Basic Class Builds (v1.02)

[Jifflez]

I haven't seen any skill builds posted since the most recent update so I figured I'd post a few of my builds that I use for each class along with a brief explanation of each. Feel free to post any builds you find useful/OP. I have completed the game with each character (this includes the Hidden/Orb route) so I'm fairly experienced with all 5 classes. Each build includes a skill point allocation order to follow as you level up. Work your way from top to bottom. The final slot of each build has multiple options to choose from indicated by forward slashes --> (x / y / z).


Knight:
Background: Experienced

• Max Sword
  
• (1) Holy
  
• Max Defense
  
• Max Holy / +STR / +VIT

Explanation:
First and foremost you should max out your Sword skill. If you take the Experienced background, you'll have Lv2 Sword by Dark Caves 2. This greatly increases your combat ability as it allows you to strike in virtually any direction an enemy is coming from. At maxed Sword your attacks with a sword will be as fast as a Rogue's dagger (note: Dragon Slayer type swords will receive a significant speed boost but will not be as fast as any other type of sword). Once you max out Sword, you should next put a single point into the Holy skill. At Lv1, this skill prevents all fall damage. It's a really nice boost as you never have to worry about taking fall damage from this point forward. Your next move should be to max out Defense. Lv1 Defense opens up the ability to block physical attacks. Lv4 Defense essentially gives you reflect damage if you time it correctly. At maxed Defense you will have a chance to automatically block physical attacks that strike you. Where you go from here is entirely up to you and your situation. You can max out Holy which basically gives you a type of Death Protection (you can only die if your hp hits 0 and you get hit a second time without healing) or you could choose to invest in a bit more strength/vitality if you need it.


Rogue:
Background: Experienced / Far-Sighted

• Max Dagger
  
• (1) Acrobatics
  
• Max Archery
  
• Max Acrobatics / +DEX (bow) / +STR (dagger)

Explanation:
As a rogue, you have many options for how you want to build yourself. If you're playing online and prefer a sniper role, you may consider investing into Archery first. That being said, I have provided here a basic all-rounder build that works well both online or in single player. Choosing the Experienced background gives you a +1 starting skill point and Far-Sighted gives you greater ranged damage and sight at the expense of some melee accuracy (may cause your dagger to miss). Because arrows are usually in short supply before the Forest stages and your bow damage is pretty awful early on, maxing dagger gives you an excellent option for up-close combat and rushing. The basic attack style for a rogue using a dagger is to rush in, hit 2-3 times, back out, repeat. Don't get greedy with your attacks as the rogue is pretty squishy. Lv2 Dagger gives you the ability to throw your dagger out a short distance ahead of you for reduced damaged (pretty useless). Lv3 Dagger is when throwing your dagger becomes viable as it hits not only on the way out but on its way back as well. Pinning an enemy near a wall using max dagger toss can quickly dispatch nearly any enemy. Once you've maxed Dagger, put a single point into Acrobatics for the fall damage reduction. Note that this only works if you are holding left/right when you hit the ground from a high fall. If you hit the ground without pressing a direction, you will take the regular amount of fall damage as opposed to 3-4 with this skill. Next, maxing out Archery helps greatly in the later levels as many of the enemies/bosses are much easier if you snipe them from afar. At maxed Archery, your attacks will ricochet off of walls multiple times (I believe it is 3/4 times). From here, you can choose to max out acrobatics for wall climbing at Lv2 and increased dodge chance at Lv3 and Lv4 or you can put some points into Dexterity (for bow damage) or Strength (for dagger damage). I personally do not place any points into the Shadow skill because the stealth bonus it gives does not work on enemies that "count" in the long run. I think it's a waste of points but if it works for you or you want to play as a Dagger-only Rogue, feel free to dump some points in it to try it out.


Mage:
Background: Bookworm

Spell Mage:

• Max Spellcaster
  
• Max Alchemy
  
• +INT / +VIT

Rod Mage:

• Max Rod
  
• (1-2) Alchemy
  
• Max Enchant
  
• Max Alchemy / +INT / +VIT

Explanation:
Mages have a large set of skills to choose from that are all expensive to max out. That being said, there are typically two builds available to the Mage, the Spell Mage build and the Rod Mage build. To start, the Bookworm background is INCREDIBLY useful to both Spell and Rod mages because when you learn a new spell it will start at Lv2 instead of Lv1. This has a great impact on the power of those spells (ex: Lv2 Summon Monster / Lv2 Fireball). The Spell Mage build has you max out Spellcaster first to get the most out of your spells fairly quickly. At maxed level, Spellcaster allows you to run and jump while charging a spell which greatly increases your mobility. From here, maxing out Alchemy early on for potion identification and the chance to not consume a potion at Lv4 are useful if you happen to find some STAT/Regeneration potions along the way. Finally, you can choose to place your remaining points into Intelligence for additional spell damage or Vitality for some extra HP.

The Rod Mage build has you max out Rod first to greatly increase the power of your rod's charged attacks. At Maxed level, Rod allows you to cast the currently selected spell from your Rod in addition to its normal charged attack. From here, you should invest a point or two into Alchemy depending on your circumstances. A single point identifies all potions while two points will allow you to mix two potions to create a random one. You should only invest two points into Alchemy if you have a fair amount of potions in your inventory. Otherwise, invest in a different skill until you have more. Once placing a point or two into Alchemy, Enchant should be maxed next as it will allow you to enchant yourself (and weapons at maxed level) with elemental buffs depending on which spells you use. The stronger the spell, the stronger the elemental buff. This will enhance your rod's damage even further especially when striking up close. Finally, you can choose to max out Alchemy or stick points into INT/VIT.

Note: It is possible to max out both Rod and Spellcaster, however, most people typically either strictly use spells or use their rod. Maybe it's the change in attack style but I personally don't use both at the same time. A possible build would be: Max either Rod or Spellcaster, then the other, then choose whether to place your remaining 3 points into Enchant/Alchemy/INT. At Lv3 Rod, your rod will charge from spell damage, although not as quickly as meleeing an enemy would. Mages are also heavily dependent on INT to increase their spell damage. This being the case, it is usually better to max only one out instead of both so you can take advantage of those extra points being dumped into support skills (Alchemy or Enchant) and INT.


Wildling:
Background: Experienced

• (3) Berserk
  
• Max Fist Weapon
  
• Max Berserk
  
• +STR / +VIT / Max Animal

Explanation:
The Wildling has to be the most OP class of all due to its multi-hit capabilities. The Experienced background works well as the Wildling typically has some difficulty in the earlier levels if you're new to playing him. Additionally, this will ensure that you have access to multi-hit by Forest 3/Temple (VERY useful for Temple). To begin, your first three skill points should go into Berserk. At Lv3 Berserk, you get a passive lifesteal bonus while in berserk mode. This is a huge help as at later levels you can practically have infinite HP if you time your attacks right. After getting Berserk to Lv3, your next skill to max is Fist Weapon. Lv3 Fist Weapon gives you the ability to perform multiple attacks when you're charged (indicated by up to three red dots below your character). Each level above Lv3 adds an additional attack to your combo for a grand total of +3 additional attacks. This means that at maxed Fist Weapon, when fully charged you'll hit up to four times at once. Combine this with berserk and your passive lifesteal and you're practically unstoppable at this point regardless of your equipment. The proper attack style from this point forward is to charge to full, rush an enemy/enemies with your combo, back out, repeat. If you've reached this point and your gear is good, you can bum rush any enemy/boss with utter impunity. Once you've finished maxing out Berserk, you can invest your remaining points into whatever you want. I recommend Strength or Vitality for more rofl-stomping but you can choose to stick some points into Animal. The stomp attack you gain at Lv2 is pretty decent but other than that, this particular skill tree isn't worth investing points into.


Ranger:
Background: Experienced

• Max Club
  
• (1) Pet Utility
  
• Max Pet Offensive
  
• Max Pet Bond

Explanation:
The newest class, the Ranger, is quite a change up from the regular Vagante play style. This class uses blunt weapons as its primary weapon of choice. This includes clubs, maces, morning stars, and hammers. Additionally, you get a wolf to command/assist you in combat (I will refer to him as Doggo) that you can revive once per level (hit down when standing over a dead-Doggo). I consider the Ranger class to be one of the more technical classes of the game simply because of Doggo. After multiple successful play throughs (including orb runs) with the Ranger class, I can say for certain that poor Doggo is far more of a liability early on than he is an asset. The main reason being that he attacks whatever he pleases unless you command him to stay put. Add to this, his damage is utter crap until you invest some points into Pet Offense. Honestly, I have found only two uses for Doggo in early-game: (1) As fodder for bosses; or (2) As a way to diffuse traps in the Ruins. To begin, you should max out the Club skill to increase your damage and attack range. At Lv3 you will emit a shockwave (similar to the shockwave spell) from your weapon at full charge. At Lv4, the charge time will be reduced substantially. The shockwave ability greatly increases your ability to take out multiple foes at once. Additionally, Doggo can be used as a decoy by throwing him out into the fray while you charge your attack from behind and unleash it when you get close. It takes a bit of practice but once you figure out how the shockwave works, it's extremely useful in small cooridors and when standing at the top of a set of stair-like blocks. Once Club is maxed, you should place a single point into Pet Utility. Lv1 Pet Utility is where Doggo starts to become slightly more viable as he will instantly teleport to you when you issue his Return command. This is incredibly useful when using Doggo as a decoy or way to engage the enemy from afar as you can throw him in, let him attack/aggro the enemies, then immediately call him back using the Return command. Prior to Lv1 Pet Utility, he takes a bit of time to teleport back and, in most cases, attempts to walk all the way back to you from where you left/threw him. From here, you should start investing into Doggo's damage by maxing Pet Offensive. At maxed level, Doggo can do a significant amount of damage when he multi-attacks. Finally, you should max Pet Bond primarily for the extra defense bonus. At Lv3 Pet Bond, you will share some of the damage you take with Doggo. This only works for you so if Doggo gets hit, you won't take any damage from it. At maxed level, Pet Bond grants Doggo bonus damage/defense based on your equipment. You can choose to sacrifice points in one skill tree to max out Pet Utility if you choose to chuck Doggo at enemies but I find it's far more beneficial for your survival if you leave it at (1). Mastering Doggo's commands is key to this class and takes a lot of practice.

[bael]

OMP Support Thot:
Background: Bookworm or Experienced (helpful if you want to get your support duty done asap)

• Alchemy 1
  
• Enchant 3
  
• Alchemy 2
  
• either Spellcaster 4 & Int 3, Rod 4 & Int 3 or Dex 5 & Anything really

Reroll any potions that are not permanent stat pots or regeneration. You should be able to get by with just your starting spells and early spoils until you can start leveling offensive trees. Until then, axes and rods go well with your enchants and many spells do enough damage even with your starting Int. Fireball, iceball, shockwave and homing spells are all worth learning. Depending on what gear/spells you have you can branch into one of the three paths listed. Rod is always viable as long as you have a spacer/wave rod, Dex is good if you have a decent battle axe and okay melee damage, spellcaster requires 2-3 good spells and at least ~15-18 int.

[Lagoon]

Getting back into Vagante after a long break, this is helpful

[gonnamad]

Knight - 2 holy - max STR - 4 holy - Max DEX = gg.
Mage (hardmode) - 2 enchant - 1 alch - max STR - Max DEX - other in VIT
Mage (no true ending) - 3 enchant (if you got fire spell) - 4 alc + start drinking and mixing pots- max STR - Max DEX
Wuildling - 3 berserk - Max STR - Max DEX - other in VIT
Try to get tier 2 axe with any enchantment (envenom best) and any fast weapon with lifesteal.

You can start max class weapon only if you get lifesteal version of it.

Didn't complete true ending with other classes yet.

All start with +1 lvl.

Or you can go death acolute and easy game in 15 min.