New World: Aeternum Tank Build Guide for Gorgon Raids

Hello, New World adventurers! Welcome to another comprehensive tank building guide. Today, I'm here to answer your questions and help you become the ultimate Gorgon tank. As you gear up for your journey, you might find yourself needing to enhance your gameplay experience further—consider exploring options to buy New World Coins to acquire the best gear and resources more efficiently. Let’s dive into the strategies that will make you an unbeatable tank!

Introduction to Tanking in Gorgon

Tanking in Gorgon is easier than you might think! With the right team and a solid build, you’ll find that your raids run smoother than ever. This guide will cover the optimal weapons, gear, perks, attributes, and strategies you need to become an effective tank.

Primary Weapons: Sword and Shield

Your primary weapon for Gorgon will be the sword and shield. This combination offers excellent defensive capabilities and allows you to provide crucial support to your team.

· Best Sword: The Hoplite Longsword is your best option, especially when equipped with the perks Trenchant Rend and Refreshing Move. The ideal perk to include is Sundering Stacks.

· If you haven’t acquired the Hoplite yet, consider farming the Taiyi Longsword in Ebonscale.

Ensure you have two Tower Shields for the raid. Opt for shields that come with Sturdy and Fortifying Shield Rush; one shield should include Slash Shield Ward, and the other should have Nature Shield Ward. The Tall Duneborn Shield, which you can get from the Worm, is excellent, but both the Hoplite Tower Shield and other shields with the necessary wards will suffice. Gear score is less critical here, so don’t hesitate to farm 625 shields like the Portent or Girdle of Geb.

Secondary Weapon: Greatsword

Your secondary weapon will be the greatsword, which you’ll primarily use for taunting and defensive maneuvers while maintaining most of your actions with the sword and shield.

· Any greatsword with the Energizing Counter perk will work. Versions like the Hoplite or Duneborn greatswords are great options.

· Consider alternatives like Serenity or Crescent’s Wave if you're just starting out.

Final Boss Strategy: Warhammer

For the last boss encounter, switch from the greatsword to a Warhammer equipped with Sundering Shockwave. The Duneborn Maul is a promising choice, but you can also upgrade a Hoplite Warhammer, or buy the Gorgon Warhammer or the Azoth Crystal version.

Gear Recommendations

Key Perks

One significant perk to focus on is Contagious Upheaval. This sword perk enhances your damage and allows for debuff transfer. Other optional perks include:

· Fortifying Shield Rush (if you don’t have it on your shield)

· Accelerated Resolve

· Depending on your Warhammer, either Sundering Clearout or Shockwave.

Artifacts

You should aim for the Void Darkplate, upgraded with Vital Synergy, which is critical for tanking and drops from Mutated Barnacles. Alternatives include The Unmoved, Survivor’s Coat, and Gilli’s Gravity Gauntlets.

Armor Sets

The optimal armor choices are the Hoplite heavy pieces with Enchanted Ward and Health. If you lack them, start with Azoth Crystal heavy gear possessing the same perks or faction gear with Enchanted Ward, Refreshing, and Health. For boots, craft or buy Gorgon Boots with Enchanted Ward and your preferred perks.

Jewelry

You don’t need artifacts for jewelry but aim for:

· Amulets: Three are recommended — one with Strike Protection, one with Slash Protection, and one with Nature Protection. Each variant should include Health and a third perk of either Divine or Empowered.

· Rings: Look for Slash Damage, Hearty, and Leeching.

· Earing: Key perks include Despised for aggro and Regenerating for passive healing, with an optional third perk of Fortifying, Refreshing, or Empowering Toast.

Attributes

Distribute your attributes to have 350 Constitution while dumping the rest into Strength. The 300 Constitution threshold is crucial for maximizing grit uptime, while 350 boosts defenses whenever grit is active.

Skill Trees

Sword and Shield Skills

Focus on the following skills for your sword and shield setup:

Upheaval: Your main damage skill, reducing cooldowns of your other skills.

· Shield Rush: This skill weakens enemies while boosting your armor.

· Defender’s Resolve: This increases your defenses and provides an AoE taunt for better aggro management.

Additionally, choose the left-side ultimate skill to grant your team the Leadership buff, enhancing their damage output.

Greatsword Skills

While the greatsword mainly serves a utility purpose in this build, it remains a vital tool for your defensive strategy. Focus on:

· Calamity Counter: This skill allows you to block virtually all incoming damage and applies an AoE taunt, making it invaluable for gaining and holding aggro.

· Roaring Rupture: This skill makes you uninterruptible and weakens nearby enemies. By upgrading this skill, you can push or pull enemies. It’s advisable to use the pull function when needed.

· Relentless Rush: Use this skill to engage mobs, enter offensive stance, trigger Rupture to taunt enemies, and navigate back into defensive stance for enhanced protection.

Warhammer Skills

The goals with the Warhammer are to apply grit and rend effectively:

· Every ability you utilize will come with grit, enabling you to stay in the fight even when taking damage.

· Abilities like Shockwave are essential since they apply a weaken debuff, significantly improving your survivability.

· Time your abilities carefully to maintain grit through Medusa’s attacks, then switch back to your sword and shield for effective defense.

Gem Recommendations

For gem choices, adhere to the following guidelines:

· Equip Onyx gems on your gear.

· Use Carnelian gems on your weapons for added damage and utility.

· Adjust your protection setup during fights. Use your Slash Protection shield and Strike Amulet for the first two bosses. For the last boss, switch both your shield and amulet to Nature Protection. This strategy minimizes the need for constant gem swapping.

Essential Tanking Tips

To be an effective tank in Gorgon, remember these key elements:

1. Understanding Damage Management

Tanking isn’t merely about absorbing every hit or blocking all attacks. It involves understanding attack patterns and practicing dodging techniques. Use dodges to avoid damage entirely and rely on grit to absorb hits without losing stamina.

2. Team Composition Matters

Your success as a tank heavily relies on your team. Having teammates that can apply weaken to the boss significantly enhances your survivability. Consider partnering with players who have skills like Enfeebling Skewer (spear) and Powerstone Flail, as these debuffs greatly reduce the damage you take.

3. Positioning is Key

As a tank, you need to manage aggro and keep enemies, especially bosses, facing away from your team. This positioning allows your allies to deal damage more safely from behind. Maintain control over the boss’s positioning and avoid unnecessary movement, as erratic behavior can lead to chaos in the fight.

Transitioning Weapons for Boss Fights

The rationale behind using the greatsword for the first two bosses and switching to the Warhammer for the last one lies in group strategy:

· For the first two bosses, melee players usually favor a rendbot to reduce the boss's armor, making the greatsword's defensive abilities advantageous, minimizing the need for healing.

· During the final boss fight, most teams transition to ranged attacks, which may limit your team's rend capabilities. Switching to the Warhammer allows you to apply your own rend effects, ensuring the team maintains damage efficiency while benefiting from the healer's ranged heals.

Conclusion

Now that you have a complete guide to the strongest tank builds for the Gorgon, it's time to start practicing! Once you gain enough experience, you can even explore medium build options or adjust your Constitution allocation for different play styles. If you want to enhance your gameplay even further, consider places to buy New World Gold, such as MMOEXP, to acquire the best equipment and resources. Feel free to refer back to this guide to learn the best equipment, skills, and strategies that will consistently perform well regardless of your armor choice. Thanks for reading!