Blunderbuss Hammer Bruiser PvP Build for New World

This build will use a standard bruiser crowd-control weapon, the WarHammer, to establish point presence and setup kills for damage focused players. With that being said, having a Blunderbuss with this build will allow you to potentially pick up a quick kill. It differs from the light variant by providing a much more defensive setup that will enable you to more easily use crowd-control abilities in more beneficial locations in the middle of a clump fight. You will have less damage, but it will still be significantly more than other medium bruisers. This build is a bit more versatile and not as focused on single-target damage, it prioritizes team value more than being a solo kill machine.

This variation of the Blunderbuss can be used with a War Hammer or an Ice Gauntlet in either light or medium armor. The attributes and Blunderbuss build will always be the same no matter what weapon you choose. You will only need change gear sets depending on your second weapon perks.

• Net Shot — When combined with Exhaustive Net Shot this is a powerful CC ability that will slow a target and make them vulnerable to exhausting themselves and being easily taken down. It will deal a moderate amount of damage but allow you to quickly close gaps. It can also be a fantastic source of mobility if you use this while walking backwards so that you can escape enemies.
• Azoth Shrapnel Blast — This is the Blunderbuss's highest damaging ability. This should always be used immediately after firing off a basic attack so that you can deal a potent burst of damage. It has incredible range, AoE potential, and when used in combination with a regular shot it can take away a significant amount of health. It should also be used on clumps of enemies to take advantage of the bomb it leaves on the ground after being used.
• Splitting Grenade — Aim to use this on Gravity Well or other clumps of enemies. It will deal a great amount of initial burst damage, but it can also leave a devastating damage over time effect that lasts 10 seconds and can stack up to three times depending on how many of the bombs hit the target. This is the greatest source of AoE damage on the Blunderbuss.

This is the optimal build for maximizing cooldown usage and being able to get more abilities out for burst damage.

• Wrecking Ball — This is a great tool for defensiveness and crowd-control. When it is used it will apply a Fortify buff that will help with survivability. Additionally, it has a unexpectedly large AoE knockdown effect that is essential for starting any kind of crowd-control combo.
• Shockwave — In most cases, this should be used as soon as a target is knocked down by Wrecking Ball. Not only with it provide a massive AoE stun. Every target will be debuffed and rended as long as you use its perk. This makes all targets extremely vulnerable.
• Path Of Destiny — This is perfect for free AoE damage and it does stagger, so you can use it to interrupt healers or other players. It is primarily used to catch targets who are running away because of its stagger and its slowing debuff. It can also be used defensively with its perk to provide quick healing.

In a build like this your attributes can vary depending on your own preferences and playstyle. The important thing to note is that this build needs defensiveness so it can CC targetsa, debuff, and have some point presence. This build, unlike most medium armor builds, will still have one-shot potential. Since you are in medium armor you can play at 150 Constitution but have far more survivability. You can always adjust this to play at 200 Constitution, but will have to sacrifice significant damage passives--most likely the 200 Strength passive.

You can generally play with higher Constitution because you will be using Mortal Empowerment to increase damage. If you want more damage to one-shot medium armor players, or those with more defensiveness, you can reduce your Constitution to 100.

Slot	Perks	Gem	Weight	Attribute	Source
Blunderbuss	Enchanted Flame Attunement Plagued Splitting Grenade	Runeglass of Ignited Opal	-	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE*
War Hammer	Sundering Shockwave Thwarting Counter Flame Attunement***	Runeglass of Ignited Ruby or Runeglass of Ignited Opal	-	Strength	Crafted/BoE
Helmet	Ability Perk* or Refreshing** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion**	Runeglass of Ignited Onyx	Light	Intelligence or Strength	Crafted/BoE
Gloves	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Runeglass of Ignited Onyx	Light	Intelligence or Strength	Crafted/BoE
Chest	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Runeglass of Ignited Onyx	Medium	Intelligence or Strength	Crafted/BoE
Pants	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Runeglass of Ignited Onyx	Light	Intelligence or Strength	Crafted/BoE
Boots	Ability Perk* or Refreshing*** Resilient Freedom or Elemental Aversion***	Runeglass of Ignited Onyx	Light	Intelligence or Strength	Crafted/BoE
Amulet	Health Stamina Recovery Slash Protection	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Constitution, Strength, or Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Ring	Mortal Empowerment Fire Damage Hearty	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Constitution, Strength, or Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Earring	Refreshing Toast Purifying Toast Refreshing	Cut Pristine Opal	-	Constitution, Strength, or Intelligence	Crafted/BoE

*: The ability perks you need to make sure are in your build are Plagued Splitting Grenade, Leeching Shrapnel Blast, Exhaustive Net Shot, Sundering Shockwave, and Leeching Path Of Destiny.

**: In medium armor builds it can be better to use Refreshing Ward depending on your playstyle.

***: 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.

****: Any Attunement perk can be used. If you go with Fire it will scale with Fire Damage.

Overall with gearing, this is the ideal loadout of perks for a best in slot build. With that being said, be sure to refer to the Blunderbuss or War Hammer guide to have a better understanding of other flexible perk options to fit into your build. You can decide what you are most comfortable with.

For more specific information on optimizing your gems in PvP and PvE please refer to our dedicated guide for Blunderbuss or War Hammer.

When focusing on burst damage Brutal Heartrune of Detonate will always be one of the top picks, and it should be used in this build. You just need to play safely after activating it.

For a safer alternative to allow more survivability you should use Stalwart Heartrune of Stoneform.

In medium builds that focus on point presence you can use Brutal Heartrune of Grasping Vines to clump enemies.

Your Heartrune will be used similarly in PvP and PvE scenarios. As such, please refer to our Blunderbuss or War Hammer guide for tips on how it can be used most effectively.

With a build like this it can be difficult when trying to decide what abilities to use and when. You can reference the priority list below to understand how each individual ability can be used. The main priority is successfully completing the damage combo to secure kills. In medium, you will not have as much damage output, but it is the same combo for light armor users to one-shot players.

• Begin combat by using Net Shot for its slowing effect.
• Use Shockwave to stun.
• Use Wrecking Ball to knock down the target.
• While the target is on the ground aim at them and fire a basic shot.
• Immediately follow basic shot with Azoth Shrapnel Blast.
• If the target does not die, finish them with a basic attack.

• Begin combat by using Net Shot for its slowing effect.
• Use Wrecking Ball to knock down the target.
• Use Shockwave immediately to stun and set up.
• Aim down sight and fire a basic shot
• Immediately after shooting use Azoth Shrapnel Blast
• If the target does not die, fire a basic attack at them

If you do not have Azoth Shrapnel Blast available, or if you want to kill a more defensive target, you can use Splitting Grenade and detonate it without it hitting the stunned target. If you hit them with the grenade the stun will break. The grenades will drop at their feet and right as they explode you can hit an aimed shot on their head.

• Begin combat by using Net Shot for its slowing effect.
• Use Wrecking Ball to knock down the target.
• Use Shockwave immediately to stun and set up.
• Use Splitting Grenade and immediately re-activate to split the grenades.
• Aim down sight and fire a basic shot
• Immediately after shooting use Azoth Shrapnel Blast
• If the target does not die, finish them with a basic attack.

• Perform one-shot combo (Top priority if a single target is being focused)
• Use Wrecking Ball if targets are stacked together or a priority target is alone
• Use Shockwave if targets are stacked together or a priority target is alone
• Use Net Shot to initiate combat or close gaps by slowing priority targets.
• When targets are low health or clustered, prioritize shooting a basic shot from your Blunderbuss and following it up with an immediate Azoth Shrapnel Blast. (This ability can be used by itself to quickly execute enemies).
• Use Splitting Grenade on AoE clumps or a priority target. This can be reactivated to split earlier and control the location where it drops.
• Use Path Of Destiny for AoE damage, interrupting casts, or to apply a slow and catch players. It can also be used when outnumbered for a burst heal with Leeching Path Of Destiny
• Use aimed shots from your Blunderbuss as a filler until abilities are off cooldown, or for quick bursts of damage.

When using the Blunderbuss or War Hammer in PvP and PvE there are many similar aspects that go into gameplay decisions and rotations. To learn more about how you can improve your gameplay, use certain secondary weapons, or additional information on specific abilities, please refer to the Gameplay section of the Blunderbuss page or War Hammer page.

For more information on the most frequently asked Blunderbuss or Ice Gauntlet questions please refer to the FAQ section of the Blunderbuss guide, or War Hammer, for answers on PvP and PvE topics!