Estoc as main weapon any good?

[skyhrg]

I got it up to +5 and sometimes I feel it's not doing enough damage. In my previous run, I used a Zweihander/strength weapons but I felt that made the game too easy.

What do you guys think?

[MundM]

I mean, yeah, Zweihander deals more physical damage, and it also deals a ton of poise damage, with the drawback being the slow move set.
The Estoc is a poking weapon with quick attacks. You have to use a more skillful playstile with the Estoc, because you can't rely on staggering, so you should do a lot of spacing and dodging in between attacks, but with a buff, the Estoc's damage potential is very high and you get a better DPS than what the Zweihander could do.

Both playstyles are fun, and I personally always chose move sets over damage numbers. I love the Partizan for it's versatility, but it sure ain't the hardest hitter.
If you combine the Estoc with heavy armor, you can also easily trade and DPS kill anything.

Just pick what is most fun, don't go after numbers. There are several piercing swords in the game, I personally find Velka's Rapier the most fun, duo to its move set, but it requires intelligence.

Don't forget you can use the Estoc while having your shild up, so you can attack while blocking.
The Estoc has also a very long reach. Don't forget, if you use it 1 handed, the R2 gives you a horizontal slash.

The Estoc is a very versatile weapon, and it can carry you through the whole game, but of course it plays different than a heavy two handed sword. The extra mobility duo to the fast move set is a ton of fun in any encounter.

...also if you go into pvp, the netcode problems with ping and phantom range, combined with a powerfull weapon buff, makes this a nice meta weapon if you want to be a total tool, lol.

[Agoraphobic Meep]

It's one of the best thrusting swords in the game if you pair it with leo ring, and it already does the most physical damage out of all the piercing swords assuming you don't infuse. If you use leo ring, have 40 dex, and give it charcoal or pine resin, it will absolutely melt everything with a pulse.

It also has one of the best movesets in the game IMO. It has the longest reach of all the piercing swords which makes it goated for crowd control. It doesn't have the typical UGS issue of being extremely clunky in tight spaces since your r1's and two handed r2's are straight forward stabs, and, again, it's fast and does mostly thrust damage so leo ring makes it goated.

[skyhrg]

Good to know.

If I want to complement this to deal with armored/shielded foes that have higher thrust resistance, is there a way to make it work with the estoc, or would you get a second weapon like a club?

[akpocfallout]

Originally posted by skyhrg:

I got it up to +5 and sometimes I feel it's not doing enough damage. In my previous run, I used a Zweihander/strength weapons but I felt that made the game too easy.

What do you guys think?

Estok is a weak weapon in general

[MundM]

Originally posted by skyhrg:

Good to know.

If I want to complement this to deal with armored/shielded foes that have higher thrust resistance, is there a way to make it work with the estoc, or would you get a second weapon like a club?

What enemies are you talking about? You just have to hit them more times... there is nothing in this game that can't be defeated by anything. If something needs to die, just two hand it and thrust through them with an R2. Don't forget the back stabs.

[dcy665]

I've had several successful runs with the Estoc as a main weapon. It will suffice for much of NG. Depending on how many others swords you've picked up you can decide to enchant it or not. Enchant as in Standard -> Magic+5->Enchanted.

I tend not to rely only on the Estoc once I acquire some Balder side swords for fire and such. So if you're up against something a bit too much for the Estoc a backup halberd is always a good idea. Admittedly, As NG+ increases I will eventually have enough Gargoyle Halberds with sufficient enchantments to cover all conditions.

As in all DS:R weapons you must never marry yourself to a weapon; Quick way to die. Unless you're are doing a challenge, of course. Which might also be a quick way to die ;-)

[skyhrg]

The hitbox for the estoc, especially when you're hitting downwards or against dogs/rats, is atrocious lol. It's making me want to restart a run haha.

[Agoraphobic Meep]

Originally posted by skyhrg:

The hitbox for the estoc, especially when you're hitting downwards or against dogs/rats, is atrocious lol. It's making me want to restart a run haha.

The one handed R2 hits dogs pretty well iirc, block the dog and mashing that should be work.

[darinbob]

Yup, Estoc has a long reach, nearly as good as Zweihander, and a long reach is always handy. Being faster means you can probably get in more hits on some bosses when they're recovering from their own attacks than on the Zweihander.

It's also good to have more than one weapon. Ie, having a divine weapon for the catacombs and later Nito is a big help but not best as a main weapon. Some bosses are more vulnerable to lightning, one in particular is nearly immune. So if you give up on Estoc, and it's already up to +5, that makes it perfect to give a damage type to for special purposes.