I was considering on getting a brandish but, I don't know which alchemy path i should follow for it. I was wondering if anyone would like to give some advice or useful tips on which alchemy path I should follow. Much appreciated (:
Brandish series help
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 14:38
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 15:05
#2
piercing, elemental, shadow
Right, don't get Cautery Sword. The others are all good.
Damage type is crucial in swords and guns. This puts Acheron into a different category than the other brandishes. Combuster, Glacius, and Voltedge all seem like very nice elemental swords; I use Glacius more often than I use my Divine Avenger. Acheron is a very nice shadow sword; I use it more often than I use my Gran Faust. If you want to know more detail, check out the Swordsmaster Guide or search the forums for comparisons of Acheron vs. Gran Faust, Combuster vs. Fang of Vog, etc.
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 15:46
#3
A breakdown of the the
1+ to Bopp's comments (again).
A breakdown of the the Elemental Brandishes
Combuster, Best damage over time
Voltedge, Compromise between damage over time and crowd control (shock can interrupt attacks)
Glacius, Best crowd control and still has some extra damage if they are allowed to thaw
Glacius and Voltedge are the top picks for FSC (due to the fire stratum theme). I am currently about to upgrade my Boltbrand to Voltedge, but I have a feeling I may switch to DA after I find that recipe. Voltedge recipes are very cheap and easy to get if you like Lockdown. Pick the path that rounds out your loadout. Do you need Shadow or Elemental? If Elemental what runs are you going to be doing the most? and what roll do you want your sword to play (support, damage, hybrid)?
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 16:09
#4
Make both an Acheron and one
Make both an Acheron and one of the elemental ones. I personally like the Voltedge because the recipe is basically free if you play enough PVP. At some point I might supplement it with a combuster so can switch things out in shock themed levels, but otherwise there's not much between them.
I'm not a huge fan of the Glacius because if you get in with an inexperienced pug they'll often jump on the frozen enemies first because "OMG SITTING DUCKS" which kind of defeats the crowd control and ice break damage aspects.
And yeah, the Cautery is a noob trap. The nightblade does more damage against jellies than the cautery does.
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 16:37
#5
Well if this help.. a Shock
Well if this help.. a Shock Brandish is insane in tier 2 pvp.. a Charge attack is a OH-KO if shock.
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 19:58
#6
Thanks everyone for your
Thanks everyone for your input!!
Thu, 10/20/2011 - 20:54
#7
Acheron and Glacius are the
Acheron and Glacius are the best brandishes.
Glacius is the best elemental brandish because the freeze adds extra utility to the sword that the other elemental brandishes don't have. Having that element of crowd control can make a difference when fighting certain enemies solo, especially retrodes. Combuster may do slightly more damage but the little bit of extra damage from the fire really isn't going to be something that makes or break any encounter. The freeze on a Glacius might.
Fri, 10/21/2011 - 09:15
#8
I prefer Glacius myself as
I prefer Glacius myself as well because you can oftentimes gimp enemies with the freeze attack.
Take a Trojan (or even Slag Guard) for instance. Say you've charge attacked it and it freezes. Now you can charge another attack and if you attack their back on an angle opposing the direction they're facing (so you're sorta coming in at their side but still hitting their back) then you can actually get it so that the charge attack initial hit will break the freeze then they get hit by the first explosion and might re-freeze. I've done this multiple times on any large target. It makes Slag Guards a breeze when it happens. I've had it happen 3 or 4 times in a row and just slaughter the Slag Guard.
Another thing to note with any Brandish series sword. Be aware that you can use the charge attacks like ranged attacks. It's not guaranteed that you'll have three explosions but more often than not you will, or at least I seem to, so more often than not I can use the charge attack to pick off enemies too far from me to hit normally.
Sat, 10/22/2011 - 02:28
#9
+1
Whether you have more use for a new Shadow sword or Elemental sword is probably the first deciding factor. If you already have one of those types, you probably want to upgrade the Brandish to fill the other niche. If you have neither, which monsters do you think you would most like a sword damage bonus against and, depending on how many slots you dedicate to swords, which monsters would you most mind a sword damage penalty against? Brandish upgrades vs. Sealed Sword upgrades is a matter of personal preference for both damage types, but Sealed seems more popular. Sealed swords hit a bit harder but slower, might have slightly better arcs, and the DA has an unusually nice ranged charge attack. Brandishes are faster, so you can dodge or shield much quicker after an attack, and you can attack twice in quick succession without the long window of vulnerability between combos. I do not know for sure, but I think 2 Brandish-line attacks deal more damage than 1 Sealed-line attack at same star level with no UVs.
There is only one Brandish option for Shadow damage, and the only competition is the Faust. The Sealed path is, as far as I know, the only way to get a Curse-inflicting weapon but the charge attack has a chance to Curse you as well as the target. The Nightblade path has a charge attack that is safe to use, and is easier to acquire, but has no Curse effect at all. I enjoy my Nightblade, but intend to go for Faust later on simply because I want a Cursing weapon and that is my only option. The Elemental choice may be more complicated, but it looks like others have broken it down nicely; Fire is weaker in FSC, Freeze is generally awesome except with PUGs, Shock costs Krogmo Coins while the others don't, and Shock is a middle ground between bonus damage and mob control.
DA looks more effective but I prefer the look and feel of Brandishes over Sealed Swords, so... for what little it's worth, I intend to eventually get Iceburst and Fireburst as my primary Elemental sword choices after finding the compromise of Shockburst lacklustre. The target movement disruption is too unpredictable for my tastes and damage bonus seems to rarely add up to less hits to kill a target.
Just don't make a Cautery Sword, and you should be fine :)
The other 4 branches of the line are all solid swords that have repeatedly proven themselves in battle. The most popular models to my knowledge are the Combuster line and the Glacius line due to the great statuses they inflict, but the Voltedge is great too, provided you can get enough Krogmo Coins for it. The Archeron line is really the only other sword line besides the Gran Faust line that inflicts shadow damage, so if you don't like slower swords and still want a good shadow sword, that is the way to go. It doesn't inflict statuses though. Just remember that the Brandish lines will not inflict statuses unless you use the charge attack.
Probably other people can give you better advice than I can.