The Serpent
First published in Season 4. Return to the Build Hub.
Jeigo's Serpent
With high DPS and low Con, I focus on versatility and adaptability in combat. The Great Sword serves as my heavy-hitting, high-damage weapon while the Hatchet provides swiftness and precision strikes.
With the Great Sword’s wide swings and powerful slashes, it’s effective against tougher enemies or when I need to control the battlefield. The other benefit here is being able to temporarily tank mobs if needed as the Defiance abilities allow a great amount of Fortify with an added perk of being able to taunt with Roaring Rupture. On the other hand, the Hatchet complements this by offering speed and agility. It allows me to be nimble and quickly manoeuvre around enemies.
I’d recommend this build to others because of its versatility. It caters to different preferences, whether you prefer the raw power of a heavy-hitting weapon or the agility of a faster one. It offers a dynamic combat style.
Build Summary
Weapons:
- Great Sword
- Hatchet
Best for:
- PVE
- Expeditions
Main Attributes:
- Strength
- Dexterity
This includes things that prevent damage such as blocks, stuns, roots, staggers.
This includes things that strengthen the team and mitigate damage, such as healing, buffing and debuffing.
This is pretty self-explanatory and covers raw damage output, include damage over time.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Weapon Ability Trees
Great Sword:
I have an almost even split between the two ability trees, Onslaught and Defiance. Relentless Rush is my evasion ability to get out of trouble or can be used to kill an enemy as there’s a 50% CDR with Relentless Refresh. Roaring Rupture I use similar to the Great Axe’s Grav Well, being able to group large numbers with this ability is always a plus for hard-hitting DPS.
Hatchet:
I use the Hatchet for its throwing abilities and being able to have ‘something ranged’ so I’m able to attack up close or from a distance. The name of the build, Serpent comes from my most used ability, Infected Throw. 140% weapon damage, 30% disease, 10% weaken with a 20% duration increase having the final perk selected in the tree.
View my full gearset on nw-buddy.de
Attribute distribution
I mainly run mutations and ECRs, 90% PVE. I find the 50 con in M1s and M2s to be enough, sometimes nail-biting, but enough. I like the bonus damage you get at the 200 Dex mark for backstab and headshot (hatchet throwing)
To get the 200 dex I eat Banana Pudding (+48 dex)
Important perks
Weapons
What’s important to me for the Great Sword is Trenchant Strikes due to the amount of heavies I do with it. Keenly Jagged is always nice with the bleed effect and having Keen to be able to crit attack as much as possible.
I like Rogue and Vorpal on the hatchet due to the headshot and backstab bonuses they give, pairing this with the 200 Dex buffs.
Armor
As a melee DPS, Enchanted Ward and Health are the two perks I run on all my gear, being able to take a couple of hits helps without being one shot
Jewelry
For running mutations, you would want to have an Amulet that includes protection against that damage type for that dungeon i.e. Flame Protection on your amulet for dungeons that are running ‘Hellfire‘. Health is always nice in addition.
The Azoth Crystal Ring you can craft at the gypsum kiln for 3500 dense mutation materia I find is the best for me, as a base you get Hearty and Leeching, Hearty being my most important as a light melee providing 10% max stamina.
The earring I’m still playing around with but I’m liking Endless Thirst (artifact) with 33% stronger healing consumables. I’ve added the Refreshing Toast perk to negate some of the potion cooldown increase.
My advice
As tempting as it is to be the first one to hit a mob in a mutation, don’t. Let the tank settle, let the mobs get their first strike in then go in. This saves frustration from the tank, you getting stunned half way through your first ability and takes the pressure off you trying to run away from everything chasing you.
I like this build because it offers a balance between brute force and finesse. I can adapt my play-style based on the situation. Using the Great Sword for heavy damage or switching to the Hatchet for faster, more agile encounters. It allows me to handle various enemy types effectively.
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