Best Cassandra builds - Dragon Age: Inquisition (DAI)

In this post, I will go through in great detail how you should best build Cassandra for Dragon Age Inquisition. I will cover: which skills to pick, tactics, and gear options.

Cassandra is the first companion in Dragon Age Inquisition. I think she is quite rejective of the Inquisitor at first. However, during the game, Cassandra opens up and it is interesting to hear her background.

Important! The companion builds are compatible with Nightmare difficulty, however, to pull it off correctly, be sure to have a good Inquisitor build

So let us go through the Cassandra Builds

Cassandra level 1 - 10

I will assume that Cassandra will be your main tank at the beginning of the game. Even though Blackwall may be better, for some players it may take a while to get him. So we will first build Cassandra as a tank.

Order	Skill	Description
1	Shield Wall	Cassandra gets it by default
2	Payback Strike	You get this ability by default, not impressive, but enough for the start of the game.
3	Challenge + Call Them Out	Taunts the enemy and generates 10% Guard. With the upgrade, it has no cost.
4	War Cry + Any upgrade	AOE Taunt. I would suggest trying out both of the upgrades. Call to Arms may be better for newer players
5	Warrior's Resolve	Gives a stamina boost for lost hp. Good ability especially in the early game
6	Trust the Steel	Gives a 20% armor bonus
7	Bear Mauls the Wolves	Cannot be flanked by enemies

Once you reach level 11, specializations will unlock and you can start working on the full Cassandra build

Cassandra Two-Handed templar build

This build mainly concentrates on supporting your party members and dealing damage. Unfortunately, it is mediocre for using Cassandra as a tank.

Remember that you will need to respecialize skills before making this build

Abilities investment - detailed progression

IMPORTANT: Get a relevant Amulet of Power for Cassandra to maximize the number of ability points

In this section, I will go through all the skills and talents that need to be picked for this Cassandra Templar build in Dragon Age Inquisition.

Order	Skill	Description
1	Spell Purge + Spell Shatter	Use it to dispel enemy magic. Moreover, you can use it on Veil Tears before enemy spawns to cancel the summoning. Moreover, it can be used with Wrath of Heaven for a combo but AI may not be able to pull it off.
2	Blessed Blades	We take this mainly for progression
3	Maker's Will	There is a 5% chance that your attacks will weaken the enemies
4	There Is No Darkness	Boots resistance by 10% to elemental and spirit damage
5	Wrath of Heaven + Embrace the Light	Your signature ability. Deals 1000% of weapon damage, and also stuns enemies in AOE.
6	Grappling Chain	We take this ability for progression
7	Crippling Blows	Weakens enemies with each critical hit
8	Combat Roll + Coming Through	Extremely useful and funny ability. Even though AI does not use it perfectly, it has a low stamina cost and deals AOE damage of 500%
9	Coup de Grace	Deals more damage against stunned and knocked-down enemies
10	Horn of Valor + That's the Spirit	This ability will boost your group damage, armor, and guard generation.
11	Block and Slash	We take it only for progression
12	Flow of Battle	Each critical hit will reduce your cooldowns by 1 second
13	Pommel Strike + Lightning Jab	Strongest two-handed weapon offensive ability. It deals a large amount of damage, has low stamina cost, and knockdowns enemies.
14	Hamstring	We take it to unlock other abilities
15	Deep Reserves	Boosts stamina regeneration when your stamina is low

With this, the core of the build is finished.

Late-game skill investments

These abilities are the ones that I think are useful to have to further improve your build

Order	Skill	Description
1	Mighty Blow	We take it to unlock other abilities
2	Shield-Breaker	Reduces enemy armor when you hit an enemy with a critical hit
3	Whirlwind	We take it to unlock other abilities
4	Clear a Path	Restores 10% stamina with each extra hit during your normal attacks.

Abilities investment - short version

This section is a short version of what abilities you should take for Cassandra.

Two-Handed Weapon skill tree

We want to get Pommel Strike and if possible Clear a Path once we are 20+ level

Battlemaster ability tree

We want to have Horn of Valor, Deep Reserves, and Combat Roll from this tree.

Templar Skill tree

The main aim is to get the Wrath of Heaven ability. This is the build's signature ability.

Cassandra Stats

In this section, I will cover the best stats that should be prioritized when choosing what equipment to equip. This will ensure that you build the best two-handed Cassandra

• Raw damage - for this take the best weapon that you can find. Most of your offensive abilities scale off your weapon damage. Due to this, it is important to get the one with the highest raw stats
  

• Critical chance – this should be a priority after you get Flow of Battle. Get it to at least 50%

• Critical Damage – once you have a 50% critical chance this stat is the main one that you should concentrate on

• Attack – this stat increases all damage that you do

• Cunning - gives a critical chance to boost

• Dexterity - gives a critical damage bonus

• Strength - boosts attack indirectly

Best Equipment

In this section, I will go through some decent equipment that you can equip or craft.

It is important to note, generally crafted equipment is better. However, for this, you need good Tier 4 or Tier 3 materials.

Weapons - obtainable

Here is a list of great weapons that you can obtain at different levels for Cassandra. Check what you prefer the most, I have listed weapons that have both a high bonus to attack and also a bonus to critical chance or damage.

So for example in the late game if Cassandra has a high critical chance, give her two-handed weapons with a big boost to critical damage. If low, then give items with a large attack boost.

Priority	Item	Description
1	Single Incarnation	Available during the Trespasser DLC. It is quite a powerful axe. I suggest trying it out and seeing, how Cassandra performs with it.
2	Demon's Advocate	Extremely powerful Maul, that makes enemies explode after they are killed. I personally prefer this one compared to the others.
3	Chromatic Greatsword	Similar to Prismatic Greataxe, you will randomly deal elemental damage together with physical damage. This weapon can last you until the end of the game. However, have other weapons on hand if you encounter enemies with high elemental resistance
4	Certainty	The sword gives a +36% Attack boost, this equates to an almost 72-point strength bonus. This can be an alternative to the Chromatic Greatsword if you don't prefer its looks
5	Prismatic Greataxe	Due to the weapons mechanics, this weapon deals a bonus of 100% elemental damage. So with a skill like Pommel Strike, you will deal 600% elemental damage and 600% physical damage.

Weapons - craftable

Schematics are usually better than obtainable counterparts. However, you need good materials for that.

Priority	Item	Description
1	Prismatic Greataxe Schematic	One of the more overpowered weapons that deal additional elemental damage together with Physical damage. Expect Cassandra's skills to deal double damage
2	Chromatic Greatsword Schematic	One of the more overpowered weapons. However, the schematic can only be obtained in Trespasser DLC. Similar to Prismatic Greataxe Schematic
3	Axe of the Dragon Hunter Schematic	Has large Leather offensive slots, and can be easily obtained in Black Emporium

Armors - obtainable

Unfortunately, there are not many options for obtainable armor that provide offensive bonuses

Priority	Item	Description
1	The Skin That Stalks	Obtainable only in the Trespasser DLC. Boosts Critical Damage, Critical Chance, and Attack.
3	Revered Defender Armor	Abilities cost 10% less stamina with this armor.
4	Masterwork Battlemaster Armor	Gives bonus stamina, which allows using more abilities
5	Armor of the Knights-Divine	Abilities cost 7.5% less stamina. Moreover, gives bonus defensive stats.

Armors - craftable

Sadly there are not too many armors that you can craft to give a lot of offensive options. Your main priority is to either get Leather or Metal utility slots

Priority	Item	Description
1	The Skin That Strikes Schematic	This medium armor can be worn by anyone and it has leather utility slots. This means it can boost either critical chance or critical damage.
2	Revered Defender Armor Schematic	A decent schematic that gives a large metal utility slot. However, you will need some luck to get it in The Descent DLC
3	Templar Armor Schematic	This is the only heavy armor that gives a leather utility slot. This will allow you to either boost Critical Chance or Critical Damage
5	Battlemaster Armor Schematic	Great tier 3 schematic that you can get in Hissing Wastes. It also comes with Upgrade slots.

Helmets - obtainable

Priority	Item	Description
1	Stone Stalker Mask	One of the best helmets in the game. Gives a decent boost to dexterity and cunning stats.
2	Helm of the Drasca	The helmet provides fewer offensive stats than the Winter Palace masks, however, it has a much higher armor rating.
3	Ambassador's Mask	This Winter Palace mask provides an 8% boost to critical damage. Equip it if you have a high critical chance of 50%. It can be used until you feel that your armor values are getting low
4	Mask of the Grand Duchess	This Winter Palace mask provides a 12% boost to critical chance. It can be used until you feel that your armor values are getting low
5	Curse of Morrac	Unfortunately not as good a helmet as the Winter Palace masks, but it is a decent alternative if you did not get those.

Helmets - craftable

Priority	Item	Description
1	Superior Skirmisher Hat Schematic	This helmet gives Leather utility slots that you can use to increase the critical chance and critical damage. This is the best helmet in terms of DPS and damage and is easy to buy.
2	Revered Defender Helm Schematic	Provides a large number of metal utility slots, good for increasing pure attack damage
3	Duke's Mane Schematic	This schematic allows crafting a helmet with 11 metal utility slots. However, it is quite demanding to obtain the schematic as you will need first to finish the Jaws of Hakkon DLC.
4	Superior Venatori Helmet Schematic	The helmet can be purchased early in the game if you have The Short List perk. It gives 10 Utility metal slots.

Amulets

The amulets are listed by Tier. Usually, the Best tier can be obtained late in the game, but it provides maximum bonuses.

Priority	Item	Description
-	Amulet of Power	Gives Cassandra a single ability point. It is consumed once you use it.
1	Amulet of Death Syphon	This amulet will give stamina and hp regeneration after each enemy that dies nearby. So Cassandra can spam abilities more often.
2	Amulet of Renewal	This amulet will increase stamina regeneration allowing the skills to be used more often
3	Master Stamina Amulet or Superb Stamina Amulet	This amulet will boost Cassandra's overall stamina. She will be able to use more abilities initially when the fight starts
4	Superb Amulet of Dexterity	When Cassandra has a comfortable 50% critical chance. Use this amulet to boost her Critical damage
5	Amulet of the Rogue	Use this amulet to increase Cassandra's Critical Damage and critical rate in the late game
6	Superb Amulet of Cunning	Use this amulet if Cassandra has less than a 50% critical chance.

Belts

Priority	Item	Description
1	The Bind That Guides	Top-tier Belt, unfortunately only available in Trespasser DLC. Boosts Critical Chance by 10%
2	Superb Belt of Staggering	The belt will give a higher chance to temporarily stun enemies with normal attacks
3	Superb Belt of Sunder	The belt will give a higher chance to weaken the enemy's armor

Rings

Priority	Item	Description
1	The Hand That Cuts	You only obtain this ring in Trespasser DLC. However, it gives a +20% Critical Damage bonus
2	Ring of Slicing	The rings boost critical damage by 10% and critical chance by 5%. It is one of the best rings for this build
3	Superb Ring of Critical Damage	Gives +20% critical damage, equip it once you have high enough critical rate
4	Superb Ring of Critical Chance	Gives a +10% critical chance. Great to boost it, if you have less than 40%
5	Superb Ring of Attack	Boosts overall attack damage

Tactics

In this section, I will go what strategy and tactics you should use to fully utilize Cassandra

• Combat Roll - set to preferred. We want that Cassandra to use this ability as often as possible as it is extremely cheap and powerful
• Wrath of Heaven - you can set it to Preferred. I suggest first try it out.
• Pommel Strike - stuns and deals a lot of damage.
• Horn of Valor - set Preferred. We want the Cassandra AI to buff the party constantly
• Spell Purge - set to Active. We do not want AI to constantly use it.

Overall this build should be self-sufficient and you should not micromanage Cassandra too often. however, if you see that she uses some abilities too often when it is not necessary, feel free to either lower them to Active or Disable.

Cassandra Tank build

This build is for those that want to have Cassandra as their main tank in the group. Although she may be a bit weaker than Blackwall, she can definitely do the same job.

Remember that you will need to respecialize skills before making this build

Abilities investment - long version

In this section, I will go through all the skills and talents that need to be picked for this Cassandra Tank build in Dragon Age Inquisition. Feel free to adjust your abilities based on preference. This is just a recommendation

IMPORTANT: Get a relevant Amulet of Power for Cassandra to maximize the number of ability points

Important note: I personally recommend using a Two-Handed sword for a tank build. Even though you would think sword and shield are more "logical", the two-hander has better crowd control skills, and some of the talents from the Weapon and Shield tree work without a shield equipped.

However, you are free to use Sword and Shield if you prefer, just do not invest anything into Two-Handed weapons and swap those skill points for Weapon and Shield tree abilities.

Order	Skill	Description
1	Spell Purge	Even though this one is not mandatory it allows you to clear spawning monsters from Veil Tears
2	Blessed Blades	We take this ability for progression
3	Maker's Will	There is a 5% chance that your attacks will weaken the enemies
4	There Is No Darkness	Boots resistance by 10% to elemental and spirit damage
5	Wrath of Heaven + Embrace the Light	Your signature ability. Deals 1000% of weapon damage, and also stuns enemies in AOE.
6	Challenge + Call Them Out	With the upgrade, your tank can constantly taunt any enemy that is attacking your mages or rogues without any stamina cost
7	Warcry	Will Taunt enemies in AOE, it is a decent ability, but this build already has a free Taunt so we do not take the upgrade
8	Trust The Steel	Increases armor by 20% when you have an active Guard
9	Grappling Chain	We take this ability to unlock the next ones
10	Crippling Blows	Enemies are weakened with each critical hit you do
11	Coup de Grace	We take it only for progression but still increase your damage against stunned enemies
12	Horn of Valor + Fortifying Blast	Cassandra is a weaker tank compared to Blackwall. For this reason, we take Horn of Valor to increase Guard generation for her and other group members
13	Block and Slash	We take it to unlock other abilities
14	Flow of Battle	Each critical hit reduces cooldowns, we mainly take this for progression
15	Pommel Strike + Lightning Jab	This ability is extremely strong and also cheap to use. There is no way to not recommend it.
16	Shield Wall	We take this for progression
17	Bear Mauls the Wolves	This passive skill will reduce damage taken from the flanks
18	Untouchable Defense	In this late stage of the game increasing the maximum guard will be beneficial
19	It'll Cost You	Returns 50% of damage to the enemies
20	Livid	Reduces damage taken and increases your damage for each enemy near you.

With these abilities, the core of the build is done, and you should have no problems finishing the game.

However, you can still get these skills if you have free skill points:

• Still Standing - livid upgrade, boosts Guard amount
• Hamstring + Deep Reserves - increases stamina regeneration when it is low
• Warrior's resolve - gain additional stamina every time you lose HP

Abilities investment - short version

This section will shortly cover what abilities should be picked in what tree for Cassandra Tank build.

Templar tree

Our goal is to have Wrath of Heaven, to stun groups of enemies.

Vanguard Tree

We want to have both Taunting abilities and late in the game Livid

Battlemaster tree

Getting Horn of Valor will ensure that Cassandra and party members constantly have Guard on themselves.

Two-Handed Weapon

Getting Pommel Strike ensures that we have cheap offensive skill to knock out enemies.

Weapon and Shield

Only get the passive ability to increase survivability of Cassandra

Cassandra Tank Stats

These are the stats that I recommend prioritizing when choosing the equipment

• Constitution – increases base health and melee defense

• Willpower – increases the damage and provides magic defense

• On hit gain * guard – you will get more Guard on each hit. You can obtain this stat from Masterwork materials when they are used in crafting.

• Ranged defense – bigger defense from ranged attacks

• Magic defense – overall more magic defense, better than specific element defense

• Melee Defense – more defense from melee attacks

• Attack – overall increase in damage

• Strength – provides damage boost and some Guard damage boost

With these stats high enough Cassandra should have no problem taking groups of enemies on herself. Moreover, as long as she generates enough Guard she can keep aggro on bosses.

Cassandra suggested equipment

In this section, I will go through some decent equipment that you can equip or craft.

Weapons - obtainable

Priority	Item	Description
1	Edgewise	This is the best defensive sword. It gives constitution, bonus armor rating, and chance to taunt enemies
2	Demon's Advocate	This Maul gives +19 Constitution and provides the effect of exploding bodies when an enemy is killed.
3	Chromatic Greatsword	Not only it gives a large boost to damage but also raises elemental resistance
4	Prismatic Greataxe	The weapon gives a large boost to damage and +15% elemental resistance.

Weapons - craftable

Schematics are usually better than obtainable counterparts. However, you need good materials for that.

Priority	Item	Description
1	Masterwork Brute Hammer Schematic	Due to a large number of metal utility slots, this Maul is perfect for a tank.
2	Masterwork Serrated Greatsword Schematic	This blade provides both offensive and utility metal slots. So you can equip it if you decide that Cassandra can deal a bit more damage.
3	Prismatic Greataxe Schematic	The schematic comes both with offensive and defensive slots. Moreover, the weapon effect doubles the damage dealt. Use it if you wish to deal increased damage
4	Chromatic Greatsword Schematic	The schematic comes both with offensive and defensive slots. Moreover, the weapon effect doubles the damage dealt. Use it if you wish to deal increased damage

Armors - obtainable

Priority	Item	Description
1	The Divine	Extremely strong armor if Cassandra was elected as a Divine during the Trespasser DLC. Grants guard on hit and bonus willpower
2	Revered Defender Armor	This armor trades blows with The Divine. Personally, I prefer this one due to the decreased stamina consumption.
3	Masterwork Battlemaster Armor	Increases base stamina and provides decent defensive stats bonus

Armors - craftable

Tier	Item	Description
1	Revered Defender Armor Schematic	This schematic has the most metal utility slots in the game. Makes the perfect armor for Tank Cassandra
2	Superior Battlemaster Armor Schematic	More expensive alternative to Battlemaster Armor Schematic. Although it has worse slots, the armor value is higher. Moreover, comes with upgrade slots.
3	Battlemaster Armor Schematic	Has the most utility slots if includes the upgrades. Perfect for maximizing Cassandra's defensive options and constitution

Helmets - obtainable

Level	Item	Description
1	The Divine	Cassandra gets this helmet in The Trespasser DLC if she has become the Divine. Has optimal defensive stats boost
2	Revered Defender Helm	The Helmet can be obtained in The Descent DLC. Provides very good defensive bonuses: constitution, melee defense, etc.
3	Duke's Mane	A decent helmet that gives a bonus  +8 Strength and +8% Melee Defense

Helmets - craftable

Tier	Item	Description
1	Revered Defender Helm Schematic	Gives very good utility slots that you can use to increase constitution or strength
2	Duke's Mane Schematic	Provides 11 utility metal slots to increase constitution.
3	Helm of the Inquisitor Schematic	The schematic is quite cheap and provides 10 metal utility slots.

Amulets

The amulets are listed by Tier. Usually, the Best tier can be obtained late in the game, but it provides maximum bonuses.

Priority	Item	Description
-	Amulet of Power	Gives Cassandra a single ability point. It is consumed once you use it.
1	Master Cooldown Amulet or Superb Cooldown Amulet	Reduces the cooldown for skills. This way Cassandra can better handle aggro throughout the combat
2	Master Stamina Amulet or Superb Stamina Amulet	Increases the pool of stamina. Great for using abilities early in the fight
3	Superb Amulet of Constitution	Increases Consitution that results in higher melee defense and HP pool

Belts

Priority	Item	Description
1	Master Guard Belt of Superior Guard Belt	Increases the Maximum Guard for Cassandra. This way she can take more damage before HP will be affected.
2	Superb Belt of Health	Increases Health pool, allowing to soak more damage
3	Belt of Life	Increases Health pool, allowing to soak more damage

Rings

If you see that Cassandra can handle enemies well: maintains guard, and does not die or use potions, feel free to use rings from the offensive build

Priority	Item	Description
1	Superb Ring of Life-Drain	This ring will drain HP from dying enemies. However, look for other options if Cassandra always has her get Guard full.
2	Superb Ring of Staggering	Increases the chance to interrupt enemy attacks and stagger them
3	Enhanced Horn of Valor Ring	Boosts your main supporting ability by extending its duration. Especially valuable early to mid-game.

Tactics

Here is what tactics I recommend to use with Cassandra:

• Challenge - Active, we do not want Cassandra to always spam it. Just enough to keep aggro
• Warcry - Active. similar to Challenge this ability should be used occasionally to get enemy attention on the initial encounter
• Horn of Valor - Preferred. This ability should be active at all times. it ensures both your and party members' survivability and increases in damage.
• Wrath of Heaven - Active. For best usage, I recommend using it manually at the start of the combat to stun groups of enemies.
• Livid - Active. Let Cassandra AI decide when this should be used
• Pommel Strike - we want Cassandra to use this ability, it can easily stun enemies

All other abilities should be disabled. Important note: use Spellpurge manually when enemies are spawning from the Veil Tears. This way you will lower the number of demons spawned.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this guide. I hope it will help you to fully understand how to best build Cassandra in Dragon Age Inquisition. The post goes into great detail on her skills and tactics that should be used

if I have missed anything, feel free to leave a comment below