As the title says, why is the stun with polearms so pronounced?
Before people say 2h is superior to polearms - polearms have incredible variety, utility and they hurt. There's everything from short and painful (Bec) to long and incredibly annoying (Long Spear). Then you have all the variety in between. Concerning 2h, the greatswords are largely the same length and speed with a little variation in stats while the same goes for mid-tier weapons like Longsword and the Heavy Bastard (same fucking sword, just one has a scabbard). Facing two opponents and one having a long spear to poke you and loloverhead through his teammate is the epitome of frustrating as you're attempting to fight the guy in front of you. As far as damage is concerned, the values are comparable. The poleaxes do greatsword damage and have longer reach. Not to mention they have balanced shield breakers and a balanced pierce weapon.
Granted, the animations on polearms do give 2h an advantage. I can't get used to them; they just feel weird to me. But that a personal preference, and I see many people dominating with polearms.
Before people say polearms have to be different from 2h - polearms have incredible variety, utility and they hurt. That's different enough. Why do you need to be staggered as well? I find it incredibly illogical that you can shrug off a slash from a sword while a swing with the blunt side of a spear can have you staggering and unable to move.
Is this is a rage post? Nah, I just woke up
I'm just genuinely interested in the reasoning behind this mechanic and am not looking to argue about it. I don't consider it a game breaker but I have to admit it's frustrating when you get stunlocked. If its something hardcoded then I apologize for wasting forum space.