Make Axe Viable Again

Hi,

The title of the thread says it all! Firstly, I am a 17x hero (hybrid axe and sword user) cuz I personally liked the appeals of an axe as well as the hype of a sword.

I'm thankful for the recent release of NT, where players can now craft their own end game weapons (or wait for a lucky drop from the bosses).

However, the situation now is that even with the new NT weapons, some weapons are comparably less viable than others (in terms of attack speed and of course, overall dpm). Why is that so though?

[comparing between 1h axe and 1h sword]
Speaking of experience, I know that 1h axe gives you a wider range (lower base and higher top range) while 1h sword gives you a lower range; albeit one that is more consistent in terms of dpm. Comparatively, 1h axe loses out to 1h sword in terms of dpm, this is especially so when 1h axe usually as of a lower speed tier than 1h sword (ie 1h sword hits faster than 1h axe). This statement is made in reference to the end game NT weapons - NT sword (fast 4) vs NT axe (fast 5).

As a result, I almost don't see any hybrid heros in the server (or axe hero so to speak) because it's simply not viable to have it. I would like to propose, if possible, that axe users be REVIVED by making the end game axes the same speed tier (fast 4) as their swords counterparts. I think not for selfish reasons but for a simple one just to balance out the weapons The change wouldnt give axe users an unfair advantage to the sword counterparts as the weapon is
1) hard to get/craft (same as the sword counterparts)
2) same speed tier meaning there's no unfair advantage in terms of dpm dealt.

I'm open to any comments

 

Not that extreme as to balance out all the axes though, what I meant is not for axes to be made more viable than swords or the other way around, but for both axes/swords to be equally viable/balanced in terms of the end game content (as of right now, 1h NT axe gives much lesser dpm than 1h NT sword due to its speed tier)

I feel that SP resets can be saved up overtime so it isn't a really pressing issue. But to see more variety of characters (e.g axe-wielding heroes) ard maplelegends would definitely make the game more fun and enticing, and would be a step forward in encouraging people to take up weapons that were previously thought to be less viable.

 

I just hope to further elaborate with these 4 examples, hopefully to put things into perspective:

1) 2h NT axe - max wa 115, normal (6) versus 2h NT sword - max wa 113, normal (6)
2) 1h NT axe - max wa 110, fast (5) versus 1h NT sword - max wa 105, fast (4)
3) 2h stonetooth sword - max wa 106, fast (5) and 2h dragon claymore - max wa 110, normal (6)
4) 2h colonian axe - max wa 104, normal (6) and 1h dragon axe - max wa 106, normal (6)
*not mentioning the 2h dragon battle axe that has a max wa of 111 but a speed of slow (7) that is simply too pathetic to put into comparison*

First of all
Previously, before the release of NT, we can clearly see why axe heroes are not viable. As shown in 3), stonetooth sword has the highest speed tier as compared to 4) the axe counterparts and has been confirmed and shown in other forum posts to deal the most dpm (without SI support).
With SI support, dragon claymore (a 2h sword) outshines stonetooth and all other axes due to the fact that it has the highest wa. This makes axe heroes almost completely absent from the server.

Now that Neo Tokyo is released
NT weapons take on a new arena as the end game weapons and I believe this is the time to make changes to the previous imbalances that I feel should have been corrected (or at least looked into).

Speaking of 1) yes I do agree with akashsky that 2h NT axe is equally viable (deals comparable dpm) as 2h NT sword due to the fact that both weapons are of the same speed tier and similar in wa. The fact that axes generally have a larger attack range would mean that the overall dmg is less consistent, which justifies why 2h NT axe is 'compensated' with 2 more wa (max wa 115) as compared to 2h NT sword (max wa 113). Overall, both weapons will deal similar dpm (regardless of SI support).

However, 2) is rightfully pointed out by akashsky as well that the disparity here is seemingly large, due to the fact that both weapons have different speed tiers and while 1h NT axe is 'compensated' with 5 more wa (max wa 110) than 1h NT sword (max wa 105), the 5 higher wa of the axe simply cannot match up to its sword counterpart due to the difference in attacking speed, hence leading to a lower dpm dealt by an axe user (I have tested and proven this point personally with my 1h NT axe and 1h NT sword).

Does the disparity here unintentionally discourage 1h axe users? Yes I believe so.

I am therefore proposing a change/review (and with the following justifications)
>> Changing the attacking speed of 1h NT axe to fast (4), same as that of 1h NT sword.

The question now is whether such a change will make 1h NT axe more OP than 1h NT sword, or even more OP than 2h NT axe and sword?
>> My answer is No, for the following reasons:
a) while 1h NT axe has 2 wa more than 1h NT sword, the fact that the axe has a larger attack range means that the damage dealt is less consistent as compared to the 1h NT sword, hence both weapons will dish out similar dpm.

b) the presence of SI support does not come into argument here. 2h NT axe and 2h NT sword will outshine the 1h NT counterparts when SI is available, simply because the 2h NT weapons wields higher wa. The same argument used for a) can be used when comparing 2h NT axe with 2h NT sword, and both of them will do similar dpm nonetheless.

All in all, I would like to reiterate that this post was made NOT with the intention to seek for a total revamp of axes or swords but for the sole purpose of balancing end game weapons (particularly 1h NT axe) - to minimise disparity between the weapon and its counterpart (e.g. 1h NT axe versus 1h NT sword and so on). This is to encourage players to enjoy more combinations of their preferred end game set-up while still maintaining a level-playing field.

Thank you!

 

hmm, any more feedback on this? tryna bump this thread

 

Just wanna bring to your attention on the thread made previously by bluelight [skills and weapon balance (blunt, axe, staff)] just 4 months back..

Some suggestions like increasing weapon mastery/increasing tier speed only for end game weapons/adjusting multiplier for 1h vs 2h were rightfully brought out as well.

maybe this would spur on (and stress the need for) some positive changes in the future?

 

Bumping this thread again <3 especially with the influx of players this season! Share what you think!