Is Solar Flare armor actually an upgrade?

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OnyxShadow

OnyxShadow

Terrarian
Solar Flare has 5 more defense and a fairly nice speed boost/damage shield. However, the stacking damage reduction seems to be significantly weaker than Beetle. A 45% damage reduction on 73 defense (or about 105 with full gear) is significantly stronger than 30% on 78 from a math perspective. Am I missing something?
 
Well, there's the fact that, as far as I can tell, all three stacks of Solar Blaze are a 30% reduction, as opposed to Beetle Endurance stacking in 15% increments.
But the biggest thing is that it is better offensively than defensive Beetle armor, and better defensively than offensive Beetle armor. I started asking myself the same question after I realized my DPS was lower with Solar Flare armor than offensive Beetle armor with a full stack of Beetle Might (at least provided the weapon accepted melee speed bonuses)-- and a full stack is easy to get with endgame weapons.
 
That's a good point about it always being 30%. I thought for sure I checked multiple times and saw Solar start at 15%, but checking again I found that you were right. Maybe it got patched, or maybe I'm just imagining things.

In any case, even then it feels like Solar Flare is merely a side-grade. Considering what you have to go through to put it together that seems odd.
 
OnyxShadow said:
That's a good point about it always being 30%. I thought for sure I checked multiple times and saw Solar start at 15%, but checking again I found that you were right. Maybe it got patched, or maybe I'm just imagining things.

In any case, even then it feels like Solar Flare is merely a side-grade. Considering what you have to go through to put it together that seems odd.
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It pretty much is a side-grade. It's sort of like Turtle Armor was in 1.2.4-- a balanced option, for those who don't want to compromise offense for defense or vice-versa. Personally, I've ended up back in my Beetle Scale Mail, because I like the DPS more than the added defense (and the dash is really annoying, given that I tend to tap for small adjustments).
 
OnyxShadow said:
Solar Flare has 5 more defense and a fairly nice speed boost/damage shield. However, the stacking damage reduction seems to be significantly weaker than Beetle. A 45% damage reduction on 73 defense (or about 105 with full gear) is significantly stronger than 30% on 78 from a math perspective. Am I missing something?
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It is way weaker than beetle for me and the dash actually makes me get killed more as well because it activates when I don't want it to and puts me into danger.
 
If you're in danger during any fight besides Moon Lord with Solar Flare armor, I think you're doing something wrong...
 
So, I tinkered around with the Solar armor because I have completed the game and am bored with life. Anyways, there are some pros to the armor. The dash allows you to escape enemies/finish off enemies with low health or low max health. Basically, you get a free accessory.

While we are talking about this, the other end of the spectrum is the nebula (Mage) armor. It basically makes things that increase health regen, mana regen, and damage when picked up. It basically is the tanky version of a Mage, which I believe needs to be nerfed in some way.
 
It provides a more decent "flat" stat bonuses than beetle scale [22% melee damage vs 14%, +15% melee speed vs 12%, +17% crit chance versus +8%, and +15% movement speed vs +12%], it provides more defense and has a more consistent damage reduction than beetle shell, as well as provide a powerful explosion that deals 250 damage + damage mods. On top of that, it has a dash that allows you to move faster than a person running in asphalt that also damages multiple enemies in your way [while at the same time protecting you from their touch damage(?)].

Vs. Beetle Scale Mail
Pros:
8% more flat damage than Beetle Scale Mail
3% more flat melee speed than Beetle Scale Mail
9% more flat crit chance than Beetle Scale Mail
3% more flat movement speed than Beetle Scale Mail
17 more armor than Beetle Scale Mail
30% more damage reduction than Beetle Scale Mail
Provides a powerful explosive 'thorns' aura
Provides a quick dash that damages enemies in the way

Cons:
22% less overall damage than Beetle Scale Mail
27% less overall melee speed than Beetle Scale Mail


Vs. Beetle Shell
Pros:
11% more damage then Beetle Shell
9% more melee speed than Beetle Shell
12% more crit chance than Beetle Shell
9% more movement speed than Beetle Shell
5 more armor than Beetle Scale Mail
Provides a flat 30% damage reduction with just one charge
Provides a powerful explosive 'thorns' aura
Provides a quick dash that damages enemies in the way

Cons:
15% less overall damage reduction at full charges
Slightly slower charge regen rate


All in all, it's somewhat of a jack-of-all-trades armor that, although offer less than both Beetle Armors in full charge, provide better stats consistently, even while missing hits, not attacking, and even getting hurt. Basically, it combines both Beetle Armor, Shield of Cthulhu, and Turtle Armor into one set.

Due to this, it shouldn't be a surprise if it is considered a turn off for minmaxers who prefer to maximize defense or dps. But to the person who wants the best of both worlds, then this is the armor they'll be looking for.
 
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