New World's REAL Best DPS Weapon Isn't What You Think! (with Skill Trees)

[@botta88]

While interesting to learn about the sword, I think the hatchet is just a better and more efficient weapon for speed running dungeons. Since this is purely based on dps it wouldn’t necessarily account for getting hit, knocked down, stunned, etc. Since the hatchet has defy death and beserk there might be mechanics you don’t have to kite or dodge therefore potentially allowing for me dps uptime. For example in garden, you can ignore the wipe mechanic and continue to dps in that window instead of hiding behind the rocks.

[@DukeSloth]

I think Defy Death is a huge argument for hatchet while Leadership is a huge argument for sword. The extra dps uptime from DD is likely outclassed by the overall DPS increase of leadership if you're not empower capped though. There aren't *that* many dungeon mechanics making it necessary. Berserk I personally don't value that highly. You'll already have grit from 300 str anyways and holding Berserk to use it for CC cleanse would massively lower your DPS. Generally, I think both weapons go pretty even in terms of overall performance in dungeons. The main thing limiting sword's additional benefits is that more than one person running it doesn't add to Leadership.

[@yesimnew8775]

If u want pure burst for mob i see people pack bunderbuss for ablitys and then switch main dps ether hatchet sword shield spear what ever

[@SlowBroToe]

Bro i used to watch your Smite vids all the time, switched to new world when it released and had NO idea you started making NW content!! This is amazing. Glad to have you in Aeternum : )

[@DukeSloth]

Glad you found out now! :) I just came back to it after a bit of an extended break!

[@SoyDuckHot]

If you go over empower cap I think it is still good because I believe it counts toward debuffs like weaken. This is like going over fortify cap but it still helps because any percent over 50% still negates the effects of rend. It seems like the same mechanic so it would work across the board.

[@nib6383]

I do not think this is how the things you're talking about interact, would love to see it tested though.

[@SoyDuckHot]

@@nib6383 I watched a video at some point that explained how going over fortify cap is actually not bad. I can’t remember what video it was.

[@ch3rie_406]

Let's test

[@johjoh9270]

yeah... started using round shield and sword as dps (change the other weapon depending on both dungeon and team composition) and it was amazing, the dmg it alread has by itself, paired with the ability to block and survive stuff where you would usually have to use time rolling (as opposed to a quick tap to block and release) is so good, but that permanent whole team buff... just OP

[@olympicgay4205]

@@vanilla7767 go war hammer, trust me dude.

[@iconic4609]

@@olympicgay4205 war hammer? Idk chief.

[@Destructow]

It might also be handy to note that bane perks stack for sns. I’m a tank in game and say I do laz I have a angry earth bane perk both on my sword and my shield. And I have 250str and 259 con with leadership so it really helps out the team clear a m10 a lot faster.

[@benedictg]

Great video. Break down rapier dps next!

[@TheAyko20]

SnS/Bow Main since Launch, gonna take a look on this later and share my personal experience + thoughts.

[@MrBalrogos]

Hello i know that from begginign of the game when i started like 8 months ago :) since begginign of game i Play as Tank and recently switched to heavy armor dps with 50con, and now when they fixed shield perks it means you can Stack Banes, enchanted on sword and shield, so my sword have Thwarting strikes + corrupted bane + chain arcane when small shield have bane + keenly empowered. I want also mention buffs SnS tree Provides: 30% empower for 5 sec on heavy attack, 15% dmg whgen hp is full, 10% dmg on slowed enemies(3rd attack of fast chain can apply slow for 2sec) + 5% reend from whirling blade and 10% dmg to you and party when weapon is in hand. And with raw numbers im outdamaging spear user with normal attack without all this buffs i mentioned vs corrupted enemy.

[@rabbitgames1971]

Wait... are you saying Perks from the Hatchet tree are effecting your damage with a sword while holding the sword? I thought perk tree effects were only active while holding that specific weapon.

[@AllSnipe]

is the SnS attack reset still a thing for more dps? Used to be able to do 2 light attacks and cancel the third with a block and go back to lights, L>L>B>L>L>B

[@danielsterling4918]

You want to include the third and final attack on light combo for the +15%damage (if you take the passive, which you absolutely should)

[@DukeSloth]

It definitely still works, haven't compared it for DPS difference though. Could be more effective against bosses. Against trash mobs you might lose damage for doing it, since you won't get the opportunist bonus damage since you don't apply the slow without the 3rd hit!

[@martinhunt4698]

I’ve been using sword and shield exclusively for tanking. I’ve been doing it wrong 😂 Gonna have to get a damage build going. Thanks Duke

[@ZeeroDubs]

So basically, my main two weapons since launch are the 2 best dps in the game? WOOT!! I honestly just chose them based on things like aesthetics and fun. But I'll take it!

[@Phenolisothiocyanate]

So: Berserk > Raging Torrent > SnS Light Attacks > [Repeat]? (I'm ignoring the minor dps increase from other abilities)

[@DukeSloth]

Depends. If you're the only one in the group running SnS, you're probably better off just sticking to SnS because the overall DPS bonus from leadership for your group is stronger than the DPS increase from the hatchet combo. If there's a tank also using SnS, then that combo would work. Question is if you want to run them together in the first place. I personally prefer using spear as a secondary weapon with any DPS weapon for easy rends and bleeds.

[@Phenolisothiocyanate]

@@DukeSloth Gotcha. I was thinking more for solo content. So just spam SnS Light attacks. For groups do you get a DPS increase from the rends and bleeds from the spear overall? Thanks!

[@choopgod1699]

i have not watched your videos in YEARS and i just got back into new world and i was like wait a minute, i know this guy. good to see youre still here and gamering

[@EndlessApocalypse]

hatchet rotation for me is usually heavy, 3 lights, heavy - the animation is actually quite smooth to transition into and removes the garbage 105% attack and emp uptime is 100% then does XR have a link to his animation speeds? been recording them myself but takes so long -.-

[@nqgames2954]

As a SnS player because I think it's more fun than the hatchet, this makes me happy. Now hopefully everyone doesn't suddenly switch to SnS

[@JROCThaGreat]

It's a skill weapon, weapons with a high skill cap, are never popular. So your safe SnS was really good from the jump

[@Chris____.]

8:56 Hehe, there's a reason I havent completed Motherwell quest while waiting for the day it drops 590+. (That and the other fact that I was the singular player in my server farming Artisan Jewelcrafters Hood and selling it for 20k for a solid 8 months before drop changes)

[@lanewoodard6868]

Does the shield drop? Been farming for about 20m so not long but if it doesn't drop or if it drops and it's under 500 that sucks

[@DukeSloth]

@Iane woodard You can't farm it above 590 gs YET! But next patch they change that!

[@Chris____.]

@@lanewoodard6868 I dont remember too well, but I think you need to be at least lvl 59 for the drop to appear (NWDB shows it); besides that requirement, Motherwell drops a named Epic bag at least once per hour, but its split between the Rapier & Shield. Also they only drop ~500gs for now, so im waiting for the Brimstones patch since it SHOULD be possible to drop 590 after the NAMED drop changes.

[@Darkstar12p]

Saw the new New World videos and just re-download the game last night. It's been since December 2021 that I last played with over 850 hours. Hopefully there have been enough changes for me to start a new character and be interested again. Currently I have 2 lvl60s and some lvl40s out there. But I think its time to start fresh. Thanks for the videos my man

[@DukeSloth]

If you're planning to start fresh, I recommend waiting until the Brimstone update next month. They'll overhaul the entire starting experience until approx level 30!

[@planetg2125]

Sword has a bigger hitbox and better melee tracking than the hatchet. But from experience in PvP, if you're landing hatchet you kill them faster, issue is you don't land as consistently as sword. Fortunately you can equip both :)

[@rudygarcia3338]

Been trying not to do it, because I've seen someone doing it. But I'm just going to do it because it's going to be so fun and it's what the heart wants lol.

[@keleko_ix9341]

Honestly would like to see thoughts of SnS paired with Gs.

[@XQwayne]

Include ranged weapons next time too! Great vid

[@McDudes]

think pve dmg perks like coatings and bane doesn't count towards the usual empower cap, same thing for ward towards fortify cap.

[@NathanaelHuber]

You can even stack PvP dmg perks on sword!

[@Juke847]

so best dps for gen is sword with Angry Earth + Thwarting Strikes + Keenly Jagged ? i bought one for 2k. Ive always thought sword is very close to hatchet but didnt think it was better

[@DukeSloth]

Yeah, wow, that's an absolute bargain!

[@xtarsia5822]

not sure I want this public info :p , tho maybe ppl will let me dps more often in m10s with my sword :p - im an sns main - known this for a good while after doing similar work, tho not as indepth as XR went, so kudo's to him for that!

[@darthasavage7213]

Okay so whats the empowerment cap supposed to be cause when I do a heavy attack and then swing with a Keenly Empowered Sword (using the 30% damage buff from heavy attack) it definitely increases the damage depending on whether or not it crits.. but then say I lay down an oblivion + I do a heavy without a Keenly Empowered proc and swing non crit its the same damage as it was with Keenly Empowered no oblivion and also the same as oblivion + KE + Heavy attack buff

[@anthonyminson]

Is it worth trying to help with DPS as a healer? I love void blade and getting into the fight here and there and it also helps with PVP. I’m running a void runeglass build, void damage on ring, abyssal attunement enchanted keen VG, 400 focus 100 con. Would it be worth doing 500 focus without dying?

[@Gimbal-Lock]

Where can I see your spreadsheets you showed in the video? That’s some great data you’ve collected.

[@onlinetoughguy7530]

I notice on my tree I have 19 points where as on the video you have 18 maybe they updated it to 19 now?

[@ViliGiX]

leadership is stacking ? Can it be 10%*5=50% dmg for the whole group?

[@nib6383]

unfortunately that shield at 9:00 is unobtainable if you already did the motherwell guardian quest.

[@DukeSloth]

I know they at some point changed it so that you could get other people to help you and enter the area, but I'm not sure if they changed it back when they nerfed the Well Guardian. I'll have a look after next patch when coin can actually only drop at 590+ gear score

[@bryansantos7919]

Why do the stats on the shield like the attribute points not matter? Wouldn't you be losing out on a ton of attribute points and percentages from the perks? Like building a 625 Shield with the same perks or at least 2 of the good ones. Or is that not possible to craft? You don't lose a bunch of stats but for min maxing or is that just difficult to craft which is why that shield is better?

[@BlackholeU_U]

Does sns last 3th attack spin pull player over Cuz I’m a heavy mage and every time some sns player stun me and light attack me I can’t seem to get out their attack the tracking is too good

[@ferchi4567]

The shield mothers well is not optainable at 590+ gear score if i am not mistaken. So cannot really use it.

[@Pudim996]

Hey, how can you get the named round shield now? I cant get into the place the mob is

[@vanilla7767]

Hi. When am i supposed to use the sword and when the hatchet, for example in expeditions? Thank you, I do love these weapons and I'm quite new

[@Leach-ez7dq]

How does rapier with its faster attacks from evade stack up? I'd think with its very fast 4 hit combo it would outperform the hatchet, even if the damage boost was removed.

[@rob3497]

Reaper took crazy nerfs recently

[@cuross01]

Jocrap approves this video for the sword and shield master race

[@craigo1432]

So what abilities other than leaping should be run with the sword? Should we be using shield bash for the stagger?

[@potatowatch8278]

Was the test for the hatchet done while sword and board were equipped as the secondary weapon? If so, doesn't the board's stats fall off when u switch to hatchet (meaning u lose half of a weapons stats) or did they patch that?

[@PhossiTV]

The stats from the shield ONLY works when wielding it ( no bonus on your back/sheeted)

[@stahliboi6249]

Would be cool to be able to duel wield sword

[@parisgkgr]

can i play this build as hybrid tank with con dex heavy armor? or is ti better as medium dex con or dex str?

[@garrionfire]

i did a lot of testing and rapier with flurry and omni evade out damages hatchet by a large percentage

[@kevo8137]

I couldn't find this anywhere but does bane stack? Say I have it on sword and shield

[@NathanaelHuber]

It does!

[@cripnikka86]

lol 11:17 so... we shouldn't use any abilities but leaping strikes and light attacks to do max dps?

[@DocGamer99]

They never said you couldn't use abilities, they just pointed out that most abilities don't increase DPS, therefore, if you are trying to max DPS, you wouldn't use the abilities that decrease DPS, which is most of them.

[@DopeGuyTy]

I dead ass forgot that you played new world. Love your smite vids.

[@youngswinglish2763]

so for a full dps build, would you use both hatchet and sword?

[@Xariann]

Help a newbie - what is "empowered capped"?

[@yesimnew8775]

Whit hatchet u can pack attunment as well where shield dont have that perk

[@rikhansen4574]

Always the best info on the game that matters

[@mitchellkrever421]

Refreshing torrent can get pretty juicy when used on 3+ mobs as it will completely reset it's cool down.

[@PrinZons]

do you know if you can stack bane perks ? you can get that on shield just not sure if it works.

[@DukeSloth]

Tested now, yeah it stacks! You can only get bane on specific shields from mutations though!

[@freemanlee5655]

I wonder if 29% extra empowered time work from Scorpion Stone, will work on the 5s sword empowered

[@RMMFeed]

What is the gear and attribute distributions for this?

[@El1j4h101]

swop thwarnting for avysal attunment= 11% more damage?

[@cotytice7658]

Are you running light, medium, or heavy gear and what perks

[@baneofodin8279]

I'm curious if these numbers were simulated or just tested through manual testing. WOW sims for example are insanely higher than what any human can theoretically do, but they are useful information on theory crafting and builds.

[@DukeSloth]

They are simulated! The calculator is extremely complete though. Ingame DPS for all weapons would be lower since it needs to factor in mitigations from the target you're hitting. But that reduction would be percentage-based equal for all weapons, so the relatively performance of each weapon would stay the same

[@verdibahnsen]

Isn’t running double tondo the best for speed running dungeons? I thought laz world records was done with this

[@FusionThunder]

Before I watch: voidgauntlet with voidblade is my best guess atm

[@Xariann]

Did you watch? ;)

[@FusionThunder]

@@Xariann I did I did. Them sword be slicing and dicing!

[@d.k.7931]

can u tell the attributes for that build?

[@decimusx1950]

WHat's the attributes look like on these builds?

[@DukeSloth]

300 str, rest in dex!

[@EndlessApocalypse]

bane also stacks from memory unless it was changed

[@McDudes]

what about block cancel? For example that last attack in hatchet chain?

[@DukeSloth]

Can definitely be done for either of them since both have slower last attacks, but XR didn't specifically test that

[@ruandersonsilva8896]

i found out that the SnS was the most damaging one since i've been plaiyng the assassin build with the SnS

[@EscoPvP]

Is it worth it to get any of the attunement perks on your sword or will that decrease the dps if compaired to other perks?

[@DukeSloth]

Hmm I think you'd end up decreasing DPS in most situations. Thwarting doesn't have the 1 sec CD, Bane is absolute must in PvE and Keenly jagged likely out-dpses attunment (not 100% sure without testing). It's so much harder to roll a weapon with good perks (especially bane) and attunement though that that would probably the main limiting factor.

[@IPlayVideoGamesAndNothingElse]

So the best dps setup in the game is shield and sword primary with hatchet secondary. Wonder if berserker buff works when you swap to sword.

[@atlavis]

No, berserk works only while on hatchet. You can also easily break berserk buff by doing other actions like: gathering, reviving.

[@IPlayVideoGamesAndNothingElse]

@@atlavis thx, so do full rotation of ability’s with berserk active switch to sword and do rotation to provide defense then swap back to regain health / execution phase as needed would be best then.

[@scottxlxlxl]

I feel like firestaff flamethrower ability has high dmg per second with all the burn ticks. but idk never did a deep look like this

[@kalatarusgaming8468]

best part of flamethrower is it's hard to miss with. I do believe the burn stacks are the same as light attacks, but in the FT tree is 20% dmg boost to its regular 1/2 sec hits making it better than LA's (which would be much harder to hit with). (I play FT a lot, but did not log in and test anything I just said.)

[@FuriousJase2422]

Does anyone know if the game creates damage logs?

[@coardaoc1226]

I am sorry to say but u messed this up hard: u test the Ench Perk with and without Shield EQ, this is a big difference ( not to mention the Dex Value Difference) , i tested it again after your Vid , and like all my other testes: ENCHANT and VICICIOUS DONT STACK !.Pls repeat your test with a Shield with and shield without Ench and u see what u did wrong. Keep in Mind the Shield adds a Dmage Value to the calculation also depending on your GS and Premorial Edge is a Sword with 7 more total damage comared to all other swords

[@jjrome78]

dam right when i got my sns cracked you drop this video lmao could have used this 3 months ago

[@askarn94]

i just realized your chest armor piece looks pretty much like the Akum armor in BDO..

[@SpaceGnat]

So happy to be seeing these science videos again

[@arthurivanov2754]

Can someone please go over the sns skill tree he used?

[@clowenngayos6718]

Whats the stat and set

[@SirLunchAL0t]

I've been trying to tell people Sword is the best dps weapon for PvE for ages. Made a YT video showcasing Sword + Spear DPS 8 months ago.

[@dreamforger7166]

was going to say Void Gauntlet, but only light and heavy.. hmm Great Axe then?

[@MrBalrogos]

Can you provide link to calculator?

[@DukeSloth]

Unfortunately not, sorry! The calc is linked to a bunch of other docs and open for editing since it's only accessible for a few people.

[@JA-vr1tz]

Where are you close to empower cap without heavyattack on sns

[@DukeSloth]

Confidence + Leadership + Coating + Oblivion

[@TheCoreGameplay]

Super interesting video, love this

[@DukeSloth]

Thanks Core! :)

[@nefariousnw5966]

Any update on this?

[@mixed_nuts]

Nice work XR!

[@danielsterling4918]

As someone who has used SnS for dps a bunch of times, I called it lol If you're looking for a good sword, go for the *Timekeeper's Hand* which has Enchanted, Refreshing Move, and Keen. Slap an opal gem in for more damage after dodging (get an earring with *Evasive* for -50% threat for 5s since SnS generates more threat), run a round shield with Enchanted (also suggest "sturdy" incase you get surrounded and need to block) and full light armor. Get the "Smooth Bone Ring" for extra stamina, crit. chance, and lifesteal. All in all, you should have 32% crit. chance if you get the 10% passive in the skill tree. This setup is super underrated.. It's great for dps, and really good for "peeling" mobs off your healer, using Leaping Strike and Shield bash combo to give heals some space.

[@MrBalrogos]

Enchanted dont worrk on crits. so bad idea.

[@Ethan-rv3em]

I think you only get more threat generation if you take the threat generation powers especially with carnelian gems. I believe any extra threat is from the sheer amount of DPS a light armor sword user does.

[@NathanaelHuber]

What about the Primordial Edge, abilities are wasted anyways so Refreshing Move does nothing in PvE and Enchanted doestn work with crits.

[@MrBalrogos]

@@NathanaelHuber Refreshing move in PvE does nothing since when? im currently using infernus and cutting with refreshing move my cooldowns taunt important skill :o

[@NathanaelHuber]

@@MrBalrogos Absolutely for tanks, but as the charts show, using abilites as dps even lowers your overal damage.

[@eric31304]

People will never bevieve this.

[@MrBalrogos]

Why they fixed shield perks some time ago.

[@prasinoz3]

It's not about what people believes its about how the weapon performs in game and how it works with other builds.

[@DukeSloth]

Unfortunately, yeah. But I imagine some of the min-maxers that play as a group will be paying attention!

[@eric31304]

@@DukeSloth Yes. But random people are too stubborn to accept any other opinions. I keep being kicked out m10 when i say that SnS is better than hatchet for the group. Or that FS with PoF perk on weapon has the highest DPS on trash mobs (6k to 8k, more on AE) per 1.5 sec, on multiple mobs.

[@nib6383]

@@DukeSloth for min maxing you'd still mainly use hatchet anyway, pretty similar DPS and defy death makes dungeons SO much easier. You can simply ignore mechanics.

[@paeden5431]

I wish this game had a DPS meter

[@liamachuela3631]

nooooooo!! Don’t expose my LA attack SnS build!! Nah but really it’s great. All of the slow and CC damage boosts are amazing. It’s great for solo.

[@liquid1292]

it's a useless comparison if you only take under consideration light attack spamming and excluding weapons that use abilities and light attacks to deal damage as the spear. the spear is the best weapon in terms of dealing damage because not only you can use abilities, you can spam abilities as you reset the cooldowns while dealing damage with light attacks

[@LoneWolf_RO]

i think u just said hatchet is not one of them at the start of the video....

[@planetg2125]

yes it's sword but I'd say mostly because it has the best melee tracking

[@Shokeilive]

nice work. this is great.

[@ivnb]

For PVE, I'm outdpsing anything with a bow when the boss is lower than 50%.

[@bryanhowyong]

Can Sword and Shield solo whole Scorched Mines and defeat all the brutes and bosses?

[@DukeSloth]

Considering somebody has solo'd M10 Dynasty at this point, the answer to that is probably "yes" for any weapon. Likely more a matter of player skill and mob knowledge than weapon choice.

[@meatballsyes3854]

Istg if this is the Greatsword again

[@NatDaHomie]

Highest damage is the aimbotters on opr with muskets killing my Ally’s out the spawn door lol. I am always in denial until you strafe and roll and get hit and when team complains I’m like u prob running in straight line until I look at scoreboard and see the kill count there on before halfway to 1000 😂

[@deathstroke1308]

I think it'd be the rapier

[@kidbonkerz2683]

Rapier and hatchet or spear

[@thanuestudent_4555]

Mages straight up suck 😢

[@boopity6749]

He's back!

[@kirchhoff7049]

The reality is that it doesn't even need to be that close for the sword to win because of Leadership, unless your tank is running it already.

[@OkkaOtter]

The issue is that hatchet has the against all odds passive which increases your base damage afaik, But my build lately has been sword/shield / void for a support build in slash-worthy dungeons. in which even with all stats in sword using void for utility, the hatchets totally beat you because of the shared leadership / oblivion / disintegrate (if you manage to get a group without a spear)

[@DukeSloth]

Yeah, it's definitely a huge benefit. Though it is worth keeping in mind that many DPS players in optimized dungeon runs are already at empower cap anyways, in which case leadership doesn't add anything.

[@kirchhoff7049]

@@DukeSloth Good point.

[@blindx]

TURN SCREEN SHAKE OFF. HOLY FUCK.

[@RoadDeerGames]

Hammer? My guess at 10 sec

[@Sensaiq8]

Sword and shield is good but hatchet dps is much higher with abilities