Why do weapons have requirements?

OK, so I can understand a system where non-max weapons have requirements ranging from 0-9, so that they can improve as the player levels. But, why do max weapons have to come req. 9-13?

It would make sense if the higher req. weapons were in some way better, so that only req. 13 weapons were "max", but as it stands, it seems like a pointless stat.

a perfect example would be shiros sword, Req 15 i believe... And thats no better than any other req 9 green

so people can wts xx swords for 500k+500ectos?

I guess its just the way magic works.

So the general easy to obtain max damage weapons have the drawback that you need to put 13 points into the skill to get all the effects to work.

Someone at great expense crafted weapons that work as well with less points so you can place them elsewhere in your build.
These are more expensive and also Rare

Why do weapons have requirements? Ofc because they want to.

Ya but I like how shiro's blades or sword looks. Daggers are long unlike all the other short stubby ones. They're actually req 13, but this makes it so that only primary assassins/whatever can use that weapon through runes/headpiece.

That isn't how weapon damage works at all. The requirement is the amount of attribute points you have to put in to not get the minimum damage (1-3, IIRC). once you meet that requirement, a second damage calculation is done. The higher your attribute, the more damage you'll do. You need 12 points in your weapon's attribute to do the listed damage. Further points above 12 still increase your damage, though less drastically. At 16 weapon mastery, you'll deal 115% of the listed damage.

If you're only putting 9 points in your weapon just to meet the req, you're only doing 77% of the listed damage, your 15-22 damage sword is dealing 11.5-17. You should always be placing the maximum number of points in your weapon.

On the OP, requirements make sense for foci and shields, since they're otherwise independent of their attribute, monks shouldn't be able to pick up a shield and use it at full strength for no cost. However, since weapons are dependent on their attribute, req only serves to confuse people like gremlin.

It was most likely added to have consistency between all item types, it would perhaps be even more confusing to not list a requirement for weapons at all.

From wiki if it helps.

Effect of Attributes on Weapon Damage Attribute Level
Percent dmg relative to 0 rank Percent dmg relative to 12 rank
0 100% 35.6%
1 109% 38.6%
2 119% 42.0%
3 130% 45.9%
4 141% 50.0%
5 154% 54.5%
6 168% 59.5%
7 183% 64.8%
8 200% 70.7%
9 218% 77.1%
10 238% 84.1%
11 259% 91.7%
12 283% 100%
13 293% 104%
14 303% 107%
15 314% 111%
16 325% 115%

No...req. 13...

Great expense? I craft weapons all the time for myself in GW:EN. My fav is the charr slaying sword and shield. I use them at fort ranik for the special weekends. I kill charr and get carvings and drops and woot get stinking rich so that I can buy Necrid Horsemen and then put them in the garbage so that there are less of them so that the price goes up. I had destroyed 14 of them so far. WOOT.

I digress yes the req ?? It makes sense that the lower ones cost more gold because you only have 200 max attribute points that you can spend.

So if you are a ele and have a req 9 Wand and focus like the Dragon's Breath Wand and a fire focus you have a mitt full of attribute points to put in your SECONDARY PROFESSION. This is what makes you super strong.

But Wait. there are RUNES of Sup Fire that you can get. This will reduce the req attribut points to a puny 21 attribute points to get MAX Damage from your Fire wand Hrt 20% Hct 20% and Focus of Hct 20% and HCT 20% giving you a 40/40 kick but weapon/focus set and leave another 179 attribute points to spend on your secondary profession.

It used to be 15. Was updated a while back.

It seems like the game treats higher req weapons as higher end weapons becouse they often sell for more. So maybe only the game is thinking 'more is better'.

wut? weapons with higher req sell for more? wrong game i'm afraid

Higher req tend to sell for slightly more to merchants, lower req sells for more to players.

Now that is interesting. I never thought about that. I have 3 Plat Blades all with different req's. I will get on tonight to see if the req ^ = more gold.

Let's see something.

My warrior runs at 15 sword mastery. For 1 point, the drawback from the sup sword mastery rune isn't worth it IMO. I'd rather run with 15 instead of 16, but that's me.

However, AFAIK, at 16 sword mastery, with a req13 weapon, you'll do the same damage than with a req9 weapon.

Thus to me, req isn't worth too much. Since I run with at least 14 or 15 in sword mastery, why would I bother buying a req9 gold sword for 100k when I can have a purple req13 for 5k? In the end it does the same damage, thus the same job... (unless I'm willing to pay for a skin, but I'm talking damage here.)

But I take advantage of the system. I have a crystalline sword req13 (no, I don't, this is an example) and I find a req9. Which one do you think I'll sell?

To the OP's question:
Because they do.

This was something that could have been debated in the first year of the game on how it should be, now its just the norm. Some choose to pay more for lower req's others dont, it works well as a system.

From the wiki:

"Linked attribute

Generally, every character can equip any weapon. However, most weapons have an attribute requirement for their damage. If the character's rank in the required attribute does not meet the requirement, the equipment will function in one of two ways:

Collector, crafter, quest reward, or unique weapons, will deal damage equal to an equivalent starter weapon (i.e. attempting to wield a Droknar's Sword at 8 Swordsmanship will result in it dealing 2-3 damage like a Starter Sword).

If the weapon is a dropped item, it will deal half damage. For example, a max 6-28 axe will have a base damage range of 3-14 when you do not meet the requirement.

Note that any mods on the weapon will still have their stated effect. Using a sword with a max fortitude mod will not give you any less health if the sword's requirement is not met.

Certain attributes (such as Hammer Mastery) increase the damage dealt using the appropriate weapon type as an inherent effect."

So, the req makes a difference, not just the attribute. If I read this correctly, Shiro's sword (req13) would only do the damage of a starter sword unless I meet the req.

Correct, but considering you'd have to be an idiot to not max out your weapon attribute, it doesn't matter much in the end.

True. But, this (I think) helps explain why a req7 would be more in demand than a req12. Regardless of whether or not you max out your attribute, it makes it an easier weapon to meet the req on is all, and therefore usable by more people. A req13 sword needs a Warrior primary, a req9 doesn't.

and you'd be using a sword for damage on something other than a warrior because..?

Hammer, yes. Axe, sometimes. Scythe, sure. Sword? Uh....