How do you do a Dash Strike in Grounded 2?

Equip a dual-wield weapon (daggers), then hold the attack button until an orange glow flashes near your character's hand, and release. On keyboard and mouse that's holding Left Mouse Button; on an Xbox controller it's holding the Right Trigger. Releasing makes you lunge forward and hit hard with heavy stun.

What does Dash Strike do in Grounded 2?

It's a charged heavy attack exclusive to dual-wield daggers. You lunge a short distance and deal far more damage than a normal strong attack, plus a heavy stun that can instantly stagger smaller bugs. The downside is the lunge animation briefly locks you in place, so it's best as an opener on an unaware enemy rather than mid-trade against a big one.

What is the first dagger to practice Dash Strike with?

The Mitey Claws are the easiest early dual-wield weapon to learn the timing with. The Assassin mutation, unlocked by getting dagger kills, boosts the crit chance of your Dash Strikes.

🗡️ Grounded 2 · Combat Mechanic

Grounded 2 Dash Strike — How to Do It

Dash Strike is the dagger payoff — a lunging charged hit that staggers small bugs instantly and opens big ones. The catch is it's dual-wield only and the input isn't spelled out in-game, so plenty of players never find it. Here's the timing on both keyboard and controller, and how to make it hit even harder.

Verified vs. Grounded guides · Early Access · June 2026

How to do it

With daggers equipped, hold the attack button until an orange glow flashes by your hand — then release.

Keyboard & mouse: hold Left Mouse Button. Xbox controller: hold Right Trigger. You lunge forward for big damage + heavy stun. What it does ↓

🎮

How to Dash Strike

Equip a dual-wield weapon — Dash Strike is exclusive to daggers (the Rogue's weapon class). It won't trigger on one-handers, two-handers or bows.
Hold the attack button to start charging — keyboard & mouse = hold Left Mouse Button; Xbox controller = hold Right Trigger.
Watch for the orange glow near your character's right hand. That flash is the cue the charge is ready.
Release to dash forward and strike.

Learn it on Mitey Claws. They're the easiest early dual-wield weapon to get the timing down with before you commit to a Rogue build.

💥

What Dash Strike Does

It's a charged heavy attack with a built-in gap-closer:

Big damage + heavy stun. Far more than a normal strong attack, and the stun instantly staggers smaller bugs (worker ants, weevils, etc.).
Best as an opener. The lunge lets you close on an unaware enemy and burst it before it reacts.
The downside: the lunge animation locks you in place for a moment, leaving you exposed — so against a big, fast enemy, use it on the opening, not mid-trade.

Stack the Assassin mutation. Assassin boosts your Dash Strike crit chance and is unlocked by racking up dagger kills (milestones at 40 / 100 / 200). If you're leaning into daggers, it's a must.

Grounded 2 Dash Strike FAQ

How do you do a Dash Strike?

With daggers equipped, hold the attack button (LMB on keyboard, Right Trigger on Xbox) until the orange glow appears near your hand, then release to lunge and strike.

What does it do?

A lunging charged hit with big damage and heavy stun — it staggers small bugs instantly. The lunge briefly locks you, so it's best as an opener, not a mid-fight trade.

Which weapons can Dash Strike?

Only dual-wield daggers. The Mitey Claws are a good first pair, and the Assassin mutation (from dagger kills) boosts its crit chance.

Grounded 2 Dash Strike — How to Do It

How to Dash Strike

What Dash Strike Does

Grounded 2 Dash Strike FAQ

More Grounded 2 guides