Introduced in Build 65, the Knight was implemented in the game to be the most resilient class, with incredibly high Defense and low Speed. Like the Warrior, he was equipped with a sword, a shield, and heavy armor. The shield originally did nothing but provide a DEF boost. In Build 96, the Knight was given access to the MP and Wisdom stats with which to use the newly implemented shield bash ability. Build 97 gave Warrior his own unique ability, making the shield exclusive to the Knight. In Build 113, his base DEF stat cap was nerfed slightly, to where it stands today.
Today, the Knight is commonly thought of as one of the stronger classes in the game, owed to the fact he can possess the highest natural defense stat of all classes. Knight is a short range attacker, relying on his high defense stat and his equipment to make it easier to get close to enemies. The Knight also possesses strong burst damage with his shield, to compensate for the lack of being able to buff his own DPS with the sword. To unlock Knight, reach level 20 with Warrior. You can find his stat gains, caps, and averages here.
The most exceptional stat Knight possesses is a defense cap of 40, exclusive to the Knight. Combined with the stats of Heavy Armor and a Shield, the Knight can easily stay Out of Combat and regenerate quickly. Like the Warrior, he has a high vitality (75) and shares the highest health capacity of 675 (average) and 770 (cap). His other stats are not particularly noteworthy; his attack, speed, dexterity, and wisdom all cap at 50. Keep in mind, DEF will only block up to 90% damage of any single shot. This means that each shot will still do at least 10% of its damage. A high DEF does not equal invincibility.
The Knight’s weapon of choice is the sword. Swords provide high damage output, but have a very short range. The Knight’s high defense and stunning ability makes sword range much less problematic for Knight than it would be for Warrior or Paladin. You may want to refer to this guide for a more comprehensive comparison of all the practical swords available.
Tiered swords are very strong and consistent options on every sword class.
The Sword of Acclaim (Acclaim), Sword of Splendor (Splendor) and Sword of Majesty (Majesty) are the main weapons for the Knight, dealing the highest damage of all tiered weapons, at the cost of their 3.5 tile range. The Sword of Splendor and Sword of Majesty drop from endgame bosses (Void Entity and Oryx 3), but Acclaim still deals great damage.
These swords require you to get even closer to the enemy, but deal even more damage.
The Demon Blade (DBlade) and Pixie-Enchanted Sword (Pixie) fire multiple shots; while each shot is weaker than tiered swords, they deal much higher damage; easily competing with T14 and other endgame swords. In exchange, they have a very small true range, of 1.37 or 1.87 tiles, respectively. Thankfully, the Knight’s stun helps you approach enemies… that you can’ stun, anyway. Pixie deals more damage against lower defense.
The Crystal Sword (CSword) and Ancient Stone Sword (A.S.S.) have plenty of secondary uses. Both do not have impressive damage outputs, but sport better range (4.5 and 4 tiles), respectively. They are great against dungeon bosses in certain phases, and can be used for mob control - the ASS might also one-shot foes that take multiple swings ohterwise. However, their lower overall DPS may be undesirable for the Knight, who is already slightly lacking in that repartment.
The Pirate King’s Cutlass boasts a higher rate of fire and faster projecile velocity; outdamaging Splendor until 70 DEF. This comes at a slight range reduction (3.3 tiles), and it is harder to kite enemies. It is dropped by Jon Bilgewater.
The Keychain Cutlass has a similar damage output to the Acclaim, but has a massive damage variance. What makes it unique is that the Keychain provides a boost to MP. This is useful for many of Knight’s abilities, and especially the Crystal Shield. While it is forgable and tradable, both the sword and its blueprint only drop from the event boss, the Keyper.
The Sword of the Colossus (Colo Sword) is a unique sword; it has a 4.5 tile range and clearly beats all non point-blank swords in DPS. However, the shots curve out and in, hitting consistently at the end of its range. This makes it difficult to aim, and more notably, to use with most shields. However, the combination of DPS and safety are amazing for any sword class, if least the Knight. It drops from the Marble Colossus, a difficult boss.
Oryx’s Greatsword (Greatsword) is a unique sword that is dropped by Oryx 2, part of the Oryx’s Battle Attires set. This is currently the only sword with the ability to completely armor pierce enemies - on a Knight, this sword will outdamage all other swords at 77 DEF.
Divinity, an endgame drop from Oryx the Mad God 3, is one of the few swords that can hit multiple targets. It fires a series of Exalted Beams per second that ignore the defense of targets at the end of their range, dealing great damage. Unfortunately, beams are not boosted by Berserk. However, it beats out both the Sword of Majesty and the Colo Sword with no buffs, making it best for solo play. Even with Berserk, it still deals amazing damage.
When you use the Knight’s special ability, a wide shield slash bursts in the direction you aim. Anything hit by this will take damage and be stunned. The shield goes through obstacles and hits multiple enemies, and greatly boosts your Defense when worn. Tiered shields have a range of 3.2 tiles, so you need to be well within the range of a tiered sword in order for the shield bash to reach. While each tiered shield adds shots, damage, and MP cost, the upgrade does not add to stun duration.
Shields can either be used for their damage, or their stun ability. Many weaker godlands and dungeon foes will fall to a single shield bash. Meanwhile, many bosses (and many minions of tough ones) will be simply unable to attack, making them extremely easy for their group to clear. Take note that not all enemies can be stunned. Please take caution don’t stay too close to these enemies when using the shield.
The Colossus Shield and the Shield of Orcish Reglia are the highest tiered shields. They give a high Defense boost (12 / 14), and like other T6+ abilities, give HP and MP. They have a reasonable MP cost of 100, so you can use the shield almost three times without having to flee. This is all the time you and your group will need to do heavy damage to most bosses and events.
The Shield of Ogmur (Ogmur) is perhaps the most peculiar shield of all. It deals extremely high damage, gives the second biggest passive DEF boost of 14, and an HP boost of 60. The catch is that the shield doesn’t stun enemies; it’ll Armor Break them, negating all their defense. This shield is extremely useful as a swapout, or if there is another Knight that can already reliably chainstun an enemy or boss. There are only two bosses in the game that are unable to be Armor Broken, meaning that this is a massive increase to group DPS. However, it is an exceptionally rare item, due to its status as a drop from an event boss (and lack of blueprint).
The Spiteful Scutum (Scutum) offers an extra second of stun, a slightly longer range, and armor piercing. However, it only fires two shots (requiring presise aim), and has a 1.5 second cooldown. It is a rare drop from Janus the Doorwarden.
The Shield of Flowing Clarity (Clarity) provides the best passive DEF boost of all shields, at +17. This shield, like most untiered shields, lacks the ability to stun enemies. However, the shots will slow enemies for 4 seconds. The ability to slow enemies provides Knight with another practical (if rare) use. The DEF boost also isn’t that important, as 12 DEF is still great to wield.
The Champion’s Bastion (Bastion) has the highest burst damage of any shield in the game. However, its stun duration is much shorter, at 1.5 seconds. It also boosts the user’s DEF by 15 for 2.5 seconds, which pairs nicely with the entire ST set, but is gimmicky with regular equipment. Because of its very short stun duration, it is very costly or even impossible to chainstun with this shield, but it is slightly less costly to sustain the DEF boost. This shield is rarely dropped by Oryx 2.
The Brutal Buckler (Buckler) shield can do insane damage, gives +4 ATT, and a slightly longer range. It only reaches full strength at 80%+ HP, and doesn’t stun. This shield should only be used when stun is not needed or the boss is immune to stun. As an Agents of Oryx item, it is difficult to acquire outside of events; you must trade in 30 Shards of the Intern to the Tinkerer.
Oryx’s Escutcheon (Escutcheon) sends out a series of 3 consecutive exalted beams, dealing a high amount of damage that and ignores the defense of targets. They still stun, albeit for a shorter length then most other shields, at 1.2 seconds per beam. It is a very strong alternative to the Brutal Buckler, but is a well-worth drop from Oryx the Mad God 3, a very difficult endgame boss.
The Crystal Shield (CShield) grants 
Invulnerable when held. This is an incredibly powerful ability in the right hands. This, of course, comes at the high MP cost of 75 MP/second, and a -30 SPD debuff when you hold and let go of the ability key. You cannot recover MP while invulnerable, meaning that you cannot abuse Magic Potions or the Magic Heal Pet Ability in order to gain permanent invulnerability. Neither are you immune to status effects; including 
Quiet, which will instantly remove invulnerability. Paralysis and Petrification are also scary; if it doesn’t run out, you’ll most likely be forced to Nexus.
However, it is nearly impossible to overestimate the usefulness of Invulnerability. Complete with the E.Y.E ring, and you can inflict massive damage (at a massive risk). It is useful for the group to deal with chasing bosses, especially those who destroy/ignore decoys, such as the Bridge Sentinel. For maximum safety and utility, bring MP boosting gear, such as the Keychain Cutlass.
Knight is one of five classes to wear heavy armor, which further boosts his already high DEF. This allows Knight to shrug off damage from most swarm attacks and proceed to deal with a boss. Many UT options let you foregore ‘overkill’ defense for various practical perks, such as more DPS or MP.
However high your DEF stat is, as said before, you will only block up to 90% of damage from any one shot, so a high DEF stat does not equal invincibility! That is why you should consider equipment that boosts your HP if your DEF stat is already very high, especially on a Knight. You are also not invincible against endgame bosses, who can easily deal 200-300 damage per shot.
The Acropolis Armor and Dominion Armor are the best tradable tiered heavy armors. They provide Knight with a substantial boost to his DEF stat, though without any additional bonus or penalty. The Annihilation Armor is a small upgrade, providing +28 DEF, but is soulbound and can only be acquired by fighting in The Shatters or Oryx Sanctuary.
The Resurrected Warrior’s Armor gives only 17 Defense, but a massive 150 MP and 20 Wis. The Knight’s abilities are incredibly important, and the guarantee of at least multiple extra stuns (considering pet MHeal and faster regeneration) are lucrative prospects. It drops from the Haunted Cemetery.
The Breastplate of New Life is a rare but useful heavy armor that provides a massive +160 HP bonus, at the cost of defense. Knight’s already high DEF cap makes him arguably the best class to use this armor, able to stay Out of Combat more. It is most useful in other endgame content, where shots deal massive damage. However, this is a very rare drop from an endgame-level boss, the Marble Colossus, so be sure to not lose it.
Mercy’s Bane and Gladiator Guard (GGuard) are armors focusing on pure DPS. Mercy’s Bane provides +7 to both ATK and DEX, unmatched by any heavy armor. It has a measily defense of +10, though the ST set as a whole serves to mitigate that. GGuard give a “modest” +5 to both stats, but has much more defense and an additional +7 speed buff (knights are slow!), making it better in most practical situations. Mercy’s Bane drops from Oryx the Mad God 2, while GGuard drops from Oryx the Mad God 3 (which is much harder than O2).
Knight is a class that has a high amount of defense, but he lacks statistically in his offensive stats compared to other classes. You should wear a ring that either boosts your offensive capabilities or your health capacity.
The tiered health rings are the best rings to maximize survivability, especiallly as a Knight. The Ring of Exalted Health (ExaHP) and Ring of Unbound Health (UBHP) will boost your HP by 140 and 180, respectively, and if you happen to have a Ring of Decades (Deca), +190 HP. A Deca with New Life and Ogmur will give you 1180 HP, which is certianly no slouch!
The Knight is, along with the Priest, one of the best users of MP boosting rings. Both Ring of the Nile and the Sourcestone provide HP and MP buffs; boosting the Knight’s survivability, but more importantly, greatly increasing the number of stuns (especially with strong Magic Heal). They also boost SPD by a small amount, which helps with low mobility. The Nile provides +60 HP/MP, but drops from a much easier dungeon (the Tomb); the Sourcestone provides a competitive +110 to both. Nile also gives a DPS boost (+4 DEX), though obviously not worth the decrease in other stats.
The E.Y.E outclasses the Ring of the Nile as an HP/MP ring, providing +70 to both stats - though that is not its main purpose. Instead, it fires an attack for every shot you take, with no cooldown, even if you took no damage from it. This fact makes the E.Y.E incredibly potent with the Crystal Shield. It drops from a Court of Oryx dungeon, High Tech Terror.
The Forgotten Crown and the Magical Lodestone are great rings for boosting general DPS stats - both rings provides +6 to ATK and DEX alike. The Forgotten Crown boosts HP, which is more useful on the high DEF knight than the Lodestone’s DEF - though the latter’s speed helps a little.
The Twilight Gemstone has historically been a weak ring, but now posesses one of the best utility for ability users - least of which the Knight. In addition to the Sourcestone’s +110MP, the Gemstone discounts 30% MP of abilities (notably, it doesn’t work for CShield). While this is largely overkill for stunning, combining this with shields like the Oryx’s Escutcheon deals incredible damage. In exchange, it sacrifices surviability; it provides 8 DEF instead of the Sourcestone’s 110 HP.
The Chancellor’s Cranium is a more popular choice for Knight. Its moderate +6 DEF and +120 HP is on par with most tiered rings. However, its true synergy with Knight comes whenever he takes damage; it creates a short range, highly damaging head (with a cooldown this time). Being a close range class, the Knight will naturally tank a lot of shots, and the ring gives the durability to do so.
Knight’s high DEF cap makes him stand out by being able to take high-damage shots more safely. His high VIT and HP capacities maximize his chances of taking even less damage indirectly. In addition, Knight’s heavy armor affords him maximum survivability. For these reasons, the Knight is thought as the most resilient class, and should be at the front lines of the battlefield to take the heavy damage first.
Knight is capable of possessing the highest natural defense of all classes; with a Keychain Cutlass(+3), Shield of Flowing Clarity (+17), Candy-Coated Armor (+30), and a Ring of Unbound Defense (+10), Knight can possess 100 DEF without any temporary boosts. However, equipping your Knight for this high a DEF stat is very gimmicky; as said before, you should consider boosting your health capacity instead, as this will give you better odds at survival than simply having high DEF, in most circumstances.
With the potential to have very high DEF and an equally outstanding HP capacity, the Knight is one of the few classes that can tank Septavius’ ring nova and survive, and he is also the only class to be capable of that without the armored status effect (keep in mind that this is a dangerous and unnecessary feat to attempt and is only really performed to show off).
The Knight’s primary weakness is his short attack range, although his ability to stun enemies makes range less of an issue than for Warrior or Paladin. A fresh Knight has identical average stats to a fresh Warrior, and is relatively resilient and strong due to his equipment. However, other classes like Archer and Necromancer might fare better at farming stat potions because they have a long enough attack range to keep their distance from enemies, despite lacking in damage compared to a Knight. Like Warrior, a Knight should only be used to farm stat potions if the user is skilled and comfortable with the attack range. On the other hand, Knight’s stuns will ease a lot of the trouble in farming potions.
Knights are the bulkiest class of all, and wield powerful swords that can deal high damage. While his DPS lags behind many other classes against low defense enemies, he recovers his advantage against high defense enemies. Unfortunately, along with the Warrior, they share the lowest Speed and 2nd lowest Dexterity stats in the game. Also, the Knight lacks a healing ability. Bringing HP pots and MP pots with you is a good idea for a makeshift trip to the Nexus, and if you happen to have a healing pet, it will make things a lot easier and faster paced.
The Knight also benefits from Vital Combat as his high DEF requires more damage for the Combat Trigger and his 75 VIT makes the Combat Duration last for 3.4 seconds.
Because they have such high Defense and HP, Knights should always be at the front of the fight to tank hits for the more fragile classes. While one shot from a blue skull won’t hurt a maxed Defense Knight, unmaxed classes and mid-range fighters like the Huntress or the Assassin will suffer more greatly from the same attacks. When at full health, always consider the option of rushing to the boss and stunning it for damage. Make sure to watch out for the amount of minions protecting the boss, the terrain you are on, and of course if the boss itself is about to fire upon you.
Knights appreciate boosts from Warriors and Paladins, as he himself lacks this ability. Attack and Dexterity boosts help maximize the damage that he can do. Usually, experienced players will follow Knights when they rush. When in a large group, one stun will buy enough time to do heavy damage to bosses.
If the group is good enough or if there is another Knight around, using the Shield of Ogmur will increase the damage output on the target, making it faster to kill, thus increasing your group survival rate.
However good you may be at strafing and dodging, you are not invincible. Remember to dodge shots when you can, and be especially careful in dungeons where enemies can inflict armor-break. Never try to go in to stun a boss without full health and full magic points.
Knights are known for being able to rush through a crowd of minions without taking much damage. However, when going to attack a boss, always keep an eye on your health. While you are destroying the Cube God or Skull Shrine, their minions are still free to attack you, and their damage will add up quickly, minimal as it may be. The amount of minions might be high enough that they’ll fire a lot of shots onto a Knight before he has a chance to react to it. Choose your time to attack wisely, so that you can better survive as you swoop in to attack.
The most effective way to take out Cube Gods or Skull Shrines is to stun them and launch a barrage of sword hits. Unfortunately, getting close enough to stun can be tricky. The best time to charge at a boss is right after they use their attack. This is because their attacks have a cooldown before they can attack again. When you stun the boss, never think that you are safe from damage.
Once you use your shield, make sure you keep track of time. Each stun only lasts for 3 or 4 seconds depending on the shield you use. If you can’t land another stun before the last one expires, try to escape a half second before the stun expires, because that way, you can get away without being hit by the boss’s counterattack. If you don’t leave before the stun ends, because you are so close to the boss, you’ll take a shotgun to the face. If you have the slightest thought that you may have missed your stun, back away so that you don’t get hit by an attack when the enemy recovers from the stun. Better safe than dead!
Also remember when rushing into a Cube God or Skull Shrine to watch your HP and strafe left to right. If done correctly, the Cube or Skull will try to predict your movement but actually fire behind itself. One thing to do is never get over confident and never stop moving.
The Knight is a simple and straightforward character to use, who has plenty of defense to back himself up, and can deal truckloads of damage at a safe position after using his shield. For players who want a bulky character who leads the offensive, the Knight is a perfect choice for you.
