I'm a gunslinger
I currently use
1.Callahan
2.bio hazard
3.cryo driver with a damage uv versus constructs med.
My cryo driver just became lvl ten and I've seen the pulsar pistols in action and Im starting rethinking upgrading my cryo driver can I get some opinions?
Lets look at the FACTS:
Alchemers (mk II):
----Pros: Decent bullet speed.--2 shot "clip"-- elemental,normal, and shadow damage with an added status effect on 3 of the different types.-- look pretty cool. -- Rictocheting bullets can be useful
----Cons: Er....i dont believe there is any. Other than the bouncing bullets hitting an undesired enemy or switch.
Pulsars:
----Pros: Bullets nget stronger the farther they travel and still do decent damage up close (ive studied it and the up close bullets are just about as strong as alchemer's explosion does extra damage).-- fires 3 bullets per reload-- has great knockback on enemies the further enemies travel + explosion causes a larger area of effect (AOE)-- for the elemental damage line (polaris) the AOE caused by explosions have a high chance of causing shock (does 50% of the time and i only have Kilowatt Pulsar).-- looks different but is still awesome.
----Cons: In teams,some people hate it when it makes them miss their attacks. Usually they dont but theres always 1 out of the 1000 who do.-- Bullets are quite slow compared to other guns and thus it can be frustrating to attack far enoughaway to get the explosion when facing fast enemies.-- explosion can spam switches -_-. but so does the alchemer.
In conclusion. I think the pulsar wins for the AOE, 3 shot "clip", and knockback additions to doing the same as a Voltech MK II (assuming we compare Kilowatt to Voltech MK II to be FAIR)
In short: i believe Pulsar > Alchemer
P.S dont flame saying i dont know how good an alchemer is. I have a Cryotech MK II and a Voltech MK II both with UV vs construct and pulsar still beats them with a UV slime low :P. I did like the Alchemers a lotbut after seeing what the Pulsar can do i switched. BTW all my Alchemers i stated are level 10 as well as my pulsar and i tested them equally.
Alright. Back to crafting.
Additional facts that you might have not touched on:
Alchemers:
--Pros: Good in crowd controlling, especially in tight spaces where ricochet can be triggered more often
--Cons: Lower DPS compared to Pulsar (assuming ricochets are disregarded), highly dependent on the ricochet effect to really shine, need tactics to heavily use the ricochet effect to the maximum
Pulsar:
--Pros: Good damage, AOE status effect, damage, and knockback
--Cons: Not really useful compared to the alchemers in tight or small areas (the bullets wont be exploding, as to in alchemers, the ricochet really helps)
You forgot to mention that the alchemers only shine when you have large mobs chasing you. Single target, the Pulsar is still better even in confined quarters. However, in open areas where large mobs are likely to occur, the Pulsar gives superior mob shaping ability, as well as nicely directed damage.
Alchemers
Pros:
-Higher DPS compared to pulsar if you count ricochets at 5-star.
-Significantly better charge attack (If you aim at the side of a mob, even in an open area, the Ricochet will still land at least two hits. I can one-shot gun puppies solo even in the open, and nearly one-shot them in a 4-man party.)
-Does not impact the DPS of your teammates
Cons: Occasionally hits switches or kills mobs you don't want it to kill
Pulsar
Pros:
Nothing to add
Cons:
-Knocks mobs into teammates. I liken pulsar users to charge-only leviathan users. Just because people do not complain, doesn't mean it doesn't piss roughly 1 in 4 people off.
-Causes missed shots by your teammates, reducing your team's overall effectiveness
-Visually noisy and distracting. Shots occasionally are lag-inducing.
I will not argue that the pulsar is not a good weapon, however I will state that it is an excellent weapon for pissing off your entire team, and getting others killed. At 5-star, the pulsar has roughly the same DPS as Alchemers if you take charges and Ricochets into account. While the pulsar is an excellent solo weapon, in T3 using one is probably hurting your team more than helping.
Fyi, Alchemers gain a massive boost to their damage potential when they become drivers at 4-star, and an even bigger bosst at 5-star. Charged shots from them can easily deal ~400+ 100% chance of status effect in the open, while spamming the bullets between two mobs or between a wall and a mob can quickly rack up damage. Conversely, I've found pulsars distracting and deadly to your teammates.
Pulsar = Excellent solo weapon. Good against single targets.
Alchemers = Better group weapon. Good against groups.
If you go with pulsar, you'll have two choices:
1) Hold your fire or switch to a different weapon whenever fighting any mobs that might plausibly attack someone other than you.
2) Misuse the pulsar and be an idiot who is detrimental to your team and really should be kicked from the group.
The fundamental problem with the pulsar lines is the big, flashy explosions that make it so that you can't see mobs. More to the point, you can't see if the mobs are attacking or not. That means that for your teammates to attack the same mob(s) as you is intrinsically suicidal. That leaves them with a choice of either going suicidal, or leaving you to solo whatever you're attacking. The former is rarely beneficial to the group, and the latter often isn't helpful, either.
It's not so much that the pulsar is intrinsically a bad weapon, as that it's very hard to use properly when in a group, to the extent that hardly anyone does. But if people who use a pulsar almost invariably use it badly, then for most practical purposes, it might as well be a bad weapon. If you're purely a soloer, then that isn't a problem for you, I suppose.
The alchemer lines don't bring any such drawbacks, and you can spam them to your heart's content. Alchemer gun lines won't kill your teammates the way that the pulsar lines can.
But quizzie... I WANT to kill my teammates :o How else can I farm their heat?
Why does everyone forget that you can avoid pulsar explosions by getting closer to the mob? You do more damage that way to a single target anyways. Learn to use a Pulsar and it will be an amazing weapon that far outshines any alchemer.
"But quizzie... I WANT to kill my teammates :o How else can I farm their heat?"
You know what? If you ever join one of my groups, I should wait until we're right at the very end of a level. Ideally, an arena level in which we did all three arenas. And then I should kick you, to reset your heat for that level.
More seriously, why do people brag of being griefers on the forums? I mean, that's practically begging for the response in my previous paragraph.
"Why does everyone forget that you can avoid pulsar explosions by getting closer to the mob?"
In which case, you defeat the point of having a gun in the first place. If you're at close range, then use a sword.
@Quizzical
The maximum range of the pulsar's unexploded bullet is still greater than any range of a sword. Do your research. Playing with a Polaris correctly just means you can't stand WAY back and pewpewpew like a newbie. :)
The key with a Pulsar is not to spam it on everything. It's really good for constructs (which nobody wants to get close to anyway) and it's also great against undead but oftentimes an Argent Peacemaker is better for your sword-toting teammates (although just as often the Pulsar is still better, use your head when selecting a weapon)
I decided on on just getting my hail driver
the magic of the pulsar being able to snipe gun puppies Is not that attractive since the Uv on my alchemer gives it a medium damage bonus and I'm happy with it thanks all for the advice.
i have an alchemer and the alchemers have a wide range of elemental status (fire,ice,shock,shadow, and the other thing) and i use my cryotech alchemer sometimes more than my brandish
I like alchs better.