Slayer

Slayers are one of the most feared sights to see on the battlefield. Their near impenetrable suits of armor and huge weapons, like the Great Sword, cause even the hardiest of combatants to feel a moment of panic. Because of their heavy weapon, slayers are not swift and quick. However, what they lack in speed they compensate with their better sense of judgment.

The slayer is a class that wields a heavy, large sword ruthlessly. They are equipped with heavy swords and armor which makes their attacks rather slow. Their role is to deal great amounts of damage towards wounded enemies to take them out with certainty. Due to the heavy armor and swords slayers wield they move sluggishly. To compensate for this weakness, they have incredible composure and are great at making decisions. Slayers are useful for helping allies who are surrounded by enemies with their wide arsenal of knockback abilities.

Slayer gameplay video:

Slayer Skill List

Icon	Name	Required Level	Description	Cost
	Backstab		The slayer quickly runs behind the target and looks for an opening to attack. It can only be used against targets within a certain range.
	Fighting Spirit		By focusing the Slayer can raise his rested condition temporarily.
	Bisection Strike		Strikes the target vertically in a straight line. In order to activate the skill you press the skill key right after finishing a basic attack to unleash it immediately as a combo.

Combo Attack

Combo Attack is the Slayer’s first offensive skill. Bound to the left mouse button by default, at each click, the slayer will advance forward with a strike of their greatsword. At each uninterrupted swing, the attack combos, gaining more damage each swing for up to four swings. Each hit Combo Attack lands also grants the slayer mana.

Rushing Dodge

Rushing Dodge is a Slayer’s basic evasive maneuver. The Slayer may jump forward to avoid an attack at the cost of mana, every 4 seconds with this skill. Rushing Dodge is extremely useful, given TERA’s dynamic combat system.

Whirlwind

Learned at level 2, Whirlwind is a swooping AoE attack in which the slayer swirls their greatsword around in a fairly quick 360 degree flurry. In order for it to be executed properly, the slayer must spend 1.5 seconds “casting” the attack uninterrupted, so the skill is best used when the player can spare its mana cost and can guarantee the enemy will not be hitting them or moving anytime soon.

Trip Attack

Learned at level 6, Trip Attack is a high damage frontal attack with an 8 second cooldown. Similar to Whirlwind, this attack must be “casted” for 1.6 seconds and so is best used when the player can anticipate enemy movement. This skill has a very high chance to cause a knockback, making it increadibly useful for incpaciting other players in PvP.

High Level Skills and Gameplay

As the Slayer levels, they gain skills that increase their PvP viability. At level 12, Soaring Attack allows the Slayer to recover from knockbacks and counter attack the enemy. Also affecting PvP, at level 26 the class receives a Dash skill which currently increases the Slayer’s movement speed by 100% for 10 seconds. This could help the player in many PvP situations such as to escape melee range and return to it quickly or to get out of the line of a spellcaster’s fire.

Slayers also receive a few more high-damage dealing offensive abilities as they level. At level 16, they gain Smash and the passive damage increase to knocked back targets, Smash Intensified which, when coupled together, allow the Slayer to leap forward instantly with a large, lethal blow. At level 28, they also gain Decisive Slash which is a highly powerful, 1.2 second cast time attack. When Decisive Slash is used after Whirlwind, Smash, Trip Attack, or the last hit of a series of Combo Attacks, its cast time is decreased, forcing the player to choose the proper moment for this skill’s use.

Although Slayers may seem similar to Berserkers, at level 36 they receive a skill that seems to greatly differentiate them from their heavy-armored friends. According to its tooltip, Vicious Stance alows the Slayer to agilely approach the target’s back looking for a blind spot, making it sound almost like a backstab skill. How this maneuver actually works will be interesting to learn about!

Slayer Screenshots