Ice Gauntlet Flamethrower PvE Build for New World

In PvE magic weapons are not commonly used due to the innate elemental resistance of enemies that rotate within each mutator set. But, when you can take advantage of magic damage, specifically Fire damage, you can play one of the easiest and best builds that New World has to offer. When using this build you will take advantage of the constant damage of Flamethrower mixed with easy to use passive damage abilities on your Ice Gauntlet. This will rarely be used in PvE, but when it is, it can be a satisfying and relaxing way to DPS through an expedition.

• Pillar of Fire — This allows you to target an area that hits all enemies within its radius. It can provide fantastic burst damage on a single target or clumped groups. This can be difficult to land at times, which makes some players choose Flamethrower.
• Fireball — This is the largest source of burst damage the Fire Staff has to offer. When using Empowering Fireball on a weapon this will deal massive damage to a single target, but will be best used when aiming at large clumps of enemies. It is important to note it leaves an AoE on the ground that will continue to hit enemies for up to 9 seconds.
• Burnout — This is a highly debated ability. While it is the Fire Staff's only mobility option, it comes with a long casting animation. Nonetheless, it can damage targets and can be used to finish off enemies who are trying to runaway, or deal AoE damage. It also applies a damage over time effect.

This is the standard Fire Staff build if you are not wanting to use Flamethrower in PvP.

• Flamethrower — This ability can be freely activated and de-activated, it will last until your mana bar is empty. It provides fantastic damage output, it can critically hit, proc attunment effects, and leaves a stacking DoT. While some players do not think this is a serious ability, it is certainly a consistent option that will result in fantastic damage when used properly and can be better than something like Pillar of Fire

If you feel comfortable with positioning and knowing when to use Flamethrower, this is the standard PvP option.

This build can be used if you have a healer in your group, or are simply looking for pure damage output and do not want to have to deal with the awkwardness of Burnout.

Ice Storm — This activates a large AoE damage ability that has high overall damage ouput but also results in large amounts of crowd control (CC) through its slowing effect. This should be used to clear trash packs and AoE situations between boss fights. It is generally not needed in a single target situtation.

Ice Pylon — Pylon synergizes very well with Flamethrower. You simply put it down, and due to its passives it will extend its own duration. This will be free damage that can critically strike that you have to do nothing for. When combined with Pylon Burst it will result in great amounts of single target and AoE output.

Entombed — Use this defensively when you are surrounded, or it can be used for quick mana regeneration.

In PvE combat you will want to lower you Constitution as low as you are comfortable with. Since you should have defensive perks like specific Ward perks, you will not need a large health pool. As such, it is best to play around 100 Constitution, but you can go up or down depending on your level of comfort.

Slot	Perks	Gem	Weight	Attribute	Source
Fire Staff	Bane Perk* Flame Attunement Keen	Runeglass of Ignited Diamond	-	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Ice Gauntlet	Bane Perk* Pylon Burst Keenly Jagged	Runeglass of Ignited Opal	-	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Helmet	Ward Protection Perk Refreshing Ability Perk** or Any Viable Third Perk	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	Light	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Gloves	Ward Protection Perk Refreshing Ability Perk** or Any Viable Third Perk	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	Light	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Chest	Ward Protection Perk Refreshing Ability Perk** or Any Viable Third Perk	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	Medium	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Pants	Ward Protection Perk Refreshing Ability Perk** or Any Viable Third Perk	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	Light	Intelligence	Named Drop***
Boots	Ward Protection Perk Refreshing Ability Perk** or Any Viable Third Perk	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	Light	Intelligence	Crafted/BoE
Amulet	Health Stamina Recovery or Divine Protection*	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	-	Intelligence or Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Ring	Fire Damage Keen Awareness Refreshing	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	-	Intelligence or Constitution	Crafted/BoE
Earring	Refreshing Toast Purifying Toast Refreshing	Elemental Damage Reduction Gem (Mutator Specific)	-	Intelligence or Constitution	Crafted/BoE

*: The type of Bane and Ward that you slot into your gear will be dependent on the expedition you are in and the type of enemy that you are facing. For example, if you are fighting Angry Earth enemies in Genesis you will want Angry Earth Bane and Angry Earth Ward. Your amulet protection perk will be similar. Depending on the elemental type of the Mutator you are in, you can wear an elemental protection amulet for more defensiveness instead of completely switching your gems.

**: The ability perks you need to make sure are in your build are Empowering Fireball, Unending Thaw, and Pylon Burst.

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 Fire Staff Perks guide or Ice Gauntlet Perks 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 the best PvE damage reduction it will be best to only use Cut Pristine Opal and Runeglass variants due to the elemental damage in Mutated Expeditions.

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

Using Flamethrower in PvE will charge your Heartrune very quickly. For the most damage output you should use Brutal Heartrune of Detonate.

You could also use Cunning Heartrune of Detonate if you are looking to improve ability damage and Fire Staff output with a weaker detonate.

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

• Use Pillar of Fire on enemies who are full health for more damage, otherwise use this ability first regardless. It will not always be worth to stop your Flamethrower unless you need quick burst or enemies are stacked.
• Use Fireball for burst damage and to leave a fire patch on the ground for damage over time.
• Dodge to snapshot your damage empowerment and use Ice Pylon. This will have increased damage due to the Opal. Try to put this far enough away to make use of Pylon Burst, but not close enough for it to be destroyed easily.
• Drop a Ice Storm on large groups for additional damage. (This will normally be used only in AoE situations.)
• Activate Flamethrower and position yourself behind the target. Continue to aim at the target until your mana bar is empty. Once empty use a Infused Mana Potion or Entombed.
• Use all available cooldowns before going back to Flamethrower
• Use Entombed for survival or damage mitigation.
• Repeat

The one caveat with this build in PvE is that you need to be aware of positioning when using Flamethrower. It functions differently than other magic weapons and will increase damage from behind like a melee weapon. This ability is also incredibly strong in AoE. You can simply keep aiming back and fort from left to right to hit multiple targets and deal great AoE damage. The only other important factor is be sure to have potions available to restore mana, or intermittently dodge for mana return from the Intelligence passive.

When using the Fire Staff or Ice Gauntlet 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 Fire Staff page or Ice Gauntlet page.

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