Here's the build:
Charging Executioner
Attributes:
I choose to use helmets to store superior runes as they're the items with +1 bonuses anyway. A friend of mine uses gloves, which makes no sense to me, but whatever.
Skills:
Skill #1: Dismember - Adds Deep Wound for 21 seconds / low adrenaline cost
Skill #2: Executioner's Strike - +42 Damage, nice single spike
Skill #3: Counterattack - +22 Damage and +5 energy if you hit an attacking foe. It costs 5 energy, so if you hit correctly it's free. Very very nice.
Skill #4: Charging Strike - 33% faster run for 7 seconds, +30 damage on next attack, ends if you use a skill. Stance. -- Excellent for chasing down someone and landing a +30 Attack, or stancing out of Flail.
Skill #5: Flail - For 12 seconds, 33% faster attack, 33% slower move. Stance. Excellent new stance with a managable down-side through Charging Strike. Only 4 Adrenaline, very very nice.
Skill #6: Watch Yourself - Even through the nerf, you still gain +18 armor for 9 seconds. Longer duration, 2 less armor. I can live with that.
Skill #7: Healing Signet - +115 HP self heal, it's good enough to keep but everyone can agree the -40 armor penalty is
.Skill #8: Generic Resurrect -- I use Rebirth, personally as you are able to res from a distance and keep that party member from dying immediately after they are ressed if they're near a group of enemies.
Weapon Set:
Weapon: I use an Axe containing the following modifiers: 15^50, Furious, Fortitude
Shield: I use a Shield with the following Modifiers: Req (Tactics), -2 Damage While In A Stance, +45 Health While In A Stance
Modifier Explanations
Damage +15% (while health is above 50%) - This is the easiest mod to meet the requirement of (other than +5 energy). As warriors are either alive or dead (rarely lingering on low hp for very long) you're meeting the requirement often.
Furious - 10% chance to gain extra Adrenaline on an attack is the absolute best mod for most Warrior builds, as very many Warrior skills work off of Adrenaline. Also, you aren't sacrificing a pip of Energy regen, or constantly losing Health due to Modifiers that, while very useful, can be better utilized in a different build.
Fortitude - +30 Health will give you more leeway on the 15^50 mod, and bolster your punishment threshold by at least 1 more attack. Granted, +5 armor will reduce the amount of damage you take overall, +30 hp is the best fix-all mod for most Warrior weaponry. In my opinion, +5 armor / +7 vs elemental or physical is best used in Farming builds, but that's only my opinion.
Requirement - Honestly, this doesn't matter at all with this build. Since you're at 16 Axe Mastery, you will meet the Req of any weapon with ease. Personally, I only use items with Requirements of 9 and under, but that's personal preference. Color really doesn't matter, just go with whatever meets the requirements of your build.
Shield - I feel a Shield containing two modifiers working off of "While In A Stance" feed this build the best. Your source of running down enemies and attacking faster are both Stances. You should be in a stance 90% of the time that you're active in combat. These mods also very much help if you need to run away, hit Charging Strike and gain a -2 dmg and +45 HP bonus.
Use any shield that has these mods on it. Don't worry about the Requirement, just as long as it's got the In Stance mods.
If you can't get one, the shield i'm using is from a Collector in Prophecies, located here: http://gw.gamewikis.org/wiki/Hagnon_Warblade
It's easy to gather the materials for that Shield, so don't worry about trying to track down someone selling a perfectly modded equivalent for a price that's ridiculous.
-- Don't use a -5 (20%) / +30hp shield for this build. You won't benefit from the -1 constant reduction and +30hp as much. I know that it's a shield mod set that's easy to meet the 0 Requirement of, but just stay away from it for this Build.
Build Usage
This build is very straight forward. If you've ever played a Warrior before, you should have a basic (at least) knowledge of how Adrenaline is gained / dumped.
At the start of any combat situation, activate Charging Strike and attack a target. You can use this skill before getting to the target (which is preferred) as it gives you the +33% faster running speed for 7 seconds.
Let your first attack be an Auto-Attack. You will only gain the bonus from Charging Strike if it's an Auto-Attack. If you Executioner's Strike during a Charging Strike, you will hit for +30, not +72 (30 cs + 42 es).
After your first strike through Charging Strike, try to get into Flail as soon as you can. This is, of course, unless you are already mobile in combat. Then hold off until you need to work the ribs of whoever you're attacking.
If you need to chase someone, switch to a target that isn't adjacent / nearby, and you are still under the effects of Flail, Stance out with Charging Strike and run to your new target.
Also, Charging Strike is nice to just activate and let auto-attack take over for a strike. It's nice to use as an Adrenaline builder and also deals +30 damage. That's more than most of the skills you'll find in Strength at 10 Attribute, and also allows you to switch targets easily if you activate it at the same time your target dies. -- I freaking love this skill. Well worth the Elite slot in my opinion.
I like to refer to this skill, in this Build, as my Get Out Of Flail Free Card. It's not free, but I like how that sounds and it's funny. Plus, Monopoly sucks so it's fitting, as -33% run sucks hardcore.
For that reason and that reason alone, I favor this combo over most other +attack speed / +run speed skills, as you are able to Stance in and out with ease and not suffer the penalties of Flail for more than a few seconds (ex: Get to your target and moments later need to switch because of a freshly dished out spike).
Dismember is very nice as it's only 5 Adrenaline (easily achieved through increased attack speed) and it will add Conditions to enemies, causing their healers to either spend time removing it, or covering more important conditions such as Burning, Poison, Bleeding, Dazed, or Crippled. Yes, Deep Wound is amazing as it allows for a very simple spike, but other conditions (Dazed, for example), are more useful in a wider array of combat conditions.
Counterattack is hands down, my favorite new Warrior Skill. This skill alone convinced me to stop running 16/13. At 10 Strength, this skill pays for itself in cost when you strike an attacking foe. It doesn't use Adrenaline, and has a low recharge time. +22 damage isn't anything to cough at, either. As a Warrior, good Energy management is vital, and with this skill you can power your Adrenal skills without draining your Energy pool too quickly. I've already stated it, but I will say it again. This skill is f'ing awesome. At higher Strength, you actually gain Energy if you connect with an attacking foes mouth.
The rest of the build is very cookie-cutter in essence. Most of the remaining 3 skills are used (at least one) in almost every Warrior build. Why? They're tried and true great skills.
PvP Viability
You can bring this Build into AB and do rather well. I have not tested it in GvG, RA, TA, or Halls...but I know that the more "gimmicky" Builds out there would probably yield better results.
Obviously, the counters for this build are the standard Anti-Melee counters. Spirit Shackles, Degen, Conditions...the crap none of us like to see on our screens attached to our Character.
As long as you've got a decent Monk in your party, you won't suffer for too long before someone uses the "Save This Tank's Life" card.
Build Variants
Swordsmanship - +1/ +3 Swordsmanship Helmet
Dismember -> Sever Artery
Executioner's Strike -> Silverwing Slash (Added damage while in a Stance)
Hammer Mastery - +1 / +3 Hammer Helmet
Dismember -> Counter Blow (sacrificing a condition for a second or two of Knockdown is well worth it in many cases)
Executioner's Strike -> Mighty Blow
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Thank you all for reading this! Also, thanks for judging, criticizing, stealing, claiming, and passing along this Build!
I very much like this build, and i'm sure some of you will too.
