A Complete Guide to Protector Play in Warborne: Above Ashes

In Warborne: Above Ashes, few heroes embody the fantasy of an unbreakable frontline as completely as Durion. Where many tanks rely on short bursts of crowd control or momentary shields, Durion is designed around endurance, punishment, and battlefield dominance. His kit rewards positioning, timing, and an understanding of damage flow—both incoming and outgoing—making him one of the most strategically demanding protectors in the game.

This article breaks down Durion’s abilities in depth, explains how his mechanics interact in real combat scenarios, and explores how to maximize his value in PvE, PvP, and coordinated team play. Whether you are looking to anchor your squad in large-scale battles or act as a counter-engage specialist, Durion offers one of the most satisfying tank playstyles in Warborne: Above Ashes.

Durion’s Core Identity

Durion is not a tank who simply absorbs damage and waits for others to act. His design revolves around turning enemy pressure into team-wide advantage and Warborne Above Ashes Solarbite. He thrives in extended engagements where opponents commit heavily, punishing them for overextending and rewarding allies who stay within his protective zone.

At his core, Durion excels at three things:

Teamwide Survivability – Massive Max HP boosts and crowd control immunity.

Damage Conversion – Transforming absorbed damage into devastating magic retaliation.

Zone Control – Forcing enemies to either disengage or suffer severe penalties.

His abilities encourage enemies to make uncomfortable choices: ignore him and fail to break his team, or focus him and suffer reflected and unleashed damage.

Active Skill: Protector’s Radiance

Durion’s defining ability, Protector’s Radiance, is one of the most impactful defensive skills in the entire game. It turns Durion into a living fortress while dramatically empowering allies within his presence.

Skill Breakdown

Channel Duration: 6 seconds

Self Effect: Immunity to all control effects

Ally Effects:

+40% Max HP

Immunity to Forced Movement (Pulls, Knockbacks)

Energy Mechanic:

Every 5000 total damage taken by allies generates 1 Energy Stack

Maximum of 5 stacks

Reactivation Window:

Can be reactivated within 12 seconds of starting the channel

Unleash Effect:

Deals 350%–700% Magic Damage, scaling with Energy stacks

Applies 30% Movement Speed reduction for 4 seconds

Understanding the Channel Phase

The channeling phase is where Durion’s value begins. During these six seconds, he becomes completely immune to crowd control, allowing him to stand his ground regardless of enemy attempts to disrupt him. This alone makes him an incredible answer to teams that rely heavily on pulls, knockbacks, or displacement-based combos.

More importantly, allies on the field receive a massive 40% increase to Max HP. This is not a temporary shield—it is a raw HP increase, meaning it synergizes with healing, regeneration, and damage mitigation effects. In coordinated play, this turns fragile damage dealers into temporarily unkillable threats.

The forced movement immunity is equally powerful. Many team fights in Warborne: Above Ashes are decided by displacement—pulling carries out of position or knocking tanks away from objectives. Protector’s Radiance shuts down this entire layer of enemy strategy.

Energy Generation: Turning Pain into Power

The Energy stack mechanic is where Durion transitions from pure defense to offense. Every 5000 damage taken by allies during the channel contributes to stored energy, up to five stacks. This design strongly encourages enemies to either disengage or risk empowering Durion.

In practice, this creates a psychological pressure point. Enemies often hesitate to commit damage during Protector’s Radiance, giving Durion’s team space and tempo. If they do commit, they are feeding into a powerful counterattack.

The fact that ally damage intake, not just Durion’s own, generates stacks means that smart positioning is crucial. Durion should always channel in a place where his team is most likely to be targeted—choke points, objectives, or contested zones.

Unleashing the Radiance

Reactivating Protector’s Radiance within the 12-second window unleashes the stored energy in a burst of magic damage. At maximum stacks, this ability reaches a staggering 700% damage rate, making it one of the strongest tank-based damage tools in the game.

The added 30% movement speed reduction for 4 seconds ensures that enemies cannot simply walk away after surviving the burst. This slow often sets up follow-up crowd control or secures kills for allied damage dealers.

The timing of this release is critical. Releasing too early wastes potential damage, while waiting too long risks missing key targets or losing pressure. Mastery of Durion involves reading the fight and choosing the perfect moment to convert defense into devastation.

Passive Skill: Reflective Shield

While Protector’s Radiance defines Durion’s presence, Reflective Shield ensures that even outside his active window, he remains a threat.

Passive Breakdown

Trigger Condition:

Taking damage equal to 10% of Max HP within 5 seconds after skill cast

Effect:

Gain 25% Damage Resistance for 6 seconds

Reflect Magic Damage equal to 65% + 1.5% of Max HP to the attacker

Cooldown: 25 seconds

Defensive Power with Offensive Consequences

Reflective Shield activates when Durion takes a significant burst of damage shortly after casting a skill. This timing window encourages proactive play—Durion should engage or cast abilities before absorbing damage, not after.

Once triggered, the 25% damage resistance significantly increases his survivability, allowing him to remain on the frontline longer. However, the real threat lies in the reflected damage. Scaling partially with Max HP, Reflective Shield punishes enemies who mindlessly focus Durion, especially magic-based attackers.

In prolonged fights, this reflection can account for a surprising amount of total damage, often forcing enemy casters to reposition or switch targets.

Synergy Between Active and Passive

Durion’s kit is carefully designed so that his abilities feed into one another. Protector’s Radiance invites enemy aggression, increasing the likelihood of Reflective Shield activation. Reflective Shield, in turn, makes it safer for Durion to stay in the thick of battle, ensuring allies remain within the protective aura.

Together, these abilities create a loop:

Enemies attack → Allies gain energy stacks

Durion resists and reflects damage → Enemies suffer consequences

Stored energy is unleashed → Enemies are slowed and punished

This synergy is what elevates Durion from a simple tank to a true battlefield controller.

Role in Team Composition

Durion excels in teams that want to fight on their own terms. He is particularly effective when paired with:

Sustained Damage Dealers who benefit from longer fights

Healers who can exploit the temporary Max HP increase

Area-Control Mages who capitalize on slowed enemies

He is less effective in compositions that rely purely on hit-and-run tactics, as his value scales with fight duration and enemy commitment.

PvP and Objective Control

In PvP, Durion shines in contested objectives and choke-point battles. His forced movement immunity can completely shut down enemy engagement tools, while Protector’s Radiance often forces opponents to disengage or risk catastrophic retaliation buy WAA Solarbite.

In large-scale fights, a well-timed Radiance can decide the outcome before the damage even lands—simply by denying enemy control and buying time for allies to reposition and unleash their abilities.

Final Thoughts

Durion represents one of the most thoughtfully designed protector heroes in Warborne: Above Ashes. His kit rewards awareness, patience, and precise timing, offering immense payoff for players who understand damage flow and battlefield dynamics.

He is not a flashy assassin or a high-speed duelist, but in the hands of a skilled player, Durion becomes the foundation upon which victories are built. By turning enemy aggression into both defense and destruction, he exemplifies the core philosophy of Warborne: Above Ashes: power is earned through mastery, not automation.

For players who enjoy commanding the frontline, protecting allies, and punishing overconfidence, Durion is not just a hero—he is a statement.