Unleashing Divinity: The Definitive Strongest Build in Divinity: Original Sin 2
So, you want to break Rivellon? You’re tired of tactically maneuvering around every corner and meticulously planning each encounter? You want to dominate? Then you’re asking the right question: what’s the strongest build in Divinity: Original Sin 2?
The answer, unequivocally, is the Lone Wolf Critical Chance Warfare build, often centered around a Two-Handed weapon. However, its dominance extends far beyond simple brute force. It’s a strategic combination of devastating damage, unparalleled mobility, and surprising survivability. Let’s dive into the specifics.
The Core of the Colossus: Warfare, Crit, and Lone Wolf
This build leverages several key factors that, when synergized correctly, create an unstoppable force.
-
Lone Wolf: The most crucial element. This talent doubles your AP, Vitality, Armor (both Physical and Magical), and significantly boosts your damage output when you only have one or two characters in your party. This effectively turns your character into a one-person army.
-
Warfare: The Warfare skill school is the backbone of physical damage in Divinity: Original Sin 2. Max it out (up to 10 naturally, then boost it with gear and the Mirror) as quickly as possible. Every point in Warfare directly increases your physical damage output, making you a true juggernaut. It also provides invaluable mobility and crowd control skills.
-
Critical Chance and Damage: Aim for 100% Critical Hit Chance. With the proper gear and the Savage Sortilege talent, every attack becomes a potential game-changer. Maximize your Critical Damage multiplier as well. Stack Finesse to increase crit damage, as well as Wits for increased crit chance and initiative.
-
Two-Handed Weapons: These weapons provide the highest base damage, allowing you to capitalize on your Warfare bonus and Critical Hits. The Falone Scythe is an excellent late-game option, but any high-damage two-handed weapon will suffice.
Essential Talents and Skills
Beyond Lone Wolf and Savage Sortilege, here are the talents and skills that elevate this build to god-tier status:
Key Talents
-
Executioner: Gain 2 AP after killing an enemy. This further increases your momentum, allowing you to chain kills and maintain battlefield dominance.
-
Opportunist: Allows you to perform opportunity attacks against enemies who move out of your melee range. Synergizes well with high mobility, letting you punish enemies attempting to reposition.
-
Living Armour: Regenerate physical armour equal to 30% of any healing received. This substantially improves your survivability, especially when combined with skills like First Aid.
-
The Pawn: Move up to 1 AP worth of distance for free each turn. This greatly enhances your positioning capabilities, allowing you to get into the optimal attack position.
Core Skills
-
Whirlwind: An area-of-effect attack that hits all enemies within melee range. Essential for dealing with groups of enemies.
-
Battle Stomp: Knocks down enemies, disabling them for a turn. This is crucial for controlling the battlefield and preventing enemies from attacking.
-
Blitz Attack: Teleports you to an enemy and attacks them. Provides excellent mobility and allows you to quickly engage distant targets.
-
Phoenix Dive: An alternative mobility skill that leaves a fire surface beneath you.
-
Challenge: Increases your damage against a specific target and draws their attention. Use this to focus down high-priority enemies.
-
Adrenaline: Grants 2 AP immediately, at the cost of AP next turn. A vital burst of AP when you need it most.
-
Skin Graft: Resets your cooldowns and removes status effects. Extremely powerful for longer fights.
-
First Aid: Heals and cleanses status effects.
Gear and Attributes: Optimizing for Destruction
Prioritize the following attributes and stats when choosing gear:
-
Strength: Increases your physical damage and allows you to equip heavier armor.
-
Wits: Increases Critical Chance and Initiative. You want to go first in combat and crit every hit!
-
Constitution: Improves your Vitality.
-
Warfare: Max this skill through armor and amulet bonuses.
-
Critical Hit Chance: Reach 100% as soon as possible. Rings, amulets, and certain unique items can provide significant bonuses.
-
Critical Damage: Increase the multiplier as much as possible.
-
Initiative: Going first is crucial for this build. Prioritize gear that boosts your initiative, so that you can begin destroying your enemies before they can react.
Beyond the Basics: Advanced Tactics
-
Pre-Buffing: Before combat, use skills like Peace of Mind, Haste, and Encourage to boost your stats and initiative.
-
Environmental Awareness: Utilize the environment to your advantage. Create choke points, destroy cover, and exploit elemental weaknesses.
-
Teleportation: A non-Warfare skill that is worth investing one point into. Teleport allows you to control your enemies’ positioning, which is invaluable.
-
Potion Management: Carry a variety of potions to deal with different situations. Armor potions, resistance potions, and healing potions can all be life-savers.
-
Knowing Enemy Weaknesses: Identify enemy weaknesses and exploit them with the right damage types and status effects.
The Limitations of the Lone Wolf Build
While incredibly powerful, the Lone Wolf build is not without its limitations:
-
Vulnerability to Crowd Control: While you can mitigate this with skills like Cleanse Wounds and Shackles of Pain, being crowd-controlled can significantly reduce your effectiveness.
-
Reliance on Gear: The build is heavily reliant on having high-quality gear to maximize its damage output and survivability.
-
Potential for Boredom: Some players may find the build’s simplicity repetitive and lacking in tactical depth.
However, even with these drawbacks, the Lone Wolf Critical Chance Warfare build remains the most powerful and efficient way to conquer Divinity: Original Sin 2. It transforms you into a nearly unstoppable force, capable of obliterating entire encounters with ease. So go forth, embrace the Lone Wolf, and become the god that Rivellon deserves!
For more information about the broader impact of gaming, consider exploring the resources available at the Games Learning Society website, where researchers and educators are exploring the intersection of games and education: https://www.gameslearningsociety.org/.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Can this build work on Honour Mode?
Yes! While Honour Mode presents a significant challenge due to the permadeath mechanic, the Lone Wolf Warfare build is still exceptionally strong. The high damage output and survivability allow you to deal with encounters efficiently, minimizing the risk of death. However, careful planning and awareness of enemy abilities are even more crucial in Honour Mode.
2. What’s the best race for this build?
Human and Elf are both good choices. Humans receive “The Scoundrel” talent which increases critical chance and Elves receive “Flesh Sacrifice”, which increases damage. In the end, the race doesn’t matter as much as your build composition and gear.
3. Should I use a shield?
No. This build focuses on maximizing damage, not defense. Shields offer minimal offensive benefits and reduce your overall damage output.
4. What should my starting class be?
The starting class is not very important for the Lone Wolf Warfare build, as you’ll be completely re-speccing your character early in the game.
5. Is this build viable without Lone Wolf?
Not really. Lone Wolf is the cornerstone of the build, providing the necessary stat bonuses and AP to function effectively. Without it, you’ll be significantly weaker.
6. What skills should I prioritize early game?
Focus on skills that provide mobility and crowd control, such as Battle Stomp, Battering Ram, and Tactical Retreat. These skills will help you control the battlefield and survive early encounters.
7. How much should I invest in Wits?
Enough to get 100% critical chance, which is usually more than you would assume. As you progress, you can swap gear to maximize critical chance while also maximizing your damage output.
8. What’s the best way to deal with magic armor?
While this build primarily deals physical damage, having access to a few magic damage skills can be beneficial for dealing with enemies with high physical armor. A few points in Hydrosophist for armor of frost, or Polymorph for chicken claw can completely negate armor.
9. What is the best weapon to use in the late game?
The Falone Scythe is arguably the best due to its high damage and chance to apply Decaying. However, any high-damage two-handed weapon with good stats will work well. Look for weapons that provide bonuses to Strength, Critical Hit Chance, or Critical Damage.
10. How do I deal with elemental damage?
Invest in resistance potions and armor pieces with elemental resistances. The Torturer talent also allows you to apply elemental status effects through armor, bypassing the need to strip it first.
11. What should I do if I get surrounded?
Use skills like Whirlwind and Battle Stomp to create space and disable enemies. Teleportation can also be used to reposition yourself to a safer location.
12. Is this build beginner-friendly?
While the build is powerful, it requires a solid understanding of the game’s mechanics and strategic decision-making. It may not be the best choice for complete beginners, but it can be a rewarding build to strive for as you gain experience.
13. Can I customize this build?
Absolutely! This is just a template. Feel free to experiment with different skills and talents to suit your playstyle. For example, some players prefer to incorporate Polymorph skills for added utility and crowd control.
14. What are some good alternative builds?
While the Lone Wolf Warfare build is the strongest, other viable builds include the Glass Cannon Mage, the Necromancer, and the Ranger. Each build has its own strengths and weaknesses, and the best choice depends on your personal preferences.
15. Where can I find more information about Divinity: Original Sin 2?
The Divinity: Original Sin 2 subreddit is a great resource for build guides, tips, and discussions. The GamesLearningSociety.org also features related information about the game.