Once Human: Best Endgame Power Surge Build Guide (Gear Loadout & Mods) (2024)

The Power Surge build is one of the most popular and overpowered setups in Once Human, provided that players customize an optimal combination of weapons and gear that can boost their unique power ability. With the ability to perform high-DPS at nearly no cost, making use of this build requires players to channel the Power Surge's Elemental damage feature, Shock.

While this build has many advantages that can allow you to dominate the battlefield, it can be somewhat challenging, due to the amount of mods and bonuses required to make it perform its best. The setup below showcases all the best pieces of items, gear, and weapons to make the most of the Power Surge build, that you can reliably use in the endgame of Once Human.

The Best Weapons For A Power Surge Build

Primary Weapon

The main centerpiece of a Power Surge build in Once Human is the SOCR Outsider assault rifle. Not only do its bullets hit hard, causing mass damage output, but its fire rate increases each time players land a critical hit, making good use of both Crit DMG and Crit Rate.

The main utility of this weapon that makes it compatible with a Power Surge build is its weapon feature, of having a 35% chance of triggering Power Surge upon hitting an enemy. This percentage is quite high for a firearm, and so it is incredibly effective, especially when hitting large swarms of enemies at a rapid rate, giving you a higher chance of Power Surge occurring.

The SOCR Outsider assault rifle is only available at the Wish Machine, as one of the few blueprints that can be won as a prize in the Wish Machine tutorial. It can reliably take you to the endgame with the Power Surge build, especially once it has been calibrated and paired with a set of Power Surge armor.

Secondary Weapon

As for your secondary weapon in Once Human, the best option to go for is the Recurve Crossbow, which is not only great for Power Surge builds, but is one of the best secondary weapons in the game. This is due especially to its ability to inflict the Bull's Eye status, upon targeting enemy weak points. This feature increases your Crit Rate against enemies, making them extremely vulnerable to your damage.

A great alternative for those who don't like using crossbows is the D.E. 50 Wildfire Wish Machine weapon. This firearm has a similar feature to the crossbow, in that it has a 60% chance to inflict the same Bull's Eye status, which can be triggered by hitting any bodily area of the target.

The Best Mods For A Power Surge Build

Static Shock

Weapon mods are integral to improving the performance of your combat gear, and further enhancing its utility aside from the already impressive features your weapons may possess. For your primary weapon, the main weapon mod should be Static Shock.

The core effect of this mod is its reduction of Power Surge status duration of -50%, with Power Surge DMG being increased by +20%, two must-have features for any Power Surge build. Fortunately, there are multiple ways you can acquire this mod. It can be farmed in Once Human, in Normal Monolith of Thirst, Hard, and Pro Gaia Cliff Monolith, or Pro LEA Research Lab.

The table below lists other compatible mods that are suitable for this assault rifle as well as other pieces of gear later mentioned, as well as their locations:

The Best Armor For A Power Surge Build

Heavy Duty, Mayfly, & Shelterer Pieces

The best armor pieces in Once Human suggested by CreativeGaming on YouTube are the Mayfly Goggles and the Heavy Duty Scout Mask. The YouTuber explains that these two pieces of gear synergize excellently to trigger the best effects of Power Surge, your Shock ability to deal a ton of damage.

The table below details the benefits and features of the suggested accessories:

Equip the Scout Mask with the Thunderclap mod, so that after activating your Power Surge ability 20 times, as mentioned in the table of mods, your next hit summons a Celestial Thunder attack, that deals Shock damage based on 200% of your PSi Intensity.

While it costs you to lose 30 Power Surge damage, instead of triggering a single Power Surge, you will trigger two, which is worth it for the loss of damage. Aside from these pieces, the full set recommended is the Shelterer set, with details showcased below:

The main bonus of this setup in Once Human is that you gain damage status reduction, element damage for your Shock, and the final feature, which allows your weapon hits to give you a stack of Deviant energy, providing 1% Elemental damage to your Shock. This can stack up to 20 times.

The Best Deviant For A Power Surge Build

Lonewolf's Whisper Or Festering Gel

Deviants are small alien critters that are integral companions to help with exploration, as well as boost your build's abilities to aid you during combat in Once Human. For a Power Surge build, you should opt for a Combat Deviant that can boost your offensive capabilities, especially as there aren't any Deviants currently available in Season 1 to boost Status or Shock DMG, which the Power Surge build heavily relies upon.

The Lonewolf Whisper is recommended for its offensive abilities, as it can draw away enemies from the player, which is especially helpful in solo ventures. This Deviant can be found after defeating Rabizex, a boss in the Monolith of Thirst.

Upon slaying this formidable adversary, the Deviant will appear in the boss's place, hovering inside an orb. Simply hold 'F' to secure it, allowing you to store it in an Isolated Securement Facility within your territory in Once Human. With your Deviant at your side, you can use Cradle perks such as the Deviation Master to gain a 50% damage buff, simply by having your Combat Deviant with you.

Source: CreativeGaming/YouTube

Once Human

Survival

Shooter

Open-World

Systems

OpenCritic Reviews

Top Critic Rating:79/100 Critics Recommend:75%

Platform(s)

PC , Android , iOS

Released

July 9, 2024

Developer(s)

Starry Studio

Publisher(s)

Starry Studio , NetEase, Inc.

Multiplayer

Online Multiplayer , Online Co-Op