Thoughts on the Bane Dragon

[Kaeylum1980]

So the Banes have been out for a while, and while mine isn't fully trained yet, i've seen a few on LS that are.

What do you folks think of them? Do they completely replace the Cu? Are they as good as the Dread Mare? Are they worth keeping in use with the peckish problem? Do they do enough dps to replace runes in the rune/mare combo?

For my money my Bane is a yes to all those. I just wanted to see what other tamers thought, and maybe consolidate all the Bane dragon opinions and knowledge into one thread.

 

[Luke Carjacker]

I'll throw out my opinion on a few of these things.

I've got a couple of Dreads, and for me, my new Banes completely replace those - only thing I don't like about the Banes is their size. The reason for this is that my Dreads have pretty average stats - average HP, average resists, decent stats - and I really have no way of getting ones that are substantially better; while on the other hand, I've tamed a dozen Banes that are better in every way. I've taken a look at a lot of Dreads over the last few years, and while I have seen a few with excellent stats, most are pretty average and quite a few are downright terrible. So, with just a little effort, I think most people can acquire a Bane that is far superior to any Dread they can get their hands on. On the flip side, Banes are susceptible to dragon slayers and Dreads are not vulnerable to slayers, however I don't think most people keep dragon slayers handy in pvp (maybe they will in the future), so at present it's a small drawback.

I don't agree that Banes have fully replaced Cu Sidhes, in either PvP or PvM. Banes have stronger attack, but Cus have greater survivability. If you're a PvP tamer with no Vet, you can keep fighting a lot longer with a Cu, because it will heal itself over time as you get on and off and ride around. And again, Banes are vulnerable to dragon slayers, while at present, fey slayers are still a lot more rare (and cannot be imbued). So, depending on the situation, I wouldn't write off Cus just yet.

As a replacement for a Rune Beetle, I don't really have an opinion. I will say that since Banes are rideable and Rune Beetles are not, you have some different options for the second slot (since you don't necessarily need a rideable mare now). I'm pretty sure Bake Kitsune's deal out damage faster than mares.

 

[Storm]

For me the bane is awesome and combine it with a mare and they rock and if you can keep them charged up then In my opinion they are for sure the best all around combo (always this depends on the foe )! and add to that that Both are mounts !

 

[Taylor]

The benefit of dreads is that they eat normal food, their breath damage (i.e., fire) does a bit more direct damage, and is not vulnerable to slayers. The benefit to bane dragons is that they have, on average, higher stats and higher resists.

I don't think that banes replace cu sidhes, as cus have greater survivability (as Luke mentioned). Also, I think that rune beetles poison more quickly and more often than banes (note: bane dex peeks at 125, whereas some rune beetles can reach around 160 dex).

They're good pets, for sure. I like 'em.

 

[Adol]

One advantage a Bane Dragon has over a Rune Beetle is almost double the Hit Points; they can have up to 650, and unlike the Rune if they get into trouble you can mount them and run off. They have higher resists on average (except for Poison) and although lower Dex and Int, they make up for it with greater base damage and a slightly wider spread of damage types (the Rune has 70% Energy). The poison blast damage they do is set by range, but they'll poison even in close quarters and even when peckish, and still have both the magery and fire blast on top, where as the Rune get's just poison at close range and magery... And finally, they can be fed (if not recharged) and bonded from Tasty Treats, which now drop like mad from Treasure Chests. So I'd say yes, for the same 3 slots they are absolutely worth it.

There are minor niggles though. In the Enhanced Client, they're enormous (like swamp dragons) so you often can't access your own storage when stood next to it, without getting Bane Bits in the way. I end up leaving it downstairs when I go home! And the "Peckish" spam is very frustrating, it seems to be every time it tries to cast the poison blast. Also you can't raise Magical Resistance as quickly as other pets, as they are hyper aggressive; they'll cast both blast types at you after being Weakened, even if they don't try and get into melee or cast magery on you.

But still worth it, I would say! My best Bane so far is a 3.9 rated pet; he's a tad too weak to take to Peerless, but he's had a good romp through most of Europa's recent EM events, and I've preferred him solo to my Cu because I can pop an Energy Vortex or Earth Elementals on top, which helps if I need sudden spawn control...