War and Strife are the two protagonists in Darksiders: Genesis. Each character begins the game with just one ability, but gamers can find two additional abilities for each protagonist while playing the game. These abilities are found in epic chests that are scattered throughout the storyline.
Some of the chests are easy to spot, while others are placed in obscure locations. Players that want to get the most out of both characters will need to find all epic chests, as the Wraith abilities will be crucial in the final missions. This guide will cover where to find each chest and how to use each Wrath ability.
Updated on September 10, 2021 by Payton Lott: War and Strife have powerful abilities, but players will need the right creature cores to beat the game on Apocalyptic difficulty. As a quick reference, gamers can look at the last section in this guide for some of the best creature cores available. These are by no means the only useful creature cores, but they combine to create a powerful max wrath build. When players are putting together their build they will want to focus on increasing wrath power first. At the same time, Strife should have as much attack power as possible, and War should have cores that emphasize max health. Our creature core guide is available for gamers that want a more in-depth analysis.
Strife Wrath Abilities
Strife wields the power of his two revolvers, Mercy and Redemption. He is best used at range, but can attack enemies up close with his dual sabers. Mercy and Redemption can be loaded with several different types of ammunition, each with distinct effects. Additionally, Strife can utilize the Void Bomb and Aether spark to damage foes. However, Strife's Wrath abilities are the true strengths of the character. All of the epic chests and how to locate them are included below. Gamers may have to use Strife's abilities and bombs to break into closed areas.
Caltrops
Strife's Caltrops ability sends explosive spikes toward enemies. The ability keeps demons from getting too close and provides a large area of effect to weaken them. As a ranged attacker, Strife needs to use the spikes to maintain distance and deal as much damage as possible.
Players can find the epic chest containing the ability in the Inferno Vault. At the frozen steps, gamers should walk up the first set of stairs and walk to the right. The chest will be all the way at the end of the walkway. When looking at the map, the chest will be located in the area that extends furthest to the right.
Shadow Clone
The Shadow Clone base ability allows strife to create a shadow clone to conceal his true location. The ability will also boost the rate at which he fires Mercy and Redemption.
World Ender
Strife's world ender ability combines the power of both of his pistols to produce one concentrated blast which decimates enemies. The World Ender ability epic chest can be found during the fifth mission in Genesis. Players need to head to the Shrine of Vanity on the left side of the map. The chest will be to the left once players enter the Shrine.
War Wrath Abilities
War is the tank main in Darksiders Genesis. While Strife usually deals damage from range, War will get up close and personal to absorb and deal damage to demons. War wields the power of his enormous sword to slay demons at point-blank range. Solo players can swap between War and Strife to maximize their effectiveness in-game. War should always be the first character to encounter enemies, as he has the most health and damage resistance. War's Wrath abilities, listed below, are all geared toward tanking. Gamers will need to use their base abilities and bombs to break through closed doors and areas to reach both epic chests.
Rampage
War's Rampage ability allows gamers to rocket forward, creating a path of area of effect damage along the way. The ability is extremely useful for the tank, as it allows him to close the gap between enemies. War will use half of his pip each time the ability is activated. Whenever Strife is drawing enemy attacks, War should agro enemy attention with Rampage.
Gamers can find the Rampage chest during the fifth mission of the game in the Hoard. The epic chest will appear on the map above the High Road. The chest will be easy to locate on the top right corner of the map.
Blade Geyser
War's Blade Geyser attack will drive the character's sword into the ground creating an area of effect to damage enemies. Each blade that sprouts above the ground will deal moderate damage to any enemies in the vicinity of the character. As War levels up, the Blade Geyser attack will generate more blades and progressively deal more damage.
Stoneskin
The Stoneskin ability essentially makes War unstoppable for ten seconds. His skin will turn to stone, repelling most enemy damage. Similar to the Rampage ability, Stoneskin will use half of War's pip. War will be able to combine the use of Stoneskin and Rampage to lure demons away from Strife. Gamers should use Stoneskin while dealing with multiple enemies or battling higher-level foes.
Gamers will find the Stoneskin epic chest during the eighth mission in the game. It is on the top left side of the map during the mission. The area players fill find the chest is called The Source. Gamers can see the location on their minimap.
Utilizing Each Character's Abilities
The basic strategy in Genesis is to have War absorb as much damage as possible while Strife maintains distance and lays down DPS. However, this is a gross oversimplification of how to use each character and their abilities effectively. The best strategy will depend on what enemies the player is fighting, as well as other factors like the enemy's attacks and abilities. For War, the most common tactic is to use Rampage first to aggro bosses and mobs. Next, use basic attacks and Blade Geyser for extra DPS. After tanking for a few seconds, War can activate Stoneskin to finish off the fight. Against a boss, Stoneskin will be the most effective ability for War. With just one target, War will be able to keep the boss' attention and Strife can DPS from range.
Strife's World Ender does the most damage over time of any attack. The ability should be saved for a boss fight or when Strife is on his own. The other two abilities should be constantly cycled to wall off and hide from enemies. Caltrops should be the first ability Strife uses because it will damage demons while keeping them away. Next, Shadow Clone can be activated to cloak Strife from any potential threat. Players will need to use these abilities sparingly on higher difficulties. Especially with Strife, who survives by dodging and evading enemies.
Creature Cores And Upgrades
Gamers can combine the abilities with various creature cores and upgrades for more of an advantage. Upgrades can be purchased from Dis and Vulgrim. Each of the vendors will be encountered during the playthrough. These upgrades can be expensive, but each provides a noticeable boost to character performance. Don't worry about picking the perfect upgrade, as all of the upgrades can be unlocked later in the game. The right upgrades will depend on how people like to play, and what their weaknesses are.
Creature cores provide passive and active bonuses to each character. There are minor and major creature cores on every level. Minor cores are dropped from mobs and adds, and major cores are boss drops. Under the description of each level, the creature cores that have a chance to drop are displayed. This means that gamers can return to a level and farm the core to create their ideal build. With a few upgrades and some useful cores, War and Strife's abilities will be unstoppable.
Best Creature Cores
In the endgame, people will want to have as much power as possible. To use the following builds, gamers must have the Abyssal Armor equipped. These Creature Cores focus on increasing Strife's attack power and wrath power. On the other hand, they increase War's max health more than the character's power stats. Additionally, there are a few different creature cores that have a small chance to spawn in an ally. With the high wrath power of the combined cores, these allies can deal a ton of damage. Use the combination of creature cores below to maximize the potential of both characters.
Shared Cores
- Scarab Queen: Increases health by 25%. Lowers attack power and wrath power by 2%
- Feral Tidehunter: Getting damaged has a 2% chance to spawn a water eruption dealing damage based on wrath power in a 3 meter radius
- Suffering: War gains a 25% damage reduction for 6 seconds after landing. Strife increases run speed by 5% for 10 seconds
- Nephilim Brute: Increases attack power by 15% lowers health by 2.5%
Best Creature Cores For Strife
- Stinger: Stoneskin returns some damage absorbed and Caltrops explosions spawn health orbs
- Legion: Shadow Clones Taunt enemies and Blade Geyser gains a 5% attack buff for 6 seconds
- Hellhound: Any attack has a 2% chance to spawn a hellhound
- Legion Shieldbreaker (Major): Gain a damage shield that absorbs 20% of max health. The shield regenerates every 45 seconds.
- Armored Legion Champion: Block and evade counter attack damage is increased by 5%
- Demonic Geomancer: Increases max health by 3% and wrath power by 3%
- Flea Hulk: Chaos and Anarchy forms last 20% longer
- Hollow Fiend (Major): Increase attack power by 15%
- Slag Flea: Fleamag explosions never interrupt players and cause 20% less damage
- Dagon (Major): Melee attacks have a 5% chance to trigger chain lightning, which jumps to 3 enemies within 10 meters.
- Stormcaller: Increases wrath power by 10%, but lowers health by 5%
- Borrower: Synergy: War heals both players for 40% of max health. Strife's Synergy damage increased by 10%
- Fallen Hound: Increases attack power by 10%
- Inferno Angel: Melee attacks have a 5% chance to spawn ammo
- Tidehunter: Increases movement speed by 2%
- Spectral Angel: Strife's Hot Streak bullet count is increased by 20%. War's Tremor Gauntlet damage increases by 10%
- Dreadwalker: War can block 100% more damage. Increases Strife's attack power and wrath power by 10%
- Ashworm: Increase attack and wrath power by 12%
Best Creature Cores For War
- Grub: Dealing damage has a 2% chance to spawn a Grub that deals heavy damage
- Demonic Magus: Increases ammo drops by 5%
- Molten Hound: Stoneskin causes an aoe bubble of 2.5 meters and Caltrops lures enemies within 2.5 meters
- Construct Champion (Major): War refills 3 wrath pips when used, Strife's Hot Streak meter fills
- Broodling: Health drops are increased by 3.75%
- Flame Legion: Rapage's trail is 25% larger and World Ender slows enemies by 40% for 6 seconds
- Legion Champion: Increases wraith power by 10%
- Grinner (Major): Shadow Clone spawns an additional clone that explodes. Blade Geyser heals War for 100% damage inflicted.
- Gholen: Increase max health by 4%, attack power by 4%, and wrath power by 4%
- Moloch (Major): Increases max health by 10%, attack power by 10% and wrath power by 10%
- Legal Bomber: Hot Streak builds up 10% faster and damage taken after a parry is reduced by 10% for 3 seconds.
- Skeletal Archer: Killing an enemy boosts movement speed by 4% for 6 seconds
- Fallen Husk: Increases health by 15%, lowers attack and wrath power by 1%
- Fallen One: 2.5% more ammo drops
- Angel Champion: Dashing deals slight damage based on attack power
- Phantom Guard: Shadow Clone's bullets ricochet, pierce, and deal 10% more damage. Blade Geyser's radius increases by 100%
- Jailer (Major): Killing an enemy boosts attack power by 24% for six seconds
- Leviathan: Increases max health by 10%, attack power by 10% and wrath power by 10%