The Mentat is one of the most unique classes in Dune: Awakening, offering a high-skill, high-reward playstyle built around ranged attacks, poison zones, crowd control traps, and tactical gadgets. Originating from the Order of Mentats, this class excels at calculated decision-making, manipulating the battlefield, and eliminating enemies from a distance. With three distinct trees — Mental Calculus, Assassination, and Tactician. Mentats can shift between damage, support, and disruption roles with ease.
1. How the Mentat Class Works in Dune: Awakening
Skill Tree Overview
The Mentat class plays like a tactical controller, more chess master than berserker. Instead of charging in, you set traps, deploy auto-firing drones, debuff enemies with poisons, and use tools to dictate movement and visibility. Many Mentat skills are built around headshots, weakspot targeting, or stacking poison damage over time.
Others let you protect allies, slow incoming enemies, or even deploy holographic decoys to confuse attackers. This makes the Mentat a powerful option for players who prefer preparation, positioning, and precise execution.
Each of the three skill trees provides a specialized role:
- Mental Calculus: Precision damage with rifles and pistols, weakpoint creation, gear durability control
- Assassination: Poison AoEs, stuns, surprise attacks, and powerful one-shot kill tools like the Hunter-Seeker
- Tactician: Traps, cover creation, holograms, utility support, and class synergy with teammates
All classes
2. Should You Start as Mentat in Dune: Awakening?
Choosing to start as a Mentat in Dune: Awakening offers a very different experience from more aggressive classes like the Trooper or Swordmaster. Mentats excel in long-range combat, support control, and tactical skill combos, but they lack early burst damage or brawling tools. This makes Mentat a strong pick for players who enjoy outsmarting enemies, using gadgets, and taking control of the battlefield through smart positioning and precision shooting.
As a starter class, Mentat gives you early access to useful passives like Ranged Damage and tools like The Sentinel turret or Poison Mine, which can help in solo survival. However, it requires more preparation and game knowledge than beginner-friendly builds.
2.1 Pros
- High ranged damage scaling through headshots, backshots, and weakpoint combos
- Excellent battlefield control with gadgets, turrets, traps, and slow fields
- Support tools that can benefit your entire squad in PvP and raids
- Passive resource efficiency from skills like Garment Keeper and Tailoring
- Access to Hunter-Seeker, a long-range assassination device with extreme burst damage
2.2 Cons
- Low burst damage without gear or subclass support
- Weak in direct 1v1 combat unless traps and setup are in place
- Requires precise positioning and timing
- Gear-dependent : you need good tools and mods to stay competitive
- Slow learning curve compared to straightforward brawler or melee classes
2.3 Best Playstyles for Mentat Players
- Players who prefer precision, strategy, and control over brute strength
- Fans of support-damage hybrids and sniper-style gameplay
- Group players who want to bring PvP utility, debuffs, and enemy tracking
- Solo players who can trap enemies, kite with poisons, and control engagement range
Mentat Sniper
3. Best Early Game Skills and Survival Tips for Mentat
In the early game of Dune: Awakening, Mentat players must rely on ranged damage, traps, gear preservation, and careful positioning to survive. While you don’t have strong melee tools or burst damage at the start, you can safely solo content and hold your ground using area denial and precision play. The skills below offer the best early-game value based on utility, survivability, and synergy with common starting weapons.
Top Early Game Mentat Skills
- The Sentinel: Deploys an autonomous turret to guard you during looting or defend key paths. Great for low-DPS encounters and open-world farming.
- Poison Mine: Creates a damaging zone that punishes melee enemies and holds choke points. Ideal for outposts and caves.
- Ranged Damage (Passive): A universal DPS boost for all ranged weapons. Works immediately with pistols or rifles.
- Garment Keeper (Passive): Reduces armor wear and tear. Critical for early solo players with limited repair options.
- Marksman (Technique): Increases headshot damage for ranged weapons. Synergizes well with starter rifles or the JABAL Spitdart.
- Exploit Weakness (Technique): Tags enemies with weakspots, letting you amplify follow-up shots and quickly eliminate threats.
- Tailoring (Passive): Lowers max durability loss when repairing armor. Helps preserve your gear during long desert runs.
- Pistol Damage (Passive): Boosts output from early weapons like the Rafiq Subnose, making kiting and close combat more viable.
Survival Tips for Early Mentat Players
- Start engagements with Poison Mine to soften enemies and control movement
- Use The Sentinel before looting or while crafting to prevent ambushes
- Prioritize headshots to fully benefit from Marksman and Exploit Weakness
- Avoid fighting in flat, open zones—use rocks, ridges, and elevation to set up traps
- Preserve gear durability by unlocking Garment Keeper and Tailoring early
- Always carry a ranged weapon—Mentat lacks melee tools until you multiclass
With these early skills and tactics, Mentats can handle threats in the Hagga Rift and transition smoothly into higher-tier builds. Focus on disruption, attrition, and positioning—not brute force.
4. Full List of Mentat Skills in Dune: Awakening
The Mentat skill tree in Dune: Awakening is divided into three distinct branches: Mental Calculus, Assassination, and Tactician.
Each contains a mix of Abilities (active skills), Passives (always-on effects), and Techniques (slot-based modifiers). Mentats are one of the most versatile classes in the game, able to alternate between ranged DPS, trap placement, status effects, and team support.
| Skill | Skill Tree | Type | School (Class) | Skill Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anti-gravity Mine | Tactician | Ability | Mentat | This mine, when triggered, uses a modified secondary phase Holtzman field to negate the effect of gravity in a spherical area. You can use the sphere to lift enemies or prevent fall damage during traversal.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Gravity Mine | Tactician | Ability | Mentat | This mine, when triggered, uses a modified secondary phase Holtzman field to amplify the effect of gravity in a spherical area. You can use the sphere to slow enemies and drain their power or decrease the speed of projectiles.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Iron Will | Tactician | Technique | Mentat | You have developed such a strong sense of self, that you are able to alter your thought patterns to avoid the manipulations of the Bene Gesserit voice at the cost of stamina. At least, those of lesser practitioners.Techniques only take effect when equipped. |
| Shield Wall | Tactician | Ability | Mentat | You deploy a half-height holtzman shield that provides cover during combat for you and your allies. It will also slow enemies who attempt to pass through it - giving you time to take them down.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Solido Decoy | Tactician | Ability | Mentat | You use a miniature solido projector to project a near-perfect image of yourself onto the battlefield. Triggering it again will force the projection to move forward, fooling enemies into attacking.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Source of Power | Tactician | Ability | Mentat | You place out a powerful generator that continuously regenerates power for nearby allies. Though the device uses a form of nuclear fission, it is small enough to be safe provided that it is given adequate time to cool between uses.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Skill | Skill Tree | Type | School (Class) | Skill Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assassin's Shot | Assassination | Passive | Mentat | You do not squander an advantage in battle. Ever. You deal additional damage to your enemies when shooting them in the back. |
| Headshot Damage | Assassination | Passive | Mentat | As you train with ranged weapons, you become more proficient at shooting the vulnerable parts of the human body. Your headshot damage is increased. |
| Hunter-Seeker | Assassination | Ability | Mentat | You have been trained in the use of the Hunter-Seeker, a specialized assassination device used to kill enemies without causing alarm. You pilot a thin sliver of metal that, when it strikes, burrows inside the arteries of the enemy and causes them incredible pain and often, instant death. You are vulnerable while piloting the device.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Poison Capsule | Assassination | Ability | Mentat | You have a hidden dart dispenser that fires off a specially prepared capsule filled with poisonous spores. On impact, a cloud of poison spores appears, building poison on all who remain within.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Poison Mine | Assassination | Ability | Mentat | You can place a remotely triggered mine that, once triggered, releases a cloud of poisonous spores - stacking poison on all who stand within.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Poison Tooth | Assassination | Technique | Mentat | Installed by a Suk Doctor, you can activate this poison tooth when downed in combat, causing a cloud of poison mist that damages and poisons anybody nearby. The downside, of course, is that it damages you as well.Techniques only take effect when equipped. |
| Stunner | Assassination | Ability | Mentat | You have a hidden dart dispenser that fires off a specially prepared sedative tipped dart. On impact, this dart stuns the enemy, locking their muscles and rendering them unable to move or attack.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
| Skill | Skill Tree | Type | School (Class) | Skill Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exploit Weakness | Mental Calculus | Technique | Mentat | You have learned to observe your enemies and predict their weaknesses based on a thousand minutiae. When you damage an unshielded enemy with a ranged weapon, the hit location becomes a weak point which you can target to increase the damage of subsequent attacks. Only one weak point may be visible at a time.Techniques only take effect when equipped. |
| Garment Keeper | Mental Calculus | Passive | Mentat | You are able to spot the flaws in any garment and see where it is most likely to tear first. This allows you to reinforce it, preventing wear and tear. Your garments maintain their durability for longer. |
| Marksman | Mental Calculus | Technique | Mentat | You are an expert at focusing on the most vulnerable part of the human body, the head. However your training to hit this smaller target has actually made you worse at putting darts into the center of gravity. Your headshot damage is increased, but your body shot damage is decreased.Techniques only take effect when equipped. |
| Pistol Damage | Mental Calculus | Passive | Mentat | Handfired weapons are usually less lethal the further away they are, but you have used your mental training to optimize your shots. All damage with pistol style weapons such as the Maula Pistol and Rafiq Subnose is increased. |
| Ranged Damage | Mental Calculus | Passive | Mentat | You use your considerable mental prowess to calculate the most impactful trajectories for your darts – increasing your damage with all ranged weapons. |
| Rifle Damage | Mental Calculus | Passive | Mentat | Learning to overcome the drop in trajectory that occurs when a firing rifles at long range, you have increased your lethality with rifles such as the Karpov 38 and JABAL Spitdart. All damage with these weapons is increased. |
| Shield Overcharge | Mental Calculus | Passive | Mentat | When your blood is saturated with the melange any ranged attack on a shield will reveal a vulnerability in the Holtzman shield. Continual attacks against this vulnerability will overcharge the enemy shield, causing it to drain their power pack more quickly. |
| Tailoring | Mental Calculus | Passive | Mentat | Your skills with a needle are legendary. Every time you repair a garment, you reduce the maximum durability damage the repair would cause. |
| The Sentinel | Mental Calculus | Ability | Mentat | You deploy a suspensor buoyed dart projector that uses motion detection to cover a field of fire. Trigger a second time to activate.Abilities must be equipped and activated from the ability bar. |
Every ability above can be upgraded over time via Mentat skill points, which are unlocked through the class questline given by Zayn De Witte. You can equip three active abilities, three techniques, and a variety of passives in your final loadout.
5. Best Mentat Builds for PvP and PvE
The Mentat class in Dune: Awakening offers multiple viable loadouts depending on whether you’re playing solo, in groups, or in PvP zones. The class excels when combining trap setups, weakspot burst, and AoE control. Below are the best builds optimized for different playstyles using only verified skills.
5.1 Top PvP Loadout for Mentat Players
This build focuses on burst assassination, utility traps, and crowd control. It shines in duels and zone defense, especially when flanking or ambushing.
- Abilities:
- Hunter-Seeker – High burst assassination tool
- Gravity Mine – Slows enemies and controls space
- The Sentinel – Automated turret for secondary damage and coverage
- Techniques:
- Exploit Weakness – Weakspot creation for bonus ranged damage
- Marksman – Increases headshot damage for burst kills
- Iron Will – Resist Bene Gesserit Voice (especially valuable in PvP)
- Passives:
- Ranged Damage
- Assassin’s Shot
- Shield Overcharge
- Headshot Damage
The Sentinel
5.2 Best PvE and Exploration Build for Mentat
This loadout emphasizes safety, trap control, and passive gear sustain, ideal for soloing outposts, exploring high-threat areas, or farming spice fields.
- Abilities:
- Poison Mine: Early area denial and farming safety
- Shield Wall: Defensive cover and slowdown
- Poison Capsule: AoE poison for controlling large groups
- Techniques:
- Poison Tooth: Releases poison if downed
- Exploit Weakness
- Optional: Marksman or Iron Will depending on enemies
- Passives:
- Garment Keeper
- Tailoring
- Ranged Damage
- Pistol Damage or Rifle Damage
Shield Wall
5.3 Mentat Loadout Optimization Tips (PvP & PvE)
- Always pair traps with cover tools like Shield Wall or Gravity Mine to delay enemies
- Time Hunter-Seeker after traps trigger – you’re vulnerable while using it
- Against melee classes, stack Poison Mine + Gravity Mine + Sentinel
- Prioritize ranged passives in both PvP and PvE for maximum efficiency
- Use Iron Will anytime you’re fighting Bene Gesserit opponents
6. Best Class Combos to Pair With Mentat
In Dune: Awakening, you can unlock additional class skill trees and combine them with your primary class to create a hybrid build. Mentat benefits most from classes that offer mobility, healing, or frontline control, which cover its weaknesses in survivability and melee. These combinations allow you to build a more complete loadout for both solo survival and team-based PvP.
6.1 Top Class Pairings for Mentat
- Trooper: Grants Suspensor Dash for fast repositioning and access to grenades. A great combo for more mobility and direct damage.
- Bene Gesserit: Offers Trauma Recovery and healing abilities to boost solo sustain. Also lets you stack ranged debuffs with precision poison.
- Swordmaster: Adds powerful melee finishers like Riposte or Quick Draw for a close-range option when enemies breach your traps.
- Planetologist: Improves resource collection and hydration management, making it ideal for PvE exploration, farming, and travel builds.
6.2 Best Mentat Multi-Class Combos by PvP and PvE Role
- Solo PvE: Mentat + Planetologist
- Support DPS: Mentat + Bene Gesserit
- Trap + Grenade PvP: Mentat + Trooper
- Hybrid Combat: Mentat + Swordmaster
When combining classes, choose one that complements your Mentat strategy. For example, if you use traps and poison mines to zone enemies, Trooper’s Suspensor Dash helps you escape or chase, while Bene Gesserit’s healing gives you second chances in fights. Multi-classing can elevate your Mentat build from strategic to unstoppable.
All Classes
7. Top Weapons and Tools for Mentat Builds in Dune: Awakening
Mentat builds rely heavily on the right weapon setup to maximize ranged burst damage, weakspot exploitation, and headshot bonuses. Since Mentats gain early passives for Rifle Damage, Pistol Damage, and Headshot Damage, your loadout should focus on precise, high-impact firearms that synergize with these strengths. Some Mentat quests also reward unique weapon drops that further enhance their kit.
7.1 Best Weapon Types for Mentat Builds
- Rifles: Ideal for long-range engagements, they gain the full benefit of Ranged Damage, Rifle Damage, and Marksman techniques. Look for scoped models with high accuracy and weakspot potential.
- Pistols: Better for fast-paced PvE and kiting. Pistols pair well with Poison builds and provide flexibility in close-range combat.
- Hunter-Seeker (Tool): While not a traditional weapon, this assassination drone acts as a one-shot device that scales with Mentat passives and is part of many PvP loadouts.
7.2 Recommended Early Weapons
- Rafiq Subnose (Pistol): Quick-firing, good for PvE and poison trap follow-ups
- Karpov 38 (Rifle): A scoped rifle perfect for exploiting Exploit Weakness and Marksman
- Jabal Spitdart (Rifle): Higher fire rate with less recoil, great for early zone control
7.3 Late-Game Weapon Options
- Thufir’s Best (Rifle): A unique weapon unlocked at the end of the Mentat questline. Offers high damage, synergy with Prescient abilities, and is ideal for PvP bursts.
- Sidearm: While rifles are your main focus, always equip a backup sidearm like the Cope for emergencies. Its high recoil limits long-range use, but it excels when enemies breach your traps.
7.4 Best Utility Tools for Mentat Combat Builds
- Scan Tools: Help identify enemy weakspots or gather Prescience intel
- Remote Detonators: Pair well with Poison Mine or Gravity Mine setups for tactical ambushes
- Prescient Gear Mods: Increase the effectiveness of Shield Overcharge and stealth scouting
Mentats don’t rely on brute force, so weapon choice should support your combat control style. Choose firearms that let you land headshots consistently, apply poisons efficiently, and avoid close-quarter brawls.
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- Rifle
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- Thufir’s Best
8. How to Unlock Mentat Class and Find Trainers
To play as a Mentat in Dune: Awakening, you must complete a two-stage unlock process involving two different NPCs. The first trainer unlocks your basic skill tree and Tier 1 passives, while the second trainer – found later in the main quest – opens access to higher tiers, advanced abilities, and full build customization.
8.1 Basic Trainer – Samin Morro at Riftwatch
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- Location Samin Morro
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- Samin Morro
The basic Mentat trainer is Samin Morro, found at the Riftwatch Outpost in the southern part of Hagga Rift. You will encounter can get there using your sandbike after leaving Haggaa Basin South.
- NPC: Samin Morro
- Location: Riftwatch, southern Hagga Rift (east of Anvil Tradepost)
- Unlock Quest: “First Blood”
- Requirements:
- 100 Plant Fiber
- 40 Iron Ore
- Quest Summary: Travel to Suk Alusus Market, poison a secure area, retrieve an ID band, and return to Samin. This grants you access to Mentat Tier 1 and the base skill tree.
8.2 Advanced Trainer – Zayn De Witte in Arrakeen
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- Location Zayn De Witte
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- Zayn De Witte
The advanced trainer is Zayn De Witte, located inside the bar in Arrakeen (you need to take a taxi for 2,500 Solari to get there). He offers the Mentat’s main story arc, unlocking skill tiers 2 through 6. Each completed contract grants access to new passives, abilities, and increased point allocation.
- NPC: Zayn De Witte
- Location: Bar interior, central Arrakeen
- Function: Grants Tier 2–6 skill access and new combat tools
8.3 Full Mentat Unlock Questline from Zayn De Witte
- Calculated Calamity: Investigate Mobula Gang activity
- An Olive Branch: Choose faction loyalty between Thufir and Piter
- Cataloging Defectors: Use a blood extractor in Arctus Cavern
- A Bloody Development: Resolve a sabotage conflict
- The Price of Rejection: Deploy a Hunter Seeker to eliminate a traitor
- Untwisted Questions: Navigate a radiation zone mission and unlock Thufir’s Best rifle
You must complete these quests in order to reach full Mentat build potential. All missions are designed for mid to late-game players, often requiring strong gear and multi-class synergy.
9. How to Respec and Multi-Class With Mentat
Dune: Awakening allows you to respec your class points and unlock additional class trees over time. This means your Mentat build is never locked—you can experiment with new passives, abilities, and techniques from other classes like Trooper, Swordmaster, Bene Gesserit, or Planetologist. This system enables full customization and hybrid playstyles, but it requires access to specific trainers and cooldown management.
9.1 Respec System and Cooldown
- You can respec skill points within your Mentat tree at designated NPCs or terminals
- Respec cooldown is confirmed in-game (cooldown timer resets after a fixed period)
- Only Mentat skill points are reset—multi-class passives and unlocked tiers remain intact
Use this system to experiment with different Mentat loadouts, such as switching from a Poison Trap PvE build to a Hunter-Seeker PvP sniper setup.
9.2 How to Unlock New Class Skill Trees
- You can unlock other class trees by finding their specific trainers (e.g. Swordmaster trainer, Bene Gesserit trainer)
- You must complete a trainer-specific contract to gain access to that class
- Once unlocked, you can freely slot their abilities, passives, and techniques alongside Mentat skills
Each player can mix and match from all unlocked classes, offering near-limitless build combinations.
9.3 How to Combine Classes and Abilities
- You can equip up to:
- 3 Abilities (from any class)
- 3 Techniques
- Multiple Passives
- You are free to slot Mentat passives with Trooper grenades, Bene Gesserit regeneration, or Swordmaster melee counters
- Mentat abilities scale best when paired with mobility or sustain skills from other classes
9.4 Best Multi-Class Pairings for Mentat
- Mentat + Trooper: Add Suspensor Dash and grenades to create a mobile trap-burst hybrid
- Mentat + Bene Gesserit: Use Trauma Recovery and Voice-resistance tools for long-range control and healing
- Mentat + Swordmaster: Gain reactive melee techniques to punish gap closers who survive your trap combo
- Mentat + Planetologist: Extend survival in the Deep Desert with hydration bonuses and movement tools
Multi-classing expands Mentat’s utility dramatically. Whether you want to build a sniper, trapper, controller, or explorer, combining classes is the best way to adapt your strategy for PvP zones, raid content, or solo travel.
