The STRONGEST Power Sword Bulwark Build
Bulwark build by MitchKalypse, made for Hotfix 15.1.
Based on a video by First Tour Guardsman. Posted with credit and not endorsed by First Tour Guardsman.
First Tour Guardsman guide for Bulwark with the Heroic Salamander power sword.
Class perks
Intimidating Aura, Scrambled Targeting, Steel Within, Focused Restoration, Purity of Purpose, Invigorating Icon, Merciless Resolve, Defensive Mastery
Prestige perks
Auxiliary Reload, Overcharge, Powerful Shot, Masterful Defence
Wargear
- Secondary: Bolt Pistol (Ophelian Liberation - Beta) - Perpetual Precision, Head Hunter, Gun Strike Reload, Increased Capacity, Head Hunter, Elite Hunter, Head Hunter, Extended Magazine, Divine Might
- Melee: Power Sword (Salamanders) - Armoured Strength, Master of Offence, Perpetual Strength, Perpetual Strength, Tranquility, Melee Onslaught, Hard Target, Cutting Edge, Majoris Slayer, Extremis Slayer, Terminus Slayer, Speed Restoration
Guide
This setup is designed to dominate high-difficulty operations by capitalizing on perfect parries, incredible AOE damage, and top-tier team survivability.
Primary Weapon: Salamander's Power Sword.
This build uses the Fencing variant of the Salamander's Power Sword. The core mechanic revolves around the Nocturne's Retort heroic perk, which empowers the blade for 300% more damage on the next light attack after a perfect parry.
Key Weapon Perks:
Master of Offense: Deal 20% more melee damage for 5 seconds after switching to speed style.
Melee Onslaught & Perpetual Strength: Provides a flat 10% damage buff to everything you do with the sword.
Hard Target: Take 15% less ranged damage while performing a light combo.
Cutting Edge: Power rake deals 50% more melee damage, an essential pick for any fencing variant.
Speed Restoration: Doubles CP (Contested Health) recovery while in speed style.
Secondary Weapon Options
Your sidearm changes depending on the faction you are fighting:
Against Chaos: Plasma Pistol
Picked for its high contested health recovery and ability to stagger Chaos Terminators out of their minigun volleys.
Perks: Focus heavily on Plasma Collection and Rapid Cooling to improve the Bulwark's otherwise poor ammo economy.
Against Tyranids: Firepower Bolt Pistol
Excellent for utilizing headshot multipliers against annoying floating targets like Zoanthropes.
Perks: Focuses on the Elite Hunter perk, which grants 50% more headshot damage for 10 seconds after a melee execute (which you can maintain almost permanently).
Bulwark Class Perks
These selections turn the Bulwark into an unkillable tank that heals the squad:
Intimidating Aura: A perfect parry deals massive AOE damage in a 5m radius. This is arguably the strongest perk on the class, taking out large chunks of enemy health just by defending.
Scramble Targeting & Steel Within: Greatly improves survivability by granting 25% damage reduction from ranged attacks when surrounded, and 30% less health damage when below 50% HP.
Focus Restoration: Automatically restores one armor segment for the entire team every 30 seconds.
Invigorating Icon: Dropping your banner allows the entire team to regain maximum contested health. This is one of the only true sources of team healing in the game and is vital for this build.
Defensive Mastery: Instantly incapacitates a Majoris or Extremis enemy on a perfect parry or block (90-second cooldown), which is invaluable during large waves or boss fights.
Prestige Perks
Auxiliary Reload: Melee killing an Extremis or higher enemy restores one magazine for your secondary weapon, helping mitigate ammo issues.
Overcharge: Increases heavy and charged attack damage by a multiplicative 20%.
Powerful Shot: A flat 20% boost to your ranged damage.
Masterful Defense: Restores your banner ability charge by 1% for every blocked ranged attack, drastically reducing your cooldown times when fighting ranged hordes.
Primary Weapon: Salamander's Power Sword.
This build uses the Fencing variant of the Salamander's Power Sword. The core mechanic revolves around the Nocturne's Retort heroic perk, which empowers the blade for 300% more damage on the next light attack after a perfect parry.
Key Weapon Perks:
Master of Offense: Deal 20% more melee damage for 5 seconds after switching to speed style.
Melee Onslaught & Perpetual Strength: Provides a flat 10% damage buff to everything you do with the sword.
Hard Target: Take 15% less ranged damage while performing a light combo.
Cutting Edge: Power rake deals 50% more melee damage, an essential pick for any fencing variant.
Speed Restoration: Doubles CP (Contested Health) recovery while in speed style.
Secondary Weapon Options
Your sidearm changes depending on the faction you are fighting:
Against Chaos: Plasma Pistol
Picked for its high contested health recovery and ability to stagger Chaos Terminators out of their minigun volleys.
Perks: Focus heavily on Plasma Collection and Rapid Cooling to improve the Bulwark's otherwise poor ammo economy.
Against Tyranids: Firepower Bolt Pistol
Excellent for utilizing headshot multipliers against annoying floating targets like Zoanthropes.
Perks: Focuses on the Elite Hunter perk, which grants 50% more headshot damage for 10 seconds after a melee execute (which you can maintain almost permanently).
Bulwark Class Perks
These selections turn the Bulwark into an unkillable tank that heals the squad:
Intimidating Aura: A perfect parry deals massive AOE damage in a 5m radius. This is arguably the strongest perk on the class, taking out large chunks of enemy health just by defending.
Scramble Targeting & Steel Within: Greatly improves survivability by granting 25% damage reduction from ranged attacks when surrounded, and 30% less health damage when below 50% HP.
Focus Restoration: Automatically restores one armor segment for the entire team every 30 seconds.
Invigorating Icon: Dropping your banner allows the entire team to regain maximum contested health. This is one of the only true sources of team healing in the game and is vital for this build.
Defensive Mastery: Instantly incapacitates a Majoris or Extremis enemy on a perfect parry or block (90-second cooldown), which is invaluable during large waves or boss fights.
Prestige Perks
Auxiliary Reload: Melee killing an Extremis or higher enemy restores one magazine for your secondary weapon, helping mitigate ammo issues.
Overcharge: Increases heavy and charged attack damage by a multiplicative 20%.
Powerful Shot: A flat 20% boost to your ranged damage.
Masterful Defense: Restores your banner ability charge by 1% for every blocked ranged attack, drastically reducing your cooldown times when fighting ranged hordes.