Conan Exiles Authority Build: Thralls, Perks and Relaxed PvE

The Conan Exiles Authority build is the classic pick if you'd rather roam the Exiled Lands with strong followers than land every hit yourself. Instead of pumping your own weapon damage, you build your character so your thralls hit harder and stay up longer. The result is a very relaxed PvE style: you position, heal and loot, and your fighter thrall cleans up. This guide covers the attribute split for the Enhanced (UE5) version, every Authority perk, the best fighter thralls and the gear that makes sense.

⚔️ What Authority actually does

In the current attribute system, Authority is the follower stat. According to the community wiki, each point gives +4% damage for your followers (lethal damage only) and +6% concussive damage for you. The concussive bonus is handy when you knock out new thralls yourself with a truncheon or trebuchet shot, so an Authority character doubles as a good thrall hunter.

One thing to understand: the damage bonus applies to your regular follower slots and is tied to your points, not to a specific perk. At 20 points you automatically have +80% follower damage, unless you pick the War Party perk at the top, which removes exactly that bonus. More on that below.

📊 How to spend your attribute points

In Enhanced you get 1 attribute point per level, so 60 points at max level 60. Each attribute caps at 20 points. That means you can max exactly three attributes. For an Authority build, the split is simple:

Three maxed attributes use up all 60 points. Since you barely deal damage yourself, you can mostly ignore Strength and Agility. The full breakdown of every stat is in our Conan Exiles attributes guide.

💡 Well Trained vs. War Party

This is the most important decision in the build, and it isn't 19 vs. 20 points. It's the tier 20 perk. At 20 points you already have the full +80% follower damage. At the 20 threshold you then pick one of two perks:

• Well Trained: your active followers get +20 to all attributes. The +80% damage bonus stays. This is the strongest option for a single companion.
• War Party: your follower limit goes up by 1 (two active fighters), but the follower damage bonus from Authority and gear is removed. Your thralls then fight with only their own stats and equipment.

For relaxed solo PvE, one thrall boosted by Well Trained is usually the calmer and stronger companion. If you want to lead a small war band with two fighters, for Purges or dungeons for example, take War Party. There is no reason to stop below 20: at 19 you lose the whole tier 20 perk, and the damage difference (76% instead of 80%) is tiny.

✨ All Authority perks at a glance

Perks unlock at fixed thresholds. These values come from the community wiki (Enhanced version):

Irritate is gold for a relaxed PvE style: your thrall holds the enemies while you stay out of reach. Combined with Well Trained (+20 to all stats), even a decent thrall turns into a wall of muscle.

☢️ Corrupted Authority: only for aggressive builds

You can also corrupt your Authority points. You lose the normal damage bonus and get different effects instead, including Frenzy (followers get stronger per corrupted point when you deal damage), Devour (follower damage heals you) and Demon Lord (a chance to summon a demon). It's a more aggressive and riskier path, and you don't need it for calm PvE. It's listed here for completeness.

⚔️ Best fighter thralls and where to find them

The build lives or dies with the right companion. These named T4 fighters are considered the top picks. Funcom doesn't publish clean base stats, so this table only has documented locations and a relative ranking:

A follower starts at level 0 and levels up to level 20, but only while actively following you. Guards at your base get no experience. Growth chances per attribute vary by faction and tier, which is why two thralls that look identical can turn out very different. Capturing and leveling are covered in our thralls guide, and the full ranking is in best thralls.

Thrall perks while leveling

Your thrall rolls its own perk at levels 10, 15 and 20, three at most. For fighters, Strength and Vitality perks are strong: Might of Giants (+10 Strength, level 20) or Godly Vigor (+10 Vitality, level 20) are top rolls. These perks stack with weapon and armor bonuses.

📦 Gear for your thrall and for you

• Thrall weapon: a heavy two-handed weapon or a fast one-hander with high base damage. Your follower uses your Authority bonus in full, so it's worth giving it the best weapon you can craft. Our best weapons list helps you pick.
• Thrall armor: heavy armor for maximum armor rating, so your fighter can actually take the aggro from Irritate. See best armor.
• Your armor: you stand in the back, so a mix of Vitality bonuses and freedom of movement works fine.
• Healing: thanks to Attentive Care, bandages and stews heal your thrall 50% more. Bring plenty.

💡 Example build for relaxed PvE

1. Authority to 20, pick Well Trained at tier 20 for one fully boosted fighter (or War Party for two fighters).
2. Vitality to 20 as your safety buffer.
3. The remaining points into Grit for stamina and mobility (or Expertise for carry weight).
4. Capture Dalinsia or a Cimmerian Berserker and level them to 20 in heavy armor with your best weapon.
5. In combat: send the thrall in first (Irritate pulls aggro), then land your own hits for the 5% healing from Commanding Presence.

Prefer a construct over a thrall? How golems work is covered in our Conan Exiles golem guide.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions about the Conan Exiles Authority Build

Should I take Well Trained or War Party?

Always put 20 points into Authority, which locks in the +80% follower damage. Then decide at the tier 20 perk. Well Trained gives your single fighter +20 to all stats and keeps the damage bonus, ideal for calm solo PvE. War Party brings a second fighter but removes the Authority damage bonus, good for Purges and a war band playstyle.

Which fighter thrall is the best?

Dalinsia Snowhunter has the highest base stats. According to guides, the Relic Hunter Treasure Seeker from the Unnamed City scales even better in the endgame.

Does my thrall get the Authority damage automatically?

Yes, as long as it is actively following you in a regular follower slot and you haven't picked War Party. With War Party, the player damage bonus is gone for all your followers.

Does my thrall have to follow me to level up?

Yes. A follower only gains experience while it is active at your side, not as a stationary guard.

📌 Bottom line

For a comfortable PvE run in 2026, the Authority build is hard to beat. The real lever is not 19 vs. 20 points but the tier 20 perk: Well Trained for one fully boosted fighter, or War Party for two fighters without the bonus. If you mostly play solo, start with Well Trained and Dalinsia. You can still respec later with a Potion of Bestial Memory if you want to try a war band.

All Conan Exiles guides are on the Conan Exiles overview.

As of October 11, 2026 (Conan Exiles Enhanced, patch 3.0.0 and hotfix 3.0.1). Values, perk thresholds and locations were checked against Funcom's official patch notes, the Conan Exiles Wiki on Fandom (it calls itself the "Official Conan Exiles Wiki" and is linked from Funcom's site conanexiles.com, but by its own description it is written by players) and established guides. Per-point percentages are community data. Base stats of individual thralls are not cleanly documented and were left out rather than estimated.