02-05-2006, 05:03 AM
INTRODUCTION
I've been playing Diablo for a bit; got it when it first came out (even got the pre-release Diablo on a demo disk). Played single player games to distraction, then got a decent Internet connection and went wild on online multiplayer (Bnet and Kali) too.
I've accomplished a bit with the game. Leveled three characters to fifty (a mage, a warrior, a rogue); won solo, duo, and three-person Ironman games, played some variants (Elitists, Barbarians, and a BNM -- even got the latter to 3 dots).
After all those games, I thought that I had exhausted what Diablo had to offer, and that D1 was pretty much played out for me.
Well, I was wrong.
A gaming/forum bud turned me on to another way of playing Diablo. It's not 'regular'; it's not Ironman; it's not a "Variant" per se. It's challenging as all get out and really gets you back into the minutia of the game. (Thanks BigD. Nice call there, dude.)
It's called playing a "Dot at Level" character (or Dot@Level, or D@L).
*****
DOT AT LEVEL RULE(S)
There's only one overall rule governing "Dot@Level" characters.
THE DOT@LEVEL RULE:
Regardless of equipment and statistics, your character MUST get his/her first dot at character level 17; their second dot at character level 20, and their third dot at character level 30. If you achieve these three goals, then you've successfully played a :"Dot at Level" character. Fail, and you'll need to start anew and try again.
I've added two other "rules" that I have chosen to play by, to increase the difficulty a bit and to make the game REALLY interesting (you don't HAVE to play using these two rules, but it increases the challenge -- and the enjoyment --immensely):
Attika's Dot@Level Rule #2:
Whenever your character hits clevels 17, 20, or 30, you must IMMEDIATELY attempt your Dot@Level in that game -- or immediately create a Nightmare/Hell diff game and make the attempt.
If you just turned 17, toss up a TP and from town enter the crack to Hell and try to get Diablo. At both clevel 20 and 30, exit, create a new game (of appropriate difficulty level) and then go straight to Hell and try to win the game. No more shopping runs. No more Butcher/ Leo/ Laz runs. No more checking Adria for Elixers runs. (You can visit each of the townsfolk once prior to entering Hell.) If you succeed; great. If you are driven out by foes you cannot handle, you may exit and try again -- don't abuse this privilege, however. Continue until you succeed, level up, or die (see below).
Attika's Dot@Level Rule #3:
You're mortal. If you die, THAT'S IT! Start over from scratch.
OTHER MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON PLAYING A LEGIT DOT @ LEVEL CHARACTER
#1. No cheating
-- no third party programs, no duping, no hacks, no trainers, no etc. etc. etc. Try not to exploit bugs, although avoiding the Mana Shield bug does NOT mean your Mage has to wear +237 life gear when you go for your 3@30. Just be reasonable, and use the gear/items your character has bought/found. Try to avoid the horizontal-walk bug. Don't shoot "through" the holes in the walls to kill foes. Just play the game! Nuff said.
#2. No tweaking/twinking.
Your character is "pure" in that he plays alone, accepts no gifts from strangers, friends, or even other characters that YOU have already stored. No gear transfer allowed at all between Dot@Level characters and other characters.
#3. You solo.
ALL the time. Thus someone can't clear the entire dungeon out for you and send a portal to sixteen so you can try for your dot. YOU have to fight your way down there, and survive, and NOT level in the attempt! This is VERY challenging for that 1@17 attempt, as if you kill too many foes on the way down, your character will level to 18 (or more) and doom the try.
OK, so just what ARE you allowed to do in Dot@Level games?
Well, pretty much anything and everything! -- make as many games of whatever difficulty level as you want, repeat levels looking for books, shop til you drop, do Butcher/Leo/Laz runs, go Shrine hunting, start buying Elixers from Adria -- as long as you haven't just turned clevel 17, 20, or 30. When you turn those clevels, your Fate is set -- for a time.
Now you'd think this would make things pretty easy, right? Well, you'll be in for a surprise. Read below and see.
CHALLENGES FOR THE 1@17 CHARACTER
Money is going to be a problem at game start -- you'll be a pauper for quite a bit. Just remember that you can SELL those first books you find to Adria, rather than reading them (esp. books Heal Other). Try to grab as many books as you can. Sell em. Then try and buy a Skullcap4 ($25), a Small Shield 8 ($90) and some Leather 13 ($300!). After that, scrimp and save as much as you can.
Why? Because you are saving for some other needed items. A book Telekinesis. An "of Thorns" item to take care of Hidden type foes. A bow of flame for your Rogue. A fast block shield. And books, books, and more books for your mage. (BTW, that book of Telekinesis is probably THE most important item you'll get in the game -- letting you TK books, shrines, armor racks, weapons racks, and chests all from a distance. It's the Dot@Level character's best friend -- you'll even hotkey it as a spell!)
And you'll also constantly be buying items that give you +magic, to help you read the books you've found/bought. After all, you only get to work with 16 lups -- every five lup points you put into magic rather than Strength or Dexterity means one less point melee/bow damage when facing foes/Diablo. It makes much more sense to buy "glasses" that let you read books rather than put points into your magic attribute. And these purchases can get expensive!
Of course the Mage and the Rogue also want to get a book of Mana Shield -- find it on Cats Six or deeper, or cough up 16K cash at Adria's. And don't forget Stone Curse, another 12K.
Your Dot@Level character will be wanting to sneak around grabbing Stat-adder Shrines as much as possible, along with the rare Religious, Hidden, Enchanted, and Eldritch shrines. Reducing your light radius helps your sneaking ability A LOT. "Cursed" negative light radius items are the Dot@Level character's wet dream. Cherish them!
There's a good chance you won't find much jewelry until you hit clevel 7 or 8 or so, and even then it's going to stink. Just be prepared to tough it out. No jewelry can drop on dlevel one. Some bosses (including Butcher) can drop cheap rings on dlevel 2. Ammys start showing up with bosses on three (like Leo) and from chests on four. You may find yourself going a LONG while without any jewelry at all!
You'll find yourself doing multiple Butcher/Leo runs trying to get jewelries and certain Unique items that can help you tremendously. The Butcher can drop Constricting Ring, Civerb's Cudgel, Split Skull Shield, Blackoak Shield, and the Executioner's Blade. Leo can drop amulets, Holy Defender, Sparking Mail, Ring of Engagement, Flamedart, Shadowhawk, Thinking Cap, Gnarled Root, Thinking Cap, and Fool's Crest.
Realize that your AC is pretty much going to stink. Your number one concern while playing will be to try and increase your armor class as much as possible whenever possible. Prior to clevel 12, you'll be shopping for "Grand" and "Valiant" gear at Griswold's -- remember those prefixes? At Clevel 12 Griswold will offer you "Glorious"(+71-90%) as an armor prefix, BUT up to clevel 16 the best base armor he'll sell you will be Splint Mail. No Plates. You can try the depths of Caves looking for that "Blessed" prefix that can drop as early as Caves 10, (and "Saintly" can drop at Caves 12!), but the foes there are really gonna chew you up. Be ready to drink like mad -- or die. When your first magical Plate finally drops in Caves, you'll find yourself just about salivating hoping for that terrific prefix/suffix combo, even if it's just Breast Plate!
Getting your first dot is quite the challenge. Since you only get to clevel 17 and RARELY go into Hell (you'd have to sneak your way through 4 levels of Caves first), you'll pretty much just have read the books Adria is willing to sell you at that character level. This means: no Golem, no Teleport, and no Blood Star. Not having Teleport is the one that really hurts, as this means you'll have to either a.) walk through Hell trying to get to dungeon level 16 or b.) learn to use the finicky Phasing spell for limited "teleports".
Add to this AGAIN the fact that your resists are going to be pretty miserable -- it's HARD to find all the gear that will maxx out your resistances! You can constantly switch gear to meet the situation at hand, or you can try to find the ol' Constricting Ring.
Getting decent weapons won't be too hard -- you'll be able to shop for them, no problem. The only problem there is the fact that you are actually trying NOT to kill most foes in most cases! Why not? Because you don't want to level too early, and doom your Dot@Level attempt! So, you actually try to hold off on killing most foes, continually assassinating Boss monsters to get best drops you can from them (remember, the Butcher and Leo give no experience at all!).
PLUS there is the problem of avoiding killing foes while walking through Hell! If you kill too many, you'll lup to clevel 18 before you even reach Diablo, and that means a failed Dot@Level attempt!
Then finally getting your weapons to do stunning damage for Diablo may be a problem -- even for the warrior! After all, you're taking the Demon Lord on when you are only clevel 17! The mage's Holy Bolts won't be stunning, and the Rogue won't have a bow that can stun either, and the warrior will be about stunning about 10% of the time with a vanilla bastard sword (not including crits). Then again, you can always try to get a CC from the Butcher or Leo and work with that.
But once you hit clevel 17, it's off to Hell, Diablo, and good luck! That Shadowhawk may come in very handy right about now to avoid foes on the way down. Wear that Constricting Ring! If you see the stairs down across a wall in Hell, toss a TP over next to it, go back to town, and come down the Town Portal and then continue. When you reach dlevel 16, avoid the first and second rooms to the North/East and try to get instead to the third and fourth rooms -- killing as few foes as possible. TK the bone levers in the third room. Put your back against the walls of the third room. Fire a bolt of lightning down at Diablo to activate him. Break out the CC and good luck!
CHALLENGES FOR THE 2@20 CHARACTER
You've got it all -- bad AC, poor health, low mana, weak weapons. So what's not to love about trying to win a Nightmare game with this puny character? You'll be able to buy the book Golem when you turn clevel 19. Still no Teleport though -- you'll be strolling through Hell once again.
At least you can do multiple Normal diff Laz runs trying to find better gear and books. Good luck and don't die! Buff yourself as much as possible, especially with jewelries. Maybe get a Royal Circlet, Doombringer, Gotterdamerung, and Stormshield from Laz and company. You'll need that edge when you face Nightmare Diablo as a level 20 character! (Just an FYI, your level 20 warrior will need 150 Dexterity for "perfect block" versus Nightmare Diablo.)
Oh, and by the way -- Griswold still won't be selling you Gothic or Full Plates.
Ah, and again you will experience the joy of avoiding killing foes on the way down to dlevel 16 -- you kill too many and you will lup to clevel 21, meaning a failed Dot@Level attempt!
CHALLENGES FOR THE 3@30 CHARACTER
Believe it or not, the 3@30 attempt is probably the easiest of the three as far as killing Diablo is concerned. You can "shop" Adria for Elixers when you turn clevel 26, and can really start upping your stats. increasing damage done, health/mana, to hit, and blocking ability.
What is a pain is when triple immunes show up when you start your 3@30. Laz can be tough, especially if SoulBurners appear on 15 also. Civerb's Cudgel will again come in handy.
What's nice is the fact that you can kill EVERYTHING in you trip through Hell/Hell and STILL not level up to clevel 31. So, don't hold off on the offense at this point. Kill em all! Or, Stone Curse em and kill em all!
WHAT THE BEGINNING DOT@LEVEL SHOULD BE ESPECIALLY ON THE LOOKOUT FOR:
Probably the three most important items/drops a Dot@Level character should be looking for:
#1. A book Telekinesis (can drop on Church 2).
The most important drop in a D@L game. Period.
#2. Shadowhawk (Leo can drop).
Damn what a weapon! It has +resist all so that you no longer get stunned by ranged magical attacks, it is on a broadsword base and has +15% to hit when you actually do need to fight your way out of a tight spot (along with life steal), and finally it has -20% light radius, and this is CRITICAL in avoiding activating too many foes.
#3. Constricting Ring(Butcher can drop).
This ONE item maxxes all your resistances, thus you can concentrate on improved to hit, block, AC, life, etc. with all your other gear. Yes, it sucks the life out of you while you are wearing it, but it's a small price to pay for the job it does. Don't hold your breath looking for two obsidian pieces of jewelry -- not likely that it's going to happen.
SOME DOT@LEVEL ADVICE/TACTICS
1. You'll need to re-learn to walk.
First of all, you'll need to be clicking the cursor constantly to force your character to walk around/past foes -- he's programmed to stop when he walks next to a foe. You need to get PAST that foe!
PLUS you need to AVOID walking next to walls! Huh? Walking next to walls makes it easier for foes to surround your character, forcing you to fight your way free, gaining exp, and making you level up too soon. Just don't do it! Just say no to wall-walking!
2. Try to kill as few foes as possible.
Try to kill just the bosses. Think of ways to avoid killing the minions -- such as firing a bow through a grate at JUST the boss, or using a spell that the minions are immune to. Act like an assassin -- try to kill only the bosses. Leo will pursue you through closed doors, while his minions usually cannot open said doors. Try to run toward a room, slam the door behind you, and then run out of sight of that door you just shut. Leo will still pursue you, while his minions will give it up.
3. When only a few foes are following you around on a level in Church, try to find a decent sized room (with a door) which you can lead them into and then LOCK them inside the room.
For single foes, try to line them up with a wall trap (the hole in the wall) so that the trap will kill them when you open the chest/coffin (you get no exp for a trap kill). As a last resort, let the foe stand adjacent to both you and a barrel, and break the barrel, hoping the explosion (if it is an exploding barrel) will kill the foe. It could also spawn a skeleton however, so this is risky. Another risky tactic -- Phase over a wall and leave the monsters behind.
4. Always carry your weapon in your LEFT hand and your shield in your RIGHT hand.
Why? When you are running through a level -- pursued by many foes -- and pass a Hidden Shrine, you can still TK it without pausing or changing gear. If your weapon loses ten durability, for the most part that's no big deal since you aren't really using your weapon that much anyway. If your SHIELD loses ten dur, that's a BIG deal as your shield gets a workout every single level of the dungeon, especially archer levels! Remember, Hidden Shrines hit the shield slot with a preference, so switch your weapon and shield placement in your inventory.
5. ALWAYS carry AT LEAST one (preferably two) Town Portal scrolls -- for those really, really, bad emergencies.
6. Avoid corners!
Corners are for fighting, which you are NOT to be doing! If you enter a corner, it takes only three foes to "surround" you, forcing you to fight your way out (at least, until you have Phasing or Teleport). If you stand at least one tile AWAY from a corner, and see a HUGE mob approaching, you can always cast a TP into that corner tile and escape -- can't do that if you are in the corner and surrounded.
If you get in a REAL jam -- in a corner, surrounded, no Phasing or Teleport, and don't want to fight your way out -- remember, Telekinesis can temporarily PUSH a foe away, opening up an escape route. It works best when TKing a "slow" foe -- like a Zombie or Bat -- and pretty much won't work at all against faster moving foes like Rats.
7. Reduce your light radius!
The more you reduce your light radius, the fewer foes you activate and have to deal with, and that's pretty much the name of the game for a Dot@Level character.
8. Learn to use the Phasing spell. The Phasing spell is your friend -- sort of!
*****
Well, that's it for now. Hope you liked the read, and hope you accept the challenge of creating a mortal Dot@Level character. You'll discover a whole nother aspect of playing and enjoying the game.
Good luck and good hunting!
I've been playing Diablo for a bit; got it when it first came out (even got the pre-release Diablo on a demo disk). Played single player games to distraction, then got a decent Internet connection and went wild on online multiplayer (Bnet and Kali) too.
I've accomplished a bit with the game. Leveled three characters to fifty (a mage, a warrior, a rogue); won solo, duo, and three-person Ironman games, played some variants (Elitists, Barbarians, and a BNM -- even got the latter to 3 dots).
After all those games, I thought that I had exhausted what Diablo had to offer, and that D1 was pretty much played out for me.
Well, I was wrong.
A gaming/forum bud turned me on to another way of playing Diablo. It's not 'regular'; it's not Ironman; it's not a "Variant" per se. It's challenging as all get out and really gets you back into the minutia of the game. (Thanks BigD. Nice call there, dude.)
It's called playing a "Dot at Level" character (or Dot@Level, or D@L).
*****
DOT AT LEVEL RULE(S)
There's only one overall rule governing "Dot@Level" characters.
THE DOT@LEVEL RULE:
Regardless of equipment and statistics, your character MUST get his/her first dot at character level 17; their second dot at character level 20, and their third dot at character level 30. If you achieve these three goals, then you've successfully played a :"Dot at Level" character. Fail, and you'll need to start anew and try again.
I've added two other "rules" that I have chosen to play by, to increase the difficulty a bit and to make the game REALLY interesting (you don't HAVE to play using these two rules, but it increases the challenge -- and the enjoyment --immensely):
Attika's Dot@Level Rule #2:
Whenever your character hits clevels 17, 20, or 30, you must IMMEDIATELY attempt your Dot@Level in that game -- or immediately create a Nightmare/Hell diff game and make the attempt.
If you just turned 17, toss up a TP and from town enter the crack to Hell and try to get Diablo. At both clevel 20 and 30, exit, create a new game (of appropriate difficulty level) and then go straight to Hell and try to win the game. No more shopping runs. No more Butcher/ Leo/ Laz runs. No more checking Adria for Elixers runs. (You can visit each of the townsfolk once prior to entering Hell.) If you succeed; great. If you are driven out by foes you cannot handle, you may exit and try again -- don't abuse this privilege, however. Continue until you succeed, level up, or die (see below).
Attika's Dot@Level Rule #3:
You're mortal. If you die, THAT'S IT! Start over from scratch.
OTHER MISCELLANEOUS NOTES ON PLAYING A LEGIT DOT @ LEVEL CHARACTER
#1. No cheating
-- no third party programs, no duping, no hacks, no trainers, no etc. etc. etc. Try not to exploit bugs, although avoiding the Mana Shield bug does NOT mean your Mage has to wear +237 life gear when you go for your 3@30. Just be reasonable, and use the gear/items your character has bought/found. Try to avoid the horizontal-walk bug. Don't shoot "through" the holes in the walls to kill foes. Just play the game! Nuff said.
#2. No tweaking/twinking.
Your character is "pure" in that he plays alone, accepts no gifts from strangers, friends, or even other characters that YOU have already stored. No gear transfer allowed at all between Dot@Level characters and other characters.
#3. You solo.
ALL the time. Thus someone can't clear the entire dungeon out for you and send a portal to sixteen so you can try for your dot. YOU have to fight your way down there, and survive, and NOT level in the attempt! This is VERY challenging for that 1@17 attempt, as if you kill too many foes on the way down, your character will level to 18 (or more) and doom the try.
OK, so just what ARE you allowed to do in Dot@Level games?
Well, pretty much anything and everything! -- make as many games of whatever difficulty level as you want, repeat levels looking for books, shop til you drop, do Butcher/Leo/Laz runs, go Shrine hunting, start buying Elixers from Adria -- as long as you haven't just turned clevel 17, 20, or 30. When you turn those clevels, your Fate is set -- for a time.
Now you'd think this would make things pretty easy, right? Well, you'll be in for a surprise. Read below and see.
CHALLENGES FOR THE 1@17 CHARACTER
Money is going to be a problem at game start -- you'll be a pauper for quite a bit. Just remember that you can SELL those first books you find to Adria, rather than reading them (esp. books Heal Other). Try to grab as many books as you can. Sell em. Then try and buy a Skullcap4 ($25), a Small Shield 8 ($90) and some Leather 13 ($300!). After that, scrimp and save as much as you can.
Why? Because you are saving for some other needed items. A book Telekinesis. An "of Thorns" item to take care of Hidden type foes. A bow of flame for your Rogue. A fast block shield. And books, books, and more books for your mage. (BTW, that book of Telekinesis is probably THE most important item you'll get in the game -- letting you TK books, shrines, armor racks, weapons racks, and chests all from a distance. It's the Dot@Level character's best friend -- you'll even hotkey it as a spell!)
And you'll also constantly be buying items that give you +magic, to help you read the books you've found/bought. After all, you only get to work with 16 lups -- every five lup points you put into magic rather than Strength or Dexterity means one less point melee/bow damage when facing foes/Diablo. It makes much more sense to buy "glasses" that let you read books rather than put points into your magic attribute. And these purchases can get expensive!
Of course the Mage and the Rogue also want to get a book of Mana Shield -- find it on Cats Six or deeper, or cough up 16K cash at Adria's. And don't forget Stone Curse, another 12K.
Your Dot@Level character will be wanting to sneak around grabbing Stat-adder Shrines as much as possible, along with the rare Religious, Hidden, Enchanted, and Eldritch shrines. Reducing your light radius helps your sneaking ability A LOT. "Cursed" negative light radius items are the Dot@Level character's wet dream. Cherish them!
There's a good chance you won't find much jewelry until you hit clevel 7 or 8 or so, and even then it's going to stink. Just be prepared to tough it out. No jewelry can drop on dlevel one. Some bosses (including Butcher) can drop cheap rings on dlevel 2. Ammys start showing up with bosses on three (like Leo) and from chests on four. You may find yourself going a LONG while without any jewelry at all!
You'll find yourself doing multiple Butcher/Leo runs trying to get jewelries and certain Unique items that can help you tremendously. The Butcher can drop Constricting Ring, Civerb's Cudgel, Split Skull Shield, Blackoak Shield, and the Executioner's Blade. Leo can drop amulets, Holy Defender, Sparking Mail, Ring of Engagement, Flamedart, Shadowhawk, Thinking Cap, Gnarled Root, Thinking Cap, and Fool's Crest.
Realize that your AC is pretty much going to stink. Your number one concern while playing will be to try and increase your armor class as much as possible whenever possible. Prior to clevel 12, you'll be shopping for "Grand" and "Valiant" gear at Griswold's -- remember those prefixes? At Clevel 12 Griswold will offer you "Glorious"(+71-90%) as an armor prefix, BUT up to clevel 16 the best base armor he'll sell you will be Splint Mail. No Plates. You can try the depths of Caves looking for that "Blessed" prefix that can drop as early as Caves 10, (and "Saintly" can drop at Caves 12!), but the foes there are really gonna chew you up. Be ready to drink like mad -- or die. When your first magical Plate finally drops in Caves, you'll find yourself just about salivating hoping for that terrific prefix/suffix combo, even if it's just Breast Plate!
Getting your first dot is quite the challenge. Since you only get to clevel 17 and RARELY go into Hell (you'd have to sneak your way through 4 levels of Caves first), you'll pretty much just have read the books Adria is willing to sell you at that character level. This means: no Golem, no Teleport, and no Blood Star. Not having Teleport is the one that really hurts, as this means you'll have to either a.) walk through Hell trying to get to dungeon level 16 or b.) learn to use the finicky Phasing spell for limited "teleports".
Add to this AGAIN the fact that your resists are going to be pretty miserable -- it's HARD to find all the gear that will maxx out your resistances! You can constantly switch gear to meet the situation at hand, or you can try to find the ol' Constricting Ring.
Getting decent weapons won't be too hard -- you'll be able to shop for them, no problem. The only problem there is the fact that you are actually trying NOT to kill most foes in most cases! Why not? Because you don't want to level too early, and doom your Dot@Level attempt! So, you actually try to hold off on killing most foes, continually assassinating Boss monsters to get best drops you can from them (remember, the Butcher and Leo give no experience at all!).
PLUS there is the problem of avoiding killing foes while walking through Hell! If you kill too many, you'll lup to clevel 18 before you even reach Diablo, and that means a failed Dot@Level attempt!
Then finally getting your weapons to do stunning damage for Diablo may be a problem -- even for the warrior! After all, you're taking the Demon Lord on when you are only clevel 17! The mage's Holy Bolts won't be stunning, and the Rogue won't have a bow that can stun either, and the warrior will be about stunning about 10% of the time with a vanilla bastard sword (not including crits). Then again, you can always try to get a CC from the Butcher or Leo and work with that.
But once you hit clevel 17, it's off to Hell, Diablo, and good luck! That Shadowhawk may come in very handy right about now to avoid foes on the way down. Wear that Constricting Ring! If you see the stairs down across a wall in Hell, toss a TP over next to it, go back to town, and come down the Town Portal and then continue. When you reach dlevel 16, avoid the first and second rooms to the North/East and try to get instead to the third and fourth rooms -- killing as few foes as possible. TK the bone levers in the third room. Put your back against the walls of the third room. Fire a bolt of lightning down at Diablo to activate him. Break out the CC and good luck!
CHALLENGES FOR THE 2@20 CHARACTER
You've got it all -- bad AC, poor health, low mana, weak weapons. So what's not to love about trying to win a Nightmare game with this puny character? You'll be able to buy the book Golem when you turn clevel 19. Still no Teleport though -- you'll be strolling through Hell once again.
At least you can do multiple Normal diff Laz runs trying to find better gear and books. Good luck and don't die! Buff yourself as much as possible, especially with jewelries. Maybe get a Royal Circlet, Doombringer, Gotterdamerung, and Stormshield from Laz and company. You'll need that edge when you face Nightmare Diablo as a level 20 character! (Just an FYI, your level 20 warrior will need 150 Dexterity for "perfect block" versus Nightmare Diablo.)
Oh, and by the way -- Griswold still won't be selling you Gothic or Full Plates.
Ah, and again you will experience the joy of avoiding killing foes on the way down to dlevel 16 -- you kill too many and you will lup to clevel 21, meaning a failed Dot@Level attempt!
CHALLENGES FOR THE 3@30 CHARACTER
Believe it or not, the 3@30 attempt is probably the easiest of the three as far as killing Diablo is concerned. You can "shop" Adria for Elixers when you turn clevel 26, and can really start upping your stats. increasing damage done, health/mana, to hit, and blocking ability.
What is a pain is when triple immunes show up when you start your 3@30. Laz can be tough, especially if SoulBurners appear on 15 also. Civerb's Cudgel will again come in handy.
What's nice is the fact that you can kill EVERYTHING in you trip through Hell/Hell and STILL not level up to clevel 31. So, don't hold off on the offense at this point. Kill em all! Or, Stone Curse em and kill em all!
WHAT THE BEGINNING DOT@LEVEL SHOULD BE ESPECIALLY ON THE LOOKOUT FOR:
Probably the three most important items/drops a Dot@Level character should be looking for:
#1. A book Telekinesis (can drop on Church 2).
The most important drop in a D@L game. Period.
#2. Shadowhawk (Leo can drop).
Damn what a weapon! It has +resist all so that you no longer get stunned by ranged magical attacks, it is on a broadsword base and has +15% to hit when you actually do need to fight your way out of a tight spot (along with life steal), and finally it has -20% light radius, and this is CRITICAL in avoiding activating too many foes.
#3. Constricting Ring(Butcher can drop).
This ONE item maxxes all your resistances, thus you can concentrate on improved to hit, block, AC, life, etc. with all your other gear. Yes, it sucks the life out of you while you are wearing it, but it's a small price to pay for the job it does. Don't hold your breath looking for two obsidian pieces of jewelry -- not likely that it's going to happen.
SOME DOT@LEVEL ADVICE/TACTICS
1. You'll need to re-learn to walk.
First of all, you'll need to be clicking the cursor constantly to force your character to walk around/past foes -- he's programmed to stop when he walks next to a foe. You need to get PAST that foe!
PLUS you need to AVOID walking next to walls! Huh? Walking next to walls makes it easier for foes to surround your character, forcing you to fight your way free, gaining exp, and making you level up too soon. Just don't do it! Just say no to wall-walking!
2. Try to kill as few foes as possible.
Try to kill just the bosses. Think of ways to avoid killing the minions -- such as firing a bow through a grate at JUST the boss, or using a spell that the minions are immune to. Act like an assassin -- try to kill only the bosses. Leo will pursue you through closed doors, while his minions usually cannot open said doors. Try to run toward a room, slam the door behind you, and then run out of sight of that door you just shut. Leo will still pursue you, while his minions will give it up.
3. When only a few foes are following you around on a level in Church, try to find a decent sized room (with a door) which you can lead them into and then LOCK them inside the room.
For single foes, try to line them up with a wall trap (the hole in the wall) so that the trap will kill them when you open the chest/coffin (you get no exp for a trap kill). As a last resort, let the foe stand adjacent to both you and a barrel, and break the barrel, hoping the explosion (if it is an exploding barrel) will kill the foe. It could also spawn a skeleton however, so this is risky. Another risky tactic -- Phase over a wall and leave the monsters behind.
4. Always carry your weapon in your LEFT hand and your shield in your RIGHT hand.
Why? When you are running through a level -- pursued by many foes -- and pass a Hidden Shrine, you can still TK it without pausing or changing gear. If your weapon loses ten durability, for the most part that's no big deal since you aren't really using your weapon that much anyway. If your SHIELD loses ten dur, that's a BIG deal as your shield gets a workout every single level of the dungeon, especially archer levels! Remember, Hidden Shrines hit the shield slot with a preference, so switch your weapon and shield placement in your inventory.
5. ALWAYS carry AT LEAST one (preferably two) Town Portal scrolls -- for those really, really, bad emergencies.
6. Avoid corners!
Corners are for fighting, which you are NOT to be doing! If you enter a corner, it takes only three foes to "surround" you, forcing you to fight your way out (at least, until you have Phasing or Teleport). If you stand at least one tile AWAY from a corner, and see a HUGE mob approaching, you can always cast a TP into that corner tile and escape -- can't do that if you are in the corner and surrounded.
If you get in a REAL jam -- in a corner, surrounded, no Phasing or Teleport, and don't want to fight your way out -- remember, Telekinesis can temporarily PUSH a foe away, opening up an escape route. It works best when TKing a "slow" foe -- like a Zombie or Bat -- and pretty much won't work at all against faster moving foes like Rats.
7. Reduce your light radius!
The more you reduce your light radius, the fewer foes you activate and have to deal with, and that's pretty much the name of the game for a Dot@Level character.
8. Learn to use the Phasing spell. The Phasing spell is your friend -- sort of!
*****
Well, that's it for now. Hope you liked the read, and hope you accept the challenge of creating a mortal Dot@Level character. You'll discover a whole nother aspect of playing and enjoying the game.
Good luck and good hunting!