User:Masel/Builds/Herald

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Dual Swords Power.png Power Herald[edit]

Build Rating (Subjective)
Criterion Rating
Burst Damage 4/5
Sustained Damage 3/5
Utility Options 4/5
Survivability 5/5
Difficulty 2/5

Power.png Power Herald Herald is a very strong and straightforward damage build for instanced content. The iteration provided here uses Dual Swords, but it works in a similar way with Hammer and Greatsword too. Herald Herald is also a great pick for solo gameplay, as it can provide itself 'and allies with good amounts of the most essential offensive and defensive boons: Quickness.png Quickness, Protection.png Protection, Fury.png Fury and Might.png Might. Through Dance of Death Dance of Death and Relic of Zakiros.pngRelic of Zakiros, it can reach great passive sustain with a fairly small damage loss on top.

Link to the Build on the Editor

Playstyle & Skills[edit]

Skill Type Skills
Herald Skills
Facet of Nature.png Skill.png Skill.png Skill.png Skill.png
Dual Sword Skills
Preparation Thrust.png Chilling Isolation.png Unrelenting Assault.png Shackling Wave.png Deathstrike.png
Brutal Blade.png Skill.png Skill.png Skill.png Skill.png
Rift Slash.png Skill.png Skill.png Skill.png Skill.png
Hammer Skills
Hammer Bolt.png Coalescence of Ruin.png Phase Smash.png Field of the Mists.png Drop the Hammer.png
Utility Skills (Legendary Assassin Stance)
Enchanted Daggers.png Impossible Odds.png Riposting Shadows.png Phase Traversal.png Jade Winds.png
Utility Skills (Legendary Dragon Stance)
Facet of Light.png Facet of Darkness.png Facet of Elements.png Facet of Strength.png Facet of Chaos.png
Consume Skills (Legendary Dragon Stance)
Infuse Light.png Gaze of Darkness.png Elemental Blast.png Burst of Strength.png Chaotic Release.png

Facets & Consumes[edit]

# Skill Activation.png Energy.png Tango-recharge-darker.png Description
F1 Legendary Dragon Stance.png Legendary Dragon Stance Invoke the power of the legendary dragon Glint.
F2 Facet of Nature.png Facet of Nature -2 Legendary Dragon. Facet. Place the Facet of Nature on yourself to grant nearby allies enhancements based on your channeled legend.
Legend specific mechanic
Facet of Nature―Assassin.png Facet of Nature—Assassin Grants allies the ability to steal life with their strikes.
F2 ChainOne with Nature.png True Nature 0.25¼ 20 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Strip boons from nearby enemies.
Facet of Nature―Dwarf.png Facet of Nature—Dwarf Reduce incoming damage to allies.
F2 ChainOne with Nature.png True Nature 0.25¼ 20 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Grant stability to nearby allies.
Facet of Nature―Dragon.png Facet of Nature—Dragon Increase the duration of boons applied to allies.
F2 ChainOne with Nature.png True Nature 0.25¼ 20 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Increase the duration of allies' boons. Remove conditions from allies.
  • In a similar vein, your utility skills become toggle skills with a secondary cast that puts them on cooldown.
Skill Underwater skills Activation.png Energy/Upkeep cost Tango-recharge-darker.png Description
Facet of Light.png Facet of Light 0.25¼ -1 Legendary Dragon. Facet. Place the Facet of Light on yourself to grant nearby allies regeneration every few seconds.
ChainInfuse Light.png Infuse Light 30 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Consume Facet of Light to heal yourself and convert all incoming strikes to heals for a short duration.
Facet of Darkness.png Facet of Darkness -2 Legendary Dragon. Facet. Place the Facet of Darkness on yourself to grant nearby allies fury every few seconds.
ChainGaze of Darkness.png Gaze of Darkness 15 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Consume Facet of Darkness to reveal the area around you, pulling foes out of stealth and blinding them.
Facet of Elements.png Facet of Elements -1 Legendary Dragon. Facet. Place the Facet of Elements on yourself to grant nearby allies swiftness every few seconds.
ChainElemental Blast.png Elemental Blast 0.25¼ 12 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Consume Facet of Elements to cover the target area in magical dragon breath.
Facet of Strength.png Facet of Strength -2 Legendary Dragon. Facet. Place the Facet of Strength on yourself to grant nearby allies might every few seconds.
ChainBurst of Strength.png Burst of Strength 1 12 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Consume Facet of Strength, granting increased damage for successful hits. Facet of Strength will be disabled while this skill is recharging.
Facet of Chaos.png Facet of Chaos -4 Legendary Dragon. Facet. Place the Facet of Chaos on yourself to grant nearby allies protection every few seconds.
ChainChaotic Release.png Chaotic Release 0.75¾ 20 Legendary Dragon. Consume. Consume Facet of Chaos, releasing chaotic winds damaging and knocking back foes while granting superspeed to allies. Facet of Chaos will be disabled while this skill is recharging.
  • If you want to provide Boons, you just need to maintain a particular Upkeep skill and watch it pulse that boon.
  • The secondary casts - Consumes - apply various effects that are helpful for damage, utility or survivability. I'll go into more detail in the later sections!

Rotation Concept[edit]

You can find my most recent rotation showcase here.
Damage Log

Rotation Flow[edit]

Section Notes
General Stuff
Careful:This build scales with the number of Boons on yourself, so you should only apply 10 Boons including Might.png Might, Fury.png Fury, Quickness.png Quickness and Alacrity.png Alacrity. For guidance on setting up the training area, see my guide for it
Opener
  1. Activate  Facet of Light.png Facet of Light and  Facet of Darkness.png Facet of Darkness. This is done to gain 10% damage for the opener.
  2. Right after, use both casts of  Facet of Strength.png Facet of Strength and  Facet of Elements.png Facet of Elements.
  3. The second cast of  Facet of Strength.png Facet of Strength -  Burst of Strength.png Burst of Strength.
  4. Then use both casts of  Facet of Chaos.png Facet of Chaos
  5. Shackling Wave.png Shackling Wave
  6. Deathstrike.png Deathstrike
  7. Swap to Legendary Assassin Stance Legendary Assassin Stance.
Section 1:  Legendary Assassin Stance.png Legendary Assassin Stance
Section 2:  Legendary Dragon Stance.png Legendary Dragon Stance
CC Skills for Breakbar Damage
  • Depending on your secondary weapon:
  1. Glint:  Chaotic Release.png Chaotic Release - save and prioritize this when CC is needed!
  2. Staff:  Surge of the Mists.png Surge of the Mists
  3. Hammer:  Drop the Hammer.png Drop the Hammer
  • Jade Winds.png Jade Winds - do not use, this is way too expensive.

Gear & Traits[edit]

Important Stats in Hero Panel (descending in Importance):

  1. At least 50% Critical Chance: Fury.png Fury together with Roiling Mists Roiling Mists give the remaining 50%.
  2. Maximize Ferocity
  3. Maximize Power
Gear
Armor Prefix Rune
Illustrious Visor.png Head Berserker's Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter.pngSuperior Rune of the Dragonhunter
Illustrious Pauldrons.png Shoulders Berserker's Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter.pngSuperior Rune of the Dragonhunter
Illustrious Breastplate.png Chest Berserker's Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter.pngSuperior Rune of the Dragonhunter
Illustrious Warfists.png Gloves Berserker's Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter.pngSuperior Rune of the Dragonhunter
Illustrious Tassets.png Legs Berserker's Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter.pngSuperior Rune of the Dragonhunter
Illustrious Greaves.png Boots Berserker's Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter.pngSuperior Rune of the Dragonhunter
Trinket Prefix
Vial of Salt.png Amulet Berserker's
Gift of Prescience.png Ring 1 Berserker's
Armbrace of Truth.png Ring 2 Berserker's
Black Ice Earring.png Accessory 1 Berserker's
Vision.png Accessory 2 Berserker's
Ad Infinitum.png Backpack Berserker's
Weapon Prefix Sigil
Bolt.png Sword (Main Hand) Berserker's Superior Sigil of Force.pngSuperior Sigil of Force
Bolt.png Sword (Off Hand) Berserker's Superior Sigil of Air.pngSuperior Sigil of Air
Purpose Item Type Source
Damage Ascended Food Cilantro Lime Sous-Vide Steak.pngCilantro Lime Sous-Vide Steak
Damage Non-Ascended Food Bowl of Sweet and Spicy Butternut Squash Soup.pngBowl of Sweet and Spicy Butternut Squash Soup
Survivability Ascended Food Peppercorn-Crusted Sous-Vide Steak.pngPeppercorn-Crusted Sous-Vide Steak
Survivability Non-Ascended Food Bowl of Orrian Truffle and Meat Stew.pngBowl of Orrian Truffle and Meat Stew
Damage Utility Superior Sharpening Stone.pngPotent Superior Sharpening Stone
Survivability Utility Powerful Potion of Inquest Slaying.pngPotion Of Karka Toughness
Damage Relic Relic of the Thief.pngRelic of the Thief
Survivability Relic Relic of Zakiros.pngRelic of Zakiros
Traits
Invocation
Invocation.png
Cleansing Channel.png
Spirit Boon.png
Song of the Mists.png
Invoker's Rage.png
Rising Tide.png
Ferocious Aggression.png
Rapid Flow.png
Empty Vessel.png
Charged Mists.png
Fierce Infusion.png
Incensed Response.png
Roiling Mists.png
Devastation
Devastation.png
Assassin's Presence.png
Brutality.png
Mutilate Defenses.png
Vicious Lacerations.png
Focused Siphoning.png
Notoriety.png
Targeted Destruction.png
Swift Termination.png
Battle Scarred.png
Thrill of Combat.png
Dance of Death.png
Herald
Herald.png
Elder's Force.png
Shared Empowerment.png
Elevated Compassion.png
Crystal Harbinger.png
Core Value.png
Vigorous Persistence.png
Shining Aspects.png
Envoy of Sustenance.png
Radiant Revival.png
Rising Momentum.png
Hardening Persistence.png

Open World Build[edit]

Link to the open world build in the editor
You can find my most recent open world build showcase here.

For OW, it can make sense to make a build more forgiving, so that you can sustain on your own.

Increasing General Survivability[edit]

  • To survive most open world content, it is enough to make the following changes:
  1. use Dance of Death Dance of Death in Devastation Devastation,
  2. swap out  Legendary Assassin Stance.png Legendary Assassin Stance for  Legendary Dwarf Stance.png Legendary Dwarf Stance and
  3. use a Relic of Zakiros.pngRelic of Zakiros instead of  Relic of the Thief.png Relic of the Thief.

Boon Coverage[edit]

  1. Facet of Light.png Facet of Light - 1 Upkeep - Regeneration.png Regeneration
  2. Facet of Darkness.png Facet of Darkness - 2 Upkeep - Fury.png Fury and area Vulnerability.png Vulnerability and Stun break on the second cast.
  3. Facet of Elements.png Facet of Elements - 1 Upkeep - Swiftness.png Swiftness and good damage on the second cast. I recommend just using this on cooldown for damage.
  4. Facet of Strength.png Facet of Strength - 2 Upkeep - Might.png Might and 15% damage for 10 seconds on the second cast. Always use both casts when available and you can hit in melee range.
  5. Facet of Chaos.png Facet of Chaos - 4 Upkeep - Protection.png Protection and Defiance bar damage and high damage on the second cast. Prioritize it for CC whenever you need it.
  6. Facet of Nature.png Facet of Nature - 2 Upkeep - incomign damage reduction in  Legendary Dwarf Stance.png Legendary Dwarf Stance and longer Boon duration in  Legendary Dragon Stance.png Legendary Dragon Stance. The second cast gives area Stability.png Stability in  Legendary Dwarf Stance.png Legendary Dwarf Stance and an extension of all boons on allies by 3 seconds in  Legendary Dragon Stance.png Legendary Dragon Stance. Both effects are great!
  7. Vengeful Hammers.png Vengeful Hammers - Incoming damage reduction, good damage and healing. Maintain this as long as you can.

I recommend the following strategy:

Dealing with Conditions and Control effects[edit]