Matriarch Elly, Poison Javazon with CS/LS Backup and A2 HF Merc

[PhineasB]

Matriarch Elly, PJzon with CS/LS Backup and A2 HF Merc

I've enjoyed completing Septs as a way to progress new characters and test out new builds or equipment that I haven't used, and am now working through a Lesser Skills Sept, which as you may guess is about using less common skills. For the Amazon, that meant Poison Javelin, which I used once during my 7x7+2 (Plague, with her character overview here), but leaned heavily on Lightning skills. My goal here was to really use PJ as the main through Hell. I went with CS/LS as the backup rather than Cold Bowazon or Magic Arrow, mostly for convenience, but stayed disciplined to really using LS only as backup and CS to take down stragglers. That meant Griffon's wasn't a great option, which allowed me to use this nice Rare Circlet and my Bramble armor again:

Plague Visage
Circlet
Defense: 21
Durability: 34 of 35
Required Level: 67
Fingerprint: 0xa1378794
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Amazon Skill Levels
+15% Increased Attack Speed
+24 to Strength
+19 to Dexterity
All Resistances +13
+3 to Mana after each Kill
Attacker Takes Damage of 7 1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Aureolic Jewel of Fervor
 
Aureolic Jewel of Fervor
Jewel
Required Level: 31
Fingerprint: 0x9655eae3
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Increased Attack Speed
+3 to Mana after each Kill

Bramble
Dusk Shroud
RalOhmSurEth
Defense: 763
Durability: 16 of 20
Required Level: 61
Required Strength: 77
Fingerprint: 0x11d4e376
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Level 19 Thorns Aura When Equipped
+50% Faster Hit Recovery
+48% to Poison Skill Damage
+300 Defense
Increase Maximum Mana 5%
Regenerate Mana 15%
+5% to Maximum Cold Resist
Fire Resist +30%
Poison Resist +100%
+13 Life after each Kill
Level 13 Spirit of Barbs (33/33 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ral Rune
Socketed: Ohm Rune
Socketed: Sur Rune
Socketed: Eth Rune

Equipment and Skills Summary
I can't get GoMule to give a full dump, so a rundown of stats, skills and gear is needed up top.

Stats and Skills
Strength: 115/182
Dexterity: 110/194
Vitality: 265/292
Energy: 15/20
HP: 1009/1185

Resists in Hell: 65/20/80/146
89% FRW, 105 FHR, 35 IAS, 35 FCR (on main)Block: 50

20 points: Plague Javelin/Poison Javelin/Charged Strike/Lightning Strike
6 points: Decoy (extra points would go here)
1 point: Pierce (with Razortail and + skills was >100%)
1 point: Prerequisites

0 points in Bow Tree or D/A/E skills

Gear
- up'ed eth Titan's / Spirit
- Swtich: +4 skill TStroke / 4 facet shield
- Bramble
- +2 skill rare circlet with stregnth, dext, resists (w 15IAS/+3mpk jewel)
- Aldur's Boots
- 2/20 gloves with +strength poison resists
- Razortail
- 29@ Mara's
- BKWB and 250/19 Ravenfrost
- Backback: 1 Shimmering GC, 2 30LR GCs (vita and strength) 5 skillers (with decent secondary mods), 5 toxic SCs (with vita and 4 with FRW)

Merc:
- Reaper's with RJoF
- Fortitude
- Delirium

Thoughts on the Build and Playthrough
Elly was twinked, basically melee until level 18 when she started pumping PJ. But it wasn't really useful until Elly hit level 32 and 1 point in pierce and Razortail equipped, PJ actually went through the first target. So she mostly just jabbed enemies to death until level 32. NM was entered at level 42, and lots of skillers made PJ very strong in NM. We were p8 through NM, then dropped to p3 for Hell and kept that until the Anya rescue, where I finally bumped down to p1. As per my usual approach, she completed all quests in Hell and full-cleared all A85 areas and the Red Portals in A5.

Elly moved through smoothly, and didn't really encounter any major roadblocks, except the Glacial trail with PoI/LI skeletons and other monsters immune to one or the other. Even lots of Gloams in WSK2 and the Throne Room were managed well. She made it through without a death, not so much for Hazeen. The lack of CtA meant he was vulnerable against unleechables when amp was triggered, and the red stars of death in A5 also did him in several times. Key progress updates from the Sept thread are here, here, here and here.

I've seen lots of observations about how PJ really doesn't cut it in Hell, but I found that it worked well with the Decoy and admittedly high-end gear to amplify the poison damage. It was necessary to wait around a bit for monsters to die sometimes. But I generally kept myself occupied running around and avoiding hits with her nice FRW or CSing stragglers, while Haseen and the Decoy generally kept a critical mass of enemies in the poison clouds. If I'd done all of Hell on p1, I suspect there would have been much less waiting. LS is also one of my favorite skills, so it was fun to have that as the backup for larger groups of Poison Immunes.

Hell forges were Um and Um, and only two other notable drops, a Mavina's diadem and this nice ethereal wand that ticks off another on my eth grail:

Arm of King Leoric
Tomb Wand
One Hand Damage: 15 - 33
Durability: 8 of 8
Required Level: 36
Required Strength: 15
Fingerprint: 0xf7a58661
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Chance to cast level 10 Bone Spirit when struck
10% Chance to cast level 2 Bone Prison when struck
+2 to Summoning Skills (Necromancer Only)
+2 to Poison and Bone Skills (Necromancer Only)
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+2 to Raise Skeletal Mage (Necromancer Only)
+2 to Terror (Necromancer Only)
+3 to Raise Skeleton (Necromancer Only)
+3 to Skeleton Mastery (Necromancer Only)
+103 to Mana (Based on Character Level) Ethereal

I'm still not sure if Delirium was a help or hindrance, compared to going for Valk instead. I experienced two Delirium crashes, and the constant cursing and confused monster behavior made it harder for me to aim PJs to maximize their effect and keep monsters in the clouds. Based on the experience with Plague, I think D/A/E wouldn't have been too much of a hindrance, and another tank would have likely made Delirium unnecessary and allowed less complicated fights. LS likely would not have been maxed, but I think that would have been fine with the TStroke and faceted shield.

But she was quite fun, and I enjoyed re-learning about PJ and approach for maximizing its effectiveness. Next up is to finish the Bowler Druid in A1 Hell, and I have a Dentist-to-be Necro who's only cleared the Den in A1 Normal so far. So I plan to focus on them, and maybe go back to my Craft Tourney Pally, to make some progress through Hell as I hope to finish off the Tourney Guardian Sept.

Thanks for reading! Hoping to post another one soon.

 

[Swamigoon]

Entertaining write-up! It looks like you got very nice rolls on Elly's Bramble rune word.

I will definitely be studying your setup when someday I build my own poison skills amazon.