- Jun 11, 2018
- 654
- 9
- 3
Patriarch Cameron – Feral Rage / Fury Werewolf
Cameron is my middle child and the second member of my family to get a character themed for him, following Milo. Cameron has a bad habit of biting when he gets mad. So, werewolf was the obvious character choice. At first I was planning a fury/rabies build, but those skills don’t synergize particularly well, rabies is generally not great, and I wanted to (unwisely) drop some expensive jewels into a 3os Tomb Reaver I had found previously. Spending so much on the weapon further inclined me to go all in with a physical damage build.
Stats/Skills:
Name: Cameron
Class: Druid
Experience: 1765347227
Level: 91
Naked/Gear
Strength: 122/165
Dexterity: 82/103
Vitality: 321/321
Energy: 20/40
HP: 842/2260
Mana: 200/256
Stamina: 470/620
Defense: 1866
AR: 9570 / 9117 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ Might only)
AR: 11727 / 11275 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ HoW and Might)
Damage: 1031-4467 / 1494-6580 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ Might only)
Damage: 1288-5640 / 1751-7753 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ HoW and Might)
Boost to AR from HoW: 2157 / 2158 Feral Rage / Fury
Boost to damage from HoW: 257-1173 / 257-1173 Feral Rage / Fury
^Interesting that those boosts are the same for both Feral Rage and Fury; I guess they are applied in the AR and damage equations independent of the boosts from Feral and Fury?
Resistances
Fire: 80
Cold: 77
Lightning: 76
Poison: 81
Other Stats:
MF: 113
Block: 9
GF: 156
FR/W: 30
FHR: 90 (86% breakpoint)
WIAS: 90% (5 FPA Feral Rage, 4/4/4/4/7 FPA Fury)
FCR: 0
Skills:
20(28 on switch) Werewolf
20(28 on switch) Lycanthropy
20(24) Fury
20(24) Feral Rage
20(24 on switch) Heart of Wolverine
2 Pre-requisites
Maxing 5 skills at level 91 is very nice; this build is extremely skill point efficient.
Gear
Tl;dr version:
Helm: Jalal’s Mane with 8% res all / 7% FHR jewel
Amulet: Chromatic Amulet of the Bat (30/4)
Armor: Duress Archon Plate
Weapon: Tomb Reaver 332% ED, 90% IAS, 34% res all, 64% MF (39% Ruby Jewel, 36/15 RJoF, 22/15 RJoF)
Switch: Fleshrender / Lidless Wall (for transforming and casting HoW)
Gloves: Rare with 26% LR, 14% PR, 23% MF
Belt: String of Ears (14% DR, 7% LL)
Boots: Gore Rider
Ring: Raven Frost (181/17)
Ring: Rare with +18 Strength, 27% FR, 8% LL
Readouts:
Charms:
Tl;dr version:
Leaving 8x2 free space plus TP tome, cube, and keys, an assortment totaling 6% FR, 3% LR, 20% PR, 494 AR, 13% FHR, 4 dex, 3 str, 26% MF, 156% GF, 1-2 cold damage
Readouts:
Mercenary:
Tl;dr version:
Act 2, Might
Reaper’s Toll
Tal’s Mask
Duriel’s Shell
Readouts:
Random Musings
Long version:
Regarding the Tomb Reaver: A big thank you to @T72on1 for trading me his slightly better 3os Tomby (335%) for my 226%er and a handful of pgems, and to @Zylo for trading me a 22/15 RJoF for a pile of Nef runes; together those two trades (in addition to the 39% Ruby Jewel and the 36/15 RJoF found by Milo) allowed me to put together a pretty fun toy. Sure, it’s no eth Zod’d variant, but it got the job done pretty well regardless. Easily one of the most stylish weapons I’ve used in D2 thus far.
Leveling to 84: I played norm and nm on p8, hell acts 1-2 on p7, and hell act 3 on p5. I completed all quests, conquered all side areas (sparkly chests), killed all super uniques, and got all waypoints. As for the gameplay itself, after playing a max block paladin this character took some getting used to. Consistently felt much squishier than the pally even with ~2x the life in the end. Leveling early on was fairly easy though, as werewolf, lycanthropy, and feral rage were all available early. I tried to stick with polearms throughout the journey, equipping Insight at level 27, a Bec-de-Corbin Insight a few levels later once str/dex requirements were met, and a 2x Shael’d Bonehew at level 64. Due to pumping strength/dex for various polearms, my life was a little on the low side in nightmare and this resulted in my first two deaths in this difficulty in a long, long time: Geleb Flamefinger’s death explosion, and a death-by-stubbornness-turned-hit recovery-lock to some Frenzytaur champs in the Ancient’s Way. Like I said, some getting used to was required. I moved onto Hell and leveled in the Pits to 84.
I really enjoyed having both Feral Rage and Fury maxed – it was much less redundant than I thought it would be. The general strategy was to use Fury to do most of the damage, switching to Feral Rage periodically to keep it charged. Feral Rage was also fantastic for sniping specific enemies within packs, whereas Fury just causes you to take turns swiping at everything in range. That was especially useful for taking down dangerous aura-enchanted uniques quickly. The FRW from Feral Rage was also very nice, although that often meant that the merc took his sweet time wandering over to join the battle. Fury seemed very buggy at times, much more so with Bonehew than with Tomb Reaver. I suspect the shorter range and slightly slower attack speed of Bonehew may be partly responsible. Due to the somewhat lackluster performance I was getting with Bonehew, and the fact that its damage was close to what Tomb Reaver was going to put out, I was a little worried about the strength of the final build considering the jewels I had invested. Once I equipped the Reaver, however, things got MUCH better. Fewer fury cycles were whiffing, my resistances were higher, drops improved, and I occasionally pretended to be a necromancer.
The moron lived up to his name, frequently charging bravely ahead to kill flayers while alternately hiding behind various objects in dangerous situations when decrepify would have been a massive help. Not that I didn’t hide with him at times. A very close runner-up for moron of the year was the Heart of Wolverine. No matter where I cast the damned thing, it seemed intent on charging right into the middle of every fight and promptly dying. At times I would play the Diablo II minigame, “how long can you keep the floating ball alive?” Usually not very long. But still, the boosts to damage and AR were very welcome when he was around so I didn’t respec to something else. Besides, if I’m to have a weak floating assistant that constantly dies, I’d rather have one that doesn’t greatly affect my life pool and therefore my relative safety (Oak Sage). All breakable PIs were safe enough to kill, albeit tedious due to their still-too-high physical resistance. The cold damage from Duress helped take down unbreakable PIs, as open wounds just didn’t seem to trigger like it should a lot of the time. That was especially noticeable with this PI/CI spawner boss, who took about 10 minutes to kill and I never noticed any bleeding (despite wearing Duress and Gore Rider). Large numbers of unleechables were tough but not unmanageable due to the relatively high HP pool. Yay explosion screenshots.
So, the ancients. Well, they were tame. All easy mods on the first roll and the battle took less than 2 minutes, even on p5. I kind of wish they had had tougher mods, but 1 on 1 this Druid is hard to take down with the damage he does with Fury, the leech of Feral Rage, and crushing blow. Any high HP enemies dropped very quickly. Lister and company were separated, as the constant stun/knockback without any blocking can cause problems. At one point one of them had me cornered next to a torch on the ground, with the merc dead, but at least there was no more knockback. Baal himself was a pushover, as were his drops. Final LCS after hitting level 91 (patted at 89 due to impatience).
Good finds included an SoJ in NM The Hole level 2, this nifty little charm (since traded to @T72on1 – thanks for the trade!), Griffon’s Eye, Skullder’s Ire, Mal, and Pul while leveling in the Pits, Ohm, a few various skillers, Guillaume’s Face, a 34% ruby jewel, this impressive level 13 ring, some various useful charms, Seraph’s Hymn, a nifty rare jewel, Sazabi’s Cobalt Redeemer, and probably 50+ other random sets/uniques not worth mentioning (including just about every exceptional unique body armor). Forges were Dol in NM and Pul in Hell. Also found a Vex on my second to last AT run leveling to 91.
Tl;dr version: Overall, a very fun build once I got used to the lack of blocking. There is a lot of potential for more damage (Guillaume’s and Fortitude in particular), but I enjoyed the balanced, maxed resists approach I took. Feral Rage and Fury are great compliments to one another and make for a strong all around physical damage based melee fighter, and switching between the two keeps things interesting. Lastly, questing with some MF equipped tends to pay off and makes the journey that much more fun.
Cameron is my middle child and the second member of my family to get a character themed for him, following Milo. Cameron has a bad habit of biting when he gets mad. So, werewolf was the obvious character choice. At first I was planning a fury/rabies build, but those skills don’t synergize particularly well, rabies is generally not great, and I wanted to (unwisely) drop some expensive jewels into a 3os Tomb Reaver I had found previously. Spending so much on the weapon further inclined me to go all in with a physical damage build.
Stats/Skills:
Name: Cameron
Class: Druid
Experience: 1765347227
Level: 91
Naked/Gear
Strength: 122/165
Dexterity: 82/103
Vitality: 321/321
Energy: 20/40
HP: 842/2260
Mana: 200/256
Stamina: 470/620
Defense: 1866
AR: 9570 / 9117 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ Might only)
AR: 11727 / 11275 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ HoW and Might)
Damage: 1031-4467 / 1494-6580 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ Might only)
Damage: 1288-5640 / 1751-7753 Feral Rage / Fury (w/ HoW and Might)
Boost to AR from HoW: 2157 / 2158 Feral Rage / Fury
Boost to damage from HoW: 257-1173 / 257-1173 Feral Rage / Fury
^Interesting that those boosts are the same for both Feral Rage and Fury; I guess they are applied in the AR and damage equations independent of the boosts from Feral and Fury?
Resistances
Fire: 80
Cold: 77
Lightning: 76
Poison: 81
Other Stats:
MF: 113
Block: 9
GF: 156
FR/W: 30
FHR: 90 (86% breakpoint)
WIAS: 90% (5 FPA Feral Rage, 4/4/4/4/7 FPA Fury)
FCR: 0
Skills:
20(28 on switch) Werewolf
20(28 on switch) Lycanthropy
20(24) Fury
20(24) Feral Rage
20(24 on switch) Heart of Wolverine
2 Pre-requisites
Maxing 5 skills at level 91 is very nice; this build is extremely skill point efficient.
Gear
Tl;dr version:
Helm: Jalal’s Mane with 8% res all / 7% FHR jewel
Amulet: Chromatic Amulet of the Bat (30/4)
Armor: Duress Archon Plate
Weapon: Tomb Reaver 332% ED, 90% IAS, 34% res all, 64% MF (39% Ruby Jewel, 36/15 RJoF, 22/15 RJoF)
Switch: Fleshrender / Lidless Wall (for transforming and casting HoW)
Gloves: Rare with 26% LR, 14% PR, 23% MF
Belt: String of Ears (14% DR, 7% LL)
Boots: Gore Rider
Ring: Raven Frost (181/17)
Ring: Rare with +18 Strength, 27% FR, 8% LL
Readouts:
Cameron's Jalal's Mane
Totemic Mask
Defense: 288
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0xab5ba52
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
+37% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+191% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
All Resistances +38
+5 to Mana after each Kill
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Shimmering Jewel of Truth
Shimmering Jewel of Truth
Jewel
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0xf9861e96
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+7% Faster Hit Recovery
Cold Resist +8%
Lightning Resist +8%
Fire Resist +8%
Poison Resist +8%
Chromatic Amulet of the Bat
Amulet
Required Level: 41
Fingerprint: 0x92e9aba8
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
4% Mana stolen per hit
All Resistances +30
Cameron's Duress
Archon Plate
ShaelUmThul
Defense: 1287
Durability: 58 of 60
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 103
Fingerprint: 0x52e415ea
Item Level: 86
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
+174% 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
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%
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%
Cameron's Tomb Reaver
Cryptic Axe
Two Hand Damage: 142 - 648
Durability: 49 of 65
Required Level: 84
Required Strength: 165
Required Dexterity: 103
Fingerprint: 0xf8f30c3a
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+90% Increased Attack Speed
332% Enhanced Damage
+196% Damage to Undead
+283 to Attack Rating against Undead
All Resistances +34
10% Reanimate as: Returned
+10 Life after each Kill
64% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+4 to Light Radius
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Ruby Jewel
Socketed: Ruby Jewel of Fervor
Socketed: Realgar Jewel of Fervor
Ruby Jewel
Jewel
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x2d763dda
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
39% Enhanced Damage
Ruby Jewel of Fervor
Jewel
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x90bab2b9
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Increased Attack Speed
36% Enhanced Damage
Realgar Jewel of Fervor
Jewel
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0xb9d876e1
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Increased Attack Speed
22% Enhanced Damage
Fleshrender
Barbed Club
One Hand Damage: 65 - 107
Durability: 56 of 56
Required Level: 38
Required Strength: 30
Fingerprint: 0x5515ea5d
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+1 to Druid Skill Levels
131% Enhanced Damage
Adds 35 - 50 Damage
+150% Damage to Undead
20% Chance of Crushing Blow
20% Deadly Strike
25% Chance of Open Wounds
Prevent Monster Heal
+20 Maximum Durability
Lidless Wall
Grim Shield
Defense: 274
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 70 of 70
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 58
Fingerprint: 0xc8eb1a9f
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+20% Faster Cast Rate
+82% Enhanced Defense
+10 to Energy
Increase Maximum Mana 10%
+3 to Mana after each Kill
+1 to Light Radius
Skull Knuckle
Light Gauntlets
Defense: 17
Durability: 17 of 18
Required Level: 14
Required Strength: 45
Fingerprint: 0x5bce4163
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
12% Chance to cast level 4 Charged Bolt when struck
+45% Enhanced Defense
+2 to Strength
Lightning Resist +26%
Poison Resist +14%
23% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
String of Ears
Demonhide Sash
Defense: 107
Durability: 21 of 22
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0x91caa474
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Life stolen per hit
+163% Enhanced Defense
+15 Defense
Damage Reduced by 14%
Magic Damage Reduced by 13
+10 Maximum Durability
Gore Rider
War Boots
Defense: 142
Durability: 33 of 34
Required Level: 47
Required Strength: 94
Fingerprint: 0x32f1ed98
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Run/Walk
15% Chance of Crushing Blow
15% Deadly Strike
10% Chance of Open Wounds
+163% Enhanced Defense
+20 Maximum Stamina
Requirements -25%
+10 Maximum Durability
Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Fingerprint: 0xaaf7c526
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+181 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
Blood Grasp
Ring
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x8250390e
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 50 Poison Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
8% Life stolen per hit
+18 to Strength
+6 Maximum Stamina
Fire Resist +27%
Totemic Mask
Defense: 288
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0xab5ba52
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+2 to Druid Skill Levels
+37% Faster Hit Recovery
20% Bonus to Attack Rating
+191% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
+20 to Energy
All Resistances +38
+5 to Mana after each Kill
1 Sockets (1 used)
Socketed: Shimmering Jewel of Truth
Shimmering Jewel of Truth
Jewel
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0xf9861e96
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+7% Faster Hit Recovery
Cold Resist +8%
Lightning Resist +8%
Fire Resist +8%
Poison Resist +8%
Chromatic Amulet of the Bat
Amulet
Required Level: 41
Fingerprint: 0x92e9aba8
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
4% Mana stolen per hit
All Resistances +30
Cameron's Duress
Archon Plate
ShaelUmThul
Defense: 1287
Durability: 58 of 60
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 103
Fingerprint: 0x52e415ea
Item Level: 86
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
+174% 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
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%
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%
Cameron's Tomb Reaver
Cryptic Axe
Two Hand Damage: 142 - 648
Durability: 49 of 65
Required Level: 84
Required Strength: 165
Required Dexterity: 103
Fingerprint: 0xf8f30c3a
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+90% Increased Attack Speed
332% Enhanced Damage
+196% Damage to Undead
+283 to Attack Rating against Undead
All Resistances +34
10% Reanimate as: Returned
+10 Life after each Kill
64% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+4 to Light Radius
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Ruby Jewel
Socketed: Ruby Jewel of Fervor
Socketed: Realgar Jewel of Fervor
Ruby Jewel
Jewel
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x2d763dda
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
39% Enhanced Damage
Ruby Jewel of Fervor
Jewel
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x90bab2b9
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Increased Attack Speed
36% Enhanced Damage
Realgar Jewel of Fervor
Jewel
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0xb9d876e1
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15% Increased Attack Speed
22% Enhanced Damage
Fleshrender
Barbed Club
One Hand Damage: 65 - 107
Durability: 56 of 56
Required Level: 38
Required Strength: 30
Fingerprint: 0x5515ea5d
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Shape-Shifting Skills (Druid Only)
+1 to Druid Skill Levels
131% Enhanced Damage
Adds 35 - 50 Damage
+150% Damage to Undead
20% Chance of Crushing Blow
20% Deadly Strike
25% Chance of Open Wounds
Prevent Monster Heal
+20 Maximum Durability
Lidless Wall
Grim Shield
Defense: 274
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 70 of 70
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 58
Fingerprint: 0xc8eb1a9f
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+20% Faster Cast Rate
+82% Enhanced Defense
+10 to Energy
Increase Maximum Mana 10%
+3 to Mana after each Kill
+1 to Light Radius
Skull Knuckle
Light Gauntlets
Defense: 17
Durability: 17 of 18
Required Level: 14
Required Strength: 45
Fingerprint: 0x5bce4163
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
12% Chance to cast level 4 Charged Bolt when struck
+45% Enhanced Defense
+2 to Strength
Lightning Resist +26%
Poison Resist +14%
23% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
String of Ears
Demonhide Sash
Defense: 107
Durability: 21 of 22
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 20
Fingerprint: 0x91caa474
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Life stolen per hit
+163% Enhanced Defense
+15 Defense
Damage Reduced by 14%
Magic Damage Reduced by 13
+10 Maximum Durability
Gore Rider
War Boots
Defense: 142
Durability: 33 of 34
Required Level: 47
Required Strength: 94
Fingerprint: 0x32f1ed98
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Run/Walk
15% Chance of Crushing Blow
15% Deadly Strike
10% Chance of Open Wounds
+163% Enhanced Defense
+20 Maximum Stamina
Requirements -25%
+10 Maximum Durability
Raven Frost
Ring
Required Level: 45
Fingerprint: 0xaaf7c526
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+181 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
Blood Grasp
Ring
Required Level: 66
Fingerprint: 0x8250390e
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 50 Poison Damage Over 3 Secs (75 Frames)
8% Life stolen per hit
+18 to Strength
+6 Maximum Stamina
Fire Resist +27%
Charms:
Tl;dr version:
Leaving 8x2 free space plus TP tome, cube, and keys, an assortment totaling 6% FR, 3% LR, 20% PR, 494 AR, 13% FHR, 4 dex, 3 str, 26% MF, 156% GF, 1-2 cold damage
Readouts:
Tangerine Small Charm of Frost
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xb39bdd79
Item Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 2 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
Lightning Resist +3%
Steel Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 49
Fingerprint: 0xe9f528cb
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+31 to Attack Rating
Steel Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 49
Fingerprint: 0x93893523
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+27 to Attack Rating
Steel Large Charm of Greed
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0x24a80c71
Item Level: 58
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+60 to Attack Rating
18% Extra Gold from Monsters
Steel Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0x525ea030
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+58 to Attack Rating
Steel Large Charm of Balance
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0xb21b609b
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+8% Faster Hit Recovery
+57 to Attack Rating
Steel Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0xaf96b7ea
Item Level: 64
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+56 to Attack Rating
Iron Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 31
Fingerprint: 0x62f18b68
Item Level: 81
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
+19 to Attack Rating
Russet Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xee4fb3c4
Item Level: 1
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +6%
Viridian Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x5d6c5ca8
Item Level: 66
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +7%
Emerald Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0xc15f120
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +13%
Iron Grand Charm of Dexterity
Grand Charm
Required Level: 23
Fingerprint: 0x18889ba5
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+83 to Attack Rating
+4 to Dexterity
Steel Grand Charm of Strength
Grand Charm
Required Level: 35
Fingerprint: 0x4a05be6a
Item Level: 63
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+103 to Attack Rating
+3 to Strength
Gheed's Fortune
Grand Charm
Required Level: 62
Fingerprint: 0x3f61a0a6
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
138% Extra Gold from Monsters
Reduces all Vendor Prices 11%
26% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xb39bdd79
Item Level: 23
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 2 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
Lightning Resist +3%
Steel Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 49
Fingerprint: 0xe9f528cb
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+31 to Attack Rating
Steel Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 49
Fingerprint: 0x93893523
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+27 to Attack Rating
Steel Large Charm of Greed
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0x24a80c71
Item Level: 58
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+60 to Attack Rating
18% Extra Gold from Monsters
Steel Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0x525ea030
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+58 to Attack Rating
Steel Large Charm of Balance
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0xb21b609b
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+8% Faster Hit Recovery
+57 to Attack Rating
Steel Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 36
Fingerprint: 0xaf96b7ea
Item Level: 64
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+56 to Attack Rating
Iron Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 31
Fingerprint: 0x62f18b68
Item Level: 81
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
+19 to Attack Rating
Russet Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0xee4fb3c4
Item Level: 1
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +6%
Viridian Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x5d6c5ca8
Item Level: 66
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +7%
Emerald Large Charm
Large Charm
Required Level: 27
Fingerprint: 0xc15f120
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Poison Resist +13%
Iron Grand Charm of Dexterity
Grand Charm
Required Level: 23
Fingerprint: 0x18889ba5
Item Level: 75
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+83 to Attack Rating
+4 to Dexterity
Steel Grand Charm of Strength
Grand Charm
Required Level: 35
Fingerprint: 0x4a05be6a
Item Level: 63
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+103 to Attack Rating
+3 to Strength
Gheed's Fortune
Grand Charm
Required Level: 62
Fingerprint: 0x3f61a0a6
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
138% Extra Gold from Monsters
Reduces all Vendor Prices 11%
26% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Mercenary:
Tl;dr version:
Act 2, Might
Reaper’s Toll
Tal’s Mask
Duriel’s Shell
Readouts:
Name: Razan
Race: Desert
Mercenary
Type: Off-Nightmare
Experience: 89022490
Level: 90
Dead?: false
Naked/Gear
Strength: 195/210
Dexterity: 157/157
HP: 1967/2118
Defense: 1444/2259
AR: 1970/1970
Fire: 189/149/89
Cold: 219/179/119
Lightning: 189/149/89
Poison: 189/149/89
Duriel's Shell
Cuirass
Defense: 705
Durability: 27 of 150
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0x435ea757
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+192% Enhanced Defense
+113 Defense (Based on Character Level)
+15 to Strength
+91 to Life (Based on Character Level)
Cold Resist +30%
All Resistances +20
Cannot Be Frozen
+100 Maximum Durability
Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest
Death Mask
Defense: 110
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 66
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x6acfd18a
Item Level: 86
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
The Reaper's Toll
Thresher
Two Hand Damage: 36 - 427
Durability: 61 of 65
Required Level: 75
Required Strength: 114
Required Dexterity: 89
Fingerprint: 0x7eb47447
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
33% Chance to cast level 1 Decrepify on striking
203% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
Adds 4 - 44 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (34 Frames)
13% Life stolen per hit
33% Deadly Strike
Requirements -25%
Race: Desert
Mercenary
Type: Off-Nightmare
Experience: 89022490
Level: 90
Dead?: false
Naked/Gear
Strength: 195/210
Dexterity: 157/157
HP: 1967/2118
Defense: 1444/2259
AR: 1970/1970
Fire: 189/149/89
Cold: 219/179/119
Lightning: 189/149/89
Poison: 189/149/89
Duriel's Shell
Cuirass
Defense: 705
Durability: 27 of 150
Required Level: 41
Required Strength: 65
Fingerprint: 0x435ea757
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+192% Enhanced Defense
+113 Defense (Based on Character Level)
+15 to Strength
+91 to Life (Based on Character Level)
Cold Resist +30%
All Resistances +20
Cannot Be Frozen
+100 Maximum Durability
Tal Rasha's Horadric Crest
Death Mask
Defense: 110
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 66
Required Strength: 55
Fingerprint: 0x6acfd18a
Item Level: 86
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
The Reaper's Toll
Thresher
Two Hand Damage: 36 - 427
Durability: 61 of 65
Required Level: 75
Required Strength: 114
Required Dexterity: 89
Fingerprint: 0x7eb47447
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
33% Chance to cast level 1 Decrepify on striking
203% Enhanced Damage
Ignore Target's Defense
Adds 4 - 44 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (34 Frames)
13% Life stolen per hit
33% Deadly Strike
Requirements -25%
Random Musings
Long version:
Regarding the Tomb Reaver: A big thank you to @T72on1 for trading me his slightly better 3os Tomby (335%) for my 226%er and a handful of pgems, and to @Zylo for trading me a 22/15 RJoF for a pile of Nef runes; together those two trades (in addition to the 39% Ruby Jewel and the 36/15 RJoF found by Milo) allowed me to put together a pretty fun toy. Sure, it’s no eth Zod’d variant, but it got the job done pretty well regardless. Easily one of the most stylish weapons I’ve used in D2 thus far.
Leveling to 84: I played norm and nm on p8, hell acts 1-2 on p7, and hell act 3 on p5. I completed all quests, conquered all side areas (sparkly chests), killed all super uniques, and got all waypoints. As for the gameplay itself, after playing a max block paladin this character took some getting used to. Consistently felt much squishier than the pally even with ~2x the life in the end. Leveling early on was fairly easy though, as werewolf, lycanthropy, and feral rage were all available early. I tried to stick with polearms throughout the journey, equipping Insight at level 27, a Bec-de-Corbin Insight a few levels later once str/dex requirements were met, and a 2x Shael’d Bonehew at level 64. Due to pumping strength/dex for various polearms, my life was a little on the low side in nightmare and this resulted in my first two deaths in this difficulty in a long, long time: Geleb Flamefinger’s death explosion, and a death-by-stubbornness-turned-hit recovery-lock to some Frenzytaur champs in the Ancient’s Way. Like I said, some getting used to was required. I moved onto Hell and leveled in the Pits to 84.
I really enjoyed having both Feral Rage and Fury maxed – it was much less redundant than I thought it would be. The general strategy was to use Fury to do most of the damage, switching to Feral Rage periodically to keep it charged. Feral Rage was also fantastic for sniping specific enemies within packs, whereas Fury just causes you to take turns swiping at everything in range. That was especially useful for taking down dangerous aura-enchanted uniques quickly. The FRW from Feral Rage was also very nice, although that often meant that the merc took his sweet time wandering over to join the battle. Fury seemed very buggy at times, much more so with Bonehew than with Tomb Reaver. I suspect the shorter range and slightly slower attack speed of Bonehew may be partly responsible. Due to the somewhat lackluster performance I was getting with Bonehew, and the fact that its damage was close to what Tomb Reaver was going to put out, I was a little worried about the strength of the final build considering the jewels I had invested. Once I equipped the Reaver, however, things got MUCH better. Fewer fury cycles were whiffing, my resistances were higher, drops improved, and I occasionally pretended to be a necromancer.
The moron lived up to his name, frequently charging bravely ahead to kill flayers while alternately hiding behind various objects in dangerous situations when decrepify would have been a massive help. Not that I didn’t hide with him at times. A very close runner-up for moron of the year was the Heart of Wolverine. No matter where I cast the damned thing, it seemed intent on charging right into the middle of every fight and promptly dying. At times I would play the Diablo II minigame, “how long can you keep the floating ball alive?” Usually not very long. But still, the boosts to damage and AR were very welcome when he was around so I didn’t respec to something else. Besides, if I’m to have a weak floating assistant that constantly dies, I’d rather have one that doesn’t greatly affect my life pool and therefore my relative safety (Oak Sage). All breakable PIs were safe enough to kill, albeit tedious due to their still-too-high physical resistance. The cold damage from Duress helped take down unbreakable PIs, as open wounds just didn’t seem to trigger like it should a lot of the time. That was especially noticeable with this PI/CI spawner boss, who took about 10 minutes to kill and I never noticed any bleeding (despite wearing Duress and Gore Rider). Large numbers of unleechables were tough but not unmanageable due to the relatively high HP pool. Yay explosion screenshots.
So, the ancients. Well, they were tame. All easy mods on the first roll and the battle took less than 2 minutes, even on p5. I kind of wish they had had tougher mods, but 1 on 1 this Druid is hard to take down with the damage he does with Fury, the leech of Feral Rage, and crushing blow. Any high HP enemies dropped very quickly. Lister and company were separated, as the constant stun/knockback without any blocking can cause problems. At one point one of them had me cornered next to a torch on the ground, with the merc dead, but at least there was no more knockback. Baal himself was a pushover, as were his drops. Final LCS after hitting level 91 (patted at 89 due to impatience).
Good finds included an SoJ in NM The Hole level 2, this nifty little charm (since traded to @T72on1 – thanks for the trade!), Griffon’s Eye, Skullder’s Ire, Mal, and Pul while leveling in the Pits, Ohm, a few various skillers, Guillaume’s Face, a 34% ruby jewel, this impressive level 13 ring, some various useful charms, Seraph’s Hymn, a nifty rare jewel, Sazabi’s Cobalt Redeemer, and probably 50+ other random sets/uniques not worth mentioning (including just about every exceptional unique body armor). Forges were Dol in NM and Pul in Hell. Also found a Vex on my second to last AT run leveling to 91.
Tl;dr version: Overall, a very fun build once I got used to the lack of blocking. There is a lot of potential for more damage (Guillaume’s and Fortitude in particular), but I enjoyed the balanced, maxed resists approach I took. Feral Rage and Fury are great compliments to one another and make for a strong all around physical damage based melee fighter, and switching between the two keeps things interesting. Lastly, questing with some MF equipped tends to pay off and makes the journey that much more fun.
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