Spiral Knights - Let's talk about Danny loadouts

Let's talk about Danny loadouts

10 replies [Last post]

Fri, 06/26/2015 - 12:30

Krakob

D&N has been out for a while now and I've almost found my perfect loadout for it, and I reckon a lot of others have as well. Admittedly I may be a bit late to the party as I haven't had a need to farm it a lot until now, but I've gotten familiar enough with it anyway. Here's my current loadout:

Black Kat set
Ancient Plate Shield
Penta-Heart Pendant
Elite Quick Draw Module

Seraphynx
Healthy Boost VI

Acheron (CTR Med, ASI High)
Iron Slug (CTR VH)
Arcana (ASI Med)
Electron Vortex (CTR Low) or Ash of Agni (CTR Low)

I'd say the core of this loadout is the Iron Slug. With the BK set it becomes a huge damage dealer while also offering a great amount of safety compared to Brandishes. For the wolvers and just having an overall sword I picked Acheron to accompany it - I tried Glacius but that leaves me relying on Iron Slug against Gremlins and Wolvers and that can be problematic.

An issue I did have was that I got hit a lot while unleashing the Slug charge. I used to run a Sword CTR trinket but found that with the Slug being the more useful damage dealer, it was better to add safety to it as problems tend to be more frequent when unleashing a charge attack as opposed to while holding it.

Arcana primarily fills two purposes to me. Dealing with stray slags in tense situations and shooting lost souls. I could use Argent Peacemaker for that, since bullet size is not a big deal to me - I primarily use Auto Target to get a guaranteed hit on the souls since it's quite hard to determine where they're actually located on the playing field.

Lastly I got the support bomb. AoA is really nice for turtling through the last fight while EV really helps speed it up but is far riskier to use. I'm not really sure which one I like the most but I guess it kind of depends on the party I have. I'd like to try Voltaic Tempest but I don't have one yet, although I intend to.

All in all I find this loadout very solid with the exception of the second to last phase in the final battle, with the toxigels and lumbers. They break the shield extremely easily and since I'm weak to poison I often have to play extremely defensively during it. AoA helps out a lot since it's not affected by poison but I still feel like I could improve a lot here so that I don't drag my party down.

How about the rest of you give me some suggestions on how to improve it, as well as perhaps share your own loadouts and tell us their strengths and weaknesses?

Fri, 06/26/2015 - 13:09

Bopp

recent threads

Here are some other recent threads on this topic. Cheers.

(Spoiler Alert) The New Miniboss Fight, What Do You Think of It? (equipment advice farther down)
PSA - Conserving health in Nightmares and Dreams
Suggestions for 10-2: Dreams & Nightmares Loadout
WildFire vs Polaris BEST GUN FOR ARENA -DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES
Shadow Gun/bomb for Dreams and Nightmares Arena -Permafroster

Fri, 06/26/2015 - 13:08

Finale-Flare

This is quite interesting.

This is quite interesting. What is your typical run time with this loadout? Looks like about 15 mins or so.

For the 2nd to last wave, all you have to do is use Acheron charges on the void slimes. I use a level 8 Acheron with no dmg bonus, and it works fine. I use Blazing pulsar to take care of Skellies, Lumbers and, Slimes sort of, Acheron for Slimes, Gremlins, and wolvers, and ctr max shadow driver for gremlins and void slimes for when I am low on health. Run time for me is 20 mins since I have weak armor, but I don't use sparks and on elite. For the record, I solo this mission since parties tend to derp around a lot. I also have weak weapons, so parties make them wven worse.

For your loadout, I would recommend blazing pulsar (Wildfire if you want to worry about another thing to heat), but only if you know how to arc it. Otherwise it just becomes useless. I would choose BP over Arcana, because it takes out lost souls, requires less effort, is effective against almost all enemies, sets stuff on fire which helps a ton, and helps you focus on dodging the turrets more.

About the electron vortex...seems risky, but if you can make it work then i guess it helps. If not, I would recommend CTR Umbra/Nova/Magma/ASI Permafroster/Wildfire

Sat, 06/27/2015 - 09:49

Krakob

@Bopp
Thanks! I'd like to point out that the first link seems to be about an earlier mission, though.

@Finale Flare
I'd estimate something like that, yes. I haven't timed it yet but I'm not very concerned with time nevertheless - I'd rather spend a minute not spending a spark than the other way around.

I can absolutely see the use in Acheron charges and I tend to use them more during that wave, but they're largely problematic for two reasons. You have to get close and you're likely to get hit since those projectiles are more or less everywhere. A shadow gun like you have would probably be very handy, but then I'd be pretty gimped against the Slags although they are no doubt a far smaller issue.

My strategy for taking out souls with Arcana is to toggle AT and shoot at them. It's quicker than waiting for a Pulsar shot but I suppose it means less mobility. I don't like using Pulsars a lot as they can be very disruptive for my teammates. I've played with some pulsar heavy users and I find myself taking damage or being put in very risky situations because of the Pulsars. Either way I have a Polaris and a Supernova, I'm sure both are pretty fine.

Mon, 06/29/2015 - 07:04

Holy-Nightmare

My loadout (f2p set)

Ancient plate shield

Volcanic plate set

Wildfire

Supernova

Use: This set is about being able to keep enemies back and the ability to tank damage. Ancient plate set while superior in defense values leaves you less mobile. Permafroster while great for gremlins hinders movement and counters the Wildfire status. In the later waves some of the monsters will target Vaelyn, you need to leave those monsters alone and focus on the ones aggroing you. Use the Wildfire to take out Zombies, Lumbers and slimes and switch the Supernova in and out when facing enemies that have mixed weaknesses (some weak and some resistant to elemental).

Downside: This set sacrifices DPS for overall survivability, for those without extra weapon slots the wolvers and gremlins may prove troublesome. If one decides to get a weapon slot then the Riftlocker is suggested since it counters the wolvers rather well and can pick off the gremlins before they heal themselves.

Tip: Prior to the final battle you are in a room pushing buttons to open gates, if you aren't at max HP help Vaelyn kill some monsters from the single spawner till you get enough HP drops to get to max.

Mon, 06/29/2015 - 08:30

Vohtarak-Forum

I'm vohtarak, call me by that name

I use

Perfect mask of seerus (poison med, shock low) mainly for the bonuses
Mercurial mail (fire med) MSI is good to have
Grand tortoise (normal low I think) strong normal shield is needed

Maskeraith (vengeful quills, vengeful shadow cloak, chaotic haze) quills get more enemies, stun is good if you're being chased, chaotic haze because it has better use than haunted
Swift steps 2, MSI

Grand tortofist (ctr med) high damage spike walls are food, and the normal attacks are god at finishing things off
Iron slug (ctr med) rips through crowds and OK normal shots on low health enemies
Chilling duelist (ctr low but I want asi) any damage kills souls, so this works, also for box breaking and drawing aggro (I noticed swarm enemies have a horrendous habit of swapping aggro for no reason)
Warmaster rocket hammer (asi med) good close range weapon for enemies that get in your face

(I don't use trinkets)

Downside: no heart attack and no damage weapons that you can move while firing, not too great solo

Advantage: good crowd damage and ways to free yourself from swarms of enemies, works best in a party

Mon, 06/29/2015 - 09:32

Rhons

Uh... I will hope aboard this train and hope I don't fall off...

Helmet + Armor: Black Kat Set (Three Star)

Weapon I: Radiant Pulsar (Supernova)
Weapon II: Radiant Pulsar (Supernova)
Shield: Swiftstrike Buckler

Trinket I: Elite Quick Draw Module
Trinket II: Elite Quick Draw Module
Sprite Perk: Swift Steps II

Strategy: Move along the edges of the arena in a counterclockwise fashion, keeping enemies in the center or stacking Pulsar Projectiles onto enemies along the perimeters. Dash is often used. With my Seraphynx, carefully rush into the middle and inflict the Heart Beat/Attack onto Void Monsters for health.

This may seem like a stupid loadout, and it might actually be one. However, I always solo Dreams and Nightmares on my own, and as a Gunslinger who also plays Recon in Lockdown with efficiency, I make much more use of footwork than fighting. The Normal-Damage Pulsars deal more Neutral Damage than their cousins, can be used against any enemy, and they are great with crowd control.

The downside it that not all players share the strategy I use, and not all players understand and/or have two Normal Pulsars. The greatest piece of discouragement is the incredibly low health. Just for your information, if you do become adept with footwork and this loadout, you can pass the arena without using your Emergency Revive. I often end up with full Health afterwards.

_____

Proceed with criticism/ridicule/praise/not giving acknowledgement to my existence.

Mon, 06/29/2015 - 09:40

Holy-Nightmare

@Rhons

I can understand the use of two pulsars, I prefer to keep one type damage pulsar just for the sake of being able to halve the number of enemies you're fighting fairly quickly.

For your set I would Trade your Kat set out for maybe Shadowsun till you get that Kat set to 5*, and trade your shield for one of the plate shields (or Omega Shell).

Of course that is my opinion, I enjoy running a good tanky loadout that can handle some of the cheap stuff that happens. Souls spawning on top of you, Black squares obscuring most of your vision, lagspikes, Vaelyn knocking a monster into you, etc.

Tue, 06/30/2015 - 08:47

Jenovasforumchar

my loadouts

I am down to two different loadouts now:

Both have:
Shield: APS
Amor: Chaos set
Sprite bonus: Bomb damage

1st Loadout:
Wildfire + DR

2nd Loadout:
DBB+DR

I choosed the DR as a permanent companion because it can be placed and deals damage even if I walked far away from that spot. The orbs of DR will still deal damage to monsters that are even out of any gun range. So this bomb offers safety by placing bombs and simply run away from monsters. Once you got used to the patterns how stuff is shooting to you, you can make smaller circles ( I for my part prefer to use only the left half of that arena if it is crowded and if possible, I use only a quater for highest dps with this bomb). This bomb tiers gremlins and lumbers apart in no time, and since i hate jellies, I add my sprite buff for it.

My secound weapon slot goes to either Wildfire, that allows me to play on a distance and get rid of certain enemies by keeping me safe or i use DBB for more damage.

Usually I dont even take any damage with these loadouts until the lumber-jelly wave which is the last-but-one wave in that room. The big problem is that I can't simply walk in the centre because those stupid jellies shoot from all directions to me and since I have a natural delay while playing, it is impossible to me to dodge a jelly shot after it got released, so I have to keep distance here.

My tactic is to run in, place a DR, and dash out. If I got my wildfire, I use this one to deal extra damage and also to knock back and kill lumbers from a distance.

Souls:
Since I am always in motion, I dont care about souls and they don't care about me. Not one bit. Seriously, since someone mentioned in this topic that there are souls I had totally forgotten that this arena has souls, too.

Pro/Con on these loadouts:
-Fast killing in the first waves till it comes to the jelly-lumber wave.
-DR+DBB is faster, but takes more risks
-ASP shields perfectly vs all damage sources, included Void bullets, but is a horrible defense vs jelly shots
-since that loadout does not include swords to engage enemies, I can keep running and can completely ignore souls
-while charging a bomb, a wolver could suddenly dash in front of you and block you shield bump and dash will help here, but you have to stop the bomb charge

Wed, 07/01/2015 - 08:18

Momofuku

I solo DnN and often don't

I solo DnN and often don't even need the emergency revive.

Helmet + Armor: Chaos, for CTR and damage buff

Weapon I: Gran Faust or Triglav
Weapon II: Ash of Agni
Shield: Swiftstrike Buckler

Trinket I: Penta Heart Trinket
Trinket II: Penta Heart Trinket
Sprite Perk: Swift Steps II

I didn't have much success with guns or charge shots /brandishes mostly because they relied heavily on conditional positioning for safety (ie. no enemies signaling an attack in range, no lost souls self destructing, no void turret bullets nearby, away from rotating rope of death or whatnot). Survivability is also impacted by lack of much boxes/vitapods found in the earlier depths for this mission and often find myself in the final room without a vitapod in hand. So I'm surprised I don't see too many people bringing Pentas here.

AoA deals a lot of raw damage over time for a mob, and effectiveness is even better as mob size is larger. It has a quick recovery animation and requires no aim since mobs make zero effort to avoid the AoE effect. It allows you to keep a healthy distance from slimes and their spike attack, giving you enough space to actually move out of the way if you see it happen while placing a bomb to burn the slime at max range. Monsters literally die off screen and the entire arena is littered with hearts.

Gremlins are the only potential issue. They take reduced damage from AoA, but the real issue is that at low health they hide along the edges often and don't get kited easily. Often at the end of AoA spamming, they line up along the bottom edge of the arena, not healing or attacking, but not dying. The other annoying part is their AI can spontaneously trigger their roundhouse attack, which is too fast to block on reaction and does crazy damage. Risk of this happening is even higher when they are grouped together and idle as you approach. That's where GF/Triglav max range helps finish them off at a range and hit a lot of them at once for double/triple kills.

There might be faster techniques, and I can only comment as someone who doesn't have a pulsar. So maybe those might be safer/faster strategies. My main priority was not to burn sparks though, and this is a comfortable working strategy for me. I also did not want to bother with gun switching strategies (which I tried) but it is incredibly labor intensive and tiring for such a long arena with many waves. I'm lazy.

Wed, 07/01/2015 - 08:19

#10

Sir-Henry-Cooldown

I'm just gonna post a picture

I'm just gonna post a picture because I r lazy. I edited it together to show UV's, which surprisingly didn't take that long to edit.

Search

Let's talk about Danny loadouts