New World Sword and Shield Build 2024 - PvE & PvP

In this New World Sword and Shield Build 2024, we’ll be covering the Sword and Shield in both PvE and PvP. You can use the sword on its own if you’d prefer, but keep in mind you won’t be able to access the defender side of the skill tree without the shield, and the Shield can be used offensively. That said, it is still an option if you’re trying to manage your weight. The Sword and Shield scale with both Strength and Dexterity, but they benefit more from Strength. So, if you’re planning to focus on this weapon combo, it’s a good idea to prioritize Strength over Dexterity in your build.

New World Aeternum Sword & Shield Build Information

Scaling Stats: Strength (90%), Dexterity (65%)
Damage Type: Strike, Slash, Thrust
Light Attack Damage: 100%
Light Ender Damage: 105%
Heavy Attack Damage: 120%
Charged Heavy Attack Damage: 160%
Taunt Gem Compatible: Yes
Best Strength Weapon Pairings: Great Axe, War Hammer
Best Dexterity Weapon Pairings: Bow

New World Sword and Shield Build 2024 – Overview and Strategy

First up for this New World Sword and Shield Build 2024; light attacks with the Sword and Shield deal 100% damage, with the final spinning attack hitting for 105%. Heavy attacks do 120% damage, and charged heavy attacks reach 160%. One thing that really sets the Sword and Shield apart for me is their ability to deal multiple types of damage: Strike, Slashing, and Thrust. Regular light attacks are slashing, while heavy and charged attacks are thrusts. Some skills are slashes, some are thrusts, and any shield attack is considered Strike or Blunt damage. This versatility makes the weapon set great for handling a wide variety of enemies.

There are also 3 different types of Shields in New World: Aeternum, and they operate similarly with some slight differences:

Round Shields are the lightest, with the lowest Block Stability but highest damage. Block Stability determines how much Stamina is consumed when you block an attack. Use this Shield type if you plan to maximize your damage with Defender Skills, which is ideal for questing or 1v1 PvP, but not so great for tanking Expeditions or larger scale PvP where you might need to block a lot.

Kite Shields are twice as heavy as Round Shields, have 10% more Block Stability, and deal about 10% less damage. They are a solid middle ground between tankiness and damage, and are best used by those that plan to play a mix of offensively and defensively when playing Sword and Shield.

Tower Shields are twice as heavy as Kite Shields, which is a lot, and have 10% more Block Stability than Kite Shields, but do roughly 10% less damage. They are the ideal choice for would be tanks in larger PvP battles and in Expeditions where they will be absorbing a large number of attacks.

New World Aeternum Sword & Shield Pros:

Balanced Offense and Defense
High Survivability
Great for tank roles
Many different damage types

New World Aeternum Sword & Shield Cons:

Damage output isn’t as high as the other weapons
Few AoE skills

Swordmaster Skill Tree

Starting this New World Sword and Shield Build 2024 with the Swordmaster tree, this one focuses on boosting and dealing sword damage. If you’re using Sword and Shield while questing and want to increase your overall damage, since it’s not naturally high, this is the tree to invest in.

Upheaval

The first ability is Upheaval, which deals 200% weapon damage. You also gain grit when you’re casting this skill which makes it uncancelable. Progressing this line gives it a damage increase when used on on Crowd Controlled targets (great for following up a Shield Bash), and a passive that allows you to get a 25% cooldown reduction on other sword skills when it lands, which is handy. The downside is it has a very limited range with a cooldown of 17s so it’s not really spammable.

Whirling Blade

Next is Whirling Blade, an AoE ability that lets you hit multiple enemies at once two times. It deals slash damage, making it effective against a variety of enemies. Progressing this skill line allows you to get a bonus when you land a hit depending on your armor weight: Light inflicts 15% rend on your enemies reducing their armor, Medium increases your stamina regen for 4s per hit, and Heavy inflicts your target with a 16% weaken. It also reduces the skill’s cooldown by 5% with each successful hit. It’s useful in PvE when pulling groups or even in PvP against small to medium-sized groups and its chance to inflict debuffs depending on your armor weight while being somewhat spammable is very useful.

Leaping Strike

The final ability in this tree is Leaping Strike, which lets you lunge forward to close the gap. However, it doesn’t cover a long distance and has a small hitbox, making it hard to land on moving or retreating enemies. It’s not a highly recommended gap-closer due to its inconsistency. Progressing this skill line allows you to increase the damage dealt and inflict slow on enemies for 3s

The capstone for this tree, Leadership, is excellent—it passively boosts your party’s damage by 10% while holding a sword. For group content like dungeons or PvP, it’s hard to find a better passive that provides this level of support to your team.

Defender Skill Tree

Next in this New World Sword and Shield Build 2024 is the Defender Tree, which helps gain Threat and use your Shield as a weapon.

Shield Bash

Shield Bash is a crowd control ability that deals strike damage while staggering and Stunning enemies (plural), making it effective against undead. It stuns while dealing damage, which is useful in PvP, especially in one-on-one situations. You can stun your opponent, heal quickly, or perhaps use Upheavel for increased damage. However, it has a smaller hitbox than you’d expect, making it a bit tricky to land. In dungeons, if you’re tanking, It’s taunt gem compatible so it’s also a good way to taunt the target, like when you need to draw the boss’s attention again. Progressing this skill line increases the threat generated, as well as giving a bonus based on your shield type: Round shields increase the crit chance of your next hit by 50% for 5s, Kite shields cleanse 1 debuff from you, and Tower shields increase the stun duration by 1s.

Shield Rush

Shield Rush is a mini-charge ability that covers 5m of distance, staggering and pushing back enemies it hits. The animation is long and it grants grit, which prevents you from being staggered while executing the skill. I generally avoid using it because you can often deal more damage with regular attacks. However, in PvP, this can be a good way to initiate a combo by rushing forward and staggering an enemy, leaving them open for attacks. Progressing this skill line lets you inflict 20% weaken and 30% slowed to enemies hit.

Defender’s Resolve

The last ability in this tree is Defender’s Resolve, which serves as a self-buff for 30% incoming base damage reduction. It also gives you 20% stamina damage reduction. It’s also taunt gem compatible so it can serve as an AoE taunt with an 8m radius, essential for tanking in dungeons. Progressing this skill line gives you a bonus depending on your shield type: Round shield increases your base damage by 20%, Kite shields reduce the potency of slows inflicted on you by 30%, and Tower shields grant a base damage reduction of 20%. It also heals you for 30% of your base health after the buff ends.

The capstone for this tree, Defensive Formation, reduces damage to all allies within a 4m radius by 30% while blocking. This is especially useful when you are fulfilling the role of a support tank. Regarding which capstone to choose, it’s all a bit situational. If you feel like your allies can go without a damage buff, or if you’re taking a very difficult expedition, you can go with this one.

New World Sword and Shield Builds 2024

Solo PvE Sword & Shield Build – New World Aeternum

Solo PvP Sword & Shield Build – New World Aeternum

Group PvE Sword & Shield Build – New World Aeternum

Group PvP Sword & Shield Build – New World Aeternum

New World Aeternum Sword and Shield Build – Weapons & Armor

Weapons that pair well with the Sword are the Great Axe, War Hammer, or even the Life Staff in certain situations. The Great Axe is a solid all-around choice for tanking in dungeons. You can switch to your Sword and Shield when you need to tank, then pull out the Great Axe to help with AoE damage and clear adds faster, contributing to your team’s DPS. It’s always helpful when the tank can deal some damage, and this is one way to do that in dungeons.

The War Hammer works similarly, but it focuses more on crowd control (CC). While you may contribute less damage, the Hammer lets you start with a CC attack, allowing your DPS to strike without taking hits. Then you can swap to Sword and Shield to taunt and deal with enemies. The Hammer is also great against undead, making it useful in dungeons and in the open world. You could pull a group of enemies, CC them, and then switch to Sword and Shield to finish them off, or use the Great Axe to mow through the easier ones and deal with tougher foes with your Sword and Shield by blocking and playing defensively.

The reason I mention the Life Staff is that, although it scales with Focus, you can slot a Nature gem into your sword, allowing it to scale with Focus as well. While it won’t hit as hard as a Strength-based Sword and Shield, this setup lets you keep a Life Staff in your back bar to heal yourself between or during combat. This creates a kind of Paladin build. You may hear people refer to this setup when they talk about Paladin builds, as it allows for healing while maintaining a traditional Sword and Shield playstyle.

This build is great for questing, as the Sword and Shield is excellent for taking on groups of enemies, and being able to heal between fights saves you from relying on food, resting, or potions. It’s an efficient way to keep moving without needing help from other players, making your quests go more smoothly.

For Armor, I suggest going with Heavy Armor if you want the added Block Stability bonus of 10%. This will be useful for going on expeditions where you will most likely be filling the tank role. If you’re just going to small scale PvP or solo quest, I suggest using Medium Armor or Light Armor. Medium is a good middle ground between protection and damage, while light will give you the most damage possible but little protection.

New World Aeternum Sword and Shield Build – Final Thoughts

I think the New World: Aeternum Sword and Shield Builds are probably my favorite in the game overall. It’s the weapon you start with at the beginning, and the fact that you can deal all three damage types with this setup is great. Plus, it’s tough to get killed when you have the Sword and Shield equipped, whether you’re in PvE or PvP. The light attacks have wide, horizontal sweeps that easily hit multiple enemies, which is a big advantage in both modes.

That said, it’s probably better suited for PvE than PvP because the damage can feel a bit lacking in PvP. I eventually switched to the Greataxe and Hammer for more damage output. However, in large-scale fights, it’s not always about dealing damage. Sometimes, your role is to draw fire and survive while your teammates handle the heavy damage. So, depending on what you’re aiming to do, the Sword and Shield can still be a great option in PvP.

Keep an eye out for more weapon guides like War Hammer, Greatsword, Flail and Shield and Great Axe, don’t forget to check out the New World Wiki for more info. What weapons are you planning to use at launch? What’s your setup looking like? Feel free to share in the comments!