Swordmaster build, I need help (I hope I'm right here)

[Imeriath]

Greetings,

I have a question about the Swordmaster: I've read, that the "Path of Hoeth" is probably the best support choice for the Swordmaster-role in a team. First of all: Do you agree with that?

I like a good mix between offense and defense and I've read, that the "Path of Hoeth" is the best choice for that. It's allegedly the most versitale path of the SM and I like being versitale.

Even if it's not: What should I wield if I choose the Path of Hoeth?: A scary a** greatsword? Sword'n'Board (Sword and shield)? Or is there any option for dual wield aviable as well?

This is really important to me, so I'd like an answer from a experienced Swordmaster who already walked (or is walking) on the Path of Hoeth.

Sincerly regards,

your Imeriath

[AzgalSoldier]

If you are sword and board PVP player, you need a lot of toughness and the healing ability purchased, can't remember if that is haoth - it's been a while

[peppex91]

U can go full path of hoeth if u wanna play as utility tank in group as the 4 sec silence plus group buff is quite good and PoH will give u a bit more surv.
Sword and board will reward u more than 2h as group tank, but that depend un your playstyle (u could run with both s&b and 2h and swith in proper occasions). If u wanna use the max out of a 2h and try a more offensive role u should try path of khaine and get some str items as ether dance is our best damage skill and being spiritual damage will bypass all the armor without any need of ws.

[Coryphaus]

if going 2h dont forget to get balanced accuracy

[Imeriath]

Thank you for the answers, I finally found out how it's working.

I remembering trying out sword & board once, but I felt very clumsy and it really took a while to take the enemy out... :/

Well... the only way to find out is try out

[Fuklebark]

I've mained an SM since I stated, and I think I can answer your question (probably bit bit more verbosely than you're looking for, but them's the breaks).

I would say that Hoeth has the most group utility, aye. In general you're going to find that a SM has very little in the way of group support on the whole (when compared to an IB or KotBS) but if you go hoeth, you can do a few cool things.

1) - The first, and most useful in my opiniopn is keep Heaven's Blade on. I knoiw it's tempting to use Phantom's Blade for the free bubble, but in later levels it doesn't scale that great, and you get a Impoved Balance bubble through Hoeth that is much better. Heavens blade debuffs ALL your target's resistances by a set amount for 10s, and the amount goes up as you go further into Hoeth. Just about every class on your team can benefit from this, if you're deliberate about your targeting. I've gotten into groups on this enchant alone.

2) - Whispering Wind. I've not played around with it too much, as I'm a 2H Path of Kahine lover since t3, but this ability is not only a 4s silence on a 20s cooldown, but decreases your group's CDs by 5s when used. It takes a bit of skill to use this most effectively, but used at the right time on a healer who's being focused, or a sorc that's wrecking your front line, it's priceless, and one of the few 'anti-magic' skills we get.

3) - Wrath of Hoeth. It's an extremely long (20s) AoE spirit resist debuff. All the other elf classes (who also do spirit damage to a greater or lesser degree) will benefit from that, as well as yourself. The best part is, it stacks with Heaven's Blade!

4) - And finally there's Dazzling Strike. It hits harder than almost any other ability save Ether Dance and increases caster's build times by 50%. While not a whole lot of use against zealots of DoT specced sorcs, it can sptill play havoc, I've found especially with a DoK's group heal. This will most likely be your main Impoved Balace finisher, as it hits very hard.

Also, as Peppex mentioned above, there's some killer survivability to be had from hoeth as well. The Bubble, proc heals, and good god Aetheric Armor. You can go either route with it, SnB or 2H, but I'd say that SnB is probably your best bet as you'll primarily be a front-line debuff machine.

tl;dr - hope this helps. Feel free to shoot me a tell ingame if you have any questions.

[thullonse]

swordmaster with whispering wind + 2 ID slayers, thats all you need.

[Imeriath]

I've mained an SM since I stated, and I think I can answer your question (probably bit bit more verbosely than you're looking for, but them's the breaks).

I would say that Hoeth has the most group utility, aye. In general you're going to find that a SM has very little in the way of group support on the whole (when compared to an IB or KotBS) but if you go hoeth, you can do a few cool things.

1) - The first, and most useful in my opiniopn is keep Heaven's Blade on. I knoiw it's tempting to use Phantom's Blade for the free bubble, but in later levels it doesn't scale that great, and you get a Impoved Balance bubble through Hoeth that is much better. Heavens blade debuffs ALL your target's resistances by a set amount for 10s, and the amount goes up as you go further into Hoeth. Just about every class on your team can benefit from this, if you're deliberate about your targeting. I've gotten into groups on this enchant alone.

2) - Whispering Wind. I've not played around with it too much, as I'm a 2H Path of Kahine lover since t3, but this ability is not only a 4s silence on a 20s cooldown, but decreases your group's CDs by 5s when used. It takes a bit of skill to use this most effectively, but used at the right time on a healer who's being focused, or a sorc that's wrecking your front line, it's priceless, and one of the few 'anti-magic' skills we get.

3) - Wrath of Hoeth. It's an extremely long (20s) AoE spirit resist debuff. All the other elf classes (who also do spirit damage to a greater or lesser degree) will benefit from that, as well as yourself. The best part is, it stacks with Heaven's Blade!

4) - And finally there's Dazzling Strike. It hits harder than almost any other ability save Ether Dance and increases caster's build times by 50%. While not a whole lot of use against zealots of DoT specced sorcs, it can sptill play havoc, I've found especially with a DoK's group heal. This will most likely be your main Impoved Balace finisher, as it hits very hard.

Also, as Peppex mentioned above, there's some killer survivability to be had from hoeth as well. The Bubble, proc heals, and good god Aetheric Armor. You can go either route with it, SnB or 2H, but I'd say that SnB is probably your best bet as you'll primarily be a front-line debuff machine.

tl;dr - hope this helps. Feel free to shoot me a tell ingame if you have any questions.

Thank you a lot! ...yeah I think I'll go 2H ... I don't like to only stay back and take punches all the time and do toothpick damage, I want a bit of that glory as well The question NOW is: 2H Khaine/ Vaul or 2H Khaine/ Hoeth, I don't wanna go 2H pure Khaine only, because that's kinda too offensive/ aggressive to me. I'd like to have a least a bit of: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFQCYpIHLNQ as well. ...something like a versitale build... where I can go 2H solo, without dying that fast (because I kinda have NO firends with which I could play this game *because Warhammer is freakin underrated and ppl rather play rip offs like WoW) AND where I can be USEFULL in a group/ guild IF I join one as well. I like to prevent my allies from dying, BUT as I said, I want a tasty piece of that delicious glory via 2H butchery as well...

[Fuklebark]

Well, Honestly I'd still say go straight Hoeth. With the cap at 31/40, you can go up to a 13pt ability or a 9pt and a 5pt, and all the 5 pt abilities are kinda crappy save Aetheric Armor. I've actually grouped with a few folks that asked me if I had specced Whispering Wind, so I'd say that's the most group utility.

You can try something like this:
http://waronlinebuilder.org/#career=sm; ... 880:2881:0:

The tactic set is the same as I use, it's a DoT spec, proccing off your Ensorcelled Blow and your Blade enchant. The nice thing about Potent Enchantments is that it refreshes itself every time you proc a blade enchant, giving you the first tick immediately. I kinda think of it as another damage boost like a BW's Flames of Rhuin, and it can proc on everyone hit by your Wrath of Hoeth AoE. You probably won't get as many procs with Heavens Blade, as I do with Nature's, but it should work well enough. If you want to be more resistant to magic, swap it out for Calming Winds.

With your 2 bubbles, you should have plenty of solo survivability, and enough group utility with Heaven's/Nature's Blade and Whispering Wind to make folks happy. 90% of the time they'll take you because order's short on tanks and lots of groups need 2 guards.

[Imeriath]

Well, Honestly I'd still say go straight Hoeth. With the cap at 31/40, you can go up to a 13pt ability or a 9pt and a 5pt, and all the 5 pt abilities are kinda crappy save Aetheric Armor. I've actually grouped with a few folks that asked me if I had specced Whispering Wind, so I'd say that's the most group utility.

You can try something like this:
http://waronlinebuilder.org/#career=sm; ... 880:2881:0:

The tactic set is the same as I use, it's a DoT spec, proccing off your Ensorcelled Blow and your Blade enchant. The nice thing about Potent Enchantments is that it refreshes itself every time you proc a blade enchant, giving you the first tick immediately. I kinda think of it as another damage boost like a BW's Flames of Rhuin, and it can proc on everyone hit by your Wrath of Hoeth AoE. You probably won't get as many procs with Heavens Blade, as I do with Nature's, but it should work well enough. If you want to be more resistant to magic, swap it out for Calming Winds.

With your 2 bubbles, you should have plenty of solo survivability, and enough group utility with Heaven's/Nature's Blade and Whispering Wind to make folks happy. 90% of the time they'll take you because order's short on tanks and lots of groups need 2 guards.

Whoa, hey I'm pretty new to this soo... not to much spec. language please How does it work with leveling skills... or get to this special path?... I guess by train those abilites... unlock something? You'd say: "Go full Hoeth", is this based on 2H combat style? Or does the choice of weaponry not affect this path. As far as I understood it: Khaine is the most offensive and physical path, focused on damage so you function like a sort of DPS tank; Vaul is the defensive path, focusing on protection and debuff the enemy... so focusing on lower and/ or avoid incoming damage... the "tankiest tank"; Hoeth is the mental path, focusing on offense via insane spirit damage, defense via the ability to use the winds of magic in a more intense and therefor effective protective way as well... the most balanced path, because of it's versitality?

Ah yeah, thank you for that build by the way, I'll try that build out, if can't get... more... "understandable" answers XD Like I said, the best way to find out, is to try out. The downgrade of it? If you choose something wrong... and you can't get those points back, or set them somewhere else, you can do aaaall the hard work from the begin on again (e_e')