Perhaps I slept through the math class on DPS (Damage Per Second), but I've always wondered which is the better weapon to have and why.  I think it would help if I knew what the multiplier was for using 1 two-hander.  Is the DPS for two handers additive?  Like 10.9 dps + 11.0 dps = 21.9 dps? 

Last night I was told that the slower the weapon is, the more damage it does therefore the more rage it builds up.  Is this the case?  It seems counterintuitive to me, wouldn't two daggers build more rage because they are faster?  Is there a kind of 'rage per second' I should be aware of?

I thought after three years playing the game, I'd have figured this out by now.  C'mon World of Warcraft mathmaticians and stat-mongers, I need your help. 

Originally posted by saint4God

Perhaps I slept through the math class on DPS (Damage Per Second), but I've always wondered which is the better weapon to have and why.  I think it would help if I knew what the multiplier was for using 1 two-hander.  Is the DPS for two handers additive?  Like 10.9 dps + 11.0 dps = 21.9 dps? 

Last night I was told that the slower the weapon is, the more damage it does therefore the more rage it builds up.  Is this the case?  It seems counterintuitive to me, wouldn't two daggers build more rage because they are faster?  Is there a kind of 'rage per second' I should be aware of?

I thought after three years playing the game, I'd have figured this out by now.  C'mon World of Warcraft mathmaticians and stat-mongers, I need your help. 

As far as I know the general rule of thumb is that the off-hand weapon will do only 50% of it's rated DPS, so no, it's not a straight additive meaning that 2 weapons with 10 dps will not be as effective as 1 weapon with 20 dps.  Other than that, I'm lost as far as 1h/2h goes.

There is an increase (spelling?) in miss chanse whith dual wield. I know a friend shouted about.

So far so good, thanks.  So 2 1-handers at 10dps is equivalent to a 15dps 2-hander.  Okay.  I'm not sure why they assign a DPS to off-hand then.  It should be a +% damage, like +50% to mainhand but have more to learn it seems.  Also, I am curious about the miss-rate factor.

Originally posted by saint4God

So far so good, thanks.  So 2 1-handers at 10dps is equivalent to a 15dps 2-hander.

Roughly speaking.  Obviously it's much more complicated than this, but I think it's a good rule of thumb.

 Okay.  I'm not sure why they assign a DPS to off-hand then.

Because a lot of weapons can be used in either the main hand or off-hand.  I don't think they want to give them 2 different DPS based on which hand it's being used in especially if it always works out the same.  You can figure that out yourself.

It should be a +% damage, like +50% to mainhand but have more to learn it seems. Also, I am curious about the miss-rate factor.

There's a lot to be considered besides just damage.  The miss factor being one of them, chance to proc on hits and all kinds of other stuff.  The choice between going 1 hand and 2 hand is more a choice between how you are going to spec.  If you spec into dual wielding, then you are going to want to dual wield, if you spec into 2 hand then you're going to want to use a 2 hand weapon, if you spec into using a shield, then 1 hand with a shield will work best.  Rather than ask yourself if you should use a 2 hand weapon or 2 1 hand weapons, ask yourself if you want to go Arms, Fury or Prot spec and let that be your guide.

your miss chance goes from 5% to 25%. also your can get bigger MS crits with a 2her. 2her is pvp for big burst damage, dual wield is sustained dmg for pve

Excellent points, thank you.  Currently my main character is a 2-handed fury warrior.  I must say I do loves the fury spec even though every group I'm in hates me.  I can solo very well and land hits quickly on multiple targets in a PvP mosh-pit.  I do like toying around with other warrior possibilities with different weapons and arms.  For some reason, playing Protection depresses me, not sure why.  Maybe because there isn't always a group to be had between levels 1 - 68 and soloing a protection warrior is like watching a ping-pong match by the world's two greatest players in slow-mo.  I thought the idea of a speedy two-handed hitter as a warrior would be cool for lots of rage but people are telling me "it don't work like that" hence the beginning of the thread. 

www.tankspot.com/forums/tankspot-library/35502-warrior-leveling-demystified.html

This link does a comparison between a 2H Fury, DW Fury and 2H Arms... DW Fury has the best DPS.

Like project had explained~

In summary:

2H is for:
- burst damage
- pvp
- Arms

Dual Wield is for:
- sustained dps
- pve
- Fury

Just to clarify something about miss chance.

Base miss chance while wielding one weapon, for all attacks: 5%

Base miss chance for special attacks while dual-wielding: 5%

Base miss chance for white damage attacks while dual-wielding: 24%

Fighting a level 73 mob increases miss chance by 4% (important since raid bosses are this level).

In raids and lesser instances, rogues do the vast majority of their damage in white damage.  So PvE rogues often try to get as close to the hit cap as possible (zero miss chance on white attacks).  Certain other dual-wielding builds (raiding enhancement shamans, particularly) will not stack hit rating nearly as much as rogues.

Now for off-hand damage.

Untalented: 50%

Talents which increase off-hand damage usually come in the form of a percentage which is added AFTER the damage is halved.

5/5 Dual Wield Specialization for rogues = 75% damage on off-hand.

5/5 Dual Wield Specialization for warriors = 62.5% damage on off-hand.

You want to know which to use, but that completely depends on your build.  You don't seem to know much about builds, so I'd start here for a basic rundown.  Like any wiki, wowwiki does have a few retards that post stuff they think is right, rather than what is actually true.  For the most part, though, it will give you a mostly accurate idea.

www.wowwiki.com/Warrior_builds

Here are a few general rules for you.

If you want sustained DPS for raids or another instance setting, both dual-wielding and 2h-using builds are viable, but you need very specific builds in each case.  This is doubly true if you want to use the optimal 2h-dps build.  That requires using a very specific strategy which has a bit of a learning curve.  I'd look for detailed guides on how to dps properly.  Others have crunched the numbers on this stuff before, and their methods are likely better than you just winging it based on what looks good.

If you are tanking in a setting that requires an actual tank, you are using sword and board.  I really do not recommend trying to level up as a tank, though.  Seriously.

For just all-around lvl'ing builds, the distinctions between what is good and bad become a lot less clear.  You obviously want a good balance of kill speed and downtime, but there's no exact science to achieving this, since playstyles and skill levels vary wildly.

Just remember one thing.  If you plan to PvP a lot, please do not use a dual-wielding deep fury build.

Lots to chew on, thanks again for the responses.  It seems that the game was made to balance or drift back and forth as to what is better...and the difference doesn't seem to be that great.  This is good news for those who could care less about the math I suppose.  It would've been nice to see a noticeable difference in play-styles from choosing a dual wield versus two handed weapon, but understand the reason for the balancing.  What it boils down to seems to be aesthetics and character personality.  Good news for roleplayers...not so much for PvP'ers.  It is after all, designed as an MMORPG not an MMOPVP.

I favour my t hander in arms spec.

Obviously i choose my talents accordingly.

I have experimented with Dual wield builds also.

As a 2 handed Fury spec my major issue has been getting enough rage to use constant Slams. I have mitigated this by equiping Haste gear. I could go into a long analysis of the differences between the two fighting styles, but ultuimately it boiled down to one thing.

I enjoy playing a 2 hander more. I find it more fun.

I have my DPS Fury specs for one of two jobs. DPS ona raid boss, or aoe dps. Both of these favour my 2 hander builds, although dual weilding spec is better against moving targets as Slam requires you to stand still.

I often spec for indivdual fights but as my damage in either spec is more than enough for the job, it just comes down to personal preference.

Originally posted by baff

I favour my t hander in arms spec.

As a 2 handed Fury spec my major issue has been getting enough rage to use constant Slams.

I enjoy playing a 2 hander more. I find it more fun.

... it just comes down to personal preference.

I ran into the same problem with rage on 2-hander fury, glad to hear I'm not the only one.  In fact, because I can thunderclap and battleshout, I like 2 1-handers for PvP as well.  I can affect more targets which means more honor kills.

Well said, I think that's what it should come down to...which you enjoy more.  Your post was a big help because it came to conclusions I had hoped and suspected.

Rumor has it the new expansion is going to allow 2 2-handers? O_o

Oops, hit enter too soon...

As far as normal damage goes.. basically  a 2handed weapon will end up being the same as 2 1handed weapons.  It's pretty balanced. (when you factor in 1/2 damage for off-hand and miss chance for dual wield)

The reason you decide one way or the other is based on your spec.  If you are Arms spec, the majority of your damage will come from Mortal Strike, which greatly favors a slow  2-handed weapon.

Fury = dual wield
Arms = Big, slow weapon

All of the fury talents favor dual wielding.  I can't think of a single talent that is made better by using a 2handed weapon.