Anything Goes D2 Lounge!

[Kitteh]

Really struggling at the moment. I ditched the druid summoner because I wasn't having that much fun, and I find myself in this spot where nothing really appeals to me.

 

[snickersnack]

@Kitteh Same. I don't know why, but D2R keeps crashing, so I was running on old skool graphics for a while, but turning all the settings down a bit also works. The builds I have are getting a bit stale, too. I regeared my fendazon and was reminded why I stopped playing her: very frequent repairs. The gold cost isn't a problem, but when your BO lasts longer than your weapon....

 

[Triple Helix]

@Kitteh Same. I don't know why, but D2R keeps crashing, so I was running on old skool graphics for a while, but turning all the settings down a bit also works. The builds I have are getting a bit stale, too. I regeared my fendazon and was reminded why I stopped playing her: very frequent repairs. The gold cost isn't a problem, but when your BO lasts longer than your weapon....

I get this way sometimes too. I've been trying some new builds, which helps. Thinking the Random Tournament might help even further, but not sure how much time I would commit to it currently.

Right now I'm running an MF FOH/Smiter through the Pit after running some keys and torches with him... synergized FOH is kind of fun.

Riftsin was a blast. Nova sorc was pretty fun. Didn't get into the Pitzerker. Poisonmancer is pretty chill. I always enjoy going back to the Trapsin. Recently ran full Tals Lightning sorc through WSK/Baal quite a bit for a nice change. Wolf barb was good fun. Tried Hammerdin but didn't like how the hammers don't move with you.

Just my experiences and opinions.

 

[BBS_Agonistes]

EDIT: Nevermind--I found it! https://www.baronsbazaar.ca/forum/ppr/ar_calc.html

Is there a D2R attack rating calculator currently online? I remember one from the old days, but it seems to have disappeared, like some of the IAS calculators I used to use. Unlike the IAS calcs, I’ve yet to find a replacement.



I can calculate it myself, but just didn’t want to be wasting time on it if there was some nice resource. It would be killer if you could just select your monster (I.e. Pindle, Nihlathak, etc.), your level, and then see AR needed to hit various percentages, though that’s probably wishful thinking.

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Really struggling at the moment. I ditched the druid summoner because I wasn't having that much fun, and I find myself in this spot where nothing really appeals to me.

@Kitteh Same. I don't know why, but D2R keeps crashing, so I was running on old skool graphics for a while, but turning all the settings down a bit also works. The builds I have are getting a bit stale, too. I regeared my fendazon and was reminded why I stopped playing her: very frequent repairs. The gold cost isn't a problem, but when your BO lasts longer than your weapon....

I get this way sometimes too. I've been trying some new builds, which helps. Thinking the Random Tournament might help even further, but not sure how much time I would commit to it currently.

Right now I'm running an MF FOH/Smiter through the Pit after running some keys and torches with him... synergized FOH is kind of fun.

Riftsin was a blast. Nova sorc was pretty fun. Didn't get into the Pitzerker. Poisonmancer is pretty chill. I always enjoy going back to the Trapsin. Recently ran full Tals Lightning sorc through WSK/Baal quite a bit for a nice change. Wolf barb was good fun. Tried Hammerdin but didn't like how the hammers don't move with you.

Just my experiences and opinions.

I hear you all on this. I'm kind of in the same boat right now, but I guess the good side is that I've introduced my 9 year old son to this game, and between him playing asking me questions and celebrating finds and stuff, I feel like I've found a distraction in the meantime.

 

[Kitteh]

I hear you all on this. I'm kind of in the same boat right now, but I guess the good side is that I've introduced my 9 year old son to this game, and between him playing asking me questions and celebrating finds and stuff, I feel like I've found a distraction in the meantime.

Teach them early.

 

[BBS_Agonistes]

I hear you all on this. I'm kind of in the same boat right now, but I guess the good side is that I've introduced my 9 year old son to this game, and between him playing asking me questions and celebrating finds and stuff, I feel like I've found a distraction in the meantime.

Proud moment the other day when I decided to start running NM Andariel with my Blizz sorc and my 9 y.o walked by and asked, "Why are you using Glacial Spike? Ice Blast has more damage, and you can't freeze Andariel anyway!"

 

[LouB]

Out of the mouth of Babes

 

[Kitteh]

Any changes to efficient chaos running since D2R released? I've been planning a purpose built FoH Chaos runner, might be the tankiest build I've ever made. Might try and implement it.

 

[Ergro]

So I've been thinking...

What is most likely the most "invincible" build out there? Now I am not talking about more glass cannony high dmg tons of LL/life tap builds but the ones that can survive most tanking on their own?

I mean to me there seems only two possible options, either vita barb, that can hit insanely high HP levels while still having decent resists and reduction with like Stormshield and stuff or the good old Palading with Holy shield, stuff like guardian angel and rest focused on damage reduction, not unlike abbot or whatever these are called.

Either way paired with an ability to kill at at least somewhat decent speed be it by using grief or anything else.

So is there any most accepted "invincible" build?

After all those chars and builds built for fastest clears, it might be a nice change of pace to make this ultimate tank.

Thanks for any input at all.

 

[Maltatai]

A dodging amazon could be a strong candidate too, not much get past both blocking and dodging.
Assassin with fade and weapon block? Or a shield for that matter but weapon block is more iconic.
Leap barbarian. I managed to keep even the mercenary alive throughout the game with that.

It's a bit hard to isolate pure tanking ability since offense and crowd control almost always factor in a lot, unless you stand still just to test it out... A necromancer with maxed bone armour and dim vision using decrepify against close targets will likely have an easy time standing up to most but it's not due to what is usually counted as pure tanking ability.

 

[PhineasB]

So I've been thinking...

What is most likely the most "invincible" build out there? Now I am not talking about more glass cannony high dmg tons of LL/life tap builds but the ones that can survive most tanking on their own?

I mean to me there seems only two possible options, either vita barb, that can hit insanely high HP levels while still having decent resists and reduction with like Stormshield and stuff or the good old Palading with Holy shield, stuff like guardian angel and rest focused on damage reduction, not unlike abbot or whatever these are called.

Either way paired with an ability to kill at at least somewhat decent speed be it by using grief or anything else.

So is there any most accepted "invincible" build?

After all those chars and builds built for fastest clears, it might be a nice change of pace to make this ultimate tank.

Thanks for any input at all.

SSoG has an Abbott guide here, which he dubbed the invincible abbott (with caveat that even an optimized character still could be killed in certain situations). I built an offensive oriented version with Insight stave in my 2H melee sept. He was quite fun but definitely not invincible with my gear options and choices. I think 1H Grief would allow for a better blend of offensive damage and allowing more attention to the defensive/iDR side of the build than what I could obtain with 2H approach. But it still requires high-end iPDR gear (ideally with max sockets) to shine.

 

[LouB]

I also follow SSog Abbot build and went with a Shillegah for Insight as he suggest, but the problem is that with a two hand weapon you can't get to 100 PDR and good resists. Also have built a max PDR Bear Paladin with max Fanatacism, holy shield and defiance. He is quite the tank. However, my vote for the tankiest is a Wolf barb. Max shout, BO and Iron skin, 10+ to natural resists and add in really high levels of life leach 20-40% and he is very hard to kill, my first character to go through the game without dying. When I finally find some Jah runes I plan to make him a Phoenix shield and take him to 99.

 

[Zyr]

I think 1H Grief would allow for a better blend of offensive damage and allowing more attention to the defensive/iDR side of the build than what I could obtain with 2H approach.

I have a "Grief"-swinging Berserker with, IIRC, +94 iDR and +17 MDR. I'm very happy with him.

 

[Zyr]

However, my vote for the tankiest is a Wolf barb. Max shout, BO and Iron skin, 10+ to natural resists and add in really high levels of life leach 20-40% and he is very hard to kill, my first character to go through the game without dying.

I certainly would not disagree. My Wolfbarb is rigged for MF rather than DR. But with ~5400 HP he has never had a close call.

(BTW, both the Wolfbarb and the Berserker I mentioned above are HC.)

 

[NorthDakota]

The problem with melee isn't that it doesn't do enough damage, it's just that it's SO BORING. Werewolf, run up hit 5 times. Zealot? Run up hit 5 times. Barb double swing, frenzy conc berserk all fall into that same feel. Just a hit, one target one at a time. Fireclaws even. Vengeance.

People suggest adding melee splash all the time but imo that doesn't fix the core problem that tons of melee abilities are exactly the same or feel essentially the same. Adding melee splash does nothing to change that, it just raises all those abilities in multitarget scenarios.

Some melee that got some pizazz:

assassin melee is pretty sick imo
amazon cs/lightning strike
druid rabies
barb ww, leap attack

Those aren't all good though.

 

[LouB]

And standing well back from the monsters and casting Blizzard isn't boring? Nah, it all in the mind of the player and what satisfies him. I prefer melee characters which should be obvious from my first sentence. However, I do agree that some builds are just boring. In my mind the all time champion of boring is the Concentrate Barb. Then again some of us are more easily entertained than others. I actually enjoyed my Griswold Avenger because of the light show that went on while I was giving my finger a workout clicking the mouse button over and over- first the green from Conviction, then monsters turning blue from Holy Freeze, then the green streaks and balls of terror and confuse from Delirium and finally the light blue clouds of decrepify from Reapers..

 

[NorthDakota]

And standing well back from the monsters and casting Blizzard isn't boring?

Sure, but 4 other classes aren't also casting blizzard and calling it something else, you get what I mean? At least blizzard does its own thing.

 

[BBS_Agonistes]

That is a good point, ND. I agree with the melee skills you named. I'd add one skill that's different, but most find annoying, is Charge. I actually played a Charger through the game back in the day and enjoyed it. What seemed to kind of make it work is I used a "Wrath" wielding A1 merc with Giant Skull for knockback so she would spread the enemies apart so I could sort of pinball off them. I wonder about the new Frenzy Barb merc with Giant Skull or Nef-ed Headstrikers, etc. Could make for some interesting gameplay paired with Charge.

 

[NorthDakota]

Charge is a great skill, even greater now that the glitchiness got sorted out in D2R. Love it. Wish more classes had movement skills.