Berserker or Swashy?

[Brewl]

<DIV>Yo guys.</DIV> <DIV>I'm a newbie and after spending two weeks trying out almost every class (and with some help from the community), I've narrowed my class choice down to 2 classes: Berserker or Swashy!</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Now, of course posting this in the zerker forum is gonna get me lots of zerker fanboys and what-not, but I decided to post here because it's a more popular thread than the swashy's thread, heh. And I do apologise in advance for making a class choice thread as there are enough already. And note: I have used search but couldn't find any specific threads similiar to this; they all seem to be arguments about how the zerker is/isn't a DPS class or something. Anyway...</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I'm an action player, and I love being able to kill many enemies at once (or being able to kill single enemies quickly), for the most part, but I don't like sitting there with auto-attack on. From my experience, both zerker and swashy are almost constantly button-mashing, which I find quite fun, but I want to pick ONE of these as I hate having alts.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>As a berserker, I love having the chance to just run into a million enemies and kill them all without having to sneak around (and the zerker fluff spells look more fun).</DIV> <DIV>As a swashy, I love getting to stun and be able to go anywhere because of stealth and, of course, I love the really fast killing.</DIV> <DIV>I do enjoy both of these classes, but I would preferably go for the one that is classed as "better", even though I know how hard it is to compare 2 quite different classes.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>My questions would be:</DIV> <DIV>1) Who is the most sought after? Who would I find it easier to get into groups with (being on the Antonia Bayle server)?</DIV> <DIV>2) Who is the better solo-er?</DIV> <DIV>3) Is it true that zerkers can out-damage a swashy?</DIV> <DIV>4) If you were FORCED to start over again and could only choose one of these two classes, which would you choose?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Oh yeah, I guess I'm not bothered about tanking or being a DPS-person in a group, as long as people would want me to be in their groups and as long as I wouldn't be just a "backup" or a secondary class then I'd be happy.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance guys!</DIV>

[Yojimbo99]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>My questions would be:</DIV> <DIV>1) Who is the most sought after? Who would I find it easier to get into groups with (being on the Antonia Bayle server)?</DIV> <DIV>2) Who is the better solo-er?</DIV> <DIV>3) Is it true that zerkers can out-damage a swashy?</DIV> <DIV>4) If you were FORCED to start over again and could only choose one of these two classes, which would you choose?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Oh yeah, I guess I'm not bothered about tanking or being a DPS-person in a group, as long as people would want me to be in their groups and as long as I wouldn't be just a "backup" or a secondary class then I'd be happy.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance guys!</DIV> <P><BR></P> <HR> <P>well ive played both and still do sorta(my swash went to brigand at lvl 57 or so) so ill give my opinion for whats its worth ( which aitn a whole hella'lot)</P></BLOCKQUOTE> <P>1) well i dont play on Ab but most servers in general tend to be a bit tank heavy and a good solid dps class as far as im concerned such as a swash is by far more sought after in pugs for the most parts(plus other reasons which ill explain at toward the end).. and not that im a raid guru but  really most raids need another tank like they need a hole in the head</P> <P>2) got to give the tip of the hat to the swash at this. however it can be risky but with the stuns ghetto mez and such a well played swash as an advantage ( plus evac invis). your kills vs death ratio might be a bit lower but if u mean taking on nameds and thier loot  then swash by by a point or two imo ( as far as norm stuff its about the same)</P> <P>3) well as far as i have parsed in a grp settin  not really unless ive had open wounds/rampage( as a zerker)and a big enough grp of nasties to unleash on.. for raids.. agian not full knowledge here and im sure some with that insight will pipe in...but again so much depends on grp/ raid make up and optimizing classes.. swashies can lay dwn some damage as can zerks(esp if the setting is right) and even if zerks are beating alot of swashies in raids dps wise zerks dont debuff(well for all intents and purposes) just about every attk as a swash u will debuff/hinder something on a mob</P> <P>/4 if forced well thats a tough one.. but only given the choice .. prob swash..they are very versatile and  with a solid aa tree they can tank debuff  or do very solid damage( and some decnt ae damage in higher lvls) ..plus with  few high end aa's(mind u aa's can really define the rogue classes in general) do some neat stuff.. also agrro is like .. well a booger to a well played swash.. it can be picked, rolled up for later , or just flicked on whoever u want , a cool hat, a kinda crap grp invis and all the other lil things</P> <P>however if i was only gonna have to choose one tank to play in the game then hands dwn it would be a zerker.. just a completely solid tanking class.. takes a licking keeps on ticking but not afraid to bite back either. imo nothing really compares for  a tank class.. but given  the choice between just one or the other my torn heart would choose the flexiable nature of the rogue over  the hard line tank aspect of the zerk(but not if you really want to tank)<BR></P> <P>Message Edited by Yojimbo99 on <SPAN class=date_text>10-22-2006</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>05:17 AM</SPAN></P><p>Message Edited by Yojimbo99 on <span class=date_text>10-22-2006</span> <span class=time_text>05:22 AM</span>

[Baynne]

<div></div><div><blockquote><hr>Brewlar wrote:<div></div><div>Yo guys.</div><div>I'm a newbie and after spending two weeks trying out almost every class (and with some help from the community), I've narrowed my class choice down to 2 classes: Berserker or Swashy!</div><div> </div><div>Now, of course posting this in the zerker forum is gonna get me lots of zerker fanboys and what-not, but I decided to post here because it's a more popular thread than the swashy's thread, heh. And I do apologise in advance for making a class choice thread as there are enough already. And note: I have used search but couldn't find any specific threads similiar to this; they all seem to be arguments about how the zerker is/isn't a DPS class or something. Anyway...</div><div> </div><div>I'm an action player, and I love being able to kill many enemies at once (or being able to kill single enemies quickly), for the most part, but I don't like sitting there with auto-attack on. From my experience, both zerker and swashy are almost constantly button-mashing, which I find quite fun, but I want to pick ONE of these as I hate having alts.</div><div> </div><div>As a berserker, I love having the chance to just run into a million enemies and kill them all without having to sneak around (and the zerker fluff spells look more fun).</div><div>As a swashy, I love getting to stun and be able to go anywhere because of stealth and, of course, I love the really fast killing.</div><div>I do enjoy both of these classes, but I would preferably go for the one that is classed as "better", even though I know how hard it is to compare 2 quite different classes.</div><div> </div><div>My questions would be:</div><div>1) Who is the most sought after? Who would I find it easier to get into groups with (being on the Antonia Bayle server)?</div><div>2) Who is the better solo-er?</div><div>3) Is it true that zerkers can out-damage a swashy?</div><div>4) If you were FORCED to start over again and could only choose one of these two classes, which would you choose?</div><div> </div><div>Oh yeah, I guess I'm not bothered about tanking or being a DPS-person in a group, as long as people would want me to be in their groups and as long as I wouldn't be just a "backup" or a secondary class then I'd be happy.</div><div> </div><div>Any feedback is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance guys!</div><hr></blockquote>i too have played every class and in the last 2 years on and off have not lvld a toon to 50.  however right now i am pretty set on my serker.  i played a swash and i may again, they are awesome DPS / utility class.  i have been in groups too where swashy was the MT.  with stun and debuffs and good damage they can pull it off if they need to.  serker can tank a lot better tho, given the use of plate and a hefty shield when needed.1.) hard to say on this question because anyone can be LFG for hours at a time.  odds are tho that a swash will get a group before a serker for many reasons like there is already a tank or they just need higher DPS.2.) this is tough too.  i was able to solo quite well with my swash. so well that a lot of mobs were mostly dead before they got to turn and face me.  serker can take quite a beating but i cannot foresee me soloing much on mine.3.) i do not yet know this but with rampage/open wounds and a lot of mobs i would imagine it to be possible.  as far as single target and small group DPS? not as likely no.4.) as indecisive as i am, that question is impossible for me to answer lol.bottom line both classes can really do either role, but serkers hold aggro better and swash debuffs a lot more.  GL and more important just have fun <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" />  my 2 cp.</div>

[tvies]

<P>1)  There is a difference between what a successful group needs (healer and tank) and what it wants (like a specific mage or scout class).  As a zerker I usually start the group with a specific mission (quest or xp), grab a healer, then fill the group as needed.  I also spend a lot of time building relationships with healers in the group.  Knowing where they are on certain quests and being a dependable tank when they need one can really increase your chances of always having a group.</P> <P>You can also look at the typical group setup when deciding your class.  Most groups have 1 tank, 1 healer, and 4 DPS.  This means for every 1 tank spot open there are 4 DPS spots open.  Sometimes I can get into a group as a DPS with a zerker, but that is usually because no other DPS class is open.</P> <P>2)  From level 1-70 a Swashy, from level 50-70 a zerker.</P> <P>3)  If you are setup for DPS and you have a few levels on the Swashy then yes, a zerker can out DPS a swashy.  End game when your tanking and swashy is hammering away, not a chance.  Unless, like the others said, you are in a group of MOBs with open wounds, destruction, offensive stance, and all your AoEs are ready.  Important point here is that a zerker generates most of its agro from its damage unlike other tank classes, but we still need taunts to make up the difference.  1 DPS = 1 hate gained.  I have 4 taunts (a single target that is 400-500 hate, a defensive proc that is 200-300 hate, a group taunt that is 350-450, and a CA that does damage and adds hate around 300).  With a swashy those taunts are going to be replaced by DPS.</P> <P>4) Zerker, no questions.</P>

[Nembutal]

IMHO this is a better question for after EoF and the combat changes are known.  If you are looking for a definitive answer with unknown elements waiting to be unleashed then you will not find what you are looking for.I also agree though that there is 1 healer, 1 tank and 4 DPS slots in a group... Zerker is rarely considered DPS.. I actually disagree at this point becaise I can buff over +100 STR and add a proc that gives the people in the group +28% Haste and +28% DPS as well... then of course group regen to help shorten downtime a little.  As far as a support class that leans towards DPS we are good to go... then our own DPS can not be laughed at either.... and our tanking ability is rock solid.in EoF this could all change... but right now I think my zerker is pretty nice.I think more of the question is "do you like to be the puller?" tanks are typically considered the group puller which means if you hate pulling you should be a Swash.  If you don't mind pulling... I'd say zerker.<div></div>

[Disturbe]

<DIV>Best class for you would be swashy, heres why</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>1. Swashy are going to be more in demand, they have great debuff ability some of the best damage output and alot rarer than berserker. Berserkers are a dime a dozen on most servers, where there is normally only a hand full of swashys</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>2. Swashy will always solo better, their dps/debuff abilities let you kill twice as fast as berserkers</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>3. Berserker can burst damage higher than swashies past 50, but on long or maintained dps no. Berserker dps depends on having mulitiple mob and using open wound and rampage. Rampage proc XXX ae damage up to 10 time and open wounds is 100% chance to auto attack muliple targets in front of you and +45% attack speed buff for 35 sec, both of these have 3 min recast. At the same time swashy have 45-50% chance to auto attack muliple mobs at ALL time (hurricane).  And for raids, ask any raider 90% of the time top 3 parsers are assassin, ranger, swashy, not always in that order. I've read berserkers parseing 2000, this would have to be against 3 or more mobs that with berserker in ideal group with a skilled player in a fairly short fight, but a swashy in same spot should do just as well if not better.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>4. Hard to say I've already done the berserker thing and I've been thinking about making a swashy alt.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>5. As a berserker your going to tank, unless you start every group and invite someone to tank for you. Berserker = tank, hence your going to be wanted to tank, not dps. swashy make good backup tanks and can tank if needed if geared for it but your not going to be expected to tank normally.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>To sum it up if you don't want to main tank don't take a berserker you lose alot of useful skill to gain "tank" status. Swashies solo better, have better maintained dps, group invis, evac, great debuffs, hate transfer, etc.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Berserker think they can dps because once even 3 min they can top a parse, in a raid this wouldn't be a bad thing, but normal everyday grouping its once every 6-8 encounters for me.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Vonkonk 70/50 brigand, unrest   raid brigand of stc  </DIV> <DIV>Cronous 70/50 berserker, unrest</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>note: brigand is swashy's evil counter part</DIV>

[Brewl]

<P>Thanks for all of your replies guys. I'm gonna go with swashy for my first main due to the suggestions, and maybe try berserker when I start my next character.</P> <P> </P> <P>Once again, thanks!</P>