Spiral Knights - What is my skill level?

What is my skill level?

18 replies [Last post]

Fri, 09/04/2020 - 08:26

Bbsc

OK, I have been playing Spiral Knights for at least 7 months now. Currently, I am ranked Vanguard. In the Colosseum, PvP, I only manage to get around 2,000 hit points and occasionally hit the 3,000 mark. I finally managed to solo the mission, "The Sovereign Slime" on elite difficulty without even using sparks or dying once. I managed to do accomplish this up to mission "Axis of Evil" (6-1). I have not yet accomplished this on the next mission, "Plan of Attack" (6-1)

I have completed all missions on elite difficulty, including "Operation Crimson Hammer" on 1 star, 3 star and 5 star levels but with a party. On a side note, this has always been on elite difficulty.

I know that I am not a good player, but I am not terrible either. If a person can complete "The Sovereign Slime" mission on solo elite difficulty without dying even once, should the player be considered at least below average in playing skills?

Of course, my ultimate aim is to complete every mission solo, elite difficulty without dying once and that includes the danger missions as well.

On a side note, after the recent difficulty buff in Shadow Lair, is it even possible to complete this solo, elite difficulty without using sparks or dying? I have seen a couple of players playing Shadow Lair, solo elite difficulty without having the need to revive on YouTube, but these were played way before GH increased the difficulty levels for Shadow Lair.

Any thoughts on this would be welcomed. Thanks!

Fri, 09/04/2020 - 09:29

Almondtasterad

Doing good.

Considering you have been playing for 7 months, I think that you are doing pretty good. Doing 2k-3k dmg in current LD is alright imo, as LD highly relies upon your in-game connection, relative skill, and uvs(Major debate on whether or not uvs actually affect skill, but in my opinion it certainly gives you a noticeable edge). Looking at you doing what you said you have done, I do think that you are probably doing some fighting methods that are not optimal for endgame. I will just address quickly here some of the things you pointed out.

-You are probably doing the full attack cycle of the weapons that you have, (For example, swiping all three times with a brandish, shooting all 3 rounds of a blaster, all 2 rounds of a driver, etc..) in situations where your weapon(s) is not strong/fast enough to flinch (interrupt) a monsters attack before they complete it. You saying that you have done JK on elite without dying actually does mean that you have some skill, as slimes are one of the more difficult monsters in the game to fight in large groups. I don't know what you attack style is, so I can't really give you any substantial advice as of right now, but it does sound like you are getting the hang of predictions, timing, etc..

-Completing every mission without dying is a pretty cool idea, and I cheer you on. However, it will be some time before you have both the gear and pvm skill in order to solo without dying the harder danger missions like Heart of Ice or harder missions like Shadowplay or DaN, as they are significantly more difficult than JK.

-I have seen people do the current SLs without dying (Fishmclimsy being the most notable as he has a video of himself doing SL Vanaduke), but it takes a large amount of time (on the order of 2-3 hours) to complete and is very difficult to do without dying as monsters hit so hard. It's possible ofc, but it will take a long time to get the right kinds of gear to be able to realistically do them.

Cheers.

Fri, 09/04/2020 - 09:49

Bbsc

Yes, since I began playing, i

Yes, since I began playing, i have been doing full attack cycles most of the time. I guess, that could be a detriment to further progress in my gameplay. I am aware of the Shield cancelling technique but to be honest with you, I use it infrequently.

Are there any more advanced techniques than Shield cancelling?

Fri, 09/04/2020 - 11:24

Almondtasterad

There are a few.

I’m no crazy player, but there are a few techniques I apply that help to make monster fighting a little easier. I do use single-switching quite a lot myself, as I am mainly a gunner, but I have other techniques that involve swords as well. I can show you these techniques if you would like. If your forum name is the same in game I can shoot you a pm and we can meet up so I can show you some of them. Tbh though, most of the skills are going to be developed over time, so it’s whatever you want to do.

Fri, 09/04/2020 - 16:20

Bbsc

My IGN is Blanchflower and I

My IGN is Blanchflower and I am interested in being shown how to do the advance techniques. Thanks.

Fri, 09/11/2020 - 01:08

Manava

For PvP get a gun called

For PvP get a gun called "Polaris". its an elemental shock gun from the "Pulsar" gun type (get it with roarmmulus twins tokens). If u dont know how to shield cancel/switch its fine, just shoot twice then wait a little bit then shoot twice again. you can get used to the timing quickly. Dont rush in with it but keep like a wall of bullets between you and your opponent and always be prepared to run aka hit and run. You can use Polaris in PvE but its kinda niche however i do solo vanaduke with it along side wildfire and supernova (not recommended but its fun).

note: Polaris is probably the most hated weapon in this game so expect to be hunted down.

Tue, 11/24/2020 - 09:07

Bbsc

OK, I finally am able to

OK, I finally am able to complete all levels on elite, up to Sewer Stash (6-2) without emergency reviving or using sparks. Now, the difficult part is. I am having great difficulty in completing "Built to Destroy!" on elite without dying or using sparks. Does anyone have any tips on which is the best gear to use, especially in defeating the twins?

Any tips from veteran and expert players would be most welcomed. By the way, I am nearing my own person goal of completing every level on elite without dying even once. It is a very long road, though! Thanks.

Tue, 11/24/2020 - 12:06

Bopp

congratulations

It's great to hear from someone enjoying the game.

The Twins can be killed using many kinds of weapons, such as Brandishes and guns. Not so much bombs I guess.

Have you figured out the Twins AI? Once you do, you can complete the fight pretty quickly. Under two minutes, as I recall. Maybe faster. I'm not sure how to explain the AI to you. Unless you consider it cheating, you could watch a clip on YouTube?

Fri, 11/27/2020 - 16:12

Jenovasforumchar

For the Twins and that mission generally I recommend going with the Winter Grave as your main option to attack and a side arm that is fitting or supporting that.

Any large enemy will recive tredemous amount of damage while the charged attack shot hits multiple times while passing it. Since Winter Grave is also Shadow, it will help with jellies and gremlins.

Your best shield of choice during that mission is Grey Owlite or a previous version of it. And if you want to play it save, then get a high shock resistance.

But why is actually everyone talking so much about weapons to begin with?
Just de-epquip your heavy weapons, get some nice fresh air on your arms and kill Jelly king just like that!

I would like throw in a youtube link, but the guy who did record the video of our weaponless run did remove the video for some reason...

Fri, 11/27/2020 - 20:29

Bbsc

Thanks. By the way, is the

Thanks. By the way, is the combuster good enough to beat the Twins? It is an elemental weapon and the Twins are weak to it.

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 07:15

#10

Bopp

yes

Yes, Combuster does quite well against the Roarmulus Twins. It helps to have lots of CTR and damage bonus of course.

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 08:15

#11

The-Ancient-One

For the actual twins fight you want something like grim repeater, divine avenger, volcanic pepperbox or iron slug. These can one shot a phase of the twins using their charge attack. Combuster is good for speedrunning the first two levels and taking care of scuttlebots though, and if you don't have one of the above you can totally use it to damage the twins and you'll be fine, just not spectacularly well off.

I usually bring-

Gran Faust/Divine Avenger/Combuster/ETC. (slimes/construct/gremlins)
Grim Repeater (One shotting the twins)
Dark Retribution (Switches)
Nitronome (Cheese)

Dark retribution is important because it hits the switches on repeat for a few seconds, allowing you to bypass most of the puzzles. Nitronome is important because of the block sections. Grim repeater one shots, and the sword is for just fighting the small mobs that get in the way.

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 09:20

#12

Bbsc

@Wrench-Wizard Thank you so

@Wrench-Wizard Thank you so much for your tips! I always use a combuster and I noticed that if I do a charge attack with this sword, it is just not enough. However, I find it strange that an Iron Slug (which is a normal attack weapon) can cause more damage with a charged shot to the twins. The same goes for the Winter Grave which I believe that using a shadow attack on a construct, it has the same damage properties as a normal charged attack. Why is this so? It is this part of the game I find it a bit confusing.

If I use a Strom Driver, charged shot, (Which is an elemental weapon and the Twins are weak to elemental), isn't it better? Thanks.

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 09:44

#13

Bopp

I think it is

For what it's worth, I think that Combuster can one-shot-kill a Roarmulus Twin if it has damage+6. I'll check sometime. (I play with Combuster when I just want to relax --- which is frequently.)

Damage type comparisons are clearest when you're controlling for other factors such as weapon style. An elemental Blaster (Arcana) does more damage to constructs than a shadow or normal Blaster. An elemental Magnus, if it existed, would do more damage to constructs than a normal or shadow Magnus. But the mechanics of the Magnus charge are so powerful that a shadow Magnus charge does more damage than an elemental Blaster charge.

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 10:37

#14

The-Ancient-One

It wouldn't surprise me if combuster could do that to be honest. Be sure to test it with a party of four, I know you usually solo Bopp.

Sat, 11/28/2020 - 13:37

#15

Bopp

that's true

It's true that I usually solo nowadays. But a larger party should make things easier (assuming that all party members are approximately equally competent). As you know, monsters have just twice the health against a party of four as against a party of one.

Sun, 11/29/2020 - 05:15

#16

Bbsc

@Bopp So is it wise to use a

@Bopp So is it wise to use a 5 star black kat armor and helmet together with a combuster? It would be a great idea if one is an expert in this game, meaning rarely getting hit but what about mere average players like me? The black kat kit has a shock status penalty and this could pose serious problems playing in the Twins mission. Your views would be highly appreciated.

Sun, 11/29/2020 - 07:49

#17

Bopp

I guess not then

In an instant, shock can wreck your whole fight. So, if you're going to get hit, then shock-vulnerable armor is terrible. There's not much good shock-resistant armor. Perfect Mask of Seerus is a natural choice, if you have Operation Crimson Hammer. I wouldn't go out of my way to get Grey Feather, Divine, Mercurial, etc. By the time you obtain that stuff, you'll probably be able to dodge anyway.

In contrast, something like Iron Slug or Winter Grave is worth getting for your long-term play. So Wrench-Wizard's advice might be good for you.

In general, invest your time (and/or money) into weapons more than armor.

Mon, 02/01/2021 - 07:45

#18

Bbsc

OK, after about 2 months

OK, after about 2 months trying, I finally managed to beat the mission, "Built to Destroy!" on elite difficulty without dying! Not even a single revive! The irony of it all, is that I finally had the courage not to use my both 5 star health pendants and used the trinket "Redwood Bracelet", which is a 3 star pendant and an "elite sword focus module" which is a 5 star pendant. I finally realized that health pendants are quite redundant in single player missions because the more health you have and when you take a hit, the number of bars being gone is more when you have less starting health. Health pendants are only useful in PVP. I am sure the more experienced players here noticed this long time ago.

Anyway, right now I am elated because of countless times I tried to beat this mission without dying. At the end, I only had 3% health left and you guys could imagine my nervousness! I don't have the whole day to practice because I am currently holding a full time job. Anyway, now for my next goal of starting the 7-1 missions without dying and becoming a "pro" player. LOL! This could take months! Thanks and I will keep you guys updated.

Of course the ultimate aim is to complete the shadow lair missions without dying. By the way, I have not even started one, not even in a party, although I watched a couple of pro players completing these missions. But I know this is a completely different ball game! :)

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