Odysseus + Kalthas

Why Odysseus and Kalthas work together

Odysseus spends 5% of his own HP on every Burst (factor 16,250, 18,000 awakened) and Burns the target with part of that HP. His Armor Piercer makes a troop he leads that is made only of Axe Throwers ignore up to 50% of the target's DEF, the largest DEF ignore found in the game. He gains damage and rage as his HP drops, and heals in short bursts when it falls.

Kalthas's Scalesplitting Strike (factor 9,000) hits harder for every Vulnerability stack he has applied. Breaker's Mark gives his normal attacks a 10% chance to cut the target's DEF by up to 8% per stack, and at 5 stacks the next hit cuts 48% for 5 seconds. Shadow Scale Ward makes him weak for the first 5 seconds of a fight and then ramps normal-attack damage up to +300%. He heals 10% of the damage he deals and, awakened, gains +40% ATK for 3 seconds after each Burst.

Key skills at max level

Odysseus

• Searing Flame Arrow (Burst): Burns 5% of his current HP to strike the target, then Burns it for 3 seconds for a share of the HP he burned.
• Scorching Resolve (Passive): For each 10% of Max HP lost, damage and rage recovery rise for 5 seconds, stacking 3 times.
• Armor Piercer (Passive): When the troop he leads is made only of Axe Throwers, its attacks ignore part of the target's DEF.

Kalthas

• Scalesplitting Strike (Burst): Charged strike on the target. Deals 5% extra damage for each stack of Vulnerability Kalthas has put on that target. Costs 1,000 rage; gains up to 160 rage per round.
• Shadow Scale Ward (Passive): For the first 5 seconds of battle, normal attacks deal 70% less damage, with a chance to become immune to damage from the target. For the next 5 seconds, normal-attack damage rises every second.
• Breaker's Mark (Passive): Normal attacks have a 10% chance to apply Vulnerability, lowering the target's DEF for 5 seconds. At 5 stacks, the next attack applies a much larger DEF cut for 5 seconds and clears the stacks.

Skill upgrade order

Odysseus

1. Armor Piercer
2. Searing Flame Arrow
3. Scorching Resolve
4. Bloodflame Recovery

Kalthas

1. Breaker's Mark
2. Scalesplitting Strike
3. Shadow Scale Ward
4. Blackscale Revival

Talent build

Odysseus's talent trees: Axe Thrower, Hunter, Skill. For Blackforged and PvE:

1. The Hunter tree first: Sound Strategy (cheaper Blackforged attacks), Blackforged Insight and Deadly Assault, then All-out Assault if this hero starts rallies.
2. Then the Axe Thrower tree.

See the blackforged hunting build and every talent node.

Troop mix

100% Axe Throwers.

Swaps if you don't have Kalthas

• Joan F2P: Invest
• Roro F2P: Situational

Questions players ask

Is Odysseus + Kalthas a good pairing?

Yes for blackforged and pve. Highest single-target damage; Armor Piercer needs an all-Axe Thrower troop.

Who should be commander, Odysseus or Kalthas?

Odysseus commands and Kalthas is lieutenant. Both heroes' skills apply, but some skills only work in one role; see the skills section on this page.

What troops should Odysseus and Kalthas lead?

100% Axe Throwers.