[Thidranki] LvL24 Shadowblade Specs?

Hi guys. Lets do a little brainstorming about "working specs". I never played a shadowblade before so please correct them with a little advice.

Race
Norse +15 Str 10 Quick

Crit Spec (+5 all skills in mind

20 Stealth (for MOS but 19 would be enough)
21 Crit (for perf)
17 Poison (to reach con/weapon debuff)
10 Axe (LvL10 anytime haste debuff style)
3 LeftAxe (rest)

1.) You would perf or backstab to start the fight with a 2hander.
2.) Fighting a caster. Just spamm garotte
3.) Fighting a melee. Keep haste debuff running with the anytime axe style. After that use after evade style with backup garotte.

You heavily rely on your openers. Is the melee damage playable?

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Zerk Spec (+5 all Skils in Mind

a.) with con/weapon debuff poison

19 Stealth (dont rely on crit openers)
19 LeftAxe
15 Axe (LvL10 anytime haste debuff style)
17 Poison (to reach Con/Weapon Debuff)
2 Crit (Rest. for Opener and Bubblebreaker)

b.) without con/weapon debuff poison

20 Stealth (Could go 20 LA or 20 Axe but dont see an advantage)
19 LeftAxe
19 Axe (LvL10 anytime haste debuff style)
10 Poison (lvl 20 dot)
2-6 Crit (Rest. for Opener and Bubblebreaker)

The difference between the lvl 15 and 20 dot is only 5 damage. So i dont kow if it is worth spending more than 10 points
into envenom without trying to reach the lvl22 con/weapon debuff poison.

For both specs i dont know which styles to use. Most of them got a -defence penalty.

On Paper :

1. Starting the fight :
- LvL 2 crit style against casters to break bubble
- LvL 15 axe style "evernight" from behind with a 2Hander (+10hit/0,60 GR) ?
- LvL 4 leftaxe style "doubler" from behind (+5 hit/-5def/0,62 GR) ?

2. Infight :
- LvL10 axe anytime style "pillager" (+5hit/0,40 GR) for 21% haste debuff

After that

- LvL 12 axe detaunt style "hoarfrost" (+5 Hit/+10 def/0 GR) to better get the leftaxe after evade "comeback" (+10hit/0,94 GR) style off ?

The LvL 10 leftaxe style "snowblind" (+5Hit/-10def/0,6 GR) has a penalty. So im running out on options here ^^

Please someone enlighten me.

Please answers with an explanation i can work with. Nothing like "i would spec xy...xy.. thats it)

Fri 26 Jul 2019 10:41 PM by Numatic

To go crit you need comp weapon which means dropping envenom. Your best bet is a SZ spec 19 st, 19 axe, 15 LA, 17 env, 2 CS. This gives you comp weapon (I believe at 24 your comp spec is your level, unlike at 50 its 52). 17 env gives you your first wpsk/con debuff. That debuff is VERY worth it and should not be overlooked. LA increases your base dmg and LA style damage. But You need Axe also for your weaponskill and overall max damage (iirc, this server has alot of custom changes so i may have missed something). LA should not be higher than Axe until axe is at least at comp level.

Your bread and butter is going to be your pillager/plunderer combo. You could also use ravager/atrophy but your style damage will be lower, thus lower damage.

Use cleave/thrym for your evade combo

Sat 27 Jul 2019 6:55 PM by Cruella

Numatic wrote: ↑
Fri 26 Jul 2019 10:41 PM
To go crit you need comp weapon which means dropping envenom. Your best bet is a SZ spec 19 st, 19 axe, 15 LA, 17 env, 2 CS. This gives you comp weapon (I believe at 24 your comp spec is your level, unlike at 50 its 52). 17 env gives you your first wpsk/con debuff. That debuff is VERY worth it and should not be overlooked. LA increases your base dmg and LA style damage. But You need Axe also for your weaponskill and overall max damage (iirc, this server has alot of custom changes so i may have missed something). LA should not be higher than Axe until axe is at least at comp level.

Your bread and butter is going to be your pillager/plunderer combo. You could also use ravager/atrophy but your style damage will be lower, thus lower damage.

Use cleave/thrym for your evade combo

Thank you for your time! So you prefer a zerker build instead of the crit spec. Is there a reason for that?

Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:31 PM by Numatic

Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 6:55 PM
Numatic wrote: ↑
Fri 26 Jul 2019 10:41 PM
To go crit you need comp weapon which means dropping envenom. Your best bet is a SZ spec 19 st, 19 axe, 15 LA, 17 env, 2 CS. This gives you comp weapon (I believe at 24 your comp spec is your level, unlike at 50 its 52). 17 env gives you your first wpsk/con debuff. That debuff is VERY worth it and should not be overlooked. LA increases your base dmg and LA style damage. But You need Axe also for your weaponskill and overall max damage (iirc, this server has alot of custom changes so i may have missed something). LA should not be higher than Axe until axe is at least at comp level.

Your bread and butter is going to be your pillager/plunderer combo. You could also use ravager/atrophy but your style damage will be lower, thus lower damage.

Use cleave/thrym for your evade combo

Thank you for your time! So you prefer a zerker build instead of the crit spec. Is there a reason for that?

Limited spec means giving up dmg. As a SZ in thid you can pop them out of stealth without having to be in position for opening. Speccing for crit would mean losing out on poison or LA. And you rely heavily on getting PA off. If you miss or fail you're likely not going to win in a straight 1v1. I suppose it matters on what your playstyle is. Crit is still viable, I just look at raw dps. Just need to worry about getting PA off.

Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:42 PM by Cruella

Numatic wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:31 PM
Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 6:55 PM
Numatic wrote: ↑
Fri 26 Jul 2019 10:41 PM
To go crit you need comp weapon which means dropping envenom. Your best bet is a SZ spec 19 st, 19 axe, 15 LA, 17 env, 2 CS. This gives you comp weapon (I believe at 24 your comp spec is your level, unlike at 50 its 52). 17 env gives you your first wpsk/con debuff. That debuff is VERY worth it and should not be overlooked. LA increases your base dmg and LA style damage. But You need Axe also for your weaponskill and overall max damage (iirc, this server has alot of custom changes so i may have missed something). LA should not be higher than Axe until axe is at least at comp level.

Your bread and butter is going to be your pillager/plunderer combo. You could also use ravager/atrophy but your style damage will be lower, thus lower damage.

Use cleave/thrym for your evade combo

Thank you for your time! So you prefer a zerker build instead of the crit spec. Is there a reason for that?

Limited spec means giving up dmg. As a SZ in thid you can pop them out of stealth without having to be in position for opening. Speccing for crit would mean losing out on poison or LA. And you rely heavily on getting PA off. If you miss or fail you're likely not going to win in a straight 1v1. I suppose it matters on what your playstyle is. Crit is still viable, I just look at raw dps. Just need to worry about getting PA off.

How would you spec the critblade? Like i meantioned? My buddy wants to go for perf.

Sat 27 Jul 2019 9:28 PM by Numatic

Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:42 PM
Numatic wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:31 PM
Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 6:55 PM
Thank you for your time! So you prefer a zerker build instead of the crit spec. Is there a reason for that?

Limited spec means giving up dmg. As a SZ in thid you can pop them out of stealth without having to be in position for opening. Speccing for crit would mean losing out on poison or LA. And you rely heavily on getting PA off. If you miss or fail you're likely not going to win in a straight 1v1. I suppose it matters on what your playstyle is. Crit is still viable, I just look at raw dps. Just need to worry about getting PA off.

How would you spec the critblade? Like i meantioned? My buddy wants to go for perf.

19 st, 19 axe, 21 CS, 7 LA, 5 Env

If it becomes a drawn out fight the loss in LA and Env will show. Luckily 2h is a bit more viable in thid due to lower defenses (evade, shield, parry etc) and you dont have to worry about a slow CD followup.

Sat 27 Jul 2019 9:53 PM by Cruella

Numatic wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 9:28 PM
Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:42 PM
Numatic wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:31 PM
Limited spec means giving up dmg. As a SZ in thid you can pop them out of stealth without having to be in position for opening. Speccing for crit would mean losing out on poison or LA. And you rely heavily on getting PA off. If you miss or fail you're likely not going to win in a straight 1v1. I suppose it matters on what your playstyle is. Crit is still viable, I just look at raw dps. Just need to worry about getting PA off.

How would you spec the critblade? Like i meantioned? My buddy wants to go for perf.

19 st, 19 axe, 21 CS, 7 LA, 5 Env

If it becomes a drawn out fight the loss in LA and Env will show. Luckily 2h is a bit more viable in thid due to lower defenses (evade, shield, parry etc) and you dont have to worry about a slow CD followup.

So you mean a higher weaponskill with 19 axe is better than 10 axe + the lvl22 con debuff? i dont know the exact delve but it should be something
like -50 con. You could "count" that as damage too.

Sat 27 Jul 2019 10:04 PM by Numatic

Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 9:53 PM
Numatic wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 9:28 PM
Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 8:42 PM
How would you spec the critblade? Like i meantioned? My buddy wants to go for perf.

19 st, 19 axe, 21 CS, 7 LA, 5 Env

If it becomes a drawn out fight the loss in LA and Env will show. Luckily 2h is a bit more viable in thid due to lower defenses (evade, shield, parry etc) and you dont have to worry about a slow CD followup.

So you mean a higher weaponskill with 19 axe is better than 10 axe + the lvl22 con debuff? i dont know the exact delve but it should be something
like -50 con. You could "count" that as damage too.

It's not just weaponskill. Axe determines max dmg as well IIRC. You could try both specs and see which one works best for you(him). The higher envenom could offset the loss in wpsk and damage.

Sat 27 Jul 2019 10:10 PM by florin

Also highly recommend you test bs2 damage vs PA because it may actually hit harder the way PA scales on this server

Sat 27 Jul 2019 10:20 PM by Saroi

Having comp weapon in Thid is not really needed. 10 axe should be fine, you can go higher axe too and lower CS to 18.

Because of the custom changes, PA will do less damage than Backstab 2 in this level range and Backstab 2 also stuns the enemy. There is absolutely no reason to prefer PA over Backstab 2 and you get a followup with Tigh cut which deals more damage than anytimer. (Unless you see another sneak, then PA will be easier to execute instead of Backstab 2)

This is level 24, so having higher weapon doesn't have a big affect. This is also the reason why you will see some NS/Inf using a staff to open for Backstab 2 or PA, because it will do more damage than 1h slash/thrust specced.

Shadowzerk won't really be viable, you pretty much need the openers. Infs have a 6 sec evade stun, every Alb melee will be crushed spec, meaning they have a 2part anytime 6 sec stun. So you are already in a disadvantage here and as a Shadowzerk you won't have burst damage to compensate. You are missing Doublefrost, so Garotte as anytimer will have much higher damage than the anytimer from axe/sword/la in this level range.

The first weapon/con debuff from level 22 is as a value of 55. You can only count it as "damage" if you Miss Backstab 2.

In the end it will come to your playstyle and what you like more. You can respec free for the first 24 hours so you can do some testing for yourself and see what works for you in the end or how your enemies are.

Sat 27 Jul 2019 11:00 PM by Cruella

Saroi wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 10:20 PM
Having comp weapon in Thid is not really needed. 10 axe should be fine, you can go higher axe too and lower CS to 18.

Because of the custom changes, PA will do less damage than Backstab 2 in this level range and Backstab 2 also stuns the enemy. There is absolutely no reason to prefer PA over Backstab 2 and you get a followup with Tigh cut which deals more damage than anytimer. (Unless you see another sneak, then PA will be easier to execute instead of Backstab 2)

This is level 24, so having higher weapon doesn't have a big affect. This is also the reason why you will see some NS/Inf using a staff to open for Backstab 2 or PA, because it will do more damage than 1h slash/thrust specced.

Shadowzerk won't really be viable, you pretty much need the openers. Infs have a 6 sec evade stun, every Alb melee will be crushed spec, meaning they have a 2part anytime 6 sec stun. So you are already in a disadvantage here and as a Shadowzerk you won't have burst damage to compensate. You are missing Doublefrost, so Garotte as anytimer will have much higher damage than the anytimer from axe/sword/la in this level range.

The first weapon/con debuff from level 22 is as a value of 55. You can only count it as "damage" if you Miss Backstab 2.

In the end it will come to your playstyle and what you like more. You can respec free for the first 24 hours so you can do some testing for yourself and see what works for you in the end or how your enemies are.

Havent thought about that ones.

There is some testing to do then...

1.) 21crit 17 venom 12 axe <- test pa with con debuff
2.) 21crit 10 venom 16 axe <- test pa without con debuff

3.) 18 crit 17 venom 16 axe <- bs with con debuff
4.) 18 crit 15 venom 18 axe <- bs without con debuff / could raise axe to 21 but perhaps the lvl20 dot is better

Sun 28 Jul 2019 5:40 PM by Saroi

Cruella wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 11:00 PM
Saroi wrote: ↑
Sat 27 Jul 2019 10:20 PM
Having comp weapon in Thid is not really needed. 10 axe should be fine, you can go higher axe too and lower CS to 18.

Because of the custom changes, PA will do less damage than Backstab 2 in this level range and Backstab 2 also stuns the enemy. There is absolutely no reason to prefer PA over Backstab 2 and you get a followup with Tigh cut which deals more damage than anytimer. (Unless you see another sneak, then PA will be easier to execute instead of Backstab 2)

This is level 24, so having higher weapon doesn't have a big affect. This is also the reason why you will see some NS/Inf using a staff to open for Backstab 2 or PA, because it will do more damage than 1h slash/thrust specced.

Shadowzerk won't really be viable, you pretty much need the openers. Infs have a 6 sec evade stun, every Alb melee will be crushed spec, meaning they have a 2part anytime 6 sec stun. So you are already in a disadvantage here and as a Shadowzerk you won't have burst damage to compensate. You are missing Doublefrost, so Garotte as anytimer will have much higher damage than the anytimer from axe/sword/la in this level range.

The first weapon/con debuff from level 22 is as a value of 55. You can only count it as "damage" if you Miss Backstab 2.

In the end it will come to your playstyle and what you like more. You can respec free for the first 24 hours so you can do some testing for yourself and see what works for you in the end or how your enemies are.

Havent thought about that ones.

There is some testing to do then...

1.) 21crit 17 venom 12 axe <- test pa with con debuff
2.) 21crit 10 venom 16 axe <- test pa without con debuff

3.) 18 crit 17 venom 16 axe <- bs with con debuff
4.) 18 crit 15 venom 18 axe <- bs without con debuff / could raise axe to 21 but perhaps the lvl20 dot is better

Have fun and see how it goes