Some questions about Swashbucklers

[Vankrooger]

<p>Hey guys, I just recently betrayed from a Brigand to a Swashbuckler (didn't like the way Brigs solo'd) and I have a few questions.</p><p>How are Swashbuckler's DPS compared to other Scouts/Mages in groups/raids?</p><p>How is the Swashbuckler's debuffs/utility compared to the Brig's?</p><p>How wanted are Swashbucklers in raids/groups at 80?</p><p>I know most of these answers are a form of opinion, but would still like to know what you guys think. </p><p>Thanks in advance!</p>

[Deaudlus]

<cite>Vankrooger wrote:</cite><blockquote><p>Hey guys, I just recently betrayed from a Brigand to a Swashbuckler (didn't like the way Brigs solo'd) and I have a few questions.</p><p>How are Swashbuckler's DPS compared to other Scouts/Mages in groups/raids?</p><p>How is the Swashbuckler's debuffs/utility compared to the Brig's?</p><p>How wanted are Swashbucklers in raids/groups at 80?</p><p>I know most of these answers are a form of opinion, but would still like to know what you guys think. </p><p>Thanks in advance!</p></blockquote>I will take a swing at answering your question but the funny thing is that I have recently been considering betraying from swash to brig.  Swash and brig DPS are fairly close.  Swash will generally parse a bit higher on group encounters because of hurricane and 2 AOE's and brigs will generally do a bit better on single target encounters.  As far as debuffs go my opinion is that brigs have the upper hand.  The reason for this is that swash debuff offense and briggs debuffs defense.  The problem with this is that only really the tank on the group benefits from offense debuffs on a mob where everyone in the group that is doing damage benefits from a mob having its defense debuffed. Don't get me wrong, swashs to have a few debuffs to parry and things like that however it doesn't come anywhere close to how great dispatch is.  As far as getting groups / raids in my experience you won't be chosen over a brig if there is a DPS slot open.  Dispatch is just to useful.  I am not saying swashs are worthless or that they suck, I just feel like from a utility perspective they pale in comparrison so brigs.

[Vankrooger]

<p>Yes I did hear that Brigands were one of the most sought after classes for raids, it's one of the reasons why I rolled one. </p><p>But I just didn't like the way they solo grinded. They were overkill vs 1 mob but they sucked vs 2+ mobs. They relied on stuns and back attacks too much.</p><p>I'm liking the Swash because of their more frontal attacks and AoEs.</p><p>So you're saying that Brigs are better for raiding and Swash better for grouping? Are Swash still sought after for raids though? Or are they like Brawlers/Crusaders; just fillers?</p>

[Luk]

Brawlers and Crusaders are only fillers if they are played poorly, played well they can excel in DPS as well as bringing utility to the raid.I will say this for all classes, if you play it well, you won't have a problem getting a regular spot in a raid force, if you play poorly, look at being the first dropped each time no matter what class you play.Pick a class for your play style and abilities, don't pick one because class x is better than class y, this may not be the case with you, you may play class y better and therefore be a more useful inclusion in a raid.

[Vankrooger]

<p>I've never had a character above 60, so I only go by what other people say in terms of raid viability.</p><p>And what I heard from numerous sources is that some classes get into raids a lot easier than others. My main is currently a Bruiser (55) and I was having a blast with him solo, but people over on the boards are saying due to poor RoK itemization and lack of any new useful Bruiser abilities, that they are worse of than they were before the expansion.</p><p>Anyway, I quit my Brig a while ago because I couldn't stand solo grinding with him. I didn't like coming close to death whenever I had to fight 3+ mobs, I didn't like having to rely on stuns to use half of his DPS abilities. </p><p>The Swash I think is as fun as the Bruiser to solo because they have a lot more frontal attacks as well as AoE to deal with multiples. On top of that, I heard they were somewhat more desirable in raids than other classes due to their high DPS and debuffs, but I don't know if that's true or not.</p>

[liveja]

<p>Every raid needs a Swashy for hate transfer & drop-dead <b>sexyness</b>.</p><p>Every raid needs a Brigand for Dispatch, & for people to laugh at. For this second reason, Gnomes make the best Brigands of all!</p><p>IMHO, multiple Brigands benefit a raid moreso than multiple Swashies. But that's because 1 Swashy can do it all, while Brigands ... well, you know.</p><p>I suddenly have this craving to play a Gnome Brigand, just for laughs.</p><p><img src="http://forums.station.sony.com/eq2/images/smilies/97ada74b88049a6d50a6ed40898a03d7.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" width="15" height="15" /></p>