User:Jdavis/Swords

This page, commonly called Bopp's Sword Guide, tells you just about everything you need to know about swords, whether you are a pure sworder or someone who uses swords on the side. The advice here applies equally well to free-to-play and pay-to-play players. It is focused on player-vs-enemy play, rather than player-vs-player play. For more general equipment advice, or to learn about me and why I write this stuff, read my my user page.

You should also check out the semi-official Swordmaster Guide. In my opinion, that guide erroneously focuses on sword feel rather than damage type. Also, because it is written by many people, the writing is not very polished. However, it is improving continually, and it offers player-vs-player advice and fighting tips, which this guide does not.

Damage Type

Damage type is the single most important consideration in choosing a sword (or handgun). There are four types of damage: normal, piercing, elemental, and shadow. Each monster family is vulnerable to, neutral to, and resistant to certain damage types. As a rule of thumb, hitting a monster with its vulnerable damage type gives you about 25% extra damage, while hitting a monster with is resistant damage type penalizes you about 75% of your damage.

Monster Family	Vulnerable To	Neutral To	Resistant To
Slimes	Shadow	Elemental, Normal	Piercing
Gremlins	Shadow	Piercing, Normal	Elemental
Beasts	Piercing	Shadow, Normal	Elemental
Fiends	Piercing	Elemental, Normal	Shadow
Undead	Elemental	Piercing, Normal	Shadow
Constructs	Elemental	Shadow, Normal	Piercing

Notice that all monsters are neutral to normal damage. This means that normal damage is general-purpose; it never incurs the 75% resistance penalty, but it never achieves the 25% vulnerability bonus either. A normal sword (particularly Leviathan Blade) is a good choice, for example, for a bomber who carries three bombs at a time, and wants a general-purpose sword as his fourth weapon, for getting out of sticky situations.

If you carry two or more swords at a time, then there is no particular reason to own a normal sword at all. Instead, you want to own a piercing sword, an elemental sword, and a shadow sword. Before entering a stratum or level, examine the gate map, to determine which two of these seem most useful. Use them on the correct monsters, to inflict huge damage on 4/6 of monsters and moderate damage on the other 2/6 of monsters. For example, if you are carrying piercing and elemental, then use piercing on beasts, fiends, and gremlins, and elemental on undead, constructs, and slimes. (Or carry all three types, to do huge damage to 6/6 of monsters.)

This same damaged-based advice applies to guns, and to mixtures of swords and guns. For example, a popular mixed setup is a piercing sword, an elemental gun, and a shadow sword. The reason is that guns are useful against turrets, and all turrets are vulnerable (gun puppies, howlitzers) or neutral (polyps) to elemental. The user carries all three of these, or just two at a time.

This damage-based advice doesn't quite apply to bombs, which are more idiosyncratic. But let's return to swords.

Sword Basics

Although damage type is the primary consideration in choosing a sword (or handgun), here are some other qualities to consider:

• Different swords can actually feel different to the player — a charming feature of Spiral Knights. Some swords are much faster than others. The piercing swords have stabbing motions that take some practice, to aim correctly. Every player who is into swords should try a variety of feels. There is no particular reason to restrict yourself to one feel. I regularly carry swords of different feels, and have no trouble switching among them in battle.
• Typically, slow swords have wide swings and long reach, so that they can hit multiple tightly packed monsters, while fast swords have small attacks that require close contact with monsters and rarely hit multiple monsters. The piercing swords, which are fast and long, are a notable exception.
• Knockback is useful for defense, especially in crowded rooms. However, in a party you must take care not to knock monsters into your teammates. This is especially true for Leviathan Blade's and Divine Avenger's charge attacks.
• All seven status effects — fire, freeze, shock, curse, poison, stun, and sleep — are useful to inflict on monsters, so consider weapons that inflict them. (There are a couple of tactical exceptions to watch out for, such as fire on oilers and shock on quicksilvers.)

Here is a summary of all of the 5-star swords: damage type, status effect, strokes per combo, and miscellaneous notes.

The guild Lancer Knightz is collecting data on the speed of various swords' combos, and hence how much damage per second (DPS) they can do. Although raw damage per second is not the only consideration in choosing a sword, you might want to check out their data.

So Which Swords?

Remember that, if you're into swords, then you want to own a piercing sword, an elemental sword, and a shadow sword. The direct comparisons in this section should help you make up your mind about the specific swords of each type. In each case, I try to present the objective facts, followed by semi-objective analysis of the implications, followed by my subjective opinion.

Piercing Swords

Facts: Final Flourish and Barbarous Thorn Blade are identical in their regular attacks. BTB's charge attack spews a shower of thorns, that damage several monsters moderately. Final Flourish's charge attack is essentially a more powerful version of its regular combo; it lunges into one monster (or a tight crowd), damaging it heavily. The other two piercing swords, Furious Flamberge and Fearless Rigadoon, are similar to Final Flourish, but sacrifice some damage for the ability to inflict status effects.

Implications: These swords kill piercing-vulnerable monsters so quickly that there is usually not much point in also inducing a status; you would rather just have as much damage as possible. The Final Flourish charge does more damage than the BTB charge against a single enemy or a tight crowd. Against a large crowd, the BTB charge is a bit safer, because it disrupts the attacks of several monsters, while the Final Flourish charge can leave the user exposed. All of these swords are much easier to use with auto-targeting on, than with it off.

Opinion: Final Flourish and BTB are equally good. Furious Flamberge and Fearless Rigadoon seem less good.

Elemental Swords

Facts: The three elemental Brandishes (Combuster, Glacius, Voltedge) use a fast, three-stroke combo, while Divine Avenger uses a slow, two-stroke combo. The Brandishes do more damage per combo, and can execute more combos per minute, for a higher raw DPS. DA enjoys longer reach, a wider swing, and more knockback. The Brandishes can inflict status (freeze, fire, shock) on charge attacks. DA's charge attack does more knockback and probably more damage, even after the Brandish charge was improved in early January 2012. While DA is charging or charged, the user moves at reduced speed; the Brandishes' charges let the user move at full speed. (The fourth elemental sword, Fang of Vog, uses a slow, three-stroke combo, which does low raw DPS but often sets enemies on fire. The charge attack is similar to Leviathan Blade's, except that it sets both enemies and the user on fire. I do not yet know the fifth elemental sword, Warmaster Rocket Hammer, well enough to comment on it.)

Implications: A Brandish combo offers more opportunities to dodge and shield than does a DA combo. Hitting fast enemies is usually easier with a Brandish than with DA. Against a single enemy, a Brandish does higher damage per second than DA does. Against tightly clustered enemies, DA's longer reach and wider swing mean that it can hit multiple enemies at once, potentially doing high total damage. However, completing a combo against multiple enemies without getting hit requires care. DA's higher knockback aids defense in tight, crowded fights. Among the Brandishes, Glacius' freeze is useful for crowd control, and it does some damage upon thawing, but freeze can hinder kiting and knockback. Voltedge's shock disrupts monsters somewhat, and does some damage, especially since shock does area-damage to close monsters. Combuster's fire is useful for extra damage, but offers no crowd control. Also, freeze and shock can prevent a monster from riding the entire Brandish charge attack for full damage; fire does not have this defect. Although the monsters in Firestorm Citadel are largely immune to fire, Combuster's charge attack still does damage — just not status. (FoV's main attraction is its colossal charge attack, which requires fire protection on the user. I don't know Warmaster Rocket Hammer well.)

Opinion: DA is better against crowds, especially if the monsters are slow, while the three Brandishes are better against individual targets. Each Brandish's status effect has advantages and disadvantages. There is no universal clear winner. (FoV is worse than those four swords, unless you have large charge time reduction and large fire protection. In any event, FoV is not a practical choice for a first elemental sword. I don't know Warmaster Rocket Hammer well.)

Shadow Swords

Facts: Acheron uses a fast, three-stroke combo, while Gran Faust uses a slow, two-stroke combo. Acheron does more damage per combo, and can execute more combos per minute, for a higher raw DPS. GF enjoys longer reach, a wider swing, and more knockback. GF can curse monsters, both on its regular attack and on its charge attack. GF's charge can also curse the user. Since the January 2012 Brandish update, the two swords' charge attacks now seem to do comparable damage and knockback. While GF is charging or charged, the user moves at reduced speed; Acheron's charge lets the user move at full speed.

Implications: An Acheron combo offers more opportunities to dodge and shield than does a GF combo. Hitting fast enemies is usually easier with Acheron than with GF. Against a single enemy, Acheron does higher DPS than GF does. Against tightly clustered enemies, GF's longer reach and wider swing mean that it can hit multiple enemies at once, potentially doing high total damage. However, completing a combo against multiple enemies without getting hit requires care, so this is not really a route to high DPS. GF's higher knockback aids defense in tight, crowded fights. GF's monster curse is useful against large enemies (Royal Jelly, lichen colonies), but small enemies do not usually live long enough for it to be useful. GF's user curse is dangerous; anti-curse armor and trinkets are desirable.

Opinion: GF is better for a defensive mode — doing single swings to keep a crowd at bay in a tight room, for example. Otherwise, Acheron is better.

Other Swords

This section is identical in style to the preceding section, but it deals with normal-damage comparisons and cross-damage-type comparisons.

Leviathan Blade vs. Cold Iron Vanquisher

Facts: Cold Iron Vanquisher does less base-line damage than Leviathan Blade, but does more damage against undead due to its damage bonus. Levi's charge attack knocks back more than CIV's does.

Implications: Levi does higher damage per second in most regular attacks. CIV's advantage against undead vanishes if lots of damage bonus is applied through armor, trinkets, and UVs. The high knockback of Levi's charge attack is good for defense, but it can disrupt teammates when used badly. Against light enemies, CIV's charge is more likely to hit three times and do heavy damage.

Opinion: Levi is better in most situations.

Dread Venom Striker vs. Wild Hunting Blade

Facts: Dread Venom Striker can inflict poison. Wild Hunting Blade does more damage against beasts.

Implications: WHB's advantage against beasts vanishes if lots of damage bonus is applied through armor, trinkets, and UVs. Furthermore, any piercing sword does far more damage against beasts than WHB does. DVS's poison is useful against most monsters — especially ones that heal, such as the Royal Jelly.

Opinion: DVS is better.

Sudaruska vs. Triglav

Facts: Sudaruska inflicts stun, while Triglav inflicts freeze.

Implications: If the Triglav successfully freezes its target, then the freeze prevents the target from being knocked back.

Opinion: I have no personal experience with either of these swords. The prevailing opinion on the forums seems to be that knockback is a main attraction of these swords, so Sudaruska is better.

Divine Avenger vs. Gran Faust

Facts: Divine Avenger does elemental damage, while Gran Faust does shadow damage. Therefore DA does more damage against undead and constructs (and fiends), while GF does more damage against slimes and gremlins (and beasts). DA's charge attack does more total damage. GF's charge attack can inflict curse on monsters, but it can also curse the user. Contrary to the statistics bars displayed on these items, GF is not significantly faster than DA.

Implications: Damage type is a major consideration in choosing a sword, so these swords are not really comparable. People ask about these two swords only because they are similar and they are both obtainable from Jelly Gems.

Opinion: If you have already decided that you are going to craft either DA or GF, then choose the one that complements your other weapons' damage types. In the case of a tie, choose DA, because DA is as good as any elemental sword, whereas GF is perhaps not quite as good as Acheron.

Calibur vs. Brandish

Facts: Calibur and Brandish are 2-star swords, not 5-star swords. The 5-star versions of these swords do various kinds of damage (normal, elemental, shadow). The Calibur-style charge attack can hit several monsters up to three times, with large knockback. The Brandish-style charge attack hits one monster (or a tight crowd) once, with up to five additional damage bursts, depending on the star-level of the Brandish.

Implications: Damage type is a major consideration in choosing a sword, so these swords are not really comparable. People ask about these two swords only because they are similar in their 2-star versions.

Opinion: If you are primarily a gunner or bomber who wants to own a single sword for all emergencies, then get a Leviathan Blade. If you are primarily a sworder, then do not get any Calibur-line sword, but strongly consider Brandishes (to complement the damage types of your other swords). If you use a mixture of swords and guns, then strongly consider Brandishes (to complement the damage types of your other swords and guns).

Armor and Trinkets

There are three armor sets that give sword bonuses: Skolver, Vog Cub, and Snarbolax. Note well that the Snarbolax armor can be crafted only in the Shadow Lairs; it is not a good choice for your first 5-star armor. Barbarous Thorn Shield is the only shield that gives a sword bonus. Swiftstrike Buckler is tempting, but its protection is terrible. Other popular shields for sworders are Grey Owlite Shield, Volcanic Plate Shield, and Crest of Almire.

Each of the sworder armors excels in certain situations. For the Royal Jelly Palace, where most of the damage is normal and piercing, the best choice is the Skolver armor. For the Firestorm Citadel, where most of the damage is normal and shadow, but there is also lots of fire, both Vog Cub armor and Snarbolax armor seem good. I have had far greater success with Vog Cub armor, because the shadow damage is easier to dodge than the fire. Insofar as there is a general trend, it's this:

• Vog Cub offers better defense than Skolver. Elemental and fire are more prevalent than piercing and freeze, especially due to Firestorm Citadel. Also, Vog Cub's attack speed increase helps you disrupt enemies, further improving your defense.
• Skolver offers better offense than Vog Cub. While Vog Cub's speed increase amounts to one unique variant on each of your swords, Skolver's damage bonus amounts to somewhere between two and six unique variants on each of your swords. Also, the percentage increase in damage bonus is greater than the percentage increase in speed increase, so damage bonus improves your damage per second more.

I recommend to any new player that he or she build a general-purpose armor set before building more specialized sets. Sworders should consider getting Ash Tail Coat/Cap, and then upgrading one piece to Vog Cub, and then upgrading the other to Skolver. Sworders should also consider the combination of Divine Veil with Skolver Coat; this is probably the best general-purpose armor set in the game.

There are trinkets to enhance your sword attack speed, damage, and charge time. Coordinate these with the unique variants on your swords, the sword bonuses on your armor, and the Medium charge time reduction that comes automatically at heat level 10. In particular, you can always achieve the following bonuses on all swords.

• Very High speed increase: Vog Cub Cap or Elite Quick Strike trinket, Vog Cub Coat or Elite Quick Strike trinket
• Very High damage bonus: Skolver/Snarbolax Cap or Elite Slash trinket, Skolver/Snarbolax Coat or Elite Slash trinket
• Medium charge time reduction: heat level 10

Remember, these are just baselines. Barbarous Thorn Shield, Swiftstrike Buckler, and any unique variants on your swords let your swords achieve even higher bonuses. My personal strategy is to seek charge time reduction unique variants on my swords, and to let my armor and trinkets handle the speed increase and damage bonus.