PVP: Werewolf, question on viability 1hander

[Anger-DRS]

For a while now me a and a few friends have been discussing creating a few werewolf/bear characters thanks to various influences, personally I frequently play melee and whilst I've never actually came up against a half decent one in Europe I found myself wanting to build one.

Out of the few I've seen, they all have one thing in common and that is a beastly two handed weapon, the most commonest an eth Zod Shael Shael Tomb Reaver or a EBOTD Warspike etc.

Whilst I can understand the advantage of this, huge damage, insane attack speed and often nice mods, I can't see how these would fare to well against melee though I guess 14k dmg at 4frames can kill rather fast my GM V/T'er or Zealer can take them out without to much fuss.

Using a shield, and if rabies or fire, good poison reduction and resistance and FHR often nullifies the threat of the WW/WB Druids and I've found they die rather quickly.

So would I be right in saying that the strategy behind one would be "kill quickly or die?"

So then I thought, what would be the viability of one of these against another melee character and...winning? My none exile Zealot (a rare site in itself) is armed with 7k Zeal dmg, not counting Deadly strike, 3xk def and 22k Ar along with just alittle under 3k life with BO and almost 50% DR and this has killed every druid I've came across, bar most windies of course, though I've noticed that Hoto/Whitsans ones can die with alot of difficulty if I go mad.

Anyway, back to Druids. Obviously a vital mod against melee is defence, Druids don't really have much of that, unfortunatly so getting hit often will be a problem.

If I were to arm my druid with Storm + Dungos I'd get the maximum DR% allowed, that and FHR would be my reliant defance against Zealers and WWBarbs, naturally I'd have 75% chance to block though my defence will still be rather low as werewolves have no defance multiplier mod :(

Before I get building I thought I would post my setup here, see what you guys think since you're the dr00ds, would this survive a half decent melange?

Helmet: Jalals Mane, This just seems so much better then Cerebus'
Weapon: Ebotd Zerker/Warspike
Shield: Stormshield Monarch (with a lovely FHR/DEX jewel if I get one)
Armour: Stone (2xxx def) or Duress (14xxx def)
Belt: Dungos
Gloves: Bloodfists
Boots: This is a hard choice, I'll check if Treks hit another FHR BP, if not then Gores or possibly Marrows for the STR/DEX bonus as druids have rather low chance to block with most shields, so Marrows + BOTD will help alot.

Charms: 10x Shapeshift GC's of vita/balance (yeah, my barbs dying for this druid)
9x Fine small charms of vita (3/1x/1x)
Annihulus

As you can see this shall be a Fury druid. I've messed about with a few in SP and noticed that if I leave WW and Lycan at base I can put points into Cyclone Armour + Synergy, bear in mind I am NOT using any Spirits as they die way to damn quick.

It doesn't have to be a fury druid though, currently I'm interested in Kazama Fury's flaming rabies, though since synergy bugs are banned by the PVP rules we play to thats impossible :(

Any comments? obviously help would be muchly appreciated.

Oh, and as far as the weapons concerned I've got a wide choice plus I can get some more. Is it worth trying? Or shall I just get a two hander in?

[evilchair]

i wouldn't use a 1 hander because you miss out on a lot of damage. I also would stick to 1 stragety and if fury druid is what u want invest in werwolf and lycanthropy. I would look at the cranium basher as a weapon with a shael in it. You hit 4fpa insane dmage with 75% cb as well as its resist bonus. the only problem with that is the cranium basher requires 250 strength to use so you would have to use heavy strength bonus items leviathin SteelIrend Jaljals ect. To get the extra resist in there i would use resist small charms or if possible a grand charm with a resistance bonus on it.

[Sim.The.GoSu]

DO NOT LISTEN TO DUDE UP!!!!!

4 frames is a very nice option for a ww. If I were you, I'd switch the BotD for a 4 frame weapon.

[Forcefeedback]

I'm not an expert on PvP, but I'll try to help where I can...
I would use a shield on a fury druid since they don't have a defence bonus, if you want to have defence as well, build a werebear.
You probably won't need all the fhr on the stone armor and as I said if you want defence, werewolf isn't the build for you. Use duress or coh.
I suggest you leave cyclone armor at 1point to be prebuffer or no points since it can't be recast in wereform.
Oak sage or how would benefit your build but since you aren't going to use them I suggest rabies without abusing the carrion bug.
Where are all your points going then if you aren't pumping lycantrophy, werewolf or spirit?

I can't see how you can reach 4 frames with a cranium basher(I calculated 11/7/7/7/7 fury with a shaeled cranium basher with 46% OIAS), are you sure evilchair that you are using the calculator correctly or have I miscalculated?

[MrGoth]

Oh jeez...

Ok, first all of the melee's that you have dueled are idiots.

Forget ebotd, unless its going to be a very fast 2 hand weapon on weapon switch for dueling casters.

Always duel with a sheild vrs melee, unless you forgot your brain in a channel.

As said, ditch ebotd 1 handed weapons, trade for a 4 socket griz caddy, socket it with 3 shaels or 3 edias jewels, and one LO rune {the deadly strike one}.

Amulet must be highlords. Deadly strike from Lo + this will be enough.

As for skills, dont think about cyclone armor in duels unless your a mage. First, you cant recast it while shifted, and 2nd, its overall effectiveness is horrible unless you pump it and 2-3 full synergies. Even at that a good sorc will rip it off.

Even if a spirit dies quickly, its still useful. Sage is best if you duel casters, HoW if melee.

If your going to be a fury wolf or mauling bear, max werewolf/bear & laco anyways, the point of shifting to get these attacks is to have a higher % ar/deff/damage/hp anyways, and its the only edge you will have.

Might need some more help here with your build, might have missed some things.

[Anger-DRS]

Whats the viability of a 6 40/15 Beserker Axe? I know it only hits like 6FPA but would range/damage make up for it?

[mepersoner]

5 40/15 + shael is good. That hits 4 frames.

Whoever said 4 frames about CB is just ridiculous, ignore them.

[2JZ-GTTE]

Like others said try getting a one-handed 4fpa weapon. There are a few choices out there, and there are still arguments as to which really are the best. A griz caddy is very popular though, since its not too hard to get.

If this is just for melee, then I would use a ED/something armor.

Deadly strike is extremely helpful, which is why I would recommend gore riders for boots.

If you want more FHR then just socket a shael into your jalals and you should be very close to achieving the 86% fhr bp.

A spirit is practically a must. Just recast if it dies.

Good luck and have fun.

[DistortedRiff]

I hear a CFKQ is good, is it though?

[2JZ-GTTE]

It's a pretty nice weapon. Since it is a dagger-class, the dmg gets boosted by dex, so if you have lots of dex (which you should for max block) then the damage is boosted. The downfall is the range though.

[Anger-DRS]

Wow, thanks everyone you've been very helpful.

Just some more things to ask.

Firstly, whats CFKQ I've never heard this definiton?

Alright, so speed is a must, I was thinking Rabies/Fury now anyway, also about the spirit thing if it dies rules say I can't recast it, however, maybe a few wolves would draw fire from me/it?

So a zerker would be viable? how dependant are melee wolves on range? i

Do you have a list of the fastest yet reasonably hard weapons to mf/trade/make somewhere?

[Strid]

Hi!

A CFKoQ is a Cruel Fanged Knife of Quickness. People usually stick a Shael and a 40/15 IAS jewel in them, so they hit the -95 Fury breakpoint.

Having a couple of Wolves running around you can be a great advantage, especially against skill with auto-targeting properties. They can also help to cause block-lock.
In .09 they were really popular, but it seems like people just tend to ignore them nowadays.
I don't know really. Personally, I don't use them because I don't find them very effective. They take a bit of my concentration everytime I have to resummon, thus making me move my character less effective.

Yes, a Robo 'zerker would definitely be viable for some situations. In most situations, I would recommed something like Griswolds Caddy and a range 5 weapon on switch, however. The advantage of using a 'zerker is having a great range (range 3) while having a shield aswell. This is awesome for hit-and-run strategies. For example, if you're going face-to-face melee with a superior opponent. Often other druids an pallies use range 2 weapons, and with a little practice, you will have a great chance of getting the first hit and then be able to run away again.

If you're looking for a great PvP weapon that isn't overly expensive, I can only recommend a 4 socket Griswolds Caduceus with 3x ED/IAS + Lo rune. This is arguably the weapon with highest damage, and its not that expensive compared to high-end cruels and rares.

Hope this helped.

[Anger-DRS]

Hi!

A CFKoQ is a Cruel Fanged Knife of Quickness. People usually stick a Shael and a 40/15 IAS jewel in them, so they hit the -95 Fury breakpoint.

Having a couple of Wolves running around you can be a great advantage, especially against skill with auto-targeting properties. They can also help to cause block-lock.
In .09 they were really popular, but it seems like people just tend to ignore them nowadays.
I don't know really. Personally, I don't use them because I don't find them very effective. They take a bit of my concentration everytime I have to resummon, thus making me move my character less effective.

Yes, a Robo 'zerker would definitely be viable for some situations. In most situations, I would recommed something like Griswolds Caddy and a range 5 weapon on switch, however. The advantage of using a 'zerker is having a great range (range 3) while having a shield aswell. This is awesome for hit-and-run strategies. For example, if you're going face-to-face melee with a superior opponent. Often other druids an pallies use range 2 weapons, and with a little practice, you will have a great chance of getting the first hit and then be able to run away again.

If you're looking for a great PvP weapon that isn't overly expensive, I can only recommend a 4 socket Griswolds Caduceus with 3x ED/IAS + Lo rune. This is arguably the weapon with highest damage, and its not that expensive compared to high-end cruels and rares.

Hope this helped.

Thanks for your help. Though blocklocks been abolished due to a timer before you can block, the closest would be using a 4fpa Zealer against a high lvl Dodge amazon whilst your team member uses armagedon on her ;)

Hmm..I wonder if the fact that I'll have high dex for blocking will multiply the daggers damage enough to be a threat?

Thanks so far guys.