Kirby's Blade Master PvP Skill Guide

I know I should've typed this up when the skill tree revamp was just released, but I was having way too much fun with it on my own, which turned out to be a good thing since I've made quite a few changes to my build since then.

Before I get into the build itself I also want to remind you that everyone has his or her own unique playstyle, so a skill that works great for one person might not for another. Don't follow my build exactly if you don't like it, and don't panic if your build doesn't match up with mine. Just pick whatever skills work best for you.

Another important reminder: you should be building your skill tree with the level 70 cap in mind because many useful skills won't hit their max level until after level 60. Between levels 60 and 70, you'll have so many different skills to upgrade that you'll actually have to spend more SP per level than you gain. So in order to max everything you want, you need to reserve about 15 unused SP at level 60. None of this would be a problem if Killer Combo decided to follow KR's example and sell SP resets for 10m ED, but instead they still cost 2000 K-Ching in the Item Mall, so I don't want anyone to be forced to pay that price when the level cap rises.

One last thing before I begin:

https://enforums.elswordonline.com/showthread.php?104314-Explanation-of-skill-multipliers-in-PvP

In short, this thread I posted proves and explains how each skill has been individually modified to deal less damage in PvP than the skill description displays. For example, Rena's Siege was given a PvP modifier of "0.6," meaning the damage multiplier in PvP is 60% of what the skill window shows. The numbers next to the skill names represent their PvP modifiers, which I calculated on my own.

Power Assault (0.75)Skip

First we have Power Assault, which was strong back in season 1, but after all those damage nerfs, it really isn't worth getting anymore. Leave it at level 1.

Shadow Step Skip + Note?

Upgrading Shadow Step only increases the strafe distance now, which really isn't worth the SP. The range on level 1 Shadow Step is already enough to pierce people offscreen. Leave this at level 1 as well. Skill note is optional and a matter of personal preference.

Breaking Fist (0.6)Skip

It's a pretty good skill, but Burning Rush is a must-have. Sonic Slash and Ground Impact together can easily substitute for this skill anyway. I definitely would've gotten it if it weren't the alternative to Burning Rush though.

Burning Rush (0.75)Learn

I really hated this new Burning Rush when I first saw it, but it actually has quite a few perks that probably make it even better than it was before in terms of utility. First, there's the MP cost and cooldown. With the note, it only costs 10 MP per use, and the cooldown is a very short 4 seconds. So this skill is very spammable.

Next is the startup time. This thing activates instantly. It's on par with Elboy's Iron Body in terms of activation speed, and when it does get cancelled, the hitbox still comes out. If you spam the skill button while getting combo'd, the smallest mistake will send the opponent flying. You basically have a 10 MP tumble that's on par with female characters. It even comes with some bonus damage and knockback!

Not only is the skill impossible to punish at the beginning, but it's also completely safe at the end as well. The stoic frames last longer than the animation, so you actually have super armor even after the skill is done. And as long as you're stoic, the hitbox remains too. So a lot of the time the opponent will try to attack you at the end of the skill, only to get sent flying when you've already come to a complete stop.

Now of course those aren't its only uses. You can still use it for saving teammates, getting out of tight spots, and dealing the finishing blow, and for those purposes, it's vastly superior to the old Burning Rush. But what about catching?

Since the skill can't be held down anymore, there's no more chaining into other skills, or cancelling it by releasing the key in midair. After using the new Burning Rush, there's also about a second of delay before you can start moving again, so it's pretty hard to catch. There are still a couple of ways, but most of them involve platforms, ledges, or walls. My recommendation would be to just run after the launched opponent every time and use >>X at them when they fall. If you hit the opponent at the very beginning or very end of the skill, you might just be able to connect and combo off of it.

Unless you can master the Light Speed Rush, I would not rely on Burning Rush for catching anymore. Anyways, Burning Rush is a utility skill, and upgrading it only increases the damage by a small amount, so I left it at level 1.

Earth Break (0.75)Skip

I won't deny that this skill has some irreplaceable catching utility due to the vertical hitbox and stun effect, so I don't blame you if you chose this path. But let me just list some reasons why I personally decided not to get EB.

1. Before the revamp, EB was almost always used in unison with Burning Rush, at least in terms of catching. But now that Burning Rush can't be chained, Earth Break's catching ability was indirectly nerfed as a result.2. Earth Break got a pretty big damage nerf. Before the revamp, I used the Q-Proto title with a 100 MP ring, so my level 7 Earth Break did over 1500% magical damage in PvP. It hurt nearly as much as Wolf Fang, no joke. But after the revamp, even level 20 Earth Break can barely break 1000% damage in PvP. If the stun doesn't proc, it's a pretty big waste of 100 MP if you ask me.3. And that brings me to the third point; the stun rate. I don't like depending on luck to determine the outcome of a match, so 70% is really unappealing to me. If the MP cost were raised to 120 but the stun rate was 100%, I might reconsider my choice.

So now that I'm through with bashing Earth Break, let's talk about its active counterpart, Ground Impact.

Ground Impact (0.6)Master

Doesn't launch anymore, which is a bit lame, but that makes it more practical, particularly in team matches. It has a low mp cost of 30 MP and a cooldown of only 4 seconds. And since it now launches core 100% of the time, that makes it BM's cheapest and most reliable method of dealing burst damage mid-combo (which is why I maxed it).

It's also a launch reset, which pairs well with BM's >>ZZZ and ZZZX combos, both of which count as launches. It also has amazing horizontal range, and it inflicts a heavy hitstun similar to base Raven's >>X, which can help to ground tumbling opponents. Not a bad skill for catching either, if you use it off a ledge.

Counter ChanceLearn

Counter Chance has a 100% success rate at level 1, so it should go without saying that you should at least learn it first. Additional points provide an unnormalized accuracy boost of 2% per level, which will definitely save you a lot of sockets. Keep it at level 1 for now, and we'll come back to it later.

Megadrill Break (0.6), Maximum Cannon (0.6), Cannon Blade (0.75), Seven Burst (0.6)Skip

None of these skills are worth investing SP in.

Berserker Blade (0.75)Master + Note

Berserker Blade was slightly nerfed but still deals good damage with the skill note. Used purely for damage, so max and note it if you plan on using it at all.

Basic Physical Offense TrainingMaster

I dumped my leftover points in here, and I was barely able to max the skill. If you follow my build exactly, you will too. If you're unsure, leave it alone for now and we'll revisit it at the end.

Cut Tendon (0.6)Master + Note

Cut Tendon is 50 MP now, and the sliding animation does more harm than good. However, you should max and note the skill because both will prolong the leg wound debuff.

Infinite CauseMaster

Even though X drops fully reset KD in PvP now, you should still max this skill to give yourself more time to prepare the resets. There are also some cases where resetting KD is very difficult, like in 3v3.

Shockwave - Divider (0.75)Learn

I got this skill to level 1 for PvE only, but it's really up to you whether you want it or not. Neither of the Shockwaves are really worth using in PvP, but it's only 3 SP to learn and will make bossing a lot easier, so why not?

Shockwave - Cutter (0.75)Skip

Mediocre in both PvP and PvE. There are more efficient ways to use your MP.

Blade MasterySkip

Lame passive, a bit of extra crit is not worth any of your valuable SP.

Fine SwordsmanshipMaster

An unnormalized attack speed boost- every BM's dream come true (in fact, I made a thread proposing this idea back in 2012). This is probably the most important perk that BM has over his other Raven counterparts, so definitely max it.

Note: the skill description is bugged as of 11/16, when this guide was written. It has been confirmed to give attack speed, not movement speed as the description incorrectly states, so please don't be misled.

Hypersonic Stab (0.75)Skip

Situational PvE skill, not worth investing any SP.

Bloody Accel (0.6)Learn

Great PvE skill for any situation, and upgrading it only increases the damage from the initial hit, so level 1 is all you need for that 30-second buff. Unfortunately, this skill has very few uses in PvP due to high MP cost and its low modifier. Like Shockwave, I only got this because I had 3 SP to spare. In a "perfect" PvP build, this skill can be completely skipped.

Shadow Piercing (0.75)Learn + Note

Finally, we have Shadow Piercing. Ground Impact almost as much for the same amount of MP, so I would only use Shadow Piercing for catching. Leaving this at level 1 saves a lot of SP.

Wolf Fang (0.75)Master

Wolf Fang should be maxed because it's BM's only "ranged" catching tool. Despite being nerfed, it still does a very good chunk of damage when awakened. The fang sweep also goes through platforms now, so it's less situational. Cooldown was increased to 10 seconds though, so be aware of that.

Intermediate Physical Offense TrainingMaster

Extra points go here after you have the essentials. Come back to this skill later.

Finishing Slash (0.6)Skip

Great skill for PvE, but barely deals half of its displayed damage in PvP. Even with the level 70 cap, it's very difficult to bring this skill past 80% per hit. If Finishing Slash dealt one hit of ~400% rather than 6 hits of 70%, it might just be worth getting. Instead, it feeds the opponent a significant amount of MP and awakening charge, and the extra combo damage really doesn't matter when it's so easy to reset KD.

It also has abysmal catching utility and a glitchy hitbox. With a bit of lag, the opponent might not flinch even when the slashes appear on your screen. 35 MP is simply too much to gamble on such an unreliable catch, especially without the old Burning Rush.

To sum it all up, Finishing Slash isn't worth using for catching or during combos, so its only real use is burst damage in PvE (and just maybe in 3v3, though its total damage is hardly any higher than Ground Impact's). And since its only purpose is dealing mediocre damage, you're forced to master the skill if you want to use it at all. At level 70, you'll have invested over 30 SP into the skill-- and it still won't be very strong.

Sonic Slash (0.6)Learn

Sonic Slash is also extremely weak in PvP, barely reaching 30% physical attack per hit and a total of 14 hits. It costs 40 MP, feeds 80, and deals about the same total damage as Finishing Slash. Obviously, you shouldn't be using this skill during combos.

But when you consider atrocious damage and MP feeding to be a shared flaw for both actives, Sonic Slash starts to shine at everything else. Unlike Finishing Slash, the hitbox is huge, reliable, and lingers for a good two seconds. Combined with the instant activation, it allows you to catch X drops with ease. It also has a suction effect that can stop tumbling, and works great for grouping opponents in team matches. If you can force three mana breaks with just 40 MP, that's obviously a good deal.

Above all, Sonic Slash works as a "panic button" you can fall upon when you're in a sticky situation, and more often than not you'll get a catch out of it. It has instant activation and stoic frames just like Burning Rush. Lost a ^Z battle and the opponent's sword is right overhead? Sonic Slash will reverse that situation. About to drop your combo? Sonic Slash will fix it. Photon Blink blocking your combo's path? Sonic Slash gives no fucks. And if you miss, just chain it into Burning Rush and you'll be 100% safe.

Okay, you might ask: even if you're able to catch with Sonic Slash, is it worth the MP it feeds? Well let's test it. To start off, we'll be generous and pretend that Sonic Slash does no damage at all. So as I said earlier, the skill feeds a total of about 80 MP, assuming your opponent has a magic necklace and the Concentration guild passive maxed. Once the skill connects, they have a few options.

Firstly, they could mana break as soon as possible, and the frequency of the hits would help to minimize the MP usage on that mana break. But since they mana broke so quickly, they only receive a few hits of the total MP they could've gained by tanking the entire skill. So all in all, the opponent gains about 30 MP and loses over 100. You used 40 of your own MP to burn 70 of theirs. Not bad, right?

Next, we'll say that the opponent tanks the skill to the end before mana breaking. But mana breaking becomes a lot harder once your normal combo starts, since the hit frequency slows down drastically (XZ loop is a good idea when the opponent has enough MP to break). So assuming the opponent uses 120 MP to mana break this time, you're still burning 40 MP overall. Not only that, but you're also dishing out additional damage,

and if you follow up Sonic Slash with Cut Tendon, then it'll be easy to catch the opponent again even after they mana break.

Third option: what if they don't mana break at all? Well then they die because X drops reset KD now, so the combo will never end, assuming you don't mess up.

Now another issue that should be addressed is the awakening charge that you're feeding with those hits. Not a lot of people have the Wrath guild passive maxed, but for those who do, they get about half of an awakening bead from tanking those 15 hits. So what can you do about this?

Well this is where Burning Rush comes in handy again. If you use Burning Rush when the opponent awakens, there's really nothing they can do to you due to the instant super armor activation. So how do you predict their awakening? Well that's easy. Right after the opponent mana breaks or you drop your combo, wait for them to get up and then use Burning Rush right away. People love to awaken right after wakeup, so you'll be right half of the time if you just follow this tip.

Also, you might notice some subtle changes in the opponent's movement patterns if they plan to awaken on you. They might become more aggressive or they might stay in one spot, waiting for you to come to them. Skilled players do a better job at hiding these patterns, but with some experience and estimation, you should always be able to tell whether the opponent has an awakening bead or not. And really, Burning Rush only costs 10 MP. Even if you mess up, you don't really lose anything. Don't forget that the skill can't be punished, both at the start and the end.

All in all, Sonic Slash has incredible catching/evading utility that balances out with its obvious downfalls. It's by no means an overpowered or even good skill-- it's just that it has more going for it than Finishing Slash, since they both deal mediocre damage in PvP.

VeteranSkip

Skill is only in effect less than half the time, since you're required to have lost over 50% your HP for the buff to work. At level 6, it increases your damage by 10%. Let's look at its alternative...

Refined PhysiqueMaster

At level 6, you receive 10% less damage. In fact, the values for Veteran and Refined Physique are the same for every skill level. The only difference is that Refined Physique is always active, while Veteran requires you to have low HP. Obviously, offense is more important than defense in PvE, but in PvP they're about equally useful, so I went with Refined Physique.

Flying Impact (0.75)Skip

Weak and requires skill note for maximum effectiveness. Avoid this skill.

Giga Drive - Limiter (0.45)Master

Some of you might remember that Giga Drive dealt some pretty outrageous damage in season 1. Then it got nerfed hard in S2, so much so that I completely abandoned the skill. Now with this revamp, the MP cost was increased by 50, but the initial hit was

given a major buff. Its PvP damage has now returned to something very close to its damage in S1, with the main difference being that the nasod core was nerfed in S2. It's still a great skill for dealing burst damage in PvP without knocking down, and your opponents will be forced to mana break your buffed combo that follows. Spamming Ground Impact, Shadow Pierce, and Cut Tendon is a lot of fun with core aura.

Giga Drive - Seismic Tremor (0.75)Skip

Tremor's total damage is pretty high, but getting all the hits requires a huge clear path in front of you, free of walls, platforms, and teammates. Even with all of these conditions met, the opponent usually breaks after the first few hits; if not, you still can't combo off of it. Decent in 1v1, but way too situational in teams.

EvacuationMaster

Evac's proc rate actually goes higher than 10% when the level cap rises, so it'll end up saving your life a lot. When combined with the Shadow Pierce note, anyone hitting you from behind while you're facing a wall is just asking for a reversal. I admit this goes against my rule of depending on luck, but at level 70, it'll be a really reliable skill.

Shadow (0.75)Skip

Harder to catch off of than the regular Shadow Pierce, and Sonic Slash and Burning Rush already have all the stoic frames you would ever need. In addition, it costs a total of 40 MP to use. You'd be better off saving that MP for Wolf Fangs if you really need long-distance catches.

Counter Chance, Physical Offense Training, Extreme BladeRemaining points

So what we have left are Extreme Blade, Counter chance, and the Physical Attack passives. This is all really up to you, but I got level 1 Extreme Blade because it just looks so badass and fun to use. Then I maxed both of my passives, and had two SP left over to dump in Counter Chance. Level 3 Counter Chance gives 6% unnormalized accuracy, and I already have almost 20% just from set effects and additional effects. You can put more points into Counter Chance if your equips don't give as much accuracy, but keep in mind that you already have the accuracy boost from Fine Swordsmanship.