If you are heading into Guerrilla Games‘ Horizon Forbidden West, then you know that Aloy is going to be able to count on many different skills during her treks through the world. But what if you are looking for the best skills to complement your play style? Fret now, for our guide to the best skills in Horizon Forbidden West will have you covered.
Branching Skill Trees
First and foremost, know that there are six distinct skill trees that are in Horizon Forbidden West, each catering to a different aspect of combat and survivability.
The six are Warrior, Trapper, Hunter, Survivor, Infiltrator, and Machine Master, with both active and passive skills up for grabs as long as you have the right number of Skill Points to pour into them. There are also different levels of the same skill to unlock, which makes them more powerful than the base skill.
As a general rule, we would recommend focusing on the Hunter (ranged combat), Survivor (survivability) and Infiltrator (stealth) trees to give you an advantage, but let us cover the more prominent skills for each tree.
Warrior Skill Tree
While melee combat is not recommended against machines, human enemies are definitely more susceptible to the different skills found here.
One of the best skills for melee in Horizon Forbidden West is that of the Resonator Blast, which energizes a target for additional damage from a ranged attack. Resonator Blast+ increases said damage to make life easier, while Resonator Buildup makes it easier to energize your spear. In addition, both Melee Damage and Critical Strike+ will help you deal more damage overall.
The combo system in the game is also very helpful, and with seven different combos, both on the ground and aerially, to unlock, you can keep your enemies guessing while tearing them to shreds.
Trapper Skill Tree
For those looking to utilise traps to hurt your enemies, the Trapper skill tree is where the action is at. Nothing like taking down a hulking machine with clever use of traps.
Getting Quick Trapper is a no brainer, since you are vulnerable while setting traps in the open. Combine that with Trap Limit, and you can cover more ground when preparing for the enemy. When the need to craft more traps arises, having Nimble Crafter can save you precious time.
Last but not least, there will be occasions when you might step into your own trap. Resilient Trapper will reduce the damage you take from your own traps, so you can keep on fighting.
Hunter Skill Tree
As the skill tree meant to enhance your ranged combat, this is the absolute most important skill tree to master in the game, with some of the best skills in Horizon Forbidden West.
Needless to say, getting Concentration+, Deep Concentration, and Concentration Regen will help you with your aiming and getting the perfect shots without losing a beat. This way, you can deal much more damage with precise shots, while still slowing downtime to plan your next move.
As an additional enhancement, unlock Ammo Expert so you can craft even more ammunition from the same number of resources. This helps keep the pressure up on your foes, while stretching your resources.
Survivor Skill Tree
Nothing matters if Aloy drops dead in the middle of a fight, and that is where the Survivor tree comes into play.
Unlocking Potent Medicine makes the many berries you can find in the world heal much more effectively and swiftly, while Medicine Capacity will increase how many of these lifesaving berries you can carry at one time.
As for other skills to look out for, getting Low Health Regen and Low Health Defense can get you out of tight spots just long enough to pop a healing potion or eat a berry. Potion Proficiency will also help make sure your potions work even better at keeping you alive.
Infiltrator Skill Tree
Keeping yourself protected starts with being in stealth, and the Infiltrator tree is very useful for that. If you much rather keep to the shadows, here are some the best skills you can consider in Horizon Forbidden West.
Silent Strike+ will make sure any enemies you catch unaware is no longer getting up with increased damage, while Stealth Tear+ and Stealth Ranged+ will increase the Tear and Impact damage when you are firing from stealth.
Lastly, count on Low Profile and Quiet Movement to reduce detection by the enemies so you can set up things up. And if things get too messy, Smoke Bomb Capacity will give you more smoke bombs to use to escape the scene.
Machine Master Skill Tree
For players looking to manipulate the machines and turn them against each other, this skill tree will be right up your alley.
Lasting Override will increase the time the machines are under your thrall, while Machine Damage will help them become more efficient at fighting their own. Another good skill to add to your arsenal is that of Heavy Lifter, which allows Aloy to move faster while using a heavy weapon.
With all the knowledge about all the best skills in Horizon Forbidden West, you are going to have a much more advantageous position against all those that stand in your way. If you are looking for more help, just drop by our guide wiki for everything else!
Jake is a full-time trophy hunter and achievement gatherer on consoles, and part-time Steam Sale victim. He has a thing for Batman and awesome statues, and running out of space for both. Send help.
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