Gnarlhorn — guide

In short

Gnarlhorn is a Rare HP-type Skinwalker of the Spirit affinity — a no-nonsense tank-provoker. He pulls enemy fire with Provoke while covering himself in Unkillable and a defense buff, which makes the Skinwalkers Crypt and dungeons his home. The site author's verdict is to build him, but don't expect damage: he is a bodyguard for the team.

Strengths

• Self Unkillable for 2 turns — survives burst that deletes ordinary tanks.
• Provoke for 1 turn plus a 30% defense buff for 2 turns: takes aggro off your damage dealers and support.
• Aura of +27% DEF to allies in Dungeons — a free bonus for the whole squad.
• 17 010 base HP on a Rare: enough for 2-3 keys without god-tier gear.

Weaknesses

• Provoke lasts only 1 turn and the cooldown is long — low control uptime.
• His A1 scales from ATK, cannot crit and ignores affinity: effectively zero damage.
• 96 Speed — slow, so without Speed gear he never gets Unkillable up in time.
• Nearly useless in Clan Boss and Chimera, where damage and debuffs matter, not Provoke.

Where to use

Best spot is the Skinwalkers Crypt (4.0): many compositions fall apart there without a tank, and his DEF aura fits dungeons perfectly. Next come Arena (3.0) and Dungeons (3.0) — in dungeons he holds a wave, in Arena he fits a defense team or works as a Provoke body. Doom Tower (2.5) is situational when you lack survivability. Hydra (2.0) and Hard mode (2.0) are a stretch, and in Clan Boss (1.0) and Chimera (0.5) there is no reason to bring him.

Stats and gear

Priority: HP% → DEF% → SPD → ACC. Rough targets: 50,000+ HP, 2,500-3,000 DEF, 170-190 SPD so Provoke and Unkillable come up in time, 200-250 ACC for Provoke in dungeons and Arena. Skip C.RATE entirely — his A1 can never crit.

Sets from the build: Frost, Relentless, Frostbite. Frost and Frostbite add control and survivability, Relentless gives extra turns — use what you have, as long as the main stats are HP%/DEF%.

Masteries and blessings

Mastery picks: In For The Kill, Survival Speed, Unflinching, Expeditious Exploitation, Gathering Momentum — the build leans into staying alive and acting more often, not into damage.

Relics: Molten Deathbell, Golden Elixir, Perched Shadow — all toward durability and useful procs.

Tombs

Book Battle Drum first: -1 cooldown means Provoke more often, and that is his actual job. Then Resolve — two levels of -1 cooldown noticeably shrink the window without Unkillable. Tar comes last, it only adds damage.

Verdict

A narrow but honest tank who does exactly his job in the Skinwalkers Crypt and dungeons, and has no place in Clan Boss or Chimera. Build him on HP/DEF and ignore his damage numbers.