2h vs pole

[Rangerbob]

I'm just asking a quick question.  2h vs pole I tend to get alot more glancing as pole even with bec.  I'm assuming its because they're too close to me when I swing.  I did notice that swords don't have this issue as much.  Can I get a confimation that poles do glance alot because of the wooden shaft of the weapons?

[Patricia]

As 2h even with bec? What the shit, the bec is a polearm.

[v/onMega]

Actually poles dont glance that often.

All depends on distance and position of your victim.

Keep in mind that Powerstrike figures 5 and lower are always more likely to bounce.

[Phew]

I've got PS 9, and at least a quarter of my swings with a Heavy Great Long Bardiche "glance". This happens when the target is too close.

It's annoying, but realistic, since the sharp bit is near the end of the shaft.

Then there's 2H swords: same max range as a long awlpike, same minimum range as a pick.

[v/onMega]

You do s*** loads of dmg with this thing then :-) Its a beast when loomed....

900 hours of 2 h play and 1 gen of polearm play expierience tell you :

Your impression might be subjective.

I tend to blame my bad positiong / footwork whenever i glance.

For a best comparisson i recommend to try out 2h swords for 1 gen... :-)

[gazda]

i always played pole, and then i swithced to 2h for a bit, and holy f**k if that aint easy mode then what is, and thus i stayed

[Rangerbob]

Pretty much I went 1 gen as pole and 1 gen as 2h and 2h seem to get much fewer glances.  Not to dis polearms because they're really strong with spike mace bec and pikes but the min range thing you notice alot in close in battles with shielders and siege maps.  Just wanted to know if it was just me being subjective.

[Corrado_Decimo]

i always played pole, and then i swithced to 2h for a bit, and holy f**k if that aint easy mode then what is, and thus i stayed

2h is not easymode. is just different.

2h advantages are:

- little more speed and reach (because polearm is held with one hand at the grip and the other at 1/3 while 2handed swords are held by the grip only and thus are swinged farther, twohanded animation is 4 points faster)
- the thrust attack of most of the 2handed swords
- the flamberge damage is matched only by the great long bardiche that have shieldbreaking ability but is unbalanced.
- parry speed unmatched... 2h swords are the weapon you want in duels.

polearms advantages are:

- every poleaxe is a shieldbreaker AND not UNBALANCED.
- the long maul is really a better version of the short 2handed great maul.
- if you're fast, you can stunlock your enemy.
- the bec de corbin is a 4 directions piercer. the 2h equivalent morningstar is slower, shorter, don't have thrust attack, heavier and most important IS UNBALANCED and don't blockcrush no more.
- you have better gameplay variety (halberd infantry, long pike anti-cav support, horse lancing) while 2handed is pretty much only anti-infantry
- you go stuck if you facehug with a poleaxe or voulge

[Yugop]

polearms advantages are:

- every poleaxe is a shieldbreaker AND not UNBALANCED.
- the long maul is really a better version of the short 2handed great maul.
- if you're fast, you can stunlock your enemy.
- the bec de corbin is a 4 directions piercer. the 2h equivalent morningstar is slower, shorter, don't have thrust attack, heavier and most important IS UNBALANCED and don't blockcrush no more.
- you have better gameplay variety (halberd infantry, long pike anti-cav support, horse lancing) while 2handed is pretty much only anti-infantry
- you go stuck if you facehug with a poleaxe or voulge

-The extra damage against shields is rarely ever useful.

-I disagree ... But maybe that's just me.

-Only person I could really see stunlock people reliably was Assahardon, and that was with a plain staff. You can't stunlock anyone with decently damaging polearms.

-the morning star actually has about the same reach, if not more, than the bec. Anyway, no one uses anything else than the german/danish swords as 2h, so that's obviously what we're adressing to first.

-as for "only anti-infantry" :
-take any large 2h sword
-horse incoming
-stab head
-finish rider off
-????
-Profit !
It's true it's not as efficient than before with the new animation, though.


Don't get me wrong, it's not game breaking in any way, but imo you definitly get an advantage with a 2h sword. And that comes from someone who played 2h characters extensively in the past. Also, not cRPG's fault, you can notice the same thing, perhaps even worse, in native.

[Rhaelys]

I never really notice glancing with my Mighty Poleaxe; in fact, I've gotten more BS hits/kills when the opponent was right next to me, counter-intuitively. It all depends on your positioning and footwork, and at what point you hit in your attack animation.

While 2Hs are better dueling weapons (superior attack animations, weight), polearms are better battle weapons (by virtue of their support abilities such as increased reach, shield breaking, polearm stagger, horse rearing)

[gazda]

only way to be competent with polearm in 2h world is to

A use light weapon which doesnt do much dammage and go for agi build with high weapon master and thus high pole wpp, but that way you will deal a really low damage

B use bec de corbin, which still isnt up to the lvl of 2h, couse even though it has 120 lenght, which is around the lenght of a descent 2h, pole swing animation shortens it alot, so youll have to invest in high athletics to dance around the target
                 

[Corrado_Decimo]

-as for "only anti-infantry" :
-take any large 2h sword
-horse incoming
-stab head
-finish rider off
-????
-Profit !
It's true it's not as efficient than before with the new animation, though.

try to lolstab a knight when he couch you with his heavy lance... yes you can do it if he's a noob. try later with a 240 long pike that stop his horse. there is a reason if a knight run away from pikes while don't fear twohanders.

[Rhaelys]

only way to be competent with polearm in 2h world is to

A use light weapon which doesnt do much dammage and go for agi build with high weapon master and thus high pole wpp, but that way you will deal a really low damage

B use bec de corbin, which still isnt up to the lvl of 2h, couse even though it has 120 lenght, which is around the lenght of a descent 2h, pole swing animation shortens it alot, so youll have to invest in high athletics to dance around the target
                 

I use a Mighty Poleaxe (90 speed) with a 24/15 build (111 WPF in polearms) and I do just fine against 2Hs. Granted, in duels 2Hs have the advantage, since I'm terribad slow, but it's a matter of knowing battlefield movement as well as combat movement to position yourself for the kill(s).

[Cyclopsided]

The sweet spots for poles are more towards the end where the actual weapon is [I think, and it should be], and lots of glances occur due to poor positioning. 2h does not suffer from these as much it appears.

I still prefer pole arms though, people do not give them the credit that they deserve. They do need a better stab animation, that is for sure. 2h has a much better stab animation than pole arms. I'll keep enjoying the hitbox issues and using them to their fullest with pole arms though.
If you exploit game mechanics, pole arms are better than 2h. If you use pole arms in teamwork, they are way better than 2h.
Use 2h in single combat/duels and they are way better. Since 90% of melee fights are just duels, 1 v 2 duels in which the 2 players don't use teamwork, or a series of 1 v 1 duels, 2h is superior. HOWEVER, THAT IS METAGAME NOT BALANCE. If the metagame was people using teamwork, people would complain about poles being OP.

They have their places, I'll continue to rely on god tier pole arm teamwork that wins every battle of 2+ player melee combat. You guys can mess around with your 2hs focusing on single combat and teamhit all day if you like. I'll be rolling with a high multiplier every time I play.

And people wonder how I can play a pole arm character that only thrusts, using a gimped animation, and consistently win games with a good KDR & multiplier.
Teamwork > Player's Skill. Teamwork > Player's Builds. Teamwork > Superior gear.  Teamwork > Everything.
And pole arms are better in teamplay than 2h.

[Thucydides]

I'd imagine the glancing is because of polearm swing animation, polearm swing is straight out and then swing while 2h curves slightly behind and then swings. That extra space allows for more room to deal damage.

also, i don't find dueling with my GLA to be all that hard, i get stomped by good players of course but its dependant on skill level, not weapons. This is in battle of course, in an actual duel on a duel server its another story.