- Mar 14, 2020
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Originally posted December 25, 2017
Hiatus, an untwinked-99er-to be, began her journey in June 2016 as my second entrant in @Kitteh’s relaunch of the untwinked 99er challenge (original untwinked 99er tourney thread is here). Hiatus was created to provide some, erm, breaks as Mercy, an untwinked assassin, plodded her way to the goal.
When Mercy hit 99 in May 2017, Hiatus was part way into level 96. Along with progressing Phaedrus, an untwinked Pally and my third entry, from level 91 to level 94, Hiatus has been the main focus of D2 gaming time since then.
We’ll start with a vid of Hiatus pinging 99, then stats and gear, followed by a rundown of progress and reflections and finds, and then some concluding thoughts and thanks.
Obviously, Nihl had to roll LI a couple times as a farewell gift. 
Stats and Gear
Progress, Reflections, and Findings
Hiatus started while Mercy was progressing towards level 95, quickly making it to level 85 as a pure Blizz sorc, mostly on Pindle. She then started mixing in AT, eventually hitting level 91, but still lacking some basics (including a 4os Monarch). But she found a 3os eTomby!
At level 92 she transitioned to some LK in search of runes, with a very nice run of runes leading to her HoTo. After a little break due to work and vacation, she hit level 94 in AT and finally found Shako and a 4os Monarch.
She slogged her way to 95, and was only a level behind Mercy. Mercy got the bulk of play time through the end of year, but Hiatus eventually focused on LK to get a Ber for CoH so that she could transition to CS. She eventually hit 96 in late January 2017 (I’d started the Pally by this point also, taking him toward level 90) but was then shelved until Mercy hit 99 in May 2017.
Hiatus got the bulk of play over the next couple weeks, hitting 97, with a 40@ HoTo reroll mixed in. She set a goal of 25M XP/week, mostly surpassing it. She had some nice finds and runes for Infinity along the way to hitting level 98 in September.
Hiatus switched to pure lightning after testing, using her last respec. About 11M into Nihl runs she had a nasty mishap, dying and then again with body recovery kit on resulting in loss of gear. Thankfully, her switch to lightning made the loss of gear manageable. And she got a nice CtA reroll and a quick Mara’s to replace the lost one as she gained back the lost XP.
At this point, it was back to avoiding deaths and setting a weekly goal, which she settled on 20M XP, hitting 98.25 before leaving for vacation in early October. After being away six weeks, Hiatus got back to running in mid-November, hitting 98.5 around Thanksgiving – and finally finding her Arachnid’s!
With an assist to @ffs and @Yng, Hiatus swapped in Bloodfists to complete her gear (with the exception of a slight charm upgrade later on). She hit 98.75 and then completed the last ~tenth of the level before pinging 99 yesterday with a major boost from Ancients quest reward. Charcter screen looks pretty cool:
In general, she was relatively slow for the last level, with only 1 skiller to start (a second dropped along the way) and no Griffon’s. The lack of Griffon’s and skillers was felt. Given her gear available, however, I don’t know if anything else would have been faster. Maybe pure fire for Nihl, but she felt obligated to fry him to complete the elemental trifecta of sorcs in the 99er thread. She could have stuck with Blizz or gone Blova, but killing only Nihl, as those builds require, wasn’t in the plans due to loss of drops.
Speaking of which, Hiatus had some nice finds along the way, contributing a fair bit to my overall grail and eth grail. The key runewords and total remaining high runes is below:
Overall, Hiatus made it to grail -33, with mostly TC3/TC87s (and Cow’s Set) missing. There was only one exceptional unique (unique cedar staff), Seraph’s Hymn, Frostwind, Fleshripper, and Nightwing’s missing otherwise. As with Mercy, there are too many nice items to summarize, so I will just list a couple favorites:
Thank You-s and What’s Next-es
As before, I have to start with thanks to this forum and everyone who participated or contributed to this thread. It’s much easier to plug away with company! So thanks, @everyone!
Special thanks go to @Pb_pal, @NanoMist and @T72on1 who were in it from Hiatus’s start and helped with feedback and encouragement throughout. Of course, @Kitteh gets a special shout out for (re)starting this challenge, along with @ffs for having another lightning Sorc far along. Finally, major thanks to all the recent entries for keeping this thread vibrant nearly two years after its start.
As for what’s next, Hiatus is going to Mat and then respec to Nova for Cow goodness in search of some bases needed for my runeword grail (and burning some of her runes along the way). Aside from that, she may get some use in future tourneys, although she will not stay untwinked. I will also sort through her stashes and may post some readouts of nice items that I’ve forgotten about.
Phaedrus is almost to 94.75, so I hope to bring him to a round 95 before taking a break from XP runs to quest some characters through. I have my trio of twins project with the Auradin in NM and itching to get him end game gear. I also plan to focus on the untwinked Barb in that project (also in NM) and a new Necro that I started recently.
I also plan to start working on the SPF 99er compendium that I mentioned a while back. I have an outline, some sections written up roughly, and notes for others. So I hope to post something for feedback before too-too long.
Final thanks are to everyone who followed along as Hiatus progressed to 99. Cheers!
Hiatus, an untwinked-99er-to be, began her journey in June 2016 as my second entrant in @Kitteh’s relaunch of the untwinked 99er challenge (original untwinked 99er tourney thread is here). Hiatus was created to provide some, erm, breaks as Mercy, an untwinked assassin, plodded her way to the goal.
When Mercy hit 99 in May 2017, Hiatus was part way into level 96. Along with progressing Phaedrus, an untwinked Pally and my third entry, from level 91 to level 94, Hiatus has been the main focus of D2 gaming time since then.
We’ll start with a vid of Hiatus pinging 99, then stats and gear, followed by a rundown of progress and reflections and finds, and then some concluding thoughts and thanks.
Stats and Gear
Code:
Last skill point and stat points are unused.
Name: Hiatus
Class: Sorceress
Experience: 3520485254
Level: 99
Naked/Gear
Strength: 143/162
Dexterity: 25/45
Vitality: 377/416
Energy: 35/42
HP: 932/1471
Mana: 231/537
Stamina: 539/589
Defense: 6/974
AR: 75/175
Fire: 177/137/77
Cold: 178/138/78
Lightning: 188/148/**
Poison: 208/168/108
MF: 187 Block: 6
GF: 118
FR/W: 32
FHR: 90
IAS: 10
FCR: 124
Fire Bolt: 0/0
Warmth: 1/13
Inferno: 0/0
Blaze: 0/0
Fire Ball: 0/0
Fire Wall: 0/0
Enchant: 0/0
Meteor: 0/0
Fire Mastery: 0/0
Hydra: 0/0
Charged Bolt: 20/34
Static Field: 5/19
Telekinesis: 1/15
Nova: 20/34
Lightning: 20/34
Chain Lightning: 20/34
Teleport: 1/15
Thunder Storm: 0/0
Energy Shield: 1/15
Lightning Mastery: 20/34
Ice Bolt: 0/0
Frozen Armor: 0/0
Frost Nova: 0/0
Ice Blast: 0/0
Shiver Armor: 0/0
Glacial Spike: 0/0
Blizzard: 0/0
Chilling Armor: 0/0
Frozen Orb: 0/0
Cold Mastery: 0/0
Code:
Skin of the Vipermagi
Serpentskin Armor
Defense: 279
Durability: 9 of 24
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x9d495766
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+30% Faster Cast Rate
+120% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +32
Magic Damage Reduced by 12
Bul-Kathos' Wedding Band
Ring
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x59e978db
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
5% Life stolen per hit
+49 to Life (Based on Character Level)
+50 Maximum Stamina
Arachnid Mesh
Spiderweb Sash
Defense: 134
Durability: 5 of 12
Required Level: 80
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0x3a9d095d
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+20% Faster Cast Rate
Slows Target by 10%
+114% Enhanced Defense
Increase Maximum Mana 5%
Level 3 Venom (11/11 Charges)
War Traveler
Battle Boots
Defense: 130
Durability: 46 of 48
Required Level: 42
Required Strength: 95
Fingerprint: 0x1a5c814e
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+25% Faster Run/Walk
Adds 15 - 25 Damage
+172% Enhanced Defense
+10 to Strength
+10 to Vitality
40% Slower Stamina Drain
Attacker Takes Damage of 9
49% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
+30 Maximum Durability
Bloodfist
Heavy Gloves
Defense: 18
Durability: 5 of 14
Required Level: 9
Fingerprint: 0x244895a7
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+10% Increased Attack Speed
+30% Faster Hit Recovery
+5 to Minimum Damage
+19% Enhanced Defense
+10 Defense
+40 to Life
Mara's Kaleidoscope
Amulet
Required Level: 67
Fingerprint: 0x81064460
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
All Stats +5
All Resistances +27
Harlequin Crest
Shako
Defense: 115
Durability: 9 of 12
Required Level: 62
Required Strength: 50
Fingerprint: 0xe1c79998
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
All Stats +2
+148 to Life (Based on Character Level)
+148 to Mana (Based on Character Level)
Damage Reduced by 10%
50% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Nature's Peace
Ring
Required Level: 69
Fingerprint: 0xbd51218c
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Prevent Monster Heal
Slain Monsters Rest in Peace
Poison Resist +24%
Damage Reduced by 8
Level 5 Oak Sage (27/27 Charges)
Call to Arms
Crystal Sword
AmnRalMalIstOhm
One Hand Damage: 18 - 55
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 57
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x3ed2310b
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+40% Increased Attack Speed
267% Enhanced Damage
Adds 5 - 30 Fire Damage
7% Life stolen per hit
Prevent Monster Heal
+5 to Battle Command
+6 to Battle Orders
+2 to Battle Cry
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: 141
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 86 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0x4969d0ea
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+33% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+108 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+3 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune
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: 0x4a8952a8
Item Level: 85
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: 146
Chance to Block: 0
Durability: 73 of 86
Required Level: 54
Required Strength: 156
Fingerprint: 0x4e480d84
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+34% Faster Cast Rate
+55% Faster Hit Recovery
+250 Defense vs. Missile
+22 to Vitality
+106 to Mana
Cold Resist +35%
Lightning Resist +35%
Poison Resist +35%
+7 Magic Absorb
Attacker Takes Damage of 14
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Tal Rune
Socketed: Thul Rune
Socketed: Ort Rune
Socketed: Amn Rune
Code:
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x5cd40a44
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x5a11b586
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0x1ba2da10
Item Level: 94
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Sparking Grand Charm of Inertia
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0xbad3e4b1
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Lightning Skills (Sorceress Only)
+7% Faster Run/Walk
Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0x955cf496
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Viridian Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xf877dfc8
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Poison Resist +6%
Serpent's Small Charm of Balance
Small Charm
Required Level: 40
Fingerprint: 0x6fb97697
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+5% Faster Hit Recovery
+14 to Mana
Ruby Small Charm of Dexterity
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0xc75ddd06
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Dexterity
Fire Resist +11%
Sparking Grand Charm
Grand Charm
Required Level: 42
Fingerprint: 0x2f8b1611
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to Lightning Skills (Sorceress Only)
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x9e920547
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x58cdd1a9
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Ruby Small Charm of Strength
Small Charm
Required Level: 32
Fingerprint: 0x49208cea
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Strength
Fire Resist +11%
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x2f14e1ec
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+19 to Life
Shimmering Grand Charm of Vita
Grand Charm
Required Level: 83
Fingerprint: 0x3481aa33
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+44 to Life
All Resistances +14
Gheed's Fortune
Grand Charm
Required Level: 62
Fingerprint: 0xdd7cbc2a
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
118% Extra Gold from Monsters
Reduces all Vendor Prices 12%
40% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0x38c48d14
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Crimson Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0xc407cc55
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Fire Resist +4%
6% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Serpent's Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 40
Fingerprint: 0x3c945fb0
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+15 to Mana
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Serpent's Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 40
Fingerprint: 0xef682610
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+19 to Life
+17 to Mana
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x41e84d9d
Item Level: 95
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Lizard's Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0xcec54b7c
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
+1 to Mana
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x99c17b57
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Lizard's Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x30694cd0
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
+5 to Mana
Amber Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0xea30ae3a
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Lightning Resist +10%
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Boreal Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 58
Fingerprint: 0x3b517827
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
Adds 7 - 12 Cold Damage Over 1 Secs (25 Frames)
+20 to Life
Small Charm of Vita
Small Charm
Required Level: 39
Fingerprint: 0x55ae6af
Item Level: 84
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+20 to Life
Small Charm of Good Luck
Small Charm
Required Level: 33
Fingerprint: 0xb368f84f
Item Level: 80
Version: Expansion 1.10+
7% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Garnet Small Charm of Dexterity
Small Charm
Required Level: 20
Fingerprint: 0xb66107d5
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to Dexterity
Fire Resist +8%
Code:
Not used for body recovery, but Darksight was used for CoS charges
to get some drops when Vipers were around.
Credendum
Mithril Coil
Defense: 111
Durability: 15 of 16
Required Level: 65
Required Strength: 106
Fingerprint: 0x2ec235d2
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+50 Defense
+10 to Strength
+10 to Dexterity
All Resistances +15
Moser's Blessed Circle
Round Shield
Defense: 169
Chance to Block: 37
Durability: 44 of 64
Required Level: 31
Required Strength: 53
Fingerprint: 0xd6adb5aa
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+30% Faster Block Rate
25% Increased Chance of Blocking
+202% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +25
2 Sockets (0 used)
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: 0xe23e4ea6
Item Level: **
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 +34
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
Skin of the Vipermagi
Serpentskin Armor
Defense: 279
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Level: 29
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x250a29f4
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+1 to All Skills
+30% Faster Cast Rate
+120% Enhanced Defense
All Resistances +32
Magic Damage Reduced by 10
Darksight Helm
Basinet
Defense: 274
Durability: 30 of 30
Required Level: 38
Required Strength: 82
Fingerprint: 0xd44c3f02
Item Level: 87
Version: Expansion 1.10+
6% Chance to cast level 3 Dim Vision when struck
5% Mana stolen per hit
+198 Defense (Based on Character Level)
Fire Resist +38%
Cannot Be Frozen
-4 to Light Radius
Level 5 Cloak of Shadows (28/30 Charges)
Call to Arms
Crystal Sword
AmnRalMalIstOhm
One Hand Damage: 18 - 54
Durability: 20 of 20
Required Level: 57
Required Strength: 43
Fingerprint: 0x89994ba5
Item Level: **
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
+2 to Battle Command
+3 to Battle Orders
+2 to Battle Cry
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
Code:
Name: Zanarhi
Race: Desert Mercenary
Type: Def-Nightmare
Experience: 114111696
Level: 98
Dead?: false
Naked/Gear
Strength: 209/229
Dexterity: 169/169
HP: 2287/2287
Defense: 1671/2967
AR: 2066/2066
Fire: 227/187/127
Cold: 227/187/127
Lightning: 227/187/127
Poison: 227/187/127
Delirium
Superior Demonhead
LemIstIo
Defense: 437
Durability: 18 of 20
Required Level: 55
Required Strength: 102
Fingerprint: 0x4e0c42ea
Item Level: 85
Version: Expansion 1.10+
1% Chance to cast level 50 Delirium when struck
6% Chance to cast level 14 Mind Blast when struck
14% Chance to cast level 13 Terror when struck
11% Chance to cast level 18 Confuse on striking
+2 to All Skills
+14% Enhanced Defense
+261 Defense
+10 to Vitality
50% Extra Gold from Monsters
25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Level 17 Attract (60/60 Charges)
3 Sockets (3 used)
Socketed: Lem Rune
Socketed: Ist Rune
Socketed: Io Rune
Chains of Honor
Superior Scarab Husk
DolUmBerIst
Defense: 859
Durability: 22 of 30
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 95
Fingerprint: 0x89c6e0b6
Item Level: **
Version: Expansion 1.10+
+2 to All Skills
+200% Damage to Demons
+100% Damage to Undead
8% Life stolen per hit
+81% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Strength
Replenish Life +7
All Resistances +65
Damage Reduced by 8%
25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Increase Maximum Durability 10%
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Dol Rune
Socketed: Um Rune
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Ist Rune
Infinity
Superior Cryptic Axe
BerMalBerIst
Two Hand Damage: 197 - 909
Durability: 36 of 36
Required Level: 63
Required Strength: 155
Required Dexterity: 93
Fingerprint: 0x6b96974c
Item Level: **
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
304% Enhanced Damage
-49% to Enemy Lightning Resistance
40% Chance of Crushing Blow
Prevent Monster Heal
+49 to Vitality (Based on Character Level)
30% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Increase Maximum Durability 11%
Level 21 Cyclone Armor (30/30 Charges)
Ethereal
4 Sockets (4 used)
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Mal Rune
Socketed: Ber Rune
Socketed: Ist RuneProgress, Reflections, and Findings
Hiatus started while Mercy was progressing towards level 95, quickly making it to level 85 as a pure Blizz sorc, mostly on Pindle. She then started mixing in AT, eventually hitting level 91, but still lacking some basics (including a 4os Monarch). But she found a 3os eTomby!
At level 92 she transitioned to some LK in search of runes, with a very nice run of runes leading to her HoTo. After a little break due to work and vacation, she hit level 94 in AT and finally found Shako and a 4os Monarch.
She slogged her way to 95, and was only a level behind Mercy. Mercy got the bulk of play time through the end of year, but Hiatus eventually focused on LK to get a Ber for CoH so that she could transition to CS. She eventually hit 96 in late January 2017 (I’d started the Pally by this point also, taking him toward level 90) but was then shelved until Mercy hit 99 in May 2017.
Hiatus got the bulk of play over the next couple weeks, hitting 97, with a 40@ HoTo reroll mixed in. She set a goal of 25M XP/week, mostly surpassing it. She had some nice finds and runes for Infinity along the way to hitting level 98 in September.
Hiatus switched to pure lightning after testing, using her last respec. About 11M into Nihl runs she had a nasty mishap, dying and then again with body recovery kit on resulting in loss of gear. Thankfully, her switch to lightning made the loss of gear manageable. And she got a nice CtA reroll and a quick Mara’s to replace the lost one as she gained back the lost XP.
At this point, it was back to avoiding deaths and setting a weekly goal, which she settled on 20M XP, hitting 98.25 before leaving for vacation in early October. After being away six weeks, Hiatus got back to running in mid-November, hitting 98.5 around Thanksgiving – and finally finding her Arachnid’s!
With an assist to @ffs and @Yng, Hiatus swapped in Bloodfists to complete her gear (with the exception of a slight charm upgrade later on). She hit 98.75 and then completed the last ~tenth of the level before pinging 99 yesterday with a major boost from Ancients quest reward. Charcter screen looks pretty cool:
In general, she was relatively slow for the last level, with only 1 skiller to start (a second dropped along the way) and no Griffon’s. The lack of Griffon’s and skillers was felt. Given her gear available, however, I don’t know if anything else would have been faster. Maybe pure fire for Nihl, but she felt obligated to fry him to complete the elemental trifecta of sorcs in the 99er thread. She could have stuck with Blizz or gone Blova, but killing only Nihl, as those builds require, wasn’t in the plans due to loss of drops.
Speaking of which, Hiatus had some nice finds along the way, contributing a fair bit to my overall grail and eth grail. The key runewords and total remaining high runes is below:
Code:
CoH
CtA x3
Delirium
HoTo x4
Crescent Moon
Infinity (eth)
Mal – 7
Ist – 3
Gul – 6
Ohm – 4
Lo – 2
Ber – 1
Jah – 3
Code:
Astreon's (overall grailer)
Shimmering (14@) GC of Vita (44)
3os eTomby
Eth Death’s Fathom (low cold damage roll, but cool)
A couple nice skillers with sustenance suffix (Captain’s, Acrobatic, 2 Entrapping,
2 Harpoonists, Fletchers, Natural)Thank You-s and What’s Next-es
As before, I have to start with thanks to this forum and everyone who participated or contributed to this thread. It’s much easier to plug away with company! So thanks, @everyone!
Special thanks go to @Pb_pal, @NanoMist and @T72on1 who were in it from Hiatus’s start and helped with feedback and encouragement throughout. Of course, @Kitteh gets a special shout out for (re)starting this challenge, along with @ffs for having another lightning Sorc far along. Finally, major thanks to all the recent entries for keeping this thread vibrant nearly two years after its start.
As for what’s next, Hiatus is going to Mat and then respec to Nova for Cow goodness in search of some bases needed for my runeword grail (and burning some of her runes along the way). Aside from that, she may get some use in future tourneys, although she will not stay untwinked. I will also sort through her stashes and may post some readouts of nice items that I’ve forgotten about.
Phaedrus is almost to 94.75, so I hope to bring him to a round 95 before taking a break from XP runs to quest some characters through. I have my trio of twins project with the Auradin in NM and itching to get him end game gear. I also plan to focus on the untwinked Barb in that project (also in NM) and a new Necro that I started recently.
I also plan to start working on the SPF 99er compendium that I mentioned a while back. I have an outline, some sections written up roughly, and notes for others. So I hope to post something for feedback before too-too long.
Final thanks are to everyone who followed along as Hiatus progressed to 99. Cheers!
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