Thunderforge Weapons - Best Options?

[Dulcimerist]

I'm looking to create a Thunderforge weapon for my barbarian, and I'm unsure what to craft.
https://ddowiki.com/page/Thunder-Forged

I use the tier 5 Ravager enhancements for the healing, and have the +2 threat range. I assume greataxes are the way to go? (This is a dwarf, but there are no spare APs for racial axe enhancements.)

1st Degree Burns look best for first upgrade, but I'm unsure which option for the next upgrade would be best.

I'm on the fence about further upgrading this, since keeping this weapon at ML26 fills in a good gap in my ETR journeys. I have a decent ML29 weapon, and low epics I have a Drow Greataxe and Antique Greataxe.

It looks like the upgraded Thunderforge weapon will have two augment slots. The Good augment for DR bypass sounds like a good choice, and perhaps I should pick up a ruby eye from the AH for the other slot? The Night Revels augment that gives enemies a negative level also sounds interesting. Any thoughts on that?

Thanks for the help! As a returning player, Thunderforge is still pretty new to me.

[Stoner81]

Tier 1 1st Degree Burns.
Tier 2 2nd Degree Burns or Paralysing Fear (depending on what you want).

As for the augment I wouldn't bother with the one which gives enemies negative levels they regain faster than you can cause them so I would look for the Meteoric Star Ruby instead.

Stoner81.

[Dulcimerist]

Thanks! Is the slow effect from 2nd degree burns really good? I haven't used slow effect much at all before.

Does paralyzing fear work on bosses?

[Saekee]

It is always a great swap weapon thanks to that DR bypassing but if you put an augment in it you can no longer feed it to a sentient jewel. Unless you plan multiple Dwarven Axe lives...It will clutter your bank

I use a ToEE set in mid epics since I am getting Resistance buff and +22 mp/rp/usp. I cannot say if it is the best option but I TWF so easier choice for an offhand

[Dulcimerist]

It is always a great swap weapon thanks to that DR bypassing but if you put an augment in it you can no longer feed it to a sentient jewel. Unless you plan multiple Dwarven Axe lives...It will clutter your bank

I use a ToEE set in mid epics since I am getting Resistance buff and +22 mp/rp/usp. I cannot say if it is the best option but I TWF so easier choice for an offhand

This character is going to do his 2nd ETR after update 45 is released, and won't do a TR until he has 12 epic lives under his belt as THF barbarian. After the TR he will do more barbarian and some THF paladin. He will get a lot of mileage out of the Thunderforged greataxe I craft, which is nice.

Good point on the augments and caution of clutter. There's temptation to grind out the mats to make several situational Thunderforged weapons (maul with the fortification bypass as a skellie beater, etc.), but crafting just one really nice ML26 greataxe (or falchion?) to help the ETR grind be a bit more pleasant sounds best.

I returned to DDO only 2 years ago, after a 6-year hiatus. ToEE crafting is still completely foreign and a bit overwhelming to me. Is there decent stuff to be made there? You're one of the "rogue gurus" on the forum, so if you've written a thread somewhere about gearing up a TWF rogue, I do have one of those as an alt. I've been thinking about crafting her a Thunderforged dagger, since she doesn't own a decent DR breaker yet.

[cru121]

I am personally a fan of Dragon's Edge as a tier 2 upgrade: Armor-Piercing 35%. On Crit: 33 to 105 Bleeding Damage.

[Dulcimerist]

I am personally a fan of Dragon's Edge as a tier 2 upgrade: Armor-Piercing 35%. On Crit: 33 to 105 Bleeding Damage.

Dragon's Edge was what I was initially leaning toward, since I'm creating this primarily as a DR breaker. Bleeding works on most bosses, and Armor-Piercing works on all enemies to give my barbarian more crits. Does the Bleeding effect damage scale with melee power?

Paralyzing Fear looks quite nice, and offers some crowd control on non-boss mobs. Looking at the Wiki, Paralyzing (https://ddowiki.com/page/Paralyzing) no longer causes helplessness, therefore not granting extra damage? When did that happen? If paralyzing isn't going to trigger Sense Weakness or grant any extra damage, I might be better off with the extra DPS from Dragon's Edge to kill those mobs faster.

Dragon's Edge looks like a good choice for my TWF rogue as well, especially with Armor-Piercing also applying to her off-hand weapon. There's still some consideration for Paralyzing Fear here, simply to reduce incoming damage during melee combat. Killing stuff faster is probably still the best way to reduce incoming damage, though.

Thanks so much for all of the input so far! +1s to everyone!

[AshtonEsson]

This is a good guide on how to improve your hero and his skills.