Cordus the Tempest guide: skills, build and team roles
Overview
Cordus the Tempest is an Epic Wind Melee Attacker from the Lightseekers Faction in Invokers: Titan Legacy. He stacks debuffs on a target and then punishes it. Piercing Truth casts Bleed, Blinding Sacrament casts Blind on nine enemies at once, and Heavenly Verdict deals more damage for each debuff on its target.
His damage scales from ATK. Fully Awakened and before Gear, Cordus has 938 ATK, 690 DEF and 7,202 HP, with 23 Accuracy and 37 Mana Gen. Those are ordinary numbers for an Epic, so he needs a Tank and a healer.
Blind makes an enemy more likely to miss its Combo Attacks and deal no damage, which suits fights against enemies that rely on basic attacks. Swift Justice Launches a line of enemies for a short time. Every debuff your teammates cast on the same target also adds to Heavenly Verdict's bonus, so he pairs well with debuffers.
Bleed is part of his kit, so Bosses that are immune to it or punish it are poor matches for him. He has no healing, Shields or Taunt, and his Blind, Bleed and Launch need Accuracy to land.
Skills To Prioritize
Blinding Sacrament hits nine enemies within 7.5m and casts Blind. Blind is 10% for six seconds at Level 1, 13% at Level 5, 15% at Level 8 and 17% for 12 seconds at Level 10, rising to 20% at Max Level. The cooldown falls from 29 seconds to 25 at Level 10 and 23 at Max Level. It needs Accuracy.
Heavenly Verdict, his Ultimate, hits one enemy and deals more damage for each debuff on it: 7% per debuff at Level 1 up to +60%, 12% at Level 6 up to +70% at Level 7, and 14% per debuff up to +90% at Level 10. Its cost falls from 900 Mana to 850 at Level 8 and 800 at Max Level.
Piercing Truth hits one enemy twice and casts a Bleed with each hit: 0.5% of MAX HP per tick at Level 1 and 1% at Level 10, lasting two seconds at Level 1, three at Level 9 and four at Max Level. The cap on each tick rises from 200% ATK to 350% at Level 10 and 400% at Max Level. It has a ten-second cooldown.
Swift Justice charges through a 14x4m path and Launches every enemy hit. The Launch lasts one second at Level 1, 1.3 at Level 10 and 1.6 at Max Level, and the cooldown falls from 29 seconds to 25 at Level 10 and 23 at Max Level. It needs Accuracy.
If you want Cordus to weaken groups, upgrade Blinding Sacrament first, as Level 10 reaches 17% Blind for 12 seconds. If you want him to hit hard on a single target, upgrade Heavenly Verdict first, as Level 10 reaches +90% damage. If you want him to scatter a line of enemies, upgrade Swift Justice first, as the Launch grows to 1.6 seconds at Max Level.
Build And Team Support
Build ATK and Accuracy to the maximum. He relies on Bleed, so don't build Crit Rate or Crit DMG, as those rolls do nothing for the part of his damage that matters. Put Accuracy on your Chestplate and Flask and keep stacking it. Mana Gen on your Talisman gets him to Heavenly Verdict sooner, and Skill RECOV on another piece brings back Blinding Sacrament.
For Relic Sets, Attack Relics raise the ATK his Bleed cap scales from, and Accuracy Relics help his debuffs land. Spark Relics add Skill SPD, which makes Bleed tick more often, Mana Relics help him reach Heavenly Verdict, and Fury Relics bring back Blinding Sacrament sooner. His native Fatigue and Frost Tolerances already match Yskara's Corruptions, so you don't need Tolerance sets there.
Pair him with a Tank and a healer, and with Invokers who cast debuffs on the same target, since each one adds to his Ultimate.
Arena, Bosses And Spires
In Arena, Blinding Sacrament cuts the Combo Attack damage of a whole team and Swift Justice scatters its front line. Be wary of enemy Invokers with Immunity, as it can block his debuffs and shrink his Ultimate's bonus.
Against Yskara, Cordus is a Melee Attacker with native Fatigue and Frost Tolerances that match both of her Corruptions, which suits a fight that wants Melee Attackers. Against Wind Omnissi, his native Fatigue Tolerance covers one of her Corruptions.
Several Bosses punish Bleed. Don't bring him against Althar, because a Bleed on him gives him Invincibility for ten seconds. Earth Omnissi and Koltmos are immune to it, and Sakiel takes half damage from it.
Against Sedula, Blinding Sacrament casts Blind on up to nine enemies within 7.5m, which makes enemy Combo Attacks miss, including the ones that drain your Mana, and it helps clear her Tentacles. She takes 70% less damage from Bleed, so treat Cordus's Bleed as a bonus there and rely on Heavenly Verdict. Sedula changes Element every day, and Cordus has Elemental Advantage on the days she is Water.
In the Wind Spire, Blinding Sacrament and Swift Justice handle waves. Pair him with Invokers of a similar Rarity: Atanna the Convincer, an Epic Wind Tank, casts Taunt, Giiya the Peddler, a Legendary Wind Support, heals, Shields and revives, and Zirthia the Witness, an Epic Wind Support, casts Shields and RES Up.
Awaken
Awakening boosts an Invoker's stats significantly. Bonuses from Relics, Accessories, the Trophy Room, Tactics and Titan leader bonuses apply to base stats and Awakening stats alike, so unlocking the Awakening nodes is critical to maximise Cordus's potential.
Unlocking each Titan node at Star 2, 4 and 6 adds a second to Titan Invokation, taking the total from 12 seconds to 15.
Review the Awakening guide for more detail.
