Great Axe PvE Builds for New World

The Great Axe is considered one of the most useful weapons when it comes to PvE content due to it's great damage output and crowd control abilities. This weapon also has multiple AoE abilities that are great for attacking multiple enemies at a time, making it very helpful when going through expeditions and/or areas that may have a large amount of mobs.

Even if you wanted to focus on a single target, the Great Axe still is a great choice due to it's range of abilities. When it comes to PvE, there are a handful of secondary weapons that work perfectly with the Great Axe, making you a great addition to any team you might come across.

The builds below highlight a few example of how you can utilize the Great Axe in PvE content.

If you're interested in swinging weapons consistently and dealing massive damage to multiple enemies at the same time, this is the build for you. In regards to which artifact weapon to utilize to be most effective, it's recommended to use the Serenity Greatsword artifact (due to it's ability to stack large amounts of empower very quickly).This build is one of the highest damage-dealing DPS builds available in New World: Aeternum if set-up correctly. The primary abilities that you will be utilizing include the following:

Relentless Rush

Crosscut

Skyward Slash

• Reap
• Maelstrom
• Gravity Well

Pairing the Hatchet with the Great Axe is a great pairing of two slash damage weapons that both scale primarily off of the Strength attribute. This build is extremely useful in solo PvE content, due to the many self-healing and buffs you can pick up with the Hatchet, but it also can be very effective in group content. With this build, you will typically utilize the Great Axe to control large groups of mobs, and then use the Hatchet to focus on single enemies and bosses.

Berserk

Raging Torrent

Rending Throw

• Reap
• Maelstrom
• Gravity Well

If you're looking for a build that provides the perfect balance between offense and defense, then this is the build for you. Both the War Hammer and Great Axe scales off of the Strength attribute, making it very easy to distribute your attributes while leveling your character. The War Hammer will be a grat addition to your PvE build, as it provides a large range of crowd control abilities that also have the potential to deal debuffs to enemies, such as Rend. Utilizing this weapon will help not only yourself with maximize your damage output with your Great Axe, but also all of your group members' damage output as well. The combination of these weapons are great for handling large groups of enemies.

• Execute
• Maelstrom or Reap
• Gravity Well

• Wrecking Ball
• Shockwave
• Path Of Destiny

The Great Axe also could be a great addition for a Tank build, which utilizes the Sword and Shield. Pairing these two weapons allow you to dish off a great amount of damage, while also having the ability to quickly swap to your sword and shield to kite enemies, taunt them, and of course, tank them as your group members deal as much damage as possible. The Sword and Shield also allows you to grant certain passive abilities with your group members, making it even more effective when running PvE content with friends.

To learn more about how to be most effective with this build, be sure to review the Sword and Shield guide.

To learn more about how to use the Great Axe as a secondary weapon, please refer to the Great Axe guide.