Difference between revisions of "Gyre and Gimble"

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{{flavour|Two quick blades joined by a chain. Swinging one compels the wielder to swing the other, as if they have minds of their own.}}
 
{{flavour|Two quick blades joined by a chain. Swinging one compels the wielder to swing the other, as if they have minds of their own.}}
  
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==Desirability==
 
==Desirability==
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'''Gyre and Gimble'''<ref>{{source ref|0.29.1|art-data.txt|1414}}</ref> are an unusual weapon - thematically two weapons, they are treated in-game as a single two-handed weapon that just so happens to make twice as many attacks as a normal quick blade. As quick blades already attack extraordinarily fast, this amounts to an ''absurd'' number of hits before the enemy can react to you. At minimum delay (requires a paltry 8 [[Short Blades]] skill), you'll essentially be getting in an attack every 1.5 auts. When [[potion of haste|haste]]ned, this goes up to an attack every aut.
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'''Gyre and Gimble'''<ref>{{source ref|0.29.1|art-data.txt|1414}}</ref> are an unusual weapon - thematically two weapons, they are treated in-game as a single two-handed weapon that just so happens to make twice as many attacks as a normal quick blade. With a minimum delay of 0.3, these weapons can inflict an ''absurd'' amount of hits before the enemy can react.
  
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However, the actual effectiveness of these attacks depends on two things: your [[slaying]] bonuses and the enemy's [[AC]].
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Gyre and Gimble take the strengths of Short Blades to an extreme. They are impacted more by [[slaying]] bonuses and enemy [[AC]].
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*A quick blade doesn't deal very much damage per hit, unless it has a set damage brand like [[distortion]], [[electrocution]], or [[pain]]. Gyre and Gimble's [[protection]] brand helps increase your survivability, but does absolutely nothing to increase your damage output. Slaying increases your damage per hit regardless of how strong your weapon is; the more times you can attack in quick succession, the more that slaying will benefit you, and attacking quickly is where Gyre and Gimble excel.
 
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*Gyre and Gimble fire weak attacks rapidly; this works fine against low-AC targets, but high-AC opponents will shrug off the majority of your blows. Enough slaying bonuses, liberal use of [[potions of might]], and easy access to [[berserk|berserk rage]] can all help overcome this issue, allowing Gyre and Gimble to be effective against armoured foes and absolutely devastating against the unarmoured. Assembling such extensive combat bonuses may be easier said than done, however.
 
  
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Alternatively, if you happen to have a reliable, renewable way to [[stab]] enemies ([[confusion]], [[invisibility]], [[Dazzling Flash|blindness]]), Gyre and Gimble function as a phenomenally deadly weapon.
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* The faster the attack, the more powerful "flat" bonuses become. Having +1 damage per hit is twice as good if you attack twice as fast. Unfortunately, Gyre & Gimble are unable to benefit from flat damage brands like [[distortion]], [[electrocution]], or [[pain]]. Thus the most impactful bonus comes from slaying.
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: Note that Gyre and Gimble can only perform 1 [[auxiliary attack]] per swing (per mutation). Having an aux attack with G&G is as effective as any ordinary quick blade (which is still ''very'' good).
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* Conversely, enemy AC has the opposite effect. Gyre and Gimble's rapid-fire attacks work fine against low-AC targets, but high-AC opponents will shrug off the majority of your blows. You can get past this by [[stab]]bing opponents, or with liberal use of [[might]] and/or [[berserk]].  
  
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Note that [[auxiliary attack]]s aren't performed any faster than with an ordinary quick blade. But as you're still attacking with a quick blade, these attacks will still fire rapidly (3 aut), so species with auxiliary attacks will get a bit more out of Gyre and Gimble than those without.
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Alternatively, if you happen to have a reliable, renewable way to [[stab]] enemies ([[confusion]], [[invisibility]], [[Dazzling Flash|blindness]]), Gyre and Gimble function as a phenomenally deadly weapon. [[Confusing Touch]] works phenomenally.
  
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Also note that most tactics that make the best use of Gyre and Gimble can also work adequately with any other type of short blade -- Gyre and Gimble's main advantage is simply their exceptional attack speed. Whether or not it's worth sacrificing the use of your off-hand is up to you, but a well-branded, fully-enchanted quick blade and a good [[shield]] (or perhaps an [[orb]]) may be the smarter choice in some cases. [[Formicid]]s, of course, don't have to worry about losing their shield slot, but whether they'd prefer Gyre and Gimble over a heavy two-handed weapon is another question.
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These stratagems apply to Short Blades in general, not just Gyre and Gimble. Their main advantage is the doubled attack speed, meaning more power at the cost of the shield slot. A well-branded, fully-enchanted quick blade with a [[shield]] may be the smarter choice. [[Formicid]]s, of course, don't have to worry about losing their shield slot, but whether they'd prefer Gyre and Gimble over a heavy two-handed weapon is another question.
  
 
==Trivia==
 
==Trivia==

Revision as of 04:03, 25 June 2023

Version 0.30: This article may not be up to date for the latest stable release of Crawl.
Two quick blades joined by a chain. Swinging one compels the wielder to swing the other, as if they have minds of their own.

Gyre and Gimble.png the +12 pair of quick blades "Gyre" and "Gimble"

+12 quick blade

Protection brand
Each swing attacks twice
Always two-handed (Except for formicids)

Desirability

Gyre and Gimble[1] are an unusual weapon - thematically two weapons, they are treated in-game as a single two-handed weapon that just so happens to make twice as many attacks as a normal quick blade. With a minimum delay of 0.3, these weapons can inflict an absurd amount of hits before the enemy can react.

Gyre and Gimble take the strengths of Short Blades to an extreme. They are impacted more by slaying bonuses and enemy AC.

  • The faster the attack, the more powerful "flat" bonuses become. Having +1 damage per hit is twice as good if you attack twice as fast. Unfortunately, Gyre & Gimble are unable to benefit from flat damage brands like distortion, electrocution, or pain. Thus the most impactful bonus comes from slaying.
Note that Gyre and Gimble can only perform 1 auxiliary attack per swing (per mutation). Having an aux attack with G&G is as effective as any ordinary quick blade (which is still very good).
  • Conversely, enemy AC has the opposite effect. Gyre and Gimble's rapid-fire attacks work fine against low-AC targets, but high-AC opponents will shrug off the majority of your blows. You can get past this by stabbing opponents, or with liberal use of might and/or berserk.

Alternatively, if you happen to have a reliable, renewable way to stab enemies (confusion, invisibility, blindness), Gyre and Gimble function as a phenomenally deadly weapon. Confusing Touch works phenomenally.

These stratagems apply to Short Blades in general, not just Gyre and Gimble. Their main advantage is the doubled attack speed, meaning more power at the cost of the shield slot. A well-branded, fully-enchanted quick blade with a shield may be the smarter choice. Formicids, of course, don't have to worry about losing their shield slot, but whether they'd prefer Gyre and Gimble over a heavy two-handed weapon is another question.

Trivia

Gyre and Gimble are a reference to the poem "Jabberwocky" by Lewis Carrol.

History

  • In 0.29, the enchantment was changed from +7 to +12.
  • Prior to 0.24, Gyre and Gimble had a +5 enchantment, the vorpal brand, and a -3 penalty to Dexterity.
  • Gyre and Gimble were added in 0.16.

References

  1. ↑ art-data.txt:1414 (0.29.1)
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