10 Character Builds That Broke RPGs
All the cheesiest, overpowered (and fun) ways to play your favourite RPGs. #eldenring #RPGs #gaming
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00:00 Building and customizing characters is one of the most fundamental parts of the role-playing and open-world genres.
00:05 From its tabletop roots with games like Dungeons & Dragons, all the way to the release of modern titles like Cyberpunk and Elden Ring,
00:11 people often spend more time on designing the looks, skills and personalities of their characters than they do on their adventures in-game.
00:20 However, one thing that's always guaranteed with gamers is that where there's the possibility of finding something totally overpowered,
00:27 they will indeed track it down.
00:29 So with that in mind, I'm Josh from WhatCulture.com and these are 10 Character Builds That Broke RPGs.
00:35 10. The Lizzie Pistol - Cyberpunk 2077
00:39 Pistol, gun-slinging based builds in Cyberpunk 2077 are all so ridiculously overpowered, especially when playing on PC.
00:47 These smaller handguns might be the universal symbol for low-level starting weaponry in most games,
00:52 however Cyberpunk has a number of features that make them pack a serious punch for players with the right investments.
00:58 One of the best builds going revolves around Lizzie, a tech pistol that increases the number of rounds fired when fully charged,
01:05 and which fires an extra round per shot.
01:08 Mode and scope slots can be used to upgrade Lizzie as well, with the weapon bursting 10 rounds per magazine,
01:14 and capable of firing a burst of 5 rounds rather than the 3 on the base Omaha.
01:19 An absolute must with any pistol build is the Crunch mod as well, which increases the damage done by each bullet,
01:25 and it is extremely handy on a weapon like Lizzie.
01:29 Because Lizzie fires more rounds when charged, the mod becomes extremely lethal and incredibly scalable the more stacked it is.
01:36 For instance, 3 crunches applied +8 damage each will work out to +32 damage per shot.
01:42 Cyberpunk 2077 is already a game that prioritises power over subtlety,
01:47 and it's clear to see why gun-slinging with a weapon like Lizzie is so often used to shred through enemies.
01:52 Number 9 - Blessed Hammer Paladin or Hammerdin - Diablo II Resurrected
01:58 The Blessed Hammer Paladin build that we're going to refer to as the Hammerdin from now on,
02:02 was an immensely popular character build back in Diablo II, mainly on the back of just how overpowered it was for players.
02:09 As well as being one of the most versatile go-tos for damage type,
02:12 the Hammerdin poses both a high damage output and a reasonably solid area of effect.
02:17 In all, the build comes with around 5k health and roughly 17k in damage from the hammer.
02:23 Depending on the gear, there's really no class in the game that can match just how easy every opponent and location feels
02:29 when marauding through with the damage increasing concentration aura applied to the hammer,
02:34 and holy shield helping to keep health up.
02:37 Essentially, Hammerdin builds offer a great way of maximising damage to a game breaking level,
02:42 without having to worry about risking a counterpunch.
02:44 The added magic damage the hammer brings is something players are unlikely to be able to mount much resistance to in PvP as well,
02:50 whilst the vast majority of monsters in PvE don't come with any magic immunities or resistance either.
02:56 Number 8 - The Sniper - Fallout 4
02:59 Bethesda has a long history of badly balancing their silent and deadly builds, more on that later,
03:05 but the Sniper builds in Fallout 4 really are something else.
03:08 Whilst there's nothing particularly revolutionary about the way in which Sniper builds operate in the game,
03:13 you know, headshots do the most damage, you can take enemies out from a distance, etc etc,
03:18 the levelling up a player can do as a marksman quickly makes this approach feel like the most overpowered in the game.
03:23 Stealth boys for instance can be acquired throughout the world and will turn players invisible.
03:28 More luck perks improve the critical chance hits,
03:31 and weapons like the Killerton Radium Rifle with its ability to deal ballistic radiation and AOE damage
03:37 feel absolutely game breaking when used from the safety of a long distance approach.
03:42 Finally, the Sniper perk gives players even more strings to their bow,
03:46 allowing them to hold their breath for longer whilst aiming, have better aim in VATS,
03:50 and even knock their opponents to the ground with their weapon.
03:52 With just a couple of low level points into the Perception and Agility trees,
03:56 it's incredibly easy to turn a character into a silent, mobile killing machine.
04:01 Number 7 - Wild Mage - Baldur's Gate
04:04 In classic Baldur's Gate lore, Wild Mages are specialist sorcerers known for honing the art of wild magic,
04:10 a form of arcane magic known for its unpredictability and erratic behaviour.
04:14 However, in what is very much a case of high risk, high reward,
04:18 this class of character is able to use this volatility to create undoubtedly the most powerful build in the game.
04:23 Wild Mages are capable of producing a wild surge 5% of the time they cast any spell,
04:29 which can have some pretty, dare we say it, wild effects on the battlefield.
04:34 As well as starting with the Mage's spellbook, Wild Mages can learn three extra class specific spells,
04:39 Chaos Shield, Improved Chaos Shield, and Nahal's Reckless Dwemer.
04:43 Unlike specialists in the game, Wild Mages don't have an opposing spell school to worry about either.
04:48 It actually come equipped with the ability to cast spells from all eight schools present in the game.
04:53 Nahal's Reckless Dwemer has the very fun, if slightly chaotic effect as well,
04:57 of upping that wild surge percentage to 100% every single time,
05:02 allowing players to cast any spell in their spellbook, even if they don't have the level for it.
05:07 Number 6 - Breton Magic - The Elder Scrolls III Morrowind
05:11 The Elder Scrolls III Morrowind is one of the all-time great role-playing games,
05:15 and gives it a level of freedom unlike any other title in the series.
05:18 Every single character is marked as non-essential, entire quest lines can be lost,
05:23 and there are more skill trees and upgrades than in both Oblivion and Skyrim.
05:27 It's such a huge and open game, the fact that Magic still stands as the undisputed overpowered build should therefore speak volumes.
05:34 The reason why Magic is considered so overpowered is how most mage builds are able to do every single thing any other class can do,
05:41 but with a few added perks such as levitating, water breathing, paralysis, enchanting, alchemy, and even invisibility.
05:48 Coupling a Breton build with the Atronach birth sign also gives players a broken amount of resistance, absorption, and magicka reserves,
05:55 and any Imperial Shrine will refill magicka to the maximum by selecting restore attributes.
06:01 Spells like absorb health, damage speed, damage strength, and damage intelligence are all incredibly versatile,
06:06 and capable of downing even the toughest of enemies.
06:09 And the alchemy tree allows players to really ramp things up to the game-breaking level,
06:13 with infinite magicka reserves and the ability to kill enemies in a single hit.
06:18 Number 5 - Bloodmage - Dragon Age Origins
06:21 Bloodmage character builds in 2009's Dragon Age Origins are all about pushing things right to the edge,
06:26 and maximizing damage until it's borderline game-breaking.
06:30 Because so much of the Bloodmage build revolves around draining HP for the benefit of casting ridiculously damaging spells,
06:36 it's a reasonably easy task just running around the battlefield, keeping out of trouble, and letting the tank take all the hits.
06:43 Blood Sacrifice allows players to keep their tank healthy as well,
06:46 whilst the buffs Spell Wish, Spell Might, and Bloodmagic ensure the maximum amount of damage is always being dealt.
06:53 Bloodwound is also one of the most powerful effects in Dragon Age.
06:57 Not only is it one of the best AoE effects, affecting enemies in a 10-meter sphere,
07:01 but it also has one of the most absurd costs to cast and cooldowns when compared to similar spells in the game.
07:06 It isn't held back by friendly fire, deals spirit damage which most enemies aren't resistant to,
07:12 and even has the added benefit of paralyzing opponents in place.
07:15 For a build that is immensely scalable and pretty jammy when it comes to its application,
07:19 Bloodmages really do take some beating.
07:22 Number 4 - Critical Master - Assassin's Creed Odyssey
07:25 The roleplaying era of the Assassin's Creed series began with Origins, but it was in Odyssey that it really hit its flow.
07:31 And out of all the possible builds, there's still no beating the unstoppable slaughtering that comes with the Critical Master characters.
07:38 As the name would suggest, Critical Master builds resolve around dispatching enemies as quickly as possible,
07:43 with players able to reach up to 100% chance of landing a critical hit every single attack.
07:49 Battlecry of Ares is undoubtedly the star of the show with this Critical Master build though.
07:53 The ability lets players enter an invincible rage mode, increasing all damage done and giving them a huge edge against even the biggest opponents.
08:01 This ability is scalable too, producing +35% damage for 15 seconds a tier 1 and +50% more damage for 20 seconds.
08:09 The build revolves around being at full health to get that 100% critical hit chance,
08:14 but when slicing through enemies at the rate in which the Critical Master allows,
08:18 this isn't anywhere near as much of a challenge as you might think.
08:22 All in all, the Critical Master build just feels like a way of playing Odyssey at a rapid rate that no developer could have ever envisaged.
08:28 3. Holy Priest - World of Warcraft Classic
08:32 Holy Priests, when paired with Protection Warriors especially, are the absolute essential picks when it comes to raiding parties in World of Warcraft Classic.
08:39 By far the most powerful healers in the game, topping the charts with their AoE spells and providing essential buffs to a party.
08:45 The likes of Power Infusion, Power World Shield, Fear Ward, Circle of Healing and Shadow Weaving are all invaluable to raiding.
08:53 The reason why Holy Priest is considered so game-breaking though is just how unmatched the build is when it comes to mass healing
08:59 and how invincible it can make a party against even the toughest PvE enemies.
09:04 Where things drift into the infuriating however is when it comes to PvP duels in the arena.
09:09 There is a mechanic where the Priest players are able to stack their haste attribute,
09:12 increasing the speed of their attack, ranged attacks and casting, and cast their Greater Heal spell unfairly quickly.
09:19 Now, these examples of Holy Priest's abilities might not be as flashy as some of the others on this list,
09:24 but the way in which they can infuriate opponents, swing huge fights against opponents and force other players into long-winded counters earns it a spot here.
09:33 2. The Stealth Archer - The Elder Scrolls V - Skyrim
09:37 Stealth builds have always been one of the most powerful picks for any player in The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim.
09:42 With the skill tree going hand-in-hand with almost any weapon or spell combination in the game.
09:47 But whilst there aren't any major exploits or mechanics to be said for the build,
09:50 stealth and archery still feel like the go-to combination for the most game-breaking experience.
09:56 With all the tank companions available to pick up, Skyrim really rewards players that won't stick to the sidelines away from the action
10:02 and pick off enemies whilst they're distracted.
10:04 Bosmas get a starting bonus to both archery and sneak, and perks such as Deadly Aim,
10:09 which sneak attacks with bows that do 3x more damage, Critical Shot, which does 10% chance of a critical hit,
10:15 Quick Shot, which means that players can draw bows 30% faster, and Power Shot, which staggers most enemies 50% of the time,
10:23 end up making the build feel like an invincible, invisible machine gun, and even the toughest of enemies won't come close to stopping.
10:30 Throw in the availability of extra damage and paralyzing effects, either through alchemy potions or the Bullseye perk,
10:35 and players can even guarantee their foes won't even be able to attempt an attack back against them.
10:40 Number 1 - The rock-slinging mage, Elden Ring
10:44 Love or hate Elden Ring's infamous difficulty, the game isn't without some game-breaking exploits.
10:50 We've all seen the bloodlust memes, we've all laughed a hearty laugh at the death-breath Scarlet Rotmist,
10:56 but it's generally just crazy how overpowered magic is across an entire playthrough.
11:01 That's because magic in Elden Ring has a remarkably diverse way of scaling, with mind, intelligence, and dexterity all impacting casting rate and how powerful each spell can be.
11:11 Where the game-breaking part of magic really comes in though is when these perks and spells are used against large swarms of enemies and bosses.
11:18 One of the cheesiest combinations involving magic is with the Meteorite Staff and the Rock-Sling and Meteorite spells.
11:24 Not only does the Meteorite Staff itself offer some incredibly strong stats on its own, but it also enhances the slinging spells further than their own already impressive damage numbers.
11:34 Combining these with a high level of intelligence and Ash Summons,
11:37 In What's Left is the perfect recipe for a character build that is free to steer clear of any danger and just throw hard-hitting rocks at their enemies from afar.
11:45 Elden Ring is a game many fans have bemoaned for its gruelling difficulty, however,
11:49 for showcasing just how jammy and cheap magic builds can be, this combination of spells and staffs really does do the job.
11:57 So, that's our list. I want to know what you guys think down in the comments below.
12:00 What do you think of these character builds and are there any other ridiculously overpowered ones I missed off here?
12:05 While you're down there as well, could you please give us a like, share, subscribe, and head over to whatculture.com for more lists and news like this every single day.
12:12 Even if you don't though, I've been Josh, thanks so much for watching, and I'll see you soon.