In this Code Vein Build Guide we’ll explore just exactly how you make the Queen’s Gambit Build, which is a One-Handed Sword DPS Build that focuses on disabling enemies before finishing them off. How do you get the most from your Weapons, Blood Veils, your Blood Code, and your Gifts? Well that’s exactly what we’re going to cover, and how they all fit together to create the Queen’s Gambit Build.

Code Vein Builds: Queen’s Gambit (Queenslayer)

The Queen’s Gambit Build uses a combination of Light Gifts and the Stun Status Effect to render its victims helpless while they are sliced to death via repeated attacks. Stunning enemies gives a huge window in which to deal massive burst damage, and is extremely effective if done right. Additionally, combining this style of play with the Gift Final Journey gives the player a competitive advantage…if they can kill their prey before their timer runs out…

Queen’s Gambit Blood Codes

There are several good One-Handed Sword Blood Codes in Code Vein, and you won’t begin the game with them all. In this section I’ll discuss which Blood Codes to use while you are working your way to your final destination: Queenslayer. First up is the most obvious one: Ranger.

Ranger

Rangers have B+ Scaling in Dexterity and D+ in Mind making them a good choice early on. You won’t have too many buffs at the beginning of the game, so it’s best to focus on Dexterity and Mobility here. Upgrade this to Prometheus as soon as you can.

Prometheus

Once you have access to Prometheus you’ll see an increase in just about all your Scaling, and your Ichor will increase to 20, which will help with buffing. Mind Scaling isn’t ideal here, because Mind will affect nearly every buff you use, but it will hold you over until you can use Queenslayer. Additionally, it features several Gifts you’ll want, so this will give you a chance to become familiar with them and Master them.

Queenslayer

Queenslayer is the recommended Blood Code for this Build. Queenslayer has a Gift that cannot be used with any other Blood Code, and it’s perhaps the most deadly in the whole game…literally. Final Journey will boost your attacks significantly, but will eventually kill you. It lasts about 3 minutes, giving you plenty of time to kill Bosses, and is the primary reason we use Queenslayer for this Build. The other is Circulating Pulse, which hits 5 times in rapid succession without using Stamina! It’s a great way to apply Stun and conserve Stamina at the same time.

Queen’s Gambit Blood Veils

Blood Veils play a very important role in the effectiveness of Gifts. Your Blood Code and Blood Veil work together to determine how strong your buffs are, with your Weapon having no impact here. When selecting a Blood Veil be sure to look for ones that grant a higher overall Light Gift value, and isn’t too heavy so that you can keep your Mobility Quick.

For end game I strongly suggest using the Noble Silver for increased Light Gift scaling. It doesn’t offer much in the way of protection, but you should be Stunning the enemy and dodging attacks anyway. The best defense is a good offense with this Build, so go hard or go home!

Queen’s Gambit Weapons

For this Build you’re going to want to use a One-Handed Sword of some kind, ideally one that scales well with Dexterity since that is Queenslayer’s strong suit, but you can also use one that scales with Strength as well. I like to use Blazing Claw late game as it hits hard and has fantastic Scaling. However, you can use whichever Sword you wish as long as it’s fast, and you’ve Transformed it into a Stun version.

Adding Stun to the Weapon will allow you to apply the Stun Status Effect faster when combined with Numbing Mark, which can make all the difference in the world. These two things work together to give you a real shot at perma-stunning enemies on the regular, so make sure you have both.

Queen’s Gambit Gifts

Gifts play a vital part of any Build, but even more so in a build that relies heavily upon them, like this one. There are a number of excellent Light Gifts, many of which are defensive, however for this Build, we’ll focus primarily on the offensive ones.

Gifts initially can only be used with the Blood Code that they are part of, but as you use them in combat you will “master” them, and then you can use them with any Blood Code. There are both passive and active Gifts, and I’ll cover which are good in both categories for a Queen’s Gambit Build. You can only have 4 Passive Gifts equipped at one time, and 8 Active. Let’s begin with the recommended Passives first:

Queen’s Gambit Passive Gifts

• Swift Destruction – This passive increases your damage for being Quick and does so by a good amount.
• One-Handed Sword Mastery – This passive will buff your Sword’s damage so slot it and use it.
• Mind/Willpower Up – You’ll need this passive with this setup to gain access to Bridge to Glory, which will nearly double your damage. This passive is an absolute must or you won’t meet the requirements for it.
• Opportunism – This passive will increase your damage against enemies that have a negative Status Effect, which works perfectly here.

Queen’s Gambit Active Gifts

• Bridge to Glory – One of the best buffs in the whole game, this Gift will increase your damage by a huge amount and should always be used.
• Blood Sacrifice – You’ll need this to stack buffs because this is a very Ichor hungry Build. Use it when necessary to gain more Ichor.
• Circulating Pulse – This 5 hit combo requires no Stamina and helps to inflict Stun quickly.
• Phantom Assault – This Gift is a great way to open vs. enemies, getting the drop on them so that you can Stun them before they can hit you.
• Stun Shot – A great way to pull a single enemy and prep them for Stun.
• Numbing Mark – A must for this Build, it will apply even more Stun than your Weapon, so you need to use it with regularity.
• Gift Extension – This Gift will increase the duration of any Gift cast while it is active by 50%! That is nothing to sneeze at and adds 90 seconds to Final Glory, for a total of 4.5 minutes.
• Final Journey – The most effective buff in the game, you will notice insane returns from this Gift. It comes with the downside of killing you in 3 minutes, but we extend it to 4.5 with Gift Extension. Learn to use it outside Boss fights when you know where you’re going.

Queen’s Gambit Code Vein Build – Final Tips

This Build is surprisingly efficient when it comes to Ichor. Between Blood Sacrifice and the repeated strikes you do, you should have no problem having enough Ichor for all your buffs and your Skill Gifts. However, if you find you just don’t have enough, consider adding the Weapon Drain Rating Up passive.

We do not use Debuff Build-Up though you would think it would be best for this type of Build. It’s because it only adds a 20% increase in Build Up, and all said in done, you’ll find it isn’t as much as you’d think. With this setup you’ll see your Stun rating go from 40-48. Damage will suffer using this and isn’t usually needed, but you can always swap it in if you find you need just a bit more Stun build up.

You’ll need to master a ton of Gifts to use this Build, so start doing this as you make your way to Queenslayer. Either use items to bypass the XP needed or use them and get there quickly, but spend some time to get them either way. This Build is much more effective with all its parts, and you may struggle otherwise.

Lastly, learn when it’s best to use Final Journey. It’s not only for Boss Fights anymore with this setup. If you’re playing NG+ or planning to go somewhere in a hurry, this buff can speed things up dramatically. Get comfortable with it, and use it often. It’s not as scary as you’d think!

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Stay tuned for more Code Vein Build Guides and be sure to check out our Getting Started Guide if you have basic questions or confusions about the game! We also have a Code Vein Scaling Guide that explains how it works.

Visit the Code Vein Wiki, check out our Code Vein Review, or read the Dark Mage Pure Caster Build, Silver Spellblade Build or  “Immortal Blade” Tank Build for Code Vein.