I’m struggling in PVP despite reaching level 65 a while ago, and I haven’t been able to gear up or obtain artifacts. I expected to perform poorly, but I’m getting demolished. I’m currently using heavy armor and have over 13,000 health with my current allocation, though I had even more before.
Despite my efforts to stay out of the middle of conflicts, I consistently take hits that deal 4,000 damage or more, resulting in very fast deaths during wars and outpost rushes. Additionally, my sword and shield combination doesn’t deal much damage, which I anticipated due to the heavy armor, but I expected to be more durable. Unfortunately, I can’t win 1v1 encounters because I get shredded, and I can’t effectively tank or engage in combat. What should I be doing differently?
If you’re using heavy armor and intend to thrive in group engagements, there are a few recommendations to consider:
1, For armor, aim for at least 675 gear with health-oriented or defensive perks. Try to avoid mixing and matching elemental aversion, physical aversion, and enchanted ward pieces. Consistency in your gear setup is essential, and it depends on your chosen defensive perks. If you can’t meet the attribute requirements, then you need to spend New World Gold to build or buy the right equipment, which is important.
2, Invest in Constitution (Con); a Con score of 350 may not boost your damage output, but it significantly enhances your survivability.
3, Familiarize yourself with abilities that provide additional fortify or mitigation effects. Keep in mind that if you frequently switch weapons, you lose the fortification granted by your previous weapon’s abilities.
4, Team up with a healer to benefit from sustained support during battles.
Consider a gear setup with elemental aversion, conditioning, and health perks. Use three thrust gems and equip two fire gems, along with opal accessories. This setup provides decent health and elemental resistance. Using thrust gems can effectively counter bow and musket users, while the remaining damage is primarily from melee attacks, making conditioning an option if you can’t afford enchanted ward.
Ensure your rings have health attributes and stamina recovery, and incorporate heart rune debuffs and healing effects into your build.
Aim for a stat distribution of 250 Strength and 350 Constitution. If you can maintain high grit through an aggressive playstyle, consider running a grit ward with health perks.