Diablo II: Lord of Destruction - Quick Reference Guide
- Written by Billy Lee
Version 4
02/02/02
*****************************************************************************
Disclaimer
This document (c)2001-2002 Billy Lee. This FAQ may not be used or
distributed for commercial use. It may not be distributed at all without
written permission from the author(that's me). Diablo II is (c)2000 Blizzard
Entertainment, Diablo II: Lord of Destruction is (c)2001 Blizzard
Entertainment. This guide must be displayed in its entirety. No pieces of
it may be removed and/or copied to another location for public display.
*****************************************************************************
UPDATES:
Version 4:More abbreviations and also alphabetized them all.
Version 3:New Section. Added to the Mercenaries section. Made corrections
on spelling/gramatical errors. Gave a few sections a "face lift"
so they should be a bit easier to navigate. More useless info
about Runes.
Version 2:Fixed a couple glitches. Added a couple more playstyles and did a
little refining in a couple of the others. Added a few more
abbreviations to the list. I was bored so I added the characters
I'm working on. Added the Auras Desert Grunts have in the mercs
section. Started 2 new sections. Fixed a few spelling/grammar
mistakes I found.
Version 1:Initial Release.
/------------------------------------\
|Table of Contents |
|====================================|
|1. Guide Introduction |
|------------------------------------|
|2. Common Abbreviations + |
|3. Playstyles |
| 3-A. Amazon |
| 3-B. Assassin |
| 3-C. Barbarian |
| 3-D. Druid |
| 3-E. Necromancer |
| 3-F. Paladin |
| 3-G. Sorceress |
| 3-H. Party Configurations |
|4. Useful Runewords |
|5. Rune Names |
|6. Mercenaries |
|7. Tidbits and Tricks |
|8. Blocking Bosses |
|------------------------------------|
|9. Site Plugs |
|10. Acknowledgements |
\------------------------------------/
|+ = Section is updated |
|* = Section is new |
\-----------------------/
=============================================================================
1. Guide Introduction
This Guide is not a walkthrough or in depth strategy guide. It is merely a
reference sheet for several aspects of the game.
Before reading this guide, there are a couple things in which you need to
take into account:
- You have to know at least a little bit about the game. Such as the common
abbreviations for certain items/skills. I will give you as many as I can
remember, but it's usually a good idea to know them beforehand so you don't
have to keep going back and forth trying to figure out exactly what I'm
talking about. Also, bear in mind that I'm playing the game less and less,
so I'm not always up to date on the most recent lingo.
- I'm not going to list every skill and what it does. There are a few skills
not worth mentioning since they won't fit the playstyle I'm going over(i.e.
I won't talk about the Druid's Elemental Skills when talking about a Shape
Shifter and vice-versa).
- Along with the previous statement, this is not going to be a step by step
guide to tell you exactly what to do. All this guide basically is is a
quick reference sheet.
- I'm not really going to explain anything in detail. There are several
web sites you can go to for a thorough rundown of just about anything you
can think of. They are:
Unofficial Unofficial Official
www.diabloii.net www.lurkerlounge.com www.battle.net/diablo2exp
All of those are high quality sites that should have most, if not all, of
the information you need.
If you have a question or comment about the guide, or Diablo 2 in general,
feel free to send it to me. I'm not the world's most mindful email checker,
so it may take me a while to get to you.
If you do not get a response from me within a week, then either the email
was lost somewhere along the way, or your question has been asked by enough
people for me to put it in the guide under an FAQ section. Or, I just
haven't gotten to it yet, in which case... umm... sorry.
Please, please, please do not email me asking for cheats, trainers, or
realm hacks! I will not respond to those, as they get a quick toss into
the trash can.
If all that didn't scare you away, then send email to:
[email protected]
I think that's all for now, now on to the fun stuff!
Yes, I meant the guide itself... yeesh...
=============================================================================
2. Common Abbreviations
I don't think this needs any sort of introduction, do you? Huh? What're
you reading this for then? Well, I like to write here, it makes me feel
complete somehow. Don't look at me like that...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
General:
Abbreviation Game Name
-------------------------------
TP Town Portal
PK Player Killer
PKK Player Killing Killer(basically someone who kills pk's)
mod item modifier(prefixes and suffixes)
excep Exceptional(the next level up for weapons/armor)
Clvl Character level
Slvl Skill level
lol laugh out loud
rofl roll on the floor laughing
lmao laughing my ass off
afk away from keyboard
brb be right back
stfu shut the fuck up
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Character Classes:
Class B.net Ladder Common Name
----------------------------------------------
Amazon Ama Zon
Assassin Asn Ass, Sin
Barbarian Bar Barb, Baba
Druid Dru Druid
Necromancer Nec Necro
Paladin Pal Pally
Sorceress Sor Sorc
----------------------------------------------
Class Variations
Variant Class Style of Play
----------------------------------------------
Bowazon Amazon Mainly Bow & Crossbow Skills
Hybrid Amazon Bow and Javelin Skills combined
Javazon Amazon Mainly Lightning Fury/Plague Javelin with Pierce
Spearazon Amazon Mainly Jab/Fend
Tankazon Amazon Mainly Passive Skills(Dodge, Evade, etc)
Flier Assassin Specialize in Dragon Flight and Tiger Strike
Trapper Assassin Mainly Traps
Bard Barbarian Mainly Warcries
Berserker Barbarian Mainly Berserk
Frenzian Barbarian Frenzy, usually with 2 Swords
WW Barb Barbarian Whirlwind and a Mastery with support skills
Bear Druid Skills Specialized around Werebear form
Elementalist Druid Mainly Elemental Skills
Wolf Druid Skills Specialized around Werewolf form
Cowkiller Necromancer Corpse Explosion in the Cow Level
Meleemancer Necromancer Poison Dagger and Support Curses
Poisonmancer Necromancer Mainly Poison Skills
Zookeeper Necromancer A *lot* of minions
Avenger Paladin Veangeance with Conviction
Hammerdin Paladin Blessed Hammer with Concentration
Martyr Paladin Sacrifice with support Auras
Vindicator Paladin Smite with Fanaticism
Zealot Paladin Zeal combined with Fanaticism/Holy Shock
Tweaker Sorceress Equip/Skills chosen for maximum casting speed.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Skills:
Abbreviation Skill
------------------------------------
Amazon:
CS Critical Strike
FA Freezing Arrow
LF Lightning Fury
IA Immolation Arrow
Guided, GA Guided Arrow
MS Multishot
Valk Valkyrie
Assassin:
BF Blade Fury
Blast Mind Blast
BoS Burst of Speed
DS Death Sentry
LS Lightning Sentry
Flight Dragon Flight
Master Shadow Master
TS Tiger Strike
WoI Wake of Inferno
Barbarian:
BO Battle Orders
B'serk Berserk
LA Leap Attack
Nat Res Natural Resistance
WW Whirlwind
Druid:
Arm Armageddon
Blast Arctic Blast
Boulder Molten Boulder
Dire Dire Wolf
HoW Heart of Wolverine
Oak Oak Sage
Rage Feral Rage
Spirit Spirit Wolf
WB Werebear
WW Werewolf
Necromancer:
Amp Amplify Damage
BS Bone Spear/Bone Spirit(you kinda have to guess)
CE Corpse Explosion
Decrep Decrepify
IM Iron Maiden
LR Lower Resist
Mage Skeletal Mage
Wall Bone Wall
Paladin:
Aim Blessed Aim
BH Blessed Hammer
Bolt Holy Bolt
Conc Concentration
Conv Conviction
Fanat Fanaticism
FoH Fist of the Heavens
HS Holy Shield
Med Meditation
Sal Salvation
Shock/Freeze Holy Shock/Freeze
Sorceress:
Ball Fireball
CB Charged Bolt
Chain Chain Lightning
EShield Energy Shield
GS Glacial Spike
Orb Frozen Orb
FW Fire Wall
LM/CM/FM Lightning Mastery/Cold Mastery/Fire Mastery
Port Teleport
SF Static Field
TK Telekenesis
TStorm/TS Thunder Storm
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Items:
Abrev. Full Name Type of Item
------------------------Unique Items------------------------
Ali Baba Blade of Ali Baba Tulwar(Excep. Falchion)
Arkaine Arkaine's Valor Balrog Skin(Elite Splint Mail)
Arreats Arreat's Face Slayer Guard(Excep. Avenger Guard)
Atma Atma's Scarab Amulet
Bartuc Bartuc's Cut Throat Greater Talons(Excep. Blade Talons)
Blackbog Blackbog's Sharp Cinquedeas(Excep. Kris)
Blink Iceblink Splint Mail
Bong The Iron Jang Bong War Staff
Bul Kathos Bul Katho's Wedding Ring
Band
Buriza Buriza Do Kyannon Buriza(Excep. Heavy Crossbow)
Culwen Culwen's Point War Sword
DCC Dark Clan Crusher Cudgel(Excep. Club)
Eye Eye of Etlich Amulet
Frosts Frostburn Gauntlets
Garb Heavenly Garb Light Plate
Gavel The Gavel of Pain Martel de Fer(Excep. Great Maul)
GF Grandfather Collossus Blade(Elite Great Sword)
Hand Hand of Blessed Light Divine Scepter(Excep. War Scepter)
Harle/Shako Harlequin Crest Shako(Elite Cap)
Herald Herald of Zakarum Gilded Shield(Excep. Aerin Shield)
Holy Grail Windforce Hydra Bow(Elite Long War Bow)
Ialal/Jalal Ialal's Main Totemic Mask(Excep. Spirit Mask)
Kuku Kuku Shakaku Cedar Bow(Excep. Long Bow)
Lidless Lidless Wall Grim Shield(Excep. Bone Shield)
Lycander* Lycander's Aim Ceremonial Bow(Excep. Reflex Bow)
Lycander* Lycander's Flank Ceremonial Spear(Excep. Maiden Pike)
Manald Manald Heal Ring
Mara Mara's Kaleidoscope Amulet
Nagel Nagelring Ring
Reaver Messershmidt's Reaver Champion Axe(Elite Great Axe)
Schaefer Schaefer's Hammer Legendary Mallet(Elite War Hammer)
Shard Spectral Shard Blade
Shaft Shaftstop Mesh Armor(Excep. Chain Mail)
Shroud The Spirit Shroud Ghost Armor(Excep. Quilted Armor)
Silks Silks of the Victor Ancient Armor
Skin Skin of the Vipermagi Seprentskin Armor(Excep. Leather)
Skins Goldskin Full Plate Mail
Skulders Skullder's Ire Russet Armor(Excep. Splint Mail)
SoE/String String of Ears Demonhide Sash(Excep. Sash)
SOJ Stone of Jordan Ring
Spire Spire of Honor Lance(Excep. Pike)
Spike Wizardspike Bone Knife(Elite Dagger)
Tarn Tarnhelm Skull Cap
Tears Tearhaunch Greaves
TG Vigor Thundergod's Vigor War Belt(Excep. Plated Belt)
Titan Titan's Revenge Ceremonial Javelin(Excep. Maiden
Javelin)
Treads Treads of Cthon Chain Boots
Twitch Twitchthroe Studded Leather Armor
Umes Ume's Lament Grim Wand
Valk Wing Valkyrie's Wing Winged Helm(Excep. Great Helm)
Vamp Gaze Vampire Gaze Grim Helm(Excep. Bone Helm)
War Travs War Traveler Battle Boot(Excep. Light Plated Boots)
WotE/Eyeless Wall of the Eyeless Bone Shield
-------------------------Set Items--------------------------
Halo Angelic Halo Ring
Sigons Sigon's Guard Tower Shield**
Whitstans Whitstan's Guard Round Shield(Excep. Small Shield)
----------------------Set Abreviations----------------------
IK Used to signify a piece of the Immortal King's Set
Nat Used to signify a piece of Natalya's Set
Tal Used to signify a piece of Tal Rasha's Set
Trang Used to signify a piece of Trang Oul's Set
------------------------Magic Items-------------------------
CCB Cruel Collossus Blade Cruel is +200% - +300% Enhanced Damage
The Blade is the Elite Great Sword
CCBQ Cruel Collossus Sword
of Quickness Same as above, only adds the mod "of
Quickness" for +40% Increased
Attack Speed
CBBQ Cruel Balrog Blade of Cruel is +200% - +300% Enhanced Damage
Quickness Quickness is +40% Increased Attack
Speed, the Blade is the Elite
Giant Sword
* - When people talk about the 2 Amazon weapons that start with Lycander's,
you have to use a bit of common sense(I know, it's heresy to use that
stuff). When they're in conversation about Bowazons or such, they're
usually referring to Lycander's Aim. When the conversation is geared
towards Spearazons and whatnot, it's a safe bet they're referring to
Lycander's Flank.
** - There are other items in the Sigon set, but usually when people use that
they are talking about the shield.
As far as gems are concerned, the names usually aren't abbreviated, but
people will usually put a "P" in front of it to signify that they are talking
about a Perfect quality gem(i.e. PSkull means Perfect Skull).
That's all I can remember for now, I'll add more when they come to mind.
=============================================================================
3. Playstyles
Section TOC:
3-A. Amazon
3-B. Assassin
3-C. Barbarian
3-D. Druid
3-E. Necromancer
3-F. Paladin
3-G. Sorceress
3-H. Party Configurations
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-A. Amazon
Bowazon:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Passive and Magic:
Valkyrie 1
Evade 1~5
Dodge 1~5
Avoid 1~5
Critical Strike 20
Penetrate 5
Pierce 20
Bow/Crossbow Skills:
Multiple Shot 5~15
Guided Arrow 10
Strafe 2
- All excess skill points should go into the evasion skills, bows are two-
handed only, meaning you will never be using a shield for added blocking
and defense.
- Stat points should go mainly into Dexterity and Strength so you can equip
the higher end bows/crossbows.
--------------------------------------------------------
Javazon:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Javelin/Spear Skills:
Jab 1
Plague Javelin 1~20
Lightning Fury 20
Passive and Magic:
Decoy 1~5
Valkyrie 1~5
Evade 1~5
Dodge 1~5
Avoid 1~5
Critical Strike 5~20
Pierce 20
- Critical Strike and Plague Javelin are skills that you have to go either
all or nothing into.
- You're not going to need very many points in the evasion skills, but they
will come in handy.
- Stat points should go mainly into Dexterity and Energy with some in the
other two.
- Try to get as much + to skill equip as you can. You will also need mana/
life leeching equipment, but not as much.
--------------------------------------------------------
Magezon:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Passive and Magic:
Valkyrie 1~5
Evade 1~5
Dodge 1~5
Avoid 1~5
Critical Strike 10
Pierce 20
Bow/Crossbow Skills:
Freezing Arrow 20
Immolation Arrow 20
- Points put into Str and Dex should only be enough to equip a bow with
Piercing as a mod. This mod is only available on a few Unique bows and
Crossbows. All of your other points should be put into Energy, as the
Elemental Arrows will not leech back very much mana.
- You might also consider going after Hellmouth, the Unique War Gauntlets
since those have a % chance to cast Meteor as well as Firestorm for each
enemy that is attacked, which will work with the radius effect on Freezing
Arrow.
- Along those lines, you might also consider looking for Goldstrike Arch,
the Unique Gothic bow since it has a %chance to cast Fist of the Heavens
with an attack; however it does not have a piercing attack, which you may
or may not need depending on the Slvl of your Pierce.
--------------------------------------------------------
Tankazon:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Passive And Magic:
Valkyrie 5
Inner Sight 1~5
Dodge 20
Evade 20
Avoid 20
Critical Strike 10
Penetrate 5
- Stat points should go into Strength, Dexterity, and Vitality. Energy is
virtually useless.
--------------------------------------------------------
Hybrid:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Bow/Crossbow Skills:
Guided Arrow 3
Multiple Shot 5
Javelin/Spear Skills:
Lightning Fury 20
Passive and Magic:
Valkyrie 1
Critical Stirke 5~10
Pierce 20
- Stat points should go into Str and Dex to start out so you can equip the
higher end Bows/Javelins. After you meet the requirements, put all your
points into Vit each level. Or, if you want to keep your blocking up for
when you use the Javelins, put 2 Dex, 3 Vit per level. As long as you
have enough mana leach and +mana after kill equip, you won't need to worry
about energy.
- Try to get both Class specifics for your weapon(Lycander's Aim for a bow
and Titan's Revenge for a Javelin). Both are very useful, and Lycander's
Aim is easier to come by than Eaglehorn or the coveted Windforce.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-B. Assassin
Trapper:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Traps:
Wake of Inferno 20
Lightning Sentry 20
Shadow Disciplines:
Burst of Speed 1~5*
Fade 1~5*
Shadow Warrior 1
Shadow Master 20
Cloak of Shadows 1
* You cannot have both Burst of Speed and Fade active at the same time. You
must choose between them depending on the situation.
- Stat points should primarily go into Energy and Vitality. If you wish to
use claws for the extra skills you can get from them(which you should), you
do not need to pump Str/Dex to equip the bigger ones since all claws will
be able to get those benefits. You may want to pick up a normal claw item
and save it for a high level imbue later on as the lower end claws tend to
not drop very regularly once +to skills becomes available.
--------------------------------------------------------
Ninjassin:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Shadow Disciplines:
Claw Mastery 20
Burst of Speed 1~5
Fade 1~5
Shadow Warrior 1
Shadow Master 1
Cloak of Shadows 1
Martial Arts:
Dragon Claw 1*
Dragon Flight 1~20**
Tiger Strike 20
Cobra Strike 1
Phoenix Strike 20
* Dragon claw is the only finishing move to use Claw damage, rather than Kick
damage, and as such, it can not be used without 2 claws equipped.
**Dragon Flight is all or nothing. At high levels, combined with Tiger
Strike, it will be able to kill pretty much any monster in one hit. It
doesn't use claw damage to enhance it, rather it goes up by about 3 to 5
damage per point in Str/Dex.
- Stat points should primarily go into Stength and Dexterity for equipping
higher level claws. Vitality will also be needed a lot due to the very
close range fighting you'll be doing.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-C. Barbarian
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Masteries:
Any Weapon Mastery 20*
Increased Speed 1~5
Iron Skin 5
Natural Resist 7
Combat Skills:
Leap Attack 1~5
Berserk 20
Frenzy 1~10**
Whirlwind 5
War Cries:
Battle Orders 20
* Masteries are chosen based on weapon preference:
Sword - Fast, 1 or 2 handed, when used with one hand, damage is lower.
Mace - Fairly slow, 2 handed, have highest minimum damage.
Spear - Very slow, 2 handed, have highest maximum damage, very long range.
Polearm - Fairly Fast, 2 handed, small damage range(high min, low max).
Axe - Fast-Slow depending on which type, 1 or 2 handed, high damage.
Throwing - umm... don't use this one...
**Only invest in Frenzy if you're going to have a secondary weapon set made
up of 2 one handed weapons. Otherwise, put those points wherever you want.
- Stat points should be placed around your weapon, so if you're going for a
Sword setup, place points so you can equip the strongest swords, likewise
for the other setups.
- I don't really like the Barbarian class and have very little experience
playing it, this is all based on what I've read and seen people using in
games.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-D. Druid
Elementalist:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Summoning:
Oak Sage 1~5
Grizzly 1
Carrion Vine 1~5
Elemental:
Fissure 1*
Cyclone Armor 1~5
Tornado 20
Hurricane 20
Armageddon 20
* Fissure is a good skill that will get you through normal difficulty until
you can get the higher powered skills, that's why it's listed and not
counted as a standard prereq.
- Stat points should be used mainly for mana, which is where they will be
needed. Before you hit level 30, you should use mana potions and pump
strength for the armor/weapons you may want later on. After level 30 your
points should go in a 2 vitality, 3 mana per level until you have enough
life to take a few hits without dying(i.e. no one hit kills), after that,
pour everything into mana.
- Try to get as much + to skill equipment as you can, you're going to need
all you can get.
--------------------------------------------------------
Powered Werewolf:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Shape Shifting:
Werewolf 5-10
Lycanrthropy 5
Feral Rage 20
Fury 20
Summoning:
Heart of Wolverine 20
Grizzly 1~20
NOTES:
- Grizzly is 1~20 because it's a matter of personal preference. The wolves
you can summon will not have enough life to be able to survive later
difficulty levels.
--------------------------------------------------------
Vitalitous Werebear:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Shape Shifting:
Werebear 5-10
Lycanthropy 20
Hunger 20
Summoning
Oak Sage 20
Grizzly 1~20
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-E. Necromancer
Minionmancer:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Summoning:
Golem(Iron or Fire) 5
Golem Mastery 5
Summon Resist 5
Raise Skeleton 1
Skeleton Mastery 5
Raise Skeletal Mage 5
Revive 15
Curses:
Amplify Damage 1~5
Iron Maiden 5
Lower Resist 5
Decrepify 5
Poison and Bone:
Bone Spear 20
Bone Wall 1
Bone Prison 1
- Stat points should mainly be split between Vitality and Energy. Strength
should be raised for armor.
- Try to get as much + to skill equip as you can, you're gonna need it.
--------------------------------------------------------
Poisonmancer:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Summoning:
Golem(Iron or Fire) 5
Poison and Bone:
Poison Dagger 20
Poison Explosion 1~5
Poison Nova 20
Bone Armor 5
Bone Prison 5
Curses:
Lower Resist 20
- Stat points should be spent in Strength and Dexterity for equipping items,
and then pumped into Vitality/Energy.
- Try to get a totem(Gargoyle Head, Zombie Head, etc.) with 25-50 poison
damage added to it for the increase in poison damage. For a weapon, go
with a 3 sockey dagger/blade and put 3 Perfect Emeralds in it if you can't
find Blackbog's Sharp. Alternatively, you can get a six socket Military
Pick and use that instead of Poison Dagger, but you will lose some poison
damage.
- Your basic tactics will be to hit something and then run away and let the
poison kill them.
--------------------------------------------------------
Spiritmancer:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Summoning:
Golem(Iron or Fire) 10
Golem Mastery 5
Summon Resist 5
Curses:
Decrepify 20
Confuse 5
Attract 5
Poison and Bone:
Bone Spirit 20
- Stat points should be primarily in Vitality and Energy with enough strength
for equipment.
- You will need as many + to skill items as you can get.
- When approaching a pack of monsters, first cast decrepify, then attract,
then send out Bone Spirits like there's no tomorrow.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-F. Paladin
Avenger:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Offensive Auras:
Conviction 20
Fanaticism 5~20
Defensive Auras:
Vigor 1
Meditation 1
Salvation 3
Combat Skills:
Zeal 3
Vengeance 20
- At lower levels stat points should go into Str and Dex so you can equip
better weapons. One you get enough for the equipment, start pouring into
Vit.
--------------------------------------------------------
Hammerdin:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Offensive Auras:
Concentration 20
Holy Freeze 5
Defensive Auras:
Vigor 5
Salvation 3
Combat Skills:
Smite 20
Blessed Hammer 20
Holy Shield 20*
* Holy Shield is more for its Smite damage bonus than its blocking.
**Since patch 1.09 came out(and maybe before that, I didn't really check),
Hammer no longer works with Fanaticism, so if you want to actually deal
damage with hammers now, you have to use Concentration.
- Boost your strength up enough to equip higher end Paladin Only shields.
The rest of your points should go into Vitality and Energy(more Vit than
Ene though).
--------------------------------------------------------
Zealot:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Offensive Auras:
Fanaticism/Holy Shock 20*
Conviction 5~20
Holy Freeze 5
Defensive Auras:
Vigor 5
Meditation 1
Salvation 3
Combat Skills:
Zeal 5
Fist of the Heavens 20
* Use either Fanaticism or Holy Shock, both will add a lot of damage, but
Shock adds lightning damage while Fanat adds normal damage as well as an
added attack rating and swing speed. If you want both that's fine, but
you're going to be using an extra 20 skill points.
- Stat points should be at first divided between Str and Dex for one handed
Swords, preferably a fast sword, such as a Phase Blade(the elite Crystal
Sword). Once you hit lvl 30 you will need a few in Ene for FoH.
- Attack speed is also very important.
- It's usually a good idea to turn on Holy Freeze and then switch to
Fanaticism when you plan to attack with Zeal.
- Get a Might merc(Act 2 Nightmare), you'll need the extra damage.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-G. Sorceress
Cold Only Sorc:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Cold Skills:
Frozen Armor 1
Glacial Spike 20
Frozen Orb 20
Cold Mastery 20
Lightning Skills:
Telekenesis 1
Teleport 1
Energy Shield 1~5
Fire Skills:
Warmth 10
- Stat points should primarily go into Energy with Vitality Secondary. You
will not need all that much Str(usually only 45).
- Try to get as much + to Cold Skills equip as possible.
--------------------------------------------------------
Fire Only Sorc:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Fire Skills:
Warmth 10
Firewall 20
Hydra 20
Fire Mastery 20
Lightning Skills:
Telekenesis 1
Teleport 1
Energy Shield 1~5
- Stat points should primarily go into Energy with Vitality Secondary. You
will not need all that much Str(usually only 45).
- Try to get as much + to Fire Skills equip as possible.
--------------------------------------------------------
Lightning Only Sorc:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Lightning Skills:
Charged Bolt/Nova 20*
Thunder Storm 20
Lightning Mastery 20
Telekenesis 1
Teleport 1
Energy Shield 1~5
Fire Skills:
Warmth 10**
* Choose between CB and Nova, you won't need both.
CB - Sends out a lot of bolts, long range, more than one can hit each enemy
Nova - Medium-small radius, hits everything in radius, higher damage
**You're only really going to need Warmth if you chose Nova.
- Stat points should primarily go into Energy with Vitality Secondary. You
will not need all that much Str(usually only 45).
- Try to get as much + to Lightning Skills equip as possible.
--------------------------------------------------------
Multi-Element Sorc:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Fire Skills:
Warmth 10~20*
Hydra 15
Fire Mastery 5
Lightning Skills:
Thunderstorm/Nova 15**
Lightning Mastery 5
Static Field 5
Telekenesis 1
Teleport 1
Energy Shield 1~5
Cold Skills:
Frozen Orb 15
Cold Mastery 5
* Work on Warmth after you've gotten your other skills to high enough levels.
**Nova/T-Storm is a matter of personal preference. I prefer T-Storm myself.
- Stat points should primarily go into Energy with Vitality Secondary. You
will not need all that much Str(usually only 45).
- Try to get as much + to All/Sorc Skills equip as possible.
--------------------------------------------------------
Second Multi-Element Sorc:
Skill Points
-------------------------------------------
Fire Skills:
Warmth
Fire Wall 15
Fire Mastery 10
Lightning Skills:
Nova 20
Lightning Mastery 20
Telekenesis 1
Teleport 1
Energy Shield 1~5
Cold Skills:
Frozen Orb 20
Cold Mastery 1
* Work on Warmth after you've gotten your other skills to high enough levels.
- Stat points should primarily go into Energy with Vitality Secondary. You
will not need all that much Str(usually only 45).
- Try to get as much + to All/Sorc Skills equip as possible, as well as a lot
of + Single Tree charms.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-H. Party Configurations
These are ways you can group the different characters together to get a
more effective playstyle against the bad guys.
Elemental Insanity:
Class Main Skill
--------------------------------
Paladin Conviction
Necromancer Lower Resist/Decrepify
Necromancer Poison Nova
Sorceress All Cold(Orb/CM)
Sorceress All Fire(FW/Hydra/FM)
Amazon Lightning Fury
Offensive Insanity:
Class Main Skill
--------------------------------
Paladin Might*
Paladin Concentration
Paladin Fanaticism
Druid Heart of Wolverine
Amazon Strafe/Multishot/Guided Arrow
Barbarian Whirlwind/Berserk
* You could also hire a Might Merc, but the Aura won't be as powerful as from
an actual Paladin, since Act 2 Mercs don't get +skill benefits.
Defensive Insanity:
Class Main Skill
--------------------------------
Paladin Defiance*
Paladin Salvation
Barbarian Shout
Necromancer Lots of Revives/Skeletons to take hits
* You could also hire a Defiance Merc, but the Aura won't be as powerful as
from an actual Paladin, since Act 2 Mercs don't get +skill benefits.
Life Insanity:
Class Main Skill
--------------------------------
Barbarian Battle Orders
Druid Oak Sage
Invincible All Paladin Team:
Auras: Conviction, Concentration, Holy Freeze, Vigor, Salvation, Defiance,
Fanaticism, Holy Shock.
Attack Skills: Vengeance, Fist of the Heavens, Smite.
You can mix and match with all of these to make your own.
=============================================================================
4. Useful Runewords
To make a Runeword, you need 3 things:
- The required item with the exact number of sockets needed(i.e. using a 3
socket armor to make Stealth will not work).
- The correct Runes needed for the Runeword.
- You need to put the Runes in the item in the right order(i.e. to make
Stealth you need to socket the Runes in the order Tal, then Eth or it
will not work).
Thse are the Runewords I found interesting and/or effective.
Runeword Runes Used
---------------------------------------------------
Amor:
Stealth Tal(07), Eth(05)
Lionheart Hel(15), Lum(17), Fal(19)
Helmets:
Lore Ort(09), Sol(12)
Nadir Nef(04), Tir(03)
Shields:
Rhyme Shael(13), Eth(05)
Melee Weapons:
Fury Jah(31), Gul(21), Eth(5)
Honor Amn(11), El(01), Ith(06), Tir(03), Sol(12)
Silence Dol(14), Eld(02), Hel(15), Ist(24), Tir(03), Vex(26)
Swords/Scepters:
King's Grace Amn(11), Ral(08), Thul(10)
Wands:
White Dol(14), Io(16)
=============================================================================
5. Rune Names
As you may have noticed, some of the runes by themselves or when combined
with others make words. Whether they were inentional or plain coincidence,
only Blizz knows that(unless they've told someone, then that person and
whoever they told know as well).
Amn - The Abbreviation for Airman, a rank in the US Navy.
Ber - Well, all I could find on Ber was that it's an acronym for various
things.
Cham - The Cham is the sovereign prince of Tartary, aka khan. Located near
India.
Dol - A dol is a unit of pain intensity.
El - Spanish for "he."
Eld - means to make old/age.
Eth - A letter in several languages, including Old English.
Fal - I found nothing on Fal itself, but it sounds like it would be part of
an Arabic name.
Gul - A stylized octagonal motif in Oriental rugs. It's also a rank in the
Cardassian Military in the "Star Trek" series.
Hel - Norse goddess of death and the underworld, also the daughter of Loki.
Io - In Greek mythology, Io was a woman who was in love with Zeus. She was
turned into a white heifer.
Ist - ist is a suffix, which is used to refer to a person who does, believes,
etc.
Ith - I remember there was a card in Magic: The Gathering, a card game, that
was called "Maze of Ith." Whether there is any relation... I dunno...
Jah - It means "God" or "Jehova."
Ko - It's an acronym for Knock out.
Lem - A spacecraft that carries astronauts from the command module to the
moon and back.
Lo - To look/see etc.
Lum - A chimney. Can also be used to mean a woody valley or deep pool.
Mal - Means bad.
Nef - The nave of a church.
Ohm - A unit of eletrical resistance.
Ort - means a scrap, usually left over food on a plate.
Pul - An Assyrian kind. Also means destruction
Ral - Well, it's similar to Ras, which is a type of gene.
Shael - I found nuthin... But hey, if you switch the "s" and "h" it's leash
backwards.
Sol - Sol means, well, the Sun.
Sur - A prefix signifying over, above, etc.
Tal - Well... it's the second half of a couple words such as metal or mantal.
Thul - Found nada...
Tir - It's similar to Tyr, who was the God of War and Strife in Norse
mythology.
Um - Um... Well, that's what it is, a word used to express doubt and fill
space/waste time.
Vex - A word in English, not used much anymore, meaning to annoy or bring
disaster
Zod - The only thing about Zod that I can remember right now is General Zod,
the main bad guy from the movie "Superman II"
MalUm - Malum, which is on the Diablo II CD case, means evil in Latin.
TirIth - Well, Tirith. Minas Tirith is a fortress in the land of Gondor in
J.R.R. Tolkein's "The Lord of the Rings"
ElBerEth - Elbereth is the name of an Elven lord, also in Tolkein fantasy.
There are some that apparently don't mean anything, but they could be
fragments from other words or changed spellings, like Shael.
I'm sure there are more, I just can't remember them right now. If you've
found one not listed here, let me know and I'll put it up.
Sources:
www.dictionary.com
My own memory and interpretation
=============================================================================
6. Mercenaries
Each Merc has it's own use and function. This is just a brief rundown on
their strengths/uses and weaknesses.
Mercs tend to die quickly on higher diff levels and vs. Bosses. If your
merc dies a lot, it may be better to go on without it, rather than to keep
dishing out money to revive them.
If nothing else, mercs make a mini-stash to hold items for you. My Act 2
merc is still holding a Spire of Honor, Goldskin, and rare helm that I'm
holding on to for a while.
Mercenaries will be stronger in the long run if you hire them at a low
level and build them up as opposed to buying them at an already high level.
Any merc can wear any armor/headgear that is not class specific(except for
Barbarian Mercs which can equip Barb specific headgear) as long as they meet
the requirements to do so. Mercs will not gain life/mana stealing bonuses,
as well as a few others that seem to be player specific.
If your mercenary dies, talk to the person that hires them in that act.
Reviving them can be quite expensive at higher levels. In Act 4, talk to
Tyrael, since there is no "Rent-a-Merc" shop there.
NOTE: These evaluations are on a scale of 1-10(10 being best), not their
actual in-game stats.
Act 1: Rogue Scout
HP - 4/10
Attack - 2/10 to 10/10*
Defense - 3/10
Resists - 5/10
* The actual Damage of their bows is quite low. Your best bet is to get a
5-6 socket bow and put Perfect Emeralds in it for some really high damage.
Equipment: Bows only, no Crossbows
Skills: Elemental Arrows(depending on which kind you hire), Inner Sight
Bonus: If you give them equipment so that they have +3 to all skills, they
will use a "Lightning Hose" attack, where it seems like she'll cast a short
range version of the Sorcs Lightning, but only dealing a lot more damage.
Bottom Line: Use them for an added ranged attack punch and their Inner Sight
to help you hit stuff. Watch out though, they are the easy to get killed,
which tends to happen frequently in later areas.
------------------------------------
Act 2: Desert Grunt
HP - 6/10
Attack - 7/10
Defense - 6/10
Resists - 6/10
Equipment: Spears, Polearms
Skills: Paladin Auras(they vary with the type you hire and which diff level
you hire them in), Jab
Aura: Hired on Normal of Hell diff
Offensive: Blessed Aim
Defensive: Defiance
Combat: Prayer
Aura: Hired on Nightmare diff
Offensive: Might
Defensive: Holy Freeze
Combat: Thorns
Bottom Line: Use them for their Auras. They are my personal choice of merc
since the Auras are very helpful, especially the Holy Freeze aura when you
are a Spellcaster or Might for the Melee fighters.
NOTE: In order to activate their aura, you must first take them into battle
and have them attack a monster. They don't have to kill it though, this is
just to put them into "Active" mode.
------------------------------------
Act 3: Iron Wolf
HP - 5/10
Attack - 3/10
Defense - 5/10
Resists - 5/10
Equipment: 1-Handed Swords, Shields
Skills:
Lightning Merc: Charged Bolt/Lightning
Ice Merc: Glacial Spike/Ice Blast/Frozen Armor
Fire Merc: Fireball/Inferno
Bottom Line: Use them if you feel the need for added elemental damage, other-
wise, skip them.
------------------------------------
Act 4: NONE!!!
------------------------------------
Act 5: Barbarian
HP - 10/10
Attack - 9/10
Defense - 7/10
Resists - 8/10
Equipment: Swords, 1 or 2 Handed. They can equip Barbarian only helmets.
Skills: Stun, Bash
Bottom Line: Use them to tank, i.e. stand on the front lines and take hits
for you, and to do some added physical damage.
=============================================================================
7. Tidbits and Tricks
These are just a few things about the game that I've noticed that may come
in handy, or they may just be good for a nice laugh. Just be forewarned that
they aren't always thoroughly tested so if they don't work perfect don't be
too mad at me.
Skill Stuff
- The nerf on SF says that it will not deal damage to an enemy below a
certain point on Nightmare and Hell difficulties(1/4 and 1/2 respectively).
This is partly true. It will actually take a monster below those levels,
it just won't activate when a monster hits them.
- The Druid Skill "Hurricane" will not trigger the charged Bolts that come
from a Lightning Enchanted monster.
Elemental Stuff
- When resistances go negative, the damage you take from that element will be
increased by the % your resistance is. So if you've got -100% Fire resist,
which can happen in Hell diff, you'll be taking double the amount of damage
you normally would from Fire attacks. This also works with monsters, if a
Pally has Conviction turned on or a Necro uses Lower Resist and you bring
the monsters resistance negative, they will take a lot more damage.
- You don't neccessarily need Poison Resistance. If you have two or more
items with "Poison Length Reduced by 75%" or are using the Paladin's Aura
"Cleansing," the poison will wear off before it has a chance to do any real
damage. Just watch out though, if your poison resistance is negative, you
can still take a lot of damage before it wears off.
- On a similar note, I've found it useful to put a column of Antidote Potions
and a colum of Thawing Potions in my belt, in case I'm poisoned or chilled.
This is especially helpful when you're going to be running around the Chaos
Sanctuary where either one can be lethal.
- If you're going to use a lot of poison attacks, you're going to need a lot
of running space since Poison is a lot more effective when you hit once and
let the damage continue.
- Poison and Open Wounds damage will not trigger charged bolts from a
Lightning Enchanted monster. The initial hit will, but the duration will
not.
Cow Level
- The Secret Cow Level is one of the best places to get items and experience
in the game. Granted, not *the* best, but it's excellent to play since
cows have no elemental resistances or immunities on any difficulty. On
Normal Difficulty, cows are level 28, Nightmare 61, Hell 90.
- To access the Secret Cow Level(what, you thought I was gonna leave you in
suspense? Well, what do you think I'm doing now?), you have to beat the
game on the difficulty level you want to play it on, so if you want to play
the cow level on Nightmare difficulty, you have to beat the game on
Nightmare. Once you've done that, go to Tristram and get Whirt's Leg by
clicking on his body in the lower left corner of the map. Then go back to
the Rogue's camp and put Whirt's Leg in the Horadric Cube with a Tome of
Town Portal and Transmute them. A red portal will open next to your
character, allowing you access to the Cow Level.
NOTE: Anything in the cube at the time of transmutation will be lost, so
don't leave anything valuable in there.
Merc Stuff
- Mercs and Minions don't take any damage from the kamikaze bad guys such as
the ever so popular Frenzied Ice Spawns.
- Occasionally, Act 2 mercs will be "broken" in that their Aura will not turn
on. If that happens, try going to town to try and reset their active mode.
If that doesn't work, hire a new merc, you got a dud.
Misc Stuff
- Most Amazons will have better blocking % when using a shield than a Paladin
since the zon usually pumps Dex a lot more than a Paladin does. Kind of
odd how that works since Blizzard gives Paladins higher shield blocking and
a skill designed to increase blocking %.
- Every character class has it's own special greeting from a person in each
act. For example, the Barb gets a different greeting from Charsi than
the other character classes the first time you talk to her. They will only
talk to you this way in the intro, every other conversation is the same for
every character class.
Tidbits not relative to gameplay
- When you select the Sorceress in the Character Select Screen, it says that
she is skilled in Magick. The extra k at the end is quite interesting to
see, considering the fact that the word was always spelled as Magic(with
no k). A wiccan author added the k at the end so people would not confuse
real magic that is practiced in the real world with the flashy stuff you
see in games, movies, tv, etc.
=============================================================================
8. Blocking Bosses
All normal attacks from bosses can be Blocked with a shield, Dodged with
a high enough defense rating, and Avoided with the Amazon skills Dodge and
Evade. This is just a list of some of their special attacks that can also
be avoided in one way or another.
Andariel - I think all of hers can be blocked. The single poison projectile
can be with a shield, and the poison spread can be avoided with a zon, not
sure about shields.
Duriel - Theoretically, his Charge can be blocked/avoided, but it has an
astronomical AR which makes it almost impossible to avoid without a shield
or an Amazon's high level dodging skills.
Mephisto - The Cold "Orb of Death" can be blocked, but not avoided or dodged.
Diablo - His "Cold Touch" can be blocked/avoided. The Lightning Inferno can
be Avoided with Amazon skills, but I'm not sure about shields. I'm not sure
about his fire attacks, I think I've doged his Fire wave nova thingy once</pre><pre id="faqspan-2">
or twice, but I don't encourage people to sit there and try it.
Baal - I think his Fire Spray can be avoided with the Amazon skill, but other
than that, he can't be avoided.
I'm not entirely sure, but it's been my experience that bosses have such a
high AR that is doesn't matter what your defense is, you're always going to
get hit by the normal attacks if you don't have a good shield or a zon with
dodge/avoid/evade, and since defense is only melee, it won't work against
their magic.
=============================================================================
9. Site Plugs
These are sites about Diablo 2 and it's expansion run by fans, they are not
official sites run by Blizzard. The official site won't be plugged here, it
was plugged elsewhere. Anyways, these are the plugs:
The Unofficial Diablo 2 Site - www.diabloii.net
**The Lurker Lounge - www.lurkerlounge.com
Phrozen Keep - www.planetdiablo.com/phrozenkeep
V&K Mods for Diablo 1 and 2 - www.vkmods.de
Savior's Realm - sivut.koti.soon.fi/hedgehog/
**Sadly, The Lurker Lounge is closed now. The site itself will remain up,
but there will no longer be any more content updates to it.
Other site plugs not specifically related to Diablo 2, but having something
or someplace on the site for Diablo 2(like a message board or something like
that):
GameFAQs - www.gamefaqs.com
If you have a site you'd like mentioned here, send me an email with
"diablo 2 link plug" or something along those lines in the subject.
=============================================================================
10. Acknowledgements
Most recent version of this guide always available at www.gamefaqs.com
The following sites have permission to display this guide:
GameFAQs - www.gamefaqs.com
Thanks to the following individuals/groups:
Mike - My best friend. Awwwww..................
Blizzard - Making a game so addictive it made me write this thing.
DiabloII.net - The website feeding you more info about Diablo 2 and its
expansion than you need.
Dictionary.com - The online dictionary. Lots of the info from the runes
section came from there.
Anyone I might've forgotten - whatever your contribution was.
*****************************************************************************
*******************************End of File***********************************
*****************************************************************************
