Best War Hammer Builds for PVE and PVP (Update 1.2.1)

This is a guide on the best War Hammer builds in New World. Read on to see the recommended stats, skills, armor, and playstyle guides of the best and latest War Hammer builds for PVE and PVP as of Update 1.2.1!

War Hammer / Great Axe Crowd Crusher Tank Build

Build Purpose
General (PvP and PVE)
Strengths	Weaknesses
・High HP and defense, perfect for tanking ・Great crowd control and AoE skills	・Low offensive capability ・Attacks are slow and easy to miss ・Reliant on team to provide damage

Build Stats and Skills

Stat Priority	Constitution
Strength	50
Dexterity	5
Intelligence	5
Focus	5
Constitution	145

Stats obtained through armor are not accounted for in this table.

1st Weapon	2nd Weapon
War Hammer	Great Axe
Active Skills
Shockwave Clear Out Path Of Destiny	Reap Maelstrom Gravity Well
Passive Skills
Frailty Meteoric Crater Outnumbered Facilitated Expedition Resurgence Power Cleaner Clean And Refreshed Swing Away Aftershock I Can Do This All Day Guarded Sprint Concussive Impact Prevailing Spirit Acceleration Seismic Waves Stimulated Reduction	Critical Gains Frustration Feed The Collector Hunger Critical Condition Mauler's Resolve Gravity Storm's Reach Absorb No Reprieve Heavy Pull Enduring Strike Crowded Protection Crowded Well Unyielding

Best Perks and Equipment

Perks and Equipment Stats
Best Perks	Regenerating Taunting IV Wilderness Ward IV Refreshing Toast Purify Divine
	Stats: Sentry (Constitution)
	Type: None Stats: -
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Sentry (Constitution)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Sentry (Constitution)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Sentry (Constitution)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Sentry (Constitution)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Sentry (Constitution)

Build Playstyle

War Hammer Crowd Crusher Tank Build is a pure tank build that relies solely on Constitution for survivability. This build does not have much offensive capability, leaving the damage-dealing to the DPS builds. What this build does have is the ability to pull enemies close and to keep them in place with stuns.

This build primarily uses abilities from the Crowd Crusher and Mauler skill trees, which are good at dealing with swarms of enemies. You can use the Great Axe to pull enemies close to you with Reap, Maelstrom, and Gravity Well, then stop enemy movement with War Hammer skills Shockwave, Clear Out, and Path of Destiny (with the Seismic Waves passive ability).

The passive skills are focused on more effectively stunning enemies, and increasing the range of your pulls. HP regen skills and perks are also important to this build, as you want the enemy to have a hard time taking you down.

You generally want to be on the front lines and in the center of all the action., where it would be easier to pull and stun multiple enemies at the same time. This would make it easier for your DPS allies to rain hell on them.

War Hammer / Spear Disabler Build

Build Purpose
PvP
Strengths	Weaknesses
・Strong single-target DPS ・Great crowd control, lots of AoE disables	・Low DPS ・Low health pool

Build Stats and Skills

Stat Priority	Strength → Dexterity
Strength	145
Dexterity	50
Intelligence	5
Focus	5
Constitution	5

Stats obtained through armor are not accounted for in this table.

1st Weapon	2nd Weapon
War Hammer	Spear
Active Skills
Clear Out Shockwave Path Of Destiny	Javelin Sweep Perforate
Passive Skills
Outnumbered Power Cleaner Guarded Sprint Acceleration Concussive Impact Facilitated Expedition Frailty Meteoric Crater Clean And Refreshed Prevailing Spirit Seismic Waves Resurgence Swing Away Aftershock Epitome Of Bonk! Stimulated Reduction	Forceful Impact Refreshing Jabs Refreshing Reach Finishing Blows Merciless Strength Tenacious Sweep Unerring Precision Refreshing Precision Defensive Stance Coup De Grace Rupturing Strikes Impactful Strikes Aggressive Maneuvers Strong Conditioning Deadly Distance Reserved Strength

Best Perks and Equipment

Perks and Equipment Stats
Best Perks	Sundering Javelin Cruel IV Bleeding Sweep Repulsing Clear Out Fortifying Perforate Sundering Shockwave
	Stats: Fighter (Strength → Dexterity)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Fighter (Strength → Dexterity)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Fighter (Strength → Dexterity)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Fighter (Strength → Dexterity)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Fighter (Strength → Dexterity)
	Weight: Heavy Stats: Fighter (Strength → Dexterity)

Build Playstyle

Use the Great Hammer for crowd control and disabling, and general damage dealing. Switch to a Spear while War Hammer skills are on cooldown for additional disables.

War Hammer for Damage

War Hammer's crowd control and debuffs will make you a tough nut to crack. The War Hammer's multi-target disables will make it good at dealing damage to large groups. Shockwave and Path of Destiny are great crowd control moves, and Clear Out can give you space when you are overwhelmed.

Spear for Additional Disables

The Spear comes into play when the opponent starts to run away from battle, or when your War Hammer skills are on cooldown. Javelin is both a damage-dealing and disabling skill with its stagger passive skill. Try to headshot with it for a huge cooldown reduction. Perforate will deal decent damage but also allows your War Hammer to deal more damage. Lastly, Sweep is a great crowd control move that can come in clutch when you need it.

War Hammer / Ice Gauntlet CC Build

Build Purpose
PvP
Strengths	Weaknesses
・Lots of crowd control ・Has multiple AoE abilities	・Requires setup for combos

Build Stats and Skills

Stat Priority	Intelligence → Strength → Constitution
Strength	65
Dexterity	5
Intelligence	110
Focus	5
Constitution	30

Stats obtained through armor are not accounted for in this table.

War Hammer	Ice Gauntlet
War Hammer	Ice Gauntlet
Active Skills
Clear Out Shockwave Path Of Destiny	Ice Storm Ice Shower Entombed
Passive Skills
Epitome Of Bonk! Hammer Time Exhaustive Attacks Hardened Steel Power Cleaner Acceleration Frailty Facilitated Expedition Concussive Impact Meteoric Crater Clean And Refreshed Prevailing Spirit Seismic Waves Swing Away Stimulated Reduction Aftershock	Cold Reach Critical Rejuvenation Gathering Storm Weakening Gust Storm Summoner Heavy Freeze Punishing Storm Quick Frost Empowered Frost Enduring Shower Quick Shower Refreshing Frost Strengthened Tomb Frigid Showers Defiant Freeze Cleansing Tomb

Best Perks and Equipment

Perks and Equipment Stats
Best Perks	Crippling Cruel IV Repulsing Clear Out Unending Thaw Brillant Focused
	Stats: Scholar (Intelligence)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Scholar (Intelligence)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Occultist (Intelligence + Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Sentry (Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Spellsword (Strength + Intelligence)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Druid (Constitution + Intelligence)

Build Playstyle

This build focuses on creating opportunities for you and your allies by inflicting Crowd Control status effects on your opponent.

Setup your team and yourself

During combat, initiate with your War Hammer. Your goal is to try and hit your opponent with Shockwave to stun them for your set-up. Once stunned, switch to your Ice Gauntlet and immediately cast Ice Shower to your opponent. Perform heavy attack to root, then cast Ice Storm under their feet. Since they're slow, you'll be able to easily hit them with a Clear Out to knock them back using your War Hammer. Since you've already created some distance between you and the opponent, perform a couple of light attacks to restore your mana using Empowered Frost and kite appropriately.

Alternatively, if their health is low, you can use Path of Destiny to finish them off, or if you're really in need of mana, cast Entombed to quickly restore it.

War Hammer / Sword & Shield Battle Tank Build

Build Purpose
General (PvP and PVE)
Strengths	Weaknesses
・Solid offensive & defensive power ・Can switch between attacking and defending in a pinch ・Great & varied crowd control skills	・Not the hardest hitter & not the tankiest tank ・Poor agility & mobility ・War Hammer attacks are slow & easy to miss

Build Stats and Skills

Stat Priority	Strength & Constitution
Strength	100
Dexterity	5
Intelligence	5
Focus	5
Constitution	95

Stats obtained through armor are not accounted for in this table.

1st Weapon	2nd Weapon
War Hammer	Sword and Shield
Active Skills
Mighty Gavel Clear Out Path Of Destiny	Leaping Strike Shield Bash Defiant Stance
Passive Skills
Epitome Of Bonk! Exhaustive Attacks Summary Judgment Impact Fracture Expedite Hammer Time Contemption Power Through Pain Hardened Steel Outnumbered Power Cleaner Clean And Refreshed Swing Away I Can Do This All Day Prevailing Spirit Seismic Waves	Empowered Stab Freeing Justice Counter Attack Achilles Heel Final Strike Intimidating Bash Concussive Bash Sturdy Shield Elemental Resistance Final Blow Defensive Formation Sturdy Grip Defensive Training High Grip Final Count Down Restoration

Best Perks and Equipment

Perks and Equipment Stats
Best Perks	Gambit IV Repulsing Shield Bash Retaliate IV Sturdy Taunting IV Physical Ward IV Wilderness Ward IV
	Stats: Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)
	Type: Kite or Tower Stats: Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: *Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)
	Weight: Medium Stats: Barbarian (Strength → Constitution)

Build Playstyle

The War Hammer / Sword & Shield Battle Tank Build strikes a fine balance between offense and defense. It takes two weapons that scale well with Strength, using the best skills from both skill trees.

The War Hammer has active skills that can do crowd control like Clear Out and Path of Destiny, while also having good smiting potential with Mighty Gavel.

The Sword and Shield on the other hand has good all-around skills with Leaping Strike, Shield Bash, and Defiant Stance, which enable you to adapt to any situation.

The War Hammer's passive skills skew towards offense while the Sword and Shield skills tend more toward defense.

The War Hammer / Sword & Shield Battle Tank Build is a formidable force on the front lines, boasting capable offensive power and solid defensive grit when in a pinch. This build is very versatile and can adapt to any situation on the fly.

War Hammer / Great Axe Glass Cannon Build

Build Purpose
PvE
Strengths	Weaknesses
・Ultimate attack power	・Close to zero defensive capability ・Not viable in PvP ・Not very useful if the player isn't able to avoid damage successfully

Build Stats and Skills

Stat Priority	Strength
Strength	195
Dexterity	5
Intelligence	5
Focus	5
Constitution	5

Stats obtained through armor are not accounted for in this table.

1st Weapon	2nd Weapon
War Hammer	Great Axe
Active Skills
Armor Breaker Mighty Gavel Wrecking Ball	Charge Execute Whirlwind
Passive Skills
Epitome Of Bonk! Quick Recovery Summary Judgment Impact Fracture Expedite Justice For All Hammer Time Contemption Power Through Pain Safety Measures Breathing Room Outnumbered I Can Do This All Day Guarded Sprint Acceleration Facilitated Expedition	Frenzied Momentum Unpredictable Strike Critical Gains Frustration Keen Edge Blood Lust Greed Death's Embrace Critical Condition Executioner's Speed Unstoppable Greed Executioner Gusting Winds Unending Winds Surrounded Mauler's Resolve

Best Armor Type and Perks

Perks and Equipment Stats
Best Perks	Rally IV Brash IV Exhilarate IV Gambit IV Opportunist IV
	Stats: Soldier (Strength)
	Type: None Stats: -
	Weight: Light Stats: Soldier (Strength)
	Weight: Light Stats: Soldier (Strength)
	Weight: Light Stats: Soldier (Strength)
	Weight: Light Stats: Soldier (Strength)
	Weight: Light Stats: Soldier (Strength)

Build Playstyle

The War Hammer / Great Axe Glass Cannon Juggernaut Build is centered on absolute melee power. All Stat points will be put into Strength first, creating a character who is fragile but can deal the most amount of damage in a single blow.

Because they are fragile, speed and mobility is preferred over tanking damage, hence the need for Light Armor. All Passive skills are focused on increasing damage output with a few ones focusing on Haste buffs for mobility.

This build is intended primarily for PvE, as the attack patterns of enemies are much easier to block and avoid compared to human enemies. This is intended for more advanced players who are confident in their ability to consistently dodge enemy attacks.

New World Related Guides

Best PVE and PVP Builds

List of Role Builds

List of Role Builds
Best Tank Builds	Best Healer Builds	Best DPS Builds

Best Weapon Builds

Best PVE and PVP Weapon Builds
Sword & Shield	Rapier	Hatchet	Spear
Great Axe	War Hammer	Bow	Musket
Fire Staff	Life Staff	Ice Gauntlet	Void Gauntlet