Gladiator PvE — Dragon Lord Forge

At the top of Season 1 the three damage skills sit at 20, and 20 is where each of them opens a third pick. That is what this version is built around. Two crafted rings, one guard line and four Unique cards are spent to put Overhead Slam, Rending Blow and Ruinous Blow on exactly 20, without wasting a level past it.

The greatsword and the jewellery are crafted: Splendent Wise Dragon Lord Greatsword with its earrings, necklace and rings, item level 102, the highest Season 1 goes. Each piece rolls five lines instead of four, which is what leaves room for two skill lines on each ring next to Might, Precision and Attack. The guard is crafted too and spends one of its five lines on Overhead Slam; the armour stays Nuakum from Ferocious Horn Den.

A Unique card at +3 holds four lines and seven levels. The Parchment puts three on Ruinous Blow and two on Overhead Slam, the Compass three on Rending Blow, and the Chalice closes the last gap on all three. The Bell and the Mirror carry the passives instead: Attack Preparation on one, Experienced Counterstrike and Murderous Burst on the other, which is where those reach 20 and 18. The Mirror stays Magic Armor for its Wisdom.

Lunge Stance at 20 is what keeps everything turning: on every crit, a 50% chance to take a second off every cooldown. Rage Burst at 20 crits every time and doubles its PvE damage buff to 20%. Zikel's Blessing at 15 adds Multi-Hit, and Focused Block at 15 can be used on the move and leaves you faster after a Parry. That spends 220 of the season's 300 stigma points; the last 80 take Zikel's Blessing and Focused Block to 20 once the shards are there.

Stand at the boss's front, next to the tank; the front damage bonus only counts from there. In stagger checks, hold Zikel's Blessing for the moment the gauge opens, because it adds 50% to your stagger damage. Dark Veil Wings from Ferocious Horn Den add damage and boss damage resistance while you wear them, and Unbound by Genus, the title for Insight 10 on all five Genus boards, is your attack title at this point.