Assasin

[bobsicle]

Hello all,

I would first like to say hello to all since I'm a new member...so hi :D.

Anyways i use to live and die by this site before its "shut down"

So, I've gotten back into Diablo 2 :LOD after a long break and I really want to make a martial art assasin but have no clue where to start, so I decided to come ask for help here. Can you guys give me a rough idea on what skills to upgrade and spread my stats points because i am really clueless at this point.

Thanks,
Bobsicle

[bigeyedbug]

Even though it's for 1.09, this is a good general guide. The main differences are that Dragon Talon and Blade Fury are much better, Fade is more useful (and both it and Burst of Speed can be used in conjunction with Venom), and that frequent use of a 1 point Cloak of Shadows is nearly mandatory.

My personal preference for a first martial artist would be a claw/shield Phoenix Striker. It's powerful, versatile, and best of all, colorful. If you know you'd like to specialize in a particular charge it's not too hard to level up, as you can put points into the relevant synergy. The first and second charges are the most likely candidates.

Pretty general information, I know. Hopefully the guide will help you out. If you have specific questions just ask.

[bobsicle]

I just have one more question, how many points should i put into strength? I dont want to over do it and wind up wasting my time.
And after I put enough points into stregth should i put more points in dex or vit?

Thanks again,
bobsicle

[LavCat]

If you are kicking you will probably want enough strength (208) to equip Myrmidon Greaves:

http://www.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/eli...ite/boots.shtml

And you may want to further increase strength for additional damage, and to be able to equip sacred armor for summoning your shadow, since she will inherit the same base type.

[bigeyedbug]

It really depends. What kind of MA Assassin are you making? Like LavCat said, kickers want a lot of STR. If you're making an elemental Assassin, you might want as little as 79 STR (after bonuses) for Greater Talons. If you're making a mixed elemental/physical damage Assassin, then 118 allows you to use any claw in the game. Of course, if there's some particular piece of gear with high requirements you want to then you'll put more in.

If you're still trying to decide what skills you're focusing on, then I'd aim for 79 initially. Being able to use Greater Talons is key because:

- They (and Runic Talons) are the fastest claws in the game.
- They have the chance of staffmods/+individual skills.
- One of the premier uniques--Bartuc's Cutthroat--is a Greater Talon.

Because Runic Talons are so fast they work pretty well for most MA, even though there are much more damaging claws. With the probable exception of Tiger Strike, all of the chargeups depend more on speed than base damage.

There's other reasons to go for low strength, but I've probably done enough damage for now. :o If you want to share your build ideas someone will be able to give you more specific feedback.

[bobsicle]

I'm looking to make a 2 claw assasin, with Pheonix Strike as my main skill. I am currently level 42 with 85 Strength, 140 something Dexterity, and 80 vitality and no points put in energy.

I wanna max out pheonix strike and max out 2 of its synergies Fist of Fire and claws of Thunder. Outside of this I'm not certain which skill i want to invest in, although i probably will put quite a few points in shadow master, some suggestions for other skills would be nice.

For my stats should I lay off the strength for now and just put points into vitality and dexterity for now? If so, what percent of my points should go into vitality and dex. One last question, by lets say lvl 90 roughly how much points should I have invested into vitality?

Thanks, any feedback would be great,
Bobsicle

[ryan4nayr]

by lets say lvl 90 roughly how much points should I have invested into vitality?

End-game hp should at least be 1k, melee'ers such as yourself should hit 2k+. Even then it's not enough, as you will find out in Worldstone hell.