Vinata
05-13-2006, 03:05 AM
Currently, my AP are spent Wis/Str like a great many of us. It has done well for me, although obviously the output is less impressive now than in the (admittedly perhaps too strong) pre-LU23 days. However, looking forward, I'm beginning to have questions about the long-term viability of the Wis path for two reasons.First, itemization. Currently, I only have minimal raid opportunities, although that will be slowly changing toward a more raid-oriented playstyle. But in both pre-raid and endgame loot, it seems as though the dw options consistantly equal or exceed (based on the assumed 1.33 ratio) the equivelently available 1hers. At endgame in particular, unless there is itemization I am unfamiliar with, Qeynos/WS appears to be greater raw damage output than the known 1hers. Of course, the concern here is that basing decisions on itemization is a fool's errand in SOE's world. Past items are no guarantee of future trends, and present items are subject to change without notice or logic.Second, opportunity cost - the benefit that would have been gained from the options not taken. The Wis line serves to make 1h combat viable, but if greater benefit can be obtained without using it at all, then it is a net loss. I think it is generally agreed that the Str line is a competant investment regardless of dw/1h combat style: blackguard's luck is a significant dps modifier due to its ability to affect CA damage, and traumatic swipe is increasingly useful. But is there something gained from the other lines that is of greater benefit than dediation to the Wis line? Ideally, a second line should provide a benefit without requiring the capstone effect, because running 2 lines to capstone is inefficient: this was what I liked about Str/Wis - as I do not generally tank, I could safely pass on Coule. However, the other options to pair with Str seem to suffer from some issues in that regard. The Agi line is dismal. Its proc does not impress me, the runspeed is insulting, and I am hard-pressed to believe Sailwind is sufficiently impactful to make up for the necessary resulting loss in Blackguard's. The Int line has some promise, at least from the raiding perspective, although I have not had problems with aggro control in the past. The capstone FD, again, seems too high of a cost to be worth pursuing, and Boot Dagger suffers from three problems ... first, it is dagger (and thus, itemization) dependant; second, it is inherently tied to Brazening, which I understand is looking at a nerf in LU24; and third, I am uncertain if that strategy actually yields a net increase in dps due to the loss of autoattacks while stealth-cycling.Is there a benefit to sticking with Wis that I'm not seeing, or, failing that, a viable build without it that doesn't depend on two capstones or enslave efficiency entirely to itemization? I regret having to make this choice with some finality ... but the nature of quest rewards makes 'trying things out' a losing proposition in all regards.