Char Guides, Calculators, Best MF, Etc. (READ THIS NOW!)

[Jason]

Zealdin (PVP/PVM) ​

​

Submitted by N_LeGeNd)​

**NOTE: If you are going to argue about Concentration/Holy Shock being better than Fanat, leave, because I already tested it out, and they suck.

Basis:​

-Lol, something to remember.. Jus as you thought zeal bug was gone/fixed in 1.10 (when pally first hits enemy when using zeal, and misses, he misses all 5 hits, therefore useless zealing and getting hit for nothing), ITS NOT!!! so get lots of AR and - target def/Ignore def weapon.
-Deadly strike, open wounds, critical strikes, and crushing blows really help! (Click here for more info. You might have to scroll down a bit.)
-Must... have... 75% block.... along... with.. high defence
-Must... have... 90%/75% all resist... in hell...
-Must... follow... the strat.... written... here...

Stats:​

Strength: Now you see? Heres the problem.. You can either put rest of your stats here after 125 dex and 200 vit.. or about 230 str and rest into vit... Your choice really! (I chose str)

Dexterity: Remember that all paladins must have 75% blocking in lvl 99, and to ensure that, you must have 125 Dexterity.

Vitality: Like stated above, 200 vit or rest. Its your choice

Energy: Obiviously, NONE!

Skills:​

Zeal=20
Obiviously.. The guide's name is Zealdin, do u think i was gonna let u max FoH? lmao

Sacrafice=20
Now to all of you who are back from 1.09 and mental breakdown from all whites being deleted.. whole new world in 1.10.. Sacrafice increases dmg for Zeal!

Fanataism=20
No surprisees here, max this, most %ed aura for pally, IAS, AR, what else would i want?

Holy Shield=20
75%, and high defence, must need for Zealdin!

Charge=20
Why not, use this in the beginning of the battle and pvp

All resists aura=1
Jus in case when u meet another zealdin and hammerdin.

Rest of the skills are optional (I wouldnt put them anywhere.)

Gears:​

Helm
-Crown of Corona (perf is good!) **
-Andy's Head (perf is good!) *
-Vamp GAze (perf is good!) *

Ammy
-Highlord (what else? 1 all skill, 20 IAS, deadly strike, perf for zealdin)**

Armor
-Enigma (wow.. teleporting zealdin.. should pwn in pvp/pvm, will test it soon as i get enigma) **
-GA (90 all resist... every character's dreams..) **
-Chain of Honor (jus another awesome runeword) **
-Upged Shaft (perf) **
-Shaft *

Weapon
-BOTD zerker ** (whoa.. a dream item)
-Death Cleaver (has all! 66% deadly strike, -33% target def, 40 IAS, WOW) **
-Demon Limb (lvl 23 enchant, use it for weapon switch) **
-Perf Azurewrath (good dmg! i have it! it's fine!) *and half
-perf Heaven's light (nice options) *
-Perf Razor's Edge (very goood!) *
-Wrath flight (hihg dmg says all)
-FleshRipper (perf for uber dia) *
-Ghost Flame (i like ignore) *

Shield
-SS with UM rune**
-HoZ **
-2 pally skill with all resist and %ED and AR
-Rhymed elite pally shield (aim for highest all resist bonus from a shield.)

Belt
-Verdungo's **
-24% FHR belt with resists.. **
-Tgod *
-SoE *
-Nosferatu's Coil (i use this, i like it better than SoE since I already ahve 50% DR... ) *

Gloves
-SteelRend (if u dont need IAS) **
-Crafted glove, 20IAS, reists, ll, +str/+dex **
-Lavagout (mmm enchant..) **
-LoH (350% ed to demons..) *

Boots
-Gore Rider Upged/non upged. (like i said, everything u need is in this boots) **
-30% run and walk, mf and resists **
-IK boots*
-Aldur's boots*

Rings1
-7ll, 100 AR, high resists, + 20 str ** (or dual leech with these options.)
-Raven Frost ** (nono if u wear rhyme, yes if u dont wear it)
-BK **
-Dwarf Ring *
-Wisp Projector *


Rings2
-7ll, 100 AR, high resists, + 20 str ** (or dual leech with these options.)
-BK **
-Dwarf Ring *
-Wisp Projector *

Inventory:​

1 Annihilus, many FHR scs (please refer to Djnat's Avengerdin, there is FHR table), all resist/resist scs with other mods, plenty of maximum dmg, +ar and + life (over 14).

**Note that: two starts mean "MUST HAVE THOSE ITEMS!!!" and * means "SHOULD HAVE THOSE ITEMS IF I DUN HAVE 2 STAR ONES"

Hirelings:​

Recommanded hireling:

Nightmare/Hell Act 2 Defensive Mercenary[/color=blue]​

Why?
-It gives freezing aura/Defensive aura, and Act 2 mercs have highest life compared to all Mercenaries.
-It has jab attack, so give him good weapon with leech and he'll rock.
-Also, he looks cool

What items:
Weapon: Eth BotD Cryptic Axe/Eth Grim reaper/perf Eth and 2 Amned Bone hew
Armor: Valor/Glad's Bane/Levithan/upged shaft
Helm: Perf Vamp gaze/Crown of Corona

Cons about this merc:
-He has Lowest FHR in the game
-He needs high defence (read above)
-Once he freezes, his jab is very slow...

Strategies:​

-Try not to get trapped unless u got -% target Def/ignore target def, it will be hell for you get out.
-Have plenty of Healing pots, u never know..
-Get 4 frame for FHR (3 is 200%, which is litterally impossible, 86% is 4th frame)
-Maintain high attack speed.
-Always do Holy Shield b4 u leave town.

Heres how i setup skills for my Zealdin:
F1: Zeal (left)
F2: Vengeance (left)
F3: Charge (left)
F4: Holy Shield
F5: Fanat aura
F6: All resist Aura
F8: Town portal

Heres Basic Zealdin strat against PvM:
1) Holy shield!
2) Charge into the crowds!
3) Zeal Zeal Zeal!
4) Use healing pot if necessary
5) get out of the 'circle' if u get trapped, also as soon as u have opportunity to get out of that circle, LEAVE!
6) 75% blocking all the way, you'll live.
7) Hit and Run works too, if u dun have much live/defence

Heres Basic Zealdin Strat against PvP:
1) Holy Shield!
2) Charge Charge! (mass charge!)
3) as Player is 'head bangning' from the charge, use ZEAL!!!
4) He/She will die, if it barb, jus start off with few charges then zeal.
**Remember, Charge bug still exist, becareful! (charge bug solution, Weapon Switch)

Make sure you mods Sticky this and all other strategies coming soon. Sticky it, but dont close it. However, close it when many ppl have put their opinions on it, then mods/i will edit it.

Strategies coming up:
Trapper, WW barb, Fire sorc, Kick sin, Hybrid Zon.

 

[Jason]

Hammerdin (PVP/PVM)​

Submitted by N_LeGeNd) ​

**NOTE: Meditation sux, if u think its good for hammerdin, plz, read this, this ill prove you how much redemption/mana pot is better than 300%/775% mana regeneration...

Basis:​

-Blessed Hammer does XTRA dmg to UD
-Must... have... 75% block.... along... with.. high defence
-Must... have... 90%/75% all resist... in hell...
-Must... reposition... my (pally)self... when... i... do .... no dmg to... monsters...
-Must... follow... the strat.... written... here...

Stats:​

Strength: Not much to here, around 100 should be fine to wear all your items. Blessed hammer's dmg doesnt increase by amount of Strength.

Dexterity: Remember that all paladins must have 75% blocking in lvl 99, and to ensure that, you must have 125 Dexterity.

Vitality: Rest of your stats to here, You need lots of life for hammerdin since you will be stuck in a place to cast hammers.

Energy: None. You may argue for this, since hammerdin is caster just like Sorceress. However, hammerdin has redemption.

Skills:​

Blessed Hammer=20
Ok, this will be your main attack/your best friend in D2 if you start Hammerdin from now on.

Concentration=20
This aura has quickly become one of fav aura in the game ever since LoD came out... This now enhances Blessed hammer dmg.

Blessed Aim=20
Ah yes.. one of unused auras for pally, even for zealdin too... This increases the AR of course, if ur wandering, why put 20? cuz its synergy to Blessed Hammer.. each point increases hammer dmg by 14%

Vigor=20
Lightning speed! is what you want for many characters! and its possible with Vigor! 1 point for vigor gives 14% increased dmg to hammer.

Holy Shield=18
Now now Ive seen many ppl that says "+skills boosts up my holy shield to 26 when i only put 1 pt into it.." =/ doesnt matter, put 18 pts, u will get 75% block in lvl 99, and more defence..

Redemption=1
This is the first skill to learn when u hit lvl 30. This aura jus sucks up all the health from a corpse and splits it to mana and health.

Charge=Rest
This is good for pvp hammerdin (charge + hammer) and when u go pvm.. (charge to the crowds of monsters, hammer away)

Gears:​

Helm
-Shako **
-Any circlet with 2 pally skills, all resist
-any helm with + skills

Ammy
-2 pally skill with all resist
-3 combat skill with all resist **

Armor
-Enigma (archon plate) **
-GA

Weapon
-Wiz spike *
-Razor's Edge (perf and weapon switch for pvp) **
-HOTO **
-Call of Arms **

Shield
-HoZ **
-2 pally skill with all resist
-Rhymed elite pally shield (aim for highest all resist bonus from a shield.)

Belt
-Archnid's Sash **
-Tal's belt
-Tgod
-Verdungo's
-24% FHR belt with resists..

Gloves
-magifist **
-frost burn

Boots
-30% run and walk, mf and resists **
-IK boots
-Aldur's boots

Ring 1
-soj **
-FCR ring with all resist
-Raven Frost *
-BK *
-Wisp projector *

Ring 2
-soj *
-FCR ring with all resist **
-Raven Frost **
-BK **
-Wisp projector **

Inventory:​

1 Anniluss, many FHR scs (match it up with frames) and all resist charms (match it up with ur resists) Also, have many 20 + life charms.

***Note that: two starts mean "MUST HAVE THOSE ITEMS!!!" and * means "SHOULD HAVE THOSE ITEMS IF I DUN HAVE 2 STAR ONES"

Hirelings:​

Recommanded hireling:

Nightmare Act 2 Defensive Mercenary​

​

Why?
-It gives freezing aura, and Act 2 mercs have highest life compared to all Mercenaries.
-It has jab attack, so give him good weapon with leech and he'll rock.
-Also, he looks cool

What items:
Weapon: Eth BotD Cryptic Axe/Eth Grim reaper/perf Eth and 2 Amned Bone hew
Armor: Valor/Glad's Bane/Levithan/upged shaft
Helm: Perf Vamp gaze/Crown of Corona

Cons about this merc:
-He has Lowest FHR in the game
-He needs high defence (read above)
-Once he freezes, his jab is very slow...

Strategies:​

-You will never, NEVER go to narrow places/caves/tiny places.
-Know that Hammers will disappear once it hits wall, it doesnt pierce like zon's arrows.
-Know that Hammers' dmg is magic type, and it works against Magic Immunes (dunno why, but oh well, good for hammerdins!)
-Reposition your self when u see that hammer isnt hitting the enemy... Dont assume that your hammer is too weak, hammer is always strong and will decrease enemy's life by huge portion.
-Know that Hammers comes out from your shield.
-You will not go on pit mfing
-Always do Holy shield b4 u leave the towns

Heres how i set up skills for hammerdin..:
F1 = Vigor
F2 = Concentration
F3 = Redemption
F4 = Holy Shield
F5 = Blessed hammer (Left side)
F6 = Charge (left Side)
F8 = Town portal

Heres the Basic hammerdin strat for pvm
1) This is before you see the monsters, use vigor
2) Wow, you see monsters now, and you wanna pwn them, switch to Concentration.
3) now charge into them
4) Use Hammer, reposition ur self if necessary
5) Now.. lets assume they are all dead, and you see bunch of corpse and ur life and mana are low! Oh no, and no more pots too, and no tps, what do we do now! Redemption! your life and mana are now full.
6) switch back to vigor again, and run around and look for more enemies..

Heres the Basic hammerdin strat for pvp
1) vigor
2) you see player, charge unto him (no concentration yet)
3) now..This will take some skills, change to concentration and hammer in same time and very quick.... and hammer away
4) Now, change back to vigor after u killed him/her... also, remember that redemption is useless, if ur thinking of meditation, GET OUT OF HERE!!!! it only gives you 300% increase... mana pot will gladly exchange that
5) Jus repeat from step 1~4.

Make sure you mods Sticky this and all other strategies coming soon. Sticky it, but dont close it. However, close it when many ppl have put their opinions on it, then mods/i will edit it.

Strategies coming up:
Trapper, WW barb, Fire sorc, Kick sin, Hybrid Zon, Zealdin.

 

[Jason]

MF Orb Sorc by SweatyOgre​

This is a strat guide for an Orb MF sorc on ladder. Using this character, you can collect gear to outfit your second character, or trade the items you find for better MF gear, creating an endless cycle of improving your MF char, because hell, 3/4 the fun of using the items is finding them.

Stats

Str : 125 - should be sufficient for whatever you may find and use.
Dex : 75 for wiz or base if not using wiz
Vit : Remaining
Eng : Base


Skills

Place skills as follows:
20 - Ice Bolt
20 - Frozen Orb
20 - Cold Mastery
20 - Warmth
1 - Static Field
1 - Telekenesis
1 - Teleport
1- All of Frozen orbs prerequisites
Total: 87

After all those are finished, you may opt to put the rest in Teleport, so you use less mana when teleporting. With warmth, this isn't very necesary, so you may also want to put remaining points into Shiver Armor.


Gear

Since ladder is new, and no one has much of anything, you're going to have to rely mainly on magic and rare items. The following gear is basically guidelines, since no one is gauranteed to be able to get their hands on anything yet in ladder.

Weapons

A Magic or rare with +2 sorceress skills and + to frozen orb, +cold mastery, or +warmth would be ideal.

If you can get your hands on an Oculus or Eschuta's, by all means, use it.

Gull Dagger on weapon switch would be a good idea. They aren't hard to find, but if you cant get one, dont worry about it.

Shields

A magic shield with +all resists(Chromatic prefix) is a nice shield to wear while weakening a boss. Also, if you can somehow get your hands on a Lidless, that would be the optimum main shield for any sorceress.

Rhyme or Milebrega's shields are nice to have on weapon switch to kill a boss with. If you don't have a chromatic shield, they're fine to have on your main weapon, and just use them the whole time.

Armor

4 Perfect Topazed Dusk Shroud. Doesn't have to be a Dusk Shroud, but the Dusk Shroud's low str requirement and good defense make it ideal.

Skullder's, just as on non-ladder, is a great mf armor, but you'll be hard pressed to get it this soon in the ladder season.

Helm

3 Perfect Topazed Helm. There are all sorts of helms that are good to use, such as Artisan's(3 sockets) Crown of Remedy(Poison Length Reduced by 25%) but any 3 socket helm will work fine.

If you're lucky enough to have a Harlequin Crest Shako, throw a P topaz in that and use it. Tarn Helm and StealSkull can also have up to 50% mf, and with a P topaz, 74%.

Belt

Goldwrap isn't hard to get, but if you can't, one of Larzuk's Plated Belts of the Whale are always nice, as is NightSmoke.

Gloves

Chance Gaurds or rare/magic MF gloves if you can find them.

Boots

War Travs or rare/magic MF boots if you can find them. Cow Kings boots are also nice

Rings

2 magic rings with MF or 2 Nagels.

Amulet

A Magic/rare amulet with +sorc skills and magic find.

Charms

Annihilus if you can get your hands on one.
As many MF charms as you can find.


Where/How to MF

Andariel: Tele up to her, static a few times, and tele away. Start casting orbs at her while tele-ing around. A good method, as suggested previously by Kao is to cast an orb at her then tele behind her, so she'll turn and walk with the orb, all the spikes hitting her. Sometimes the groups of minions around her can be trouble, but rarely, since they're NEVER cold immune.

Mephisto:Mephisto can be tricky. There are 3 methods for MFing Mephisto, the Merc method, the Mercless method, and the Moat method.

Merc Method-Have an act 2 merc distract mephisto while you static, then orb like there's no tommorow.

Mercless Method-Cast orbs at him, tele-ing around dodging his orbs, lightnings, and frost novas.

Moat Method-Tele to that little platform with the portal to act 4(yea, that one) then run up a little, cast an orb(to get Meph's attention) and then tele across the river to the left-most platform, walk just out of meph's reach, and orb at him like there's no tommorow.

Pindleskin: A merc is necesary here, unlike with Meph, Just come into the entrance of his temple, and orb away. The merc will distract pindle and the gang, stopping them from charging your ass and killing you.

These bosses can be MFed in any difficulty, but your efforts are sure to prove fruitless if you do any MFing in normal. In Nightmare, you won't find anything great, but it's a good start, and Hell, of course, will provide the best drops.

Now go! Use this guide to work your way up, gaining riches and power in the Ladder Season 2! Soon you will be second only to I, the god of the Magic Find Orb sorceress, but hey, second isn't too bad.

 

[Jason]

Originally posted by newbie4lyfe

Super Fantastic Powerful Low Level Dueling Assassin Guide​

introduction
at level 9, the assassin must be the strongest dueler you will come across. with proper gears and strategy, you can kill upto at least a level 23 with your assassin. (i've also heard that lld sins kill lvl 40's before but the highest i've killed was a lvl 35 trapsin). this requires an assassin to defeat at least upto hell act5 anya quest, or else you will have some problems with this build and resists.

stats
with all stats and skills quests in all difficulty (normal, nightmare, hell), you should be left with 55 stat points.
strength: 40ish (enough for equipment)
dexterity: 45 (max block)
vitality: rest
energy: none

Items

The items are in order of what you should try to get first. if you cannot get the item at the top of the list, try getting the ones below it.

helm

• biggon's bonnet socketed with ed//max jewel - its the prefect helm. life ed... just awesome

glove

• bloodfist - another wonder. dont dare changing it to some other shitty gloves

• death's glove - k some ppl just want to get +20ias to have an "increased attack speed" however bloodfist is probably a better choice, cuz it has a lot more than just -20ias

armor

• 3 socketed breast plate with flawed rubys or max/ed dmg jewels - if your low on life, use f. rubies, otherwise use ed/max

• 2 os magic (light plate) armor with fhr socketed with max/ed jewel - u will need the fhr and its really my favourite, i personally use it

• greyform - adds dex and ll... i personally wouldnt like it cuz you will leech very little

belt

• death's sash - if you know your opponent has some form of cold damage use this.

• rare belt /w fhr + mod - only if you know your opponent isn't using "cold"

ring 1

• rare ring with ar + mod - ar is everything in dueling with a lld adding some more magic properties makes it even better

• silver ring of (suffix) - like stated above, try getting a rare with ar + mod though

• nagelring - basic ring, if you cant find the two, use this. its pretty good, cuz it includes dr and mdr however ar is not as good though

ring 2

• rare ring with ar + mod - (see above)

• silver ring of (suffix) - (see above)

• nagelring - (see above)

amulet

• rare amulet with ar + mod - remember ar is everything, try finding an amulet with one

boots

• hsaru's - prob the best boot for lld cuz most boots dont have frw and fire resist at lvl 9

• gorefoot - 20 frw, mana leech but no resist

shield

• pelta lunata socketed with ed//max jewel - (u will NEED the FBR)

weapon

• rare eth assassin claw/katar with repair and ed - eth adds 50% and if mod includes additional ed it will be better (remember to have self-repair as well) unless you can find another eth claw

• 2 flawed emerald "fine" scissor katar / blade talon - if you cant find an eth rare claw, go for one of these. you can find them at anya in normal difficulty. use a high lvl char to buy them

• 3 flawed emereld scissor katar / blade talon - this and the one above are pretty equal imo

I highly recommend you get an act 3 cold merc and revive him everytime u battle. items for him is as followed:
helm: 3flawed rubied mask - merc needs life
armor: 3flawed rubied breast plate - merc needs life
weapon: 6 flawed emerald eth crystal sword - oh yah thats godly
shield: - (shield is very minimal here. you can probably use anything below lvl 9 here)

note: inventory should be FULL of charms. dex, life, strgth, ar, anything good for a lvl 9 dueler, avoid getting useless mods on a charm like extra gold, stamina, mana, etc.

skills
with all stats and skills quests in all difficulty (normal, nightmare, hell) you should be left with 20 skill points.
Claw Mastery: 7 - mixed with ts will give you the highest possible dmg for a lvl 9
Tiger Strike: 9 - mixed with cm will give you the highest possible dmg for a lvl 9
Burst of Speed: 4 - fastest attack speed per frame

DON’T PUT ANY POINTS INTO ANY FINISHING MOVES. Use your normal attack for your finishing move. Why ts instead of fof? cuz ts gives better + damage than stupid fire dmg

PvP strategies

before you start dueling you MUST cast Burst of speed or else your attack speed will be too slow or not fast enough to catch your opponent. you may need some practice on your mouse work when u are dueling cuz u cant just click and hold your mouse button. Good chance you would miss neways. in most cases, they will probably run or use pot. if they have some form of merc ts charge and kill them off not with normal attack but only with tiger strike.

bowzons: a real pain in the ass cuz they are really sneaky. most of the time you will see a guided arrow zon, therefore i will talk about how to kill these assholes. initially you should go out first, the moment your opponent comes out, you charge up ur tiger strike on them until you have the full three charges, then finish it with a normal attack. they may try to escape or run n shoot, thats when you need to learn to control your mouse, try not to click and hold as he/she will run and you will keep missing, eventually ruining the charge u just had.

melee javazon: prob, click and hold on them this time. 3 full charge of tigerstrike and end it with a normal attack.

missile javazon: like the bowzon, another pain in the ass. try to avoid getting poisoned and try to dodge attacks as well.try not to click and hold as he/she will run and you will keep missing, eventually running out of time to finish the charge u just had.

martialsin: hard to kill, cuz they also have charges which is a killer. if they cast a shadow, charge up on them and finish off on the assassin. otherwise good luck

trapsin: easy to kill. but they tend to be longer to kill. dodge all traps shooting at you until it dies off. if they have a shadow charge on them and finish normal attack on the assassin itself. once again avoid click and hold.

summonecro: pretty annoying, but still beatable. just kill his GOLEM first using only charge then kill his skeletons. when he has only a few army left, charge on one of his minion and finish off on the necro. try not to click and hold as he will run and you will keep missing.

bonecro: bone spirit is a pain in the ass and bonewall/prison is also lame. just try to use your merc as bait and absorb some dmg coming from bonespirit and just charge on his golem, or himself and finish off with normal attack.

thrownecro: i suggest you DONT go out first (unless you are far away), in this duel AR IS VERY IMPORTANT. you will be able to survive if you have a high enough ar to block and make the necro miss. 3 charge and finishing move. try dodging the javs/throw weapon as well

barbarian: frenzy and whirlwind is your worst nightmare, otherwise your okay. click and hold will do.

zealdin: depending if its a lld as well, try click and holding. i guess its good luck

hammerdin: try to attack from the bottom up. hammers cant reach close to him from the bottom. you should do good if he is stupid enough to know that he is not even attacking you.

sorc: probably the most hardest of them all to kill. her elemental skills are killers and she will run alot. if she have a merc, charge up on him/her and finish off the sorc

druid: ironically one of the easiest to kill. charge up on his sage / wolf and kill the druid off with a normal attack.

 

[Jason]

magic finding blizzard sorc by newbie4lyfe​

​

introduction
in my opinion, blizzard sorceress' are the best mfer you can come across, with high and decent damage, without having such godly items.

stats
strength: 156 with items for a ss // 4ist monarch
dexterity: 75 with items for a wizardspike
vitality: rest
energy: base or 50 - your choice

skills
20 ice bolt
20 ice blast
20 glacial spike
20 blizzard
1 static
1 teleport
1 warmth
2 pre requisites
rest cold mastery

items
helm:

• perfect topaz'd/um'd/cham'd shako - +skills,life,mana,mf, its just the best helm you can come across

armor:

• perfect topaz'd/um'd/cham'd tal's armor - great resist, good mf you gotta love this armor

belt:

• 15%mf tal's belt - required for set magic find bonus

amulet:

• tal's amulet - +2 sorc, light resist, also required for set bonus

weapon 1:

• ist'd occulus - +3 sorc, resist, mf, but stupid teleport when struck screws this weapon

• facet'd 25+/xx/xx death's fathom - great for adding dmg to your blizzard

• istist alibaba - 2nd highest mf on a weapon and cheap

• 6ist crystal sword - you can try for this. however expensive, especially on ladder

shield 1:

• um'd/ist'd stormshield - i love this shield, dr, resist its awesome!

• 4 ist'd monarch - the most mf u can get on a sorc

weapon 2:

• wizardspike - for teleporting

shield 2:

• lidless wall - for teleporting

gloves:

• frostburn - adds mana. use it only if you think you dont have enough mana

• magefist - fast cast and regeneration

• chance guard - mf gloves

ring 1:

• ravenfrost - use this if you dont have "cannot be frozen stats"

• nagelring - adds mf

ring 2:

• soj - adds mana and +1 skill

• nagelring - adds mf

boots:

• wartravs - mf boots, adds strength/vitality its an awesome boot

merc is optional i personally use it, hire an act2 nm defensive or act2 norm/hell defensiveif you want one use the following items for him:

armor: CoH
helm: delirium, gaze, andy's
weapon: reaper's, tombreaver, botd ghostspear

strats
against mephisto: always use the moat trick.

against pindleskin:

questions? comment? post or pm me

 

[Jason]

Flaming_Newbie's Summoner Guide

Before I begin, if you think that decripfy is better than amp on crowds... get out. Because of its TINY radius and short duration, you be constantly casting it instead of doing other things (i.e. not dieing). Also, decripfy only makes the monster take +50% damage compared to amp’s +100%. As for slowing monsters… you really don’t need it, your skellys can stay alive for a long time.

Also a note on lag: Summoners don't lag as much as people think, revives are the major source of lag. In the previous patches, because skellys generally sucked, most summoners use revives as their main summon. Now with 40+ revives running around THAT will create some lag. So keep in mind to keep your revives to a minimum.

Skill Distribution

Skeleton Mastery: 20
This skill is your hidden helper. It improves the damage of your skellys, magi, and revives.

Raise Skeleton: 20
This is your main damage dealing skill. Skellys own in all difficulty levels unlike in 1.09, they hit often and kill fast, and stay alive.

Raise Skeletal Mage: 20
These are a ranged version of the skelly. When they are summoned they randomly get (you can't choose) 1 of 4 elements that they shoot: fire, cold, lightning, and posion. These babys can spit out some serious damage at high lvls so it’s worth it.

Everything else in the Summon tab: 1
Yes, I know your thinking, "1?!? wtf, you don't max revives or a even a GOLEM?!?!". Yes that’s right, because your main damage dealing skill is skellys so you don't really need to max a golem. As for revives, its hard to keep alive more than 20 revives at a time because they have a little over a 2 minute time limit before they die. And as I mentioned before, revives cause lots of lag.

Amplify Damage: 1
This will help out your skellys by DOUBLING the physical damage the monsters take.

Bone Armor: 1
Even with one skill point, this can mean the difference between dieing and living.

Corpse Explosion: 1
This is the ultimate crowd control skill. Very useful if you wanna help your summons along.

Total points: 72

Now... wondering what to do with the rest of your points? Here you have several options. 1) you can max out bone spear/spirit to do some damage while your summons fight. 2) max bone armor and work on its synergies 3) get some more curses (confusion comes to mind) 4) or max a golem (useless in my opinion, but hey its your char)

Stat Distribution

Strength: varies
Depending on your equipment you may need more or less strength. Just remember, don’t pump ur your strength at lvl 61 to wear trang belt when you have enigma in stash waiting for you at lvl 65.

Dexterity: none, 75, or max block
With dex you can do 3 things. You can leave it at base, which will be bad for blocking but more for life. You can put into dex till 75 with gear bonuses in case you plan on using wiz spike to teleport. Or you can go for max block to keep those attacks from even reaching your health. I suggest leaving it at base to leave more for vit.

Vitality: the rest
Put your points here. This will keep you from dieing. Kinda makes sense, don’t it?

Energy: 60 or none
Here you can put points into it or if you don’t want to you don’t have to. Just keep in mind that at high levels, skellys cost 50 mana EACH to summon. And you use Teleport it can also drain your mana orb very fast.

Mercenary ]

Your merc is a very important part of this build. Of course the one you should get is the might merc, the offensive merc in Act 2 Nightmare.

Gear for your merc:
Helmet: Guilliaume’s Face, Orphans set (good for crushing blow) or Perf eth gaze
Armor: Bramble (your summons get thorns) or Duriel’s shell (can’t be frozen, resists) or Perf Eth Shaft
Weapon: Eth Bonehew with 2xAmn runes
DON’T use doom, this really helps in shattering monsters which is bad for summoners.

The Gear
Im gonna organize this in 3 gear sets, poor, rich, and trang. I wouldn’t recommend using trang because there is a bug with the cast speed so it’s VERY slow with casting (not that you really need a fast cast rate). Trang is just a fun way to play this build.

Poor
Helmet: Shako (socket with um)
Armor: Skin of the Viper Magi
Belt: Glooms Trap
Gloves: Trang gloves
Boots: Silkweave
Amulet: +1 to all skills
Rings: 2xSOJ
Shield: Homunculus
Wand: Arm of King Leoric

Rich
Helemet: +3 summoning skills with life/resits/fhr (socket with um)
Armor: Enigma
Belt: Trangs belt
Gloves: Trang gloves
Boots: Marrow Walks
Amulet: Maras or +3 to summon skills amulet.
Rings: 2xSOJ or 2xBK ring
Shield: Homunculus (socket with um)
Weapon: Arm of King Leoric*
Weapon II: CTA+ Lidless
Inventory: 10xsummon gcs with FHR or life, and small charms with fhr/life/resists and Anni

**NOTE** Im sure someone will say “WTF?!? King Leoric suxOrz! Hoto iz pwnzOr!!” Well its not. Just look at the wand, you get total, +5 to skelly mastery +5 to raise skelly and +4 to magi. THESE are your main damage dealing skills, so +3 to all skills won’t make a difference (it will actually make you cause LESS damage). But it is good to have a hoto in the stash for those situations when high resist is needed.

Trang
Full Trang Set
Weapon: Arm of King Leoric
Boots: Marrow Walks
Amulet: Maras or +3 to summon skills amulet.
Rings: 2xSOJ or 2xBK ring
Inventory: 10xsummon gcs with FHR or life, and small charms with fhr/life/resists and Anni

Strategy

A summoner can solo ANY part of the game with just his minions. Even the bosses are no match for him. This is strictly a PvM build. If you try to duel with this, you WILL be pwned VERY fast. Also, NEVER EVER EVER go into the Arcane Sanctuary or the Maggot Lair. You will die fast.

Remember, revives cause lag so keep them at a low number. And if your gonna revives something make sure its ranged and not melee. If you revives lots of melee monsters they will just get in the way of your skellys, and your skellys do the most damage.

Non-Teleporting Strategy
With your army, walk toward a group of enemies. When the skellys start to attack the monsters, cast amp to cover every single monster. Summon new monsters as needed. Rinse and repeat!
For a boss get as many revives as you can. you need to walk toward him and right past them until your skellys reach the boss. As they are fighting, cast amp and watch him die.

Teleporting Strategy
DON’T teleport into crowds of enemies. This will mean certain death for you. Teleport to the side of a crowd and let your skellys attack. While they keep the monsters busy, cast amp and resummon as necessary.
For a boss get many revives. After this just teleport ON the boss and walk out of his reach. Cast amp. He will die in no time.

**NOTE** When you use “big” revives (i.e. venom lords or gargantum beasts) and teleport, your revives will get “stuck” inside the monster. They won’t budge and will stay clumped in one spot. The can be useful for boss fights and when you are dealing with a small amount of monsters.


This is just a general guide to making a summoner, there are many things you can change about this and still make a great char.

 

[Jason]

Originally posted by djnat
In last Ladder season, I tried to make this kind of paladin, but I missed the complete gear to make it, so I didn't complete it.

But now I think that I can post a nice build for this particular kind of paladin, which is really awesome vs all non-immune monsters, and really useful in party cuz he makes tons of damage and is able to tank enemies.

The only problem is when facing lit immunes, but a good merc and party can easily help to solve it.

Let's get into the build.


Stat points allocation

Strength: min for gear. Max req is 110 for thundergods, but you can put only 57-67 points into it (depending on your annihilus) and then you can wear your CoH dusk, Zaka, and finally Thundergods.

Dexterity: phase blade requires 136 dex, and this will be fine to have max block at higher levels if you decide to max holy shield. Otherwise, you will probably have to put some extra points at level 9x to have max block with Zaka.

Vitality: all the rest.

Energy: obviously, base.


Skill points allocation

MAX Holy Shock
MAX Resist lightning
MAX Salvation
MAX Zeal

1 to Prayer and Purification (very useful for quick curse removal)

1 to all pre-reqs

All the remaining points are a pure choice of the player. You can put them in:

- Sacrifice, to increase the physical part of zeal damage;
- Holy Shield, to increase your shield's % of block, your defense and the skill duration;
- Conviction (and eventually some in Vengeance) to have a nice alternative vs Lit immunes.


Gear

This is the gear I would use on my Shocker.


"Crescent moon" Phase blade [Shael Um Tir]
Griffon's eye [Lit facet]
"Chains of honor" Dusk shroud [Dol Um Ber Ist]
Herald of Zakarum [Jewel with 15 ias and a good 2nd mod]
Thundergod
Gore rider
Crafted "Blood" Vampirebone gloves with 20 ias / crushing blow / life and so on
Ravenfrost
Bul Khatos'
Highlord

Switch: "Call to arms" Crystal sword [Amn Ral Mal Ist Ohm] + Lidless


Charms

Annihilus
+1 to Offensive aura skillers (godly if with life or fhr)
Some small charms with resists to max all resists in hell
Life small charms


Why this gear? Let's explain.

- Crescent moon and faceted griffons' are a must for this pala. CM has -35% to enemy lit resist, open wounds, ias, and nice static field. Simply the best weapon for this pala. Make it on a phase blade, cuz it is the only weapon which makes you reach the last breakpoint of zeal (4 fpa) when using Holy shock. Griffons Helps a lot with lit damage, it's a must, too.

- You need a whole 72% ias to catch the last BP of zeal with Phase Blade: you have 20% from weapon, 20% from amulet, 20% from gloves. So a 15% ias jewel in the shield is required.

- Highlord is imho the best choice. It has +1 skills (= more damage), lit resist (= very useful), 20% ias (= very important in this build) and some deadly strike that helps a bit against lit immunes.

- CoH... simply the best armor. Resists, dr, skills, mf, unbeatable.

- Gloves: you need ias and crushing blow, and good crafted gloves have these mods. If you have no good crafted gloves, use Laying of hands.

- Gore riders are the best imho. Crushing blow, open wounds... very useful mods for this pala.

- Thundergod owns. Str, vita, and max lit res / absorb. No competition for other belts.

- Ravenfrost is necessary, it has nice dex / ar and Cannot be frozen. And nice cold absorb. The second ring is a bul khatos': it has +1 to skills, and life. Leech does not matter, cuz this pala does not make such a great amount of physical damage.

- Charms are pretty self-explanatory, I think.


Hireling

Might merc with my usual gear setup. Simply the best, and he helps A LOT against immunes.


I've found this build being very effective in hell. It makes tons of damage per second and can kill all enemies quite fast. The only problem is with immunes, and you will need some tactics to face them.

- The most annoying lit immunes of the game are Souls, Beetles, Council Members and generally all the immunes with high physical resistance. Your Hireling will be the key to kill them very fast. He is a marvellous tanker and he is able to make very good damage. He also has decrepify which helps A LOT, cuz it lowers enemies' physical resist by 50%.

- Be careful when there are Oblivion knights. They have Iron maiden that probably wouldn't kill you in one hit, but it can be very dangerous, especially for your merc, who will die very fast if cursed.

- Try to avoid all zones with lit immunes, like travincal, meph runs. This pala is quite good in Chaos runs, cuz the only immunes are Storm Casters, but they have low physical resist and can easily be killed. River of flame is another good place for this pala. In baalruns, be careful when there are some souls or beetles: they will never kill you cuz you'll have 95 lit res and absorb (w00t), but it can be pretty long to kill them, especially if they are uniques. If you play in party, this is not a problem, cuz other party members will take them down.

- All non-immune enemies are totally worthless, you will kill them in 0.00000000001 seconds.

 

[Jason]

PvP WW Barb by DDRAddict​

​

(plenty was borrowed from guru, props to u my friend)

Str: 98-116 (gear will decide how much str u'll have)
Dex: 142-172 (gear will decide how much dex u'll have)
Vita: rest
Energy: base

Skills:
Max ww
Max bo
Max mastery
Max shout
14 in increase speed (all together from items)
1 in natural resists
rest into iron skin

Gear: rich
Helm: perf 200/6 arreats with a 40/9 str jewel (the 40/15 max jewels are bugged)

Armor: enigma vs casters (teleport isn't allowed in privs), duress for melee

Shield: SS with um rune

Belt: 40/15 verdungo

Boots: wt (upgraded)

Gloves: perf steelrends or perf dracs (either for some more dmg or for 25% open wounds and a possibility of life tap)

Rings: 2x angelic rings, 2x raven frosts, 2x dwarfs, 2x wisps (all perf)

Ammy: angelic ammy vs melee, cat's eye vs casters

Weapon1: ebotd zerker ( u could use a cb, but zerkers have better 1 handed dmg)

Weapon2: 2x 3 to bo weapon

Gear: poor
Helm: arreats with 38-40 ed jewel in it

Armor: duress

Shield: SS with a p diamond (not very hard to come by)

Belt: any verdungo or any SoE

Boots: wt (should be that hard to get a low mf pair), goreriders or sandstorm trek

Gloves: any steelrends or any dracs (probably dracs)

Weapon: death cleaver (could be eth, but unless it's got a zod in it, it's not worth it), razor edge (could be eth as well, but it's the same as the death cleaver. It'll run out of durability pretty quickly), gf, or ls

Weapon2: 2x 3 bo weapons

Charms: rich
Perf Anni
Shimmering sc's until u have maxed resists in hell. 1 should have 5 fhr as a second mod and another should have cold dmg. The rest should have 20 life
the rest will be 3/20/20's

Charms: poor
Anni (u'll want 2 str sc's to use your gear if u can't get one)
Resist sc's with 9-11 to 1 element preferable with a second mod
1x fhr sc
1x cold dmg sc
life sc's
poison sc's
lightning dmg sc's
2-3 max sc's with some ar

u need 1x fhr sc because with arreats (30), duress (45), and verdungo (10) u'll have 85 fhr and u need 86 to get the 4th frame.

inventory: keep spares of shimmering sc's or resist sc's incase of dueling people with - to an element items or skills (ie: conviction and facets etc)
demon limb for enchanting your barb (more ar some a very small amount of fire dmg mainly used for an ar boost)
orts and a few chip gems to repair your demonlimb


strats:
(your using the angelic rings and ammy unless specified)

barbs ww: ww them and when u run out of mana use concentration until u kill them or until they hit u and u get back mana. Becareful about running when dueling ww barbs. When u run your block drops to 33%, so unless u wanna get hit I'd suggest walking.

Barbs conc: ww these guys they should be no problem because they always run into ww and with their block dropping to 33% they'll usually get hit unless u got really low ar.

Bowazons: pretty easy to take care of these guys. Put on 2x raven frosts, enigma, and cat's eye. Just tele next to them and ww. If they got kb your cat's should be able to make u run fast enough they'll start to run cuz they are scared. The moment they run tele in front of them and they'll run into u and ww them.

Cs zons: with max resists and around 5k life they'll probably take over 4 hits to kill you. They'll be dead in 1-2 ww max unless they dodge a lot.

Zealdins: they'll run into your ww or else stand still. Just ww them and they'll die in 1-2 hits

Chargers: they repeatly charge into u to charge lock u. it'll take them at least 3-4 hits to kill you if they got a nice weapon. Plenty of time for u to ww them twice and kill them.

Hammerdins: time to put on enigma and teleport under them (lower right hand) and use conc. The moment they run ww into the direction they try to run and they'll be dead pretty fast after running along with your ww. Should take around 3-6 hammers to kill you depending on their dmg. U should be able to soak 2 hammers and ww him if he tele's under you.

Ele druids: put on 2x ravens and cat's eye (enigma too if they run too much). Run to them and they';ll be throwing out tornado. Ww them and they'll try to a. run b. take it c. teleport. U should be able to kill these guys in 1-2 hits and if they tele gl trying to catch them. They just tele and spam tornados. I usually ignore them and go back to dueling and when they try to tele on top of you ww them. They'll be dead quick.

Were druid: these guys are easy. They're just like zealdins ww them and their screwed. Dead in 2-4 hits cuz the transformation lets them live sometimes after the first hit.

Trappers: run after them. U don't have any fcr so when they mb won't be able to tele onto of them. 1-2 ww's should be enough to kill them. If they tele your kinda screwed. Put on the wisps and absorb and they're screwed. Keep chasing them, use ww, and they'll eventually run out of mana with mb + teleport

Wwsins: they have around 50 block easy guys to just ww when they dragon flight ww u. u can take up to 3 ww from them at least. Some try to df u and let vemon do it's work before using the df ww combo to finish u. with 75 pd resist u'll be fine unless u miss them repeatly. They can take 1-3 ww's depending how much they block.

Poison necro: he'll cast lower resist. It'll take u probably 10 second before u run out of health. U can ww out of bone prison. Just ww them as they do nova. Shouldn't be very hard.

Bone necro: these guys can be a pain. They spam bone prisons around u and make it hard as hell to hit them. Bone spear hurts so u could try teleport onto him and ww or ww to him. U'll probably be able to take 3-4 spears at least. The bone armor will recasted unless u keep the ww up on him. If he's got enigma gl trying to catch him. U'll probably be losing to these guys the most. Since they spam bone prisons. Otherwise run up to them and ww. Kep out of the way of the spears as much as possible.

Fb sorcs: dwarfs and cat's eye (maybe enigma). They'll tele away when u try to ww. If they have shitty fcr it'll be an easy duel. If they got high fcr 105+ then it'll be a little harder. Your dwarfs will probably stop most of the dmg and u should be able to just keep running after them and ww. U should be able to tank a lot of fb's before u die. So just keep chasing them. If u want u can try enigma, but if they got 105+ fcr you'll never catch them with no fcr (this goes for all sorcs though). Sorcs are usually 1-2 ww dead chars. So if u get them once they're screwed

Blizz sorcs: 2x ravens and cat's eye (maybe enigma). These guys are hard. Cm makes the dmg really hurt. u might wanna put on some more cold dmg sc's (not sure if that works) and chase them around. U should be able to take at least 3 blizzards. So run around them if u can, otherwise ww through it if they are in the middle. 1-2 ww should be enough pu on enigma if they tele around too much.

Lightning sorcs: 2x wisps cat's eye (maybe enigma) these guys tele a lot around you and cast lightning. Run around the lightning bolts as much as possible and try to ww them when they are shooting out the lightning bots. 1-2 hits should be enough. If it gets hard put on enigma and try them again.

 

[Jason]

Rabies/Fury Druid - Originally posted by djnat


This is an alternative druid build for the richest people of Battle.net. This is a costly build cuz it involves such items as Death's web, and such runes as Sur, Ohm, Zod and Vex.

But I find it viable in hell, cuz it can kill pretty fast and is funny to play. The only disadvantage of this build is that there are a few enemies that can be annoying, like specters that are immunes to physical / poison or souls cuz they are immune to poison and have 90% physical resist, but with the help of your merc and your gear, you will pwn them.

This build makes also use of the "charged items bug" (do you remember the Marrowwalks bug?). In fact, Rabies receives a synergy bonus from Poison creeper, and the unique ring "Carrion wind" (like marrowwalks) has lvl 21 charges of that skill, so it has a very nice bonus (in terms of poison damage) for this build.

But let's come to it.


Stat point allocation

Strength: it depends on your gear. You have to have 156 total str to wear a Stormshield, so 156 is your final goal. Keep in mind that:

- Annihilus gives +10-20 str
- Jalal's mane gives +20 str
- Thundergods gives +20 str
- Mara (if you use it) gives +5 str

Don't waste points if you haven't the correct gear.

Dexterity: max block, it depends on your level. @ level 91, the level in which the build is completed, you need 219 dex to have 75% block with stormshield.

Vitality: all the remaining points. With gear and some charms (if you have them), you should have over 2500 life. With godly charms, you can have over 4k life @ level 90.

Energy: :wavey


Skill points allocation

This is the easiest part.

MAX Rabies (main attack skill)
MAX Fury (immune to poison / second attacking skill)
MAX Werewolf (attack speed, faster run are required)
MAX Lycantrophy (tons of life and increased shapeshifting duration)
MAX Heart of Wolverine (more ar and more damage to face immunes)

You can max Oak sage if you don't like HoW, but i think that having too much life isn't so useful, with 2,5-3k life you are set imho, more damage / ar will be mose useful when facing immunes.

1 to all prerequisites

Absolutely ZERO points into Poison creeper. If you put a point here, you will loose the damage bonus from your "charged" ring.


Gear

This is the most difficult part.


Helmet: Jalal's mane [Um]
Armor: Bramble (Archon plate is a good armor for this runeword, but Dusk is good too)
Gloves: Trang gloves
Belt: Thundergods
Boots: Gore rider
Ring 1: Carrion wind (9% life leech is max)
Ring 2: 20 dex / good ar Ravenfrost
Amulet: Mara's kaleidoscope (if you love physical damage more than poison, use Highlords for the ds)

Weapon 1: Deaths web [Poison facet]
Shield 1: Stormshield [Um]

Weapon 2: BotD Zerker Axe
Shield 2: Stormshield [Um]


Charms to use:

- Annihilus.
- 7-8 Shapeshifting skillers gc's with life or 7 run.
- Some mono-elemental resist small charms if your gear's not perfect or if you use Highlords instead of Mara and need more fire resistance.
- 18+ life small charms (or if you're very rich, go for max / ar / life charms).
- 2 small charms with 5% fhr / good second mod if you want the next bp (@ 86% fhr).


Hireling

Same hireling as usual. Desert mercenary hired in Nightmare, Offensive, with Might aura. See my other builds to know his gear, or scan Viz's zon guide to find it.


Some data

- You will make more than 35k poison damage over 18,4 seconds using your main weapon switch (Rabies = lvl 37). If your bramble is very good, you can go over 40k poison damage.

- You will have -43% / -55% enemy poison resist (depending on how good your deaths web and facet are).

- You should have, with the final gear / charms, 75 / 80 / 85 / 75 as your resists. With such resistances, you can easily pwn souls and all.

- You will have 35% damage reduction, that is very good cuz you will have high life and will never suffer from physical attackers.

- You will make about 5k avg physical damage per hit, ant you will attack @ 5 fpa (5 attacks per second). With about 15k ar, you will be fine against poison immunes.


Some tactics

- Remember a crucial thing: Rabies is a marvellous skill, cuz when you hit an enemy, he will take the bite and become ill, and he will be contagious for all enemies around him. So this skill can be quite destroying when facing groups of non-immune monsters.

- Once you've "rabied" your enemy, if he's particularly slow to die, switch to zerker and use fury to finish him.

- In bosses fight use rabies: when you hit the boss switch to zerker and continue hitting him till rabies' effect is finished. Then re-use rabies (if he is still alive ) and repeat the switch to zerker. Use this tactic till he dies. One more time, remember that Rabies @ level 37 (the level you should have it with your final gear) lasts 18,4 seconds.

 

[SweatyOgre]

PvP or PvM Conc Barb

This build works for PvP and PvM, really.

Stats

Strength: 150
Dexterity: 150(Allows for max block up until level 88)
Vitality: Everything left over
Energy: none

Skills

20 Concentrate
20 Axe Mastery
20 Shout
20 Battle Orders
1 Battle Command
20 Iron Skin
1 Natural Resists
1 All Prerequisites = 3
105 Total Points

Gear

Helm: Upped Cham'd Arreats
Amulet: Angelic Wings for melee, Highlord's for caster dueling
Rings: Dual Angelic for melee, Dual BK agaisnt casters
Armor: Stone Superior Sacred Armor
Weapon: Eth Zod'd Razor's Edge
Weapon Switch: 2 Echoings
Shield: Perfect Diamond'd Storm Shield
Belt: Verdungo's
Gloves: Dracul's Grasp
Boots: Upped Gore Riders

Charms

Annihilus
As many life charms as you can get your hands on
Enough resist charms as you need
A few defense charms can't hurt

Dueling

Other Melee Chars: Really the only thing to do here is just hack away. Remember to use Walk, not Run, because running lowers your blocking by 2/3. Against another melee char that is something like a CS zon, you'll sometimes need to change gear around, but not unless their really good, because this build has great resists.


Casters: Not much you can do aside from try to catch them to get them, but casters and bowazons are always running away from conc barbs.

 

[SweatyOgre]

Templar [FOH pally] PvP Guide V1.3

Posted by FWI

Templar [Fist of Heavens pally] PvP guide v1.3 Pre-Final

Contents:

I. Introduction
II. Formulas and Breakpoints
III. Skill Choices
IV. Stat Choices
V. Equipment Choices
VI. Leveling
VII. Strategies
VIII. FAQ
IV. Conclusion and Closing Notes



Abbreviations Dictionary:

AR = attack Rating
Avenger = a paladin whose main attack is vengeance
bm = bad mannered
CB = crushing blow
Crusader = a paladin whose main attack is charge
def = defense
dex = dexterity
dmg = damage
dr = damage reduction
ds = deadly strike
ed = enhanced damage
ene = energy
fbr = faster block rate
fhr = faster hit recovery
fcr = faster cast rate
FOH = fists of the heavens
fps = frames per second
frw = faster run/walk
ias = increased attack speed
icb = increased chance of blocking
itd = ignores target defense
liberator = a paladin whose attacks are blessed hammers, FoH, and charge
ll = life leech
ml = mana leech
ow = open wounds
PvM = player vs. monster
PvP = player vs. player
ranger = a paladin who uses a bow
str = strength
v/t = Vindicator/Templar [smite/foh]
vita = vitality
Zealot = a paladin whose main attack is Zeal
Templar = FOH paladin
clvl = character level


ALL MUST READ THIS:::
By responding to this guide, I hereby understand that I will not flame the templar build or that it can be nullified with enough lightning resist. My post will be productive, not deductive. I understand that if a problem with the guide needs to be changed - I will address the problem without letting my ego get in the way.

I. INTRODUCION

This guide was originally finished in its first version , v1.0, on March 8, 2004. Since then I did v1.1 and v1.2. A templar was the first char I made and leveled after the release of the 1.10 d2 patch on Non Ladder. I haven’t used one in literally months but was considered one of the best at such a hated class on the west, long ago. My current character is a pvp fire druid [big change from lame to unique, I know] and I plan on writing detailed a guide on that within a month or two more of experience. This guide is written to be slightly elementary so it is user friendly, which allows newer d2 players to read with more ease. It’s been up on the dii.net forums for almost a year and hasn’t been removed yet with more than 20,000 views. This build is basically a V/T backwards, also known as the T/V. Your main skill will be fist of heavens while using a conviction aura, using smite as your backup. Make sure you read my responding disclaimer above and don’t hate. If you knew me, my templar was Primat_WvX from the USWest Nonladder realm. If you know me now, maybe you’ve dueled my fire druid on USWest NL – FWI. This is not a final version for these forums, so please post comments to help contribute to a final version.

II. FORMULAS and BREAKPOINTS

Max Block formula:
%to block=(%block on shield+bonus from skill)*(dex-15)/(clvl*2)

Fast Cast Rate formula:
0% fcr - 15 frames
9% fcr - 14 frames
18% fcr - 13 frames
30% fcr - 12 frames
48% fcr - 11 frames
75% fcr - 10 frames
125% fcr - 9 frames
(*note: This fast cast rate breakpoint table applies to those who are wondering how little frames a paladin can get teleport. This table is not the table for FOH because there is a timer on this skill)

Faster Block Rate:
Without Holy shield:
0% fbr - 5 frames
13% fbr - 4 frames
32% fbr - 3 frames
86% fbr - 2 frames
600% fbr - 1 frame

With Holy shield:
0% fbr - 2 frames
86% fbr - 1 frame

Fast Hit Recovery:
0% fhr - 9 frames
7% fhr - 8 frames
15% fhr - 7 frames
27% fhr - 6 frames
48% fhr - 5 frames
86% fhr - 4 frames
200% fhr - 3 frames

III. SKILL CHOICES

-Fist of Heavens: This will be your main attack, and maxing it is a must. 20 points go here.
-Holy Shock: The only Synergy that effects the damage of FOH - and helps the damage greatly [a synergy is passive - you do NOT need to have this aura active to receive the bonus]. 20 points go here
-Conviction: This will be your main and always active aura. At level 25, this will reduce your enemies resistances by -150%. Without this aura FOH is next to nothing. DO NOT MAX THIS SKILL. ONLY put enough to get it to 25 with your end game items - since this skill is capped at lvl 25 [the -%resist]
-Holy Shield: This will help your blocking and defense greatly. Maxing this is not a MUST but it is HIGLY recommended for all PvP builds with little exeptions, since your defense will reduce the enemies chance to hit you. I highly recommend 20 points here.

:AUSE::

At this time - with your necessities where the points need to go - you have used ABOUT 73 skill points. [It can change a bit depending on how much you need to get to 25 on conviction]. I will make this guide thinking you will get to level 80. Now at level 80 and with all your +skill quests done - you have about 91 skills to distribute - so this leaves you with about 18 left.


::continues::

Now the recommended ONE POINT wonders:

-Holy freeze [a nice tool to have when you need it]
-Vigor [a lil +frw when you need it]
-Salvation [if you have low resists - or if you need help to nullify an enemies conviction this can help]

The skills laid out in a ‘ME NO LIKE TO READ’ manner:

20 FOH
20 Holy shock
20 Holy shield
25* Conviction
1-x Smite [rest]

Now with some points to spare - what do i do?!?!?

I would highly recommend dumping the 'rest' into smite. Since in 1 vs 1 duels - a good opponent will stack their resists MAJORLY to nullify your conviction - hence making your FOH pointless. With smite, you can do some good damage to them and the shield you will want to get for FOH - deals nice smite damage as well. Try to dump your extra points here.

If you are anti-smite , you can dump them into defiance. Defiance is a synergy to holy shield and will passively give you more defense.

IV. STAT CHOICES [ATTRIBUTES]

Strength: Just enough to use the item with the most strength required. Make sure to factor all the +str you get from the items before it - so you can get maximum vitality.
Dexterity: Just enough for maximum blocking. Use the max block formula in the formula section to determine how much dex you need.
Vitality: ALL YOU CAN HERE
Energy: NONE - nothing here

 

[SweatyOgre]

V. EQUIPMENT CHOICES

Helms:

Harlequin Crest Shako [98-144 defense]

+2 all skills
+1.5 life per clvl
+1.5 mana per clvl
+50% Magic Find
Physical Damage reduced by 10%
+2 all atributes

The above would be your BEST choice for this build. With the 2 skills, nice life and mana, and descent damage reduced - this is the best choice for your build. Lets see the cheaper alternatives.

Peasant Crown War Hat [92-108 defense]

+1 all skills
+20 energy
+20 vitality
+15% frw
+6-12 replenish life
100% enhanced defense

The above would be a descent and very cheap alternative with the 1 skills, 20 ene and vit, and the frw.

Vampire Gaze Grim Helm [122-252 defense]

+6-8% mana stolen per hit
+6-8% life stolen per hit
15% slower stamina drain
Physical Damage reduced by 15-20%
Magical Damage reduced by 10-15
+100% Enhanced defense
Adds 6-22 cold damage

The above would be a descent alternative if you Really needed the damage reduced. But since it isnt much more dr than a shako - and a shako has WAY better other mods - i would go with shako.

Armour:

Enigma RUNEWORD [jah+ith+ber]

+2 all skills
+45% frw
+1 Teleport [this is not a charge - it acts as a skill for all classes]
+757 defense
+0.75 strength per clvl
+Increased maximum life by 5%
+Damage reduced by 8%
+14 life after each kill
+15% damage taken goes to mana [ does not effect life ]
+1% magic find per clvl

The above is your 1# armour for this build. The mods tell it all. 2 skills, major frw, the teleport skill [VERY effective in public duels], high defense, max life +5%, 8% dr. Expensive but worth while. If you can afford one - get one.

Gaurdian Angel Templar Coat [707-825 defense]

+1 Paladin skills
+4 Light radius
+180%-200% enhanced defense
+30% Faster Blocking
+15% Maximum resists to all
+5 attack rating against demons per clvl
+20% chance to block

The GA [most common abbreviation for the gaurdian angel] is mostly used for the +15% max resists - giving you a possibility of 90 resists to all. With its one skill and good + max resists, this is the next best from an enigma.

Chains of Honor RUNEWORD [dol+um+ber+ist]

+2 all skills
+200% damage to demons
+100% damage to undead
+8% life stolen per hit
+70% enhanced defense
+20 strength
Replenish life +7
+65 all resists
Damage reduced by 8%
25% magic find

With two skills this is a nice armour. This is an alternative from the enigma armour, if you really need that 65 resists. Very good mods, and same worth as enigma on most realms. I still recommend enigma. This is what I would use if you are in a dueling league that does not allow enigma/tele.

Orumus' Robes Dusk Shroud [361-467 defense]

+10-20 defense
+20% faster cast rate
+(10-15)% to Fire skill damage
+(10-15)% to Cold skill damage
+(10-15)% to Lightning skill damage
+3 Random sorc skill

This armour is another alternative since the possibility of +15% more foh damage is available. Some people prefer it - I dont.

Cheaper alternatives:

ANYTHING with plus skills will do if you have a very small budget. Ill give a list of some armours that add skills that are cheap.

-Vipermagi [+1]
-Spirit shroud [+1 - very easy to find in mf]
-Skullders [has good mf too]
-Que-Heagans [not a bad armour +1]
-Silks of the Victor [+1]

Weapons:

Wizard Spike Bone Knife

+2 mana per clvl
+15% mana regeneration
+15% max mana
+75% all resists
Indestructable
+50% faster cast rate

The above is my PERSONAL favorite, but many disagree. I have done many tests as to whether I was gonna use a 40 hoto or a wiz – and I have argued it in probably 100 posts on a different forum, and I was impressed as to how well the wiz performed.

Heart of the Oak RUNEWORD [ko+vex+pul+thul]

+3 all skills
+40% faster cast rate
+75% Damage to demons
+100 attack rating against demons
+3-14 cold damage
+7% mana stolen per hit
+1 blizzard [sorc only]
+10 dexterity
+replenish life +20
+Increased maximum mana +15%
+all resists +30-40% [varies]
Level 4 Oak Sage [25 charges]
Level 14 raven [60 charges]
+50% damage to undead

With the 3 skills, oak sage, and other descent mods - this is your other Best choice. [that number explained later so don’t decide until you have finished reading]

NOTE: A wizard spike is Very easy to get so its either that or HOTO - no more options explained.

Shield:

Herald of Zakarum [362-507 defense]

+2 Paladin Skills
+2 Combat Skills
+150%-200% Enhanced defense
+30% faster blocking
+30% chance to block
+20 strength
+20 vitality
+20% bonus attack rating
+50% resists to all

With the major skills, and the fact that every stat is a nice bonus to all paladins [50 resists is Very helpful as well], this is a no brainer best for a templar.

Alma Negra [138-164 defense]

+180-210 enhanced defense
+30% faster block rate
+(1-2) paladin skill levels
+20% increased chance of blocking
Magical damage reduce by (5-9)
+(40-75)% bonus attack rating
+(40-75)% enhanced damage

With The skills this is an ok alternative - but too expensive to not get a herald of zakurum instead.

Storm Shield [94-144 defense]

+3.75 defense per clvl
Physical damage reduced by 35%
+30 strength
+35% faster blocking
+25% lightning resist
+25% chance to block
+60% cold resist
Attacker takes 10 lightning damage

This is an ok shield if you stress the damage reduced part.

Lidless Wall [271-347 defense]

+80-130% Enhanced Defense (varies)
+1 To All Skills
Increase Maximum Mana 10%
20% Faster Cast Rate
+3-5 To Mana After Each Kill (varies)
+10 To Energy
+1 To Light Radius

With +1 skills, mana, and fcr – this shield makes a great secondary to a HoZ.

Belts:

Arachnid Mesh [106-138 defense]

+(90-120)% enhanced defense
+20% faster cast rate
Level 13 venom (11 charges)
+1 all skills
Slows target by 10%
+5% maximum mana

This belt is one of two recommended belts for this build. The reason why it is so good is it's the only belt that has +1 skills. I recommend having this one and the next one listed to switch for different opponents.

Thundergod's Vigor [109-159 defense]

5% chance of casting a lvl 7 FOH on struck
+1-50 lightning damage [melee only]
+10% maximum lightning resist
Absorbs +20 lightning damage
+160-200% enhanced defense
+20 vitality
+20 strength
+3 Lightning strike [amazon only]
+3 Lightning fury [amazon only]

This built is my PERSONAL preference and I even sold my old arachnids mesh and use this baby 24/7. There are some VERY helpful mods on here and I think that they override the +1 skills on an arachnids. The 10% max light reists, absorbs lightning [not at %], strength, and the vitality are all great mods.

Verdungo's Hearty Cord [108-153 defense]

+(90-140)% enhanced defense
+(30-40) vitality
+(100-120) maximum stamina
10% faster hit recovery
Damage reduced by (10-15)%
Replenish life +(10-13)

This belt I have in stash for whirlwinding barbs. I do not have maximum damage reduction [which is now capped at 50% in 1.10] with my items on, and the 10 to 15% dr you get from this can help you with those barbs if they can take hits of your FOH. The vita is also very nice. Test them out first. If their life goes down on an foh - you can always run from them.

 

[SweatyOgre]

Gloves:

The gloves on a templar are next to nothing on the to-do list. There aren’t any legit godly gloves for this build. [there are the hacked wiz gloves but PLEASE DO NOT go out and support non-perm hacks]. I am not going to post the stats on the gloves here but here are a few possibilities.

-Frostburns [if you need the mana]
-Crafted gloves with resists/stats/ias [good for smite, and who doesnt want those resists]

I use crafted gloves with ias, str, resists, and some other mods.

Boots:

My favorite for a templar are good rares with frw, fhr, stats, and good resists. Mine use the USWest dupes known as the Wraith Brands. With about 50% to all the elemental resists, +19 str and more - these are VERY helpful. Most expensive and useful option: get good rares. Here are the next best and unique options.

Waterwalk [94-123 defense]

+100 defense to missles
+20% faster run/walk
+15 dexterity
+180-210% enhanced defense
+45-65 life
+40 stamina
+5% maximum fire resist
+50% stamina regeneration

Some people prefer these boots but I don’t. The life and good defense and the 5% max fire resist are the good mods here. I still prefer rares with good stats.

Silkweave [94-115 defense]

+150-190% enhanced defense
+5 mana after each kill
+200 defense vs. missles
+10% maximum mana
+30% faster run/walk

These boots are very cheap and help if you need mana [for some odd reason].

Rings:

Wisp Protector

Lightning absorb +(10-20)%
10% chance to cast a lvl 16 lightning on striking
(10-20)% magic find
Lvl 2 Oak sage (15 charges)
Lvl 5 Heart of Wolverine (13 charges)
Lvl 7 spirit of barbs (11 charges)

This is one of my favorite rings because of the 10-20% lightning absorb and the oak sage. That lightning absorb makes you awesome vs all lightning attacks and most importantly, FOH. NOTE: These are expensive...

Bul Kathos Wedding Band

+0.5 life per clvl
+1 all skills
+3-5% life stolen per hit
+50 stamina

This is another favorite of mine. I usually have a wisp and a bul kathos on at all times. The 40 life at character lvl 80, and the +1 skills is very sexy.

The Stone of Jordan

+20 mana
+25% maximum mana
+1-12 lightning damage
+1 all skills

This is an effective cheaper alternative. Yet if you can get a hold of a soj, then you could probably get ahold of a bul kathos. You will NOT need to worry about all that mana add, so the life on a bul kathos will do more for you in the long run.

Amulets:

A rare amulet with +2 skills, stats, resists, and other mods is your best option. If you are on west - a duped Viper Torc would be your best option. Now onto those non-rares options...

Mara's Kaleidoscope

+2 all skills
+20-30% resists all
+5 all attributes

This is your next best option from a really good rare amy. With the 2 skills, 20-30 resists, and the 5 attributes - its a great amulet and not hard to get.

Cheap amys:

If you cant get one of the amulets listed - get a rare amulet with +combat skills on it. That’s a cheap and effective alternative.

CHARMS:::

To be very effective in PvP - you will need 10 combat gcs. They are very very hard to get these days. When I made my templar they were 5 times cheaper than they are now. These make a World of difference for your templar so pull to get these regardless of your d2 financial situation. For the small charms I recommend life / resists charms. Also life / lightning resists [solo resists - max mod is 11] are good to help you nullify an opponents conviction. If you cant afford life / resists maybe just look around for some solo lightning resists scs and some solo life scs. I have found them in normal, nightmare, and hell and they are easy to trade for if your budget does not allow. Also try to get an annihilus [if you have one]. All the mods on that will help you become stronger.

VI. Leveling Tips

This is considering you have a friend help you through the game for faster results. [rushed]

1-12: Run through act one with a group of low lvls
12-20: Andarial runs / Countess Runs
20: Ancients Quest
20-25: Cows
25-40: Normal Baal
40-60: Nightmare Baal
60-8x+: Hell Baal

 

[SweatyOgre]

VII. Strategies

The zig-zag tele:

A zig-zag tele is something I do all the time when I approach a character that needs to aim. This applies to all teleing characters as well – not just templars. A perfect example would be a spear nec or a fireball sorc. If you tele towards them in random zigzags they usually freak out and don’t land a hit on you.

The semi-circle tele:

This is basically teleing out too far and making basically half a circle. I use this on some ranged chars. Its another form of teleing towards a char that isn’t teleing around very quickly. Many times with this technique you catch chars off guard. It makes an almost defensive offensive attack – which is pretty much an oxymoron – but makes sense in a way.

--------------------------------------------

Amazons:

Bowazons: Bowazons are very easy in 99/100 duels for a templar. Just stand there and FOH the hell out of them. Notice zons have dodge [passive skill that gets annoying] so it may take a few to actually HIT them. But once you do nearly all zons dont bother to stack all that lightning resists to nulify your conviction. Most bowazons are a one hit kill.

Javazons: Same as bowazons but a little riskier, and way more damage. This is one of the reasons why I recommend dumping points into smite. If they are too fast and you cant hit them with FOH in time for them to come up and hit you - smite and holy freeze takes any javazon out. But for pure FOH - run [teleport if enigma] and FOH.

Assassins:

Trappers: You will need some time to get good with them. Their mind blast skill [if they get it on you] will make it so you cant FOH. You - will definitely need teleport to get them with pure FOH. Stay on your toes and FOH. If you have a smite option [recommended to dump all extra points there] then put on holy freeze and run up to them and smite them. If your lightning resists are high enough the smite will do the trick since you can eventually get to them while running through their mind blasts.

All Melee Assassins: Just dont let them get too close to you. Stay a ways out and just keep FOHing. If they use whirlind [granted from the chaos claw runeword], be careful. A good whirlwinding assassin can put some good damage on you.

Barbarians:

Whirlwind: Unless they have HELLA lightning resists - they are can be pretty easy. It is usually easy to dodge those whirwinds - and just keep FOHing them. There are a lot of different tele/ww techniques so study their personal habits and move accordingly. If they have hella resists - throw on your low damage smite option and see if it hurts them [use holy freeze with smite]

Conc, Frenzy, Bezerk, etc barbs: Just run and FOH. simple with them. If you want to have a fun fair duel - smite them for the hell of it. Just DONT get hit by those bezerk barbs. Those hits Hurt.

Druids:

Melee druids: Simple duel. Most dont have very good frw and most cant teleport. Just stay away and tele. If you want to smite them you can.

Elemental druids: These are your WORST enemy. Their absorb armour skill completely makes your FOH WORTHLESS. I recommend just staying away from elemental druids. But if you want to at least try, run up to them and smite them for the hell of it.

Necromancers:

Necro Note: Without teleport you have a slim chance because of bone prison.

Bonemancers: Can be a very hard duel. You will need good skill, timing and dodging here. Those bone spears travel FAST. Study their moving and casting habits and dodge accordingly. Get Just close enough to get conviction on - then run and dodge spears and you try to get some FOH in there.

Bone Spirit: Not much different from bonemancers. JUST KEEP MOVING. If they have like 15 bone spirits following you - do NOT make that mistake of stopping to let them all hit you. It could very well take you out [i have this bad luck of having that last one in a pack of many killing me]. Also do not make the mistake of dodging on your feet only. They will bone prison you and sometimes you just aren’t ready to teleport out fast enough. Just keep moving and you will do fine.

Paladins:

Other Templars: These are fun duels. VERY fun as long as you have good lightning resists... With my set up, other FOHers heal me with my resists and absorb. Its very similar to a zealot vs zealot duel. Just stand and go. Its also very fun to throw some smites in there if they dont mind.

Melee paladins: Vs. all non-smiters, just run and FOH. If a good charger with a good weapon and good ar comes along, be careful. I recommend letting the charger come to you [that way you are standing still and you get 100% of your defense]. Vs zealots - just smite. Vs smiters - FOH them. If they can block your FOH this is a disadvantage since their smite wont be as good as theirs. Good luck with a very good smiter.

Hammerdins: With precision and patience this is a fairly easy duel. You need to let them come to you. DO NOT go to them unless you are ready to go through a maze of dodging hammers. Just stay back and wait for them to start going to you. When they do just FOH and they are usually gone. If they are liberators [charge/hammer] just wait for them to charge you. When they are charging - FOH them at will - but once those hammers start flying, stay away until the charging starts again.

Sorceresses:

Fire: Most fire sorcs are fireball. This duel is very easy with timing. If you can dodge a fireball and not run into a circular meteor timer on the ground - you should be ok. Vs. all those fireball sorcs with a LOT of fcr, do NOT teleport to them. Stay on your feet because it will be a hell of a lot easer not to make a mistake since most of them shoot in a semi-circular motion. Tip for fireball: Be off screen and start Running around them in a circle. They will start shooting you in the same semi-circular motion. The moment they try to shoot AHEAD of you so that you will run into them - charge [teleport if you have] to them from the opposite of the way you were running and if you can get there quick enough it is farely easy.

Lightning: Lightning sorcs have the ability to achieve hella lightning damage. Luckily for you, you are built to slay other templars so their lightning damage hardly hurts you with the right gear. Thunderstorm is easy and just get to a chain light sorc before she gets to you.

Cold: A fairly duel if they are a good blizard sorc. All other forms of cold should not be a problem. But as far as blizzard - think what he would be thinking [think ahead]. Try to guess where your opponent would drop their blizzard, and dodge them accordingly. This is a very hard duel to win, and if you dont have teleport since those blizzard sorcs tend to teleport a LOT more than all other sorcs, your chances will be little to none. Just dodge and hit.

VIII. FAQ

Q: Isnt this build very similar to a V/T?

A: No. A V/T focuses on smite and uses FOH as their secondary. This build is the opposite.


Q: Do I need to worry about faster cast rate?

A: No. There is a 1 second delay on Fist of Heavens - so dont worry about fcr. Fast cast rate does SLIGHTLY effect how fast you can foh [based on the testing of a group of vets], but it doesn’t do enough to recognize it. As long as you have some items with some fcr, you don’t need to get mathematical if you don’t tele.


Q: What are those items I just NEED to get?

A: Things you definately need to shoot for are a Herald of Zakurum, 10 combat gcs, an enigma, and good lightning resists. I would go in the following order: light res, enigma, zak, gcs.


Q: Why smite if you cant put hardly any skills into it?

A: If someone spent the time and money to make your conviction do nothing, and resists your FOH completely, you need to be able to use another skill to kill them. My reason for choosing smite is you already have its only synergy maxed [holy shield], and a herald of zakurum already has very good smite damage.


Q: Does -% lightning resists from a rainbow facet jewel work with FOH?

A: Yes.


Q: How much lightning resist in hell will I need to negate Conviction?

A: 100 [-100 base in hell difficulty] + 75 [max without +% max] + 150 [conviction] = 325 needed lightning resist.


IV. Conclusion and Closing Notes

This is most likely going to be my pre-final draft so comments, concerns and loving hate are welcome. There seems to be a lot of hate these days about templars and I’ll tell you the truth – I hate em now to when I duel them. The problem I have is the fact that people consider the templar to be the easiest build. So did I until I made one and spent time on him. It isn’t all just hover/click.

Thanks,

-FWI

 

[SweatyOgre]

SweatyOgre's Pwnzor Wind Druid Guide

Heres a new Wind Druid guide since my last one wasnt up to par

Stats
Your stats should be as follows when naked and stats are fully distributed-
Str : 33
Dex : 144 (assuming you use the same gear as me, with the same anni, make sure you got 205 dex with gear on)
Vit : Remaining
Eng : Base


Skills

Place skills as follows:
20-Oak Sage
20-Twister
20-Tornado
20-Hurricane
20-Cyclone Armor(wait until you have your other skills maxed, then max this)
1-raven
1-spirit wolf
1-dire wolf
1-grizzly bear


Gear

Weapons

Hoto (Main Weapon):

Hoto has skill levels, resistance, dex, cast rate, and alot of other great attributes.

Call To Arms (Secondary Weapon) :

Call To Arms has Battle Orders and Battle Command.

Shields

Lidless (PDiamond or Um Rune) (Main Shield):

Skills, Mana, Cast rate, all the attributes of a great caster that isnt a pally. This shield will be used most.

StormShield (Hel Rune) (Alternative Main Shield) :

StormShield has the damage reduction and resistance needed for dueling FoH pallys, Trap Asns, or Sorc's. The Damage reduce is for Guided Zons and melee chars.

Lidless (Secondary Shield) :

This is used for the +1 skills to help out Battle Orders

Armor

Enigma (Dusk Shroud) :

With a Dusk Shroud enigma, You get strengh, skill levels, and Teleport, and near no str requires, GREAT armor.

Helm

Shako (15Res All Jewel with 2nd Mod) :

2 skills, Life, Mana, Damage Reduce.

Belt

Arachnid Mesh :

Skill Level and Cast Rate

Gloves

Mage Fist :

Cast Rate and Regen Mana

Boots

Soul Spurs :

Resistance , Dex, and Str.

If you can't get soul spurs because youre on a different realm or on ladder, just grab some boots that have 15-20 str and dex, and some resistance.

Rings

SOJ's :

Skill level and Mana

Amulet

Mara's :

Lots Of resistance, Skill Levels, and Stats.

Charms

10xEle Skill Charms (try to get 12% fhr or 35+ life on them)
Anni
9x20life/mana Smalls

Dueling
To duel with this pimp of a druid, just watch to make sure your precasts(Oak Sage, Cyclone Armor, Grizzly Bear) are up at all times, and make sure Hurricane is up constantly too.

When dueling a melee enemy, just cast Tornados like crazy in the direction of the enemy, if they are missing, let up the mouse button and start casting them again, until theyre going right to them. You should kill them before they can even get a hit off on you, but if they do, your max blocking from the dex will do good for you.

When dueling other casters, tele to them(click them, this will make your tornados hit them,) and cast tornados right away. They should die after 3 or so tornados. The key here is speed, especially against hammerdins and fire sorcs.

 

[Johnny]

Leveling Guide Outline

In 1.11 it's a dog-eat-dog world out there, so you better level up quickly. This quickest way that requires minimal glitch rushing and high level help is this:

• 1 to 6-7: Find full normal games to kill around in blood more and cold plains. I find that baal run games are great, plus its fun to have everyone party you. If you can find a slow moving party, i.e., a bunch of noobs, you can get more exp in before you need to change games.
• 7 to 15: Trist runs. Although it may be difficult to find a fast moving, full party game, keep searching, it pays off quickly. Avoid games with party members higher than 17 or 18, as they begin to suck up any experience you should be getting.
• 15 to 20: Tomb runs. This is usually easiest with a higher level character that can clear them quickly, while you leach some experience. Try to find games that have a high level killer and many party members. It usually only takes one game, since there are 7 tombs, if done right.
• 20 to 24: Norm cows. With a full game and a good leader, it usually only takes 2 or 3 games to get to 24. When you reach 24, you should get a rush to act 5 done if you hadn't already. This is where having friends comes in handy.
• 25 to 40+: Norm baal runs. With a high level, the experience comes very quickly. Keep going until you are at least 40, as that is the level required for nightmare anicents quest. If you don't have any friends on at the time, or don't have any friends, you may want to keep doing baal runs to pass the time. Another good way is to make or join "baal for quest" games, in which high levels will kill baal for you to get the character they are glitch rushing through to nightmare. Its common curtisy for them to rush you through nm as well, but some people don't do that. :/
• At least 40 to 60+: Same as the above, except you will be doing it in nightmare baal runs. Although you don't need to keep baaling in nightmare after level 60, its good to go to about 70 or so, as the experience is still good. If you don't have a rusher for hell, consider trying to offer your hellforge quest to a rusher. Don't scam them. It's not nice .
• At least 60 to 90+: Hell baal runs, make sure you get into runs with a strong teleporter, its not fun waiting a few minutes only to have the party leave while still in town. Meet friends during this time, it will help in the future to get into some baal runs.
• 90+: When doing baal runs, you may need the experience from baal, as that is where the majority of the experience comes from in the upper 90s. "Top 2" is a way of solving this, in which the highest 2 levels (or if an agreement is made, whichever 2 want to do it) will leave the original party and make their own. In this party they will kill baal. Usually, the top 2 people will offer baal's drops for the extra bit of experience.
  
  Good luck, and, when in high levels, have fun spending several all-day baal runs to gain a single level. Have fun with the extra 5 stats and 1 skill point. The glory will go the the people with the most patience.