Starting GK Trials

[Kuvo]

Ok i've been looking around and besides going for the masamune, what is the most effective damage dealing trial katana? People of so many mixed opinions in my shell that i'm at a stand still. Currently i am about half way done for my masamune and hit a snag with getting help on some of the VNMs, Carabose, and CC so i've decided to try another trial.

Ive been looking at the +10% weaponskill damage GK and that looks like it would be better then the +100 TP GK in DoT but i'm not sure.

Again the multi hit GKs looks good but why would the occ attack twice be better then one that attacks 2-4 times?

Anyone with some good feedback on which one to get? Right now i'm strongest for the +10% weaponskill.

[SpankWustler]

For Tachi: Shoha and probably a bunch of other stuff, the TP Bonus Great Katana should be superior to the +10% Weaponskill Damage Great Katana. The TP Bonus Great Katana and Tachi: Shoha look to be a really good way to get a lot of bang for your buck, especially if you get the feeling your Masamune would never make it past 90 giving how things are progressing at present.

Hopefully someone who knows more and cares more about Samurai can offer some more detailed advice or tell me that I'm horribly wrong and dumb. Mostly dumb. Always dumb.

[Delvish]

As someone who has done multiple different trial weapons, I think I can provide some insight. First and foremost, the 100% TP bonus GK - Kantonotachi is a must for anyone without a mythic. It really is worth it, especially with Shoha's TP boost modifiers.

The OAT 2-4 - Kawatsutsuminotachi is also really nice. TP gain is through the roof, and also really really good for SAM/DNC or SAM/RNG styles. Shoha will probably do about half the damage of the Kantonotachi, but frequency is through the roof. Between these two, Kanto is good for high defense mobs while kawatsu is superior for small fry. Ultimately, nearly all SAMs had a Soboro-Sukehiro at some point and many still carry theirs around. The Kawatsu is quite simply a Soboro+1. You carry a Soboro, may as well upgrade it to something worthwhile.

The OA twice/Double Attack GKs are a fair mix on the otherhand. They have a decent damage rating while still putting out a decent TP gain. Good middle ground between the previous two, but not one I cared for. Personally, the DA would be the better of the two, boasting a higher base damage as well as complementing your standard DA TP gear set. I switched out of DA though to seek greater gains in Zanshin and taking full advantage of the Hassanshin upgrade we recently received, so this one really depends on the rest of your play style.

The WS damage +10% though is a joke. If you were looking at this one, go for the 100% TP instead. With Shoha, between 100 and 200% TP the modifier practically doubles (100%=1.3, 200%=2.1, 300%=2.6), so unless you are frequently WSing at > 200% TP and thereby lowering your overall output anyway, don't go with this guy.

If you want any other insight on trial GKs, feel free to ask.

[Kuvo]

Delvish, thank you for your insight. Fantastic info and you just made my decision so much easier to make. I played the game as a mage job for many years and didn't really understand about that kind of damage output you can get with TP modifiers. So i recently capped out Shoha's merits and am going for Kanto. Thanks again.

[saevel]

Shoha gets approx 30% damage bonus going from 100 to 200 TP and that's assuming on a weak target. It goes higher if your not capping attack without the attack bonus (2nd hit doesn't get attack bonus). SAMs get enough Store TP that after HassoZanshin and /WAR is taken into account your start to approach Ws saturation. Every time you use a Ws or JA there is a 2s initial pause applied, when your using the 2~4/5 weapons you end up spending too much time in that pause for weaker WS's. For these two reasons the TP Bonus Kano ends up being the best of the bunch for SAM and unless your planning on building a 99 Amano / Masa / Mythic then you should be getting the Kano. Even then it makes a nice place holder until your finish that 99 weapon.