Berserker - Condi Macezerker

The community gave this build a rating, making it second-tier: Good

Focused on: Condition damage and Control

Designed for: PvP Conquest

Difficulty:

Normal

This build was last updated on March 29, 2024 and is up to date for the March 19, 2024 patch.

Overview

A PvP Berserker build which combines high stacks of various conditions and CC for an all-out condition burst to make up for its low sustain.

Skill Bar

Mace/Shield

Sword/Torch

Utility

Skill Variants

Weapons

• Off-hand Sword over Shield - trades CC and a better block for more damage.

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Specializations

Variants

• Shield Master improves adrenaline generation and makes your blocks reflect projectiles, which opens up new and creative ways to pressure enemies. You do lose some Weakness application however which removes a cover condition from the build and decreases your sustain a little.

Equipment

Mace

Shield

Sigil

Sigil

Sword

Torch

Sigil

Sigil

Rune

Amulet

Relic

Equipment Changes

Rune

• Rune of Orr - makes your Sword/Torch and King of Fires burst a bit weaker but adds more defense against conditions without giving up offensive stats.

Sigils

• Sigil of Cleansing over Sigil of Smoldering - only if you're playing with Exposure on the Mace set, adds back the lose cleansing.

Usage

Elite specialization mechanics

• Berserker grants Warriors acceess to Berserk, a mode during which they gain new burst skills.

• To Enter Berserker mode you must have full adrenaline (30/30). The Berserking burst skill Skull Grinder (Mace) and Flaming Flurry (Sword) become available during this time frame, these cost 10 adrenaline (which amounts to 1 regular adrenaline bar, 1/3 of the cost of what it took to enter Berserker mode).

• Head Butt and Sundering Leap are both important adrenaline management tools. They're especially useful for getting back to full adrenaline before just before Berserk recharges so you don't have to waste time building adrenaline while Berserker is available. Even in Berserker mode they are useful, allowing you to quickly fill up the adrenaline bar for back-to-back burst combos.

General

• Both the initial cast and the landing strike of Sundering Leap restore adrenaline, so try to land on top of enemies. The skill also applies useful cover conditions for burst combos and could act as a gapcloser.

• Versatile Rage restores 5 adrenaline on weapon-swap. This is great at instantly getting that last bit of adrenaline you'd need for burst skills especially if you're having difficulty building adrenaline (like getting outranged or Blind spammed).

• Aside from Brawler's Recovery most of your cleansing is tied to bigger CDs like Mending and "Shake It Off!". Proper CD management is necessary when it comes to surviving condition pressure. Bridge the gaps in your sustain with proper use of blocks, stuns, and leaps.

• Much of the pressure comes from spamming Skull Grinder and detonating Fire Auras using Berserker skills made possible by King of Fires. Any skill related to the elite specialization could detonate Fire Auras: Rage, Torch, or Berserker-mode skills.
  • Sometimes Blaze Breaker can proc the Fire Aura from King of Fires on one of its early strikes, and then detonate said aura when the skill ends. This is because crits can give you Fire Aura, and Torch skills count as Berserker skills that detonate these auras, but the trait will only check if a Berserker skill has been used once the skill has successfully finished its entire animation.

• While Mace/Shield is more defensive because of the blocks and CC, Sword can help you survive too with proper use of Savage Leap to leave enemies behind, especially if you jump from one ledge to another or behind a pillar/wall to deny line of sight. Flames of War is also a great condi cleanse.

• CCing a target grants Stability via Stalwart Strength. This trait procs before the self-stun of Head Butt, so you never have to worry about that part of the skill anymore.

• Both weapon sets could combo Fire Aura in Flames of War:
  • Savage Leap on Sword/Torch.
  • Shield Bash on Mace/Shield.
  • Sundering Leap is a utility skill therefore works on both. It's also a Rage skill capable of detonating the aura, so using this inside a Fire field first gives you an aura and then detonates it on impact right away for burst damage.

Survival

• Entering Berserk gives you an Endure Pain-like effect via Savage Instinct, turning the skill into a formidable defensive tool. Not only that but the Superspeed from Burst of Aggression could help you run away from enemies if you're being focused.

• Savage Leap and Sundering Leap both have inherent defensive value as mobility skills, you could use these to quickly disengage from fights and resustain before heading back in. Being mobility skills these could also break you out of Immobilize, making it harder for enemies to pin you down.
  • Sundering Leap even has Aegis to cover your escape. Of course if you use this to run away you'll only get half the adrenaline, but that's a small price to pay for survival.

• Always factor in what other cleansing CDs are available before you'd heal with Mending as this is your best mass cleanse. If the answer is none and you heal with no conditions on you in a condition matchup, you might get killed a few seconds later due to the lack of cleansing. Sometimes it's worth holding onto for a few extra seconds just to be safe.

• CC shouldn't be much of a problem for you with the amount of Stability access and stun breaks in the build. Deciding which stun break to use depends on the situation, for instance:
  • If you're getting condi bombed then "Shake It Off!" might be the clear winner.
  • If the target is in melee and has no Stability you could counter-burst with Head Butt.
  • If you're sitting in a Gravity Well with 3 people on you then the damage mitigation of Endure Pain or Savage Instinct is what you need.
  • If it's a Power-based matchup with no need for cleansing and you can easily avoid the incoming damage with a stun break + Shield Stance or a dodge then "Shake It Off!" could be enough while you keep Endure Pain for emergencies.

Burst combo examples

Using both sets

1. Flames of War ⇒ Savage Leap for Fire Aura
2. Head Butt
3. Enter Berserker mode, cast Flaming Flurry while they're stunned and you have Quickness
4. Weapon Swap
5. Shield Bash for 2nd Fire Aura while Flames of War is still up
6. Skull Grinder

From range

1. Flames of War
2. Sundering Leap for Fire Aura and to close the gap, also to detonate said aura upon landing
3. Weapon Swap
4. Berserk
5. Skull Grinder

Opener/Without Berserker mode

1. Blaze Breaker hoping for a King of Fires "double" proc (both an aura and an aura detonation, as mentioned above)
2. Flames of War
3. Sundering Leap for fire aura and an aura detonation upon landing

Top Streamers

• Twitch: Keyba