Virtuoso - Power DPS

Part of the current metagame

Our curator decided this build is in the current metagame regardless of rating. The community gave this build a rating, making it top-tier: Great

Focused on: Direct damage

Designed for: Raids and Fractals

Expansions required:

Difficulty:

Normal

This build was last updated on November 20, 2024 and is up to date for the October 8, 2024 patch.

Overview

Power virtuoso is a simple yet effective build that deals great burst and sustained damage. It has access to evades and blocks, permanent Fury, and inflicts large amounts of Vulnerability.

Skill Bar

Dagger/Sword

Spear

Utility

Weapon Variants

• Greatsword can replace Spear for players that don't own Janthir Wilds. This also makes the build fully ranged, which could have niche use.
• Offhand Sword can be replaced with a Focus for access to the powerful Temporal Curtain. However this is a significant DPS loss, so should only be done as a last resort.

Skill Variants

Mantra of Pain or Rain of Swords may be swapped out for other utilities as desired.

• Sword of Decimation offers similar DPS but adds some extra CC.

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Specializations

Trait Variants

• Use Bountiful Blades when running Greatsword.

Equipment

Head
Assassin

Shoulders
Berserker

Chest
Berserker

Hands
Berserker

Legs
Assassin

Feet
Berserker

Backpiece
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Amulet
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Dagger
Berserker

Sword
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Spear
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x18

Relic

• Rune of Superior Rune of the Dragonhunter is practically identical damage.
• Relic of the Thief is less damage, but allows you to save some CC (Bladesong Dissonance, and Illusionary Wave if Greatsword). The DPS difference is fairly small so use whichever you prefer.
• You should aim for ~2005 precision.

Impact Variant

If you want to run this build on encounters where the boss can be stunned, you may benefit more from running a Sigil of Superior Sigil of Impact instead of the Sigil of Superior Sigil of Accuracy. To make up for the lost crit chance, make the following gear changes:

• Switch the amulet, one ring, one accessory and the backpiece to Assassin stats.
  • You should aim for 2155 precision.

More convenient, but lower DPS options:

• Use Rune of Superior Rune of the Golemancer and switch the amulet to Assassin stats.
• Switch the Sigil of Superior Sigil of Force for the Sigil of Superior Sigil of Impact instead.

Consumables

Food

• or ascended versions

Utility

Usage

Spear rotation

The most important skill to understand on Spear is Mind the Gap. This skill is a spin attack that deals extra damage to enemies that are on the outer edge of its radius. This radius roughly corresponds to maximum melee range, so you can reliably hit with it, but you may need to stand further back than usual and annoy some boon supports.

Hitting your target with Mind the Gap applies a buff called Clarity. Your next use of one of your Spear skills 2-5 will consume the buff and gain an enhanced effect:

• Mind the Gap grants you Might
• Imaginary Inversion heals for more
• Phantasmal Lancer summons an extra phantasm
• Mental Collapse stuns your target

Of these, the only one that increases your damage is Phantasmal Lancer, so this will be the skill we want to enhance.

Opener

Try to start with five blades stocked, Mantra of Pain charged, and begin on Dagger/Sword.

1. Phantasmal Disenchanter
2. Unstable Bladestorm
3. Phantasmal Swordsman, and Bladeturn Requiem during the cast
4. Thousand Cuts and Power Spike once you have the Deadly Blades buff - both are instant cast and can be used during other skills
5. Bladecall
6. Weapon Swap

Spear Loop

If you want to save Bladesong Dissonance for CC, then delay Bladesong Sorrow until just before Imaginary Inversion at step 14

1. Mind the Gap - applies Clarity
2. Phantasmal Lancer - consumes Clarity to summon an extra phantasm
3. Signet of the Ether + Power Spike (skip Power Spike on the very first loop as you used a charge in the opener)
4. Mental Collapse - this recharges Mind the Gap
5. Mind the Gap
6. Phantasmal Lancer
7. Bladesong Harmony - maintains Deadly Blades and Relic of Fireworks buffs
8. Rain of Swords
9. Phantasmal Disenchanter
10. Psycut ⇒ Psystrike ⇒ Mind Pierce
11. Mind the Gap
12. Bladesong Sorrow
13. Psycut ⇒ Psystrike ⇒ Mind Pierce x2
14. Imaginary Inversion
15. Mind the Gap
16. Bladesong Dissonance - maintains Deadly Blades and Relic of Fireworks buffs
17. Phantasmal Lancer
18. Weapon Swap

Dagger/Sword Loop

Steps 1-3 of the Dagger/Sword loop are important to perform quickly to avoid delaying the swap back to Spear, you also need to be sure to use Bladecall off cooldown so that you can fit 3 of them in.

1. Phantasmal Swordsman
2. Bladecall
3. Unstable Bladestorm
4. Bladesong Harmony
5. Flying Cutter, and Power Spike once it reaches full charges
6. Bladecall
7. Flying Cutter, and Phantasmal Disenchanter when it comes off cooldown
8. Bladecall
9. Phantasmal Swordsman, and Bladeturn Requiem during the cast
10. Unstable Bladestorm
11. Weapon Swap
12. Return to start of Spear Loop

Video example

Greatsword rotation

Click to view

Opener

Try to start with five blades stocked, Mantra of Pain charged, and begin on Dagger/Sword.

1. Phantasmal Disenchanter
2. Unstable Bladestorm
3. Phantasmal Swordsman, and Bladeturn Requiem during the cast
4. Thousand Cuts and Power Spike once you have the Deadly Blades buff - both are instant cast and can be used during other skills
5. Bladecall
6. Weapon Swap

Greatsword Loop

Each Greatsword Loop is opened and closed with Phantasmal Berserker and Mirror Blade, using other skills off cooldown in between. If you want to save Bladesong Dissonance for CC, then delay Bladesong Sorrow until just before Mind Stab at step 13

1. Phantasmal Berserker
2. Signet of the Ether + Power Spike (skip Power Spike on the very first loop as you used a charge in the opener)
3. Phantasmal Berserker
4. Mind Stab
5. Mirror Blade
6. Bladesong Harmony
7. Rain of Swords
8. Phantasmal Disenchanter
9. Spatial Surge until Mirror Blade is nearly off cooldown
10. Bladesong Sorrow
11. Mirror Blade
12. Spatial Surge until Mind Stab is off cooldown
13. Mind Stab
14. Bladesong Dissonance
15. Phantasmal Berserker
16. Mirror Blade
17. Weapon Swap

Dagger/Sword Loop

Steps 1-3 of the Dagger/Sword loop are important to perform quickly to avoid delaying the swap back to Greatsword, you also need to be sure to use Bladecall off cooldown so that you can fit 3 of them in.

1. Phantasmal Swordsman
2. Bladecall
3. Unstable Bladestorm
4. Bladesong Harmony
5. Flying Cutter, and Mind Spike once it reaches full charges
6. Bladecall
7. Flying Cutter, and Phantasmal Disenchanter when it comes off cooldown
8. Bladecall
9. Phantasmal Swordsman, and Bladeturn Requiem during the cast
10. Unstable Bladestorm
11. Weapon Swap
12. Return to start of Greatsword Loop

Video example

Sword/Focus rotation

Click to view

Opener

Try to start with five blades stocked, Mantra of Pain charged, and begin on Sword/Focus. The dagger section of the opener is broadly the same as the Dagger/Sword loop below.

1. Phantasmal Warden
2. Weapon Swap
3. Bladesong Harmony
4. Thousand Cuts and Power Spike once you have the Deadly Blades buff from Bladesong Harmony - both are instant cast and can be used during other skills
5. Weapon Swap
6. Bladecall
7. Phantasmal Swordsman
8. Phantasmal Disenchanter
9. Unstable Bladestorm
10. Signet of the Ether
11. Phantasmal Swordsman
12. Bladesong Sorrow - make sure you're at five blades
13. Bladecall
14. Rain of Swords
15. Phantasmal Disenchanter
16. Power Spike
17. Flying Cutter and Power Spike until Bladesong Harmony is ready - Power Spike should come off cooldown when you still have the deadly Deadly Blades buff, but before you start losing stacks of Fencer's Finesse
18. Bladesong Harmony
19. Bladecall
20. Flying Cutter until Unstable Bladestorm is off cooldown
21. Unstable Bladestorm
22. Bladesong Dissonance - this is mostly to maintain Deadly Blades, so skip if you think you'll need the CC
23. Phantasmal Swordsman
24. Bladecall
25. Weapon Swap

Sword/Focus Loop

The Sword/Focus loop is very simple, just be sure to use Blurred Frenzy early and weapon swap immediately after using it a second time.

1. Phantasmal Warden
2. Blurred Frenzy
3. Autoattack until Bladesong Harmony is off cooldown
4. Bladesong Harmony
5. Autoattack until Phantasmal Disenchanter is off cooldown
6. Phantasmal Disenchanter
7. Blurred Frenzy
8. Weapon Swap

Dagger/Sword Loop

Steps 1-5 of the Dagger/Sword loop are important to get in the correct order to avoid delaying the swap back to Sword/Focus, you also need to be sure to use Bladecall off cooldown so that you can fit 4 of them in. If you reach step 15 and Bladecall is still on cooldown, just skip that step and weapon swap.

1. Bladecall
2. Phantasmal Swordsman
3. Unstable Bladestorm
4. Signet of the Ether
5. Phantasmal Swordsman
6. Bladesong Harmony
7. Bladecall
8. Phantasmal Disenchanter
9. Flying Cutter until you have five blades stocked
10. Bladesong Sorrow
11. Bladecall
12. Flying Cutter until Unstable Bladestorm is off cooldown
13. Unstable Bladestorm
14. Phantasmal Swordsman
15. Bladecall
16. Weapon Swap
17. Return to start of Sword/Focus Loop

Video example

General Tips

• Use Rain of Swords and Thousand Cuts off cooldown.
• Use Power Spike when it reaches maximum charges - ideally while under the effects of both Deadly Blades and Fencer's Finesse
• Distortion can be used to provide higher uptime of Deadly Blades, but make sure not to use up your stock of blades just before you want to use Bladesong Harmony or Bladesong Sorrow.
• If you cancel the aftercast of your Bladesongs too soon (such as with Blurred Frenzy, Signet of the Ether or Mind Stab), it will not apply the Deadly Blades buff.