How to play Valkyrie? For Honor Valkyrie Guide
This chapter contains detailed description of the Valkyrie. You will find here information about her strengths and weaknesses, full moveset and combat tips.
Last update: 22 February 2017
Valkyrie is a unique character - she combines the characteristics of both assassin and tank classes, allowing the player to play more defensively, easily blocking most of the attacks, as well as be extremely mobile, jumping around the enemy and poking him with the spear. She excels in 1 on 1 encounters thanks to her mobility, good reach, speed and, above all else, crowd control abilities - no other character has access to so many disables.
Description - strengths and weaknesses
When it comes to offense, there are two things that make her stand out. First things first, Superior Block Light Attacks. This passive ability gives her light attacks the Superior Block property during the startup of the attack. It means that her light attacks can block the enemy strike and hit the foe at the same time, provided that they are used at the appropriate moment - similarly to a parry, you have to use them when the red indicator from the enemy attack starts flashing. Additionally, Valkyrie has her Dodge Counter ability. It allows her Guard to automatically match the direction of her dodge, allowing her to easily block the enemy strike and launch a counterattack.
Her most distinguishing trait, however, are her crowd control abilities. She can use three different abilities to knock enemies over - Leg Sweep, Shield Tackle and Headbutt. All of those abilities can be used in different scenarios - from close range, from a long distance, or between hits in a chain, allowing a capable player to easily surprise the enemy. What is more, those abilities also drain the stamina of the enemy - used at the right moment can deplete the stamina bar of the foe, severely decreasing his fighting capabilities for a short time. She can also enter Full Block Stance mode, causing her to automatically block all incoming attacks.
Her Pouncing Thrust and Hunter Strike abilities are basically dashes followed by a light attack. Those allow you to easily surprise the enemy, as the attacks are extremely quick and the initial hit starts a new chain of attacks. Even her defensive ability, Dodge Counter, can be used offensively - if the enemy's attack gets blocked by it, you will be able to unleash a heavy attack called Shoulder Pin, dealing good damage and applying bleed effect to the foe.
Unfortunately, Valkyrie has multiple flaws. The first one is her stamina. Her individual attacks won't drain the stamina bar of the character, but she has to use multiple strikes to deal even a small amount of damage to the enemy. Her Full Block Stance consumes a tremendous amount of it - 3 enemy hits will deplete the stamina bar and force you out of the stance. Her damage is also a problem, as at the moment she is without a doubt a character dealing the lowest damage of all of the available ones - hitting a full chain on an enemy will drain half of her stamina and won't even take 1/3 of the enemy health.
Moveset and hero-specific abilities
Valkyrie has access to a vast amount of different abilities, easily outclassing all other characters in the game when it comes to sheer numbers. Mastering them will take some time, but on the other hand will allow you to dominate the battlefield.
Passive abilities
Valkyrie has the following passive abilities:
- Renown - renown is balanced across activities.
- Revenge Mode - Revenge Mode boosts damage and health, turns all attacks uninterruptible and parry and throws knock enemies down. Enemy attacks are auto parried on activation, knocking enemies down.
- Superior Block Light Attacks - light attacks have Superior Block property during the startup. Use it to counter attacks.
- Dodge Counter - your guard automatically matches the direction of your dodge, Pouncing Thrust and Hunter Strike. Press Heavy Attack after a successful Dodge Block to link it into a Shoulder Pin.
- Full Block Stance on Shield Tackle - hold Shield Tackle to gain Full Block Stance. It keeps full block property during the charge as well.
- Shield Tackle Cancel - press Light Attack to cancel Shield Tackle with Pouncing Thrust and Guard Break to cancel Shield Tackle with Guard Break.
- Shield Crush Cancel - press Guard Break during a heavy attack startup to cancel it into a Shield Crush.
- Spear Sweep - use Spear Sweep instead of your normal chain finisher to surprise your enemy.
- Zone Attack - you can cancel the Zone Attack after the first strike.
Feats
Valkyrie has 12 feats that are divided between 4 tiers (each tier contains 3 abilities). You can choose only one ability from each tier. The table below contains the descriptions of all abilities available for Lawbringer.
Tier | Description |
1 | Rush - use to gain movement speed for a short time. Available from the start. Deadly - passive ability. Attacks deal slightly more damage. Requires level 5. Bounty Hunter - passive ability. Gain health and stamina when you kill another hero. Requires level 13. |
2 | Bloodlust - Passive ability. Killing heroes grants temporary boosts to attack and defense. Available from the start. Bear Trap - set a trap that damages and stop enemies. Requires level 7. Juggernaut - you're slowed and gain high damage reduction. Requires level 15. |
3 | Javelin - throw a javelin for moderate damage. Available from the start. Fury - raise sprint speed slightly, attack and defense greatly. Requires level 9. Sharpen Blade - attacks inflict low damage over time. Requires level 17. |
4 | Scout - all enemies are marked for death and are visible on the map. Available from the start. Fire Flask - throws a projectile creating a fire effect over a wide area. Requires level 11. Regenerate - passive ability. Regenerate your health when out of combat. Requires level 19. |
Hero-specific attacks
As mentioned, Valkyrie has access to a great number of different attacks that can be used to disrupt enemy ranks, force them to focus your attention on you and keep Valkyrie alive even when facing multiple enemies at once. The following table contains information about every attack available to this character class.
Name | How to do | Description |
Boar Hunter | Light, light, light attack | The most basic attack sequence of Valkyrie. The thirst light attack stuns the enemy. This sequence is the fastest Valkyrie has at her disposal and the first light attack can be used in conjunction with her Superior Block Light Attacks, but her remaining hits can easily be blocked. Furthermore, those attacks deal very little damage to the enemy and should be treated more as a method to poke than to injure the enemy. Remember that you can use Spear Sweep attack as the finisher of the combo to surprise the enemy. |
Thrust and Slash | Light, light, heavy attack | A slightly modified version of the previous combo - the only difference is that it ends with a heavy attack and that the final strike doesn't stun the enemy. It deals more damage than Boar Hunter, but the third strike is slower and therefore easier to block. Remember that you can use Spear Sweep attack as the finisher of the combo and that the heavy attack can be canceled into a Shield Crush - use them to surprise the enemy. |
Harrier's Fury | Heavy, light, light attack | The third chain of Valkyrie starts slower than the previous ones, but the initial strike deals more damage. Furthermore, it can be canceled into a Shield Crush and the final strike can be swapped into a Spear Sweep. |
Hunter's Rush | Heavy attack while sprinting | A good attack to use when starting an encounter. The strike is wide and can be used from a considerable distance, allowing you to easily surprise an enemy thinking that you won't reach him. |
Pouncing Thrust | Dash forward and perform a light attack | A dash attack, allowing Valkyrie to jump forward and strike the enemy with a swift strike. It doesn't deal much damage, but the attack itself is extremely fast and the initial strike starts a chain. Use it to poke the enemy, to close the distance between the two of you, or when dealing with a player that is good at blocking attacks. |
Hunter's Strike | Side (left or right) dash and a light attack | Similar attack to Pouncing Thrust - the only difference is that the character sidesteps and performs a spear stab. This can be used to dodge attacks that cannot be blocked or when the enemy constantly tries to Guard Break you. Like Pouncing Thrust, the strike starts a chain. |
Shield Crush | Heavy attack, followed by a Guard Break | A powerful crowd control ability that can be used after you perform a heavy attack. It knocks the enemy back, it's unblockable and another chain of attacks can be linked to it after striking the enemy. What is more, you can cancel any heavy attack into Shield Crush to surprise the enemy. |
Shield Tackle | Move back and press dodge, hold Guard Break | The most unique skill of Valkyrie. It allows the character to take a step back, lower her stance and enter Full Block Stance with her Shield Tackle. You will automatically block all of the incoming attacks and you can release the Guard Break button to perform a rushing attack, dealing damage, taking a huge amount of enemy stamina and knocking him down. The longer you hold the button, the further Valkyrie will travel with her rush attack. What is more, Shield Tackle can be canceled with Pouncing Thrust to begin a combo. However, you shouldn't rely on this ability when defending - Valkyrie will automatically block all incoming attacks, but each strike will deplete about 1/3 of your total stamina. Note - there's an error in the skill description. You CAN"T cancel the Shield Tackle with Guard Break. |
Shoulder Pin | Heavy attack after a Dodge Block. | A powerful attack, but extremely difficult to use. You have to dash to the direction of the attack at the right moment and block the incoming attack with the dash itself. It's hard to tell the correct moment to use the ability, so you have to learn it on your own. Once you block the attack (the enemy gets knocked away a little), you perform a heavy attack to stab the foe. Shoulder Pin allows you to block the attack and perform a powerful counter, dealing damage and applying bleed to the enemy. However, as mentioned, this ability is extremely hard to pull off. If you fail, you will receive damage from the enemy, from an attack that could normally be easily blocked. |
Ram's Headbutt | Guard Break, followed by another Guard Break. | A powerful ability that allows you to knock the enemy away after performing a guard break on him. It knocks the enemy back and takes out some of his stamina. If you hold Guard Break, you will "charge" the attack and perform a more powerful headbutt. |
Spear Sweep | Throw the enemy to any direction and perform a down heavy attack. | Spear Sweep deals very little damage, but allows you to knock an enemy down, allowing you to hit him with another attack. Spear Sweep can be used as a chain finisher, by performing a down heavy attack as the third strike. |
Shield Crush to Spear Sweep | Perform Shield Crush and follow it with a Spear Sweep. | A variation of the Spear Sweep attack that can be done after hitting the enemy with Shield Crush. The whole combo consumes a considerable amount of stamina, but also deals more damage and disables the enemy. |
Zone Attack | Press light and heavy attack together. | A powerful attack that can be used to hit all enemies around you. |
Tips
Some tips that may be useful when using this character:
- Remember about the Superior Block Light Attacks passive ability. It allows you to perform a light attack just before the enemy attack strikes you (like with parrying - when the red attack indicator starts flashing), blocking the attack and performing your own. If performed right, you will be able to block all enemy attacks and the enemy won't be able to react to it - it won't deal large damage, but can be used to poke (down) the enemy.
- Hunter's Rush is a good attack to start an encounter with. The attack is wide and has a long reach, allowing you to start the attack earlier - most enemies won't expect the attack to have such a range and won't block it. Additionally, it's perfect to chase enemies with.
- Focus on poking enemies and countering their attacks. Valkyrie's chain attacks are rather slow and deal low damage and you won't be able to pummel enemies with them, which is why she has to rely on her other abilities. Shoulder Pin to bleed enemies, light attacks with the Superior Block Light Attacks passive to surprise your foes, Pouncing Thrust and Hunter Strike to dodge and attack at the same time.
- Learn how to use Shoulder Pin. It will require you to master the Dodge Counter ability, but once done, you will be able to counter enemy attacks and apply bleed at the same time. Bleed will deal damage to the enemy and pressure him to take an action and, hopefully, make a mistake that you can use against you foe.
- Remember about Full Block Stance on Shield Tackle. It allows you to block all enemy attacks, regardless of the direction they are coming from. What is more, Full Block Stance remains active when performing the rush attack after the Shield Tackle - once the rush attack starts, the enemy won't be able to stop and/or damage you.
- Don't rely on Full Block Stance in defense. The ability to block all incoming attacks is powerful, that's true, but it consumes vast amount of stamina - every enemy attack will take about 1/3 of your total stamina. After 3 hits you will be left with none, forcing you out of the stance and leaving you vulnerable to enemy attacks.
- Use multiple crowd controlling abilities of Valkyrie. She can perform Shield Tackle, Shield Crush and Ram's Headbutt. All of those abilities will knock enemies back and/or down, allowing you to easily turn the tides of an encounter or gain some space. Those abilities can be used from various distances and can be incorporated into chains, allowing you to easily surprise your foe.
- Control your character's stamina meter. Valkyrie needs to land multiple hits to be able to damage her foe and those consume a large amount of stamina. Depleting it completely makes things easier for your enemy. When your stamina starts to deplete (about 1/3 of its length) stop attacking for a few seconds so it can regenerate.