Ghosts of War - Guitar 1

Slayer

Quick Reference

This handy chart tells you what every dot in the ActionTab system means. If you don't understand some of them don't worry - we have video lessons that explain them in the members section.

Fretboard & Capo

The fretboard is the area of your guitar where you play

Some songs require a capo. A capo is just a clamp which you can place on any fret. This effectively moves

the 'nut' of the guitar, allowing you to play 'open' chords higher up the fretboard. In ActionTab the capo is represented by the black bar on the left.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Space, K	Pause/Play
Home	Rewind
End	Go to End
	Step Forward
	Step Backward
M	Mute/Unmute
F	Fullscreen
H	Toggle Help
S	Save Settings
R	Restore Defaults
O	Toggle Loop
D	Toggle Delay Start
X	Toggle Light Strings
W	Flip Fretboard
C	Fretboard Color
T	Tablature
N	Normal Speed Window
B	Bookmark Position
,	Set Loop Section Start
.	Set Loop Section End
/	Clear Loop Section

Strumming Hand Dots

Fingerpick

Fingertap

Downstroke

Upstroke (Palm muted)

Pinch Harmonic

Color Codes

Applies to both hands

Thumb

1st (index) Finger

2nd Finger

3rd (ring) Finger

4th (little) Finger

Fretboard Hand Dots

Hold finger here

Bend note down

Bend note up

Hammer On

Pull Off

Slide dot this way

Prepare note

Mute note/string

Harmonic

Vibrato

Open string note (no finger)

Song Notes

There are 2 guitars used in the song (King and Hanneman). Here we see Kerry King's Guitar part. Although both guitars have different solos and there are a few different riffs, for the most part both King and Hanneman play the same riffs together. We recommend learning this part first, as it has all the best riffs, and the solos are a bit better.

The song is played at blistering speed, so is very difficult to play at normal pace. You NEED to know how to alternate pick (trem pick) very fast, and how to alternate between palm muting and open notes. However, there are great riffs here, and some are good for beginners, plus lots of fun to play. We'll point those out below.

Like most Slayer songs, this one is in Eb tuning. That means tuning each string down by 1 note to:

Low Eb : Ab : Db : Gb : Bb : Eb

Intro - This is the 'weird' start to the song. It is almost like a mini song, played more quietly until the main song kicks off. There are 3 parts to the intro.

Intro Riff 1 - Intro Riff 2 - Intro Riff 3

Verse Riff 1 - This is a highly repetitive riff. It is easier than the intro riff, but you still need to get tight and fast with your alternate picking.

Chorus Riff - Although still fast as hell, this is one of the easier song riffs because it just involves powerchords and alternate picking 1 note between.

The song then reverts to the verse again, so play Verse Riff 1 again, then shift it up to fret 4 to play Verse Riff 2. It's the same riff, just higher up the fretboard. Finish off with the chorus again.

Solo Backing - Kerry King plays this backing riff while Jeff Hanneman does the first solo. This is one of the easier song riffs.

Solo - King's solo follows Hanneman, like all Slayer solos it's all a bit weird, out of key, fast and uses the whammy bar a lot.

Interlude - What an epic riff. Gotta love this one, it's typical Slayer and really cool. The tempo slows here and you should play the riff using all downstrokes, as shown here.

Second Solo - This is a shorter, easier solo, mainly using arpeggios around the E minor shape at fret 7. End with this E dim7 run (which we've recently been practicing in the Core Skills lessons).

Chuggy Riff - This is very short and repetitive. A great sounding riff with a lot of head-swingibility. Thrash beginners will love this one. Just go slow and get it tight, then build speed. The picking pattern is dud-d-d (repeat).

Ending - This is exactly the same as the first interlude riff, except played one string down. Then just finish the song using the these 3 powerchords + Chuggy riff.

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