Conan Exiles is an open-world survival game set in Robert E. Howard's Hyborian Age where you're an exile condemned to die in a harsh wasteland. The thrall system — capturing NPCs, breaking them on the Wheel of Pain, and deploying them as fighters, crafters, or dancers — is the defining mechanic. Named thralls with unique stats become powerful companions that rival player characters in combat strength. The Age of Sorcery update added a full magic system with corrupted attributes, summoning, and teleportation. Building ranges from sandstone shacks to massive T3 fortress compounds that must withstand Purge attacks.
Picking the right build determines how your experience plays out. These builds are ranked by overall effectiveness — factoring in damage, survivability, gear requirements, and how well they scale into endgame.
Quick Rankings
| Build | Tier | Playstyle | Core Gear |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength Melee | S | Charge in with heavy attacks, stagger enemies with warhammer combos, and use hyper-armor to trade hits favorably. | Dragonbone Greatsword, heavy armor, Vitality for HP, healing items |
| Agility Fighter | A | Dodge through attacks, counter with fast weapon combos, and maintain distance against heavy hitters. | Voidforged Daggers, medium armor, Agility-boosting gear |
| Archer Build | B | Kite enemies with bow from range, use special arrows for status effects, and switch to melee for finish. | Star Metal Bow, special arrows (poison, explosive), medium armor |
| Thrall Commander | S | Let your thrall tank and deal damage while you support with healing arrows and crowd control. Authority perks make thralls devastatingly powerful. | Named Fighter thrall (Dalinsia Snowhunter, Lian), thrall equipment, healing arrows for thrall |
| Sorcery Build | A | Corrupt your attributes for sorcery power, summon undead thralls, use bat transformation for mobility, and cast elemental spells. | Sorcery staff, corrupted attributes, summoning materials, bat form recipe |
S-Tier: Strength Melee
Strength builds use heavy weapons (Greatswords, Warhammers) with high stagger and damage. 20 Strength with perks gives massive damage bonuses and hyper-armor on heavy attacks. The Greatsword moveset has wide sweeps for clearing groups. Combined with heavy armor, you're a walking tank.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Blade of the Adventurer | A legendary one-handed sword with excellent damage and bonus Agility. |
| Core Gear | Dragonbone Greatsword, heavy armor, Vitality for HP, healing items | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Strength 20, Vitality 20, Grit 10, Authority 10 | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | thrall system | Knock out NPCs with a Truncheon, drag them to a Wheel of Pain, and break their will with food over time. |
How to Play Strength Melee
Charge in with heavy attacks, stagger enemies with warhammer combos, and use hyper-armor to trade hits favorably.
Strength builds use heavy weapons (Greatswords, Warhammers) with high stagger and damage. 20 Strength with perks gives massive damage bonuses and hyper-armor on heavy attacks. The Greatsword moveset has wide sweeps for clearing groups. Combined with heavy armor, you're a walking tank.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Blade of the Adventurer and thrall system creates a gameplay loop that outperforms other options. Core gear like Dragonbone Greatsword, heavy armor, Vitality for HP, healing items amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Highest overall performance
- Clear stat priority (Strength 20, Vitality 20, Grit 10, Authority 10) makes gearing straightforward
- Works in all content types
Cons:
- Popular pick, resources may be contested
- Needs specific gear to reach full potential
A-Tier: Agility Fighter
Agility builds use light weapons (Daggers, Katana, Short Sword) with fast combos and dodge-rolling. 20 Agility gives bonus damage and extended dodge i-frames. Medium armor maintains mobility. The playstyle is dodge-based, punishing enemy attacks with fast counter-combos.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Predatory Blade | A legendary daggers pair that applies bleed and cripple on hit. |
| Core Gear | Voidforged Daggers, medium armor, Agility-boosting gear | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Agility 20, Vitality 15, Grit 15, Strength 10 | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | building tiers | Three building material tiers: T1 Sandstone (cheapest, weakest), T2 Stonebrick/Insulated Wood (moderate), T3 Reinforced Stone/Black Ice (strongest). |
How to Play Agility Fighter
Dodge through attacks, counter with fast weapon combos, and maintain distance against heavy hitters.
Agility builds use light weapons (Daggers, Katana, Short Sword) with fast combos and dodge-rolling. 20 Agility gives bonus damage and extended dodge i-frames. Medium armor maintains mobility. The playstyle is dodge-based, punishing enemy attacks with fast counter-combos.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Predatory Blade and building tiers creates a gameplay loop that offers reliable performance. Core gear like Voidforged Daggers, medium armor, Agility-boosting gear amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Most versatile option
- Clear stat priority (Agility 20, Vitality 15, Grit 15, Strength 10) makes gearing straightforward
- Works in all content types
Cons:
- Lower peak damage than S-tier
- Needs specific gear to reach full potential
B-Tier: Archer Build
Archery deals respectable damage at range using various arrow types (poison, gas, explosive). 20 Agility boosts ranged damage. Bows are effective for pulling enemies and softening groups before melee engagement. Less effective as sole damage source but excellent as hybrid support.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Dragonbone Weapons | Crafted from Dragon Bone (farmed from undead dragons in the Unnamed City) and Star Metal. |
| Core Gear | Star Metal Bow, special arrows (poison, explosive), medium armor | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Agility 20, Encumbrance (arrow weight), Grit 10 | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | religion system | Choose from seven religions (Yog, Set, Mitra, Ymir, Derketo, Jhebbal Sag, Zath), each providing unique craftable items. |
How to Play Archer Build
Kite enemies with bow from range, use special arrows for status effects, and switch to melee for finish.
Archery deals respectable damage at range using various arrow types (poison, gas, explosive). 20 Agility boosts ranged damage. Bows are effective for pulling enemies and softening groups before melee engagement. Less effective as sole damage source but excellent as hybrid support.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Dragonbone Weapons and religion system creates a gameplay loop that offers reliable performance. Core gear like Star Metal Bow, special arrows (poison, explosive), medium armor amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Best survivability
- Clear stat priority (Agility 20, Encumbrance (arrow weight), Grit 10) makes gearing straightforward
- Works in all content types
Cons:
- Slower clear speeds
- Needs specific gear to reach full potential
S-Tier: Thrall Commander
Authority builds maximize thrall effectiveness. 20 Authority gives your thrall massive damage and health bonuses plus the ability to command multiple followers. A Named Fighter thrall with Authority buffs can solo most PvE content while you support from safety.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Star Metal Weapons | Crafted from Star Metal Ore (harvested from meteorites in the Frozen North). |
| Core Gear | Named Fighter thrall (Dalinsia Snowhunter, Lian), thrall equipment, healing arrows for thrall | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Authority 20, Vitality 15, any combat stat 10+ | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | purge defense | Purges are NPC raid events triggered by accumulating a Purge meter through gameplay activity. |
How to Play Thrall Commander
Let your thrall tank and deal damage while you support with healing arrows and crowd control. Authority perks make thralls devastatingly powerful.
Authority builds maximize thrall effectiveness. 20 Authority gives your thrall massive damage and health bonuses plus the ability to command multiple followers. A Named Fighter thrall with Authority buffs can solo most PvE content while you support from safety.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Star Metal Weapons and purge defense creates a gameplay loop that provides a unique approach. Core gear like Named Fighter thrall (Dalinsia Snowhunter, Lian), thrall equipment, healing arrows for thrall amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Strong in group/team content
- Clear stat priority (Authority 20, Vitality 15, any combat stat 10+) makes gearing straightforward
- Excels in its niche
Cons:
- Weaker solo performance
- Requires deep game knowledge
A-Tier: Sorcery Build
The Age of Sorcery system lets you corrupt attributes (sacrificing max HP/Stamina for sorcery power). Corrupted Strength gives lifesteal, corrupted Authority summons undead minions. Sorcery adds summoning circles, teleportation, lightning storms, and ice bridges.
Core Setup
| Slot | Choice | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Equipment | Voidforged Weapons | Endgame weapons crafted at the Voidforge station using void materials. |
| Core Gear | Sorcery staff, corrupted attributes, summoning materials, bat form recipe | Maximizes build potential |
| Stat Priority | Corrupted Authority (undead army) or Corrupted Strength (lifesteal), Vitality as offset | Optimal scaling |
| Key Mechanic | attribute respec | Attributes (Strength, Agility, Vitality, Authority, Grit, Expertise, Encumbrance) can be reset with Yellow Lotus Potion (craftable). |
How to Play Sorcery Build
Corrupt your attributes for sorcery power, summon undead thralls, use bat transformation for mobility, and cast elemental spells.
The Age of Sorcery system lets you corrupt attributes (sacrificing max HP/Stamina for sorcery power). Corrupted Strength gives lifesteal, corrupted Authority summons undead minions. Sorcery adds summoning circles, teleportation, lightning storms, and ice bridges.
What makes this build work: The synergy between Voidforged Weapons and attribute respec creates a gameplay loop that provides a unique approach. Core gear like Sorcery staff, corrupted attributes, summoning materials, bat form recipe amplifies this further.
Pros:
- Unique, rewarding playstyle
- Clear stat priority (Corrupted Authority (undead army) or Corrupted Strength (lifesteal), Vitality as offset) makes gearing straightforward
- Excels in its niche
Cons:
- High skill floor, punishing when misplayed
- Requires deep game knowledge
Build Progression Path
- Start with Agility Fighter — the most forgiving option for learning the game
- Transition to Strength Melee once you understand core mechanics and have access to Blade of the Adventurer
- Keep a Archer Build setup for content that keeps killing you
- Try Sorcery Build for a fresh experience once you've mastered the basics
Gearing Tips
- Invest in your primary equipment first — it gives the biggest power spike
- Dalinsia Snowhunter (Named Fighter from Mounds of the Dead) is widely considered the best combat thrall. She has the highest HP and damage of any follower. Farm her spawn location repeatedly.
- Build a Wheel of Pain near enemy camps for efficient thrall conversion. Greater Wheel of Pain converts thralls faster and holds more simultaneously.
- Don't spread upgrade resources across multiple builds until endgame
See our tier list for current meta rankings, or the beginner's guide if you're just getting started.
