Guildrun Class Guide: How to Play Vanguard

The Vanguard class plays similarly to Tanks, but tends to favor shorter fights over long ones. This is mainly because of the Rush mechanic, which empowers them out of the gates, but quickly fades as time goes on. They are still tough on the frontlines, but often require more synergies to work.

However, that's not to say they are less effective, but instead to highlight their unique design. You can create some incredible combos if you plan carefully, so let's dive in deeper and explore their mechanics.

Disclaimer: This guide is based on the Guildrun Demo, so please keep in mind that everything is subject to change as new patches get released.

Vanguard Mechanics: Rush, Shield, Burn

Vanguard heroes have explosive potential if you can lean into their Rush synergies. This can make them effective at dealing with annoying enemies, as an awkwardly positioned start can be remedied by striking foes down before they're an issue.

During the earlier rounds of combat, you can often get away with little investment. C-Rank is fine to begin with, provided you're in need of a frontliner. Just note that this will quickly fade, especially if you don't piece together any synergies.

Despite their innately large Health pools, Vanguards can feel like more of a glass cannon, at least relative to Tanks. Mystics can definitely help fix this, but you'll definitely need some form of scaling to help in later parts of the fight (once Rush wears off).

Ming

• Base Class: Vanguard
• Multiclass: None
• Starting Ability: Inner Flame
• Specializations: The Searing, The Tempered, The Enlightened

Ming is a fiery frontliner with innate Burn capabilities. Rush is at the center of his kit, opening up many unique paths to explore the mechanic.

• The Searing — Has the potential to apply a ton of Burn if you've got enough Rush support, while also creating an AoE Stun. With this, Ming can play more of an offensive role.
• The Tempered — A solid source of Max HP for Vanguards as a low commitment Backup. While temporary, the opening seconds of a fight often matter most (to help heroes be able to cast).
• The Enlightened — Deliberate Rush support with a high ceiling but low floor. Could be very impactful with the right setup, but won't do much on its own.

Niklas

• Base Class: Vanguard
• Multiclass: Tank
• Starting Ability: Red Hot Deals
• Specializations: The Dealer, The Executive, The Hoarder

Niklas is a wildcard pick that incentivizes burning items into the ground. He has massive scaling potential, but offers negative econ by default.

• The Dealer — A decent damage and Stun ability, but most importantly, a chance to generate items. If found at A-Rank or S-Rank (Rare and Epic items), he can spawn insane amounts of value.
• The Executive — Ties into Rush synergies while expanding his item cap. A high ceiling for power, but you're going to need a ton of Shard generation to keep up with the cost.
• The Hoarder — This spec could add a ton of extra damage from the bench, but only if you've been able to generate a lot of Shards.

Rip

• Base Class: Vanguard
• Multiclass: Assassin
• Starting Ability: Bloodthirsty
• Specializations: The Glutton, The Enraged, The Brute

Rip is far more aggressive than your typical Vanguard, coming with a built-in reset effect that triggers as health drops below half. He's got carry potential when facing off against multiple enemies.

• The Glutton — Has great potential even with just Bloodthirsty alone, but if you can stack multiple sources of Rush it becomes a huge source of HP. If farmed enough, it's great on Backup duty.
• The Enraged — This spec shifts Rip into carry mode, providing a ton of stackable stats to go alongside his passive ability. Battlemage Robes are a great fit thanks to his Rush reset.
• The Brute — Offers another flavor of Omnivamp if you can solve Crit. It's a bit more niche, but could fair nicely if you can make use of Assassin synergies.

Rowan

• Base Class: Vanguard, Tank
• Multiclass: None
• Starting Ability: Hearty
• Specializations: The Tectonic, The Protector, The Friend

Rowan excels at holding the frontlines with his scalable HP/S. His Hearty passive makes great use of items, allowing him to sustain the onslaught of the rift.

• The Tectonic — The combined self Shield + AoE Stun makes this a solid choice, but you'll likely need some additional support so that he can cast in time.
• The Protector — If you have enough sources of Shield, this can potentially turn Rowan into your carry. More synergy is required, but the reward is worth it.
• The Friend — A very strong source of permanent scaling, especially if you have multiple Stall effects. If farmed enough, he can move to the bench and provide huge stats with his Backup.

Dragomir

• Base Class: Assassin
• Multiclass: Mage, Vanguard
• Starting Ability: Devour
• Specializations: The Greedy, The Sanguine, The Kingpin

Dragomir The Kingpin is best used with a ton of Shard generation, as he can potentially grant a ton of stats. That said, he can still be thrown onto the bench as another source of Rush triggers.

Fiona

• Base Class: Mystic
• Multiclass: Vanguard
• Starting Ability: Vault Spark
• Specializations: The Right Hand, The Lustrous, The Tycoon

Fiona provides Burn from the bench with The Lustrous spec, adding a good amount of offense for a low commitment Backup. You'll need enough Shielding to justify it, but the effect is solid.

Reyna

• Base Class: Warrior
• Multiclass: Vanguard, Duelist
• Starting Ability: Triple Threat
• Specializations: The Champion, The Brawler, The Boxer

Reyna can roleplay a Tank when built as The Brawler, as this amplifies her Shielding even further. If you have any additional forms of Max HP scaling or Shield, it'll ultimately convert to more Attack, and in turn more lasting Shields.