@Cathexis Thanks! In fact, I’m right now a lvl 69 Hoplite C1 (Swordsman>Highlander>Hoplite). I was thinking of going Swordsman>Highlander>Hoplite 1>Hoplite 2>Cataphract>Doppel. But it seems Hoplite 3>Doppel is a better option for high damage, if I undestand correctly. I just thoght 2H spears were something to aim for. Anyway, I’d appreciate if you could give one last comment on this and thanks for your time.
A question that came up just now. The Plate Mastery you said and Plate Mastery: Defense on the Swordsman Attribute Tree are the same, right?
Really thinking about what should I pick for rank 2. Highlanders has cartar stroke, it has high damage and big aoe but cant really mob. While peltasta has mobbing skill but you cant kill what you mob quite fast. I like the idea of mobbing before going in for the kill but we have small map and only 1 channel with tons of players in it, they will ks if you didnt kill it fast enough, and worse, you wont get the drops
Good post, but i dont find any need to get con or spr. So i just focus on str and dex.
Currently i am level 115, and doing perfectly fine everywhere. x2 swordman x2 hoplita.
115 with 8k hp, why would i need more hp at all. No need more healing than a few pots every once a while (except in party dungeons) and almost every hit is critical which double my damage and i take less damage than being more tanky. 1 hit does 1.1 - 1.3k damage per hit (critical) and just need 3-4 hits per monster or mob most of the times.
Sometimes i need more magic resist or fire resist specially in mage tower. But i can also dodge those spells by jumping around.
My weapon is a +7 grand spontoon with x2 lvl 5 green gems (+44 crit rate)
I got around 220 critical rate and i still can’t crit 100%.
2-Handed Spears are good, however, the current state of the game when it comes to dealing the most damage involves using Arde Dagger or Karacha Dagger on your offhand. Because those weapons are currently so strong, almost every class is using them, in the case of Hoplite it means using 1-Handed Spear + Dagger offhand to deal damage, switching to Shield when necessary (some bosses for example).
While those two daggers remain as strong as they currently are, any combination of 1-Handed Spear + Dagger will outclass any 2-Handed Spear.
We will see if those daggers get nerfed in the future, but until then there is no point in going Cataphract for using 2-Handed Spears, it would be only about the mobility.
If your goal is to deal more damage, then Corsair Circle 2 offers you utility (flag) and amazing DPS, while going into Doppelsoeldner will give you an incredible AoE in Cyclone (which is really strong) while having stronger Hoplite skills (Hoplite Circle 3).
Yeah, that is the attribute on the Swordsman tree.
While choosing Peltasta will be slowler leveling at early levels compared to Highlander, the ability to AoE taunt is incredibly useful later on. Not only does it allow you to grind faster, but it will make getting parties for dungeons or grinding easier, as you can perform the role of a tank better with that AoE taunt.
As for solo grinding, don’t worry too much about getting KSed, it barely happens and as a Hoplite you will be killing those mobs really fast, specially when using Stabbing/Pierce, so it is even less likely to happen.
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Hi Cathexis,
I fairly start the game a few day ago and testing few class to catch witch one i like first.
I happend to love that Hoplite, Fencer and Corsair.
I have a few question if you don’t mind :
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First Do your build ( and end with Corsair C2) is really good ? I kept watching video on youtube about corsair and mostly they go fort Barbarian / Corsair. What différence does it make ? Is it because it’s faster ?
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So you mean Dex should be only be focus on Item instead on Stat ? So you can put more high STR Stat ?
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Is Spear / dagger won’t make the attack a little bit slow ?
For the people that went barb corsair in youtube, it has the old barb buff that gives you crit and extra attacks. They removed that buff on kcbt3 and our icbt2.
Does arde work on rank 4 hop? Is there any attribute needed to use it for offhand?
Doesnt need any attribute, you can wear daggers using any class
A little contribution to all of our hoplite players 
Also, thanks to @Cathexis, this guide is soooooo useful and complete. Dude, you’re awesome. <3
I’m atm lvl 100 swords>peltasta>hop2 planning to go corsair after, i found that high STR build wasn’t strong enough/worth it cuz my critical attack with a grand spontoon/str pendant still incredibly OP even with 20 str (base + vubble gauntlets).
Also, with a full dex build, i crit like 100% of the time with my finestra at lvl 10, except for some bosses that have high crit resistance. I bought an arde dagger at lvl 86 and my criticals on piercing monster, generally, was 500~. Now i can hit for like 900~1k and destroy everything in front of me, so i would consider arde dagger as a MUST if you’re planning to go a full dps/corsair build.
I recorded half of the unicorn boss fight with this dagger and i’ll demonstrate how hard can you hit with grand spontoon +6 and arde dagger. Also, sorry about the low framerate, my VGA is really bad. 
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I also tested full dex vs full str, with also +6 grand spontoon 2 level 4 green gems. I crit 99% at full dex and i do 400 dmg average. On full str, I do 400 dmg normal hit but i crit around 2/5 times double that. I sometimes also miss because of low dex. A mix of both should be better but with much more str than dex
Maybe if we can find a good cap for dex, like 200 or smth and so continue scalling str until the end. We need to know about dodge after 170+ also, i think str only based build can’t continue grinding like a dex based, at least for now.
Edit: i’m using 2 lvl 4 yellow gems and planning to put another one on arde, these gems really SHINE haha
Do you still use Z or C when equipped with Arde?
I actually have 70 dex and the rest went str around 100+. Still crit alot if I may say so. Considering that I’m not using any green gem.
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So what do you suggest to go fort full dps corsair with Cathexis build ?
I mean stat / equipment / weapon ? (Sorry i just start the game and can’t understand what you mean by Arde dagger XD
You mean having 2 dagger then for boss and spear / dagger for mob ?
As a Hoplite geared character, where would you go for your further ranks in order to maximize the use of your spear? At some point in order to progress, do you HAVE to pick up another class and/or put down your spear?
I really want to have a character that is awesome with a spear, and so Hoplite/Cataphract looks like one of the main classes I’ll play. I’m just wondering if I’ll be behind those who have chosen to go with a higher ranked class.
ATM i’m lvl 105, soloing very well but also got 2 irl friends lvl 120 that sometimes party with me (paladin support and a barbarian).
i’m with 144 dex, 32 str, 22 con (basically i just lvled up 5 ~ con and str and completed with some stats from equips). I maxed finestra as soon as i get c2 hoplite, stacking points as a hoplite lvl 1. Stabbing is enough on lvl 1~2 for early game, pierce is a goddamn OP skill even on leveling so i would recommend to put lvl 5 on c1, max finestra as you get c2, get spear lunge 1 (long stride don’t work without a shield so you can skip this out if you want) and them go to pierce lvl 10. i have lvl 9 pierce now and this simply wreck any normal/elite mobs and with spear lunge debuff/leather armor bosses, i can hit like 30 or 40% of their hp with just one piercing.
I’m using leather armor and getting leather atribs and it’s pretty strong also, with this dex, even with - eva from finestra you still be able to dodge most of mobs without spending much pots. get ALL of the hoplite atributes (finestra splash on circle 2, continuous piercing, stabbing evasion, piercing bleeding) ASAP and also provoke from swordsman. For enhancing atribs, i got lvl 20 gung ho/concentrate/stabbing/piercing and i’ll farm a lot of gold now to lvl up piercing to 50, i’m pretty sure it will worth it since the dmg of this skill is something really out of control. You can get nice atribs from peltasta also, all of they are cheap and increase your block/evasion while guarding/hp when you use swashbuckling, i got all of those and helped a looooooot to lvl up with a shield until i got my dagger.
Edit: about another weaps: i haven’t tried other options like golden falchion or skull crusher but since you can only use finestra with a spear i don’t think it’s worth it (maybe use and swap weapons later? Dunno, even tho, you have spear lunge debuff with a low cd and overheat so every mob that don’t take pierce dmg bonus will take it anyway haha)
I see thanks for your fast answer.
So that mean when the game will be release and when they will be no reset free we will have to focus on Dex at the begin right ?
First Do your build ( and end with Corsair C2) is really good ? I kept watching video on youtube about corsair and mostly they go fort Barbarian / Corsair. What différence does it make ? Is it because it’s faster?
Like @time2sleep00, most of the videos show them using skills that have been removed from the game. Nowadays, while it is possible to go Barb->Corsair, I think that Hoplite->Corsair is the better option overall.
So you mean Dex should be only be focus on Item instead on Stat ? So you can put more high STR Stat?
Yeah, as one reaches higher levels, acquiring Critical Rate and Accuracy through items/gems is much easier than trying to increase your damage through them. Plus STR scales much better than DEX, as you get an extra 10% of it each time you progress to a higher rank.
Is Spear / dagger won’t make the attack a little bit slow ?
No, your attack will remain the same until you reach Corsair C2, where it will actually increase through the use of Double Weapon Assault.
You only use Z when using Arde Dagger, the +153 Fire Damage is automatically added to your damage.
Thanks for sharing your experience! It helps having different perspectives on how people have played Hoplite and what has helped them
I think that you shouldn’t get too invested into that much DEX because of these reasons:
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You will be changing weapons soon, at level 120 Zega Spear becomes the best option to use. Same happens at level 170 with more options to choose from.
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Critical Attack is just a flat amount added at the end of your damage, investing into Yellow Gems for it isn’t really worth it considering that you will benefit a lot more from using Green Gems.
This means that you can use your spare points into getting more Physical Attack, which in comparison to Critical Attack, this one will actually scale a lot better because it will be affected by damage modifiers.
At higher levels, you can get way over 200 Critical Rate from Green Gems alone. -
Talking about scaling better, you have to consider that you get an additional 10% STR each time you advance to the next Rank. This means that you will get more return for your points investment as you reach higher levels. The scaling for damage will be much better by using points into STR.
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Evasion is fine, but later on there is a lot of magic at higher level maps (magic can’t dodged) and if you are using plate armor, then physical attacks will be hitting you for a very low amount anyways.
In the end, no matter what you do, STR > DEX for a Hoplite, simply because of how much flexibility Finestra gives when building a character. Sure, as a Corsair you will have to invest more points into DEX becuse you won’t be able to get higher levels of Finestra, but it won’t drastically change the build.
The scaling is just much better with STR, and it keeps getting better and better as you reach higher levels.
Thanks for answering the other questions!
While my personal build is full STR, there is a reason while I use “High STR” on the guide, and that is because the experience will change for each person depending on their gear. So they can add more DEX/CON if they feel necessary as they explore more content of this game.
Personally, even with 0 points into DEX (except the ones I get from equipment), I have never missed fighting against mobs/bosses all the way up to 160+. And thanks to Finestra + the use of Green Gems, I can critical hit just fine, as it has been shown through the videos I have uploaded so far.
I think you should start leveling up and as you explore the game you will learn more things about it and the advice on these posts will be easier for you to understand.
If you follow this guide, then you will have an easier time knowing that to focus on and then refining your build based on your experience or personal liking.
Once you are getting closer to the stage where you will turn into a Corsair, then we can better help you with your equipment/stats knowing exactly what you are using at that point in time.
That said, everyone in the game is using Arde Dagger (or the level 170 version, Karacha Dagger), which you can get as a drop from the level 90 dungeon.
You should aim to get the Arde one once you are 90+.
We are getting the Dragoon class in the near future, which is another Spear class which will give the Hoplite the perfect choice at Rank 7+.
That said, you never have to put your Spear down. Corsair and Doppelsoeldner are great choices for advancing after Hoplite, as both of those classes can keep using Spear as a weapon and fully use their skill set.
I explained the Cataphract vs Doppelsoeldner/Corsair on a post a little up, but I can expand a little more on it:
Since Cataphract C1 is a Rank 4 class (on the same level as Hoplite C2), it means that if you choose it for your build, then you will end up with two Rank 4 circles.
The idea is that you get stronger as you choose classes at higher ranks, by choosing Cataphract after Hoplite, you are not really increasing your damage output, but instead you are trading that for mobility by using a mount and the ability to use 2-Handed Spears.
Unfortunately, the current meta involves using Arde/Karacha Dagger on your off-hand, which makes it so there is no real reason to use 2-Handed Spears at the moment.
We will see if that changes in the future, but for now, if your goal is to keep getting stronger (deal more damage), then choosing Corsair or Doppelsoeldner over Cataphract is a much better option.
No, high STR remains the best option for a Hoplite. It has much better scaling than using DEX. But we will see if there are Reset Scrolls when the game comes out.
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I guess so. I’m figuring out this yet xD i wanna get corsair first but i think corsair is mostly dex oriented anyway.
Another thing to consider is that higher lvl mobs get higher crit resistance, so maybe when you manage to became a corsair, you’ll need a high dex to continue exploiting crits for the rest of your life xD
Thanks for the advice. I see your point and it’s really good to consider a str based also, i think we all will become dragoon later no matter how the choice was on circle 5/6 xD so maybe he’ll be more str based also. I’m justing worrying about the crit resistance later on, i wish we had one more month to get lvl 200 so we can test all that stuff ):