The idea of this thread is both to help the new players pick the best weapon for their style and to clear out the remaining mist around the gear which the game offers. What follows below is a result of my personal observations and some things might not be absolutely correct - due to which I encourage the other representatives of the "older generation" :p to provide their own impressions and feedback.
Some clarifications how the different weapons are evaluated:
Length: The unknown value which determines how many attack attempts can a gladiator make against an opponent with longer/shorter weapon.
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: How effective is the given weapon against armour and how likely it is to be deflected. Also how high is the chance to trigger a critical hit upon attack.
Chance to trigger bleeding: This one is self-explanatory.
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: What bonus can be expected from the mentioned skill for that weapon. Important note: ALL weapons can cause bleeding with GV, the difference is in the amount.
Initiative penalty: How much the given weapon reduces the gladiator's initiative.
Special effects: Whether the weapon has some special property which can be seen/deduced from the actual fights only.
Attack styles: How is the weapon supposed to be used.
The armour types are evaluated as follows:
Deflection rate: How often the given armour sub-type can be expected to deflect attacks.
Critical protection: How much the armour reduces the power of critical hits.
Bleeding protection: How much the armour reduces bleeding (from both critical and non-critical hits).
I'm measuring the categories which have some unknown values from Very Low to Very High (and in one case - Great, which indicates the highest available value). A short comment is put after each weapon type for flavour and minor hints. Here is the actual list:
Weapons
Blades family
Dagger
Length: Short
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Very Low
Chance to trigger bleeding: Very High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Very High
Initiative penalty: None or Very Low
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: A natural weapon choice for certain bleeder and Speed builds, as well as some War tanks who want to accumulate good initiative. It gets deflected often and is generally bad at criticals so it usually needs critical-enhancing skills/boosts to be efficient later in the game.
Rapier
Length: Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Below Average
Chance to trigger bleeding: High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: High
Initiative penalty: Very Low
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: This is a very popular weapon among various Speed builds due to its very good speed, bleeding capabilities and decent armour-penetration power for a bladed weapon. Generally works better with Lunge.
Short Sword
Length: Below Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Below Average/Average
Chance toe trigger bleeding: High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: High
Initiative penalty: Very Low/Low
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: Used mostly by speed builds, the short sword offers decent armour penetration and bleeding power for its speed. Works equally well with Slash and Lunge but the latter style is usually preferred against heavily armoured Wars.
Broad/Long Sword
Length: Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Average
Chance to trigger bleeding: Above Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Above Average
Initiative penalty: Below Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: This is a moderately fast sword which plays a demarcation point between the light, bleeding-orientated bladed weapons and their heavier cousins with a more armour-piercing role. It does decently at triggering bleeding and doing some good damage but does not excel at any of these.
Bastard Sword
Length: Above Average/Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Above Average
Chance to trigger bleeding: Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Average
Initiative penalty: Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: The heaviest weapon from the Blades family, the Bastard Sword has greater punching power than any other Blade but is also slow and adds noticeable amount of initiative penalty to the fighter. It generally takes more planning and tactical adjustment to make a good use of it compared to the other bladed weapons.
Axes & Maces family
Hatchet
Length: Below Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Above Average
Chance to trigger bleeding: Below Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Below Average
Initiative penalty: Below Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash, Slash
Notes: This is the lightest weapon from the family and offers good hitting power in addition to its decent speed. It is popular among some Power builds. One should not rely too much of its native bleeding capabilities. Works better with Bash.
War Hammer
Length: Below Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Low
Initiative penalty: Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash
Notes: Probably the most popular weapon from the family due to its significant armour-piercing capabilities and decent speed. Very often used by Power Rage and Theatrics builds, can sometimes be employed by certain more offensive Wars as well. A good weapon for beginners who want to test the A&M family.
Mace
Length: Below Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High/Very High
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Low
Initiative penalty: Above Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash
Notes: One of the best armour-piercing weapons in the game, which is also rather slow and puts a good extra load on your fighter’s initiative. It is generally more neglected than the War Hammer but can do better job than it in the hands of certain builds, like Power Theatrics.
Battle Axe
Length: Below Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Above Average/High
Chance to trigger bleeding: Below Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Below Average/Low
Initiative penalty: Above Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash, Slash
Notes: This is basically a heavier version of the Hatchet. It hits harder and slower, has some chance to trigger bleeding but it is not incredibly high and is basically what you would get it you cross a Bastard Sword with a Mace. Good for some Power builds but due to its relatively low speed and initiative penalty, it is not very popular. Works better with Bash.
Flail
Length: Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High/Very High
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous violence: Low
Initiative penalty: Above Average
Special effects: Partially bypasses Shields; Has a higher chance to miss
Attack Styles: Bash
Notes: A very powerful offensive weapon which does very well against all sorts of defensive builds. The flail has the best hitting power of all one-handed weapons but it is also more unwieldy and makes your fighter miss more often or even make critical mistakes like throwing away his weapon or falling on the ground on his own.
Two-handed weapons family
Battle Flail
Length: Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Low or lower)
Initiative penalty: High
Special effects: None (Partially bypasses shields?)
Attack styles: Bash
Notes: This is a rather unique two-handed weapon due to its lower weight and slightly higher attack speed compared to its cousins. The hitting power is also slightly lower to compensate for the extra attack every once in a while. Frequently used by Rages with Total Carnage because it allows them to better utilize the speed of the weapon but it can also be seen in the hands of some Wars.
Great Sword/Zweihander/Claymore/Flamberge
Length: Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Above Average)
Initiative penalty: High
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: Like all two-handed weapons, the 2H sword is slow and puts quite a penalty on the gladiator’s initiative but compensates with a very good hitting power. In general this type of weapon is not as offensive as other types from the family but it is possibly easier to wield and has a chance to trigger bleeding, which could be handy in some situations. There could be some difference between the different types of 2H swords but I have not noticed it.
Great Axe
Length: Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: Below Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Average or lower)
Initiative penalty: High
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash
Notes: The Great Axe is the bridge between the Zweihanders and the Maul. It has somewhat better armour-piercing properties than the 2H swords but is worse at triggering bleeding. It can be used by various Rage and War builds with good effect.
Maul
Length: Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Very High
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Low or lower)
Initiative penalty: High
Special effects: None (Possibly higher chance to miss)
Attack styles: Bash
Notes: This is a bigger, meaner and slower version of the Mace. It can hit hard even without training offensive skills and does a very good job against armour. The drawback is that the Maul seems to be relatively unwieldy and doesn’t trigger any bleeding.
War Chain
Length: Long/Very Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Very High
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Low or lower)
Initiative penalty: High/Very High
Special effects: Partially bypassed Shields; Has a higher chance to miss
Attack styles: Bash
Notes: The War Chain is basically a Flail on steroids. It is a very offensive weapon, possibly the best against defensive builds, but it is also heavy and prone to misses even with Battle Hardened. It is somewhat neglected due to its weight.
Pole Arms weapons family
Spear
Length: Long/Very Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Above Average or High)
Initiative penalty: Below Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Lunge
Notes: An interesting weapon, the Spear deals average damage but can pierce through armour quite well and scores the most bleeding of all two-handed weapons. It is not very popular and its abilities and possible applications remain largely unexplored to date. Usually employed by more offensive-minded gladiators.
War Staff
Length: Long/Very Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: Above Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Unknown (supposedly Above Average)
Initiative penalty: Average/Above Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash, Lunge
Notes: The mid-weight Pole Arm looks like a strange mix of other weapons. It has good armour-penetration power, can trigger bleeding relatively frequently and is long enough to keep the short weapon users away quite well. Its damage is not spectacular however and the weapon speed is rather low (even though it’s quite good for a two-handed item) so opponents who can hit both hard and fast can overwhelm your fighter.
Halberd/Pollaxe
Length: Very Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: High
Chance to trigger bleeding: Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: (Unknown, supposedly Above Average)
Initiative penalty: Above Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Bash, Lunge
Notes: The Halberd/Pollaxe is quite similar to the two-handed swords but unlike them it needs Agility rather than Strength to be more efficient. It is among the longest weapons available and can be used successfully in both offensive and defensive scenarios. It is possible that the Pollaxe has higher armour-piercing power than the Halberd but triggers less bleeding.
Exotic weapons family
Stiletto
Length: Short
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Very Low
Chance to trigger bleeding: Very High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Very High
Initiative penalty: None or Very Low
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: This is pretty much the exotic equivalent of the dagger. Triggers a lot of bleeding, allows very frequent attacks but is also terrible against armour and should not be expected to come up with high tier criticals very often without dedicated skills. Good for Speed fighters and some unorthodox defensive builds.
Claw
Length: Short
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Low
Chance to trigger bleeding: Very High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Very High
Initiative penalty: Low
Special effects: Can not be disarmed
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: Although it has the same attack speed as the Dagger and the Stiletto, the Claw is a heavier weapon which generally does better against armour but puts some penalty on your fighter’s initiative (which is still relatively low on global scale). Valued mostly among the Speed builds with bleeding focus.
Trident
Length: Above Average/Long
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Above Average
Chance to trigger bleeding: High
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: High
Initiative penalty: Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Lunge
Notes: A curious representative of the Exotics family, the Trident is as heavy as a Battle Flail but actually attacks faster than the Falchion and is fairly good at penetrating armour. It also has a very good bleeding output, especially with Gratuitous Violence, but its average damage can be a disadvantage against hard-hitters. Used by both defensive and offensive builds with good success.
Falchion
Length: Average
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Above Average
Chance to trigger bleeding: Above Average
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Above Average/High
Initiative penalty: Average
Special effects: None
Attack styles: Slash, Lunge
Notes: The Falchion is a more offensive version of the Bastard Sword, slightly better at penetrating armour, triggering bleeding and dealing damage but seemingly worse at parries and shorter in length. It is a slow weapon, quite efficient with Counter Attack and has good applications in both offensive and defensive scenarios.
Shields family
General note: All shields are supposed to be used with defensive styles for maximum efficiency.
Buckler
Length: Short
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Very Low
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Very Low
Initiative penalty: Very Low or Low
Special effects: Parry Bonus
Attack styles: (Parry-) Bash
Notes: The lightest shield in the game is largely neglected, especially in the later stages of the game, so its properties are mostly unexplored. Of all shields, it puts the least extra weight on your fighter’s initiative and can possibly be used in some hybrid configurations (light defense with occasional switches to offense) but its very bad offensive characteristics as well as the preference for extreme builds (heavy offence or heavy defense) makes it an outsider for the time being.
Kite Shield
Length: Short
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Very Low
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Very Low
Initiative penalty: Average
Special effects: Parry Bonus
Attack styles: (Parry-) Bash
Notes: The Kite Shield has significantly bigger defensive potential than the Buckler but it is also heavier and harder on your initiative and still terrible when it comes to offense (which you will notice mostly when your gladiator decides to make off-hand attacks). It has seem somewhat more usage than the Buckler throughout the years but in general it is an underdog.
Wall Shield
Length: Short
Armour-penetration power/Critical power: Low
Chance to trigger bleeding: None
Bleeding bonus from Gratuitous Violence: Very Low
Initiative penalty: High/Very High
Special effects: Parry Bonus
Attack styles: (Parry-) Bash
Notes: Undoubtedly the most popular shield in the game to date and right now the only one used in the Blood Gods bracket. It provides a massive boost to your gladiator’s defensive potential at the expense of an equally massive initiative penalty and extra encumbrance. Very efficient when used by heavily defensive War and Theatrics builds. It is also the only shield which can actually do some notable damage, although it is still very low when compared to most of the weapons with offensive application.
Armour
General note: To all armour types applies the rule that gladiators who wear a full suit of one sub-type (or even one type) only are exceptions, not a norm. Most of the notes below assume, for simplicity, that your fighter wears only the given sub-type of armour so its properties can be explained more clearly but in the real game you will probably mix them a lot, put lighter pieces on limbs which you expect to be attacked less often and heavier ones on the usual targets for the opponent, swap one type with another (if the class allows it) depending on your strategy and build, etc. The number of possible combinations is high enough to make them hard to describe in details so the current approach aims to present just a general picture.
General note 2: All armour types provide higher deflection rate when used with a defensive strategy.
Light armour family
Cloth
Deflection rate: None or Very Low
Critical protection: None or Very Low
Bleeding protection: None or Very Low
Notes: This is not really armour. The protection that the Cloth pieces offer is so minimal that it nearly equals fighting naked. It is still better than nothing and certainly doesn’t add any noticeable encumbrance on your fighter which is its biggest upside, allowing you to build a very fast fighter. This type of “armour” is usually utilized by Rages who don’t care about their protection, very rarely it can be seen on some Theatrics fighter and almost never on a War.
Soft Leather/Soft Hide
Deflection rate: Very Low
Critical protection: Very Low
Bleeding protection: Very Low
Notes: Still far from anything that can be called armour, the Soft Leather/Hide offers very little protection but is nearly twice better than the Cloth and still very light, allowing high initiative and speed. Primarily used by Rage fighters and on rare occasions by Theatrics. As with all very light amour types, it is neglected by Wars due to the needs of that class for higher protection. There might be some difference between the Soft Leather and Soft Hide sub-types but it is certainly not big enough to notice.
Hard Hide
Deflection rate: Very Low
Critical protection: Very Low or Low
Bleeding protection: Very Low or Low
Notes: The Hard Hide is probably the first member of the family that offers some protection which is not critically low (although it is still very inferior to the vast part of available armour types). The encumbrance levels also begin to mount slightly more visibly from this point on. In general, the Hard Hide offers a good compromise between the need to keep your fighter fast but not completely at the expense of his protection.
Padded Leather
Deflection rate: Very Low or Low
Critical protection: Low
Bleeding protection: Low
Notes: One step above the Hard Hide when it comes to providing additional protection and encumbrance, the Padded Leather is possibly the first real “light armour”. Equipping your fighter with it will allow you to see those purple notes during the fight which say that the opponent failed to do any damage because of your outfit more than once in a blue moon. In terms of encumbrance, the is the mid-weight Light Armour, still allowing you to build a fast fighter but making you slower overall than the gladiators – usually Rages – with lighter equipment.
Boiled Leather
Deflection rate: Low
Critical protection: Low or Below Average
Bleeding protection: Low or Below Average
Notes: The first of the two “heavy” sub-types of Light Armour, the Padded Leather offers visible damage reduction, some protection against bleeding and critical hits and occasional deflections at the expense of greater encumbrance compared to the majority of the other sub-types of the family. Generally a good choice for all fighters who want to achieve some levels of light protection but for various reasons want to remain faster (as far as the encumbrance is concerned) than their opponents in Studded Leather.
Studded Leather
Deflection rate: Below Average
Critical protection: Below Average
Bleeding protection: Below Average
Notes: The heaviest Ligh Armour enjoys high popularity among various Rage and Theatrics builds and is probably the only representative of the family which can be seen on Wars who are not aiming at some incredibly exotic build. Although one should not rely on it to deflect too many attacks, it still does quite well for its weight. Wearing many pieces of Studded Leather can however put your fighter in a disadvantage against more lightly equipped gladiators.
Medium armour family
Ring Mail
Deflection rate: Below Average or Average
Critical protection: Average
Bleeding protection: Average
Notes: The Ring Mail is not a very big jump from the Studded Leather in terms of overall protection but it certainly adds considerably more encumbrance on your fighter. It is a very good choice for builds which want to maintain decent speed and initiative but also be able to withstand some damage. Normally used by Theatrics fighters and on rarer occasions by Wars.
Splint Mail
Deflection rate: Average
Critical protection: Average
Bleeding protection: Average
Notes: This will probably be the first armour sub-type which will make you wonder why should you put it on when you have a lighter version of it which seemingly offers the same protection. The answer is that the Splint Mail actually offers better protection than the Ring Mail in certain areas – it deflects somewhat more often, protects against bleeding and criticals a bit better and in some situations can make the difference between win and loss. It is still relatively light so pieces of it are often used to complete heavier suits without sacrificing too much protection.
Scale Mail
Deflection rate: Average
Critical protection: Average or Above Average
Bleeding protection: Average or Above Average
Notes: Easily one of the most popular armour sub-types in the game, the Scale Mail offers fairly good damage reduction and overall protection without putting excessive encumbrance on your fighter. Used mainly by Theatrics gladiators who aim more at resisting damage rather than remaining highly mobile but it can also be seen on certain – usually offensive – War fighters. Relatively easy to use by newer players.
Chain Mail
Deflection rate: Above Average
Critical protection: Above Average
Bleeding protection: Above Average
Notes: Chain Mail armour is generally more difficult to use than the earlier sub-types of the family due to the added weight which can become a problem for your gladiator in some scenarios. For this reason it is rarely worn in full suit by Theatrics gladiators but pieces of it can often be seen in mixed configurations. It is probably the most acceptable type of Medium Armour for Wars in general as it allows for moderately offensive or defensive builds due to both being lighter than the Heavy Armour and offering higher protection than the other members of its family.
Heavy armour family
Banded Mail
Deflection rate: High
Critical protection: High
Bleeding protection: High
Notes: The only available “light” Heavy Armour marks a transition between the dual-use armour types, more or less focused on defense but still allowing some mobility, and the heaviest suits which require special training and tactics to be utilized to their full potential without turning your fighter into a sturdy but largely static target. It is normally used by gladiators who have at least partial offensive orientation but it still provides enough protection to be successfully utilized in defensive scenarios as well.
Plate Mail
Deflection rate: Very High
Critical protection: Very High
Bleeding protection: Very High
Notes: Arguably the most famous sub-type the Heavy Armour family on the arena. The Plate Mail provides a substantial protection even against the heaviest weapons, which can be further boosted by some of the dedicated War skills. It deflects often enough to make that mechanic an integral part of your strategy (rather than an unreliable event which may or may not be seen during a fight even with the best Medium Armour) and provides great resistance against bleeding. The reduction of the critical hits power is also considerably high, although your gladiator will not exactly become immune to them. The price for all this is very high encumbrance which needs to be carefully managed. Full suits of Plate Mail can normally be worn with good effect only by very big fighters or by gladiators with both the Armour Movement and Light as a Feather skills.
Full Plate Mail
Deflection rate: Great
Critical protection: Great
Bleeding protection: Great
Notes: The Full Plate Mail is rather controversial armour. It undoubtedly offers the highest possible protection in the game, turning your gladiator into a steel fortress that is very hard to shake or bring down with bleeding. Just like a normal fortress however, he or she will also be massive and… static. The encumbrance that the Full Plate Mail puts on your fighter is 25% higher than that of the already very heavy Plate Mail, meaning that a complete Full Plate suit weights so much that you theoretically need a titan to wear it and still be able to move often enough. For this reason the Full Plate Mail is almost never used to cover the entire gladiator and only certain pieces of it (usually arm guards and helms) are distributed between frequently targeted limbs.
