Players who would like to try a spellcaster role in New World have several options. One of those happens is the usage of the Ice Gauntlet. This weapon is viable in both PvE and PvP situations because of its freezing effects and crowd control (CC) methods. Here’s our guide to help you with the best Ice Gauntlet build for New World.
Best Ice Gauntlet build in New World
The Ice Gauntlet weapon in New World has two skill trees: Ice Tempest and Builder. The former is primarily for boosting your critical hits and dealing area-of-effect (AoE) damage. The latter has abilities that act as support to complement your playstyle.
Ice Tempest
- Ice Spikes – Creates a trail of spikes that move in a straight line, dealing 56% weapon damage. A Mighty Spike will then erupt to deal 157% weapon damage and push back the target. Left-clicking will also cause the Mighty Spike to erupt sooner. This is a decent ability for both PvE and PvP. Knockback effects always help when keeping enemies at bay.
- Ice Storm – Deals 17% weapon damage every 0.25 seconds for five seconds. The wide AoE also creates a frosted area that slows opponents within it. On its own, Ice Storm is okay for crowd control. The slowing effect also helps since it can take a while before hostiles move away from the field. You’ll want this ability to be complemented by passives, which I’ll mention in a short while.
Recommended active abilities: A cookie-cutter playstyle would involve using Ice Spikes and all perks that are part of its column. A more CC and AoE-oriented build, meanwhile, would have Ice Storm and all relevant perks. That being said, we still need to consider other passives, as well as recommended abilities from the Builder tree.
Recommended passive abilities: Critical Rejuvenation, Energized Critical, and Critical Frost all synergize to increase your critical hit chance and damage, as well as providing mana restoration. Speaking of mana, Gathering Storm is also decent since the Ice Gauntlet weapon in New World, by default, is extremely reliant on your resource pool. Heavy Freeze is also great for crowd control purposes.
Builder
- Ice Pylon – One of the most important abilities you can have for the Ice Gauntlet is the Ice Pylon. This spawns a turret that deals 50% weapon damage. It can attack enemies within a 20-meter radius for 15 seconds or until it’s destroyed. In most PvE situations, enemies would only aggro the turret if you’re not attacking them, meaning it can blast its projectiles consistently. In PvP, however, this can provide a distraction. Still, it can get taken out by attentive opponents.
- Entombed – This is your panic button. Think of it as akin to the Mage’s Ice Block in World of Warcraft. You’ll become invulnerable while encased in ice. Even better, it also boosts your mana regeneration temporarily. Just beware of PvP opponents who will try to destroy your protective barrier. If this happens, you can left-click to break free from your ice block and cause a knockback effect.
Recommended active abilities: To be honest, Ice Pylon and its relevant perks won’t let you down in PvE scenarios. As long as enemies are distracted, your turret can support your offensive capabilities. As for Entombed, I would only suggest it if you PvP often as it helps with survivability. Likewise, you can obtain its Cleansing Tomb perk to remove all debuffs. If you’re simply playing PvE, then you can consider this if you’re tackling high-end content solo (where brutal hits from hostiles will take you out). Still, you’re better off just dodging and blocking attacks most of the time instead of grabbing this ability.
Recommended passive abilities: Many of the passives here buff you while you’re in a frosted area (generated by some abilities like Ice Pylon, Ice Storm, and Ice Shower). The downside is that the frosted area dissipates quickly. The only exception is when you drop an Ice Pylon. The radius is smaller, but the frosted ground remains for a longer period unless the turret is destroyed. As such, I would suggest passives like Refreshing Frost and/or Frozen Touch.
An ideal Ice Gauntlet build in New World should always have Ice Pylon. The damage that it deals freely while you’re shooting foes or weaving around is always invaluable. Likewise, you’ll want Ice Storm so that, even if enemies are close, you can still freeze and debuff them with ease. Finally, it’s a choice between Ice Spikes or Entombed. The former is okay for both PvE and PvP. The latter, meanwhile, is predominantly reliable in PvP.
Moreover, your usage of the Ice Gauntlet in New World should be complemented by having higher critical hit and critical damage stats. That’s because some Ice Tempest passives greatly benefit if you can land crits often. Also, take note of the Intelligence Attribute’s bonuses, since it’s the stat used by this weapon for damage scaling. Lastly, you can pair the Ice Gauntlet with the Fire Staff. Both use the Intelligence Attribute, and they pack quite a punch. Just be mindful of your crowd control methods since, as a caster, you’re more akin to a glass cannon.
