Best Sword and Shield Builds in New World

In New World, the sword and shield combination is the very first weapon you are introduced to. It is also one of the most powerful weapons in the game. But which builds are the best to play with? Of course, it all depends on your playstyle, so you need to know what perks, stats, and abilities you find most valuable. If you want a great Sword and Shield build for both PvE and PvP, check out our favorite builds below.

Sword and Shield / Life Staff Paladin Build

This build might sound like a mouthful, but it’s incredibly valuable. It is perfect for solo play as it has a high survivability rate as it requires high Focus and Constitution values. Another great aspect of this build is the fact that you can toggle between healing and tanking. With the Sword and Shield weapon, you want to use the active skills shield frenzy and shield slam. With the Light Staff, you should focus on dealing tons of damage with the active abilities Orb of Protection and beacon.

The entire purpose of this build is to reduce incoming damage while increasing your healing and granting buffs to you and your allies.

Related: All Arcana Level Unlocks in New World – Unlocked items for each level

Sword and Shield / Hatchet Max DPS build

This build focuses heavily on strength, making sure you hit hard and fast. You will be able to target enemies with passive abilities such as swordmaster and berserk to increase damage and speed. There are also many passive abilities that can cover a lot of distance, deal a lot of damage, and increase attack movement and speed. You have to be careful as this build lacks HP and Defense, but you will deal so much damage that it’s hard to notice.

The main passive abilities to consider in this build are both Empowered Employees from the Sword and Shield Swordmaster skill tree and Defy Death from the Hatchet Berserker skill tree.

Sword and Shield / War Hammer Pure Defender Tank Build

Aside from the previous two builds, this one has great defense and even better tanking abilities. This build is heavily focused on Constitution, which is great for survivability. You’ll also enjoy this build’s playstyle if you love fending off and knocking down your enemies with stun debuffs. This build also only uses skills from the Sword and Shield Defender skill tree and the War Hammer Crowd Crusher skill tree. Another fun aspect of this build is that it allows you to be front and center without suffering the consequences of intense damage.

For more New World guides, check out the Pro Game Guides in both the Best Cosmetics in New World and the Rewards List of All Factions in New World.