Firestrike and WPS question

[Severian]

I am entertaining the thought of doing the obvious and combining my Inquisitor with the Demolitionist mastery and need the answer to the following question:

I know that Firestrike will be replaced by my Weapon Pool Skills, but which damage are these WPSs going to use as their base? I read conflicting information on this, and since GD tooltips aren't exactly reliable, I am somewhat befuddled.

Is it the normal, unmodified "weapon damage" (and btw, how is that computed when dual wielding?), or is my Firestrike damage going to be the base?

[Severian]

Also asking because putting so many points into Firestrike might not be worth it after all, if it's getting replaced 60% of the time.

[RhodosGuard]

They display x% Weapon Damage so I guess they scale off of your weapon damage and not your Firestrike damage. But then again, I would only invest points into one WPS anyway. that way you get the advantages of the WPS (the freeze the fire aoe or the shock clear) but you can focus on the one that you get most of your damage boni on (probably bursting rounds if you play demo)

So, without real insight I'd say invest into Firestrike and bursting rounds. You will still attack without WPS often enough and bursting round scales with your fire boni which should compensate for firestrike.

But then again, I'm not that much a fan of demo and therefore have 0 insight into the mastery.

[Severian]

It's my first weapon damage Demo, too. That's why I am so clueless^^ I have only played him as a Sorcerer (Arcanist/Demo) before, as an Albrecht's Aether Ray guy.

[RhodosGuard]

Originally posted by sewi:

It's my first weapon damage Demo, too. That's why I am so clueless^^ I have only played him as a Sorcerer (Arcanist/Demo) before, as an Albrecht's Aether Ray guy.

I'm playing Shaman/Inq right now with 2 handed Rifles.
Im only going for 1 point in bursting and chilling and focusing more on the shock bullets as thats the damage I scale with, and it works rather fine damage wise.
If you go inquisitor, I can only tell you, that Ranged Expertise and Deadly Aim are pure perfection for ranged builds.

[KG]

Default weapon attacks aren't quite replaced by WPS. Their effects sort of stack, with AFAIK the weapon damage % of the default attack modifying the damage of the WPS.

I wouldn't say "focus on just one WPS." Have a bunch, let them activate all the time. They don't interfere with each other even though only one can activate per attack. Even wrong-element WPS are often beneficial to damage.

[RhodosGuard]

Originally posted by KG:

Default weapon attacks aren't quite replaced by WPS. Their effects sort of stack, with AFAIK the weapon damage % of the default attack modifying the damage of the WPS.

I wouldn't say "focus on just one WPS." Have a bunch, let them activate all the time. They don't interfere with each other even though only one can activate per attack. Even wrong-element WPS are often beneficial to damage.

They sure are, but they also eat up skillpoints. I rather invest into the base damage for additional payoff if they trigger than to have them trigger off of weak attacks. But I guess both ways work.

[Severian]

Originally posted by KG:

Default weapon attacks aren't quite replaced by WPS. Their effects sort of stack, with AFAIK the weapon damage % of the default attack modifying the damage of the WPS.

So if Firestrike is sitting at 120% weapon damage at 12/12, the inquisitor's WPSs would deal 20% more damage? Like actually, multiplicatively 20% more - or like the additive 20% you usually get?

[RhodosGuard]

Originally posted by sewi:

Originally posted by KG:

Default weapon attacks aren't quite replaced by WPS. Their effects sort of stack, with AFAIK the weapon damage % of the default attack modifying the damage of the WPS.

So if Firestrike is sitting at 120% weapon damage at 12/12, the inquisitor's WPSs would deal 20% more damage? Like actually, multiplicatively 20% more - or like the additive 20% you usually get?

If your firestrike has 120% Weapon Damage, and it works the way the previous guy said it would, and the WPS from Inq is 120% Weapon damage too, then it should be 120% of 120% so 142% weapon damage.

[The_Mess]

Actually Firestrike has since earlier patches has stacked with WPS skills, so you get Firestrike damage + WPS damage, leading to some stupidly overpowered damage outputs with the right gear and build before the expac came out. i.e. Firestrike and Dual Blades sabators have disgustly good dps output, as will now inquistors who invest in inquistor WPS skills.

[Severian]

I think I would go tri-elemental with the Purifier, anyway, RhodosGuard. 100% damage bonus less for ice damage from the Demo buff is no reason to dismiss it, considering the total damage bonuses one should be sitting on at max level, don't you agree?

[The_Mess]

Originally posted by sewi:

Originally posted by KG:

Default weapon attacks aren't quite replaced by WPS. Their effects sort of stack, with AFAIK the weapon damage % of the default attack modifying the damage of the WPS.

So if Firestrike is sitting at 120% weapon damage at 12/12, the inquisitor's WPSs would deal 20% more damage? Like actually, multiplicatively 20% more - or like the additive 20% you usually get?

It's additive.

[RhodosGuard]

Originally posted by sewi:

I think I would go tri-elemental with the Purifier, anyway, RhodosGuard. 100% damage bonus less for ice damage from the Demo buff is no reason to dismiss it, considering the total damage bonuses one should be sitting on at max level, don't you agree?

Again. I'm at the moment playing a Vindicator (Shaman/Inq) and I dont get reduced damage.
I got 1 in bursting, 1 in chilling and atm 6 in the shock rounds.
They scale best with Savagery and my Devotions, and the points I dont spend on bursting or chilling I can spam into savagery and its mods.

It's not like I dont use them at all, I just have them for the occassional trigger. Especially the Freeze is useful, but nothing I would put skill points in if I can put them in my exclusive, savagery or the shock bullets.

[Severian]

Originally posted by The_Mess:

Actually Firestrike has since earlier patches has stacked with WPS skills, so you get Firestrike damage + WPS damage, leading to some stupidly overpowered damage outputs with the right gear and build before the expac came out. i.e. Firestrike and Dual Blades sabators have disgustly good dps output, as will now inquistors who invest in inquistor WPS skills.

That might be the reason Crate changed the Nightblade's other skills to do main hand damage, now, istead of weapon damage.
It is still obviously a powerful combo, though, provided Firestrike still stacks.

Do you know whether the other effects from Firestrike modifiers, Explosive Strike, Static Strike, and Brimstone also apply to the WPS?

[KG]

Originally posted by The_Mess:

Originally posted by sewi:

So if Firestrike is sitting at 120% weapon damage at 12/12, the inquisitor's WPSs would deal 20% more damage? Like actually, multiplicatively 20% more - or like the additive 20% you usually get?

It's additive.

I'm not saying you're wrong but do you have a source?

Is it still additive with for example a WPS that does 50% weapon damage? Meaning any multi-hit WPS would be insane? That doesn't seem right - those often receive a negative recommendation in builds that can't use their extra damage types.

[Severian]

Originally posted by RhodosGuard:

Originally posted by sewi:

I think I would go tri-elemental with the Purifier, anyway, RhodosGuard. 100% damage bonus less for ice damage from the Demo buff is no reason to dismiss it, considering the total damage bonuses one should be sitting on at max level, don't you agree?

Again. I'm at the moment playing a Vindicator (Shaman/Inq) and I dont get reduced damage.
I got 1 in bursting, 1 in chilling and atm 6 in the shock rounds.
They scale best with Savagery and my Devotions, and the points I dont spend on bursting or chilling I can spam into savagery and its mods.

It's not like I dont use them at all, I just have them for the occassional trigger. Especially the Freeze is useful, but nothing I would put skill points in if I can put them in my exclusive, savagery or the shock bullets.

Devotions are of course a good point that I hadn't even touched upon, yet, and it makes sense for a Vindicator to go down the Lightning path.