Firrol The Barkhorn – Champion Spotlight

Firrol the Barkhorn is one of the most versatile champions for the Hydra Clan Boss, though his kit allows him to excel across various game modes. His A2, with Block Buffs and Decrease Accuracy, combined with his A3’s Increase Resistance and Perfect Veil, covers essential effects that would typically require multiple champions. For Hydra, this setup prevents heads from buffing, counters Mischief from stealing and spreading buffs, reduces the resistance allies need, and counters the Head of Torment’s fears.

Firrol’s Decrease Speed A1 is effective for slowing down bosses, whether it’s in Hydra when ally AOE skills weak hit or get resisted, or in encounters like the Iron Twins Fortress to counter its Turn Meter mechanics. Since the Hydra changes, endgame players are actively seeking A1 Decrease Speed options to control Decapitated Heads, while allowing Serpent’s Will buffs to expire faster, boosting their damage uptime. Another standout feature is Firrol’s passive, which increases allies’ RES and ACC by 50 when they have two or three buffs active, and boosts their damage by 20% when they have four or more buffs. This ability synergizes well in a Protection set, further amplifying his teams damage output. In today’s article, we’ll dive into some of the best places to use Firrol the Barkhorn, along with tips on optimal builds and more!

The Eternal Dragon, the final boss of Rotation 2 in the Doom Tower, is notorious for its skill lock out effects. With Block Active Skills from his A1 and putting ally skills on cooldowns, this boss can leave your team struggling to use their abilities. If you lack Lock Out champions to counter the dragon, a high resistance strategy is strong – and Firrol the Barkhorn excels in this role. To safely resist the dragon’s effects, you usually require 475 resistance on the final stage of hard; Firrol’s Decrease Accuracy on enemies can effectively halve that requirement, and his Increase Resistance buff reduces it even further, making the stat threshold more achievable.

Firrol’s AOE Decrease Accuracy helps stop debuffs from the minions as well, and his passive provides valuable stat boosts to support the team. His setup allows damage dealers to land hits harder when under 4 or more buffs, speeding up the run. This strategy is especially useful for dealing with the minions, which reduces the risk of the boss gaining extra turns or healing from consuming them, avoiding more Eternal Rage cycles. Alternatively, you can avoid killing minions with the right team synergy, like Geomancer’s burn reflections and just surviving the hits, and allies to keep you sustained with heals & Decrease Attack.

In the screenshot above, allies with sufficient resistance effectively resisted the boss’s effects, while Firrol’s Perfect Veil helped reduce incoming AOE damage from the dragon. This setup allows the team to use their active skills instead of default attacks, ensuring a much smoother run. You can also position Firrol as the lead for an extra 60 Resistance from his Aura, provided your team has the necessary speed to stay ahead of the boss.

Firrol The Barkhorn is a standout Hydra champion, excelling at filling multiple essential roles. His Boreal Growth [A2] hits all Hydra heads, and places 50% Decrease Accuracy and Block Buffs effects – significantly reducing the stats required on allies to resist and prevents heads from placing buffs. Combined with his A3, which places Increase Resistance and Perfect Veil on allies, he further reduces the resistance needed, mitigates incoming AOE damage, and counters the Head of Torment’s Fear effect. This synergy of skills covers multiple Hydra mechanics, often achievable only by using multiple champions.

Firrol’s passive ability further enhances your team by adding 50 Accuracy and Resistance with 2-3 buffs, and boosting ally damage by 20% when under 4 or more buffs. A 9-piece Protection Set can amplify your team’s damage output even more. With the Hydra changes, his A1 Decrease Speed has become valuable for slowing decapitated heads and supporting when AOE champions weak hit, get resisted, or don’t have their skills back on time for heads spawning back faster. Sets like Merciless or Reflex can also help reset his active skills for more frequent use. Notably, while he places Perfect Veil on allies, he doesn’t apply it to himself. This makes it wise to avoid the Deterrence Mastery so he won’t counterattack and risk getting Feared when allies receive the effect.

Firrol is versatile in the sets you can build him in, especially since he plays a supportive role rather than focusing on damage. Key stats to prioritize include enough accuracy to meet the requirements for your encounter, along with sufficient speed to consistently apply his effects. Adding some resistance helps him avoid debuffs, though his own resistance manipulation reduces how much you need. Lastly, ensure he’s built with enough sustain [HP & DEF] to withstand hits, and, if possible, build for a bit of damage to further his effectiveness.

The key stats to look for on Firrol are:

1. DEF%
2. ACC
3. SPD
4. RES
5. C.RATE

The best sets for Firrol are:

1. Protection
2. Perception
3. Merciless [4-Piece]
4. Guardian
5. Reflex

Check out our Champion page on Firrol The Barkhorn to see our recommended Blessings, Masteries and more!

Firrol’s utility extends across multiple areas, and another standout is the Iron Twins Fortress. In strategies relying on Decrease Speed to prevent the boss from filling its Turn Meter when allies buff, Firrol’s 100% chance to apply it with his A1 is valuable, especially as the boss cleanses at specific HP thresholds. His ability to enhance resistance through his passive, Aura, Increase Resistance and Decrease Accuracy lowers the required stats to manage Iron Brand stacks, helping reduce incoming damage over time.

For more general use, Firrol performs well in Doom Tower against bosses like the Frost Spider, similar to his effectiveness with the Eternal Dragon. He’s also a solid option for areas like The Cursed City, Secret Rooms, various bosses, and waves. Firrol is definitely a champion worth investing in!