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.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. Bonus missions are not optional content
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.
2. Brink Guard is timed to the moment of impact, not the wind-up
Brink Guard is timed to the moment of impact, not the wind-up. Watch the weapon rather than the character, and count the rhythm of a combo on your first attempt instead of trying to react to every hit.
3. Skill points come from landing hits, not from levelling
Skill points come from landing hits, not from levelling. If a tree feels empty, go clear a bonus mission with that weapon equipped rather than grinding levels at a Blade Nexus.
4. Respec is free and unlimited
Respec is free and unlimited. Test all three weapons in the Charnak Mountain Range before you commit, because the difference between Greatsword and Dual Wield is far bigger than the difference between two weapons in most souls-likes.
5. Some heavy attacks cannot be blocked at all
Some heavy attacks cannot be blocked at all. Guarding them drains the entire stamina bar and leaves you open, so learn which moves in a boss set demand a dodge and treat guard as the wrong answer to them.
6. Wear one full Qazumaka set rather than the five highest defence pieces you own
Wear one full Qazumaka set rather than the five highest defence pieces you own. Set bonuses are worth more than the raw defence difference through most of the campaign.
7. The spirit gauge fills on damage taken as well as damage dealt, so a fight you are losing still generates skill charges
The spirit gauge fills on damage taken as well as damage dealt, so a fight you are losing still generates skill charges. Spending them to reset spacing is usually better than saving them for a stance break you may never reach.
8. Vitality and Endurance carry you further than any scaling stat for the first twenty or so levels
Vitality and Endurance carry you further than any scaling stat for the first twenty or so levels. Damage stats only start paying once you survive long enough to use the openings.
9. Resting at a Blade Nexus respawns every ordinary enemy in the area, so clear a route to a boss, then decide whether the healing refill is worth walking the route again
Resting at a Blade Nexus respawns every ordinary enemy in the area, so clear a route to a boss, then decide whether the healing refill is worth walking the route again.
10. Recruit every NPC you find and send them to the Crevice
Recruit every NPC you find and send them to the Crevice. The hub vendors, including Qazumaka, unlock through recruitment rather than through story progress, and missing one costs you a whole crafting line.
Advanced Strategies
Role Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For Greatsword (A-Tier):
- Focus on Brink Guard and Reflect combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: Greatsword
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Dual Wield (A-Tier):
- Versatile approach that handles any situation.
- Core gear: Dual Wield blades
- Stat priority: Balanced stats
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how The First Berserker: Khazan's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Brink Guard and Reflect + Stamina and stance breaking: Holding guard blocks at a heavy stamina cost. Combined with Stamina and stance breaking, khazan and every enemy carry a stamina bar alongside health.
Spirit gauge skills + Lacrima and the Blade Nexus: Skills do not cost stamina. When paired with Lacrima and the Blade Nexus, lacrima drops from enemies and behaves like souls in fromsoftware games.
Three weapon skill trees scaling: 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.
Weapons Efficiency
| Weapon | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Greatsword | Players who want boss fights to end in fewer, bigger punishes and do not mind committing to long animations | Slowest swing speed, highest stamina damage per hit, and the only weapon whose charged heavy reliably staggers ordinary enemies. |
| Dual Wield blades | Aggressive players who already trust their Brink Dodge timing | The fastest of the three, with attack strings that keep the spirit gauge topped up. |
| Spear | First runs through unfamiliar missions, and bosses with wide sweeping combos | Longest reach and the lowest risk per exchange, scaling off Proficiency with Willpower secondary. |
| Spirit gauge skills | Finishing a stance-broken boss, and escaping a combo you guessed wrong on | Skills spend gauge charges rather than stamina, so they are free damage in the middle of a stamina-starved exchange. |
| Qazumaka crafted gear sets | Locking in a defensive identity before the Heart of Pell Los missions | The blacksmith Qazumaka builds full armour sets once you bring him the matching Scroll, which drops from elite enemies and bosses or sits in mission side rooms. |
Location Efficiency
Charnak Mountain Range (Main missions 1 to 5 of 16): The opening region, covering Banished Hero, Trials of the Frozen Mountain, Forgotten Temple, First Act of Revenge and Strange Stench. Yetuga is the first wall most players hit, and the region is where the game decides whether you have understood Brink Guard.
Pell Los Plateau (Main missions 6 to 9 of 16): The second region, running Traitor Revealed, Veiled Knives, Devoured Village and Inconceivable Truth. Traitor Revealed takes Khazan into the city of Palemion for the first act of his revenge, and the enemy mix shifts from beasts to trained soldiers who punish sloppy guard timing.
Heart of Pell Los (Main missions 10 to 13 of 16): Witch's Castle, Hermit Mountains, Corruptors' Fortress and Strange Melody sit here. Crowd encounters get much larger, which is where heavy armour builds pull ahead and where under-levelled players should go back and clear bonus missions.
Vitalon, Capital of the Empire (Main missions 14 to 16 of 16): The final region: Fall of the Empire, Bloodied Sanctuary and Master of Chaos, ending at Ozma. Enemy stamina pools are large enough that stance breaking is no longer optional, and mistimed guards cost most of a health bar.
Palemion Citadel (Reached during main mission 6, Traitor Revealed): The citadel section of the Pell Los Plateau where Rangkus, the sixth boss, waits at the end. Rangkus has a twin, Bringkus, which is the game's first hint that beating a boss once does not mean you are done with that moveset.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Treating guard as a hold-to-block button. Holding drains stamina fast, and the punish window opens the moment the bar empties.
- Levelling Strength on a Spear or Dual Wield build because it sounds like the damage stat. Spear scales off Proficiency and Dual Wield off Willpower.
- Skipping all 24 bonus missions and then blaming the difficulty curve when Vitalon enemies take three times as long to kill.
- Dodging everything. Brink Dodge does far less stamina damage than a Brink Guard, so a pure dodge run leaves bosses at full stance and fights running twice as long.
- Hoarding Lacrima into a boss arena. Death drops it on the floor, and boss runbacks are exactly where players lose the largest piles.
Pro Quick Tips
- 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.
- Brink Guard is timed to the moment of impact, not the wind-up. Watch the weapon rather than the character, and count the rhythm of a combo on your first attempt instead of trying to react to every hit.
- Skill points come from landing hits, not from levelling. If a tree feels empty, go clear a bonus mission with that weapon equipped rather than grinding levels at a Blade Nexus.
- Start with Dual Wield, switch to Greatsword when ready
- Invest in Greatsword above everything else
- Clear areas in order: Charnak Mountain Range → Pell Los Plateau → Heart of Pell Los → Vitalon, Capital of the Empire → Palemion Citadel. See our maps guide
- Brink Guard and Reflect + Stamina and stance breaking together are stronger than either alone
More The First Berserker: Khazan Guides
- The First Berserker: Khazan The First Berserker: Khazan Overview
- The First Berserker: Khazan Best Builds
- The First Berserker: Khazan Tier List
- The First Berserker: Khazan Walkthrough
- The First Berserker: Khazan Beginner's Guide
- The First Berserker: Khazan Weapons Guide
- The First Berserker: Khazan Combat Guide
- The First Berserker: Khazan Boss Guide
- The First Berserker: Khazan Maps & Locations
- The First Berserker: Khazan Crafting Guide
- The First Berserker: Khazan Classes & Characters
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