Ask a Warrior Thread.

Is a 2-handed sword better overall than a polearm in 1st job or vice versa? I'm under the impression that they're about equal but result in different handling, but I just want to make sure.

The 2h is more stable like Noob says, however the polearm has a higher max damage but is more unstable because the minimum is lower. Also the physical reach of the polearm is greater than a 2h sword, but you make a sacrifice because if it's not a slash, all polearm stabs are greatly weakened. Swords deal the same amount of damage regardless of slashing or stabbing, while polearms, if I remember, have a 2/3 chance of slashing rather than stabbing (even though there are 2 stab animations compared to 1 slash).