Dark and Darker Best Warlock Builds (2024): Guide to Perks, Skills, and Spells

Before venturing into the perilous dungeons of Dark and Darker, you have to create a character that's suited to brave not only the mobs of monstrous enemies but also other players seeking to steal your spoils. A key part of this is the class you choose. There are 8 classes to choose from at the moment. This selection shapes things like your stats, your weapon, armour selection, and your abilities. This guide will go through the best Warlock builds.

An Introduction to the Warlock

The Warlock is the latest addition to the class roster of Dark and Darker. This magic user specialises in the Dark Arts, as shown by its unique spell cost mechanic.

As a warlock, you chip away at your health pool in order to conjure powerful attacks and debuffs. This 'mutually assured destruction' approach to combat makes for an interesting balancing act between dealing damage to your opponents and reserving your HP.

All Warlock Perks

Perks are passive additions to your character's stats. These can be changed in the 'class' tab. At Level 0 you only have one perk slot but you gain another slot every 5 levels up to Level 20. 

	Antimagic	Your magic resistance is increased by 15% except against divine magic.
	Dark Enhancement	Dark magic spells have 10% increased magic damage.
	Dark Reflection	If you take damage while Dark Reflection is not on cooldown, you reflect 10 dark magic damage to the attacker.
	Immortal Lament	Casting spells will not take you below 1 health, but your spell power bonus is reduced by 5%.
	Malice	Will is increased by 10%.
	Soul Collector	When dealing with the final blow to an enemy, one cursed soul is collected. Each collected soul increases dark magic damage by 5%, up to a max. of 6 souls. When casting dark magic, this effect is consumed and disappears.
	Torture Mastery	Curse of Pain inflicted upon enemies restores 1 health to the caster for each instance of damage dealt.

All Warlock Skills

As opposed to the passive perks, skills only last for a set time. You can have two in your loadout at a time and they can be triggered by pressing 'Q' or 'E'. The Spell Memory skill has to be equipped for you to perform spells. 

	Blow of Corruption	The next physical attack deals 20 magical damage to the target and reduces their healing rate by 70% for 12 seconds.
	Phantomize	Phases through melee attacks and projectiles, increases movement speed by 10%, and reduces magical damage reduction by 50% for 6 seconds. During this period you can only move and do not collide with other players and monsters.
	Spell Memory	Allows you to memorize spells to use in the dungeon.

All Warlock Spells 

A Warlock's spells are performed by sacrificing health points. The Spell Memory skill has space for up to five spells. However, the Warlock is still in development so there are only four spells available at the moment.

	- 3 HP	Curse of Weakness	Weakens the target for 10 seconds. Weaken: reduces base stats by 20%.
	- 3 HP	Power of Sacrifice	Curses the target with sacrifice, losing 3 health per second but increasing strength by 15 over 12 seconds.
	- 4 HP	Curse of Pain	Instantly deals 10 magic damage to the target and curses them with agony. Agony: receive a total of 10 magic damage distributed over 8 seconds.
	- 8 HP	Hellfire	Summons eternal hellfire and blasts it towards the aiming point. The hellfire does not dissipate when it reaches the target, burning them for 60 magic damage per second.

Beginner Warlock Build

Recommended loadout: A Falchion is a cheap but effective melee weapon that can be wielded in one hand. This will leave your other hand free for a Crystal Ball. 

Recommended perks: As you're starting out, Torture Mastery is the most worthwhile use of your single perk slot. Each time you cast Curse of Pain you'll regain some of the HP cost. This is a handy way to self-heal so you can maintain a stash of HP to spend on more spells. 

Recommended skills: Blow of Corruption is a valuable skill as it provides a hefty boost to your melee damage. Spell Memory is the obvious second choice. Handily, because there are only four Warlock spells you don't have to make any further choices about what to bring to the dungeon.

Generalist Warlock Build

Recommended loadout: Once you're confident with your ability to speedily swap between set-ups, equip a Spellbook as your magic weapon, and for your melee weapon, embrace the extra damage that comes with a powerful two-hander like a Bardiche. 

Recommended perks: Torture Mastery, Immortal Lament, Malice, and Dark Reflection offer the best combination of perks. Immortal Lament will prevent you from dying as a result of casting spells. The -5% spell power from Immortal Lament can be counteracted with Malice, leaving with a net +5% bonus. Dark Reflection punishes your enemies for harming you, helping to balance the scales even when they have the upper hand in combat.

Recommended skills: Even when you're a couple of levels in, Blow of Corruption and Spell Memory are the most apt skill choices.