Unless the Devs add shimmershields why would you want to go melee only? Dire Avengers can't compete with Striking Scorpions and Howling Banshees and having no ranged weapon when you're the only class that can take objectives is a bad idea.
Because I want to rock a diresword. Because even if it sucks and the only impressive part about it is a one in a million chance of soulrazor insta-killing my enemy, I want to run around the map screaming "FEAR ME!" and having LSM players complain about how clearly OP it is, even as I fail to make a single kill. The diresword is not about killing, it is about threat generation. I hear a lot from other players about what the dire avenger should be. He should be a tactical, he should be a close-range shooter, he should be cohesive to teamwork. How his only focus is capturing points. But the Dire Avenger is the aspect of Khaine as a noble and merciless warrior, tactically flexible. His role extends beyond gunfire and bladecraft, into the realm of the mind and spirit. His prerogative is the flow of battle itself. This begins before the first shot is fired, when the enemy plays his hand defensively out of fear. He is robbed of initiative, of freedom of movement. Battlefield control to allow other aspects room to maneuver. Space marines may know no fear, but the man with the controller does, and I will put him on the backfoot. That is why I want my melee weapon, because regardless of what role I am on the battlefield, my enemy will fear me. I am Dire Avenger, the bloody hand of Khaine adorns my face, and I seek a grim tally of blood to avenge my people's loss.
The Dire Avenger needs wargear and maybe a slight damage output boost. Slight. People have been grossly exaggerating here, Eldar are not half as bad as people say, in need of their other classes, wargear and a general polish, but they can perform well when played right.
1st: Bolter TTK vs Dire Avenger should be: 1.25-sec, 6 Bolts, 0.25-sec Fire Rate Accuracy: 3.4-cm spread at 24-meters Major Damage Drops: 48 and 96-meters D.A.S.Cat TTK vs SM should be: 1.242-sec, 24 Shuriken, 0.054-sec FR Accuracy: 4.5-cm spread at 24-meters Major Damage Drops: 36 and 72-meters While the SC is less accurate and has less range, its low recoil and high FR should not only keep it relatively balanced performance-wise with the Bolter at medium range but should give it the advantage in close range. 2nd: Are Plasma Grenades not anti-Inf? 3rd: A basic D.A. should be able to at least get a Chainsword. Things like Direswords can be reserved for Exarchs. 4th. Keep it. It should have burst fire and automatic. 5th: Shucks.
Why not something like a bajonett for the dire avanger, that could be a nice alternative to a sword. And maybe a alternative for the shuriken catapult, like the long Rifle or a monofilament weapon.
Chainsword is a Scorpion Weapon or Autarch that followed that path can use. I didn't see a option to give it to anyone else in the Tabletop game. Dire Avengers, have pistol and CCW (knife I believe). I'm sure the devs can come up with something appropriate to mod the knife into something with a bit of extra effect but personally I'd hate to see a Dire Avenger with a chainsword.
Because dire avengers don't have bayonets. They have swords. You can give the exarch in your dire avenger squad a power weapon (shown as a gliave in the models) and shimmershield (it's a stormshield, that applies to the whole squad). Or you can give him a diresword, which has an eldar spiritstone set into it that tries to MINDKILL any enemy hit. Other than that the knife works fine. Unless you wanna go crazy and make him slash at enemies with throwing stars. Because dire avengers when they aren't avengering are ninjas.
So basically you're the type of player that couldn't care less about the objective or the team and just does your own thing. Doesn't sound like you're meant for this faction. Holy shit I'll have to spend some time in the Garrison.
'Should be' in this case means 'what Zaeryn thinks it should be, not what the game presently has it set as'.
