Savage Shot vs Punishing Shot {E}

Savage Shot (10,0,5)
"If Savage Shot hits, your target's action is interrupted. If that action was a spell, you strike for 13-25 damage."

Punishing Shot {E} (10,0,5)
" If Punishing Shot hits, you strike for +10-18 damage and your target is interrupted"

Seems to me Savage shot is better. Why is Punishing Shot an elite skill?

Punishing shot is slightly better because it works against all enemies, not just spell casters. Most people don't put punishing shot in their skill bar because it eats up an elite skill and does not do that much damage.

However, some interruption builds will use both punishing shot and savage shot, so you are continuously interrupting casters. With a 12 marksmenship, you make a good interrupter. Personally, I would take savage shot and poison arrows.

yep savage is great as a spell buster
punishing works against everything, not just spells

thought that it still did damage, going to have to pay extra attention next time

Looks like something important is being overlooked here:

Savage Shot will interrupt ANY action. Check the description again. It only does extra damage if that action is a spell.

Punishing Shot interrupts and does extra damage regardless of what the target is doing. I don't think there's anything wrong with Punishing Shot, but when I've used it I tend to spam without worrying if I'm interrupting anything important- just fire as often as possible. It works pretty well in that role. The problem is that there are so many other ranger elites out there begging to be used and fit a specific build. Add on the fact that the ranger has lots of other non-elite interrupts, and Punishing Shot is reduced to a lesser choice among many good choices.

I personally prefer savage shot mainly because its not an elite, you have punishing shot which is quite spammable and does a good damamge all the time BUT its an elite and rangers have ALOT of GOOD elites to choose from and considering the number of other good interuptions skills like distractins hot and concussion shot plus pres like choking gas, its really easy to think of better elites to pick over.

Punishing Shot isn't worth much since the damage is pathetic for a 10 energy skill. It's not so much a bad skill as it is a bad elite. Barrage, Poison Arrow, pretty much everything but Quick Shot can beat this elite.

Per shot it does about as much damage as any Ranger bow attack- same as Power Shot/Precision, more than Barrage/Hunter's (yes they're only 5 en), and it interrupts. It means you don't have to sacrifice as much damage when going with an interrupting build.

One thing that's got me though- why does every other Ranger skill say "strike for + x damage" and Savage Shot says "strike for x damage" ?? It's not like it does no damage if it's not a spell it interrupts....

by that it means that the arrow damage from savage shot isnt counted, or at least thats what I think it means. I haven't playtested that one, so someone with a ranger check it out!

Quote:

Savage Shot will only strike for 13-25 damage. No matter what. Not bow damage + 13-25, just 13-25. Like how distracting shot always does ~ 10.

Punishing Shot combines the power of power shot (+10-18) , with the interupt ability of savage shot. You can think of it as either as an interupting power shot or a damaging savage shot. Personally I just think of it as the principle attack in your pvp skill bar, to be fired opposite savage or penetrating.