Dauntless Is Getting a New Weapon Class

Dauntless is all about hunting massive Behemoths with your friends, but what if you had the chance [...]

By Tanner Dedmon

Dauntless is all about hunting massive Behemoths with your friends, but what if you had the chance to hunt those monsters by punching them? That's exactly what Dauntless players will be able to do when the Aether Striker weapon class is added to the game. Phoenix Labs announced the release of this new weapon type on Thursday and said the weapons will be added to the game when its 1.0 update takes it out of early access.

Built for pugilists, these Aether Strikers are weapons affixed to players' hands which are then used to pummel Behemoths, according to the developer's announcement. They're your own personal Deathclaw Gauntlets that are able to harness powers called Mantras while also using some standard combos to unleash flurries of attacks. Completing combos charges up players' Mantra bars, and once the resource is charged, players can use special abilities.

The Mantra gained will run out after charging it though, so you'll have to make use of it by using abilities like Surge which consists of a dash and a reset for the timer.

"This glowing meter lets you see how much time you have left before your current Mantra(s) expire," Phoenix Labs' post about the new weapons said about the Mantra timer. "You can refresh it by either (a) activating Surge or (b) landing another successful combo before it times out. If it expires, you'll lose all of your current Mantra charges and have to start over with another combo."

Players can also use their Mantra bars to activate different techniques. These include the Tempest Form, Karma Breaker, and Adamant Bolt which all have different effects but must be used in different situations to get the full effect from them.

As for the players who might want to try these Aether Strikers out, those who currently use hammers in the game might want to give them a shot. These weapons deal blunt damage and are capable of stunning enemies, so players may find some similarities between the two fighting styles.

"One more thing to consider before you strap on those strikers is the type of damage you'll be doing," the breakdown said. "Aether strikers deal blunt damage – a type of damage best suited to staggering Behemoths and cracking through Skarn armour. As a bonus, the strikers' heavy strikes can also interrupt. So the next time you see a Shrike charging your way … go ahead and punch it right out of the sky."

Dauntless will release the new Aether Strikers when the game's 1.0 patch is out.

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