"It became a bit of a running joke": Lost Ark devs talk about the DPS Paladin power fantasy, Valkyrie damage numbers, and weaknesses (Exclusive)

Lost Ark is getting a brand-new class in the Valkyrie soon, and before that launch I had a chance to chat with the devs about what to expect. I spoke to Roxanne Sabo, Community Lead for Lost Ark, this time, about the power and the majesty of the Valkyrie class. Coming in the next major update, this class is the female version of the Paladin, and is both a support and a DPS. Judging by the footage I’ve seen of the Valkyrie so far, it’s going to have the potential to be a real menace.

On top of that, it should be a class that functions great solo, or in a group, making it pretty flexible. It’s been a while since I’ve had the time to dip my toes into Lost Ark, and the Valkyrie definitely makes me excited to go back and give the game a try again. Here’s what we learned from Roxanne Sabo.

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Roxanne Sabo on Lost Ark’s Valkyrie: Where they excel, important abilities, weaknesses, and more

Q. First, thanks for taking the time to chat with us about the upcoming Valkyrie class! For those who aren’t aware, what’s the general power fantasy of this upcoming class?

Even these sketches of the Valkyrie in Lost Ark look incredibly cool (Image via Amazon Games)

Roxanne Sabo: Thanks for chatting with us! The Valkyrie is a female counterpart class to the Paladin, and while she shares some similarities to the Paladin there are definitely some significant differences that set her apart. The Valkyrie is designed to be played as either support or DPS, giving players flexibility in how they want to approach battles.

While her general combat and movements will feel similar to Paladin for some players, Valkyrie has a unique mobility in how she’s designed that will be a lot of fun to learn. If you’re the kind of player who enjoyed playing a support role as a Paladin, but also wanted to jump into the fray from time to time, Valkyrie is going to help you fulfill that power fantasy when she’s added to the game.

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Q. So, I’ve watched some footage of the class from what I believe were the South Korean servers, and I have to say, the class looks fun, not to mention incredibly powerful. Is this class going to see any particular changes from the South Korean servers to the Global Servers?

Roxanne Sabo: When the Valkyrie class launches, we’ll be bringing in the balance patch that launched in Korea on July 9. This does include some tweaks to Valkyrie from its original launch in the Korean version of the game and a number of buffs for other support classes in the game to make sure they are able to support their allies at the highest level. All in all, we expect this class to feel good, and this patch to be great for all the support classes to shine in.

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Q. How easy is the Valkyrie going to be to play? Can we expect a really tight, challenging rotation of skills, or is it something more approachable?

Roxanne Sabo: The Valkyrie class has been designed to be easy to pick up, but flexible in how players can showcase their skill. This means new players can jump in and start contributing effectively without needing to master complex rotations right away.

However, there's significant room for growth and mastery of the class. The flexibility in switching between damage dealer and support roles also means players can adapt their playstyle based on what their team needs, making her both approachable for beginners and rewarding for veterans who want to explore all her capabilities.

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Q. On that note, quite a few players coming to try it will no doubt be unfamiliar. Can you give some suggestions for possible rotations of skills for combat, to get the most out of this class?

Valkyries have an incredible toolset at their disposal, no matter if they want to DPS or Support (Image via Amazon Games)

Roxanne Sabo: When playing Valkyrie as a support, only Protection and Starlight Skill can be used. You can maintain the attack power buff with Seraphic Oath and Seraphic Leap. For the Brand, you can choose between Circle of Truth and Truth's Decree, but Circle of Truth is recommended due to its ease of use.

Using Blessing of Salvation, you can grant a protective shield to party members within a certain distance. Like with the Paladin, it has a skill tree that can purify. Salvation Site is a skill designed to protect party members, much like the Artist's Starry Night, the Bard's Rhapsody of Light, and the Paladin's God's Decree. A skill tree can change the skill to let players move to a designated location when using the skill, allowing them to protect dangerous allies even from afar.

By using skills, you can build up your Piety Meter, unlocking the Release Light skill, which increases the damage dealt by party members. After the Piety Meter is released, the Light of the Faithful skill activates, which can restore HP of party members.

DPS players can use the Starlight and Justice skills. Justice skills are beneficial for gaining the Light Meter, while the Starlight skills focus on dealing high damage. Valkyrie possesses the Final Splendor Specialty skill, which deals high damage. Using this skill activates the Shining Knight skill. Using the Shining Knight skill enhances some of Valkyrie's Starlight skills, allowing them to inflict even more damage.

Therefore, the key to dealing damage with Valkyrie is to quickly build up the Light Meter, frequently use Final Splendor, and then inflict damage with the enhanced Starlight skills.

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Q. What are some of the more unique, or interesting skills that the Lost Ark Valkyrie has access to, would you say?

Roxanne Sabo: The biggest thing that’s so easy to keep coming back to is the Valkyrie’s two distinct playstyles for both Support and DPS options. In the early days of Lost Ark launch, a handful of players attempted to make DPS Paladin builds, and it became a bit of a running joke in the community (although a DPS Paladin is no joke in T4 builds) - but now it’s a reality with the Valkyrie!

In terms of specific mechanics, the Valkyrie stands out with her weapon summoning skills. One of her most striking abilities is being able to summon and wield a sacred sword in her left hand alongside her normal sword for dual-blade combat. Her skills are also organized into three distinct categories that each feel completely different - Justice Skills focus on refined swordsmanship with disciplined motions, Starlight Skills let her engage in that dual-blade combat or infuse her sword with divine energy for powerful strikes, and Protection Skills utilize sacred shields to protect allies or weaken enemies.

Her Hyper Awakening skills are also awesome because they incorporate completely different weapons like sacred spears, really emphasizing that she has the ability to wield different divine relics depending on the situation.

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Q. How easy will it be to unlock the Paladin class? Let’s say for example, someone’s on essentially a fresh account, where they either just made it, or didn’t get far when Lost Ark launched. How will this be unlockable for play?

Roxanne Sabo: Anyone with a character slot available on their account will be able to make a Valkyrie when she launches! The Rise of the Valkyrie update will also include a number of Progression Events to help players get their new characters to the end game to make sure they’re up to speed and ready to engage in the game’s endgame content.

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Q. I’ve seen some pretty massive damage numbers out of the Paladin on the South Korean servers, but how easy is that going to be to reach? Are those players who have incredibly powerful gear/etc, or is it going to be possible for the average, casual player to drop huge damage?

Roxanne Sabo: Some of those crazy high damage numbers you’re seeing will come from the very end game, veteran players who have committed to upgrading their gear and really going all in on their builds. It will definitely take some skill and mastery of the class to hit that hard, but with some practice and time, we’re excited to see players hit some big numbers!

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Q. We’ve spent a lot of this time talking about the classes’ strengths, but what about weaknesses? Are there any things would-be Valkyrie players need to be aware of, in terms of weaknesses, or things it simply doesn’t do as well?

The concept art for the Valkyrie really shows their divine lineage and connection to the Paladin (Image via Amazon Games)

Roxanne Sabo: While it's hard to call them weaknesses, there are some areas to watch out for. DPS Valkyries, due to their nature of rapid rotations, require careful attention to mana recovery. If you can't use skills due to insufficient mana, it becomes difficult to refill the Light Meter, ultimately reducing the frequency of using "Final Splendor".

Support Valkyries, in particular, may find health recovery to be difficult. Players will need to utilize shields to prevent health loss before it even occurs, and have the judgment to choose the right timing to use limited healing skills.

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Q. Traditionally, Paladins are tanky characters that absorb hits for other players. Of course, there are exceptions like World of Warcraft’s Retribution Paladin. Is the Valkyrie a class in Lost Ark one that will easily have solo content, or do you think it will serve better as a multiplayer option?

Roxanne Sabo: We make sure to balance our solo content and provide options for selectable buffs so that this content is accessible to players of all classes. On top of that, we also recently made some adjustments to solo content to make it a bit easier for new players so they can use it as a training ground.

Even with that in mind, solo content should feel very natural for Valkyrie players because it will be easy to swap over to her DPS set up to pack some extra punch when taking down enemies and bosses!

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Q. Do you have any advice for up-and-coming Valkyrie players in Lost Ark?

Roxanne Sabo: I believe this class can effectively fulfill its role as both a supporter and a damage dealer. Valkyrie will fill in the gaps in the party well, as a damage dealer in situations where there's a shortage of them, and as a supporter in situations where there's no supporter. Various ongoing growth support events will even make this easier, and I hope you experience both and enjoy!

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Lost Ark’s Valkyrie class will be hitting the game in the August 20, 2025, update. For players who are new or returning, there will be useful events to take advantage of, so you can get started and try this incredible new class when it shows up on the Global Servers.