Spellblade Build Guide (Shortsword)

This guide details the Spellblade, a potent Shortsword build designed for players who prefer to dominate combat with powerful spells. The core strategy revolves around generating Skyborn Might quickly and using it to cast a barrage of spells, primarily those that apply the Burn status effect to activate the damage-boosting Burning Might Benediction.

Spellblade Shortsword Build

Excels at spellcasting and applying Burn from a safe distance.

Target Stats

Vigor 40

Endurance 30

Strength Base

Dexterity 20

Insight 60+

Occultism Base

Acupoints & Temperance

Recommended Items

Weapons

Astral Blade Awakening Seal: Channel the mystical power of your weapon. Spending Skyborn Might during the duration grants stacks of Biding Time, which accelerates the regeneration of Skyborn Might. This incantation requires sufficient Skyborn Might.

Armor

Jade Pendants

Spells

Benedictions

Playstyle and Core Mechanics

The Spellblade embodies the classic battlemage fantasy, weaving deadly spells from a distance while using a nimble shortsword for defense and opportunity. Unlike purely melee builds, your primary source of damage comes from exploiting elemental weaknesses, with the Burn status effect being your main tool.

The core gameplay loop is a cycle of resource management: you use dodges and the Awakening Seal weapon skill to rapidly generate Skyborn Might, then expend that resource to cast powerful spells like Infernal Flames. The Astral Blade serves not as a primary damage dealer, but as a defensive weapon to deflect incoming attacks with Flickering Blade and as a conduit for magic damage when tempered. This build is perfect for players who enjoy a tactical, ranged playstyle and managing resources to unleash devastating magical attacks.

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Equipment and Skills Breakdown

Weapon and Discipline

Weapon	Weapon Skill	Discipline Skill
Astral Blade	Awakening Seal	Flickering Blade

The Astral Blade is the weapon of choice for its excellent magic scaling. Its Weapon Skill, Awakening Seal, is crucial for this build as it accelerates the regeneration of Skyborn Might, allowing for more frequent spellcasting. The Flickering Blade Discipline serves as a reliable defensive tool for deflecting rapid, multi-hit attacks when enemies get too close.

Armor

This build utilizes Light Armor with a focus on non-physical damage resistances, as you’ll primarily be fighting from a distance. The combination of the Embroidered Headband, Junior Maid’s Garment, Bridal Shackles, and Bridal Dress provides high resistances against common threats like Corruption and Frostbite. This setup is flexible and can be swapped to counter specific enemy types.

Jade Pendants

• Bird Pendant: Essential for this build. It increases the Astral Blade’s magic power when buffed with Temperance, making your melee attacks a viable damage source.
• Child’s Hope Pendant & Twin Infant Pendant: This pair is dedicated to stamina management, providing faster recovery to ensure you always have enough stamina to dodge away and create casting distance.

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Character Progression

Impetus Tree (Skill Tree)

Follow this progression path in the Impetus Repository for the Spellblade:

1. Prioritize Skyborn Might Generation: Your first priority is unlocking Skyborn Call I and Biding Time. These two skills work together to ensure you have a constant and rapid supply of Skyborn Might to fuel your spells.

2. Max Out Skyborn Might: Continue down the utility path to unlock Skyborn Call II and Skyborn Call III, as well as the nearby Magic nodes to increase your spell damage.

3. Unlock Windforce: Once your resource generation is secure, move to the One-handed Sword tree to unlock the Windforce node and any other magic-boosting nodes in that path.

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Playstyle and Combat Rotation

Recommended Combat Rotation

The Spellblade’s playstyle is a cycle of resource generation, applying debuffs, and unleashing powerful spells.

1. Apply Burn: Start encounters from a safe distance. Cast Infernal Flames or Echo of Dhutanga until the enemy is afflicted with the Burn status effect. This will activate your Burning Might Benediction for a significant damage boost.

2. Generate Skyborn Might: Use your dodge (Shimmer) to evade attacks and gain Skyborn Might. When you have an opening, activate your weapon’s Awakening Seal skill to further accelerate your resource generation.

3. Unleash Damage Spells: With full Skyborn Might and an enemy that is burning, cast your high-damage spells like Aurum Feather Force.

4. Defend and Reposition: If an enemy closes the distance, use Flickering Blade to deflect their combo and create space. Then, repeat the cycle.

Alternative Spells

The Thunderstorm spell is excellent for applying Paralysis to control tough enemies. For foes resistant to fire, you can swap it with Echo of Li Cheng’en to apply Frostbite instead.