Oh my...poor rolls! Well I'll try to roll one soon, but maybe not before this evening in France (5/6 hours from now). If anyone rolls before it's fine!
Alright...I think we might call it a lucky roll, at least on skills... considering normal, there's the choice for releasing charges!
Any lock? I bet no or maybe some Dragon skill...but Vang is Vang, you may well find another path!
All I have to do is kill my druid to get another shot. He doesn't want to, but it won't last forever...urk urk urk... but for now, my twinked Bowazon leveling is plenty of fun!
Alright...I think we might call it a lucky roll, at least on skills... considering normal, there's the choice for releasing charges!
Any lock? I bet no or maybe some Dragon skill...but Vang is Vang, you may well find another path!
All I have to do is kill my druid to get another shot. He doesn't want to, but it won't last forever...urk urk urk... but for now, my twinked Bowazon leveling is plenty of fun!
We finished Act 3 in ~3 sessions. I always underestimate how large the Durance of Hate level 2 is in NM and Hell. That said, I tend to really enjoy the Durance. It's really atmospheric, and as long as you don't get bone fetishes it's not too difficult. Mephisto's drop was lame:
The best part of this update came from the Dark Wood:
Nagelring
Ring
Required Level: 7
Fingerprint: 0x9825bbcd
Item Level: 52
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+65 to Attack Rating
Magic Damage Reduced by 3
Attacker Takes Damage of 3
30% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
First gold ring of this tournament, and it's a great one!
I debated turning down the player settings for Act 4, but in the end I decided to just try it and see how it went. Getting established in the Outer Steppe was challenging, but once established, it wasn't so bad. I've cleared through the City of the Damned, leaving the River of Flame and Chaos Sanctuary for another session. Level 66
Well prepared for Act V was what I wanted to be. Because I got trolled with drops like this
I decided to go on a cubing spree for a better weapon for my merc. I already posted the result in my last post.
Cruel Mythical Sword
Mythical Sword
One Hand Damage: 136 - 170
Durability: 27 of 44
Required Level: 66
Required Strength: 147
Required Dexterity: 124
Fingerprint: 0x9838469
Item Level: 25
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20% Increased Attack Speed
240% Enhanced Damage
7% Life stolen per hit
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Amn Rune
Socketed: Shael 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
Knowing my luck, I didn't even wonder when facing boss packs like these:
For the last two bosses, I tried to position my merc and Valkyrie that way, that the boss attacked my Valkyrie instead of my merc. My merc equipped his 150 fire damage sword and I kept on firing with 30% cth from my harmony bow for some additional elemental damage (and poison charm to stop regeneration). It all went well, albeit a bit slowly.
Those PI/LI or Stone Skin/LI kept on spawning, which made for slow progress. Rolled Gloams in the Frozen River, but with 75% LR and 1100+ life no problem.
Btw, does anyone know what that greenish glow on the floor beneath the Valkyrie means? I don't mean the yellowish glowing aura, but the spots to the left and right on the floor. Does anyone know?
And wow, that Valkyrie is sturdy!
Even cursed (yeah, the boss pack above was cursed) no trouble in keeping her alive.
I did full clears, but I had to let this one ghoul lord live, because it was stuck behind the obstacle in front of it and I couldn't reach it with any attack. I tried the bow, throwing, different angles, bigger reach for the merc - but nothing was able to hit it, only the Lightning Bolts from LF when I hit other monsters.
Speaking of trapped: My Valykrie got trapped too behind Larzuk's shop - see the glow where the cursor is hovering? Maybe she was a shoplifter in her earlier life, who knows...
I already talked extensively about my luck with monsters spawns...well guess what waited for me in the Halls of Vaught?
But there's no stopping meeeee!!! (Freddy Mercury tune)
And yes, i did full clears in the Halls of Vaught, too. Without the Valkyrie though it wouldn't have been possible. She was able to tank everything down there.
And then the Ancients...oh well...see for yourself!
Korlic - easily and quickly taken down.
Madawc, took some minutes more, because my merc got killed in the process, but I managed to trap him so that my Valkyrie could stab at him and slowly bleed him to death. If you look closely, there are some things already missing in this screenshot as compared to the screenshot above. Do you notice?
Yeah, the POTIONS!!! The fight was already lasting so long, that all the potions I spread over the floor disappeared So I had to be careful with my resources.
I was already 12 minutes into the fight when I faced the last Ancient, Talic:
and I faced him...
and I faced him...
The whole fight took ~40 mins. It was never dangerous, mind you, but oh so tedious. Having to rely wholly on the Valykrie for killing (cth was abysmal and I only had 4 Mana pots, 2 healing pots and 3 full rejuvs left, so no going toe to toe with Extra Strong Talic) is not something I recommend when facing the Ancients, esp. if you have less than an evening's time for the fight...
But in the end, I survived the slog and went to grab the WKS2 WP.
Pynache, level 85 Ice Arrow/LF Amazon without synergies, and Healfdane, the Barbarian, with a level 23 Valkyrie. Hell WSK3 next.
After the Ancients, the rest of Act V was a piece of cake. Thanks to the Valkyrie, it was a very safe build and I never bothered to swap out some of my MF gear (PTopaz Helm, MF amulet etc.).
One funny thing I noticed in the WSK is, that Baal treats your Decoy as if you yourself are idle in the WSK:
Everyone who has ever played a LF Zon knows that WSK and Baal's minion waves aren't that much of a hassle, so I spare you the details. (Decoy+Valkyrie in front, Spam LF, go back to town to repair stack of javelins, repeat).
Baal himself wasn't too bad, either. I chose "Strength" Falcata over my cruel weapon for the merc, and the fight only took 2 revives of my merc, 5 or 6 repair trips to town, and - voilà!
The Gheed's Fortune drop came a bit late to the party and would have been great some acts earlier, but the roll wasn't too good anyways.
Overall thoughts on the gameplay for Hell:
1. The one skill that carried the whole build through Hell was Valkyrie. Period. Without it, death would have (probably) been inevitable. But with 18 points in Decoy and level 23 Valkyrie, almost nothing could kill my Valkyrie (I remembered somewhat late, in Act iI or III Hell, that additional points in Decoy not only boost life, but also resistances of the Valkyrie).
2. No synergies is a biiiiiig difference to having syngergies. LF does 1-585 lightning damage at level 20 without any other synergies, releasing 21 bolts. No Pierce means lots of missing damage.
3. Ice Arrow is bad. The AR bug makes it such a nuisance to even hit something, and unsynergised the damage is a not-so-whopping 233-250 with 5.8 seconds of freeze. I really only used it against LI/PI bosses or some ranged monsters who tend to flee lots of the time. Hitting them was a different matter though.
4. My barbarian merc kept dying a lot. Well, A LOT. Capital LOT. According to tales, he regenerates fully in 16 seconds and should be sturdier than deset mercs. I don't know...most of the time, I'd rather have had a desert merc with an additional aura. HF for example would have made the trip safer and swifter (additional cold damage for LI/PIs). But since I had to rely on Throwing Spears only for the desert merc, the barb seemed the better choice initially and then I decided to stick with him to try something different for once.
5. Use Valkyrie, my friends. Seriously. If you don't, do it!
Thanks for reading and accompanying Pynache on her journey to guardian!
Guardian Pynache, level 85 LF/Ice Arrow Zon, with Healfdane the Barbarian and a level 23 Valkyrie.
Eth Rune
Required Level: 15
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Weapons: -25% Target Defense
Armor: Regenerate Mana 15%
Shields: Regenerate Mana 15%
Cleglaw's Pincers (for boss fights)
Chain Gloves
Defense: 8
Durability: 16 of 16
Required Level: 4
Required Strength: 25
Fingerprint: 0xf188ce06
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Slows Target by 25%
Knockback
Set (2 items): +850 to Attack Rating (Based on Character Level)
Harmony
Large Siege Bow
TirIthSolKo
Two Hand Damage: 44 - 159
Durability: 27 of 44
Required Level: 39
Required Strength: 80
Required Dexterity: 95
Fingerprint: 0x806abb2f
Item Level: 78
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Level 10 Vigor Aura When Equipped
258% 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 6 Secs (149 Frames)
+5 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
Lucky Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 19
Fingerprint: 0x6758a25d
Item Level: 63
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+16 to Life
6% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Ocher Small Charm of Dexterity
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x7c108e72
Item Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Dexterity
Lightning Resist +7%
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x866edef1
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+17 to Life
Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0x46c391c
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Fine Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xabb8c773
Item Level: 76
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Maximum Damage
+19 to Attack Rating
+17 to Life
Ocher Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 10
Fingerprint: 0x50aa62b2
Item Level: 21
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +6%
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x93542077
Item Level: 68
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+17 to Life
Cobalt Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0x792d49bc
Item Level: 52
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Cold Resist +8%
Small Charm of Sustenance
Small Charm
Required Level: 17
Fingerprint: 0x452e9560
Item Level: 45
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+13 to Life
Small Charm of Fortune
Small Charm
Required Level: 18
Fingerprint: 0x931c47eb
Item Level: 49
Version: Expansion 1.10+
4% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Emerald Small Charm of Burning
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0x6a06fa51
Item Level: 60
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 3 - 6 Fire Damage
Poison Resist +10%
Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0xb3a9eb69
Item Level: 78
Version: Expansion 1.10+
6% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Fine Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 29
Fingerprint: 0x85e3e2fe
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
+1 to Maximum Damage
+12 to Attack Rating
Viridian Small Charm of Life
Small Charm
Required Level: 14
Fingerprint: 0x11ffe715
Item Level: 10
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+8 to Life
Poison Resist +7%
Boreal Small Charm of Shock
Small Charm
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0xa24dbe85
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 3 Lightning Damage
Adds 6 - 13 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
Tangerine Small Charm
Small Charm
Required Level: 1
Fingerprint: 0x22bf1b0c
Item Level: 17
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +5%
Red Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 34
Fingerprint: 0xe1d9622
Item Level: 59
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Minimum Damage
+24 to Life
Arcing Large Charm of Sustenance
Large Charm
Required Level: 40
Fingerprint: 0x7ab391e2
Item Level: 77
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 1 - 46 Lightning Damage
+22 to Life
Garnet Grand Charm of Pestilence
Grand Charm
Required Level: 15
Fingerprint: 0xb3f044fa
Item Level: 22
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 25 Poison Damage Over 5 Secs (125 Frames)
Fire Resist +25%
Bronze Small Charm of Storms
Small Charm
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x7ed877
Item Level: 88
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+3 to Attack Rating
Adds 1 - 20 Lightning Damage
Ruby Grand Charm of Sustenance
Grand Charm
Required Level: 37
Fingerprint: 0x3ab131dc
Item Level: 61
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+29 to Life
Fire Resist +27%
For PIs:
Flaming War Sword of Fire Bolt
War Sword
One Hand Damage: 8 - 20
Durability: 44 of 44
Required Level: 51
Required Strength: 71
Required Dexterity: 45
Fingerprint: 0x19939127
Item Level: 86
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 87 - 157 Fire Damage
Level 5 Fire Bolt (32/32 Charges)
For boss fights:
Strength
Falcata
AmnTir
One Hand Damage: 41 - 79
Durability: 18 of 24
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 150
Required Dexterity: 88
Fingerprint: 0xc65e1738
Item Level: 79
Version: Expansion 1.10+
35% Enhanced Damage
7% Life stolen per hit
25% Chance of Crushing Blow
+20 to Strength
+10 to Vitality
+2 to Mana after each Kill
2 Sockets (2 used)
Socketed: Amn Rune
Socketed: Tir 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
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
Huge congrats @Grisu for this success - SP on top of it if I'm right?
Definitely, Amazon seems to be the best choice for completion, for now we needed either Valkyrie or some drinking dude to roll for us!
I am currently having my bowazon journey, SC twinked, and yes I am discovering the power of the Valkyrie...if the equipment rolls the right way, oh my god she may lasts just forever!
Anyway, congratulations again, and as stated by @Vang, what a masterpiece of patience it was for some of those ugly fights!
And after gear review, you also found a nice Fine SC of Vita, definitely a worthy run ;-)
I have yet to actually guardian a character (ever), so seeing others achieve it is super inspiring.
On my side, I did the Chaos Sanctuary in NM on P8 tonight. Overall it took a little over two hours, with lots of kiting, splitting up packs, and trying to isolate bosses. It more or less worked, though Lord de Seis's pack absolutely destroyed my mercenary a few times.
Diablo was taken on P3, as I'm generally afraid of act bosses on a melee character with low attack rating. It would probably be fine, but would take forever, and Diablo has pretty high burst potential with lightning hose and hellfire, so I chose not to risk it. His drop was alright, though the ring (Dwarf Star) would have been super helpful when killing him!
The fight itself was fine. Whirlwind is at 17 hard points, which has enough of a boost to AR that it can actually hit
I'm still making progress! I've been doing act V on players 8, which while relatively comfortable, is going quite slow. I'm using a Crushflange mace and 'Rhyme' Bone Shield for magic find and blocking, while my mercenary does most of the work. I kite things around to split them up, then a grim ward for crowd control makes most fights easy peasy, but my personal damage output is awful. I can swap to my Bonesnap War Club for great damage, but then I lose out on blocking and some magic find. I'll probably switch to the war club basically full time in hell, but for now this works
I've finished about half of act V - I rescued Anya, and completed the first two sections of Nihl's temple. I haven't yet decided if I want to do the Halls of Vaught. I'm leaning towards yes just because I want to full clear the game, but it scares me a bit
I've never found this item in a tournament setting - shame this character can't use it!
This ring was another Nagelring, which for now is an upgrade Having natural resistance is amazing because I don't need to rely as much on resists from gloves/boots/jewelry