Elves love nature and magic, art and artistry, music and poetry. Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2. Although elves reach physical maturity at about the same age as humans, the elven understanding of adulthood goes beyond physical growth to encompass worldly experience. Dark Elves excel at the dark arts, including death magic and shadow empowerment. Dark Elves were once part of the Elf race. They split off to pursue their worship of Shilen and dark magic, but Shilen proved to be too evil, and the Dark Elves now stand on their own. Dark Elves are a median race, close cousins to elves and similar to them in many ways. Like ogres and orcs, they are unplayable, but an elf can have the ‘Dark Elf Follower’ character background.Dark Elves tend to be a rare race (like ogres), being abundant only in T'sen-Ang, and are not normally present in aleatory encounters.Curiously, they are never mentioned in the Arcanum manual.
Originally posted at DarkMatters for review and discussion.
- 1Part 1
- 2Part 2
- 3Part 3
- 4Addition: Special Note on 'Creative Socketing'
Part 1
Dark Elf Weaponry
Considering the mass confusion regarding DE weapons and their names here in the forum, I thought some kind of standard would help whenever they are referred to in posts. This way, everyone has something to work with. Some of the names I have come up with are arbitrary, others hearken back to earlier versions of the game. Collectively, all Dark Elf weapons are called Du'blades.
Refer to the attached screen shot to view the actual weapons. I have included the other four generic Blade Combat weapons in the game for completeness.
Special note: Some of these weapons are new to the Underworld addition. If you are playing Plus or an earlier version, some of these weapons will not be available to your Dark Elf.
An asterisk (*) denotes a Dark Elf-only weapon. For your general information, I have identified the DE set weapons with their corresponding type. From left to right, top to bottom:
Fist Blade * (Cordell's Dagger)
Tri-dagger (Note: two versions of this weapon exist in the game: a Blade Combat weapon, and a Sword Lore weapon)
Scorpion Blade *
Butterfly Sword *
Fang Sword * (Ethan-Rhy's Malicious Blade)
Silver Sword *
Dark Elf Longsword *
Dark Elf Broadsword * (Khrag's Judge)
Thau Blade * (Bahamut's Blade)
Part 2
Weapon Ballistics
To round out this treatise on Du'blades and the other Blade Combat weapons, I will list the attack type each weapon follows, plus what damage features are typically found on each one.
Attack type is defined as the pattern of swings in combat. A dagger class weapon, for example, swings as follows: strike/strike, pause. A sword class weapon swings more slowly, but is more consistent and steady: strike, strike, strike.
Note that poison damage can appear on any Du'Blade, and is the most common damage type.
Fist Blades - Dagger class attack type. Typical damage features: Physical, Poison modified by % of Dexterity.
Tri-dagger - Dagger class attack type. Typical damage features: generally follows standard daggers in the game.
Scorpion Blades - Sword class attack type. Typical damage features: Physical, Poison. Poison damage can be modified any number of ways; there is no one method typically found more than others.
Butterfly Swords - Sword class attack type. Typical damage features: heavy on one type of damage. No firm rule applies. Poison is most common, but in higher levels of play variants start appearing that do fire, and even magic, damage.
Fang Swords - Sword class attack type. Typical damage features follows Scorpion blades. Note: despite recent patches to the game, this weapon type has 'fallen through the cracks.' A bug prevents the Blade Combat skill from influencing the use of these weapons. Case in point: I have tested Ethan Rhys' Malicious Blade with my level 135 Niobium Melee DE and have found this to be the case.
Silver Swords - This recent addition to the Du'Blade arsenal follows the sword class attack type. Typical damage features: not enough information at this time. (Will update when enough research yields results)
Dark Elf Steam +18 Patch
Dark Elf Longsword - Sword class attack type. Typical damage features: Physical, Poison. Like most swords in the game, usually offers good attack and defense ratings.
Dark Elf Broadsword- Sword class attack type. Typical damage features: Physical, and one other elemental damage type. Fire is most common, followed by Poison.
Bladed Spears - New with the Underworld patch. Sword class attack type. Faster than average speed, even in the hands of an unskilled character. Typical damage features: Physical, fire damage modified by dexterity or vs. enemy type, such as elves. Also is very prone to offer RSM bonuses.
Thau Blades - Sword class attack type. Slightly slower than other sword-type weapons. Typical damage features: highest damage output of the Blade Combat weapons, typically poison, sometimes fortified with physical damage. Poison damage is often modified by % of the Charisma statistic, making this weapon quite effective in poison delivery, since the Charisma score directly influences poison damage. A pixel glitch makes it difficult to have two Thau blades in the same weapon slot. These are one handed weapons, however, and a little patience will result in the successful use of two of them in the same weapon slot.
Claws - Dagger class attack type. As with the other generic Blade Combat weapons, these weapons have a fast attack rate, even when used by an unskilled character. Typical damage features: physical damage modified by a % of a statistic, usually Dexterity, though sometimes Strength. Occasionally, Claws will also feature poison damage.
Knuckles - Dagger class attack type. Typical damage features: follows claws.
Part 3
Note: If you do not have Underworld loaded, please refer to The Dark Elf Compendium thread for dual wielding as it applies to that version of the game.
Single Weapon Wielding
Wielding one weapon requires no special training nor ability.
Du'Blade* = Blade Combat
Du'Blade* + Shield = Blade Combat
* Also applies to generic Blade Combat weapons.
for reference purposes:Normal Sword = Sword Lore
Normal Sword + Shield = Sword Lore
Dagger = Sword Lore
Dagger + Shield = Sword Lore
Two-Handed Sword = Sword Lore
Axe = Axe Lore
Axe + Shield = Axe Lore
Battle Axe = Axe Lore
Mace, Hammer, Morningstar = Axe Lore
Mace, Hammer, Morningstar + Shield = Axe Lore
Cudgel (two-handed mace variant) = Axe Lore
Spear, Quarterstaff, Halberd, Lance, Pike, Staff, Mage's staves (two-handed varieties), Mage's Small Staff = Long-Handled Weapons
Combat Gauntlets = Unarmed Combat
Bows, Crossbows, Pistols, Muskets = Ranged Combat
Dual Wielding
Wielding two weapons in one weapon slot requires the skill Dual Wielding.
Special Note before proceeding: Understand that while Dual Wielding skill permits your Dark Elf (and the other 3 character types that can gain it) to equip any two one handed weapons in one slot, your ability to wield a weapon is first decided by the basic requirements for the weapon in question. For example, as much as I love Seraphim swords, the mighty Dark Elf can't wield one. Just the same, if a certain weapon features 'Minimum Sword Lore: X', you'll have to possess Sword Lore skill in order to equip it. Just because an item you're wearing might give a bonus to Sword Lore, if you don't at least have one skill point in Sword Lore naturally, you'll be out of luck. Items can't give you skills, they can only augment them.
Du'Blade* + Du'Blade* = Dual Wielding
Du'Blade* + Normal Sword/Dagger/Axe/Mace/Hammer = Dual Wielding
* Also applies to generic Blade Combat weapons
Again, just for reference:
Normal Sword + Normal Sword = Dual Wielding
Axe + Axe = Dual Wielding
Mace/Hammer/Morningstar + Mace/Hammer/Morningstar = Dual Wielding
Hopefully, this helps to explain Dual Wielding in Underworld. I took the time (and space) to cover other weapons so an overall understanding of the game mechanics behind the weapon skills might be gained. That just helps to clarify things for the knowledge-seeker.
Addition: Special Note on 'Creative Socketing'
Dark Elf Uncensored Patch
As the rules state, a weapon can only be wielded if the minimum requirements are met by your character. This is true regardless of whether your Dark Elf dual wields or uses one weapon. Does that mean you can never wield a certain weapon because it requires something your character doesn't have? No, not necessarily!
How to Creatively Socket
For the purposes of this illustration, your DE wants to use Aarnum's Fiery Blade, a special two-handed sword added to the game by the Underworld patch. He does not have the Sword Lore skill (DEs can take the Sword Lore skill, but in my example here this guy doesn't have it). Aarnum's Fiery Blade requires a minimum Sword Lore of 10 to wield. If this is not overcome, then your Dark Elf will not be able to equip it.
Aarnum's Fiery Blade happens to have three slots. You will utilize one of these slots to overcome the Sword Lore requirement. You will do that by socketing a ring which features a requirement higher in value than the Sword Lore requirement of Aarnum's sword. For example:
A ring which requires a Concentration skill score of 11, when socketed into Aarnum's sword, will negate the Sword Lore requirement.
Dark Elf Censor Patch
This same method applies to other weapons, such as DE weapons which require Blade Combat skill. If you don't have Blade Combat skill, use the previously described method to overcome that item's requirements by substituting a different requirement of higher value. Be careful: don't socket a ring that requires something you don't have (like Magic Lore or Meditation)!!!
Dark Elf Uncut Patch
Creative Socketing Limitations:
Dark Elf Game 18+ Patch
A different character's set weapon can never be wielded. Creative socketing does not effect this.A different character's armor can never be worn. Creative socketing can't change that.Another character's racial weapons can never be used. For example, only Wood Elves can use Wood Elf bows.
Dark Elf Save
However, with all of that out of the way, you can use the rings and amulets of other character's sets in your equipment. It will not make your armor or weapon restricted to you...unless that set ring changes the requirements!!!