Sacred 2:Sacred 2's Top 10 Best Unique Weapons Guide
|
|
Sacred 2's Top 10 Best Unique Weapons GuideBy Dobri
In itself, it is one very prudent and strong question. Every player wants to build the best character that will live long in the world of Ancaria and dominate it from start to finish. People all over the world devote countless hours of their time to achieve this goal. This is why I will attempt to save them some of this time by pointing out the best unique weapons in each category and giving a quick reasoning why did I decide to put them up for consideration. I have also refrained from adding weapons that provide bonuses that skills do as well, unless the item had other significant merits and is well worth keeping it. For example, having a weapon that improves attack speed is not all that useful, as investing in the respective skill will easily let you hit the 150% attack speed cap. Other weapons I have left out are the ones that provide chance to fear opponents away and chance for a knockback. Although these modifiers have their certain usefulness, no close combat fighter will want to scare or push back his opponent away and need to chase it to inflict another hit. This is why I decided to set the following criteria for the weapons that will qualify for the top 10: 1. Criteria. I am going to evaluate all items based on several innate item traits:
2. What kind of weapons qualify for position in the top 10? All kinds of unique and set weapons and shields qualify. Shields are included since they can be used in the left hand by most characters in the game (only the Temple Guardian and the Inquisitor cannot use them), and attack speed penalties may incur from using them, which clearly defines them as an offensive and/or defensive types of “weapons”. I will explain why I decided to call them this way later. QUALIFYING ROUND List of all weapons who qualify for a place in the top 10 best unique items 1. Staves and Wands. 1.1. Nlovae's Mystery – undoubtedly one of the best items for spellcasters in this game, as it has everything a caster needs: improvement of the combat art’s range, reduction of the regeneration times and additional casting speed, as well as 2 gold sockets. 1.2. Ignis Magica – very peculiar one-handed staff. It has only 1 gold socket, but it sports a bonus to the spell intensity, casting speed and to the enemy’s level for deathblow. Very useful for casters who rely on combat arts based on their weapon and to dual staff wielders. 1.3. Shadow Weaver – this two-handed staff has only 1 gold socket, but sports 4 modifiers that are widely favored by all casters: bonus to combat art’s range, spell intensity, and casting speed, as well as reduction to the regeneration times. 2. Swords (one and two-handed). 2.1. Ancrid's Blade – in my opinion, that’s the “berserker’s sword”. One handed, decent damage, chance for double hit, bonus to dexterity and 3 sockets (bronze, silver and gold). Dual wielding two of those easily obtainable swords can inflict a considerable amount of damage in no time – hence the “berserker’s sword” label. 2.2. Excalibran – that’s the best caster’s sword available with great modifiers – reduction on the penalty imposed by buffs, reduction of the regeneration times, and bonus to all combat art skills and to the casting speed. The only setback this sword has is that it sports only 1 gold socket. 2.3. Khandar's Slicer – life leech +value, bonus to all offensive skills and 2 gold sockets. This sword may not look like much, but it can easily become your favorite, as it is very easily obtainable and can be dropped easily almost anywhere. In my opinion it is the easiest to get unique sword that will suit any close combat oriented character. 2.4. Officer’s Saber – labeled “The king of all swords” by many players, this inconspicuous sword sports relatively poor modifiers – faster increase of survival bonus and a bonus to attack value – but it allows for the best customization there is in all of Ancaria with its 3 gold sockets. 2.5. Lorga’s Sword – very popular and hard to obtain two-handed sword. Favored by two-handed weapon users for its bonus to all combat arts, bonus to all offensive skills and 3 sockets (1 silver, 2 gold). 2.6. Uruk’s Destiny – somewhat easy to obtain two-handed sword with great modifiers that are offset by the single gold socket it has. The modifiers though, are everything a close combat fighter with a big sword wants: chance for double hit, bonus to all combat arts, bonus to all offensive skills and bonus to the attack value. 3. Hafted weapons (one and two-handed). 3.1. Braggis’s Law – very interesting one-handed club. It has only 1 gold socket, but has great synergy with a lot of other items (unique, set and rare alike) because of its modifiers: high chance to halve the regeneration times, bonus to all combat arts, opponent’s level for death blow, and chance that opponent cannot evade attacks. 3.2. Kal’Dur’s Legacy – the hardest to obtain hafted weapon in this game, and for a good reason. It provides life leech from enemies based on percentage (+%), chance to halve regeneration time and a great bonus to attack speed, which becomes so significant at higher levels, that dual wielding two of those will allow you to kill everything very fast even with only one hard point in the dual wield skill. 3.3. Methedrin’s Scepter – a great one-handed hafted weapon, perfectly suited for casters and fighters alike. It has a great synergy with staff weapons, since it provides a significant bonus to intelligence based on percentage (+%), not a flat value, along with a bonus to chance for critical hits, chance that opponent cannot evade attacks and attack speed. The only offset is the single gold socket this weapon has. 3.4. Nadjii’s Splitter – beautiful-looking hafted weapon with great modifiers. Many players keep one just for its looks, but its modifiers are not to be neglected as well: bonus to strength attribute based on percentage (+%), reduction of regeneration time and a decent regeneration per hit, which now in Ice and Blood works perfectly. 3.5. Tinwora’s Curse – arguably the best weapon for any caster and a favored choice and sought after weapon for everyone – and of course, for a good reason. It provides a significant boost to all combat arts and casting speed while reducing the regeneration times at the same time and sporting two wonderful gold sockets. 3.6. Nitao’s Hammer of Black Death – a two-handed set hammer, for everyone who can wield it. I selected it because of its amazing usefulness against every tough opponent. Simply look at the modifiers: chance for deadly wounds, chance to inflict deep wounds, opponent’s level for death blow, chance to disregard armor, and this wasn’t enough, chance that opponents cannot evade attacks! Simply amazing weapon for any hafted weapons user. 4. Ranged weapons. 4.1. Djalek’s Annihilator – this one-handed gun doesn’t look like much, but it is a very viable alternative for any ranged character. It provides additional experience per kill, which improves the leveling, along with a bonus to all offensive skills and a reduction to opponent’s defense value, along with 2 sockets – silver and gold. It is a very strong substitute for any ranged character whose main weapon is way too powerful for the current enemies. 4.2. Dragonbone Swiftbow – a very interesting bow with 3 types of damage (physical, fire, poison), two silver sockets and 2 good modifiers – opponent’s chance to evade and bonus to the chance to burn the opponent. It may not look like much, but the 3 types of damage and the modifiers make sure that the character will miss rarely and will always have a good source of damage in any area. 4.3. Testa’s Annihilator – an amazing, easily overlooked two-handed ranged weapon with wondrous capabilities, provided the player wants to exploit them. It has 3 types of damage (physical, magic, fire) and a bonus to the chance to burn/poison/weaken/freeze all in one! Now shall we add a poison weapon modifier to transform part of the physical damage to poison? If we do, you get a weapon that has a chance to burn, poison and weaken all in one – and with great synergy with damage lore too! Looking at all this, you will certainly consider the experience per kill bonus, the attack bonus and the two gold sockets as a mere bonus… 5. Shields. 5.1. Glacial Defender – a great offensive/defensive type of shield. It is offensive type because it sports a nice bonus to the combat art range, and it’s also defensive because it provides a decent all channel (all elements) damage mitigation. Looking at this, the fact that it’s very easily obtainable and the penalty on the enemy’s chance to freeze and the single gold socket once again look like a mare bonus. 5.2. Shield of Mirrors – small, cymbal-looking shield with a significant bonus to the experience per kill and stamina, along with 3 sockets – bronze, silver and gold. Great for leveling, great to boost the regeneration of combat arts due to the stamina bonus and great for customization - what more could a weapon + shield type of fighter or caster want? 5.3. Stalworth Safeguard – a safeguard all right! This shield not only provides dramatic all channel resistances, it also reduces the chance of the enemy to inflict any secondary effect (detrimental effect) and provides a decent bonus to the defense value, along with the faster increase of the survival bonus and one gold socket. 5.4. Kira’s Wall – as soon as this set shield started dropping in Ice and Blood, many players labeled it the king of all shields. It provides a significant reduction on the penalty imposed by buffs, all channel damage mitigation, armor bonus, block chance close combat and projectiles unlocked by shield lore, along with one gold socket. A truly amazing shield – if only it wasn’t dropping so hard… 6. Polearm weapons. 6.1. Cordell’s Javelin of War – along with its decent damage, this weapon sports all the modifiers a close combat fighter needs – bonus to all combat arts, opponent’s level for deathblow, flat bonus to strength and a bonus to attack value, along with a single gold socket. 6.2. Optimus Minimus – wonderful weapon for the hybrid fighter. It has only 1 gold socket, but it compensates it with bonus to all combat arts, reduction in regeneration times and a bonus to all offensive skills. 6.3. Slicing Scythe – a beautiful-looking weapon, designed for fast killing with maximum efficiency. Good damage, chance to inflict deep wounds, bonus chance for critical hits, life leeched per hit and two gold sockets – the perfect weapon for the quick killer. 6.4. Maritha’s Stake – a wondrous weapon. No customization whatsoever, but this weapon is “the Critter” – amazing bonus to chance to crit (+178.1 at weapon level 229), as well as bonuses to strength based on percentage (+%), life leeched per hit, bonus to attack value, and even a reduction to the regeneration times. All those modifiers are well worth sacrificing the customization in my opinion! 7. Blades (Daggers). 7.1. Saint Coralie’s Mercy – a simple set dagger, not looking like much… However, looking closely at it, you will notice that it fits any set and can be used anytime, anywhere – it has bonus experience per kill along with chance to find valuables, hitpoint regeneration and a great visibility range, which is great for opening up the map to improve your chance to find valuables even more. And to top it all, you also get a single gold socket to improve it even more! This is it! 27 weapons and shields battle for the top 10 in terms of availability, customization, modifiers and usefulness. As usual, it is very hard to determine the winner, but based on the criteria I have laid out in the beginning, there are a few who easily stand out…
Let’s get down to business! We chose 27 weapons of all unique items in Sacred 2, but only a few chosen must earn the top positions… As I noted just a little while ago, I will evaluate them based on availability, customization, modifiers and usefulness. The countdown begins! Position 10: Khandar’s Slicer – an easily overlooked sword, the new player’s best friend. Drops very easy, had decent modifiers to get everyone going right from the start, spawns every 12 levels, which means it can be used for quite a while before getting outdated (for a reference, officer’s saber spawns every 15 levels). The two gold sockets allow for a good customization, the life leech will keep your character alive as long as he/she is swinging the sword, and the offensive skills bonus will keep him up to par with the enemies even with a sword that dates 10 levels back. Position 9: Two two-handed weapons win this position – Lorga’s Sword and Nitao’s Hammer of Black Death. Lorga’s Sword is definitely the best two-handed sword with its multitude of sockets and bonus to combat arts and offensive skills. Nitao’s Hammer is the best that can be wielded by all who can (I’m understandably excluding all of the Shadow Warrior’s two-handed hafted weapons), and they rightfully share this position. Position 8: Shield of Mirrors – this little cymbal wins the 8th position. The extra experience per kill, the stamina bonus and the three sockets is just too much, as it allows for all kinds of customizations. Even though few people rely on it throughout their game, this is the shield that blocks just as well with shield lore mastery and can boost you XP gain by a great deal at any point, which makes it the power leveler’s best friend. Position 7: Testa’s Annihilator and Excalibran: two weapons that are easily overlooked, but carry equal punch and equal usefulness. Testa’s Annihilator is an awesome weapon to anyone who can use it properly. Excalibran is the caster’s best friend before he/she can find something better, as it boosts everything the caster needs, even with its single gold socket for customization. Position 6: Nlovae’s Mystery and Staworth Safeguard share this position. My observations are that Stalworth is still the shield of choice for many weapon and shield characters (mainly casters and boss hunters), and Nlovae’s Mystery is the next best one-handed wand after Tinwora’s Curse due to its modifiers and customization options. Position 5: Ancrid’s Blade – a great sword that drops easily, and in the hands of a well-built character can wreak so much havoc that it’s hard to imagine. The bronze – silver – gold socket setup however is not really the beginner’s best friend, as the new player will be hard pressed to smith runes and smith arts in the bronze socket, rings in the silver and amulets in the gold one. Position 4: This position share 2 shields – Kira’s Wall and the Glacial Defender. Kira’s Wall is by far the best shield in the game with the introduction of Ice and Blood, but its drop rate is so low, that you may never find one. On the other hand, the Glacial Defender represents a slightly underpowered Kira’s Wall, but it drops pretty much everywhere and is the easiest shield to obtain and use. Position 3: Tinwora’s Curse – this one handed wonder takes the bronze medal. The reason for that is that it comes with a lot of great modifiers and the two gold sockets can be used for all skills, all combat arts, more regeneration reduction, and so on. It is arguably the best weapon for every caster character. Position 2: Kal’Dur’s Legacy – this legendary in Sacred 2 Fallen Angel and now a unique weapon in Ice and Blood takes the silver medal. Quite honestly, it is the best weapon in the entire game. It has two gold sockets, attack speed boost, life leech percentage (+%) – downright everything you need to get to level 200. It does have one flaw though. It drops very, very, very rarely. Did I miss another “very”? I guess so… This is the sole reason why this amazing weapon comes in second place. Position 1: Officer’s Saber – and the gold medal goes to the Officer’s Saber! The very reason for that is that the Officer’s Saber fulfills every single criteria I made up right from the start. Let’s analyze: - Usefulness right from the start – but of course! Decent damage, fast attacks, 3 gold sockets that can be filled up with everything that drops at any Blacksmith in any village, then emptied if anything better drops; - Modifiers – even though it does not look like much, the faster increase of survival bonus is actually one of the best modifiers available. It means your attributes will improve quickly, your chance to find valuables that comes with the survival bonus will rise on its own and you will not be left with meager drops if you have no Enhanced Perception available. The Attack value bonus will not help some casters, but it will help the melee fighters; - Customization options – the 3 gold sockets are a treasure to behold. Stacked modifiers on rings and amulets receive double bonus (+10 all skills will become +12, same with + all combat arts), simple modifiers get a +1 boost - so technically, if you go for +all skills/+all combat arts you will not get as far as a Tinwora’s in term of all combat arts bonus, but you will get better overall because of the higher + all skills you’ll be able to slap in; - Availability – the Officer’s Saber is also one of the most common unique sword that drops in this game – and I can say that from experience – I have dual Officer’s Sabers all the way to 155 – and how many I have sold I can’t even begin to recall; - Assumption that there is no support for the character that will use it – the saber lets you socket everything at any time and you don’t need a shopper or a personal smith to work with it. Simply put anything useful you get from hunting in it and you’re all set. Then make some more useful socketables (rings and amulets), take out the best of your formerly socketed items and add the new ones – this way you get a weapon that improves as you use it and hunt with it. No other weapon can do that. And if you find a second one to dual wield – even a new character will start feeling powerful against regular enemies and even some simpler mini bosses. And if you can farm mini bosses – then the only way is up, baby! There it goes! These are the things to look for and to keep in mind. I am well aware that if you have support, personal blacksmith, and so on, things may change as it unbalances the standpoint as well as the viewpoint, but I need to be as objective as possible – for that reason I set the criteria to be equal for everyone. I do hope you enjoyed the read, and best of luck while hunting for those precious items!
Originally published at DarkMattersfor review and discussion. See Also |
