Dune Awakening: Swordmaster build guide

If you crave dominance in combat in Dune Awakening, Swordmaster is the way to go. By combining it with a few other class types, you can rush anyone down, deal tons of damage, and do so without draining all of your stamina. It’s the route I started with the official launch of Funcom’s latest survival MMO, and it’s served me well so far. However, you naturally don’t want to go just Swordmaster. There are way more options out there on Arrakis.

Ideally, you’ll start as a Swordmaster and then begin unlocking Planetologist and Trooper as you progress through Hagga Basin South. You will have to go pretty deep into Trooper, so get ready to do those advanced quests and fly around Hagga Basin. It will be worth it, though, as Swordmaster mixed with Trooper and Planetologist is a mean combo in Dune Awakening.

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How to play a Swordmaster in in Dune Awakening

For most of the game, you’ll be a Swordmaster/Trooper/Planetologist in Dune Awakening, but as you get into the late game, there are other skills you can pick up across Mentat and Bene Gesserit that are worthwhile. Below are the primary skills I find myself using in combat:

Swordmaster just feels like a lot of fun at all points in the game (Image via Funcom)

Primary skills

• Knee Charge (Swordmaster) x3
• Shigawire Claw (Trooper) x3
• Eye of the Storm/Deflection (Swordmaster) x3

Primary techniques

• Battle Hardened (Trooper) x1
• Dance of Blades (Swordmaster) x1
• Disciplined Breathing (Swordmaster) x1

Knee Charge is amazing in the early game to knock out/one-shot enemies, but it’s also a great gap closer and brief stun. Shigawire Claw allows you to travel more easily and stun players/NPCs in battle. Eye of the Storm is a wildly powerful AOE blade attack, and Deflection, frankly, just makes me feel like a Jedi.

You have two gap closers, and between your various passives, you have tons of extra damage and stamina reducers to just blaze a trail through any foe you come across. I still feel like it’s worth it to have a gun on hand because there will definitely be times when you can’t reach someone without taking a ton of gunfire.

For go-to techniques, you want Battle Hardened for Cooldown Reduction, Disciplined Breathing for Stamina Recovery, and Dance of Blades to empower your blade’s next attack after defeating an enemy.

Combat as a Swordmaster isn’t really complex, either. You use a gap closer to get as close as possible. If the enemy has a shield, slow attack to break that down and beat them. Otherwise, swing away without fear.

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Most important talents and techniques to pick for Swordmaster in Dune Awakening’s early/midgame

This is where you start, but not where you end up (Image via Funcom)

As you progress through the early to midgame of Dune Awakening, you’ll be focusing primarily on Swordmaster, Trooper, and Planetologist. You’ll probably want to unlock the other trainers too, though, because in the late-game, we will be picking up Bene Gesserit and Mentat skills.

Swordmaster talent picks

• Knee Charge (Active) x3
• Deflection x1
• Eye of the Storm (Active) x3
• Dance of Blades (Technique) x1
• Disciplined Breathing (Technique) x1
• Blade Damage x2
• Long Blade Damage x2
• Solid Stance x2
• Bleed Tolerance x2
• General Conditioning x2
• Field Medicine x2
• Optimized Hydration x2

Trooper talent picks

• Shigawire Claw (Active) x3
• Center of Mass
• Battle Hardened (Technique) x1
• Ranged Damage x1
• Field Maintenance xc1
• Gunsmith x1

Planetologist talent picks

• Compaction x1
• Dew Gathering x1
• Cutteray Mining x1
• Deep Analysis x1
• Overcharge x1
• Rerouting x1
• Fuel Efficient Driver x1
• Vehicle Repair x1
• Vehicle Mining x1

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Should you go long or short blades as a Swordmaster in Dune Awakening?

Honestly, I think this is down to personal preference. I focused on short blades in the early game, thanks to Khaleff’s Drinker. However, around the time of Vermillius Gap, it starts to show its age, and I think you should start seeking out a better, stronger, longer blade.

Both styles of bladed weapons are fine, and there are truly fantastic long blades as you get toward the mid-game grind. Whichever you feel more comfortable with I believe is more important than what the stats are.

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Endgame talents for Swordmaster in Dune Awakening

Once you’re pushing into the endgame and getting ready for Deep Desert action in Dune Awakening, you’re going to branch out away from just Swordmaster/Trooper/Planetologist. You’re going to want skill points pretty much everywhere. You’ll have several abilities to choose from, though we keep three active for the most part: Shigawire Claw, Knee Charge, Weirding Step.

The same goes for techniques, as you’ll have lots of options but will primarily have Battle Hardened, Thrive on Danger, and Disciplined Breathing locked in. Below is the list of talents you want on hand.

Swordmaster talent picks

• Foil x1
• Deflection x1
• Knee Charge x3
• Dance of Blades x1
• Thrive on Danger x1
• Disciplined Breathing x3
• Precise Parry x2
• Blade Damage x3
• Long Blade Damage x3
• Solid Stance x3
• Bleed Tolerance x3
• Confidence x3
• General Conditioning x3
• Field Medicine x3
• Optimized Hydration x3

Trooper talent picks

• Shigawire Claw x3
• Center of Mass x1
• Battle Hardened x3
• Ranged Damage x1
• Field Maintenance x1
• Gunsmith x2

Planetologist talent picks

• Compaction x2
• Dew Gathering x3
• Cutteray Mining x3
• Overcharge x2
• Rerouting x2
• Fuel Efficient Pilot x2
• Fuel Efficient Driver x1
• Vehicle Repair x2
• Vehicle Mining x2

Mentat talent picks

• The Sentinel x1
• Shield Wall x1
• Solido Decoy x1
• Iron Will x1
• Tailoring x1
• Garment Keeper x1

Bene Gesserit talent picks

• Bindu Sprint x1
• Weirding Step x1
• Trauma Recovery x2
• Bindu Dodge x1
• Blade Damage x3
• Vitality x3
• Recovery x3
• Self-Healing x2
• Sun Tolerance x2
• Poison Tolerance x1

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Check out our other Dune Awakening guides and features

• Dune Awakening: Research and Intel points system, explained
• Dune Awakening: How to recover from sandworm death as a solo player
• Dune Awakening: How to unlock Trooper Skills (Basic and Advanced Trainer locations)