Divinity: Original Sin 2 is in full swing, and one of the major issues players are having with the game is Builds. What Build do I use? What’s a good Build for a Warrior? Ranger? Mage? etc. Since the game is rather difficult this has come much more into focus than one would expect. In this Build Guide were going to cover the Lone Wolf Build: Assassin. Let’s jump into this Build and see just how it works.

Assassin – Rogue/Ranger Build

The Assassin is a hybrid Rogue & Ranger Build that uses Daggers and Bows to deal massive damage to its enemies. Assassins can pull this off because Finesse is used to determine the damage of both of these weapon types. By putting points into Warfare, we increase all Physical Damage this Build does from any source, further allowing this Build to be possible. Although it costs AP to swap Weapons, you will hardly notice it in Lone Wolf and we can take advantage of Chameleon Cloak’s 2 turns to swap Weapons without losing any AP.

Assassin Attributes and Equipment

As mentioned above Assassins focus on Finesse in order to increase damage with Bows and Daggers. You’ll want to pump this as high as you can, only placing points into Memory or Wits as necessary (which shouldn’t be much) in Act 1. Wits can still be useful to this Build because you won’t only be using Daggers, so once you’ve hit Act 2 consider dropping a few points into Wits to help bump your Critical Chance a bit. Ideally you’ll want to be capped on Finesse or near capped when doing this, but because you have a high Critical Multiplier from Scoundrel you’ll want to take advantage of it when not Backstabbing too.

Assassins can utilize any type of Armour which means they will have a good balance of Physical and Magical, which works well for this Build. Because Assassins are capable of fighting at range or close combat, this will give them some flexibility to decide how to engage based on the enemies they are facing. Assassins should look for Armour with bonuses to Warfare, Finesse, Scoundrel, Wits and Critical Chance, in that order. Huntsman is also not that bad if you can get it without sacrificing anything mentioned before. Slot Masterwork Runes of Power into your Armour and Fire Rune of Power into your Necklace.

As far as Weapons go, Assassins will need two decent Daggers and a good Bow. You’ll want to look for similar bonuses on these Weapons as you did with the Armour. There are a couple good pairs of Daggers you can get early on. Kniles the Flenser drops the Unique Daggers: Chastity and Abstinence in Fort Joy Prison. If you defeat Dorotya, the Decadent One in the Undertavern of Driftwood you will get Terrorbite and Venombite, which are also very good. These will help get you going until there is a better selection of gear to choose from. Because there is no Rune that gives Finesse and Physical Damage you’ll want to slot Mystical Masterwork Runes into them if you can, which will give you Wits instead.

Assassin Abilities and Talents

One of the hardest parts about making a Build in Divinity: Original Sin 2 is getting your Abilities distribution correct. It’s easy to get spread too thin, and often people make the mistake of not spreading points around enough. The bonuses you gain from Abilities in this game are somewhat different than the original, so it’s easy to see why people can get confused. Let’s take a look at what Abilities and Talents you need for a Assassin.

Assassins deal damage with two different Weapon types so focusing on the common denominator, Physical Damage, is key. This is achieved by maxing out Warfare and then placing points into Scoundrel to capitalize on high Critical Multiplier. This also works really well with Backstabs which you can perform with Daggers, as they always Crit. In Act 1 Assassins will need to get 2 points in both Huntsman and Scoundrel and then start dropping points into Warfare. In Act 2 these should be taken up to 3 each and then Warfare maxed. Once Warfare is maxed then all additional points should be placed into Scoundrel.

As far as Talents go I’d recommend the following:

Lone Wolf – You can’t be a Lone Wolf Build without taking this Talent, so here it is. You don’t have to play this Build Lone Wolf, but I think it works rather well.

Executioner – This Talent is flat out amazing in Lone Wolf and should give you extra AP nearly every round. Get this one as soon as you can.

Hothead – Although extra Critical Chance doesn’t come in handy when you’re Backstabbing, this Talent helps when you’re not, which will be about half the time or more. This works great because it applies to both Bow and Daggers.

Opportunist – This will allow you to deal more damage when in melee combat. You won’t need it as much later in the game, but it’s really good early game.

Far Out Man – Can help with Bow attack range along with Throwing Knife. You might get more use out of this late game, so consider swapping Opportunist for this sometime in Act 2.

Assassin Skills

Now that you’ve decided which Talents and Abilities you want, you’ll need to identify just which Skills work best with this kind of setup. Assassins will use a mix of Huntsman and Scoundrel Skills to deal damage. Since Builds evolve over the course of the game, I’m going to put the Skills in order from earliest obtainable to latest, because you won’t be able to get them all right way.

Huntsman Skills

First Aid – Just an all around great skill for removing Status Effects and healing a solid amount. Also only costs 1 AP which is super nice. Has a short range, so get up high to help improve that if you need to use it on a teammate.

Tactical Retreat – This skill has so many uses with this Build. Use it to get up high to get increased damage with Bow attacks, or to jump into the fray when you are ready to melee. Also grants Haste, which rocks.

Ballistic Shot – This is extremely powerful because it adds 5% damage for every meter you are from your target. This skill is a great way to take down a target in a single Bow shot from up high. Probably the best all around Bow skill there is.

Sky Shot – Not as good as Ballistic Shot, but still pretty good. Can give you a height advantage when you don’t have one. Since Huntsman doesn’t have a ton of Skills, this is another one that’s just good to keep on your bar because you may need it.

Marksman’s Fang – This skill works tremendously with this Build because you can drop an enemy to half health and then jump in with Daggers and hit with Sawtooth Knife to finish them off without ever needing to touch their Armour.

Assassinate – What kind of Assassin would you be without this skill? You can use from Stealth to increase it’s damage by 50%. You won’t need it often but you will use it. Keep it for those times when you do.

Scoundrel Skills

Adrenaline – Gives you AP at the cost of AP next round. I like to use this at the end of a turn where I use Chameleon Cloak because I swap Weapons while Stealthed and then pass, so this ensures that you won’t lose AP during that turn.

Backlash – A great gap closer that guarantees a Backstab Critical, albeit with a 15% damage reduction vs a basic attack. This should be used on turn 2 or 3 after you’ve unloaded with your bow, jumped in and already killed one target in melee.

Throwing Knife – A decent ranged skill for this Build (85% damage vs basic attack). This should be used if you can hit an enemy in range it you’ve already swapped to Daggers. If not swap to Bow and finish off the target.

Corrupted Blade – A  115% damaging skill with 2 negative Status Effects, both of which are resisted by Physical Armour. Hard to find many Skills this good with no downside.

Sawtooth Knife – This attack pierces Armour and is a great way to finish off a target hit with Marksman’s Fang. Try to take down warriors or tanky characters with this combo.

Cloak and Dagger – This skill works great turn 1 or 2 after you’ve Chameleon Cloaked to get in position for turn 2 or 3 so as to waste no AP. Hit with a Backstab or Mortal Blow immediately after on the following turn.

Mortal Blow – The best finisher in the game. Does 140% damage and double that if you are Sneaking or Stealthed, which you will be when you use it. Use turn 2 or 3 to wipe out the most dangerous target on the field.

Miscellaneous Skills

Chameleon Cloak – Use this skill at the end of your first or second turn to hide from enemies. Try to use Adrenaline just before and then the following turn swap to your Daggers and Cloak and Dagger into position, then pass. This will leave you with full AP (8) for turn 3 or 4 without needing to move.

Final Tips

When playing an Assassin I advise starting battles with your Bow as enemies usually begin a good distance from you. Use Tactical Retreat if you can get up high to deal extra damage and have extra range during this turn. Try to kill your first target quickly and get 2 extra AP from Executioner. Hopefully this will give you enough AP to kill another target, but if not hit Adrenaline and finish it off and then use Chameleon Cloak.  Turn 2 if you used Adrenaline you’ll be short 2 AP so I recommend swapping Weapons to Daggers and then using Cloak and Dagger to get into position if you can. This will give you 8 AP on the start of turn 3 and you won’t need to move.

Mortal Blow is your big finisher and can be used to kill even the hardest targets in the game. You should be able to get the double damage from Stealth easily using Chameleon Cloak so if you know you’re going to use this skill, be sure to use it after you’ve cloaked. If you don’t think you can kill your target with one Mortal Blow, try to soften them up with your Bow first.

You can play this Build in a party using the Glass Cannon Talent, but you will need to ensure that you have the highest Initiative on your team if you do this. This will ensure that you always go first (combat order alternates between your highest initiative player and the enemy’s highest) and can get off your attacks, and then Stealth, before you get CCed. I also suggest if you do this that you take the What a Rush Talent and keep your Health just under 50% to keep this active at all times. This will ensure you have 7 AP every turn to spend, just make sure that you don’t have any points in Necromancer, and make sure someone can remove Status Effects from you if needed.

As mentioned above, Marksman’s Fang and Sawtooth Knife can be an extremely deadly combo if used together on a single target. Keep this in mind when choosing what to do with your Bow attacks on turn 1 or 2. It might be a good idea to leave the target you hit with Marksman’s Fang alive, if you’ve already gotten an Executioner bonus, so that you can easily finish them the next turn with Sawtooth Knife. Note that Warfare also increases Piercing Damage.

Lastly, you can swap from Daggers back to Bow for only 1 AP, which is great for picking off stragglers after you have jumped in and “assassinated” the main group. Often on turn 4 I can’t reach a mage or archer without moving, so I just swap to Bow and Ballistic or Sky Shot them and that’s that. The fact you can just do that at will makes this Build one of the most fun I have ever played. I highly recommend it!

Be sure to check out our other Build Guides! Good luck Sourcerers, Rivellon is counting on you!