10/12 WIP - Guide on generally good and bad heirloom choices by item type

[CrazyCracka420]

Also, remember that ...

Retiring at:
LVL 31 = 1 LP
LVL 32 = 2 LP
LVL 33 = 3 LP
You get more for lvl 34 and 35 but that's so much time its crazy. 

  I would SUGGEST retiring at lvl 32 if you don't like being a peasant over and over, because it doesn't take that long and you'll be "full" level for much of it so it isn't as much of a grind - just playing.

Retiring at 32 will give you 2 LP and you can sell those on market for a +3 item.

And I'd advise against that.  Retiring at level 32 is the same as going from 1-31, two times.  SO you get two loom points either way.  If you retire at level 32 however, you're missing one full generation bonus (3% more experience).

The only time retiring at level 32 would be good is if you are already at gen 16 (the cap for xp bonus)

[Elindor]

And I'd advise against that.  Retiring at level 32 is the same as going from 1-31, two times.  SO you get two loom points either way.  If you retire at level 32 however, you're missing one full generation bonus (3% more experience).

The only time retiring at level 32 would be good is if you are already at gen 16 (the cap for xp bonus)

Mathematically you are right Huseby, because of the gen bonus.

But my suggestion is from a gameplay standpoint.  If someone is deterred from retiring over and over because they don't want to be almost always "under leveled" and not "full build" (ie 30+), then leveling to 32 or 33 although not as efficient technically is better from a gameplay standpoint because they spend much much more time at full level just playing.

There are a lot of players that do not want to constantly be retiring, and many that because of that are like gen 1 or 2 still.  The option of leveling to 32 or 33 and the retiring one time for 2-3 LPs is appealing to them.

[Malaclypse]

Can't go wrong with heirlooming Long Espada or Danish Greatsword :3

[oprah_winfrey]

Can't go wrong with heirlooming Long Espada or Danish Greatsword :3

Yeah, those are almost as rare as the kuyak.

[Ubereem]

gloves and body armor best armors, gives you a lot more benefit than looming helm or boots. Just don't loom leather, you wanna loom mail armor that gives +5 bonus at 3rd level loom.

what do leather gloves give you? do weapons react differently to mail than to leather in this game? is 8 leather not the same as 8 mail? im seriously asking lol cause i need some new gloves

[FrugFrug]

Lighter armors loomed to 3+ only give 4+ to armor instead of the normal 5+ from the heavier armors.

[Pentecost]

Up.

[Phew]

A more succinct heirloom guide:

-Never loom an item to +1, always trade your heirloom point for the +1 item+gold, or save up 2 heirloom points to trade for a +3 item
-Never loom anything but gloves. You can trade +3 gloves for pretty much any other +3 item+gold. The lone exception is newly-added items (for instance, the new brigandine armors when they first came out). These are often worth more than gloves for a few months after they are added.

...and that's about it.

[Byrdi]

Maybe you should add the Arbalest and Danish Greatsword. There are so many of them on the market that it is a dumb to loom them yourself when you can buy one for 2 loom points.

[Casimir]

Only my old friend 2h cav use arbian, real men ride Horses made for war!

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[Emotion]

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The purpose of this guide is to offer some perspective to any interested parties on good, common, and generally "safe" heirloom choices in each item class as well as some explanation as to why those choices are better than others in their same class. When pertinent, heirloom choices that should generally be avoided will also be mentioned.

Disclaimer: The most important factor when deciding on an item to heirloom should be whether you are comfortable moving in it/attacking with it. This guide is meant to be an informative rather than authoritative one with respect to that point, as there are many players who are surpassingly effective in combat with very unorthodox equipment choices. Your gameplay experience may also lead you to a different conclusion about specific items those that I have reached here. At the end of the day, you should use what you're good with and can afford, regardless of what this guide says or does not say about it.


Horses

General info about heirlooming horses: Some new players make the mistake of heirlooming a horse first, only to find that playing cavalry in cRPG is a very different experience than playing it in native. Make sure you've either spent a generation or more as cavalry or a sufficient amount of time testing it out on a skip the fun character before you commit resources to being cavalry, or you will likely end up selling your +1 horse back at a loss. Keep in mind also that horses are very expensive. Heirlooming a horse that is more expensive than what you need to function and that you cannot use all the time due to cost is less advisable than heirlooming a cheaper but still effective horse that you can use constantly or almost constantly and still make money.
 

Good heirloom choices:

Destrier - Possibly the best horse overall. A Champion Destrier offers good durability, speed, and manueverability at a very competitive price. 

Arabian - The most manuverable horse and the other main contender for the title of best horse. It is most commonly favored by horse crossbow and 2h cavalry players but is great for virtually all other types of cavalry as well--if they can meet the rather steep requirements to ride it.

Rouncey - A favorite of cavalry players on a budget and some hybrids. A Champion Rouncey is slower than a Champion Courser but has comparable stats in most other areas and is significantly cheaper and easier to ride.


Situational heirloom choices:

Courser - The fastest horse. It is the premier horse for lancing due to its speed but other types of cavalry may or may not be better served by some of the other choices available. Note that if you want to ride a heirloomed Courser, you may want to trade for one as opposed to actually spending points on one, as they are very common on the marketplace.


Bad heirloom choices:

Plated Charger - Despite the fact that it has 70 listed armor, this, like all other horses, only applies to its body and head. It effectively has zero armor when people aim for its legs, which is comparatively easy for anyone who is aware of you thanks to how slow the Plated Charger is. Compounding these issues is its tremendous upkeep cost (over 4000 gold per repair) and how it sits very high off the ground--1h and 2h cavalry players riding a Champion Plated Charger will have to be better at aiming their swings if they want to connect with an opponent compared to if they rode a smaller armored horse like a Cataphract.


One-handed

General info about heirlooming one-handed weapons: For one-handed weapons, more than for other weapon types, you will need to be willing to determine what you value most and make some compromises. As a rule of thumb, the most damaging one-handed weapons are very short, which are harder to use in most situations and make you very easy to kick if you are not careful, while the longer one-handed weapons may be comparatively lacking in damage against targets with 50 or more armor depending your build.

Good heirloom choices:

Italian Sword/Knightly Arming Sword/Nordic Champion's Sword - Very well-balanced weapons that are variations on the same theme of "classic cruciform sword". The Italian is the fastest, cheapest to upkeep, and has the best thrust, while the Nordic Champion's Sword and Knightly Arming Swords are slightly longer and have slightly better slashes. All three of them have great reach for a 1h and give you good attacks in all four directions.

Warhammer/Steel Pick - Your go-to weapons if you want to take apart well-armored targets. The pick is a little faster and has moderately better damage against the most highly protected players, but the warhammer has knockdown--a very good chance of it too.

Broad 1h Battleaxe - There are many different offerings when it comes to 1h axes, and this is arguably the best of them all. The Broad 1h Battleaxe is fast, powerful, and shreds through shields like they're cardboard/SCA props. Furthermore, although it is a shorter weapon, as all axes are, it does not absolutely cripple your reach in the way that the shortest weapons do. Keep in mind also that despite the fact that the secondary mode on it has a decent amount of piercing (28p after three improvements), it's mainly there for flavor; the raw power of the primary mode will pretty much always be better damage. 


Situational heirloom choices:

Military Cleaver - This is possibly the one exception to the above rule about damage vs. ease of use. A Masterwork Military Cleaver does as much damage as an unheirloomed German Greatsword (38c) and has a very respectable 92 length, at the expense of being on the slow side for a 1h and not having a thrust. The fact that it is quite cheap for what it brings to the table is also a good point.

Long Espada Eslavona - A favorite of some swashbucklers. It's very long, very fast, and has a very mean thrust (31p!). Its heirloom bonuses are also better than most other melee weapons, but this is likely a consequence of its base form being rather weak for its cost. Note that if you want to wield a heirloomed Long Espada, you may want to trade for one as opposed to actually spending points on one, as they are very common on the marketplace.


Bad heirloom choices:

Side Sword - A long time ago, this apparently used to be the best 1h sword hands down. Those days are long past, however. The Side Sword in its current incarnation is statistically identical to the Long Espada except for a slight increase in speed and a slight loss of range. It's also a little cheaper. That said, it's not really worth heirlooming, considering length and damage are at a premium for 1h. While you may have to sacrifice one for the other, you probably should not sacrifice both for small gains in other areas where 1h already has advantages, such as speed or cost. Unfortunately, this is what the Side Sword ultimately does.

Espada Eslavona - A sword that has the dubious distinction of being the weakest weapon in the upper price point of 1h. The younger brother of the Long Espada has an even stronger thrust at the expense of range and damage; on a Masterwork Espada Eslavona, you get a 33p thrust in exchange for 90 length and 28c on your slashes. The result is a Masterwork weapon that has three attacks in which an unheirloomed Short Falchion/Nordic Sword outdamage it and one very powerful attack that is of situational use at best thanks to the Espada not having the accompanying reach to really take advantage of it.

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This is what I've written so far; I am currently working on 2h and will move on to poles after that is finished. Now obviously, everyone is going to have a different opinion on this kind of thing, but are there any glaring omissions of or errors about certain items? Is the formatting, tone, and style acceptable? Is it informative but to the point? Any criticism is welcome.

Also, does the Elite Scimitar deserve a mention in the 1h section? I know it's quite a common MW, but I'm honestly not sure why. The NCS is better unless you are someone who specifically wants a sword that does not have a thrust, in which case there are options besides the Elite Scimitar that are arguably better.

Very good man. Although my opinions differ a little. Very well written.
For the future you have many, many 2h's to mention. I would like to see a solid precise comparison of HBS-LS, GGS-DGS, Great Maul-Mallet, Langes Messer-Mace. I think you should also mention the Katana, Flamberge, Sword of War, Great Axe, (Studded War Club?) .

[Baillin]

Is there an up to date list of all the bonuses to equipment?

[brockssn]

I'd edit this thread and replace it with All Heirloom ranks are the same. /thread

[Jarlek]

Only my old friend 2h cav use arbian, real men ride Horses made for war!

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That's the horse I use

I also got a +3 courser, but I haven't used it once for the whole gen (almost 32 now).

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I even have 6 riding, so that's not the issue either

[Formless]

If you are just starting the game, loom your gloves first before you do anything. I loomed my mail mittens way back in the day and have yet to take them off since despite going a variety of classes. This will give you at least 1 constant heirloom as you try out some of the classes in the game. Also, the difference between heirloomed gloves is night and day.

After that I personally suggest armor or horses. Staying alive is very, very important in this game. 10% armor is worth way more than 10% damage. IMO.

Totally agree, Gloves first then armour, heirloomed those first, makes a big difference.