I will preface this by saying I’m not the greatest at PVP nor is it in any way balanced. This guide will go over general builds that I’m using for all roles, as well as some tips and tricks.
AR DPS:
AR is by far the best DPS weapon to use in PVP as you longest range of all weapons, access to the longest range stun and the best healing passive in the game.
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%6891135%-%7356474%-%6891169%-%5848142%-%6891133%-%9271872%-%PS%-%9261074%-%9261058%-%9261067%-%9261056%-%9261062%
Potential Adjustments - Replace Evulsion for Lock and Load to deal more damage or swap in Multidimensional Thread passive to take less damage
Chaos Tank:
Chaos is in my opinion the best weapon to tank PVP with as it allows you to do your job - being the most annoying pest in the match - in the easiest manner. You have access to a galaxy wide AoE that can knockdown 3 times in a short time span as well as a 15 meter range AoE pull that can hit up to 9 people
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%7356448%-%7356470%-%9271872%-%7356594%-%7356426%-%7356474%-%PS%-%9271884%-%9271882%-%9271889%-%9271887%-%9256919%
Potential Adjustments - this build assumes you’re using Dark Mysteries weapon, and get Long Term Chaos, Out of Phase and X Factor Passives for free. If you’re not replace Multidimensional Threads, Probability Protection and Bullheaded with them.
Shotgun Tank:
Shotgun gives you more survivability than Chaos at the cost of being somewhat worse at ccing enemies. You also get somewhat more damage because you can run a single target basic and have greater range.
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%7360713%-%9255472%-%9271872%-%5847944%-%5847975%-%7356474%-%PS%-%9271884%-%9256319%-%9256326%-%9271891%-%9256330%
Potential Adjustments - Anomaly Elite instead of Kneecapper, not a lot of reason to do that as Anomaly is substantially worse without Twist Fate synergy and you might as well run chaos mainhand if you want to use it. If you’re using Dark Mysteries and / or Thundering Demise shotgun you will have 1 or 2 free passive slots, Multidimensional Threads and Reinforce Rockets are passives to use.
Hammer Tank:
Hammer tank is the worst weapon to tank PVP with because Equal Footing Buff makes Hammer mitigation abilities like Raging Volcano and Blazing Fury grant you a whopping 1 extra HP, as well as Raging Volcano cc being the worst option of them all. You will still get substantially more healing from a healer or gadget with all the hammer buffs though.
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%6940350%-%5848008%-%9256520%-%6940355%-%6940340%-%7356474%-%PS%-%9256910%-%9256915%-%9256923%-%9271891%-%9271884%
Potential Adjustments - Raging Volcano instead of Unstoppable Force, use it if you like being cced out of it immediately and getting almost no effect. You could also use Anomaly but then you might as well just have Chaos Mainhand
Blood Heal:
This Build is using Chaos offhand for extra survivability with Aegis Passive as well as Invoke Self cooldown. I think Blood is practically the best choice to heal in PVP because of extra survivability provided to your entire team by Expunge Blight, as well as Blood basic heal being much stronger. Blood will generally outperform fist if your team is decent and only several people take damage.
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%7356470%-%7359161%-%7359070%-%7359153%-%5848444%-%9271872%-%PS%-%9284014%-%9284017%-%9284001%-%9284012%-%9284008%
Potential Adjustments - Replace Twist Fate with anything you want. Rupture or Evulsion is a good option to CC enemies.
Fist Heal:
Fist is a great option to heal PVP as it has a more efficient group heal so it will do better if your team takes more damage but less spike damage. You also have acces to a great AoE heal, cleanse and Area denial in Wild Surge. Fist will outperform blood if a lot of healing is required on all team members at once.
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%7355938%-%9267183%-%7355924%-%7355991%-%5848031%-%9271872%-%PS%-%9286708%-%9286718%-%9286717%-%9286709%-%9286710%
Potential Adjustments - Twist Fate or Evulsion instead of Wild Surge. Replacing Overgrowth or Potent Wrath with Second Wind passive.
Blood Fist Heal:
This build sacrifices a lot of survivability and you won’t be able to tank damage for your team as effectively but if you want absolutely maximum possible healing then this build combines best of both worlds with high basic output of blood and a better group heal and healing elite from fist.
Import Via Boobuilds
BD%-%VER%-%1.0%-%SK%-%7355924%-%7359161%-%7359070%-%7355991%-%5848444%-%9267183%-%PS%-%9286710%-%9284017%-%9284001%-%9284012%-%9284008%
Weapon Affix Options:
Alacrity - possibly the best affix for pvp, up to 22% movements speed makes running away or chasing people much easier
Havoc - large numbers go bigger. Unlike destruction it’s not affected by Equal Footing Buff, so it still applies full effect.
Destruction - more free damage
Recovery - good for tanking to amplify healing for more survivability. Due to increased HP pool strongly outclasses Restoration
Efficiency - helps you reset elite to pester people more often if you’re tanking but I’d still prefer Recovery for tanking
Everything else - meh
Weapon Choices:
These are in descending order of preference and assume appropriate roles (don’t dps with Sanguinary Monograph or Torturer’s Instrument)
AR - 3rd Age Equalizer / High-Yield Launcher / Anima Touched
Chaos - Focus of The Unwritten Talisman / Dark Mysteries
Shotgun - Bolstering Blaster / Thundering Demise
Blood - Sanguinary Monograph / Lost Tome of Lies / Compendium of Wards
Fist - Bladed Gauntlets / Fisting Chains / Surgical Steel
Notes on Weapon Choices:
For Chaos, Talisman Focus is by far the best choice to do your job of being a massive pain in the ass. It’s clear that nobody balanced the passive for PVP because if you can wedge yourself between 2-3 enemies and they are stupid enough to let you hit them you can pull the entire enemy team to you every 3 seconds. It does come at a cost in survivability compared to Dark Mysteries but they can’t hit you while they’re prone anyway. Dark Mysteries is still a great option.
Sanity’s Aphelion is the best option for offhand chaos but if you run it you will need to find a place for Long Term Chaos passive in the build as it substantially boosts your double’s health pool in addition to giving you more damage reduction on aegis passive.
For Shotgun, Bolstering Blaster is the best option with shotgun elite with Efficiency being the best for CC to reset it faster and Recovery being better for survivability. Thundering demise is still a great option for one bonus passive. Multidimensional Threads is a good choice
For Blood Monograph is way ahead of competition as always and Tome and Compendium are pretty even. Other books are garbage
For Fist in PvP, Fisting Chains passive is probably the weakest it can be because you always use every cast of IW abilities so you don’t get that much frenzy back from the refund, so I’d rank Bladed Gauntlets above it. Surgical steel is always a good option too.
Gadget Choices
In descending order of usefulness
Effigy O33 Reconstructor - in my opinion the most useful gadget in PVP for all roles, because increased HP pool makes it flat % scaling even more powerful
Concentrated Anima Jet - Less healing but quicker
Ultrasonic Anti-Personnel Air Cannon - A Spartan’s Choice
Mistress’s Bashosen - Melee knockdown on several targets is much less useful than launching one person 15 meters away.
Fey Line Stone - Extra 15 meter dash
Superluminal Bridging Devices - You think you’re chasing me? I’m chasing you
Shambala Arena and Pickups
Pickups:
Most of them are largely irrelevant, the only important ones are the Leech Heal effect that looks like a little bomb with a heal sign in it and CC immunity that’s a cage. Group wide buffs in the center usually spawn too late to be relevant.
Wind Direction:
This is very important because the Actual wind direction, the wind decal you see and safe zone behind cover are all out of sync with each other. It’s not to a great extent but it’s noticeable enough to be annoying, especially if you add the game being confused about where your character is, and the ±1 meters positioning precision.
You just have to remember that safe zones are offset to the side and that 4 sided big pillars only have 1 out of 4 sides safe, the one opposite to the wind.
Whom do I shoot?
The Tank - No
The DPS - Yes
The Healer - Yes
Obviously it would be too much work to make people wear their faction uniform roles by assigning them to the buffs so that it would be easy to tell what role someone is doing, and it would make way too much sense so Funcome didn’t do it. You just have to look for the animation of healing and apply advanced reasoning to figure out that a person that’s charging you in 1 v 5 is probably a tank. Or an idiot. Or both.