planning on making the following:
-sword leviathan/ cold iron vanquisher
-bomb 1 Nitronome
-bomb 2 shivermist buster
-gun hail driver
-shield aegis
-helm volcanic demo helm
-suit bombastic demo suit
what order should I make the following from "asap" to a "few weeks later"...?
Ironically I would recommend freeze bombs for soloing, since most people don't honour freezing in a group. A better option might be the graviton bomb to draw enemies into one place for party whackage.
I agree with the recommendation a little, try to focus on one weapon you want to use most and do your best to max it out. You will invariably have to make this entire set as you go deeper, since you need items with a certain star value to prooceed (for instance, 4 star items for tier 3 strata access). Weapons take priority since killing things is more important than surviving hits from things (ideally, you won't get hit if you kill things fast enough or from a distance).
I would also recommend a storm driver over the hail driver. Again, few people honour the freeze status and allow it to do its damage, and shock is more likely to do its damage over the life of the enemy. Plus, shock takes enemies out of commission for 1-2 seconds while they spaz out, even while your party wails on them.
Personally, I would go with making my primary weapon first (the one I'd be using the most), then shield, then armor. Out of the bombs, choose one which suits your playstyle better - eg Nitronome if you're soloing more, Buster if you're partying *or* simply prefer the control, even for soloing. Freeze bombs are seriously good.