SS is usually considered to perform better at AoE damage and SM at single target damage. SM has absolutely mad single target damage while SS is a bit lackluster there, you'll often find yourself waiting for Knockout Blow and just clicking the other attacks to keep the fury when pounding lone targets. SM has better mitigation because of tremor (it's absolutely great, you can use it to disperse alphas very effectively), it also has better chances of doing KB on its single target attacks.
Speaking as a SM/ELA user, you'll feel lacking in the AoE arena without pool powers, but quite good with those. I suggest you take Mu Mastery so you can make full use of your end drain which is mostly provided by Power Surge, but you need Ball Lightning or Electric Fences to finish the job. You need that additional layer of mitigation, but it probably won't be required if Conserve Power gets switched. If you won't be going for large global recharge and/or Hasten, you won't have a complete single target attack chain without Stone Fist.
I'd also wager that SM performes better with little global recharge than SS, but this is just an assumption.
Regarding endurance, Stamina + Power Sink take care of that superbly.
Quote:
Well, let's see. The big 3 of Brutes are/were known as Energy Melee, Stone Melee and Super Strength.| What advice can you give me? |
Energy Melee was nerfed. Total Focus from mag4 to mag3 and ET animation time from 1s to 2.67s. I don't see nearly as many EM brutes today as I did back in the day.
Stone Melee was nerfed by the mallets animation time. Minor compared to the changes to EM though. Fault is still awesome control.
Finally... Super Strength. The #1 set in both PvE and PvP. It hasn't been nerfed yet. When it comes to AoE DPS, SS is the king due to Rage and Footstomp. Taking the patron AoE makes it work even better.
What comes to ST damage, SS is not exactly at the bottom either.
From Billz' thread
Quote:
|
Code:
Brute Dark w/ 10 222.7 4.53 EPS Brute Stone 218 5.2 EPS Brute Fiery 213.2 3.83 EPS Brute Strength 212.6 4.59 EPS Brute Energy 207.4 3.84 EPS Brute Warmace 203.4 4.71 EPS Brute Dark w/ 3 201.7 4.53 EPS Brute Dark w/ 1 194.7 4.53 EPS Brute Battleaxe 187.2 4.34 EPS Brute Electric 169 4.69 EPS Brute Dual Blades 168.3 4.42 EPS |
Anyway, if you choose SS, don't go cry in some big thread if it gets nerfed at some point.
I previously leveled an EM/ELA to 50. I also tried a DM/WP, SS/WP, and SM/WP. The DM/WP won out and I took him to 50. The SS and SM didn't make 20.
Now I'm interested in what the title says. I've played a SS/INV up to 35 many years ago. Never got SM above 16 or so. Now I need to decide if I'm going with SS or SM with my new /ELA brute (assuming for this scenario that conserve power is replaced, knowing that is not a done deal).
With the sets, Stone Fist is the same as Punch, Stone Mallet is the same as Haymaker, Hurl Boulder is the same as Hurl, and Taunt is the same as Taunt.
Seismic Smash and KO Blow are close. They have the same End cost and Accuracy. KO is 5 second longer recharge and .73 longer cast time. SS has a higher mag hold, but KO has knockup. SS does 6.91 DPS compared to 5.45 for KO, and they do the same DPA, not counting rage.
Foot Stomp and Tremor seem a little more different. Tremor is a full 5 End points less than Foot Stomp, 13.5 to 18.5, and has a 14 second recharge to 20. They have the same accuracy and radius. Tremor takes longer to cast, 3.3 to 2.1, and does significantly less DPA, 41.7 to 59.2, and DPS, 2.41 to 2.68. This difference is magnified not only by Rage, but by them being AoE attacks, meaning that less damage is done to more than one mob.
Next there is Hand Clap versus Fault. If Hand Clap still does knockback, that is out. If not, it can make a case to be as good as Fault.
Rage is obviously superior to Build Up, if you can deal with the crash.
Finally, there is Heavy Mallet vs. Jab. In the standard SS attack chain, I would not use jab. I would instead use Punch, Haymaker, Air Superiority, KO Blow, and Foot Stomp. Perhaps Mu Lightning and Ball Lightning when I get there.
Im not sure what the standard SM attach chain would be. If it is Stone Mallet, Heavy Mallet, Air Superiority, Seismic Smash, and Tremor, Stone Mallet does more damage than Punch and Heavy Mallet does more than Haymaker. Does that make up for the lesser damage of Tremor?
I should also point out that Im not a fan of build-up or hasten, those types of powers that cant be made perma (without spending tons of influence that I dont have).
With ELA, I have lightning Reflexes that speeds things up and makes the recharge issues of KO blow and foot stomp less of an issue. If Conserve Power changes to a heal, the mitigation provided by fault for Aid Self is not as needed.
So, my final question is, what is the difference between playing these two sets with ELA, assuming conserve power becomes a heal and medicine pool is not taken. Nor is hasten. My pools would be flight and fitness, all ELA powers, Punch, Haymaker, KO Blow, Rage, and Foot Stomp with SS, Stone Mallet, Heavy Mallet, Fault, Seismic Smash, and Tremor with SS. Dont know what I would take at 30, or from 41 to 49.
Also, I havent asked about endurance. It looks like those attack chains might have similar endurance costs. What advice can you give me?