Lost Ark: Best Destroyer Builds For PvE and PvP

Lost Ark’s recent May update brings quite a bit of new content to the MMOARPG, but the recent patch is arguably highlighted by the addition of the Destroyer class.

As an Advanced Class option for Warriors, the Destroyer represents many of the qualities most commonly associated with Lost Ark‘s Warriors. They’re big, they’re strong, and they’re not afraid to get into the action. Despite their relative familiarity, though, there are quite a few things you need to know about the Destroyer class before you dive into it. In fact, without the right tips and skills, you may struggle to see why this class is so potentially powerful.

That being the case, let’s take a look at a couple of basic Destroyer builds that should help put you on the right track.

Lost Ark: Best Destroyer Builds For PvE and PvP

With a name like “Destroyer,” you’d expect this class to be able to tear through anything in its way. However, it’s best to think of the Destroyer as a pure tank in the MMO sense of the word.

Lost Ark‘s Destroyers are beefy, resilient, and slow. That last word is the one many will dread to hear. Speed can be king in Lost Ark, and it’s usually much more fun to play as faster characters in the first place. The idea of a slow, defensive class in an ARPG doesn’t really jump off the page.

However, Destroyers are so much more than damage eaters, though they do excel at that. Indeed, one of the best reasons to play the class is to take advantage of their natural resiliency. It’s very hard to push a Destroyer around. They’re naturally immune to a variety of effects, and the right skills grant them extra resistance. They kind of get to do their own thing more than some other classes. That’s a good thing considering that they suffer from some long attack animations.

Once you get a Destroyer going, though, they’re hard to stop. They deal tremendous amounts of burst damage and typically like to bounce opponents around the map. Because they’re hard to stall through CC methods and are naturally resilient to basic attacks, you really don’t want to face down a Destroyer too often. Those same qualities also make them exactly the kind of class you want to see at the front of your raid or dungeon group.

When it comes to attacking as a Destroyer, you’ve really got to learn how to utilize your main skills that have a longer charge time. There are items and skills that will reduce those charge times, but they’re a key part of the class’ major abilities. You can build the class in a way that greatly minimizes the impact of those charge abilities, but that’s not necessarily your best option. There’s a degree to which you have to embrace the idea of playing defensively until you gather the resources needed to complete those slow burst abilities.

That being the case, the PvE build described below is meant to reduce the Destroyer’s cooldown times as much as possible while still allowing them to pull off those big burst attacks. You won’t constantly be doing damage with this build, but the damage you will be doing is often substantial enough to help you top your group’s charts. In the meantime, you’ll be using your defensive abilities to absorb a lot of blows. Your group will (hopefully) return the favor by giving you those critical buffs you need to really go Super Saiyan.

In PvP, the story isn’t that different. It’s certainly possible to use roughly the same Destroyer build for PvE and PvP, though the PvP build below is a touch faster and a little more resilient. In general, you’ll want to find ways to increase your attack and movement speeds however possible in PvP.

This build doesn’t include specific gear recommendations, but you’re generally looking to prioritize your Crit and Swiftness in the late game. Until then, the best gear available to you at any time is usually your best option.

Lost Ark: Best Destroyer PvE Build

Lost Ark: Best Destroyer PvP Build