New World: Best Heartrune Gem Abilities, Ranked

When an open-world MMO like New World has players heavily rely on weapon masteries to dominate PVP and PVE, it’s extremely important for players to capitalize on how well they execute combos and skills to ensure combat domination. At its simplest, New World allows players to have three (3) abilities attached to two (2) weapons, giving them a total of six (6) abilities to play around with. As such, when New World introduced the concept of a Heartrune Gem as an additional Ultimate, players now have access to yet another ability to spice up their builds in the game.

Related: New World: What to Do First

Thanks to a Heartrune Gem, players can access an additional skill that can cement their particular playstyle. Various Heartrune Gems bestow powers such as bestowing debuffs, boosting damage mitigation, or even dealing AOE damage to foes. With the right Heartrune Gem, players may be able to dominate combat more often. However, just which Heartrune Gems should players prioritize acquiring?

6 Detonate

Despite a player’s choice of a PVP or PVE focus, one thing remains certain: fighting enemies all at once in New World gameplay puts players at a disadvantage. This is especially the case when players don’t immediately have AOE attack options, as this immediately puts their DPS at a disadvantage even with a good New World armor set. However, with the Detonate Heartrune Gem, players get access to a nifty AOE once they get their timing right.

Thanks to this Gem, players of New World can charge themselves with explosive energy and then detonate to release 100-percent rune damage within a 5-meter radius. The ability comes with a 3-second charge time, as well as other benefits depending on the sub-type used. While its perks can be useful, Detonate’s charging time leaves players wide open for interruptions and other powerful attacks from the opponent. Here are things to consider:

Accelerating Charge (Perk 1): An ability present across all iterations of this Heartrune Gem, players get a 30-percent movement speed boost when charging - possibly to avoid interruptions.
Cunning Detonate: When this variant is used, players get access to Empowering Charge (Perk 2) that gives a 15-percent damage boost when attacking during the charge in exchange for 20-percent reduction in explosive damage.
Stalwart Detonate: This iteration gives players access to Leeching Explosion (Perk 2), which can heal opponents for 50-percent of the rune damage they did. However, there’s also a 30-percent explosive damage decrease.
Brutal Detonate: When this version of the Heartrune is used, players get Escalating Explosion (Perk 2) that lets players take 15-percent more damage while charging in exchange for boosting explosion damage by 20-percent.

5 Cannon Blast

For a fantasy game, it makes for New World gameplay to rely heavily on close-to-mid-ranged combat when it comes to dishing out powerful combos and skills. After all, even the game’s slate of spells and ranged weapons couldn’t always compare to a strike of an axe or a thrust of a blade. And for newcomer players to New World who want to get an advantage from a distance might want to consider grabbing Cannon Blast, as it gives players a summonable cannon as a skill.

When activated, Cannon Blast summons an actual cannon. It fires a shot that deals 100-percent rune damage, as well as inflicting various effects depending on the sub-type used. While the cannon itself is a formidable asset to a kit, its long-ranged nature means it’s more reliable as an introductory attack than something to be used in a rotation. Regardless, here’s what players can expect from this Heartrune Gem:

Burning Blast (Perk 1): An ability present in all iterations, successful hits from the Cannon Blast gives Burn on the targets. This will deal 10-percent rune damage each second for a 5-second duration.
Cunning Cannon Blast: With this sub-type, players get access to Penetrating Blast (Perk 2) which makes the cannon blast unblockable and pass through foes.
Stalwart Cannon Blast: Thanks to this variant, players now release a Concussive Blast (Perk 2). This only deals 30-percent rune damage in exchange for the luxury of knocking enemies down when hit.
Brutal Cannon Blast: With this variant, players get access to Explosive Blast (Perk 2) that reduces damage by 20-percent but now deals damage within a lengthy 3-meter radius.

4 Stone Form

When it comes to this game that relies heavily on New World weapons and combo rotations, buffs and debuffs become a key part of survival. Thanks to the Stone Form, players get a nifty debuff canceler that can further boost their defenses against the toughest of crowd control mechanics.

Upon activation, Stone Form will remove all crowd control debuffs to the player. Not only that, they even give players a 5-second immunity to crowd control and stagger debuffs. This can become an integral part of the combo player’s arsenal, and removing crowd control debuffs can leave them more open to turning the tide against an aggressive opponent. Here are other things players can do with Stone Form:

Fortifying Form (Perk 1): An ability possessed by all Stone Form sub-types, this gives players 10-percent damage absorption as long as this Heartgem is active.
Greater Stone Form: Possessing this sub-type gives players access to Hardened Form (Perk 2), which gives players a 10-percent damage absorption buff whenever they get hit. This can stack up to a 30-percent boost
Stalwart Stone Form: Using this sub-type gives players access to the Mending Form (Perk 2), which will heal players for 75-percent of rune damage every second. However, this will reduce their outgoing damage by 20-percent.
Brutal Stone Form: With this sub-type, players get access to Unstable Form (Perk 3), which causes the Stone Form to explore when it expires or upon pressing the Heartgem key. When players do this, the explosion causes 200-percent rune damage to all enemies within a 3-meter radius. However, the duration of Stone Form is reduced by 2-seconds.

3 Dark Ascent

Players who love New World might appreciate the game for the sheer level of control they give characters in terms of combat, especially since the MMO heavily relies on combos to dish out damage. In the context of the Heartgem mechanics, Dark Ascent works for players who loves to maximize their damage potential.

With this Heartgem Rune, players rise into the air, gathering power that they unleash onto the ground with a powerful plummeting hit. Not only does this deal 100-percent rune damage to opponents in a 3-meter radius, it also deals stagger. Players can even unleash the ground attack much earlier with a button press. They can further customize Dark Ascent with the following sub-types:

Leeching Fall (Perk 1): Present across all Dark Ascent sub-types, Leeching Fall gives HP to players equivalent to 100-percent of the damage they do after the landing blast.
Cunning Dark Ascent: With this sub-type, players get access to Crippling Fall (Perk 2), which slows down opponents the landing attack hits by 30-percent for 4-seconds.
Stalwart Dark Ascent: Thanks to this sub-type, players can gain Fortify whenever they deal successful hits through Fortifying Fall (Perk 2). This buff boosts their damage absorption by 10-percent instead of a 10-percent outgoing damage reduction. The effect lasts for 5-second, across a maximum of three (3) hits.
Brutal Dark Ascent: With this sub-type, players get access to Empowered Fall (Perk 2), which will remove the stagger effect of the landing but also deal 150-percent more rune damage.

2 Grasping Vines

Players of Amazon’s MMO who want to dominate combat as a tank might wish to find ways of dealing damage to multiple mobs at once - especially in intense New World Arena matches. This is why tanks secure builds that both mitigate damage and even attract opponents to their general direction. In the context of the game, the Grasping Vines Heartgem Rune can fit this description.

At its core, Grasping Vine will quite literally release vines around the player that deal 100-percent rune damage to enemies and even root everyone within a 4-meter radius for three (3) seconds. Not to mention, While the AOE and rooting component already transform this into an interesting crowd control skill, players can tailor their playstyle around this Heartgem Rune further by applying any one of these perks:

Enfeebling Vines (Perk 1): A property present in all types of Grasping Vines, this makes Grasping Vines apply a 20-percent debuff to enemy damage for eight (8) seconds.
Cunning Grasping Vines: With this ability, players get access to Leeching Vines (Perk 2) that will heal players for 20-percent of the damage they do to all rooted opponents.
Stalwart Grasping Vines: With this sub-type, players get access to Resilient Vines (Perk 2) that gives players Fortify upon activation. While this 5-second effect boosts damage absorption by 20-percent, it also decreases the player’s ability to deal damage by 20-percent.
Brutal Grasping Vines: When players get this sub-type, players get Rending Vines (Perk 2) that applies Rend on each hit. This reduces the player’s Stamina Regeneration by 50-percent for 5-seconds in exchange for decreasing the enemy’s damage absorption by 20-percent.

1 Bile Bomb

It’s one thing for players to dish out AOE damage in combo-intensive New World gameplay, and another for them to have attacks that constantly put enemies at a disadvantage. When a game like New World needs players to stay focused on their attacks and defense as their characters are ordinarily fragile, any debuff can put them at huge risk. Thankfully, players who wish to dominate matches can rely on Bile Bomb to get the job done.

With this Heartrune Gem, players will be able to spit out a corrosive bile blob that creates a poison cloud. This 3-second attack will stick to all enemies hit and will affect opponents that enter the cloud. In this poisoned state, all enemies get 100-percent rune damage per second and gets an extended 8-second 30-percent reduced healing debuff. These effects get enhanced depending on the variant used:

Crippling Bite (Perk 1): Regardless of the sub-type used, Bile Bomb will inflict Slow whenever it lands successfully. This will give a 3-second 20-percent movement speed reduction.
Cunning Bile Bomb: With this variant, players can inflict Exhausting Bile (Perk 2) towards opponents. This adds an Exhaust debuff to successful hits, where the enemy receives a 30-percent stamina regeneration debuff.
Stalwart Bile Bomb: Thanks to this ability, the Bile Bomb becomes a Mending Bile (Perk 2), where the target now gets healing based on 20-percent of the damage, but they get a 15-percent healing reduction debuff.
Brutal Bile Bomb: With this version, players get access to Concentrated Bile (Perk 2), where players get 50-percent healing reduction in exchange for the bile damage increasing to 150-percent per second. This also transforms the Bile Bomb into a spit, with no cloud released afterwards.