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New D2 toon...

Shiflet

10/3/2013 2:45:00 PM

Yep, still playing D2, I haven't made a new toon in ages though, and
I've decided it is about time. I had a lot of different ideas in mind,
throw barb, Rift auradin, Mauler werebear druid, Energy Shield Charged
Boltress...but ultimately I've decided on an elemental bowzon. I like
bow users, and already have a regular bowzon, so I thought I'd vary it
up, and this would give me a chance to use some gear I've been waiting
to use for awhile now. My final skill layout will look like this:
20 Frozen Arrow
20 Cold Arrow
20 Immolation Arrow
20 Fire Arrow
1 Guided Arrow(optional-I only want it to aid in dealing with the rare
Fire/Cold Immune boss and for scouting purposes)
1 in all passives
1 in all prereqs
rest in Valk

That finishes me up at level 84...assuming I go to 90, which is my usual
goal, that will give me 6 more points in Valk. Stats will be the same as
with most of my toons, enough Str and Dex for gear, rest in Vita. Who
else has played a toon like this, anyone care to comment on how they
liked it?

I plan on FA being my primary attack, with IA as my secondary, and GA
for the very rare dual immunes, so my gear is focused on boosting FA as
much as possible. As I will be using high end gear, 1 point in the
passives will be plenty. My end game gear is looking like this:

Nightwing's Veil(probably socketed with a Cold Facet but maybe an Um/res
all jewel, depends on what my resists look like after charms)
CoH Dusk Shroud
+3 Bow Skills Ice GMB
CtA/Lidless on swap
+3 Bow Skills/20 IAS magic gloves
Gore Riders(not certain about these though)
Razortail(puts me at 100% Pierce)
Ravenfrost+SoJ
Highlords Wrath(puts me at 60 IAS total, which is needed for 10 frame
attack, 9 frame requires 90 ias)
Torch, Anni, 7 Bow Skills gcs, 8 scs to be determined

She'll be running with an Act 2 Might merc with Insight. Infinity would
boost my damage, but since spamming FA/IA is pretty mana intensive and I
won't have a huge mana pool, Insight seems a better(and cheaper) choice.
And I went with Might since I'll have my own Holy Freeze, no need to go
with a HF merc.
39 Answers

scarletfire77

1/1/2010 8:59:00 PM

0


"AirtimeJunkie" <airtimejunkie@aol.com> wrote in message
news:8be29dbc-43c6-40b3-86d1-a676f903346c@r5g2000yqb.googlegroups.com...
On Jan 1, 12:08???pm, AirtimeJunkie <airtimejun...@aol.com> wrote:
> On Jan 1, 12:04 pm, "scarletfire77" <scarletfir...@heynow.com> wrote:
>
> > Anyone gone to these?
>
> > I got me a tix for Sat the 9th.
>
> How do you get tix?

All sold out. I suppose you have to be "in the know" and get a heads
up before tix go on sale. Have fun!

Kevin

~~~~~~~~~~~~
Someone here last week (Katrinka?) gave a heads up to watch for more shows
on 1/1/10
So I did.
Easy as pie 'cause everyone musta had a hangover today.
So I'm gonna do a frequent flier thing from AZ and have me a ball meeting
499 new friends.
If anyone else is going drop me a note at --> glfnaz (at) cox (dot) net

AirtimeJunkie

1/1/2010 9:16:00 PM

0

On Jan 1, 12:58?pm, "scarletfire77" <scarletfir...@heynow.com> wrote:
> "AirtimeJunkie" <airtimejun...@aol.com> wrote in message
>
> news:8be29dbc-43c6-40b3-86d1-a676f903346c@r5g2000yqb.googlegroups.com...
> On Jan 1, 12:08 pm, AirtimeJunkie <airtimejun...@aol.com> wrote:
>
> > On Jan 1, 12:04 pm, "scarletfire77" <scarletfir...@heynow.com> wrote:
>
> > > Anyone gone to these?
>
> > > I got me a tix for Sat the 9th.
>
> > How do you get tix?
>
> All sold out. ?I suppose you have to be "in the know" and get a heads
> up before tix go on sale. ?Have fun!
>
> Kevin
>
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~
> Someone here last week (Katrinka?) gave a heads up to watch for more shows
> on 1/1/10
> So I did.
> Easy as pie 'cause everyone musta had a hangover today.
> So I'm gonna do a frequent flier thing from AZ and have me a ball meeting
> 499 new friends.
> If anyone else is going drop me a note at --> glfnaz (at) cox (dot) net

I didn't see the post, unfortunately. Oh, well.

Kevin

Shiflet

10/4/2013 1:00:00 PM

0

On 10/3/2013 9:44 AM, Shiflet wrote:
> Yep, still playing D2, I haven't made a new toon in ages though, and
> I've decided it is about time. I had a lot of different ideas in mind,
> throw barb, Rift auradin, Mauler werebear druid, Energy Shield Charged
> Boltress...but ultimately I've decided on an elemental bowzon. I like
> bow users, and already have a regular bowzon, so I thought I'd vary it
> up, and this would give me a chance to use some gear I've been waiting
> to use for awhile now. My final skill layout will look like this:
> 20 Frozen Arrow
> 20 Cold Arrow
> 20 Immolation Arrow
> 20 Fire Arrow
> 1 Guided Arrow(optional-I only want it to aid in dealing with the rare
> Fire/Cold Immune boss and for scouting purposes)
> 1 in all passives
> 1 in all prereqs
> rest in Valk

Correction:20 Exploding Arrow, not Fire Arrow.

Aulë

10/4/2013 4:22:00 PM

0

On 10/4/2013 8:59 AM, Shiflet wrote:
> On 10/3/2013 9:44 AM, Shiflet wrote:
>> Yep, still playing D2, I haven't made a new toon in ages though, and
>> I've decided it is about time. I had a lot of different ideas in mind,
>> throw barb, Rift auradin, Mauler werebear druid, Energy Shield Charged
>> Boltress...but ultimately I've decided on an elemental bowzon. I like
>> bow users, and already have a regular bowzon, so I thought I'd vary it
>> up, and this would give me a chance to use some gear I've been waiting
>> to use for awhile now. My final skill layout will look like this:
>> 20 Frozen Arrow
>> 20 Cold Arrow
>> 20 Immolation Arrow
>> 20 Fire Arrow
>> 1 Guided Arrow(optional-I only want it to aid in dealing with the rare
>> Fire/Cold Immune boss and for scouting purposes)
>> 1 in all passives
>> 1 in all prereqs
>> rest in Valk
>
> Correction:20 Exploding Arrow, not Fire Arrow.
>

Hi, Danny.

I still haven't played an Amazon, so I have nothing useful to say, but
hi and WB.


Shiflet

10/4/2013 4:26:00 PM

0

On 10/4/2013 11:21 AM, Aulë wrote:

> Hi, Danny.
>
> I still haven't played an Amazon, so I have nothing useful to say, but
> hi and WB.

Thanks! And never played an amazon at all? This will be my third, I have
a standard bowzon and a standard lightning javazon, though this will be
my first non-cookie cutter zon build...

Aulë

10/4/2013 5:33:00 PM

0

On 10/4/2013 12:26 PM, Shiflet wrote:
> On 10/4/2013 11:21 AM, Aulë wrote:
>
>> Hi, Danny.
>>
>> I still haven't played an Amazon, so I have nothing useful to say, but
>> hi and WB.
>
> Thanks! And never played an amazon at all? This will be my third, I have
> a standard bowzon and a standard lightning javazon, though this will be
> my first non-cookie cutter zon build...
>

I've made some as pack-mules, but no. Give me your best cookie cutter
for one and I'll give her a try. I've only ever played the same sorc
and pally. I branched out to try a Fury Werewolf this ladder.
Interesting build, thought I don't have anywhere near a complete handle
on it.

(I'm stuck playing ladder because I'm all about finding my own loot, not
trading.)


Shiflet

10/4/2013 6:40:00 PM

0

On 10/4/2013 12:33 PM, Aulë wrote:

> I've made some as pack-mules, but no. Give me your best cookie cutter
> for one and I'll give her a try.

Bowzon and Javazon both work well...bowzon needs a good bow, but other
than that, not real gear dependent. Getting decent resists can be tricky
in hell, but with a merc, valk, decoy, and dodge/avoid/evade, you'll
hopefully not be getting hit much regardless. Physical immunes will slow
you down, but can still be dealt with without too much trouble. Javazons
can clear packs faster and are MUCH stronger at boss killing(Charged
Strike excels here) and are likewise not real gear dependent, but
lightning immunes will in turn slow you down.

Cookie Cutter Bowzon:
20 Guided Arrow
20 Strafe or Multishot(both have their advantages, my zon maxes both but
it's not strictly needed...some people are content with lower level
multishot too, since extra points only increase the number of arrows,
not the actual damage of the skill)
20 Valk
1 in every other Passive/Magic skill, with any remaining points pumping
Pierce, Dodge, Avoid, Evade, and Critical Strike as you best see fit.

If you max Strafe and Multi this should basically cover your build. If
you decided not to do both, or spend less in multishot, I would max Fire
Arrow or Magic Arrow for use against PIs. Fire Arrow converts a portion
of your physical damage to fire damage, Magic Arrow does the same but
converts to magic damage. Fire Arrow converts more(41% at lvl 20 vs 20%
for MA), but monsters typically have more Fire Resist than Magic Resist,
so it's up to you which you want as your anti-PI skill. Magic Arrow has
the additional benefit of costing no mana at a certain skill level, and
doesn't use up an arrow from your quiver either. You'll also have 1
point in MA regardless, as it's a pre-req for the other bow skills you
use, whereas FA is not.

Javazon:
20 Charged Strike
20 Lightning Strike
20 Lightning Fury
20 Power Strike OR 20 Valk(some people like having a strong minion,
others prefer maxing their damage-mine went damage)
At least 1 in all Passive/Magic skills

Once you have the P/M tree where you want it, remaining points go into
Power Strike if you maxed Valk, whereas if you go the max damage route,
remaining points go in Lightning Bolt. Basic strategy, for really big
groups of mobs(Shenk's group, cows) use Lightning Fury. For smaller
groups of just a few mobs(say, a pack of 5-6 Fallen), use Lightning
Strike. For single targets, esp bosses, Charged Strike is your go to
attack. To deal with lightning immunes, use Jab(it's a pre-req so you'll
have a point regardless) to aid your merc and valk.

> I've only ever played the same sorc and pally.

Sorc and pally are my most played classes. I have 7 sorcs(and a lvl 87
mule that I will respec into a real toon as soon as I get gear together
for her) and a whopping 12 pallies currently active. One of the sorcs is
my primary rusher/baal and chaos runner/mfer, and one of the paladins is
invincible in PvM, I have personally fought a pack of fana minotaurs and
conviction gloams simultaneously and won, and I have entered an 8 player
uber tristram portal with all 3 bosses stacked there, and cleared it. No
matter what you need done in PvM, one of those 2 characters can do it.

> I branched out to try a Fury Werewolf this ladder.
> Interesting build, thought I don't have anywhere near a complete handle
> on it.

I have a Fury/Rabies wolf, but while he's well geared and works fine, I
don't play him often.

> (I'm stuck playing ladder because I'm all about finding my own loot, not
> trading.)

Much of my stuff was actually inherited. Lotta players(many from here,
couple I know from other places) have given me old gear when prior
ladders reset, and I've had weird luck when it comes to people giving
away stuff. I often join "free item" games, and most of the time you
join one, they're full and people are throwing out junk gear...but I've
hit several where there was only 1 or 2 people there, and the person who
created it was throwing out stuff like Spirit, Enigma, Infinity, etc.
I've also had 2 separate people who were complete strangers just up and
give me their account, one because he was impressed I had a bow pally,
the other because I "seemed cool", and the accounts had some really good
stuff on them.

Aulë

10/5/2013 5:59:00 AM

0

On 10/4/2013 2:40 PM, Shiflet wrote:
> On 10/4/2013 12:33 PM, Aulë wrote:
>
>> I've made some as pack-mules, but no. Give me your best cookie cutter
>> for one and I'll give her a try.
>
> Bowzon and Javazon both work well...[snip intro]
>
> Cookie Cutter Bowzon:
> [snip build]
>
> Javazon:
> [snip build]

Cool! Thanks! Ladder is probably going to reset in a month, so I'll
make one of her for my second.


>> I've only ever played the same sorc and pally.
>
> Sorc and pally are my most played classes. I have 7 sorcs(and a lvl 87
> mule that I will respec into a real toon as soon as I get gear together
> for her) and a whopping 12 pallies currently active. One of the sorcs is
> my primary rusher/baal and chaos runner/mfer, and one of the paladins is
> invincible in PvM, I have personally fought a pack of fana minotaurs and
> conviction gloams simultaneously and won, and I have entered an 8 player
> uber tristram portal with all 3 bosses stacked there, and cleared it. No
> matter what you need done in PvM, one of those 2 characters can do it.

I have, let's see, five sorcs still in existence, four above level 90.
All are the same build, including the one of the five that is in Classic
(the lone non-90). I have four pallies, also all the same build, all
over level 85, iirc. If I ever "retire" to play NL, I do have ample
opportunity to respec and explore other builds with them.


> > I branched out to try a Fury Werewolf this ladder.
>> Interesting build, thought I don't have anywhere near a complete handle
>> on it.
>
> I have a Fury/Rabies wolf, but while he's well geared and works fine, I
> don't play him often.

I did some organ farming last night, and what struck me was how my level
75 druid wielding a Reaper's took down the pent-immune Pit Lords in the
Furnace compared to my Oath Cryptic Sword wielding level 86 fana/zealot.
He was noticeably faster dispatching them, but the pally may have been
close enough to grant his aura, I don't actually recall. (I run all
three together, now.)


>> (I'm stuck playing ladder because I'm all about finding my own loot, not
>> trading.)
>
> Much of my stuff was actually inherited. Lotta players(many from here,
> couple I know from other places) have given me old gear when prior
> ladders reset, and I've had weird luck when it comes to people giving
> away stuff. I often join "free item" games, and most of the time you
> join one, they're full and people are throwing out junk gear...but I've
> hit several where there was only 1 or 2 people there, and the person who
> created it was throwing out stuff like Spirit, Enigma, Infinity, etc.
> I've also had 2 separate people who were complete strangers just up and
> give me their account, one because he was impressed I had a bow pally,
> the other because I "seemed cool", and the accounts had some really good
> stuff on them.

Well, it is indeed cool that such gifts are still maintained and
appreciated by you. :)


Shiflet

10/5/2013 6:35:00 AM

0

On 10/5/2013 12:58 AM, Aulë wrote:

> Cool! Thanks! Ladder is probably going to reset in a month, so I'll
> make one of her for my second.

Should be fun to do something new.

> I have, let's see, five sorcs still in existence, four above level 90.
> All are the same build, including the one of the five that is in Classic
> (the lone non-90). I have four pallies, also all the same build, all
> over level 85, iirc. If I ever "retire" to play NL, I do have ample
> opportunity to respec and explore other builds with them.

Most of mine are different builds, though several are close or play like
other builds. I have 2 pure light sorcs(one wielding her own Infinity,
one with Eschutas/Spirit), and my Liberator pally plays like a weaker
hammerdin in PvM since his hybrid skill is for PvP, but for the most
part I don't duplicate builds heh.

> I did some organ farming last night, and what struck me was how my level
> 75 druid wielding a Reaper's took down the pent-immune Pit Lords in the
> Furnace compared to my Oath Cryptic Sword wielding level 86 fana/zealot.
> He was noticeably faster dispatching them, but the pally may have been
> close enough to grant his aura, I don't actually recall. (I run all
> three together, now.)

Decrep does boost physical damage a fair bit, so having that proc helps.
My wolf wields an eBotD Great Poleaxe, which can 1 shot quite a few
mobs, though he lacks the defense and block of my paladins.

Shiflet

10/5/2013 2:23:00 PM

0

On 10/5/2013 8:44 AM, Xocyll wrote:

> Or you just keep an elemental bow on your second pane for PI types,
> something fast firing and slotted with pgems perhaps if nothing better
> comes along (all one type or a variety, depending on your preferences.)
>
> Might not be the fastest way to deal with them, but it WILL deal with
> them.

Sure, but when you have an ability as part of your character build
anyways, I tend to lean towards that. The cookie cutter bowzon does have
a pretty large amount of spare points if you're not maxing both Multi
and Strafe afterall.

I guess it also depends on your gear...for a high end zon like mine,
converting 20% of my physical damage to magic is more non-physical than
any 6 pgems will get me, a zon not running with my gear might do better
with an elemental bow. Also, if you have one, Witchwild String has a
chance to proc amp damage...you can remove PI with that and it's a
pretty nice bow in general.

> Xocyll
>