The First Berserker: Khazan Combat Guide: Master Every Mechanic

Q: How many bosses are in The First Berserker: Khazan?

There are 16 main bosses tied to the 16 main missions, plus roughly 20 side bosses encountered mostly through the 24 bonus missions. Once a main boss has been beaten, it can be refought from the mission map.

Q: Which weapon should I start with?

Spear for a first run, because its reach forgives bad reads. Greatsword ends bosses fastest through stance damage and Dual Wield rewards the most aggressive play. Since respec is free and skill points come from hitting things, you can hold all three trees before the game is over.

Q: Do I need to have played Dungeon Fighter Online?

No. Khazan shares the Arad setting and a few names with Neople's long-running action game, but the story of Khazan's betrayal by the Pell Los Empire is self-contained and explained in the opening mission.

Q: What does Lacrima do?

Lacrima is the experience and currency drop from enemies. You spend it at a Blade Nexus on Vitality, Endurance, Strength, Willpower or Proficiency, and you lose your carried pile on death until you retrieve it.

Q: Is Brink Guard required, or can I dodge everything?

You can dodge, but fights get much longer. Brink Guard does the heavy stamina damage that leads to a stance break and a critical finisher, and stance breaks are where most of your damage on a boss actually comes from.

The First Berserker: Khazan combat guide covering every mechanic, advanced techniques, and the strategies that separate good players from great ones.

EarlyGuides Editorial Team

Researched and editorially reviewed. Updated August 12, 2026.

The First Berserker: Khazan is Neople's souls-like, released on 27 March 2025 and set in the same Arad universe as Dungeon Fighter Online. Khazan is a decorated general of the Pell Los Empire who is framed for treason, crippled, and left to die in the snow until a spirit called the Blade Phantom keeps him alive. The campaign runs 16 main missions across four regions, from the Charnak Mountain Range through the Pell Los Plateau and the Heart of Pell Los to Vitalon, capital of the empire, with 24 bonus missions hanging off the same mission map. There are no character classes. You choose between Greatsword, Dual Wield and Spear, and you can respec every skill point at a Blade Nexus for free, as many times as you like.

Combat in The First Berserker: Khazan rewards knowledge over reflexes. Understanding how each mechanic works (and how they interact) is what turns a struggling player into a dominant one. New here? Start with our beginner's guide for the basics.

Core Combat Mechanics

1. Brink Guard and Reflect

Holding guard blocks at a heavy stamina cost. Tapping it on the exact frame the attack lands triggers a Brink Guard instead: the hit is negated, your stamina barely moves, and the enemy's stamina bar takes the damage. Reflect is the upgraded version that interrupts an ongoing combo and breaks the attacker's stance outright. Every main boss is built around this one input, so a player who never learns it will run out of healing long before the boss runs out of health.

Why it matters: This is the foundation of all combat. Everything else builds on this.

2. Stamina and stance breaking

Khazan and every enemy carry a stamina bar alongside health. Your attacks, dodges and guards spend yours, while Brink Guards and Brink Dodges drain theirs. Empty an enemy's bar and their stance breaks, opening a critical finisher that does more damage than a dozen normal swings. Against the 16 main bosses, stance damage is the real health bar you are working on.

Why it matters: The most underrated mechanic. Players who master this early have a massive advantage.

3. Spirit gauge skills

Skills do not cost stamina. They spend charges from a separate spirit gauge that fills as you deal damage, take damage, Brink Guard or Brink Dodge. Nodes in the skill trees raise how fast the gauge builds, which means an aggressive player gets noticeably more skill casts per fight than a cautious one, and defensive play still pays because a clean Brink Guard also feeds the gauge.

Why it matters: Unlocks a new layer of gameplay depth once understood.

4. Lacrima and the Blade Nexus

Lacrima drops from enemies and behaves like souls in FromSoftware games. You spend it at a Blade Nexus checkpoint on five stats: Vitality, Endurance, Strength, Willpower and Proficiency. Resting at a Nexus restores health, refills consumables and respawns every ordinary enemy in the area. The hub Nexus at the Crevice is where recruited NPCs set up, including the blacksmith Qazumaka.

Why it matters: The tactical edge that separates average players from advanced ones.

5. Three weapon skill trees

The skill menu holds four tabs: Greatsword, Dual Wield, Spear and Common. Skill points are earned by landing hits with a weapon rather than by levelling, and respec costs nothing, so switching weapons mid-campaign only costs you the time to relearn its timings. Scaling is fixed: Greatsword leans on Strength, Dual Wield on Willpower, Spear on Proficiency.

Why it matters: The endgame optimization mechanic. Small improvements here compound into massive gains.

How These Mechanics Combine

Understanding how mechanics interact is where real optimization happens:

Brink Guard and Reflect + Stamina and stance breaking

Holding guard blocks at a heavy stamina cost. When combined with Stamina and stance breaking, khazan and every enemy carry a stamina bar alongside health. This combination is the core of every effective build.

Spirit gauge skills + Lacrima and the Blade Nexus

Skills do not cost stamina. Paired with Lacrima and the Blade Nexus, lacrima drops from enemies and behaves like souls in fromsoftware games. This is why the tier list favors builds that leverage both.

Three weapon skill trees as a Multiplier

The skill menu holds four tabs: Greatsword, Dual Wield, Spear and Common. Skill points are earned by landing hits with a weapon rather than by levelling, and respec costs nothing, so switching weapons mid-campaign only costs you the time to relearn its timings. Scaling is fixed: Greatsword leans on Strength, Dual Wield on Willpower, Spear on Proficiency. This system amplifies everything else. The better your Three weapon skill trees optimization, the more your other mechanics pay off.

Combat by Role

Each role approaches combat differently:

Greatsword (A-Tier)

Combat approach: Balanced combat style. Key weapons: Greatsword Primary mechanic: Brink Guard and Reflect

Greatsword offers a solid combat experience. Full setup in our builds guide.

Dual Wield (A-Tier)

Combat approach: Balanced combat style. Key weapons: Dual Wield blades Primary mechanic: Stamina and stance breaking

Dual Wield offers a solid combat experience. Full setup in our builds guide.

Spear (A-Tier)

Combat approach: Balanced combat style. Key weapons: Spear Primary mechanic: Spirit gauge skills

Spear offers a solid combat experience. Full setup in our builds guide.

Brink Guard counter build (A-Tier)

Combat approach: Balanced combat style. Key weapons: Spirit gauge skills Primary mechanic: Lacrima and the Blade Nexus

Brink Guard counter build offers a solid combat experience. Full setup in our builds guide.

Spirit skill build (A-Tier)

Combat approach: Balanced combat style. Key weapons: Qazumaka crafted gear sets Primary mechanic: Three weapon skill trees

Spirit skill build offers a solid combat experience. Full setup in our builds guide.

Advanced Combat Techniques

Damage Optimization

Match your weapons to your role's stat priorities
Exploit Brink Guard and Reflect for maximum damage windows
Chain Stamina and stance breaking and Spirit gauge skills for combo damage
Use Lacrima and the Blade Nexus to create openings

Survivability

Learn enemy patterns before committing to attacks
Bonus missions are not optional content. There are 24 of them across the four regions and they are the intended source of Lacrima and blacksmith Scrolls, so a player who runs only the 16 main missions arrives at the Heart of Pell Los badly under-geared.
Position using Brink Guard and Reflect to control spacing
Save defensive options for guaranteed survival, not comfort

Boss Combat

Bosses test your understanding of every mechanic. See our boss guide for fight-specific strategies.

Phase awareness: Most bosses change behavior at health thresholds
Patience over aggression: One extra hit per opening beats dying to greed
Build preparation: Swap gear and weapons for specific fights when needed

Common Combat Mistakes

Button mashing: Committed attacks have recovery frames. Mashing locks you into animations.
Ignoring Stamina and stance breaking: This mechanic exists for a reason. Players who use it take significantly less damage.
Wrong weapons for the situation: Check our weapons guide for situational picks.
Not learning from deaths: Every death teaches something. If you don't know why you died, you'll die the same way again.
Overcommitting: Trading hits works in Charnak Mountain Range but will get you killed in Palemion Citadel.

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