What is the focus of the Greatsword Tank Build in New World Season 10: Nighthaven?

The Greatsword Tank Build focuses on maintaining aggro, applying debuffs, and ensuring survivability with strategic ability rotations in the Isle of Night and Hive of Gorgons Raids.

What mainhand weapon should I use for the Greatsword Tank Build?

Equip a Greatsword with Cut Pristine Carnelian gem, Hatred, Trenchant Strikes, Energizing Counter, and Leeching perks for aggro and damage.

What are the offhand weapon options for this build?

Use Power Stone with Cut Pristine Carnelian gem, Crowded Bludgeon, and Keenly Empowered, or a Shield with Keenly Fortified, Slash Protection, Strike Protection, Gem Slot, and Physical Aversion.

How should I allocate attributes for the Greatsword Tank Build?

Set attributes to Strength 200, Dexterity 5, Intelligence 5, Focus 5, and Constitution 350.

What armor perks and gear should I prioritize?

Prioritize Weapon Perks (Crippling Rupture, Relentless Freedom), Gem Slot with Onyx (x5), Enchanted Ward (x5), Fixed Perks (Lifestealer's Draught, Prolonged Favor x2, Empowering Breaker, Shirking Energy, Shirking Fortification x3), and Elemental Aversion and Physical Aversion.

What jewelry should I choose for this build?

Select a Protection Amulet matching the activity’s damage type with Protection, Well-Being, Fortified, Gem Slot, and Divine perks (II versions). Use a Blooddrinker Ring with Leeching and Enfeebling perks. Equip an Earring with Despised, Refreshment, Gem Slot, Leeching, and Divine perks.

Which Heartrune is best for this build?

Use Stalwart Heartrune of Stoneform for self-survivability.

What buffs and trophies should I use for Hive of Gorgons Raid?

Apply 3x Major Angry Earth Trophies (15% Angry Earth Damage), Infused Angry Earth Coating (15% Angry Earth Damage), Infused Angry Earth Ward (10% less damage from Angry Earth), Powerful Honing Stone (7% Empower), Desert Sunrise (25% reduced DoT duration), and +48 food. Aim for 5 buffs above your health bar.

What is the combat rotation for the Greatsword Tank Build?

Follow this sequence: 1. Use Relentless Rush to position and activate Empower, 2. Use Roaring Rupture to taunt and weaken, 3. Spam heavy attacks to block with Guard Point and apply 5% Rend (up to 3 times), 4. Use Calamity Counter for low stamina, heavy damage, or re-taunting, 5. Rotate offhand skills (Bludgeon, Trip, Barrage) when safe.

What are some tips for optimizing this build?

Leverage Greatsword’s built-in Grit on heavy attacks for easier tanking. Use Trenchant Recovery for sustainability over Trenchant Strikes. Save Calamity Counter to restore 50 stamina via Energizing Counter. Use the Empower Calculator to track your 55% Empower total (capped at 50%) from Keenly Empowered, Honing Stone, Leadership, Relentless Power, Step and Strike, and Crowded Bludgeon.

Greatsword Tank Build - New World Season 10

The Greatsword Tank Build is a dynamic setup tailored for New World’s Season 10: Nighthaven, designed to tank raid teams in challenging encounters like the Isle of Night raid and Hive of Gorgons raid. Centered around a Greatsword with perks like Hatred and Trenchant Strikes, and paired with a Power Stone and Shield offhand, this build excels at maintaining aggro, applying debuffs, and ensuring survivability through strategic ability rotations. It leverages heavy attacks with built-in Grit and carefully selected gear perks to dominate as a competitive starter tank. Below, I detail the weapons, armor, jewelry, and gameplay strategies to master this powerful tanking role.

Weapons

Mainhand

Greatsword with:
Gem slot: Cut Pristine Carnelian
Hatred
Trenchant Strikes
Energizing Counter
Leeching

Offhand (options)

Power Stone with:
Cut Pristine Carnelian gem
Crowded Bludgeon
Keenly Empowered

Shield

Keenly Fortified
Slash Protection
Strike Protection
Gem Slot
Physical Aversion

Skill Tree

If you are using Greatsword as an offhand for tank, replace Relentless Rush with a 1 point Skyward Slash.

Attributes

Strength	200 [fill the rest]
Dexterity	5
Intelligence	5
Focus	5
Constitution	350

Armor

This gear serves as a starting point to build upon as some of it may get replaced when you come into Set pieces with infixes. Infixes should replace your least favorite fixed perk on each piece. The Gem slot serves as your defensive piece with an Onyx.

Weapon Perks
- Crippling Rupture
- Relentless Freedom
Gem Slot x5
Enchanted Ward x5
Fixed Perks
- Lifestealer’s Draught
- Prolonged Favor x2
- Empowering Breaker
- Shirking Energy
- Shirking Fortification x3
Elemental Aversion and Physical Aversion to fill the gaps

Jewelry

Pick the best Protection amulet that matches the most common damage you will be taking in the activity you are in. Assume all perks are the new “II” or “2” versions.

Amulet Perks:

Protection
Well-Being
Fortified
Gem slot
Divine

Ring Perks:

Blooddrinker with:
Leeching
Enfeebling

Earring Perks:

Despised
Refreshment
Gem Slot
Leeching
Divine

Some of the Offensive and Defensive sockets are flexible for your to pick the your preferred perk.

Heartrune

Stalwart Heartrune of Stoneform

Typical Buffs and Trophies

You should ideally have 5 buffs above your health bar, and Major trophies at each of your 3 houses matching the enemy type you are facing. For example:

3x Major Angry Earth Trophies – 3×5%(15%) Angry Earth Damage
Infused Angry Earth Coating – 15% Angry Earth Damage
Infused Angry Earth Ward – take 10% less damage from Angry Earth enemies
Powerful Honing Stone – 7% Empower
Desert Sunrise – reduce duration of incoming DoTs by 25%
+48 food

How to Play

Relentless Rush
- To get into position and activate empower
Roaring Rupture
- To taunt and weaken
- Defiance Stance will now be active
Spam heavy attacks
- While in Defiance Stance, you will block incoming enemy attacks while charging your own heavy attacks via Guard Point
- Blocks with Guard Point will inflict 5% Rend (up to 3 times) for 10s on melee attackers
Calamity Counter
- Activate when stamina gets low, OR
- When expecting a lot of incoming damage, OR
- When needing to re-taunt straggling enemies
Rotate in Offhand skills when safe
- Bludgeon for self empower, bonus fortify and damage reduction
- Trip for Rend and fortify
- Barrage for single target taunt and gap closer

One of the struggles of Mainhand Greatsword is maintaining stamina. Energizing Counter will help with this to restore 50 stamina when activating Calamity Counter, which is why if you can save it can be valuable to save during a fight.

Empower details

Keenly Empowered	13%
Honing Stone	7%
Leadership (team)	10%
Relentless Power	10%
Step and Strike	10%
Defiant Stance	-15%
Crowded Bludgeon	20%
Total	55%

Empower is capped at 50%, but having more than 50% can help you manage to stay at cap at all times. To know where your current Empower total stands, check out the Empower Calculator. Even with Defiant Stance taking 15% empower away, you are still able to hit Empower Cap with a timed rotation.

Tips to Remember

Since Greatsword has Grit build in to its heavy attacks, in Season 10 it has become easier to use as a starter Tank weapon than Sword and Shield, until you get a Grit Infix or set bonus.

If you need a little more sustainability instead of damage, take Trenchant Recovery on the Greatsword instead of Trenchant Strikes.

Build made using the free tools at New World Buddy.

For unfamiliar terms, please refer to our terminology guide.

Greatsword Tank Build – New World Season 10