Duelist and You | Darkest Dungeon 2 Guide

This guide explains the basic mechanics of Sahar who is easily the most complex hero in the game. Between multiple stances and paths changing her mechanics, it takes a lot of time to be proficient with her.
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[@kernel_games_]

This is by far the most complex character they've ever done. The amount of actual abilities this character has from stance rotation and paths is astonishing. I love this.

[@p.p.wienersson]

it's just their version of the Thorne

[@GiraffeVortex]

​@@p.p.wienerssonbrought the watcher from slay the spire to mind

[@blitzboy2934]

@@GiraffeVortexI’ve been playing a lot more slay the spire recently, and when I figured out the basics of how she worked, watcher was right there. If they had to take inspiration from anything (if they didn’t just think the idea was cool) I’m glad it was watcher.

[@lolking476]

@@GiraffeVortex guess what they just added to dd2 mods..

[@Wolie318]

As a very,very amateur fencer, I really love how accurate she is to actual fencing techniques, what the stances and how they interact, the moves themselves, it's all so great.

[@sheriffrandom2276]

As someone in the same situation, I was thinking the exact same thing

[@danny_decheeto8300]

Same lmao. Out of curiosity, what sword did you fence? I was epee.

[@ShuffleFM]

Fencers unite. You love to see it

[@Wolie318]

@danny_decheeto8300 the club I'm in does all 3, but I prefer sabre

[@Wolie318]

also, other fencers in the replies, anyone else find it both hilarious and brilliant how flick ignores block and dodge

[@Beton_Arme]

As a french person, it’s funny to see a move called killing blow but not when one of your characters die

[@PerditiousSooth]

These videos helped me up my game in DD1 and now they're helping me get through DD2. Thanks for the quality content!

[@biglad4284]

I have a strong feeling she's going to be my new favorite once I replay the game. I absolutely adore this archetype and she seems to be a spiritual successor to the shieldbreaker which also was a favorite of mine.

[@pyromainia4710]

This kinda reminds me of a video I saw about implementing Shieldbreaker into DD2. Instead of stances, that video had SB have "Cadence" both forward and backward which affected her moves like the Duelist's stances do. I love this character though. For me personally though, I feel like Wanderer is the best path.

[@ShuffleFM]

Wanderer is super viable. SB with a unique mechanic sounds fun too

[@TheValiantBob]

I am feeling slightly mixed on her. On one hand, I love that she is a high damage, mobile, and never out of position dancer. But on the other hand, that basically kills the chances of Shieldbreaker ever returning since she was basically the same niche, and she was my favorite character in DD1 and one I was hoping would someday get added to DD2 lol

[@theshadegames3531]

She still has the poison and stun niche, so we could still see her. Be nice if we got someone old and someone new with every DLC. Or hell if they get permission and add some fan favourites from DD1 modding community as we continue on

[@missNekolover91]

@@theshadegames3531 man, really hope for transformation class, like Bigby

[@mothichorror446]

@@missNekolover91 Red Hook have said that creating a transformation class in DD2 is essentially creating 2 separate characters due to so many more animations needed and ability interactions. It's certainly possible and something I'd like to see, but it's unlikely to be anytime soon

[@missNekolover91]

@mothichorror446 daw, but it could still happen, since there are modded classes that transform

[@heroesoftomorrow3488]

I believe Shieldbreaker has a chance of showing up, maybe specifically as a character that massively punishes blocking (through Blight, Block removal, extra damage against blocking target), but struggle dealing with dodge

[@karmine_yamaoka]

Thanks for the guide! I was really confused by Sahar, so this video really helped condensed and explain everything she does

[@Gungir23]

Is no one going to talk about Crocodilian Hatchiling? Had Sahar, Audrey, Alhazred, and Barristan moving all over the place and it wasn’t uncommon to have +20% damage on each character.

[@CrimsonXenoProduct]

was the first thing I used / did when I used her, "this character is mobile" oh ok sure lemme just make a ballet

[@mistared4021]

Lil tidbit about the name, in Persian, "Sahar" is the word for early morning/dawn(time).

[@davidgeorge1943]

You forgot one of the biggest pros: hearing Wayne June saying "Rencontre".

[@originalcharacterplznostea2749]

Baby Croc Point Blank Shot Disengage Point Blank Shot Disengage

[@beeeean]

LMAO thats what I did

[@okonkwojones]

Ruthless Instruction’s “target: ignore blind (3 turns)” is actually pretty interesting with Leper-Chop gets bonus damage if you hit while blinded (iirc if it’s base or on a path) Right? EDIT: just checked, you’d have to get cruel intent, so not reliable enough to build around the bonus damage) Suddenly The King is popping off for three turns. IDK if it’d be worth the setup time, but it’s an interesting duo to try-especially because her mobility & speed can help reposition Leper for when he inevitably ends up totally out of place.

[@ShuffleFM]

Forgot about that!

[@Hunko115]

Got to try that. I'm personally big Leper guy so I want to make him less tedious lol.

[@kadenha2175]

It's a waste on Leper since he's least affected by Blind

[@Hunko115]

wdym least affected? His whole mechanic is being blinded and removing it with reflection rinse and repeat. If Duelist can remove Lepers blind for 3 turns means that he can put out more consistent attacks which makes him better. @@kadenha2175

[@notloopers1110]

Cruel Intent Leper is the best class once again! anyone who disagrees is gonna eat a 44 damage chop

[@Frubs97]

I find that she is best as a dps imo, using: Get a stance(meditation, touche rank 3, trinket) Flip it to aggressive if needed Prep Fleche Than just sit her in 1st row and spam prep and touche, with instructrice dont use meditation, just touche if upgraded or directly prep, than fleche even without crit token, than spam touche prep, and if needed she can disengage and then use the last ability to stress heal which is the cerry on top of a delicious cake

[@awesomepork101]

Yo, like how the names are accurate. I fence competitively, but I’d worry against her! No mask, she’ll be needing new equipment

[@LorenTR]

Thanks for another good video. I wonder if this character is really worth it aside boss fights. It seems that she needs some turns to setup. DD2 gameplay revolves around getting kills asap.

[@shayd4553]

I recommend people try running man at arms and duelist together. They synergize very well, and MAA can even rampart to get in front of her when needed

[@Crouton-]

And hold the line if you also have crusader to spam holylance and fleche

[@zacharyatwood5263]

DoT clear is important on Intrepede beacuse any damage will removed the path buffs. Feels like an oversight and hopefully will get patched because nothing feels worse than building up a stack of buffs and losing them to a random bleed.

[@level100derp7]

Ah, there she is: The REAL star of the DLC. Such grace with her movements, such power with each strike. This, my fellow Shuffle viewers, is what a real character looks like. No armor, no need to hide her face. She radiates confidence, precision, and strength with every breath, every flick of the wrist. She reminds me of the true main character of Darkest Dungeon: The red-haired barbarian goddess that we all know and love. The rest of you can fight for the “knight in shining armor.” I will gladly accept anything the Duelist wishes to bestow upon me, and provide her with whatever I can. Assuming my one true love is not present, of course

[@gachispy]

VileTwitchChatter

[@eyemmike7266]

Silence, heretic! We have no time for your surface-level prattle, holy war awaits!

[@threeruneblade508]

Vile twitch chatter

[@4JOLOT3]

boy you have a huge mommy fetish. still i agree with you in that she is cool (i despise your "love" thought)

[@DeDeDank]

I sentence you to a Crit Stunning Blow. Also, you fooled me in the first half into thinking you swapped waifus

[@noahandrulis9077]

Baseline Again! Sounds like an amazing enabler for a Leper damage-stacking with Ruin.

[@CookaSoupNieceEH]

I wish we had that snake lady from DD1, don't remember her name

[@4JOLOT3]

shieldbreaker right?

[@ThatsOk83]

If people talk about her enough I can see em adding her like they did with Reynauld

[@staminjammer4246]

Honestly I’d love to see her come back, as well as the houndmaster. Abomination was my favourite character in DD1, but I’m not sure how well he’d translate to DD2 in terms of gameplay mechanics

[@jakestavinsky3480]

​@@staminjammer4246I'm assuming it'd be a stance character like duelist

[@staminjammer4246]

@@jakestavinsky3480 I guess that could work, but hopefully they’d make the stance system feel different from Duelist’s

[@TehSamurai]

I'm really starting to like her in the front two ranks paired with Highwayman or Graverobber. Crusader with Holy Lance also fits in nicely. The stances take a while to get used to, but they are interesting. Flick piercing armor and having execution is huge. I don't know why I slept on it.

[@kikuraged1815]

Thank you Shuffle! So fast with the video

[@hidood5th]

Prep is actually really useful for Intrepide since dots count towards removing the buffs from the stances.

[@Raelyn]

"No setup stun" is technically not true, because you will have to spend atleast one turn going to defensive stance. It removes your stance too, so you can't do it consecutively. In that sense, it's similar to putting a combo token on an enemy and then stunning them.

[@LycanDreams9159]

It’s interesting how the wanderer path is focused on interacting with riposte. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem like she is tanky enough to support a riposte play style. Im trying to help by mixing her with vestal shield consecration but I’m not sure.

[@ShuffleFM]

Gotta dodge while riposting. If you get hit a couple times then start protecting her.

[@NonSenseMeow]

The Boot is now my favorite Darkest Dungeon skill ever 🥾

[@soapmcsoaperson]

They didn't have to go that hard on its sound effect, but I'm glad they did

[@DekieLabourOfLove]

13:05 Jester using encore on PD PD uses her grenades Duelist uses again on jester for encore PD uses plague grenade again PD uses plague grenade due to the second encore again With trinkets that increase her blight damage dealt or duration, this scales crazy high, nuking most backlines in

[@notloopers1110]

now the question is, whats the maximum turn counts you can get in a single round i NEED a image of a leper with like 5 turns

[@richard4888]

Again! with Instrutice seems like a bit of a wacky nonsense combo with Flagellant, especially against a Confession boss, since the extra stress will result in a Toxic rather then a Meltdown. Plus if it triggers before you get your extra turn, that can lead to some big blight damage.

[@Hydrodictyon]

The moment a saw her I knew she ought to be insanely good, WAY too much stuff she can do. Then I didn’t get how to use her. Next, I unlocked several skills - and shit started ROLLING. Duelist is extremely fun and unique and powerful, a great design. Probably my favourite character in the game from now on

[@ragnar3434]

This is such an interesting character. I haven't even unlocked half her skills yet and she's already quite complex, and i don't have any idea what I'll do when I unlock the last two paths.

[@Justkidding277]

New favorite team: Leper, Crusader, Duelist, Vestal.

[@RanVor]

This character should come with an instruction manual. RH went overboard with complexity here. I've run her multiple times by now, I've unlocked all of her skills and the first path, and I still have no clue what to do with her. She doesn't have a button I can just press, everything needs to be a part of an intricate strategy that will be invalidated by dodge or blind or weak or whatever next round anyway. Choosing her skills takes forever because almost every single one (poor Ruthless Instruction...) feels like a necessity. All the cool things she can do require so much setup that by the time I'm done preparing, I don't have a target for them anymore, and in general, it feels like she's never in position to do what I need her to do when I need her to do it. I want to like her, I really do, but she's just unplayable for a non-expert and I don't have time to do a billion training runs with her. So, for the first time ever, I'm coming here to actually find out what I'm supposed to do instead of figuring it out on my own and comparing my conclusions with the video. Help me, ShuffleFM. You're my only hope.

[@Crouton-]

She's my favorite character and am attempting a grand slam with her right now. I would say you need to know what you want to do with her early in the fight. Do I want her to repost? Buff/debuff, or dps. Being able to recognize what stage of the fight you're in is really helpful to avoid unnecessary buffs and lost damage. So like in road fights, I only really use meditation. For boss fights, I set her up with giga fleche+repost to go into meditation and fleche again. And when setting up her skills, you should have 3 skills that you auto click for the most part with a plan. For example for me I usually start with fleche to get into offensive stance and keep high tempo Meditation to get dodge and repost Then touche if I want her out, feint if I want her to keep the heat and keep reposts. I usually also have maa with her so he can hold the lime and I could immediately fleche with no consequences if It's upgraded. Usually by the time that whole sequence finishes, most road fights are done. For boss fights, I like to set her up to dps with prep into fleche then meditation and so on. There's a lot you can do with her. She's very very versatile. I haven't touched too much of the buffs, they seem pretty good.

[@RanVor]

@@Crouton- A bit late with that reply. I gave up on her months ago. I couldn't squeeze any fun out of her no matter how I tried. I haven't touched her since I unlocked her final path, and in all honesty, I don't really want to anymore. It's a shame, really. There are some heroes I like more than others, of course, but I there wasn't a hero I disliked to the point of not wanting to play them until Sahar entered the picture. Oh well. If you pushed me to explain what the problem with Duelist is, I'd say that the level of forward planning and preparation required to play her effectively necessitates the player dictating the pace of combat the entire time - something that a game like Darkest Dungeon is designed not to allow. But it's not like it really matters. The point is, I'm done with Duelist. I don't care anymore. If a character requires an unreasonable amount of time to learn to play properly, that's the game designers' problem, not mine. Should've made her more accessible.

[@Crouton-]

@@RanVor fair enough, but I really like complex characters like these. So many options that people are still talking about how to best play them almost a year after release. I think the biggest criticism of the character is that she takes time to set up in a game that has a really high tempo. You might not want anything to do with her now but maybe in a few years you might get an itch to play her again good luck in your future endeavors :)

[@RanVor]

@@Crouton- Thanks! Good luck to you too!

[@gabrieljurubeba6948]

Skill issue

[@void_king2962]

i love it when my plague doctor with 20 hp guards my 50 hp duelist with 3 doge

[@Canadian_Zac]

I have 2 problems with her Shes built around Dodge, and i have terrible luck with that RNG, can have her with triple dodge+ and shell get nailed by every big attack. And her story is, kind of boring. Everyone else has these tragic backstories that motivate them on. Hers is. Really good fencer. Fell in love with her teacher. Killed him while training. But she didnt regret killing him, it wasnt a mistake. She just killed him, goes "thanks for the lesson' and wanders off to keep fencing

[@ShuffleFM]

For me it's fun that it's a bit different. Can only have so many tragic past stories lol

[@Freyafanboy90]

I hope we get some more technical characters. They are a pain to learn, but once you get the technical aspects down pat, you van dance around the enemy and deal shed loads of damage and keep the enemy off balance. Hopefully they put in Hound master and make him a technical character as well.

[@RanVor]

Please, don't. Learning Duelist is hell, and I refuse to be put through it again.

[@edgard142ndofwelshdale7]

16:35 this with Cruel Intent MMMMMM

[@Upsetkiller456]

My two most wanted characters from DD1 are abomination who I think would be incredible in this game and shield breaker. I do think we need another ranger character however, it’d be cool to see the falconer get added, with a burn range focus. How would you adjust plague doctor or should you just buff vestals heals?

[@nickdavid1846]

Abom and houndmaster would be very nice to get back

[@davidgeorge1943]

When I saw the whole mechanic of her stance tokens, it reminded me of characters like Leif from Dragalia Lost. Does anyone else remember that game?

[@ShuffleFM]

My gf and I played that for a bit. It was cute

[@michasukowski385]

I'll be happy if you will add Crusader and Duellist to the DD2 Tier List one day :) I'm looking forward to see more videos about Duellist if you ever going to record some ;) Duellist's so difficult to learn how to play. Hopefully your videos will help me How do you think, will more heroes come to the DD2? I miss Houndmaster, Arbalest/Musketeer and Shieldbreaker Edit: I just realized, you showed us 3. example builds for Wanderer, Instructrice and Antagoniste but there were no example build for Intrepide ;)

[@davidlust2895]

Thank you shuffle

[@pabloarammasmanian5391]

A easy comobo to start is preparation into reposte skill. Specially with prep + you can srack +50% reposte dmg wich is absurd strong against aoe spamer like cultist or bosses

[@TheTechguy40]

For hellion, man of arms, leper and dullest what position for each and what paths and skills for each?

[@mrpyrosaxo2020]

She just soloed the act 3 boss by spamming two abilities while at death's door the whole time. Decent character if you ask me.

[@PrivateDaisy]

For me she died on her first deathblow twice...

[@mrpyrosaxo2020]

Classic Darkest Dungeon I guess. Thing is on my run she reached death's door but never actually got hit afterwards due to easy access to infinite dodge+.

[@Didi-wl9cs]

@@mrpyrosaxo2020 what kind of team did you build around her ? i just bought the new dlc and i'm trying my best to beat this act 3 boss with her :3

[@CRuduxypegg]

Mine died on the first two limerence too despite having 3+ 75% evasion tokens and blind on the bs fault (and got everyone else killed because he stacked a million dodge + armor off it). Really hate that stupid boss the most in the game.. at this point I think removing chapter 3 wouldn't even make the game worse just because of the stupid mess at the end.

[@gabrielsanandres6165]

I kinda miss the times when you used to show the animation of the move after describing it

[@ShuffleFM]

I need to get back to it. It's a small detail that takes a little time but it does up the quality

[@BRLink1]

She reminds me of the thorn mod character from dd1

[@foczeimre]

She looks cool, her things are interesting but she is just NOT EFFICIENT. By here complexity is not associated with effectiveness. She can't hit hard or properly Rank4 but Skill Point Greedy, Rank Greedy, need more Rounds for less or similar DMG with no DoT or Buff/Debuff . Low damage +30% is mid damage (with prep) and losing dodge is not a good feeling. I really want love her but after every Act i feel, i need my HM or the lovely Audrey. She needs proper self heal / DMG buff /rank stretching & opening Stance (by Paths). I hate the preparation for 0 or low DMG.

[@kalecraft8906]

I've had to watch this video like 3 times to understand this hero lol

[@ShuffleFM]

It's tough. I'm still making sequencing mistakes with her sometimes.

[@0p0n0n1]

Great guide, any chance you could link the stance effects for each path in a comment or in the description? No way im remembering all that.

[@ShuffleFM]

I'll pin it tomorrow when I'm back at my pc. I should have included the pics I had in the video lol

[@Sir_Man_Can]

​@@ShuffleFMalso heads up. 28:55 you mention Antangoniste Def Stance effct is -10% debuff res on combo. I believe it's now -5% debuff res unconditional. Keep up! 👍

[@0p0n0n1]

@@ShuffleFM awesome, thank you

[@thiago.leal17]

Could you do a guide on her 4th Shrine? I'd really appreciate it!

[@ShuffleFM]

My newest vid has it :)

[@thiago.leal17]

​@@ShuffleFMthanks, I'll watch it later

[@Rathiel84]

Does your duellist have a different skin active? I unlocked all of her cosmetics but can't find anything like it

[@ShuffleFM]

Nah I have the regular stuff

[@Jay_Vee1]

Do Reynauld and Sahar have hero shrines?

[@Helldragon789]

Yup full shrines

[@MagicianCamille]

Yes and you have to unlock their trinkets, inn items, etc. with candles just as with other characters.

[@marwansoliman6820]

You are very welcome

[@vumerion5481]

Very hard to use. I kinda stick to the antagonist, it's a fun disrupter/combo generator/setter, plus some damages. I mostly stay in aggressive stance, so i guess it works, but i feel like i could use the duelist a bit more to its true potential. Quite the learning curve, really. Gonna do some suicide-runs to test tactics though.

[@vumerion5481]

Fortunately i feel like the shrines do help to learn the stances (at least the basics).

[@DanielFalca0]

What about Again! with Jester encore spam?

[@ShuffleFM]

I haven't used the 2 of them together much yet. If you try it lemme know :)

[@TheEmperorProteccs]

3rd time watching the video and still not very sure how to build her. Dodge tank, support, riposte machine, fletche dps? What skills are optimal for each of those roles... hmm... too many things going on with this hero for my small brain haha

[@ShuffleFM]

You usually pick 1 or 2 roles, not all of em haha. Too hard to build that way

[@voodooozo3755]

Back in DD1 there was modded class called the thorn, a blind swordswoman based on riposte and regen. I feel like this class is a little bow towards that character.

[@PotionSmeller]

That's the Thorn. There's another rapier-wielding modded class called the Duelist.

[@voodooozo3755]

@@PotionSmeller oh ur right

[@S_Black]

One of the best mod classes IMO. Immediately reminded me of her.

[@DangerBay]

@ShuffleFM Can you help? Why can I not equip all my trinkets in the crossroads? Frustrating... anyone?

[@ShuffleFM]

Can't equip items until you get out of the crossroads sadly

[@SaintGoldSS]

Some skills have change

[@fortheloveofking]

It's weird how you didn't mention Again! with Flag.

[@ShuffleFM]

He's a good target for it. I rarely find myself needing him to use stuff back to back though.

[@phymenthaconsultancy842]

I don't know how to play Darkest Dungeon 2 properly, I always have grave robber/highwayman in any formation, can't form a team without them

[@ShuffleFM]

You are playing correctly if GR is in every team and you are having fun :)

[@OugiEin]

​@@ShuffleFMBased for the GR shoutout

[@sweetlikedonuts8581]

I dont understand how to build a team around her lol

[@butteredpie5666]

Time to get french fencing lady for 10 dollerinos

[@rosieeeeeeeeeeeee]

she has the boot worth the money

[@megladon5645]

She seems like a min maxed shield breaker.

[@MegaSerza]

This is literally just Highwayman but fancy

[@bautipe9948]

This could be Highwayman if he stopped rolling on mud whenever he can

[@PotionSmeller]

So true, just like how Highwayman is just a ripoff of Yuffie from FF7.

[@drguthrie7621]

Flick ignoring protections has killed so many big enemies for me tbh

[@ShuffleFM]

It's a move that I needed to give more credit for sure

[@crimso_nn]

She seems so fun, shame I can't get the dlc :(

[@ShuffleFM]

:(

[@crimso_nn]

@@ShuffleFM Ever since they changed the exchange rates on Steam for Turkey I haven't been able to get anything, but if the dlc ever goes on a big sale I may grab it

[@gianmarcopallaoro1596]

Did Red Hook say where they got the inspiration for this character? It reminds me of a mod for dd1 (actually it's a copy of that mod)... I hope they mentioned the creators somehow

[@bertomo9]

the creator of the mod probably worked on this, didn't marvin work on dd2? maybe its the same in this case as well

[@eclecticspaghetti]

DD modders did not invent the fencer archetype.

[@wayner396]

I think she looks cool and has a few neat skill loops but I don't think she fits my play style and I'm just not jiving with her as much as I'd hoped.

[@thefailbender]

Any recommended skills for Intrepide? There was no pop up with that path.

[@ShuffleFM]

Forgot to make one, sorry! I usually have her with feint, prep, and meditation so she can dodge spam while making riposte. After that maybe coup de grace, flick or fleche so she can still finish stuff off.

[@doctordice2doctordice210]

So basically she's what DD1's shield breaker should've been?

[@ShuffleFM]

SB was a much different type of unit

[@darakin2219]

Love the video, but jesus christ hearing you say Fleche as flayche instead of Fleche drives me nuts

[@ShuffleFM]

Yeah I screwed it up I'm sorry haha

[@darakin2219]

@ShuffleFM It's fine, only slightly annoying. You got the important part, which is explaining this complex hero well.

[@marooniballooni03759]

ah man, the cam blocked a skill...

[@ShuffleFM]

My bad, forgot it was in that corner!

[@hyperionsidartha5891]

POG!!

[@fortheloveofking]

Would.

[@Blooperfan94]

It's flesh

[@ShuffleFM]

Yeah I'm not gonna live that one down lol. Live and learn!

[@Graymage69420]

Even hearing you explain this character I feel like she’s just too complicated and uses too many moves to average results

[@urass3737]

한글 자막 있었으면.... 결투가 너무 어려워 ㅠㅠ

[@samueljayrivera2280]

I think this game should have alternative costumes.

[@ShuffleFM]

Eventually. The issue is they have to individually rig and animate each one, it's not like slapping stuff over the top so it takes time.

[@Д.К-ж8ф]

You start reading the character skill descriptions and damn RH i aint readin allat 💀

[@hihosilver1234]

I wonder how kuch capital investment money they got to add this character and parades their ass in our face. Not even kidding, capital investment firms pay game devs to make their games horny, but with certain caveots. Look into it.

[@kingofthejungle5338]

Shuff why are you making a guide for this goober. We only care about crusader here

[@SnakeEater776]

Becuase they're a character he spent money on and enjoys maybe?

[@kingofthejungle5338]

@@SnakeEater776 it's a joke m8. Look at the comments on the crusader vid