Hail Lurkers,
In all my years of playing and reading about Diablo II I can not say I vanquished the prime evils on Hell difficulty. I mean, what kind of hero am I? Well this lack of achievement did not settle so well within me. I felt like I owed my old friend Diablo a visit again. So I started a Barbarian, and I wanted to actually finish the game on Normal difficulty before I wrote this. Before I get in detail about my experience on Normal difficulty, I suppose you should know how I play the game. So here are a few notes on my play style:
-I spend quite a bit of time planning a character out, then playing it strictly on how I planned it. If my character turns out to be “gimped”, I welcome the challenge. If he turns out to be the most damage efficient build, then so be it. I set rules on what skills they are allowed to use, and I follow it.
-I play single-player only. I clear out all areas (even all of Tal Rasha's Tombs), and I try to clear every monster in a zone. I use the 1.11b official Diablo II patch. I do not use any mods.
-I do not use hacks. I DO use the mule application, ATMA, only to store items. I won't transfer gold or items within characters, unless they finish Hell difficulty.
On to my character, Monty, the Barbarian.
I chose a Barbarian because it's actually the class I have the least amount of experience with. The only Barbarian I've played is a Frenzy Barbarian, and I only completed Normal difficulty. I wanted to play a classic slash and hack character, and the idea I had in mind was a normal sword and shield build. I wanted Monty to be a tough warrior, being able to survive massive battles from all different types of enemies. So the basic skills and strategy Monty will be using is the following:
Concentrate will be Monty's main attack. During battles I will cast War Cry to control groups of enemies if Monty gets surrounded. Against bosses or enemies with a lot of life, I will cast Battle Cry on them. Monty will try and keep Shout, Battle Orders, and Battle Command active at all times. I realize Monty's damage output might be on the low side, but I'm aiming for control and survivability. I will try to use the highest damage one-handed sword to counter his lack of damage.
Here's his skill plan: (Planned for 95 skill points, level 85)
Warcries:
(1) - Howl (Not Using)
(1) - Taunt (Will Use)
(1) - Shout (Will Use)
(1) - Battle Cry (Will Use)
(20) - Battle Orders
(17) - War Cry
(1) - Battle Command (Will Use)
Combat Masteries:
(20) - Sword Mastery
(1) - Increased Stamina
(1) - Increased Speed
(1) - Iron Skin
(5) - Natural Resistance
Combat Skills:
(1) - Bash (Not Using)
(1) - Leap (Will Use)
(1) - Stun (Not Using)
(1) - Leap Attack (Will Use)
(20) - Concentrate
(1) - Beserk (Only for Physical Immune Enemies)
Once I've completed a difficulty, I'll reply to this post with a write-up. Comments much appreciated!
-MonTy
In all my years of playing and reading about Diablo II I can not say I vanquished the prime evils on Hell difficulty. I mean, what kind of hero am I? Well this lack of achievement did not settle so well within me. I felt like I owed my old friend Diablo a visit again. So I started a Barbarian, and I wanted to actually finish the game on Normal difficulty before I wrote this. Before I get in detail about my experience on Normal difficulty, I suppose you should know how I play the game. So here are a few notes on my play style:
-I spend quite a bit of time planning a character out, then playing it strictly on how I planned it. If my character turns out to be “gimped”, I welcome the challenge. If he turns out to be the most damage efficient build, then so be it. I set rules on what skills they are allowed to use, and I follow it.
-I play single-player only. I clear out all areas (even all of Tal Rasha's Tombs), and I try to clear every monster in a zone. I use the 1.11b official Diablo II patch. I do not use any mods.
-I do not use hacks. I DO use the mule application, ATMA, only to store items. I won't transfer gold or items within characters, unless they finish Hell difficulty.
On to my character, Monty, the Barbarian.
I chose a Barbarian because it's actually the class I have the least amount of experience with. The only Barbarian I've played is a Frenzy Barbarian, and I only completed Normal difficulty. I wanted to play a classic slash and hack character, and the idea I had in mind was a normal sword and shield build. I wanted Monty to be a tough warrior, being able to survive massive battles from all different types of enemies. So the basic skills and strategy Monty will be using is the following:
Concentrate will be Monty's main attack. During battles I will cast War Cry to control groups of enemies if Monty gets surrounded. Against bosses or enemies with a lot of life, I will cast Battle Cry on them. Monty will try and keep Shout, Battle Orders, and Battle Command active at all times. I realize Monty's damage output might be on the low side, but I'm aiming for control and survivability. I will try to use the highest damage one-handed sword to counter his lack of damage.
Here's his skill plan: (Planned for 95 skill points, level 85)
Warcries:
(1) - Howl (Not Using)
(1) - Taunt (Will Use)
(1) - Shout (Will Use)
(1) - Battle Cry (Will Use)
(20) - Battle Orders
(17) - War Cry
(1) - Battle Command (Will Use)
Combat Masteries:
(20) - Sword Mastery
(1) - Increased Stamina
(1) - Increased Speed
(1) - Iron Skin
(5) - Natural Resistance
Combat Skills:
(1) - Bash (Not Using)
(1) - Leap (Will Use)
(1) - Stun (Not Using)
(1) - Leap Attack (Will Use)
(20) - Concentrate
(1) - Beserk (Only for Physical Immune Enemies)
Once I've completed a difficulty, I'll reply to this post with a write-up. Comments much appreciated!
-MonTy