Ranger - is Woodsman staff the only real option till raid gear?
 

Or does dual wield function about as well when using decent weapons?

I ask because I love dual wield since it's fun watching a flurry of attacks but I don't want to self-gimp out the ass because the DPS from the WS is so much better.

Dual Wield is worse DPS for most melee classes until 40s or 50s when Bonus damage fully kicks in.

If you are 60 with a pair of good droppable weapons the difference probably isn't that pronounced but Woodsman's Staff is pretty cheap compared to the best droppable 1handers like Edge of the Nightwalker and Jagged Blade of Mourning.

I think it's more about DW / DA having a higher % chance to trigger in the 50s when skill is nearly capped.

I use a swarmcaller myself. It's a fraction of the price, and just looks manlier in general. Maybe it doesn't do as much damage, but if you're playing a ranger, you already are avoiding the min/max path.

There are comparable combinations. Close enough but woodsmans is great with haste. I agree dual wield doesn't compare though until DW skill raises over 200 in the 50s. I am using a steel hilted and lupine dagger now at 51 and having a blast. My dex is over 200 though. I don't use steel hilted on raids though just 5 man groups. Lupine and CSs is a pretty solid combo but woodsmans is still quite a bit better at 51. Maybe at 60 the gap will even out. I think it's important to have a 1h because as soon as you get 1 of the epics you're going DW. For solo play or ranking you really do take a lot less riposte dmg

Oh yea the wurmslayer and green axe could be some pretty heavy hitting stuff too

Woodsman Staff is a tuff weapon and an excellent bang for your buck. Keep bludgeoning mobs with it, get levels, and save your plat

It has nothing to do with DA, as the math makes this a wash. It's mostly about DW, and to a lesser extent the relative increase that 1 handers get in terms of damage bonus vs 2 handers. The second part is more complicated as it depends on the delay of each weapon. And can reverse for various levels with different delays.

Is off-hand DA chance equal to primary? If not, how is it calculated?

Quads are what make DW worth using. You can't say that DA doesn't matter.