Build:Spellbreaker - Power Hammer DPS

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 June 09, 2024 and is up to date for the March 19, 2024 patch.

Overview

Hammer Spellbreaker is a great all-rounder, combining high sustained damage, consistent boonrip, huge CC, and good survivability thanks to Full Counter and the Defense traitline. This build fits the melee brawler archetype perfectly, and as such cannot really do anything if forced out of melee range. The Greatsword build is burstier, but otherwise loses most of the advantages provided by the Hammer build.

Skill Bar

Hammer

Dagger/Axe

Utility

Skill Variants

Qadim Lava Elemental Kiter Variant

• Healing Signet gives you more sustain while kiting Lava Elementals
• Break Enchantments does increased damage to enemies that have boons. Qadim regains boons on a very short interval. Replaces Bull's Charge
• Signet of Rage can be used if adrenaline generation is an issue. Alternatively, use your Signet of Fury actively to make up any adrenaline deficiency, which allows you to take Winds of Disenchantment in case DPS isn't high enough to skip Qadim's defiance bar (or on Challenge Mode)

Template Code

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Specializations

Trait Variants

• Loss Aversion - On bosses that regain boons very regularly you will not gain the benefit of Sun and Moon Style, and you can reliably gain the extra damage and adrenaline for removing boons with this trait.

Equipment

Head
Berserker

Shoulders
Berserker

Chest
Berserker

Hands
Berserker

Legs
Berserker

Feet
Berserker

Backpiece
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Accessory
Berserker

Amulet
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Ring
Berserker

Hammer
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Dagger
Berserker

Axe
Berserker

Sigil

Sigil

Rune
x6

Infusion
x18

Relic

• Against bosses that don't get Stunned, a Sigil of Superior Sigil of Air on Hammer will do more DPS than the Sigil of Superior Sigil of Impact.
• If you're able to reliably use CC during a bosses attack animations, then Sigil of Superior Sigil of Severance will trigger, which can make it better than Sigil of Superior Sigil of Impact on hammer.
• Against bosses where you can reliably remove boons (such as Qadim), Relic of Nourys may offer higher DPS. Be aware that you will also stack this relic passively in combat, so the damage buff may trigger on a moment where it's not useful.

Consumables

Food

• or ascended versions

Utility

Usage

Rotation

Start on Hammer

Opener

1. "To the Limit!" to gain adrenaline
2. Winds of Disenchantment
3. Earthshaker
4. Staggering Blow
5. Hammer Shock
6. Weapon Swap
7. Disrupting Stab - this is interchangeable with Dual Strike, but as it is a priority skill we use it first to prevent us interrupting Dual Strike
8. Dual Strike
9. Breaching Strike
10. Aura Slicer - to combo with the lightning field from Winds of Disenchantment for another Daze
11. Whirling Axe
12. Precise Cut ⇒ Focused Slash ⇒ Keen Strike
13. Bull's Charge
14. Precise Cut ⇒ Focused Slash ⇒ Keen Strike x2
15. Breaching Strike
16. Disrupting Stab
17. Dual Strike
18. Weapon Swap

Hammer section

1. Fierce Blow
2. Earthshaker
3. Hammer Shock
4. Hammer Swing (warrior) ⇒ Hammer Bash (warrior) ⇒ Hammer Smash x2
5. Staggering Blow
6. Fierce Blow
7. Backbreaker
8. Fierce Blow
9. Earthshaker
10. Hammer Shock
11. Weapon Swap

Dagger/Axe section

1. Disrupting Stab - this is interchangeable with Dual Strike, but as it is a priority skill we use it first to prevent us interrupting Dual Strike
2. Dual Strike
3. Breaching Strike
4. Whirling Axe
5. Precise Cut ⇒ Focused Slash ⇒ Keen Strike
6. Bull's Charge
7. Precise Cut ⇒ Focused Slash ⇒ Keen Strike x3
8. Breaching Strike
9. Disrupting Stab
10. Dual Strike
11. Weapon Swap
12. Return to start of Hammer section

Video example

Video example (dagger opener)

Kiting Qadim's Lava Elementals

This build can reliably kite Lava Elementals at Qadim, while also bringing decent DPS on the boss and utility in removing Stability during Parry by using Winds of Disenchantment. It is however very unforgiving for mistakes and becomes more difficult quickly when Qadim gets stacks of Fiery Surge.

Build variation

• Healing Signet gives you more sustain
• Signet of Rage can be used if adrenaline generation is an issue. Alternatively, use your Signet of Fury actively to make up any adrenaline deficiency, which allows you to take Winds of Disenchantment in case DPS isn't high enough to skip Qadim's defiance bar (or on Challenge Mode)
• (Optional) Break Enchantments does increased damage to enemies that have boons. Qadim regains boons on a very short interval. Replace Bull's Charge and use off cooldown (be aware that it interrupts other skills)
• (Optional) Loss Aversion - Qadim regains boons very regularly, so you will not gain the benefit of Sun and Moon Style. You can however reliably gain the extra damage and adrenaline for removing boons with this trait.
• (Optional) Relic of Nourys can be taken since Qadim regains boons constantly that you can remove to stack this effect.

Kiting Strategy

For a general overview, see this section.

Since this build has no ranged capabilities, we will be running around to kill the Lava Elementals up close. The elementals spawn in an anti-clockwise pattern around the platform Qadim is on. The main strategy for killing the elementals is to go through a loop of three methods (and since the platform is a triangle, that means that we'll be using every method in the same corner every time).

• Whirling Axe or Disrupting Stab and Dual Strike (alternate between them every loop)
• Breaching Strike
• Aura Slicer

Since we don't have Fury, it's possible we won't crit every time. Just finish the elemental with some auto attacks in that case.

Running around the platform means most of Qadim's attacks won't hit us. The main danger comes from , but this attack can be dodged or jumped over. Fire Dance will usually occur right before going back to the first elemental spawn spot, but this can deviate based on Fiery Surge stacks. If we avoid all the attacks, the only sustain we need is for the passive aura. This sustain is provided by the passive of Healing Signet and building up Adrenal Health by hitting Breaching Strike. If an emergency block is needed, Full Counter can be used which will also add stacks of Adrenal Health if it hits an enemy. Adrenaline can be topped off by using the active of Signet of Fury or bringing Signet of Rage.