My first Guardian: OrbBall, the MFing Failure
TL;DR ALERT!
The Borings
So, Guardian #1 is in the bag. Not bad, considering I started playing HC in...April, maybe? Don't get me wrong, I've stopped for a few weeks a couple of times due to frustration. At one point I remember giving up completely, heading back to SC with my tail between my legs, and promptly getting bored with it. So I started up again, and it appears I've finally learned to play this game. Huzzah!
Yes, I named her after her build. I plan to have many more Guardians (right) and this way if I want to play them afterward I don't have to remember "Oh, yeah, Mxtptlv was the Hydra/TS, Asdfjkl was the Passivezon..."
Anyway, the borings: lvl 86, 20 FO/FB/Fire Bolt, 13 CM, 1 in Warmth and ES, the rest in FM. Not-quite-max-block build (60% with Rhyme shield) that still left me with lots of life (around 1,050 with charms) and turned out to be a good compromise. She was technically untwinked, I guess, but that statement is kind of meaningless given the number of runs of various things she did before becoming a Guardian.
Gear is mostly cheap, based on +skills and MF (4 PTopaz armour, PTopaz Harlequin Crest, Tal's orb and amulet, Rhyme GS, the rest rares.) When she was running LK, I switched a few things out to hit a cheap 105% FCR (Kept the Shako and amulet, added Wizardspike, Vipermagi, Lidless Wall, Magefist, and Natalya's boots for FRW.) Merc was exceptionally good at turning things blue, immediately before sucking and dying, though I did kind of neglect his gear. I'm not really sure what he's wearing and it's probably embarrassingly bad; I did give him an eth Meatscraper for OW.
The only things worth posting, really, were a couple of the rares she had:
Their Deeds of Valour Will Be Remembered
So, how many deaths? Well, this depends on how you look at it. I was initially trying to make a pure-Blizz to do some MFing and build some HC wealth. And my form was, shall we say, lacking a little something after years of casually playing SC. I quickly ran out of fingers and toes to count the sorc corpses littering Sanctuary.
I believe I made 2-3 Destroyers and one Conqueror in that time. The Conqueror's deeds screen (lvl 80-ish, Hell Countess *grumble*, some half-decent gear lost to the void) was the last straw; I stopped playing D2 entirely for a few weeks, and played SC when I returned. It took me only two days to Mat a Blizzard sorc, run her up into the mid-80s, get bored, delete her, and get the urge to try HC again. After the Countess fiasco and knowing what was in store for A5 Hell, I decided to go dual-tree. OrbBall is my first attempt since then, believe it or not.
So What Made the Difference?
A few things. My many, many deaths taught me patience and a few necessary skills; I can now draw single enemies out of packs like nobody's business, have well-developed Tele and Juv reflexes, and I took to aiming FO pretty well.
The main thing, though, was Energy Shield. I decided to try it out and, wow, I doubt I'll ever run a sorc without it again. Turned her into a blue-pot addict (though I could have taken care of that had I bothered to make an Insight), but lowered my blood pressure by about the same amount.
A Failure of MF, Part I: 2,300+ Andariel runs
While doing Nightmare Baal runs to level for Hell, I found Tal's Lidless Eye (2FM/1LM/1CM). Since I was close to Hell Andariel, I figured a few runs wouldn't hurt, and maybe I'd end up with Tal's Adjudication, which would give me an extra +1 Sorc (from the orb) and +2 All. I tried keeping her in place with Stupid and sweet-spotting her with FO; turns out he was completely incapable of holding her long enough to get the required 4-5 orbs off. So I left him for dead, found she dropped pretty quickly with a 20/20 Fireball anyway (she has -50 FR IIRC).
Just so there's no suspense, I never did get Tal's Amulet. Ended up trading for it (thanks Thomh! :thumbup. She did, of course, drop some nice stuff as a consolation.
Hell Andariel, ~250 MF, /p1, ~2,300 runs
A Failure of MF, Part II: 1,300+ /p3 LK runs
Not so much MF, and not so much a failure (as I was only looking for charms, and found a few good ones at that), but I did do about 1,350 LK runs for nothing better than a Lum. (One letter less and I would have been happier...)
Teleporting around at 105% FCR was a lot of fun, though. Got myself in trouble a few times, but there's nothing too scary in LK.
The Long Hard Road out of Hell
After filling up my inventory with LK charms (left a 2x4 open IIRC), I finished Acts 3/4 in a couple of hours. Mephisto and Diablo fell quickly; I was expecting a lot more trouble with Meph at least. I actually had more trouble with De Seis and the Infector, both of whom rolled up CI/FI. Note of inconsequence: I have NEVER killed Hell Izual as fast as this girl did. <3 FO
And then I hit Act 5 Hell, the cold sorceress' bane. I teleported blind through the first half of the act (stopping to kill Shenk and rescue some barbies.) And then, the Frozen River. I tried the quickly-teleport-through thing and got my face stomped by a pack of witches. Within seconds my blue ball was empty and the red a mere sliver from tripping the dreaded Deeds. A desperate Juv, change of direction, and TP later, she was happily still alive. I took a walk, had a cigarette, and waited until my hands stopped shaking.
And decided to kill everything in that godforsaken place in revenge. It took longer than the whole of Act 4, pulling witches and Gloams out of their packs one-by-one to deal with them on my terms (You know things are bad when you're relieved to see a big Claw Viper spawn.) Frozenstein rolled up Mana Burn and Extra Fast, and thus had an entire pack of cold-immune, extra-fast manaburners with him. At that point, however, I'd been through the worst and, hey, HF still works on CIs. Some fevered teleporting, blocking with Stupid, and Fireball spam later, I got my last Res scroll.
I skipped Pindle, having no need for further levels or gear, and headed straight to the Old Men on the Hill. I only had to reroll them a few times, luckily. It was an epic battle, though. I nearly ran through my full belt of Juvs just dealing with the CI Leaper, and worried that I'd have to S&E and mule a few more on. The (also CI) Thrower decided to make things a little easier and get himself stuck at the WSK entrance. The FI Whirler I thought could be a problem, but somehow Stupid managed to get himself between Whirly and a pillar and hold him in place for FO. My first Hell Ancients attempt in HC was a sweet, sweet success.
The rest of the game was an anticlimax, to be honest. I did get USDs in the Throne, and Baal gave me my last NDE of the game at one point, but he fairly quickly got out of the way and actually dropped something decent. Note of inconsequence II: the same map I used to run LK turned out to have a rockin' WSK 2 map as well.
Some old guy (Cain?) congratulating me :cloud9:
See you in another six months with Guardian #2. :crazyeyes:
ETA: LCS shot
HF: Thul/Ko/Lum (Yeah, the NM HF was higher. Can't have it all, I guess.)
TL;DR ALERT!
The Borings
So, Guardian #1 is in the bag. Not bad, considering I started playing HC in...April, maybe? Don't get me wrong, I've stopped for a few weeks a couple of times due to frustration. At one point I remember giving up completely, heading back to SC with my tail between my legs, and promptly getting bored with it. So I started up again, and it appears I've finally learned to play this game. Huzzah!
Yes, I named her after her build. I plan to have many more Guardians (right) and this way if I want to play them afterward I don't have to remember "Oh, yeah, Mxtptlv was the Hydra/TS, Asdfjkl was the Passivezon..."
Anyway, the borings: lvl 86, 20 FO/FB/Fire Bolt, 13 CM, 1 in Warmth and ES, the rest in FM. Not-quite-max-block build (60% with Rhyme shield) that still left me with lots of life (around 1,050 with charms) and turned out to be a good compromise. She was technically untwinked, I guess, but that statement is kind of meaningless given the number of runs of various things she did before becoming a Guardian.
Gear is mostly cheap, based on +skills and MF (4 PTopaz armour, PTopaz Harlequin Crest, Tal's orb and amulet, Rhyme GS, the rest rares.) When she was running LK, I switched a few things out to hit a cheap 105% FCR (Kept the Shako and amulet, added Wizardspike, Vipermagi, Lidless Wall, Magefist, and Natalya's boots for FRW.) Merc was exceptionally good at turning things blue, immediately before sucking and dying, though I did kind of neglect his gear. I'm not really sure what he's wearing and it's probably embarrassingly bad; I did give him an eth Meatscraper for OW.
The only things worth posting, really, were a couple of the rares she had:
Code:
Blood Cord
Mesh Belt
Defense: 46
Durability: 15 of 16
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 58
Fingerprint: 0xb0fcb3c4
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+24% Faster Hit Recovery
+14% Enhanced Defense
+55 to Life
Cold Resist +5%
Poison Resist +18%
Attacker Takes Damage of 1
Blood Grip
Ring
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x22581b05
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+4 to Energy
All Resistances +7
Lightning Resist +30%
Fire Resist +9%
6% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Level 3 Fire Bolt (27/27 Charges)
Raven Spiral
Ring
Required Level: 48
Fingerprint: 0x64b89155
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+6 to Dexterity
+4 to Life
Cold Resist +14%
All Resistances +4
Lightning Resist +29%
Level 1 Confuse (22/22 Charges)Their Deeds of Valour Will Be Remembered
So, how many deaths? Well, this depends on how you look at it. I was initially trying to make a pure-Blizz to do some MFing and build some HC wealth. And my form was, shall we say, lacking a little something after years of casually playing SC. I quickly ran out of fingers and toes to count the sorc corpses littering Sanctuary.
I believe I made 2-3 Destroyers and one Conqueror in that time. The Conqueror's deeds screen (lvl 80-ish, Hell Countess *grumble*, some half-decent gear lost to the void) was the last straw; I stopped playing D2 entirely for a few weeks, and played SC when I returned. It took me only two days to Mat a Blizzard sorc, run her up into the mid-80s, get bored, delete her, and get the urge to try HC again. After the Countess fiasco and knowing what was in store for A5 Hell, I decided to go dual-tree. OrbBall is my first attempt since then, believe it or not.
So What Made the Difference?
A few things. My many, many deaths taught me patience and a few necessary skills; I can now draw single enemies out of packs like nobody's business, have well-developed Tele and Juv reflexes, and I took to aiming FO pretty well.
The main thing, though, was Energy Shield. I decided to try it out and, wow, I doubt I'll ever run a sorc without it again. Turned her into a blue-pot addict (though I could have taken care of that had I bothered to make an Insight), but lowered my blood pressure by about the same amount.
A Failure of MF, Part I: 2,300+ Andariel runs
While doing Nightmare Baal runs to level for Hell, I found Tal's Lidless Eye (2FM/1LM/1CM). Since I was close to Hell Andariel, I figured a few runs wouldn't hurt, and maybe I'd end up with Tal's Adjudication, which would give me an extra +1 Sorc (from the orb) and +2 All. I tried keeping her in place with Stupid and sweet-spotting her with FO; turns out he was completely incapable of holding her long enough to get the required 4-5 orbs off. So I left him for dead, found she dropped pretty quickly with a 20/20 Fireball anyway (she has -50 FR IIRC).
Just so there's no suspense, I never did get Tal's Amulet. Ended up trading for it (thanks Thomh! :thumbup
. She did, of course, drop some nice stuff as a consolation.Hell Andariel, ~250 MF, /p1, ~2,300 runs
Code:
*****S/U Jewelry*****
Set Rings found: 85
-------------------
Cathan's: 58
Angelic: 27
Set Amulets found: 53
---------------------
Iratha's: 14
Civerb's: 13
Angelic: 8
Cathan's: 6
Tancred's: 6
Vidala's: 5
Arcanna's: 1
Tal's/ToB: 0
Unique Rings found: 38
----------------------
Manald Heal: 14
Nagelring: 14
Dwarf Star: 6
Carrion Wind: 2
Raven Frost: 2
Unique Amulets found: 22
------------------------
Nokozan Relic: 6
Rising Sun: 4
Atma's Scarab: 3
Mahim-Oak Curio: 3
Saracen's Chance: 2
Crescent Moon: 1
Highlord's Wrath: 1
Seraph's Hymn: 1
Cat's Eye: 1
Eye of Etlich: 0 (how?)
Gheed's: 13 (not hot-muled, as I wasn't using one)
Best Rune: [URL="http://img137.imageshack.us/img137/6126/screenshot004r.jpg"]Ist[/URL]
Best Rune from Andy Herself: [URL="http://img203.imageshack.us/img203/5928/screenshot005e.jpg"]Fal[/URL]
Code:
*****TC3 Sets/Uniques*****
Arctic Furs
Quilted Armor
Defense: 51
Durability: 13 of 20
Required Level: 2
Required Strength: 12
Fingerprint: 0xfd70e235
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+325% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +10
Set (2 items): +225 Defense (Based on Character Level)
Set (3 items): Cold Resist +15%
Arctic Furs
Quilted Armor
Defense: 48
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 2
Required Strength: 12
Fingerprint: 0x5b668388
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+307% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +10
Set (2 items): +225 Defense (Based on Character Level)
Set (3 items): Cold Resist +15%
Death's Guard
Sash
Defense: 22
Durability: 11 of 12
Required Level: 6
Fingerprint: 0x9f96414f
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 Defense
Cannot Be Frozen
Set (2 items): Cold Resist +15%
Lightning Resist +15%
Fire Resist +15%
Poison Resist +15%
Tancred's Hobnails
Boots
Defense: 2
Durability: 7 of 12
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0xa1f1c59b
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10 to Dexterity
Heal Stamina Plus 25%
Set (2 items): +30% Faster Run/Walk
Set (3 items): +10 to Strength
(Another Tancred's Hobnails, that was part of the package I traded for Tal's Adjudication and no longer have)
Vidala's Ambush
Leather Armor
Defense: 64
Durability: 16 of 24
Required Level: 14
Required Strength: 15
Fingerprint: 0xbf2209a6
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+50 Defense
+11 to Dexterity
Set (2 items): Fire Resist +24%
Set (3 items): +187 Defense (Based on Character Level)
Vidala's Ambush
Leather Armor
Defense: 65
Durability: 13 of 24
Required Level: 14
Required Strength: 15
Fingerprint: 0xfe09c417
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+50 Defense
+11 to Dexterity
Set (2 items): Fire Resist +24%
Set (3 items): +187 Defense (Based on Character Level)
Pelta Lunata
Buckler
Defense: 39
Chance to Block: 20
Durability: 11 of 21
Required Level: 2
Required Strength: 12
Fingerprint: 0xf3f27633
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+40% Faster Block Rate
20% Increased Chance of Blocking
+30% Enhanced Defense
+30 Defense
+2 to Strength
+10 to Vitality
+10 to Energy
+9 Maximum Durability
Hotspur
Boots
Defense: 10
Durability: 10 of 12
Required Level: 5
Fingerprint: 0xffa273a4
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 3 - 6 Fire Damage
+17% Enhanced Defense
+6 Defense
+15 to Life
+15% to Maximum Fire Resist
Fire Resist +45%
Gull
Dagger
One Hand Damage: 2 - 19
Durability: 15 of 16
Required Level: 4
Fingerprint: 0x6a170c01
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 15 Damage
-5 to Mana
100% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Bane Ash (<-- First I've *ever* seen)
Short Staff
Two Hand Damage: 1 - 7
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 5
Fingerprint: 0x8e903294
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Increased Attack Speed
56% Enhanced Damage
Adds 4 - 6 Fire Damage
+5 to Fire Bolt (Sorceress Only)
+2 to Warmth (Sorceress Only)
+30 to Mana
Fire Resist +50%
Rixot's Keen
Short Sword
One Hand Damage: 9 - 14
Durability: 14 of 24
Required Level: 2
Fingerprint: 0xc3212ef4
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
100% Enhanced Damage
+5 to Minimum Damage
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
25% Chance of Crushing Blow
+25 Defense
+2 to Light Radius
Code:
*****Other things of interest*****
Ribcracker (The best of three, actually)
Quarterstaff
Two Hand Damage: 61 - 167
Durability: 29 of 130
Required Level: 31
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0x165abd7f
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+50% Increased Attack Speed
+50% Faster Hit Recovery
[B]296% Enhanced Damage [/B]
Adds 30 - 65 Damage
50% Chance of Crushing Blow
+100% Enhanced Defense
+100 Defense
+15 to Dexterity
+100 Maximum Durability
Vampire Gaze
Grim Helm
Defense: 252
Durability: 23 of 40
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 58
Fingerprint: 0xbad3ad05
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 6 - 22 Cold Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
[B]8% Mana stolen per hit
8% Life stolen per hit [/B]
+100% Enhanced Defense
15% Slower Stamina Drain
[B]Damage Reduced by 20%
Magic Damage Reduced by 14[/B] (ooh, so close)
Arm of King Leoric
Tomb Wand
One Hand Damage: 10 - 22
Durability: 12 of 15
Required Level: 36
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0x514ed767
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Chance to cast level 2 Bone Prison when struck
5% Chance to cast level 10 Bone Spirit when struck
+2 to Poison and Bone Skills (Necromancer Only)
+2 to Summoning Skills (Necromancer Only)
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+3 to Skeleton Mastery (Necromancer Only)
+3 to Raise Skeleton (Necromancer Only)
+2 to Terror (Necromancer Only)
+2 to Raise Skeletal Mage (Necromancer Only)
+93 to Mana (Based on Character Level)
Herald of Zakarum
Gilded Shield
Defense: 503
Chance to Block: 52
Durability: 37 of 50
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 89
Fingerprint: 0x16bae8f0
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Combat Skills (Paladin Only)
+2 to Paladin Skill Levels
+30% Faster Block Rate
30% Increased Chance of Blocking
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+198% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Vitality
All Resistances +50A Failure of MF, Part II: 1,300+ /p3 LK runs
Not so much MF, and not so much a failure (as I was only looking for charms, and found a few good ones at that), but I did do about 1,350 LK runs for nothing better than a Lum. (One letter less and I would have been happier...)
Teleporting around at 105% FCR was a lot of fun, though. Got myself in trouble a few times, but there's nothing too scary in LK.
Code:
*****Interesting LK lewt*****
Burning Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x3027f7b2
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Fire Skills (Sorceress Only)
Chilling Grand Charm of Craftmanship
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x8dd7f246
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Cold Skills (Sorceress Only)
+1 to Maximum Damage
Mentalist's Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x7f2c9953
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Shadow Discipline Skills (Assassin Only)
Preserver's Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x7ae6f6ff
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Defensive Aura Skills (Paladin Only)
Grand Charm of Vita
Grand Charm
Required Level: 69
Fingerprint: 0x9a9256d7
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+37 to Life
Russet Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0x39a151c5
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
Fire Resist +6%
Shimmering Small Charm of Life
Small Charm
Required Level: 25
Fingerprint: 0x705e1517
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+6 to Life
All Resistances +5
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x463d0fbf
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to LifeThe Long Hard Road out of Hell
After filling up my inventory with LK charms (left a 2x4 open IIRC), I finished Acts 3/4 in a couple of hours. Mephisto and Diablo fell quickly; I was expecting a lot more trouble with Meph at least. I actually had more trouble with De Seis and the Infector, both of whom rolled up CI/FI. Note of inconsequence: I have NEVER killed Hell Izual as fast as this girl did. <3 FO
And then I hit Act 5 Hell, the cold sorceress' bane. I teleported blind through the first half of the act (stopping to kill Shenk and rescue some barbies.) And then, the Frozen River. I tried the quickly-teleport-through thing and got my face stomped by a pack of witches. Within seconds my blue ball was empty and the red a mere sliver from tripping the dreaded Deeds. A desperate Juv, change of direction, and TP later, she was happily still alive. I took a walk, had a cigarette, and waited until my hands stopped shaking.
And decided to kill everything in that godforsaken place in revenge. It took longer than the whole of Act 4, pulling witches and Gloams out of their packs one-by-one to deal with them on my terms (You know things are bad when you're relieved to see a big Claw Viper spawn.) Frozenstein rolled up Mana Burn and Extra Fast, and thus had an entire pack of cold-immune, extra-fast manaburners with him. At that point, however, I'd been through the worst and, hey, HF still works on CIs. Some fevered teleporting, blocking with Stupid, and Fireball spam later, I got my last Res scroll.
I skipped Pindle, having no need for further levels or gear, and headed straight to the Old Men on the Hill. I only had to reroll them a few times, luckily. It was an epic battle, though. I nearly ran through my full belt of Juvs just dealing with the CI Leaper, and worried that I'd have to S&E and mule a few more on. The (also CI) Thrower decided to make things a little easier and get himself stuck at the WSK entrance. The FI Whirler I thought could be a problem, but somehow Stupid managed to get himself between Whirly and a pillar and hold him in place for FO. My first Hell Ancients attempt in HC was a sweet, sweet success.
The rest of the game was an anticlimax, to be honest. I did get USDs in the Throne, and Baal gave me my last NDE of the game at one point, but he fairly quickly got out of the way and actually dropped something decent. Note of inconsequence II: the same map I used to run LK turned out to have a rockin' WSK 2 map as well.
Some old guy (Cain?) congratulating me :cloud9:
See you in another six months with Guardian #2. :crazyeyes:
ETA: LCS shot
HF: Thul/Ko/Lum (Yeah, the NM HF was higher. Can't have it all, I guess.)
Last edited:
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