Talk:Heavy

Strategy

I'm just gonna put a draft here for what I'd put in the tips & tricks / strategy section. I'm admittedly very biased on the subject so feedback is advised. Hordes (talk) 16:47, 20 February 2023 (CET)

Strategy

In theory, heavy can be an incredibly risky brand, due to the importance of reaching 1.0 attack delay. A weapon with minimum delay of 0.7 would now have a delay of 1.05 decaAut. This represents a 5% chance of a regular speed enemy double-turning you.

With 2 turns, a deep elf annihilator can maxroll 2 crystal spears for 204 damage, which can instantly kill most characters for most parts of the game. Deep elf annihilators have a 0.002% to maxroll a single crystal spear, which is further reduced by AC / EV / SH, and most enemies won't be that dangerous. But monsters don't come alone. When multiple monsters get a double-turn on you, things can go sour very quickly. Even if they aren't maxrolls, a few high rolls can end your run, or at least force consumable usage.

Weapons with 0.6 or 0.5 mindelay, like demon blades, demon tridents, and Short Blades, can reach a post-heavy mindelay below 1.0. Therefore, the dangers of heavy are mostly negated. Watch out for shields, which can bring delay back up beyond 1.0.

With all that being said, heavy offers a slightly weaker damage boost than flaming or freezing, but has the benefit of being irresistable. In addition, heavy is less impacted by AC, slaying, and enchantment. In an average situation, heavy is a competitive brand with flaming or freezing - assuming you are past the early game (early on, low accuracy makes heavy a risky brand). Heavy can also be a great brand if it's on a weapon below 0.7 min delay, for the reasons stated above.