Weapon of Choice + HELP

[ApacheDemon]

Hey guys I have created this thread to ask you guys what is your weapon of choice and well what weapon you think is best. Not any specific weapon but more a weapon type e.g battle axe or mace. But also I have a question for just my playthrough. What is better... a battle axe or a greatsword (both two handed) because well I've used both and can't tell which I prefer could people who no more tell me the advantages + disadvantages of each. And is two handed worth it or should I try to find a weapon with a higher rate of swing?

So those are my questions, but feel free to add any comments that have to do with weapons and weapon choice in skyrim

(And just because here's my youtube channel, www.youtube.com/user/ApacheDemon I've just started a skyrim playthrough)

 

[morguen87]

• Greatswords swing faster and use less stamina for power attacks, but do less damage than battleaxes.
• Battleaxes swing a little slower, use more stamina for power attacks (they are heavier), but do more damage than greatswords.
• And if you want to consider warhammers, they do more damage than both greatswords and battleaxes, but swing the slowest and use the most amount of stamina for power attacks.

 

[Onyx]

Hiya.

Here would be my feedback from testing + info from the guidebook

Swords
- Fastest Attack Speed
- Lowest Base Damage
- Maxed Perk -> 20% Crit Chance = about 5% damage boost in the long run

Axes
- Medium Attack Speed
- Medium Damage
- Perk Max: Increased Bleeding DoT. Not sure of overall damage, but I find this the most useful as when using 2H weapons I hit once with Power Attack, then weave out and then attack again several seconds later. The whole time this perk is doing damage (I think between 3 - 10 damage per second).

Maces
- Slowest Attack Speed
- Highest Damage
- Max Perk: Ignore 75% of targets armor. A big bonus against heavily armor targets. Less useful against light armor and offers no advantage over non-armor wearing foes.

For my opinion, for 1h I prefer either swords as I can get the most attacks in. If I have free perks I also take the mace perk and have a backup for when I meet a heavy armor foe.

For 2h I prefer axes as with the bleed effect they are constantly taking damage which is pretty good considering I only hit them every 4-5 secs or so (if not longer as I do not go in swinging widly but more weaving in, hit and weave out to avoid counter attack).

 

[M'aiqaelF]

i prefer the sword for 1H for the speed as well as the perks for critical damage and the increased chance to behead the opponent

 

[brandon]

for two handed weapons i prefer swords or axes. they have better cut scenes. but you should consider dual weilding 1h weapons an axe mace combo is fantastic. and they do about the same dam as a 2h weapon with the power attacks. and they have the same perks ie extra bleeding for axes and ignore armor for the mace.and you can decapitate with any weapon it doesnt have to be a sword or axe. ive decaped just as many people with my mace as my axe

 

[wheato]

I'm a big fan of dual wielding maces.

 

[squaretwo]

I prefer any kind of one handed weapon, because my other hand always burning with fire or spark.

 

[morguen87]

I've been using a greatsword lately and I really like it. I used to always use a warhammer, but found those better for just 1 on 1 fighting since they swing slowly and use a lot of stamina for power attacks. For example, If I kill someone after multiple power attacks with the warhammer, I won't have any stamina left to use on the next guy.

My stamina stays up longer with the greatsword, and combined with it's faster swing, I have an easier time against groups.

While the warhammer is still the better 1 on 1 weapon, I don't usually have a problem with most 1 on 1 fights anyway. It's the groups that most often get me killed.

I haven't experimented with a battleaxe yet, the middle ground always seems to kind of bore me. I'd rather have the fastest swinging or the heaviest hitting two handed weapon.

 

[brandon]

yeah the groups of enemys is why i switched to 1 handed weapons they dont take much stamina and combined they do as much dam as any 2 handed weapons. i put alot of points into my 2 handed but then i had to start working on my 1 handed skill i wish i had read about the dual weild before i got into the game. i was at lvl 23 or 24 when i switched. now im doing 160 dam or so with my one handed attack. at lvl 41. if i had gone straight 1 handed it would be maxed out already.

 

[Timett]

I am a big fan of dual wielding: A dagger in one hand, your enemy's throat in the other.

 

[morguen87]

yeah the groups of enemys is why i switched to 1 handed weapons they dont take much stamina and combined they do as much dam as any 2 handed weapons. i put alot of points into my 2 handed but then i had to start working on my 1 handed skill i wish i had read about the dual weild before i got into the game. i was at lvl 23 or 24 when i switched. now im doing 160 dam or so with my one handed attack. at lvl 41. if i had gone straight 1 handed it would be maxed out already.

I want to try this, but I'm the same way, I've invested so many points in two handed I'd hate to basically start over with one handed. I think I'll try it when it's time to make a new character.

 

[modi]

I see that you it seems as though you have counted out warhammers....I also counted out warhammers at first because of how slow they are, but then I tried using one....I haven't used anything other than a warhammer since. A couple things. As far as one hand vs. 2 hand, it depends on the character you have. I have an Orc, and since they have a huge boost to heavy armor, I chose to take advantage of it by using 2 handed weapons. Personally, for a warrior, I feel that 2 handed weapons are much more satisfying. If you are a battlemage, 2 handed weapons wouldnt work. Also, If you are using a 2 handed weapon, I personally feel that Greatswords are not nearly as strong as Battleaxes or Warhammers. From there, I do not feel that Battleaxes are fast enough to compensate for being weaker than the Warhammer. Since using my Orcish Warhammer, I one hit every draugr (other than overlords etc) & one or 2 hit every human. Obviously I can't do the same against a dragon, but I do well over twice the damage in less time than I would do normal damage with a one handed weapon.

As far as the details on advantages and disadvantages, it roughly goes like this:

Greatsword: Fastest of all 2 handed weapons, weakest of all 2 handed weapons, ALSO can have a 10% increase in probability for critical strikes when leveled up.

Battleaxe: 2nd fastest 2 handed weapon, 2nd strongest 2 handed weapon, ALSO can cause extra bleeding damage when leveled up.

Warhammer: Slowest, but Strongest. ALSO can ignore 25% of armor worn by your enemies when leveled up.

As I have said, I feel like the best weapon class is the Warhammer. My thought process is that all 2 handed weapons are rather slow, so I might as well get the strongest one even if it means getting the slowest one.

 

[ApacheDemon]

Wow... good response, for those interested let me clear up a few things, I hae used the warhammer but I just dont like the stamina drain or the lack of speed, i dont like the pause in the heat of battle. And my character is a Nordic heavy warrior. From what i've heard so far i think I might have to use both the axe and dual wielded swords. (you can do that right?) I will probably use my axe while roaming but for when i go into a dungeon or a multi enemy fight will have the dual wields to back up on, luckily im not a fan of magic or alchemy and such so I have a much smaller skill range to spend my lvl up points on

For any future posts lets souly turn this into just a weapon discussion page. Because well it's my favouriite aspect of the game and enjoy reading on it and hopefully you do to.


(SKYRIM PLAYTHROUGH:

)

 

[morguen87]

Is the axe you're referring to for roaming about a two handed battle axe? Because the one issue that you could potentially run into by using both 2handed and 1handed weapons is spreading yourself thin between the two when you really could just be using one or the other. That said, playing the game however you enjoy it is more important, just be aware there's a possibility of spreading your combat skills thin.

 

[ApacheDemon]

AAARRGH i hate logic... :/ ok ok ok... I'll pick up a sword and see if i have any mad desire, if not i'll do the exact same thing but use a greatsword if things get rough... really all i want is a sleavless armor top to make my character look like a BEAST

 

[morguen87]

Haha like I said, just play the game doing whatever makes you enjoy it more. That's the most important thing. I just wanted to give you a little fair warning, that's all. I'm by no means saying don't do it.

 

[ApacheDemon]

Nah i know what you mean, i kinda thought that two... BUT one question, can i realistically peruse making a high level heavy armor + 2 handed weapon + archer character?

 

[morguen87]

Nah i know what you mean, i kinda thought that two... BUT one question, can i realistically peruse making a high level heavy armor + 2 handed weapon + archer character?

I'm playing an orc now that wears heavy armor and sneaks with a bow but has a greatsword for backup. I get detected more often in heavy armor than I would in light, but also don't mind getting detected as it gives me an excuse to use my greatsword, so it's no big deal.
I haven't spent any perks in the heavy armor tree yet, I've been putting everything into 2handed, sneak, and archery, but I wear heavy armor and so far everything is working pretty well.

I basically start every dungeon sneaking around with the bow and take as many people out stealthily as I can until I get detected in my noisy heavy armor then the fight with the greatsword starts.

I may have spread myself a little thin, but again it comes down to doing what you enjoy, and I like having a flexible way of getting through a dungeon - it's more fun to me. I have had my share of difficulties, but the orc's special ability (Do 2x damage while taking 1/2 damage for 1 minute) is amazing and has gotten me through some rough situations.

And honestly, sneaking in heavy armor isn't that bad with the perk that reduces armor noise. I get detected more often because I'm not taking my time and decide it's "greatsword time" than the amount of times the armor noise gives me away.

 

[ApacheDemon]

You my good sir, are an inspiration to us all. I used to be a sneaky sneaky in Oblivion but I've decided to become a 'noble' warrior beast : P and in this the job description kinda forces me to run in guns blazing but i generally just let the game play itself out and spend on what i need at the time (btw the heavy armour tree is pretty useful!!)

 

[Rayven]

Nah i know what you mean, i kinda thought that two... BUT one question, can i realistically peruse making a high level heavy armor + 2 handed weapon + archer character?

Absolutely. The problems arise when you spread yourself too thin when it comes to skill raising. I think one armor type, one melee weapon type and one ranged weapon type is a great balance.