Books of Knowledge Volume II: Shards of the Shattering
- Advanced Builds
- Introduction
- Giant-Crusher
- Serpent-Hunter
- Hand of Malenia
- Bloodflame Bloodhound
- Black Bow Archer
- Highland Axe
- Ancient Dragon Lightning
- Misericorde
- Dark Moon Spellsword
- Gravity Mage
- Night Sorcerer
- Blasphemous Pyromancer
- Envoy Trumpeter
- Vyke's War Spear
- Godslayer's Greatsword
- Beastclaw Greathammer
- Jar Grenadier
- Marais Executioner's Sword
- Dragon Apostle
- Antspur Rapier
- Blood Mage
- Sword of Night and Flame
- Golden Retaliation
- Necromancer
Advanced Builds
Introduction
The builds described here tend to require precise loadouts and focus on a single weapon or spell category in order to maximize their effectiveness; they'll therefore limit your options in battle compared to less specialized builds, but also enable you to achieve far higher damage potential, and using them can open up entirely new playstyles. While fully optimized on their own, these builds can also serve as templates for modification if you wish to adjust their functionality.
As with the basic builds in Vol. I, Endurance and Mind values are not listed here as their priority is solely dependent on your individual discretion; however, for best results, consider raising them at least high enough to achieve a Medium roll with your desired loadout and a sufficient amount of FP to sustain your abilities and/or spells.
Note that 40 dexterity and the Radagon's Icon Talisman, which provides the equivalent of an additional 30 dexterity for spellcasting purposes, are recommended for several of the spell-orientated builds in order to achieve the 70 total Dexterity required for maximum cast speed.
You may also observe that many of these builds wield two of the same Staff or Sacred Seal - this is because when holding both together, the damage bonuses to their respective spell types stack, so be sure to swap both Staffs or Seals into your active armament slot before you cast.
As mentioned in Vol. I, adding 25 Faith to any of these setups will enable you to cast both Flame, Grant Me Strength for its +20% boost to Physical and Fire damage for 30s, and the spell version of Golden Vow for its +15% damage boost and +10% damage negation for 80s; this approach will help most setups reach their optimal damage output, but it is not by any means mandatory, and you may wish to skip it in order to minimize the number of levels required for your build.
Giant-Crusher
Build Requirements
Stats
- Vigor: 60
- Strength: 80
Weapons
- Heavy Giant-Crusher (x2)
Ashes of War
- Royal Knight's Resolve (x2)
Armor
- Raptor's Black Feathers
Talismans
- Claw Talisman
- Axe Talisman
- (OPT) Ritual Sword Talisman
Crystal Tears
- Spiked Cracked Tear
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Description
Jumping attacks can be incredibly powerful both in terms of raw damage and stagger potential, and provide opportunities to follow up with additional attacks while your target is recovering - simply buff both Giant-Crushers with Royal Knight's Resolve, then perform a dual jumping attack While leveling this build, you can use the Prelate's Inferno Crozier until you get the second Giant-Crusher on New Game+ (or obtain one from another player via an online trade). To boost the damage of your jump attacks, equip the Claw Talisman for an additional +15% and the Raptor's Black Feathers chest armor for another +10%. Royal Knight's Resolve adds +80% extra damage to the next attack for 10s, and while its short duration can make it tricky to apply to both weapons, the resulting burst damage is unparalleled. Optionally, the Ritual Sword Talisman grants a +10% increase to all attack damage while your HP is full.
For a safer and less demanding playstyle, you can use Raptor of the Mists on one Giant-Crusher and buff the other with Royal Knight's Resolve for slightly less burst damage, but much less setup time. Charged attacks with this build are also extremely powerful, although using them requires sufficient time to set up your attack without being hit.
Serpent-Hunter
Build Requirements
Stats
- Vigor: 60
- Strength: 99
Weapons
- Serpent-Hunter
Talismans
- Axe Talisman
- (OPT) Spear Talisman
- (OPT) Ritual Sword Talisman
- (OPT) Shard of Alexander
Crystal Tears
- Spiked Cracked Tear
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Description
This build is based around the Serpent-Hunter, a special Great Spear that's primarily used to battle Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy. Although its unique attack properties only activate in Rykard's boss room, the weapon itself is extremely powerful on its own. With "A" scaling in Strength at maximum upgrade level, it can deal enormous amounts of damage, especially when wielded in both hands. As it's a weapon meant to be used by any character regardless of their level, it has no stat requirements whatsoever, so you can focus purely on Strength to boost its damage very quickly. The Serpent-Hunter necessitates a slow and methodical playstyle, but landing a Strong attack with this weapon for over 1000 points of damage is an exceptionally satisfying experience.
The best way to achieve the Serpent-Hunter's full potential is by using its powerful charged slashes, which are boosted +10% with the Axe Talisman and a further +15% for 180s by the Spiked Cracked Tear (plus any other general damage buffs from consumable items such as Exalted Flesh, or spells like Golden Vow). Most enemies and many weaker bosses will have their Stance broken after one or two of these attacks, allowing you to follow up with even more charged swings while they recover. Optionally, you may use the Spear Talisman to increase the Counter Hit damage of your Light attacks by +15% (most of the Serpent-Hunter's String attacks are not thrusts, and do not benefit from this talisman's effect) and/or the Ritual Sword Talisman for a +10% increase to all damage you deal while your HP is full. If you wish to use Great-Serpent Hunt, you can boost its damage by +15% using the Shard of Alexander, but beware that this Skill has an extremely low start-up and you'll have limited opportunities to perform it safely.