Diablo II: Lord of Destruction
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PvP Necromancer Guide
By: Joey Lau (J.Lau)
Email:
[email protected]
For: Computer
Date: May 5, 2002
Latest Version: 1.01
Patch: 1.09
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
------------------
Table of Contents:
------------------
I. Introduction
II. Stat Distribution
- Strength
- Dexterity
- Vitality
- Energy
III. Skill Distribution
VI. Equipment
- Main Weapon
- Secondary Weapon
- Armor
- Helm
- Gloves
- Boots
- Belt
- Ring1
- Ring2
- Ammy
- Charms
V. What To Do Against...
- Barbarians
- Paladins
- Druids
- Assassins
- Sorceress'
- Amazons
- Necromancers
VI. My Equipment/Stat Distribution
VII. Thanks To...
VIII. No Thanks To...
===============
I. Introduction
===============
Hi this is AzN GaMeR - My GameFAQs account name (was known as *HolySamurai,
now is *HostileFire on the USEast Realm). This is a Necro build I’ve built
twice (And I’ve only ever built two Necromancers o_O) and I’ve played it for
a few hundred hours (Latest Necro: HostileFire, lvl. 93) in duel games. He
has won me many duels be it LEGIT DUEL (
http://www.myleague.com/useastpvp/
for LEGIT DUEL rules) or PUBLIC duel games, which BTW is where most people
duel. It’s not really a hard build to get into though, though maybe in the
few hours you start dueling with him it might seem like they are real hard
to duel as. Keep in mind I don’t plan to help the people that can’t afford
at least half of the “pricey” stuff unlike Vlad (A.K.A. Togashi Tsuke).
During the duration of this guide I’ll be giving my advice to be IMO the
best PvP Necro you can be. I’ll be using some Diablo II terminologies as
well so if you don’t fully understand what I’m talking about don’t read it,
go read Sashanan’s Terminology Guide or ask on the boards O_O. And just if
you’re wondering why I started a FAQ on a PvP Necromancer when Vlad has one
out it’s because I think I know more about this ^_^ (Yes I am that cocky...
Shoot me =P).
=====================
II. Stat Distribution
=====================
Strength: If you can use your equipment without the +stats from your shield
or weapon you will have a slightly lower risk of corpse popping (or so I am
told by PhiSig67 ((Wow a dbl. Bracket... I’m pretty sure he said this)) so
blame him if anything happens o_O). So put just enough STR for you equipment
without the shield or weapon boosting them.
Dexterity: Put your cursor over the Defense “tab” and it’ll say how much
block you have in %s. Keep putting in DEX if its not hitting 75% and if it
stays at 75% don’t put any in it.
Vitality: All the rest of the stat pts. go in here. Duh...
Energy: None. (Again PvP characters usually don’t waste points into NRG)
=======================
III. Skill Distribution
=======================
I’ll be listing the ones you need to put pts. in so I’m not mentioning the
prerequisites you might have to go through just know that you only need 1
pt. in it if it isn’t mentioned.
1 – Golem Mastery (More life for your golem what else?)
1 – Fire Golem (More useful in certain situations)
1 – Bone Prison (Mmmm trapping running characters in front of your screen
o_O)
1 – Decrepify (Slows down real fast characters...)
20 – Lower Resist (Huge radius and allows for more BS damage)
20 – Bone Armor (It acts as extra life, works with PDR and totally stops the
last attack done on it)
20 – Bone Spirit (Main attack...)
20 – Poison Nova (Secondary attack...)
The remaining pts. will be your choice to which you think you need more in
or spells you want for PvM. I went with pts. into Bone Wall though (you’ll
find why in the Strategies section) and Decrepify because I found them more
useful then IM.
=============
VI. Equipment
=============
I’ll be listing what I deem as the best Equipment for the PvP Necro but you
can choose whatever you want since I can’t force you to do what I want =(
but you’ll die if you don’t!! ^_^ And I’ll list what you should put in the
sockets in parenthesis... Again I’ll be listing some other equipment you can
go but I’d really advise for you hitting 60%+ PDR unless you have that much
skill to dodge iGAs (invisible Guided Arrows) and every attack imaginable.
Some statistics before you get choosing... All the #1s I picked are the ones
I use in FFAs w. no Sorceress' with FO and 1v1s against physical damage
characters other then the Boots in which I use Waterwalks.
[Casting Frame]
11 FPS – 48% FCR
10 FPS – 75% FCR <--- This should be the minimum you should cast at...
9 FPS – 125% FCR
[Faster Hit Recovery Frame]
7 frames – 0 % FHR <--- If you don’t hit or past this stop playing ^_^
6 frames – 18% FHR
5 frames – 48% FHR <--- Try to hit this if you’re having huge troubles
getting out of Wake of Fire + Mind Blast lock or can’t get out of a MA
Assassin’s stun lock
[Faster R/W Frame]
There is a certain amount for this, it does have frames, and it does have
diminishing returns but no one that I know has found this out yet...
Needless to say having 200% R/W and 225% R/W won’t make too much of a
difference or will going up by another 50% R/W...
Weapon:
1) Wizardspike - +mana, +resist, the highest FCR item available, etc...
Nothing else will do as much this thing (Io rune or +resist jewel)
2) Blackhand Key – You can actually have this to cast Fire Golem and BA if
you really want it going up a few pts. that badly but don’t switch other
then in town or your mana will have to regenerate which wastes time in a
duel (Io rune or +resist jewel)
Shield:
1) Stormshield – 35% PDR and +resist... Mmmmm~ (-req. jewel w. +15
prismatic/+life/etc. or Hel rune)
2) Homunculus – Faster mana regenerate, +mana, +resist, +skill, etc. Also it
doesn’t require as much DEX as Stormshield does for max block (Io rune, Um
rune, Sur rune, or Jah rune)
3) Lidless Wall – FCR if you plan to hit the 9-frame mark but then you would
need a few other items to hit 9 frames also... (Io rune | Isn’t worth to put
a Jah rune in since Homunculus is the better one and if you can’t afford
that you probably shouldn’t have a Jah rune to waste for it)
Armor:
1) Shaftstop (Um rune, Perfect Ruby, Cham rune, Sur rune, or Jah rune)
2) Jeweler’s [insert light armor with low STR requirement and the ability to
have 4 sockets here] of the Whale (4x Perfect Skulls) – Secret... Well not
anymore... Hmmm if you don’t know what it does too bad =P
3) Guardian Angel (Um rune) – If you don’t know what the second armor is for
you’ll probably be using this
Helm:
1) .09 Harlequin’s Crest – The +mana here is 2x more useful then the minor
+life .08 Harlequin’s Crest will give (Um rune, Perfect Ruby, Cham rune, Sur
rune or Jah rune)
2) .08 Harlequin’s Crest – If you can get 1,500+ mana then be my guest use
this instead... (Um rune, Perfect Ruby, Cham rune, Sur rune or Jah rune)
Gloves:
1) Magefists
2) Frostburns
3) Bloodfists (30% FHR... Good for Trap Assassins...)
Boots:
1) High +STR/+DEX dual stat boots w. 20%+ R/W and +resist
2) Waterwalks - +life, +15 DEX and +5% max to Fire resist O_O
Belt:
1) Trang Oul’s
2) A belt with a few of these mods... +life, +mana, +stats, resistance, FHR
and FCR
Ring1:
1) SoJ
2) Raven Frost
Ring2:
1) SoJ
2) Raven Frost
Ammy:
1) FCR Ammy w. +life/+mana/+skill/+stat/+resistance
2) Cat’s Eye – R/W and +DEX allows for more life
3) Mara’s Kaleidoscope – Resist if you need it that badly... Oh yeah and
+skills ^_^
Charms:
- R/W SCs
- R/W w. +resistance SCs
- R/W w. +mana SCs
- +Life SCs
- +Life w. + resistance SCs
- +Life w. +mana SCs
- +1 P/B skills with +30~ life GC
========================
V. What To Do Against...
========================
Any other problems you have against any other characters just message me or
post on the board and I can help you out if I have experience against them.
Keep in mind I don't over abuse absorb the most I usually use is 1 against
each element and maybe sometimes Guardian Angel. And I don’t think I should
even bother mentioning this but anyways always keep BA (Bone Armor) up
against any physical damage attacker.
[FAQ Writer’s Note: Don’t use Golems against any physical attackers other
then against Assassins because they can leech greatly off of them – Example:
My cousin had a PvP Necro awhile back and he used Clay Golem as a tank and
whenever my Amazon was low on life I would kill the Clay Golem and leech
back pretty much all my life which made our long duels even longer]
=============
1) Barbarians
=============
A. Whirlwind
They can be one of your biggest problems if they run a lot faster then you.
Cast Decrepify if you can’t outrun them well or if they seem to cause you a
lot of desynch. Since I have a lot of R/W though I go for LR instead. Good
WW Barbs will change charms for more R/W and use Zerk as their main weapon
though so make sure you keep your Decrepify up since 1 base pt. into
Decrepify even with a lot of +skills isn’t going to last long. Don’t allow
them to get to close and stay away from ponds but use houses and walls to
your advantage (It’s not good when you get desynch and you’re stuck on a
spot near the ponds).
B. Thrower
I’d really say one of those harder match-ups against a good Necromancer
(Just because my good old Throw Barb owned Fluzz and other good Necromancers
^_^). If they can outrun you by a lot then hope that you have enough skill
to dodge all the Javelins coming at you or at the least most of them. A few
hits even with a 1,700+ life, max block and max PDR Necromancer it will kill
you shortly if you don’t block or dodge too many of them. Go for LR here
because Throwers seem to use a lot more R/W then any other kind of Barb
(other then Frenzy but that’s not too viable in PvP). If they lock on you,
you can just run around and around and make them waste their Javelins, which
means you win the duel if they lose all of their quantity.
C. Hybrid
Most Hybrids I know are of the WW - Thrower variant and are very versatile
taking the best of both worlds (LOL go buy that CD). Just play them like
they are either Throwers or the WW Barbs and you should do fine though they
can take you by surprise when you start running from WW then they change to
Dbl. Throw’n and you get caught in it. Also take advantage when they WW as a
Thrower because WW with the Javelins is real weak so you can tank their
attacks standing and cast BS like crazy then.
===========
2) Paladins
===========
A. Charger
Hit and run is all you can do because Charge stun is annoying to get out of.
You can use ponds, houses, walls, etc. to stop being constantly charged on
constantly. Of course this is where you choose to use LR or Decrepify like
against any physical attacker. You can run around a house or pond and
constantly spam Poison Nova to kill them. Even though this way usually
doesn’t work because a low lvl. to even a higher end IM won’t out ride a
good character with high leech and max PDR but you can trap them with Bone
Prison when they are near pond(s), against a wall(s) or house and then IM
them and cast Bone Prison repeatedly but its usually real hard to get a Bone
Prison on unless they stop to attack or you get lucky and they lag.
B. Smiter
Slower then Chargers but they hurt more. Keep away from them or you’ll get
stunned by Smite and keep away from ponds, houses, etc. this time since
you’ll actually get stuck to them against a Smiter. Run from Holy Freeze
whenever they put it on and when they change to Vigor to catch you start
spamming BS.
C. FoH'er
Run away and use Bone Walls/Bone Prisons and Fire Golem to take FoH hits and
lock onto them a lot with BS then when they’re on the run start spamming
Bone Prisons or spam Bone Prisons when they are about to cast FoH.
[FAQ Writer’s Note: Not many good Paladins are just one variant but a mix
like FoH/Smite, Charge/Smite, etc. so use the strategies accordingly.]
=========
3) Druids
=========
A. Werewolf
Just like the Zealot but harder >_< Hope you outrun them or strafe a lot so
they can’t get a Fury hit on you. Again stay away from ponds because desynch
will get you caught and stuck on a pond sooner or later. Don’t cast Bone
Walls but use Bone Prisons when you see an opening for getting him trapped
but never just cast Bone Prison without having BS chasing after him and only
do it when you know that the amount of BS after him is enough to kill or at
the least near enough to kill him.
B. Werebear
<Same as above>
============
4) Assassins
============
A. Martial Artists
A good Martial Arts Assassin is one of the hardest match-ups for a
Necromancer. Keep a Clay Golem up (it will sometimes take a Dragon Flight
hit if it is in between you and the Assassin and might take Shadow Master
attacks as well) so they can’t charge off them too much, remember to never
let your golem be too far away from you, and run downwards (don’t do it too
much it’ll piss off any Assassin that knows about this) to screw around with
Dragon Flight targeting. Try not to walk into any Traps or the Assassin will
stun you with Mind Blast then Dragon Flight in and then start attacking you
with Charge-Ups then a final attack which all usually stuns you enough to
allow the Cobra Strike to kill you. Don’t bother with Bone Wall or just Bone
Prison either if you don’t have a real train of Bone Spirits after them
because a Cobra Strike can easily leech most of their life back. Don’t ever
go Bone Spirit against their attacks because they got massive stun/block
lock on their side and then you won’t able to get out but maybe cast 1 or 2
at the most when they DF in.
B. Trappers
Another hard match-up for a Necromancer for sure if that Trapper knows what
to go skill, equipment, and stat wise but not many do so you’ll actually
have a pretty easy time against most of the ones out. Don’t allow them to
get too close and try to not run in to any Wake of Fire’s because it’ll
cause a brief stun which will allow a Trapper to take advantage and get you
in Wake of Fire + Mind Blast lock. This is one of the duels where you’ll
want to spam Bone Prison as much as you can since they can’t leech of walls
and they’ll have to Dragon Flight to get out. This is a duel where you can
switch to Homunculus, Guardian Angel/#2 Armor, and/or Thundergod’s Vigor.
=============
5) Sorceress'
=============
There are two ways to beat a Sorceress... And this is another duel you can
switch to Homunculus, Guardian Angel, the #2 Armor, Raven Frost(s) and/or
Thundergod’s Vigor.
A. Cast Bone Walls randomly everywhere and whenever you see the Sorceress
coming cast Lower Resist a few times, cast Bone Spirits randomly and spam
Poison Nova and hope the poison, lag and Bone Walls protect you from death
because a Sorceress can easily dodge all the Bone Spirits unless there’s lag
to help you out. You have to get real good at dodging Frozen Orb’s and
Hydra’s here.
B. Get in between two walls (I.E. a corner) and get Bone Walls all around
you and leave a little open space between the end of the screen and the Bone
Walls. Spam Lower Resist when the Sorceress gets near and Bone Spirits and
keep recasting Bone Walls whenever they go down. This might last longer and
you might hear a lot of complaining but if they can’t get in and out without
getting hit by hundreds of Bone Spirits then they shouldn’t be dueling
anyways. I’d really advise for armor #2 here since you’ll need it if you
don’t have a lot (I MEAN A LOT) of mana. (This strategy is harder to use in
Norm because the Bone Walls get lower life)
==========
6) Amazons
==========
A. Bowazon
These match-ups can be hard to extremely hard. Don’t ever go Bone Spirit for
Guided Arrow (ever...) because they’ll get you in to block lock. Shoot Bone
Spirits from screens away and don’t ever stand still unless there’s a whole
train of Bone Spirits after them and that’s when you switch to Bone Prison
and trap them. This is a duel where you only use Lower Resist. It will last
long if you don’t duel against an Amazon that charges at you thinking
they’ll win. When they chase after you start casting Bone Spirits so they
can keep the Amazon on the run and then lock on to them with Bone Spirits
then switch to Bone Prison and hold on that until you see their name across
the screen or if they’re still alive after awhile then get ready to do that
again if they start charging. Remember to kill all your Bone Prisons if they
leave it anywhere without leeching off them themselves and/or when they die
trapped inside.
B. Javazon
Real quick and annoying to duel against a Jabazon but against Amazons that
use just Lightning Fury and Plague Javelin it shouldn’t be too hard. Play
Javazons like Throwers... Against Jabazons though use Decrepify (remember to
constantly cast it because it doesn’t last long) and you can either spam
Poison Nova and/or Bone Spirits. Like every other duel use Bone Prison if
you think you see a huge enough amount of Bone Spirits on them.
C. Hybridzon
Use Bowazon and Javazon strategy accordingly.
===============
7) Necromancers
===============
There are many types of Necromancers going either no DEX or max block, no
PDR or max PDR, high +skill or high +life, etc. but in Necromancer vs.
Necromancer they all duel the same other then some have more life, +skills,
actual PvP skill, etc. then others. This is a duel where you’ll WANT to
switch to Homunculus and the #2 Armor. This is a duel where you should never
stop running because invisible Bone Spirits (iBS) are usually everywhere
chasing after you. Use houses and walls to absorb the hits every once in a
while so you can make sure there isn’t any iBS, randomly cast Bone Walls and
cast Bone Prisons when they get on your screen. Don’t bother with Decrepify
in this duel because it doesn’t help too much though it might help you get
them in Bone Prison easier but then you can pretty much walk and still get
out of Bone Prison cast unless they hit lag.
==================================
VI. My Equipment/Stat Distribution
==================================
These were the items I use... Too bad I duel in public games though since
I’d be able to put on much better stuff if I didn’t go in to public games =(
Also since my account was deleted I’m not sure what were the exact mods of
my Ammy but it was like the one I listed but a little better.
===============
1) My Equipment
===============
Weapon:
A. Wizardspike (Io rune)
Shield:
A. Stormshield (-Req. w. +15 prismatic jewel)
Armor:
A. Shaftstop (Um rune)
B. Jeweler’s Gothic Plate of the Whale (4xPerfect Skulls)
C. Guardian Angel (Um rune)
Helm:
A. .09 Harlequin’s Crest (Um rune)
Gloves:
A. Magefist
Boots:
A. Perfect Waterwalks
Belt:
A. Trang Oul’s
B. Thundergod's Vigor
Ring1:
A. SoJ
B. Raven Frost
Ring2:
A. SoJ
B. Raven Frost
Ammy:
A. +2 B/P skills, +5% FCR, +11% prismatic and +mana
Charms:
The same I listed above other then most of them have secondary mods...
=========================
2) Base Stat Distribution
=========================
Strength: 133
Dexterity: 187 (max block)
Vitality: 258 (I had around 1,400 life)
Energy: Base (I had around 1,250 mana)
=================
VII. Thanks To...
=================
(a) CJayC – Well you know...
(b) PKPKPK (GameFAQ name) - Haha my cousin. We practice 1v1 a lot, own
pubbies and our skill is pretty much equal. He’s going to be angry with me
making another FAQ for sure O_O Hi~
(c) Fluzz – For showing me how Necro’s own and showing me his secret 4
socket Perfect Skull Armor which then I advertised his idea here... Whoops?
Nah... (*jackassery on Battle.net – Message him if you want to be owned...
You beat him? REPLAY PLEASE!! ^_^)
(d) People from clan wesuck! - Thanks for the duels! Go here if you want to
abide by legit rules... Most balanced rules possible IMO so stop
complaining...
(e) Me – Because I am that shameless O_O
=====================
VIII. No Thanks To...
=====================
(a) Vlad – For starting a PvP Necro FAQ before me when I’m pretty sure I
mentioned I was going to do one first =P
(b) Blizzard – For deleting my account? Nah I love Blizzard... >_<
(c) Me – For not being able to make those ASCII art things so it gives me
more KBs on my Contributor Page (which BTW also makes it look better) and
using so many faces ^_^
Unpublished FAQ © 2002 Joey Lau
