Initial look- At first glace this weapon looks pretty weak and over priced for what it can potentially do but, upon further analysis, we will see that looks can indeed be deceiving.

Offensive Power- 1/3- It scores a point simply because it does the largest amount of icons for full earth blockers but attacking isn't the reason why you use it; the staff was never meant to be an offensive weapon. Its primary function has always been defense but, even then, a little offense is always a nice added benefit irrespective of the weapons actual intended use.

Defensive Power- 5/5- News Flash: The game has changed. Not only is the strongest attack constant in Neopia, the infamous Super Attack Pea, readily available and widely used its brothers, Seasonal Attack Pea/Attack Pea, are also seen more often than in the past. Not only that but other elite weapons such as Faerie Slingshot, Illusens Staff and Grapes of Wrath all deal massive earth icons and are being seen more and more often in the new battledome...Especially Illusens Staff due to a VERY recent price drop to less than 40mil!. With all of these super powerful earth dealing weapons becoming more and more available, having the strongest full earth blocker in the game is almost a must unless you don't mind being Dual SuAP'd every turn (Yes, that actually happens now, even at the "lower" levels of battling).

Counters- *Secret bonus point unlocked +1* This actually gets my super secret bonus point award because of the simple fact that this weapon is actually hard to stop when used properly. There's really no way to subvert its superb defensive vs all of the extremely powerful earth weapons and, not only that, but if you manage to block it offensively then who cares? Its not like you were counting on this weapon to Saitama your opponent. Really the only way to "stop" it is to not use any earth based weapons at all or avoid using them on the same turn as this staff. Except the only problem with that is that you don't know when it will or won't be used...

Alternatives- The only viable options other than using G-Staff are Pirate Captains Hat and Shield of Pion Troect. The Shield of Trotect is inferior both offensively AND defensively (2 air icons blocked is far more useful than 3 light), so that's out of the window and as for the Hat two words eliminate it: Semi-Fragile. As many have found out, this thing can and will break on the first or second use; leaving you basically defenseless against the almost certain onslaught of assorted Peas, Grapes, Staffs and Slingshots...end well that will not.

Bonus- 1/1- Excellent potential for combinations. Using this with Hubrid Nox Memorial Shield or another full light blocker like Skarls Sword can save pets skin if they get a strong hit from a Faerie Slingshot, a G-Sword + I-staff combo, or Dual SuAP'd. Also if used with another multi-duty weapon such as Rod of Dark Nova you can fully block 3 whole icons and do damage to your opponent; imagine that combo vs a Grapes of Wrath + I-Staff/SuAP combo; total shut down and it makes it less likely your opponent will use either of those weapons, especially I-Staff, as the battle progresses.

Overall Rating- 8/10- Gone are the days where the massive earth weapons were few and far in-between. With the advent of Dual SuAP's, dirt cheap I-Staffs and powerful earth dealers such as GoW and FSS becoming more and more widely available, having some sort of assured defense against these threats is becoming more evident as time passes. And what better defense than the weapon best suited for dealing with it? Besides, even if you don't get any earth thrown at you at least you still got a few icons in attack wise.

Rated on September 16, 2017

Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie (G-Staff for short) is an ancient weapon available for consideration for the wealthiest of players. G-Staff is hard to come by these days, and its lucrative full-Earth defense means that sellers will expect a handsome payment. In terms of cost, G-Staff falls in the "Hidden Tower+" range, priced well beyond the stock prices of active Hidden Tower weapons.

Although the full-Earth defense is the selling point of Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie, the weapon does possess a sprinkling of other icons. G-Staff offers 3.3 to 6 icons of offense as well as two icons of air defense to compliment the mighty Earth block.

At the highest levels of 2-Player battling, Earth icons reign supreme. Super Attack Pea, Seasonal Attack Pea, Attack Pea, Grapes of Wrath, Illusens Staff, and Faerie Slingshot all deal lethal amounts of Earth icons. At the Hidden Tower level, Skarls Hasty Mace, Sword of Thare, and Sword of Lameness are all Earth threats. When facing elite competition, an Earth counter is a necessity.

However, G-Staff does have competitors in the department of Earth defense. At a measly 6 icons, Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie does have the strongest potential attack of any Earth-blocking dual duty, but alternative Earth defenders have other offerings.

The Pirate Captains Hat is semi-fragile, but it costs a fraction of the price of G-Staff and offers full-Light defense as well as a small amount of Fire defense, making better equipped to fend off blows from Seasonal Attack Pea, Faerie Slingshot, and Grapes of Wrath.

Shield of Pion Troect is slightly weaker than G-Staff, providing only 2.4 Dark icons of offense and 3 icons of Light defense, but it is also far more cost efficient.

Earth Scarab is exceptionally rare just like G-Staff, but its 4.66 constant icons of Earth offense are more desirable than the variable Physical icons on the Staff.

Ultra Dual Shovel is pricier than the two tower shields, Pirate Captains Hat and Shield of Pion Troect, but its price is certainly not beyond practicality like G-Staff. Ultra Dual Shovel is the reason that G-Staff is not the Earth-defender of choice when facing elite competition.

A 75% Earth reflect cannot be underestimated against the many powerful Earth weapons in the metagame. Consider the following examples.

Against Super Attack Pea, Ultra Dual Shovel will block 15 Earth icons and deal them back for a total of 30 icons. Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie would block the 20 Earth icons as well as 2 of the Air icons. Add in the Staff's attack and it generates a total of 25.3 to 28 total icons.

Against Grapes of Wrath, Ultra Dual Shovel will block 11.25 Eath icons and deal them back for a total of 22.5 icons. Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie would block the 15 Earth icons. Add in the Staff's attack and it generates 18.3 to 21 total icons.

Go through the list of Earth weapons I mentioned earlier in this review and you will find that time after time Ultra Dual Shovel outperforms Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie. The only real advantage that G-Staff owns over the Shovel is the fact that it will still do 3.3 to 6 icons of offense in absence of any opposing Earth icons. When considering the immense power of weapons in the elite metagame, this quantity of offense is negligible.

Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie is not a bad weapon, but its price diminishes its usefulness. Ultra Dual Shovel can be obtained in the HT-level price range and can perform admirably. If Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie carried a price tag similar to active Hidden Tower weapons, it could be a more competitive purchase.

When it comes to high caliber 2P battling, stick to Ultra Dual Shovel. If you want to show off your wealth, then consider Greater Staff of the Earth Faerie.

Rated on May 31, 2014