The best early build in Greedfall 2: The Dying World

Greedfall II: The Dying World offers players several different options at the beginning of the game, allowing you to customize your character and playstyle however you like. With nine pre-made starters and the ability to completely customize your own if none are right for you, it can be difficult to decide what to choose right from the start.

Greedfall 2: The Dying World has six different skill trees, with each of the pre-made loadouts using two of them. This guide will break down what each skill tree offers, which skill trees your starting companions have access to, and offer suggestions on which skill trees will provide the best early game experience for new players.

Six skill trees

The six skill trees available in Early Access can be divided into two categories: Paths and Weapons. Path skill trees are not tied to a specific weapon group and specialize in a general playstyle, such as tanking, dealing damage, or healing and support. Each Path's Skill Tree starts with a Stance Skill that can be switched to benefit that Path's playstyle in exchange for penalties in other areas. Weapon skill trees are tied to a specific weapon category, such as small arms, bows, or bracelets. They offer access to special skills when wielding the corresponding weapon, making those weapons more effective.

The six skill trees available in the current Early Access build are:

• Paths of Destruction (Damage Oriented)
• Defense Paths (tanking oriented)
• Paths of Charity (focused on healing and polishing)
• Teer Fradeean Bracelets (Magical Gloves with Healing and Damage Skills)
• Military weapon (Small arms with stun effect and AOE attacks)
• Bows (bows with a combination of damaging attacks and debuff skills)

Paths of destruction

Paths of Destruction, while serving as a damage-focused Path, gives you abilities that allow you to deal more damage to the enemy, sometimes to the point of lowering your defense stats to do so.

Ways of protection

As a defense and tanking focused Path, Paths of Protection gives you abilities that allow you to attract aggro and strengthen your defensive abilities. Your offensive stats will sometimes suffer in exchange.

Roads of charity

A path focused on healing and buffing, Paths of Charity offers abilities that help the user heal and buff their allies. However, sometimes this happens at the expense of increased damage taken.

Military weapons

Weapons of War, one of the broader weapon skill trees, provides skills and effects related to one- or two-handed maces and axes. These weapons (collectively referred to in the game as “Shock Weapons”) tend to specialize in knocking enemies back, knocking them over, and generally interrupting the enemy's actions.

Teer Fradeean Bracelets

The Teer Fradeean Bracelets are the only sorcery weapons available in the current Early Access build that offer a combination of offensive and defensive spells to help them aid the party.

Bows

As the only ranged weapon to have a skill tree in the current Early Access build, bows provide a mix of damage and debuff skills.

The best early build of the game

Given the skills we've talked about, let's put together a build that complements the two party members we get at the start of the game and remains useful throughout the game. Our first two party members are Nilan and Sheda. Nilan is an archer who uses the Path of Benevolence skill tree, and his unique skill tree allows him to cast multiple healing spells despite having a bow. Sheda, on the other hand, wields melee weapons and utilizes the Paths of Defense skill tree, focusing on protecting Nilan and the main character by attracting the attention of enemies and parrying their attacks.

With that in mind, there are a few strategies we could use. For the purposes of this early game build guide, we'll be recommending a Paths of Destruction character using the Tyr Fradius Bracelets as a weapon, providing this group with a powerful damage-focused caster. (If you want to use a ready-made class that fits this niche, choose Spell Caster.)

Attributes

The most important attribute of this build is Will, followed by Focus and Perception. If you need some extra security in case an enemy gets past Sheda to attack you, it might be worth trading a point or two of Concentration or Perception for a couple of extra Stamina points (although the build we've presented assumes you'll be holding Sheda between you and the enemy if possible.)

Willpower affects the damage dealt by the bracelets that will be your weapon in this build. Perception increases critical strike rate, while Focus is a stat used by light and medium armor, and also reduces the cooldown of skills. It also increases your maximum action points, which is important for reliably casting your damaging spells and providing emergency healing. Endurance gives you a boost to max health, but ideally you'll be behind your tanking teammates, and strength increases critical damage, so it's worth investing a little money into it.

Skills

We'll be picking the Destroyer's Stance skill from the Paths of Destruction skill tree to increase our damage output, then we'll be adding Bracelet Mastery and Bramble's Shackles from the Terra Fradia Bracelets skill tree to give us access to some powerful offensive skills and a way to prevent enemies from getting to us.

Make sure Shada unlocks the Taunt once she reaches level 2 to help take the pressure off you and Nilan in combat.

Combat strategy

In combat, you'll want to trap enemies with Bramble Shackles so they can't get close to you, while Shadda deals aggro and Neelan deals extra damage and heals. If enemies are trapped, you can use Toxic Bloom to keep damaging them over time, and use Breath of Life to help Neelan and Shade stay healthy when needed. After leveling up, you can grab a boost from the Paths of War skill tree to apply a Mighty buff and boost damage, or a Devastating Throw to throw vials and deal more negative status effects.