Two handed sword and AoE skills

Hi everyone,

Sorry for my bad english, I will try to do my best since it's not my native language.

I play a duelist with two handed sword, but this weapon seems really underpowered compare to the other two handed weapons.
The only spammable AoE is cleave which seems very useless compare to sweep or ground slam.
The damage are low and the range is so short that I am already hurt whereas I havn't even hit.

I don't have already drop flicker strike, so maybe it will change everything.


What is your impression about this kind of weapon?
What is the benefit about plyaing with a two handed sword?
What are the most viable skills with it?
Does it need a dedicate skill ?

What is your impression about this kind of weapon?
I love, love 2hand sword duelist! Just started my new one for this patch!

What is the benefit about plyaing with a two handed sword?
I like swords, because to me, they seem to drop more often, which probably isn't true, but there isn't a lot of competition for them in the trade market, at least there wasn't prior to the migrations.

What are the most viable skills with it?
I use (as i get the skills of course) - Cleave (which i like way more than ground slam), flicker strike, heavy strike

Does it need a dedicate skill ?
I use "Heavy Strike" when I feel "Flicker" will get me in trouble. I will use phase run for a big one time flicker on a boss. Flicker Strike is excellent for taking out archers and mages. Cleave decimates packs of white trash mobs. warloards call helps too, as a curse it gives you more life steal.

"

Gilhyan wrote:

I play a duelist with two handed sword, but this weapon seems really underpowered compare to the other two handed weapons.

A look at your character's skill tree might be in order, just to be sure you're getting all the relevant boosts (STR, 2H boosts, sword boosts). Note that some weapons... *ahem*claws*cough*... take a bit longer to shine than others.

"

The only spammable AoE is cleave which seems very useless compare to sweep or ground slam.
The damage are low and the range is so short that I am already hurt whereas I havn't even hit.

Because you're hitting multiple targets with Cleave, it's ideal for spawning on-hit effects, foremost among these being life leech (via some combination of the weapon(s), curse, support gems, and/or potion effects). While it doesn't have the native knockback of Sweep, it does execute faster, which is important if you're using it to leech life.

"

I don't have already drop flicker strike, so maybe it will change everything.

Flicker Strike is fun, but takes a bit of practice to use effectively and synergizes very well with Frenzy (10x + 31% attack speed, where x is the number of frenzy charges).

"

What is your impression about this kind of weapon?
What is the benefit about plyaing with a two handed sword?
What are the most viable skills with it?
Does it need a dedicate skill ?

My marauder Tcharzanek rocks one of these in the Default league...



...to good effect. Swords are, I believe, the most accurate and usually fastest of the two-handed weapons. Cleave is useful as noted above, the question of which other gems would be a good idea depends on the character concept. Axtrixis makes some good points, to which I would add Leap Slam not only for getting to those pesky archers/mages, but as a means of getting out of a sticky wicket. Detonate Dead, if available, is also good for softening up the tangos and helping Cleave with crowd control.

2h axe/sword:
Flicker Strike
Heavy Hit
Cleave (which is significantly better than the mace AEs)
------ Those are your 3 main ones, link with support gems, etc.
Phase Run, Warlord's Mark, Blood Rage, Auras - Hatred if you don't have blood magic, Anger if you do

I have restart a duelist because I have too much passive point waste on my first one.

"

A look at your character's skill tree might be in order, just to be sure you're getting all the relevant boosts (STR, 2H boosts, sword boosts). Note that some weapons... *ahem*claws*cough*... take a bit longer to shine than others.

My skill tree is currently like that :


And I think I will get this at lvl 50 :


I have a little bit change my way to play my duelist.

I am currently using :
Heavy strike for champion
Cleave for pack of white mob
Leap Slam for initiate a big pack of mob and avoid projectile (It seems that when the animation start, the char can't be hit)
Flipper Strike for fleeing or initiate

And I project to use :
Warlord Mark, Blood Rage and maybe Dual Strike instead of Heavy Strike because I find it just more duelistish


Now I feel less the lack of AoE but I need to go further in difficult level.

Sweep should be made useable with 2h swords

"

Gilhyan wrote:

And I project to use :
Warlord Mark, Blood Rage and maybe Dual Strike instead of Heavy Strike because I find it just more duelistish

Dual Strike is a dual wielding ability

Sorry, I mean Double Strike

Yes I agree sweep should be usable with a 2 Hand sword.

My goal was to make a 2 hand duelist and go 2 hand sword. I started using sweep which became my favored skill to kill multiple monsters. Cleave really isnt as good.

Id like to see more skills for attacking multiple monsters.