Buying Lost Ark Gold with real money is an effortless and quick way to boost your character. It can be used to get all the required equipment, gear upgrades, engravings, and more!

Gunlancer performs a powerful shield swing to deal low amounts of damage. If he uses the skill again, he will additionally inflict moderate amounts of damage with the follow-up swing. 

Thanks to selected Engravings, this Shield Bash deals a lot of damage to Bosses and serves as one of the main offensive skills of the build. Also, it deals considerable Stagger Damage. 

• Stagger: High 
• Attack Type: Frontal Attack 

Level 12

1. [Level I]  Nimble Movement - Increases the skill's Attack Speed by up to +27% (at Rank 5). This is a necessary addition, especially when the Additional Hit Engraving is selected as well. 
2. [Level II]  Weak Point Detection  - Increases Damage dealt to Push-Immune enemies by up to +94.8% (at Level 5). This Engraving will make Shield Bash much more powerful against Bosses. 
3. [Level III]  Additional Hit - Each combo attack hits twice. On the first hit, Damage +46.4% (at Rank 5). On the second hit, Damage +95.2% (at Rank 5). This allows you to maximize the damage of Shield Bash. 
4. [RUNE] Quick Recharge - Gives a chance to reduce all Cooldowns on skill use. 

Gunlancer performs a 9 meter leap toward the target location and strikes at the ground, dealing high amounts of AoE damage. 

This powerful Skill not only deals considerable Damage but also serves as one of the few available ways for the Gunlancer to move around the battlefield quickly. With it, you will be able to dodge attacks that have to be dodged (so, the instant-kill mechanics, mainly). 

• Stagger: Mid 
• Super Armor: Paralysis Immunity 

Level 12

1. [Level I]  Direct Hit - Increases the Skill's Direct Damage done when landing by up to +40% (at Rank 5). The alternative here would be Cooldown Reduction, but Gunlancer's skills recharge quite fast already and it wouldn't provide too much of a difference. 
2. [Level II]  Electric Field  - Element is now Lightning. You create an electrical area where you land, inflicting 14.0% (at Rank 5) of the landing attack Damage every 1s for 5s. This adds a nice DoT component to the skill and increases it overall damage by quite a bit. 
3. [Level III]  Low Shock - Changes Leap Attack to Combo Mode. When the skill is used for the second time, Gunlancer will perform another jump and inflict 80.0% Damage (at Rank 5) with a downward strike. 
4. [RUNE] Galewind - Increase the skill's casting speed. With this, the Skill's animation becomes much faster, making it more dynamic. 

Gunlancer calls forth a lightning strike from the sky to deal high amounts of Lightning damage to all enemies within 5 meters radius. The Lightning also electrocutes all hit enemies for 3 seconds. 

This is a very powerful offensive AoE skill with no positional requirements and a rather quick animation. It also deals a quite high Stagger Damage. 

• Stagger: Mid-High 

Level 12

1. [Level I]  Damage Luck - Drops an additional Thunderbolt, dealing another powerful hit to the enemy. This provides the highest DPS boost of the three available Tier 1 Tripods. 
2. [Level II]  Tough Strike - Increases the skill's outgoing damage by up to +50% (at Rank 5). 
3. [Level III]  Lightning Stalk -  On thunderbolt hit, shoot lightning streaks crosswise, inflicting +80.0% Damage (at Rank 5). This offers a considerable damage boost to the skill. 
4. [RUNE] Galewind - Increase the skill's casting speed. With this, the Skill's animation becomes much faster, making it even stronger. 

Gunlancer charges forward with his shield raised in front of him. While charging, he inflicts moderate amounts of damage with each hit. Shield Charge is a Holding skill, so you can cancel it early by releasing the button. 

This skill serves as a damage source, but not only that. With the Shield Tripod, Shield Charge also protects you from incoming damage and synergizes with the Barricade Engraving. 

• Stagger: Mid 
• Super Armor: Paralysis Immunity 

Level 12

1. [Level I]  Enhanced Strike - Increases the skill's outgoing damage by up to +40% (at Rank 5). 
2. [Level II]  Shield - This tripod surrounds you with a shield that has 25% of your max HP (at Rank 5) when you're dashing with Shield Charge. 
3. [Level III]  Destruction Charger - Shortens the dash attack intervals, enabling you to attack 2 more times. Dash attack Damage +30.0% per hit (at Rank 5). Max of 210.0% (at Rank 5).
4. [RUNE] Galewind - Increase the skill's casting speed. With this, the Skill's animation becomes much faster, making it less awkward to use. 

Gunlancer performs a powerful shield attack that inflicts moderate amounts of damage and stuns enemies for 3 seconds. 

This is a very versatile ability that not only debuffs the target (-12% defense for 10 seconds) but also provides you with a self-buff (considerable Attack Power increase for 5 seconds). Also, it deals high Stagger Damage. 

• Stagger: High 
• Attack Type: Front Attack 
• Counter: Yes 

Level 11

1. [Level I]  Armor Destruction - Makes you apply a -12% Defense debuff for 10 seconds when you Bash an enemy. This turns Bash into a party-wide DPS increase. Also, this lasts for the duration of Bash's Cooldown, so you can potentially maintain it 100% of the time. 
2. [Level II]  Ready Attack - With this, Bashing an enemy will also give you a considerable boost to Attack Power for 5 seconds (+25% at Rank 1). 
3. [Level III]  Bell Strike - Increases the skill's AoE Radius by +30%. This makes Bash much stronger against packs of weaker enemies. 
4. [RUNE] Bleed -  This Rune makes Bash inflict all enemies hit with a Bleeding effect for 6 seconds. Thanks to Bash's low cooldown, Bleed provides a nice boost to DPS, especially against trash mobs. 

Gunlancer lets out a fierce roar, inflicting moderate amounts of damage to all enemies within 8 meters radius. Non-player enemies are taunted for 5 seconds, and certain skills on them are disabled. Monsters of Challenge or higher difficulty cannot be taunted again for a set period of time. 

This Skill is what makes Gunlancer truly unique, as it's currently the only one in the game that can interrupt many boss mechanics. Besides that, it also generates a lot of Identity Gauge, when used outside the Defensive Stance, and provides a party-wide DPS buff against affected enemies. 

Level 10

1. [Level I]  Quick Preparation - Reduces the skill's Cooldown by up to -6 seconds (at Rank 5). This will allow you to generate your Identity Gauge much faster. 
2. [Level II]  Shield - Creates a shield for 41.0% (at Rank 5) of Max HP for 3.2s. This pairs extremely well with the skill's Taunt component and makes you benefit from the Barricade Engraving more. 
3. [Level III]  Open Weakness - On hit, Shield Meter restored +20%. Weakness is exposed and outgoing Damage from all party members +3.0% for 12.0s. Frontal attacks and back attacks from all party members +9.0%. 
4. [RUNE] Focus - This Rune lowers the skill's Mana consumption by quite a lot, making it much more cost-effective. 

Gunlancer lets out an inspiring roar and surrounds all party members within a 24 meters radius with a shield that reduces their damage taken by 25% for 6 seconds. 

This is a powerful defensive skill that lets you protect your party members from the incoming damage. Moreover, with the Survive Tripod, Nellasia's Energy also creates a Shield around everyone - this Shield synergizes with the Barricade Engraving. 

Level 10

1. [Level I]  Quick Preparation - Reduces the skill's Cooldown by up to -8 seconds (at Rank 5). This Skill has a long base cooldown (40 seconds), so this is a must-have. 
2. [Level II]  Effectiveness  - Increases the skill's Damage Reduction by an extra -35% (at Rank 1). 
3. [Level III]  Survive - Creates a shield for 24.0% (at Rank 1) of Max HP around all party members within 24 meters for 6.0 seconds. 
4. [RUNE] Focus - This Rune lowers the skill's Mana consumption by quite a lot, making it much more cost-effective. 

Gunlancer advances 3 meters forward, shrinking enemies with his gunlance to deal moderate amounts of damage and launching them into the air. When the skill is used again, Gunlancer fires a shell to inflict an additional powerful hit. 

This is your main Counter Attack Skill that also deals relatively high Stagger Damage. 

• Weak Point: Level 1 
• Stagger: Mid-High 
• Attack Type: Frontal Attack 
• Counter: Yes 

Level 7

1. [Level I]  Ready Attack - With this, the first attack of the sequence will also increase your Attack Power by up to +23% (at Rank 5) for 4 seconds. 
2. [Level II]  Weak Point Detection  - Increases damage dealt to push-immune enemies by up to + (70%). This Tripod will greatly increase Dash Upper Fire's Damage to bosses. 
3. [RUNE] Overwhelm - A rune that makes the Skill deal +30% Stagger Damage. This will help you help your team with stagger checks. 

When using this Skill, Gunlancer recovers 100% of his Identity Gauge and releases a protection aura in a 10 meters radius. Enemies within the aura take high amounts of damage and become stunned for 4 seconds. All party members within the aura take 40% less Damage and become immune to Debuffs and Push mechanics. 

This powerful Awakening skill allows you to instantly fill up your Shield Meter to enter the Defensive Stance immediately. Moreover, it can save your party members' lives thanks to its high and long-lasting damage reduction effect. 

• Stagger: High 
• Super Armor: Push Immunity, Debuff Immunity 

With this build, you can focus on dealing damage without the need for dodging mechanics as you should be able to simply tank most of the incoming damage. The only attacks you have to watch out for are 1-shot kill nukes and skills that deal % of your HP in damage. 

• To maximize the effectiveness of your defenses, you should always try to use your other Shields (Nellasia's Energy, Shout of Hatred, Shield Charge) before the Defensive Stance's Shield. 
• Use Shout of Hatred strategically to counter the most annoying/disrupting of the Boss's abilities. Remember to turn off the Defensive Stance before using it or it won't generate any Identity Gauge. 
• Leap Attack can be used for quick relocation when needed. 
• Use Dash Upper Fire to Counter Attack the Boss. 
• Bash is your Self-Buff and enemy debuff skill, you should try to keep it active at all times. 

Your Standard DPS rotation looks like this: 

1. Use Bash to apply a self-buff and debuff the enemy 
2. Use Guardian's Thunderbolt 
3. Use Shield Bash 
4. Use Shield Charge 
5. Use Leap Attack 

1. Combat Readiness (Class Engraving) - Increases Damage of your Normal (Blue) Skills by 20%. Increases Shield Amount in Defensive Stance by (Level 1: 30%, Level 2: 40%, Level 3: 50%). Increases Damage by (Level 1: +4%, level 2: +5%, Level 3: +6%) for 10 seconds when hit while in Defensive Stance (this effect stacks up to 3 times and can trigger no more than once every second). 

This is the Core Engraving of this Build. It increases the damage of all your Blue skills, makes your Shields much more durable, and gives you a slight DPS boost when your shields are active. Moreover, it has no drawbacks, which makes it worth running right from the start. 

2. Barricade - Increases your Damage done while shielded by (Level 1: +3%, Level 2: +8%, Level 3: +16%). 

As a Combat Readiness Gunlancer, you should be able to keep a shield active almost all the time, which makes this a constant DPS boost with no drawbacks. 

3. Hit Master - Increases the damage of attacks that do not correspond to back attack or front attack by (Level 1: 3%, Level 2: 8%, Level 3: 16%). This effect does not apply to Awakenings. 

Most of the Skills you will be using won't require you to strike from the back or from the front. Because of this, Hit Master is very strong for the build. It effectively gives you the same effect as Cursed Doll, but without the drawback. 

4. Stabilized Status - Increases your Damage dealt by (Level 1: +3%, Level 2: +8%, Level 3: +16%) when your Health is above 80%. 

This is a very solid choice for the tankiest build in the entire game, isn't it? If you're good at preserving your Health by managing your defensive cooldowns, this will give you a solid Damage boost without any drawbacks. 

5. Grudge - Increases your Damage Dealt to Bosses (Level 1: +4%, Level 2: +10%, Level 3: +20%), but makes you take 20% more damage from them. 

This Engraving is extremely powerful, but it will punish you if you make a mistake. If you can live with the downside, it will serve you as an unconditional damage increase. Gunlancer is probably the easiest Class for running Grudge, as he boasts the highest defenses and can shrug off the additional incoming damage with relative ease. Also, this is only really worth using at Level 3 and becomes very powerful when you reach Tier 3 content. 

6. Adrenaline - When using skills other than mobile and basic attacks, attack power increases by (Lv. 1: 0.3%, Lv. 2: 0.6%, Lv. 3: 1%) for 6 seconds (stacks up to 6), and when this effect reaches its maximum stack, critical hit rate increases by an additional (Lv. 1: 5%, Lv. 2: 10%, Lv. 3: 15%). This effect is applied after the skill ends if the cooldown time reduction due to skill cancellation is applied. 

This engraving is very effective for a Combat Readiness Gunlancer as his Cooldowns are low which allows you to maintain the buff with relative ease. The more Cooldown Reduction Gems you run, the more reliable this Engraving becomes. 

7. Cursed Doll - Increases Attack Power at the cost of reduced 25% Healing Received (does not affect natural Health recovery (Level 1 - +3% Attack Power, Level 2 - 8% Attack Power, Level 3 - +16% Attack Power).

This Engraving can boost your offensive power rather significantly, but the tradeoff is quite painful. Only pick it if you know encounter mechanics very well; If you lack experience, skip it. This should replace Hit Master at later stages of the game if you plan on min-maxing your damage output (after you reach Tier 3). 

8. Awakening - Reduces the Cooldown of your Awakening Skill by (level 1: 10%, Level 2: 25%, Level 3: 50%) and increases the maximum number of uses by (Level 1: +1, Level 2: +3, Level 3: +3) 

This is a good choice if you plan on maximizing your survivability and team utility.

9. Spirit Absorption - Increases Attack Speed and Movement Speed by (Level 1 - 3%, Level 2 - 8%, Level 3 - 15%). 

Gunlancer moves like a tank and tanks are not really known for their dynamics, so any boost to mobility is welcome. With this Engraving at Level 3, you'll move significantly quicker and your skill animations will become much faster. In other words, pick this engraving if you want your Gunlancer to become more dynamic. 

• Gear Sets - As a DPS Class, Gunlancer wants his set to boost his offensive capabilities as much as possible. Here are the optimal Sets for each Tier: 
  • Tier 1: Seraphic Oath Set (Epic); Boisterous Elemental Set (Legendary) 
  • Tier 2: Marvelous Earth Set (Epic); Unyielding Will Set (Legendary) 
  • Tier 3: Twisted Dimensional Set (Epic); Preordained Diligence Set (Legendary) 

• Gems -  With these, you can apply a Cooldown Reduction or Bonus Damage to your Skills. There is a limit of 11 Gems; you should distribute them in the following way: 
  • You should use Cooldown Reduction Gems on the following Skills: Bash, Nellasia's Energy, Leap Attack, Shield Bash, Shield Charge, Shout of Hatred, Guardian's Thunderbolt 
  • You should use Attack Gems on the following Skills: Shield Charge, Leap Attack, Shield Bash, Guardian's Thunderbolt 

• Cards - Depending on your budget, you should go for one of the following Card Sets: 
  • Light of Salvation Set - A Full set offers +30% Dark Damage Reduction, changes your Damage type to Holy, and increases your Holy Damage dealt by 15%. 
  • Lostwind Cliff Set - A Full set offers +25% Dark Damage Reduction and +7% Critical Rate. This one is the cheaper of the recommended two. 

ENDNOTE

This is the initial version of our Combat Readiness Gunlancer Raid Tank Build for Lost Ark, where we tried to include all of the important information on how to set up this character while keeping the guide as compact as possible. If we've missed something of importance, please let us know! 

If you have any Build requests, please post them in the Comments section below. We will be happy to cover your most requested builds in the future! Also, we hope that you have found this guide useful and informative. Also, we will be happy to receive constructive criticism that will help us improve our future work, so don't hesitate to give us your feedback.