Curse

ogion · Feb 01, 2009, 06:23 AM // 06:23

Hello,

I earned my first 10,000 balthazar faction points yesterday playing in random arenas and it seems like I have to spend them before earning any more. I was thinking of buying 3 elite skills and one normal skill with the points. Can you recommend Swordsmanship skills that complement/replace skills from my current build?

My current build: [build=OQMU4mYS5aGX1vAOwBwiCVAA]

Also, can I use the sword on my PvE character(level 15) for my PvP character too? If yes, how? If no, how do PvP characters find a better sword? Thanks

PS: I am currently going through W/Any builds on http://www.pvxwiki.com/wiki/Category...king_RA_builds

Edit1: I think [Crippling Slash] is a great replacement for [Sever Artery].

kvndoom · Feb 01, 2009, 06:57 AM // 06:57

I'm going to guess you mean 10,000 faction. Anyway, you haven't said which campaigns you own. There are only 4 Swordsmanship elites, but for PVP only 2 are worth their weight. Anyway, your first 3 elites should come from this pool:

[hundred Blades]
[crippling slash]
[warrior's endurance]
[primal rage]

Use a character slot and make a PVP warrior. Then you can make whatever weapons and armor you want (in terms of stats, not looks). You will need more faction to unlock mods, but it comes relatively quickly. Be sure to play as much as you can on a double RA/TA weekend.

As far as your build, For Great Justice is garbage in PVP now. Please bring Frenzy + Rush unless you're using Primal Rage + Rush. A warrior without some form of faster attack speed isn't going to kill anything. Power Attack is useless without Warrior's Endurance. And forget Tactics entirely. It's only a step above Spawning Power in the scale of useless attributes. Warriors kill, not heal. Do not forget that sentence. You already have the pvx link, look at the skills used and understand why they're used, and you will be all the better for it.

Sun Fired Blank · Feb 01, 2009, 07:26 AM // 07:26

Seraphim, don't mislead posters.

Cripslash, Primal Rage or Hundred Blades for Swordsmanship. Read this. I don't advise using Frenzy or Primal Rage and Rush from the very start if you're uncomfortable with canceling.

ogion · Feb 01, 2009, 08:02 AM // 08:02

Yes, 10,000 faction points

I have all three campaigns but not EotN expansion. @kvndoom Which two of the four you listed are good for PvP("worth their weight")?

I just bought Crippling Slash and Hundred Blades going by your suggestions. But I am able to equip only one of them in my skill bar. Players can equip only one elite skill at a time? Did I just waste 3000 faction points?

I am deciding if I should unlock Primal Rage and a non elite skills or 4 non-elite skills with remaining 4,000 points.

Edit: My options now:
1. Sun Fired Blank's linked build needs 6,000 points.
Cripslash (got this)
Gash (got this)
Sun and Moon Slash (1000 points)
Bull's Strike (1000 points)
Primal Rage (3000 points)
Rush (1000)
Resurrection Signet (got this)

2. Use Frenzy(got this) in place of Primal Rage(3000 points) above.

3. Use Flurry/Sprint(got this) in place of Rush(1000 points) to cancel damage taking stances.

4. Earn 2000 more points and unlock them all

Sun Fired Blank · Feb 01, 2009, 09:29 AM // 09:29

In general, warrior builds have evolved in a specific way for a reason:

[build box][Sever Artery][Crippling Slash][Disrupting Chop][Agonizing Chop][/build] - for sword: condition pressure, prerequisite for deep wound
- for axe: utility attack skill
[build box][Dismember][Eviscerate][Gash][/build] - deep wound
[build box][Body Blow][Executioner's Strike][Standing Slash][Sun and Moon Slash][/build] - big damage
[build box][Bull's Strike][/build] - knock down
[build box][Primal Rage][Frenzy][/build] - increased attack speed
[build box][Rush][Sprint][/build] - increased movement speed, stance to cancel frenzy
[build box][Shock][Savage Slash][Conjure Flame][Conjure Frost][Conjure Lightning][Hundred Blades][/build] - utility skill

You can only equip one elite but that doesn't change the basic setup or functionality of the bar, it's going to look and play similarly regardless. The list above encompasses most of the elites / non-elites you want to unlock for sword / axe, and Primal Rage should probably be your next elite unlock, as it's presently a strong gateway skill to axe.

One last note. In terms of PvP, sword's not as popular because:

1) overall damage output versus axe is lower (exception: sacrificing your utility slot for Hundred Blades)
2) attack chain gets undone by restore conditions (HA / GvG) or Foul Feast (TA)
3) it's harder to threaten players with the conditional deep wound from gash versus the unconditional deep wound from eviscerate / dismember

I'm going to go on record and say that Cripslash is probably my favorite warrior bar, but it's generally better to be familiar with axe and play sword from that basis rather than vice-versa, primarily because axe attack skill timing and usage is a little more complicated, and sword attack skill timing and usage is pretty linear.

Dre · Feb 01, 2009, 09:31 AM // 09:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by ogion

Yes, 10,000 faction points

I have all three campaigns but not EotN expansion. @kvndoom Which two of the four you listed are good for PvP("worth their weight")?

I just bought Crippling Slash and Hundred Blades going by your suggestions. But I am able to equip only one of them in my skill bar. Players can equip only one elite skill at a time? Did I just waste 3000 faction points?

I am deciding if I should unlock Primal Rage and a non elite skills or 4 non-elite skills with remaining 4,000 points.

Edit: My options now:
1. Sun Fired Blank's linked build needs 6,000 points.
Cripslash (got this)
Gash (got this)
Sun and Moon Slash (1000 points)
Bull's Strike (1000 points)
Primal Rage (3000 points)
Rush (1000)
Resurrection Signet (got this)

2. Use Frenzy(got this) in place of Primal Rage(3000 points) above.

3. Use Flurry/Sprint(got this) in place of Rush(1000 points) to cancel damage taking stances.

4. Earn 2000 more points and unlock them all

you can only have one elite on your bar (skills with yellow/gold border)

Edwards · Feb 01, 2009, 09:39 AM // 09:39

Quote:

Originally Posted by ogion

Yes, 10,000 faction points

I have all three campaigns but not EotN expansion. @kvndoom Which two of the four you listed are good for PvP("worth their weight")?

I just bought Crippling Slash and Hundred Blades going by your suggestions. But I am able to equip only one of them in my skill bar. Players can equip only one elite skill at a time? Did I just waste 3000 faction points?

I am deciding if I should unlock Primal Rage and a non elite skills or 4 non-elite skills with remaining 4,000 points.

Edit: My options now:
1. Sun Fired Blank's linked build needs 6,000 points.
Cripslash (got this)
Gash (got this)
Sun and Moon Slash (1000 points)
Bull's Strike (1000 points)
Primal Rage (3000 points)
Rush (1000)
Resurrection Signet (got this)

2. Use Frenzy(got this) in place of Primal Rage(3000 points) above.

3. Use Flurry/Sprint(got this) in place of Rush(1000 points) to cancel damage taking stances.

4. Earn 2000 more points and unlock them all

Well, to start, Cripslash and PR are both elites, so you cannot run the on the same bar anyways. If you wanted to run Cripslash, you would probably put in Frenzy or another IAS if you're uncomfortable with using a cancel stance. If you wanted to run PR, you'd have to take out Cripslash for another skill, the best option being Sever Artery.

For your remaining faction, the first thing you should unlock is Bull's Strike, which is among the best skills in the game and is a staple on pretty much every warrior build. Sun and Moon is also a very nice skill, though it really shines when you're running a Conjure, so you might want to use Final Thrust instead if you have your eye on something else to spend your faction on. Rush is another excellent skill, because it's the cheapest, fastest recharging cancel stance available for warriors.

Quote:

Also, can I use the sword on my PvE character(level 15) for my PvP character too? If yes, how? If no, how do PvP characters find a better sword?

You can use your PvE items on PvP characters by putting them in your storage, and then accessing it from a PvP character. However, because you can equip yourself with PvP items on a PvP character, that option doesn't make very much sense in the long run.

Other than buying skills with your faction, you can also unlock item upgrades which can be attacked to your PvP items. Because of this, after a while PvPing regularly, you'll be able to create much better weapons for your PvP characters than you would normally get in PvE. So another way you could spend your faction is to purchase weapon and armour upgrades. I'd recommend starting with things like weapon mastery and vigor runes and moving on from there.

Krill · Feb 01, 2009, 10:47 AM // 10:47

Hundred Blades can put up some huge numbers on burst damage, Cripslash used to be a lot of fun but with the ubiquity of RC in GvG / HA and FF in TA it kinda got left behind with PS sins being the death nail. For RA I'd probably unlock Hundred Blades because it kills people, Cripslash is more tactical.

ogion · Feb 01, 2009, 11:04 AM // 11:04

Just lost another 3000 points in Bull's Charge thinking it is Bull's Strike. No undo.

I have never read such easy to understand summary of warrior builds before, it's awesome. I have a better sword than the axe on my pve character, so got used to swordsmanship skills. I will definitely try an axe build on my pvp character in a week or two, after earning more points to unlock axe skills.

If I have to select one elite skill only, I think {Crippling Slash+Frenzy} trumps {Primal Rage+Sever Artery} or Hundred Blades, so I will use that for a while. Why is Rush superior to Sprint or Flurry?

I am thinking this:
[build=OQMU4mYS5aOHWAzUjpEA0KYFBAA]

Can't imagine entering random arena without Healing Signet

Gonna miss Final Thrust for sure

Ajantis · Feb 01, 2009, 12:42 PM // 12:42

drop flurry for rush (or sprint) and you're set

ogion · Feb 01, 2009, 01:08 PM // 13:08

I am sure Rush is the way to go but I want to understand the reason before I equip my bar with it. Is it because it is adrenalin based and has no cool-down? I thought I could use the adrenalin for attack skills and largely unused energy pool for stance cancelling skill.

I don't understand 80% of the skills being used but still observe a lot of pvp games just for the fun of it

Reverend Dr · Feb 01, 2009, 02:02 PM // 14:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by ogion

I am sure Rush is the way to go but I want to understand the reason before I equip my bar with it.

1. Every warrior needs a speed boost. If you don't have a speed boost then 100% of your damage can be negated by kiting.

2. Yes it is adrenaline based, so it is available just about whenever. So you can frenzy whenever without worry as your cancel stance is always available.

For a more basic view warriors absolutely have to have an IAS (frenzy usually) a IMS (usually the cancel stance for frenzy, usually rush), bull's strike (since this puts a target on the ground so you can keep attacking), and deep wound (it does 100 damage,and without deep wound there would be approximately 90% fewer deaths in pvp). Beyond that, adrenaline skills are good (more hits = more adrenaline = more adrenaline skills = more DOMAGE, energy skills are based upon recharge/energy such that hitting more does not increase damage at all), you need some +damage skills, and any extra disruption you can fit (warrior bars are very tight if you haven't figured it out yet) is good. Also, if this hasn't been said before, you are a warrior, run warrior skills, if you run more than one sub profession skill on a warrior, then you are doing it wrong.

kvndoom · Feb 01, 2009, 02:12 PM // 14:12

Please, I'm begging you, get rid of Healing Signet. I know it seems good in theory, but I can guarantee you it will save your life less than 10% of the time. Your "heal" costs you 40 armor (-40 armor = double damage from physical and elemental sources) and takes 2 seconds. If you are under pressure, [healing signet] =

.

For as much as I hate the drawback of [lion's comfort] if you absolutely must bring a self-heal, bring that. But be warned that using it will hurt your team if the chips are down. I can understand why you want to self-heal since you're new to this, but in time you'll come to see why it's a bad idea.

ogion · Feb 01, 2009, 04:22 PM // 16:22

I try to cripple the players I am already fighting to prevent them from kiting. But if I have to catch them first, then you are right, IMS is invaluable. So you guys think I won't be short of adrenalin if I play the warrior class correct. Reverend Dr's comparison of adrenalin generation and energy generation makes a lot of sense. Thanks. I have unlocked Rush and will use that in future battles.

Thing with Healing Signet is that many times in RA there are no monks and players don't even bother calling; they just disperse and fight their own duels. At such times I (sadly) tend to care less about which team wins and more about winning my own personal duel. I don't use it when someone is hitting on me, but as kvndoom points out, using it still means NOT fighting for those many seconds(running away, healing and coming back - if I am not crippled), not optimal for the warrior class I guess.

This looks good?
[build=OQATEZKXn5wCYmaMFtyP5vKAAA]
I will replace Lion's Comfort with [Power Attack] or something like that once I get used to the idea of not healing myself

Seraphim of Chaos · Feb 01, 2009, 08:47 PM // 20:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sun Fired Blank

Seraphim, don't mislead posters.

Cripslash, Primal Rage or Hundred Blades for Swordsmanship. Read this. I don't advise using Frenzy or Primal Rage and Rush from the very start if you're uncomfortable with canceling.

What the hell? Damn you. >:

uh 100 baldez n primael rage is good n stuff

Edwards · Feb 02, 2009, 06:26 AM // 06:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by ogion

This looks good?
[build=OQATEZKXn5wCYmaMFtyP5vKAAA]
I will replace Lion's Comfort with [Power Attack] or something like that once I get used to the idea of not healing myself

Looks good, but when you're ready to replace Lions, I'd go with a utility skill, instead Power Attack, which is sub-par in most instances. Good choices would be Savage Slash, which is a really nice interrupt, Shock, for KD chains, or an Attunement for bigger damage. Keep in mind that an Attunement requires a matching elemental weapon if you choose to use one.

Div · Feb 02, 2009, 09:42 AM // 09:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by ogion

This looks good?
[build=OQATEZKXn5wCYmaMFtyP5vKAAA]
I will replace Lion's Comfort with [Power Attack] or something like that once I get used to the idea of not healing myself

Lions comfort actually isn't so bad for RA, since it provides some relief off your healer (if you even have one), and is pretty nice for gaining adrenaline for your attack skills. Putting a conjure instead of lions comfort would make you a lot more powerful for killing stuff.

Primal rage is another one you can try out, since it combines speed boost with attack speed into one to make warrioring a little easier. Just watch out because you take double damage.

Oh, and press J to make new weapons. You'll have to unlock different upgrades, which you'll have to do through getting faction. But the better your build is, the better you'll do (on average), which means faction should rack up faster.

scruffy · Feb 02, 2009, 11:28 AM // 11:28

my favourite sword build right now goes like this

sever artery, gash, sun and moon, shock, primal rage, disciplined stance, healing signet, ressurection signet

it can deal with everything you will come against but its not exactly a powerhouse build so you really have to pay attention to what your teammates are doing and do something that compliments their strategies

Byron · Feb 02, 2009, 08:14 PM // 20:14

Don't listen to these RA veterans. Final thrust is beautiful and primal rage is the new warrior meta.

Tried out a sword build between dodgeball rounds this past weekend. Was mildly happy with it, mostly because I could use final thrust, but also because I could rage-spam. I ran 14 strength like a real pro.

[build prof=W/rt name="" desc=""][bull's strike][sever artery][gash][final thrust][primal rage][rush][enraging charge][resurrection signet][/build]

The objective, as should be obvious, is to final thrust people to death.

Of course, primal rage works okay with conjure.

[build prof=W/e name="" desc=""][bull's strike][sever artery][gash][sun and moon slash][primal rage][rush][conjure flame][resurrection signet][/build]

Reverend Dr · Feb 02, 2009, 10:41 PM // 22:41

I miss final thrust something fierce. It no longer being used is my primary reason for hating sword now.

Nostalgia: I remember when people first started bringing a hard rez to GvG. It was resurrect since every other hard rez was worse. I cannot count the number of kills I got with frenzy + final thrust about .5 seconds after they rezzed.

Also primal rage is the new class defining skill, previously it was frenzy. Primal works great with sword, axe, or hammer.