Dual Blades...for which AT?
By
Bright,
Posted on: 2010-12-26 22:04 in Archetypes and Powers General Discussion
Most of my experience is with the Tanker and Stalker versions, but I would recommend Scrapper DB. That said, it's pretty solid for all 4.
They ALL float down here. When you're down here with us, you'll float too!
@Starflier
I like it a lot on Scraps and Stalkers, as well as Tanks. FCM has been having a lot of fun lately with a DB Brute, too.
@Brightfires - @Talisander
That chick what plays the bird-things...
I really enjoy Dual Blades on my stalker. I found the mix of aoe and soft control to compliment the stalker playstyle nicely. The pace of battle with a stalker seems to make it easier to maximize the DB combos whereas with scrappers I just seem to spam the AOEs as soon as they recharge without considering combos at all.
I made it on a Scrapper because I figured if I want to focus on the blades and combos, they might as well be the primary, and I'm not so much a villainside fan (also I felt, possibly wrongly, that Stalkers would limit my use of the blades and Brutes would make me feel too much pressure to keep Fury up to enjoy what I was seeing onscreen. But those are personal quirks and likely not universal.)
If we are to die, let us die like men. -- Patrick Cleburne
----------------------------------------------------------
The rule is that they must be loved. --Jayne Fynes-Clinton, Death of an Abandoned Dog
I think I will just have to make it for all the ATs and stick with who I like. I think the Tank version I may skip just b/c I already have several tanks on each server I play. I'll definitely look into all the other versions though. Thank you very much for the input.
I definately would advice you not to make a stalker. Other than that, whichever you mighy prefer is alright. My vote goes foe scrappaer though.
Motivation: i myself have a lvl 50 db/nin stalker and even though he was great fun when leveling and even afterwards I in a way regret him. The two useful combos imo are sweep and vitals. For a stalker the vitals combo is ST (understandable), for the rest they are both aoe-based. In order to obtain both those combos as a stalker you need to pick up ALL powers in the set; which to me is unacceptable. on my stalker I skipped the best ST attack (ablaiting) and the sweep combo. For the other ATs you can skip the first of the ST attacks (nimble) and still obtain both sweep and vitals (which in this case is an aoe). If you want a tanker ,that's fine and if you are choosing between brute and scrapper then the rumors say that scrappers put out higher damage (I'm sure numbers can confirm). I myself am making a db/inv scrapper.
I hope I got you thinking.
//Benjamin
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Rothb
I definately would advice you not to make a stalker.
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Sailboat
I made it on a Scrapper because I figured if I want to focus on the blades and combos, they might as well be the primary, and I'm not so much a villainside fan (also I felt, possibly wrongly, that Stalkers would limit my use of the blades and Brutes would make me feel too much pressure to keep Fury up to enjoy what I was seeing onscreen. But those are personal quirks and likely not universal.)
|
I've got a level 50 DB/WP scrapper as my main toon; I liked it so much after getting to 50 that I immediately made a clone WP/DB tank, and slotted that one identically with the same IO's upon hitting 50. Eventually, I wound up making another identical build for a DB/WP brute to play redside, and enjoyed that one all the way to 50 (and beyond) as well. I love them all, or at least I used to -- I think dual blades worked a LOT better on my brute before the recent changes to Fury.
After reading this thread, I thought "I STILL don't have a stalker above level 20-something. Maybe I should make a DB/WP stalker to complete the set!"
At level 22, what a disappointment. Oh, it's certainly a viable toon, and I enjoy ganking things from Hide just fine, thanks, but it doesn't PLAY the same as the other three. (I know, it's not supposed to 'cause it's a stalker, but....)
For me, at least half the fun of dual blades IS the combos, and the whole sense of being a whirling dervish of destruction as I mow through enemies. Attack Vitals, Sweep, Attack Vitals, Sw...oops. Missed. Random stabbing or throw in another combo? Keep going and pick up where I left off. For me it's a fast-paced set, not counting the three second animation of One Thousand Cuts, and I'm constantly in motion and pressing keys and dropping bad guys left and right.... When I'm playing dual blades I feel like I'm playing the piano, and using most of my keyboard; when I play my martial artists or claws scrappers I feel like I'm just (slowly) mashing a few keys in comparison.
So I started playing my new stalker, and -- Assassin's Blades takes three seconds to go off, and is interruptable?!
Placate is part of the Empower combo, which for the other three AT's is one of the first ones you get, but here it has a SIXTY SECOND RECHARGE?! So much for cycling through low level combos quickly, huh?
Now, I'm not saying that dual blades is a BAD powerset for stalkers at all! (If it is, how would I know? This level 22 is the highest level stalker I've got!) I AM saying that playing dual blades on a scrapper feels almost identical to dual blades on a tank [if you don't count the smaller orange numbers] which feels almost identical to dual blades on a brute [if you don't count the smaller orange numbers, the fury bar, or the lack of critical hits].
Comparing DB scrappers to DB tanks to DB brutes is like comparing three different types of apples, and I don't think DB stalkers come close to oranges for the sake of analogy. They're more like french fries or something.
(And while french fries are great, I don't think I can deal with 28 more levels of fries when I'm this used to apples!)
"But it wasn't anything some purples and oranges and lots of screaming in fear couldn't handle." -- Werner
30 level 50's: 12 scrappers, 7 other random melee types, 11 blaster/blapper/support squishies, two accounts, and a TON of altitis since 4/28/04
Quote:
ROFL. Both of you got me thinking about not making a DB stalker. I don't think I'd like a DB stalker. I prefer those combos to do the same things the scrap I had did (I only got up to Attack Vitals). I think I'll try a brute and a scrap. I've been trying to find a brute that I'd like. Maybe DB can show me the way |
Originally Posted by Eldorado
Comparing DB scrappers to DB tanks to DB brutes is like comparing three different types of apples, and I don't think DB stalkers come close to oranges for the sake of analogy. They're more like french fries or something.
(And while french fries are great, I don't think I can deal with 28 more levels of fries when I'm this used to apples!) |
Quote:
For what it's worth, slotting a Gambler IO in Hide and a bit of Recharge in your BU helps a lot if you're really into the all-combos-all-the-time style of dual blade play. You're still not going to be the monster a DB scrap can be, but it's not as dire a difference as all that. A decently equipped DB stalker can still make a mess of the place... You just start the dance a little differently. |
Originally Posted by Poisonfist1
ROFL. Both of you got me thinking about not making a DB stalker. I don't think I'd like a DB stalker. I prefer those combos to do the same things the scrap I had did (I only got up to Attack Vitals). I think I'll try a brute and a scrap. I've been trying to find a brute that I'd like. Maybe DB can show me the way
|
Two DB scraps and three DB stalkers later (Not to mention the two DB tanks... I'm sort-of a fan of the set.
), I'll agree absolutely that they aren't 100% identical in the way they handle... and if you aren't comfortable with the typically slower, more deliberate way stalkers play to begin with there's likely to be an additional learning curve involved for you (You'll find youself wishing for Typhoon. Often.)... But I'd still say there are a lot more similarities between the two ATs than differences. Once you're out of Hide, it's still all about being a digital Tazmanian Devil, after all. ^_^
@Brightfires - @Talisander
That chick what plays the bird-things...
Cool. I think I will just have to try them all out really. I also need to find a new server to start this on. Freedom and Virtue are full for me. Maybe Pinnacle or Guardian. Again, thanks to everyone for their inputs.
Heh my 1st and only lvl 50 stalker is a DB/Nin and I love it. It was the only stalker that I could handle all the way to 50.
He slices and dices. I had no problems soloing the Incarnate arc at all. But then again it is how you play the toon.
Oh and I don't have hasten.
Alts on all servers, lvl 50 of every AT:
lvl 50 Heroes on all servers but; Pinnacle, Victory
lvl 50 Villains on all servers but; Guardian, Pinnacle, Triumph, Victory
Current Projects: Tanks
Official MOM of Tribal Alliance
I have only tried DB on a scrap that I had and my wifes lvl 50 stalker. I love the set and I want to make another DB toon, I'm just not sure which AT to use. I would love to hear what you guys think. I am open to all four ATs and all secondaries. Thanks and have a great day.