In Warhammer 40,000 Darktide, users choose from four specialized classes that excel in a specific area. If you enjoy possessing magical powers and blowing up heads, the Psykinetic class is probably what you should choose. Unlike the Sharpshooter, Zealot, or Ogryn, Psykers use their psychic abilities to dish out damage, cast “spells,” and crowd control the hordes of Chaos. This guide will cover the Psyker’s abilities and skills in Darktide, and will provide an intro on how to play the class.
How to Play the Psykinetic Class in Darktide
Players that pick up Psyker in Darktide need to understand the core mechanics of the class first. The Psyker is a spell-casting class focusing on high single-enemy damage output and a range of magical AOE attacks to help support other party members. Each time a Psyker uses a psychic ability, they generate Peril–which, if overloaded, can cause the player to explode. Therefore it’s important for players to reduce their Peril bar while playing by using the Battle Meditation Ability. Attacking with your Primary weapon will also reduce Peril on each successful hit.
Psykers gain access to powerful staves at level 9, which replace their secondary melee weapon with more magical attacks they can perform in battle.
Psyker Abilities
If you plan on playing the Psykinetic Class, you’ll need to understand their passive and active abilities, especially because some of the passive bonuses are not so apparent. Psykers possess the following abilities in Warhammer 40K Darktide:
- Brain Burst (Blitz): Target an Enemy and blow up their heads.
- Kinetic Presence (Aura): Allies in Coherency gain +10% Damage to Enemy Elites.
- Pyskinetic’s Wrath (Ability): Push back enemies with Pysker’s psychic abilities.
- Warp Siphon (Iconic): Killing an Enemy with Brain Burst earns Warp Charge. Each Charge grants +3% Damage. Warp Charges are retained for 25s. You can store up to 4 Warp Charges.
- Battle Meditation (Iconic): +10% Chance to Quell 10% Peril on Kill. Used to lower Peril.
Warp Siphon and Warp Charges
Warp Siphon is a passive ability that grants Warp Charges after you Brain Burst, which buffs your overall damage. However, this damage buff only lasts 25 seconds after Brain Burst, so you need to make the best use of the buff.
Because you can have 4 stacks of Warp Charges, this means that you can increase your damage output by +12% for that 25-second window. Players that can brain burst 3 enemies, then attack, then brain burst before the 25 seconds are up, can sustain the high-damage input before the cooldown for Warp Charges expire.
Psyker Staff Unlocks
At level 8, Psykers unlocks powerful staffs that replace the secondary weapon. These staffs give them the ability to unleash powerful magic abilities that really define the class in Darktide. Players will unlock the staffs in drops or at the shop at the following levels:
- Equinox: AOE Pushback Staff obtained after level 8+
- Nomanus: Lightning Staff obtained after level 12+
- Voidstrike: Force projectile staff unlocked after level 18+
- Risthaven: Fire staff unlocked after level 25+
Warhammer 40K Darktide: Psyker Skills (Feats)
The Psykinetic class has different skills called Feats that you can unlock as you gain levels in Darktide. Each time you hit a new Tier level for your skills, you’ll have the choice to choose from 1 of 3 different skills. These skills synergize with each other, resulting in powerful combinations and builds.
Below, you’ll find a list of all the current Psyker skills and abilities in Warhammer 40K Darktide.
| Feat Name | Tier | Unlock Level | Description |
| Essence Harvest | 1 | 5 | Replenish 30% Toughness over 5s on gaining Warp Charge. |
| Warp Absorption | 1 | 5 | Replenish 10% Toughness when you kill an Enemy with a Warp attack. |
| Quietitude | 1 | 5 | Replenish 5% Toughness for each 10% of Peril Quelled |
| Pyskinetic’s Wrath | 2 | 10 | Gain between 5% and 15% damage with your Force Weapon attacks, based on your current Peril |
| Inner Tranquility | 2 | 10 | 6% Peril Resistance per Warp Charge |
| Wrack and Ruin | 2 | 10 | Killing an Elite or Specialist with Brain Burst applies 2 Stack(s) of Soulblaze to all enemies within 3 metres of the target. |
| Psychic Communion | 3 | 15 | Whenever you or an ally in Coherency kills an enemy, you have 4% chance to gain a Warp Charge. |
| Psykinetic’s Aura | 3 | 15 | 15% Combat Ability Cooldown (Allies in Coherency) on Elite Kill. |
| Cerebral Lacerations | 3 | 15 | Damaging an Enemy with your Brain Burst ability causes them to take +15% Damage from all non-Warp sources for 5s. |
| Kinetic Deflection | 4 | 20 | While below critical Peril, Blocking an attack causes you to gain Peril instead of losing Stamina. |
| Kinetic Shield | 4 | 20 | Take between 10% and 33% reduced Toughness damage from Ranged Attacks based on your current number of Warp Charges. |
| Mind in Motion | 4 | 20 | Your Movement Speed is not reduced while Quelling Peril. |
| Warp Battery | 5 | 25 | Can store up to 6 Warp Charges, |
| Kinetic Overload | 5 | 25 | While you have a maximum Warp Charges, gaining a Warp Charge instead applies 4 Stacks of Soulblaze to a nearby enemy, prioritizing Elite enemies. |
| Kinetic Flayer | 5 | 25 | All Attacks have 10% chance on Hit to Brain Burst the target. This cannot occur while at critical Peril, and has a cooldown of 15s. |
| Quicken | 6 | 30 | Psykinetic’s Wrath expends all Warp Charges, reducing Cooldown by 12.5 for each Warp Charge removed. |
| Ascendant Blaze | 6 | 30 | Psykinetic’s Wrath expends all Warp Charges and applies Stacks of Soublaze to Enemies Hit based on the number of Warp Charges expended. Enemies killed by your Soublaze effects (from any source) have a 10% chance to grant you a Warp Charge. |
| Kinetic Barrage | 6 | 30 | For 10s after using Psykinetic Wrath, your Brain Burst charges 25% faster and consume 50% less Peril. |
To select your Feats in Darktide, you must reach level 8 first, access your inventory, and click the Feat tab.
Should I Roll Psyker?
The nice thing about Darktide is that you can slot all of the different classes in the game; therefore–it’s just as easy as creating a new character if you want to try the Psykinetic Class. If you’ve preferred playing mage roles and like dishing out DPS using skills over your melee weapon or gun, choose Psyker.
If you prefer to shoot things or be a total tank on the battlefield, Psyker is probably not the role for you. Your best bet is to team up with 3 people you know so that you can synergize your skills and abilities with them. That being said–a 4 Psyker team during the endgame is still viable if all players spec into skills that play off each other.
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