Tomb of Annihilation Preview: Huntsman and Primal Gear Sets

We’ll continue our in-depth preview of Neverwinter’s upcoming “Tomb of Annihilation” with the high end gear sets today. In case you’re wondering what’s in store for your alts, make sure to also read through our summary of the low end gear sets. Additionally bookmark our module hub as there’s much more to come in the days until release.

Tomb of Annihilation introduces two endgame sets that both drop from the new dungeon “Tomb of the Nine Gods“. They differ in stat distribution,  set bonus and item level. Please use the sheet I’ve created to look up all the information for your classes.

*** UPDATE ***: In an earlier build on preview all sets used to have the same stat distribution, which is no longer the case. If the spread sheet is not up-to-date for all classes, stay tuned. I’m going to update it eventually.

Huntsman

The Huntsman set comes in at item level 480, already matching fully charged Relics. The set directly drops from the dungeon bosses and chests and binds to character. The Huntsman gear and its set bonus thematically is build around the new Hunting mechanic, which we’ll preview at a later point. The head piece directly adds damage vs. Hunts, but most other pieces generate sizeable stat buffs if facing one enemy, which is the case while hunting. Considering that most relevant endgame bosses currently come without adds, this should also make the gear pretty strong in other areas though. The arms piece and its power bonus for example could be outperforming Relics outside Mod 10 content.

Is the jewelry viable?

The corresponding rings suffer from the fact that they don’t come with double offensive or defensive slots. In some situations they might still be better than others, because the 1,000 stat boost is more than what a Rank 12 could offer (700). Whether those work on Bonding Companions is also something that should be tested. But then again: I don’t really like situational enhancements of Armor Penetration or Critical Strike as you want to reliably cap those on most builds.

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Primal

The Primal Gear is token based. Every boss and chests inside the “Tomb of the Nine Gods” rewards Seals for the Brave, which can then be traded for the the new 500 item level pieces. It binds to account and you can purchase stuff for other classes. This means if one character on your account can run the dungeon, all your alts will be able to profit from the new gear.

Once again the arms pieces look mostly interesting as they grant a Power boost up to 5%. Not sure I’m equally sold on the other pieces. If you do need the stats there’s not much reason not to switch to the higher item level from Relics though. It’s a little bit difficult to really give clear advise right now because the gear landscape is so diversified. With all the different procs and bonuses we’re talking about case-by-case scenarios. My gut however says that item level 500 doesn’t make Primal Gear automatically best-in-slot. You still have to weigh it against the other options.

Jewelry

Primal’s jewelry is a bit underwhelming. You do get a percentage of your Power for a kill, but that’s basically only helpful solo and with trash. Since boss fights are what matters, I’d rather roll with Huntsman or something completely different here.

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Intention?

Overall I think it’s obvious that the devs continue to hand out gear that doesn’t simply outperform the competition. In past modules the release of a new set most likely meant that you would be switching to it because it had either the best item level or set bonus, or both. Dragonflight or Relics are obviously the mafor examples here.

This approach has changed gradually and nowadays gear normally comes with procs and bonuses that only help in certain situations or versus certain content. While it makes for much fun to compile the pieces and crawl through your options, it also adds the necessity to switch more and more gear depending on the situation you’re in. I wouldn’t go as far as saying they specifically went this route to sell loadouts, but it certainly helps the feature.

Power Creep Counter

I think it has more to do with the power creep, because designing gear horizontally helps coping with it. Obtaining stuff in Chult first and foremost assists in the new content and doesn’t make chars that much better anywhere else. Old content remains viable and players don’t feel that the work they put in in recent months is wasted because the next big thing just arrived. Overall I do like it although it makes it a little bit more difficult to figure out what’s best.


That’s our preview of the new endgame sets in “Tomb of Annihilation”. Are you a fan or unimpressed? Share your thoughts in the comments below and visit the corresponding thread on our message board!

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2 thoughts on “Tomb of Annihilation Preview: Huntsman and Primal Gear Sets

  • July 12, 2017 at 2:30 pm
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    “Every boss and chests inside the “Tomb of the Nine Gods” rewards Seals for the Brave”
    When I did the new dungeon I only got the seals from the final chest, dont know if they changed it recently or it has a random chance to drop but it didnt for me.

    • July 13, 2017 at 11:05 am
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      Will double check, thanks.

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