With the release of the latest next-gen update for witcher 3, it piques the interest of the OGs of the game and some newbies to try out the game again. The new content in The Witcher 3 allows players to alter their builds and make the best ones that suit their playstyle.
This guide will give you detailed information on the builds you can use and match to your playstyle, may that be an entire melee focus build or relying heavily on signs and magics. Keep in mind that while these builds are viable for all difficulties, Death March difficulty requires its very own death march focused builds to help you survive.
Crafting a proper and balanced build in The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt can be tricky when starting the game, so rather than focusing on creating a godlike build, unlock the skills you like at the start of the game. You don’t have to worry about skill points since they can reset anytime.
You can buy a clearance potion from Keira Metz after completing the magic lamp questline or talk to the merchants in Novigrad to buy the potion.
The following builds are the ones that are popular in The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt and your best bet for every type of playstyle
- Euphoria Build
- Signs and Magic Build
- Combat Build
- Wolf School Build
- Alchemy Build
- Hybrid Build
- New Game Plus Build
The Witcher 3 Euphoria build
Mutation: Euphoria
Skills
- Precise Blows (lvl 3)
- Muscle Memory (lvl.3)
- Heightened Tolerance (lvl.3)
- Refreshment (lvl.3)
- Side Effects (lvl.3)
- Poisoned Blades (lvl.3)
- Fixative (lvl.3)
- Acquired Tolerance (lvl.3)
- Tissue Transmutation (lvl.3)
- Synergy (lvl.3)
- Adaptation (lvl.3)
- Endure Pain (lvl.3)
- Killing Spree (lvl.3)
- Cat School Techniques (lvl.1)
- Gourmet (lvl.1)
- Metabolic Control (lvl.1)
Recommended Sets (Armor and Weapon)
- Manticore Set (complete set)
- Feline Set (3pc)
To maximize this build’s output, you must maintain a high toxicity level that will increase your sign intensity and sword damage.
The build can be used for swordplay or alchemy. With the high toxicity, you can drastically increase the damage of your firm and fast attack, increasing the maximum damage done to enemies. However, you won’t be resting that much to maintain high toxicity.
Signs and magic build
Mutation: Conductors of Magic
Skills
- Muscle Memory (lvl.3)
- Razor Focus (lvl.3)
- Melt Armor (lvl.3)
- Firestream (lvl.3)
- Igni Intensity (lvl.3)
- Sustained Glyphs (lvl.2)
- Magic Trap (lvl.3)
- Yrden Intensity (lvl.3)
- Supercharged Glyphs (lvl.3)
- Exploding Shield (lvl.3)
- Active Shield (lvl.3)
- Quen Intensity (lvl.3)
- Synergy (lvl.3)
- Griffin School Techniques (lvl.1)
Recommended Sets (Weapons and Armor)
- Griffin Armor (Full Set)
- Wolven Armor (Full Set)
- Forgotten Wolf Armor (Full Set)
The recommended set for this build is the Griffin gear set, increasing the radius of the Yrden trap by 40% and Increasing the Intensity of signs by 100%. When the traps are active, the damage you receive is reduced by 20% and boosts the stamina regen.
While the Yrden Trap is active, the Igni sign will become your primary damage, dealing melting down enemies with buffed damage and the damage over time.
Combat build
Mutation: Blood Bath
Skills
- Muscle memory (lvl.3)
- Strength training (lvl.3)
- Precise blows (lvl.3)
- Whirl (lvl.3)
- Cripilling strikes (lvl.3)
- Sunder Armour (lvl.3)
- Deadly Precision (lvl.2)
- Resolve (lvl.3)
- Undying (lvl.3)
- Razor focus (lvl.3)
- Poisoned blades (lvl.3)
- Protective coating (lvl.3)
- Synergy (lvl.3)
- Cat School Techniques (lvl.1)
Recommended Sets (Weapons and Armor)
The recommended Set for this build is the Ursine set; it is a heavy set focused on using solid attacks if you go that route.
The downside for this build is you will be running around full glass cannon and potentially get one shotted if you are playing on a greater difficulty. For the Weapon, you can use Aerondight Silver Sword with the Replenishment rune on it that will increase the attack power of your sword with the sign.
Wolf school build
Mutation:
Skills
- Muscle memory (lvl.3)
- Strength training (lvl.3)
- Precise blows (lvl.3)
- Supercharged Glyphs (lvl.3)
- Cripilling strikes (lvl.3)
- Magic trap (lvl.3)
- AARD Sweep (lvl.3)
- Endure Pain (lvl.1)
- Frenzy (lvl.3)
- Razor focus (lvl.3)
- Poisoned blades (lvl.3)
- Gourmet (lvl.1)
- Rage Management (lvl.1)
- Griffin School Techniques (lvl.1)
Recommended Sets (Weapons and Armor)
The armor style is very similar to Eskel’s and other Witchers of the School of the Wolf – layered jackets made of leather and reinforced with metal studs/rivets. Mastercrafted and Grandmaster gear sets further reinforce the outer jacket with panels of mail armor and metal spaulders on the shoulders.
Alchemy build
Mutation: Euphoria
Skills
- Precise blows(lvl.3)
- Muscle memory (lvl.3)
- Hightened Tolerance (lvl.3)
- Refreshment (lvl.3)
- Side Effects (lvl.3)
- Poisoned Blades (lvl.3)
- Fixative (lvl.3)
- Aquirred Tolerance (lvl.3)
- Tissue Transmutation (lvl.3)
- Synergy (lvl.3)
- Endure Pain (lvl.3)
- Killing Spree (lvl.3)
- Gourmet (lvl.1)
- Cat School Techniques (lvl.1)
Recommended Sets (Weapons and Armor)
- Manticore Gear (Full Set)
Manticore School Gear is a set of armor typically worn by the witchers from the School of the Manticore and is introduced in the Blood and Wine expansion. Bonuses have been implemented for wearing 3 and 6 matching pieces of Witcher gear.
With the Armor set, you will use Levity Rune to treat the equipped armor as the light armor to increase Crit chance and Crit damage. On your silver sword, you will use Invigoration Rune to convert the regen into bonus attack damage on your next strike. You can deal damage up to 50%.
On your Steel sword, you will equip the Dumplings Rune to increase the vitality regen up to 400% after consuming food. Having the Gourmet perk will already be helping you quite a lot with regen so this is basically doubling down on that.
Hybrid build
Mutation: Adrenaline Rush
Skills
- Muscle memory (lvl.3)
- Precise blows (lvl.3)
- Whirl (lvl.3)
- Crippling Strikes (lvl.3)
- Resolve (lvl.3)
- Undying (lvl.3)
- Razor Focus (lvl.3)
- Fire Stream (lvl.3)
- Melt Armor (lvl.3)
- Igni Intensity (lvl.3)
- Pyromaniac (lvl.3)
- Focus (lvl.1)
- Adrenaline Burst (lvl.1)
- Griffin School Techniques (lvl.1)
Recommended Sets (Weapons and Armor)
- Wolven Gear (Full Set)
- Feline Gear (Full Set)
This build will primarily focus on the bleeding effect and Igni sign. With the complete Wolven armor set, you will gain adrenaline points on the bleed effect applied to a single enemy. That said, you will equip Rotation Rune on the armor set.
On your Steel Sword, you will go with Severance Rune, which will increase the range of Whirl by 1.1 yards and Rend by 1.9 yards. On your Silver Sword, you will go with an Elation rune that will generate one adrenaline point on fatal blows.
For the other set pieces, you will simply equip Greater Glyphs of Igni to increase the intensity and thus increase the maximum damage output of it.
Build for new game plus
For the old veterans hopping back into the game, we recommend you use the tank build if you wish to explore the immersive world of Witcher 3 again.
Mutation: Euphoria
Skills
- Strength Training
- Resolve
- Crushing Blows
- Rend
- Razor Focus
- Sunder Armor
- Deadly Precision
- Heightened Tolerance
- Acquired Tolerance
- Protective Coating
- Fixative
- Synergy
- Hunter Instinct
- Killing Spree
- Bear School Technique
- Metabolic Control
Recommended Sets (Weapons and Armor)
- Ursine Armor Set
- Toussaint Steel Sword
- Aerondight Silver Sword
This build relies heavily on the heavy attack that also makes up for any lack of sign skills. You will run around with high toxicity that Euphoria Mutation can manage. Because of the metabolic control, you will increase your maximum damage when the toxicity is nearly 90%.
