Black Panther End Game Build black panther dps pvp
Guide by Tragicomedy Last update at Jun 13th 2013, 13:21

Points Available: 0
Exalted of Bast 1
1  60


UPDATED (13 June):
*With the changes being made to defense (every character now has significantly more than before, I've decided to drop Panther Soul down to just 1 skill point.  Until Gaz takes a close look at how much defense these types of passive skills add, they are now worth significantly less than they already were (and their utility was already up for debate).  I'm taking 1 point in Panther Soul for the initial spirit tick when you take damage.  In place of Panther Soul, I suggest you:
  1. Max out Vibranium Trap with a full 20 points.
  2. Place the remaining points into Blessing of Bast...you should be able to get it to 14 at the level cap.

UPDATED (7 June): 
*Play testing around with Scything Sweep (mine is currently at level 14 with + skill items) has led to the conclusion that it's not a great AOE option for Black Panther.  References to it in the original guide have been removed.  Based on feedback from other players and some preliminary number crunching, I recommend tossing those points into one of the following skills instead (in prioritized order):

  1. Vibranium Trap - mobility plus a decent amount of damage, and doesn't leave locked into surrounding yourself with enemies.  The only downside is it costs 8 spirit more than SS does, but it's a worthwhile trade off and a big boost to overall damage.
  2. Blessing of Bast - while this skill doesn't scale terrifically well in terms of health point returns, it does end up being the equivalent of a spammable mini-med kit at higher levels.  The additional haste and tenacity rating are just icing on the cake.  It's also 20 spirit per use.  This indirectly increases your damage with the haste gain, but it only lasts for 3 seconds.  Useful more for the health return aspect.
  3. Triple Throw - I admittedly have done zero testing on this front.  None, nada, zilch.  The idea behind taking this is merely that on certain fights like Magneto or Dr. Doom, you will find situations where the boss is surrounded by VERY BAD SPARKLY AOE DAMAGE BUBBLES and you don't want to step inside them.  Essentially, this means that on things like phase three of Dr. Doom you aren't really contributing as much as you'd probably like...more of quick hit-and-run tactics.  In theory, tossing a few mean blades at the boss is better than nothing.  The biggest downside is that at 30 spirit a pop, you won't be tossing a large number of them.
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ORIGINAL BUILD

This build is designed with end game play in mind, and priorities are established with that goal.


Absolute must-max (20 points) abilities are:


  1. Savage Strike - this is your hardest hitting ability, and it's on par with the best single-target damage skills in the game. The damage from the strike + the bleed effect is absolutely devastating. 
  2. Panther Grace - to me, this is the definitive skill of the class. Dodge is your primary defensive mechanism, not defense or armor like some of the other classes. Black Panther falls into the dodge-based category of melee characters with Daredevil (others that rely heavily on dodge are the Black Widow and Rocket Raccoon, though they have more ranged options as well). If you stack this and armor that grants dodge percentages to your character, you will see your survivability skyrocket. Mine is hovering at ~40% now, and I plan to push it higher as I level up. Under the current game mechanisms, dodge can actually give you increased survivability on bosses than even defense does (I know this from hitting level 20ish on Colossus...his defense and armor are amazing against most enemies, but are trash against bosses). With some luck from the RNG gods, you can avoid a ton of damage. 
  3. Vibranium Trap - this is your main AOE attack and it comes with a very handy stun.  Excellent skill all around for farming, killing trash on the way to bosses, and for leveling in Limbo mode.
  4. Freezing Slash OR Enervating Slash - pick one of these two as your main basic power attack. Both are melee range attacks that strike a small cone of targets in front of you. The former slows down and potentially freezes your targets, saving you from incoming damage. The latter weakens and slows down your foe as well, minus the freeze effect. So why the debate between them? Well, the first two basic powers on the left side of the skill tree strike faster than the final one. It's not a HUGE difference, but it has definitely been noticeable to me during game play. If you are a complete speed freak (fitting for a Black Panther player), the slower speed of Freezing Slash might be a deal breaker for you. Try them both out and decide for yourself. I'm committed to Freezing Slash for now, since the ability to completely freeze my opponent wins out in my mind. 
  5. Predator's Aim - this is the least necessary of the passives to max, but I suggest doing so just the same. This allows your basic power attack to reduce the defense of your enemies very significantly. This affects not only your attacks but those of your party, as well. Think of it as a massive debuff on a boss, where every little bit helps. 
Next comes Blessing of Bast - a self-cleanse, instant health regeneration, and a boost to your haste rating for more damage.  Can be spammed as a mini-med kit.  What's not to like?  You'll dump all remaining points into here and should be able to get it to level 14 at level cap.

Finally, there are a few one point wonders I suggest you get: 
  1. Slashing Lunge - allows you to dash towards your enemy and knock them down. Basically, a quick gap-closer. Who cares about the damage? 
  2. Stealthy Escape - get out of jail free card, which also serves as an aggro dump. 
  3. Panther Sight - useful only in getting your enemies to show up on the radar, no use putting more than one point into it. 
  4. Dora Milaje - summon two bodyguards to help you in tough situations or boss fights. Mainly used as a quick distraction.