Tyranny – Character Build Tips – Mage, Tank, Archer, Rogue

Building your character perfectly in Tyranny and other RPGs can be tough. There are a lot of options, and you have to take into account each and every single one. Because of this we’ve put together a short article to help you find some good character builds that will prove worthwhile and helpful during your time in Tyranny. These Tyranny character builds will only apply to your primary character, the Fatebinder, as that is the only character that you can truly determine the build for.

How to Build a Tank

Tanks help make the world go round, and give you plenty of health and power to get in the faces of your enemies and stay there for a while, diverting attention from your allies.

• Primary Expertise: Sword and Shield
• Secondary Expertise: Spear and Shield
• Skills: +8 One-handed Weapons, +5 Parry, +4 Athletics
• Abilities: Shield Slam; Sunder

By using your Primary and Secondary Expertise slots with these two choices, you give your character the ultimate amount of power and health abilities it needs to hold down the enemy’s frontline while your allies attack from safety behind you. By deciding to go with this class of character, you can focus more on the mage and ranged companions in the game, as you’ll be able to absorb most of the damage being dealt towards your party.

How to Build an Assassin/Rogue

Rogues (or Assassins) are characters that specialize in moving quickly and attacking often. For the ideal Rogue class, Dual Wielding is a key part of your character build.

• Primary Expertise: Dual Wielding
• Secondary Expertise: Dual Wielding
• Skills: +8 Dual Wield, +7 Athletics, +5 Parry, +3 Subterfuge
• Abilities: Slice; Flurry of Blows

Choosing for your main character to be a Rogue means you’ll need to rely on tankier companions like Barik or Kills-in-Shadows. This build will allow you to move in quickly, and stay nimble on your feet as you dance around your enemies. Just remember not to stick around too long, though, or you’ll find your health dropping quickly.

How to Build an Archer

Archers are quick on their feet and good at providing damage from afar. They’re also extremely squishy, so try to stay out of your enemy’s attack range as much as possible.

• Primary Expertise: Short Bow
• Secondary Expertise: Short Bow
• Skills: +8 Bows, +7 Subterfuge, +3 Dodge, +3 Athletics
• Abilities: Heart Shot; Hobble

Archers are great at providing additional fire support for your party, but they can be rather squishy. If you plan to use this particular build, we’d highly suggest bringing a tank and support-based companion along with you, just to be safe. If you wish to play through the game without any companions, we’d suggest not using this class at all, as it is rather squishy and can be eliminated easily when several enemies are attacking.

How to Build an Offensive Mage

Magic is a tool for the offensive with this build, and you’ll have plenty of power to throw around at your enemies. You’ll also be very squishy, though, so make sure to bring Barik or Kills-in-Shadows along to soak up enemy attacks.

• Primary Expertise: Shock Spells
• Secondary Expertise: Frost Spells
• Skills: +2 Control Frost, +3 Magic Staff, +10 Lore, +8 Control Lightning, +3 Dodge
• Abilities: Charged Fist; Frozen Grasp

If an offensive-based magic user is what you are looking for, then you won’t find anything better than a mage running Shock and Frost spells. The Frost spells allow you to slow your enemies so your companions can tear them to pieces, while Shock spells allow you to control the amount of times your enemy can attack by interrupting them. This is a volatile combination in battle, and it is extremely useful for those looking to complete the game with a magic user as their primary character. Mages are squishy, though, so be wary of getting into the heat of things in battle.

How to Build a Healer

Deciding on a Support-based primary character is a tough call. You’ll often be at the back of the lines, constantly healing your companions as they fight to clear out your enemies.

• Primary Expertise: Vigor Spells
• Secondary Expertise: Atrophy Spells
• Skills: +2 Control Atrophy, +3 Magic Staff, +10 Lore, +8 Control Vigor, +3 Dodge
• Abilities: Titan’s Touch; Touch of Atrophy

While you could focus on Vigor spells for both your Primary and Secondary Expertise, pairing Vigor and Atrophy together actually gives you far greater benefits. Not only does your Lore increase, but your Vigor control, and Dodge skills also get a nice buff. The two skills together also allow you to not only support your allies, but also drain power and health from your enemies, allowing you to hit both sides of the spectrum with one character.

These are only a few of the character builds possible in Tyranny. Because the game is actually built off of a skill-based system instead of a class-based system, you can rework your stats at any time to focus on additional skills and areas of expertise. You can learn more about abilities with our Character Creation guide, or return to our Tyranny walkthrough for more detailed tips and guides to the world of the Tiers.