How do I

[Darkling Glory]

That's it. The topic title and topic description pretty much present my predicament. I want to build a ranger and I need help, in the form of advice. I would like to see anything and everything people have to offer. From distribution of stat points and advantageous skills selections, to recommended equipment and most compatible mercenary, I am asking for assistance. The only preordained specifics are that he will be softcore and ladder, hanging out in the west. Oh yes, there is one more thing; No ShadowHM, I will not consider a crossbow. :lol:
I would like to see what everyone is willing to share. Very important, slightly important or just matter-of-factual; nothing is insignificant. Even if it is just an unconfirmable observation, I would appreciate reading it. I promise to read it all, cull through it all, and digest it all.
Thank you,
--DG

[ShadowHM]

Hi :)

You knew I would be compelled to answer in this thread, didn't you? Even though I am not allowed to extol the virtues of Crossbows. ;)

For starters, Elvish_Legion has compiled quite a lot of information in this thread at the Amazon Basin.

You have to make a decision, almost from the start, about specialization for your Ranger. You just cannot do it all anymore. I have a Cold/Lightning Thrower on the grow who is a lot of fun. But, as Elvish pointed out, there are many skill structures that can and would work. So many characters to build, so little time......

The one thing he did not discuss directly in that thread was mercenaries. He does recommend dropping points into Blessed Aim for the passive bonus to attack rating. My preference would be to save those points for damage skills and use a Blessed Aim mercenary.

I tried using a Prayer mercenary for my Thrower, on the grounds that I wanted a durable tank out in front of vulnerable little me and Prayer mercenaries are more durable than most. I thought I could make up the AR with lots of dexterity. I was wrong. By mid Act 2 Hell I was having trouble hitting the broad side of a barn, even with over 350 dexterity and a few points in Blessed Aim. I fired Kasim, hired Razan and presto, I could hit things again. Given the differing skill maxes for mercenaries hired in Hell versus Normal, I think you would be better off hiring your Blessed Aim helper right from the start.

[Assur]

Hi

Since you play SC, go with a Blessed Aim, Might or Holy Freeze merc from act 2, Blessed Aim merc is superflous if you use a partial Angelic Raiment set (amulet, ring and armor). Best auras in my opinion are Fanatism and Holy Shock. Fun bows, sorry Shadow :P , are Witchwild String, Kuko and Skystrike, they are not that rare and can also be traded.

Are you using a melee set-up on your weaponswitch?

good karma

[ShadowHM]

Blessed Aim merc is superfluous if you use a partial Angelic Raiment set (amulet, ring and armor).

While this will deliver a lot of AR boost, it is also extremely limiting, in that you have taken up three slots that could be devoted to resists (always a concern for characters with no shields), pluses to minimum damage, pluses to skills and other tasty affixes. :o

I am a fan of hiring mercenaries who will fill holes in your set-up. A Blessed Aim mercenary fills the bill, in this case. B)

On the other hand, if one is going with Fanaticism as the primary aura, it is possible that a Holy Freeze mercenary will be your best friend instead. And, if one is going with a hybrid set-up, with a mêlée attack on weapon switch, it would be hard to go wrong with a Crescent Moon weapon and Holy Shock.

Edit: by the way, the comments in the thread that I linked to above notwithstanding, as far as I know the original creator of the Ranger variant for Paladins is Rhydderch Hael. I lost all my favourites links in a hard drive crash last fall, but I had bookmarked his original posts way back when on the topic. He inspired my first Ranger back in Classic D2. :)

[LavCat]

By mid Act 2 Hell I was having trouble hitting the broad side of a barn, even with over 350 dexterity and a few points in Blessed Aim.   I fired Kasim, hired Razan and presto, I could hit things again.   Given the differing skill maxes for mercenaries hired in Hell versus Normal, I think you would be better off hiring your Blessed Aim helper right from the start.

How about using Widowmaker? I have a Widowmaker wielding sorceress who finds it difficult to miss.

On the other hand, I have a no-dex, no-twink barbarian who is running into difficulty. His preference is to bludgeon things, however, so admittedly there is not a direct comparison.

[Darkling Glory]

First off, let me thank you for your input. :)

Now a question. Which one is a Blessed Aim mercenary? My hunter/druid uses a rogue and my sniper/assassin uses a holy freeze wolf and my eighty-something necromancer (non-hybrid) uses the act 2 mercenary with thorny feet (attack?). It makes all his skeletons very pricklie.

Next question. Is there a list somewhere regarding the attributes of all the different mercenaries? Please point me.

Another question. Is a bow-using necromancer a practical idea or is it just a pipe-dream?

In reply to the question about my weapon-switch, I was planning on going "dead-hot" against physical immunes. I realize this build will have difficulty equaling an amazon's immolation arrow, but I am hoping to come up with something satisfactorily comparable. My level 84 amazon (who doesn't use a mercenary, only a level 20 valkyrie) uses a level 7 immolation arrow on Act 5 / Hell physical immunes, with acceptable results. The results being they are dead when she is through. (I hate evasive action.) The valkyrie stands them up and the amazon burns them down. Enough braggadocio, I am hoping to get the ranger's fire damage to a level equivalent to the amazon's level 7 immolation arrow. Actually, if this goal is achievable, it would theoretically be better than the amazon's immolation arrow, in the sense that the ranger wouldn't have a timer on his arrows. Hmmmm . . . . now there's something for me to think about. :unsure:

There's another question. Can the ranger's fire damage reach a level on a par with an amazon's fire damage?

I think that's it for now. I'm sure I will have more questions.

--DG ;)

[adeyke]

Which one is a Blessed Aim mercenary?

Offense, hired in act 2 normal/hell (preferably normal).

Is there a list somewhere regarding the attributes of all the different mercenaries?

Clicky (AB link). There's a lot of information there, so it takes a while to load.

[ShadowHM]

I am hoping to get the ranger's fire damage to a level equivalent to the amazon's level 7 immolation arrow.  Actually, if this goal is achievable, it would theoretically be better than the amazon's immolation arrow, in the sense that the ranger wouldn't have a timer on his arrows.

It will depend on a number of factors, such as how many points your Amazon has in the synergy skills for Immolation Arrow and how many points you spend on Holy Fire and its synergies.

There is a skill planner here that can help you work out the damage levels that are achievable.

As to the bow using Necromancer, I have not made one in v1.10, but I did have one in v1.09. :D He suffered the same horrible AR problems as my other non-Amazon bow users, but he sure was fun. Oh, and he did actually use a bow, not a crossbow. :P

[Wyrm]

He inspired my first Ranger back in Classic D2.  :)

If I remember rightly, wasn't that a rare (Gothic/Rune) bow coupled with Concentration? I think I started one way back and then got bored of it during act 2 normal.

I still remember back in classic (1.04 or thereabouts, don't remember anymore) getting an imbue on a Gothic that (as I found out later) had ~150% ed and being really heartbroken when I saw poison damage on it.

Ah sweet nostalgia...

[ShadowHM]

How about using Widowmaker?  I have a Widowmaker wielding sorceress who finds it difficult to miss.

This particular character is a Paladin Thrower - so he uses throwing knives, axes, etc.

However, Widowmaker is a nice bow for delivering elemental damage. Not only is it ITD, but it has a hidden AR bonus from the slvl 11 Magic Arrows it fires. :) Or, if your mana supply is high, those Guided Arrows never miss.

[Assur]

While this will deliver a lot of AR boost, it is also extremely limiting, in that you have taken up three slots that could be devoted to resists (always a concern for characters with no shields), pluses to minimum damage, pluses to skills and other tasty affixes.   :o

Hi

I have to admit that the partial Angelic Raiment set isn't endgame equipment, but the partial and hidden boni: +95 life, +10 dex, +50 MF, +50 mana, +50 fire res, +1 all skills added to the increased AR really make this a viable outfit well into NM. By then, thanks to the increase MF you should have better gear.

Bowmancers are doable, I'm running one in HC. Either go for a pumped IG or be a traditional summoner with your skillpoints, AR is a problem, like with a Ranger, but if you go down the summoning path I would suggest an Act 2 Prayer merc (combat N/H)

good karma

[ShadowHM]

Bowmancers are doable, I'm running one in HC. Either go for a pumped IG or be a traditional summoner with your skillpoints, AR is a problem, like with a Ranger, but if you go down the summoning path I would suggest an Act 2 Prayer merc (combat N/H) 

Hi

So the Iron Golem is a better choice than a Fire Golem now? If so, why?

My v1.09 Bowmancer used a Fire Golem (it was a wonderful monster magnet to keep them away from him) with maxed Golem Mastery and Summon Resist, along with the requisite curses. He used a might mercenary but he struggled forever with AR.

[Assur]

So the Iron Golem is a better choice than a Fire Golem now?  If so, why?

Hi

A level 20 FG costs around 240 mana, a level 30 FG, easily achievable with the right equipment on the weapon switch, costs more. My Bowmancer doesn't put any points into energy, so reaching that amount of mana is difficult!

My personal experience is that an IG with maxed life and created from a Palashield socketed with perfect diamonds, combined with a highlevel PrayerMerc is virtually unstoppable. FGs also used to have the nasty habit of setting of LE enchanted monsters/bosses :rolleyes:

I have to admit that the arrows I blasted at the monsters were mostly moral support ;)

good karma

[Darkling Glory]

More Questions: What about the skill Vengeance?

Will Vengeance work with a bow? Will one point add 70% fire, cold and lightning damage to the ranger's arrows and 20% to his A/R?

Will one point in fire, cold and lightning resists synergize an additional 10% to these damages? Or is it 10% of the original 70%?

Last (for the moment), will one point in Salvation synergize 2% to ALL elemental damage, including poison (a nice possibility of preventing healing)? Or does it just add 2% to the above mentioned elemental damage? And, is it an additional 2% or just 2% of 70%?

I am guessing the questions' equations would look like this (assuming that Vengeance works with a bow)--
Will a paladin with one point in Vengeance, Fire Resist, Cold Resist, Lightning Resist and Salvation receive:
70%(fire, cold & lightning damage) + 10%(f, c, & l dmg) + 2%(f, c, & l dmg) + 2% (poison damage) = 82%(f, c, & l dmg) + 2%(p dmg) ???

or will he receive:

(70% x 10%)2% = 78.5% + poison (yes/no?)

Again, all of this hinges upon the question of the applicability of Vengeance. If Vengeance doesn't apply, this has all been a fantasy and an exercise in futility. Do paladins have a fantasy skill? Or possibly a skill of futility? Hmmm . . .

I would like to thank all of you who have contributed/donated to this thread and I anxiously await your responses to these questions as my little ranger is poised on the brink of making the career choice of his life. :rolleyes:



<pauses to contemplate> A vengeful little ranger . . . sounds like it could be fun.

[adeyke]

Vengeance doesn't work with bows.

Salvation adds 2% to your fire, lightning and cold percentages on vengeance (e.g. +70% + 2% = +72%). It doesn't do anything for poison.

[Fragbait]

Hi adeyke,

I think you meant fire, lightning and cold.

Salvation adds 2% to your fire, lightning and poison percentages on vengeance (e.g. +70% + 2% = +72%). It doesn't do anything for poison.

If not, then please explain further...

Greetings, Fragbait

[Darkling Glory]

<stops and ponders for a moment>
So, am I wrong in jumping to the conclusion that none of the Paladin Combat Skills work with a bow? :(

[adeyke]

I think you meant fire, lightning and cold.

Of course. Sorry.

[Assur]

So, am I wrong in jumping to the conclusion that none of the Paladin Combat Skills work with a bow?&nbsp;&nbsp; :(

I think you can charge with abow :D

[adeyke]

So, am I wrong in jumping to the conclusion that none of the Paladin Combat Skills work with a bow?

Blessed Hammer, Holy Bolt and Fist of the Heavens are in the combat skills tab but can be used with a bow. They're just spells, though, so they don't actually use the bow.

The only attack Paladins can naturally use with a bow is normal attack. Of course, there are also the exploding/magic arrow bows, the items with charges of amazon bow skills and the guided arrow oskill on Widowmaker.