Rapier and Spear PvP Build (2024)

Last updated on Feb 23, 2023 at 12:00by Lemoni9 comments

The following is a PvP dive build that will use the high single-target damage and crowd-control of theSpear and pair it with the Rapier for its incredible mobility and defensive options. It can also be usedas a secondary source of burst damage, or ways to CC a target to begin a spear combo. This weapon pairingallows a player to dive into enemy lines, focus on one target, and easily escape.

This build offers top-tier mobility and ways to effectively dive in andout of combat. Its speed mixed with the various options it has for crowd-controlallow you to control the entire pace of a fight and to pick your fights wisely.It can be played more as a frontline bruiser, or a nimble backline assassin.

There are two versions of this build:

• Option 1: Light Armor - This has high burst damage and more mobility.
• Option 2: Medium Armor - This will focus on survivability but still hasincredibly high burst potential.

• Javelin — This is a ranged ability that does a significant amount of damage. It scalesits damage based on the distance it is thrown, but it is a powerful close range CC tool that willknock a player down and enable a plethora of combos.
• Skewer — This is a high damage ability that also applies a bleed. It has some subtlemobility that will lunge to the targets, making it easy to chase.
• Vault Kick — This stun will be paramount in crowd-control combinations. It providesyou withn enough time to reposition behind a target to quickly burst them down, or enable a follow-upCC ability.

• Sweep — This provides an AoE crowd-control ability that knocks a player down andcan be followed up with a downward stab that counts as a heavy attack. This is a strong from of CCthat does not count toward diminishing returns since it knocks the target on the ground. Use thisif you are not confident in using Javelin.

Use this if you prefer to have a burst damage option. At times, this can be significantly betterfor players using Dexterity builds. It acts similarly to Riposte by staggering the target, andit has a follow up ability that can deal damage or be quick mobility. This can be a great way to pick upquick kills on low health targets.

Use this if you prefer to have a survivability option with Riposte. This ability can beeasily at times if used incorrectly. Nonetheless, it will give you a moment of invulnerability andwill certainly save your life at times.

This split allows you to take advantage of the 200 Strength passive which increases damage on targetsaffected by crowd-control. If you prefer, you could go with 200 Dexterity to increase backstab damage. If youscale with Dexterity you will have higher sheet damage, but the passive from Strength will be more potentialeffective damage. You will want to scale both attributes to get the highest possible damage.

Alternatively, you can scale completely to 300 Dexterity and go 200 Constitution, or stay at 150 and gowith 50 Strength. The 300 Dexterity passive guarantees a critical hit, but only applies every 10 seconds.

Slot	Perks	Gem	Weight	Attribute	Source
Spear	Vicious Keenly Empowered Attunement Perk or Chain Damage Perk	Runeglass of Ignited Opal**	-	Dexterity	Crafted/BoE
Rapier	Omnidirectional Evade Vicious Attunement Perk or Chain Damage Perk	Runeglass of Ignited Opal**	-	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Helmet	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light or Heavy	Strength or Dexterity	Crafted/BoE
Chest	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Medium or Heavy	Strength or Dexterity	Crafted/BoE
Gloves	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light or Medium	Strength or Dexterity	Crafted/BoE
Pants	Refreshing or Freedom*** Resilient Shirking Energy	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light	Strength or Dexterity	Crafted/BoE
Boots	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Cut Pristine Onyx	Light or Medium	Strength or Dexterity	Crafted/BoE
Amulet	Health Stamina Recovery Slash Protection	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Ring (Light)	Mortal Empowerment Thrust Damage Hearty	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Ring (Medium)	Mortal Empowerment Thrust Damage Third Perk	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Earring	Refreshing Toast Purifying Toast Refreshing***	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Strength or Constitution	Crafted/BoE

*: The ability perks you need to make sure are in your build are Sundering Javelin, Keen Vault Kick, Enfeebling Skewer, Omnidirectional Evade, and Sundering Riposte if you choose to use it. You may also use Bleeding Sweep as anoptional perk. If you do not use a perk, fill that slot with a viable defensive passive.

**: Your Opal Runeglass on your weapons can be any variation of elemental damage, the same goes foryour Attunement and Chain Damage perks. It is best practice to match your Attunement or Chain with thetype of DoT damage your Opal does.

***: Freedom, Elemental Aversion, and Refreshing, are all viable options.When using Freedom you should stack 3 or 5 times. Any combination of these perks is viable.

For more specific information on optimizing your gems in PvP and PvE pleaserefer to our dedicated guides.

This will increase physical damage dealt by a flat percent, but it has an internal cooldown attached toit. This means that if you swing two light attacks, only every other swing will have thedamage increase. This drastically reduces its effectiveness over time, whereas you could just take normaldefensive gems to increase survivability. It can be worth it to put 1-3 of this Runeglass in your gear, butnever use a complete set of 5 Punishing Runeglass

When you are looking to have higher damage output and burst down multiple targets within a clumpshould use Brutal Heartrune of Detonate. You just need to play safely after activating it.

If you are wanting to push through choke points, doorways, or want a more defensive option, Stalwart Heartrune of Stoneform is great to have some independent burst healing if you donot have a healer. For max defensiveness, Cunning Heartrune of Stoneform is the betteroption.

Your Heartrune will be used similarly in PvP and PvE scenarios. As such,please refer to our Spear guide orRapier guide for tips on how itcan be used most effectively.

• Open on a target with Javelin if they are a farther distance away.
• Open on a target with Vault Kick if they are in melee range.
• Dodge and use Vault Kick or Javelin (Whichever you did not open with) to get cooldown reset.
• Dodge and use Skewer from behind the target.
• If it is available, repeat this rotation again, starting with either Javelin or Vault Kick.
• Light attack whenever all abilities are on cooldown or you can sneak in quick damage.
• If the target escapes, swap to Rapier, use Evade and attempt to execute them with Flourish and Finish. You can also chase them down with Fleche
• Use abilities like Riposte or Flourish and Finish to staggertargets and help you escape.
• Use Evade whenever it is available for a damage increase or for its mobility.
• Use Fleche for mobility and escaping.

When using the Spearor Rapier in PvP and PvE there are manysimilar aspects that go into gameplay decisions and rotations. To learn more abouthow you can improve your gameplay, use certain secondary weapons, oradditional information on specific abilities, please refer to the Gameplaysection of the Spear page orRapier page.

For more information on the most frequently asked Spear or Rapier questionsplease refer to the FAQ section of the Greatsword,or Rapier, for answers on PvP and PvE topics!