Playing with the Zealot is often a flavor decision in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. Players who need strength on the frontline tend to pick the Ogryn. Gamers who want to deal damage go for the Veteran. The Zealot blends both of these classes together in the form of an indoctrinated servant of the Emperor.
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To be what the group needs, gamers need to get the best talents that Warhammer 40,000: Darktide has to offer. Better weapons and gear will help, certainly, but they can't replace the ways that talents can fundamentally change the game for the character.
Updated on October 9th, 2023 by Hodey Johns: The Zealot, along with all the other operatives, has received a significant overhaul with Path #13. Additionally, many changes to gameplay, combat, and leveling have been implemented, altering the landscape and value of various weapons and abilities. The greatest adjustment has been the talent system over the old feats. Ranking talents is a tough thing to do since different builds will have different priorities. Choosing the "best" talents might make for an incoherent character since some of the talents synergize well together. Still, it's not a bad idea to see which talents seem to be having the greatest success and make the Zealot popular in a given party.
Best Ability Talent
Best Choice | Description |
Chorus of Spiritual Fortitude | Wield a holy relic that releases pulses of energy every 0.8 seconds. While channeling, Allies in Coherency have Stun immunity and Invulnerability. Each pulse Replenishes 45% Toughness to Allies in Coherency. If the Ally is at full Toughness they instead gain 20 Max Toughness up to a total of 100. Base cooldown 60 seconds. |
Other Choices | Description |
Fury of the Faithful | Dash forward, Replenishing 50% Toughness & gaining 20% Attack Speed for 10 seconds. The Zealot's next Melee Hit gains 25% damage and is guaranteed to be a Critical Hit. Base cooldown 30 seconds. |
Shroudfield | Enter Stealth for 3 seconds. While in Stealth gain 20% Movement Speed, 100% Backstab Damage, 100% Finesse Damage, and 100% Critical Chance. Base cooldown 30 seconds. |
Chorus of Spiritual Fortitude makes players forget about the best ranged weapons in the game with a channeled ability that grants Invulnerability to the entire squad. In addition to being invincible, the team gets more Toughness, beefing up the squad for the gith as soon as Chorus of Spiritual Fortitude fades.
Fury of the Faithful is an upgrade from the standard Chastise the Wicked ability and can be useful for melee players who want to beef up before charging onto the frontlines. Shroudfield grants Stealth which is underrated for defensively shedding unwanted attention but it's offensively designed more for single-target encounters.
Best Blitz Talent
Best Choice | Description |
Immolation Grenade | Throw a grenade that leaves a layer of flaming liquid, Burning and Staggering enemies, and barring their path. Most effective against Unarmoured Enemies. |
Other Choices | Description |
Stunstorm Grenade | Throw a grenade that stuns all Enemies within its blast radius. |
Blades of Faith | Throw a consecrated knife to deal high Damage to a Single Enemy. Very effective against most Enemies; less effective versus Carapace Armour. Quick Throw, killing Elite and Special Enemies in Melee replenishes one knife, and ammo boxes replenish knives. |
It's often a tossup between Immolation Grenade and Stunstorm Grenade for handling mobs of enemies. Immolation Grenade has a slight edge in the hands of a pro player since it can block a path for a given time, allowing operatives to better control the battlefield.
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However, Blades of Faith can be useful for builds that want to be single-target specialists. Use one of the game's best melee weapons to consistently gain consecrated knives. Be warned that Carapace Armour counters these knives directly, so use them against specific targets and not just anybody.
Best Aura Talent
Best Choice | Description |
Beacon of Purity | Heal 1.5 Corruption from the current Wound for the Zealot and Allies in Coherency every 1 second. |
Other Choices | Description |
Benediction | +15% Toughness Damage Reduction for the Zealot and Allies in Coherency. |
Loner | The Zealot always counts as being in at least two Coherency. |
Healing in the game is sparing for a good reason; the levels are designed to wear the team down. Granted that the healing from Beacon of Purity is slight, but it's enough. The healing gets even stronger with more Wounds, giving the team more healing when it's needed most. Beacon of Purity changes the game.
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An argument can be made for Loner since other skills and talents that are better with Allies in Coherency are made better but it does require sacrificing the Aura slot to get this. Benediction will help the squad tank up a little more damage. Use the best curios to get the most out of any of the Auras.
Best Keystone Talent
Best Choice | Description |
Blazing Piety | +15% Critical Hit Chance for 8 seconds when in Fury. Fury is triggered when 25 Enemies have died within 25 meters. |
Other Choices | Description |
Martyrdom | Each missing Wound grants +8% Melee Damage, up to 9 missing Wounds. |
Inexorable Justice | Moving grants the Zealot Momentum (Stacks 20 times). When the Zealot hits an Enemy, spend all Momentum, gaining 1% Melee Attack Speed, 1% Ranged Attack Speed, and 1% Damage per Stack. Lasts 8 seconds. |
Depending on the group, it's quite possible for Blazing Piety to be up almost all of the time. As groups of enemies fall like flies, Fury will give a critical hit chance buff to the operative. Tack on some excellent weapon traits and the Zealot suddenly becomes a critical hit machine.
For those who are primarily interested in melee weapons, Martyrdom grants extra damage for each Wound. The more damaged, the more lethal. It's a strong pick for those who want the best defense to be a good offense. The only issue with Inexorable Justice is its infrequency as Momentum is expended with each hit.
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is available now for PC and Xbox Series X/S.