Suggestions for a two-handed damage dealer

Petoften

I have a two handed damage dealer. He's an orc dragonknight.

Feel free to make some basic suggestions - up to three important skills for the bar, a few important champion points, some good armor sets and weapons.

I'm not really looking for a 'complete build' with a complicated rotation.

But a good generalist 2H DPS, balancing damage, survivability, good solo or in groups.

Elendir2am

My first advice is, use different type of weapon on your two bars. It give you access to power on both weapons.
Most common combination is Dual weapon / two handed sword. DW/2H or 2H/DW depends on what arena weapon you want to use. Arena weapon is on back-bar:
DW/2H - Merciless Charge
2H/DW - Spectral Cloak

You can use 2H/Bow as well, 1H&Shield (PvP) and there can be some new combination with hybridization.

2H skills:
Stampede - is fun yet strong skill. It will give you some mobility and it is strong with Merciless Charge weapon.
Carve - Powerful cleave damage which add bleeding as DoT. If you count all damage for all skills at trials, Carve would be at top probably. Good against Boss, great against trash.
Executioner - Good executioner skill (skill you use against low health opponents instead spammable).

Stampede and Carve are used frequently. DK don't have execution skill, so Executioner would be good, but I don't have space on my bar for it with my DK for example.

h9dlb

Sword singer set with new moon acolyte

Petoften

Thanks for the replies. On using different types of weapons, this char is pretty much about 2H, an orc who likes to smash. If different types can mean a 2H Maul and a 2H Axe, that's fine. This is pve only. I like sword slinger and will look at the things.

Petoften

Is Stampede better than Critical Rush? More single target damage might be good on bosses?

Are there Dragonknight skills to get besides 2H skill, but to be used with a 2H? Executioner is nightblade, isn't it?

Petoften

He's about offense, but what would be for defense? Hit dragon, killed.

Petoften

OK found the executioner for DK.

mocap

Heartland + Torugs + Iceheart
infused 2H maul with Glyph of Hardening
Bastion and Strategic Reserve passives (red)
Weapon Expert and both direct + single resistance passives (blue)
27-30k HP
corrupting bloody mara if not vampire or sugar skulls if vampire
Skills: Stampede, Burning Embers, Engulfing Flames, light attack spam
use Green Dragon Blood from time to time
Temporal Guard ult

Enjoy free 13700 damage shield each 3-6 seconds, 3000+ base HP regen. DPS will be so-so but okish ) For more DPS just add more dots (Oblivion, Carve 1x or 2x but watch your stamina).

Veteran Maelstrom Arena becomes a cakewalk with this as well as most of world bosses including DLC.

Elendir2am

Carve give you small DMG shield.
Burning Embers (DK skill) is decent self heal.

This two are enough for most content. Elsewhere dragons need something more, like Coagulating Blood.
Coagulating Blood is other morph to Green Dragon Blood. Stronger in healing without stamina regeneration.
Use Flames of Oblivion, it is high on damage meter of DK skills and it give you Major Prophecy and Savagery.

You need to decide, what type of DK you want to be. 2H don't mean, you need to be stam DK. You can be magicka hybrid (using 2H skills and magicka DK skills) with all attribute points in magicka.

Sets:
Top DD not trial set is Kinras's Wrath and DK has enough space for Barbed Trap on bars (not like pet sorc). You can combine it with trial sets:
Magicka hybrid DK - Bashes mania
Stamina - Relequen, Coral

If you don't want to farm trial set, you can use Burning Spellweave for magicka (hybrid) DK or Leviathan for pure stamina DK.

Dimski

Petoften wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. On using different types of weapons, this char is pretty much about 2H, an orc who likes to smash. If different types can mean a 2H Maul and a 2H Axe, that's fine. This is pve only. I like sword slinger and will look at the things.

Critical Rush: you get the bonus damage only once
Go with Stampede: leaves a dot in a frontal cone and is too expensive spam. You usually end up with the whip as spammable.

Necrotech_Master

Dimski wrote: »

Petoften wrote: »

Thanks for the replies. On using different types of weapons, this char is pretty much about 2H, an orc who likes to smash. If different types can mean a 2H Maul and a 2H Axe, that's fine. This is pve only. I like sword slinger and will look at the things.

Critical Rush: you get the bonus damage only once
Go with Stampede: leaves a dot in a frontal cone and is too expensive spam. You usually end up with the whip as spammable.

the dot is actually a circular aoe, with the center of the aoe being on the target you hit

this dot will also apply the maelstrom dot (and reapply it as well, or freshly apply it to enemies who walk into it)

Petoften

I went with brawler over carve.

etchedpixels

Elendir2am wrote: »

Top DD not trial set is Kinras's Wrath

On all but 12 man content and some vet content with very long fights Medusa will outperform Kinras and is easier for a newer player. Kinras takes time to power up and the slight extra bonus isn 't enough to even that cost out before it is over.

A lot depends on the content. If you want to bulk murder trash then it's hard to beat the titanic cleave arena weapons combined with sets that stack and pack trash. My trash clearing warden DD runs it with dark convergence but the same basic setup works with other classes.

Sword singer is a good levelling set as it's easy to get pieces and you can upgrade your rings at an Alik'r dolmen any time you want. It's not as strong as some of the other sets though. Orgnums Scales (crafted but needs a good crafter) plus sword singer works really well for solo levelling play if you want to be fairly tanky. Whilist mine is PvP focussed I've soloed a scroll temple with that sort of build while below level 30.

For solo a bow backbar can be useful because their are spots where having a ranged attack is fairly important. If not then Oakensoul (even post nerf) is likely to be better than dual two handed as you should only need 2H sword for PvE, or maul if you have penetration issues (usually maul is more of a PvP choice).

What is more important are the buffs. You want major brutailty and major savagery all the time. There are various sources for these (eg rally) but having that and the right amount of penetration then as much weapon damage as you can get are actually often more important than sets.

Kahnak

h9dlb wrote: »

Sword singer set with new moon acolyte

No thanks.

Petoften

etchedpixels wrote: »

A lot depends on the content. If you want to bulk murder trash then it's hard to beat the titanic cleave arena weapons combined with sets that stack and pack trash.

I don't think trash clearing is usually a priority for a lot of people, though, compared to harder content?

Sword singer is a good levelling set as it's easy to get pieces and you can upgrade your rings at an Alik'r dolmen any time you want.

Not sure what that means, just get more drops hoping for higher quality?

El_Borracho

Petoften wrote: »

I went with brawler over carve.

Brawler is more of a PVP skill. If this is PVE, Carve is better. Stampede causes more damage, but is more expensive than Crit Rush. Executioner, Barbed Trap, and a heal round out my 2H bar.

Depending on what you run on the other bar, you will want Flames of Oblivion, Engulfing Flames, and Eruption. You can mess around with the other 2 slots for spammables, either the whip or a weapon-specific skill.

As for a heal, either of the Dragon Blood morphs are good, or you can go with Vigor. You will need a heal with DK, regardless of stamina or magicka

Petoften

What is the over 50% spam attack? Under 50% is execute.

Hot bar - and 1 seems plenty - is 1. Leap (Stampede), 2. AOE and damage shield (Brawler), 3. resists (Spiked shield), 4. Inferno which does some damage but seems largely about buffs, and 5. Execute.

Not really seeing one simply to spam damage.

Elendir2am

Elendir2am wrote: »

You need to decide, what type of DK you want to be. 2H don't mean, you need to be stam DK. You can be magicka hybrid (using 2H skills and magicka DK skills) with all attribute points in magicka.

I quote myself, because answer depend on your votes:
- pure stamina
- Hybrid DK
Hybrid DK with attributes in magicka is stronger, but you can have your own reason not to go that path.

Hybrid DK use semi-spamable Burning Talons.
They use it every 4s with placing other DoTs in that time frame. That skill is powerful against trash and decent against Bosses, but it can be hard to sustain in not optimized group.

Other possibility is Molten Whip.
Molten Whip can be sloted because Seething Fury stacks only, or as clasic spammable.

I don't have much experience with stam DK.
Stone Giant as only stamina spammable isn't very good, so they are using weapons spammable.
There is only Uppercut and it`s morphs in your cause. However, 2H/2H stam DK is rare and I dont know which of morph and what is best way to use it.

Petoften

Ya, I haven't really decided about the stamd and magicka except that it feels like a stam character and even the hybrid builds I see use 64 stam. So I need to replace one of those front 5 with a spam attack it sounds like?

Elendir2am

Petoften wrote: »

Ya, I haven't really decided about the stamd and magicka except that it feels like a stam character and even the hybrid builds I see use 64 stam. So I need to replace one of those front 5 with a spam attack it sounds like?

Not necessary. It has been possible to have rotation without spammable and use only DoTs. I wanted to write you, that you can try it. Although It has been more difficult, then rotation with spammable. This possibility will be over with U35, so you will need spammable.

Your spammable need to use resources to which , your attributes are allocated.
64 stam = you need stamina spammable.
There are good selection under dual weapons, but DK and 2H stamina spammable are on weaker side. So I see 3 possible way for you.

1. Reallocate your attributes point to 64 magicka. You could use magicka spammable then.
2. Change from 2H/2H to DW/2H and use DW spammable.
- Rapid Strikes simple but decent damage.
- Bloodthirst has selfheal but lower damage.
- Whirling Blades is AoE and execution skills as well
3. Role Playing is more important for you, so stay 2H/2H 64 stamina attributes point DK. Choose one of stamina spammable, I wrote before.

Zodiarkslayer

A lot of good advice here.

I'd like to add that whatever you do, use weapon damage glyphs on the jewelry. DKs class buff is minor Brutality, so the weapon damage stat is in nearly all cases equal or higher than spelldamage stat. After Hybridization changes that means that weapon damage is used for nearly all your damage calculations. You can spec into Magicka and even use weapon damage as your main damage stat.
That is, if you can keep Minor Brutality up all time.

For sets I can only recommend to start at something easy to get (Order's Wrath and Briarheart, for example) and iterate to where you feel you are lacking.

I also agree with @Elendir2am. Dual Wield has a lot more potential. Bloodthirst enabled me to Solo difficult Bosses with my DK, even though I like the image of a "Brawler" much more.

Petoften

Elendir2am wrote: »

3. Role Playing is more important for you, so stay 2H/2H 64 stamina attributes point DK. Choose one of stamina spammable, I wrote before.

I'm leaning toward this, but the question it leaves is which spammable to pick but also where to make room for it - what to give up - in the current list.

Petoften

Zodiarkslayer wrote: »

I also agree with @Elendir2am. Dual Wield has a lot more potential. Bloodthirst enabled me to Solo difficult Bosses with my DK, even though I like the image of a "Brawler" much more.

I think it'd kind of bad game design when it's "you can play DW or 2H but 2H sucks compared to DW". I have a nightblade dual wield and even 2, this char is for 2H. I'm more likely to compromise on magicka than weapon type.

Petoften

Zodiarkslayer wrote: »

For sets I can only recommend to start at something easy to get (Order's Wrath and Briarheart, for example) and iterate to where you feel you are lacking.

I'm leaning toward sets that fit the char - sets with 2H buffs (e.g. Sword Singer), sets with 'when you kill a monster' benefit, maybe sets that help DK fire damage, maybe 'fun' bonuses; it's hard to sort out.

Zodiarkslayer

Sword Singer.... puh...
I wouldn't bother. It only affects TwoHanded abilities. Not class abilities, not heals, not light attacks. Sure Brawler and Stampede hit like a truck. Everything else, though?

Dead Water's Guile is fun on a DK. Not good in Boss fights, but fun.
So is Witchman Armor. Best sustain set for a DK, imo, doubles up the Battle Roar passive. 100 resource(s) per ultimate point spent. That's 11k for a Take Flight.

Titanic Cleave is also an obvious contender, but you'd have to drop the monster set for it. And farm Dragon Star Arena.

Witchknight's Defiance is good on Stamina DKs. And its Overland.

El_Borracho

Petoften wrote: »

Ya, I haven't really decided about the stamd and magicka except that it feels like a stam character and even the hybrid builds I see use 64 stam. So I need to replace one of those front 5 with a spam attack it sounds like?

Traditional 2H on front bar spammable is Wrecking Blow or Stone Giant. I prefer Dual Wield on the front bar with 2H on the back. Can still use Stone Giant, but I like Shrouded Daggers better because you get Major Brutality.. The other option is to run the whip and Channeled Acceleration or Deadly Cloak. If you can get a full set of jewelry and DW weapons from Berserking Warrior, Deadly Cloak works extremely well with that set.

etchedpixels

Sword singer is a good levelling set as it's easy to get pieces and you can upgrade your rings at an Alik'r dolmen any time you want.

Not sure what that means, just get more drops hoping for higher quality?

[/quote]

I meant for level upgrading rather than colour. There's a continual supply of cheap Sword singer jewellery at lower levels from the Alik'r dolmen comedy show.

Petoften

Oh, my chars are over CP 160, so level of gear isn't an issue.

I'm trying to find a post where someone mentions Grothdarr monster set for something and can't find it. What's a good monster set for 2H?