Beginners Guide: Sinner’s End Run
By Vezzov.
This guide for those who seem to be struggling to find some success in their Sinner’s End runs. If you are unsure of how you and your friends want to balance your team as a comp or strategize to move around the map, hopefully this can set a baseline for you.
I’m sure many of you want to know what comp you should consider running as a 3 stack so that you can get to level 20 and get those juicy free stats, so I will explain what my 3 stack uses. I will mostly forgot explaining the static abilities of the classes, but I may write suggestions for how to use them. For each class in our comp I will go over the most important stats for you to get, in order. It is important to know that some passive abilities are simply game changing, and will really skyrocket your team’s success.
Here is an example kill of the Wendigo fight in Hard Mode, you can read about the mechanics below by clicking on Hell and the Wendigo:
Fighter
The best team frontliner in the game IMO. The Fighter has one of the most useful passive in the game for teams, it’s called “Restraint”, and you need 25 will to activate it. Trust me when I say that if your team’s fighter does not have this skill unlocked, your team’s potential damage is cut by a significant amount. If you are unfamiliar, “Restraint” allows the fighter to hit allies and be hit by allies to take zero damage. This is the only skill in the game that allows a backline to rain spells and bolts forward and not worry about TK’ing.
After achieving this stat, you should prioritize stamina, then dexterity (to unlock “Proficiency” at 25), then strength. The two best raw stats for the class are Stamina and Strength. They unlock “Fired Up” (Stamina 35), “Vengeful Riposte” (Strength 45), and “Weapon Mastery” (Strength 70). “Fired Up” is the second best passive ability for Fighter. It enables the user to traverse in and out of combat to avoid death, push forward, or back up teammates who are far away. “Vengeful Riposte” gives Crit chance after a block and “Weapon Mastery” increases Physical Resistance by a ton while spinning. Both of these passives are obvious in their strength, but should not be sought out until you have unlocked “Proficiency” at 25 Dexterity for the extra movement speed during Whirlwind.
As a frontliner your job as a Fighter is to apply pressure to other teams, and bait out cooldowns from enemies. Let me be clear, in a fight between two teams of really geared players, the Fighter’s job is NOT to run in and try to 1v3. Competent players will block your “Whirlwind”. Sometimes the best use of this ability is to have the threat of using it. Same goes with “Rush”. It may be tempting to dash on every encounter you find yourself in, but having it on cooldown could cost your team its bulk. You should save “Rush” for escaping and positioning rather than blindly charging in. You would be surprised as to how many teams you can just walk up to.
For weapons, my team’s fighter runs a Longsword (obviously) because you need it to cast “Whirlwind”, and Sword/Shield for the 97%-100% block. I know that the crossbow is an option, as well as dual daggers, but the shield’s stats offer more to the role of Frontline Tank.
Cryomancer
Arguably the most useful backliner in the game. “Ice Storm”, if used correctly, has the potential to win you fights you didn’t think you could win. Same with “Ice Barrier”. As a Cryomancer, your damage is going to come from high Crit Chance and Will, but you should not prioritize these stats until you unlock the passives which let you control the tide of battle around you.
Let’s start with “Shattering Ice”. At 25 stamina your “Ice Barrier” will instantly freeze enemies around you once broken. With the right communication to your team, this can be an insanely easy way to pick off an enemy. Be warned though, if you use this and fail, your chances of dying are very high. The reason you want this first is because the burst Crowd Control can net you wins even with green gear vs blues/purples.
The second passive to go for is “Permafrost” at 20 Dexterity. This increases Freeze duration by 2 seconds and applies to “Ice Storm” and “Shattering Ice”. With this buff, if you catch someone in a freeze, your team is enabled to kill them and take them out of the fight.
Next you will want to get your Intelligence up to 30 for “Frostbite” and then 55 for “Winter’s Wrath”. Both of these passives are strong, with “Frostbite” slowing enemies on the initial channel of “Ice Storm” and “Winter’s Wrath” extending the range of “Ice Storm” in its second phase. There is an argument to be made about rushing for 55 intelligence to get “Winter’s Wrath”. From my experience though, it should not take precedence over the other passives I’ve mentioned if it means you don’t get them.
The last passive for Cryomancer is “Soul Freeze”. At 45 Will, “Ice Storm” will give back Soul Energy when it Freezes an enemy. This passive is great, and it allows for easier clears of PVE rooms, but it is not to be prioritized over your Crowd Control passives. You will probably unlock this if you stat correctly after getting your other passives, as Will determines your increase of Skill Damage.
As a Cryomancer, your job is to Crowd Control enemy teams and set up kills. You are the scariest person on your team, and competent enemies know this. Play accordingly. I mentioned that “Ice Barrier” can be used as a tool to aggressively target someone, but when you are properly geared you should save this ability to preserve your life, and use the Freeze to get away from frontliners who get in your face. When using “Ice Storm”, have your frontliner apply pressure and keep you safe until you get the full channel.
My team’s Cryomancer runs with a Lightning Staff and Sword/Shield. The Lightning staff offers range and good damage to other players and bosses. I am aware that many players choose to run double Lighting Staff, and I don’t disagree that having four charges is good, but if my team runs into your Cryomancer and they use/don’t have “Ice Barrier” off Cool-down, you can bet we are going to target them first, and they are going to pray for a shield in that moment.
Rogue
Alright, let’s talk about the best PVE class in the game, no contest. Sorry to say, but when you face players in all purple’s in Hard Mode, the one doing the killing is probably your Fighter or Cryomancer. Don’t get me wrong, you are going to set up the battlefield for your teammates to succeed. Through scouting and harassing other teams there will be plenty of times for you to half-health the ones in cloth with a crossbow Crit, or even outright assassinate someone caught unaware.
Just like Fighter and Cryo, your first stat milestone is Stamina. At 25, you will gain “Evaporate” which will put you in stealth every time you kill an enemy. This includes PVE. Use this to get around the map and save “Vanish” for when you really need it. The very synergistic next milestone comes from getting 35 Strength. “Ambush” gives the Rogue Lifesteal when you are in stealth. The combo of getting stealth on PVE kills and healing makes the Rogue incredible in PVE, and you will not have to worry about healing while having these two passives.
Once you have 35 Strength, build the rest of your stats towards Dex until you hit 70. We are going to ignore “Sleight of Hand” because pickpocketing someone is pretty useless in a team setting. Getting “Featherfoot” at 70 however, opens up a new world to the Rogue with double jump. Use this to position, dodge, flank, etc. Through the limited testing I have had in the demo, it’s my take that going over 70 Dex isn’t worth it. Look for gear that gives % Damage bonus to get a backstab one-shot on PVE mobs. With enough stats, you can clear a whole room in Hard Mode with one or two Backstabs per mob.
Your job as a Rogue is not to 1vX the lobby. The best Rogues will protect their Cryo and give information to the team. Use your crossbow to harass and get free Crits with Stealth. In PVE, clear a path for your team to traverse the map so they do not have to spend resources to get around. You get free healing and should have good movement speed to move back to your team when they need you most. Save “Petrifying Poison” to neutralize enemies that are either too far from their team or use it to stop scary abilities like “Whirlwind” in its tracks.
For weapons, use dual Daggers and a Crossbow. Daggers enable you to move quickly and backstab is the key to killing PVE. Crossbow is for landing those satisfying Crits in PVP while keeping your relatively squishy self out of danger.
Sinner’s End
There are some things about Sinner’s End which are very important to know and recognize. As far as my 3 stack has been able to confirm, there is one guaranteed rez shrine on the map. It tends to be a hotspot for PVP due to players also knowing this information. Other rez shrines can be found in dynamic spawns, and it’s a good idea to check to see which ones are up. It is your best interest to collect these stones. If you have a Rogue on the team, it is generally easy for them to go looking for them and obtain them with double jump and stealth.
Generally, the map is pretty close quarters, so make sure you don’t stray from your team if you are not a Rogue. If a team rolls up on yours while you are away, there is a high chance the fight will be over quickly. One of the best spots to hold on the map is the center room with moving pillars. If your team has the high ground it can make for a good place to stop and organize your next move, or even ambush players. If you have a Rogue, have them double jump to kill all the ranged mobs which guard the room.
Keep in mind that you can spawn very close to other players. There are at least 3 spawns I know of where another team can potentially spawn adjacent to you. You are not safe when you spawn. Listen closely for a team rushing you off rip. The easiest noise to hear is the sound of them killing mobs.
If you want to kill a miniboss, make sure you don’t have other teams around you. My team often does not attempt to aggro them if we are aware there is another team we think can kill us. You will essentially deafen yourself to the noises other players make and open yourself to getting killed.
By design or circumstance, the majority of blue portals spawn near the very end of the raid. If you’re playing as a 3 stack, plan to be the last ones standing. There are more than enough portals for two-five teams to leave Sinner’s End by either leaving the match or going to Hell. But, the reality is that it probably won’t end up that way.
Hell and the Wendigo
If you decide to take a red portal and go to Hell, just know that the mobs here generally have more HP, take less stagger from attacks, and hurt more. There is no easy way for me to say this, but you will probably have to kill the Wendigo and/or one of the other minibosses to get out as a 3 stack. Just like in Sinner’s End, the blue portals are at the end of the match, and they will probably end around one of the many bosses on the map. Something to keep in mind is that sometimes the blue portals spawn in the loot room which is only opened after you kill the Wendigo. Generally, my team rushes the Wendigo room in the center and kills him as soon as we can to allow ourselves to breathe for the rest of our time down there. It is usually followed up by us guessing where the end circle will be and killing the miniboss associated with that area. It is a good idea to have a couple rez stones on you in case someone gets killed in these encounters. As a side note, any elixirs you drink in Sinner’s End will not keep you buffed in Hell.
Wendigo
Congrats, you’ve made it to the tankiest boss in the game so far. This encounter does not have to be scary if you do it correctly. The general strategy is to rush to his room and give yourself as much time as you can to kill it. There are entrances to the boss room from every side of the map. It doesn’t matter which entrance you use, but if you have a ranged dps hold aggro on him, he will never path through the open door. In our team’s case, our Cryo pulls the boss and runs back to get him to this spot. It is important that you allow the ranged dps to continue to hold aggro or things can get hard for you.
Totems
The Wendigo initially has, and will periodically spawn totems. These need to be prioritized first by whoever does not have aggro of the boss. If you do not kill them in time, they will either kill you or get you killed. Always prioritize the totems that shoot ice bolts first. These do a ridiculous amount of damage and the slow can get you killed easily. The second priority goes to the totems which slow you. This effect is a debuff and will last even after it is dead, so make sure to get it quickly. Third priority is the totem which spawns a green spectral mob. In Hard mode, this is a replica of one of the minibosses. It is generally easy to dodge attacks, but if left unchecked, it can kill someone. Next are what my team refers to as lava totems. These shoot waves of fireballs in a 360 area around the totem, and they hurt a lot. Generally, I let my Fighter melee the lava totems while I try to shoot them with my crossbow as Rogue.
Wendigo Attacks
If you are holding him at an entrance, the only boss attacks you need to watch out for are his barrage of ice missiles, and his bright, slow-moving “orbs”. If the boss faces you and does the ice missiles, get behind a wall or pillar immediately or you can and will die. If you are a Rogue with double jump, you can usually manage to clear most of the missiles while only getting hit by one. Take two and you are probably dead. The “orbs” are his strongest attack. Do not run into them. They fire in a frontal cone and are easy to avoid.
This fight can take a while but can be done in all greens if you stat correctly. Make sure you bring pots and bandages for when you inevitably take damage. Rogues get stealth by killing a totem, and they don’t have a ton of HP (Unless you are in Hard Mode; It’s about double), so you can heal off stealth repeatedly through the fight. Make sure to check the loot room which opens after you kill him. There will always be a crown to loot on the head of a skeleton in there, as well as multiple good chests to open. As of 2/6/24 we have found a legendary ring inside one of the chests in the loot room on Hard Mode.
That’s all! I really appreciate it if you’ve made it this far. See you in the game!
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