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NextDelay is a property that activates a hidden "hit timer" that limits how often any attack from that group (i.e. all the skills listed here) can damage a single target. This works similarly to the infamous Casting Delay, which limits how often any spell in that group can be cast. The difference is that the hit timer doesn't prevent you from attacking, it just sets everyone's (includes you, your minions/merc, other players (hostile/neutral/allied), and their minions/mercs) chance-to-hit that monster (with a hit timer attack) at zero until the timer runs out.
So, the moment a certain skill from the following list damages a monster, it prevents every other skill on the list from hitting the said monster for the original skill's NextDelay duration (whether from you or any other character).
Skills affected by NextDelay
25-Frame Delay (1 second)
- Shock Web
- Blade Sentinel
- Twister
- Tornado
10-Frame Delay (0.4 seconds)
- Volcano (initial eruption)
6-Frame Delay (0.24 seconds)
- War Cry
- Grim Ward
5-Frame Delay (0.2 seconds)
- Fissure
- Volcano (small fireball)
4-Frame Delay (0.16 seconds)
- Multi Shot
- Strafe
- Lightning Strike
- Chain Lightning
- Nova
- Frost Nova
- Poison Nova
- Shock Wave
- Fist of Heavens (Holy Bolts)
- Wake of Fire
- Claws of Thunder (only 2nd and 3rd charge charges have Next Delay. 1st charge does not trigger Next Delay)
- Phoenix Strike (only 2nd Chain Lightning and 3rd Chaos Orb charge have Next Delay. 1st charge does not trigger Next Delay)
- Dragon Flight
- Battle Cry
- Battle Command
- Battle Orders
Examples
2 sorcs are questing along and they encounter a monster. They both cast Chain Lightning targeting the same monster, but one player has a slightly faster reaction/casting speed/whatever than the other, so his CL hits the monster first. The first CL to hit starts the NextDelay timer, which lasts for 4 frames (0.16 seconds). The second, slower sorcs, ChainLightning will automatically miss if it "hits" the monster within the 0.16 seconds of the first CL. If the NextDelay from the first CL has already run out when the second CL "hits", the monster will also receive the damage from the second spell (and reset the NextDelay timer again).
A Wind Druid is spamming Twister at some Frenzytaurs. He is quite well equipped and hits the 11 fpc breakpoint. Thus he can hit a monster at least two times a second. The Frenzytaur in lead gets hit by the first Twister, and even the second Twister cast 11 frames later hits him. Since he is still under the influence of the NextDelay timer from the first Twister, which lasts 25 frames, he will only take damage from the first Twister. The damage from the second one will not be applied.
Credits
The information about NextDelay is taken from the diabloii.net Assassin FAQ.
The first example is sirpoopsalot's from the Sorceress FAQ.