Having a hard time deciding between Magma Shortsword and Breastplate of the Forge.

[Terantatek]

Hey, im new to the forum and have been having fun playing the game. I'm at a crossroads though that's giving me a hard decision. Can anyone help me decide which would be the better choice?

I'm a melee rogue with grissenda as my companion. Would it be better for me to get the Magma Shortsword for myself or settle for Flaming Dirk and Vulcan Dagger and get the Breastplate for Grissenda? What would be the better boon to my adventure IYO?

Also I was wondering if there's a point to having both mainhand and offhand having the same elemental affect? I'm not quite sure how the elemental damages are counted into damage formulation. Like does +4 fire damage only do 4 fire damage or does it change the damage type entirely?

Sorry if my post isnt formatted well. Any insight would he helpful, I've already exhausted all the Google search results.

 

[Owns]

Can anyone help me decide which would be the better choice?

I personally prefer Breastplate of the Forge and give it to Grissenda. It will be the best Body armor for fire resistance until a better option becomes available at the very end-game. It is also unique, meaning you will never have another chance of obtaining one. Magma shortsword on the other hand, you will find again and similar variations of it.

wondering if there's a point to having both mainhand and offhand having the same elemental affect?

Definitely yes. Different enemies will have different weaknesses (or resistances). So if an enemy is weak against fire for example, you will want as much fire elemental damage against them as possible. Fire weakness is probably the most common in the game by the way (many undead you'll encounter and most animals with fur are weak against fire).

The way damage works is as so: First there is 'normal' (non-elemental) damage. This damage will be mitigated by armor. Then you have elemental damage. Elemental damage is only mitigated if the enemy has resistance to that specific element type. If the enemy has a weakness to that element then you will do enhanced elemental damage on top of what's in the weapon description (you should try to achieve this as much as possible). If an enemy is neither weak nor resistant to an element, then elemental damage will simply deal the damage as described (true damage, neither mitigated nor enhanced).

I suggest switching on the combat-log in your settings (while playing) and keeping an eye on the damage calculations. Any time you see your damage minus some value, it means the enemy is resistant to that element (or in the case of normal damage it is mitigated by armor). Whenever you see your elemental damage with a plus some value that means the enemy has a weakness to that element. If you tap the text at the top of the screen you'll pause and open the log so you can have a better look. You can also review the wiki's Bestiary to see enemy stats and resistances. A resistance listed as negative means it is a weakness. Hope this helps!

 

[VDX_360]

I tend to go with the Ring of Health. By the time you can get the Ring of Health, there aren't many other poison resisting items. Since the Grotto of spiders is soon after, the poison resist is nicely timed. Plus it's +20 health is noticeable in the early to mid-game. The only other time you can get the Ring of Health is from the Three vs. Eleven quest, which offers the Shield of Life as the (oftently) more preferred option. The ring also has some late and end game usefulness.

The game offers several comparable fire weapons, including the light Flamming Warhammer that does more damage (Moon Children Quest). Also, right after the Fort Assault quest, you're likely ready for the World is a Stage that offers the Icicle, an ice-based weapon that deals more damage than the Magma Shortsword. So really, unless you're heading to the Trollfins right after Fort Assualt, the Magma Shortsword won't see as much use as you might hope.


For players joining the Warrior's Guild, they can buy the Magma Shortsword later, making the Breastplate of the Forge a more useful item. Still the Ring of Health is nice.

 

[VDX_360]

I'm not quite sure how the elemental damages are counted into damage formulation.

You're in-game combat log can help guide you through the calculations each attack.

The basic physical damage of the weapon is calculated, including all special sources of PHYSICAL damage such as weapon attributes (Orc Killer, Crusader etc), skills that raise physical attack (Fury, Heavy Handed etc). This also includes damage increases due to Potions of Giant Strength etc. This is one lump sum of all physical damage displayed as your damage done minus the enemies physical defense. Some randomness in both values. It's the first row displayed in the attack entry.

Than the extra damage from elements is calculated per source, regardless of type. This includes weapon elements (poison, fire, death etc) or skills that add a weapon element such as the Cleric's undead killing skill. Note, each source of extra damage is calculated separated, even if its the same element type as another source resulting in one row of calculations per source of extra damage. I use Arnenos' Might as an example because the physical damage bonus is added to the lump sum equation but the fire damage is handled as element damage. Each source of element damage is applied against the enemies resistance values, which alter the damage amount by a percentage (and based on semi-recent updates, some enemies are completely immune to some elements and some elemental enemies are healed). Each row is displayed as Damage plus/minus a value (based on resistance) for damage from that source. Multiple sources of element damages results in multiple rows. If two sources offer the same element type, they are still calculated separately.

 

[Terantatek]

The similar weapons to Magma Shortsword dont really fit my build much. I'm going to be an Assassin Rogue with Grissenda 1h as my companion. So the Longsword and Hammer wont do enough damage I'm assuming. Is the Volcanic Dagger good enough to replace the Shortsword? Also I'm joining Seventh Guild for the Assassinate skill so I cant get Magma if I pass it first time.

I'm wondering what out of the 3 will get the most use. Breastplate would of course be great for grissenda, but would it work if I just used fire resist potion on her in areas with a couple pieces of meh fire resist gear? Saying like 50 or so fire res pre-final endgame bosses.

Then there's Ring of Health, I've read that rogues shouldn't need the huge boost of hp or you are doing something wrong (could be an elitist saying that). And with the poison resist, is there a poison resist potion that may replace it if I can afford it?

 

[Owns]

and Hammer wont do enough damage I'm assuming

Why not? The hammer is also a Light weapon and does slightly more normal damage than the Magma Shortsword but slightly less fire damage.

Is the Volcanic Dagger good enough to replace the Shortsword?

No, the Magma Shortsword is one of the best fire elemental Light weapons (if not the best) in the game, but vulcan dagger + flaming dirk will still deal loads of damage to those weak against fire. Bear in mind you won't always need fire damage, and imo the best early game weapon for a rogue is Troll Cleaver for its high damage and Vicious attribute, it should last you for a long time. Few enemies are resistant to Toxic damage (equally few are weak against it too though). Later, Stiletto (don't underestimate Vicious2), especially if you're going for crit build.

I'm wondering what out of the 3 will get the most use. Breastplate would of course be great for grissenda, but would it work if I just used fire resist potion on her in areas with a couple pieces of meh fire resist gear? Saying like 50 or so fire res pre-final endgame bosses.

Probably the Magma Shortsword will find most use. But in my opinion very few items will be as useful as the Breastplate when you do need it, while for the Shortsword you'll still manage with the alternatives. In my experience, when you're heading to areas that require high elemental resistance, it'll be much more important to have the high resistance (at least 100) than it will be to have the highest damage. You'll want to have 100 resistance from gear alone plus potions on top imo. Typically as many elemental resistance gear/rings as you have, you'll need to equip and again nothing will offer the same Fire protection as the Breastplate until very end-game gear, even though you will need for more than one dungeon. (I play on hard difficulty though, might be different at normal or casual).

 

[Owns]

Also remember to compare weapon speeds (and DPS), not only the damage range. Faster weapons will put in more attacks, especially in a long fight. And if you want a crit damage build, that's even more important since the more hits, the more crits and daggers usually have a higher crit chance.

 

[Terantatek]

Hmm, it seems like Breastplate is the best choice then. Unless someone thinks otherwise for me.

 

[turboexpress]

I have a off-hand flaming hatchet in my arsenal that sometimes my rogue companion uses when we go troll hunting. His main weapon is Lightning Axe. He also sometimes uses fire bow. Never had any problems with trolls. I'm warrior class and use the flaming longsword. Could an option for you be to get flaming longsword for Grissenda? For your rogue mess around with off-hand weapons that deal fire damage?

 

[Duck123]

I think the breastplate of the forge will be better, you can get the ring of health again, or at least a very similar version and I have found the magma shortsword many times but the chest plate is unique