Cultist Class Guide

*See also: Cultist Class Profile*
The Cultist class is one of the most interesting to play. This is due in part to their relatively low initial stats during most of the mid-game, making item-hunting a lot more fun and valuable.

In *Majesty*, the Cultist was largely a supporting class who contributes by charming animals. As a result, the individualistic gameplay of *Heroes of Ardania* has made the Cultist a very unconventional class, with some traits resembling those of Priestesses. The Monster Charming ability is well-presented in HoA, which, when combined with stealing and high luck for gambling, allows the Cultist to perform quite well in the early game. The Cultist starts with relatively low combat stats and is only being able to wield daggers. This deficiency is somewhat mitigated by the unique combat system of the Cultist, in which their H2H stat is weighted against the opponent's dodge (rather than parry). Most enemies have lower dodge than parry, which benefits the cultist.

Due to their low combat stats, low level Cultist rely on the Power Shock spell for damage dealing. This spell is obtained at the Valmorgen library, and should be obtained as soon as possible. At level 7, Cultists get a significant boost in the form of the Change Shape spell, which effectively provides a +35 HP heal whenever it is used. Cultists are great in the early game's Valmorgen sewers and will destroy most of the hard low-level enemies either with their Followers, or by shear durability afforded by the Change Shape spell. However, this class suffers from a quick decline in power after leaving Valmorgen. During the mid stage, cultists suffer from their low combat stats, particularly H2H. As such, they have difficulty doing enough damage output to take on difficult encounters. Therefore, during the mid-game, cultists will need to slowly build up their stats by accumulating various items.

Later in the game, Cultists become very powerful for the following reasons. First, the Baldric of Feathers permits the cultist to damage all opponents (though only once in 5 rounds), which dramatically increases damage output. Second, cultists have one of the best lineup of class-specific items from Thallis, particularly the Varg Cloak, which adds an astonishing +30 to H2H, dodge, and parry, along with other bonuses. Third, late in the game, cultists are able to augment their damage output through the "Attack of Opportunity" skill.

## Progression

To begin, check the attributes of your Cultist. Since the main five attributes are randomized within a range, it is preferable to have maximum INT (27) and STR (16+) or something close to the maximum. It also helps to have Vitality of 13 or 14 and Artifice above 19, or something close to these values. In the Valmorgen Sewers, cultists have a variety of strategies as outlined in the Beginning Strategy article. As mentioned above, once level 7 is reached, cultists are generally very powerful in the sewers. Until then, you will need to rely on followers to some extent. If you need additional followers, you may pray at the Krypta temple to obtain a few skeletons.

Before leaving Valmorgen, completion of the following is suggested:

* Completing the four Rat-Catcher Quests you find the Royal Rat-Catcher in the sewers.
* Learn both spells from the Library. Reanimate your Skeletons from the temple if they die.
* Obtaining the highest grade weapon and armor available in the Blacksmith, and enchanting both to +3.
* Obtaining the Ring of Protection.
* Completing the Gnome Collector (quest), if you have not yet gotten rid of the junk accumulated after exploring the sewers.

After leaving Valmorgen, cultists should obtain a Totemic Mask of Earth or Totemic Mask of Fire from Treldan Wood. After the mask is obtained, the Goblin Territory is an excellent location to gain gold and Goblin Beard Rings. Embedding 3x Goblin Beard Rings into an armor piece will permit the cultist to carry significantly more items, as well as increase a bit the damage output.

As noted above, cultists suffer from low combat stats at this stage. To remedy this deficiency, cultists should craft the Night Dagger, whose ingredients are relatively easy to obtain. The Holy Dagger needed for the Night Dagger can be obtained in the Witch King Ruins without a fight. The Black Stone and Black Claw can be obtained mostly easily in the Elven Valley. To reach the Elven Valley, you may explore HFM East until finding a lost elf to escort to the Elven Valley. Once the Night Dagger (+15 to H2H, Dodge, Parry) is obtained, along with an additional Carved or Black accessory, the cultist will have sufficient combat stats to take on gradually more difficult encounters.

## Items

Listed below are the optimal items for each category, as well as other notable items. For a full list of usable items, see items usable by Cultist.

* **Weapon**
	+ Lion's Dagger (*Damage 13, H2H +20, PAR +20*)[Thallis item]
	+ Golem Fist – can outperform the Lion's Dagger in builds that utilize extensive +damage bonuses
	+ Early on, Night Dagger (*Damage 10, H2H +15, PAR +15, DOD +15*)
* **Armor**
	+ Bear Armor (*Armor: 9, STR +16, PAR +10, MGR +10*)[Thallis item] embedded with either 3x Skull Beard Rings (for improved defense) or 3x Goblin Beard Rings (for improved damage and weight capacity). Craft two Armor pieces of each DBR combination for more flexibility.
	+ Breechcloth of the Wilds (*ART +8, DOD +10, PAR +10; Valmorgen Schematic*) → Breechcloth of the Desert (*Armor: 2, ART +10, DOD +20, PAR +15, MGR +10*; *upgrade at Imp's Workshop*) – An alternative to the Bear Armor that raises Artifice to enhance Attack of Opportunity for maximum damage. In most situations, the Bear Armor is more preferable due to its higher versatility.
	+ Early on: Medusa Mail (*Armor: 7, MGR +15*)
* **Cloak**
	+ Varg Cloak (*VIT +1, ARM +1, Stealth, ART +5*)[Thallis item]
	+ Early on: Sneaky Reinforced Cloak or Protective Cloak. Keep the Protective Cloak even after the Varg Cloak is obtained.
* **Headgear**
	+ Circlet of Lycanthropy (item) (*H2H +15, RNG +15, PAR +15, DOD +15, Werewolf Form*) → True Werewolf Circlet (*ARM +1, MGR +10*)
	+ Early on: Totemic Mask of Earth (*ARM +2*) or Totemic Mask of Fire (*DMG +2*)
* **Belt**
	+ Belt of the Dire Bear (*Armor: 3, H2H +20, PAR +10, STR +22, RNG +10, MGR +5, ART +10*)[Thallis item]
	+ Belt of Ravaging
	+ Belt of Brawling embedded with a "Might" accessory (total bonus: *Armor +1, Parry +5, Damage +1, STR +16, H2H +20*)
	+ Early on, Belt of Rage
* **Footwear**
	+ Bearskin Greaves (*Armor: 2, PAR +10, DOD +10, MGR +10, H2H +5, DMG +3*)[Thallis item]
	+ Early on: War Chargers (*Armor: 3, STR +4, H2H +10*);
* **Glove**
	+ War Gauntlets (embed with 2x Beard Rings)
* **Armband**
	+ Mithril Bracers or Nevryl Bracers (embed with 2x Beard Rings)
* **Necklace**:
	+ Ring Amulet embedded with either a Ring of Protection or Dark Band
	+ Neckband of Smashing
	+ MGR-boosting necklaces (Blue Charm / Rezzenthells Spellkiller / Dwarven Locket) are useful against magic-wielding opponents.
	+ Early on: Amulet of Destruction – Before the Baldric of Feathers, this item is particularly effective in compensating for the Cultist's lack of damage output, particularly in light of the Cultist's relatively high INT.
* **Ring**
	+ Ring of Protection, Dark Band, or Ring of Fortitude
* **Accessory**
	+ Baldric of Feathers (*Dark Forest Abandoned Library schematic*) → Enchanted Baldric of Heavy Feathers (*upgrade at Imp Workshop*) embedded with a Black / Carved Claw or other accessory.