New World: Best Bow Build

The Bow is a powerful weapon in New World, as long as you know how to create the best build. We cover attributes, masteries, and weapon pairings.

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• Best Bow Build In New World

• Bow And Hatchet Build

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The Bow might be one of the most reliable and versatile weapons in New World. Suited to single-target damage, the Bow excels in PVP, although it can also excel at clearing Expeditions with the right masteries.

Our preferred build is to pair the Bow with the Hatchet, something we covered in brief in our best build to level up fast guide. For this guide, we’ll cover some different weapon pairings and build ideas for the Bow, ranging from glass-cannon PvP builds to excellent leveling builds for PvE.

Updated December 8, 2021: To further illustrate the power of the Bow in New World, we have included our very own video guide to highlight its best attributes when it comes to building a character around it. There are a variety of builds you can use centered around the Bow, and here are the best ones.

Best Bow Build In New World

The Bow is incredibly strong, arguably one of the best ranged weapons in the game. It serves as a harder-hitting alternative to the Musket, although you’ll have to get used to the Bow’s travel time and various abilities. In its current state, the Bow is the perfect weapon for PVP.

Here’s the best way to build a Bow for PvP. Thanks to NewWorldFans for providing a great platform to experiment with builds.

Best Masteries For The PVP Bow Build

There are three skills you’ll want for a PvP-focused Bow build:

• Description: Leap back 5m and shoot an arrow, dealing 125% weapon damage.

• Evasive Knockback: Evade Shot causes 2m of knockback.
• Go the Distance: Evade Shot grants 15% movement speed for 5 seconds.

• Description: Fire an arrow that releases a 3m poison cloud that persists for 6 seconds.
  • Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Infected Arrows: Poison from Poison Shot now deals 12% weapon damage per second.
• Direct Hit: Poison Shot’s arrow now deals 200% more damage.

• Description: Fire 3 consecutive arrows, the first two dealing 100% weapon damage.
  • The final arrow deals 125% weapon damage and knocks targets back.

• The final arrow deals 125% weapon damage and knocks targets back.

• Rapid Accuracy: If all 3 arrows consecutively hit the same target, Rapid Shot’s cooldown is reduced by 50%.
• Final Blow: The third shot of Rapid Shot deals 25% extra damage.

For the most part, you want to stack your active skills and passives into the Skirmisher tree.

• Evade Shot – Leap back and fire a shot at an opponent, deals 125 percent weapon damage. If tiered up with Evasive Knockback and Go The Distance, this becomes your main source of mobility.
• Poison Shot – Fantastic for PVP, the Poison debuff prevents enemies from healing, especially during the early game when most people are munching on rations to get their health back. This is an AOE ability that you fire at the ground (it creates a cloud), so try and predict your opponent’s movement.
• Passives in the Skirmisher tree – This build focuses on mobility, so you pick up passives like Dodge and Weave (after you dodge, gain haste for a small period) and Archer’s Speed, which grants you a speed boost whenever you switch to the Bow.

However, you also do want to venture into the Hunter tree for the Rapid Shot active skill.

• Rapid Shot – This is a great active skill to follow up your Evade Shot with. Bounce back, fire off three rapid shots, and then drop a poison cloud. The third shot will also inflict a knockback if it connects. It just adds a little more CC to your kit.
• We also suggest picking up two passives from the Hunter tree: Long Range (extra damage from a distance) and Finishing Shot (deals extra damage to enemies that are below 50 percent health.) Long Range gives you that stronger initiate from distance, and Finishing Shot might help you finish off an enemy tha’s running away. People love to run when they get low health. Fair enough.

There are some example Bow builds that use Penetrating Shot. Despite this active ability’s difficulty to actually hit multiple targets, it does provide you with a much more accurate, more impactful first shot. It’s something to consider.

As for weapons to pair with the Bow:

• Hatchet – The movement speed buffs from the Bow pair nicely with Hatchet’s Berserk ability and rapid attacks.
• Sword – Bows provide some excellent utility that Swords desperately need.
• Rapier – This allows you to become an excellent dueling character for PvP skirmishes.

Tips For A Bow Build

Here are some general gameplay tips for a Bow build, as well as the attributes and gear you’ll want to focus on:

• A Bow Build is all about taking as little damage as possible. You need to make good use of your Evade and Dodges to reduce incoming damage.
• Light armor is preferred. That extra mobility with dodge can come in clutch.
• You want to stack your attributes into Dexterity mostly. You can play around with different attribute builds depending on your secondary weapon, but Dex is what the Bow scales off of.
• Heavy attacks are actually quite reliable with the Bow, at least if you open up with a heavy attack thanks to a few of the Bow’s passives. It isn’t easy aiming the Bow—some players prefer the hit-scan of the Musket.

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Bow And Hatchet Build

Our favorite during the early leveling phase has been the Hatchet and Bow, thanks to the movement boost each weapon provides. It cuts down that quest-travel time significantly. The Hatchet might just be one of the best weapons in New World, even after its Closed Beta nerfs. The Berserk tree just seems so strong. Watch out for this one: we spy more nerfs on the horizon when the game fully releases.

Best Masteries For The Bow

• Description: Leap back 5m and shoot an arrow, dealing 125% weapon damage.

• Evasive Knockback: Evade Shot causes 2m of knockback.
• Go the Distance: Evade Shot grants 15% movement speed for 5 seconds.

• Description: Fire an arrow that releases a 3m poison cloud that persists for 6 seconds.
  • Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Infected Arrows: Poison from Poison Shot now deals 12% weapon damage per second.
• Direct Hit: Poison Shot’s arrow now deals 200% more damage.

• Description: Shoot an arrow that deals 150% weapon damage and passes through targets.
  • Continues up to 100m.

• Continues up to 100m.

• Blood Soaked Arrows: Increases damage by 10% after each hit (caps at 50%).
• Deep Strike: Penetrating Shot deals 20% more damage to targets 20m or more away.

We’ll be using a similar setup to our PvP setup, except this configuration trades out Rapid Shot for Penetrating Shot. This ability deals a ton of damage in one hit, and it can pierce through hordes of enemies. Use this when enemies are clumped up, or you need to deal some good initial damage to a tougher opponent.

Best Masteries For The Hatchet

• Description: For 12 seconds, deal 20% increased damage.
  • Taunt Gem Compatible: Taunt enemies within 8m for 8 seconds.
  • Swapping weapons ends this ability early.

• Taunt Gem Compatible: Taunt enemies within 8m for 8 seconds.
• Swapping weapons ends this ability early.

• On The Hunt: Move 20% faster while Berserking.
• Uninterruptible Berserk: While in Berserk, you cannot be staggered or interrupted.

• Description: Leap to the target and attack twice.
  • The first hit deals 115% weapon damage.
  • The second hit deals 130% weapon damage.

• The first hit deals 115% weapon damage.
• The second hit deals 130% weapon damage.

• Dispatch: Deal 20% more damage with Feral Rush to targets under 30% HP.
• Crippling Strikes: If Feral Rush hits a target’s back, they’ll be immobilized for 2 seconds.

• Description: Attack four times in quick succession, each hit dealing 90% weapon damage.

• Aggressive Approach: Gain 20% movement speed for 6 seconds when you hit someone with Raging Torrent.
• Final Blow: Press light attack at the end of the combo to attack a fifth time, dealing 120% weapon damage.

This setup focuses entirely on the Berserker tree. It provides excellent damage, health sustain, and it provides immunity to stuns through Berserk—one of the only ways to gain stagger immunity in New World. Here’s why we use each ability:

• Berserk: This ability does everything you’d ever want. It grants bonus damage, movement speed, periodic healing, and it makes you immune to staggers and interrupts.
• Feral Rush: Deals some solid damage, roots retreating targets, and helps you close the gap during combat.
• Raging Torrent: This allows you to alpha-strike certain PvE enemies. Use Feral Rush, then immediately follow up with Raging Torrent. Most targets will drop dead right then and there.

If you’d like to learn more about each Hatchet ability and why this weapon archetype is so powerful, check out our Hatchet guide.

Best Attributes And Gear

• Attribute: Strength
• Armor: Medium

The Hatchet is going to be your main source of damage for this build, so you’ll want to spec mostly for Strength. If you do have endgame gear or a ton of points to spare, put your excess attribute points into Dexterity to scale your Bow’s damage output. For armor, medium will provide a great mix of damage and defense. Gear that enhances your skills, critical stats, or provides healing effects is highly recommended.

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Bow And Spear Build

We’ve covered this build in-depth on our Spear build page, which you can check out here. This build essentially relies on the high mobility of the Bow paired with the CC and versatility of the Spear. It’s a great PVP build and definitely will be a popular one with the full release of New World. For the Bow, you want to pick up Penetrating Shot, Poison Shot, and Evade Shot. For the Spear, you want to go for Perforate, Vault Kick, and Sweep.

Best Masteries For The Bow

• Description: Leap back 5m and shoot an arrow, dealing 125% weapon damage.

• Evasive Knockback: Evade Shot causes 2m of knockback.
• Go the Distance: Evade Shot grants 15% movement speed for 5 seconds.

• Description: Fire an arrow that releases a 3m poison cloud that persists for 6 seconds.
  • Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Infected Arrows: Poison from Poison Shot now deals 12% weapon damage per second.
• Direct Hit: Poison Shot’s arrow now deals 200% more damage.

• Description: Shoot an arrow that deals 150% weapon damage and passes through targets.
  • Continues up to 100m.

• Continues up to 100m.

• Blood Soaked Arrows: Increases damage by 10% after each hit (caps at 50%).
• Deep Strike: Penetrating Shot deals 20% more damage to targets 20m or more away.

We’ll be using the same setup as our last build. Evade Shot, Poison Shot, and Penetrating Shot provide some excellent damage, AoE, and general utility. When paired with the amazing CC potential of the Spear, you’ll be able to dish out some absurd damage to unsuspecting targets.

Best Masteries For The Spear

• Description: Stab the target three times, dealing 70% weapon damage with each hit.
  • Enemies have 5% reduced damage absorption when hit by Perforate.

• Enemies have 5% reduced damage absorption when hit by Perforate.

• Rupturing Strikes: Enemies have 10% reduced damage absorption if they’re above 50% HP and hit by Perforate.
• Impactful Strikes: Landing all three blows will stagger the target.

• Description: Use your Spear to vault forward and kick your target, dealing 75% weapon damage.
  • Inflicts a 1.5-second stun.
  • Taunt Gem Compatible: Taunts the enemy for 2 seconds on hit.

• Inflicts a 1.5-second stun.
• Taunt Gem Compatible: Taunts the enemy for 2 seconds on hit.

• Relentless Blows: Deal 20% increased damage for 5 seconds upon hitting a target under 50% HP.
• Continuous Motion: Reduces other spear cooldowns by 30% on a successful hit.

• Description: Sweep the target’s legs, dealing 75% weapon damage and knocking them down.

• Tenacious Sweep: Sweep cannot be interrupted.
• Coup de Grace: Light attack during Sweep to follow up with a downward stab that deals 125% weapon damage.

This setup focuses heavily on the Zoner tree, allowing you to stagger and interrupt targets with ease. If you can master the range of the Spear and weave it with your Bow’s abilities, you become incredibly tough to kill in all content—PvE and PvP. Here’s a quick overview of each ability:

• Perforate: Provides a solid chunk of damage output. The third hit staggers the target, punishing tanks for blocking your hits.
• Vault Kick: Provides a nice amount of mobility while dealing a solid amount of damage. Try to hit multiple targets with Vault Kick to get your other two abilities off cooldown.
• Sweep: This ability is fantastic. It works as a hard CC option, putting enemies straight to the floor. If you want to enhance Sweep’s damage output, grab the Coup de Grace mastery.

Best Attributes And Gear

• Attribute: Dexterity
• Armor: Medium

Since both weapons in this build scale with Dexterity, that’s the attribute you’ll want to invest into. You can put a few points into Constitution once you’ve hit 300 Dex. For armor, medium is arguably the best if you want a solid mix of defense and offense. If you prefer to dodge enemy attacks, feel free to use light instead. Keep an eye out for perks that enhance your abilities, increase your Dexterity attribute, or allow you to critically hit more often.

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Bow And Rapier Build

The Bow and Rapier build is similar to the Hatchet build, but provides even more mobility and burst damage. A fully glass-cannon build, you won’t have the sustain of the Berserker tree to keep you alive. There’s a fairly high skill ceiling to this build, but its potential damage output is hard to ignore.

Best Masteries For The Bow

• Description: Leap back 5m and shoot an arrow, dealing 125% weapon damage.

• Evasive Knockback: Evade Shot causes 2m of knockback.
• Go the Distance: Evade Shot grants 15% movement speed for 5 seconds.

• Description: Fire an arrow that releases a 3m poison cloud that persists for 6 seconds.
  • Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Poisoned enemies take 10% weapon damage per second for 20 seconds.

• Infected Arrows: Poison from Poison Shot now deals 12% weapon damage per second.
• Direct Hit: Poison Shot’s arrow now deals 200% more damage.

• Description: Fire 3 consecutive arrows, the first two dealing 100% weapon damage.
  • The final arrow deals 125% weapon damage and knocks targets back.

• The final arrow deals 125% weapon damage and knocks targets back.

• Rapid Accuracy: If all 3 arrows consecutively hit the same target, Rapid Shot’s cooldown is reduced by 50%.
• Final Blow: The third shot of Rapid Shot deals 25% extra damage.

We’ll be using the PvP Bow setup for this build, as the Bow and Rapier are well-suited for 1v1 duels. If you’re using this for PvE or hate Rapid Shot, you can replace that skill with Penetrating Shot instead for more burst damage.

Best Masteries For The Rapier

• Description: Slash targets in a 5m arc, dealing 50% weapon damage while inflicting bleed.
  • Bleed deals 85% weapon damage over 12 seconds. Stacks x3.
  • Stack increments refresh bleed’s timer.

• Bleed deals 85% weapon damage over 12 seconds. Stacks x3.
• Stack increments refresh bleed’s timer.

• And Again: Reduces cooldown by 25% upon hitting a target.
• Heavy Puncture: Heavy attacks extend bleed’s duration by 2 seconds, applying to present and future stacks.

• Description: For 1 second, parry an incoming attack, stunning the target for 1.5 seconds.
  • Successful Riposte gives you temporary invulnerability.

• Successful Riposte gives you temporary invulnerability.

• Insult to Injury: Successful Ripostes cause your attacks to be uninterruptible for 3 seconds.
• Priority: Successful Riposte stuns reduce all Rapier cooldowns by 20%.

• Description: Perform a sidestep, granting invulnerability mid-animation.
  • Light attacks during Evade are exceptionally quick.

• Light attacks during Evade are exceptionally quick.

• Allegro: Gain 20% movement speed for 3 seconds on use.
• Adagio: Evading forward grants 15% increased damage on your next light attack. Ends on hit or after 1 second.

Some active skills to consider for the Rapier include Tondo, for Bleed damage, and Riposte, for CC. The Evade skill with the Rapier pairs nicely with the Bow’s Evade Shot. You’ll basically be jumping and zipping all over the place, but if you get caught, you’re probably dead.

Best Attributes And Gear

• Attribute: Dexterity
• Armor: Light

Both weapons scale with Dexterity, so you’ll want to invest in Dex as much as you can. For armor, light will provide a solid damage increase and access to the best dodge in the game. Of course, if you’d prefer to take a few more hits before dying, medium also works. Gear that enhances your bleeds and reduces critical damage taken is highly recommended.

For additional build guides like this, you can check out some of our other builds here:

• New World: Best Ice Gauntlet Build
• New World: Best Spear Build
• New World: Best Musket Build
• New World: Best Support Healer Build

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Link Source : https://www.thegamer.com/new-world-best-bow-build/