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=Introduction= | == Introduction == | ||
The Assassin class is unlike any other character class for Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction. It is the only class that is a "hybrid" build by nature to be successful, frequently relying on skills from all three Skill trees for maximum effectiveness in both PvM play and PvP play. The most powerful minion of the game, the Shadow Master, is also an Assassin skill. Playing an Assassin requires guile, cunning, and agile fingers to manipulate the hotkeys for maximum effectiveness. | The Assassin class is unlike any other character class for Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction. It is the only class that is a "hybrid" build by nature to be successful, frequently relying on skills from all three Skill trees for maximum effectiveness in both PvM play and PvP play. The most powerful minion of the game, the Shadow Master, is also an Assassin skill. Playing an Assassin requires guile, cunning, and agile fingers to manipulate the hotkeys for maximum effectiveness. | ||
== Basic Terms and Abbreviations == | |||
=Basic Terms and Abbreviations= | |||
'''AoE: '''Area of Effect <br /> | '''AoE: '''Area of Effect <br /> | ||
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'''CSSQ: ''' Cruel Scissors Suwayyah of Quickness <br /> | '''CSSQ: ''' Cruel Scissors Suwayyah of Quickness <br /> | ||
'''CSSE: ''' Cruel Scissors Suwayyah of Evisceration | '''CSSE: ''' Cruel Scissors Suwayyah of Evisceration | ||
== Misc/Item FAQs == | |||
=Misc/Item FAQs= | |||
==What claw do I use when determining the WSM Kicks use, when C/C?== | ==What claw do I use when determining the WSM Kicks use, when C/C?== | ||
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'''25-Frame Delay (1 second)''' | '''25-Frame Delay (1 second)''' | ||
:Shock Web | :''Shock Web'' | ||
:Blade Sentinel | :''Blade Sentinel'' | ||
:Twister | :Twister | ||
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:FoH Holy Bolts | :FoH Holy Bolts | ||
:Wake of Fire | :''Wake of Fire'' | ||
:Claws of Thunder | :''Claws of Thunder'' | ||
:Phoenix Strike | :''Phoenix Strike'' | ||
:Dragon Flight | :''Dragon Flight'' | ||
:Battle Cry | :Battle Cry | ||
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It depends on your opponent. Against most opponents, WoF is best, due to the wide area of effect. Against Amazons and Necromancers, LS is usually best. | It depends on your opponent. Against most opponents, WoF is best, due to the wide area of effect. Against Amazons and Necromancers, LS is usually best. | ||
== Martial Art FAQs == | |||
=Martial Art FAQs= | |||
==Hey, why isn't my CS/Equipment leech working on those Skeletons? They aren't PI!== | ==Hey, why isn't my CS/Equipment leech working on those Skeletons? They aren't PI!== | ||
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No. Although the description for Dragon Claw reads "Adds charged-up bonuses to both claw attacks", it does not appear to do so, at version 1.10. It releases charges with the first claw that successfully attacks and the second just comes with the damage/attack bonus of Dragon Claw. Dragon Talon can have multiple kicks but any charge ups are released on the first kick only. | No. Although the description for Dragon Claw reads "Adds charged-up bonuses to both claw attacks", it does not appear to do so, at version 1.10. It releases charges with the first claw that successfully attacks and the second just comes with the damage/attack bonus of Dragon Claw. Dragon Talon can have multiple kicks but any charge ups are released on the first kick only. | ||
== Shadow Disciplines FAQ == | |||
=Shadow Disciplines FAQ= | |||
==Can I pre-buff my Shadows and Fade/BoS/Venom, with, for example, a pair of +3 Shadow Disciples claws on my weapon switch? Will the bonuses disappear once I switch back?== | ==Can I pre-buff my Shadows and Fade/BoS/Venom, with, for example, a pair of +3 Shadow Disciples claws on my weapon switch? Will the bonuses disappear once I switch back?== | ||
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==What are some of the properties of CoS?== | ==What are some of the properties of CoS?== | ||
1 | 1. Unlike in 1.09, damage does not dispel the 'blindness' effect of CoS. The enemy vision radius of the monster while blinded is 1, but if a monster to be doing something (e.g.. chasing you) when you cast CoS, he will continue to do so (until you interrupt him, with a Psychic Hammer, for example), then remain stationary when the action is finished.<br> | ||
2 | 2. CoS dispels Firewalls (in the Arcane Sanctuary).<br> | ||
3 | 3. CoS prevents Shamans from reviving Fallen, Flesh Spawners from creating babies, Sand Maggots from laying eggs and ranged attackers from firing.<br> | ||
4 | 4. CoS forces monsters to use their melee attack, even if they are in range for a secondary attack (e.g. Balrogs will never use their Inferno ability when CoS is active).<br> | ||
5 | 5. The blinding effect of CoS does not work on Bosses, Champions, Super uniques (including Act Bosses), Minions of Destruction, and Oblivion Knights. The -%defense on CoS works on all monsters except Act Bosses.<br> | ||
6 | 6. CoS's defense bonus is treated differently from any other defense modifier (except RibCracker's defense bonus, which is additive with CoS's bonus). Hence, it is multiplicative, not additive, with other defensive modifiers, such as Defiance and Shout. To understand how this works, a bit of explanation on how to calculate a character's defense is needed: | ||
A) Find the base defense of a character. For player characters, this is just Dexterity/4 and rounded down. For hirelings this should be their Dexterity/4 rounded down, plus whatever defense they gain from levels. | :A) Find the base defense of a character. For player characters, this is just Dexterity/4 and rounded down. For hirelings this should be their Dexterity/4 rounded down, plus whatever defense they gain from levels. | ||
B) Find the item defense of a character. This is the sum of all defense you obtain from items, which includes your helm, armor, shield, gloves, belts, and boots. Note that +%defense on items that have a defense number are exclusive to that item alone. So, if you have a Helmet with a base defense of 5(and a +100% defense mod on it, making the total helmet defense 10) and a Quilted Armor with a base defense of 10(and a +50% defense mod on it, making the total armor defense 15), you would have an item defense of (10 + 15) = 25, not (5 + 10) * 2.5 = 37.5 | :B) Find the item defense of a character. This is the sum of all defense you obtain from items, which includes your helm, armor, shield, gloves, belts, and boots. Note that +%defense on items that have a defense number are exclusive to that item alone. So, if you have a Helmet with a base defense of 5(and a +100% defense mod on it, making the total helmet defense 10) and a Quilted Armor with a base defense of 10(and a +50% defense mod on it, making the total armor defense 15), you would have an item defense of (10 + 15) = 25, not (5 + 10) * 2.5 = 37.5 | ||
C | :C. Multiply item_armor_percent bonuses to the results of #B, then round down (the bonuses below are additive with each other): | ||
'''Sources of item_armor_percent include:''' | |||
: | |||
::Valkyrie defense bonus | |||
::Spirit Wolf defense bonus | |||
::Dire Wolf defense synergy from Spirit Wolf | |||
::Grizzly defense synergy from Spirit Wolf | |||
::Cloak of Shadows defense bonus | |||
::+%Defense on items without a defense number (e.g.. rings, amulets, weapons. So, instead of +%Defense usually being applied only on the item it's on, +%Defense on weapons/rings/amulets are effectively being applied on every single piece of equipment. It's this property that makes RibCracker such a popular weapon on characters focusing on defense). | |||
:D. Sum up the results of #A and #C to obtain total character defense. | |||
:E. Multiply skill_armor_percent bonuses to #D, then round down to find total defense (e.g.. what's being used for calculating the chance a monster hitting you. Again, the bonuses below are additive with each other): | |||
:All Sorceress cold armors | '''Sources of skill_armor_percent mods include:''' | ||
:Paladin's Defiance, Conviction, Holy Shield | |||
:Barbarian's Shout, Concentration, Iron Skin, Battle Cry | ::All Sorceress cold armors | ||
:Werebear defense bonus | ::Paladin's Defiance, Conviction, Holy Shield | ||
:Cloak of Shadows debuff | ::Barbarian's Shout, Concentration, Iron Skin, Battle Cry | ||
:Shadow Warrior defense bonus | ::Werebear defense bonus | ||
:Overseers whipping their minions | ::Cloak of Shadows debuff | ||
:Succubi defense curse | ::Shadow Warrior defense bonus | ||
::Overseers whipping their minions | |||
::Succubi defense curse | |||
The result is that CoS multiplies the item defense, before other +%Defense modifiers on skills are put into effect. In the end, you get a much higher defense than you would usually have, had CoS's +%Defense bonus been a skill_armor_percent bonus instead of a item_armor_percent (especially if you have a lot of bonuses from the skill_armor_percent section). Whether this property is a bug (since it's the only skill in the item_armor_percent section that affects the character and not the minion) or a feature remains to be seen. | The result is that CoS multiplies the item defense, before other +%Defense modifiers on skills are put into effect. In the end, you get a much higher defense than you would usually have, had CoS's +%Defense bonus been a skill_armor_percent bonus instead of a item_armor_percent (especially if you have a lot of bonuses from the skill_armor_percent section). Whether this property is a bug (since it's the only skill in the item_armor_percent section that affects the character and not the minion) or a feature remains to be seen. | ||
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It depends. Obviously, on a Trapper or Kicker, Claw Mastery isn't going to be of much use, as Claw Mastery doesn't add damage to Traps or Kicks. However, if you're playing a build that's heavy on chargeups or relies on claw damage, then max Claw Mastery is probably worth the points. | It depends. Obviously, on a Trapper or Kicker, Claw Mastery isn't going to be of much use, as Claw Mastery doesn't add damage to Traps or Kicks. However, if you're playing a build that's heavy on chargeups or relies on claw damage, then max Claw Mastery is probably worth the points. | ||
== Trap FAQ == | |||
==What exactly does +x/y weapon damage on the various Blade skills mean?== | |||
It means that x/y of your total damage is in effect on the Blade skill, in addition to its own natural damage. This includes elemental damage, poison, etc., bonuses from CM/STR/DEX in terms of claw damage despite what it says. If you're C/C, it uses damage from whichever claw you equip first (or have still equipped, if you unequipped one) + external elemental damage. | |||
It should be noted that this property reduces Venom's duration in proportion to its damage, and not its damage alone. For example: At level one, Venom does 60-80 damage over 0.4 seconds(150-200 over one second), and can be expressed in the following equation): | |||
:(150-200 damage / sec) times (0.4 seconds) = 60-80 total damage | |||
The Blade skills' property (in this case, BSentinel's +3/8 damage) changes the above equation: | |||
:60-80 (over 0.4 secs) reduced to 60-80 * 3/8 (over 0.4 sec * 3/8) = | |||
:60-80 (over 0.4 secs) reduced to 22.5-30 (over 0.15 sec.) | |||
So while the damage/frame is still unaffected, in practice, you have to be able to hit once every 0.15 seconds(3.75 frames) to keep up your Venom damage rate, which is near impossible except with Blade Shield and BFury. | |||
Note: It isn't a good idea to use Two-Handed weapons with the Blade skills, if your aim is to improve Physical damage with them, as the Physical damage of Two-Handed weapons takes an additional 50% damage penalty (on top of the fraction of damage that is applied on the Blade Skills). So, when using Two-Handed weapons, only 3/8 on BFury, 3/16 on BSentinel, and 1/8 on Blade Shield of Physical damage is transferred over to the Blade skills (despite what it shows for BFury and BSentinel on the Character Screen). However, the elemental damage transferred remains unaffected. | |||
==Q: What is Blade Shield's range?== | |||
Blade Shield's range is locked at 6(or 4 yards). Weapon range does not affect it. | |||
==What determines the speed of Blade Shield (how often it does damage)?== | |||
Blade Shield's speed is locked at 25 frames (i.e. it damages every second). | |||
==Do Blade Fury, Blade Sentinel and Blade Shield need AR, or do they have a 100% chance to hit?== | |||
No, they do require AR (use Normal Attack AR), despite them not having an AR listed on the Character Screen. | |||
==How do I increase the rate my Traps fire their shots?== | |||
Unfortunately, this isn't possible. The speed at which Traps fire is locked. | |||
==How do you calculate Blade Fury's speed?== | |||
The speed an Assassin throws out each star is locked at 6 frames. | |||
==Since the Blade skills make use of weapon damage, do Claw Mastery/+%ED Auras (such as Might) increase the damage you do with the Blade skills?== | |||
Yes to both. However, Claw Mastery only increases the Blade skills' damage if you're using claw(s). | |||
==SWeb and BSentinel have a 25 frame(1 second) NextDelay. How does this affect the skills?== | |||
The NextDelay property, in this case, renders these two skills mostly useless (even detrimental), as they do little damage, in addition to preventing the above attacks from doing any damage for the 1 second duration (including attacks in the NextDelay list, from other characters). However, they both have some redeeming factors. SWeb is still useful as a Lightning trap synergy, and BSentinel remains the only AoE duration-based Blade skill (and hence is a good method of distributing poison/elemental damage), in addition to looking very cool. | |||
==WoF has a 4 frame NextDelay. How does this affect the skill?== | |||
Given that WoF fires its shots so fast, there may be a chance of WoF shots hitting a target may overlap and cause one another not to do any damage (especially with multiple WoF traps). To remedy this somewhat, try not to cast WoFs from the same distance to a crowd (or boss) or bunch all your WoFs together, so there will be a short time between each WoF hitting a crowd, to allow NextDelay to expire (having a tank, like an SM or Act 2/5 mercenary to keep the crowd/boss as still as possible, helps greatly). | |||
==What determines the speed you throw FBs and lay Traps?== | |||
A: Your "Normal Attack" speed (use the heading "%IAS required for 7 frame attack with Claw/Shield Non-Elemental Chargeup Attack" on this for finding out the speed of your Normal attack. If you're C/C, use the WSM of the claw you equip first, or the claw that remains, if you unequip one) is used for calculating the speed at which you lay Traps and throw FBs. Since the speed of your "Normal Attack" is subject to IAS on your equipment and slvl of BoS (if any), so is your FB throwing & Trap-laying speed. | |||
==Why is my WoI barely hitting anything?== | |||
It's been discovered that the actual missile that causes the damage of WoI is extremely thin, which makes it useless on moving targets. WoI still has hope with completely stationary targets, though. | |||
==How many traps {sentries} can the Assassin place?== | |||
She can place a maximum of five Sentries at any one time. These can be mixed (2 Wake of Fire, 3 Lightning) or all the same kind. The five cap only applies to Sentries (Charged Bolt Sentry, Wake of Fire, Lightning Sentry, Wake of Inferno and Death Sentry). Do note that the Traps that your Shadow casts also counts towards this limit. For example, if you had five WoI traps active, and your Shadow casts an LS, one of your WoI traps would be destroyed and replaced with your Shadows's LS. | |||
While BFury, Blade Shield, SWeb and FB don't count as Traps in terms of the trap limit, BSentinel does (when you have 5 WoI traps active, and cast a BSentinel, one of your WoIs will disappear). Theoretically, an Assassin is not able to have more than 5 BSentinels active at the same time, due to limitations from its casting delay and duration (there is also a hard limitation that prevents more than 5 BSentinels from being cast, as the first BSentinel will wink out before the sixth is cast). | |||
==So the best traps to use are WoF, WoI, LS, and DS?== | |||
Some combination out of those four, yes. Don't bother putting more than one point into DS, as the lightning damage is not as good as LS. The only thing that increases per slvl is the corpse explosion radius. But remember, a maxed trap is better than several low level traps. | |||
Also, remember to put natural points in the relevant Trap synergies to ensure your Traps' effectiveness in Hell. | |||
==Can monsters/players destroy traps?== | |||
No. | |||
== Credits == | |||
jrichard, Frenzied Bovine, Sebol, Fenriz, LGT_Freak, RogueMage (from the Amazon Basin forums), LeserXYZ, Cironir, Brainles, Skythe, BT-LightDash, Loschnorg, eclipsedk, Tommi Gustafsson, The_Great_Apple, Mr Bones, StealthStalker, BIGeyedBUG, Polaris, *Cyrus*, Zath (from the Lurker Lounge forums), Shade, zen_bc, The_Great_Apple, Noni_Ryder, weylun, archpsi, Forksup31, dydx, adeyke (from the Amazon Basin Forums), several users of the Diabloii.net Assassin forum and the Lurker Lounge | |||
[[Category:Assassin]] | [[Category:Assassin]] | ||
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