LORETIDE - Veteran - Valhallan Ice Warrior - Mk II Plasma Gun + Mk VII Tactical Axe
 Veteran Build - Warhammer 40k: Darktide 

Link to Discussion thread.

VALHALLAN ICE WARRIOR

By Denartes

1. Foreword

Welcome to the Driptide series, where I craft themed builds, pulling from Warhammer 40,000 lore, along with fitting cosmetic setups, focusing on fun and variety over strict adherence to the meta. While these builds may not always align with the current meta or the most optimal configuration, they promise an engaging experience for those seeking something different.

Before I make a build public, it undergoes extensive playtesting and adjustments to prove its viability in Auric Damnation. This ensures that although they can be unorthodox, you will be able to enjoy the build without worrying about being deadweight.

This also means that these builds aren't just for those who enjoy playing dress-up. They will perform well enough that if you are just wanting to try a new weapon, or find these builds interesting, you can certainly use them without any of the cosmetic stuff.

Often, a weapon has been selected for thematic coherence first, with the build then designed around these weapons. For example, it makes thematic sense for a Hive Ganger to use the Shredder Autopistol. So, although there are significantly better weapons, my Hive Ganger build is as optimised as I believe the Shredder can be so that I can still roleplay a Hive Ganger without signifcantly affecting the team's performance. In this particular instance, I acknowledge that even with such a build, a weapon like the Shredder is so low in performance that the average player is likely to struggle. In such instances, this will be indicated by the required player skill metric in the Overview section.

2. Contents

1. Foreword
2. Contents
3. Lore
4. Overview
5. The Drip
6. Primary Weapon
7. Secondary Weapon
8. Curios
9. Talents
10. Tactics

3. Lore

Warhammer 40,000 Wiki - Valhallan Ice Warriors

"As inexorable as the winter cold, as ruthless as the bitter frost, as certain as death—the Valhallans fight only for victory and the Emperor. All else is but a prelude." — Colonel Kasteen of the 597th Valhallan Ice Warriors Regiment.

The Valhallan Ice Warriors, hailing from the desolate and frozen world of Valhalla in the Segmentum Ultima, are among the most renowned regiments of the Astra Militarum. With a legacy forged in the harshest conditions, they are celebrated for their tenacity and resilience. These troops have a storied history of victories against formidable foes, particularly the Orks. Valhalla, once a verdant paradise, was transformed into an icy wasteland after a comet strike. Despite these cataclysmic changes, the Valhallans adapted to their new environment, carving out subterranean homes beneath the ice and developing a hardened resolve that defines their fighting spirit.

In battle, the Valhallan Ice Warriors are unmatched in their ability to endure and overcome. They are especially adept at cold-weather combat, leveraging their homeworld's brutal climate to their advantage. Their tactics often involve combining massed artillery barrages with relentless infantry assaults, a strategy that has proven devastatingly effective. On the defensive, they exhibit a dogged determination, holding their ground against overwhelming odds. This unwavering stoicism and dedication to the Emperor have earned them a reputation as some of the toughest soldiers in the Imperial Guard, often deployed to the most treacherous warzones where their grit can tip the balance of power.

Life on Valhalla is as unforgiving as the planet's climate. The population lives in overcrowded subterranean caverns, where human life is cheap and survival is a constant struggle. This harsh existence breeds soldiers with a casual disregard for their own lives, viewing service in the Astra Militarum as both an escape and an honour. Valhallan regiments are known for their grim determination and unyielding spirit, traits that have made them legends throughout the Imperium. Their ability to endure the harshest conditions and emerge victorious has made them invaluable assets in the Imperium's endless wars.

4. Overview

Build Difficulty: Easy

Easy - Meta or extremely strong, can easily carry Auric Damnation.

Medium - Competent players will do well, average players will do okay but will struggle if last alive.

Hard - Mechanical complexity, unique setup, or a bottom tier weapon requires a high level of player skill. Only expert players will be able to clutch.

For this build I have chosen the ubiquitous M35 Plasma Gun, a common Veteran weapon due how powerful it is in the current game balance, and the Mk VII Tactical Axe, a much rarer weapon to be seen on Veterans. Thematically, I can easily imagine an Ice Warrior in the midst of a frozen battle zone enjoying the warmth of the plasma coils, while keeping their Axe nice and sharp ready for whatever utility they might need it for.

There is not much explanation needed for the Plasma Gun, it is about as simple as Darktide can get. You point it towards the enemy and shoot, the incredible high damage and infinite cleave (it even go through walls!) will do the rest. Execution Stance is taken to highlight Specials and Elites, allowing you to easily pick them out amongst a crowd, and it will make it straightforward to pick off enemies through obstacles. Weakspot damage is a priority here, the idea being that while you will be incredible strong at killing Specials/Elites, you will also be capable of dealing significant damage to bosses with good positioning.

The Mk VII Tactical Axe is slightly different, in that many may not be familiar with it, but you may be surprised at its effectiveness. It is built the same as the Combat Axe, but has a slightly different attack pattern, which may be a welcome change for some.

5. The Drip

• Primary Weapon - Chemzone Sludge Camo.
• Secondary Weapon - Sludge Jungle.
• Head - Winter Cap (Wadi).
• Upper Body - Hostile Environment Field Kit (Ice Mourn).
• Lower Body - Militarum Field Fatigues (Gerdan Pattern).
• Accessory - None.

6. Primary Weapon (Melee)

Atrox Mk VII Tactical Axe.

The Tactical Axe is similar to the Combat Axe, but trades reach for attack speed. In my experience, with the same blessings it will feel just as fast at horde clear, you will just need to be more mindful of positioning as the it doesn't have the same reach.

Perks

1. Damage (Maniacs) - You can change this for Unarmoured, but I prefer Maniac as it allows you to 2 tap a Mutant with heavy weakspot hits.
2. Damage (Flak) - Required for breakpoints on flak enemies.

Blessings

1. Brutal Momentum - Straight forward, you want the additional cleave on weakspot kills to help with horde clear.
2. Headtaker - A common choice for axes, with the fast attack speed you will be able to build 5 stacks fast.

Attack Combos

Multi-target:

Heavy > Light > Repeat

Or if you are getting swarmed and need to make space:

Push Attack > Heavy > Light > Repeat

Single target:

Heavy > Heavy > Repeat

Tips & Tricks

The special bash has an incredibly fast attack speed and is good for staggering Ragers.

7. Secondary Weapon (Ranged)

M35 Magnacore Mk II Plasma Gun

The Plasma Gun needs no introduction. Arguably the strongest ranged weapon in the game, it will allow you to destroy entire hallways of elites without breaking a sweat. Make sure you leave some for your teammates!

The build is stock standard, you may want to play around with different damage perks to test different breakpoints. This setup will not disappoint though, most enemies will be a 1 shot, especially with weakspot hits.

Perks

1. Damage (Flak) or (Carapace) - Up to your preference.
2. Damage (Unyielding) - This is a strong boost to the boss killing ability of this build.

Blessings

1. Blaze Away - Best in slot, as we don't bother with charged attacks you will quickly build stacks from spamming left click.
2. Gets Hot! - More crit as you fire, this especially helps with DPS against bosses. You could take Gloryhunter instead if you want more toughness regen on kill.

Tips & Tricks

You can shoot through some obstacles and walls. Pop Execution Stance and see what enemies you can kill, you will quickly learn what you can and can't shoot through, it's basically wall hacks.

8. Curios

Curios are entirely up to player preference for this build. Below is my typical setup. Combat Ability Regeneration to minimise any downtime between Execution Stance uses (sometimes a lone poxwalker takes you out of your ability), and health/toughness for increased survivability.

Stats

1. Max Health
2. Toughness
3. Toughness

Perks

1. Combat Ability Regeneration.
2. Toughness.
3. Health.

9. Talents

Blitz: Shredder Frag Grenade

Taken as most talent point efficient route to Execution Stance.

Aura: Survivalist

You will popping a lot of specials and elites, this will help to alleviate ammo use.

Combat Ability: Executioner's Stance

This ability is overpowered with the Plasma Gun as it will allow you to spam delete all the special/elites in a throng of enemies, some take Voice of Command but I personally really like how well this ability synergises with the Plasma Gun. We also take The Bigger They Are to ensure Ogryn enemies are highlighted a long with specials and elites. Relentless is taken as the constant kills will kept it refreshed.

Keystone: Marksman's Focus

This, coupled with Camouflage so you can get stacks if you can't get any kills, will turn you into a boss killing powerhouse and give you significant ranged weakspot damage against bosses. Although, this isn't required and you could very well leave this out if you didn't care for the boss killing capability, there is a lot of utility you otherwise take. 

Notes:

We take a smattering of talents to our ranged damage against bosses. We also take the passive grenade regeneration as the utility is simple too good to give up, although you could drop Demolition Stockpile and the connecting node for Demolition Team to give yourself a free point.

10. Tactics

Hordes/Mixed Hordes

Switch to Tactical Axe and use multi-target combo (Heavy > Light, or Heavy > Light > Push Attack), save your ammo for the weapons below.

Specials/Ragers/Maulers/Crushers/Bulwarks/Shooters/Gunners/Reapers/Snipers

Pop Execution Stance. Point Plasma Gun towards enemy. Spam left click.

Monstrosities
Find somewhere to post up, pop red stimm if you have, pop Execution Stance, and go to town on the weakspot. This build will do some insane ranged weakspot damage.

-----

Build template v1.2