Is there a trick to parrying with a rapier?

[Vepar]

I was doing a build of Chaos rapier with pyromancy, and (other than the low damage), i wasn't having much success parrying with it.

I thought it would be cool to have an attack, and a parry in the right hand witht he flame in the other, but i just couldn't get the hang of it.
It seems way off for some reason.

I can parry with the buckler, i can parry with the medium shields, and i can parry with the parrying dagger, but not the rapier. It's like i have to delay the parry or something, it feels super weird.

Is that just how rapiers are, is the timing super specific or is there a trick to it?

[Fried Noodles]

There's no trick, really.
The timing is just a little bit off from the buckler.
Slightly slower startup animation (only two frames longer) requires activation a split second before you would do with the buckler.
Slightly shorter active frames means your window of opportunity is a bit shorter.
But slightly quicker recovery animation.

You should try parrying with a 2H weapon.
I took a bit of time trying to get it down not too long ago and I kind of hated it. ;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTERYZrfCTI

[Vepar]

Originally posted by Fried Noodles:

There's no trick, really.
The timing is just a little bit off from the buckler.
Slightly slower startup animation (only two frames longer) requires activation a split second before you would do with the buckler.
Slightly shorter active frames means your window of opportunity is a bit shorter.
But slightly quicker recovery animation.

You should try parrying with a 2H weapon.
I took a bit of time trying to get it down not too long ago and I kind of hated it. ;)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTERYZrfCTI

My NG playthrought was with a greatsword, i totally forgot there was a parry with it. :P
What you wrote seems to align with how it felt, yeah. I just couldn't get it down for some reason.

I'm doing Benhart in NG+ with MLGS, idk if that one has a parry, maybe i shoudl try it haha.
But i can parry with Benhart's shield just fine now, so, i guess the rapier parry window/animation was messing me up.
It wasn't very good anyway, so meh...

[Fried Noodles]

Parrying in DS2 in general isn't very good for PvE, to my mind.
Only the Sunken Gank Squad, the Pursuers, and Velstadt really respect being parried (as far as bosses are concerned).
Everyone else will sometimes be momentarily staggered but most of the time just hop away before you can even get a single strike in. ;)

It's almost always* better to just roll and take an attack on an enemy's missed strike.

Having said that though, I parried damn near everything I could during my first playthrough of DS2 :D

[Vepar]

Originally posted by Fried Noodles:

Parrying in DS2 in general isn't very good for PvE, to my mind.
Only the Sunken Gank Squad, the Pursuers, and Velstadt really respect being parried (as far as bosses are concerned).
Everyone else will sometimes be momentarily staggered but most of the time just hop away before you can even get a single strike in. ;)

It's almost always* better to just roll and take an attack on an enemy's missed strike.

Having said that though, I parried damn near everything I could during my first playthrough of DS2 :D

I like parrying in DS2. :) The way the enemies and players fall to the ground and all that haha. And it gives you i think more time to do it than other souls games.

Anyway, i was practicing parrying on the Syan knights in drangleic, they're really good for that. But each time, i could parry with shields, but not with the rapier. Couldn't get the hang of it. But seeing the parry explained above, yeah, the rapier just works ever so slightly different enough to be a bit confusing to me.

[Fried Noodles]

If you aren't married to your Chaos Rapier, and if you can get your hands on one, have a go at parrying with the Monastery Scimitar.

It's got a shorter active window, but the startup animation is also a fair bit shorter than even the buckler.

This makes the monastery scimitar the best armament for 'reaction parrying' where you tap the button around about when you'd expect your character to take a hit.

[Vepar]

Originally posted by Fried Noodles:

If you aren't married to your Chaos Rapier, and if you can get your hands on one, have a go at parrying with the Monastery Scimitar.

It's got a shorter active window, but the startup animation is also a fair bit shorter than even the buckler.

This makes the monastery scimitar the best armament for 'reaction parrying' where you tap the button around about when you'd expect your character to take a hit.

Right now i'm using the MLGS, ditched the Rapier ahha. Already finished most of the game on NG+, maybe i will on the NG++. I am looking for a new fun weapon, i'll definitely give it a try, thanks!

[Smeelio]

Hey, this is only tangentially related, but since you guys seem to know about the Rapier... is there a way to get rid of the parry and just have a strong attack somehow?
I'm considering one of the Rapier-type weapons for my next run but I feel I won't enjoy the right-hand on-weapon parry as much as 'regular' parries.

[Fried Noodles]

Originally posted by Smeelio:

Hey, this is only tangentially related, but since you guys seem to know about the Rapier... is there a way to get rid of the parry and just have a strong attack somehow?
I'm considering one of the Rapier-type weapons for my next run but I feel I won't enjoy the right-hand on-weapon parry as much as 'regular' parries.

Not all thrusting swords have the R2 parry.
Although all of them that do could simply be used two-handed. The rapier has a shield-bypassing heavy attack if you wield it two-handed.

Estoc is a decent option. It has a similar moveset one-handed. R1 thrusts.
R2 on the Estoc is a sweeping attack.

[JellyPuff]

Originally posted by Smeelio:

Hey, this is only tangentially related, but since you guys seem to know about the Rapier... is there a way to get rid of the parry and just have a strong attack somehow?
I'm considering one of the Rapier-type weapons for my next run but I feel I won't enjoy the right-hand on-weapon parry as much as 'regular' parries.

Only Rapier, Chaos Rapier and Espada Ropera have right-hand R2 parries and only if 1-handed.

Ricard's Rapier, for example, has it's signature flurry-attack as it's 1HR2. Estoc has a fast, horizontal slash, making it a very versatile weapon, albeit one with lower counter-damage, than most other thrusting swords. And then we have one of the potentially highest DPS weapons in the game, Ice Rapier, which is a weak Soul Spear that drains durability as it's 1HR2. Note that in terms of parry-frames, these just have the basic, crappy hilt-parry as their 2HL2.

[Vepar]

I tried parrying with a greataword. I kinda got it. It's easier than a rapier lol.

[Smeelio]

Thanks peeps, the info helps a lot!

[Fried Noodles]

Originally posted by Vepar:

I tried parrying with a greataword. I kinda got it. It's easier than a rapier lol.

Sounds like you're doing better than me. ;)

For no good reason at all I am randomly trying to parry the Lost Sinner with my Murakumo again.

I can parry her all day and all night with my buckler / target shield no problem... It's really hard for me to predict / react with a slow curved greatsword parry.

[Toyosatomimi no Miko]

Originally posted by Fried Noodles:

If you aren't married to your Chaos Rapier, and if you can get your hands on one, have a go at parrying with the Monastery Scimitar.

It's got a shorter active window, but the startup animation is also a fair bit shorter than even the buckler.

This makes the monastery scimitar the best armament for 'reaction parrying' where you tap the button around about when you'd expect your character to take a hit.

Monastery Scimitar or the Melu Scimitar. Both have the same parry frames as far as I know, and Melu is much easier to get (though a fair bit heavier and more stamina-intensive)

[Vepar]

Originally posted by Fried Noodles:

Originally posted by Vepar:

I tried parrying with a greataword. I kinda got it. It's easier than a rapier lol.

Sounds like you're doing better than me. ;)

For no good reason at all I am randomly trying to parry the Lost Sinner with my Murakumo again.

I can parry her all day and all night with my buckler / target shield no problem... It's really hard for me to predict / react with a slow curved greatsword parry.

It depends on the mob honestly lol. Some mobs i don't get where the parry window was supposed to be haha. :P

I didn't try to GS parry any bosses though, but maybe in NG++,l this NG+ is already done mostly.

But since i didn't parry anything with the rapier and parried at least something with the GS, i guess i'm better at GS parry.