Ker'shal Scepter vs. Elondrian Gnarled Rifle

[Energizeric]

This is going to be the big debate for sorcerers. I currently have both weapons in my possession and spent some time playing with both of them today. The rifle did not yet have any gems, so my stats and damage suffered slightly -- my Kershal is +18 INT with all super gems. Here is my comparison...

In terms of stats, the Kershal is better, no doubt about it. With equal gems, the rifle should give around 8-10 more damage, but the Kerhsal will have the advantage in every other stat: +4.3 crit, +40 dps, +160 health

The real story here is the proc..... I think we all agree that the Kershal proc is terrible. I did not play long enough with the rifle really judge the root proc... in fact I only used it in PvP for a few minutes, and I was so excited using it that I forgot to pay attention and look for the proc, so I did not notice if the root proc was ever activated or not. But the +30 armor buff is huge. If you keep firing the rifle, it stacks 5 times for +150 armor. This does make a noticeable difference.

Together with the new Ancient Druid armor, I saw a very big armor increase. The big issue is that by changing away from the Kershal and the mythic helm & armor, you are losing most of your crit points. So this is more of a survivability build. You have much higher armor, and the increased range from the rifle means you no longer have to stand right in front of your target, instead you can kite from a distance.

The new rifle is really really good in PvP. Once again I have a chance to win against a warrior since I can keep my distance from them. You can run and fire at the same time, something you cannot do with a staff. I think if you are more concerned with PvP, you will want to have this new rifle.

However, in PvE I think the Kershal still rules, especially in places like the tombs or elites where you are trying to take down mobs. I think this is more of a staff vs. gun issue, but staffs attack many targets at the same time, where as guns only hit a single target. So against mobs, the kershal cannot be matched. But boss fights would be a different story, as there I would prefer the rifle. Although some bosses spawn mobs, so take your pick.

Overall I would not be surprised if both weapons retain a similar value. They are both good weapons, and each has its advantage. I think depending on your style of play and what you prefer to focus on (PvE vs PvP), you may prefer one over the other.

For me, I'm going to stick with the rifle as I'm more of a PvP focused player, and I just prefer rifles. I'm going to miss the Kershal disco ball glow though