05-24-2004, 02:19 AM
One curse will most likely not get you through the game. Depending on the situation, every curse has its own use. Before v1.10 came out, necromancers were considered by some to be the 'thinking man' class, especially Mojomancers (curses only) and cursing summoners. This is due, in no small part, to the feeling that necromancers were like generals out on the battlefield, surveying the scene and deciding what action to take, rather than just bullrushing ahead without considering the consequences. I don't feel this is the case anymore with the new patch since players are more cautious and the skeletons are stronger than they were before. But this still doesn't mean that you should use only one curse to help out your army.
But to help you decide on some curses, here's a primer on all the curses, grouped by how often I've used them. Note that all curses can be overwritten, with the exception of Attract. (All of the curse descriptions and the more technical data can be found on the AS.)
Frequently used curses
Amp damage: Want to kill fast? Then this is the curse for you. It removes physical immunity from most monsters and it works partially with corpse explosion. Works by reducing physical resistance by 100%. Typically the curse of choice.
Dim Vision: Perfect scouting curse. Especially with ranged attackers since it shuts them down. Usually recommended to max it out since that increases duration and area of effect. Usual strategy is to cast this first and overwrite it based on what you find after scouting. Doesn't work with champs and bosses. Does work on minions, though. Duration is reduced in nightmare and in hell.
Decrepify: A 'weaker' version of amp in that it doesn't reduce physical resistance as much. However, it also slows monsters down and reduces their damage output. This is the curse I use the most. Nothing like slowing monsters down to a crawl while my minions take their shots at them. Great for solo play. Note that the area of effect is fixed, which is different than amp.
Life Tap: If your army isn't leeching enough, this is the curse to help them out. Extremely useful against skeletons since this is the only way to leech life from them. Usually cast once to get their life back up, and then overwritten with something else to help the battle. Melee party members love this curse.
Not-so-frequently used curses
Lower Resist: If you dish out more elemental damage than physical, use this one. Can break immunities. Perfect against physical immune monsters where amp is useless. Elemental party members love this curse.
Attract: Useful in crowded situations. Cast this on something in the back of the battle, and the battle typically thins out from divided forces. Can't be overwritten, so keep that in mind. Use attract on revivers (shamans for example) and use another curse on the other monsters. Duration is reduced in higher difficulties.
Confuse: Chaos in a can. In a crowded area, this is great for thinning out the other army. Found on the runeword 'Delirium'. There are reports that confused monsters that are killed give you zero experience, so keep that in mind. I haven't confirmed that myself. Like dim vision and attract, duration is reduced at higher difficulties.
Terror: Great for clearing out some room for your army or for giving you a breather in the middle of a tough battle.
Rarely used
Iron Maiden: If you meet a hard hitting group of monsters, then this might help to kill them faster than any of the other curses. But given the high life and regen of these monsters, your army might be decimated before that happens.
Never used
Weaken: Since this doesn't help your damage output, I only put one point here as a pre-req for the other curses. It might be useful at lower levels, but by level 24, decrepify should replace this curse since it does the same thing, but better. Plus it has other additional effects.
That should be enough to help you decide which curse to use and when. Good luck with the build.
But to help you decide on some curses, here's a primer on all the curses, grouped by how often I've used them. Note that all curses can be overwritten, with the exception of Attract. (All of the curse descriptions and the more technical data can be found on the AS.)
Frequently used curses
Amp damage: Want to kill fast? Then this is the curse for you. It removes physical immunity from most monsters and it works partially with corpse explosion. Works by reducing physical resistance by 100%. Typically the curse of choice.
Dim Vision: Perfect scouting curse. Especially with ranged attackers since it shuts them down. Usually recommended to max it out since that increases duration and area of effect. Usual strategy is to cast this first and overwrite it based on what you find after scouting. Doesn't work with champs and bosses. Does work on minions, though. Duration is reduced in nightmare and in hell.
Decrepify: A 'weaker' version of amp in that it doesn't reduce physical resistance as much. However, it also slows monsters down and reduces their damage output. This is the curse I use the most. Nothing like slowing monsters down to a crawl while my minions take their shots at them. Great for solo play. Note that the area of effect is fixed, which is different than amp.
Life Tap: If your army isn't leeching enough, this is the curse to help them out. Extremely useful against skeletons since this is the only way to leech life from them. Usually cast once to get their life back up, and then overwritten with something else to help the battle. Melee party members love this curse.
Not-so-frequently used curses
Lower Resist: If you dish out more elemental damage than physical, use this one. Can break immunities. Perfect against physical immune monsters where amp is useless. Elemental party members love this curse.
Attract: Useful in crowded situations. Cast this on something in the back of the battle, and the battle typically thins out from divided forces. Can't be overwritten, so keep that in mind. Use attract on revivers (shamans for example) and use another curse on the other monsters. Duration is reduced in higher difficulties.
Confuse: Chaos in a can. In a crowded area, this is great for thinning out the other army. Found on the runeword 'Delirium'. There are reports that confused monsters that are killed give you zero experience, so keep that in mind. I haven't confirmed that myself. Like dim vision and attract, duration is reduced at higher difficulties.
Terror: Great for clearing out some room for your army or for giving you a breather in the middle of a tough battle.
Rarely used
Iron Maiden: If you meet a hard hitting group of monsters, then this might help to kill them faster than any of the other curses. But given the high life and regen of these monsters, your army might be decimated before that happens.
Never used
Weaken: Since this doesn't help your damage output, I only put one point here as a pre-req for the other curses. It might be useful at lower levels, but by level 24, decrepify should replace this curse since it does the same thing, but better. Plus it has other additional effects.
That should be enough to help you decide which curse to use and when. Good luck with the build.