Middle-earth: Shadow of War skills guide - your first look at Talion’s abilities

Here we have your first look at the skills you’ll have available when you roam Middle-earth once again on October 10. There are six different skill categories to foster each of the distinctly different playstyles, but we don’t have every last one at the moment. So make sure you keep checking back here for all the latest Shadow of War updates.

Combat skills

Combat upgrades focus on your more traditional melee combat skills.

Execution 

• When your Might is full, aim at an enemy and execute them.
• Upgrade: Secret Might - Gain Might for each kill while remaining undetected.
• Upgrade: Grim Resolve - Gain Might each time you are damaged in combat.
• Upgrade: Fatal Might - Successful sword strikes gain much more Might. Might resets after taking damage, missing an attack, or exiting combat.

Perfect Counter

• Well-timed counters knock down enemies.
• Upgrade: Fatal Counter - Well-timed counters instantly kill enemy grunts, but not captains and beasts.
• Upgrade: Mighty Reversal - Gain Might from each counter.
• Upgrade: Rain of Arrows - Well-timed counters replenish one Elf-Shot.

Critical Strike

• Melee attacks have a chance of causing critical hits for additional damage.
• Upgrade: Unstoppable - Your Critical Strike chance increases significantly as long as your hitstreak is above 20.
• Upgrade: Reprisal - Critical Strike chance increases as your health is reduced.
• Upgrade: Elven Precision - Use Strike as your Strike lands to greatly increase chance of a critical.

Ground Finisher

• Decreases the amount of time it takes to perform ground executions on downed enemies.
• Upgrade: Wraith Shield - Counter enemies while completing a ground execution.
• Upgrade: Fury - Ground executions enable you to unleash a flurry of blows before finishing an enemy, gaining Might on each hit.
• Upgrade: Ground Drain - Drain enemies who have been knocked down. 

Brutal Aggression

• Might can be double-charged, enabling Brutal Executions which cause nearby enemies to flee in terror.
• Upgrade: Ceaseless Might - Skills that require Might no longer fully deplete Might.
• Upgrade: Wraith Execution - Chain executions to additional enemies. Consumes Focus for each additional target.

Retaliation 

• Time you Last Chance success perfectly to instantly kill the enemy targeting you. Does not apply to captains, graugs, or drakes.
• Upgrade: Vengeful Drain - Retaliation drains your attacker.
• Upgrade: Adamant - Gain an additional Last Chance attempt.
• Upgrade: Burst of Might - Gain full Might on a perfect Last Chance.

Predator skills

Predator skills focus on agility and stealth. Upgrade these abilities to punish your enemies quickly and undetected.

Elven Agility 

• A burst of speed when leaping over objects, landing, or climbing. At the top of a climb you’ll vault over a ledge.
• Upgrade: Spectral Dash - Cross short distances while in stealth or reach nearby enemies instantaneously.
• Upgrade: Silent Runner - Sprinting no longer creates a sound.

Brutalize 

• Perform terrifying stealth kills, causing nearby enemies to flee while increasing your Might and hitstreak.
• Upgrade: Reckless Hate - Brutalize causes more enemies to flee.
• Upgrade: Unyielding Ferocity - Using Brutalize gives a bonus to both your Might and hitstreak

Poison Tendril

• Aim at a grog barrel and poison it from afar.
• Upgrade: Contagion - Enemies who drink from poisoned grog go berserk and attack anyone nearby, spreading the poison.

Wraith Chain 

• Target an additional enemy during a stealth kill.
• Upgrade: Shadow Blade - Eliminates Focus cost for first target in a chain.

Deadly Spectre 

• Use Attract to leave behind a Wraith that will kill your target.

Ranged classes

If you're sinking points into ranged classes, you'll be buffing your ability to attack from afar with weaponry such as bows.

Detonate 

• Shadow Strike into a firepit, detonating it and lighting nearby enemies on fire.
• Upgrade: Spider Song - Detonate a firepit and cause spiders to swarm the area.
• Upgrade: Bursting Arrow - Shoot firepits to detonate them without Shadow Striking into them.
• Upgrade: Matron’s Scent - Detonate a firepit and cause ghuls to swarm the area.

 Freeze Pin

• Shooting an enemy’s foot freeze’s them in place.
• Upgrade: Savage Ice - Freeze Pin affects Olog-hai and beasts.
• Upgrade: Deep Freeze - Freeze Pin duration is doubled.
• Upgrade: Brutal Cold - Freeze Pin causes nearby enemies to flee in terror.

Bird of Prey

• Slow down time and aim while in the air. This consumes Focus.
• Upgrade: Talon Strike - While falling, strike at the ground with a damaging blast that also Stuns nearby enemies. Consumes Elf-shot.
• Upgrade: Eagle Sight - Focus is consumed at a slower rate while in the air.

Mighty Shot

• When your Might is full, fire an explosive shot.
• Upgrade: Freeze Blast - Might Shot causes a frost explosion.
• Upgrade: Firestorm - Might Shot causes a fire explosion.
• Upgrade: Venom - Might Shot causes a poison explosion

Wraith skills

Wraith skills channel the power of the ethereal but powerful elf Celebrimbor.

Brace of Daggers 

• Quickdraw to throw a dagger that damages and staggers enemies.
• Upgrade: Serrated Edge - Thrown daggers have a chance to cause a critical strike.
• Upgrade: Swift Barrage - Three daggers can be thrown rapidly.
• Upgrade: Rain of Blades - Throw five daggers at once to hit multiple enemies.

Elven Light 

• Unleash a powerful blast which, when your Might is full, stuns and temporarily blinds nearby enemies.
• Upgrade: Winter’s Breath - Elven Light also freezes enemies.
• Upgrade: Cleansing Blaze - Elven Light also sets enemies on fire.
• Upgrade: Poison Blast - Elven Light also poisons enemies.

Ice Storm

• Freeze enemies then follow with a flurry of sword strikes.
• Upgrade: Frostbite - Ice Storm finishers also cause a critical strike.
• Upgrade: Shower of Ice - Freeze all enemies in an area in front of you. The higher your hitstreak, the larger the area of effect.
• Upgrade: Shattering Blow - An Ice Storm finisher shatters your target, causing nearby enemies to flee in terror.

Consume

• When your Might is full, drain an enemy quickly during combat. 
• Upgrade: Lord of Wrath - Consume increases Wrath. 
• Upgrade: Olog Lord - Consume works against Ologs.
• Upgrade: Chain of Souls - Aim during Consume and Drain additional enemies. Consumes Focus for each additional target.

Treasure Hunter 

• Automatically collect loot from defeated enemies.
• Upgrade: Discerning Eye - Increases your chances of getting higher quality gear drops from captains or higher ranking orcs.
• Upgrade: Mind Breaker - Increases domination speed.
• Upgrade: Prospector - Increases your chances of receiving higher quality gems from defeated enemies.

Mounted skills

Beast-related abilities fall under the Mounted sub-category. These pertain to gaining mastery over beasts to turn the tide of a fight.

Caragor Rider

• Dominate and Ride a Broken caragor
• Upgrade: Unknown

Pounce

• Unknown

Bestial Rage

• Unknown

Shadow Mount

•  Unknown

Story skills

You'll only be able to unlock story skills at particular stages of the main campaign. They include important abilities likle orc domination.

Drain

• Recover health by draining life from orcs and beasts.
• Upgrade: Domination - Drained enemies are also dominated.
• Upgrade: Quiver of Souls - Draining an enemy replenishes elf-shot
• Upgrade: Bright Lord’s Wrath - Draining or dominating an enemy fully recovers health and gains you Wrath.

Spectral Glaive 

• After your Glaive appears you can initiate a heavy sweeping attack.
• Upgrade: Mighty Swing
• Upgrade: Deadly Striker - Double-charge your Glaive for fast sword-combo follow-up attacks.

Elven Rage

• Slow time, with all melee attacks resulting in instantly lethal executions.
• Upgrade: Freezing Burst - All nearby enemies are affected by a frost explosion after Elven Rage ends.
• Upgrade: Final Blaze - All nearby enemies are affected by a fire explosion after Elven Rage ends.
• Upgrade: Poisonous Wrath - All nearby enemies are affected by a poison explosion after Elven Rage ends.

Shadow Strider

• Talion can double-jump in mid-air. You can also cross wider gaps or change direction mid-jump.
• Upgrade: Waters of Lorien - Upgraded dodge that blinks through enemies. Consumes Focus.
• Upgrade: Hammer of Eregion 
• Upgrade: Eagle’s Eyrie 

Call Followers

• Summon a group of warriors to fight alongside you. Command them to attack targets or dismiss them.
• Upgrade: Bodyguard - Assign a captain to be your bodyguard in the army menu. Command your bodyguard to attack targets or dismiss them.
• Upgrade: Cluster of Spiders - Summon a cluster of spiders with your followers. Spiders cause a poison effect.
• Upgrade: Iron Guard - Summoned followers can withstand more damage.

Dominate Captain

• Dominate a Captain who has been broken. Orc captains who are a higher level than you cannot be recruited.
• Upgrade: Destroy Followers
• Upgrade: Enrage Followers
• Upgrade: Lifeblood