It's extremely clunky. Hard to bar swap out of it. It almost feels unnecessarily complicated from a dps standpoint. Adding the AOE element to it didn't do it any favors. It's not a consistent aoe at all. It's just a mess of an ability.

This skill is indeed very interesting. You could say it's a jack-of-all-trades skill, master-of-none.

And right here is the problem. In ESO you specialize your self for something and frankly this skill doesn't fit anywhere. Let's break down the skill and see it's usefulness.

First you step on the ground making some good AOE damage around you.

You then have a fairly short duration to throw the rocks in order to make use of the full potential.

The last rock will stun which is useful for PvP.

So let's look at the complications

You want to deal some massive AOE damage to clear trash... What need do you have for the single target rocks?

You want to be a potent ranged stamina damage dealer... What need do you have for the ground stomp?

You could think a jack-of-all-trades skill would make use in a PvP environment. But "players" will see the stun rock come from a mile away and if you try to lure the opponent... There just isn't enough time on the duration.

This is just my opinion about the skill but I hope it helped a little with some insight about it.

So true with everything up.

and in fact that using it burns up your stamina too quickly and dmg are not that great.

if you are on a bow you have a better range skill like Lethal arrow.

Cast time, unpredictable stun, tries to do too many things instead of one thing really well, made with the purpose that trial raids would always want a DK.

Not a recipe for a fun, let alone effective, ability.

Only person I saw using it used it because it looked awesome. Then fast forward a few months later and I have convinced them to roll a magDK and they hate me now.... because it's so much better

It's clunky, generally confusing in its design, and there are a lot of better things that could be designed to replace it.

But with all that said, for me it's between this and dizzying swing. I use dizzying swing on so many other builds that I enjoy the variety this creates. And although it's weird and clunky, its unfocused design occasionally proves useful. There are many times where my opponent will be trying to stealth or roll away and the initial AOE will hit them, and other times if my opponent is trying to disengage I'll be able to continue dealing damage due to its range. The damage good enough, not quite as potent as dizzying swing, but easier to land. So it's not all bad.

Hmm. I've been running it for a while, but haven't noticed the cast time. Not playing my DK a lot in PvP, but have done so on and off over the last few patches. Come to think of it, the way my build is set up, I probably don't really bar swap away from this skill. I'm probably more likely to Rally up and then bar swap to refresh my buffs.

I've always thought there is an element of ... I don't know ... snobbery against this skill. If you're not running Dizzying, which is arguably the meta, if you're running something that has open world utility, but isn't optimal for duels, then you're dismissed by some people. I've killed people from range with this, even a good player who previously gave me a hard time in duels. Especially when you don't leap, but use Corrosive Armor instead, they can be caught off guard.

I don't really get the clunkiness argument. Just view it as a melee skill. You're playing a melee class. The fact that it still hits 3 times out of 4 when people try to outrange you is a bonus. Anything else is just the glass half empty view. What I feel more ambivalent about is the stun. It's more useful for running down people's stamina than trying to design some sort of combo around it.

Dizzying does more damage, stuns more consistently and is better in setting up a combo. I have not played it much. The reasons I run Stone Giant are:

(1) Minor Brutality from a skill that costs stamina, keeping my magicka use way down. I love Fossilize but have neither the bar space nor the magicka for it.

(2) I run Shuffle instead of Fragmented Shield, gaining a snare removal skill and the AOE damage mitigation.

(3) I run Physical Resistance / Health / Stamina potions, since I don't need tri-stat pots. DKs have more Spell Resistance than Physical, yet Physical is arguably more valuable. Those potions turn that around.

In other words using the skill bolsters your defenses despite not having Fragmented Shield. You might also argue it bolsters your damage, because you do not have to invest into magicka sustain unless you usually make do with just tri-stat potions and ultimates. My only magicka skills are Hardened / Volatile Armor and Cauterize. I am free to dump any excess magicka into Cauterize, which is actually a small burst heal.

If you ever wanted to try Diamond's Victory, Stone Giant also fits the bill as spamming it procs both buffs of that set.

Alucardo wrote: »

fred4 wrote: »

If you ever wanted to try Diamond's Victory, Stone Giant also fits the bill as spamming it procs both buffs of that set.

I actually did not know this. Thanks for the info !

So wait, I just have to clarify something. Does the effects stack? ie: you get both 437 weapon damage to ranged/DoTs AND 437 to melee just by flinging one poo rock?

Not exactly. You get +437 to ranged from the AOIE stomp. You get +437 to melee from flinging a rock. Those effects can stack, but you need 2 casts of Stone Giant to activate both.

Isn't that the skill broken down on the eso University website estimating the group buff damage part added over 2k per dps group member?

@fred4
I think the issue is that the change in cast time does effect how one can gage weaving. Since the stomp hits with a different speed then the rocks timing it takes alot of work, which can be detrimental when using sets like relequin or kinras, that out perform diamonds victory. I think zos has done a decent job of fixing it, but originally it was very easy to get stuck on your bar on stone fist cast.

i useing stonegiant in arena´s like vma vvh because its give´s minor brutality aswell and i have an other barspace i know rapid strikes or wrecking blow do a little bit more dmg ( i would use them both prob in raids over stony ) i just like it because minor holds only around 20 secs i guess compare to the big 1 from the pot or molten in arenas defently stonegiant its very good

Spurius_Lucilius wrote: »

After reading a few forum posts talking about why Stam Dk needs poison whip or stone giant is bad, I decided to try out Stone Giant in PVP, and I find it a fun skill to use, if you build for it. I manage to find a playstyle that I like quite a lot with this skill...

The first thing comes to mind is what weapon should I use for my main hand. I want a weapon that could utilize the full potential of Stone Giant. DW or 2H won't allow me to light weave with the range part of the skill, so ideally I want a ranged weapon. Bow's passives are just disappointing because the crit chance is wasted if I use Malacath band, and other passives only benefits bow skills.
My final decision is to use Inferno Staff. I also thought about using Lightning staff, but Inferno Staff is just more fitting for a DK thematically. I can light weave the rock, and both the rock and the light attack benefits from Ancient Knowledge passive.

The details of the build is in this video: https://youtu.be/lrS5VaDQF00

I personally enjoy this playstyle. I have a bow on the back bar for more crit healing, major expedition and poison injection. I can generate both stamina and magicka using ranged HA. I have attack options from a distance while also be a strong melee fighter.
I highly recommend anyone to try out this setup if you think this could be fun.

You can like weave with 2h and DW in melee range with the projectile portion of Stone Giant. This allows you to continue to run your melee dots as well. I see it being range not as it's primary function, but just the ability to sometimes add some additional pressure if someone is trying to get out of melee range from you.

Flame staff is going to give you significantly less weapon damage, and your light attacks won't benefit from your physical penetration. Seems like it could be like a fun thematic build, but it seems pretty far from optimized for PVP.

I use it

Using Stonefist:
- when I need melee AoE, I get a ranged single-target attack, or have to wait.
- when I need a ranged attack, I have to spend ressources for melee AoE that does nothing first.
I don't have those issues with weapon skills, melee is always melee, etc. 2H and bow ftw.

I tried, it looks cool, but it's overly complex to use, compared to alternatives.