G5 Marksman Hero Ruby Deep Dive — Skills, Best Builds, Artifact Guide
This guide is a comprehensive, tactical, and practical breakdown of the new G5 marksman hero lineup — Ruby and her marksman pair Kylin — plus the newly released artifact commonly called the Roaring Rager (name used here for clarity). If you want actionable builds, march setups, awakening and talent choices, artifact interactions, and in-game tactics for merits and wars, this is the one-stop reference. Throughout the guide you'll find clear recommendations, step-by-step progression, and sample setups you can copy into your march planner.
Key takeaways up front
Ruby is the new G5 marksman designed around ranged burst, stacking crit multipliers, and battlefield repositioning.
Kylin acts as an elite support marksman who amplifies sustained damage and grants mobility buffs.
The Roaring Rager artifact dramatically enhances marksman burst windows through stacking attack speed and a timed damage amplifier that synchronizes with Ruby's awakening.
Best uses: merit farming mixed marches, open-field skirmishes, and synchronized flag captures when paired with cavalry or fast infantry screens.
Not ideal as a lone defender against prolonged siege stacks without proper sustain or heal support.
Build philosophy and overview
The marksman archetype in Call of Dragons has historically excelled at conditional high single-target and focused area damage while relying on positioning and support to survive. Ruby doubles down on that model: her kit rewards set-up, timing, and pairing with shields or repositioning heroes.
Core objectives when building Ruby:
Maximize her opening burst and sustained crit throughput during her awakening window.
Use Kylin and artifact procs to extend or multiply Ruby's high-damage windows across several waves of combat.
Maintain survivability through micro (march control) and macro (talents/artifact bonuses) rather than raw HP stacking.
Core objectives when pairing Kylin:
Provide consistent damage amplification and mobility support to enable Ruby to use hit-and-run or retreat mechanics without losing DPS uptime.
Offer faction or division bonuses to smooth matchups against heavy-armored or high-HP targets.
What makes Ruby special
Ruby brings three defining mechanics to the battlefield:
Stacked Crit Charge — Every successful hit builds a crit-charge stack on the target. After reaching a threshold, Ruby's next skill converts stacks into a bonus true-damage blast that ignores a portion of armor. This makes her highly effective against units and heroes that tend to turtle behind high-defense numbers.
Positional Blink — A short-range blink tied to her primary skill that allows immediate repositioning. This gives Ruby survivability against melee gap-closers and enables ideal shot angles to maximize the crit-charge mechanic.
Awakening Sync — Ruby's awakening interlocks with the Roaring Rager artifact: when awakened, she receives a timed attack-speed and crit-multiplier buff that intensifies with each enemy hero or unique unit killed during that window.
Practical effect: Ruby is best when you can engineer a short, intense damage burst (3–6 seconds) and then back out or be supported by secondary waves. She synergizes with fast guards, cavalry screens, and heroes that can hold aggro for a beat.
Kylin: the marksman ally
Kylin is not simply a secondary damage dealer; think of Kylin as a rhythm-maker who smooths Ruby’s damage curve.
Kylin’s key mechanics:
Synchronized Volley — Kylin fires periodic volleys that apply a damage-amplifying debuff to enemies for a short time. If Ruby attacks a debuffed target, her crit-charge gains extra accumulation per hit.
Tethered Sprint — Grants Ruby (or the marked ally) a burst-speed or small reposition that refreshes Ruby’s positional options and reduces the cooldown of her blink.
Passive Volley Resonance — Every third volley increases Ruby’s crit multiplier for a short duration if both march members are within a close proximity.
Practical synergy: Pair Ruby and Kylin as a concentrated marksman march (2-3 hero march comps) or attach Kylin to the flank of a larger mixed-march that needs sustained DPS + mobility. Kylin’s debuff makes Ruby’s stacks accumulate twice as fast, shortening the time to the crit-conversion blast.
The Roaring Rager artifact explained
Overview: The Roaring Rager is an artifact focused on amplifying marksman burst windows. It offers a layered set of procs and permanent modifiers that reward timing and kills.
Primary stats:
Flat attack proportionate to artifact level.
Attack speed scaling when outnumbered (increases as Ruby’s march size is below a threshold).
Crit multiplier bonus during artifact proc windows.
Unique passive: "Battle Crescendo" — On every third successful hit while artifact proc is active, generate a Rage stack. At 6 stacks the artifact releases a ripple that increases attack speed for all allied marksmen in the march and converts a percentage of attack speed into flat damage for the next second.
Active proc: "Roar Strike" — 20–30 second cooldown depending on artifact ascension; when triggered it gives a short, high-intensity buff that multiplies crit chance and temporarily reduces the target's armor. If Ruby triggers awakening during this window, the Roaring Rager extends the awakening by a fixed percentage, increasing total output.
Why this artifact matters: It lines up almost perfectly with Ruby’s awakening sync and Kylin’s volley debuff, allowing coordinated marches to chain high-damage windows across several enemies or to take down key targets in neutral field fights.
Talent and awakening roadmap
Choose one primary path for clarity: Burst Dominance (maximize opening damage) or Sustained Marksman (survive-and-outlast). Ruby is most efficient in the Burst Dominance route, while Kylin can be tailored either way depending on the player’s marching philosophy.
Recommended Ruby talent tree (priority order):
Critical Precision — increases base crit chance and crit damage scaling.
Marksman Momentum — reduces cooldown of positional blink and grants minor HP when blinked.
Stacking Prowess — strengthens the crit-charge stacks and increases true-damage conversion percentage.
Awakening Mastery — reduces awakening cooldown and boosts the awakening damage multiplier (synergy with artifact).
Defensive Reflex — a minor defensive node for survivability when outnumbered.
Recommended Kylin talent tree (priority order):
Volley Amplifier — increases the damage of synchronized volleys and the debuff potency.
Tether Efficiency — reduces cooldown of Tethered Sprint and extends its duration slightly.
Resonance Focus — enhances passive volley resonance to increase Ruby’s crit multiplier stacking.
Sustain Network — minor lifesteal or shield generation for short skirmishes.
Logistics — grant small march movement or rally bonuses in the campaign map.
Awakening priorities:
Ruby: Unlock awakening early and invest a few points — her awakening is the fulcrum of the burst strategy.
Kylin: Moderate investment to ensure the damage debuff and sprint support remain consistent.
Artifact: Ascend the artifact steadily—artifacts scale with hero progression and the extra awakening extension is more impactful late-game.
Sample builds
Below are three practical, copy-ready builds for different player goals.
Burst Marksman (PvP/War)
Ruby: full crit + awakening mastery heavy; blink cooldown reduced to 5–6 seconds.
Kylin: volley amplifier maxed, sprint cooldown trimmed.
Artifact: Roaring Rager at max ascension available.
March comps: Ruby + Kylin + frontline tank (short-stun shield cavalry or stonewall infantry).
Playstyle: Engage, detonate artifact + awakening, secure kill, reposition.
Merit Farming (Open-field, Multi-target)
Ruby: crit-charge speed increased, slight durability nodes.
Kylin: sustain network + longer volley duration.
Artifact: focus on attack speed baseline rather than ascension.
March comps: Ruby + Kylin + two fast harassers to keep aggro off Ruby.
Playstyle: Kite, burst single targets, avoid prolonged clashes.
Siege Support (Flag capture, objective push)
Ruby: balance between crit output and survivability.
Kylin: keep tether on Ruby or key ally to secure mobility.
Artifact: medium ascension for consistent procs.
March comps: Ruby + Kylin + artillery or high-range siege units.
Playstyle: Hold distance, use blink to evade counter-initiation, burst on exposed targets.
March composition and unit ratios
Unit choices are crucial when fielding marksmen. Ruby’s best unit partners depend on whether you need to keep distance or dominate in short windows.
General ratios:
Light Cavalry: 40% — provides screen and chase to secure Ruby’s blink windows.
Ranged Infantry (Arbalests/Sharps): 30% — increases focused damage synergy.
Heavy Infantry / Shield: 20% — tank and hold frontline for a short period.
Support / Siege: 10% — situational: use siege for structure damage, support for heals.
Notes on micro:
Always keep Ruby near the edge of engagement range. Let frontline units draw initial aggro, then use blink to re-position for safe burst.
Use Kylin’s tether to grant Ruby escape windows; tethered sprint can be used offensively to cross short gaps and trigger crit-charge faster.
If enemy has strong gap closers, shorten march size or replace a support slot with anti-melee units (spears/pikes).
Combat tactics and micro
Pre-fight
Check terrain: Ruby thrives on open fields with flank options. Avoid dense choke points where blink becomes limited.
Time artifact procs: sync artifact cooldown with Ruby’s awakening for maximal effect.
Engagement sequence (example)
Start with Kylin volley to apply the damage amplification debuff.
Advance with frontline to bait out enemy abilities.
Ruby uses primary skill to build crit-charge stacks — use blink when threatened or to reposition for multi-target stack accumulation.
Trigger Roaring Rager + awakening together to convert stacks into high-damage true hits.
Pull back immediately; let allied sustain finish or reset the fight.
Counterplay advice
Against heavy CC teams: bring dispel or anti-CC supports; Ruby is vulnerable to hard stuns during her awakening.
Against armor heavy teams: time skill bursts after Kylin debuffs or artifact armor-reduction windows to ensure damage penetrates.
Against prolonged attrition teams: avoid head-on in drawn fights; instead execute hit-and-run raids, focusing on high-value targets.
Progression and leveling plan
Early game (levels 1–40)
Focus on unlocking Ruby’s awakening and basic talents that reduce blink cooldown.
Accumulate target practice runs in merits to learn stack timings.
Mid game (levels 41–80)
Invest heavily into crit chance and crit multiplier talents.
Prioritize artifact ascension to at least mid-tier to unlock the Roaring Rager’s Battle Crescendo passive.
Late game (levels 81+)
Max Ruby’s awakening mastery and final artifact ascension. -fine-tune talent points to optimize cooldown windows and survivability.
Practice coordinated timings with alliance mates — wars and group merit farming realize the biggest gains from Ruby’s kit.
Artifact upgrade and optimization path
Ascending the Roaring Rager should be a calculated move. Follow this path:
Upgrade to unlock artifact passive tiers — prioritize the Battle Crescendo stacks that convert attack speed into flat damage.
Invest in the active Roar Strike cooldown reduction next — the awakening extension scales with artifact level.
Finalize by improving baseline attack speed and crit multiplier; these provide steady returns outside of proc windows.
Materials efficiency tip: When resources are limited, prioritize the artifact’s proc cooldown and awakening-extension nodes first, as they multiply Ruby’s overall DPS more than flat stat upgrades early on.
Sample talent trees (visualized in words)
Ruby (Burst Dominance sample)
Tier 1: Critical Precision (+12% crit)
Tier 2: Marksman Momentum (-10% blink CD)
Tier 3: Stacking Prowess (+15% true damage conversion)
Tier 4: Awakening Mastery (-20% awakening CD; +10% awakening damage)
Tier 5: Defensive Reflex (+5% effective HP when blink used)
Kylin (Support DPS sample)
Tier 1: Volley Amplifier (+20% volley damage)
Tier 2: Tether Efficiency (-15% sprint CD)
Tier 3: Resonance Focus (+12% buff to Ruby crit when within range)
Tier 4: Sustain Network (+8% small heal on volley)
Tier 5: Logistics (+3% march speed to whole march for 3s after tether)
Practical examples: March presets you can copy
Preset A — 3-hero burst march
Heroes: Ruby (front), Kylin (support), Shield Tank (aggro)
Units: 40% light cavalry / 30% ranged infantry / 20% heavy shield / 10% utility
Use: Quick snipe of enemy hero stacks or merit targets.
Preset B — Merit farming hit-and-run
Heroes: Ruby, Kylin, Fast Skirmisher (low-cost)
Units: 50% light cavalry / 30% ranged infantry / 20% scouts
Use: Surround merit camps, single-target elimination, avoid prolonged fights.
Preset C — Objective push (flag)
Heroes: Ruby, Siege Specialist, Kylin
Units: 30% heavy infantry / 30% ranged infantry / 20% cavalry / 20% siege
Use: Combine siege with Ruby’s pick-off potential to clear defenders and secure points.
Common mistakes and how to avoid them
Overcommitting Ruby without Kylin or artifact — result: quick kill but no follow-through. Fix: Always ensure Kylin or a similar support is present for synchronized volleys.
Using awakening at the wrong time — result: low value. Fix: Wait for Kylin debuff or artifact proc before activating awakening.
Putting Ruby in the front line — result: fast death. Fix: Keep Ruby at range, use blink to avoid direct melee engagements.
Ignoring cooldown windows — result: missed damage. Fix: track artifact and awakening cooldown timers manually and in alliance planning.
Matchups and situational counters
Versus heavy melee (spears/cavalry)
Use blink defensively and kite; deploy heavy shield as meat-shield and use roving cavalry to bait charges.
Versus high-CC comps
Add anti-CC supports or reduce Ruby exposure by shortening march size and using flanking angles.
Versus high-armor tanks
Time Roaring Rager’s armor-penetration procs with Kylin volleys to bypass defenses.
Versus long-range artillery/siege
Close the gap quickly with tethered sprint; use cavalry to disrupt artillery lines and position Ruby behind fast screens.
Alliance coordination and war tactics
Synchronize artifact uses across allied marches where multiple marksmen exist. A coordinated artifact + awakening window can wipe out grouped stacks.
Use real-time comms to call awakening windows — allies should avoid overlapping AoE that could accidentally stun or silence Ruby during her burst.
Assign a designated “bait” march to soak initial spells and CC on the enemy side; Ruby’s march then times the burst for cleanup.
Farming and resource optimization
Focus initial materials on Ruby’s awakening and artifact ascension in the ratio 60:40 until mid-game.
Rotate merit farming schedules so Ruby’s burst windows target high-value merits (hero materials, runes).
Avoid wasting artifact procs on low-value targets; save procs for flagged battles or guaranteed hero-target eliminations.
Tips for micro players
Hotkey Ruby’s blink and awakening separately to ensure you can blink out if a spell hits mid-awakening.
Use quick-swap target commands to ensure Ruby’s shots hit stacked enemies for faster crit-charge accumulation.
Watch for teleport or blink counters; preemptively hold blink until counters are used, then reposition.
Accessibility and controller setups
Configure your quick-ability keys (blink, awakening, artifact) to adjacent buttons for faster combination plays.
Practice the three-step combo (Kylin volley → Ruby stack build → Roaring Rager + awakening) in low-risk environments to internalize timings.
Build variations for different playstyles
Aggressive solo player
Max crit and artifact cooldown reduction; use hit-and-run to pick off exposed solo players.
Alliance support player
Slight survivability trades for increased utility (movement buffs, small heals) to consistently enable allied pushes.
Casual merit grinder
Keep one solid PvP build but favor steady upgrades; invest in artifact baseline stats rather than the highest ascension tier.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes Ruby different from other marksman heroes
Ruby’s signature is a stack-to-burst mechanic that converts built-up crit stacks into true-damage explosions, combined with a short-range blink for repositioning. That makes her uniquely suited to planned, timed strike windows rather than continuous chip damage.
Should I always pair Ruby with Kylin
No, but pairing Ruby with a support marksman like Kylin is the most efficient route to fully unlock Ruby’s damage potential. If Kylin is unavailable, any hero that offers damage amplification, movement, or light CC removal will work as alternatives.
How important is the Roaring Rager artifact
It’s very important. The artifact amplifies Ruby’s awakening and provides attack-speed-to-damage conversions that drastically increase total DPS during procs. Prioritize its ascension when possible.
Is Ruby viable in defensive roles
She can operate in defense with careful positioning and talent investments prioritizing survivability, but she’s fundamentally tuned for offensive pick-off and skirmish playstyles rather than prolonged static defense.
What unit composition suits Ruby best
A balanced march with light cavalry for screen and chase, ranged infantry for sustained fire, and a small contingent of heavy infantry for temporary frontline holding provides optimal support for Ruby’s playstyle.
How do I counter Ruby when facing her
Use hard CC early to disrupt her stack building, time armor buffs to withstand her awakening, and bring mobile units that can close distance rapidly to punish her relative fragility after her proc window ends.
When should I use awakening vs artifact proc
Ideally both at the same time. Activate the artifact’s proc directly before or simultaneously with the awakening to extend and amplify the burst window, resulting in the greatest net damage.
Are there any progression shortcuts
Focus on unlocking awakening and the artifact’s awakening-extension nodes early. Prioritize talents that reduce blink cooldown so you can survive encounters while building stacks reliably.
Closing recommendations and quick checklist
Quick checklist before engaging:
Kylin volley is ready and applied.
Roaring Rager proc is up (or ready in 3–5 seconds).
Ruby’s blink is off cooldown and awakening is available.
Allied march or tank is positioned to soak spells.
One-line summary: Build Ruby to create short, devastating damage windows and use Kylin and the Roaring Rager to chain those windows into decisive removals. With timing and a correct march setup, Ruby becomes an elite pick for merits, pick-offs, and coordinated war plays.
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