Tested Every Mentat Perk in Dune: Awakening – What Works and What Doesn’t

After spending dozens of hours in Dune Awakening, I’ve finally tested every single Mentat skill tree perk to figure out what truly holds value and what is pure bait. As a PvP-focused player and regular Twitch tester, I went in with a simple question: how do you spend your 200 skill points wisely? Here’s my honest take on every Mentat perk—what works, what flops, and what might surprise you.

Poison Perks – Misleading and Mediocre

Poison Capsule is serviceable due to its flexibility—you can throw it wherever. But Poison Mine is weak, triggering too far from enemies to pose a threat, especially in PvP. Poison Tooth is a total letdown. It only triggers if you suicide after getting downed, and the resulting damage is barely noticeable. Total waste of points—avoid it at all costs.

Crowd Control & Utility – A Mixed Bag

Gravity Mine works as intended, draining power. The Anti-Gravity Mine is underrated: while it can be escaped with dash skills, it also locks enemy abilities. Shield Wall is nearly unbreakable and doesn’t drain power, but it’s easy to flank in PvP. Cellado Decoy is gimmicky but okay for baiting. Iron Will is incredible—resist all Ben Gesserit voice commands, as long as you have stamina. It’s literal PvP gold.

Hunter Seeker – OP But Buggy

Yes, Hunter Seeker hits like a truck. I can’t even tell what damage type it is because every test ends with a kill. That said, PvP has a 40% skill damage reduction, so it’s not as insane as it looks. I suspect it’s not modified by range damage bonuses, much like turrets. Still, it’s worth the skill points just for the burst potential.

Damage Perks – Powerful But Situational

Backshot sounds good but is impractical—it requires a perfect cone behind the enemy. In PvP, that’s fantasy land. Headshot Damage and Assassin Shot work and stack. However, Marksman is bugged—it claims 20% damage but actually gives ~16–17%. Range Damage perks from both Mentat and Trooper do stack, giving you 18% range damage, but they all fall into the same additive bucket. Pistol and Rifle damage perks work, but Spit Dart’s poison component remains unmodified.

My verdict: they’re nice, but don’t expect multiplicative stacking.

Exploit Weakness & Shield Overcharge – Big Letdowns

Exploit Weakness is broken. The weak spot is random and has an awful hitbox. Even when shooting the right spot, it only registered once in four attempts. Shield Overcharge just adds a 30% multiplier to power drain—it’s not a flat 30% nuke. Neither skill lets you control outcomes, so both are skippable in serious PvP builds.

Source of Power – Panic Button God Tier

Source of Power is insane for team fights. It keeps you and allies’ power at max, letting shields recharge endlessly. Even when trying to drain power under pressure, I couldn’t go below 595/600. Has a cooldown, but as a clutch support perk, this is a no-brainer for team-focused builds. It’s not flashy, but it’s effective.

Garment Keeper – Long-Term Value

Just like the equivalent Trooper perk, Garment Keeper helps reduce max durability loss. It’s tough to test properly without firing 800+ rounds, but it does work. If you’re using unique or high-tier Dune Awakening Items, this perk saves you long-term repair costs. Not essential for casuals, but excellent for min-maxers.

Overhyped But Not Worthless

While many players hyped up Mentat—likely spit dart fans hoping to squeeze extra DPS—I found the tree overall underwhelming compared to others. Aside from standouts like Iron Will, Source of Power, and maybe Hunter Seeker, most perks either underperform or are too situational for consistent PvP use.

If you’re planning your build and looking for better investment of your Dune Awakening Solari, my advice is to cherry-pick the few standout perks and leave the rest behind. With the 200 skill point cap, you can’t afford to waste them on fluff.

Got questions or want to see more testing live? Catch me on Twitch where I continue breaking Dune Awakening one perk at a time.