the attack will almost always be useful on pup, i've never been in a fully buffed situation on pup.
;; Yeah, although I have (rarely) experienced full buffs on PUP, this is probably the practical approach since you're likely Atk starved when DDing on PUP. That's the reason I generally use Foire Tobe +3 for WS, and eventually I'll get Pitre+3 hands in there as well (Ryuo until then).
In theory, Ryuo Tekko +1 may win on a spreadsheet with strong buffs (or on trash mobs)... and it's true that WSD has
less impact on multi-hit crit WS (note that doesn't say NO impact), but Pitre hands/Foire body also have a ton of Acc/Atk and solid STR. Not to be ignored if you're lacking ideal buffs.
I'm looking to play around with auto nuking. Is something like this:
ItemSet 357375
a workable place to start? I know ideally I'd have Udug Jacket + AF2+3 legs and feet, but this is all from gear that I already have.
Yeah, you are definitely on the right track.
1) Macc/MAB: You will also want to consider Macc needs. If you're getting partial resists, it's likely worth dropping MAB for Macc where available. Might put together a higher Macc set and a lower Macc/higher MAB set.
Macc: Tali'ah +2 head, body (assuming no Udug), hands. Tali'ah are also a good placeholder until relic legs/feet or AF+2/+3 feet.
MAB: Rawhide Mask, Herculean Body, Naga Tekko
2) Weapon: Tinhaspa are a viable option, but I personally prefer Midnights for the maneuver effect +2. And honestly, nuking is the one place where you might be also be legitimately thankful for the overload suppression since you'll likely be doing a lot of Ice x3 right after an Activate.
3) Waist: Not a big deal, but a minor adjustment would be Ukko Sash if you have it (same Macc, but adds some FC - helpful unless you have some magical LUA that properly handle pet precast/midcast gear)
4) Feet: in general, Pitre+3 > Pitre+2 > Foire +3 > Foire +2 > MAB Herculean (unless you have some god tier DM augment) > Tali'ah +2
For Macc-heavy situations, might consider Foire+3 jumping past Pitre+2, and Tali'ah+2 probably overtaking Herculean.
Worth noting that Foire+2/+3 are also useful for the FAR more practical purpose of Repair, so if you're not up for dropping the gil/items on relic feet upgrades for a piece that's only useful for pet nuking, that's a pretty compelling placeholder.
5) Reality: no matter how good your set, automaton nuking is going to be garbage. I say that as someone who still tinkers with my set for fun, but it's simply not practical. As I've said so many times, even if you can get one big MB that might make for a pretty screenshot... that's far less impressive when you look at total over time versus any player doing multiple nukes per MB and never having to deal with obnoxious puppet AI and the tedium of Deactivate>Activate>Deploy.