God of War Ragnarök offers players an incredible amount of customization when it comes to crafting their ideal version of Kratos. With various stats to boost, unique armor sets to collect, and legendary weapons to upgrade, there is no shortage of options. However, with so many choices available, it can be downright overwhelming trying to determine what the best builds are for different playstyles. This extensive guide will break down some of the top builds for Kratos in God of War Ragnarök, providing everything you need to know to craft a mighty god-slaying machine tailored to your preferences.
Overview of Kratos Builds
Before diving into specific builds, it‘s important to understand the basics of how you can customize Kratos in God of War Ragnarök. Much of your capability in combat comes down to your equipment and upgrading various stats. Here‘s a quick overview:
- Armor Sets – There are various legendary armor sets that you can collect, each of which provides different stat bonuses and powerful perks. Mixing and matching sets allows you to accentuate certain playstyles.
- Stats – By upgrading gear and slotting enhancements, you can increase Strength, Defense, Runic, Luck, Vitality, and Cooldown for Kratos. Prioritizing certain stats is key for certain builds.
- Weapons – Kratos wields the Leviathan Axe, Blades of Chaos, and Draupnir Spear. You can slot weapon attachments to add bonuses and perks.
- Shields – Along with his weapons, Kratos uses shields for protection in battle. Shields have special skills that can complement builds.
- Enchantments – These slottable gems provide a wide array of statistical bonuses to fine-tune Kratos‘s capabilities.
- Relics – Extremely powerful relics can be activated for devastating attacks. Some builds focus on enhancing relic use.
Now that you understand the basic customization components for Kratos in God of War Ragnarok, let‘s check out some amazing end game builds you can craft!
Best Runic Attack Build
Runic attacks are those spectacular cinematic displays of destruction that Kratos can unleash upon his foes. For those who love unleashing a non-stop torrent of magical mayhem, this is the perfect damage-dealing build to maximize those runic barrages.
This build centers around the Enlightenment armor set which can be obtained in Svartalfheim. The full set includes the Enlightenment Spaulders, Bracers, and Belt. Together these provide bonuses like increasing runic attack damage against enemies afflicted with status effects. They also have high runic stats overall.
To further improve runic capabilities, the key weapon attachments would be:
- Leviathan Axe – Grip of Weighted Recovery – Stun grabbing restores cooldown timer
- Blades of Chaos – Pommels of the Undying Spark – Chance to grant Strength gift on runic kill
- Draupnir Spear – Hind of Attuned Elements – Bonus spear damage against burning/frozen enemies
- Shield – Rond of Disruption – Chance to trigger elemental explosion on parries
With this setup, you‘ll be able to spam those cinematic runic death-dealers nonstop! Make sure to use them only when enemies are vulnerable for that sweet boost from the Enlightenment armor perks. Send draugr flying with the force of your endless magical barrage!
The Rage Monster Build
For some, there are few greater joys than embracing the raw wrath of the Spartan Rage. This build turns Kratos into an unstoppable berserker who can channel near endless rage, delivering whirlwind flurries of axe swings and spear stabs that overwhelm all foolish enough to stand in his way.
The Berserker armor set is crucial here with it‘s rage-enhancing perks. In tandem with the Darkdale gauntlets and waist guard, hacking away at enemies afflicted with status effects will build rage rapidly.
Key weapon attachments would include:
- Blades of Chaos – Deadly Obsidian Handles – Chance for rage burst on blade kills
- Draupnir Spear – Battle-Scarred Sauroter – Stun grab grants rage burst
- Shield – Rond of Aggravation – Parrying grants chance of rage burst
With this monstrous setup, Kratos can maintain his empowering rage state for ridiculous lengths of time, unleashing his beastly might upon the realms as he sees fit. All will know this walking fury storm as an unstoppable rage monster leaving only bodies and wreckage in his wake!
The Whirlwind Build
Some prefer a more elegant combat dance to Kratos‘s typically direct and heavy-handed style. For those valuing finesse, dexterity, and a whirling ballet of death, the Whirlwind build expedites slicing up enemies with style.
Constructing the Lunda‘s Lost armor set forms the framework for this build. It provides excellent luck bonuses to trigger the set‘s perk – imbuing bare-handed attacks with high poison damage. Additional weapon attachments include:
- Leviathan Axe – The Furious Maul – Chance to grant Strength gift on axe kills
- Blades of Chaos – Pommels of Brutal Might – Chance to gain Strength gift on stun grab
- Shield – Rond of Affliction – Parrying has a luck chance to poison targets
By combining these equipment choices with the incredible mobility of the Dauntless Shield, you‘ll be able to dance around the battlefield at blinding speeds, dicing up groups of foes with elegant twin-blade flourishes and debilitating poison swipes.
Spinning, flipping, and sprinting between targets while unleashing a dizzying flurry of slices and toxic ruptures, Kratos becomes the epicenter of a gracefully gruesome slaughter under the Whirlwind build.
The Tank Build
Not everyone enjoys frantically dancing around the battlefield or maintaining rage states. Some prefer the direct approach, wading straight into the thick of battle and relying more on mighty defenses than overwhelming offense. For these resolute warriors, the Tank Build transforms Kratos into an immovable object that can withstand insane amounts of punishment.
The Steinbjorn armor is the core of this build with its ludicrous defense stats and health regeneration perk. Combining this impenetrable cuirass with the Bracers of Raven Tears and Surtr‘s Scorched Girdle provides additional damage reduction and increased resistance to interruption while attacking.
With his mountainous health pool passively regenerating during combat along with stacked damage mitigation, Kratos becomes nigh-invincible under the Tank Build. He can use the Dauntless Shield to hunker down under assault then counterattack out of turn with his trusty Leviathan Axe.
Through steadfast resilience, the unbreakable juggernaut Kratos withstands everything the realms throw at him before burying his axe into the skulls of his defeated foes!
Conclusion
The most rewarding aspect of God of War Ragnarök is tailoring Kratos to your own personal vision of the ultimate god-slaying machine. Whether you want a relentless rage monster fueled by destruction, a poetically lethal whirlwind dancer, or steadfast immovable juggernaut, the game provides all the tools needed to craft iconic builds true to your preferences.
Experiment, adjust, and upgrade until you settle on that perfect synchronization of gear, enchantments, stats, and playing style that brings your idealized interpretation of Kratos to glorious reality. Revel in the power fantasy as you unleash your unique flavor of godly rage upon the denizens of the Norse realms!
Hopefully this guide has given you some ideas on iconic ways to craft Kratos to excel at different combat styles. Now grab your Leviathan Axe and let the build crafting begin!
