This build has been successfully vetted by the GuildWiki community according to the vetting procedure. This build has been designed for the following use: PvE-general

The Zealous Decapitater is a build that focuses on the use of the Elite Skill Decapitate to deal high damage, in conjunction with the energy management skills of the Dervish.

Attributes and Skills

Warrior / Dervish	Attribute Rank
Axe Mastery	11 + 1 + 3
Earth Prayers	10
Strength	10 + 1

Vital Boon

Zealous Renewal

Flail

Decapitate

Signet of Pious Light

Furious Axe

Counterattack

Sunspear Rebirth Signet

Depending on the situation, Vital Boon can be replaced with:

• Aura of Thorns as a snare
• Lightbringer's Gaze for use in high-level PvE

If you find yourself getting enough energy from Zealous Renewal without Flail, swap it for Conviction. If you don't own the Factions campaign, replace Furious Axe with the energy-based attack skill of your choice.

Equipment

• Armor with Radiant Insignia to give a base Energy pool of at least 25.
• A Rune of Superior Absorption, the best Vigor Rune available and one rune of Vitae.
• A Zealous Axe Of Fortitude. Wing's Axe is a good choice.
• A Strength requirement Shield with +30 Health and received damage -2 (in stance) shield would be optimal due to the use of Flail and the -5(20%) mod being random.

Usage

• Approach your target, and once you are in melee range use Vital Boon and Zealous Renewal.
• Attack your chosen target and build up Adrenaline. Activate and maintain Flail.
• Use the two energy-based attack skills as necessary. Furious Axe while your target is under a blocking stance or Guardian can be beneficial.
• Once you have sufficient Adrenaline and your target is at approximately 75% health, use Decapitate.
• Use Signet of Pious Light to end Zealous Renewal and gain back Energy.
• Once you have Energy, use Furious Axe and Counterattack in quick succession on your target.
• Recast Zealous Renewal and repeat on a different target if the first is not already dead.

• Should you need healing at any time, use Vital Boon followed by Signet of Pious Light

Counters

• Wild Blow and other Stance counters will remove your IAS, which results in less Energy gain after removing Zealous Renewal.
• Be especially wary of enemies removing Zealous Renewal before you have used Decapitate. On the other hand, enemies removing the enchantment after you use Decapitate can be beneficial.
• Blind, Weakness, etc.
• Life Sheath can render a large portion of your damage useless.

Variants

A variant using different attack skills is below.

Zealous Renewal

Vital Boon

Flail

Cyclone Axe

Decapitate

Signet of Pious Light

Twin Moon Sweep

Sunspear Rebirth Signet

Same usage as the main build, but after using Decapitate and Signet of Pious Light, follow instead with Vital Boon followed by Twin Moon Sweep for a double-strike and additional healing. Note that Twin Moon Sweep can be used with an Axe, as it is a Melee Attack rather than a Scythe Attack. Any spare attribute points should be placed into Scythe Mastery for this variant. Cyclone Axe is useful for increasing the return from Zealous Renewal and also for building adrenaline.