The Untwinked Level 99 Progress Thread, The Saviours of Sanctuary Rise Anew

[Grisu]

Now 1,528 NM Andy runs in, trying to find that SoJ for the Annihilus (and the XP boost...)...So far I found:

24x Nagelring (and not even a 30% one...)
35x Manald Heal
0x Stone of Jordan

stopped picking up set rings after 31 Angelic Halos and 70 Cathan's Seals...and yes, I am nearing the 90% chance of finding a SoJ...in theory...

The hunt continues...

P.S.: I did find 2 Tal's Amulets though (1:1047 over 1:823 for a SoJ)- yay, I guess???

* * *

Hall of Fame

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
zticazzy         Perkele          SC     Barb   99     3.52  2016-07-12  No      -      -       -      -
Pb_pal           Eleanor          SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2016-11-09  No   3068    437       5      -
NanoMist         Izuna            SC     Sin    99     3.52  2016-12-25  No   5109    470       4    360
PhineasB         Mercy            SC     Sin    99     3.52  2017-05-23  Yes     -    475      11      -
PhineasB         Hiatus           SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2017-12-25  Yes     -    471      21      -
ffs              HelpYourself     SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-04-29  Yes     -    447       -      -
Neksja           Aura             SC     Pala   99     3.52  2018-08-08  Yes     -    481       -      -
Jpy              Sophie           SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-08-26  Yes     -      -      10   <300
T72on1           Neverland        SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-10-21  Yes  lots    483      13    350+
Bewitch          itssoftcore      SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-11-07  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Phaedrus         SC     Pala   99     3.52  2018-11-12  Yes     -    401      13      -
ffs              Ric              SC     Necro  99     3.52  2018-12-26  Yes     -    463       -      -
Bewitch          Mayhem           SC     Barb   99     3.52  2019-07-07  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Pestilence       SC     Necro  99     3.52  2019-07-29  Yes     -      -       -      -
Pb_pal           Klaus            HC     Druid  99     3.52  2019-10-07  Yes     -    433      NA      -
ResTTe           ResTTe           SC     Barb   99     3.52  2019-12-14  Yes     -    465    many   ~320
ffs              Lucid            SC     Pala   99     3.52  2019-12-23  Yes     -    457       -   <250
PhineasB         Quinta           SC     Ama    99     3.52  2019-12-27  Yes     -    413       4      -
Luhkoh           Arkana           SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2020-03-01  Yes     -      -       -      -
Kinkara          Bobo             SC     Barb   99     3.52  2020-12-13  Yes     -      -       -      -
D30D043          Fragile          HC     Sorc   99     3.52  2020-12-29  No      -      -       -    348
PhineasB         Death            SC     Barb   99     3.52  2020-12-31  No      -      -       2      -
Pax1990          Anger            SC     Barb   99     3.52  2021-11-12  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Septimus         SC     Druid  99     3.52  2022-03-05  Yes     -      -       0      -
grogs            Windy            SC     Druid  99     3.52  2022-09-21  ?       -      -       -      -

Questing Heroes

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
HanShotFirst     Das-Omen         SC     Sorc   98.33  3.33  2022-08-25  Yes     -    489       -      -  D2R
Pb_pal           Stevesy          HC     Barb   98.3   3.31  2022-01-04  Yes     -      -      NA      -
D30D043          Exanimate        HC     Nec    98     3.31  2021-09-07  No      -      -       -    308  D2
MercMan          Big_Chill        SC     Sorc   98     3.23  2021-11-13  Yes     -    458     Yes      -  D2
ulof             LuckBeALady      HC     Nec    97     3.14  2021-09-20  Yes     -    482       -      -  D2
ffs              Revenge          HC     Barb   97     3.10  2022-09-29  Yes     -      -       -      -
Kstil3227        Hurricane-Syd    HC     Druid  96     2.75  2022-02-02  Yes     -    432       -      -  D2R
AntiRush         Live             HC     Barb   96     2.74  2022-10-06  Yes     0      -       -      -  D2R
Jpy              Emilia           SC     Sorc   96     2.71  2021-10-28  No      -      -       -     55
Evoken           Evoken           SC     Barb   96     2.71  2022-09-05  No      -      -      Yes   183  D2
Freuga           Ledyne           SC     Sorc   96     2.71  2022-11-06  Yes  1616    372      90    164  D2R
maxicek          Villanelle       SC     Sin    95     2.53  2022-09-13  Yes     0    -94       -      -  D2R
Pax1990          Pax              SC     Pala   95           2021-11-17  Yes     -      -       -      -
Grisu            Aviendha         HC     Sorc   95     2.51  2022-12-06  Yes  3582    363       -     82  D2R
PhineasB         Redux            SC     Sorc   95     2.49  2022-08-14  Yes     -      -       9      -  D2
Gynli            BlizzIOO         SC     Sorc   95     2.49  2022-10-08  No      -      -       -      -  D2R
NorthDakota      Aeon             SC     Sorc   94     -     2021-10-10  Yes     -      -       -    100  D2R
Irenicus         Fiona            SC     Zon    93     -     2021-12-18  No      -      -       16     -  D2R
Kinkara          Faust            SC     Nec    92     -     2021-07-21  Yes     -      -       -      -
Vang             Lost             SC     Sin    92     1.92  2021-10-29  Yes   175      -     Yes         D2R
Foghorn Leghorn  May-may          HC     Zon    91     1.87  2022-08-13  No      -      -      NA      -  D2R
Yori96           Grace            HC     Sin    89     1.48  2022-01-15  Yes     -    102      NA      -  D2R
Foghorn Leghorn  Jin-qua          HC     Nec    87     1.27  2022-04-23  No      -      -      NA      -  D2R
Foghorn Leghorn  DirkStruan       HC     Pala   85     1.08  2022-04-23  No      -      -      NA      -  D2R
Slam             Izaura           HC     Sorc   82     -     2021-02-27  Yes     -      -       0      -
Vildecor         Alanna           SC     Zon    82     -     2022-09-07  Yes     -      -       -      -  D2R
Babyhell         Athena           SC     Sorc   67     0     2021-09-18  Yes     0      -       -      -
Babyhell         Minerva          SC     Zon    67     0     2021-09-23  Yes     0      -       -      -
inspiredunease   Kanakata         SC     Sin    80     -     2021-10-14  ?       ?      -       -      -  D2R

Resting Heroes

Spoiler: Resting Heroes

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
Buckcrazy        Zic              HC     Sorc   98.5   3.38  2019-07-22  Yes     -      -      NA   lots
Bewitch          Mindcrime        HC     Pala   98     3.27  2019-11-19  Yes     -      -       -      -
Bewitch          Necronomicon     SC     Necro  98     3.22  2019-07-09  Yes     -      -       -      -
hasuprotoss      Reina            SC     Sorc   97     2.96  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes  1751    384       -      -
darkstarhub      Neptune          SC     Sorc   97     2.96  2018-07-23  Yes     -    470       -      -
Ashenshugar      Natur            SC     Druid  97     2.96  2018-11-20  Yes  2529      -       -      -
ResTTe           Lyssandra        SC     Sorc   97     2.96  2020-10-19  Yes     -    375    many    ~90
Me2Nik           Fugu             HC     Ama    96     2.72  2019-02-03  Yes  Lots      -       -      -
Tarantella       Tarasha          HC     Sorc   96     2.72  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Grim             Furious_Blonde   SC     Ama    96     2.72  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
drmalawi         TheCanMan        SC     Pala   96     2.76  2020-01-19  Yes     -      -     Yes      -
teddeeboy        Atheyanore       SC     Sorc   95     2.52  2019-02-03  Yes  300+      -       8   many
Chaostar         Prairie          SC     Sorc   95     2.49  2019-06-15  Yes     -    384      25      -
CrustyRusty      Space_Oddity     SC     Ama    95     2.49  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
XyleneCyanol     Fishie           HC     Sorc   95     2.49  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -      -
Quinneczech      Blackwell        HC     Barb   95     2.49  2019-04-01  -       -      -      NA      -
Hutton           Terrahork        HC     Barb   95     0.00  2019-04-24  Yes     -      -      NA      -
ThomasJohnsen    xInTheBuffx      HC     Sorc   95     2.49  2017-03-31  Yes     -      -       -      -
NamelessPenguin  Rockatansky      SC     Barb   95     2.49  2017-12-14  Yes     -      -       -      -
Dezrok           Salome           SC     Sorc   95     2.49  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes   792    318       -      -
smloeffelholz    ArbeitsPferd     SC     Sorc   94     2.29  2020-09-10  Yes     -      -       -      -
Arctodus         Lubotor          SC     Barb   94     2.28  2020-02-16  Yes     -      -      16      -
sanguillen       GordonChen-UT    HC     Necro  93     2.14  2019-02-27  Yes     -      -      NA      -
Reyz             Qty              SC     Sorc   93     2.10  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -      -
Zenigma          Ayura            SC     Barb   93     2.12  2018-09-08  No      -      -       -      -
T72on1           TooMuchEnergy    SC     Sorc   93     2.10  2019-07-19  Yes   267    181      12     47.5
LongingForDeath  VelvetSky        SC     Sorc   93     2.10  2019-12-19  Yes     -    396      12      -
Smittyphi        TheLongRun       SC     Sorc   93     2.09  2019-11-06  Yes    30      -     Yes      -
Trapin'          ceegee           SC     Pala   93     2.17  2020-01-01  No      -      -       -      -
Potent           Challenge(CL)    SC     Sorc   92     1.96  2018-07-30  no      -      -       -      -
jjscud           Ragnarok         SC     Pala   92     1.97  2019-12-28  No      -      -      36   lots
liquid_mage      zDadColdSorc     SC     Sorc   91     1.89  2019-02-04  Yes     -    223       -      -
Tatterson        Titaani          SC     Barb   91     1.84  2018-11-27  Yes     -      -       -      -
Zenigma          Gnosis           SC     Druid  91     1.79  2018-04-26  No      -      -       -      -
OldSoldier       Battleforge      HC     Pala   91     1.76  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -    236       -      -
kyndig           DrearyAura       HC     Sorc   91     1.76  2018-02-20  Yes     -      -       -      -
tokerdin         tokeress         SC     Sorc   91     1.76  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
sir_cyclops      devi             SC     Sin    91     ?.??  2019-02-27  Yes     -      -       -      -
jonnyphive       Shaltara         SC     Sorc   91     ??    2020-03-13  Yes     -      -     Yes      -
Neksja           Aurora           SC     Sorc   90     1.70  2018-09-08  Yes     -    215       -      -
AlexTheNextOne   Orion            SC     Pala   90     1.62  2018-07-22  Yes     -      -       -      -
Southpaw         Njord            SC     Druid  90     1.62  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Qwernt           CanbeOnlyBlizz   SC     Sorc   90     1.62  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       ?      ?
MercMan          Este             SC     Ama    90     1.62  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes  1212    278       2      ?
Zarfen           Stamina          SC     Sorc   90      ??   2019-12-08  Yes     -      -     Yes      -
Lynchgrinch      Tattersail       SC     Sorc   89     1.48  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -    321       ?      ?
Hutton           Jyn              HC     Sin    89           2020-05-24  Yes     -      -       -      -
Jocular          BareBear_Where   HC     Druid  88     1.47  2019-05-20  ???     -      -      NA      -
LiquidClear      Sally            SC     Sin    88     1.36  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes   225      -       1      -
MizzouFTW        Mariah           SC     Sin    88     1.36  2019-01-28  Yes     -     -        -      -
BasicBhoy        Belgarath        HC     Druid  88     1.36  2019-01-29  Yes     -      -       -      -
TwentyMuleTeam   Chore            SC     Sin    88     ?.??  2020-01-02  Yes     -      -       -      -
D30D043          Brute            HC     Barb   87     1.34  2020-10-31  No      -      -       -     59
Neksja           Turirao          SC     Druid  87     1.25  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes   191    124       5      -
T72on1           Grapelike        SC     Barb   87     1.25  2019-01-24  Yes    98     82      13     37
Gladstone        Socrates         HC     Druid  86     1.15  YYYY-MM-DD  -       -      -       -      -
klonki           Dualizt_Ann      SC     Sorc   86     1.14  2019-05-26  Yes     -     37       1     15+
Burgomaster3     Hastur           SC     Druid  86     1.14  2018-07-02  Yes     -      -       -      -
sanguillen       DirkStruan-UT    HC     Pala   85     1.10  2018-12-19  Yes     -      -      NA      -
nMEKn            Summon           SC     Nec    85     1.07  2019-05-17  Yes     -      -       4      -
hackedagainanda  Hugo             HC     Necro  85     1.05  2017-12-17  Yes     -      -       -      -
Bobbo            Barbamel         HC     Barb   84     1.01  2019-01-11  Yes     -      -      NA      -
nepeta           finistere        SC     Sin    84     1.14  2019-01-04  ?       -      -       1      4
DaveW            Long_Term        SC     Sorc   84     0.97  2018-05-02  Yes Heaps      -    Lots     30+
Naturallog       Athos            HC     Barb   84     0.96  YYYY-MM-DD  No    159    105       0      -
Kitteh           Gwynt            HC     Druid  83           2018-10-28  Yes     -      -      NA      -
Xul's Gull       Xul              HC     Necro  81     0.74  2018-03-26  No      -      -      NA      -
Qwernt           AmaAgainstAll    SC     Sorc   81     0.74  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Gambit           Mallenroh        SC     Sorc   81     0.74  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     0      0       0      0
aarrgus          Acala            SC     Barb   80     0.68  2017-12-30  Yes     -      -       5      -
ioupainmax       Durnik           SC     Pala   79     0.63  2018-06-28  Yes   177    111       0      -
Jean Avila       SpeedAdict       SC     Ama    77     0.52  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -     50
MizzouFTW        NoDeathNoGlory   SC     Sorc   77     0.00  2019-12-12  Yes     -      -       -      -
logoutzero       Digimon          HC     Necro  76     0.48  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes    85     65       0      -
Gripphon         Ryu              SC     Sorc   76     0.48  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       ?     13
TwentyMuleTeam   Knope            SC     Sorc   76     0.00  2020-01-02  Yes     -      -       -      -
Darke Rahl       Bells            HC     Ama    74     0.40  YYYY-MM-DD  No     19      -       0      -
Smittyphi        SliceNDice       SC     Sin    70     0.30  2018-03-27  Yes    15      -       6      -
Irenicus_Mfs     Morgana          HC     Sorc   69     0.26  2018-12-09  Yes     -      -      NA     14+
Xul's Gull       Araphel          HC     Necro  60     0.12  2017-12-21  No      -      -       -      -
Burton Roberts   Arizona          SC     Ama    56     0.08  2018-06-12  No      -      -      15     38
Sleepybear123    Rob_theBarb      HC     Barb   50     0.05  2018-01-06  Yes     -      -       -     10
RIP              Sucell           HC     Druid  47     0.03  2018-12-08  Yes     -     20       -      -
Pijus            AGoodBoy         HC     Druid  45     0.00  2018-05-29  Yes     -      -      NA      -
Grape            Coke             SC     Barb   42     0.00  2018-12-06   ?     14     14       0      -
Izzak            Bones            SC     Necro  42     0.88  2019-01-10   -      -      -       1      -
TrU              Henryk           SC     Barb   41     0.02  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -      22     12
Gambit           Colossus         SC     Pala   39     0.02  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     0      0       0      0
kstuart          Nena             SC     Sorc   39     0.02  2020-04-15  Yes     -      -       -      -
Smancer          Smancer          SC     Necro  26     0.00  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     1      -       -      -
RIP              Espada           HC     Necro  24     0.00  2018-06-01  Yes     -     13       -      -
BKC              FearsomeFreddie  SC     Necro  23     0.00  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Ergroilnin       Erilinda         HC     Sorc   20     0.00  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -      -
DaveHutt         Alice            SC     Ama    13     0.00  2018-05-18  Yes     -      -       1      -
Lord Molybdenum  Ilucuthen        SC     Sin    13     0.??  2019-09-14  No      -      -       -      -
FireNice         Isern            SC     Zon    12     0     2019-12-04  Yes     0      -       -      -
dkn              Morgoth          SC     Barb   01     0.00  2019-10-04  Yes     -      -       0      0
MizzouFTW        Hocus            HC     Sorc   01     0.00  2018-10-28  Yes     -      -      NA      -

The Fallen

Spoiler: The Fallen

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
Vildecor         Trina            SC     Ama    98     3.22  2020-03-20  Yes     -    443      17      -
ulof             LiveAndLearn     HC     Sorc   97     3.09  2021-03-10  Yes     -    477       -      -
Vildecor         Mina             HC     Zon    96     2.78  2022-02-10  Yes     -    363       1      -
ulof             BillyIdol        HC     Necro  96     2.71  2021-01-10  Yes     -    430       1      -
1have2much3time  Vagabond         HC     Necro  95     2.66  2019-06-22  Yes     -      -       1      -
RIP              Kaira_II         HC     Sin    95     2.55  2018-09-06  Yes     -    399       -      -
T72on1           ShouldBeEasy     HC     Pala   95     2.52  2019-01-04  Yes  lots    320      NA    103
Babyhell         IpBanPrevales    SC     Sin    95.5   2.60  2019-09-22  Yes     -      -       9      -
ulof             ArmyOfMe         HC     Nec    92     ?.??  2021-07-25  Yes     -    286       -      -
Babyhell         BabyNinetyNiner  SC     Pala   91     ?.??  2019-08-02  Yes     -      -       3      -
Lord Molybdenum  Verisimilitude   SC     Ama    91     1.62  2018-06-02  No     98     77       3      -
Tears85          EoEF_Untwinked   HC     Barb   90     1.63  2020-09-23
Shuffleblast     Translocator     HC     Sorc   89     1.48  2019-11-23  Yes     -      -       1      -
Lord Molybdenum  Cruise_Control   SC     Necro  88     1.??  2018-06-02  No    128    101      22      -
Kitteh           Gwynt            HC     Druid  87     XXXX  2018-11-07  Yes     -      -       -      -
Bewitch          itsreal          HC     Sorc   87     1.xx  2018-04-24  No      -      -       -      -
MizzouFTW        Pure             HC     Necro  86     1.15  2018-01-10  Yes     -      -       1      -
Babyhell         Frida            HC     Ama    85     ?.??  2020-11-24  Yes     -      -       1      -
Vildecor         Ivar             SC     Pala   84     1.02  2019-09-02  Yes     -    307       3      -
Vildecor         Celia            HC     Ama    84     0.99  2018-05-30  Yes   125     97       1      -
Lord Molybdenum  Essa             SC     Sorc   84     0.??  2018-06-02  No     20     19       5      -
Lord Molybdenum  But_Why          SC     Sin    81     0.74  YYYY-MM-DD  No     55     51      53      -
coju             NintyNine_orRiP  HC     Sorc   81     0.74  2016-04-07  Yes     -      -       1      -
Vildecor         Zinerva          SC     Ama    80     0.70  2020-04-24  Yes   309    195       0      -
RIP              Attila           HC     Barb   78     0.59  2018-09-26  Yes     -     73      no      -
TwentyMuleTeam   Valus            HC     Barb   76     0.48  2016-10-27  Yes     -      -       1      -
Pb_pal           Stevesy          HC     Pala   76     0.48  2017-06-19  Yes     -      -       1      -
Vildecor         Rikka            HC     Ama    76     0.00  2020-04-05  Yes    63     56       -      -
Shuffleblast     Translocator     HC     Sorc   67     0.00  2019-11-03  Yes     -      -       1      -
weezaard         Cypher           SC     Druid  66     0.00  2018-02-21  Yes     -      -      20+     -
Tenecabo         OldShatterhand   HC     Druid  49     0.04  2016-06-16  Yes     -      0       1      -
Vildecor         Mina-II          HC     Zon    45     -     2022-02-24  Yes     -      -       -      -  D2R
Pijus            Pyrestarter      HC     Druid  36     0.00  2018-05-21  Yes     -      -       1      -
coju             fB               HC     Sorc   29     0.00  2016-04-09  Yes     1      1       1      2
Kitteh           Verallus         HC     Druid  26     0.00  2016-03-25  No      -      -       1      -
logoutzero       Rolex            HC     Barb   21     0.00  2016-03-26  Yes     0      0       1      1

 

[smorris54]

Hey all, I'm starting my first untwinked 99er challenge and have picked a barb for the playthrough. Meet Hartwig the Barb! Normal and A1 NM were nothing exciting, just grinding for Perfect amethysts and spirit runes/bases to try and roll a 4 socket so I can save my Larzuk quests. After I got my first spirit I decided to push on and am making good progress in NM after WW for the win against Andy with black and strength runewords. Currently level 42 and enjoying the playthrough so far after only about 6 hours.

 

[PhineasB]

Welcome @smorris54 and looking forward to following Hartwig’s progress.

 

[smorris54]

Hartwig made his way through nightmare and into A3 hell with thanks to some pretty lucky drops! Thanks to a suicide branch from nm baal and a wizspike from hell countess he was able to sing his way through past trav. Now he's ready for some LK before he moves forward with meph. He's still under levelled at only 69(nice) and while the gear has helped solve mana issues, the dmg output is pretty pitiful. With Harmony in hand he'll hopefully make some meaningful progess farming LK for some much needed charms, runes and bases. With any luck, he'll be the WW barb he's dreamed of in no time!

 

[Irenicus]

@ smorris54: Welcome!

Meanwhile Fiona, my untwinked Javazon did mixed runs (for essences, keys and exp) and reached level 95 today. My highest level so far if I remember correctly.

Ubers is quite a pain, but I gathered four sets of keys and could kill the mini ubers without reskilling. The four runs to Tristram were done today after reaching level 95. What can I say, Fiona remains to be a VERY lucky girl.

Spoiler

Torches by now:

1st (done at level 93): Pala 10/15
2nd (today): Assa 11/20
3rd (today): Sorc 10/13
4th (today): Ama 17/20
5th (today): Druid 14/18

I will post my current gear in the next days/weeks. Happy running everyone!

 

[smorris54]

After my first 1000 runs of LK with Hartwig and a couple hundred eldritch/pindle runs for leveling up to 82 I had some good luck! Runes were scarce for the first 700 runs, only finding a gul rune and various mid runes. But on accident I started run 701 on p5 after some leveling and dropped a ber rune! After that I figured I'd keep the luck up and stay p5 for the session and found a titans revenge for my grail on 709! Nothing else popped up in that set of 100 but now out of superstition and perhaps boredom I'll rotate sets of 100 or 50 with p7 and p5 incase I get lucky again. My map spawned a battlebelt rack too so now after having no snowclash on my grail for hours and hours, I found 4 or 5 in just a few hundred runs in LK.
Once I find a Lo rune or enough runes to reasonably cube up I'll probably make grief and respec so I can fool around with some other farming until Jah pops so LK doesn't get too stale. I'm still lacking my PB base though and while I get they drop just about anywhere and the Pits are a good farming spot for them, I'm curious if they can drop on racks in LK. The ilvl and alvl matches up so theoretically they should be able to but I've never heard of it.
Can anyone confirm or deny if PB can drop on racks in LK?

 

[Grisu]

Guys, it is getting ridiculous...are we sure they didn't bug NM Andy to not drop SoJ anymore by purposely bugging her in D2R?

I am now at 2,400 NM Andy runs with 469 MF. So far I found 46 Nagelring and 52 Manald Heal and still no SoJ...(but my 3rd Tal's Ammy...). Finding no SoJ with those numbers is a 5.44% chance to happen...I know, I know, still in the realm of possibility, but nonetheless I had to rant somewhere about it...my wife wasn't the ideal audience for it ("what are you even talking about?!"). That is over 18 hours of my life I am not getting back Looking back, it would have been as efficient to just start getting XP (and more satisfying...the XP bar has not been moving at all those 2.4k runs), because ~20 hours is what I wanted to save by getting an Annihilus early...

 

[AntiRush]

Guys, it is getting ridiculous...are we sure they didn't bug NM Andy to not drop SoJ anymore by purposely bugging her in D2R?

I am now at 2,400 NM Andy runs with 469 MF. So far I found 46 Nagelring and 52 Manald Heal and still no SoJ...(but my 3rd Tal's Ammy...). Finding no SoJ with those numbers is a 5.44% chance to happen...I know, I know, still in the realm of possibility, but nonetheless I had to rant somewhere about it...my wife wasn't the ideal audience for it ("what are you even talking about?!"). That is over 18 hours of my life I am not getting back Looking back, it would have been as efficient to just start getting XP (and more satisfying...the XP bar has not been moving at all those 2.4k runs), because ~20 hours is what I wanted to save by getting an Annihilus early...

I have fairly recently gotten an soj from nm andariel. I bet if you switch to hell, though, the first ring that drops will be an soj.

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Guys, it is getting ridiculous...are we sure they didn't bug NM Andy to not drop SoJ anymore by purposely bugging her in D2R?

I am now at 2,400 NM Andy runs with 469 MF. So far I found 46 Nagelring and 52 Manald Heal and still no SoJ...(but my 3rd Tal's Ammy...). Finding no SoJ with those numbers is a 5.44% chance to happen...I know, I know, still in the realm of possibility, but nonetheless I had to rant somewhere about it...my wife wasn't the ideal audience for it ("what are you even talking about?!"). That is over 18 hours of my life I am not getting back Looking back, it would have been as efficient to just start getting XP (and more satisfying...the XP bar has not been moving at all those 2.4k runs), because ~20 hours is what I wanted to save by getting an Annihilus early...

This saddens me, as I've never found an SoJ before in my 20 years of D2, and was hoping to try and get my first ever Anni in D2R. But your experience has now made me wary of it ever happening.

In the meantime, I'll enter a more thorough update when I get a moment but in sum: my Frostmaiden May-may has made it to just over halfway between level 92 and 93, doing a variety of Stony Tomb / Ancient Tunnels runs, Pindle runs, Cow runs, and Chaos runs. Last night in the Stony Tombs, she had a unique Spiderweb Sash drop! I've specked her in anticipation of Razortail dropping at some point (that I haven't had one drop in 92.5 levels is rather annoying), but do you all think I'm better off just donning the Arachnid's, and getting 100% Pierce another way? She currently wears Chains of Honor and a +2 skills, + 30% R/W Coronet, and has a +3 B/C skills Melody Stag Bow. I suppose I can swap out the helm for a Wisdom runeword, but am wondering if losing those +2 skills is counterproductive in the long run, vs. the 33% pierce gained? Though Wisdom does have some added value in terms of extra mana and mana per kill....

 

[PhineasB]

Because you’re not using Enigma, I think the Arachnid’s is less significant because the FCR isn’t as important, and it’s more about the +skill. If you end up staying enigma-less, my hunch is that Razortail will give more benefit to get pierce maxed than dropping skills and other mods from helm to use Wisdom. But it’s only net -1 skills compared to Arachnid’s set up and would even out if you are using Ravenfrost and can swap in a +skill ring. The other mods across set ups may tip the balance, including mana leech from Wisdom.

Another option would be to pump Pierce via a few hard points and with +skills can be approaching 100%. That’s what I did with my LFzon (to allow Arachnids and in D2L where Wisdom wasn’t an option) and didn’t regret the skill points at loss of some extra synergies. Not sure how stretched on points your Zon is though and whether that’s a realistic option.

Also, grain of salt, I’m still on D2L and haven’t tracked synergy updates closely. So I may be missing something for a D2R character.

 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Because you’re not using Enigma, I think the Arachnid’s is less significant because the FCR isn’t as important, and it’s more about the +skill. If you end up staying enigma-less, my hunch is that Razortail will give more benefit to get pierce maxed than dropping skills and other mods from helm to use Wisdom. But it’s only net -1 skills compared to Arachnid’s set up and would even out if you are using Ravenfrost and can swap in a +skill ring. The other mods across set ups may tip the balance, including mana leech from Wisdom.

Another option would be to pump Pierce via a few hard points and with +skills can be approaching 100%. That’s what I did with my LFzon (to allow Arachnids and in D2L where Wisdom wasn’t an option) and didn’t regret the skill points at loss of some extra synergies. Not sure how stretched on points your Zon is though and whether that’s a realistic option.

Also, grain of salt, I’m still on D2L and haven’t tracked synergy updates closely. So I may be missing something for a D2R character.

Thanks for the tips, PhineasB. This was the food for thought I was hoping for when I asked, so I'm grateful for your reply.

As far as mana leech goes, my Melody bow is in a Stag Bow, so leech at the moment is pretty weak regardless. I imagine the 5% boost to max mana from the Arachnid's will help as well. Right now my two rings are both rares with res all and some extra life and mana, so I don't have any + to skills to use in those slots. Though I did just have a Ravenfrost drop and would like to add that in place of one, to take advantage of the CBF and the added cold damage that comes with it.

I was wondering about pumping Pierce, so I'm glad you brought that up. I'm currently at level 14 Pierce (with 8 base points pumped into it), which is listed at 79%. I do have 9 points I can still use, which at lvl 23 would take it up to somewhere between 85-89%, depending on which site you look at. The thing is, I have those 9 points to spend because I don't know where else to use them. I've maxed out Freezing Arrow and its synergies, Ice Arrow and Cold Arrow - each are lvl 35 with +skills. Throwing those points into one of the Fire tree skills would take that skill to 24 but based on where I do my runs I'm not sure what value that bring, other than against the Oblivion Knights in the Chaos Sanctuary, so I've not pursued that (but am open to being persuaded otherwise). Other than the base points, I haven't thrown any extra points into D/A/E because with +skills, I feel like I'm already at the Diminishing Returns point. Penetrate I've left at the base point as well, because I don't need it if Freezing Arrow is auto-hit (at least, I think it is). So that would leave the Valk, which I already 14 base points in (lvl 20 overall) and don't feel like it needs any more points. Decoy has one base point (10 overall), and I don't feel like any more points here are worth it either. So, short of any +skill rings, I feel like the choice is either:

-pump my excess points into Pierce, slap on the Arachnid's and Ravenfrost, keep the rare coronet as is --> B/C skills = lvl 36, Pierce ~ 85-89%
-slap on the Wisdom, slap on the Arachnid's, and put the points into either a Fire skill or one of the others mentioned above --> B/C skills = lvl 34, Pierce = 100%, 30% less R/W speed

I have to admit, I'm kind of leaning toward the first option (your point about your LFzon is weighing here as well).

Another question on a similar change vein - my merc is currently a Might merc, to try and help keep him alive. Am I better off switching him to a Holy Freeze merc? I worry about his ability to keep himself alive but then again, if spamming Freezing Arrow keeps most content frozen, maybe whatever Might brings to the table isn't as worth it as I thought?

 

[smorris54]

Hartwig has just finished his 2000th run on LK and this time with meager results. The highest rune drop was an ist and then the racks offered a few uniques for my grail but in all its poor consolation after hitting 20 hours. I will say I'm extremely happy I was able to find a ber rune so I can't complain but looking at my results I'm fairly confused at how I should feel. I should average a Vex+ every 430 ish runs I believe which would put me at around 5 high runes so far. Now I get that a combination of 5 vex-sur runes would have a tough time comparing to the value of a ber rune outright, but it would help motivation if I had more spread out drops. Having a big ber rune drop at run 701 was a huge pick me up but it's been 1300 runs since then with nothing than an ist to show for it so the excitement has worn off by now and the grind is getting a lot more real. I plan to at least hit the estimated average for enigma, which I believe is 3855 runs, before I allow myself to become too discouraged.

I'm glad I have this forum to report and vent to and hope you're all doing well on your journey to 99! Wish me luck!

 

[maxicek]

@smorris54 Read the first post in the Item Find Thread, you won’t feel so bad

 

[Grisu]

I did it!!!!



Phew, that was tougher than expected...run #2967 was the lucky one.

So, here are my stats on finding a SoJ from NM Andy:

# of runs: 2967
total time: 22 hrs, 34 min, 20 sec
avg run time: 27.4 sec

Nagelrings found: 56
Manald Heals found: 59
SoJ found: 1
Tal Rasha's Adjucation: 5

With my MF, the chance to find at least 1 SoJ in 2967 runs is about 97.3%. So yeah, I had to go pretty far to beat the odds. For the more visual guys among you - here is what your Flavie readout looks like if you are the 2.7% guy:


Now on to Uber Diablo and then I can finally start my 20 hrs batch in the Finding the Balance tourney

EDIT:
And here it is

Annihilus
Small Charm
Required Level: 70
Fingerprint: 0xe166b6d9
Item Level: 99
Version: Resurrected
+1 to All Skills
All Stats +10
All Resistances +14
+10% to Experience Gained

Well, not the best rolls, but at least 10% more XP to pay me back for 22 hours of running Andy

 

[AntiRush]

I did it!!!!

View attachment 84808

Phew, that was tougher than expected...run #2967 was the lucky one.

So, here are my stats on finding a SoJ from NM Andy:

# of runs: 2967
total time: 22 hrs, 34 min, 20 sec
avg run time: 27.4 sec

Nagelrings found: 56
Manald Heals found: 59
SoJ found: 1
Tal Rasha's Adjucation: 5

With my MF, the chance to find at least 1 SoJ in 2967 runs is about 97.3%. So yeah, I had to go pretty far to beat the odds. For the more visual guys among you - here is what your Flavie readout looks like if you are the 2.7% guy:

View attachment 84807
Now on to Uber Diablo and then I can finally start my 20 hrs batch in the Finding the Balance tourney

EDIT:
And here it is

Annihilus
Small Charm
Required Level: 70
Fingerprint: 0xe166b6d9
Item Level: 99
Version: Resurrected
+1 to All Skills
All Stats +10
All Resistances +14
+10% to Experience Gained

Well, not the best rolls, but at least 10% more XP to pay me back for 22 hours of running Andy

Nice job being persistent. 10% XP is the only roll that really matters here, too. That's awesome!

 

[smorris54]

Hartwig the Barb is now 3855 runs on LK after 38 hours. I've had decent enough luck and most of it was concentrated in my mid 2000's. I picked up 2xSur, 2xOhm and a few Guls and Vex along with plenty of mid runes in that time period. I also finally racked Alders Boots and 46% War Travs so that was a bonus! I'm still one ber short of Enigma but I've made my first Grief and have the mid runes to cube for a second if I want to. I'm burning out on LK so even though Travincal is going to be less efficient than LK, I'll probably start doing more trav runs to break up the monotony. Maybe I get lucky and drop a Jah outright so I can keep an extra ber.
I've started settling into more manageable expectations after slowing down the last few weeks. The holidays tied me up a lot but even when I had the time I wasn't too eager to grind LK. I'm finally losing the sense of rush and getting more comfortable with the long term implications of this challenge. I'll still be active with good ole Hartwig but I won't have as many updates over the course of his climb to 99.
Good luck everyone on your characters!

 

[PhineasB]

Champion Redux, Blizz Sorc, and Emilio the A2 HF Merc, Lvl 97
One more level to go at CS before likely transitioning to Nihl. The last update here was past 95.6 after picking up Arachnid's at Meph.

She was at 95.75 at the start of Finding the Balance tourney hosted by @ffs and she progressed to just shy of 96.7 during the 20-hour set. She placed third, and her drops are summarized here. Of note for her 99er journey was the Ber, that became Infinity so that is in hand for Nihl runs:

Aside from that, though, she didn't pick up anything useful for herself, not even a charm upgrade. Over the last week she gained the last bit to hit the level, with notable drops of Stormspire and an Ohm, plus two Ums and a Pul:

Her rune luck has been sub-par for CS, with only Ist, Vex, Ber and Ohm as Mal+ runes since lvl 93 to lvl 97. Hopefully that picks up for the last level, with a Jah, Ohm/Lo and Vex needed for Phoenix if we go the Fire route (but Lightning is always an option).

Also as a side-note, I swtiched to defensive merc Gulzar for the tourney set, thinking it might be safer than HF. It was not, so I switched back to HF (and was able to rehire HF Emilio to boot!) and ended up with a better CS map as a result: 1-3 boss packs upon entering CS, and average of another 2-3 around the Pentagram or seals.

My playing time will be more limited due to new job responsibilities, longer hours, and shifting back to 4-5 days in the office as a result. But I'm hoping to keep getting chunks of time with Redux when winding down in the evenings, along with progressing my Lesser Skills sept characters and making a run at finishing off (one way or another) my HC tourney pally to see if I can finish that Sept also.

Happy New Year SPF!

* * *

Hall of Fame

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
zticazzy         Perkele          SC     Barb   99     3.52  2016-07-12  No      -      -       -      -
Pb_pal           Eleanor          SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2016-11-09  No   3068    437       5      -
NanoMist         Izuna            SC     Sin    99     3.52  2016-12-25  No   5109    470       4    360
PhineasB         Mercy            SC     Sin    99     3.52  2017-05-23  Yes     -    475      11      -
PhineasB         Hiatus           SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2017-12-25  Yes     -    471      21      -
ffs              HelpYourself     SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-04-29  Yes     -    447       -      -
Neksja           Aura             SC     Pala   99     3.52  2018-08-08  Yes     -    481       -      -
Jpy              Sophie           SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-08-26  Yes     -      -      10   <300
T72on1           Neverland        SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-10-21  Yes  lots    483      13    350+
Bewitch          itssoftcore      SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2018-11-07  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Phaedrus         SC     Pala   99     3.52  2018-11-12  Yes     -    401      13      -
ffs              Ric              SC     Necro  99     3.52  2018-12-26  Yes     -    463       -      -
Bewitch          Mayhem           SC     Barb   99     3.52  2019-07-07  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Pestilence       SC     Necro  99     3.52  2019-07-29  Yes     -      -       -      -
Pb_pal           Klaus            HC     Druid  99     3.52  2019-10-07  Yes     -    433      NA      -
ResTTe           ResTTe           SC     Barb   99     3.52  2019-12-14  Yes     -    465    many   ~320
ffs              Lucid            SC     Pala   99     3.52  2019-12-23  Yes     -    457       -   <250
PhineasB         Quinta           SC     Ama    99     3.52  2019-12-27  Yes     -    413       4      -
Luhkoh           Arkana           SC     Sorc   99     3.52  2020-03-01  Yes     -      -       -      -
Kinkara          Bobo             SC     Barb   99     3.52  2020-12-13  Yes     -      -       -      -
D30D043          Fragile          HC     Sorc   99     3.52  2020-12-29  No      -      -       -    348
PhineasB         Death            SC     Barb   99     3.52  2020-12-31  No      -      -       2      -
Pax1990          Anger            SC     Barb   99     3.52  2021-11-12  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Septimus         SC     Druid  99     3.52  2022-03-05  Yes     -      -       0      -
grogs            Windy            SC     Druid  99     3.52  2022-09-21  ?       -      -       -      -

Questing Heroes

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
HanShotFirst     Das-Omen         SC     Sorc   98.33  3.33  2022-08-25  Yes     -    489       -      -  D2R
Pb_pal           Stevesy          HC     Barb   98.3   3.31  2022-01-04  Yes     -      -      NA      -
D30D043          Exanimate        HC     Nec    98     3.31  2021-09-07  No      -      -       -    308  D2
MercMan          Big_Chill        SC     Sorc   98     3.23  2021-11-13  Yes     -    458     Yes      -  D2
ulof             LuckBeALady      HC     Nec    97     3.14  2021-09-20  Yes     -    482       -      -  D2
ffs              Revenge          HC     Barb   97     3.10  2022-09-29  Yes     -      -       -      -
PhineasB         Redux            SC     Sorc   97     2.96  2022-12-31  Yes     -      -       9      -  D2
Kstil3227        Hurricane-Syd    HC     Druid  96     2.75  2022-02-02  Yes     -    432       -      -  D2R
AntiRush         Live             HC     Barb   96     2.74  2022-10-06  Yes     0      -       -      -  D2R
Jpy              Emilia           SC     Sorc   96     2.71  2021-10-28  No      -      -       -     55
Evoken           Evoken           SC     Barb   96     2.71  2022-09-05  No      -      -      Yes   183  D2
Freuga           Ledyne           SC     Sorc   96     2.71  2022-11-06  Yes  1616    372      90    164  D2R
maxicek          Villanelle       SC     Sin    95     2.53  2022-09-13  Yes     0    -94       -      -  D2R
Pax1990          Pax              SC     Pala   95           2021-11-17  Yes     -      -       -      -
Grisu            Aviendha         HC     Sorc   95     2.51  2022-12-06  Yes  3582    363       -     82  D2R
Gynli            BlizzIOO         SC     Sorc   95     2.49  2022-10-08  No      -      -       -      -  D2R
NorthDakota      Aeon             SC     Sorc   94     -     2021-10-10  Yes     -      -       -    100  D2R
Irenicus         Fiona            SC     Zon    93     -     2021-12-18  No      -      -       16     -  D2R
Kinkara          Faust            SC     Nec    92     -     2021-07-21  Yes     -      -       -      -
Vang             Lost             SC     Sin    92     1.92  2021-10-29  Yes   175      -     Yes         D2R
Foghorn Leghorn  May-may          HC     Zon    91     1.87  2022-08-13  No      -      -      NA      -  D2R
Yori96           Grace            HC     Sin    89     1.48  2022-01-15  Yes     -    102      NA      -  D2R
Foghorn Leghorn  Jin-qua          HC     Nec    87     1.27  2022-04-23  No      -      -      NA      -  D2R
Foghorn Leghorn  DirkStruan       HC     Pala   85     1.08  2022-04-23  No      -      -      NA      -  D2R
Slam             Izaura           HC     Sorc   82     -     2021-02-27  Yes     -      -       0      -
Vildecor         Alanna           SC     Zon    82     -     2022-09-07  Yes     -      -       -      -  D2R
Babyhell         Athena           SC     Sorc   67     0     2021-09-18  Yes     0      -       -      -
Babyhell         Minerva          SC     Zon    67     0     2021-09-23  Yes     0      -       -      -
inspiredunease   Kanakata         SC     Sin    80     -     2021-10-14  ?       ?      -       -      -  D2R

Resting Heroes

Spoiler: Resting Heroes

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
Buckcrazy        Zic              HC     Sorc   98.5   3.38  2019-07-22  Yes     -      -      NA   lots
Bewitch          Mindcrime        HC     Pala   98     3.27  2019-11-19  Yes     -      -       -      -
Bewitch          Necronomicon     SC     Necro  98     3.22  2019-07-09  Yes     -      -       -      -
hasuprotoss      Reina            SC     Sorc   97     2.96  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes  1751    384       -      -
darkstarhub      Neptune          SC     Sorc   97     2.96  2018-07-23  Yes     -    470       -      -
Ashenshugar      Natur            SC     Druid  97     2.96  2018-11-20  Yes  2529      -       -      -
ResTTe           Lyssandra        SC     Sorc   97     2.96  2020-10-19  Yes     -    375    many    ~90
Me2Nik           Fugu             HC     Ama    96     2.72  2019-02-03  Yes  Lots      -       -      -
Tarantella       Tarasha          HC     Sorc   96     2.72  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Grim             Furious_Blonde   SC     Ama    96     2.72  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
drmalawi         TheCanMan        SC     Pala   96     2.76  2020-01-19  Yes     -      -     Yes      -
teddeeboy        Atheyanore       SC     Sorc   95     2.52  2019-02-03  Yes  300+      -       8   many
Chaostar         Prairie          SC     Sorc   95     2.49  2019-06-15  Yes     -    384      25      -
CrustyRusty      Space_Oddity     SC     Ama    95     2.49  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
XyleneCyanol     Fishie           HC     Sorc   95     2.49  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -      -
Quinneczech      Blackwell        HC     Barb   95     2.49  2019-04-01  -       -      -      NA      -
Hutton           Terrahork        HC     Barb   95     0.00  2019-04-24  Yes     -      -      NA      -
ThomasJohnsen    xInTheBuffx      HC     Sorc   95     2.49  2017-03-31  Yes     -      -       -      -
NamelessPenguin  Rockatansky      SC     Barb   95     2.49  2017-12-14  Yes     -      -       -      -
Dezrok           Salome           SC     Sorc   95     2.49  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes   792    318       -      -
smloeffelholz    ArbeitsPferd     SC     Sorc   94     2.29  2020-09-10  Yes     -      -       -      -
Arctodus         Lubotor          SC     Barb   94     2.28  2020-02-16  Yes     -      -      16      -
sanguillen       GordonChen-UT    HC     Necro  93     2.14  2019-02-27  Yes     -      -      NA      -
Reyz             Qty              SC     Sorc   93     2.10  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -      -
Zenigma          Ayura            SC     Barb   93     2.12  2018-09-08  No      -      -       -      -
T72on1           TooMuchEnergy    SC     Sorc   93     2.10  2019-07-19  Yes   267    181      12     47.5
LongingForDeath  VelvetSky        SC     Sorc   93     2.10  2019-12-19  Yes     -    396      12      -
Smittyphi        TheLongRun       SC     Sorc   93     2.09  2019-11-06  Yes    30      -     Yes      -
Trapin'          ceegee           SC     Pala   93     2.17  2020-01-01  No      -      -       -      -
Potent           Challenge(CL)    SC     Sorc   92     1.96  2018-07-30  no      -      -       -      -
jjscud           Ragnarok         SC     Pala   92     1.97  2019-12-28  No      -      -      36   lots
liquid_mage      zDadColdSorc     SC     Sorc   91     1.89  2019-02-04  Yes     -    223       -      -
Tatterson        Titaani          SC     Barb   91     1.84  2018-11-27  Yes     -      -       -      -
Zenigma          Gnosis           SC     Druid  91     1.79  2018-04-26  No      -      -       -      -
OldSoldier       Battleforge      HC     Pala   91     1.76  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -    236       -      -
kyndig           DrearyAura       HC     Sorc   91     1.76  2018-02-20  Yes     -      -       -      -
tokerdin         tokeress         SC     Sorc   91     1.76  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
sir_cyclops      devi             SC     Sin    91     ?.??  2019-02-27  Yes     -      -       -      -
jonnyphive       Shaltara         SC     Sorc   91     ??    2020-03-13  Yes     -      -     Yes      -
Neksja           Aurora           SC     Sorc   90     1.70  2018-09-08  Yes     -    215       -      -
AlexTheNextOne   Orion            SC     Pala   90     1.62  2018-07-22  Yes     -      -       -      -
Southpaw         Njord            SC     Druid  90     1.62  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Qwernt           CanbeOnlyBlizz   SC     Sorc   90     1.62  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       ?      ?
MercMan          Este             SC     Ama    90     1.62  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes  1212    278       2      ?
Zarfen           Stamina          SC     Sorc   90      ??   2019-12-08  Yes     -      -     Yes      -
Lynchgrinch      Tattersail       SC     Sorc   89     1.48  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -    321       ?      ?
Hutton           Jyn              HC     Sin    89           2020-05-24  Yes     -      -       -      -
Jocular          BareBear_Where   HC     Druid  88     1.47  2019-05-20  ???     -      -      NA      -
LiquidClear      Sally            SC     Sin    88     1.36  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes   225      -       1      -
MizzouFTW        Mariah           SC     Sin    88     1.36  2019-01-28  Yes     -     -        -      -
BasicBhoy        Belgarath        HC     Druid  88     1.36  2019-01-29  Yes     -      -       -      -
TwentyMuleTeam   Chore            SC     Sin    88     ?.??  2020-01-02  Yes     -      -       -      -
D30D043          Brute            HC     Barb   87     1.34  2020-10-31  No      -      -       -     59
Neksja           Turirao          SC     Druid  87     1.25  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes   191    124       5      -
T72on1           Grapelike        SC     Barb   87     1.25  2019-01-24  Yes    98     82      13     37
Gladstone        Socrates         HC     Druid  86     1.15  YYYY-MM-DD  -       -      -       -      -
klonki           Dualizt_Ann      SC     Sorc   86     1.14  2019-05-26  Yes     -     37       1     15+
Burgomaster3     Hastur           SC     Druid  86     1.14  2018-07-02  Yes     -      -       -      -
sanguillen       DirkStruan-UT    HC     Pala   85     1.10  2018-12-19  Yes     -      -      NA      -
nMEKn            Summon           SC     Nec    85     1.07  2019-05-17  Yes     -      -       4      -
hackedagainanda  Hugo             HC     Necro  85     1.05  2017-12-17  Yes     -      -       -      -
Bobbo            Barbamel         HC     Barb   84     1.01  2019-01-11  Yes     -      -      NA      -
nepeta           finistere        SC     Sin    84     1.14  2019-01-04  ?       -      -       1      4
DaveW            Long_Term        SC     Sorc   84     0.97  2018-05-02  Yes Heaps      -    Lots     30+
Naturallog       Athos            HC     Barb   84     0.96  YYYY-MM-DD  No    159    105       0      -
Kitteh           Gwynt            HC     Druid  83           2018-10-28  Yes     -      -      NA      -
Xul's Gull       Xul              HC     Necro  81     0.74  2018-03-26  No      -      -      NA      -
Qwernt           AmaAgainstAll    SC     Sorc   81     0.74  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Gambit           Mallenroh        SC     Sorc   81     0.74  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     0      0       0      0
aarrgus          Acala            SC     Barb   80     0.68  2017-12-30  Yes     -      -       5      -
ioupainmax       Durnik           SC     Pala   79     0.63  2018-06-28  Yes   177    111       0      -
Jean Avila       SpeedAdict       SC     Ama    77     0.52  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -     50
MizzouFTW        NoDeathNoGlory   SC     Sorc   77     0.00  2019-12-12  Yes     -      -       -      -
logoutzero       Digimon          HC     Necro  76     0.48  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes    85     65       0      -
Gripphon         Ryu              SC     Sorc   76     0.48  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       ?     13
TwentyMuleTeam   Knope            SC     Sorc   76     0.00  2020-01-02  Yes     -      -       -      -
Darke Rahl       Bells            HC     Ama    74     0.40  YYYY-MM-DD  No     19      -       0      -
Smittyphi        SliceNDice       SC     Sin    70     0.30  2018-03-27  Yes    15      -       6      -
Irenicus_Mfs     Morgana          HC     Sorc   69     0.26  2018-12-09  Yes     -      -      NA     14+
Xul's Gull       Araphel          HC     Necro  60     0.12  2017-12-21  No      -      -       -      -
Burton Roberts   Arizona          SC     Ama    56     0.08  2018-06-12  No      -      -      15     38
Sleepybear123    Rob_theBarb      HC     Barb   50     0.05  2018-01-06  Yes     -      -       -     10
RIP              Sucell           HC     Druid  47     0.03  2018-12-08  Yes     -     20       -      -
Pijus            AGoodBoy         HC     Druid  45     0.00  2018-05-29  Yes     -      -      NA      -
Grape            Coke             SC     Barb   42     0.00  2018-12-06   ?     14     14       0      -
Izzak            Bones            SC     Necro  42     0.88  2019-01-10   -      -      -       1      -
TrU              Henryk           SC     Barb   41     0.02  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -      22     12
Gambit           Colossus         SC     Pala   39     0.02  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     0      0       0      0
kstuart          Nena             SC     Sorc   39     0.02  2020-04-15  Yes     -      -       -      -
Smancer          Smancer          SC     Necro  26     0.00  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     1      -       -      -
RIP              Espada           HC     Necro  24     0.00  2018-06-01  Yes     -     13       -      -
BKC              FearsomeFreddie  SC     Necro  23     0.00  YYYY-MM-DD  Yes     -      -       -      -
Ergroilnin       Erilinda         HC     Sorc   20     0.00  YYYY-MM-DD  No      -      -       -      -
DaveHutt         Alice            SC     Ama    13     0.00  2018-05-18  Yes     -      -       1      -
Lord Molybdenum  Ilucuthen        SC     Sin    13     0.??  2019-09-14  No      -      -       -      -
FireNice         Isern            SC     Zon    12     0     2019-12-04  Yes     0      -       -      -
dkn              Morgoth          SC     Barb   01     0.00  2019-10-04  Yes     -      -       0      0
MizzouFTW        Hocus            HC     Sorc   01     0.00  2018-10-28  Yes     -      -      NA      -

The Fallen

Spoiler: The Fallen

Forumite         Character        SC/HC  Class  Level  Exp   Date        E/S  S/U   Grail  Deaths  Hours  D2/D2R
---------------  ---------------  -----  -----  -----  ----  ----------  ---  ----  -----  ------  -----  ------
Vildecor         Trina            SC     Ama    98     3.22  2020-03-20  Yes     -    443      17      -
ulof             LiveAndLearn     HC     Sorc   97     3.09  2021-03-10  Yes     -    477       -      -
Vildecor         Mina             HC     Zon    96     2.78  2022-02-10  Yes     -    363       1      -
ulof             BillyIdol        HC     Necro  96     2.71  2021-01-10  Yes     -    430       1      -
1have2much3time  Vagabond         HC     Necro  95     2.66  2019-06-22  Yes     -      -       1      -
RIP              Kaira_II         HC     Sin    95     2.55  2018-09-06  Yes     -    399       -      -
T72on1           ShouldBeEasy     HC     Pala   95     2.52  2019-01-04  Yes  lots    320      NA    103
Babyhell         IpBanPrevales    SC     Sin    95.5   2.60  2019-09-22  Yes     -      -       9      -
ulof             ArmyOfMe         HC     Nec    92     ?.??  2021-07-25  Yes     -    286       -      -
Babyhell         BabyNinetyNiner  SC     Pala   91     ?.??  2019-08-02  Yes     -      -       3      -
Lord Molybdenum  Verisimilitude   SC     Ama    91     1.62  2018-06-02  No     98     77       3      -
Tears85          EoEF_Untwinked   HC     Barb   90     1.63  2020-09-23
Shuffleblast     Translocator     HC     Sorc   89     1.48  2019-11-23  Yes     -      -       1      -
Lord Molybdenum  Cruise_Control   SC     Necro  88     1.??  2018-06-02  No    128    101      22      -
Kitteh           Gwynt            HC     Druid  87     XXXX  2018-11-07  Yes     -      -       -      -
Bewitch          itsreal          HC     Sorc   87     1.xx  2018-04-24  No      -      -       -      -
MizzouFTW        Pure             HC     Necro  86     1.15  2018-01-10  Yes     -      -       1      -
Babyhell         Frida            HC     Ama    85     ?.??  2020-11-24  Yes     -      -       1      -
Vildecor         Ivar             SC     Pala   84     1.02  2019-09-02  Yes     -    307       3      -
Vildecor         Celia            HC     Ama    84     0.99  2018-05-30  Yes   125     97       1      -
Lord Molybdenum  Essa             SC     Sorc   84     0.??  2018-06-02  No     20     19       5      -
Lord Molybdenum  But_Why          SC     Sin    81     0.74  YYYY-MM-DD  No     55     51      53      -
coju             NintyNine_orRiP  HC     Sorc   81     0.74  2016-04-07  Yes     -      -       1      -
Vildecor         Zinerva          SC     Ama    80     0.70  2020-04-24  Yes   309    195       0      -
RIP              Attila           HC     Barb   78     0.59  2018-09-26  Yes     -     73      no      -
TwentyMuleTeam   Valus            HC     Barb   76     0.48  2016-10-27  Yes     -      -       1      -
Pb_pal           Stevesy          HC     Pala   76     0.48  2017-06-19  Yes     -      -       1      -
Vildecor         Rikka            HC     Ama    76     0.00  2020-04-05  Yes    63     56       -      -
Shuffleblast     Translocator     HC     Sorc   67     0.00  2019-11-03  Yes     -      -       1      -
weezaard         Cypher           SC     Druid  66     0.00  2018-02-21  Yes     -      -      20+     -
Tenecabo         OldShatterhand   HC     Druid  49     0.04  2016-06-16  Yes     -      0       1      -
Vildecor         Mina-II          HC     Zon    45     -     2022-02-24  Yes     -      -       -      -  D2R
Pijus            Pyrestarter      HC     Druid  36     0.00  2018-05-21  Yes     -      -       1      -
coju             fB               HC     Sorc   29     0.00  2016-04-09  Yes     1      1       1      2
Kitteh           Verallus         HC     Druid  26     0.00  2016-03-25  No      -      -       1      -
logoutzero       Rolex            HC     Barb   21     0.00  2016-03-26  Yes     0      0       1      1

 

[Dazliare]

I have played this game on and off since 1999 when a friend showed it to me. In that time, I have never had a 99 and it's always been a goal of mine. I had a 97 lightning sorceress years ago but she is long gone. I have tried a few times to achieve a UT 99er with a HC character but it's always ended poorly. I had this week off and, on a whim, decided to create a SC paladin to see how far I get. Ananiel (Rain of God in the Book of Enoch) is currently level 82 and going strong. I've had a few deaths, though I expect those to be minimized as the character gets stronger.

There also isn't a Fist of the Heavens paladin on the list (last I checked). It's a spell I've always wanted to build around and so far it's great, though just a bit clunky. FoH has two drawbacks:
1) No AoE damage for non-undead/non-demon monsters
2) I don't fully understand this, but it looks like the main target of the spell receives a lot more lightning damage than holy bolt damage (no holy damage if not undead/demonic). The way this manifests in reality is that a LI unique is usually easier to kill by targeting its minions and letting the holy bolts take it down rather than targeting the unique individually. Again I don't have a full understanding here, but has been my experience.

However, against groups of undead or demons, it's a great spell. Is it on par with hammers? Probably not, but I have no idea because I've never played a hammerdin.

I have my gear planned out and plan to go the max block/holy shield route for max survivability. Here is the journey so far:
Act 1 on /players 8 - finished the act around 19
Act 2 on /players 1, but full cleared all of Tal Rasha's tombs at /players 8 - finished the act at 28
Rest of the game on P1 with leveling stops at normal and nightmare Baal
Around level 70 I started running pits/countess and have stayed there until now at level 82.

The last thing I'll mention is that I had originally planned for this character to do Ancient Tunnels from around 85 to around 94 but that may not work. AT has horror mages and archers which are immune to lightning and really annoying to kill unique packs. Invaders are also not demonic or undead so I think AT will end up being much slower than pits. The only troublesome enemies in the pits so far are LI archer packs which are demonic. We'll see. That's all for now

 

[Dazliare]

Here are some thoughts I've had. I'm not really looking for advice or whether or not any of this is correct - part of the fun is figuring this stuff out.

Planned/proposed gear:
Harlequin Crest
Mara's Kaleidoscope
Heart of the Oak
Enigma
Herald of Zakarum
Magefist
Stone of Jordan/Bul-Kathos' Wedding Band
Arachnid Mesh
War Traveler
Call to Arms and Spirit on switch

Mercenary:
Lots of options here and I'm not sure what's best so I'll have to experiment. Reaper's Toll, Vampire Gaze, and Fortitude would be excellent.

Paladin FCR breakpoints are 75 and 125. The setup above exceeds 75 without needing spirit. Mara's may be difficult to find but the rest should be relatively farmable. A 2/20 caster amulet with spirit would exceed 125 fcr, but HoZ is really good. A possible solution would be Griffon's Eye, though I've never once found one, on top of a 10fcr ring

There is also a bit of a meme possibility with a 5os war scepter with 3 combat skills, 3 FoH, 3 Conviction, and either socket a runeword into it or light facets. This setup would probably want a 3/20 magic circlet with a light facet socketed, but we're starting down the rabbit hole of "this will never happen but might be fun"

I hit 83 tonight, and plan to stay in the pit until 85, at which point I'll start looking at LK. The setup above requires the following runes: Jah, Ith, Ber, Ko, Vex, Pul, Thul, Amn, Ral, Mal, Ist, Ohm, El, Sol, Dol, Lo. The nasty ones are Jah and Ber obviously. Vex, Pul, Mal, Ist, and Ohm are all not toooo bad. Lo can be pretty bad, but not as bad as Ber. Jah can't drop in LK so I may intersperse some Travincal runs depending on how quick I can run it.

 

[smorris54]

I'm honestly surprised to have another update for Hartwig so soon after claiming it would be awhile and for that I apologize haha. I spent several days this last week working on travincal and pits with a little meph farming here and there as I'm still missing arreat's face and laying of hands. Kill speeds were slow and despite being absolutely sick of LK over the last month I kinda missed setting up a show and just zoning out doing LK runs so I decided to reload a good map and found a pretty solid 30 second map which, with 6 second load times on D2R for my PC setup, is almost a perfect map. On run 61 of my first session on that new map I found a Sur! Then even luckier, I found a second Sur only 22 runs later on number 83. That was so insane to me!

I total about 4300 runs now and almost every high rune followed a 1000 run dry streak. I forgot the dry stretches real quick after finding 2 Sur in less than a hundred runs though. Now Hartwig has dual grief and Enigma and is completely ready to tackle anything!

Here's a video of cubing runes and finally making the enigma:

EDIT:
I feel bad making another post but I gotta share this luck from today so I'll just tag it on here.
Holy crap this has been a golden day! I decided to farm soj for anni before i got into leveling in earnest and settled into a nm map for andy. My runs were averaging 27 seconds with the new enigma and I expected 1000+ runs before I found one but on run 167 I dropped one! I was a little scared to tackle Diablo Clone with a WW Barb as it is my first time doing so but I had stormshield and string of ears as well as good resists so there wasn't much risk of dying and he fell easily.
My anni rolled extremely average but with how quickly I was able to farm it, it's beautiful!