This weapon is awkward to use. On a Zealot pushing the front line and kiting to keep ranged enemies busy off the back line, it is very challenging to use the charged attack to “pick off” important elietes or even just hit the ogryns when any little guy can walk into your way and take the hit causing your huge recovery (which leaves you open to getting hit).
I feel this would give you a good choice between the Evisorator and the thunder hammer which right now, the two handed chain sword just kind of does everything better and is far more reliable dealing with mobs due to the quick light attacks. I have not opened the stats and seen, but I am assuming its also a “faster” weapon giving you a better dodge.
Charged Thunder Hammer should absolutely cleave through “soft” Targets and only discharge and deliver the extra Damage when it hits an Elite, a Specialist or a Monstrosity.
It should definitely cleave through everything until it hits something its cleave stat can’t go through. Not only that, the damage should be enhanced on everyone it cleaves through when it’s charged. It’s only a single swing, after all
edit: also the ending lag animation when your hammer explodes needs to either be way shortened, or the explosion needs to do an aoe knockdown that at least knocks down basic mobs.
There is just has a bunch of clunky mechanics attached to the weapon, and due to how the power up functions it would probably be hard to change it to cleave through normal enemies and do the powered up impact damage when hitting a solid target.
I like SlenderBarracuda’s suggestion though, just make it simpler and more efficient.
I think it should have way more cleave on special/heavy. It needs a different identity that helps it stand out against the eviscerator, which is just a better thunder hammer right now. It should the weapon you bring that does an exceptional job at dealing with massive hordes, because as it stands now it doesn’t do a fantastic job at anything in particular, not even single target (why the hell do I need two blows to the head of a trash mob on a slow light attack?). My thoughts on changes include having the special (special activations in general) stay on, and use stamina on attack, that way it doesn’t get annoying having to constantly activate it and interacts with gameplay more deeply. In this essence, you would be using the special, and your stamina, to cleave through and damage(decreased from current)/stagger everything within its sweep, for a few swings until you run out of stamina, or more if you manage your spacing. The special light attack can remain the same. Having a charged hammer attack accidentally hit some trash mob off-screen when you’re aiming at a crusher’s head really gets annoying after a while, and the non charged heavies don’t really have a lot of cleave to begin with either. It needs more, and it needs a different identity.
I’d love to see it conform to every other thunder hammer I’ve used. This one is totally unique, and doesn’t really feel like anything. It’s a bad version of Bardin’s hammer that can be charged up for a super single target hit.
And usually it hits the wrong target, and the rebound is distracting as heck.
Thing is bad, and instead of fixing it people just complain about the weapons that do work.
The weapon is absolutely designed the right way as it is. With the charged swing you get trash out of the way, to be able to strike the bigger and tougher ones with your special attack. Its is not akward to use, its simply hard to master the timing, thats a diffrence
myself id like it if the Pow hamm and for that matter other single target nukers to have smarter targeting. ie they hit the special or elite in the cross hair > the first dreg in path.
i also think the attack needs to do a little ae flinch around the target im fine with the self stun as it really sells the power of the attack but it leaving you open to a fisting is not great
The Thunderhammer needs some getting used to but in the end is the best weapon for the Zealot already. The main problem with people playing with the TH is this: they want to use the power attack too often. It should really just be reserved for monstrosities and lone elites and shouldn’t be used in crowds. When you see an elite in a horde, just swing away and don’t use the thunder.
I was all for the cleave argument a while ago, but now I realize that’d just make the weapon extremely OP; the answer to everything.
