- by Islwyn, put the Master in Swordmaster, Altdorf celebrity bodyguard
The purpose of the following passages is to elucidate the mysteries
of the Swordmaster in such a way as to allow for your own discovery,
whilst guiding you past frustrating pitfalls! There are two ways to
combat the forces of Destruction, the first is with your greatsword,
and the second is to relay on your shield to protect you.
Path of Khaine
The Path of Kaine favors the greatsword heavily, and going down this
path will yield the greatest offensive potential. Learning Balanced
Accuracy, Great Weapon Mastery, and Ether Dance are your primary
goals, and then further increasing your burst with tactics such as
Potent Enchantments and Enscorcelled Agony. Master of the ways
of Khaine will give you great offensive capabilities, but the key to
success in battle as a Swordmaster is found through balance.
Path of Hoeth
mastering the ways of Hoeth will give you access to magical armor
enhancements, and even a method to harden yourself against your
enemy's strikes. Purity of Hoeth grants you a small amount of
protection, but also helps you move through your Dance even when
foes are not near.
Path of Vaul
Mastering the Path of Vaul, in conjunction with the use of a shield,
will grant you unparalleled defensive capabilities. When clearing
dungeons of any manner of Destruction filth, the defenses proffered
from Vaul are invaluable. Whilst warring against the champions of
Destruction the effectiveness of Hold the Line, and your second
interrupt (Crusing Advance), can be very powerful tools for
protecting your allies and disrupting your foes.
There are many ways to combat the forces of Destruction as a
Swordmaster, but the most important thing to remember is balance.
Fully mastering the Khaine tree with disregard for Hoeth's and Vaul's
gifts will likely leave you a corpse. However, becoming an immovable
force through master of Vaul's gifts will leave you ineffective, as you
lack the power to slay your foes. You must be dangerous enough
to be a threat, and defensive enough to survive. While those two
goals are met, all paths are open to you.
Selecting your armaments is important, and just as with your
masteries, balance is the key. A great deal of toughness, at the
expense of strength, will leave you ineffective. Have enough
toughness to survive in battle with aid from your allies, but enough
strength to be dangerous. When using Ether Dance, you should
seek a slow weapon. Because a great deal of your time will be
spent channeling ether dance, you will not be able to auto attack,
so harder hit for hit damage is preferred. While using the gifts of
Vaul or Hoeth primarily, a fast weapon can be more effective.
Dwooid Note: If there are more SM subjects you'd like Islwyn
to cover, or comments you'd like me to pass on, obviously feel
free to contact him directly or send it to me through the "Contact
Dwooid" address on the sidebar and I'll send it on to him :).