An in-depth look at the Deathgivers, an incredibly unique weapon with a high-risk, high-reward playstyle.

January 31, 2018 at 11:09 AM by SeanTazzik

If you like to jump around fights while dealing massive amounts of damage and drawing pressure from the enemy, the Deathgivers are for you. They’re a daunting weapon to learn, but if you can master them, they can be one of the most influential weapons in Albion.

Weapon Skills

The first choice is simple; Sunder Armor is a melee range ability that lowers the target's armor and magic resistance. That resistance shred stacks as a debuff on the enemy up to 3 times and is essential to your combo.

The next choice is a difficult one. Dash is an ability with an 11m range that quickly dashes towards a targeted area. Similarly, Shadow Edge is a skill shot that, if it lands, pulls you to an enemy, and it offers double the range of Dash with 22m. Shadow Edge also stuns struck targets, locking them down for a short period of time. Shadow Edge can be used much more effectively than Dash, but it is challenging. I'll talk about why Shadow Edge is the preferred skill in the Tips and Tricks section.

Ghost Strike is what makes the Deathgivers such a scary weapon to play against. This ability deals a tremendous amount of damage while dashing through the enemy. If the targeted enemy has 3 stacks of Sunder Armor, Ghost Strike doesn't go on cooldown and can be used immediately for even more damage (although this isn't always the best choice). After casting Ghost Strike, it also lowers energy costs by 50% for 3 seconds and turns you invisible for 3 seconds. This ability does a lot, so it's important to know what each part does; I'll talk more about it in the Tips and Tricks section.

Since this playstyle focuses on the burst of the weapon, Aggressive Rush is the better choice of passives. Also, take resistance potions and beef stew to give you a further defensive and damage increase.

Gear Choice

Since you’re going to be diving enemies and drawing a lot of pressure, this build is designed to give you different defensives to choose from while you keep to your target.

The Hunter Hood ability Retaliate is an excellent defensive for the Deathgivers; you're probably going to end up getting focused by your enemies, so the 60% resistance increase for 5 seconds is a great help to staying in position. On top of that, Retaliate also reflects all damage you take back to the attacker, further increasing your damage. Timing this ability right can add large amounts of damage to your combo.

Since we're so focused on defensives, the Assassin Jacket shines with its great ability Inferno Shield. For 8 seconds it increases your resistances while also reflecting 30% of the damage you take (before the resistance increase) back to the attacker, similar to Retaliate. These two abilities can be used together, but it's better to use one at a time unless you're taking huge damage.

You may opt to run Royal Shoes for another defensive, but the better choice is actually the Hellion Shoes ability Mark of Sacrifice. This is an often-overlooked ability that works great with the Deathgivers; It has an 11m range that marks an enemy, and while channeling you become invisible and invulnerable. After 2 seconds you'll jump to your target and deal a small amount of damage, but more importantly, you'll apply a debuff that lowers healing received by 40% for 5 seconds. They can be used offensively to close the distance between you and a target, but it can also be used to jump around a fight or to block damage.

Tips and Tricks

The key to mastering the Deathgivers is fully utilizing your abilities. If you're sticking to an enemy, you can auto attack twice between your Sunder Armor abilities, meaning you can proc Aggressive Rush before your third stack of Sunder Armor and Ghost Strike for extra damage.

Shadow Edge is very important to master. You can either use it to further dive into the enemy backline, or use it defensively by hitting a tank or front-line enemy, bringing you closer to your team. Using Mark of Sacrifice to jump a target and then quickly using Shadow Edge to return to safety after bursting with Ghost Strike is a devastating combo, but only one of many that you can do.

Mark of Sacrifice makes you invulnerable during the channel, so while you're in the enemies' back-line, you can use it to block a significant amount of damage, then use Shadow Edge to either further dive or get back to safety. On top of that, you have Inferno Shield and Retaliate to keep yourself healthy while stacking Sunder Armor.

Ghost Strike does a massive amount of damage, but the question is if you should use it in rapid succession or not. Sunder Armor can be used 3 times in 6 seconds; that means you can stack Sunder Armor, use Ghost Strike, and if another Ghost Strike (that will deal less damage because the enemy no longer has the sunder debuff) won't finish them, you can simply restack Sunder Armor. This effectively makes the cooldown of Ghost Strike 6 seconds, and you always have the option to recast it immediately for even more damage, though this will put it on a 20-second cooldown.

Remember that after using Ghost Strike you become invisible; those 3 seconds are crucial and can't be wasted. You can either position to restack Sunder Armor, begin a Mark of Sacrifice channel to lower their healing received and attempt another burst, or set up a Shadow Edge. Mastering the different tactics that this build offers is essential to perfecting the Deathgivers.

That's all for this Build Spotlight; if you'd like to see the Deathgivers in action, you can check out these videos by members of the community. You can also visit the previous Build Spotlight, and be sure to come back for more!