Lots of grim, not too much dawn so far. Which is a shame. Dawn’s so pretty. Might lift the spirits after all that zombie-twatting in the gloom. Still, that is what we’ve signed up for: Grim Dawn, an action RPG created by much of the team (and the tech) behind Titan Quest, is here to be our alt-universe Diablo III. No fancy business models (other than Steam Early Access), no unorthodox DRM (other than Steam), no drowning in lore and cinematics, no slickness at the expense of all else: just getting on with the zombie-twatting. Spiders too, naturally.
I’ve got to be honest, I find writing about action RPGs hard work. They don’t elicit tales of high adventure or great introspection, because their primary purpose is, even within a medium already broadly dedicated to that purpose, a boredom-killer, a way to make time disappear without feeling overwhelmingly guilty about it. A more technical mind than mine could, I’m sure, could find plenty to say about the feedback, the UI, the balance; me, I’m stuck with that nebulous concept of ‘feel.’
I’ve got to be honest, I find writing about action RPGs hard work. They don’t elicit tales of high adventure or great introspection, because their primary purpose is, even within a medium already broadly dedicated to that purpose, a boredom-killer, a way to make time disappear without feeling overwhelmingly guilty about it. A more technical mind than mine could, I’m sure, could find plenty to say about the feedback, the UI, the balance; me, I’m stuck with that nebulous concept of ‘feel.’
Does Grim Dawn, whose first ‘chapter’ has been out on Early Access for a little while now, ‘feel’ right? Does clicking upon a monster and having it recoil, strike back or die ‘feel’ satisfying and tactile? That is what an action RPG lives or dies on, the pinata concept of hitting something until it splits open and potentially showers candy about the place. Blizzard North defined that feel in the first Diablo decades ago, and any ARPG since cannot help but emulate it.
Yes, Grim Dawn feels right. Perhaps not quite as right as Titan Quest did, but that may be because it’s gone for a grubbier, nastier feel, more of a sense of ruin and desperation in the art and which somehow affects the combat too. It feels dirty, and very physical. This is a matter of light and sound creating something that feels very different to the shiny tooniness of Diablo III, even though the essential actions are the same. Indeed, Grim Dawn’s sound is a big part of its snarling charm – sombre music and escalating sword-swipe beats, the muted thunder of kicking open a barrel, the dank sounds of the underground. None of this is new for an action RPG, but the attention to detail is here, and it makes me feel enough like I’m in a place rather than on a numbers hunt.
Visually and it terms of written character it seems rather more lacklustre. As you can see, this means it takes an appalling screenshot. While it’s not quite so dully chaotic in practice, there’s too much emphasis on beyond-muted colours and excessive spikiness, which as well as making it actively difficult to work out who’s stabbing who half the time, sadly undermines the careful detail and slightly retro-tiled look of the environments. This approach is especially true when it comes to enemies. They all seem so forgettable, and so short on flavour. A Bone Rat is a rat with spiky bits. A zombie soldier is called a Zombie Soldier. A Giant Mosquito looks like a big mosquito and is described as ‘insectoid.’ No shit, Sherlock. A Giant Spitting Spider is a giant spider which spits at you. Hence, it’s called Giant Spitting Spider. Because it’s a giant spider which spits at you. So it’s called Giant Spitting Spider. Because it’s… well, I kinda worked it out for myself, thanks. Dull names for dull foes.
Yeah, it’s Early Access and all that entails/excuses – though it’s one of the slicker, more complete feeling Early Access game I’ve played – but the armchair producer in me says it could really do with a second, more enthusiastic pass on beastie descriptions, even if the deflating, obvious creature design is undoubtedly locked down by this point. I might sound a little anal on this front, but this stuff matters – you want to feel like you’re adventuring in a strange land inhabited by strange beasts, not swiping at stuff that’s rolled right off the Fantasy Action Game production line. There’s no sense of wonder here.
Quests feel a little too messy too, though the direction they’re aiming for is a noble one. I really appreciate that objective locations aren’t handed out on a plate, and often require paying some close attention to dialogue and maps – there’s no automaton-trudging to a distant icon, and careful spacing/randomising of quest-specific foes means farming isn’t viable. Against that is too much progress hangs around squinting at the minimap to ascertain the one passage or road that isn’t blocked off, or to find a path that was so narrow or visually obscured you walked right by it. I suppose avoiding that sort of thing is what a sky-high budget and a terrifying amount of QA and focusing grouping are for, and I’d rather imagine Grim Dawn hasn’t enjoyed those. So I won’t begrudge it too much, but it is worth accepting that completing quests can be something of a war of navigational attrition rather than a joyous tally-ho of boss-nobbling.
It’s the combat and the skill tree that the Grim Dawn’s most grabbed me and refused to let me go, to the point that this piece is running two days later than intended due to the cheerful curse of Just One More Go. I suspect I’ll be proven wrong in this by more long-term devotees of the game, but I’m finding that levelling seems more geared towards building a character and skillset that I personally enjoy than it is unwavering fealty to specific builds. Clearly I’m referencing Diablo III again, and the constant comparison is a little rude to Grim Dawn, but I do think it’s appropriate rather than lazy. Torchlight 2 was one alternative, going full throttle for excess, whereas this seems like the other other option – more focused on tinkering and self-specialising than either of its rivals-apparent.
I don’t want to rip all the fun out of the skilltree by painstakingly describing it, but I think it hits a complexity sweetspot, neither falling into exhausting overload of choice or essentially forcing you down one route or another if you mean to remain effective. My character’s a Witchblade, which, as well as meaning she looks like a member of a biker gang trying to do Warhammer cosplay, involves her having a few skills from the Occultist tree and a few skills from the Soldier tree, thanks to the option to dual-class come level 12.
This in layman’s terms means she can twat stuff that with a big club that does mega-damage every third strike, while a summoned raven and a summoned hellhound perform crowd control and heal her. Also she can throw a giant poison eyeball at things. It’s probably a right old mess when it comes to efficiency, but it’s such a thrilling way to be a lazy bugger – all I really need to do is hit stuff over and over and over again, but the presence of my bestial chums and a few tricsky black magic spells means it never feels like a game in which one character hits stuff over and over and over again. I’ve got all kinds of scope to be more tactical or more specialised if I want, but as it is I am completely free from both the worry that I’m not building The Right Character and that I’m coasting through. Moreover, the aforementioned use of sound has all the right melodic thumps and squidgy noises that it feels so satisfyingly physical. The personality that’s a little lacking on the art and description side of things is unquestionably present and correct where it arguably most counts.
I’ve also found myself helpessly obsessed with the socketing system, because it has such big effects – bigger even than equipping a whole new weapon or armour piece. You can equip a found magic component to almost any piece of gear, though some are only suited to weapons or armour, and have an immediate effect, but find three matching components, attach them all to the one item and you’ll get a mega-boost which makes a serious difference. In the case of weapons, it’ll often grant you a bonus ability, such as a poison bomb or ice spike. What this means is that there’s a steady flow of change: you’re not simply building to a fixed place on the skill tree, but irregularly mixing it up.
Also, the Great Hunt that characterises aRPGs is now focused more on finding specific components than it is on praying for a random weapon to drop with roughly the right stats. It’s a minor deviation from the genre norm, but a meaningful one, enough to give what is, at its heart, the same experience we’ve had since the mid-1990s, a slightly different feel that doesn’t stem from graphics or cutscenes or auction houses.
To put all this rather more simply, Grim Dawn’s the action RPG I’ve enjoyed most in quite some time, and I’m very keen to try the later chapters as they’re released. More so than Torchlight 2, which was a bit too much of a sugar rush experience for me, and certainly more so than Diablo III, which regardless of business model controversies seemed to these tired eyes so polished as to be almost ephemeral. Perhaps my enjoyment’s down to having had a lengthy break from games like this, as in recent months I’ve concentrated more on disappearing down the rabbit hole of introspective titles, and now I’m coming up for slap-happy air. Even so, while stylstically Grim Dawn lives up to its name a little too well, I do think it’s a truer heir to Diablo 1&2 than any of its recent rivals and in doing so it’s very adeptly filling a vacuum in our gaming lives.
Grim Dawn‘s out on Steam Early Access now, for £21. It’s only the first act for the time being, but I was pleased to find that lasts a good long while, and what’s there has seemed essentially finished and light on bugs.
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According to Grim Dawn’s lore, Demolitionist are part engineer, part sorcerer mastery that is absolutely good when it comes to explosions. This hybrid mastery is proficient in dealing both physical and magical based damage by laying traps, throwing grenades, and putting any kind of pyrotechnics into its attacks.
Note: Recommended Devotions are not in order. Meaning, it is up to you what constellation you should learn first. Just in case you don’t know, devotion points can also be re-assign in order to meet certain requirements.
When it comes to gear components, resistance to different damage types should be the priority for your character to survive on higher difficulty.
Dual Pistol Purifier
Dual Pistol Purifier is my most recommended build for new demolitionist players. This build is all about dealing barrage of both physical (pierce) and magical (elemental) based damage from distance.
Attributes
Cunning will be your main attribute in order to wear ranged weapon. Then put points in spirit since you mainly deal magical based damage. But of course you also need to put points in physique too to survive on higher difficulties.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Fire Strike (12 points) – Explosive Strike (12 points) – Static Stike (12 points) – Brimstone (12 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Flashbang (4 points) – Searing Light (4 points)
Inquisitor Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Ranged Expertise (10 points)
Bursting Round (10 points)
Chilling Rounds (10 points)
Storm Spread (10 points)
Aura of Conviction (12 points)
Deadly Aim (12 points)
Devotion
Primordial Crossroads
Ascendant Crossroads
Tortoise
Spider
Quill
Hawk
Owl
Chariot of the Dead
Bard’s Harp
Hydra
Rhowan’s Crown
Blind Sage – Assign Elemental Seeker on Fire Strike
Note: Put the remaining 1 point to Empty Throne
Equipment Priorities
The most important equipment that you should have is to dual wield ranged weapons. Any kind of one-handed ranged weapon will do, as long as it can deal any elemental based damage.
How to play?
This build is really simple to play. Use Fire Strike as your default weapon attack and the procs from your passive and different devotions will just come out. If there are incoming mobs, immediately disable them using Flashbang.
Two-handed Gunner Commando
Another gunslinger demolitionist build that is capable of dealing both physical and magical based damage. Compared to Dual Pistol Purifier, this build uses two-handed ranged weapon.
Attributes
Same as Dual Pistol Purifier.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Fire Strike (12 points) – Explosive Strike (12 points) – Searing Might (3 points) – Static Stike (12 points) – Brimstone (12 points)
Mortar Trap (16 points) – Heavy Ordnance (12 points) - “The Big One” (12 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Flashbang (6 points) – Searing Light (5 points)
Soldier Skills
Mastery bar (32 points)
Markovian’s Advantage (12 points)
Field Command (12 points) – Squad Tactics (12 points)
Devotion
Chaos Crossroads
Ascendant Crossroads
Jackal
Viper
Spider
Raven
Quill
Scholar’s Light
Owl
Kraken
Rhowan’s Crown
Ulzuin’s Torch
Blind Sage – Only assign points on prerequisite to unlock Elemental Seeker. Then assign the mentioned devotion skills on Fire Strike.
Hydra – Skip putting points on bonus to pierce damage. Meaning, your are not going to complete this constellation.
Equipment Priorities
Two-handed ranged weapon that can deal any kind of elemental damage types.
How to play?
Start the fight by planting powerful Mortar Trap which deals devastating damage in a wide radius. Then play it like how Dual Pistol Purifier is played. Use Fire Strike as your default weapon attack and let your passive and devotion skills proc itself.
When there’s incoming danger, use Flashbang to disable them.
Infernal Commando
A more close and personal type of commando build, wielding powerful two-handed weapon called Infernal Brimstone to brutally blast enemies in melee.
Attributes
Physique is the most important attribute here so that you can survive the brutal environment of melee combat.
To proc Rain of Fire from Infernal Brimstone easily, you have to increase your offensive ability by assigning 20 or 30 points on cunning.
To wear high level jewelries, don’t forget to put small amount of points in spirit.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Fire Strike (12 points) – Explosive Strike (12 points) – Searing Might (3 points) – Static Stike (12 points) – Brimstone (12 points)
Vindicative Flame (16 points)
Grim Dawn Classes
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Soldier Skills
Mastery bar (32 points)
Markovian’s Advantage (12 points)
Field Command (12 points) – Squad Tactics (12 points)
Blitz (1 point)
Fighting Spirit (12 points)
Menhir’s Will (12 points)
Military Conditioning (10 points)
Devotion
Order Crossroads
Fiend
Tortoise
Quill
Kraken
Magi
Alladrah’s Phoenix
Chariot of the Dead
Behemoth
Ulzuin’s Torch
Note: Assign the last 3 devotion points to Empty Throne depending upon your needed resistance.
Equipment Priorities
The most important weapon here is Infernal Brimstone or Mythical Infernal Brimstone on higher levels. For other gears, wear items that can increase your fire and burn damage.
How to play?
Charge your enemies with Blitz then continuously attack them with your Fire Strike. Simple as that.
Chaos Fire Pyromancer
From the name of the build itself, this caster build can unleash hell by using combined powers of both fire and chaos damage.
Attributes
Invest on spirit until you can wear the best caster off-hand. The remaining attribute points should be put on physique.
If you are concern in increasing your offensive ability, feel free to put points on cunning.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Blackwater Cocktail (12 points) – High Potency (1 point) – Demon Fire (12 points) – Agonizing Flames (12 points)
Thermite Mine (16 points) – Hellfire Mine (12 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Flashbang (12 points) – Searing Light (5 points)
Vindicative Flame (1 point) – Ulzuin’s Wrath (12 points)
Occultist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Summon Hellhound (1 point) – Hellfire (12 points)
Possession (12 points)
Devotion
Chaos Crossroads
Tortoise
Wretch
Fiend
Raven
Solael’s Witchblade
Magi
Oklaine’s Lantern
Behemoth
Ulzuin’s Torch
Abomination – Only assign points on prerequisite to Abominable Might.
Note: It’s up to you where to assign 1 remaining devotion points.
Equipment Priorities
Wear equipment that will boost your chaos and fire damage. Another thing, it is required to wear caster off-hand due to Oklaine’s Lantern in your list of devotions.
How to play?
Let your enemies melt by planting multiple Thermite Mines around you. Then throw Blackwater Cocktail whenever it is available.
By the way, you should set your Summon Hellhound’s behavior to defense. Its primary role is just to support your character with Hellfire aura.
Lightning Storm Elementalist
This build has multiple lightning based skills that can automatically target enemies for you.
Attributes
Due to existence of Tempest and Hand of Ultos in your devotion skills. It is great idea to always land critical hits, so investing on cunning is as important as putting points in spirit.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery Bar (50 points)
Stun Jacks (16 points) – Full Spread (12 points)
Mortar Trap (1 point) – Heavy Ordnance (12 points) - “The Big One” (12 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Flashbang (7 points) – Searing Light (6 points)
Vindicative Flame (1 point) – Ulzuin’s Wrath (12 points)
Shaman Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Storm Totem (16 points)
Wind Devil (1 point) – Maelstorm (12 points)
Stormcaller’s Pact (12 points)
Devotion
Primordial Crossroads
Chaos Crossroads
Wraith
Vulture
Tsunami
Spider
Raven
Quill
Empty Throne
Tempest
Oklaine’s Lantern
Ultos, Shepherd of Storms
Blind Sage – Just assign points on the prerequisite bonus to lightning and electrocute damage.
Equipment Priorities
Equip items that can boost your lightning damage.
Wearing a caster off-hand is also required.
How to play?
Basically play it using hit and run tactics. Just cast Mortar Trap, Storm Totem, and Wind Devil whenever it is available. Then run away from your enemies and let those casted skills do the damage for you. You can take high level enemies even bosses without easily dying by just doing this strategy.
Don’t forget that you also have Stun Jacks for both damaging and disabling enemies.
Arsenal Sorcerer
This build uses variety of bombs and traps that does heavy fire damage in a wide radius.
Attributes
Same as Chaos Fire Pyromancer.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Grenado (1 point) – High Impact (12 points) – Shattering Blast (12 points)
Canister Bomb (12 points) – Improved Casing (10 points)
Thermite Mine (16 points) – Hellfire Mine (12 points)
Mortar Trap (16 points) – Heavy Ordnance (12 points) - “The Big One” (12 points)
Ulzuin’s Chosen (10 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Arcanist Skills
Mastery bar (15 points)
Olexra’s Flash Freeze (12 points)
Maiven’s Sphere of Protection (12 points)
Mirror of Ereoctes (1 point)
Inner Focus (5 points)
Devotion
Imp
Vulture
Jackal
Raven
Scholar’s Light
Empty Throne
Owl
Oklaine’s Lantern
Magi
Ulzuin’s Torch
Blind Sage – Assign points on prerequisite to Elemental Seeker only.
Rhowan’s Crown – Assign points on prerequisite to Elemental Storm only.
Equipment Priorities
Wear equipment that increases your fire damage. Also remember to equip caster off-hand too.
How to play?
Strategically plant Thermite Mine and Mortar Trap around you.
When engaging enemies, freeze them first using Olexra’s Flash Freeze. Then throw either your Canister Bomb or Grenado.
Flaming Skeletons Defiler
Part gunslinger, part summoner. The build’s specialty is summoning multiple skeletons with celestial power of Flame Torrent. This build keeps your enemies busy dealing with army of skeletons, while you take them out using your gun.
Attributes
Same as Dual Pistol Purifier.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Fire Strike (12 points) – Explosive Strike (12 points) – Searing Might (3 points) – Static Stike (12 points) – Brimstone (12 points)
Thermite Mine (16 points) – Hellfire Mine (12 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Flashbang (12 points) – Searing Light (6 points)
Vindicative Flame (1 point) – Ulzuin’s Wrath (12 points)
Necromancer Skills
Mastery bar (12 points)
Raise Skeleton (16 points) – Undead Legion (12 points) – Will of the Crypt (12 points)
Devotion
Chaos Crossroads
Eldritch Crossroads
Vulture
Spider
Raven
Empty Throne
Owl
Magi
Ulzuin’s Wrath
Blind Sage – Only assign points on prerequisite to Elemental Seeker. Then assign the mentioned celestial power to Fire Strike.
Hydra - Skip putting points on bonus to pierce damage. Meaning, your are not going to complete this constellation.
Rhowan’s Crown – Same thing goes for this constellation. Only assign points until you unlock Elemental Storm.
Equipment Priorities
Due to Searing Might, the required ranged weapon to equip are two-handed ones.
Damage type priority is fire and all damage to pets.
How to play?
Your Raise Skeleton’s main purpose is for both distracting enemies and triggering Flame Torrent. Being lucky enough, you may raise multiple caster type skeleton that can benefit from your Flame Touched.
Your main damage dealer here is still Fire Strike and Thermite Mine. And as usual, disorient your enemies using Flashbang.
Melee Dual-Wielder Saboteur
A melee dual-wielder that can quickly strike and finish off its opponents with elemental damage.
Attributes
Same as Infernal Commando.
Demolitionist Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Fire Strike (12 points) – Explosive Strike (12 points) – Searing Strike (3 points) – Static Strike (12 points) – Brimstone (12 points)
Flame Touched (12 points)
Blast Shield (12 points)
Vindicative Flame (16 points) – Ulzuin’s Wrath (12 points)
Nightblade Skills
Mastery bar (50 points)
Dual Blades (1 point) – Execution (8 points)
Pneumatic Burst (1 point) – Elemental Awakening (12 points)
Shadow Strike (1 point)
Blade Barrier (6 points)
Merciless Repertoire (12 points)
Devotion
Primordial Crossroads
Ascendant Crossroads
Tortoise
Spider
Quill
Hawk
Bard’s Harp
Crab
Rhowan’s Crown
Oklaine’s Lantern
Alladrah’s Phoenix
Blind Sage – Assign Elemental Seeker to Fire Strike
Note: Put the 3 remaining devotion points to Empty Throne.
Equipment Priorities
Dual-wield melee weapons. Then you should have atleast one dagger in one of your hands to get bonuses from Oklaine’s lantern.
Damage type priority should be elemental from your equipment choices. But you can also choose individual elements like fire, ice, and lightning.
Legendary ring called Reign of Ice and Fire also fits well in this build.
How to play?
Initiate the fight using Shadow Strike and continuously attack with Fire Strike.
Don’t forget to always rebuff your character with Pneumatic Burst and protect yourself with Blade Barrier when in great trouble.
© 2018 Arc Sosangyo
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Last updated on March 22nd, 2018
In this guide, I’ll give you some useful Grim Dawn tips to help you to play the game in a more efficient manner. Hopefully it’ll also make it a more enjoyable game for you.
Grim Dawn is an Action RPG that have been around since 2016, and with every update, DLC and expansion, it’s getting better and better. The next expansion, Forgotten Gods, was announced earlier this month, and is due to be released on Steam and GoG in second half of 2018.
The first expansion (released October, 2017) brought some interesting features like new classes and the entertaining Fashion Dawn. So I can’t wait to see what the Forgotten Gods have to add to the game next. But before we all get too excited about the future of Grim Dawn, I wish to share some few precious tips I’ve learned along my journey in Cairn that I wished I’d known them before I started playing.
I’ll split the tips into more than one article, to give some details on each part.
One: Attributes aren’t there to mess with:
The customization in Grim Dawn is immense. You can customize and tweak every aspect about your character, when you first level up, or later. You have the spiritual guide, an NPC who can reset your skill points and devotion points, so you can spend them elsewhere. All of your choices can be changed later in higher difficulties. Be it faction, or some random trader you murdered on the road, you have a second and third chance to rectify your choices.
It’s all designed to give you freedom, and encourage experimentation. Which means you can virtually go crazy and make what you like, and change it all later. And it’s true, but for one small tricky part: Attributes!
The problem: It’s very easy to develop the wrong attributes
You get one precious attribute point each level, which you can spend on Physique, Cunning, or Spirit. Attributes gives small bonus to damage, health, or mana, but their main value is being a requirement for armors and weapons.
That’s where it gets tricky, you are level 20, and you get a nice drop which makes you all excited, but sadly you can’t equip due to lack of Spirit, or Cunning. You level up, you immediately spend your point into Spirit or Cunning. Then it’s enough, so you level some more, and keep spending points this way until you able to wear it.
Then you spend one more hour, and your are level 30. Except now that awesome drop isn’t awesome anymore. By end game, you realize that attributes can’t be refunded and new gear needs different distribution. Regret doesn’t feel good, does it?
The Solution: How to play safe with Attributes?
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Level up your mastery bar first:
Your two classes increase your attributes passively, which get you the points required to equip things. It decreases the need to spread your attributes points around and gives you a better idea of where you really need to spend your points. So don’t rush maxing all skills, but instead increase mastery bar early on.
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Physique is the king in Grim Dawn:
Plain and simple, Physique is the most important attribute. It not only gives flat numbers in health (which can be multiplied by various ways), but the best defensive armor requires so many points spent on Physique – maybe even Allpoints in it.
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Leave some points undecided for end-game:
If you – typically – spent all first 70 points in Physique, it’s probably wise to not spend the rest immediately. Leave the last ten or twenty points free until you get to Max level and have all the equipment you need. You might find a good accessory that needs five more spirit points or something.
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Utilize components as you level up:
Things like “Polished Emerald” , “Spellwoven Thread” , and “Vicious Jawbone” can be a source for some attributes early on. Even if they don’t give direct benefit to your build, using them for the stats is okay. You can see a full list of all components and what they do here.
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Take a look at Devotion Constellations:
Yes, the stars have attributes, and you might not need to go out of your way to get them! On the road to every major proc skill, you will find small boosts in attributes. You will grab these by default on the way, so don’t worry about changing anything for attributes.
Two: Build up your defenses properly:
No matter what level you are (beyond the first ten or twenty), you always need to prioritize defense. Yes, when I first heard this tip from professional players, I thought it sounded counter-productive, and boring, and that it would make progression slower. But having played this game over 400 hours, I can totally confirm the viability of the method.
The thing is: Grim Dawn is really grim. The enemies can be really weak on normal/Veteran, but become way stronger in Elite, and a total nightmare in Ultimate. Even in normal you can encounter some hard to pass encounters as a glass cannon. And if you can’t stand few hits, you will have to start running to escape, and will stop doing damage. While a good defense allow you to stand your ground for a bit, giving you better chance at finishing enemies before they finish you.
The solution: How to prioritize your defenses
- Max out “Resistances”, that will take care of most damage types. Physical resistance is very hard to come by though.
- Invest in “Health”, health is an all around decent defense against all types of enemies.
- Defensive Abilities. It’s a sure way to not get hit by a crit, and also have enemies miss some hits on you. very important to not get 1 hit by the toughest bosses.
- Don’t let “Armor” fall behind too much. Make sure to replace your low level equipments regularly with something with higher armor and decent stats.
- “Circuit-Breakers” This is a term people use on skills that proc when player Health gets to a certain point (40% for example) and pop up some temporary strong defense buff or shield. Skills like “Blast Shield” from demotionalist , or Gaint’s Blood from Constalltions are very strong defense in tight situation where you can’t do much. I put it further down the list because it’s not mandatory in Normal and Elite. But Max these out by the time you get Ultimate, it will be very useful.
- Over-cap your resistance. That’s a tip for the very end-game top contents, like hunting Nemesis bosses. Some bosses debuff your resistances, so having some extra reserve is always a good thing. Don’t neglect other important defenses to do that though.
There are many other sources of defense in Grim Dawn, but they are situational, and depends on build. Like Vitality damage builds, and retaliation builds, also solider shield builds are very strong and Crucible viable in general. But these are topics not for this article.
Three: Know what build you are doing
This one sounds basic stuff, but it could get very tricky. Grim Dawn is a rich world, with countless possibilities to replay the game and having different experience. Thus, the majority of the build guides out there are aimed towards experienced players, with long hours into the game, and decent stash of equipment ready to be used. In other words, many builds are gear dependent, which might not be friendly for beginners.
The matter is: If you don’t have the specific gear the build asks for, you either ask the guide writer to suggest you a beginner alternative, or don’t do this build. The drop rates in grim Dawn are very good, and you keep getting good items constantly as you play. But the loot tables are shared among all monsters in the world, meaning that anything can drop anything, and there are no specific spot to farm any item. The exception is some rare items called “Moster infrequents” or “MI”, which are moderately good items dropping from some specific bosses or monsters, and are okay for leveling, not top end game though.
Pro & Cons:
It’s good on one side, as it make you keep playing the game, go wherever you like, and enjoy all the content without worrying about the drops, since what you get here would be the same as you got there. But it restrict you from planning top builds without before having the items required. It might be wiser to plan your second character based on what you already have from first playthrough, not on what you wish/expect to have.
This problem extend to the first playthrough, since you have nothing to start with. Well, not “nothing” , since the faction gear can be excellent choices for some builds, best in slot even. These faction gear require some effort to get, but it’s fun and very rewarding to do.
Some beginners-friendly builds suggestions:
- Poison Caster Witchblade (Occultist/Solider)
- Pyromancer fire pets summoner (Occultist/Demotionalist)
- Sword and Board Pierce Blademaster (Nightblade/Solider)
- Two handed lightening Elementalist (Shaman/Demotionalist)
- Strom totem Warder (Shaman/Solider)
- Lightning/Pet Druid (Arcanist/Shaman)
- Dual pistols Sorcerer (Arcanist + Demolitionist)
- Dual Wield Melee Witchhunter (Nightblade + Occultist)
- Bleeding based Conjurer (Occultist + Shaman)
These are some quick concepts of varied basic builds in Vanilla to look forward. But notice that you don’t have to follow any of these suggestions, you can actually start the game and level with one mastery through the normal difficulty, then depends on your taste, decide where to go from there. Adding another mastery depends on your direction, or respec to another build entirely, Grim Dawn is flexible like this. These guidelines are only for those who don’t like to feel overwhelmed by the amount of customizations the game have.
Four: Learn how to craft, and what to craft:
And be patient for the recipes as they come one by one. Really, crafting a strong aspect of the game, that keep giving you candy along the way, but only gets to its full potential after hundreds of hours of gameplay. You can craft so many things. For example, consumables, powerful Mythical Relics, parts of legendary items sets and the most important components.
Saving the rare materials required for materials is crucial, as these are drops only, and not sold by any merchant (they can be exchanged for one another in act Four though). Things like Tainted Brain Matter, and Ancient heart and the like are precious little things, so use them wisely.
Don’t be afraid of trying to craft basic gear though; the items with question marks in the default menu of the blacksmith, named Enchanted Mace and Enchanted Boots. These are not strictly “magic” items. The crafting can give you rares and scales up with your level. You can actually get some solid gear from them to cover any weakness your character have. You just need scraps and gold, and some courage to go through the randomization.
I hope that you liked this article. If so, you could read Grim Dawn – A Detailed Analysis next. Alternatively, you could read Divinity Original Sin 2 Builds: Eternal Warrior.
Current master of the ARPG throne -- especially for fans of grimdark fantasy and horror -- Grim Dawn is about to get a major update with a whole new mastery class to play.
Before that highly anticipated Necromancer becomes available though, there are still dozens of potential mastery combo builds to try out. We've previously looked at some of the more fun mastery builds, but now its time to get down to the real goods: what's the single, absolute best Grim Dawn build available?
Picking The Best Mastery Combo
Grim Dawn Witch Blade Build
The answer to that question is that there's at least five 'best' builds, depending on your play style: melee, ranged, caster, hit and run, or the tank. Among those five varied styles, there are still two different ways to approach which is the 'best' -- either the highest damage per second output, or the best survivability.
There are plenty of mastery combos that can deal ungodly amounts of damage (the Nightblade mixed with just about anything immediately comes to mind) but they are also quite squishy, making it difficult to survive after you leave Normal difficulty behind and head into later stages of the game. The Sorcerer combo for instance (Arcanist + Demolitionist) can deal huge damage to large groups, but requires quick reflexes as you run around the screen like mad to avoid getting hit back.
For our best Grim Dawn build, we're going to focus on the survival aspect, with respectable damage output, for a tank who rarely goes down and will allow you to survive the most devastating enemies at the highest difficulty levels.
Keep in mind that most builds can be drastically altered by your equipment choices, since there's a very random element there in what weapons and armor you'll find you in your playthrough, as well as what path you are taking along the constellation when you unlock Devotion Shrines.
Best Grim Dawn Build - Warder
We're going with a Shaman + Soldier combo to create the Warder. The focus here is on high health, massive defense, quick regeneration, and equipping absolutely any item with reflection or retaliation so you never go down and always take out enemies when they hit you.
We're going to eventually max out the Soldier mastery bar entirely. The Shaman mastery bar will end at 25, but we're actually going to start on the Shaman side as the first class.
First up, grab Devouring Swarm on the Shaman side as your primary attack at low levels (this is costly on energy, but well worth it). If you want to branch out, Savagery and Grasping Vines are decent, but don't go too far on those.
At level 10, switch to Soldier and focus on Menhir's Will to keep you alive (don't forget you need a two-handed weapon or shield for this skill to work). This is the skill that keeps you alive for longer periods. When it triggers, get out of the throng of enemies and wait to recover so the cooldown period ends.
Around level 15, switch back to Shaman and work on Modrogen's Pact and Heart Of The Wild. Next, fully upgrade Wendigo Totem and Oak Skin for huge bonuses to healing while draining enemies of health.
Shaman Projected Build
Around level 29 - 30, switch back to Soldier and pump up the mastery bar, while maxing out Military Conditioning, Shield Training (if you are doing a shield instead of two handed), Overguard, Decorated Soldier, Field Command, and Veterancy. These will keep you up at maximum health and defense while doling out decent damage.
When you're around 40 - 45, its time to let go of Devouring Swarm, which won't be as helpful anymore, so respec and put all those points into the Soldier mastery bar and maxing out the previously mentioned skills.
From there, focus on Menhir's Bulwark (with a shield equipped and this skill maxed out, you will absorb and retaliate huge amounts of damage). Now finish off the build with maxing out Scars of Battle and (on the Shaman side) Modrogen's Pact.
Soldier Projected Build
Tweaks To The Build
Grim Dawn Witchblade Set
This Warder build is extremely effective against melee combatants, but it does have one Achilles Heel: ranged spellcasters are a problem. So get close to them to force them into melee. And of course putting a few points into the Soldier skill Break Morale can rectify this to a degree.
In terms of equipment, a full set of Perdition items vastly builds on the Warder's strengths -- but in general, pick up anything that adds reflection or retaliation.
For the Devotion constellation path, Tortoise and Wolverine are both excellent choices, since they even further increase your defense, and Scales Of Ulcama is another great choice for upping health and regeneration.
Surviving a brutal boss with the Warder
Of course, there's other possible routes to take to reach an invincible killing machine, such as switching up which class is the primary or connecting a different secondary to the Soldier.
What's your preferred build, and how could we tweak this best Grim Dawn mastery build to make it even tankier? Let me know down in the comments! And be sure to check out the rest of our Grim Dawn guides for even more tips to help you get through the game.
Crate Entertainment’s ARPG Grim Dawn continues to expand with the patch V1.0.0.7 update which has now gone live.
This latest update brings Brim Dawn’s third roguelike dungeon the game, the Aetherial overrun Port Valbury. The patch also comes with plenty of updates to Legendary items, tech fixes, class chnages, and much more.
It’s also worth pointing out that Crate has just revealed the game’s seventh Mastery, the Inquisitor which you can read about on the official forums
Grim Dawn picked up the PC Invasion Best Crowdfunded game award today so congratulations to Crate, a well-deserved win.
For the lengthy patch V1.0.0.7 patch notes, head to this page.