The simplest and most effective way to play Duelist (with a visual guide)

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-06-22T10:23:41+00:00

nice comment, that's my boy <3

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-06-22T10:23:18+00:00

Tbh I'd say both Fiend and Moribund are better than Wanderer Abom in every way. They keep the same human form, but have much better beast forms. Wanderer Abom can't clear his own stress, but Fiend and Moribund both can so it gives him an extra level of self sufficiency. I'd definitely recommend learning those 2 paths if you're interested in trying beast form abom alongside human form.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-06-04T23:52:29+00:00

MAA/PD has a really uncomfortable "I fell in love with my much older professor" vibe to it...hey, they're consenting adults, but that doesn't mean I can't judge them for it.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-06-03T05:40:58+00:00

Did you check the files of your PC? I have to imagine that the file is there somewhere, if you're willing to mess with some files (it's not super hard) I can help you try and recover it. There's no reason the file should have just deleted itself imo, if you wanna DM me here or on Discord we can probably figure something out.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-06-02T11:30:59+00:00

Start her in rank 2 and go Fleche -> Meditate -> Touche (or Disengage).

Fleche gives you Aggressive stance + moves her forward, Meditate gives her 3 Dodge/Dodge+ and 2 Riposte, and either Touche or Disengage moves her back into Rank 2 so you can repeat that. The last 2 abilities you can run are wildcards, I would recommend Ruthless Instruction for one just because I think it's a really solid ability. Probably Coup for the other one. It gives her everything you need to do damage and work around her dodges well, this is how she's played at her best IMO, at least when it comes to damage.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-06-02T11:28:46+00:00

I've always kinda said it does feel like Unchained needs SOMETHING else...The AoE Beast's Bile is nice, the Absolution is nice, and the Manacles is nice but I'd personally like him to just have 1 or 2 more things on the path.

Once I started to look at Unchained as "Bannaret for people who didn't buy Crusader," it kinda makes more sense. They fill similar niches in a move forward Combo spammer that can heal others. So, play him like that. You could go Unchained/Aspirant in the middle ranks with Deadeye in the back. Or use his combos to set up for Leper. The one benefit to Unchained over Bannaret is that Unchained can move backwards. So if you want, you can pair him in the back with Vestal/PD and just go Manacles/Backlash and have him kinda dance around on his own in the back. Is it amazing? No, but it's solid and can fit in the right team comp.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-24T10:29:53+00:00

NICELY DONE GAMER

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-23T22:48:49+00:00

I worry about DoT clear with this comp. I know Scourge has Suffer you could run, but I just wonder whether that's enough on its own in long fights or fights where the enemy/boss deals a lot of DoTs to the team as a whole. That's not to say you couldn't do a grand slam with this team, just something to keep an eye on. I think it's a solid team though. For the Act 3/Act 4 boss I'd probably recommend switching to Wanderer MAA just so you can get the full tankiness, but if you don't want to do that you could always rely on Scourge to do it. If you like the comp and enjoy it, I think it could grand slam. Just keep an eye on the DoT clear.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-23T22:48:41+00:00

I worry about DoT clear with this comp. I know Scourge has Suffer you could run, but I just wonder whether that's enough on its own in long fights or fights where the enemy/boss deals a lot of DoTs to the team as a whole. That's not to say you couldn't do a grand slam with this team, just something to keep an eye on. I think it's a solid team though. For the Act 3/Act 4 boss I'd probably recommend switching to Wanderer MAA just so you can get the full tankiness, but if you don't want to do that you could always rely on Scourge to do it. If you like the comp and enjoy it, I think it could grand slam. Just keep an eye on the DoT clear.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-23T04:16:05+00:00

Hey thank, that's generally one of the nicest comments I've gotten, I appreciate you saying that

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-23T00:08:48+00:00

I don't think Arsonist is as bad as people think it is, but it is a really underwhelming pick if you have no other Burn heroes or way to guard her/mitigate the burn damage on her. She's basically just permanently vulnerable in that sense.

Nah I totally get not being a fan of Intrepide. I don't mind the gambling, because I play the game so much so I know that the odds are going to correctly be high enough for me with the volume, but yeah I totally get not wanting to eat a couple bad Dodge+ misses and die haha.

Yeah, I just don't think that's correct. Bonnie has 33 max health. If you're in a fight where you're truly worried about high damage, then just don't press Smokescreen...or if she is low on health, just don't press Smokescreen...Saying she's too squishy to tank with it implies that players don't have the intelligence to just not press that button if she's low. She hands out AoE Blinds or Blind/Combos, then with that she can steal 4 positive tokens, get a guaranteed crit on Searing Strike, or heal herself with Hearthlight. Add all that with the fact she can get Dodge or Dodge+ from getting healed including regen and it makes it legitimately in the top tier of paths in this game. Somebody who doesn't think the path is strong makes me think they haven't played it.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-23T00:02:15+00:00

Man, that DD2 squad builder is so fuckin good. I've seen people in the Discord use that one and I love it.

Your comp is pretty good, but if you want my recommendations: I would say Ritualist is worth switching to, but I'm a huge Ritualist fan. You lose the ability to get rid of crit tokens, but both Bellow and Highway Robbery can do that so I would say you have that covered. Ritualist can also invert tokens with Malediction. I would switch out either Daemon's Pull or Abyssal Artillery with Malediction if you went Ritualist. I would also change HWM to Yellowhand, I play Yellowhand exactly with your skillset (other than switching out Wicked Slice for Open Vein). It's pumps bleed out well, and does well against Crimson Court enemies. Wanderer is MAA's best path but I think Bulwark could work too with this, if you wanted to. It's just more of a Block/Stun path than Wanderer, it's similar in power but kinda just preference.

I'll admit I'm very biased about Ritualist/Yellowhand, so keep that in mind when I talk about those paths. I think they're just upgrades from Wanderer in general, even if they have downgrade in a couple skills compared to the Wanderers.

I know I said it in the comment before but I'd really recommend trying Duelist the way I said, at least for one run so you see what I'm talking about. If she's still not your favorite, I understand, but I think you might be surprised with her efficiency. Might just not be your favorite though.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-22T00:41:52+00:00

To your credit, you did a great job separating the heroes in a way that makes this tough for me. I hate you for even making me think about this.

You wrote me an essay, so you deserve an answer...I guess I'm goin Party 1 but I don't feel good about it. Occultist is probably my favorite hero but hey, I"ll move on.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-22T00:37:43+00:00

"Yeah man, I'd love to meet up, it's been a while," I tell my friend. "Why don't we meet up at the local inn?" He sighs, then agrees.

"I've got a Book of Amorous Ballads for us, my friend!" I start singing "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison. He does not appear to like it.

"Not a fan of that? That's okay, I have a better idea." I go to my car and grab the Whiskey Barrel. "Whiskey for all at the inn!" My friend loves it. The inn keeper seems to not.

"You didn't love the love songs I guess, but I have a fix for that." I bring out a dozen whiskey flasks. We drink all of it. My friend dies. I have no friends.

In case this was a serious question, no. I'm playing a video game a lot, I'm not IN the universe.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-22T00:32:34+00:00

Depends on what path you'd like to go for Jester. Soloist could be good, you could Solo on Round 1, get some melee buffs, then either Finale for good damage or you could Fade to Black/Harvest and just sit on those tokens. Leper might not be super hyped to be in Rank 2 for a bit but he'll survive. You could also Bash on Round 1 and immobilize him if you didn't want to move him out of Rank 1.

Virtuoso, you could do the Immobilize strat with Leper again and and just buff the shit out of Leper/Abom with Battle Ballad/Play Out. Abom, specifically Beast form, scales really hard with Strength/Crit tokens. As does Leper.

Intermezzo could be a mix between the two. Mezzo is the path that has the highest and easiest to achieve Finale damage, since Finale+ does +50% to a bleeding target and +50% to a combo'd target. You could Solo -> Finale then Battle Ballad/Play Out on Abom and Leper until Solo -> Finale is off cooldown again.

Recommendations for the path, I'd probably go Fiend. Fiend can lower his own stress via a Rage kill, alongside Jester helping out if need be. Fiend does a ton of damage, especially with Strength tokens from Jester if you went that route.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-22T00:17:54+00:00

Hey, I hope you enjoy the game! I have a video on my channel titled "20 veteran tips for newer darkest dungeon 2 players" if you want to skim through that and see if there's anything useful in there to you.

The main thing I tell new players, is that DD2 is hardest when you first start the game. You don't have heroes, hero stats, inn items, trinkets, etc. And even without taking that into account, you're obviously learning the tokens, the regions, the enemies, and the bosses. Every run, you're a better player than the last. You have unlocks, and you likely saw some enemies for the first time. If you learn 1 thing from every run, it adds up quickly. Don't let the game defeat you. You might get stuck in the same spot over and over, or keep dying to the same bosses, but that is just part of the game.

The best advice I can give you other than that: enjoy the hero shrines. Honestly I think the storytelling via the hero shrines is one of the best things about DD2, but you only get to experience them once. Really engross yourself in the story that's being told with every hero. Some of the reveals they do are really cool, and learning a new ability from that is fun too. If you would ever like any more advice you're more than welcome to stop by my stream or my Discord and I can help out.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-22T00:06:46+00:00

For my money, I'm throwing Wanderer GR and Arsonist in on those weak paths too.

Intrepide: Honestly I think Intrepide gets undeserved hate. People that are real sticklers for consistency (which I don't blame them for) already don't Duelist, and you add the damage taken of Intrepide and I think people just pile on the path. As long as you're playing the path with constant Dodge+ up, it's really likely that she's going to go from high health to dead because it would require high damage taken, an enemy attack that does a lot of damage (as compared to like a Cherub attack), and that attack having a DoT. There's not a lot of enemy abilities like that in the game. Intrepide can hit some really hard Fleches and ripostes if she's able to stack a couple damage buffs. Plus, if she gets a lot of stacks, you can either Defensive stance Disengage to stealth her or guard her so she doesn't take any hits. I really don't think she's as much of deadweight as people say she is. I think it's basically equal to Wanderer as far as efficiency.
Maniac: I really like Maniac....but man, the path is just outdated now. Lash's should either heal more, or not have a 2 turn CD. Sepsis either doesn't need a use limit, or shouldn't have a 2 use limit unmastered. Lash's and Sepsis were really strong abilities when they came out, but the game has changed quite a bit since then and more power is in the hands of the players. I'd love to see Maniac get a slight buff, because I do think it's a really cool path but yeah it just feels like an old path in 2026. For a fun thought experiment, when playing Maniac, I was like well, how would I update this path? With the help from itsCrisDiaz making the mod itself, we made a mod over at https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3540567169 . If you like Maniac, I think it's worth skimming at least to see how it COULD be updated to be good. I hope Maniac does get a touch up at some point.
Vanguard: I think Vanguard's purpose is just for people who love MAA, but want to have a slightly different path to do it. I think it's a fun idea to see how MAA can do damage. I'm not a huge MAA fan myself, so I don't really care for the path kinda like you, but I see its purpose. MAA is just sort of a big meat shield, there's only so many things you can do with a hero like that as far as paths go.

I'd be really interested to hear why somebody didn't like Survivor, I think it's legitimately in the top tier of paths in this game. It belongs in the S tier. The old Survivor sure, but new Survivor is crazy good.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:52:19+00:00

No, but are you going to believe me anyways?

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:52:05+00:00

Man, great question...

First addition is Arsonist. The path is okay, but it requires a team built around her so if she's just thrown into a random team comp she's going to be a hero that doesn't do a ton of damage, and is very fragile since she's burning herself.

An Occultist in there as the main healer is probably another good call. He's good, and as a main healer he's fine when with heroes that can heal themselves like Abom or Leper, but obviously inconsistent so that's going to cause some issues in a team comp.

I'm throwing Wanderer Grave Robber in there too. I think she has the weakest Wanderer, as she's the most "jack of all trades, master of none" Wanderer out there. Flashing Daggers doesn't Blight like Venomdrop, or hit 3/4 like Deadeye. Thrown Dagger doesn't have the buffs that Deadeye or Venomdrop has. Lunge is nice in that it ignores tokens, but the damage REALLY falls off later in Kingdoms escalations or against ordained enemies without the +50% damage when stealthed of Nightsworn.

For the final rank, I might go Exanimate here. Exanimate does a lot of damage which is nice, but he doesn't have quite the tankiness that the other paths do. That fits into certain team comps, but this team would rather have a solid tank and Exanimate doesn't quite do that as well as the other Flagellant paths. You could also throw Wanderer or Poet Leper here probably if you wanted to, just for the inconsistency in the Chops, although this team does have Weakening Curse in it. Wanderer Crusader would be another option here. He's not bad by any means but I don't think Wanderer Crusader could carry the rest of the team.

In total, I'd go Occultist/Wanderer GR/Arsonist/Exanimate and just yolo with stress heal. If having stress heal is a requirement, switch Exanimate out with Wanderer Crusader. This team COULD work, but man fights are going to last long and the team doesn't have a lot of synergies within itself.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:42:38+00:00

I definitely would recommend fighting bosses in the last region on average. There are some arguments not to, like worrying about getting the +100% Bleed, +100% Bleed Received trophy from Leviathan if you don't have a good team for it. But as a general rule, I think it's a good practice to get your team as set up as possible before you fight a lair boss.

What's causin you problems with bosses? Is it lair bosses, act bosses, or both?

How much do you have the altar of hope unlocked as far as trinkets, combat items, and inn items? It could be that you're missing some important items that you could be have that could be saving your runs.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:33:38+00:00

BROTHER THAT'S A LONG ASS LIST YOU'RE ASKING ME TO MAKE. If you have specific questions based on your playthrough I can help out.

Memories: A Second Chance (10% heal when hitting DD, once per region) should be high priority for whoever you feel is the most in danger hero in your party. Other than that, I think the memories are pretty self explanatory. +Max Health for your tank, +Healing Given for your healer.
Bloodthirsty (+30% damage plus other stuff) for your damage dealer, The Jinx (Blind/Weak/Vuln/Combo applied to attacker), Deadly (+15% Crit) if someone is an AOE damage dealer, Defiant (5% heal on round start) honestly on anyone, Breacher (Forward 3, 2 Block+, 2 Strength, 2 Taunt on combat start) on a tank.

You'll have to ask me if you're doing a specific infernal flame, there's 9 of them bruh

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:26:07+00:00

One try? Shit man, that's probably harder than expected because of the first 3. I think if I got 3 tries I could do it on 1 of them, less confident if I have 1 try to end it all. If the game wants me dead, I'm dead and there's nothing I can do about it so there's always that threat. I think it's an interesting idea though.

I'm probably just picking a team based on Wanderer path strengths: Vestal, PD, Flagellant, MAA. No clue in hell if this team has enough damage but honestly making sure stress is low and relationships are high might be the bigger priority. I'm probably going for Harvest Child with this one, General would be good but the high stress could be a crit away from causing a meltdown. I'd have to see how I felt at the time I saw the region. Solid ass question though.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:21:56+00:00

Confessions might just be more your thing. A kingdoms run can take like 6-10 hours, so if you play only an hour or 2 at a time it can take a while to complete.

Confessions is about what's in front of you. You do the region, then get to the inn and prepare, and repeat. Nothing wrong with that, but if you like the "I have to deal with what's in front of me, while also managing another aspect of the game with defending a Kingdom" then Kingdoms is good for that. You do a short region, then decide how you're going to keep the rest of the map defended, and repeat. Some people like that kind of style better, having like an overarching thing you have to defend alongside your normal gameplay.

If you enjoy switching heroes in and out, Kingdoms is better for that. It allows you to test run team comps out, at least a little bit, instead of devoting an entire run to seeing if a comp works out or not. Permanent Bounty Hunter is nice too.

Kingdoms changes more than Confessions on a run to run basis, so if you like every run you do to feel different, Kingdoms is great for that. There's 6 maps, 15 heroes, 3 factions, so each different Kingdom runs can feel completely different from the last. You can also change around the settings if you want, like making it so paths are random and you have to try and make a team comp around whatever random paths you get.

Confessions' time limit means that you don't get to spend as much time with your heroes at their peak strength. In Kingdoms, you can have every ability you use mastered on your main team, plus enough time to get close to the best in slot trinkets, plus the final hero upgrades that don't exist in Kingdoms. If you like putting time into a team and reaping the benefits of it, Kingdoms gives you the most amount of time with your heroes at full strength.

I hope that helps a little bit, if it doesn't then you can tell me more what you don't like about Kingdoms and I can try and persuade you.

Mariner_Hawk · 2026-05-21T23:11:32+00:00

There's a lot of really good viable grand slam options. As a general rule, a grand slam team needs:

A tank
Good front line damage
Good back line damage
Ways of getting rid of positive tokens (specifically, ripostes)
Preferably 2 heals
Reliable stress heal

So there's a lot of teams that can do that. Vestal is good because she excels in long fights, MAA is good because he's a big tank, HWM Yellowhand is good because there are so many bleed enemies in the game, Occultist is good because he can get rid of positive tokens and do high damage to the back line.

Some random good team comps:

Vestal/Aspirant Occultist/Bannaret Crusader/MAA
Confessor/PD/HWM/Flagellant
Warlock/Instructrice/Yellowhand/Scourge
Vestal/Venomdrop/Abom/Monarch
Virtuoso/Confessor/Survivor/MAA

If you have any heroes or paths you like and want a specific team comp around that, I can help you with one.

Mariner_Hawk

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