11-04-2003, 12:14 AM
Well, I've always liked the necromancer, and though I wouldn't say that I'm an expert (though I do fit the engineers' definition), I feel I may be able to give a few points.
Both now and in the beta, I played a skeleton warrior necromancer.
Max RS before SM. Raise Skeleton now gets + damage, +%ed, and though a 1SM, 20RS gives about the same bonuses as a 20SM 1RS, the former gives you 7 more skeletons. It starts a little slower, so looking for wands and heads that add to these two skills is advised. Once you get up a few levels, the damage is obscene. ~40 damage, by the end of act 1, at the moment. On each of the 8 skeletons. It comes back into balance by the time you reach Hell, but a 52 SM/RS could be nasty, should one choose to go all out there.
Keeping them alive is interesting. You are either fine or dead, with a very thin line between the two. Decrepify is essential with the more dangerous packs, and attract really shines now with the more powerful ranged attackers. Chilling and freezing are two big worries, and you really need to use attract to get your skeletons out of this. That, or another attack. I found that acting as a supporter, rather than a main attacker, allowed me to have a great deal of control over the battles through cursing. I'd attract a few monsters, then amp, the watch my skeletons attack unhindered, or decrepify a nasty bosspack/Diablo/Baal and watch the skeletons stop crumbling and start killing. Great fun.
The build only uses about 55 skill points, so can be paired with CE, PN, heavy curse invesments, Golem, or expanded to a full overlord.
Both now and in the beta, I played a skeleton warrior necromancer.
Max RS before SM. Raise Skeleton now gets + damage, +%ed, and though a 1SM, 20RS gives about the same bonuses as a 20SM 1RS, the former gives you 7 more skeletons. It starts a little slower, so looking for wands and heads that add to these two skills is advised. Once you get up a few levels, the damage is obscene. ~40 damage, by the end of act 1, at the moment. On each of the 8 skeletons. It comes back into balance by the time you reach Hell, but a 52 SM/RS could be nasty, should one choose to go all out there.
Keeping them alive is interesting. You are either fine or dead, with a very thin line between the two. Decrepify is essential with the more dangerous packs, and attract really shines now with the more powerful ranged attackers. Chilling and freezing are two big worries, and you really need to use attract to get your skeletons out of this. That, or another attack. I found that acting as a supporter, rather than a main attacker, allowed me to have a great deal of control over the battles through cursing. I'd attract a few monsters, then amp, the watch my skeletons attack unhindered, or decrepify a nasty bosspack/Diablo/Baal and watch the skeletons stop crumbling and start killing. Great fun.
The build only uses about 55 skill points, so can be paired with CE, PN, heavy curse invesments, Golem, or expanded to a full overlord.