Dark Knight: Guide by Raenryong/Weapons/Great Sword

General key:
If an item is hard to get but also something I deem as somewhat necessary, it will appear as blue.
=====Great Sword=====
 - Well, it's better than the Chaosbringer at least...
 - Get this; do not bother questing it however, it's really cheap on the AH.
 - Does the extra DMG outweigh the attack on the Deathbringer? The +1 may do, but I would say the NQ probably doesn't. No harm in sticking to Deathbringer here.
 - The dmg gain here is very significant as compared to the Deathbringer, so make sure you upgrade here. Note you can't sell the Vulcan Claymore back if you use its enchantment.
 - NM drop; adds DEX and +5acc as well as sporting a high DMG. There is no reason not to get this weapon.
 - Higher DMG and +atk than Braveheart, but no accuracy. Your choice; obviously better if you can land most of your hits.
 - Very high DMG but little else. Braveheart, Mercenary's Greatsword or one of these are all solid choices for this level.
 - High DMG and a very nice +attack... however, the -5acc at this level is killer. Maybe worth using if you're using sushi and have a bard, but otherwise, don't bother.
 - Really nice DMG, +attack, and the +MP is nice too. Worth using.
 - High DMG and additional fire damage... very nice weapons.
 - High DMG, additional darkness damage. It's nice.
 - Powerful greatswords if you can catch them on the AH; they're not made very often and have challengingish crafting requirements.
 - So many greatswords in this level range have high damage and then a nice additional effect. Hmm...
 - Hard to find on the AH, but the best at this level. The Gust Sword is just a Greatsword (original name) with an additional effect you're unlikely to use, get whichever is cheapest/available if you can!
 - Nothing revolutionary, and again very hard to see available. Greatswords as a whole are scarce throughout these levels.
 - DMG upgrade, hard to get ahold of. Same conditions you've been facing the last few weapons.
 - Beastly greatsword for its level and easy to get!
 - Hard to get since it drops from a very tough NM, although it is an incredibly good greatsword.
 - Again, very elusive. Greatsword users have such a hard time in this level range.
 - Relatively small upgrade from the darksteel claymore, and again incredibly hard to find on the AH.
 - Not too rare on the AH, surprisingly -- also very good.
 - Drops from Cancer, a powerful greatsword for its level and very aesthetically pleasing as well. Whether it's worth all of the effort is up to you.
 - Additional effect of Dispel and powerful to boot. A very nice greatsword; not TOO hard to find on the AH either.
 - Drop from Fafnir, but luckily not rare/ex! An obscenely good great sword, its only flaw being that it reduces the effectiveness of Souleater substantially. Use this and love it; it also looks awesome!
 - This should definitely not be used in exp over Balmung, but it is quite handy for a certain floor of Limbus because it deals BLUNT damage with its melee hits (although the weaponskills are still slashing).
 - Do not use this.
 - Depending on your luck, this can really suck to get. It drops randomly from some KSNMs, and if you're unlikely could take many tries to get (since it's rare/ex). That said, it is easily the third best greatsword in the game when unlocked.
 - Obtained by paying 48,000 IS with a Second Lieutenant or higher rank from a Sanction guard. Has a powerful hidden effect; this will easily beat Balin's Sword but will probably lose to Subduer and almost definitely to the Algol and Naglering. Still worth it if you have IS to burn or bad luck getting the other three.
 - This will produce higher weaponskill damages than the Balmung, but will inflict less DoT in likelihood; however, it also does not hamper Souleater damage. Use this in endgame battles but the Balmung is probably better for "softer" opponents than gods etc. Subduer of course beats both options (for "softer" things, Balin's Sword will do marginally more weaponskill damage) and is only bested by Algol and Naglering.
 - Do not use these either; you do not need those accuracy boosts so much at this level, and it lacks compared to the stronger greatswords.
 - The new king of greatswords, tied with Algol. Huge attack bonus, accuracy bonus, and high delay which is actually a boost since it allows you to make a low "x hit" build. Hard to get though, from high-tier ZNMs. Please see notes at the bottom.
 - The king of greatswords, tied with Naglering. High base damage, +Attack, an additional fire attack proc chance and... a chance of Triple Attack (3%). This can skyrocket either your TP or your weaponskill damages depending on where it procs. The catch is it drops exclusively from Cerberus, so unless you're in an HNMLS there is very little chance of ever seeing this beauty. Do not worry, however; Naglering is accessible by just about anyone and is debatably even better!
In order to take advantage of the opportunities the higher delay gives on /sam, you have to either;
* Eat Carbonara, TP and WS normally (assuming you have a Rajas Ring and a Brutal Earring)
* TP and WS in +8 Store TP (+2 extra than Rajas Ring and Brutal Earring) -- this can be achieved with items such as Attila's Earring, Chivalrous Chain and Ecphoria Ring. Remember you must also WS in +8 Store TP from gear.
* TP in an Askar Korazin and WS normally -- a fairly large accuracy loss from not using Haubergeon so bear this in mind.
* Rose Strap is wonderful for this kind of idea. Yes, it is entirely worth giving up Pole Grip for and is probably your best option to create this build.