KOTOR – The Best Builds

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR) allows players to create their own character when starting a new game. Players are given the choice of three classes: Scout, Scoundrel, and Soldier. These classes each provide different skills and bonuses.

Additionally, at a certain point, players need to choose from three Jedi classes; which are Guardian, Sentinel, and Consular. The different combinations of these six classes allow for a wide variety of options when building a character in KOTOR. In addition to the six classes, there are Feats, Skills, and Force powers – this allows for character builds for nearly any type of character.

Updated November 27, 2024, by Gerardo Molina: When playing Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, builds are more important than most players think. They present them with tons of possibilities regarding how they can approach combat situations and even how they can withstand Status Effects. Picking a Jedi Class at the Dantooine Academy is merely the starting point, as players should keep developing their character with a specific pathway in mind to maximize their power and combat abilities.

Although it’s possible to complete the game without struggling too much with any difficulty, regardless of the build or lack thereof that players choose, have a clear goal and building towards it is always better, and much more fun.

17 The Quadruple Hitter

Master Speed And Lightsaber Proficiency Are Deadly

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic is known for being a very complete game with tons of Skills and Feats that players can unlock as they progress through the story. Despite being released in the early 2000s, where many titles were limited in terms of game mechanics due to console hardware, this game managed to offer players an incredible amount of choices.

That said, few Feats in the game are as overpowered as Burst of Speed, which starts out as Knight Speed and can ultimately be upgraded to the deadly Master Speed. The ultimate version of this Feat not only allows players to progress faster through the game and cover more of the map quicker, but it also grants them two additional attacks. Pairing Master Speed with Lightsaber Proficiency and Two-Weapon Fighting is an ultimate combination, even with the penalty that Two-Weapon Fighting represents. In the late-game stages of the game, players will be able to one-shot almost any enemy without too much effort.

16 Droid Technician

Having Technical Skills Often Pays Off

In Star Wars, droids play a key role in the world and how society works, which is already very interesting. However, Knights of the Old Republic takes things one step further, as it allows players to repair broken droids in certain areas of the game and program them to attack their enemies, which can be a determinant factor in battle.

Players can also use Computer Spikes to hack terminals and overload those in other rooms, killing groups of enemies without breaking a sweat. By investing points in the Repair and Security Skills, players will have to use fewer resources to hack droids and terminals, turning them into the ultimate programmer in the entire galaxy.

15 Mace Windu Build

Based On One Of The Greatest Jedi Duelists To Have Ever Existed

Anyone familiar with Star Wars lore knows that Mace Windu was not the traditional Jedi. Windu walked a fine line between the light and dark side of the Force; especially with his lightsaber techniques. This build starts with the Soldier class and switches to the Guardian Jedi class. Feats for this class should include Lightsaber Focus, Flurry, Jedi Defense, Dueling, and Conditioning feats. Awareness is the ideal skill.

Windu’s fighting style is built more upon Dexterity than Strength; however, don’t neglect Strength. Wisdom and Constitution should also be raised. The ideal starting stats should be around the following: 12 Strength, 15 Dexterity, 14 Wisdom, and 14 Constitution. Force powers for the Windu build include: Burst of Speed, Force Push, Force Resistance, Valor, Throw Lightsaber, and Stun Droid.

14 Jedi Hunter

Ideal Against Other Force Users

This build is designed to take down other force users with ease. This does not, however, mean this build is weak against other foes. Anyone capable of defeating any Jedi or Sith they encounter shouldn’t have much problem with a droid or bounty hunter.

This build uses the Force Suppression, Force Resistance, Force Push, Stun, and Burst of Speed. The player is free to pick Duelist or Two-Weapon fighting styles. The Scout is a good pick for this build due to the implants; some other feats that complement this build the best are Force Immunity, Toughness, and Conditioning. The Jedi class in this build is the Sentinel.

13 Demolitions Expert

Decimating Enemies, One Explosion After Another

One type of build that many players don’t try is a character that uses explosives as their main weapon. It’s understandable, this is a Star Wars game that lets the player create and play a Jedi. There are a lot of reasons to use explosives though; for one, a lightsaber can’t be used to deflect explosions.

There are eight grenade types in KOTOR, in addition to the famous thermal detonators. Each grenade is suited for a different purpose. Frag grenades are the standard damage dealer, ion grenades take droids down quickly, and plasma grenades are extremely damaging and can cause Horror. There are also concussion, cryo, adhesive, poison, and sonic grenades. The Scout is the best class for this build due to its Uncanny Dodge feat that reduces the DC (Difficulty Class) of throwing grenades accurately.

12 Speed Demon

Among Many Other Advantages, This Build Allows Players To Cover Areas Faster

The Speed Demon build is designed to speed across the battlefield with such speed that the enemy won’t know what hit them. This build starts with the Scoundrel, then becomes a Guardian. This is solely because the Guardian class gets the Force Jump feat.

The Speed Burst, Force Push, and Slow are the primary Jedi powers. A good strategy is to Force Push an enemy away and follow-up with a Force Jump attack. The run speed in this game is a bit slow; give this build a try when replaying the game to make all the running back and forth a little less cumbersome.

11 Delayed Build

An Outstanding Choice To Create The Ultimate Jedi

This build is a bit difficult at first – mainly because the player must refrain from leveling up until becoming a Jedi. The player should remain at level three until after Taris. Expect to reload the game a lot. The boss fight at Taris is particularly hard at a low level, even for the Soldier class.

If the player can pull this off, though, they will be rewarded with the option of making a super-powered Jedi character.

This will give the player’s Jedi a lot more force points, but fewer feats. With this in mind, the Jedi Consular class is ideal for this build. With this build, the player can spam Force Storm until the fight is over.

10 Master Duelist

Making Close Combat A Priority

This build is probably very close to what many players wanted their Jedi to be on their first playthrough. That is a master with the lightsaber that can zip around during a fight dispatching enemies with a swing of their lightsaber. After all, this is a Star Wars game.

For this build, players will want to start as a Scout, and then choose the Guardian Jedi class. Then focus on increasing the character’s Strength, Constitution, and Wisdom – don’t neglect Charisma and Dexterity though. Take the Dueling feat, and the Flurry and Toughness feats make this build even deadlier in battle.

9 Smooth Talker

A Sharp Tongue Is Often More Effective Than A Weapon

With some games, especially Bioware games, it pays to make a character good at communicating. This opens up dialogue options that are not otherwise available. These extra options can earn players some extra credits, but they can also let characters talk their way to victory.

This build is best when the character starts as a Scoundrel and then picks the Consular Jedi class later.

This gives the character the Persuade skill early in the game. Players will need to increase this build’s Charisma and Intelligence – the Intelligence is needed to increase the number of skill points players can allocate to Persuade. This is a good build to spend some (17) points on Repair to get HK 47.

8 The Canonical Revan Build

Role-playing As The Fearsome Sith Lord

This build mimics the skills and abilities of Darth Revan from Star Wars canon. For those new to KOTOR, just know that he (or she) is a Sith Lord suffering from amnesia and is the protagonist in the game. This build is considered one of the strongest available by players, and gives a good balance between combat, non-combat, and Jedi abilities,

This build starts with the Scout class, and then uses the Sentinel Jedi class. The Primary attribute of this build is Wisdom. Secondary attributes are Charisma and Intelligence. Make sure to throw a point into the physical attributes (STR, CON, DEX) from time to time too. This build also uses the two-weapon fighting feat – though picking the Dueling feat is also canonical.

7 Critical Strike Build

One Of The Most Powerful Late-game Builds

Early in the game, the bonuses for Critical Strikes are not very appealing. This forces players to choose skills and feats that give a more immediate benefit. However, the Critical Strike build becomes one of the most powerful builds during late-game play.

This build uses the Scoundrel class for its Critical Strike and Scoundrel’s luck ability; which eliminates the -5% penalty to Critical Strike. The Primary attribute for this build is Strength – players want this as high as they can get it. Sneak Attack should be improved to make the most out of this build’s critical hits. Lastly, use Keen weapons for their bonus to critical hits.

6 Blaster Master Build

Destroy Enemies From A Distance

Playing as a Jedi almost impulsively makes players pick the lightsaber as their main weapon. Why pick anything other than a plasma sword that can cut through almost anything with ease; however, if a character is built around using blasters they can be just as deadly. How did Obi-Wan kill Grievous again?

This build uses the Scout class. This is mainly for its Rapid Shot ability, but also the Implants. The Jedi class for this build is Sentinel. Dexterity is the Primary attribute, followed by Charisma and Wisdom. All of these need to be raised to, or above, 15. Two-weapon fighting lets players dual wield blasters which is what players want. Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at a player’s side.

5 Immunity Build

Status Effects Will Never Be An Issue Again

Status effects can quickly turn a would-be victory into a crushing defeat. Not having to worry about a character getting stunned, poisoned, or suffering from any of the other status ailments makes this game a lot easier.

This build uses the Scout class combined with the Sentinel Jedi class. This build is dependent on what items players use versus what skills or feats they choose. Players want to get the Advanced Bio-Stabilizer Mask for immunity to poison and mind-affecting. The Retinal Combat Implant will grant immunity to critical hits. The Electrical Capacitance Shield makes players immune to electricity – including force lightning. Players will also want to max out their Force Resistance power.

4 Ultimate Scoundrel

A Sneaky Approach To Combat

Charging headlong into battle, lightsaber swinging wildly, is one strategy in KOTOR. Another strategy is to stay in the shadows and fight enemies on the player’s terms. The thief build relies on remaining unseen until they decide to attack, and making the most out of every attack.

Obviously, this build requires starting as a Scoundrel for the Stealth and Sneak Attack skills. The Jedi class should be either Guardian or Consular. Guardian will allow for Force Jumps; this prevents players from having to sneak all the way to an enemy. The Consular’s bonus force powers work well with this build too. This build primarily uses blasters, but when enemies get too close, switch to a lightsaber.

3 Force Build

Who Needs A Lightsaber With Such Mastery Of The Force?

This build focuses more on using force powers over weapons. This build is basically like running a wizard class in games like Skyrim. Like those games, this build starts weak but gets increasingly more powerful – by the end of the game this build will be defeating entire groups of enemies in seconds. This is especially true if players pick the dark side.

The Force Build combines the Soldier and Consular classes. Being a Soldier will help this character stay alive in the early parts of the game. The Consular class will give access to more Force powers than the other two Jedi classes. Wisdom should be maxed-out for maximum Force points.

2 Darth Build

Joining The Dark Side Is A Small Price To Pay For Unlimited Power

This build is for those players that want to play a character as imposing and deadly as any that have carried the title “Darth”. Naturally, this requires players to choose the dark side, but honestly, the dark side powers are the most fun.

This build uses the Scout and Consular classes. Players want to take two-weapon fighting, Flurry, and Heavy Armor Proficiency for the Sith Mask. Focus on the Drain Life, Force Lightning, and Choke/Kill force powers. This build’s primary attributes are Strength and Wisdom; secondary attributes are Dexterity and Constitution.

1 Obi-Wan Build

A Very Balanced Build

This build mimics the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi’s abilities. This build produces hardy characters that are good with a lightsaber, force powers, and (later in the game) persuading others.

This build is a combination of a Scout and a Guardian (for Force Jump).

Players will want to make Dexterity, Wisdom, and Charisma the primary attributes. This build uses the Dueling, Flurry, Weapon Focus: Lightsaber, and Jedi Defense feats. Force Push, Affect Minds, Valor, and Speed powers.

Star Wars: Knight of the Old Republic is currently available on PC, PlayStation 5, Android, iOS, and Nintendo Switch.