Is Cobra Rod superior to Falcon Rod?

Question

I've seen a post talking about Falcon items vs Cobra items in general, but I don't feel the answers there goes as deep as I want it too.

So, I'm gonna ask about this very specific duo: Cobra Rod vs Falcon Rod

Both Rods can be imbued with Critical, so my question is very simple: Overall, which Rod is better? I'm trying to decide which one I'll keep on my mage and then sell the other. 

I'll try to make my list of pros/cons, but I'm a main EK, and I'm hoping some main mage can tell me if I'm correct.

PROS:

1. Extra Magic Level over Cobra Rod
2. Extra 8% Energy Defense

PROS:

1. Extra 18% Life Leech FOREVER
2. 20kk to 40kk cheaper than Falcon rod (depending on the server), which you could in theory use to get magic levels and negate the Falcon Rod extra magic level

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To be honest, when I'm playing mage, the extra ML from Falcon Rod is unnoticeable but the Life Leech from Cobra Rod is very noticeable, it saved my life a couple of times. 

The only respawn I can think of that the Falcon Rod is superior is at Energy Library, because in that place the mage will most likely be on mana shield, so the life leech is useless, and they also deal energy damage.

Even if solo hunting Falcons, I like the cobra rod more than the falcon rod, cos the Life Leechs helps a lot. But when I look at the market, is very hard to sell the Cobra Rod and everyone claims the Falcon Rod to be superior, so is there anything I'm missing here? Why am I the only one who thinks the Cobra is superior in almost every situation?

Answer 1

For me Cobra Rod is better in most of the situations.

Most of mage gears already give elemental resistance. For example a gnome helmet  gives 8% energy protection, a  Thundermind Raiment gives 8% energy protection, a gnome legs gives 7% energy protection and the mage could use a shield with energy protection for an extra 15% energy protection if needed or a spellbook. Resistances don't stack meaning that the more resistances you have the less you'll get for a new piece of equipment. 

Them we end up with the difference of +1ml and 18% life leach. 18% life leach is crucial for mages as their life pool is very small. It can be the difference between life and death. A druid could be using exura gran mas res more safely using this weapon, helping the paladins around him as mas res heals less than exura sio and exura vita in general.

To sum up. For me it's better to have more survivability than +1 ml making cobra rod the best choice. 

Answer 2

My answer is completely an opinion based, I'm not even druid on my main char, but I usually do duo with one.

This is what it feels like:

• Falcon Rod: (mlvl +3 and e protection; 2 slots): It is normally imbued with mana leech + critical. This would be better to hunts where the ED doesn't get a lot of damage in team hunts, where it is preferable he/she to deal more damage, or spots where he needs to be on 'utamo spell'. I would use this one when hunting in team, with an EK that can exeta the creatures, so the ED has not to stand so many creatures.
• Cobra Rod (mlvl +2 and life leech; 2 slots): It is normally imbued with mana leech and critical. This one is better when the ed is receiving a lot of damage, so every turn he attacks he heals himself. For solo hunts I would prefer this one, it is also good when you hunt with an RP since he can't exeta res the creatures.

The ED I hunt with, prefer the cobra rod as you said, mostly because I am RP and can't take the creatures away from him, so we normally hunt as it is done in catacombs. In falcon he also prefers it when solo hunting, but the falcon rod when hunting with an EK, so he can maximize his damage.