2nd tier alchemic repeater

[ltlFox]

base : good
1st : earth
2nd : ?

mainly in mind air vs earth
& i almost got for myself to that it should be earth as matter of dmg & i don't need that extra +1 to hit from air as enemy considered to be holded signifiant time (from tier1)

i'd like to hear different opinions on that subject

[Brennie]

The two big problems i have with teir2 Air on range weapons are 1) Doublestrike does not affect ranged combat in any way, shape, or form, and [2) +2 exceptional dex is really nice for a Ranged character that also has Evasion - So nice, infact, that if you can score it, you may want to have it in a more permenant slot (Say, on your second ToD ring). Obviously, if you never plan on slotting expcetional dex anywhere else, #2 is not an issue.] (Rescinded #2)!

So, for my ranged characters, tier 2 alchemical offers: lightning strike. And that it. I don't know about you, but I'd rather have a LitII with Holy/Shocking burst/Shocking blast on it. However, that is just my opinion.

Each of the other options has its charm:

• Earth has Exceptional CON +2, which is a nice bonus 20 HP that you can swp on and off at will, Disintegration which is according to the wiki, the same DPS as lightning strike, however it is untyped and has higher proc chance for lower damage (Which makes it more consistant, and less overkill-y) and Acid Blast which... well okay Acid Blast sucks, but its still something. I would put this as my #1 pick, personally. Less so if you will have exceptional con elsewhere.

• Water has Wisdom +2 (Yay for spot check and will save? Atleast this is highly unlikely to be redundant with your other gear!) with Crushing Wave and Corrosive Salt guards. According to the wiki, the average DPS gain from both of these is roughly equal to Lightning strike and disintegration, with a pretty decent chance of proccing (5% and 2% respectively). However, they are DoTs (which, of course, don't always have time to run their course), and Crushing wave is partially cold damage (All the rest is irresistable). This would probably be the second best DPS gain, but difficult to justify over Earth.

• Fire is +2 strength, which is irrelevant to your character for anything but carry weight, Incineration and Righteous. This one opens interesting possibilities, since you could make a Silver, Cold Iron or Adamantine repeater and have a built-in DR breaker (I think? Does that work for Ranged weapons?). It offer +2 to hit versus evil, which is the only real non-DPS advantage available to teir 2s... but other than that, Incineration is a low proc chance, low DPS, entirely fire based proc (ew!) which doesn't even come close to the DPS gain from the other tiers even when including the +2 damage per hit from Righteous.

Earth is my Vote, [though if you have no other source of Exceptional dex] (rescinded), Air would probably be very similar, though mildly less overall DPS and less useful against electric-resist/immune/absorb enemies.

EDIT: Woooah, upon further review of the wiki, evidently the stat bonuses are "Alchemical" and NOT exceptional! That utterly changes my second problem with teir 2 air! That makes the descion between Eart hand Air different:

Earth: Lower + more consistant UNTYPED damage via proc, a little "Something extra" in DPS from Acid Blast (About 1.8 per shot average w/ improved crit?), +20 HP and +1 fort save.

Air: Higher proc damage + lower proc chance, electric damage. +2 dex, for +1 to hit and +1 reflex saves (And a few skills you probably don't care about).

Earth still looks better to me, but i suppose it all depends on how much you value to-hit and reflex saves.

[Valindria]

The +2 bonus is Alchemical not Exceptional so it would stack with Exceptional +2.

[ThePrincipal]

I really like the Epic Repeater from the challenge series. My mechanic is lvl 19 and I'm really targeting that weapon for heavy endgame use.

[ltlFox]

forget about calomel , there gonna be one with enervation & it will be f2p ^^

[ThePrincipal]

Interesting. Can you direct me to the upcoming update gear?

[elgranmago13]

http://forums.ddo.com/showthread.php?t=359450