Crosby4HyG wrote:Alright, for the newb ass question of the evening I'd like some clarity about the 4fpa for weapon speed. On the speed calculator I'm hitting between 7 and 8 fpa, is that more than enough or am I aiming to get this lower? Seems like more frames per animation would be better but I'm pretty ignorant about this so thought I'd ask.
4fpa attacks is crucial. Being slower not only greatly reduces your damage, it also reduces survivability through life on melee attack.
basically, for 1-hand weapons, you need (34 attack speed on weapon affix) + (attack speed modifier value on base item). for 2-handed swords like great swords (which count as one-handers for barbs), these have an attack speed modifier of 15, so you need a total of 49% attack speed affix to get to 4fpa. Hammerhead axes have a speed modifier of only 5, so you only need 39% attack speed affix for 4fpa.
the difference between each breakpoint is MASSIVE, as follows:
8fpa to 7fpa is just under 14.3% damage increase
7fpa to 6fpa is 16.66% (recurring) damage increase
6fpa to 5fpa is a 20% damage increase
5fpa to 4fpa is a 25% damage increase
increasing your attack speed is going to be one of your single biggest (and probably easiest) damage increases.