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Can I play a necromancer?

Discussion in 'Diablo 1 & 2' started by Eyebreaker7, Feb 29, 2016.

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  1. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Remove all ads!
    I don't know about a separate program to allow respecs, but if you are still on normal level, don't worry, as you can pretty much finish that level with just about anything and use the Nightmare respec when you get it.

    Generally, my advice is get the golem to a level where it takes at least 10 seconds to die, then just work on your skeleton army until you are happy. The golem's function is to basically slow down big enemies and get in the way. That's it on normal level. On Nightmare and Hell, it's job is to draw aggro and slow the other side down and be indestructible.

    Your army of skellies is what does the actual killing, along with your idiot sidekick. You sit back and either use amp (for weaker enemies that you want to mow down) or decrep for bosses that you need extra slow. Once there's a corpse, you explode it. Rinse and repeat.
     
    dmc, Mar 10, 2016
    #21
  2. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    So you get a respec on each level (norm, nightmare, & hell)? Nice :)
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 10, 2016
    #22
  3. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Yup. Plus, on Hell difficulty killing the act bosses gives a chance of dropping an essence, which, when you have all four types, can be cubed into an item to allow further respecs.
     
    dmc, Mar 10, 2016
    #23
  4. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Very nice! How hard are they to drop? Normal odds or harder like sets and unique.
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 10, 2016
    #24

  5. xosmi Gems: 20/31
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    If you allready used your respec, you get another in a1 nightmare difficulty, and another in hell difficulty.
     
    xosmi, Mar 10, 2016
    #25
  6. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    As for the drop rate, they are between 1% and 2% according to what I have seen, but my playing memory tells me that the rate is actually higher than that. If you do any sort of boss running, it won't take you long to find them (Andarial and Duriel drop the same essence, so I would run Andy as she is easier to reach).

    I think you will find it basically unnecessary though. By the Hell respec, you will have ironed out your character to the way you want it unless you decide (as I have done) to completely change the focus of a character). Example - a druid I ran was perfectly fine through normal and nightmare, but insufferably slow in hell, so I completely respecced the character into a windy and had a much better time. At that point, though, I was very seasoned and knew exactly what I was doing.
     
    dmc, Mar 10, 2016
    #26
  7. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    How do you like Windows 10? Is it hard to get use to? I still want to know what happend to Windows 9 :p
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 11, 2016
    #27
  8. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    It's OK.

    I went and looked at my necro for you.

    Final build:

    Curses tree - (5 points total)
    1 point amp, 1 point dim vision, 1 point decrep (and the curses needed to get there)

    Bone/Poison tree - (21 points total)
    1 point teeth (to get to), 20 points corpse explosion

    Summon tree - (78 points total)
    20 points raise skeleton, 20 points skeleton mastery, 20 points raise skeleton mage, 1 point revive, 7 points clay golem, 7 points golem mastery, 1 point blood golem, 1 point iron golem, 1 point summon resist

    The last couple of golems were because I really had nothing else to use the points on and I figured I might, every now and again, want to use an iron golem. I was wrong, but there really isn't any point of adding to clay golem, because he never dies. With all the +skills gear (see right below), he's a monster.

    Helm - Harlequin Crest
    Armor - Enigma in an Archon Plate
    Belt - Arachnid Mesh
    Gloves - Chance Guards
    Boots - Magic boots with big lightning resist and magic find
    Weapon - Arm of King Leoric
    Shield - Homunculous
    Amulte - Mara's Kaleidoscope
    Rings - Two rares that give resists, FCR and strength

    All points were used to get strength to 78, which, when added to the other gear, got that to 103 allowing me to wear the archon plate (my highest stregth item), everything else went to vit.

    Various small charms of MF and resists, a Gheeds and a grand charm of +1 summoning tree, which I really could drop if I wanted to to clear three more spaces in inventory.

    The merc is a NM act2 might merc, using Chains of Honor, a triple eth'ed Hone Sundan and a Guillame's Face. Big time CB, very solid idiot sidekick.
     
    dmc, Mar 11, 2016
    #28
  9. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Why a necromancer and not a summoning druid? Just your thoughts (anyone out there). I'm running both but I'm curious about others opinions?
    So far I'm finding the druid to be beefier and quicker but I like the Necro's look much better and CE is a lot of fun. :borg:

    Thanks for the template dmc. Should definitely help.
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 11, 2016
    #29
  10. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    For normal and Nightmare, I don't think it really matters. On Hell difficulty, the necro's army of skellies is much more formidable. Plus, once you create a corpse, CE takes care of the rest of the enemies. Much faster kill speed IMO.
     
    dmc, Mar 11, 2016
    #30

  11. xosmi Gems: 20/31
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    A fairly accepted theory is that they skipped windows 9 because of the pre-existing windows 95/98.
    A lot of (old) 3rd party software has code that checks if the OS version starts with "windows 9" and if it does, automatically decides it must be either windows 95-98.
    This could cause some obvious problems when trying to run this software on windows 9, so they went with 10 instead :p

    kinda off-topic, i know but i just thought i'd share :)
     
    xosmi, Mar 12, 2016
    #31
    Taluntain likes this.
  12. Paracelsi

    Paracelsi Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!)

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    Because summoning druids lack the versatility and damage potential of necromancers. Necromancers get plenty of crowd control/damage amplification from curses, a powerful nuke with Corpse Explosion, golems/skeletal mages/Revive to add variety to their army and if you dip into the Poison and Bone tree you even have access to the magical damage type and Bone Spirit, a rather cheesy spell that allows you to kill anything not immune as long as it can't get to you.

    In comparison, the druid's summoning tree/closest support skills from other trees are rather bland unless you go hybrid. Only one major damage type (physical), only one damage amplification skill (Heart of the Wolverine), very limited crowd control options (Shockwave from Bear Form, blind from Ravens, Grizzly stun) and you can't have multiple minion types out at once (you have to choose between Spirit Wolves/Dire Wolves/the Grizzly).
    Overall, I'd say druids were simply not designed to rely on summoning as much as necromancers.
     
    Last edited: Mar 14, 2016
    Paracelsi, Mar 12, 2016
    #32
  13. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    I've been looking over the curses and I'm wondering why other curses aren't used? Not just you dmc. I've read other posts online and they don't use any others except iron maiden I have seen a couple times.
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 14, 2016
    #33

  14. xosmi Gems: 20/31
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    It's quite simple really, most curses are not much use besides maybe 1 point for utility in some.

    Amplify damage is the main one used - you don't need to spend points in other curses to get it since it has no pre-required skills, so you're not wasting any points. It's the main curse that will increase your damage, by lowering the enemies resistance to it. (while also removing physical damage immunity from them.)
    Since bone spear does physical damage for bonemancers, as well as the skeleton warriors/golems for summonmancers, it's the best curse to improve your damage potential.

    Iron maiden is useful vs hard hitting physical damage enemies, since it will reflect a portion of the damage you or your summons take - so not that useful for a bonemancer, but pretty good on a summoner.
    still, it is kind of situational since it does nothing vs ranged attackers or those that do magical damage.

    All the other curses are either highly situational, (dim vision, terror, confusion, attract) or - while they are alright to have - are still outshone by amplify damage (life tap, iron maiden) or require too much points in other skills to be worth getting (decrepify)
     
    xosmi, Mar 14, 2016
    #34
  15. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    I found that the only curses I would ever even consider using were dim vision or attract, and then only on gloams.
     
    dmc, Mar 14, 2016
    #35
  16. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    How should I prepare for Duriel? I'm on my way to get the head for the staff. I'm level 24 with:

    6 in summon skellys
    5 skelly mastery
    1 skelly magi
    5 clay golem
    3 golem mastery
    1 summon resist

    1 teeth
    1 corpse explosion

    1 amplify damage
    1 weaken


    600 AR
    318 defense

    Life 148
    mana 83

    I only have FR 23 and CR 5. nothing in LR or PR

    Strength 92
    Dexterity 61
    Vitality 31
    Energy 31

    I'm using a sword with 3 perfect emeralds in it so my attack damage is 325-353
    I also have a zephyr bow that does 22-94
    I'm wearing:

    angelic mantle ring mail = defense 218
    gemmed circlet with 2 perfect topaz
    cathan's amulet
    cathan's ring
    angelic halo ring
    a 6 defense belt that has a 5% chance to cast level 3 frost nova when struck
    some gloves that also have a 5% chance to cast level 3 frost nova when struck
    an finally a pair of boot's I crafted:

    +10% faster cast rate
    2% life stolen per hit
    +17 to life
    replenish life +10

    Will my golem, spear jabby guy and I be able to take ......It? I guess it's an it. lol

    Any advice is definitely welcome :)
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 21, 2016
    #36

  17. xosmi Gems: 20/31
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    Duriel can be annoying on a summonmancer since there are no corpses in his area you can use to resummon skeletons from.you should still be able to do it, but you might have to open a TP in his area so you can retreat to town when your skeletons have died so you can resummon a few just outside of town and heal your mercenary.
     
    xosmi, Mar 21, 2016
    #37
  18. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Get another level before you meet him. You should have taken Decrep at level 24.

    To go against Duriel, your strategy should be to keep him Decrepified at all times. In between doing that, you should constantly recast your golem right next to him so that he focuses on the golem and leaves your skellies alone.

    Also, pop a Teleport right before you go through the gate to visit him so that, if you die, you can easily get back there without traversing the whole freaking tomb (the gate always seems to be the farthest walk from the entry).
     
    dmc, Mar 21, 2016
    #38
  19. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Well I took on Duriel at level 29 and he.... it... was pretty easy with the minions. I took the advice and kept casting clay golem and he... it.. kept concentrating on it for some reason. I didn't complain and just breezed through him... it...??
    I got in there cast decrepify then a town portal then just kept shooting him... it... with my bow. It's a weak bow for higher levels but pretty decent so far. It fires explosive arrows which works pretty nicely. Anyway, I just kept shooting and re-summoning the clay golem and had a fun time. Lol. Thanks for the advice.

    Now for another question. I have a wand that says "7% mana stolen per hit". Does that count for spells cast that deal damage? Or do I have to hit the target with the wand? Seems pretty lame if you have to hit it with the wand in melee???
     
    Eyebreaker7, Mar 26, 2016
    #39
  20. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Life leach and mana leach work at full strength for melee hits, some reduced amount for ranged weapon hits and a big ZERO for magic, sorry.
     
    dmc, Mar 27, 2016
    #40
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