The Gladiator Party support (Lifestealing Blade) build in AION 2 (PvE, support) is played around Lifestealing Blade 15, Murderous Burst and Focused Block, with Lifestealing Blade 15, Zikel's Blessing, Focused Block and Lunge Stance as stigmas. From 3 player sources on Bahamut (TW), updated Oct 17, 2026; every name checked against the client.
A Taiwanese idea from April: play the Gladiator as the party's buff carrier. Lifestealing Blade shares lifesteal and a damage bonus with the group, Zikel's Blessing adds attack, and Murderous Burst is kept up as a passive. Focused Block cuts the recovery after the blade and Lunge Stance keeps the loop moving.
Read off the Taiwan server, in April. Taiwan then cut Lifestealing Blade (28 Apr) and later pushed the class back to damage, so the group value is probably lower now; check the skill text in the global client before you commit points.
Lifestealing Blade — Players take it to 15 because the client's level-15 option removes 30 s of cooldown, which then lines up with Lunge Stance. One tester put the group damage gain near 7%.
Murderous Burst — Passive kept for the group: Taiwanese posts say it lowers the boss's tolerance to critical damage.
Focused Block — Press it to cancel the end of the blade's animation.
Stigmas
Lifestealing BladeLv 15The client's level-10 option puts Predation on party members for 20 s.
Focused BlockAnimation cancel and a defensive button.
Lunge StanceKeeps the loop smooth around the blade.
Talents: skill specializations
What each level of the build's skills opens in the client — the options you pick at 8 (actives) and the ones that come at 12, 16 and the stigma levels.
50% chance to reduce all skill cooldowns by 1s on Critical Hit for the duration
Options and the levels that open them are the client's (SpecializedSkillParts); lit = reached at the level this build aims for (skill points buy up to 10, stigmas 20 — the rest are bonus levels).
Talents: Daevanion boards
All five boards with a computed build for this role already learned — lit nodes are taken. Then what players do on the boards.
Most skill levels: +35 skill levels · 88 nodes · 136 pts. Computed by us — again and again the cheapest path with the most of the goal per point, for the points levels give at the cap. Change it in the planner →
Gear for the Party support (Lifestealing Blade) build
The Gladiator's top pieces, and what this build wants rolled on each.
% = chance one soul binding gives that line on that piece — our calculation from the client's weights, as on the item pages. Skills listed are the ones this build raises past what points buy (Murderous Burst); stats are the ones it ranks. Gear Transfer moves good lines onto a better piece.
Read on Oct 17, 2026 on Bahamut (TW); the words are ours. Every skill, stigma and stat named here exists in the global client 2.0.6.0 hotfix 1 — a name it does not have stops our build.
Questions
What is the Gladiator Party support (Lifestealing Blade) build?
A Taiwanese idea from April: play the Gladiator as the party's buff carrier. Lifestealing Blade shares lifesteal and a damage bonus with the group, Zikel's Blessing adds attack, and Murderous Burst is kept up as a passive. Focused Block cuts the recovery after the blade and Lunge Stance keeps the loop moving.
Which stigmas for the Gladiator Party support (Lifestealing Blade) build?
What is the Gladiator Party support (Lifestealing Blade) rotation?
Lifestealing Blade on cooldown, then the normal damage loop.
Where does this build come from?
Low-medium: three Bahamut threads from April describe the same four stigmas; the camp is split between support and plain damage dealer. Sources: 【心得】劍星改版後測試心得（吸血劍-組隊必備強力吸血團輔）; 【閒聊】吸血技能再砍一刀~; 【討論】劍星4/29職改事前分析.
Everything is built around spamming Overhead Slam with Rending Blow as the second button, both on one right-click macro, while the left button holds Keen Strike to cut the animations short and refill MP. Lunge Stance at 20 keeps cooldowns rolling, Zikel's Blessing adds damage, and the rest of the stigma points stay cheap.
Gladiator has no taunt: it holds a boss by out-damaging the party. The tank build is the damage build with more parrying — Focused Block keeps the boss facing you and refreshes Experienced Counterstrike, which players describe as a damage buff for the group after a block.
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Thin evidence: four Reddit threads and no Korean tank guide — Korean groups run the class as a damage dealer.
In Korea's Abyss the Gladiator is a 1-on-1 fighter: close in with Rush Strike, buy time with Defiance, then chain Overhead Slam with its lifesteal option while Armor of Balance keeps crowd control off you.
Read off the Korean servers (a June guide and October reactions). Korea cut PvP damage by 30% on 14 Oct; check before copying numbers.
Until Overhead Slam reaches 16, keep it simple: Overhead Slam then Rending Blow on the right-click macro, Keen Strike held on the left, and only those three damage skills raised. Stigmas get the minimum and every spare point goes into Lunge Stance.
Lifestealing Blade shares lifesteal and a damage bonus with the group, 
Zikel's Blessing adds attack, and 
Murderous Burst is kept up as a passive. 
Focused Block cuts the recovery after the blade and 
Lunge Stance keeps the loop moving.
Up to +20% damage when more targets hit
PvE damagePvEDamage
Overhead Slam with 
Rending Blow as the second button, both on one right-click macro, while the left button holds 
Keen Strike to cut the animations short and refill MP. 
5
Experienced Counterstrike, which players describe as a damage buff for the group after a block.
PvP duelistPvPDamage
Rush Strike, buy time with 
Defiance, then chain 
Armor of Balance keeps crowd control off you.
Before Overhead Slam 16LevelingDamage
