Best Heavy Armor Warrior Build in No Rest for the Wicked

No Rest for the Wicked offers more or less the same playstyles one would expect from a game using the Soulslike combat formula, and this includes heavy, two-handed weapon styles that are slow but powerful. Swinging a giant piece of metal around is bound to be cumbersome at first, but with the right build and fighting technique, you’ll be bulldozing your way through No Rest for the Wicked in no time. Here’s a build for all you fans of great weapons.

Best Two-Handed Warrior Build in No Rest for the Wicked

To keep things simple and accessible for the vast majority of players, we’ll be focusing on the Claymore, one of the starting weapons in No Rest for the Wicked that players can buy from Filmore or find randomly from loot sources.

The Claymore trades speed for hefty, long-reaching swings and stabs. It is deceptively mobile, and it can apply elemental status effects very quickly with the right combo. The two most important Claymore moves you need to know are:

Dodge and Sprint attacks chain into a two-hit combo, but if you time another attack input just when the sword touches the ground, you can follow up with a strong finisher move.

The first Charged Attack swing lunges you forward, letting you hit enemies near the edge of the screen.

For the sake of this build, you need to master these attacks. When you get a Claymore, use these moves on every enemy you find. Only use your basic standing attack combo against enemies that are about to die.

Stat Allocation

Health: 20–30

Stamina: 20-25

Strength: As high as you can

Dex/Int/Faith: 10

Focus: ~20

Equip Load: Any, as long as you’re Heavy and not Encumbered

These are the general stat windows you should aim for when using a Claymore with heavy armor. How you raise your stats is up to you, and if you’re ever unsatisfied with how things are playing out, you can always respec at the Crucible Atrium.

Armor

This build will use heavy armor for two reasons:

High Armor and Poise stats allows us to trade blows with enemies while taking minimal damage

Shoulder Barge

Heavy armor goes nicely with the warrior fantasy this build is set to achieve. Not only will you be shrugging off hits from minor enemies, but you’ll also be able to knock almost every enemy down using Shoulder Barge, a move that’s only available to players who are heavily encumbered. Go with whatever armor provides the best protection, but make sure that your Weight Class is Heavy, not Encumbered.

What About Fat Rolling?

For the uninitiated, Fat Rolling is what happens when you try to dodge while your Weight Class is Heavy. It has a slower recovery animation than a Normal or Light dodge, making it unappealing for many players.

Fat Rolling is definitely going to feel weird at first when using a heavy armor build, but it doesn’t make the game unplayable. It’s a small price to pay for the ability to use Shoulder Barge.

What Even is Shoulder Barge?

Shoulder Barge is a charging tackle that knocks down even the biggest of enemies in No Rest for the Wicked. To perform a Shoulder Barge, press V on your keyboard or LB/L1 + RB/R1 on your controller. You need to be Heavy in order to use this move.

Shoulder Barge will trivialize most of your 1v1 fights. Charge into your enemy, knock them down, then follow up with a Charged Attack, potentially freezing your target instantly. While the enemy is frozen, you can follow up with another attack or just wait for your Stamina to replenish.

Weapon Infusions and Enchantments

Ideally, your Claymore should at least have a Cold Damage Infusion. This will let you freeze enemies, giving you time to regenerate Stamina or lay on some more damage while your target is frozen. The Claymore is surprisingly good at freezing enemies, and it works against bosses too.

We recommend infusing a Sapphire Gem onto your Claymore, then enchanting it at Eleanor’s. You won’t be able to slot more gems into it, but you’ll get a bunch of other modifiers on your weapon in exchange. Some good modifiers include:

Bonus Damage after Charged Attacks

Stamina Recovery based on Durability

Healing Increased based on Durability

Attack increased based on Durability

You can always just buy another Claymore if you want to try one that’s socketed to the brim with gems, but for the majority of the game, an enchanted version will serve you well.

Armor Infusions and Enchantments

As for your armor, try to get ones with the following Infusions/Enchantments:

Experience Gain Increased (via Diamonds)

Max Stamina Increased (via Emeralds)

Regainable Health Increased (via Bloodstones)

Focus Gain Increased (via Topazes)

Stamina Cost Decreased (via Tiny Fangs)

Stamina Recovery Increased

Elemental Resistances

Poise Defense (Chest Armor)

Gain Stamina on Parry (Gloves)

Basically, you’ll want to get as much survivability as possible while improving your Stamina and Focus economies. Runes will play a big part in how this build plays, so you’ll want to get some Focus-based Infusions/Enchantments on your gear.

Runes

Claymores come with the Juggle Strike Rune, which is a slow but strong uppercut that can send enemies flying. Normally, enemies can easily dodge away when we use this skill, but since we have a Cold-infused sword, we can freeze enemies first before busting them open with Juggle Strike.

Ice Ram is another great Rune for this build. Not only does it help with freeze buildup, but it also acts as a counter-attack. You can use this skill to dodge an incoming hit before retaliating with a freezing stab. You can get this Rune by upgrading Filmore’s Blacksmith to level 3, buying the halberd from him, then extracting the Ice Ram Rune at Eleanor’s.