade)
• Shadehound Tooth (without Voracious Culling Blade)
• Livingwood Pommel
• Gargolmar's Shattered Hand

• Ancient Rubble
• Bladed Bulwark
• Champion's Decree
• Gibbering Skull
• Ogundimu's Fist (Kyrian)
• Periapt of Furor
• Pleonexian Command
• Ragemote
• Shrieking Flagon
• Singing Stones
• Soulwrought Studs
• Succulent Carpaccio
• Thundering Roar
• Umbral Ear Trumpet
• Battlelord's Invocation
• Battlelord's Legacy
• Battlelord's Lesson
• Battlelord's Mythos
• Ancient Prolegomenon
• Elysian Shoulderwrap
• Kyrian Warhelm
• Stonepiercer Signet
• Distillation of Sin
• Hateful Fetish
• Repulsive Pennant
• Sinew-Sewn Tassels
• Overgrowth Catalyst
• Petrified Wildseed
• Weathered Runestone

If an Anima Power is not in the Tier List above, it is either because we have been unable to test due to being unavailable as a pick, or information about its tuning is not complete. It will be added to the list as we find out more.

Occasionally you will be offered the ability to get Phantasma instead of an Anima Power, or increases to your Phantasma generation. Judging these is more difficult because it depends on how much of each floor you are clearing. Grabbing these early on is usually a good idea so you can make use of vendors, while the later the run goes the less valuable these are.

Arms Warriors have a very strong toolkit for dealing with the mixed pulls in Torghast, backed by several powerful anima powers which create interesting gameplay builds. The only real weakpoint is a lack of in-combat self healing, but that is easily be compensated for by numerous defensive abilities and anima powers which enhance them. Some tips for gameplay are:

• Scratched Knife is the best power, which will almost always take out the strongest enemy or boss on the floor in one hit and grant an extra anima power, leading to many more powers over the course of a run than otherwise.
• Combining Brawler's Brass Knuckles and Voracious Culling Blade will result in a one-button rotation capable of decimating everything in your path.
• Stacking Hurricane Heart and Bloodstained Whetstone can create a very strong self healing build.
• Gaining enough Unbound Fortitude and Warlord's Resolve will result in a 100% uptime on Die by the Sword, making you nearly immortal.
• Do not be afraid to kite if you feel you are in danger, using Piercing Howl and Intimidating Shout.
• Do not rush into big pulls if you have no cooldowns and are not stable. Torghast has no timer, and enemies can become very dangerous at higher floor levels so know your limits.