Matriarch/Patriarch/Guardian Archive Thread

Originally posted by @Cyrax on Apr 3, 2015:

Guardian MP_Bloodraven FA/multi zon

After getting my first MP char to guardianship i thought i could start reaping the rewards (lvling and finding tons of good stuff). Things turned out differently. Pyro was really set on getting another character, and i couldn't leave the poor bastard knowing that he would die without me. :p

Hence we started another dynamic duo. He went for a wolfbarb by the name of Gossamer or something similar, and i decided upon a zon using FA and multishot. Already have one in SP SC which i like and they can be very strong with the right gear. For a name i decided on Bloodraven since some of the more obvious names like Artemis were already in use by other chars of mine. And now here we are with my second MP guardian.

Her base stats at lvl 82 (which is when we made guardian):
str - 134
dex - 191
vit - 160
ene - 15

life: 882
mana: 378

resists:
fire: 74
cold: 8
lightning: 37
poison: 40

3 in multishot
19 decoy
3 pierce
20 frozen arrow
20 cold arrow (synergy)
20 penetrate
1 guided arrow and pre-reqs

Next point goes to decoy. After that probably a few more points into multi and pierce. Then either GA or that skill that gives extra crit chance i guess.

Base damage:
Guided arrow (using WF): 155-1955
Multishot (using WF): 104-1296
FA (using Lycander's aim): 2064-2131

Gear:
Lycander's aim / WF (one for FA, the other for the physical skills)
shako (um)
viperskin (33%)
razortail
LoH
ravenfrost

rare ring:
Order Grip
Ring
Required Level: 18
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 30
Fingerprint: 0xed7cb04f
+2 to Life
+33 to Mana
+93 to Attack Rating
Poison Resist +25%
4% Life stolen per hit
Replenish Life +5

rare boots:
Blood Greaves
Light Plated Boots
Defense: 21
Durability: 18 of 18
Required Strength: 50
Required Level: 29
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 82
Fingerprint: 0x24aaba4c
+77% Enhanced Defense
Fire Resist +21%
Poison Resist +10%
13% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
30% Faster Run/Walk
Repairs 1 durability in 20 seconds

crafted amulet:
Eagle Gorget
Amulet
Required Level: 56
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 92
Fingerprint: 0xf5cc36b1
+11 to Strength
+13 to Mana
Regenerate Mana 8%
All Resistances +19
Replenish Life +8
+1 to Amazon Skill Levels
6% Faster Cast Rate

Prayer merc using vamp gaze, treachery and insight

Gameplay:
Since most of the little MP twinking gear i had already was on other chars, she started out only half twinked. With me getting my main killer (FA) only at lvl 30 and Pyro getting his not until 79 things started out fairly slowly.

After a while i got around the lvl where i could start using FA and killing stuff, Pyro did most of the heavy lifting before that. About that same time he was nice enough to donate me a stash with quite a few nice items, like the WF and the crafted amulet i'm using now. Combine those two and i became a killing machine. Now Pyro was the one that just needed to follow. Which he did in his very own style. Partly using frenzy, partly whirling and perhaps he was even using berserk at some point idk. Didn't really matter because most things died fast to my frozen arrows.

In the later stages i held on to my prayer merc because i'm mainly using FA and might doesn't help with that. Besides that i think Pyro got a might merc so i got the aura anyway. And having some healing never hurts when you're playing HC.

Normal, NM, early hell all were disposed of easily and hardly worth mentioning. Actually i think that goes for pretty much the entire game. Freezing almost everything in sight makes things really safe and whenever trouble could've been rising i had BO from Pyro's barb and his barb as a meatshield. Eventually he got tired of being a wolfbarb that couldn't transform into a wolf so he got one or two lvl's on his own so he could finally play the way he was supposed to. But that was already very late game.

Pretty much the only noteworthy encounters were ancients. That leaping bastard went after me the whole time. Instead of me easily pumping their veins with ice from a distance it became a shoot-and-run kinda game. Still, it wasn't that hard. I could get enough shots off and Pyro kept the others in place while whacking them.
Also one of the WSK lvls was fun. Filled with lots and lots of tiny flayers, with little life and not immune to cold. With some pierce and splash damage i killed them by the dozen. Good times.

Noteworthy drop was an ist by the forge. Other than that nothing really comes to mind.

All in all she was fun to play with, as i knew she would. Hoping to play with her some more, get some decent lvl's, perhaps some better gear and ofc lots of other good items to support more new characters.

Big thanks to Pyro, both for playing with her as for donating pretty much all of her endgame equipment. I can only hope i've proven worthy to use it.
 
Originally posted by crawlingdeadman on Mar 5, 2018:

Guardian TetsuyaFujita - Windy

Well, I am aparently trying to catch up my guardian threads.* I started with my newest one last time because I was excited about it. This time it's more of a chore because he's a fairly cookie-cutter build. I enjoy the hell out of windys and have made several before. They are pretty sturdy with crap gear so this one I decked out to see what the build could really do. I played through this with Pyro's FO/Nova sorc, and some other people that I cannot identify now when I look back through the screenies.

It was a good team, I could get the ones he couldn't and he could get the ones that gave me trouble. I forget everything else that was going to go here, but there are some nice Action Shots below of some game play I (don't) remember. Thanks in advance, I have one more Guardian thread that was started but never finished for a build I had a loooooot of fun playing, but just never found time to write up.

TetsuyaFujita

Stats/Skills:
Naked/Gear
Strength: 76/164
Dexterity: 30/45
Vitality: 389/416
Energy: 20/45
HP: 969/1311
Mana: 188/350
Stamina: 532/712
Defense: 7/2006
AR: 120/4410

Fire: 171/131/71
Cold: 184/144/84
Lightning: 177/137/77
Poison: 154/114/54

MF: 85 Block: 7
GF: 0
FR/W: 85
FHR: 105
IAS: 0
FCR: 112

Raven: 1/15
Poison Creeper: 1/15
Oak Sage: 8/22
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/15
Carrion Vine: 1/15
Heart of Wolverine: 0/0
Summon Dire Wolf: 1/15
Solar Creeper: 1/15
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 1/15

Werewolf: 0/0
Lycanthropy: 0/0
Werebear: 0/0
Feral Rage: 0/0
Maul: 0/0
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 0/0
Hunger: 0/0
Shock Wave: 0/0
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 0/0
Molten Boulder: 0/0
Arctic Blast: 1/18
Fissure: 0/0
Cyclone Armor: 20/37
Twister: 20/37
Volcano: 0/0
Tornado: 20/37
Armageddon: 0/0
Hurricane: 20/37
Maxed Tornado and its synergies, one point into each summon down to Grizz, rest into Sage.
Gear:
Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 247
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0xa4733833
Item Level: 64
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
+50% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+150% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
All Resistances +30
+5 to Mana after each Kill
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune

Mara's Kaleidoscope
Amulet
Required Level: 67
Fingerprint: 0xdc78d07c
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
All Stats +5
All Resistances +29

SaekoBusujima's Heart of the Oak
Flail
KoVexPulThul
One Hand Damage: 1 - 24
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Level: 55
Required Strength: 41
Required Dexterity: 35
Fingerprint: 0x3a447a4d
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to All Skills
+40% Faster Cast Rate
+75% Damage to Demons
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
+150% Damage to Undead
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
7% Mana stolen per hit
+10 to Dexterity
Replenish Life +20
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
All Resistances +40
Level 14 Raven (60/60 Charges)
Level 4 Oak Sage (25/25 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ko Rune
Socketed: Vex Rune
Socketed: Pul Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune

Harry-dAmour's Enigma
Dusk Shroud
JahIthBer
Defense: 1219
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 65
Required Strength: 77
Fingerprint: 0x928fefba
Item Level: 1
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+45% Faster Run/Walk
+1 to Teleport
+754 Defense
+63 to Strength (Based on Character Level)
Increase Maximum Life 5%
Damage Reduced by 8%
+14 Life after each Kill
15% Damage Taken Goes To Mana
85% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items (Based on Character Level)
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Jah Rune
Socketed: Ith Rune
Socketed: Ber Rune

Spirit
Monarch
TalThulOrtAmn
Defense: 146
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0xa4820561
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+32% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+112 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+5 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Trang-Oul's Claws
Heavy Bracers
Defense: 70
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 45
Required Strength: 58
Fingerprint: 0x1742eb94
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Curses (Necromancer only)
+20% Faster Cast Rate
+25% to Poison Skill Damage
+30 Defense
Cold Resist +30%

The Stone of Jordan
Ring
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0xc3c093c0
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
Adds 1 - 12 Lightning Damage
+20 to Mana
Increase Maximum Mana 25%

Arachnid Mesh
Spiderweb Sash
Defense: 134
Durability: 12 of 12
Required Level: 80
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0x7e2423d9
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+20% Faster Cast Rate
Slows Target by 10%
+113% Enhanced Defense
Increase Maximum Mana 5%
Level 3 Venom (11/11 Charges)

The Stone of Jordan
Ring
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0x4fc5dc3a
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
Adds 1 - 12 Lightning Damage
+20 to Mana
Increase Maximum Mana 25%


Aldur's Advance
Battle Boots
Defense: 45
Durability: 10 of 18
Required Level: 45
Required Strength: 95
Fingerprint: 0xfe64b459
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Indestructible
+40% Faster Run/Walk
+50 to Life
+180 Maximum Stamina
Heal Stamina Plus 32%
Fire Resist +45%
10% Damage Taken Goes To Mana
Set (2 items): +15 to Dexterity
Set (3 items): +15 to Dexterity
Set (4 items): +15 to Dexterity

Switch:
Call to Arms
Crystal Sword
AmnRalMalIstOhm
One Hand Damage: 18 - 54
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 57
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x24c44908
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+40% Increased Attack Speed
261% Enhanced Damage
Adds 5 - 30 Fire Damage
7% Life stolen per hit
Prevent Monster Heal
+3 to Battle Cry
+2 to Battle Orders
+4 to Battle Command
Replenish Life +12
30% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
5 Sockets (5 used)
Socketed: Amn Rune
Socketed: Ral Rune
Socketed: Mal Rune
Socketed: Ist Rune
Socketed: Ohm Rune

Spirit
Monarch
TalThulOrtAmn
Defense: 134
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0xac82c99e
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+27% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+89 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+8 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune
I don't have a good +5 tornado helm so I went with Jalal even though many would go with shako. I do have this hat, but I honestly prefer Jalal's stats to the extra damage.
Inventory:
Inventory:
Amber Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xe165442c
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +10%

Iron Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xc788a873
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Attack Rating
+17 to Life

Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x63a788c4
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+34 to Life

Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0xf7b25727
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+34 to Life

Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0xc79035a7
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+35 to Life

Lizard's Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x165c2961
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+33 to Life
+10 to Mana

Natural Grand Charm of Shock
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xd735a601
Item Level: 94
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
Adds 1 - 3 Lightning Damage

Natural Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xdaf26e08
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Natural Grand Charm of Burning
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xb5a7ffe0
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
Adds 2 - 4 Fire Damage

Crimson Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0xe8c1eb89
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+35 to Life
Fire Resist +7%

Amber Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x9088498a
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+34 to Life
Lightning Resist +13%

Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x7cae356f
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+35 to Life

Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x97623049
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+35 to Life

Merc:
Guillaume's Face
Winged Helm
Defense: 217
Durability: 40 of 40
Required Level: 58
Required Strength: 115
Fingerprint: 0xa26793a6
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Hit Recovery
38% Enhanced Damage
35% Chance of Crushing Blow
15% Deadly Strike
+120% Enhanced Defense
+15 to Strength
+17 to Life
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Ruby Jewel of Hope

Ruby Jewel of Hope
Jewel
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x8ea14790
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
38% Enhanced Damage
+17 to Life

Duriel's Shell
Cuirass
Defense: 666
Durability: 46 of 150
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0x2fec5bbf
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+176% Enhanced Defense
+106 Defense (Based on Character Level)
+15 to Strength
+85 to Life (Based on Character Level)
Cold Resist +30%
All Resistances +20
Cannot Be Frozen
+100 Maximum Durability

The Reaper's Toll
Thresher
Two Hand Damage: 35 - 415
Durability: 65 of 65
Required Level: 75
Required Strength: 114
Required Dexterity: 89
Fingerprint: 0x22ce2045
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
33% Chance to cast level 1 Decrepify on striking
195% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
Adds 4 - 44 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
14% Life stolen per hit
33% Deadly Strike
Requirements -25%

Damage:
End of game LCS (Jalal)
End of game LCS (Bird Hat)

Action Shots:
Big Party from our Hamachi server played through some of Hell with us (speak up if you recognize your character. The only one I recognize is The_Punisher and I cannot remember whose he is):
Hell%20Party.jpg

Hell%20Tomb%201.jpg

Hell%20Council.jpg

Hell%20Act%204%20Action.jpg

Hell%20Durance%20Action.jpg
My Hephasto was PhI


Noteable drops:
Hellforge:
NM: Dol
Hell: Gul

Baal Drop
Sander's Cap in act 1 NM (I think)

I have no future plans for this guy, I really liked playing him, but I feel like (to me) he's more of a group character and I have no groups. The impetus of writing this up is so that I can fully ungear him and move him into retirement. Final thought.

*Note: HAHAHA! I started this write up in October of 2015. I actually went so far as to upload the screenshots and get some of their links insterted, but then never finished his stats and the outro to the guide.

PS. Photobucket is not being very nice anymore. Does anyone have a suggestion for how to host pictures in posts?
 
Originally posted by Dezrok on Nov 11, 2017:

Guardian Naruma

Guardian Naruma the 5 Stages of Grief Wind Druid

A Tournament Guardian from the 5 Stages of Grief Tournament. Read the Tournament rules here.

Naruma's journey starts here.

HC, Single-pass, untwinked, 1.14d. RWM and GoMule.

A pretty standard Wind Druid with a few quirks created by the rules of the Tourney. The two main quirks being in Act 2 all stat points had to be put into Energy, while in Act 3 all stat and skill points were randomly assigned.

p8 full clears in Normal and Nightmare. Full clears continued into Hell at p3, but by the time we reached Hell Act 3 we were Level 84 and ready for the end game, so dropped to p1 and stopped with the full clears. We still did all the quests and tagged most of the waypoints, killed monsters we came across and popped the poppables, but didn't go out of our way looking for things to kill or pop.

Stats
Level: 86

Strength: 72/77
Dexterity: 48/48
Vitality: 280/302
Energy: 120/140
HP: 752/1005 (1438 with Oak Sage)
Mana: 390/656
Stamina: 424/424
Defense: 12/660
AR: 210/350

Fire: 81
Cold: 93
Lightning: 76
Poison: 83

MF: 87
Block: 7
GF: 192
FR/W: 20
FHR: 75
IAS: 10
FCR: 101

All those points in Energy were required by the Tourney rules. They meant Naruma's life was much lower than it could have been, but did mean we had very few problems with mana.

Skills
Raven: 1/4
Poison Creeper: 3/6
Oak Sage: 1/4
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/4
Summon Dire Wolf: 12/15
Summon Grizzly: 1/4
Werebear: 1/4
Arctic Blast: 10/13
Cyclone Armor: 20/23
Twister: 7/10
Tornado: 20/23
Hurricane: 20/23

A few oddities with the skills because of the nature of the tourney. Points in Poison Creeper and Werebear were wasted. The points in Arctic Blast turned out to be very helpful in dealing with physical immunes, although At the time I was required to allocate the points I thought they were being completely wasted.

Gear
Naruma's Spirit Long Sword
TalThulOrtAmn
One Hand Damage: 3 - 19
Durability: 44 of 44
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 55
Required Dexterity: 39
Fingerprint: 0xd3e222b4
Item Level: 64
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+31% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
7% Life stolen per hit
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+90 to Mana
+7 Magic Absorb
4 Sockets (4 used)

Splendor Grim Shield
EthLum
Defense: 192
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 70 of 70
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 58
Fingerprint: 0x462fac28
Item Level: 53
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+20% Faster Block Rate
+67% Enhanced Defense
+10 to Energy
Regenerate Mana 15%
50% Extra Gold from Monsters
20% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+3 to Light Radius
2 Sockets (2 used)

Doom Beads Amulet
Required Level: 40
Fingerprint: 0xe98240db
Item Level: 58
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
6% Mana stolen per hit
All Resistances +19
Fire Resist +32%
Damage Reduced by 2

Doom Grip Ring
Required Level: 16
Fingerprint: 0xddb20766
Item Level: 35
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+107 to Attack Rating
Cold Resist +6%
Lightning Resist +27%

Bahamut's Ring of the Apprentice
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x187b67ae
Item Level: 59
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+116 to Mana

Rainbow Circlet of the Magus
Defense: 29
Durability: 35 of 35
Required Level: 26
Fingerprint: 0xc0e3fffe
Item Level: 27
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Faster Cast Rate
+11 to Maximum Damage
All Resistances +24
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Scintillating (+13%) Jewel of Carnage (+11)

Smoke Cuirass
NefLum
Defense: 330
Durability: 50 of 50
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0xc06d235a
Item Level: 63
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Faster Hit Recovery
+75% Enhanced Defense
+280 Defense vs. Missile
+10 to Energy
All Resistances +50
-1 to Light Radius
Level 6 Weaken (18/18 Charges)
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Nef Rune
Socketed: Lum Rune

Shadow Hand Light Gauntlets
Defense: 16
Durability: 18 of 18
Required Level: 27
Required Strength: 45
Fingerprint: 0x3ea38876
Item Level: 57
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Increased Attack Speed
3% Mana stolen per hit
+37% Enhanced Defense
Fire Resist +26%
Poison Resist +27%
9% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Corpse Winding Sharkskin Belt
Defense: 70
Durability: 14 of 14
Required Level: 46
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0xe231ca12
Item Level: 69
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+90% Enhanced Defense
+5 to Strength
+18 to Mana
Regenerate Mana 5%
Lightning Resist +12%

Cruel Stalker Chain Boots
Defense: 11
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 18
Required Strength: 30
Fingerprint: 0xe4781365
Item Level: 62
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Faster Run/Walk
+13% Enhanced Defense
Poison Resist +33%
23% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+1 to Light Radius
Repairs 1 Durability in 20 Seconds

Switch:
Battle Staff of Teleportation
Two Hand Damage: 6 - 13
Durability: 40 of 40
Required Level: 24
Fingerprint: 0xf73cfe3
Item Level: 45
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Meteor (Sorceress Only)
Level 2 Teleport (37/37 Charges)

Charms
Gheed's Fortune Grand Charm
Required Level: 62
Fingerprint: 0xa188f7b1
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
142% Extra Gold from Monsters
Reduces all Vendor Prices 13%
32% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Lapis Small Charm of Fortune
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0xcc4a01ea
Item Level: 55
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +7%
3% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Grand Charm of Vita
Required Level: 69
Fingerprint: 0xc671763e
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+38 to Life

Burly Grand Charm of Vita
Required Level: 69
Fingerprint: 0x8e59c3aa
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+29 Defense
+37 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xc09a339d
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x3d9e3bc3
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+18 to Life

Sapphire Grand Charm
Required Level: 22
Fingerprint: 0x549c2c3e
Item Level: 81
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +29%

Small Charm of Vita
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xde17355c
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+17 to Life

Amber Large Charm of Craftmanship
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0xafd28e92
Item Level: 48
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Maximum Damage
Lightning Resist +14%

Sapphire Grand Charm
Required Level: 22
Fingerprint: 0x3f7e2b41
Item Level: 57
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +28%

Steel Small Charm of Sustenance
Required Level: 49
Fingerprint: 0x9cc89e3d
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+33 to Attack Rating
+15 to Life

Small Charm of Sustenance
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0xa9f1bc8
Item Level: 42
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Life

Large Charm of Vita
Required Level: 50
Fingerprint: 0x88451b8b
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30 to Life


Stash
Grim Wand of Lower Resistance
One Hand Damage: 5 - 11
Durability: 15 of 15
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0x1dd4fd79
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Golem Mastery (Necromancer Only)
Level 2 Lower Resist (75/75 Charges)

Victorious Grim Wand of Dim Vision
One Hand Damage: 5 - 11
Durability: 15 of 15
Required Level: 12
Fingerprint: 0x7b9306b9
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to Mana after each Kill
Level 7 Dim Vision (112/112 Charges)

Woestave
Bec-de-Corbin
Two Hand Damage: 16 - 110
Durability: 37 of 55
Required Level: 30
Required Strength: 133
Required Dexterity: 91
Fingerprint: 0x322b9086
Item Level: 78
Version: Expansion 1.10+
30% Enhanced Damage
50% Chance of Open Wounds
Prevent Monster Heal
Hit Blinds Target +3
Freezes target +1
Slows Target by 50%
-50 to Monster Defense Per Hit
-3 to Light Radius
Required Level +5

Mercenary
Neeraj Act 2 Holy Freeze

Tal's Horadric Crest socketed with a Shael
Treachery Embossed Armor
Insight Superior Cryptic Axe


Really not too much to talk about with Naruma. It had been a long time since I'd played a cookie-cutter build and was surprised at how strong they are. The Tourney rules made the early difficulties quite hard, but by the time of reaching Hell, they didn't have much impact. PI/CIs were really the only monsters to cause problems, Tornadoes made pretty short work of just about everything else except Moon Lords.

A first time for me to use Cyclone Armor. I'd always thought of it as a buff type skill, the sort you cast and forget about until the timer is up. However, I had it mapped to my prime skill key and cast it every time Naruma looked like taking elemental damage. Maxed Cyclone Armor with plenty of synergies also protects from lots of elemental damage ... over 1000 points. As a result, Naruma took almost no elemental damage for the entire game. Super nice in HC!

Dire Wolves vs Grizzly Bear - Most of the time we had the Grizzly cast as a big, dependable meat shield. However, the Dire Wolves proved to be more important for dealing with problem bosses. There were a few that we wouldn't have been able to defeat without the Dire Wolves.

Woestave - in HC single-pass untwinked this is probably the most useful (and achievable) single item to possess. Such a great combination of affixes.


Future Plans - I was planning on entering Naruma in the MFO, but deeded him while doing test runs to see what areas he could effectively MF. Such is life.

He did find a SoJ before dying, so the testing wasn't a complete waste of time.
 
Originally posted by DX-Crawler on Jun 8, 2004:

Guardian Windy_Ploppy

My druid made Guardian earlier today at the level of 83.
It's a Winddruid and he was great fun to play.
He was really great in the WSK, my Grizzly kept the monsters away from him and he could spam tornados at them.

Stats with Equip looks like this:
Str 183
Dex 201 74% Block
Vit 137
Ene 58

Life 1389 (with Oak Sage)
Man 615

Tornado Damage 2771-2956
Hurricane Damage 1361-1476

Equip:
PTopazed Harley
Dark Clan Crusher
Um'd Skin of Viper (upgr)
Mara's Kaleidoskop
Hel'd Stormshield
Wartravs (49%)
Frostburn
2 rare rings with resist
Verdungos Hearty Cord

Skill placement:
Max Hurricane, Tornado, Twister, Cyclone Armor
Oak Sage 15
Grizzly 8

Merc:
Act 2 Defiance Merc lvl 82
Reaper's Toll
Tal's Helm
Shaftstop

The only problem I had was those Ghoul Lords (I think) in WSK took foreever to kill with high Physical Res and cold Immune, Had to skip some of them when my merc didn't manage to pierce the PI with Decrip.

Well that was about it
Thanks to Stridje for the great guide on how to build a Windmaster.
If I only can get that Vex rune and make a Heart of the Oak and I will be happy.

DX
 
Originally posted by Gambitsreturn on Jun 14, 2008:

Guardian #8 SilverSurfer

Hello SP Forum.👋 I would like to introduce my new Guardian, SilverSurfer. He was the second or third character I made in SP and he started out untwinked. SilverSurfer made it halfway through act 1 NM before he was put on the back burner due to boredom. I finally picked him up again because I wanted to play with my little brother and this was the closest char I hade to his level. I twinked on some simple caster gear and fell in love with the char all over again.

Guardian SilverSurfer
Level 83
Life: 808 (1619 w/ Oak)
Mana: 582

Resists: 55/75/85/48

Stats: (/w gear)
Str - 75 (163)
Dex - 177 (210)
Vit - 228 (263)
Eng - 20 (45)

Skills: (w/ Gear)

20 Hurricane (30)
20 Tornado (30)
20 Twister (30)
20 Cyclone Armor (30)
9 Oak Sage (17)
1 Grizzly (9)
1 Raven (9)

Damage:

Hurricane 1573-1688
Tornado 3283-3488
Cyclone Armor absorbs 2017 damage

Code:
Heart of the Oak
Flail
'KoVexPulThul'
One-Hand Damage: 1 to 24
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Dexterity: 35
Required Strength: 41
Required Level: 55
Mace Class - Fast Attack Speed
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x1c2a2ac6
+10 to Dexterity
All Resistances +33
Adds 3-14 cold damage over 3 seconds
7% Mana stolen per hit
Replenish Life +20
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
40% Faster Cast Rate
75% Damage to Demons
150% Damage to Undead
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
+3 to All Skill Levels
Level 4 Oak Sage (25/25 Charges)
Level 14 Raven (60/60 Charges)
Socketed (4: 4 used)

Stormshield
Monarch
Defense: 451
Chance to Block:  67%
Required Strength: 133
Required Level: 73
Indestructible
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x58c4c822
+30 to Strength
+25% Increased Chance of Blocking
Damage Reduced by 35%
Fire Resist +7%
Lightning Resist +25%
Cold Resist +60%
Requirements -15%
35% Faster Block Rate
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 10
Indestructible
+311 to Defense (Based on Character Level)
Socketed (1: 1 used)

Skin of the Vipermagi
Serpentskin Armor
Defense: 279
Durability: 23 of 24
Required Strength: 43
Required Level: 29
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 59
Fingerprint: 0xd2c54021
+120% Enhanced Defense
Magic Damage Reduced by 11
All Resistances +29
24% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
30% Faster Cast Rate
+1 to All Skill Levels
Socketed (1: 1 used)

Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 274
Durability: 20 of 20
(Druid Only)
Required Strength: 65
Required Level: 42
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0xf5d826e8
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
+177% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +30
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
30% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+5 to Mana After Each Kill
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
Socketed (1: 0 used)

Trang-Oul's Claws
Heavy Bracers
Defense: 68
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Strength: 58
Required Level: 45
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x268baedb
+30 Defense
Cold Resist +30%
20% Faster Cast Rate
+2 to Curses (Necromancer Only)
+25% to Poison Skill Damage

Thundergod's Vigor
War Belt
Defense: 151
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Strength: 110
Required Level: 47
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x3f494d1d
+20 to Strength
+20 to Vitality
+186% Enhanced Defense
+10% to Maximum Lightning Resist
Adds 1-50 lightning damage
+3 to Lightning Fury (Amazon Only)
+3 to Lightning Strike (Amazon Only)
+20 Lightning Absorb
5% Chance to cast Level 7 Fist of the Heavens when struck

War Traveler
Battle Boots
Defense: 129
Durability: 47 of 48
Required Strength: 95
Required Level: 42
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x25936d20
+10 to Strength
+10 to Vitality
+170% Enhanced Defense
+15 to Minimum Damage
+25 to Maximum Damage
+30 Maximum Durability
Attacker Takes Damage of 9
44% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
25% Faster Run/Walk
40% Slower Stamina Drain

Mara's Kaleidoscope
Amulet
Required Level: 67
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x1e351386
+5 to Strength
+5 to Energy
+5 to Dexterity
+5 to Vitality
All Resistances +26
+2 to All Skill Levels

Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x8aa901ed
+15 to Dexterity
+40 to Mana
+220 to Attack Rating
Adds 15-45 cold damage over 4 seconds
20% Cold Absorb
Cannot Be Frozen

Entropy Grasp
Ring
Required Level: 41
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 80
Fingerprint: 0xa0c3d363
+40 to Mana
+5 to Minimum Damage
Lightning Resist +20%
Replenish Life +7
10% Faster Cast Rate
+1 to Mana After Each Kill

Merc: Defiance Merc Razan

Code:
The Reaper's Toll
Thresher
Two-Hand Damage: 35 to 414
Durability: 49 of 65
Required Dexterity: 89
Required Strength: 114
Required Level: 75
Polearm Class - Fast Attack Speed
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 86
Fingerprint: 0x452f4a4b
+194% Enhanced Damage
Adds 4-44 cold damage over 1 seconds
15% Life stolen per hit
Requirements -25%
Ignore Target Defense
33% Deadly Strike
33% Chance to cast Level 1 Decrepify on striking

Guillaume's Face
Winged Helm
Defense: 217
Durability: 33 of 40
Required Strength: 115
Required Level: 34
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x5f5917a3
+15 to Strength
+120% Enhanced Defense
30% Faster Hit Recovery
35% Chance of Crushing Blow
15% Deadly Strike

Atma's Wail
Embossed Plate
Defense: 1242
Durability: 78 of 78
Required Strength: 115
Required Level: 51
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0xcdd2006d
+15 to Dexterity
+136% Enhanced Defense
+50 Maximum Durability
Replenish Life +10
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
20% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
30% Faster Hit Recovery
+166 to Defense (Based on Character Level)
Ethereal (Cannot be Repaired)

Forges: Pul/Ko I think and the highest runes I found were Dol and Hel


I was shocked to see how strong this build is. There were parts of Hell where I could put the player settings to 5+ and not really notice a big difference in kill speed. I love cyclone armor and hurricane because they provide so much protection for your char. The oak sage, although really vulnerable to elemental attacks, and ravens also helped a ton. I had a hard time killing the last 2 waves of Baals minions and I don't know why. I have no idea how Strijdje made lvl 99 with his/her wind druid.

Thanks for reading.
 
Originally posted by JoeBruce on Dec 14, 2011:

WalksWithStorms - A Guardian Story

THE SUMMARY


I took a character through the game without dying and without save & exit. He started self-found, but received some nice twinking items because I wanted to use them (a couple crafts and nothing you couldn't find from NM Andy).

Wind druids are powerful, but their playstyle can be tricky in certain situations. They are something akin to Hammerdins with their high damage attack but awkward casting. A good tip is to cast torando behind your target, and take advantage of open places and groups of enemies, because torando melts through packs. Oak Sage is unreliable, but just be conscious of where it is and constantly recast it. Cyclone Armor is a life-saver, and remember to recast that when you're taking lots of elemental damage. Hurricane is a sweet little mini-aura which lasts for almost a minute and does 1k cold damage. Somehow a mercenary can survive most of hell with only 3% life leech (the Blackhorn's face probably helped a lot).

I maxed Tornado, Cyclone Armor, Hurricane and Twister. I had a 1-point Grizzly and the rest of my points into Oak Sage. Base energy, 60 strength, enough dex to maintain around 67% block, and the rest into vitality for about 1600 life when I could keep Oak Sage alive. Resists in Hell were 76/47/42/22. I had some pretty nice drops (check the highlighted sections below), and gear is listed in a spoiler at the bottom.

For anyone interested in some light reading:

The Druid was born long ago. He watched one great hero surpass even his own skills: a Sorceress, wielding the elements of the selfsame Earth from which he took his own powers, disappeared into a place called the Canyon of the Magi and was never heard from again. The Druid battled on, slowly, purposefully, and with great pace. A second hero emerged and surpassed the might of the Druid yet again: an Amazon, strong and brave, felling all who stood before her with staggering ferocity. After a long journey she made it to the secret Portal within the Arcane Sanctuary. She was rumored to have gone through, but no other word has reached mortal ears. The Druid battles on.

I started this character a long time ago… probably back when I was in the processing of getting my first guardian ([/shameless self-promotion]). His progress was slow and sporadic, as I was still playing softcore for the most part. As I transitioned back into hardcore, I also had the aforementioned character projects going, which I thought would net me a guardian well before I finished him. Unfortunately, I lost two characters (three if you count my SUTC 5 character) in Act II Hell. (Player’s note: the sorceress died to a cold enchanted explosion in a false tomb, the amazon fell to a mob in the Canyon. Both were after taking breaks from playing that particular character, the sorceress after a particularly long break – lesson learned, hopefully.)

The original idea was to make a second self-found character, and he went untwinked (but using an extended stash) up until act 3 normal, but I found such great low- and mid-level caster gear (some of it end-game for a self-found character) that I didn’t want to let sit around collecting e-dust, so I outfitted him with some decent things to help speed his progress. Not that he really needed it: once I unlocked tornado (already synergized from cyclone armor) he was tearing through the baddies at a steady clip. I mainly gave him a bunch of magic find equipment (I socketed a topaz into a Peasant Crown, for a poor-man’s harly) and a suicide branch (+ 1 skill, 50% faster cast, +10 resistance), and he netted himself a Gull for the effort. He managed to find his own suicide branch at some point, if I remember correctly. The Gull became his main weapon to assist with magic finding. In nightmare came the skin of the vipermagi and some sweet crafted caster gear(to help him hit that 68% fast cast breakpoint - readouts coming later). The wind druid is quite powerful, and with a holy freeze merc and a bear, combined with a little life boost from oak sage, made him quite safe. I decided to go for 2/3 blocking (around 67%) with a Rhyme shield. This allowed me to put every other level into vitality, increasing his life at a steady rate. I went full clears all the way, something I don’t always do (with twinked characters) in normal/nightmare, but almost always through Hell – they have to earn that last title. The first two difficulties were done on /players 8, Hell was started on /p3.

Hell - Act I

I was reminded right out of the gate that this would be no walk in the park. A quill rat boss pack nearly killed him in the blood moor, with the spirit dying (typical) just before the cold enchant-explosion of the boss, taking him down to a very low level of life. I believe that the Oak Sage is a very misunderstood skill. It is actually an attack summon, but one that forgot to put any of its points into vitality or attack skills. I also encountered the first cold/physical immune in a zombie boss on the blood moor, and a second in Corpsefire. I had to quit out, search my (limited) hardcore stash, and then make a Malice runeword out of a Stygian Pike for the merc to deal with any future ‘unkillables.’ Corpsefire was merely cold immune the second go-around. Skill points were going into Twister, the final synergy to my armor and two attack skills. The damage increase was minimal, but better a bit more damage than boosting life on a suicidal spirit. I suggested a more defensive stance for myself and the spirit, hiding behind the meat shields, but the oak sage was having none of it. Stat points alternated between dexterity (to maintain that 67% block) and vitality.

Just before hitting level 80, I did a re-spec to allocate 3 points used in testing out the solar creeper vine and to go ahead and get twister maxed out. (Sorry, vine, but with the decriminalization of blue potions you really have no use.) I also took a few points out of strength, going with a base of 60 instead of 80. The act was, for the most part, relatively easy at /players3 for a full clear. I did use the Malice merc weapon several times to take out a few cold/physical immunes. Andariel dropped one unique, a venom ward breast plate, ironically (appropriately) enough.

Act I item finds: Raven Frost Unique Ring; Kelpie Snare Unique Fuscina; Sm. Charm: 10% Fire Res, 6% Magic Find; Sm. Charm: +14 mana; Gr. Charm: +1 Off. Auras, +25 poison dmg

Act II


Act two, the grave of my two previous hardcore endeavors. Will the Druid weather the desert heat and the dark of the tombs to make it to Kurast? The large, open desert areas will not pose much of an issue – tornado was designed for these areas. The tombs could be troublesome, but careful use of grizzly should keep him safe. Tornado is notorious for not going where you aim it, and this is especially true trying to aim it through doorways or at enemies up against a wall (I find the secret is to aim at a spot behind your target – not an option when they are parked against a barrier).

That said, the druid had several near deaths in act 2. I need to be careful about not running ahead of the tanks, and make sure to keep the ravens active – their blind effect can really help take heat off the group during a battle. The game experienced one of its rare crashes on me at the beginning of the act, right as I was approaching Radament’s corner of the sewers. I had to reload and play through level 3 all over again, which was annoying (there was a group of several skeleton boss packs, all of them stone skin and several extra strong, between me and the level 3 stairs), but I netted my extra skill point, and any of those are now going into Oak Sage, as the only practical elemental skills are all maxed. The Halls of the Dead were quite annoying, with several tough boss packs (Unravelers hunkered against walls) and dangerous areas. Frustration is not conducive to survival. The Maggot Lair was even worse, but he managed.

One of those near deaths came in the Ancient Tunnels, with a boss group of those decaying corpse monsters striking me just as I was hitting a full rejuv, so I saw my health orb empty just before it filled. I should not have been that close to them. The Claw Viper Temple was taken with more caution, casting the bear ahead of me into rooms to insure I could get through the doorways. It didn’t always work, however. Ravens helped confuse a few of them, but casting tornado through a doorway is like shoving play-dough into a coin slot. The seal was broken and the staff was obtained, and it was time to head into the palace.

The palace was relatively uneventful, given what a pain those archers can sometimes be. I took a break of a few weeks before starting up play again.

The Arcane Sanctuary. The druid had heard of this place, welded from unnatural forces and dark magic. It was the beginning of the end for his predecessors. The townsfolk whispered that there was a passage within the Arcane Sanctuary which led to a canyon in the far reaches of the desert, where the legendary mage, Tal Rasha, was said to have been entombed. A hero once claimed she had reached this canyon and was exploring the many tombs within, but disappeared one day, never to return. A second hero was famed to have found the Arcane Sanctuary as well, but she had been gone these many months with no word or indication of her progress or survival. Now the Druid found himself in a surreal world of twilight and marble passageways with no apparent foundation. He gave pause to his surroundings. Would his magic work here? He could feel the power of this place, could feel its source, and discerned it was a part of the same earth and elements from which his power came. But something different; this magic was not merely taken, but stolen, and bent to a purpose for which it was not intended. The Druid smiled. It was time to let this captured magic loose upon its prison.

I found the portal on the first leg – NE route, easy stairs. Ghosts are annoying, but simply need to be occupied while hurricane and holy freeze chip away. Even Arctic Blast gets an honorable mention. Everything else goes down easy, even the ghoul lords for the most part. A few ghost bosses resulted in a few mercenary resurrections, and I found myself un-summoning or moving the bear sometimes, because his knockback would cause me to miss out on some hard-earned monster drops (once from a ghost boss monster). Nothing required the Malice weapon (already used several times this act), and after clearing the board it was time to take that fateful step into the Canyon of the Magi.

The wind druid handled the Canyon with easy monster rolls and without difficulty; I cleared half the outside area and four of the tombs on one pass, and the rest of the desert and the final three tombs on a second leg. Ghosts were in three of the seven, including the true tomb, and presented the only real difficulty. Several bosses were physical/cold immune, and some (like these guys) took more than a few minutes to whittle down with the Malice weapon. Duriel himself was actually quite easy, and the merc lasted for the first half of the battle. He dropped two each of unique, set and rare items (one rare – a sorc orb – was a failed unique), but nothing useful or notable. Act Two was finally finished, /p3 all the way, at level 84.

Act II item finds: Windhammer Ogre Maul; Sm. Charm: 8-18 cold dmg; Gr. Charm: +1 Traps, +18 life

Act III


The Druid breathed the humid jungle air with a sense of resignation, such a contrast to the open sea of the past few weeks. The dryness of Lut Gholein and the desert wastes was long past, and the fetid odor of jungle rot assailed his senses. Where others had fallen, the Druid was victorious. However, victory had come but too late. Instead of one evil, the hero now pursued a pair, and whatever horrors would be released in their wake the seasoned warrior could only guess. Stepping foot onto dry land, the Druid took in the scene of Kurast Dock – the final refuge of a once great city. There was fear in the eyes of the people here, fear in the air around them. The stories told of massacre in Kurast, of blood in the canals and evil in the encroaching jungle. The Druid squared his shoulders; there was work to be done.

I always appreciate the relative ease which accompanies the start of a new act. This was doubly so, finally advancing a character past Act 2 Hell for the first time in a while (have I mentioned how infrequently I play this game, and how slowly I play when I have it loaded up?). That being said, I cruised through the initial jungle areas of Act 3, the mostly open spaces helping with the killing speed. By this time, the Mercenary stopped using the Spirit of Honor Lance altogether, and was exercising his arms with an ethereal Malice Hyperion Spear. The 2% life leech from his blood armor was apparently enough to keep him alive in most situations, although in the Arachnid’s lair I was feeding him every health potion that dropped to stem the flow of poison. Easy rolls all around, with multiple access points into the Flayer Jungle, and a non-maze level three of the two dungeons. A rare totemic mask dropped in the Jungle…

Stormtree was frightening for a moment, melting through bear and mercenary. But I had a good approach, and bottled his crew on the nearby bridge only to realize most of my tornadoes must have hit the super-unique, as he went down first and his minions soon succumbed to the awesome power of tornado. When enemies, especially large ones, are bunched tightly together, it can really shine.

Several unique items dropped in Lower Kurast, one exceptional. The Bazaar had more tree creatures, easily dispatched with tornado, and the cloud insects, put into constant hit recovery by hurricane. The battle in Sarina’s chamber, to recover the book, was a bit intense. The merc was insisting on a delaying action for his part, but the bear managed to stall while the merc executed his strategy. There was also a spider boss pack lurking in the rear that the Oak Sage decided to launch an assault upon once the Battlemaid was fallen, and they proved a bit more tenacious, and dangerous, with their cursing. Enemies felled, quest completed. Sarina dropped a rare eldritch orb…

The remainder of the temples posed no real problem or stair traps, but some boss monsters did involve some lengthy engagements and a fair amount of potion drinking. Travincal and the council were handled with a relative ease, the bear soaking up most of the hits. The trick is to keep cyclone armor active (it really absorbs that elemental damage), and to recast Oak sage whenever it would let loose its battle cry, which was frequent. The first level of Durance had a lot of Mauler-type boss monsters, one room including a cursed pack and some champion exploding dolls for an extra helping of fun. One boss Mauler dropped a rare ceremonial javelin…

Level 2 was long, as it always has been ever since that one patch. Still fully cleared at /players 3, the merc’s damage was pretty negligible on most monsters. I am worried that low damage and low life leech will catch up to him, but he is still hanging in there for most battles. He didn’t die at all on level three, and in fact took down a particularly sturdy, stone skin blood lord boss. Tornado wasn’t doing much, so I decided to let the open wounds from malice whittle his life away. It is a tedious process, but I was well rewarded – with all those rare items, which could have spawned a useful unique, I was hoping for something nice. A unique of that caliber was better than expected, and it’s an item I’ve never found, either. Mephisto turned out to be a bear hunter, or perhaps he just has some childhood complex involving a teddy bear, but at any rate he was well distracted through the battle. The quest drop was less than impressive, but included tearhaunch greaves, an elite set item (dark adherent) and a rare elite highland blade with 3x durability (failed unique). I grabbed myself a soulstone and headed through the portal, happy to put the durance of hate behind me.

Act III Item Finds: Dwarf Star Unique Ring; Gr. Charm: +1 Paladin Combat Skills, +2-3 cold dmg; Doombringer Champion Sword; Lg. Charm: +35 life

Act IV


Welcome to the Pandemonium Fortress. If people named their houses, that would be mine. I took a little break after Act 3, but after jumping back on that horse, breezed through the Outer Steppes with general ease. The entrance to the Plains of Despair was a different story, mainly due to this guy. Notice the gloams in the background. Note also I have 32 lightning resistance. Luckily for me, I have Cyclone Armor, not to mention Oak Sage (that last part was supposed to make you laugh). The problem here was when Oak was executing a flanking maneuver and the gloams knocked out my cyclone armor. The old ticker was working overtime as I beat a hasty retreat with no spirit boost, no armor, and lightning piercing through me at an alarming rate. One other minor incident (not so serious), and I was able to clear the Plains; the mercenary handled himself very well, with few (if any) resurrections necessary. Before I found Izual – who went down very quickly – I was rewarded with a nice drop from a random normal corpse-spitter (it's a Lightsabre). This was funny because I had just killed four or five boss packs of this same monster type.

Battling through to the Hell Forge was fun, the Urdars hitting hard as always, but going down equally hard. The Forge itself dropped an Um rune, always a welcome sight. I needed to unload a few things before fighting Diablo, and the re-roll brought those stygian spawners, who took a long time to go down to Tornado. The Chaos Sanctuary was relatively easy, but the mercenary died several times – the first real instance of this. Hopefully not a trend in Act 5. The Diablo fight was a blast – he cast bone-prison on me twice, which had the blood pumping in my ears, but nothing serious came of it. I kept recasting cyclone armor and Oak Sage between Tornados, most of which were hitting the target, and Diablo went down without any trips to town. He dropped at least one each of failed unique and set, but zero of any actual gold/green. Pretty disappointing.

Act IV Item Finds: Magewrath Unique Bow; Lightsabre Unique Phase Blade; Um Rune (Hellforge)

Act V


The final showdown. Act Five started with a lot of examples of why I like to play Hell difficulty. There was this nice elite set drop in the Foothills. Then some tough boss packs in the Pit of Acheron – that is a boss pack of Unravelers on the left and a boss pack of skeleton fire mages on the bottom right (with conviction in there). Later was a difficult questing area yielding a high reward: Gloams set the tempo pretty much as soon as I stepped foot into the Frozen River. There were a lot of them down there. Witches with Amp and frozen dudes were about as well. Towards the end some normal monster dropped a great elite unique – it may have been a gloam or one of those big frozen guys. Frozenstein and his bunch were handled easily, casting the bear ahead and getting them bottled on the little bridge. That's Frozenstein in the picture with the corpses of his minions on the ground. He dropped me a class-specific elite unique.

Nihlathak’s temple was relatively easy, despite the flesh spawners on level two (they are cold immune and seem to have extra physical resistance, or at least take a while to go down to tornado). The bottom level had Ghosts, PI Witches, and the poison spitting, bugged serpents. The bug almost got me too, as everything was dead in this hallway and I went to go pick up a few items and started getting killed by invisible spears, my health dropping to almost nothing before I hit a full rejuv and backed out of there. Nihlathak’s corpse explosion is never fun either, but after getting up in his grill Tornado took him down.

The Glacier Trail was all cold immune, the first time Hurricane was not used. The super-unique which guards the sparkly chest was PI/CI, and did not seem to be effected by open wounds – anyone ever heard of a monster being immune to open wounds? I think he was the only monster I parked in the whole game. The Frozen Tundra had a nice little welcome party for me – that’s right, whole bunches of physical immune brawler monsters. I was glad the waypoint was right at the base of the map, so I grabbed that and decided to take a break, and see what a re-roll of the monster types would do for me.

Normally I don’t re-roll the monster types, and just battle what I get, but who doesn’t cut corners from time to time? A second try got the same PI Brawlers mixed with imps – an even worse combo (those towers take forever to destroy). Round three had no PI monsters, but was no cake-walk with those witches flying around. They really are like glass-cannons of the D2 bestiary, and those boss packs can be very dangerous. I fought my way up the mountain, into the way, and found more gloams in the ice cave beneath the Ancients. The trio themselves were very easy – no curses or auras, no physical immune (though the whirler was stone skin) – and went down without difficulty.

I had basically done all of Act 5 in one day, and on /players3 and full-clears that was no small time investment. I didn’t think I would actually get to the end by this day, but I had the day off and it was raining. Battling through the Worldstone was uneventful, and I got all the way to the Throne, killing bunches of Blood Lords, probably one of the most tedious monster types for a wind druid. He killed the minions, dealt even with Lister with no great problems, and finally stepped into the throne. Baal was (as usual) more annoying than difficult. I had found a nice cold resist grand charm to boost the cold resistance to 75, and Baal really wasn’t doing too much damage to me.

On a trip back to town, I resurrected the merc and ran up to Malah to top off my potions, and the game froze. This is not a problem that happens often with Diablo 2 – one of the reasons why I love this game, it has always been pretty reliable for me. I posted about it here. Playing in window mode seems to solve it, and I might try that glide wrapper program, because I prefer full-screen.

When this happened, I was upset. The entire day of battling through, and I was denied at the last moment. I had neither the patience nor posture to go back through the keep and Baal's minions again. I went back down into the Worldstone Keep the next day, on /players1 and with a Kelpie Snare (self-found back in Act 1 Hell). WalksWithStorms became a guardian, and Baal's drop was crap.

Act V Item Finds: M’avina’s Set Grand Matron Bow; Stormshield Unique Monarch; Wolfhowl Unique Fury Visor; Sm. Charm: +7% magic find; Gr. Charm: +29% cold resistance

The gear:

Cruel Cord
Sharkskin Belt
Defense: 58
Durability: 14 of 14
Required Level: 47
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0x7736d27c
Item Level: 69
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+8% Faster Cast Rate
+57% Enhanced Defense
+8 to Life
+17 to Mana
Regenerate Mana 4%
Fire Resist +28%
Poison Resist +21%

Beast Torc
Amulet
Required Level: 51
Fingerprint: 0x51fa3bd7
Item Level: 73
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Druid Skill Levels
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+5 to Minimum Damage
+16 to Energy
+11 to Mana
Regenerate Mana 10%
Lightning Resist +25%

Order Turn
Ring
Required Level: 13

Fingerprint: 0x38571689
Item Level: 19
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+26 to Attack Rating
Fire Resist +19%
Damage Reduced by 2
14% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Doom Grasp
Ring
Required Level: 9

Fingerprint: 0x2811848d
Item Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+64 to Attack Rating
+2 to Strength
Fire Resist +5%
Poison Resist +10%
11% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Boots: Magic, +39 cold resistance, +18% magic find
Gloves: Bloodfist (+40 life, +30 faster hit recovery)
Hands: Gull Dagger (+100% magic find) and Rhyme Bone Shield
Hat: Peasant Crown w/ Perf Topaz (faster run, +life/mana, +1 skills)
Body: Skin of the Vipermagi (+26 all resistance)

Charms:
Coral Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0xa2d99be3
Item Level: 42
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Life
Lightning Resist +8%

Natural Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xe69f524b
Item Level: 50
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Ocher Grand Charm of Life
Grand Charm
Required Level: 7
Fingerprint: 0x46662792
Item Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+13 to Life
Lightning Resist +20%

Lapis Grand Charm of Dexterity
Grand Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xb2c87a93
Item Level: 37
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5 to Dexterity
Cold Resist +20%

Emerald Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xd9f71df3
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+11 to Life
Poison Resist +10%

Coral Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0x8f007617
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +8%

Serpent's Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 41
Fingerprint: 0x85eac520
Item Level: 55
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+56 to Mana

Lapis Small Charm of Life
Small Charm
Required Level: 14
Fingerprint: 0xd516a51b
Item Level: 3
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10 to Life
Cold Resist +7%

Russet Small Charm of Greed
Small Charm
Required Level: 15
Fingerprint: 0x36edfa9a
Item Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +7%
9% Extra Gold from Monsters

Ruby Grand Charm of Flame
Grand Charm
Required Level: 22
Fingerprint: 0x2456b228
Item Level: 78
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 2 Fire Damage
Fire Resist +26%

Lucky Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0xf9d392fe
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+31 to Life
4% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Ruby Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0xbd1f9030
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +10%
6% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

The Mercenary:

Dire Hide
Plate Mail

Defense: 190
Durability: 37 of 60
Required Level: 49
Required Strength: 46
Fingerprint: 0xfbd2c3c9
Item Level: 72
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+24% Faster Hit Recovery
3% Life stolen per hit
+63% Enhanced Defense
+17 to Life
+14 to Mana
+2 Life after each Demon Kill
Requirements -30%

Blackhorn's Face
Death Mask
Defense: 252
Durability: 10 of 20
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x7ee5f442
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Prevent Monster Heal
Slows Target by 20%
+190% Enhanced Defense
Lightning Resist +15%
+20 Lightning Absorb
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 25

Malice
Hyperion Spear
IthElEth
Two Hand Damage: 69 - 245
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 43
Required Strength: 145
Required Dexterity: 110
Fingerprint: 0x558b8c70
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
33% Enhanced Damage
+9 to Maximum Damage
-25% Target Defense
+50 to Attack Rating
100% Chance of Open Wounds
Prevent Monster Heal
-100 to Monster Defense Per Hit
Replenish Life -5
+0 to Light Radius
Ethereal
3 Sockets (3 used)
 
Originally posted by @Kestegs on Jul 12, 2015:

Guardian Rhett, Tournament Elemental Druid

It's been a couple years since I Mat/Pat/Guardianed anything, so here's my latest guardian:

I'll give a brief outline of the rules, but he is part of the tournament I hosted here.
Single pass, untwinked.
One player setting per act allowed.
Single tree (Elemental) (no +other druid skills allowed either)
Single stat (Vita)
No magic find allowed on me or merc
Only one merc allowed
No resetting ancients

Here's my character dump from Gomule:
Name: Rhett
Class: Druid
Experience: 1159115795
Level: 86

Naked/Gear
Strength: 15/34
Dexterity: 20/24
Vitality: 465/487
Energy: 20/40
HP: 1122/1265
Mana: 190/516
Stamina: 609/609
Defense: 5/236
AR: 70/834

Fire: 237/197/137
Cold: 208/168/108
Lightning: 213/173/113
Poison: 163/123/63

MF: 0 Block: 1
GF: 0
FR/W: 20
FHR: 75
IAS: 0
FCR: 52

Raven: 0/0
Poison Creeper: 0/0
Oak Sage: 0/0
Summon Spirit Wolf: 0/0
Carrion Vine: 0/0
Heart of Wolverine: 0/0
Summon Dire Wolf: 0/0
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 0/0

Werewolf: 0/0
Lycanthropy: 0/0
Werebear: 0/0
Feral Rage: 0/0
Maul: 0/0
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 0/0
Hunger: 0/0
Shock Wave: 0/0
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 7/11
Molten Boulder: 2/6
Arctic Blast: 1/5
Fissure: 4/8
Cyclone Armor: 20/24
Twister: 20/24
Volcano: 1/5
Tornado: 20/25
Armageddon: 1/5
Hurricane: 20/24

Eagle Chain
Sharkskin Belt
Defense: 31
Durability: 14 of 14
Required Level: 44
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0x9362d89
Item Level: 62
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+6 to Life
+18 to Mana
Regenerate Mana 10%
Fire Resist +9%
Repairs 1 Durability in 20 Seconds

Cruel Blazer
Demonhide Boots
Defense: 33
Durability: 12 of 12
Required Level: 28
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0xecc748bd
Item Level: 70
Version: Expansion 1.10+
14% Chance to cast level 5 Nova when struck
+20% Faster Run/Walk
Cold Resist +33%
Lightning Resist +20%

Dread Grasp
Ring
Required Level: 47
Fingerprint: 0x94fb9625
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Maximum Damage
+10 to Strength
+33 to Mana
Cold Resist +12%

Tome of Town Portal
Fingerprint: 0x7bb8e979
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Graverobber's Grand Charm of Vita
Grand Charm
Required Level: 69
Fingerprint: 0xab7ff93c
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Summoning Skills (Necromancer Only)
+39 to Life

Russet Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x5ad70c16
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+17 to Life
Fire Resist +6%

Skull Band
Ring
Required Level: 48
Fingerprint: 0x6965f4ca
Item Level: 83
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+49 to Attack Rating
+15 to Life
+86 to Mana
All Resistances +11
Poison Length Reduced by 25%

Hailstone Fist
Chain Gloves
Defense: 14
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0xbaec7dfe
Item Level: 43
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Bonus to Attack Rating
+40% Enhanced Defense
+4 to Strength
Fire Resist +29%
+5 to Light Radius
Repairs 1 Durability in 20 Seconds

Serpent's Grand Charm of Dexterity
Grand Charm
Required Level: 35
Fingerprint: 0xd9d8a821
Item Level: 50
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+4 to Dexterity
+51 to Mana

Serpent's Large Charm of Strength
Large Charm
Required Level: 41
Fingerprint: 0x41f9ced9
Item Level: 71
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5 to Strength
+33 to Mana

Havoc Necklace
Amulet
Required Level: 49
Fingerprint: 0xfdff1654
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Sorceress Skill Levels
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+16 to Mana
Regenerate Mana 10%
All Resistances +15
Fire Resist +30%
Poison Length Reduced by 25%

Key
Fingerprint: 0x8922f479
Item Level: 35
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x28682b4a
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+19 to Life

Natural Grand Charm of Anthrax
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xf6afa368
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
Adds 50 Poison Damage Over 6 Secs (150 Frames)

Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0xfe12dff1
Item Level: 38
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+12 to Life

Small Charm of Life
Small Charm
Required Level: 14
Fingerprint: 0x2f4db3b8
Item Level: 10
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10 to Life

Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 34
Fingerprint: 0x970dcc34
Item Level: 70
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+25 to Life

Lore
Antlers
OrtSol
Defense: 22
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 27
Required Strength: 24
Fingerprint: 0x9c727531
Item Level: 31
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+1 to Tornado (Druid Only)
+10 to Energy
Lightning Resist +30%
Damage Reduced by 7
+2 to Mana after each Kill
+2 to Light Radius
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Sol Rune

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Sol Rune
Required Level: 27
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +9 to Minimum Damage
Armor: Damage Reduced by 7
Shields: Damage Reduced by 7

Smoke
Breast Plate
NefLum
Defense: 115
Durability: 47 of 50
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 30
Fingerprint: 0x1abcbc6
Item Level: 33
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Faster Hit Recovery
+75% Enhanced Defense
+280 Defense vs. Missile
+10 to Energy
All Resistances +50
-1 to Light Radius
Level 6 Weaken (18/18 Charges)
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Nef Rune
Socketed: Lum Rune

Nef Rune
Required Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Knockback
Armor: +30 Defense vs. Missile
Shields: +30 Defense vs. Missile

Lum Rune
Required Level: 37
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Energy
Armor: +10 to Energy
Shields: +10 to Energy

Halberd of Pestilence
Halberd
Two Hand Damage: 12 - 45
Durability: 55 of 55
Required Level: 18
Required Strength: 75
Required Dexterity: 47
Fingerprint: 0xdb99f24
Item Level: 90
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 50 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)

Divine Gnarled Staff of Teleportation
Gnarled Staff
Two Hand Damage: 4 - 12
Durability: 35 of 35
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x93c16438
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+337% Damage to Undead
+419 to Attack Rating against Undead
Level 4 Teleport (28/45 Charges)

Spirit
Crystal Sword
TalThulOrtAmn
One Hand Damage: 7 - 22
Durability: 11 of 11
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 33
Fingerprint: 0xab9c7a0b
Item Level: 65
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+32% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
7% Life stolen per hit
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+89 to Mana
+5 Magic Absorb
Ethereal
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Tal Rune
Required Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Armor: Poison Resist +30%
Shields: Poison Resist +35%

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Amn Rune
Required Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Life stolen per hit
Armor: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 14

Gemmed Superior Large Shield
Superior Large Shield
Defense: 15
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 23 of 24
Required Level: 18
Required Strength: 34
Fingerprint: 0x25d07433
Item Level: 20
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+6% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +57
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Perfect Diamond
Socketed: Perfect Diamond
Socketed: Perfect Diamond

Perfect Diamond
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +68% Damage to Undead
Armor: +100 to Attack Rating
Shields: Cold Resist +19%
Lightning Resist +19%
Fire Resist +19%
Poison Resist +19%

Perfect Diamond
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +68% Damage to Undead
Armor: +100 to Attack Rating
Shields: Cold Resist +19%
Lightning Resist +19%
Fire Resist +19%
Poison Resist +19%

Perfect Diamond
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +68% Damage to Undead
Armor: +100 to Attack Rating
Shields: Cold Resist +19%
Lightning Resist +19%
Fire Resist +19%
Poison Resist +19%

Mercenary:

Name: Pratham
Race: Desert Mercenary
Type: Comb-Normal
Experience: 70781722
Level: 86
Dead?: false

Naked/Gear
Strength: 192/216
Dexterity: 155/155
HP: 1870/1870
Defense: 1373/2046
AR: 1985/2174

Fire: 180/140/80
Cold: 198/158/98
Lightning: 186/146/86
Poison: 153/113/53

Gemmed Chaos Armor
Chaos Armor
Defense: 478
Durability: 36 of 36
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 130
Fingerprint: 0xf2a67ad1
Item Level: 69
Version: Expansion 1.10+
30% Enhanced Damage
+24 to Strength
Ethereal
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Perfect Amethyst
Socketed: Flawless Amethyst
Socketed: Realgar Jewel of Virility

Perfect Amethyst
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +150 to Attack Rating
Armor: +10 to Strength
Shields: +30 Defense

Flawless Amethyst
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +100 to Attack Rating
Armor: +8 to Strength
Shields: +24 Defense

Realgar Jewel of Virility
Jewel
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x7c3bd76
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
30% Enhanced Damage
+6 to Strength


Rockstopper
Sallet
Defense: 195
Durability: 18 of 18
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0xa44b2892
Item Level: 94
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Hit Recovery
26% Enhanced Damage
Adds 1 - 8 Fire Damage
+211% Enhanced Defense
+15 to Vitality
Cold Resist +37%
Lightning Resist +33%
Fire Resist +27%
Damage Reduced by 10%
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Realgar Jewel of Passion

Realgar Jewel of Passion
Jewel
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x87f8f36d
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
26% Enhanced Damage
Adds 1 - 8 Fire Damage


Beast Song
Colossus Voulge
Two Hand Damage: 45 - 444
Durability: 150 of 150
Required Level: 48
Required Strength: 210
Required Dexterity: 55
Fingerprint: 0x741248da
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
169% Enhanced Damage
+1 to Maximum Damage
+189 to Attack Rating
Adds 1 Cold Damage Over 2 Secs (50 Frames)
7% Life stolen per hit
Cold Resist +8%
Repairs 1 Durability in 20 Seconds
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Amn Rune

Amn Rune
Required Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Life stolen per hit
Armor: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 14

I decided to be a Wind druid, pure vitality, with a prayer aura desert guard. This character was in general very powerful, and didn't have too much trouble killing anything that wasn't PI. It was a bit of a slow start, as I don't get any real damaging skills until 24, and the mana vs damage ratio is not good early on. The merc also struggled for a long time, as I couldn't find him any life leech until act 1 hell. Finding good gear was tough with no MF, but some of the staples were pretty easy, like 3 Pdiamond shield and a spirit sword. The other hard part was keeping enough strength up to wear the gear I did find. I had really terrible rune luck, and outside of my hell forge drop I never found anything better than a lum, which was in act 2 NM. I really wanted to make a lionheart armor, but I never could.

All of Normal and NM were done on /p8. Hell act 1 was done on /p5 and the rest of hell on /p1. (I learned my lesson after doing act 1 at /p5 :p)

After I maxed out the 4 skills I needed I messed around with various fire skills, which I used to deal with PI/CI monsters. If I could do it over I would have put all extra points in Motlen Boulder, as it proved to be the most useful secondary skill, mostly because it puts monsters into hit recovery.

This character was fun because it was powerful and pretty safe due to cyclone armor. It was frustrating due to the fact that tornadoes are hard to aim. Not having a bear, vine, or spirit was also sad, especially since I had the extra points to put there. In the end I thought this character was a little too easy, even with tough restrictions on him.

Notable finds:
Gul Rune from hell forge
Elemental skiller
Graverobber's GC of vita(39)
Demon Limb, was the only Elite S/U I found, but of course the str is too high to use
Rockstopper, Guardian Angel, Lidless wall, Tiamat's rebuke, and Witchwild string were some of the nicer S/U items I found.

And here's a few of my favorite screenshots from him:
Screenshot001.jpg

Screenshot004.jpg

Screenshot001.jpg

Screenshot008.jpg

Screenshot003.jpg

Screenshot003.jpg

Screenshot034.jpg

Screenshot008.jpg

Screenshot002.jpg
 
Originally posted by @Kitteh on Oct 9, 2018:

Guardian #8 - Gwynt - Dye-Parth Gooeyth ew eye Thechrye

1590570212656.png

It sure has been a while :oops:


Gwynt, the wind druid, has completed the first step of his journey! Hence the phrase, 'Dye-parth gooeyth ew eye thechrye', a Welsh proverb meaning 'Starting the work is two-thirds of it'.

I enjoy wind druids and this was no exception, especially as he is my entry in the Revenge of the 99ers. Credit to @Kestegs for that as I have really only rebooted his tournament.

I got quite lazy with his fcr to be honest...

Name: Gwynt
Class: Druid
Experience: 929211984
Level: 83

Naked/Gear
Strength: 154/189
Dexterity: 100/100
Vitality: 231/253
Energy: 20/40
HP: 650/759
Mana: 184/343
Stamina: 372/387
Defense: 25/789
AR: 470/470

Fire: 215/175/115
Cold: 222/182/122
Lightning: 234/194/134
Poison: 143/103/43

MF: 52 Block: 34
GF: 0
FR/W: 30
FHR: 75
IAS: 10
FCR: 37


Raven: 1/4
Poison Creeper: 1/4
Oak Sage: 7/10
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/4
Carrion Vine: 1/4
Heart of Wolverine: 0/0
Summon Dire Wolf: 1/4
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 1/4

Werewolf: 0/0
Lycanthropy: 0/0
Werebear: 0/0
Feral Rage: 0/0
Maul: 0/0
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 0/0
Hunger: 0/0
Shock Wave: 0/0
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 0/0
Molten Boulder: 0/0
Arctic Blast: 1/4
Fissure: 0/0
Cyclone Armor: 20/23
Twister: 20/23
Volcano: 0/0
Tornado: 20/23
Armageddon: 0/0
Hurricane: 20/23


Tome of Identify
Fingerprint: 0xcb0a6271
Item Level: 10
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Lapis Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x37023f7
Item Level: 12
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +7%

Shimmering Grand Charm of Life
Grand Charm
Required Level: 6
Fingerprint: 0xfc33e7b1
Item Level: 10
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Life
All Resistances +3

Ocher Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xd94f4bc6
Item Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +7%

Havoc Whorl
Ring
Required Level: 26
Fingerprint: 0x853b0a75
Item Level: 43
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Maximum Damage
+19 to Life
+47 to Mana
Lightning Resist +23%
13% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Tome of Town Portal
Fingerprint: 0xa5a3247f
Item Level: 10
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Loath Touch
Light Gauntlets
Defense: 11
Durability: 16 of 18
Required Level: 15
Required Strength: 45
Fingerprint: 0x52c914b8
Item Level: 40
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Increased Attack Speed
Fire Resist +17%
Half Freeze Duration
25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Smoke
Serpentskin Armor
NefLum
Defense: 220
Durability: 22 of 24
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x5d7e7be0
Item Level: 44
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Faster Hit Recovery
+75% Enhanced Defense
+280 Defense vs. Missile
+10 to Energy
All Resistances +50
-1 to Light Radius
Level 6 Weaken (18/18 Charges)
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Nef Rune
Socketed: Lum Rune

Nef Rune
Required Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Knockback
Armor: +30 Defense vs. Missile
Shields: +30 Defense vs. Missile

Lum Rune
Required Level: 37
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Energy
Armor: +10 to Energy
Shields: +10 to Energy

Tangerine Small Charm of Shock
Small Charm
Required Level: 9
Fingerprint: 0x468c8d62
Item Level: 44
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 3 Lightning Damage
Lightning Resist +3%

Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0x313b3bb8
Item Level: 56
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+14 to Life

Azure Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 1
Fingerprint: 0x3d939d3e
Item Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +7%

Flawless Ruby
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 10 - 16 Fire Damage
Armor: +31 to Life
Shields: Fire Resist +28%

Flawless Ruby
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 10 - 16 Fire Damage
Armor: +31 to Life
Shields: Fire Resist +28%

Horadric Cube
Fingerprint: 0x81f144b4
Item Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Flawless Emerald
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 60 Poison Damage Over 6 Secs (152 Frames)
Armor: +8 to Dexterity
Shields: Poison Resist +28%

Flawless Topaz
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 30 Lightning Damage
Armor: 20% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Shields: Lightning Resist +28%

Small Charm of Life
Small Charm
Required Level: 14
Fingerprint: 0x7c97a5ff
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xcbea56f2
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+17 to Life

Grim Greaves
Greaves
Defense: 14
Durability: 14 of 24
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 70
Fingerprint: 0xc52adcbc
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Run/Walk
Fire Resist +36%
Poison Resist +17%

Flawless Topaz
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 30 Lightning Damage
Armor: 20% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Shields: Lightning Resist +28%

Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0xd0d72fee
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+11 to Life

Tangerine Small Charm of Strength
Small Charm
Required Level: 5
Fingerprint: 0xf1c287f2
Item Level: 11
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Strength
Lightning Resist +5%

Ocher Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x2e6b1c43
Item Level: 60
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +7%

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xa75df722
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+16 to Life

Viridian Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 12
Fingerprint: 0x2f6e9952
Item Level: 27
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +9%

Russet Small Charm of Strength
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x3f0b93eb
Item Level: 51
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Strength
Fire Resist +6%

Ruby Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x62c954b2
Item Level: 44
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +15%

Cobalt Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0xde990a5
Item Level: 83
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +9%

Amber Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0x9528d803
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +11%

Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0xc10141f4
Item Level: 61
Version: Expansion 1.10+
4% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Lore
Superior Circlet
OrtSol
Defense: 32
Durability: 37 of 38
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x2039901e
Item Level: 53
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+5% Enhanced Defense
+10 to Energy
Lightning Resist +30%
Damage Reduced by 7
+2 to Mana after each Kill
+2 to Light Radius
Increase Maximum Durability 11%
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Sol Rune

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Sol Rune
Required Level: 27
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +9 to Minimum Damage
Armor: Damage Reduced by 7
Shields: Damage Reduced by 7

Scintillating Amulet
Amulet
Required Level: 25
Fingerprint: 0x34467648
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
All Resistances +15

Viper Grasp
Ring
Required Level: 41
Fingerprint: 0xec28a831
Item Level: 56
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
Replenish Life +9
+15 Maximum Stamina
Fire Resist +24%
10% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Bone Chain
Plated Belt
Defense: 10
Durability: 14 of 24
Required Level: 15
Required Strength: 60
Fingerprint: 0x97b7a4c8
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to Strength
+7 to Life
Cold Resist +22%
Lightning Resist +6%
Attacker Takes Damage of 5

Amethyst
Required Level: 12
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +80 to Attack Rating
Armor: +6 to Strength
Shields: +18 Defense

Perfect Skull
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 3% Mana stolen per hit
4% Life stolen per hit
Armor: Replenish Life +5
Regenerate Mana 19%
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 20

Superior Tusk Sword
One Hand Damage: 11 - 42
Two Hand Damage: 21 - 66
Durability: 30 of 50
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 104
Required Dexterity: 71
Fingerprint: 0x2b6a4214
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
15% Enhanced Damage
+3 to Attack Rating
2 Sockets (0 used)

Platinum Ring of Perfection
Ring
Required Level: 67
Fingerprint: 0x16a6d1f0
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+103 to Attack Rating
+17 to Dexterity

Bone Wand of Life Tap
Bone Wand
One Hand Damage: 3 - 7
Durability: 15 of 15
Required Level: 24
Fingerprint: 0x2a08abe4
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Level 5 Life Tap (58/97 Charges)

Ancients' Pledge
Kite Shield
RalOrtTal
Defense: 24
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Level: 21
Required Strength: 47
Fingerprint: 0x9c98fb57
Item Level: 30
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+50% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +43
Lightning Resist +5%
Fire Resist +5%
Poison Resist +5%
10% Damage Taken Goes To Mana
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Ral Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Tal Rune

Ral Rune
Required Level: 19
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 5 - 30 Fire Damage
Armor: Fire Resist +30%
Shields: Fire Resist +35%

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Tal Rune
Required Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Armor: Poison Resist +30%
Shields: Poison Resist +35%

Festering Essence of Destruction
Fingerprint: 0xf10d925f
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Dread Cowl
Tiara
Defense: 62
Durability: 17 of 25
Required Level: 60
Fingerprint: 0x87ea0c87
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Poison and Bone Skills (Necromancer Only)
+23% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +12
19% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Level 2 Tornado (7/25 Charges)

Brimstone Aegis
Sexton Trophy
Defense: 79
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 45 of 60
Required Level: 33
Required Strength: 47
Fingerprint: 0x65fdfb9b
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Poison and Bone Skills (Necromancer Only)
+17% Faster Hit Recovery
Adds 13 - 28 Poison Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
+2 to Confuse (Necromancer Only)
+42% Enhanced Defense

Corpse Shell
Overseer Skull
Defense: 158
Chance to Block: 18
Durability: 10 of 20
Required Level: 49
Required Strength: 91
Fingerprint: 0xc4b04210
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Faster Block Rate
10% Increased Chance of Blocking
Adds 13 - 28 Poison Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
+11% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +11
Fire Resist +21%
Half Freeze Duration

Festering Essence of Destruction
Fingerprint: 0xd3ed1bbd
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Full Rejuvenation Potion
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Replenishes Mana 100%
Replenishes Health 100%

Full Rejuvenation Potion
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Replenishes Mana 100%
Replenishes Health 100%

Full Rejuvenation Potion
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Replenishes Mana 100%
Replenishes Health 100%

Spirit
Long Sword
TalThulOrtAmn
One Hand Damage: 4 - 28
Durability: 23 of 23
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 45
Required Dexterity: 29
Fingerprint: 0xbb606ee0
Item Level: 68
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+27% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
7% Life stolen per hit
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+112 to Mana
+5 Magic Absorb
Ethereal
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Tal Rune
Required Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Armor: Poison Resist +30%
Shields: Poison Resist +35%

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Amn Rune
Required Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Life stolen per hit
Armor: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 14

Stormshield
Monarch
Defense: 453
Chance to Block: 47
Durability: 65 of 86
Required Level: 73
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0x4423ca25
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Indestructible
+35% Faster Block Rate
25% Increased Chance of Blocking
+311 Defense (Based on Character Level)
+30 to Strength
Cold Resist +60%
All Resistances +19
Lightning Resist +25%
Damage Reduced by 35%
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 10
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Perfect Diamond

Perfect Diamond
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +68% Damage to Undead
Armor: +100 to Attack Rating
Shields: Cold Resist +19%
Lightning Resist +19%
Fire Resist +19%
Poison Resist +19%


Mercenary:

Name: Gulzar
Race: Desert Mercenary
Type: Def-Nightmare
Experience: 69457268
Level: 83
Dead?: false

Naked/Gear
Strength: 183/213
Dexterity: 147/167
HP: 1687/1737
Defense: 1245/1571
AR: 1889/381578

Fire: 177/137/77
Cold: 177/137/77
Lightning: 192/152/92
Poison: 177/137/77

Blackhorn's Face
Death Mask
Defense: 248
Durability: 19 of 20
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x972383f3
Item Level: 50
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Prevent Monster Heal
Slows Target by 20%
+186% Enhanced Defense
Lightning Resist +15%
+20 Lightning Absorb
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 25


Lionheart
Superior Breast Plate
HelLumFal
Defense: 78
Durability: 57 of 57
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 26
Fingerprint: 0xbc0f59c
Item Level: 60
Version: Expansion 1.10+
20% Enhanced Damage
+14% Enhanced Defense
All Stats +10
+15 to Strength
+5 to Dexterity
+10 to Vitality
+50 to Life
All Resistances +30
Increase Maximum Durability 14%
Requirements -15%
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Hel Rune
Socketed: Lum Rune
Socketed: Fal Rune

Hel Rune
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Requirements -20%
Armor: Requirements -15%
Shields: Requirements -15%

Lum Rune
Required Level: 37
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Energy
Armor: +10 to Energy
Shields: +10 to Energy

Fal Rune
Required Level: 41
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Strength
Armor: +10 to Strength
Shields: +10 to Strength


Insight
Bill
RalTirTalSol
Two Hand Damage: 82 - 274
Durability: 26 of 26
Required Level: 27
Required Strength: 85
Fingerprint: 0xd58cec59
Item Level: 60
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Level 12 Meditation Aura When Equipped
+35% Faster Cast Rate
248% Enhanced Damage
+9 to Minimum Damage
201% Bonus to Attack Rating
Adds 5 - 30 Fire Damage
Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
+2 to Critical Strike
All Stats +5
+2 to Mana after each Kill
23% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Ethereal
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ral Rune
Socketed: Tir Rune
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Sol Rune

Ral Rune
Required Level: 19
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 5 - 30 Fire Damage
Armor: Fire Resist +30%
Shields: Fire Resist +35%

Tir Rune
Required Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +2 to Mana after each Kill
Armor: +2 to Mana after each Kill
Shields: +2 to Mana after each Kill

Tal Rune
Required Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Armor: Poison Resist +30%
Shields: Poison Resist +35%

Sol Rune
Required Level: 27
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +9 to Minimum Damage
Armor: Damage Reduced by 7
Shields: Damage Reduced by 7


I have stuttering issues when I record these days (no idea why...), so no videos.




Gwynt began his journey as a 'Leaf' touting fire druid, who's journey began with an intro to the tournament. Having RIP'd my last druid, an Oliver's Army character, I was quite keen for Gwynt to be around long term, which is mandatory reaching level 99... Normal and nightmare were a breeze and in all honesty I can't remember them too well - even the first half of hell was a few months ago. The more recent play time;

Gwynt killed Mephisto and was very happy to see this drop as his reward...
1590569917830.png

And then...

1590569901002.png

Some other nice finds :D
1590569886210.png
1590569879490.png
1590569871418.png
1590569854853.png

Gwynt had one NDE that I can remember, just the other day in Durance - there is a prize (there isn't) for whoever can guess what nearly killed him. The next stage is to head to LK and get Enigma/CtA and HotO. Then to Mephisto for arach, shako, reaper's, sandstorms etc... Then time for some Baal runs! :D
 
Originally posted by naranjadita on May 14, 2010:

My first 1.13 Guardian - Krakatau.

Guardian Krakatau, the master of Fire, Wind, and Martial Arts.

A couple days ago I decided to play a bit on the battle.net after some time without playing diablo. And I saw THIS.

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1203

Oh, I thought. Great. So the ladder is finally reset, and all my underlevelled chars are non-ladder, so bye-bye Infi, CtA and Fortitude I haven't got yet... Too bad.
But then I thought I hadn't played SP for ages, and a new patch is a good reason to play a bit.
I decided to start from zero: I packed all my characters and stashes into a rar-file and threw it into the depths of my hard disk to collect dust.


Part One. Krakatau.

Krakatau, lvl 80 Druid
Hardcore, 1.13, RWM.
Untwinked.

http://yfrog.com/j9krakataufirej

So what is a good non-sorc (...and non-pally, non-fishyzon and whatevermancer as well...) character to start with? I thought, that a pure fire druid is a good way to go. He has nice damage, according to calculator, all elemental skills have certain applications with the first skill being available at level 2!

"So, you've cleaned the den of Evil yadda yadda yadda..." What's that? A respec is one of the features implemented with 1.13? *looks through the patchlog* - oh...

Normal and most part of Nightmare were extremely easy. So easy that I tried to do full clears at most areas. I even wiped everything at the dark passageways of Swampy Pit. Did you guys know that it actually has THREE floors?.. )
Surprisingly, Nightmare High Council made my knees shake quite a bit: suddenly all of them (both bosses and their minons) rushed at me ignoring the mercenary completely!
Nightmare Chaos Sanctuary was an unpleasant place: crowds of fire immune Doom Knights were quite an obstacle with my merc having neither good weapon to kill, nor a good armor to tank. So I went /players1 from /players8 and spent some time scattering molten boulders around.
In some icy caverns of act 5 I finally found a 4 socket normal sword and a 4 socket exceptional polearm (it was a grim scythe. I made an Insight in it and then it was like "Heere we go... Hey..HEY, come on, what the... 140 dex required?!" I had to give THIS http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1196
to merc, and he ran around covering his hairy smoking with this crap for quite long time).

Hell was the place where I understood that a fire druid is not a two-elemental character, he is 1.5-elemental. With little to no +skills equipment Volcano and Boulder could hardly kill FI monsters quickly enough. Having struggled my way to act 3 I decided to level up a bit and possibly get some useful stuff. So I made a few runs at NM Cows (got Sigon's Guard and Duriel's Shell) and Hell Maggot Lair (All hail Molten Boulder! No descent finds, but lots of fun. I wiped away entire boss packs of those electrocockroaches with just two or three boulders!)

At act 3 I shopped for a teleport-charged staff and it did speed things up quite a bit.

Generally, the rest of the game went quite smooth: I tended to kill only key monsters and skipped the rest. Council gave me Um (can this still be considered a good find in 1.13?), Hell Forge drop was Gul.

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1192

Chaos Sanctuary? A bit of bowling. I found a 2-os Lac... Laq... how should this be spelled? - Plate and made a 'Smoke' for my merc. (Heeere we go. Wha.. Come on, not again! 208 str?! Had to socket Guillaume I found somewhere in act 3 with a perfect amethyst) Then lots of teleporting through act 5. Ancients were surprisingly easy - their mods were just stupid (mana burn, Teleport etc). Baal (no good drop) and his minions were easy, too.

There were no really descent finds. Most of them are mentioned above. (Um from Hell Council, Gul from forge, Duriel's Shell, Guillaume's, IK Boots... nothing spectacular)

I was tempted to use a respec several times, but I wanted to beat the game without it (as well as without using ATMA) first. And now the character is a guardian, it's time to play with skills and stats resetting a bit.

Random screenshots:

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1193
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1195
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1194


Part two. Wind of Change.

The first respec turned an unlucky Fire Druid into a cheesy and lucky Wind one. After changing the character's structure I started running Hell Mephisto, Council, Countess, Baal, CS and basically everywhere I could reach.

Actually, I don't like windies very much, but I needed a char to find stuff for the next stage.
There were many good finds with windy:
- a bunch of IK Mauls (one of them turned out to be perfect)
- arachnid
- Raven Frost
- IK boots, gloves, helms
- LoH
- a couple Kukos
- Goreriders
- BCombat lifer
- and lots of other goods I don't even remember.

As soon as I collected items I needed for the next incarnation, I used the second respec.

Part three. The Fury of the Furry.

http://yfrog.com/j5krakatauferalj

This is the most enjoyable part of all three. I like melee builds, I love high attack speed, I am fond of Druids, I adore cute fluffy things :3 To sum up, I made a Fury Werewolf.

This guy compensates his average damage with +550% damage to demons and 90% CB - enough to run Council on /p1-/p3 and to kill /p1 Hell Meph in 3-5 fury sequences. Feral rage with 60% LL helped a lot, too (thus no LL on the equipment).

There is no particular area he runs; pits, AT, CS... I've rolled a good meph map

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/album.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1201

nice countess map, average WSK map... and trav map is always OK; and I'm quite happy with the results he is showing in any of the abovementioned areas.

I had one NDE in the Tower, however - bumped into a pack of goats with some nasty mods. God bless "Save and Exit"!

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/album.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1199

There are some very pleasant finds, both on rune and item sides.

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1197
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1198
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1204


Right now I continue running Countess, Council and Meph (not some ordinary mephruns though: I kill everything in his chamber, then switch to /p8 and check the chests). I hope to get some runes to complete the list of items I want for my next character.

Random screenshots:

http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/album.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1202
http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/album.php?albumid=283&pictureid=1200
 
Originally posted by Nightfish on Jul 3, 2005:

NF's weekly guardian (#16/49)

Another week, another guardian. This time it's a druid, but not just any druid, it's my favorite one so far. Presenting:

Guardian Regret - Level 82 Druid

Stats without items:
Str: 125
Dex: 179
Vit: 176
En: 20

Life: 720
Mana 450

Relevant Skills:
20 Firestorm
20 Fissure
20 Tornado
20 Cyclone Armour

1 Grizzly
1 Oak Sage

5 Unspent

The elemental skills are all in the thirties with his gear.

Gear:
Switch 1: Earthshaker / Stormshield
Switch 2: Ondal's Wisdom
Helm: Ravenlore (FireFacett)
Armour: Skullder's Ire
Belt: Trang Oul's Girth
Gloves: Magefist
Boots: Waterwalk
Ammy: Mara's
Ring: SoJ x 2

4 Shimmering Grand & 4 Shimmering Small Charms


Damage:
Fissure: 1570-1650
Firestorm: 1950-2150
Tornado: 1560-1660

Resistances
75% for Lightning and Cold, around 30% for Fire and Poison

Might Merc: using Fortitude, The Reaper's Toll and Delirium Crown / Guillaume's Face. He does around 700-4000 damage or so. Pretty decent. And that's not even counting deadly strike or decrep... He's a killer.


Well, so much for the stats, now for the random rant. As you can see he's a fire / wind hybrid. Probably not something you see every day. At least I don't remember seeing one before. But believe it or not, it works pretty well. Fissure works great vs crowds, firestorm is decent vs single enemies and tornado does enough damage to deal with FIs. But truth to tell, I hate tornado. It's not that I can't hit with it, I can if I try. It's just not a very fun skill to use, imo. So I used fissure most of the time, followed by firestorm and tornado only against FIs.

The one point in oak sage is pretty much enough, too. He dies all the time but probably no more often than he did when maxed with my werewolf. He still takes my life from around 700 to around 1.2k and helps a bit. Grizzly does a good job of tanking, too. But he's a bit slow in moving to the front and doesn't really last as long as I'd like him to. Okay, I didn't really spend more than 1 point on him so I shouldn't expect too much.

Ancients were pretty easy. I stopped respawning them as soon as none were cursed and just cast fissure and ran around in circles until hte first one was down. Then I tanked the other 2 until my merc and my spells had killed them. (both stone skinned so it took a while).

MFwise he does good vs pindle and in all areas without too many fire immunes. Would do better if I could be bothered to aim tornado. Baal runs are okay but he lacks a good way to kill baal himself. But that's okay, I don't need another MFer. If I want to level him to 90 pindle can serve.

He only found one good item during his journey but the quality makes up for lack of quantity:

Vex Rune
Can be Inserted into Socketed Items

Weapons: 7% Mana stolen per hit
Helms: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist
Armor: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist
Shields: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist

Required Level: 55
Item Version: 1.10 Expansion

Dropped from a regular cadavar type monster in durance 2 in hell. My best rune drop ever. (excluding hellforge and cubing). Speaking of the forge, he got a Fal and an Um which makes up for the good drop I guess...

Well, that's it for this guy. I think I'll give him around 200 MF and run pindle for a while, just for kicks. See ya next guardian!
 
Originally posted by @Pyrotechnician on Apr 11, 2013:

Guardian SuddenStorms - Wind Druid

Did someone say they wanted to read more guardian threads? And one that didn’t involve a deeds later? Fine, I think we can handle that.

Guardian SuddenStorms

This is your standard wind druid, not exactly a powerhouse in any one area, but can handle them all without too much trouble.

Stats/Skills:
Code:
Name:       SuddenStorms
Class:      Druid
Experience: 980689504
Level:      84

            Naked/Gear
Strength:   145/161
Dexterity:  20/47
Vitality:   325/347
Energy:     20/48
HP:         839/937
Mana:       186/346
Stamina:    467/655
Defense:    5/912
AR:         70/409

Fire:       198/158/98
Cold:       177/137/77
Lightning:  204/164/104
Poison:     177/137/77

MF:         9       Block:      8
GF:         14
FR/W:       43
FHR:        55
IAS:        0
FCR:        134

Raven: 1/15
Poison Creeper: 1/8
Oak Sage: 8/15
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/8
Carrion Vine: 1/8
Heart of Wolverine: 0/0
Summon Dire Wolf: 1/8
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 1/8

Werewolf: 0/0
Lycanthropy: 0/0
Werebear: 0/0
Feral Rage: 0/0
Maul: 0/0
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 0/0
Hunger: 0/0
Shock Wave: 0/0
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 0/0
Molten Boulder: 0/0
Arctic Blast: 1/17
Fissure: 0/0
Cyclone Armor: 20/36
Twister: 20/36
Volcano: 0/0
Tornado: 20/36
Armageddon: 0/0
Hurricane: 20/36

Gear:
Code:
Magefist
Light Gauntlets
Defense: 25
Durability: 18 of 18
Required Level: 23
Required Strength: 45
Fingerprint: 0x70698ac4
Item Level: 59
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Fire Skills
+20% Faster Cast Rate
Adds 1 - 6 Fire Damage
+25% Enhanced Defense
+10 Defense
Regenerate Mana 25%

Nightsmoke
Belt
Defense: 23
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 20
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0x28479dc0
Item Level: 59
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+42% Enhanced Defense
+15 Defense
+20 to Mana
All Resistances +10
Damage Reduced by 2
50% Damage Taken Goes To Mana

Skin of the Vipermagi
Serpentskin Armor
Defense: 279
Durability: 23 of 24
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x831b22e6
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+30% Faster Cast Rate
+120% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +25
Magic Damage Reduced by 12

Aldur's Advance
Battle Boots
Defense: 40
Durability: 11 of 18
Required Level: 45
Required Strength: 95
Fingerprint: 0xd5b67147
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Indestructible
+40% Faster Run/Walk
+50 to Life
+180 Maximum Stamina
Heal Stamina Plus 32%
Fire Resist +47%
10% Damage Taken Goes To Mana
Set (2 items): +15 to Dexterity
Set (3 items): +15 to Dexterity
Set (4 items): +15 to Dexterity

Storm Band
Ring
Required Level: 47
Fingerprint: 0xee93cb64
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
14% Chance to cast level 5 Nova when struck
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+11 to Strength
+8 Maximum Stamina
Cold Resist +7%
Lightning Resist +12%

Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Fingerprint: 0xa917e401
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+204 to Attack Rating
Adds 15 - 45 Cold Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
+17 to Dexterity
+40 to Mana
Cold Absorb 20%
Cannot Be Frozen

Ravenlore
Sky Spirit
Defense: 386
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 74
Required Strength: 113
Fingerprint: 0x84617e5
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
-12% to Enemy Fire Resistance
+7 to Raven (Druid Only)
+148% Enhanced Defense
+28 to Energy
All Resistances +24

Corruption Necklace
Amulet
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x7c570662
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Chance to cast level 3 Chain Lightning on attack
+1 to Druid Skill Levels
Lightning Resist +29%
Fire Resist +23%
Half Freeze Duration
9% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Heart of the Oak
Superior Flail
KoVexPulThul
One Hand Damage: 1 - 26
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Level: 55
Required Strength: 41
Required Dexterity: 35
Fingerprint: 0x29027f30
Item Level: 52
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to All Skills
+40% Faster Cast Rate
11% Enhanced Damage
+75% Damage to Demons
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
+150% Damage to Undead
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
7% Mana stolen per hit
+10 to Dexterity
Replenish Life +20
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
All Resistances +39
Level 4 Oak Sage (25/25 Charges)
Level 14 Raven (60/60 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ko Rune
Socketed: Vex Rune
Socketed: Pul Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune

Ko Rune
Required Level: 39
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Dexterity
Armor: +10 to Dexterity
Shields: +10 to Dexterity

Vex Rune
Required Level: 55
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Mana stolen per hit
Armor: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist
Shields: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist

Pul Rune
Required Level: 45
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +75% Damage to Demons
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
Armor: +30% Enhanced Defense
Shields: +30% Enhanced Defense

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Spirit
Monarch
TalThulOrtAmn
Defense: 148
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0xce180caf
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+34% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+100 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+8 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Tal Rune
Required Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Armor: Poison Resist +30%
Shields: Poison Resist +35%

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Amn Rune
Required Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Life stolen per hit
Armor: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 14

Charms:
Code:
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xa702c042
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+18 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x41c93c05
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+19 to Life

Lapis Small Charm of Inertia
Small Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0xfffd64f3
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3% Faster Run/Walk
Cold Resist +7%

Natural Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x81901f83
Item Level: 65
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Natural Grand Charm of Greed
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x27dbc6bd
Item Level: 69
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
14% Extra Gold from Monsters

Natural Grand Charm of Craftmanship
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x757325c6
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
+1 to Maximum Damage

Natural Grand Charm of Strength
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x2e475b19
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
+5 to Strength

Natural Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x796580ee
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Viridian Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x643c527e
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +7%

Viridian Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x5a991fae
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +7%

Natural Grand Charm of Life
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xb7a587a9
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
+11 to Life

Merc:
Code:
Name:       Kasim
Race:       Desert Mercenary
Type:       Def-Normal
Experience: 59772260
Level:      81
Dead?:      false

            Naked/Gear
Strength:   183/183
Dexterity:  148/163
HP:         1670/1670
Defense:    1232/2409
AR:         1928/1928
 
Fire:       148/108/48
Cold:       148/108/48
Lightning:  163/123/63
Poison:    148/108/48

Atma's Wail
Embossed Plate
Defense: 904
Durability: 32 of 105
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 125
Fingerprint: 0x9eb70f79
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Hit Recovery
+143% Enhanced Defense
+166 Defense (Based on Character Level)
+15 to Dexterity
Replenish Life +10
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
20% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+50 Maximum Durability

Blackhorn's Face
Death Mask
Defense: 273
Durability: 17 of 20
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0xda387b39
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Prevent Monster Heal
Slows Target by 20%
+214% Enhanced Defense
Lightning Resist +15%
+20 Lightning Absorb
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 25

The Reaper's Toll
Thresher
Two Hand Damage: 37 - 439
Durability: 54 of 65
Required Level: 75
Required Strength: 114
Required Dexterity: 89
Fingerprint: 0xbc31daac
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
33% Chance to cast level 1 Decrepify on striking
212% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
Adds 4 - 44 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (18 Frames)
11% Life stolen per hit
33% Deadly Strike
Requirements -25%

Alright with all that boring stuff out of the way, this was another group play character which can be found here:

https://diabloii.net/forums/threads/839057

We actually were able to have 4 people complete this group, which I thought was fairly impressive especially with how difficult it is to organizetimes to play and the like.

Build and Gear progression:

The progression in gear was pretty normal for a caster, my early level twink gear has become pretty standard from character to character. A combination of hsarus’s/cleglaws/angelics/isenharts (I tend to piece together random things for the set bonuses) and probably either hellforge hammer or a gemmed wirt’s leg.

Slowly moved into caster gear, vmagi/magefist/spirits etc. I had jalal’s equipped for a long while until I got the ravenlore from fred, it net me one more +elemental skill, so it works for my purposes. I believe most of the skill charms are from him as well, but were equipped earlier. The three main spots I’d like to improve upon for this guy are a better amulet, arach belt, and an enigma if I ever gain that much wealth, but I’m pretty comfortable with his setup as is right now, he has all of his res maxed (fire and lightning actually over stacked, regardless of the cyclone armor that’s always up) reaches a decent fcr, and moves around pretty well.

As far as skills go, I think I maxed tornado and hurricane first, cyclone armor after that, then twister. I’m dumping my remaining points into oak at the time being, because hey, more life, even if it does die all the time, and grizz stands up pretty well on its own, even with one point.

Questing and Gameplay:

As always MP is a blast, it makes game progression much nicer, and it’s always fun to throw some witty comments at each other, and we are always encouraging each other of course. We started off with more people in our group then made it to the end, but none the less, real life always gets in the way.

I don’t recall any really difficult situations, everything was either frozen and burning, or being destroyed by hammers and tornados (oh and phar was there too, shooting arrows or something…) Up until late nightmare we also had a few other characters cruising along with the group until they unfortunately had to drop out.

With oak alive I can pretty much run anywhere and spam a few tornados, and things die. With decrep’d and chilled monsters (from hurricane) and the fully synergized cyclone armor, not much really gets to him. Bosses can get pretty slow when I’m on my own but that’s to be expected with a standard wind druid. I’ll probably switch my merc’s helm for some crushing blow at some point but in a group setting where he sees the most use right now it is not really all that necessary.

Future Plans:
Not too much actually, as stated earlier, he can handle most areas, but is not a specialist at any. He sees occasional use in some MP chaos/baal runs, but he’s pretty much relaxing for the time being.

Screenshots for your enjoyment:

Organized Inventory – As per Normal

Ancients, and baal, baal, baal!
 
Originally posted by ron on Apr 14, 2007:

Guardian: Godsmack (3/7)

Just finished with Godsmack
level 78 Wind Druid

I maxed Hurricane and synergies, put a whole bunch in cyclone armor and maxed Oak sage. I didnt use any summons, but I didnt need them. You will see why when I get to the gear.

Attributes are with gear/charms
Str 157
Dex 45
Vit 367
Eng 40

Life 1081/2926 w/ Oak Sage
Resists 80/75/85/75

Gear
Jalals Mane
Vipermagi 30% resist all
Frostburns
Thundergods Vigor
Waterwalks
SoJ x2
Spirit Monarch
HotO (made it with the 2 Guls I got from my two previous Guardians)
+2 druid skills 13% resist all ammy
Gull/Rhyme on switch

Up to level 30 was a pain in the butt. I almost didn't stick it out. It just seemed so painfully slow. As soon as I hit 30 and put on some gear, it just took off. I started this toon like 4 days ago. Of course the gear made it pretty easy. With my gear and 5 elemental skillers, my elemental skills were at level 37. Hurricane did 2068-2203 damage, and Tornado did 3540-3777. Very few monsters survived very long. Listers pack took the longest to kill. Lister was cursed, and killed my merc more often than he died in CS. The ancients died pretty quickly without doing anything besides making me recast Oak Sage a few times. Baal made me chase him around for awhile before finally taking the dirtnap and dropping me my 3rd eth Battlebranch.

Hellforge: Lem
Best Find: ehh..ali baba from hell Diablo I guess. Nothing spectacular. A few good socketable weapons and armor due to having almost 0 MF.

Pretty fun to play, very safe. I will probably try dropping the vipermagi and putting MF armor on him. If I can run baal for awhile maybe I will find some nice stuff to add to my grail.

For my next trick, I may try and finish one of the other toons I am supposed to be making Guardians. My javazon is in act 3 hell, my bowie is in act 1 hell. My trapper is in act 1 hell. My zerker is in act 2 hell. My hammerdin is in act 1 hell. I really want to make a Bone necro, so I will probably do that next. Maybe another Guardian thread soon, maybe not. After I finish these 7, I may try it untwinked. I am not sure if I am ready for that kind of pain though. As it was, this was my first druid I have ever played.
 
Originally posted by @Pyrotechnician on Oct 3, 2014:

Guardian Predator - Fire Hunter Druid

I’m close to wrapping up another character, so thought I’d do this first.

Guardian Predator

This is a fire hunter druid, one of the more abnormal builds out there, but the concept is pretty straightforward, skills split between the fire elemental skills (main fissure and volcano) and summons (main dire wolves and grizzly), using a bow switch to pick off enemies as the skill timers run down. A ton of fun, but also kind of wears on you over time. Especially when paired with another abnormal and slightly underpowered build. This character was done with crawlingdeadman and his double throw barbarian. His guard thread will be linked here whenever he finishes it.

Stats/Stats-Bow/Skills #2:
Code:
Name:       Predator
Class:      Druid
Experience: 888164357
Level:      83

            Naked/Gear
Strength:   115/161
Dexterity:  80/109
Vitality:   285/307
Energy:     20/40
HP:         758/962
Mana:       184/356
Stamina:    426/426
Defense:    20/1464
AR:         370/35637

Fire:       213/173/113
Cold:       214/174/114
Lightning:  236/196/136
Poison:     214/174/114

MF:         25       Block:      23
GF:         50
FR/W:       20
FHR:        85
IAS:        0
FCR:        95

Raven: 1/13
Poison Creeper: 1/13
Oak Sage: 1/13
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/13
Carrion Vine: 1/13
Heart of Wolverine: 1/13
Summon Dire Wolf: 20/32
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 20/32

Werewolf: 0/0
Lycanthropy: 0/0
Werebear: 0/0
Feral Rage: 0/0
Maul: 0/0
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 0/0
Hunger: 0/0
Shock Wave: 0/0
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 1/14
Molten Boulder: 1/14
Arctic Blast: 1/13
Fissure: 20/33
Cyclone Armor: 1/13
Twister: 1/13
Volcano: 20/33
Tornado: 1/13
Armageddon: 1/14
Hurricane: 1/13

Gear:
Code:
Magefist
Light Gauntlets
Defense: 24
Durability: 18 of 18
Required Level: 23
Required Strength: 45
Fingerprint: 0xeaa7ca79
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Fire Skills
+20% Faster Cast Rate
Adds 1 - 6 Fire Damage
+22% Enhanced Defense
+10 Defense
Regenerate Mana 25%

Nightsmoke
Belt
Defense: 23
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 20
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0x726c114d
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+42% Enhanced Defense
+15 Defense
+20 to Mana
All Resistances +10
Damage Reduced by 2
50% Damage Taken Goes To Mana

Angelic Halo
Ring
Required Level: 12
Fingerprint: 0xbde7d72c
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Replenish Life +6
Set (2 items): +996 to Attack Rating (Based on Character Level)
Set (3 items): 50% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

(2 items): +10 to Dexterity

Infernostride
Demonhide Boots
Defense: 94
Durability: 9 of 12
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0xc4f3f039
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Chance to cast level 8 Blaze when struck
+20% Faster Run/Walk
Adds 12 - 33 Fire Damage
+120% Enhanced Defense
+15 Defense
+10% to Maximum Fire Resist
Fire Resist +30%
50% Extra Gold from Monsters
+2 to Light Radius

Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Fingerprint: 0xe5b125fd
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+186 to Attack Rating
Adds 15 - 45 Cold Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
+18 to Dexterity
+40 to Mana
Cold Absorb 20%
Cannot Be Frozen

Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 277
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 47
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0x9eabe267
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
+30% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+180% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
All Resistances +45
+5 to Mana after each Kill
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Um Rune

Um Rune
Required Level: 47
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 25% Chance of Open Wounds
Armor: Cold Resist +15%
Lightning Resist +15%
Fire Resist +15%
Poison Resist +15%
Shields: Cold Resist +22%
Lightning Resist +22%
Fire Resist +22%
Poison Resist +22%

Chains of Honor
Archon Plate
DolUmBerIst
Defense: 885
Durability: 60 of 60
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 103
Fingerprint: 0x5119c0bb
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+200% Damage to Demons
+100% Damage to Undead
8% Life stolen per hit
+70% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
Replenish Life +7
All Resistances +65
Damage Reduced by 8%
25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Dol Rune
Socketed: Um Rune
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Ist Rune

Dol Rune
Required Level: 31
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Hit Causes Monster to Flee 25%
Armor: Replenish Life +7
Shields: Replenish Life +7

Um Rune
Required Level: 47
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 25% Chance of Open Wounds
Armor: Cold Resist +15%
Lightning Resist +15%
Fire Resist +15%
Poison Resist +15%
Shields: Cold Resist +22%
Lightning Resist +22%
Fire Resist +22%
Poison Resist +22%

Ber Rune
Required Level: 63
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 20% Chance of Crushing Blow
Armor: Damage Reduced by 8%
Shields: Damage Reduced by 8%

Ist Rune
Required Level: 51
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 30% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Armor: 25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Shields: 25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Angelic Wings
Amulet
Required Level: 12
Fingerprint: 0x56f010b3
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
20% Damage Taken Goes To Mana
+3 to Light Radius
Set (2 items): +75 to Life
Set (3 items): +1 to All Skills

(2 items): +10 to Dexterity

Harmony
Great Bow
TirIthSolKo
Two Hand Damage: 50 - 190
Durability: 36 of 36
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 121
Required Dexterity: 107
Fingerprint: 0x5319d649
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Level 10 Vigor Aura When Equipped
249% Enhanced Damage
+9 to Minimum Damage
+9 to Maximum Damage
Adds 55 - 160 Fire Damage
Adds 55 - 160 Lightning Damage
Adds 55 - 160 Cold Damage Over 2 Secs (58 Frames)
+6 to Valkyrie
+10 to Dexterity
Regenerate Mana 20%
+2 to Mana after each Kill
+2 to Light Radius
Level 20 Revive (25/25 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tir Rune
Socketed: Ith Rune
Socketed: Sol Rune
Socketed: Ko Rune

Tir Rune
Required Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +2 to Mana after each Kill
Armor: +2 to Mana after each Kill
Shields: +2 to Mana after each Kill

Ith Rune
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +9 to Maximum Damage
Armor: 15% Damage Taken Goes To Mana
Shields: 15% Damage Taken Goes To Mana

Sol Rune
Required Level: 27
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +9 to Minimum Damage
Armor: Damage Reduced by 7
Shields: Damage Reduced by 7

Ko Rune
Required Level: 39
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Dexterity
Armor: +10 to Dexterity
Shields: +10 to Dexterity

Arrows
Fingerprint: 0xb34b7af6
Item Level: 5
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Heart of the Oak
Superior Flail
KoVexPulThul
One Hand Damage: 1 - 26
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Level: 55
Required Strength: 41
Required Dexterity: 35
Fingerprint: 0x29027f30
Item Level: 52
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to All Skills
+40% Faster Cast Rate
11% Enhanced Damage
+75% Damage to Demons
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
+150% Damage to Undead
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
7% Mana stolen per hit
+10 to Dexterity
Replenish Life +20
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
All Resistances +39
Level 4 Oak Sage (25/25 Charges)
Level 14 Raven (60/60 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ko Rune
Socketed: Vex Rune
Socketed: Pul Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune

Ko Rune
Required Level: 39
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +10 to Dexterity
Armor: +10 to Dexterity
Shields: +10 to Dexterity

Vex Rune
Required Level: 55
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Mana stolen per hit
Armor: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist
Shields: +5% to Maximum Fire Resist

Pul Rune
Required Level: 45
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +75% Damage to Demons
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
Armor: +30% Enhanced Defense
Shields: +30% Enhanced Defense

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Spirit
Monarch
TalThulOrtAmn
Defense: 134
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0xf9936f81
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+35% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+112 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+5 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Tal Rune
Required Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 75 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Armor: Poison Resist +30%
Shields: Poison Resist +35%

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Ort Rune
Required Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 50 Lightning Damage
Armor: Lightning Resist +30%
Shields: Lightning Resist +35%

Amn Rune
Required Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 7% Life stolen per hit
Armor: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 14

Inventory:
Code:
Tome of Town Portal
Fingerprint: 0x5f0c45a
Item Level: 12
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Tome of Identify
Fingerprint: 0xebdd2d0d
Item Level: 12
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Horadric Cube
Fingerprint: 0x2445dc63
Item Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Natural Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x4eedb23f
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xf7257a62
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+17 to Life

Trainer's Grand Charm of Life
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x455a3cb9
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Summoning Skills (Druid Only)
+8 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xd2b95e96
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+18 to Life

Key
Fingerprint: 0x10b753d2
Item Level: 78
Version: Expansion 1.10+

Crimson Small Charm of Dexterity
Small Charm
Required Level: 5
Fingerprint: 0xce7d7ec
Item Level: 19
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Dexterity
Fire Resist +4%

Amber Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xf3ea218f
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +11%

Amber Small Charm of Strength
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xfadd83bc
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Strength
Lightning Resist +11%

Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 50
Fingerprint: 0x88d75964
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30 to Life

Natural Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x9c53cd0c
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Natural Grand Charm of the Icicle
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x8117454f
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
Adds 2 - 3 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)

Trainer's Grand Charm of Vita
Grand Charm
Required Level: 69
Fingerprint: 0xddbca874
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Summoning Skills (Druid Only)
+36 to Life

Trainer's Grand Charm of Strength
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x7dfabc57
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Summoning Skills (Druid Only)
+5 to Strength

Merc:
Code:
Name:       Leharas
Race:       Desert Mercenary
Type:       Comb-Normal
Experience: 52872334
Level:      78
Dead?:      false

            Naked/Gear
Strength:   178/178
Dexterity:  143/143
HP:         1550/1610
Defense:    1146/1632
AR:         1889/1889

Fire:       160/120/60
Cold:       190/150/90
Lightning:  160/120/60
Poison:    160/120/60

Treachery
Wire Fleece
ShaelThulLem
Defense: 375
Durability: 17 of 32
Required Level: 53
Required Strength: 111
Fingerprint: 0x91e1daab
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Chance to cast level 15 Fade when struck
25% Chance to cast level 15 Venom on striking
+2 to Assassin Skill Levels
+45% Increased Attack Speed
+20% Faster Hit Recovery
Cold Resist +30%
50% Extra Gold from Monsters
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Lem Rune

Shael Rune
Required Level: 29
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: +20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: +20% Faster Block Rate

Thul Rune
Required Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
Armor: Cold Resist +30%
Shields: Cold Resist +35%

Lem Rune
Required Level: 43
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 75% Extra Gold from Monsters
Armor: 50% Extra Gold from Monsters
Shields: 50% Extra Gold from Monsters

Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest
Death Mask
Defense: 111
Durability: 16 of 20
Required Level: 66
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0xf3d84e30
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Mana stolen per hit
10% Life stolen per hit
+45 Defense
+60 to Life
+30 to Mana
All Resistances +15

Crescent Moon
Thresher
ShaelUmTir
Two Hand Damage: 57 - 673
Durability: 33 of 33
Required Level: 53
Required Strength: 142
Required Dexterity: 108
Fingerprint: 0x533a0853
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Chance to cast level 17 Chain Lightning on striking
7% Chance to cast level 13 Static Field on striking
+20% Increased Attack Speed
219% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
-35% to Enemy Lightning Resistance
25% Chance of Open Wounds
+10 Magic Absorb
+2 to Mana after each Kill
Level 18 Summon Spirit Wolf (30/30 Charges)
Ethereal
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Um Rune
Socketed: Tir Rune

Shael Rune
Required Level: 29
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: +20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: +20% Faster Block Rate

Um Rune
Required Level: 47
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: 25% Chance of Open Wounds
Armor: Cold Resist +15%
Lightning Resist +15%
Fire Resist +15%
Poison Resist +15%
Shields: Cold Resist +22%
Lightning Resist +22%
Fire Resist +22%
Poison Resist +22%

Tir Rune
Required Level: 13
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +2 to Mana after each Kill
Armor: +2 to Mana after each Kill
Shields: +2 to Mana after each Kill

Build and Gear Progression:

As said earlier this is a fire hunter druid. Early levels I pumped the fire elemental skills fissure, followed by volcano, and then started maxing summons, dire wolves followed by grizzly. 1 point and plus skills were enough to carry the summons until late NM/Hell mode when I had more available points to allocate to them. At level 83 and all skill quests the main skills are maxed, so technically complete, spare skill points can probably be added to additional fire synergies or Oak/HoW depending on what you feel like really. If I get any further it will probably be a fire damage synergy though. Stats, same as always, enough strength (and this time dex) for gear, rest into vitality. Using both spirit monarch and a bow switch made it seem like I constantly had low life, and I pretty much did, which is probably why the second version made it and the first did not.

Gear selection, for early leveling, the usual mish mash of random set pieces, including cleglaws, hsaurus’, angelics, khalim’s will. At level 15 I equipped ravenclaw for bow switch to start with the core of the build. Gear was eventually replaced for standard caster gear including spirit weapon with rhyme, vmagi, magefist (for the +1 fire skills). Mid level gear included adding jalal’s and switching to kuko bow. End game gear is as seen above, which includes hoto/spirt, harmony in a great bow, and COH. The final gear set left me with overstacked res on cast switch and just under max with bow switch. I should probably switch some things around to max out fire/light on switch but I’m not sure how worth it is now.

The great bow base was chosen because it had the lowest dex requirements of the elite bows, it has a high strength requirement, but I was already going to use spirit so it wasn’t a lost cause. Belt and boots can probably be switched out, but they were equipped mid-way through and they worked, so I left them as is (besides I seem to like the higher fire res brought by infernos, switching to tgods probably isn’t a bad idea either since I do have stacked res on cast switch).

Questing and Gameplay:

Early game was the same as always, twink a bunch of stuff on and hit things. As the game progressed, I usually casted a few fissures in-between hitting things before settling into the casting/bow type gameplay. Typical game play was something like this…Cast all summons, make sure Armageddon was still up, cast a fissure on the next pack, switch to bow and plink away. The bow switch would usually be kept out for the majority of the play and I would only switch to the caster side to cast something then swap back in order to maintain the Valk summon of harmony (switching fast enough doesn’t make her poof). The vigor aura of harmony was also a nice touch as we were able to speed between groups of monsters fairly fast. Even though I was playing with a barb, my summons did almost all of the tanking, cdm would for the most part be hanging back with me shooting off a variety of axes, glaives, or one of the other many variety of throwing weapons he tested. For most of normal and NM it was smooth sailing. I would provide area of effect and tanks (also plinking), and cdm would provide the buffs and as he so aptly put it Machine Gun Em.

Hell mode started though and progress slowed, the fire immunes piled up and we weren’t putting out big damage numbers (ok, well I wasn’t, cdm was still doing fairly well aside from constantly running out of things to throw). Shooting the bow, while fun, didn’t really add much, but it did provide something to do in-between the casting of the fire skills, which is the main point of the build.

Questing then took an unfortunate turn when facing De Seis, and thus BecomeTheHunted’s quest was over, and Predator was born. After trudging through most of hell mode and then suddenly having to do it all over again, it kind of put a damper on my will to play for a while (that combined with summertime), so rebuilding/redoing took a fairly long span of time. Eventually things progressed through with some help from others, getting past Baal in NM again, and eventually exacting revenge. This time making sure to stack as many vita charms as I could in my spare inventory, including a newly found trainers of vita (only time this will ever be useful).

After that we pretty much cruised through the remainder of the game and it was surprisingly enjoyable until the end of the playthrough (beer helped), we had good/easy monster rolls for almost all of act 5, and no real difficulty after that. We played through most of hell mode at p3/p5.

Overall take on the build though? Good fun, enjoyable through normal and nightmare but then things slow down a bit too much for my taste after that. Would I do it again? Yeah, of course I would, but not for a while. It’s time to move onto a more powerful build for a little while, and then think about the abnormal/underpowered builds again sometime later.

Interesting finds:

Nothing that I recall.

Future Plans:

None to very little, I can’t really see picking this character up for much of anything at this point as even in any form of MP runs he doesn’t really contribute much to the group other than a lot of tanks, and there are better builds for that.

Screenshots for your enjoyment (have quite a few of them this time):

Ancients – Normal, Baal - NM, Baal #2 - NM, Andy – Hell, Duriel - Hell, Duriel Drop – Hell, Izual – Hell, Diablo - Hell, Diablo Drop - Hell, Ancients – Hell, Ancients #2 – Hell, Ancients #3 – Hell, Throne Room – Hell, Baal Minions – Hell, Baal Minions #2 – Hell, Baal Minions #3 – Hell, Baal Minions #4 – Hell, Baal – Hell, Baal #2 – Hell, Baal #3 – Hell, Baal Drop - Hell, The End

Thanks for reading!
 
Originally posted by purplelocust on Sep 22, 2009:

Guardian Sanguine, untwinked wind-druid who allocated stat points in 100-point blocks

Quick summary


Untwinked wind-druid only allocates stat points when 100 unused have accumulated. Wields a Gull almost the entire game, actually has good drops.

Backgrouund

I am usually quite frugal with stat points, and often end up juggling charms, +stat gear and using +stat gear to equip items. So this character had the limitation that I could save my stat points, as per my usual miserly ways, but that whenver the accummulated total reached 100 stat points, I needed to allocate them all that instant into a single attribute, via shift-click.

One of the features added, I think in 1.10, is the "shift-click" method of stat point allocation, where all the points go in at once instead of clicking, for example, 100 times. It's kind of exciting with such big chunks since screwing up would be terrible. So after playing a while (Sanguine started out as a Bow Druid for a tourney), and finding the Gull (he wasn't going to be a bow-barb any more), I realized I hadn't spent any stat points yet. I figured I could hold off until I had 100 saved, and thus the idea was born. I didn't plan or think carefully about when the likely allocation spots would be, but it worked out well in that the last one was at the end of NM, at least after some Baal runs.

So the limitation was: the only time I could allocate any stat points, it was via shift-click when 100 had accumulated. Not surprisingly in HC, I decided thus to go all-vitality for each allocation.

Skills:

Basic wind druid
Max Cyclone Armor, Twister, Tornado, Hurricane
1 in Summon Grizzly + prereqs, 9 in Oak Sage

Stats:

Level 84
STR: 15/78
DEX: 20/26
VIT: 425/425
E: 20/40
30 unallocated at the moment- he's not likely to make it to 98, the next time he'd be allowed to allocate them!

Merc:

L84 Holy Freeze
Blackhorn's
Woestave
Hwann's Refuge

Gear:

Helm: Jalal's Mane
Weapon: Dark Clan Crusher
Shield: Rhyme bone shield
Armor: Stealth leather armor
Gloves: Bloodfist
Boots: Infernostride
Switch: Gull/Lower Resist charged wand and rare prismatic bone shield with LR
Amulet: rare +2 elemental 21%LR
Code:
Rune Beads
Amulet
Required Level: 30
Fingerprint: 0x876bd9c9
Item Level: 72
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)
Replenish Life +3
Lightning Resist +21%
Poison Length Reduced by 50%
Level 3 Holy Bolt (27/27 Charges)

Rings: rare +str, resists:
Code:
Shadow Grip
Ring
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x83387e77
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+105 to Attack Rating
Adds 1 - 18 Lightning Damage
+20 to Strength
All Resistances +11
Poison Length Reduced by 25%

Bitter Spiral
Ring
Required Level: 48
Fingerprint: 0x4c787ada
Item Level: 69
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+54 to Attack Rating
Adds 1 - 21 Lightning Damage
+5 to Strength
All Resistances +8

Belt rare +str, life, 22% CR
Code:
Grim Fringe
Spiderweb Sash
Defense: 125
Durability: 12 of 12
Required Level: 50
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0x9cb5dcdc
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+99% Enhanced Defense
+18 to Strength
+30 to Life
Replenish Life +9
Cold Resist +22%

Gear notes:

Not much FCR- just that from Stealth. I did have some FCR gear along the way, before Jalal's dropped, but +str gear was the main thing to use that. I kept a Gravepalm in the stash to help equip the Jalal's, which was then self-sustaining.

I gambled a lot of amulets and never got anything better than that one. I would have taken prismatic + FCR, skills + FCR or skills + prismatic but I never got two of out three of those, or even two out of four (where the fourth would be a big +STR).

I did have a Wizardspike drop, but after the contortions I went through to equip Jalal's with base strength, I decided against ever trying to use the Wizardspike.

The merc had been using Woestave for a while, and it's slowing effect is very nice. At some point, shortly before about to enter Gloam territory, the Blackhorn's dropped, and I put it on the merc to improve his chances there. Now the slow was fantastic! And IM is not a concern when your weapon does such little physical damage.

LCS:

Tornado 2617-2796
Hurricane 1297-1412
Life: 2713 after Oak Sage
Def: 542 no blocking
Mana: 226
Resists: 85/75/75/71 or 85/75/85/86 with potions

Charms:

crammed full. Highlights: Shimmering GC of the Icicle (13), Shimmering GC (15), large charms of vita/sustenance/etc, some mana charms, small resist charms with two nice ones: Coral of Vita (17 life, LR8) and Cobalt of Vita (17 life, CR 8).


Finds:

A lot of nice finds, which is what happens if you play normal and NM (at /players 8, rerunning) and Hell (rerunning) for a long time weilding a Gull and MF gear the whole time!

Highlights:

Dracul's Grasp, Flamebellow, Demon Limb, Cranebeak, Wizardspike, Bloodmoon, Blackoak Shield, Atma's Scarab, gambled Tal-Rasha's amulet, an SoJ, and a lot of other gear that would have been great for other characters. Also a lot of TC3s including the full Death's set, Torch of Iro, Biggin's Bonnet, Blinkbat's Form, and Vidala's armor.

A nice barb circlet in AT:
Code:
Demon Circlet 
Circlet 
Defense: 51 
Durability: 32 of 35 
Required Level: 67 
Fingerprint: 0x1b8959f3 
Item Level: 88 
Version: Expansion 1.10+ 
+2 to Barbarian Skill Levels 
+5 to Minimum Damage 
7% Life stolen per hit 
+66% Enhanced Defense 
+29 to Life 
All Resistances +13

Very wimpy rare ethereal Sacred Armor, but I'm still always happy to see Sacred Armor's drop in the AT!
Code:
Fiend Pelt 
Sacred Armor 
Defense: 787 
Durability: 31 of 31 
Required Level: 66 
Required Strength: 222 
Fingerprint: 0xb75154ef 
Item Level: 88 
Version: Expansion 1.10+ 
Lightning Resist +10% 
Fire Resist +6% 
Poison Resist +8% 
Damage Reduced by 3 
Poison Length Reduced by 25%
Ethereal

11 min damage rare jewel:
Code:
Skull Talisman 
Jewel 
Required Level: 30 
Fingerprint: 0xc86f63f0 
Item Level: 83 
Version: Expansion 1.10+ 
+11 to Minimum Damage 
28% Extra Gold from Monsters 
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

I also had some good staffmod items drop, at least from the standpoint of the Staffmod grail, so I'll need to update that.


Gameplay notes:

This time, I tried to make notes during play instead of just remembering Normal and NM as a blur from a long time ago. Early on Sanguine started out as a druid in the bow-only tourney. Shortly into the game, as he was plucking away, a Gull dropped from a Tainted in Jail 1. That changed everything- finding a Gull early on untwinked was a great thing, and if I remained in the tourney, I couldn't wield it at all. So I withdrew and began playing without the tourney limitations and decided an untwinked wind druid would be a good choice And I would introduce my own limitations, which were originally just going to be Vitality only, but then I had the "save and splurge" stats as mentioned above,

Normal:

Normal went well at /players 8, with lots of nice finds. For a while there, Sanguine was a TC3 finding machine. It's kind of a rich-get-richer phenomenon, once he found the Gull. Actually, even before the Gull dropped, Death's Hand did, so he was very fortunate!
Total there were two Deaths' Hands, a Death's Sash from Jail 1, a Biggins Bonnet from a neighbor of Bloodwitch- it's ridiculous that an untwinked character found the Death's combo!

Even more ridiculous, (looking at you, Hrus!) was that a Torch of Iro dropped in normal CS! Normal forge: El. It happens sometimes.

There were more ironic finds: an Amn in A5 from a random monster- usually an untwinked melee character would be overjoyed for such a find that early. And then another Amn from a demon sprite in A5, as well as Sol. And another Amn later in A5.

At the end of normal Baal runs, Sanguine was level 48 and had done two burst allocations of vitality. He was still wearing the Death's Set from when he was bowing his way through A1, but weilding the Gull and rares. The rare pelt was a nice hawk helm with +1 elemental and +2 Dire Wolf which gave him 3 wolves through normal mostly.
He still had his A1 rogue merc.

Nightmare:

Again, all done on /players 8, weilding the Gull. A nice shimmering grand charm dropped in A1 NM
There were dolls in the Flayer Dungeon, Durrance 1 and Durrance 2. No NDEs but I was very careful to keep distance there. NM forge was Ko.

NM Diablo dropped Dark Clan Crusher, which was quite a nice drop. I had been identifying all the various clubs/cudgels in hopes of getting one with +druid skills. The other mods on DCC weren't relevant but the +2 druid skills is great, particularly in a low-strength weapon. NM Diablo also dropped two set rings, but I already had that ilvl in my Cathan's ilvl list. I didn't actually wield the DCC as I wanted to continue MFing along the way with the Gull, but it was good to have an option on switch for summoning and prebuffing.

At this point, merc gear was anti-lightning oriented: Blackhorns for merc, which was a switch away from rare FRW circlet, together with lightning resist gear. He was wielding Woestave, which actually is quite nice with the blinding and the bleeding and the slowing.

For the NM ancients, I decided to face them at /players 8, wielding the Gull. Kind of pointless, but in a brave-ish way. I was short of being able to allocate stats by about 9 levels, so I was tempted to switch down and break out the DCC, but I had a go at /players 8 and it was no problem.
Here was the gear for facing the NM ancients:

Gear: rare hawk helm +1 elemental, +2 dire wolf LR 6 PR 15, Gull,
rare amulet: FCR, +5 dex +9 life, 14 resist all, +1 defensive auras
Stealth leather armor
death's hand and guard
junk rare rings
rare boots 10 FHR 17 FR 12 MF
Dark Clan crusher on switch, no shield
STR 27, dex 29, vit 325 (55 saved)
life 948/1422

Usually for a wind druid, FCR rates as very important. But to be honest, I didn't have much mana, so FCR just meant running out of mana faster and I made do at slower cast rates.

For NM Baal's quest drop: failed set cudgel, Pompeii's wrath, failed set giant axe,... So I was close to getting another DCC.

Then it was a long sequence of NM Baal runs. I really wanted to get to 79 and spend the 100 accummulated stat points, so it was a fair number of /players 8 runs. A remarkable thing happened in there- I gambled Tal Rasha's amulet! Completely useless, of course, but quite a nice thing untwinked. And my MF didn't help there at all. I really hadn't even been trying to gamble amulets, though my amulet was pretty weak. I was mainly trying to gamble better belt and boots but I got impatient waiting for low-strength options to turn up on the gambling screen when I had too much money for the next Baal run.

I hadn't had a single Shael drop as I wanted to make Rhyme for some time, but finally a Shael dropped in WSK NM, run 20-ish or so. I also got a second grand shimmering charm, this one from a flayer in the WSK. Dolls were a pain on these Baal runs, but OK's weren't. The merc was still using Woestave, which is pretty good against IM.

I hadn't visited Anya to get her reward or open up the portal to Pindle et al, but I did do and of course got a pelt with too high of a strength requirement. That reminded me that I hadn't gotten my Anya normal reward, so I went back to pick it up and remarkably, it was great! I had assumed that the ilvl was fixed, like the Ormus and Akara rewards. But apparently not, which made me realize that I should go back to normal and talk to Anya there. So I did and I got a wonderful rare hawk helm, +2 druid.
Code:
Sanguine's Skull Casque 
Hawk Helm 
Defense: 23 
Durability: 19 of 20 
Required Level: 51 
Required Strength: 20 
Fingerprint: 0x72b1784 
Item Level: 76 
Version: Expansion 1.10+ 
10% Chance to cast level 3 Nova when struck 
+2 to Druid Skill Levels 
+10% Faster Hit Recovery 
+1 to Solar Creeper (Druid Only) 
+45% Enhanced Defense 
+34 to Life 
Fire Resist +14%
I would like to think that was on purpose (waiting to talk to normal Anya until I was high enough level to get some good affixes) but it was really out of laziness. Once I saw it was +2 druid all with a low strength requirement, I figured that was my end-game headgear.

Finally more 6 runs to get from 78 to 79: allocate 100 more, 325 to 425 vitality.


Hell:

The first steps out to Blood Moor: ouch. But I found a Jalal's there! That posed a problem, as its strength requirement was much higher than anything else I had.

So it was back to run various NM areas for charms, and seek and gamble +STR gear.

Then back in A1 Hell, a Wizardspike dropped in the Tamoe Highlands, in the same drop as Stormrider. I decided against using the Wizardspike as the dex would just be too much, and I just had sorted out strength for the Jalal's. The rest of A1 went pretty smoothly, with lots of mana potions, as I missed my staffmoded Solar Creeper.

A2 went pretty well- a Dracul's dropped in the Maggot Lair! Again, not something needed or remotely useful for Sanguine, but that would have been a wonderful drop for an untwinked melee player. Then again, an untwinked melee player would not be using a Gull!

A3: There was yet another Dark Clan Crusher in Flayer Jungle. I was still mostly using the Gull but I did start to have the DCC on switch at that point. A very smooth stair entrance for the Ruined Temple- it figures, one time when I could probably handle a nasty stairtrap, I get an easy one!

Hell Meph: nothing useful. Another Gull from a tough Blood Lord boss in Hell Durrance 3, though! There was a boss cluster mess at Izual, who took a while but was comically slowed so there was no rush there. NM Forge: Lum. No Treachery this time!

For Hell Diablo- there was portal shrine right near the star, so I wanted to find out if Diablo would Bone Prison a shrine portal. But I didn't find out as I wasn't really up for intentionally luring him over there to find out. For the battle I used DCC, and for the final blow, I forgot to shift to Gull. That was the first act boss in the game I didn't use it on, oh well.

A5: Mostly went well, particularly when there aren't cold immunes. That nice rare +11 min jewel dropped in there. There were some nasty Cold/Physical immunes that I did not kill, but in general the "guest monsters" worked in my favor without as many CIs as one would expect in A5. I had a lot of concern about the ancients, and I went back to AT runs to levelup before fighting the Ancients: found a few better charms, Cranebeak, nice barb circlet. My AT map was pretty good for runs, whereas my LK map was just one campfire and it wasn't smoothly runnable, so I focued on AT for levelling and some gear improvements rather than trying for a better LK map.

I did the full prep for the Ancients: skill shrine active, potions laid out, and so on. The first combo, there were no terrible mods and it was less than five minutes before the two non-CI ones two were dead. They were slowed so the urgency wasn't there. But Korlic was Extra Strong and Stone Skin on top of cold immune, and whittling him down took lots of mana. I realized a fair way through that I should have shopped a lower resist wand beforehand. Although it wouldn't have helped with Korlic, it would have been a good improvement in the "killing speed is safety" part of killing the first two. Eventually, after many Grizzlies, Ravens and Spirits, open wounds from Woestave plus the steady Tornados were enough.

For the WSK, he got quite favorble monster combos in the first effort. Heirophants, non-CI rogues, bombers, non-CI witches, invaders, gloams (briefly), unravellers and CI blood lords. I wasn't worried about OKs but dolls were going to mean rerolling for sure. But that wasn't needed.

For the final waves, after clearing the full Throne level for parking/battling, the waves were pretty smooth. There were many trips to town. I decided finally to shop a Lower Resist wand just before Ventar which took 30 minutes, but that time was well spent. For them and the relatively slowed Lister and his pack, picking them apart and wearing them down worked well.

Hell Baal- slowed, Lower Resisted, and then I again didn't time the Gull switch properly! So I missed my chance to have an untwinked Guardian who had killed every single boss with the same weapon (well, almost- at least wielded it at the time of death...)

Summary comments:

1) I have new respect for Solar Creeper. The Anya quest pelt had it as a staffmod, and I figured- why not, the more the merrier? But it was a noticable improvement in mana usage for NM Baal runs. Or rather, when I started using the Jalal's, I noticed a big hit in mana consumption!

2) Dolls really hurt a non-blocking character. Even with a lot of life and 85% fire resist, those hit pretty hard. I already knew that, though!

3) The Anya reward ilvl=character level I really should have realized, as I'd noticed it in 1.07 but somehow didn't connect. The problem is that to make good use of it, you have to avoid talking to her. Which means no Pindle. I don't like Pindle, but I did go back and do the Nihilathak quests in NM and normal after getting the items much much later.

4) Not having FCR isn't a huge deal if it just means that you'll run out of mana in 1/15 of a second instead of 1/10 of a second...

5) I have more respect for Ravens than before. They are a good distraction and definitely slow down the pace of the game measurably.

6) Like a frostalot, I got a good sense of the cold resistance of monsters. With a cold sorc, if they aren't immune, then Cold Mastery takes care of everything. But if they have high-ish cold resistance but aren't actually cold immune, it's pretty noticable with Hurricane not softening things up much.

Screenshots:

About to allocate stat points for the last time
Just afterwards
Fighting Korlic, at long last worn down
Fighting Baal
Baal's drop
An AT chest shower of uniques

Plans:

He can obviously run L85 areas with safety and MF, so that is a definitely plus. I'm not sure if I will break down and end the splurge stat assignments but I probably will to get more flexibility in gear.

Since the writeup above, in preparation of visiting Nihilatak, I ran AT and Mausoleum for experience and MFing. An SoJ dropped in AT, and Ariocs in the Mausoleum. And once the merc made 85, I headed off to Pindle and killed Nihilathak. That went well so now all quests and WPs are done (except Hell Halls of Pain- he may visit Pindle again!) although he still has imbues, some personalization and socketing rewards available.
 
Originally posted by skunkbelly on Jan 17, 2007:

Guardian Skunkgale (yep...)

Yep, another one :jig:

Skunkgale the wind druid has defeated the Ancients and Baal, and become my 12th Guardian. Only two left to complete my double-sept project (though neither of those characters are past A1 hell). I was greatly relieved to finish this guy off... I lost two other wind druids in the past couple years, one in A2 hell and the other in A3. I don't think I could've handled starting over again.

Here's how easy the battle with the Ancients was:

1. Quick check to see if anyone's immune to physical. Nobody? And no curses? Just a little conviction? Great, let's go!

2. Leaper down. Thrower down. Wait... I just got credit for the quest. I guess I killed the other one in there somewhere.

Seriously... I don't know when the whirler died, or how. The whole Ancients battle took less than three minutes. Easiest time I've ever had with them. My merc, bear, ravens and other minions kept them very well occupied. I just had to spam Tornado and enjoy the view from the mountain.

The WSK wasn't too much worse. On level 2, I hit gloams, including several nasty boss packs... but no FE/LE, and no conviction. Nothing that couldn't be handled with reasonable caution. No other monsters in the Keep were particularly scary, and the only PI's were ghosts on level 3. The Throne featured gloams again, along with vampires and frenzytaurs... but there weren't many 'taurs, and they didn't account for any of the boss packs. Not nearly as bad as my trip yesterday with Skunknova.

Baal was also a piece of cake. Tele across moat to Baal (with Naj's Puzzler on switch), merc zaps with Kelpie, additional slow from Hurricane, then lots and lots and lots of Tornados. Only a few mana potions required... and a few recasts of my ravens, just 'cause I hate not having the maximum number of ravens flying around. Nice birdies. Baal dropped a Fetid Sprinkler and a Arctic Binding. Sigh. But his death popped me over the top to level 83.

No more of these threads for a while... I have another 10 or 11 characters going, but some are underpowered tourny chars who don't stand a chance, and the others are either in A1 hell or NM.

STATS:

Character name : Skunkgale
Character type : Hardcore Druid
Character level : 83
Character exp : 884344596

Strength : 70
Energy : 20
Dexterity : 178
Vitality : 237

Life : 1454 / 662
Mana : 562 / 184
Stamina : 448 / 378

SKILLS:
Summoning: 1 in oak sage and carrion vine, 9 in grizzly, 1 in pre-reqs.
Elemental: 20 each in Hurricane, Tornado, Cyclone Armor, 17 in Twister.


GEAR:

Skin of the Vipermagi
Serpentskin Armor
'Ort'
Defense: 279
+120% Enhanced Defense
Magic Damage Reduced by 11
Fire Resist +29%
Lightning Resist +59%
Cold Resist +29%
Poison Resist +29%
30% Faster Cast Rate
+1 to All Skill Levels
Socketed with Ort rune

Bahamut's Ring
Required Level: 37
+117 to Mana

Waterwalk
Sharkskin Boots
Defense: 117
+15 to Dexterity
+65 to Life
+40 to Maximum Stamina
+194% Enhanced Defense
Heal Stamina Plus 50%
+100 Defense vs. Missile
+5% to Maximum Fire Resist
20% Faster Run/Walk

Trang-Oul's Claws
Heavy Bracers
Defense: 73
+30 Defense
Cold Resist +30%
20% Faster Cast Rate
+2 to Curses (Necromancer Only)
+25% to Poison Skill Damage

Gaean Amulet
Required Level: 45
+3 to Elemental Skills (Druid Only)

Trang-Oul's Girth
Troll Belt
Defense: 154
+66 to Life
+45 to Mana
+30 to Maximum Stamina
+94 Defense
Replenish Life +5
Requirements -40%
Cannot Be Frozen

Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
'Ral'
Defense: 252
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
+155% Enhanced Defense
Fire Resist +60%
Lightning Resist +30%
Cold Resist +30%
Poison Resist +30%
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
30% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+5 to Mana After Each Kill
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
Socketed with Ral rune.

Nature's Peace
Ring
Damage Reduced by 10
Poison Resist +26%
Slain Monsters Rest In Peace
Prevent Monster Heal
Level 5 Oak Sage (27/27 Charges)

Naj's Puzzler (on switch)
Elder Staff
Two-Hand Damage: 200 to 232
Durability: 35 of 35
+35 to Energy
+70 to Mana
+150% Enhanced Damage
Adds 6-45 lightning damage
30% Faster Cast Rate
150% Damage to Undead
+1 to All Skill Levels
Level 11 Teleport (69/69 Charges)

Heart of the Oak
Flail
'KoVexPulThul'
One-Hand Damage: 1 to 24
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Dexterity: 35
Required Strength: 41
Required Level: 55
Mace Class - Fast Attack Speed
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x499e2917
+10 to Dexterity
All Resistances +39
Adds 3-14 cold damage over 3 seconds
7% Mana stolen per hit
Replenish Life +20
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
40% Faster Cast Rate
75% Damage to Demons
150% Damage to Undead
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
+3 to All Skill Levels
Level 4 Oak Sage (25/25 Charges)
Level 14 Raven (60/60 Charges)

Rhyme
Grim Shield
'ShaelEth'
Defense: 117
Chance to Block: 60%
+20% Increased Chance of Blocking
Regenerate Mana 15%
All Resistances +25
50% Extra Gold from Monsters
25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
40% Faster Block Rate
Cannot Be Frozen


MERC GEAR:

Vampire Gaze Grim Helm

Shaftstop Mesh Armor

Kelpie Snare
Stygian Pike
'Amn'
Two-Hand Damage: 106 to 431
Required Level: 56
+10 to Strength
+165% Enhanced Damage
+30 to Minimum Damage
+50 to Maximum Damage
Fire Resist +50%
7% Life stolen per hit
Required Level +7
Slows Target by 75%
+103 to Life (Based on Character Level)
Socketed with Amn rune
 
Originally posted by DeathMaster on Mar 7, 2008:

At last - Guardian Michael

Selene and Michael, after the last fight, finally got a peaceful life, and as time pass by, they had a son who was named Michael Jr. It may because they are both hybrid, the child is part of human, more than either vampire or werewolf. However, he has the blood and ability of both vampire and werewolf. Before his 18th birthday, he said "I want to go out and test my ability". "But where you want to go? the war was over, and we cannot let people know the existence of our kind" asked Selene. "We don't want you get hurt, you shouldn't go through what we've been" said Michael. Michael Jr. was deeply disappointed. One day he found an ancient ruin and when he touched a door knock like stone, a magic portal opened in front of him. He saw a troubled world, and people crying for help. Then he knew his chance was given, and ran back to his parents.

Michael and Selene went there, investigated the ruin. They discovered ancient writing which says "The portal may lead you to a world full of demon and magic. Be warned, only mortal may pass it unharmed. Unholy beings will lose their power and become mortal if they travel through this portal to the over world."

Michael Jr said, "look, I will just have a look, if I lost all my power, I will just run back. Plus, we are immortal, I'm part of human, I should be fine." Without Selene and Michael's approval, he jumped in. Then he tried his super ability, they are gone, he can still turn to a wolf, regain life by sucking blood, but not all powerful, even he is still much stronger then normal human. What worse, the portal disappeared behind him. Now Michael Jr. had to find his way out. A group of wolves appeared in front of him, and they suddenly turned into human. One of them, who seems to be the leader, welcomed him "we are the keeper of the forest, you must be the hero who will save us from the evils. We see the mark of hero on your face". "What ..." Michael Jr said "I think you must be mistaking, I ...". The Druid leader said "Our ancient book predicted your coming. The one who step through the magic portal will save us from evil". "If you can defeat the evils, the magic portal will reopen, and you can then travel freely between your world and our world". "What is your name, our hero?" "Mhhh, you can call me Michael, I will help you if what you said is true. I don't want to stuck here forever, even I started to like here".


The character detail will continue...


Character name : Michael
Character type : Hardcore Druid
Character level : 87
Character exp : 1360559628

Strength : 110
Energy : 22
Dexterity : 30
Vitality : 363
Stat Points Rem : 0
Skill Points Rem: 0

Life : 1178 / 919 (with weapon switch)
Mana : 495 / 196 (with weapon switch)
Stamina : 606 / 507 (with weapon switch)

Life in wolf with OS: over 4.8k

Gear:
Immortal King's Forge - War Gauntlets
Immortal King's Detail - War Belt
Immortal King's Pillar - War Boots
Immortal King's Stone Crusher - Ogre Maul (socket with Hel and IAS jewel)
Jalal's Mane - Totemic Mask (socket with Um)
Bul-Kathos' Wedding Band - Ring
Mara's Kaleidoscope - Amulet
Duress - Dusk Shroud
Weapon switch: 2x spirit

Merc: Might with
Duriel's Shell - Cuirass
Vampire Gaze - Grim Helm
The Reaper's Toll - Thresher

Skills: 20 WW, 20 Fury, 20 Lycan, 20 OS, 11 Grizzly, 1 carrion vine, all other skills in between one point.

Game play:
A lot of time, just hold down right mouse button. However, he did run around a lot, just to separate packs and sometimes pull back and let merc + bear to handle (eg. kill OKs).
Ancients wasn't hard, he got very lucky on the first roll. WSK however was another story. bullhead + ghost + OKs, it was not the worst, but enough to be nightmare. Throne room was without OK (lucky), but full of blacksouls, and witches (bloody star). It took me over 3 hours to clear from ancient way to baal.
He started P8 full clean all the way normal and NM. Started hell at P3, then quickly raised to P4. Down to P3 doing the 7 tombs, and since then stick to P3. Only mistake was down to P1 to fast clean CS (should stay at P3).

Drops: nothing great, he is not MF character, but there was a few okay uniq. HF drop was something okay (cannot remember, at least not a Hel).

Forgot to post screen (done after guardian).
 
Originally posted by Dezrok on Nov 10, 2013:

Guardian Kodi - HC 1pt Mauler/Kodiak

It's a bear. It was going to be a Kodiak (Hunger Bear), but with Hunger bugged for bears, the Kodiak is a really gear dependent build. I didn't have a lot of the gear (I thought I would find more of it by the time it mattered), so it turned out that 1pt Maul was our main attack and Hunger used just to top up the bulbs every now and again. Actually, a lot of the time Kodi just sat back and played at being a Summoner while spamming Shockwave and letting the merc deal with everything. He would wade into the fray just to stop me from getting too bored, but really almost everything was killed by the merc, Kodi was just too slow and did too little damage.


Limited myself to being a 2-hander and investing points in a limited skill set which was randomly selected (Hunger, Shockwave, Werebear, Lycanthropy, Poison Creeper, Heart Wolverine and Dire Wolf). Also another moderately twinked effort, with gear being a very long way from godly.

Guardian screen

LCS


Stats
Code:
Name:       Kodi
Class:      Druid
Experience: 949305356
Level:      83


            Naked/Gear
Strength:   152/174
Dexterity:  119/121
Vitality:   214/214
Energy:     20/55
HP:         616/660 (Bear=2046)
Mana:       184/254
Stamina:    355/355
Defense:    29/1874
AR:         565/20622


Damage with max Maul+Enchant - Maul=1048-1987/Hunger=358-724


Fire:       172/132/72
Cold:       154/114/54
Lightning:  176/136/76
Poison:     139/99/39


MF:         87       Block:      12
GF:         133
FR/W:       45
FHR:        70
IAS:        80
FCR:        0


Skills
Code:
Raven: 1/3
Poison Creeper: 20/22
Oak Sage: 1/3
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/3
Carrion Vine: 0/0
Heart of Wolverine: 20/22
Summon Dire Wolf: 11/13
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 0/0


Werewolf: 1/5
Lycanthropy: 20/24
Werebear: 1/5
Feral Rage: 1/5
Maul: 1/5
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 1/5
Hunger: 5/9
Shock Wave: 10/14
Fury: 0/0


Firestorm: 0/0
Molten Boulder: 0/0
Arctic Blast: 0/0
Fissure: 0/0
Cyclone Armor: 0/0
Twister: 0/0
Volcano: 0/0
Tornado: 0/0
Armageddon: 0/0
Hurricane: 0/0


Gear
Code:
Hone Sundan
Yari
Two Hand Damage: 98 - 199
Durability: 28 of 28
Required Level: 37
Required Strength: 101
Fingerprint: 0xc3bbb73d
Item Level: 58
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+60% Increased Attack Speed
171% Enhanced Damage
Adds 20 - 40 Damage
45% Chance of Crushing Blow
Repairs 1 Durability in 10 Seconds
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Shael Rune


Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 250
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0x265eda25
Item Level: 68
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
+30% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+153% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
All Resistances +30
+5 to Mana after each Kill


Duress
Dusk Shroud
ShaelUmThul
Defense: 1246
Durability: 17 of 20
Required Level: 49
Required Strength: 77
Fingerprint: 0x447e29fe
Item Level: 83
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+40% Faster Hit Recovery
14% Enhanced Damage
Adds 37 - 133 Cold Damage Over 2 Secs (50 Frames)
15% Chance of Crushing Blow
33% Chance of Open Wounds
+167% Enhanced Defense
-20% Slower Stamina Drain
Cold Resist +30%
All Resistances +15
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Um Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune


Laying of Hands
Bramble Mitts
Defense: 87
Durability: 11 of 12
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0x5d6a6909
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Chance to cast level 3 Holy Bolt on striking
+20% Increased Attack Speed
+350% Damage to Demons
+25 Defense
Fire Resist +50%


String of Ears
Demonhide Sash
Defense: 107
Durability: 19 of 22
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0x48b6e94d
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Life stolen per hit
+163% Enhanced Defense
+15 Defense
Damage Reduced by 13%
Magic Damage Reduced by 13
+10 Maximum Durability


Natalya's Soul
Mesh Boots
Defense: 154
Durability: 66 of 116
Required Level: 25
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0x2f527a77
Item Level: 69
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+40% Faster Run/Walk
+114 Defense
Heal Stamina Plus (Based on Character Level) +20%
Cold Resist +20%
Lightning Resist +25%
+50 Maximum Durability


Blood Touch
Ring
Required Level: 23
Fingerprint: 0x58134da9
Item Level: 67
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to Minimum Damage
+101 to Attack Rating
+15 to Energy
Lightning Resist +27%
Poison Resist +24%
Damage Reduced by 2


Gold Ring of Fortune
Ring
Required Level: 31
Fingerprint: 0x1cdc5758
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+94 to Attack Rating
24% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Beast Necklace
Amulet
Required Level: 51
Fingerprint: 0x4275852e
Item Level: 78
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+8 to Minimum Damage
Cold Resist +11%
Lightning Resist +17%
Poison Resist +37%
Damage Reduced by 1
23% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Obedience
Thresher
HelKoThulEthFal
Two Hand Damage: 56 - 662
Durability: 63 of 65
Required Level: 53
Required Strength: 122
Required Dexterity: 95
Fingerprint: 0x26ca4006
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
30% Chance to cast level 21 Enchant when you Kill an Enemy
+40% Faster Hit Recovery
370% Enhanced Damage
-25% Target Defense
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
-25% to Enemy Fire Resistance
40% Chance of Crushing Blow
+232 Defense
+10 to Strength
+10 to Dexterity
All Resistances +29
Requirements -20%
5 Sockets (5 used)
Socketed: Hel Rune
Socketed: Ko Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Eth Rune
Socketed: Fal Rune


Gheed's Fortune
Grand Charm
Required Level: 62
Fingerprint: 0xd9ab49e8
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
133% Extra Gold from Monsters
Reduces all Vendor Prices 10%
23% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Tangerine Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0xa3d1f66
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +5%
4% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Fine Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 21
Fingerprint: 0x3837ada7
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Maximum Damage
+18 to Attack Rating
4% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Steel Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 41
Fingerprint: 0xb3055a95
Item Level: 59
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+129 to Attack Rating


Steel Large Charm of Dexterity
Large Charm
Required Level: 44
Fingerprint: 0xa430af90
Item Level: 61
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+65 to Attack Rating
+2 to Dexterity


Coral Small Charm of Venom
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0x4e7844e5
Item Level: 45
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 15 Poison Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
Lightning Resist +8%


Coral Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0xc7e28aaf
Item Level: 55
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +9%


Shimmering Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 25
Fingerprint: 0x37c5a26f
Item Level: 66
Version: Expansion 1.10+
All Resistances +3


Sapphire Large Charm of Storms
Large Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x22588155
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 33 Lightning Damage
Cold Resist +15%


Ruby Large Charm of Inertia
Large Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x48e8e87a
Item Level: 59
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Run/Walk
Fire Resist +14%


Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0xaaae49a1
Item Level: 56
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0x4778eba5
Item Level: 50
Version: Expansion 1.10+
4% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items


Garnet Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 34
Fingerprint: 0x8fd95abc
Item Level: 65
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+24 to Life
Fire Resist +12%


Ruby Small Charm of Storms
Small Charm
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x43dfd870
Item Level: 68
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 26 Lightning Damage
Fire Resist +10%


Garnet Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xd6a557ad
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Fire Resist +8%


Ocher Small Charm of Strength
Small Charm
Required Level: 16
Fingerprint: 0xbe455c90
Item Level: 70
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Strength
Lightning Resist +7%


Mercenary
Code:
Name:       Durga
Race:       Desert Mercenary
Type:       Off-Nightmare
Experience: 69494056
Level:      83
Dead?:      false


            Naked/Gear
Strength:   183/183
Dexterity:  147/147
HP:         1687/1687
Defense:    1245/1961
AR:         1889/1889


Fire:       147/107/47
Cold:       177/137/77
Lightning:  162/122/62
Poison:    147/107/47


Zach's Treachery
Scarab Husk
ShaelThulLem
Defense: 450
Durability: 28 of 28
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 95
Fingerprint: 0x55625ad3
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
5% Chance to cast level 15 Fade when struck
25% Chance to cast level 15 Venom on striking
+2 to Assassin Skill Levels
+45% Increased Attack Speed
+20% Faster Hit Recovery
Cold Resist +30%
50% Extra Gold from Monsters
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Lem Rune


Blackhorn's Face
Death Mask
Defense: 266
Durability: 15 of 20
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x304f8e37
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Prevent Monster Heal
Slows Target by 20%
+206% Enhanced Defense
Lightning Resist +15%
+20 Lightning Absorb
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 25


The Reaper's Toll
Thresher
Two Hand Damage: 42 - 494
Durability: 65 of 65
Required Level: 75
Required Strength: 114
Required Dexterity: 89
Fingerprint: 0x6ee6695d
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
33% Chance to cast level 1 Decrepify on striking
+15% Increased Attack Speed
251% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
Adds 4 - 44 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (37 Frames)
13% Life stolen per hit
33% Deadly Strike
Requirements -25%
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Ruby Jewel of Fervor


Ruby Jewel of Fervor
Jewel
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0xefc527af
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Increased Attack Speed
40% Enhanced Damage


Finds - Mausoleum: Gul; HF: Lem (pretty much nothing)


NDEs - none


So, what to say. Large life and Shockwave - does it get much safer? PIs broken by Reaper's (there was only one unbreakable PI in the whole run), unleachables were more of a problem, well I had to use potions, that's not really a problem. Hunger - does it get much slower in terms of killing speed? Hunger looks impressive but sounds horrible and is pretty ineffective. The times you want it's leach to work are usually against big hitting high phys resists or unleachables, when of course it does nothing or next to nothing.


The Future? When I finally find a Guilliame's and Gore Riders/Goblin Toes I might come back to Kodi and kit him out properly as a Kodiak, just to see if Hunger gets any better (but I have my doubts, as Maul is always going to be almost twice as fast for a bear). Ultimately though, I think he is looking to be respeced into something that is just a little more fun to play with.
 
Originally posted by crawlingdeadman on Sep 11, 2014:

Guardian "BartholomewKuma - Summon/Shock/Mauler"

Hello all,
I see it's been just over a year since my last write-up and since I just finished another I thought it was time for a bit of catch-up. This isn't the guy I just completed, this character was finished sometime in November (2013) with Pyro. He is named after a character from the Manga/Anime One Piece look him up, he's begging to have a bear build named after him; he's already bear themed and one of his signature attacks is Ursus Shock(wave). I initially started this guy as a tourney character (not sure which and I cant be bothered to look) and hadn't even made it out of normal before I switched him to a MP character with Pyro's Phoenix Striker. The past few times we've collaborated we've picked builds that probably can solo the game, but are generally considered weaker. We've tried to match power levels after the time we MP'd characters with a Javazon and kinda just stood around most of the time. This time around we went with a heavy but fragile hitter in a PS sin and a beast of a tank that does little damage in my summon/shock Bear. The combo worked out well especially when we got to our mercs' engame weapons of Infinity and Reaper's toll. All in all, we had zero troubles and it wasn't exactly boring, but I dont think either of us was ever in trouble for our lives.

BartholomewKuma

Barty is a Town Dump Werebear mostly. Read the guide if you're thinking of making one, it's a cornerstone guide to werebears in general and has lots of tips. My IK pieces come from Safety's tips. It's a really nice build and I'm certain it'd be able to complete most of the game untwinked as it requires next to nothing. Try to get some fcr in bear form, get as many +skills on summon switch and use as big a hurty stick as you can find, that's pretty much it. Even skills are pretty loose requirement wise. First priority is to get your summmons beefed up, I found that dire wolves lasted pretty much all game up until Act 4 Hell River of flame before they started dying too much. Even after that they are good when you're being targeted from multiple ranged sources in that they offer more of a moving shield than a bear does. With 20 in Dire and 20 in Bear, he's nearly invincible. I topped him out with 20 into wolves and that was that. I maxed HoW this time around because I never had and it was great! Barty has ~3200 life shifted without BO and ~4500 def w/o trying so you're pretty safe especially when most everything is stunned with Shockwave. HoW gives you AR and an increase in your (pathetic) damage and your summon's and merc damage as well. Also either its AI is better than oaks or maybe it's lower on the monster's attack list so it doesnt die as much as Oak seems to. The only problem with the build is physical immunes so have something in mind for that. When I solo with this guy he's got Reaper's on his merc for that purpose.

Stats/Skills:
Name: BartholomewKuma
Class: Druid
Experience: 1008016476
Level: 84

Naked/Gear
Strength: 68/168
Dexterity: 92/136
Vitality: 330/357
Energy: 20/45
HP: 849/1062
Mana: 186/323
Stamina: 472/472
Defense: 23/1984
AR: 430/24822

Fire: 205/165/105
Cold: 193/153/93
Lightning: 230/190/130
Poison: 222/182/122

MF: 50 Block: 30
GF: 0
FR/W: 40
FHR: 153
IAS: 63
FCR: 41

Raven: 1/10
Poison Creeper: 0/0
Oak Sage: 1/10
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/10
Carrion Vine: 0/0
Heart of Wolverine: 20/29
Summon Dire Wolf: 20/29
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 20/29

Werewolf: 1/13
Lycanthropy: 6/18
Werebear: 6/18
Feral Rage: 1/13
Maul: 8/20
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 1/13
Hunger: 1/13
Shock Wave: 8/20
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 0/0
Molten Boulder: 0/0
Arctic Blast: 0/0
Fissure: 0/0
Cyclone Armor: 0/0
Twister: 0/0
Volcano: 0/0
Tornado: 0/0
Armageddon: 0/0
Hurricane: 0/0

Gear:
Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 247
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0xa4733833
Item Level: 64
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
+50% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+150% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
All Resistances +30
+5 to Mana after each Kill
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune

Shael Rune
Required Level: 29
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: +20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: +20% Faster Block Rate

Mara's Kaleidoscope
Amulet
Required Level: 67
Fingerprint: 0xdc78d07c
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
All Stats +5
All Resistances +29

Crawlingdeadman's Grief
Phase Blade
EthTirLoMalRal
One Hand Damage: 31 - 35
Indestructible
Required Level: 59
Required Strength: 25
Required Dexterity: 136
Fingerprint: 0x7d0a8173
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
35% Chance to cast level 15 Venom on striking
+38% Increased Attack Speed
Damage +363
Ignore Target's Defense
-25% Target Defense
+157% Damage to Demons (Based on Character Level)
Adds 5 - 30 Fire Damage
-20% to Enemy Poison Resistance
20% Deadly Strike
Prevent Monster Heal
+2 to Mana after each Kill
+12 Life after each Kill
5 Sockets (5 used)
Socketed: Eth Rune
Socketed: Tir Rune
Socketed: Lo Rune
Socketed: Mal Rune
Socketed: Ral Rune

Chains of Honor
Archon Plate
DolUmBerIst
Defense: 875
Durability: 60 of 60
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 103
Fingerprint: 0x54bd95d3
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+200% Damage to Demons
+100% Damage to Undead
8% Life stolen per hit
+70% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
Replenish Life +7
All Resistances +65
Damage Reduced by 8%
25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Dol Rune
Socketed: Um Rune
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Ist Rune

Spirit
Monarch
TalThulOrtAmn
Defense: 145
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0x5edc2dc
Item Level: 83
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+31% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+94 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+8 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Immortal King's Forge
War Gauntlets
Defense: 232
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Level: 30
Required Strength: 110
Fingerprint: 0x7462cab3
Item Level: 99
Version: Expansion 1.10+
12% Chance to cast level 4 Charged Bolt when struck
+65 Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Dexterity
Set (2 items): +25% Increased Attack Speed
Set (3 items): +120 Defense
Set (4 items): 10% Life stolen per hit
Set (5 items): 10% Mana stolen per hit
Set (6 items): Freezes target +2

(2 items): +50 to Attack Rating
(3 items): +75 to Attack Rating

Shadow Gyre
Ring
Required Level: 46
Fingerprint: 0x84e58a92
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Cast Rate
+48 to Attack Rating
4% Mana stolen per hit
5% Life stolen per hit
+3 to Mana
Poison Resist +29%

Immortal King's Detail
War Belt
Defense: 194
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 110
Fingerprint: 0x7d38fe8f
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+36 Defense
+25 to Strength
Lightning Resist +31%
Fire Resist +28%
Set (2 items): +105 Defense
Set (3 items): +25% Faster Hit Recovery
Set (4 items): +100% Enhanced Defense
Set (5 items): Damage Reduced by 20%
Set (6 items): +2 to Masteries Skills (Barbarian Only)

(2 items): +50 to Attack Rating
(3 items): +75 to Attack Rating

Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Fingerprint: 0x764602a
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+196 to Attack Rating
Adds 15 - 45 Cold Damage Over 4 Secs (100 Frames)
+19 to Dexterity
+40 to Mana
Cold Absorb 20%
Cannot Be Frozen

Immortal King's Pillar
War Boots
Defense: 123
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Level: 31
Required Strength: 125
Fingerprint: 0x874e1c07
Item Level: 94
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+40% Faster Run/Walk
+110 to Attack Rating
+75 Defense
+44 to Life
Set (2 items): 25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Set (3 items): +2 to Combat Skills (Barbarian Only)
Set (4 items): +160 Defense
Set (5 items): Half Freeze Duration

(2 items): +50 to Attack Rating
(3 items): +75 to Attack Rating

Switch:

SaekoBusujima's Heart of the Oak
Flail
KoVexPulThul
One Hand Damage: 1 - 24
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Level: 55
Required Strength: 41
Required Dexterity: 35
Fingerprint: 0x3a447a4d
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to All Skills
+40% Faster Cast Rate
+75% Damage to Demons
+100 to Attack Rating against Demons
+150% Damage to Undead
Adds 3 - 14 Cold Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
7% Mana stolen per hit
+10 to Dexterity
Replenish Life +20
Increase Maximum Mana 15%
All Resistances +40
Level 4 Oak Sage (25/25 Charges)
Level 14 Raven (60/60 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ko Rune
Socketed: Vex Rune
Socketed: Pul Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune

Spirit
Monarch
TalThulOrtAmn
Defense: 134
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0xac82c99e
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+27% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+89 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+8 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune

Merc:
Name: Hazade
Race: Desert Mercenary
Type: Off-Nightmare
Experience: 71972588
Level: 84
Dead?: false

Naked/Gear
Strength: 184/209
Dexterity: 148/163
HP: 1727/1837
Defense: 1274/1781
AR: 1898/1898

Fire: 193/153/93
Cold: 193/153/93
Lightning: 193/153/93
Poison: 193/153/93

Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest
Death Mask
Defense: 101
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 66
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x8e7d0fa4
Item Level: 62
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Mana stolen per hit
10% Life stolen per hit
+45 Defense
+60 to Life
+30 to Mana
All Resistances +15


Infinity
Great Poleaxe
BerMalBerIst
Two Hand Damage: 169 - 468
Durability: 43 of 55
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 179
Required Dexterity: 99
Fingerprint: 0xd8801d7d
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
50% Chance to cast level 20 Chain Lightning when you Kill an Enemy
Level 12 Conviction Aura When Equipped
+35% Faster Run/Walk
269% Enhanced Damage
-54% to Enemy Lightning Resistance
40% Chance of Crushing Blow
Prevent Monster Heal
+42 to Vitality (Based on Character Level)
30% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Level 21 Cyclone Armor (30/30 Charges)
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Mal Rune
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Ist Rune

Lionheart
Wire Fleece
HelLumFal
Defense: 406
Durability: 32 of 32
Required Level: 53
Required Strength: 95
Fingerprint: 0x70b229b9
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
20% Enhanced Damage
All Stats +10
+15 to Strength
+5 to Dexterity
+10 to Vitality
+50 to Life
All Resistances +30
Requirements -15%
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Hel Rune
Socketed: Lum Rune
Socketed: Fal Rune

Inventory:
Sharp Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 50
Fingerprint: 0xf8dc2f2c
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+6 to Maximum Damage
+26 to Attack Rating
+27 to Life

Iron Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 34
Fingerprint: 0xa0b5272b
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+28 to Attack Rating
+25 to Life

Sharp Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 34
Fingerprint: 0xa024495c
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+4 to Maximum Damage
+48 to Attack Rating
+21 to Life

Trainer's Grand Charm of Strength
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x3b1438a2
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Summoning Skills (Druid Only)
+5 to Strength

Steel Large Charm of Balance
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0x73620447
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+8% Faster Hit Recovery
+58 to Attack Rating

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xb2d93b4e
Item Level: 71
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+18 to Life

Ruby Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xead5f225
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
Fire Resist +11%

Shimmering Small Charm of the Glacier
Small Charm
Required Level: 25
Fingerprint: 0x40a491d
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 3 - 6 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
All Resistances +4

Garnet Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0x1546e95a
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
Fire Resist +8%

Ocher Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0x1127689e
Item Level: 58
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
Lightning Resist +6%

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x465f1f02
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+19 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xcda4c956
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+16 to Life

Fine Large Charm of Vita
Large Charm
Required Level: 50
Fingerprint: 0x17269b7e
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Maximum Damage
+18 to Attack Rating
+27 to Life

Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x96af40a
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+16 to Life

Spiritual Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xcffa155b
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)

Spiritual Grand Charm of Strength
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x892b2721
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+5 to Strength

Damage:
End of game LCS:
Maul no charge
Maul fully charged
Shockwave stun length

Did the calc thing. Dunno if I'm reading it right, but it says I was doing only 2234 damage for a fully charged maul. Seems right; it was enough to leech back and feel like I'm contributing, but not much more.

Action Shots:
Normal Lister, this is how all Baal runs went; everything stunned
Rando Desert action
Pretty colors in arcane
Stun em!
Hell Plains
River Monsters
I cant remember why I said this, but I'm sure we can agree
Obligatory CTH baal LCS shot
Pwning Baal

Noteable drops:
Hellforge:
NM: Pul
Hell: Um

Ohm from Hell Andy
Sur in Palace
Hell Meph
Hell Baal



I have no future plans for this character. He finished hell at 84 and is currently 86. He's a real fun MP character that easily takes on the role of crowd control and tank both. The build is very comparable to WC barb, but also has the meat shield benefits of a summoner. I would love to MP with him more, but general screwing around with complete characters doesn't happen much and I'm planning on taking him apart and putting him in the retirement home shortly. I would like to thank Pyro (but i wont) for the help and the great play through that I barely remember now. Next write-up may be coming tonight or tomorrow, buddy so you better get going on yours! Thank you all for reading this write-up. It's done at this point, but feel free to comment/ask questions (I may edit in some true damage calculations if I get ambitious as I'm curious how much Maul he is actually doing).

As always, thanks,

-CDM

Edit: Oh, snap, looks like Pyro got his done a long time ago, added link.
 
Originally posted by @Drystan on Oct 4, 2006:

Guardian Fenris - Wolfy (3/7)

Well, Fenris is now Guardian Fenris, the level 82 MAX Vit wolf.

He had a lot of trouble with losing 3k+ hp in seconds, but that was overcome with a slight change in tactics.
As recommended, I also got a bear, which I was quite disappointed with. To me, he was the worst minion you could get. He was the last into the fight (including my OS,) first to run away from a fight, and died at least 4 times more than my OS, despite using my OS as a tank (which worked quite well.) Half the time he'd stand around a corner dieing to poison. :shocked:

Had some more problems with PI's in the Arcane Sanctuary, but kept running the maps until I got past. After that, very little trouble, and Fenris could tank almost anything.

Oh, and I had to equip the Duriel's Shell and Aldur's Weapon to get enough strength to equip the Lionheart, which then gave enough strength to equip the Ethereal Edge.

Hell HellForge: Pul.

LCS
Stats:
STR: 15 (156)
DEX: 20 (77)
VIT: 445 (465)
ENE: 20 (50)
Life: 6310

0 Stat points remaining

Skills:
20 OS
20 Werewolf
20 Lycantrophy
20 Fury
1 Rabies, Feral Rage, Raven, Spirit Wolf, Dire Wolf, Bear

7 Skill points Remaining

Items
Rich (BB code):
Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 271
Durability: 13 of 20
(Druid Only)
Required Strength: 65
Required Level: 42
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0x6179b4bf
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
+174% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +30
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
30% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+5 to Mana After Each Kill
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)

Lionheart
Ornate Plate
'HelLumFal'
Defense: 434
Durability: 47 of 60
Required Strength: 145
Required Level: 41
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 85
Fingerprint: 0x9cb7c2b0
+25 to Strength
+10 to Energy
+15 to Dexterity
+20 to Vitality
+50 to Life
+20% Enhanced Damage
All Resistances +30
Requirements -15%
Socketed (3: 3 used)

Weapon 1:
Ethereal Edge
Silver-edged Axe
Two-Hand Damage: 252 to 448
Required Dexterity: 55
Required Strength: 156
Required Level: 74
Axe Class - Very Fast Attack Speed
Indestructible
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 86
Fingerprint: 0xa6d7a450
+172% Enhanced Damage
+288 to Attack Rating
25% Increased Attack Speed
185% Damage to Demons
+6 Life after each Demon Kill
+12 Fire Absorb
Indestructible
Ethereal (Cannot be Repaired)

Weapon 2:
Demon Limb
Tyrant Club
One-Hand Damage: 95 to 172
Durability: 65 of 65
Required Strength: 133
Required Level: 63
Mace Class - Normal Attack Speed
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0xfac9869c
+198% Enhanced Damage
Fire Resist +16%
Adds 222-333 fire damage
11% Life stolen per hit
123% Damage to Demons
150% Damage to Undead
Level 23 Enchant (16/20 Charges)
Repairs 1 durability in 20 seconds

Raven GorgetAmulet
Required Level: 63
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 73
Fingerprint: 0x4c37090f
+21 to Strength
+19 to Life
Fire Resist +25%
Lightning Resist +20%
Cold Resist +20%
Poison Resist +20%
Poison Length Reduced by 25%

Ring 1:
Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0xe56fe85
+20 to Dexterity
+40 to Mana
+175 to Attack Rating
Adds 15-45 cold damage over 4 seconds
20% Cold Absorb
Cannot Be Frozen

Ring 2:
Doom Eye
Ring
Required Level: 66
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 80
Fingerprint: 0x46d5029e
+16 to Strength
+40 to Life
+33 to Mana
+114 to Attack Rating
+3 to Maximum Damage
Poison Resist +9%

Immortal King's Forge
War Gauntlets
Defense: 112
Durability: 17 of 24
Required Strength: 110
Required Level: 30
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0x272a94
+20 to Strength
+20 to Dexterity
+65 Defense
12% Chance to cast Level 4 Charged Bolt when struck

***Partial Set Item Bonuses***
25% Increased Attack Speed
+120 Defense
10% Life stolen per hit
10% Mana stolen per hit
Freezes Target +2
***Partial Set Item Bonuses***

Immortal King's Detail
War Belt
Defense: 142
Durability: 16 of 24
Required Strength: 110
Required Level: 29
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0xafe28761
+25 to Strength
+36 Defense
Fire Resist +28%
Lightning Resist +31%

***Partial Set Item Bonuses***
+105 Defense
25% Faster Hit Recovery
+100% Enhanced Defense
Damage Reduced by 20%
+2 to Masteries Skills (Barbarian Only)
***Partial Set Item Bonuses***

Aldur's Advance
Battle Boots
Defense: 47
Required Strength: 95
Required Level: 45
Indestructible
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0x4e59f0c5
+50 to Life
+180 to Maximum Stamina
Heal Stamina Plus 32%
Fire Resist +45%
40% Faster Run/Walk
10% Damage Taken Goes to Mana
Indestructible

***Partial Set Item Bonuses***
+15 to Dexterity
+15 to Dexterity
+15 to Dexterity
***Partial Set Item Bonuses***

Charms
+352 to Life
+14 to Strength
+2 to Dexterity
+Fire Res: 19
+Light Res: 16
+Cold Res: 18
+Pois Res: 15
And some other +AR etc.

Merc Items
Peasant Crown
Duriel's Shell
Spire of Honour

I think that's all. :)
Anyway, next guardian, Aliandra, the LF/CS zon.
Some questions for her though. She just got slaughtered by Duriel, so what weapon should I use because none seem to do enough damage, and she can't stand in front and tank? Current level 20'ish. Cheers 👍

Drystan.
 
Originally posted by @Grisu on Dec 21, 2019:

Guardian #11: Oberon, the somehow botched S/U Worshipper Tournament 2017 Fire Claws/Grizzly Druid

Hello everybody and thanks for dropping by! For those who know me: Hello again. For those who don't: I wasn't very active the last few years, but very active in the late 2000s, up until my oldest daughter was born. I play HC self-found only and after some serious MFing back in 1.11 (leaving my grail at -1) I switched to playing mainly HC tournaments. This is my 8th tournament guardian - albeit a botched one. I tell you why in a minute, but first:

The S/U Worshipper Tournament 2017
The tournament rules (shortened version):
• Single pass HC
• Only Sets/Uniques may be equipped
• Sockets may only be filled with:
- emeralds
- topazes
- jewels with the green or the yellow graphic
- unique jewels
• All charms are allowed. (If you find Gheed’s Fortune, you must use it.)
• Merc equipment must follow the same rules as your character (socketables, white-/grey- and S/U items).
• Quest items (e.g. Khalim’s Will) may be used (because they are golden items) but they do not force you away from white/grey items if you’d rather use those.

The socket filler part was the part that made this character a botched tournament character. From NM on I used a Bonensap socketed with Shael and once I found my Witchwild String I put two Shaels into it...I honestly didn't remember the ruling about runes being not allowed as a socket filler and somehow thought, only runeword items were disallowed...alas, once I noticed it (shortly before freeing Anya in Hell difficulty), I decided to continue his quest nonetheless...the tournamet had concluded anyways and I didn't want to abandon the character shortly before making Guardian.

Here are the readouts of the character and his equipment with which I made Guardian:

Code:
Name:       Oberon
Class:      Druid
Experience: 1346353130
Level:      87

            Naked/Gear
Strength:   124/125
Dexterity:  111/113
Vitality:   260/260
Energy:     20/20
HP:         704/795
Mana:       192/207
Stamina:    384/534
Defense:    27/533
AR:         525/768

Fire:       180/140/80
Cold:       191/151/91
Lightning:  175/135/75
Poison:     106/66/6

MF:         181       Block:      11
GF:         166
FR/W:       40
FHR:        30
IAS:        60
FCR:        0

Raven: 1/1
Poison Creeper: 0/0
Oak Sage: 1/1
Summon Spirit Wolf: 1/1
Carrion Vine: 0/0
Heart of Wolverine: 0/0
Summon Dire Wolf: 4/4
Solar Creeper: 0/0
Spirit of Barbs: 0/0
Summon Grizzly: 14/14

Werewolf: 1/1
Lycanthropy: 4/4
Werebear: 1/1
Feral Rage: 1/1
Maul: 1/1
Rabies: 0/0
Fire Claws: 20/20
Hunger: 0/0
Shock Wave: 10/10
Fury: 0/0

Firestorm: 1/1
Molten Boulder: 17/17
Arctic Blast: 0/0
Fissure: 1/1
Cyclone Armor: 0/0
Twister: 0/0
Volcano: 20/20
Tornado: 0/0
Armageddon: 0/0
Hurricane: 0/0


Snowy Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0x2c2fc023
Item Level: 48
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 3 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
+15 to Life

Ocher Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xb0963caa
Item Level: 5
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +6%

Serpent's Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 40
Fingerprint: 0x4edc59f9
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+13 to Mana
5% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Lizard's Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0xf2e9dbf5
Item Level: 42
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+13 to Life
+2 to Mana

Ocher Small Charm of Strength
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x4515b9ec
Item Level: 7
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Strength
Lightning Resist +7%

Ocher Small Charm of Greed
Small Charm
Required Level: 15
Fingerprint: 0x2a5256df
Item Level: 14
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +6%
10% Extra Gold from Monsters

Lapis Small Charm of Dexterity
Small Charm
Required Level: 16
Fingerprint: 0x9ed98e5c
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Dexterity
Cold Resist +6%

Shimmering Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0xe5c717e3
Item Level: 37
Version: Expansion 1.10+
All Resistances +15

Amber Small Charm of Fire
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xee09154e
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 2 - 4 Fire Damage
Lightning Resist +10%

Snowy Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0x63e50dca
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
Adds 2 - 4 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)

Amber Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x97788fa5
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +13%

Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0xdb6953af
Item Level: 83
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Life

Aldur's Stony Gaze
Hunter's Guise
Defense: 158
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 36
Required Strength: 56
Fingerprint: 0x33d2b0dd
Item Level: 48
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+25% Faster Hit Recovery
+90 Defense
Regenerate Mana 17%
Cold Resist +44%
48% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+5 to Light Radius
Set (2 items): +15 to Energy
Set (3 items): +15 to Energy
Set (4 items): +15 to Energy
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Perfect Topaz
Socketed: Perfect Topaz


Perfect Topaz
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 40 Lightning Damage
Armor: 24% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Shields: Lightning Resist +40%

Perfect Topaz
Required Level: 18
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: Adds 1 - 40 Lightning Damage
Armor: 24% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Shields: Lightning Resist +40%

Vidala's Snare
Amulet
Required Level: 14
Fingerprint: 0xd3ee16fb
Item Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Life
Cold Resist +20%
Set (2 items): 50% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

(2 items): +75 to Attack Rating

Hawkmail
Scale Mail
Defense: 115
Durability: 27 of 36
Required Level: 15
Required Strength: 44
Fingerprint: 0x45625ba5
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Faster Run/Walk
+89% Enhanced Defense
+15% to Maximum Cold Resist
Cold Resist +15%
Lightning Resist +27%
Cannot Be Frozen
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Ambergris Jewel

Ambergris Jewel
Jewel
Required Level: 14
Fingerprint: 0x7cd74739
Item Level: 67
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +27%

Nagelring
Ring
Required Level: 7
Fingerprint: 0x1a3f2793
Item Level: 22
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+69 to Attack Rating
Magic Damage Reduced by 3
Attacker Takes Damage of 3
17% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Nagelring
Ring
Required Level: 7
Fingerprint: 0x50bb6df8
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+55 to Attack Rating
Magic Damage Reduced by 3
Attacker Takes Damage of 3
18% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Hwanin's Blessing
Belt
Defense: 135
Durability: 14 of 16
Required Level: 35
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0x3a38e49a
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 3 - 33 Lightning Damage
Prevent Monster Heal
+130 Defense (Based on Character Level)
12% Damage Taken Goes To Mana


Vidala's Fetlock
Light Plated Boots
Defense: 11
Durability: 16 of 18
Required Level: 14
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0xd9a22b88
Item Level: 53
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Run/Walk
+150 Maximum Stamina
Set (2 items): Cold Resist +8%
Lightning Resist +8%
Fire Resist +8%
Poison Resist +8%

(2 items): +75 to Attack Rating

Laying of Hands
Bramble Mitts
Defense: 86
Durability: 10 of 12
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0x33481a0
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Chance to cast level 3 Holy Bolt on striking
+20% Increased Attack Speed
+350% Damage to Demons
+25 Defense
Fire Resist +50%


Gheed's Fortune
Grand Charm
Required Level: 62
Fingerprint: 0x532ca1c1
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
156% Extra Gold from Monsters
Reduces all Vendor Prices 12%
38% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Shimmering Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0x28ce145c
Item Level: 36
Version: Expansion 1.10+
All Resistances +13

Garnet Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 15
Fingerprint: 0x8c0019c0
Item Level: 82
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +24%

Steel Grand Charm of Sustenance
Grand Charm
Required Level: 53
Fingerprint: 0x34ee2bfc
Item Level: 63
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+109 to Attack Rating
+33 to Life

Bonesnap
War Club
Two Hand Damage: 175 - 258
Durability: 58 of 60
Required Level: 34
Required Strength: 124
Fingerprint: 0xed98fbb1
Item Level: 53
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Increased Attack Speed
232% Enhanced Damage
+200% Damage to Undead
40% Chance of Crushing Blow
Cold Resist +30%
Fire Resist +30%
Required Level +5
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune

Shael Rune
Required Level: 29
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: +20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: +20% Faster Block Rate

Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0x365d00f2
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Unidentified
5% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Witchwild String
Short Siege Bow
Two Hand Damage: 34 - 80
Durability: 35 of 40
Required Level: 39
Required Strength: 65
Required Dexterity: 80
Fingerprint: 0x8989332d
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
2% Chance to cast level 5 Amplify Damage on striking
+40% Increased Attack Speed
Fires Magic Arrows
167% Enhanced Damage
87% Deadly Strike (Based on Character Level)
All Resistances +40
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Shael Rune
Socketed: Shael Rune

Shael Rune
Required Level: 29
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: +20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: +20% Faster Block Rate

Shael Rune
Required Level: 29
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: +20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: +20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: +20% Faster Block Rate

Mercenary:

Name:       Neeraj
Race:       Desert Mercenary
Type:       Def-Nightmare
Experience: 79947844
Level:      87
Dead?:      false

            Naked/Gear
Strength:   190/190
Dexterity:  153/153
HP:         1847/1907
Defense:    1359/1951
AR:         1937/1982

Fire:       166/126/66
Cold:       166/126/66
Lightning:  166/126/66
Poison:    166/126/66

Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest
Death Mask
Defense: 109
Durability: 12 of 20
Required Level: 66
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x28613da2
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
10% Mana stolen per hit
10% Life stolen per hit
+45 Defense
+60 to Life
+30 to Mana
All Resistances +15



Rattlecage
Embossed Plate
Defense: 483
Durability: 44 of 55
Required Level: 30
Required Strength: 125
Fingerprint: 0x1304f94d
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+45 to Attack Rating
25% Chance of Crushing Blow
Hit Causes Monster to Flee 40%
+200 Defense
Required Level +5


Arioc's Needle
Hyperion Spear
Two Hand Damage: 154 - 528
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 81
Required Strength: 145
Required Dexterity: 110
Fingerprint: 0xa31dbfa5
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to All Skills
+30% Increased Attack Speed
197% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
Adds 394 Poison Damage Over 10 Secs (250 Frames)
50% Deadly Strike
Ethereal

This was what my LCS looks like w/o Holy Freeze active and with Oak Sage:
1590574989138.png

Note the 666 defense which are a bazillion style points in a game called Diablo!!!
I had the 10 skill points left in case I found some even better suited item that needed more DEX and/or STR.

Essential part of my gear were two items: Firstly, the Hawk Mail for its CBF mod and secondly the Witchwild String for fast attacks and its Resist all mod and for being an awesome weapon overall. Two early Nagelrings (Act I and Act III normal) provided me with enough MF to get the MF train rolling (and with enough AR to actually hit some things!).

For boss kills, the Bonensnap I found in Act III NM was very useful and once the WWS dropped in Act V NM, Oberon's journey was much more safer.

I opted for an Act II HF mercenary to have a way to deal with FI/PI monsters. Also, it made gameplay much safer. And the eth Arioc's Needle drop was gg, obviously (Courtsey from Hell Mephisto).

You can read about my progress in the following posts:

Normal Act I
Normal Act II
Normal Act III/IV
Normal Act V
NM Act I
Intermezzo - finding Aldur's Stony Gaze in Act II NM!
NM Act II
NM Act III/IV
NM Act V
Hell Act I
Hell Act II
Hell Act III
Hell Act IV/V
Hell Act V

Random facts:
#1: This character was namend after the mythological Oberon, not after the Iron Druid Chronicles Oberon. But after a hint in that direction from @Drystan (thanks btw!) I read the whole Iron Druid chronicles and enjoyed it very much. It is fast paced and funny and reminds me of the Dresden Files (still waiting for that delayed book 16 - Peace Talks...you hear me, Jim Butcher? ;-)

#2: Stopped playing in May 2018 after beating Diablo in Hell, played some more one year later in 4/19, then had a break of 7 months again before finishing in November 2019.

#3: Nutella is the best chocolate cream. Period. And it tastes good with pretzels.

#4: Shockwave. Make a shockwave Druid. It's awesome.

#5: From time to time, when I felt like it, I didn't pop chests/urns etc. immediately, but cleared the area first, then equipped my ethereal Goldwrap and Lagner Briser for an additional 82% MF. Sometimes I didn't bother though, because it is quite time consuming.

#6: I use my merc and myself as a short-time mule for items to sell, i.e. if I am overburdened and after a large fight there are some items lying around I want to sell, I drop my equipment and equip the newly found items (mostly exc/elite armors and caster items, they are worth the most) and go back to town to sell them, then go back and pick up my equipment again. Of course, that doesn't work in this tournament, because I may only equipe S/U items...so more town trips were needed. I pray, that one of those days I don't accidentially S&E after selling my items in town :rolleyes:

Special thanks:
- @jiansonz for hosting the tournament and being such an awesome forumite and player! I worship the (untwinked) ground you walk on and learned so much from you just reading your posts! Thank you very much!
- The site Wereform Central (shut down in the meantime, have backup locally) for giving accurate attack speeds in Wereform (as far as I know)
- all the participants in the S/U worshipper tournament - I was especially glad to see @Wolron back, because his obsession tournament was the one that sucked me into D2 tournaments way back in 2006 - thank you!
- our great and dedicated moderators (actual and former) for keeping this place busy AND tidy! - thank you!
- everyone taking their time to read and comment in the SPF in general - I think I would have quit for good long ago if it weren't for everyone of you!

Thanks for reading everyone!
 
Diablo 4 Interactive Map
PurePremium
Estimated market value
Low
High