A dagger to the spine is overrated. Back in the good old days, a spear to the face was how the ancient Greeks settled the arguments over which city-state had better lifestyles. Luckily, players are able to relive those moments in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey in the most Spartan way possible by ignoring the “assassin” part altogether and going full warrior on some audacious malakas.

With that in mind, picking the best abilities in the Warrior ability tree is necessary for players to honor Alexios or Kassandra’s Spartan heritage. Some of them are not really that optimal for the best warrior ever. So, this guide aims to produce the healthiest, strongest, and meanest Spartan this side of the Mediterranean by picking 10 abilities.

10 Shield Break

Oddly enough, neither Alexios nor Kassandra came equipped with a standard ancient Greek soldier paraphernalia, the shield. The enemies have it, so why can’t they? Never mind that, just even out the playing field by breaking their shield to bits.

With the Shield Break ability. With a name like that, you’ll just never guess what it does. Any further upgrades add more damage and a chance to stun. Players usually won’t need those, so they can leave the Shield Break ability at the base level to allot more points in other abilities.

9 Spartan Kick

Much like Shield Break, the Spartan Kick is best used for utility than an actual means of dealing damage. It simply knocks down the target or sends them flying off a cliff or ship without further need for confrontation—hurray for pacifism!

The max upgrade is quite juicy, as it sends a Spartan Kick so strong that the shockwave affects multiple enemies. It’s best used in clearing ship decks and fattening up sharks. Do note that the Spartan Kick still won’t be lethal at any level no matter how many ribs get shattered and organs get punctured.

8 Second Wind

The problem with being a bruiser in Odyssey is that enemies tend to swarm the players and initiate unfair fights. With Alexios or Kassandra being demigod spawns, though, it all evens out with the surprisingly lifesaving Second Wind ability.

It’s one of the few and immediate means to heal yourself in Odyssey. The initial stage isn’t that helpful, as it only heals for 25 percent of the total health. However, the final stage heals for half and also remove the debilitating effects of fire and poison.

7 Battlecry of Ares

Speaking of fighting multiple enemies, Spartans shouldn’t face them without the blessing of their favorite god, Ares. This is all made possible with the Battlecry of Ares ability. It gives players invulnerability and a huge damage boost.

This battle cry serves as the perfect panic button, especially when things go wrong during a camp infiltration or a boss fight. Some players have also abused this ability to make the game a breeze, killing enemies with one hit left and right.

6 Ring Of Chaos

One of the reasons why Sparta Kick’s multiple knockdown upgrade is obsolete is due to this ability, Ring of Chaos. It’s an area of effect stun with a short-range that gives players a breather for a few seconds in the thick of a fight.

Moreover, it also deals a considerable amount of damage. Pair this with fire abilities, and it easily lets warriors control the battlefield by setting squads of melee enemies on fire without even using their weapons.

5 Weapon Master

Being a warrior in Odyssey, players also have to learn not to rely too much on their active abilities. The basic weapon attacks are usually their bread and butter, after all. That’s why giving the melee weapons a default buff is mandatory.

The Weapon Master ability does this, and it’s pretty simple with a straight heavy and light attack boost, critical damage boost, as well as combo finisher boost. Paired with the right weapons as well as the aforementioned abilities, stealth becomes a less fancy option compared to bashing skulls.

4 Gear Master

Of course, defense is also a priority for warrior builds since they mostly spend their time beating others or getting their wits beaten out of them. Having an extra margin of error and a safety cushion is the difference between life and death.

Expand this margin of error by grabbing all the Gear Master nodes. Like Weapon Master, it’s a straight-up percentage increase to armor by nearly double at the max stage. The final stage also adds a stagger chance to any unfortunate enemy that attacks the player.

3 Flaming Attacks

This is where the warrior build’s damage and crowd control potential goes sky high. Playing with fire is the most effective tactic for multiple enemies. Flaming Attacks is the best ability for that. It’s a buff that adds fire damage for as much as 25 seconds.

Stack it on top of gear with fire damage boost and take advantage of abilities like Ring of Chaos and start burning anything remotely close to Alexios or Kassandra. Be careful, though, as Alexios or Kassandra may end up burning themselves.

2 FIRE MASTERY

In order to actually make the ‘Ring of Fire’ tactic viable, players have to jack up their fire damage and burn rate. That means getting Fire Mastery, as well as maxing it out. It speeds up the fire build-up rate and also prolongs the burn duration.

The max level also adds a big chunk of fire damage. With this ability, players can usually set the weakest enemies on fire with just one Ring of Chaos activation, or two for tougher enemies. This one can make any battle with multiple opponents a joke.

1 Overpower Attacks

The warrior’s best ability for dealing as much damage in the shortest amount of time? That would be the Overpower Attacks. It’s essentially a barrage of unblockable attacks that usually brings the toughest enemies to a near-death state from full health.

The best part is that the animations vary per weapon. It can be anything from a sword dance to a huge smash. The downside is that it needs three adrenaline bars to activate. The payoff, however, is grand and cinematic.

NEXT: 30 Things Everyone Completely Missed In Assassin’s Creed Odyssey