- Aug 5, 2005
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The Warrior-Monk, and Uber-Tristram Assassin Build - Guide v. 1.1
Originally posted by JanusJones, Sep 13, 2005
Note: This guide was originally written for BNet. Please bear in mind it may recommend items not found or permitted in Single Player.
ENTER THE WARRIOR
The people in the town didn't know what to make of her. Few ever heard of the Mageslayers, and those who had knew little of her monastery. Despite the uncomfortable stares from these rough villagers, Nandi felt strangely at peace. She was, after all, among warriors, and there was a straightforward strength to these people that she admired. Though their methods might differ, they were in many ways the same.
It might have been her appearance that led the old man to trust her. He had the look of a hardened soldier of many campaigns. His armor, though dented, gleamed with the dull sheen of constant care and repair. Nandi had inclined her head further than she was accustomed to, showing the man her respect; a warrior's best friend was her equipment, and this barbarian clearly honored that bond. Quahl-Kehk had eyed her suspiciously, his piercing stare catching on the cutting edge of her axe, her high helm, and the sturdy shield slung across her back. A creature called Shenk, he had said, eyeing her suspiciously. Cut off the head and the body dies. End the siege and you'll earn my trust.
Before she left town she checked her gear. Her blades, blackened with soot, still bore the potent adder's venom she had so meticulously applied. Her axe's edge shone, ground razor-fine on the blacksmith's wheel. She adjusted her helm, ensuring her peripheral vision was not compromised. The master had always taught that a warrior's best weapon was to know the battlefield; you could only defend against that which you could see.
She took a moment to steady her breathing, centering herself. Her mind emptied of the squalid town, the stink of the demon's fires outside the walls, the moans of the injured men who littered the street, the admonitions and warnings of the Elder, Cain. Closing her eyes, she focused her inner sight on a single point of light hovering in the darkness behind her lids. Under her attention, it grew into a pulsing sphere. She felt it's warm pulse, felt the ache of her muscles fade as the ki surged through her. When her eyes opened, she felt a momentary satisfaction: they would never see her coming.
INTRODUCTION
Let me start by saying this is not an original build. It is essentially a re-make of Frogboybri's Ninja guide, to whom I owe many thanks (thanks, man!). It is different in several crucial ways, both in terms of equipment and in terms of skill selection. Above and beyond uber-hunting, it is a fun and viable Hell build which is a different take on the melee Assassin.
I've called it the 'Warrior-Monk' since I chose not to use traps (a tactic which would appeal to Ninjas and Assassins) and the character is a melee build. Traps are something which you could decide to optimize on this character - however I have not. I'm not a huge fan of traps and wanted to make a solid melee build to tackle the uber three. Also, its equipment makes it look far more martial than most Assassins, and its play-style reinforces that image.
I've included only moderate detail on specific equipment modifiers as this information is available from a number of sources; I mostly get mine HERE. Check out any of the specifics if you're curious.
ADVANTAGES
This build is the fastest way to apply max Crushing Blow in the game - period. Zealers can't swing as fast and Crushing Blow is nerfed on ranged attacks (making a 2 fps Strafe useless for the purposes of CB). Dragon Talon's speed - the fastest melee attack in the game - and its incredibly high AR makes it perfect for running uber-trist. Using the gear and skills I suggest, this Assassin can tank uber-Mephisto without breaking a sweat.
This build can tank in almost any area of the game with the right equipment. Between Mind Blast, Life Tap, and your Shadow Master you will never be overwhelmed. Play smart and you'll never have to pick up a corpse.
This build has a VERY effective ranged and melee attack, making it incredibly versatile. Unlike bow/javelin zon hybrids, you never have to switch weapons - melee and ranged can be on right and left clicks (or just ahotkey away).
This build has both poison and physical damage, and can take nearly any monster in the game. With the right gear, it can also do in phys/poison immunes without breaking a sweat.
You have a physical damage attack which does not hurt when you've got Iron Maiden cast on you: Blade Fury. This means you can slaughter Doom Knights without a care in the world, while barbs drop like flies around you.
Warrior-Monks look COOL.
DISADVANTAGES
When built right, none! If you don't like thinking while you play, this isn't the build for you. It only takes an absolute minimum of strategy to play a Warrior-Monk right, though, and they're unbelievably cool. Trust me.
SKILLS
TRAPS
1 in Fire Blast (prerequisite)
1 in Wake of Fire (prerequisite)
1 in Blade Sentinel (prerequisite)
1 in Blade Fury (main skill!)
1~20 in Death Sentry
Notes on Skills:
Blade Fury, though it is a main skill for this build, only requires a single point to be effective. The majority of the damage dealt by the spell is weapon and item dependant, with further points only netting limited returns. Note that it is a PvM skill and is not useful for the ubers - the Ignores Target Defense modifier does not apply to champions or super-uniques. It is, however, very useful for dealing with other monsters at range, thinning enemy packs to make them easier to take in melee.
This skill is actually a one-point wonder, but the key is your equipment has to be designed to augment it. Fortunately, this build's equipment is great for powering up some very respectable shuriken.
Using Blade Fury can be awkward at first, but once you get the hang of it you'll wonder how any of your assassins did without it. The first key to using this skill well is this: NEVER TARGET ANYTHING. It seems like an odd piece of advice, I know, but hear me out. When you start using Blade Fury, your assassin strikes a ninja pose, arm outthrust, and then begins hurling shuriken. However, the problem is that this little pose takes a little while to get into; precious moments lost from your attack routine. If you directly target an enemy, you'll chuck blades till it goes down and then your assassin will stand back up, put her hands in her pockets, and look pleased with herself: mission accomplished, enemy dead. The problem is there are usually more than one enemy, and when you click on the next you have to go through your pose animation yet again. This is a great opportunity for your enemies to mob you and thump you silly.
Instead of actually clicking on an enemy, you'll want to hold down shift and click on empty space - somewhere between you and the enemy. Be careful not to click on an item (if you're also holding down Alt to scan for decent drops) or you won't start your blade stream. Then, while holding shift and the attack button down, you can move your stream of blades like a hose, waving it back and forth to cut your enemies down. Be careful not to move the cursor over your life/mana globes or the screen border (buttons, stamina bar, etc.) though, or your attack routine will be interrupted and you'll have to re-strike your chucking pose again.
Something that initially confused me, however, was my tendency to miss certain enemies. I'd be clicking more or less directly on the guy in question, but somehow my stars were going past him, not into him. I've come to realize that this is the case only with enemies standing to the right or left of the assassin; up or down you'll get them everytime. The reason? I was aiming for their heads or torsos - the stars themselves get chucked just a little lower than the cursor. The solution is simple: aim for the feet of your enemies and you'll hit them every time. Think of it as hamstringing 'em.
Note: the ITD on Last Wish (and many other nice Warrior-Monk weapons) won't work on champions and bosses. This is what your Dragon Talon is for; it has HUGE AR bonuses and can make short work of even the toughest baddies (read: uber three!). Blade Fury, however, when coupled with ITD is one of the best ranged physical damage attacks in the game (barring, of course, Strafe and Multishot - curse those zons!). I particularly like that it can be effectively used to scout out monsters. I usually keep one finger on shift and one finger on attack while I'm running, then periodically hit shift and shoot blades off-screen. When any of my chance-to-cast effects (firestorm, charged bolt, life tap, etc.) trigger, I know there are monsters out there; so I just keep spamming my blades. By the time any of them make it to me, they're usually in bad shape - perfect for a nice kick to finish'em off.
A strange thing I've noticed: though Dragon Talon will release the Charged Bolt effect from Last Wish, Blade Fury won't - ever. Don't precisely know why, but check it out for yourself - very odd.
I would also like to point out that many players swear by the effectiveness of Death Sentry, the last skill in the Lightning Traps branch of the tree. It is effective with only a single-point investment, levelling packs with heavy damage based on monster life (making it deadly in Hell, where monsters are tougher than nails) and removing enemy corpses. It is, however, useless in uber-tristram without an item which has the modifier 'Slain Monsters Rest In Peace,' since the minions there do not leave corpses otherwise. Also if you choose to use Phoenix, corpses will evaporate giving you life and mana - which means they won't be available for explosions. I chose not to include it here as I myself do not use it.
Another reason is that between Blade Fury, Mind Blast, and Dragon Talon I found myself with more than enough to keep straight in terms of hotkeys. Players comfortable with quick skill-shifting during combat, however, should look into using Death Setnry to increase their crowd-control potential. I find that with Mind Blast and Cloak of Shadows most enemies are occupied enough to give me ample time to kill them with my kicks and shuriken.
SHADOW DISCIPLINES
1 in Claw Mastery
1 in Claw Block
1 in Psychic Hammer
1 in Burst of Speed
1 in Shadow Warrior
1~20 in Cloak of Shadows
1~20 in Fade
20 in Shadow Master
1~20 in Mind Blast
20 in Venom
Notes on Skills:
Venom provides one of the main sources of damage for this build, and confers its damage on both Dragon Talon's kicks and Blade Fury's shuriken. The one thing I don't like about this skill is its lousy duration. You'll need to keep periodically checking to see if you're still enchanted with this skill, and it'll be hard to tell just by looking - when you're Faded, you're hard to see!
The two auras, Fade and Burst of Speed, should be used conditionally depending on the situation; when using Blade Fury at range, Fade should be used (as Blade Fury's rate of fire is independent of IAS). When kicking in melee, however, Burst of Speed will provide the extra IAS needed to hit the 7/3 frames per attack breakpoint for Dragon Talon. The notable melee exception is when fighting uber-Mephisto; in this case, using Fade is a must. Plus, the loss in speed is marginal; at worst, you'll be at 9/3, which is still faster than the quickest Zealot or Fury Druid - meanwhile, you'll have more intrinsic resistances than either build.
Though the Shadow Master will provide Mind Blasts which will help with crowd control, if you are a heavy PvM you may want to increase the skill so that you have a higher chance of converting your enemies. Mind Blast works especially well with the equipment for this build, as the Might aura from the Last Wish axe will apply to your newly converted minions and help them beat down their former comrades. Also, many PvP players also max this skill for the increased damage, as they use it to lock up their opponent while they approach.
As far as Shadow Master, let me just say this summon is great: best AI of any summon in the game, hefty life, huge AR, respectable resists, and to top it off she's generated with nice rare equipment. In fact, I have on a number of occasions had her generate with a weapon that cast Amp Damage on hit - amazingly handy in Hell. However she does have one major drawback. If you run around enough, I garuntee you will somehow (go figure!) leave your shadow behind. And when you do, she will inexplicably poof. More than any other summon I've used (and I've played with 'em all), Shadow Master will dissappear when you run too far afield. My suggestion is to stop frequently to let her catch up, or if you're just flat-out running for a destination just re-cast her when you get there. She also has a very limited lifespan against bosses and champs - watch her and don't be ashamed to re-cast when necessary.
Finally Cloak of Shadows - maxing this in a PvM character is usually a mistake, since you can't re-cast the skill until the first one has run out, meaning that increased duration can get very annoying very quickly. However for PvP and for the purpose of uber-hunting it can be incredibly handy - you cast it once and minions ignore you; plus, they are easier to hit and you are harder to hit! A maxed CoS for a uber-only Assassin would be a wise investment.
MARTIAL ARTS
1~20 in Dragon Talon
1~20 in Dragon Flight
Notes on Skills:
Dragon Talon is an incredibly useful skill for applying various effects to enemies; however, you only gain one kick for every 6 levels in the skill: level 6 = 2 kicks, level 12 = 3 kicks, etc. This means it is very important to know exactly how much +skills gear you plan to wear before you build the character so that you don't waste too many points here. The best (and most reasonably achievable) levels to shoot for are 24 and 30, for 5 and 6 kicks, respectively.
Tiger Strike and Cobra Strike, though fantastic skills for almost any other build, are not worth investing in for a Warrior-Monk; the speed of your kicks will make charging up a waste of time. Moreover, the effects of charge-up skills will only apply to the first kick. The only other skill worth considering on this tree is Dragon Flight, a must-have for PvP players. One point is usually enough, as it is normally simply used to get to your target as fast as possible (and it's the only option outside of Enigma's Teleport for doing that at a PvP-friendly speed). Maxing Dragon Flight can also make for a nasty opening kick.
Originally posted by JanusJones, Sep 13, 2005
Note: This guide was originally written for BNet. Please bear in mind it may recommend items not found or permitted in Single Player.
ENTER THE WARRIOR
The people in the town didn't know what to make of her. Few ever heard of the Mageslayers, and those who had knew little of her monastery. Despite the uncomfortable stares from these rough villagers, Nandi felt strangely at peace. She was, after all, among warriors, and there was a straightforward strength to these people that she admired. Though their methods might differ, they were in many ways the same.
It might have been her appearance that led the old man to trust her. He had the look of a hardened soldier of many campaigns. His armor, though dented, gleamed with the dull sheen of constant care and repair. Nandi had inclined her head further than she was accustomed to, showing the man her respect; a warrior's best friend was her equipment, and this barbarian clearly honored that bond. Quahl-Kehk had eyed her suspiciously, his piercing stare catching on the cutting edge of her axe, her high helm, and the sturdy shield slung across her back. A creature called Shenk, he had said, eyeing her suspiciously. Cut off the head and the body dies. End the siege and you'll earn my trust.
Before she left town she checked her gear. Her blades, blackened with soot, still bore the potent adder's venom she had so meticulously applied. Her axe's edge shone, ground razor-fine on the blacksmith's wheel. She adjusted her helm, ensuring her peripheral vision was not compromised. The master had always taught that a warrior's best weapon was to know the battlefield; you could only defend against that which you could see.
She took a moment to steady her breathing, centering herself. Her mind emptied of the squalid town, the stink of the demon's fires outside the walls, the moans of the injured men who littered the street, the admonitions and warnings of the Elder, Cain. Closing her eyes, she focused her inner sight on a single point of light hovering in the darkness behind her lids. Under her attention, it grew into a pulsing sphere. She felt it's warm pulse, felt the ache of her muscles fade as the ki surged through her. When her eyes opened, she felt a momentary satisfaction: they would never see her coming.
INTRODUCTION
Let me start by saying this is not an original build. It is essentially a re-make of Frogboybri's Ninja guide, to whom I owe many thanks (thanks, man!). It is different in several crucial ways, both in terms of equipment and in terms of skill selection. Above and beyond uber-hunting, it is a fun and viable Hell build which is a different take on the melee Assassin.
I've called it the 'Warrior-Monk' since I chose not to use traps (a tactic which would appeal to Ninjas and Assassins) and the character is a melee build. Traps are something which you could decide to optimize on this character - however I have not. I'm not a huge fan of traps and wanted to make a solid melee build to tackle the uber three. Also, its equipment makes it look far more martial than most Assassins, and its play-style reinforces that image.
I've included only moderate detail on specific equipment modifiers as this information is available from a number of sources; I mostly get mine HERE. Check out any of the specifics if you're curious.
ADVANTAGES
This build is the fastest way to apply max Crushing Blow in the game - period. Zealers can't swing as fast and Crushing Blow is nerfed on ranged attacks (making a 2 fps Strafe useless for the purposes of CB). Dragon Talon's speed - the fastest melee attack in the game - and its incredibly high AR makes it perfect for running uber-trist. Using the gear and skills I suggest, this Assassin can tank uber-Mephisto without breaking a sweat.
This build can tank in almost any area of the game with the right equipment. Between Mind Blast, Life Tap, and your Shadow Master you will never be overwhelmed. Play smart and you'll never have to pick up a corpse.
This build has a VERY effective ranged and melee attack, making it incredibly versatile. Unlike bow/javelin zon hybrids, you never have to switch weapons - melee and ranged can be on right and left clicks (or just ahotkey away).
This build has both poison and physical damage, and can take nearly any monster in the game. With the right gear, it can also do in phys/poison immunes without breaking a sweat.
You have a physical damage attack which does not hurt when you've got Iron Maiden cast on you: Blade Fury. This means you can slaughter Doom Knights without a care in the world, while barbs drop like flies around you.
Warrior-Monks look COOL.
DISADVANTAGES
When built right, none! If you don't like thinking while you play, this isn't the build for you. It only takes an absolute minimum of strategy to play a Warrior-Monk right, though, and they're unbelievably cool. Trust me.
SKILLS
TRAPS
1 in Fire Blast (prerequisite)
1 in Wake of Fire (prerequisite)
1 in Blade Sentinel (prerequisite)
1 in Blade Fury (main skill!)
1~20 in Death Sentry
Notes on Skills:
Blade Fury, though it is a main skill for this build, only requires a single point to be effective. The majority of the damage dealt by the spell is weapon and item dependant, with further points only netting limited returns. Note that it is a PvM skill and is not useful for the ubers - the Ignores Target Defense modifier does not apply to champions or super-uniques. It is, however, very useful for dealing with other monsters at range, thinning enemy packs to make them easier to take in melee.
This skill is actually a one-point wonder, but the key is your equipment has to be designed to augment it. Fortunately, this build's equipment is great for powering up some very respectable shuriken.
Using Blade Fury can be awkward at first, but once you get the hang of it you'll wonder how any of your assassins did without it. The first key to using this skill well is this: NEVER TARGET ANYTHING. It seems like an odd piece of advice, I know, but hear me out. When you start using Blade Fury, your assassin strikes a ninja pose, arm outthrust, and then begins hurling shuriken. However, the problem is that this little pose takes a little while to get into; precious moments lost from your attack routine. If you directly target an enemy, you'll chuck blades till it goes down and then your assassin will stand back up, put her hands in her pockets, and look pleased with herself: mission accomplished, enemy dead. The problem is there are usually more than one enemy, and when you click on the next you have to go through your pose animation yet again. This is a great opportunity for your enemies to mob you and thump you silly.
Instead of actually clicking on an enemy, you'll want to hold down shift and click on empty space - somewhere between you and the enemy. Be careful not to click on an item (if you're also holding down Alt to scan for decent drops) or you won't start your blade stream. Then, while holding shift and the attack button down, you can move your stream of blades like a hose, waving it back and forth to cut your enemies down. Be careful not to move the cursor over your life/mana globes or the screen border (buttons, stamina bar, etc.) though, or your attack routine will be interrupted and you'll have to re-strike your chucking pose again.
Something that initially confused me, however, was my tendency to miss certain enemies. I'd be clicking more or less directly on the guy in question, but somehow my stars were going past him, not into him. I've come to realize that this is the case only with enemies standing to the right or left of the assassin; up or down you'll get them everytime. The reason? I was aiming for their heads or torsos - the stars themselves get chucked just a little lower than the cursor. The solution is simple: aim for the feet of your enemies and you'll hit them every time. Think of it as hamstringing 'em.
Note: the ITD on Last Wish (and many other nice Warrior-Monk weapons) won't work on champions and bosses. This is what your Dragon Talon is for; it has HUGE AR bonuses and can make short work of even the toughest baddies (read: uber three!). Blade Fury, however, when coupled with ITD is one of the best ranged physical damage attacks in the game (barring, of course, Strafe and Multishot - curse those zons!). I particularly like that it can be effectively used to scout out monsters. I usually keep one finger on shift and one finger on attack while I'm running, then periodically hit shift and shoot blades off-screen. When any of my chance-to-cast effects (firestorm, charged bolt, life tap, etc.) trigger, I know there are monsters out there; so I just keep spamming my blades. By the time any of them make it to me, they're usually in bad shape - perfect for a nice kick to finish'em off.
A strange thing I've noticed: though Dragon Talon will release the Charged Bolt effect from Last Wish, Blade Fury won't - ever. Don't precisely know why, but check it out for yourself - very odd.
I would also like to point out that many players swear by the effectiveness of Death Sentry, the last skill in the Lightning Traps branch of the tree. It is effective with only a single-point investment, levelling packs with heavy damage based on monster life (making it deadly in Hell, where monsters are tougher than nails) and removing enemy corpses. It is, however, useless in uber-tristram without an item which has the modifier 'Slain Monsters Rest In Peace,' since the minions there do not leave corpses otherwise. Also if you choose to use Phoenix, corpses will evaporate giving you life and mana - which means they won't be available for explosions. I chose not to include it here as I myself do not use it.
Another reason is that between Blade Fury, Mind Blast, and Dragon Talon I found myself with more than enough to keep straight in terms of hotkeys. Players comfortable with quick skill-shifting during combat, however, should look into using Death Setnry to increase their crowd-control potential. I find that with Mind Blast and Cloak of Shadows most enemies are occupied enough to give me ample time to kill them with my kicks and shuriken.
SHADOW DISCIPLINES
1 in Claw Mastery
1 in Claw Block
1 in Psychic Hammer
1 in Burst of Speed
1 in Shadow Warrior
1~20 in Cloak of Shadows
1~20 in Fade
20 in Shadow Master
1~20 in Mind Blast
20 in Venom
Notes on Skills:
Venom provides one of the main sources of damage for this build, and confers its damage on both Dragon Talon's kicks and Blade Fury's shuriken. The one thing I don't like about this skill is its lousy duration. You'll need to keep periodically checking to see if you're still enchanted with this skill, and it'll be hard to tell just by looking - when you're Faded, you're hard to see!
The two auras, Fade and Burst of Speed, should be used conditionally depending on the situation; when using Blade Fury at range, Fade should be used (as Blade Fury's rate of fire is independent of IAS). When kicking in melee, however, Burst of Speed will provide the extra IAS needed to hit the 7/3 frames per attack breakpoint for Dragon Talon. The notable melee exception is when fighting uber-Mephisto; in this case, using Fade is a must. Plus, the loss in speed is marginal; at worst, you'll be at 9/3, which is still faster than the quickest Zealot or Fury Druid - meanwhile, you'll have more intrinsic resistances than either build.
Though the Shadow Master will provide Mind Blasts which will help with crowd control, if you are a heavy PvM you may want to increase the skill so that you have a higher chance of converting your enemies. Mind Blast works especially well with the equipment for this build, as the Might aura from the Last Wish axe will apply to your newly converted minions and help them beat down their former comrades. Also, many PvP players also max this skill for the increased damage, as they use it to lock up their opponent while they approach.
As far as Shadow Master, let me just say this summon is great: best AI of any summon in the game, hefty life, huge AR, respectable resists, and to top it off she's generated with nice rare equipment. In fact, I have on a number of occasions had her generate with a weapon that cast Amp Damage on hit - amazingly handy in Hell. However she does have one major drawback. If you run around enough, I garuntee you will somehow (go figure!) leave your shadow behind. And when you do, she will inexplicably poof. More than any other summon I've used (and I've played with 'em all), Shadow Master will dissappear when you run too far afield. My suggestion is to stop frequently to let her catch up, or if you're just flat-out running for a destination just re-cast her when you get there. She also has a very limited lifespan against bosses and champs - watch her and don't be ashamed to re-cast when necessary.
Finally Cloak of Shadows - maxing this in a PvM character is usually a mistake, since you can't re-cast the skill until the first one has run out, meaning that increased duration can get very annoying very quickly. However for PvP and for the purpose of uber-hunting it can be incredibly handy - you cast it once and minions ignore you; plus, they are easier to hit and you are harder to hit! A maxed CoS for a uber-only Assassin would be a wise investment.
MARTIAL ARTS
1~20 in Dragon Talon
1~20 in Dragon Flight
Notes on Skills:
Dragon Talon is an incredibly useful skill for applying various effects to enemies; however, you only gain one kick for every 6 levels in the skill: level 6 = 2 kicks, level 12 = 3 kicks, etc. This means it is very important to know exactly how much +skills gear you plan to wear before you build the character so that you don't waste too many points here. The best (and most reasonably achievable) levels to shoot for are 24 and 30, for 5 and 6 kicks, respectively.
Tiger Strike and Cobra Strike, though fantastic skills for almost any other build, are not worth investing in for a Warrior-Monk; the speed of your kicks will make charging up a waste of time. Moreover, the effects of charge-up skills will only apply to the first kick. The only other skill worth considering on this tree is Dragon Flight, a must-have for PvP players. One point is usually enough, as it is normally simply used to get to your target as fast as possible (and it's the only option outside of Enigma's Teleport for doing that at a PvP-friendly speed). Maxing Dragon Flight can also make for a nasty opening kick.