Creating strong and competent New World builds is an essential part of being successful in the game. However, with the world’s complex and open system, it can be overwhelming to know what to focus on. That’s why we’re here: to provide you with a list of the best New World builds to try out. See which one best suits your playstyle and goals in this guide for new players.
What Is New World?
New World is an open-world massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) with real-time combat created by Amazon Games. It was released just recently on September 28, 2021, and uses a purchase-to-play business model, unlike most other MMORPGs.
Apart from its unconventional business model, New World functions like most other MMORPGs in many other aspects. For example, it’s set in a fantasy world that’s full of both magic and threats to your life. As a result, you’ll need to survive by doing whatever you can in the game. This includes fighting the monsters you encounter, gaining strength, gathering resources, and even choosing a faction to belong to.
With that said, New World sounds pretty much like a regular MMORPG. However, you might ask: are New World builds the same as those in other games? The answer is yes and no. That’s because, unlike other games, you don’t have to choose from multiple New World classes. Hence, there’s no need to ask what the best class in New World is because there are none.
Instead, what you can focus on is creating the best New World builds for your playstyle and goals. This entails focusing on your Weapon Type and trying to not let things fall apart after new game patches. Unfortunately, New World still gets tons of patches and fixes that might affect your build’s stability and effectiveness.
Class-Based New World Builds
While your character isn’t locked into any class, you can still create New World builds with class-specific functions. Hence, you don’t have to drop your favorite build type from other MMOs, and you can simply replicate them within the game.
That said, what can you create in terms of class-based builds in New World? Which classes exist and which do not? Let’s check out all the builds you can create within the game.
Healer / Support
If you’re focused on creating New World meta builds, then we highly recommend crafting a healer or support-based build. To do this, you’ll need to use the Life Staff as the main weapon. This helps you heal both yourself and other members of your party.
The Life Staff has two Mastery paths: Protector or Healing. The former primarily focuses on protection from damage while the latter focuses on healing in the aftermath. Regardless of which you choose, however, both of them should prove useful as you play the game.
Apart from this, you should get the Void Gauntlet as your secondary weapon. It’s a great complement to the Life Staff because it can let you heal your character as well as friendlies. Of course, the latter application depends on the context you’re in.
Moreover, the Void Gauntlet is great for providing you with offensive capabilities to complement Healer builds. Whether you engage in close or ranged combat, you’ll be able to deal Void damage using the Gauntlet. Hence, you can also act as a DPS or Mage to support your team as well.
Lastly, the key attribute to focus on for a healer build is certainly Focus. This helps you develop a better master over the Life Staff and also lets you use the Gauntlet more effectively. On the other hand, you should also give points to Intelligence just to wield your weapons a bit better.
If you get a point surplus, we also recommend ramping up your Constitution. This lets you heal before healing others in the game and wards off your death. Of course, you might think it’s a bit selfish to use attribute points for this. However, just remember you should stay alive; otherwise, it’s utter doom for your party without a healer.
DPS
What is the best DPS build in New World? By far, the best primary weapon to use for DPS New World builds is certainly the Musket or the Rapier. Sure, neither of these might be the best weapon in the game. However, if you use them well, they can prove to be incredibly powerful when used in a strong party. Just make sure to employ the Sharpshooter Mastery for the Musket or the Blood Mastery for the Rapier.
In addition, we also recommend using the Fire Staff as a secondary weapon. Apart from its high damage capabilities, it’s also incredibly useful for crowd controlling the enemies. It’s a great go-to weapon to bail you out whenever things aren’t looking so hot for your party.
Lastly, we recommend DPS New World builds focus on Dexterity and Intelligence for their attributes. Of course, adding points to the Constitution attribute would make sense as well. However, if you have a good healer or tank, they should be able to cover you on that front.
Tank
New World players who want to create Tank builds should focus on using the Sword and Shield weapon set. It’s particularly versatile because of how you can use it for both personal defense and tanking attacks. Moreover, it’s also a decent choice for crowd control during tough times.
As a secondary item, we recommend almost any other two-handed weapon for the tank. Of course, we highly recommend the Great Axe or War Hammer for this job. They deal excellent amounts of damage even though they can be a bit slow. However, you can also opt to use the Spear for better speed while keeping a handy knock-back attack on hand.
Lastly, the best attributes are Strength and Constitution for New World builds focused on being a Tank. These are incredibly important if you want to make your offensive moves impactful. They’re also great for tanking damage to protect your party’s healer and defend your mages and DPS characters.
Mage
Unfortunately, there are not as many resources to create tons of versatile Mage New World builds in the game. That’s because it provides more non-magical weapons compared to magical ones. Nonetheless, there’s enough in the game to help you create a decent build if the Mage is your go-to class.
With that said, we recommend the Fire Staff above all as your primary weapon. Use this with either Fire Mage or Pyromancer Mastery to get the best results. Regardless, the Fire Staff should enable you to attack and knock enemies back enough to help your team. Moreover, using the Ice Gauntlet as your secondary weapon should bolster your effectiveness and replenish your Mana. Likewise, this also comes with two potential Masteries which are Ice Tempest or Builder.
Lastly, Mage New World builds should focus a lot on beefing up their Intelligence attribute. Of course, allocating points to your Constitution attribute should complement this nicely to give you both defensive and offensive capabilities.
Solo
Does the best New World solo build even exist for players when it’s an MMORPG? Of course, the game developers built the world and its challenges around teamwork and group effort. However, that doesn’t mean progressing alone is completely off the table. You can still create solo New World builds for yourself for times when you just want to fly solo. With that said, what weapons and attributes do you need to be able to progress alone?
Firstly, we highly recommend using the Hatchet with the Berserker Mastery as the main weapon. It’s both incredibly overpowered and flexible. Moreover, it’s also quick and light, being a one-handed melee weapon. What’s more, if you build the Berserker Skill Tree then you may even be able to heal yourself later on. Of course, this will require an active rage buff for it to work.
Secondly, we recommend using the Life Staff as a second weapon. It’s great for self-healing especially with the Healing Mastery built up. However, you can also opt for the Protector Mastery if you desire its benefits more, although it’s not as helpful.
Lastly, you can buff up your Strength and Constitution attributes to get you through the game. The Constitution attribute will be a great help to buy you time to heal yourself when you’re overwhelmed. On the other hand, Strength is great for dealing damage which is important for solo gamers.
3 Best PVE New World Builds
What are the best builds for New World? We’ve seen how you can create class-based New World builds in the game. However, there are two things you’ll have to be ready to face within the game regardless of “class.” That is the Player Vs. Environment (PVE) and Player Vs. Player (PVP) battles. Let’s tackle the former first.
Build 1: Melee + Ranged Pairing
There isn’t truly a “bad combination” when it comes to New World PVE builds. However, one weapon pairing we highly recommend is the melee + ranged weapon pairing. The (primary) melee weapon of choice we’re talking about is either the Spear or Great Axe.
With the Spear, you can clear up some room and help yourself breathe as you battle against enemies. It also has decent attack power and is enough to get you through the challenge. However, it shines the most in this build because of the ranged weapon pairing that helps you clear more enemies. Alternatively, you can also use the Great Axe if you want a safer defensive choice.
Secondly, we recommend using ranged weapons, like the Musket or Bow, as your secondary weapon. That’s because PVE is a great time to hone your ranged skills (like aiming and timing). It’s the best opportunity to train, whether you’re hunting animals or fighting AI opponents. Moreover, it’s great for grinding ranged weapon experience points (XP) if you want to use a ranged weapon for PVP.
Lastly, we recommend focusing on the Strength and Dexterity attributes (in that order) for PVE. That’s because it’s a pretty safe environment compared to other scenarios. Hence, you don’t need to focus on the Constitution attribute as much. Just make sure the attributes you do choose complement your weapons of choice.
Build 2: Hatchet Build
The Hatchet is a great melee weapon for all kinds of uses to deal damage. That’s why we recommend trying it out as your primary weapon if you dislike the previous option. For the secondary weapon, however, things become a little more flexible for the Hatchet build.
That’s because you can either pair it with a ranged weapon (similar to build 1) or the Life Staff. The former will give you similar benefits as the first build. However, the latter will help you heal yourself and possibly avoid more disasters down the road. We highly recommend the Life Staff if you’re going for a Hatchet build. With both DPS and healing, you’ll be able to last through PVE longer.
Build 3: Class Build
If you’re looking for the best PVE New World builds in 2021, then we highly recommend using your class build of choice. This is because New World is, at heart, a multiplayer-based game. Hence, having proper synergy with your party is the most important factor if you want to progress.
That’s why we also recommend practicing with your class build of choice as you go through PVE battles. It’s a great opportunity to practice and experiment with different mechanics. Moreover, if you go with your team, it’s an easy way to see how each player’s styles mesh or clash.
3 Best PVP New World Builds
PVE and PVP battles differ a lot. That’s why we don’t always recommend using the same build for both. So, what are the best New World PVP builds you can use to play effectively? Here are our top recommendations.
Build 1: Sword and Shield + Hatchet
By far, New World’s best build for PVP is the Sword and Shield + Hatchet combination. This sort of meshes the solar, tank, and a bit of the mage builds we included previously. It’s a well-rounded approach that helps you both take and deal damage a decent amount. There’s no specialty to this build, just versatility that should provide you with ample power.
For Sword and Shield, you can choose the skill tree you want to invest in yourself. You can either add more points to defensive or offensive skill trees. Either way, it doesn’t matter as long as you know which one you’re focusing on. The attributes we recommend are Strength and Constitution. Lastly, the secondary weapon we recommend for this build is the Hatchet. It’s great if you want a damage-heavy but lightweight weapon to complement your main sword and shield.
Build 2: Hatchet + Life Staff
One of the best New World builds for PVP is undoubtedly the Life Staff + Hatchet combination. The Hatchet, as always, is great for rapidly dealing immense damage to your enemies. Moreover, focusing on the Berserk skill tree makes you even deadlier as a DPS character. However, it does sacrifice some ranged capabilities, unlike other weapons.
Regardless, pairing the Hatchet with the Life Staff is a great way to help you stay alive throughout the PVP. With it, you can retreat and survive safely without using up too many restoration items. Moreover, it’s great for both team and solo players. Team players simply need to focus on Life Staff’s second skill tree. On the other hand, solo fliers should give more importance to the Healing skill tree.
Build 3: Fire Staff + Ice Gauntlet
Wielding both weapons of extreme temperatures comes with its perks. For one, it just feels cool to master both elements. Kidding aside, however, this mana-based build is great if you want high versatility.
Through the Fire Staff, you can attack and deal plenty of damage to enemies especially when you’re high level. The Ice Gauntlet, on the other hand, is great for larger distances and folks who want a good ranged weapon. Moreover, it’s also great at restoring your mana and complements the whole deal, increasing your damage output.
As for the skills, we recommend focusing on either Incinerate or FireBall for the Fire Staff. On the other hand, the Ice Gauntlet should use either Entombed or Ice Storm, depending on your priorities. The former is great for increasing mana while the latter is useful for warding off enemies.
Difference Between PVP and PVE Builds
PVP and PVE builds are essentially different for one reason: PVE is much safer than PVP. Hence, you can focus on other things during PVE that you otherwise wouldn’t be able to in PVP.
For example, one of the New World MMO builds we recommend for PVE involves a ranged weapon. While you still can use a ranged secondary weapon for PVP, it’s recommended within PVE for practice instead of success. Moreover, because PVE has a less threatening environment, it’s also a great arena to strategize your team’s game plan.
Why Should You Try Out These Builds?
If you search for the best New World builds online, you might find tons of conflicting answers. After all, New World builds are incredibly versatile and don’t lock you into any character class. That said, this high flexibility also creates a bit of confusion. Hence, if you want a bit of guidance, we recommend trying out these builds as a base. Afterward, you can modify these builds to suit your playstyle as you go along.
Of course, these choices are merely recommendations and the decision still rests on your shoulders. You’re free to go off on your own and build one from scratch. Alternatively, you can even use a New World builds calculator to spice things up.
Master the Game with the Best New World Builds
There are tons of New World builds and combinations you can go for. That’s because the game is incredibly versatile and allows for tons of flexibility in that regard. However, this doesn’t mean that every build you create will be effective. Some weapons simply function too similarly and, as a result, aren’t great complements. That’s why it’s important to consult a guide before you commit to any New World builds permanently. Moreover, it’s also crucial to mix things up first and figure out your desired playstyle before you decide.
