Rebalancing Project: Swords

[bkdubs123]

The other thread is getting a little long in the tooth, I've got stuff mixed in all over the place in replies. So I'll be consolidating things in the future into small threads like this.

In this thread I'll be working on rebalancing Swords from start to finish.

I'll be updating this for a while.

Longsword: ATK 50, HIT 10.

Silver Fang: ATK 50, DEF 5, HIT 5, LUC 3, GUTS 2. Quadruples damage to enemies with "Bugbear," "Hound," "Kobold," or "Wolf" in their name.

Golden Fang: ATK 50, AVD 3, LUC 30. Doubles items dropped from enemies and Fol obtained from battle.

Dual Swords: ATK 70, DEF 5, AVD 5.

Broadsword: ATK 80, DEF 5, GUTS 3.

Sinclair Sabre: ATK 110, AVD 5, CRT 3.

Icicle Edge (New Sword, Customize Lv 3, Longsword, Broadsword, Twin Swords or Twin Fury + Sapphire, Claude and Ashton only): ATK 100, INT 12, CRT 7. Water element attack. Chance to inflict Slow on hit.

Flame Sword (Customize Lv 3, Longsword, Broadsword, Twin Swords or Twin Fury + Ruby, Claude and Ashton only): ATK 120, INT 5, GUTS 5. Fire element attack.

Twin Fury: No changes.

Farcutter: ATK 120, HIT 5, CRT 5. +1 attack hits.

Vagrant's Blade (New Sword, enemy drop; Dias-Only): ATK 170, LUC 20, STM 60. ATK increases as the number of steps increase.

Venomous Stingers: ATK 180, HIT 30, CRT 5. Small chance to inflict Poison on hit.

Red Squall (New Sword, Customize Lv 3, Sinclair or Farcutter + Ruby, Claude-Only): ATK 200, HIT 20, STM 12. Recover 5% HP when triggering Power Burst.

Estoc (previously Guthgwine): ATK 220, HIT 15, AVD 12. Shield damage +25%.

Deadly Edge: ATK 222, HIT 60, CRT 20, GUTS 40. ATK increases when Strategy is set to "Protect Your Allies!" and character is not being controlled.

Walloon Sword: ATK 275.

Dervish Knives (previously Twin Splicers): ATK 340, HIT 5, AVD 30, LUC 5, STM 12, CRT 10.

Eastern Blade (previously Oriental Blade; Dias starting sword in Marze Village): ATK 350, HIT 30, CRT 18.

Storm's Fury (New Sword, Customize Lv 4, Estoc, Farcutter, Walloon Sword, Eastern Blade, Twin Fury or Dervish Knives + Green Beryl; Claude, Dias, and Ashton): ATK 350, HIT 60, AVD 40, INT 20. Wind element attack. Chance to cast Lightning Bolt on hit.

Maiden's Aria (Customize Lv 3, Venomous Stingers + Sapphire): ATK 380, HIT 20, AVD 50, LUC 30, CRT 15. Chance to cast Cure Light on crit. Halves Water.

Sword of Clear Skies (New Sword, Customize Lv 3, Eastern Blade + Sapphire; Dias-Only): ATK 390, HIT 50, INT 50, LUC 50, STM 30. Nullifies Petrification and Instant Death.

Diamond Razor (New Sword, Customize Lv 5, Deadly Edge + Diamond; Claude-Only): ATK 400, AVD 40, CRT 33. Critical hits deal triple damage.

Scarlet Shadow (New Sword, Customize Lv 3, Eastern Blade + Ruby; Dias-Only): ATK 444, AVD 30, CRT 10. Doubles shield and HP damage when performing a Perfect Counter.

Veil Piercer (Claude and Dias): ATK 450, HIT 90, CRT 15. Casts Dispel on Breaking an enemy. Halves Dark.

Dancer's Deflection (previously Swords of Deflection; Pickpocket from Ashton in Laceur City): ATK 460, DEF 12, AVD 70, STM 10, GUTS 20. 5% chance to reflect damage received.

Crush Sword (New Sword, Customize Lv 5, Walloon Sword + Iron, Claude-Only): ATK 500, DEF -10, HIT -10, AVD -10, GUTS 30. Enemy Break and Stun duration +50%.

Scimitars of Shielding (previously Shield Swords): ATK 500, DEF 30, AVD 50, STM 20, GUTS 20. Damage enemy shields on block. Halves Earth.

Swallowtail (previously Swallowblade; Dias starting sword at the Lacuer Front Line): ATK 500, HIT 50, AVD 20, INT 20, CRT 35. Triples the trigger rate of Sidestep when attacked from behind.

Blade of Minos (Customize Lv 5, Deadly Edge + Damascus): ATK 599, DEF 33, INT 33, LUC -50, STM 66, CRT 33, GUTS -20. Dark element attack. Attacks drain HP by 2% but always hit.

Sirocco (New Sword, Customize Lv 7, Dervish Knives or Maiden's Aria + Orichalcum; Ashton-Only): ATK 600, HIT 20, AVD 40, INT 80, STM 40. +1 attack hits. Small chance to cast Fohn Wind on hit.

Harvester (New Sword, Customize Lv 5, Veil Piercer + Damascus, Claude-Only): ATK 600, HIT 20, CRT 10. Chance to inflict Instant Death on Breaking an enemy. Recover 25% MP anytime Instant Death is inflicted by anyone.

Murasame: ATK 630, DEF 12, CRT 20, GUTS 15. The last damage received is added to the next damage inflicted.

Grand Sting (previously Metalcrusher, Customize Lv 6, Sword of Clear Skies, Veil Piercer, or Diamond Razor + Rune Metal, Claude and Dias only): ATK 650, GUTS 40. Nullifies back attacks. ATK and DEF +100% against enemies weak to Light.

Hope of the Breeze (Customize Lv 7, Sword of Clear Skies + Green Beryl; Pickpocket from Dias in Armlock; Dias-Only): ATK 650, HIT 60, AVD 60, LUC 60, STM 30, CRT 30. Wind element attack. + 2 attack hits.

Heavy Cleavers (New Sword, Eluria Tower, Ashton-Only): ATK 670, HIT 50, AVD 50, CRT 30, GUTS 12.

Blizzarhazard (New Sword, Customize Lv 7, Icicle Edge, Veil Piercer, or Crush Sword + Sapphire; Claude and Ashton only): ATK 680, DEF 40, HIT 80, INT 80, CRT 15. Water element attack. Chance to cast Magnum Tornado (Water) on hit. Nullifies Water, halves Fire.

Stonesplitter (New Sword, Customize Lv 6, Veil Piercer + Diamond; Dias-Only): ATK 720, DEF 30, HIT 70, STM 20, CRT 12, GUTS 30. Earth element attack. Inflicts Frailty on Breaking an enemy.

Searing Sword (Customize Lv 7, Flame Blade, Walloon Sword, or Crush Sword + Star Ruby; Claude and Ashton only): ATK 770, GUTS 90. Fire element attack. Chance to inflict Frailty on hit. Nullifies Fire, halves Water.

Dragonsong (New Sword, Customize Lv 6, Twin Swords + Rainbow Diamond; Ashton-Only): ATK 800, HIT 40, AVD 40, INT 60, LUC 60, STM 80. Fire element attack. Water element attack.

Greatsword "Bronn" (Artifact) (New Sword, Claude-Only): ATK 800, HIT 20, DEF 20, AVD 40, GUTS 40. +1 attack hits. +1 to all Combat Skill levels. -50% spell damage received.

Muramasa (New Sword, Customize Lv 6, Farcutter + Orichalcum; Dias-Only): ATK 835, HIT 70, AVD 20, CRT 15. Start battle with a Haste effect.

Luminous Slicers (Centropolis): ATK 870, DEF 60, HIT 50, AVD 50, LUC 50, STM 50. Light element attack. Escape death with 1 HP, once per battle. Halves Dark.

Force Sword (Centropolis): ATK 908. Attacks drain 3% MP but always crit.

Voltaic Breaker (New Sword, Armlock, Claude and Ashton only): ATK 990, HIT 70, AVD 15, INT 70, CRT 22. Wind element attack. Chance to Break enemy on crit. Absorbs Wind, nullifies Earth.

Aurora (Customize Lv 9, Grand Sting + Rainbow Diamond; Claude and Dias Only): ATK 999, DEF 50, HIT 50, AVD 50, CRT 10. Light element attack. Chance to retaliate with Divine Wave when hit. Halves Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth.

Orichalcon (New Sword, Centropolis; Claude, Dias, and Ashton): ATK 1000, HIT 100, CRT 10.

Sword of Marvels (Claude, Dias, and Ashton): ATK 1050, DEF 50, AVD 20, INT 7, LUC 7, STM 7, CRT 7, GUTS 7. Attacks always hit. Revive at 40% HP with an Angel Feather effect once per battle.

Blade of Ruin: ATK 1100, CRT 50. Dark element attack. Chance to inflict Paralyzed, Petrified, and Poisoned on crit.

Lotus Eaters: ATK 1150, HIT 50, CRT 20. Small chance to inflict Stun on hit. Stunned enemies have a chance to drop Magic Gumdrops.

Silvance (Customize Lv 8, Silver Fang + Mithril; Claude-Only): ATK 1200, DEF 20, HIT 99, AVD 20, CRT 30. Light element attack. 5% HP recovery every 3 seconds. Halves Light and Dark.

Bloodmoon (New Sword, Customize Lv 8, Scarlet Shadow + Moonstone; Dias-Only): ATK 1230, STM 40, CRT 40, GUTS 70. If Stunned, Paralyzed, or Petrified become Enraged instead. Doubles Rage duration.

Chrome Nightmare: ATK 1333, AVD 33, CRT 33. Reflect 20% damage receieved. Chaos Sword and Deadly Illusion have a chance to inflict Confusion.

Gemini (Customize Lv 9, Maiden's Aria + Orichalcum): ATK 1350, DEF 20, HIT 80, AVD 50, LUC 50, CRT 23. +1 attack hits. Halves Fire and Water.

Godslayer (Artifact) (Sword, Claude-Only): ATK 1350, DEF 50, HIT 50, STM 20, CRT 20, GUTS 20. 3% MP drain. Doubles trigger rates of Guard Break, Feint, and Breaker. Attacks can't be interrupted.

Doubledemon Sword: ATK 1500, DEF 70, STM 100, CRT 20, GUTS 100. +1 attack hits. Remain in Rage state constantly but character cannot be controlled.

Holy Cross (Customize Lv 8, Luminous Slicers + Mithril): ATK 1570, DEF 80, HIT 100, AVD 40, LUC 80, STM 60, GUTS 40. Light element attack. Nullifies Petrification and Instant Death. Nullifies Dark.

Flamberge (previously Saad Sword, the dumbest name ever; Claude, Dias, and Ashton): ATK 1600, CRT 33. Courage +3 skill levels. Small chance to inflict Instant Death on hit. Halves Fire.

The Devil's Due (New Sword, Customize Lv 10, Aurora + Mithril; Dias-Only): ATK 1666, DEF 66, AVD 66, LUC 66, STM 66, CRT 18, GUTS 33. Light element attack. +1 attack hits. Chance to inflict Blind, Cursed, and Silence on hit. Absorbs Fire and Dark.

The Famous "Vainslayer" (Artifact) (previously Famed Sword Vainslay): ATK 1700, HIT 30, LUC 77, CRT 7, GUTS 30. Instantly kills enemies with "Lord," "Master," or "Scum" in their name. Increase ATK and recover HP and MP by 20% each after each successive battle.

Aeterna (Customize Lv 10, Blade of Minos + Meteorite; Claude-Only): ATK 1750, HIT 70, AVD 30, CRT 12. Dark element attack. Launches stars with each attack. Halves Fire and Water. Nullifies Light and Dark.

Dragon Knight's Grace (New Sword, Customize Lv 10, Dragonsong + Meteorite; Ashton-Only): ATK 2000, DEF 100, AVD 90, INT 150, LUC 100, STM 90, CRT 15, GUTS 60. +1 Fire element attack hit. +1 Water element attack hit. Absorbs Fire and Water. Halves Dark.

Mephistofar (Customize Lv 9, Lotus Eater + Damascus): ATK 2300, DEF 35, HIT 80, AVD 70, INT 100, LUC 120, CRT 40. HP and MP drain 3%. Chance to inflict Weakness on crit. Absorbs Light.

Crimson Devil (Customize Lv 10, Bloodmoon + Damascus; Dias-Only) ATK 2400, HIT 100, AVD 80, INT 80, LUC 80, CRT 35. Spatter blood mist on crit that increases AVD and damages nearby enemies. Nullifies Instant Death.

Joyeuse (New Sword, Claude-Only): ATK 2500, LUC 150, GUTS 30. 60% chance to nullify damage that would bring you to 0 HP from at least 40% of your max HP.

[bkdubs123]

(Reserved in case of character limits)

12/23: Working on Ashton's Swords today.

12/23: Happy holidays, friends! Everything before the post-game is complete! As someone who struggles against the darkness inherent to PTSD myself, I wanted to allow for a story of redemption through Dias' weapons. Many of his Swords are powerful, technical, and dangerous, but a few show that there is still a pure heart in there tormented by grief and self-loathing, and a love of beauty. I hope you all enjoy!

[bkdubs123]

Alright, until the post-game weapons, I think that's all for the Swords. I've rebalanced all of Claude, Dias, and Ashton's weapons, to my knowledge, added a bunch of new ones, and done my best to provide a smoother power curve throughout the story.

Did I miss any?

Any issues with these? What do you think?

[Second Duke Revier]

These do sound cool, if rather exceptionally powerful. But I can't determine how good or bad these weapons are without the appropriate context in game. RPGs are complicated beasts that hinge on multiple factors, so I would need to see the "full picture", so to speak.

[bkdubs123]

Originally posted by Second Duke of Aeria Revier:

These do sound cool, if rather exceptionally powerful. But I can't determine how good or bad these weapons are without the appropriate context in game. RPGs are complicated beasts that hinge on multiple factors, so I would need to see the "full picture", so to speak.

Absolutely understandable.

A lot of my thought process going through was, "oh, there's a big gap between this cool weapons and that character's next decent weapon," and "hmm... would I consider using this weaker weapon as opposed to the one I can just buy in the next town?"

Some characters have a while between a decent weapon and a really solid weapon that you can just buy. I wanted to make those decisions a little more interesting.

Sword of Marvels, for example. Amazing in Marze. Something I don't even give a second thought to, even at + with the poison proc in the Field of Might. So I wanted to fix little issues like that while still giving room for all of the different weapons along the way.

How do you think I did?

EDIT: As one example out of many, the Flame Sword feels basically like, on Galaxy difficulty, or even Universe outside of a challenge run, like the dominant Claude Sword with basically no challenger until the Veil Piercer, but who cares because you're grabbing the Searing Sword at the same time you can get that. So I wanted to offer a bunch of little alternatives like that where a bunch of additional ATK might not quite justify switching out your favorite weapon just yet.

Do you have a favorite?

[Second Duke Revier]

Hmm, well personally I like the Farcutter and wish there were more weapons dedicated to its gimmick of medium damage but inbuilt multi hits. Kinda wish Dragon Claw had more imitators too, come to think of it.