Dauntless Hits Xbox One Today with 10 Tips to Slaying with Style

The team here at Phoenix Labs is excited to welcome the Xbox One community into Dauntless, our co-op action RPG launching today! Dauntless is all about teaming up with your friends to take down larger-than-life behemoths, crafting epic gear, and taking on larger and more difficult challenges to forge your legend as a Slayer in the Shattered Isles.

Dauntless has been in development for over four years now, and we spent a great deal of time taking in feedback from the community. Because so much has changed in the last year alone, I wanted to take the opportunity to provide some tips for rookie Slayers to get the most out of their Dauntless experience.

1. Never Stop Dodging: We designed combat in Dauntless to feel fast and fluid, and the behemoths you fight will never give you an inch so dodging is integral to successfully taking down your target. After fighting the same behemoth a few times you’ll be able to start reading their movements and prepare to dodge out of the way of a projectile or tailspike that could easily ruin your day.

2. Always Check Your Smiths: You should be making countless trips to visit Moyra the Armoursmith and Wils the Weaponsmith over the course of your journey. It’s always good to check in with them following a hunt to see if you have any new gear available to craft or upgrade. Even if you can’t make anything new, take a peek at what materials you need for that next level. If ranged combat is more your cup of tea, Janek Zai on the western side of town is your go-to source for Repeaters and Grenade crafting. Repeaters are super flexible weapons but will take a little extra time to craft all their requisite customizable parts.

3. Pursue Mastery for New Combat Options: Mastery is a new system in Dauntless that grants rewards for just about everything you do in the game. Each behemoth and weapon in the game has its own unique Mastery achievements. Enjoy hunting with the Hammer? You’ll earn Hammer mastery experience every time you take your cudgel out on a hunt. Check out the Mastery screen from the main menu, and you’ll see all the objectives you can meet – it’ll be worth it to unlock new abilities for your weapons, such as alternate Special Attacks and powerful Weapon Mods!

4. Visit Gregario to Grab Hunt Pass Rewards: The Hunt Pass gives Slayers the ability to earn seasonal rewards across 50 levels. Even if you don’t want to drop some Platinum for the Elite Pass (which has some pretty sweet cosmetic rewards), all Slayers will receive rewards for gathering certain items around the city, getting special Break Parts off behemoths, or completing weekly challenges in the quest log. Platinum is Dauntless’ premium currency and can be used to purchase cosmetic items like weapon and armour skins, emotes, flares, dyes, and more.

Players can purchase Platinum in the Dauntless store and earn it through both the basic and Elite tracks of the Hunt Pass. Players cannot use Platinum to buy stronger weapons and armour – those are strictly earned through progression. Break parts are pieces of behemoths that players break off during combat, and they’re also rewarded at the end of a hunt. Break parts are the key ingredients to crafting and upgrading weapons and armour. Hunting a behemoth like Koshai can net you parts like the Vital Thorn, Imposing Antler and Vinetooth. Break parts have different rarity levels as well. Each weapon and armour piece has a specific recipe that players will discover through progression.

5. Keep an Eye on Elements: Each behemoth in Dauntless has an elemental affiliation that you can use to your advantage as you prepare for a hunt. For instance, Frost behemoths are weak against Blaze weapons. You’ll also gain a defense boost by wearing armour that matches the behemoth’s element! Build up an arsenal of different elemental gear sets so you’re ready for any enemy you’ll find in the Maelstrom.

6. Keep the Middleman Busy: Cells are enhancements that you can socket into you gear and are a critical part of your Dauntless loadout. Cells range from uncommon to epic rarity and range from granting +1 to +3 levels of a particular perk. If you visit the Middleman, you can drop off two cells of the same rarity, which he will turn into a cell of the next rarity level up. You can also mix and match cells to get different outcomes: match two of the same cell exactly to receive a powerful version of that cell, match categories for a random cell of that category, or just roll the dice by dropping off two totally random cells. Upcycle strategically to strengthen your build!

7. Stay Alive with Bulwark Tonics: If you’re finding yourself getting downed a bunch while learning the behemoths and getting your footing with combat, don’t hesitate to keep an eye out for Ironthistle and craft yourself some Bulwark potions. They’ll massively reduce the damage you take for the next three hits in combat, so chug one during a break in combat for a little safety net.

8. Don’t Waste Cell Power: Perks don’t get more powerful than their +6 bonus level, so make sure you don’t waste any valuable itemization power by going over the limit. You’ll get some perks from gear and the rest from cells, so try to hit the magical +6 sweet spot for a sizable effectiveness bump with no wasted power.

9. Don’t Sleep on Lanterns: When you gain the ability to craft new lanterns, don’t miss out on the huge power bump you’ll get from using them effectively. Each lantern has a “tap” ability and a “hold” ability which charge in combat. Using lantern abilities frequently (yet still at the best strategic windows) is a huge way to optimize your Dauntless DPS (damage per second)!

10. Practice Makes Perfect: Every time you fight a behemoth, you’ll learn more about the encounter and get closer to mastering it. Learn those DPS windows. Learn those attack patterns! Be like me and keep it a total secret that you chugged a thousand Bulwark Tonics learning the Rezakiri fight! Keep at it, gather your friends, and show those behemoths the power of a Slayer’s determination.

See you in the Shattered Isles, and clear skies, Slayers!