Gladius Expedition Duchess Build

Duchess has a ton of options going into the Gladius, Beast of Night (Tricephalos) fight.

She can either go for a knife setup with hybrid spellcasting, or she can go for a more aggressive setup running either a Rapier or a hrusting sword. Gladius, Beast of Night (Tricephalos) is weak against Holy Damage, which will stagger him consistently, meaning that we put a lot more value on these types of weapons.

When Gladius, Beast of Night (Tricephalos) does get staggered, Duchess’s Restage ability can rack some extra damage making the fight that much easier. Her ultimate is also an amazing ability in this fight because the stealth allows you to either let go of the boss’s agro in phase 2 when he splits, or get a free revive when needed.

Day 1

Duchess’s base HP is insanely low, where normal characters can get away with going to a cathedral or fort, she cannot. Level up to lv 2 or 3 and then go there instead.

If we are near a Church, go there. Churches give you extra flask charges, and Duchess needs all the help she can get early on.

Fort’s are also great early settlements to go to because the enemies and bosses are fairly easy to deal with, and they always include a map for the location of talisman beetles. 

There are some insanely strong talismans for Duchess, especially the ones that buff spellcasting, so going out of your way to get them is never bad.

You can also decide to go to a Main Encampment to find a shopkeeper and a smithing table who tend to spawn there often. There, you can also defeat the boss for extra levels. Usually aim for level 5-8 after day 1 to have a good setup for the boss and day 2.

Keep in mind that you can always find a staff inside a fort. This will help you get a better staff by defeating a boss later.

Day 2

On Day 2, we want to start looking for either a Field Boss, Castle, or Ruin. We can run towards a Crater if it spawns, for Duchess, it's not needed, however, and is 100% your choice.

Keep stacked up on consumables, but don't be afraid to burn through them. Once you have your desired weapons, if they need upgrading, get a shard from one of the mines. You should be far too strong for the boss in there, so that should be a breeze. 

Keep looking for weapon passives and try to get as high a level as possible for day 2!

If you have trouble finding a good weapon, try the castle in the middle. There is a boss at the top of the castle, and at the bottom, they both drop purple tier loot, usually, so you should be able to get a good weapon from that!

Day 3

With this guide, we are taking into account that you fight the boss Gladius.

Be sure to check the shop and level up before you enter the arena!

Gladius is most dangerous at mid-range because of his swipe attacks with his sword. If you have trouble getting in use, keep in mind Duchess can double dodge because of her passive. 

The risky part for her is phase 2 because she has no real way to deal with the triple wolves' attack, so use your ultimate for that if they focus on you!

Keep in mind to use Restage whenever you deal heavy damage to the boss to double that amount, this is essential to using Duchess to her full potential!

• Duchess is very squishy and easily killed if you don't use her passive to her fullest. She is the most slippery character in the game by a long shot, so use that to your full extent!
• Be sure to use consumables on every day end boss fight, there are plenty to go around, so don't be greedy and keep it until you die.
• If you are playing with 3 people, keep in mind to use your Ultimate to resurrect allies. It de-agroes every foe around, which gives you free time to resurrect a teammate and can come in clutch!
• You can also use your ultimate as a setup for an Ironeye or Recluse to give them protection from the boss if they get focused too hard.
• Restage is your best ability, especially if you have any allies with bleed around, cause you just double that damage for free.