Skill Point Distribution
Overall, making pure builds is relatively simple. No balancing between damage types is required. There are some points that you need to keep in mind, however. This describes my way of spending skill points for Lightning Javazons. Others are perfectly entitled to disagree with me.
Passive and Magic Skills
Inner Sight - 1 (mostly a prereq)
Slow Missiles - 1
Critical Strike - 1 (mostly a prereq)
Penetrate - 1 (mostly a prereq)
Dodge - 1-5
Avoid - 1-5
Evade - 1-5
Decoy - 1
Valkyrie - 5-20
Pierce - 1-20
Javelin and Spear Skills
Jab - 1
Power Strike - 1-20 (synergy)
Lightning Bolt - 1-20 (synergy)
Lightning Strike - 1-20 (synergy)
Poison Javelin - 1 (prereq)
Plague Javelin - 1 (prereq)
Charged Strike - 20 (main single-target killer)
Lightning Fury -20 (main group killer)
Impale - 0
Fend - 0
Bow Skills
None.
Now why did I pick these skills?
Lightning Fury is your main killer. This is the core skill of the build, it is what makes the Lightning Javazon one of the most powerful character builds out there. Any monster pack that is not lightning immune is destroyed almost instantly by the skill. It draws its power from the ability to pierce, which effectively re-applies the splitting Lightning Bolts. The bigger and tighter the monster pack is, the more damage you deal. Nifty, no? This is what I recommend you max first.
Charged Strike is to large, single targets what Lightning Fury is to monster packs. Even though the listed damage doesn't look particularly impressive, be aware of the fact that it is per bolt. When dealing with large monsters, all the lightning bolts hit the same target, making the total damage output HUGE. My rather modestly geared Zon takes out Hell Baal in less than 20 seconds. I believe the USWest record for Über Diablo is somewhere around 5 seconds, by Dragonius. Max the skill, please.
Valkyrie is a somewhat touchy subject. Some say spend all 20 points, others say "don't bother". I take the middle road. I suggest you aim for a level 17 Valk after all +skill modifiers have been counted in. At skill level 17 she gains access to most of her powerful gear. And at that level, she will almost never die, while providing invaluable tanking and even a healthy bit of physical damage that comes in handy when dealing with lightning immunes.
Dodge, Avoid and Evade are basically skills that make the enemy land a damaging blow on you less often. Obviously, that is a good thing. There is however a problem with balancing the number of points spent in these defensive skills and points spent in the offensive skills. I like leaving them at base, and letting +skills boost them up to respectable levels. Others like spending up to five hard points in each of them. The latter option is a much more feasible choice if you are very short on +skills.
Note that all the skills are subject to heavy diminishing returns.
Pierce is probably the single most debated Lightning Fury Amazon issue. It is clear that this skill is of VITAL importance to any Javazon. Without it, Lightning Fury is nothing but a very mana-intensive way to deal a low amount of lightning damage. With it, it is one of the game's prime group killers, as stated above. Having a high chance to pierce is absolutely essential. It is the approach that is different among Amazon fanatics. Some claim that the best way is to simply Max the Pierce skill, and leave it at that. My approach, however, is to leave it at a relatively low skill level, and to use the Razortail belt to make up for the rest. My reason for that will be explained in the "Technobabble" section.
Jab has two purposes. To get you to level 6, where you gain access to Power Strike, and after that to get rid of Lightning Immunes. It only requires one point. I did a variant with maxed Jab last year, and although it certainly got me through hell, the end killing power was unnecessarily reduced. I recommend one point. It will be enough.
Decoy and Slow Missiles are useful skills. I shall address their use in the Gameplay section.
Power Strike, Lightning Bolt and Lightning Strike I use mostly as synergies. I'm sure there are players out there that actively use them, but I have to admit that I just plain don't see why.
Power Strike looks like a weaker version of Charged Strike to me, even though it still very powerful. It might even be more effective against small targets, but I have found that Charged Strike takes care of them quickly enough already. It does have its uses at lower levels though, before Charged Strike is available. That's why I end up maxing it nearly all the time, even though I almost never use it.
Lightning Bolt looks to me like a Lightning Fury that costs less mana and doesn't split. Huh? They tell me PvPers use it, though…
Lightning Strike, although positively an impressive-looking skill, is plagued by NextDelay (see links). Also, it supposedly is a group killer, only I find that Lightning Fury can do the same job, only faster.
I'm sure that I have deeply offended the lovers of those skills, but I still use them as mere synergies. If you do have or find a use for them, max that skill and use it. And be so kind as to tell me about it.
Desirable items
This is what you were waiting for, right? Welcome to the items section.
I must warn you, if you expect gear that makes teh omg gawldiest zon on B.Net to be listed here in droves, you will be sorely disappointed. I capped the "budget" at items that are reasonably attainable to a casual gamer through legitimate methods. I have several reasons for this. First of all, the primary host of this guide will be the Baron's Bazaar, which does not support guides with duped or otherwise illegitimate items. Second, this build does not need items that are rare as frog showers, not by far. Third, if you do have them, you should be able to figure out how to implement them.
Now that I'm done ranting, let's start. Always keep in mind that these are items I view as desirable, not necessary.
------------Shields------------
Why did I start with this? Probably because it's the only major variable when it comes to gear. This item will significantly affect your final stat distribution, so choose wisely.
Roughly, there are two ways to group the shield choices. One way is "Shields that are Monarchs, and shields that are not", while the other is "Shields for offense, or shields for defense". The reason for this segmentation will be revealed in the Stat section.
- The most common shield I see Javazons using is Stormshield. It's a behemoth of a shield. The only thing I see wrong with it (the strength req aside) is that the individual resistances present a potential problem with balancing the resistances to reach 75% all. This is my second choice. Defensive, Monarch.
- A very traditional and solid choice is Moser's Blessed Circle. I recommend two Perfect Diamonds in the sockets. Defensive, non-Monarch.
- My favourite Shield for this build is a Sanctuary runeword. Best made in a Troll Nest or a Hyperion (in my opinion). It is roughly similar to Moser's, although it has higher defense, variable resists, better blocking, and a higher price tag. Defensive, non-Monarch.
- If you like blocking, Whitstan's guard is the shield for you. I disagree with this choice due to its lack of resistances. Defensive, non-Monarch.
- I consider Lidless Wall and the Splendor runeword to be offensive shields, for they provide typical caster mods, at the cost of blocking and resistances. I disagree with this approach in general. Magic-Finders might like Splendor for the MF bonus, however. Offensive, non-Monarch.
- The Spirit runeword was implemented during mid-1.10, and caused a revolution in the approach to casters. It is to offense what Stormshield is to defense. A heavy shield with heavy +skills and mana. It does have some defensive modifiers (FHR, Vitality, a splash of resistances), but I still consider it an offensive shield due to the lack of blocking. If I wanted an offensive shield, this would be my choice. Offensive, Monarch.
- Frequently overlooked shields are Gerke's Sanctuary and the Rhyme runeword. Both provide a respectable amount of resistances and blocking. Gerke's is unique in offering MDR and DR, and Rhyme offers the invaluable cannot be frozen mod and a bit of MF. Defensive, non-Monarchs.
*A note on Gerke's. Using this shield presents you with an interesting option: Stacking integer Magic and Physical damage reduction. Quite a few items mentioned later can assist you in that, such as The Gladiator's Bane, Nature's Peace, a Safety Javelin, Sol runes, etc. can really add up. The usefulness becomes more noticeable when multiple PDR/MDR items are combined, as they start making you largely immune to lighter attacks. Integer damage reductions are naturally more effective against multiple light hits, while percentage damage reduction works better when dealing with heavier attacks.
- The Ward, a four-PDiamond Monarch and Ancient's Pledge deserve some attention due to how easy it is to get them, mostly. Lots of resistances to be had, but I wouldn't consider them an optimal choice due to their lack of blocking. Blackoak Shield was pointed out to me, but I don't like it. The dexterity, life and cold absorb mods are useful, but I don't think it makes up for its shortage of resistances and (despite the dexterity boost) blocking.
------------Weapons------------
This section is surprisingly uninteresting. The only Javelin I can outright recommend is...
- Titan's Revenge. It's still the king of Amazon-only Javelins. It has everything you need. Don't worry if yours is the worst, non-eth, non-upgraded one on B.Net, they still blow the competition out of the water. Ethereal, high-ED or upgraded ones only more so. The worst one will still send you flying through hell (even against lightning immunes =D). The rest of the build's items can be switched out, but this is the only item where I will say "nothing compares to it". It should be an absolute priority on your wishlist.
- A different choice would be Thunderstrokes. The main attraction here is the -resist% modifier. It does a large amount of damage, sure, but it doesn't compare with Titan's for PvM, if you ask me. The lack of a self-replenish mod hurts. It is possibly useful as a switch weapon for bosses, but mine tend to sit in the stash unused.
- The non-Amazon unique javelins are largely unsuitable, in my opinion. Some can be used as secondary weapons to Jab at lightning immunes (Demon's Arch in particular), but I never see the need if I have Titan's.
- Everything else can work. Honestly. It has long been rumoured that Lightning Javazons can kill with cracked Javelins. I will not attempt to dispel that rumour. Just remember that the most important mod you can find on rare/blue javelins is the self-replenish mod. It drops the gold cost to 1, which is a serious relief when running to town every five minutes to get your pointy sticks repaired. I should probably mention that the crafted Safety weapon is a javelin, but I have never felt the need for it. PDR and MDR stackers might like the Safety Javelin, though.
------------Body Armor------------
I primarily look for +skills or resistances here. Other mods are a bonus.
- The Gloom runeword is my choice. Massive resistances, defense, a splash of strength and Faster Hit Recovery? Perfect. That chance to cast Dim Vision, although unreliable, can get you out of tricky spots as well. Only problem is that Um and Pul runes don't always fall out of the sky when starting fresh.
- Gloom's little brother is Smoke. Only narrowly inferior (IMO), this provides resistances and FHR as well. The defense is lower than that of Gloom, it doesn't have +strength, and not that cute little Dim Vision effect either. On the other hand, the higher rune required is Lum. It's a much more affordable option.
- Lionheart is a classic. IMO, the most impressive feature here are the massive +stats. They can make equipping and achieving max block with that Stormshield much more tolerable. This would be my second choice after Gloom.
- 1.11 introduced the (infamous) runeword Peace. No resistances, but 2+ to Amazon skills. It's a rather offensive armor, probably very well suited for "Cowgirls".
- The Skin of the Vipermagi provides both resistances and a +skill (and a cute amount of MDR) . It's a good armor, but one of its main attractions, the FCR bonus, is almost completely wasted here. The low level requirement is attractive, though. I consider this a good armor for mid-game leveling, but I recommend something more specialized for the end-game.
- If the thought of an enraged Frenzytaur pack tearing your girl apart keeps you awake at night, Shaftstop might soothe your worries. The selling point here is the "Damage Reduced by 30%" mod. It (along with the fixed life boost) is the only really impressive mod here, but that 30% is a lot. You won't find more on any other armor. It doesn't have any of the resists I want here, this is what you are looking for if you suffer from a fear of physical damage dealing monsters.
- The Gladiator's Bane is another interesting armor. It has lots of defense, lots of both types of integer damage reduction, Faster Hit Recovery, Poison Length Reduction, and most importantly the almighty Cannot Be Frozen mod. It is a very powerful defensive armor with pretty much everything but resists. If you can make up for that somehow... you have something impossible to ignore.
- Duriel's Shell seems to have been forgotten as an hell-option when 1.10 came out. My beloved resists can be found, a life bonus and a strength bonus. Oh, and Cannot Be Frozen again ^_^. It has served me faithfully in the past.
- Treachery is another gift of the 1.11 patch. While technically an Assassin runeword, this is probably the "best" 1.11 runeword. The biggest boon here is the Fade proc. A level 15 Fade means 60% to all resistances, and 15% Damage reduction - huge. On top of that we get 45% IAS, a Venom Proc, and FHR. I forgot to mention it as a main armor originally, even though I do use it on my current main Javazon, in a way.
What I do is:
1) I place the Treachery on my mercenary, and wait for the Fade and Venom to proc. 2) I switch armors with the merc, until I have both spells active as well. 3) I switch armors again.
This can be a chore to do every five minutes (288 seconds), but it can allow you to get away with much lower resistances. I started doing this a few minutes after 1.11 came out, so I can only assume that everyone else who does it is stealing my idea. :biggrin:
- Skullder's Ire for the Magic Finders! If you're not into MF it's rubbish except for that skill point, however.
------------Helms------------
In contrast with the body armors, I usually look for +skills and miscellaneous mods here. You could of course switch it around, getting resistances here and heavier +skills on the armor instead.
- The Shako (Harlequin Crest for those who haven't been defiled as greatly by the Diablo 2 jargon as I) has long been favoured by everything not strictly melee. This is a cookie-cutter choice for a reason. The downsides are that it can be hideously overpriced early in ladder seasons, and it looks absolutely awful. If you have some ulterior motives for playing Amazons, this hat is not for you. ^.^
- What I like, however, is a Valkyrie Wing. Yes, the "crappy" 1.10 one. It can have the same +skills as the Shako, and I found that the FHR, FRW and +to mana after each kill mods actually helped me more than the life, mana and DR% Shako offered. As long as I am not magic-finding, I prefer it. It also provides vastly superior aesthetics, and can usually be obtained for a few Perfect gems via trading.
- A choice I disagree with is Andariel's Visage. If I were a Stormshield user, I'd probably look more favourably upon it due to the +strength. It does have 2+ all skills, and 20% IAS that admittedly can be difficult to get when playing a Javazon. Even though leech generally doesn't work very well due to the fact that most of your damage is elemental, it does help, and it's there. The thing I absolutely don't like about it are the resistances. That massive poison resist and fire resist penalty make it a nightmare to balance around that flat 75% all res I like. The level requirement looks rather scary as well. I don't like leveling up 82 times before using my final helmet. Odds are I'll already have completed the game by then. Nevertheless, some swear for it.
- The ultimate option would most likely be Griffon's Eye. That ridiculous lightning damage is very, very hard to argue against. I have never had the pleasure of finding one, but I can theorise that this would be the ultimate choice.
- Kira's Guardian is interesting. Huge all resist, Cannot be Frozen and some FHR keep you alive very, very well. But no +skills at all. If I wanted to make a switch and get resistances from the helm and +skills from the armor (as with Peace), this would be the helm. The CBF mod frees up your ring slots as well, which is definitely a plus. I don't use it myself, but I see how it could.
- A rare circlet could fit well. This is also something you could most likely find/gamble/imbue yourself, while hunting for a specific unique item is usually hopelessly tedious when playing solo. Look for +skills (Amazon, of course), resistances and stat bonuses. I don't think you should be crossing your fingers for more useful mods on a single circlet. =þ
- Despite being a powerful helm, I do not think Guillaume's Face is suitable. The substantial Crushing Blow is much more effective for fast-attacking characters. Deadly Strike doesn't boost the lightning damage portion of your attacks, negating its usefulness. Our attacks are largely elemental and comparatively slow, the exact opposite of what Guillaumes' users need. It should help you considerably when Jabbing... but you want to be doing that as seldom as possible.
------------Belts------------
When looking at uniques, I see two options. As I said in the skills section, these options are heavily debated.
- My choice is Razortail. It looks humble, I admit. The only major mods here are the dex bonus (good for blockers!) and the 33% chance to pierce your target. In the Technobabble section, I shall demonstrate why that chance outweighs just about everything else you could get on a belt. In my opinion. Oh, and this is a cheap item when it comes to trading. No one likes it for some reason. =þ
- The other major choice is Thundergod's Vigour. Admittedly, this is an awesome belt to look at. Massive stat bonuses, a Lightning Fury skill level bonus, and that integer absorb that the WSK Souls loathe. At first glance, it does wipe out the competition. The only moderately annoying thing about it is the chance to cast FoH when struck, which briefly stops you from attacking. Big, blunt, and it works very, very well.
- Everything else, including String of Ears, Verdungo's Hearty Cord and Arachnid Mesh are inferior choices in my opinion. I see these mentioned very often when people ask forumers to criticise their first Javazon ideas. They are good and beneficial belts, no denying that, but I must say that both TGod's and Razortail blow them away, and that at an usually lower "price". Rare belts are not very suitable in my opinion. Use them only if you can't get Razortail (or TGod's) for whatever reason, such as playing untwinked or on Single Player.
- Goldwrap requires a mention for the MF usefulness. But that's it. The IAS boost is not enough to make it a hell-viable survival belt.
------------Rings------------
There are probably many more options here that I'm missing. My experience tells me that I end up with two rings, a primary ring and a secondary ring. On the primary ring you will most likely have to make up for a rather large gap I have (intentionally) left so far. In other words, it's a part of the actual build, while the secondary ring can mostly get you something "unecessary" you'd still like to have. Like +skills or life/mana.
- The ring I say all Javazons should definitely try to get is a Raven Frost. One simple reason; the Cannot Be Frozen mod is invaluable. You can live without it, but it will make your life sooooo much easier to have it. And the only other "viable" sources (that I can see, at least) are Rhyme, The Gladiator's Bane, Duriel's Shell and Kira's. If you are playing untwinked or for some other reason can't get a Raven Frost, Rhyme becomes a much more promising shield choice. In trading, the low end ones usually go for a few Perfect gems. And a low end one is all you need. The cold absorb, mana and AR is nice, but not needed. You "need" CBF, and I say this is the place to get it. It should be your primary ring, never leave camp without it.
- Bul-Katho's Wedding Band is my secondary ring of choice. It is simple, that skill bonus and raw life boost is very, very good! Only downside is... its rarity of 1 makes it a royal pain in the rear end to both find and trade for. It's a good thing you don't need it in any way (it doesn't provide any critical mods), but it should be the rich or lucky man's option.
- The Stone of Jordan is exactly the same thing as Bul Katho's, really. Just switch the life bonus for a mana bonus. It's a pretty impressive ring, and I only have two problems with it. A minor problem is that it's precisely as difficult to find as the BK ring. The HUGE problem is that it is THE most massively duped item in the history of Diablo 2. I absolutely can not recommend you trade for it. If you have found one, excellent. If you don't, well, just forget about it and move on.
- Nature's Peace is interesting. And we can actually afford to get something that's "only" interesting here on the secondary ring, since we aren't really depending on it for any crucial mods. There's nothing very "outstanding" here, which causes people to overlook it. It's the sum of the mods that make the ring, and those mods happen to be useful and hard to get elsewhere (PMH and MRIP), so this is a serious secondary ring to consider.
- Rare rings fit well as secondary rings. Try to make up for something you lack, such as a particular resistance, a small mana pool, etc. It's filling, do what you need with it.
------------Amulets------------
This is a rather open section. People look for very different things here. It is likely that availability will play a role in your amulet selection. Try to get one that helps your Javazon fulfil the build goals. Depending on your other equipment choices, that should vary greatly.
- Mara's Kaleidoscope is the cookie-cut choice. I only have one issue with it: Without IAS on the amulet, reaching the 30% Charged Strike breakpoint is difficult. It really is no more difficult to find (in hell) than an Eye of Etlich, but since everyone wants these, they can be a PitA to trade for.
- Highlord's Wrath can solve the beforementioned IAS problem. The skill point and DS (which helps Jabbing a bit) is welcome as well.
- Cat's Eye is an amulet I have sadly neglected until now. I just didn't notice it. 20% IAS. 25 to dexterity. 30% FRW. If you're blocking, I say it's a clear winner over Highlord's. If you are not, however... that extra skill point on Highlord's might be more worthwhile.
- Other brand-name amulets, such as the Eye of Etlich, Saracen's Chance and Telling of Beads are not bad, but not really great either. I have finished the game successfully with both a Saracen's and a Telling of Beads, but I can't recommend it if you have the "better" options. One great thing about them if you're starting is that many people consider them freebies, however. :biggrin:
- It may very well be that you decide (or are forced to use) a rare amulet. As said before, look for just about anything you need, be it life, mana, +skills, stats, resistances, whatever. You can get most things on rares. Just remember to not bother with turning over rocks for +Javelin skills or IAS - they can't spawn.
------------Gloves------------
I say this is the one time when non-brand name items are actually more desirable than any others. And the most important thing here (IMO) is IAS. Everything else is a bonus. The gloves are by far the easiest place to get IAS modifiers.
- For blue/rare gloves, look for the +to Javelin skills and IAS modifiers. Blue items can get up to 3+ Javelin skills, and rares up to 2+. IAS is either 10% or 20%. Unfortunately, getting both mods is rare as hell. As I said before, emphasising IAS before +skills is what I recommend. You can get +skills elsewhere, IAS is more difficult. All other mods are gravy. Resistances are especially juicy.
Good skill/IAS gloves are the most desirable item here, I say.
- Crafted gloves are a very suitable replacement for rare gloves. Getting good mods to spawn can be a pain, but if they do you get them you're in business. I recommend Caster gloves for the mana mods, but if your resources are limited Blood gloves might be more desirable due to the fact that it's usually easier to trade Blood gloves unsuitable for you than unsuitable Caster gloves.
- The gloves Lava Gout and Laying of Hands beat plain magical IAS gloves IMO. Not optimal, but not bad at all either.
- Bloodfists are very underestimated gloves. Life, IAS, and holy-cow-have-you-seen-the-faster-hit-recovery? If you don't have skill/IAS gloves, but you DO have 20% IAS from outside the glove slot, these are my recommendation. People tend to overlook it because it is a low-level normal unique, but it's awesome. Trust me. ;)
- Gta-maloy] recommends Dracul's Grasp for the +to life after each kill modifier. I disagree with this choice. Even though the life after each kill is impressive, I do not think it is worth sacrificing both potential IAS and +skills. The Leech, Life Tap and Open Wounds mods aren't being put to their full potential on a lightning damage character. Even as a long-standing Dracul's fan, I can not recommend them for a Lightning Javazon.
- There's always the option of using Chance Guards to bolster your MF and GF. If you don't need the gloves to do anything at all, just use these. Even though it is very possible to have too many magical items, I'll assume that isn't a problem for most players. ^_^
------------Boots------------
It seems that boots are unable to offer any crucial mods to Javazons. There is nothing you can get here that you can't get somewhere else. There are a few boots, however, that require an honourable mention.
- Silkweaves can make the life of mana-munching Javazons easier. The 5+ to mana after each kill (along with the other mana mods) make keeping the blue orb up and the monsters down considerably less annoying. They are usually rather easy to get a hold of, as well.
- Waterwalks are more suitable for those who don't have mana problems. It's a nice pair of boots, although it desirability drops on non-blockers. The benefits of that considerable life bonus are obvious, if I dare.
- Sandstorm Treks are a very typical high-end choice. Faster Hit Recovery and stats on the same pair of boots are impressive. The only problem is that these are elite boots, making them traditionally harder to find. Also, they are very popular, making trading more difficult. Don't even think about ethereal ones unless you have them already.
- War Travelers are effectively the footwear equivalent of Chance Guards. Use them for MF rather than running barefoot.
- I disagree with the use of Gore Riders for this build, for the same reasons I don't like Guillaume's Face (see the Helms section above). The OW, DS and CB are excellent things to have on a boot... for other character types.
- Rare boots should be able to shine here. Naturally, look for resistances, FRW, whatever floats your particular boat. I must admit that I've never actually used rare boots for the entire game duration. A more desirable unique pair has always popped out somewhere before I reach hell Baal. :P
------------Charms------------
My philosophy on charms is as following: "You don't need them." You should be perfectly capable of reaching the build goals without them. I consider them to be crutches to make up for whatever your real gear lacks, be it resistances, FHR, whatever. Charms are to fill up holes. There are some charms that I should probably mention here, however. For completeness' sake.
- Annihilus/Hellfire Torch:
Having one of each is probably the best way to spend three inventory spaces. Some have the capacity to get them, others don't. You most certainly don't need them, but they do make life a lot easier, even the very low ones. Only one piece of advice; decide whether or not to get them early. Preferably before level 50ish. Adding them as an afterthought will effectively negate half of the stat bonuses they carry. Once you have them, they will most likely never leave your character, so don't be afraid to base your stat points on them. Same with all other permanent +stats charms.
- Javelin and Spear skills Grand Charms:
A.k.a. Java skillers. Clogging your inventory up with these is a very simple way to boost your lightning damage. Just know that you are doing it at the cost of both inventory space and your "trading resources".
- Magic find charms/Gheed's Fortune:
If you have absolutely nothing to make up for, this is a good way to bolster your item supply. Just don't fill the entire inventory up. I always try to leave a 4x4 space for PvM combat.
------------Sockets------------
This isn't as big of an issue for Javazons as for most other character types. The Javelin naturally can't be socketed, and one or two of the other "socketable" slots tends to be occupied by a runeword. There are a few things that need to be mentioned, though.
In almost all cases any non-runeword shield should be socketed with a Perfect Diamond. If you for some strange reason don't have a use for more resistances, an Eld rune might be useful to boost your blocking. A -requirements jewel or a Hel rune can be useful if you are using a socketable Monarch (meaning Stormshield). Jewels with secondary mods are preferable to Hel runes.
For the armor and helm, there are more options. Shaels for FHR, all the gems can have their uses (although I don't particularly care for Skulls or Diamonds), and a conglomerate of jewels can be used. Um runes are good if you have them to blow.
If you really have all your defensive aspects covered, there are Rainbow Facets to consider. The Lightning variant, of course. In almost all cases the -resist% is more effective than the +damage%, even though it won't ever break immunities.
Finally, Sol runes provide direct PDR. See "a note on Gerke's".
Stat Point Distribution
The traditional way to spend stat points in version 1.10+ is simple. The Lightning Javazon is not an exception.
Strength - enough for gear.
Dexterity - enough for gear or a block rate of 75% while walking (max block) should you choose to.
Vitality - everything else.
Energy - nothing.
Now, the only complicated part is to hit those specifications as precisely as possible. The reason you want to do that is because the vitality stat, which decides your life will be hurt if you don't. This is also the reason that I put this section after the gear section. Optimally, you should know what you will be using in the end before you start the character.
Do you still remember those little "Defensive/Offensive, Monarch/non-Monarch" tags I put next to the shield options? They come into play now. If you chose a "defensive" shield, you should spend enough points in the dexterity stat to achieve max block once the character is finished. If you chose an "offensive" shield, getting max block is just too dexterity-demanding to be worth it, so try to spend as little as you can get away with while still being able to equip your items.
If you chose a Monarch shield, you will need 156 strength after stat bonuses. If you didn't, you will most likely be able to get away with much, much less. This is the downside of using Monarchs... their strength requirement will cut into your life pool rather severely.
If you chose a path where the shield is not a limiting factor for your stat distribution, that role will naturally be projected to another piece of equipment, in most cases your weapon or body armor. Ceremonial Javelins require 109 dexterity, so in no case should you have less final (after +stats) dexterity than that. The body armors should require 100-115ish final strength at most.
Of course, it is not always possible to know what you will be using before you start, especially if you are playing untwinked, in the start of a ladder season, or you just simply don't have any "Javazon items" to start with. In that case I recommend 100ish hard points in strength and 110ish in dexterity, with the rest in vitality. Javazons created this way typically have lower end-game life than their spoiled sisters, but they are rewarded with greater flexibility in their gear choices.
Finally, a word about items that give +stats. These can save many precious stat points when used correctly.
A good example would be an Amazon that has 136 base strength points. She is now unable to pick up a Monarch. However, if we give that Amazon a Titan's Revenge, the +strength from the javelin will boost her total strength up to 156, making it possible to use the shield without investing more hard points. Since your Titan's will remain on the character at virtually all times, this does usually not present a problem.
Another way to use +stats is to make items with stat bonuses sustain themselves. This is referred to as "stat tiering" or even "stat glitching".
An example of this is an Amazon which has 126 base strength points. She is unable to equip a Stormshield Monarch. In order to reach the 156 strength required, she puts charms in her inventory that give her 30+ to strength, enough to equip Monarchs. She can now equip the shield. This brings her total strength to 186 with the strength bonus from the Stormshield. Now this is where the trick comes in: You can now remove the charms from your inventory, but the +strength from the shield will still be enough to equip the shield. The shield is now, in effect, supporting itself. This is an extremely dangerous practise, because if you die, you will not be able to reequip all of your gear, so if you die again, you will be left with multiple corpses. Since only one corpse (the one with the most valuable items... in gold) will be transferred to the next game you enter, using this glitch/trick to save stat points is an excellent way to lose your gear. Excepted from this are hardcore players, who lose all their gear anyway when they die.
Both ways save stat points. I can however only recommend the first one. The thought of losing half a gear set for a bit of hp does not appeal to me the least.
Always be careful when placing stat points. Placing them badly is probably the easiest way to screw up a perfectly viable character.
GameplayI will briefly discuss a few tips, tricks & tactics that should be helpful during your Javazon's adventures.
Lightning immunes and how to terminate their existenceLightning immunes pose a surprisingly small obstacle. Even though all your major attacks are lightning-oriented, Javazons don't suffer as much when facing lightning immunes as their Sorcy sisters. There
are things you can do to get rid of even the peskiest of monsters rather quickly. I'll list a few:
- Jab them to death. It's my favourite and the most straightforward way to deal with LIs. Poke them until they die. It works perfectly even with a single point in jab and low-end javelins (example: I did solo Baal walks with this thing). Jabbing can be risky when dealing with heavy-hitting monsters if you aren't blocking, though.
- Keep a mercenary and Valkyrie around. If your mercinary is using a beefy weapon and your Valkyrie is level 17 or above, they deal out very noticeable amounts of damage to everything but physical immunes. They can usually take out weaker lightning immune monsters on their own.
- Keep a wand with Lower Resist charges on your weapon switch. The low level charges won't remove all immunities, but they can help in "most" situations. Using one of those wands can also cut the time it takes to kill the biggest bosses in half, so it's a good thing to keep around.
- Use an alternate attack type. I have never felt the need for this, the first three methods have gotten me through anything I have ever met. The attacks I see most often mentioned here are Plague Javelin and Strafe (with a bow on switch). I do not have experience with using these, but it had to be mentioned for completeness.
- Team up with someone. Bah. You shouldn't need it, but that's what e-friends are for. Killing monsters that are too big and bad for you to handle on your own. Use them wisely.
- RUN! Nothing worked? Ah, well. You can outrun most things if you really need to.
People have been surprised by how little emphasis I place on this. I didn't emphasise it because I really haven't run into any considerable problems with immune monsters when playing Javazons.
A thing I neglected to mention at first and that is always annoying is a lightning/physical immune monster. I have always had some way of wearing them down, although it can take a few minutes if you're not well equipped. Even though I rejected their usefulness in the gear section, this is where Demon's Arch and an Open Wounds modifier can shine. Even Tiamat's Rebuke (which I didn't even mention) can be a lifesaver. Luckily, in my experience these monsters are few and far in between.
Mana managementLightning Fury is a mana hog, and you need to get that mana back somehow. Mana leeching is largely ineffective unless you are Jabbing (which slows down your killing) due to the fact that most of your damage is elemental.
Using lots of +mana items such as charms can work, but it is a hack fix in my opinion. You'll still run out of mana very fast.
Since 1.10 you can buy mana potions from NPCs. This is a fact you should take advantage of. Never be shy about quaffing potions.
A Mercenary with an Insight polearm can make your mana problems vaporise almost instantly.
+To mana after each kill items are my favourite. This becomes especially noticeable in large groups of weak monsters, such as Flayers. In those cases attacking can actually make you gain mana.
How to use Slow MissilesIt would be a shame to say that the Javazon
requires a large amount of complicated manoeuvring to be successful. The raw attack strength tends to slay everything in its path before elaborate tactics can be applied. Nevertheless, there are always situations when you can't rely on large lightning damage numbers and an incompetent AI to carry you through. In my experience, the major "tactical" abilities the Amazon has are Slow Missiles and Decoy (see next section for Decoy tricks).
The Slow Missiles spell is simple enough to use. Fire it up, and every ranged attack within the area of effect becomes fast like a slug. It is
unbelievable how many Amazon players don't use this spell at all. With enough running space and the timely use of Slow Missiles, most ranged monsters should not be a problem. The key word here is
dance. SM does not reduce the damage ranged monsters deal, so if you just stand around like a doofus and take the beating, slowing the attacks does absolutely nothing. What SM does do is give you the Matrix-like ability to completely dodge your opponents' missiles.
Now, there really are two ways ranged monster packs deliver the ranged death: Pulse and "constant". This is not a "real" difference, but rather an arbitrary result of how you first engaged the monster pack. Monsters don't appear to start shooting until they actually "see" you. That way, if the monsters closest to you see you a considerable amount of time (more than a second or two) before the more distant monsters do, they will not fire in harmony, making the attacks "constant". However, if all the monsters see you "at once", their attacks will create a noticeable "pulse" due to the fact that they all started shooting at the same time.
The pulse is much easier to handle. Slow Missiles and a one-dimensional dodging movement will usually make it very easy to not get hit (much). You shoot, you reposition, you shoot again, and you go back to the place you started. That way, the monster missiles will always harmlessly be where you
used to be a moment ago, not actually reducing your health pool.
If the monsters are not attacking in "pulses", you need a bit more space to dodge effectively. The problem is that the missiles of the "late shooters" will still be heading towards the spot you just left, making retreat to that location ill-advisable. Instead, a circular motion is more desirable. This requires more space to perform, but it can be done. You will usually make a half-circle or so before the pack is dead.
If you decided to not emphasise block, this becomes much more important. Blocking Amazons can "usually" tank non-spellcasting ranged mobs.
There are a few things that make this trickier, however. First of all, your henchidiot does usually
not understand what you are doing. The typical scenario is thus: The merc charges into the pack, scattaring it and negating any chance of the attacks becoming pulsed, then he dies. :pissed:
Also, an unfortunately large number of ranged monsters are immune to lightning, making Lightning fury relatively ineffective. The most noticeable bunch here are the dreaded Worldstone Keep Souls. Ah, well. There's always lightning absorb...
Finally, the faster the monsters are, the more difficult it is to control them. That applies to both attacking and running speed.
How to use DecoyI have reduced this section to a link. I had written a mishmash of instructions on how to perform Decoy tricks... but then I ran across this guide by Othin and was dwarfed.
http://www.theamazonbasin.com/d2/forums/in...showtopic=57565I have nothing to add.
When to stand stillIt's amazing how many players have never thought of using this little feature. The default button for this command is the Shift key. Most importantly, it gives you the ability to shoot Lightning Furies at things you can't see. Hold the button down and shoot where you for some reason expect a nasty monster pack. Odds are you'll find a dead or weakened group that never had a chance to attack you. It may not be a very "nice" thing to do, but I haven't ever heard monsters complain about cheap or unfair tactics. Experiment with it, you will find it helpful.
How to "herd"I mentioned in the skills section that big, tight monster groups take more damage from piercing Lightning Furies. Now what do you do if the monsters aren't packed? You
herd them to form bigger packs.
In almost all cases, "melee monsters" will do one thing. They will run towards you like cavemen and attempt to pelt you to the ground. That's it. No fancy tactics are to be expected from them. This you can use to your advantage.
When all the monsters in a group are running towards a single target, the distance between them will naturally decrease.
This picture is my attempt at demonstrating this effect.
I spent many minutes creating that, so be gentle please. What I am trying to tell you is to
keep running until the desired monster density is reached. In a perfect world, they will end up in a nice line that can be pierced from one end to another. Tricky, but it is possible.
Cows (the Hell Bovines in the Moo-moo farm) are the prime target of this trick. There is a lot of them to be found, they move slowly, and
none of them have ranged attacks. Perfect. You can keep your distance easily, and simply mow them down. The biggest problem is that their constant chorus of death moos becomes tiresome after a while.
You can easily take the trick further, like combining two monster packs to form a single, bigger target. I suggest you experiment with it rather than wasting your time hunting down individual monsters.
Henchidiots
While they are notorious for charge-attacking while under an Iron Maiden curse, depleting your gold supply and crashing games, mercenaries are useful.
There are endless ways to choose and fit a mercenary, so I won't go into them in detail. Use your imagination. Find something you like, there isn't a "best". I'll list a few end-game gear options, use them if you wish. You don't have to. All mercenary items should be ethereal if possible.
Act 2 Mercs are the most popular due to their auras. Choose one that fits you. Many dislike Holy Freeze mercs for Javazons due to their alleged tendency to interfere with your herding.
Weapons - Arioc's Needle, Bonehew, Tomb Reaver, Obedience, Hone Sundan, The Reaper's Toll, Crescent Moon. The only weapon here that deserves special mention in my opinion is the Insight runeword. It can take care of your mana issues once and for all.
Armor - Duress, Smoke, Gloom, Treachery, Leviathan, Stone, Duriel's Shell.
Helm - Guillaume's Face, Andariel's Visage, Vampire Gaze, Rockstopper, Crown of Thieves, Tal Rasha's Mask.
My last Javazon used an Act 1 merc using the Harmony runeword. I found that I could get by easily without the tanking from the Act 2 or 5 mercs, so the FRW bonus from the Vigor Aura helped me more. The armor/helm options are largely the same for act 1 mercs as for act 2 mercs, only you can't equip the heaviest of items, presumably. For bows, Harmony, Goldstrike, Eaglehorn, a Windforce if you have one lying around should be rather obvious end-game viable options.
And of course, if you have a difficult time gearing your merc well, just don't. They will be perfectly happy with items you find along the way. You didn't hire them to complain, you know.
TechnobabbleDon't worry, this section isn't very swollen. It doesn't have to be. Also, if numbers haunt you in your nightmares, just skip it and trust what I have been saying earlier.
Amazon FHR, FCR and FBR breakpoints:All numbers were taken from Syrith's post in the Blizzard Diablo 2 Gameplay Discussion forum (see links).
FHR Frames
0% 11
6% 10
13% 9
20% 8
32% 7
52% 6
86% 5
174% 4
600% 3
These are the only breakpoints of the FHR, FCR and FBR series that I have ever been very concerned about when it comes to Javazons. As stated in the "build goals" section, I recommend some. You'll live without it, but expect to be locked and killed by angry mobs more often if you slack here.
FCR Frames
0% 19
7% 18
14% 17
22% 16
32% 15
48% 14
68% 13
99% 12
152% 11
Look at that. It's awful. An Amazon with 68% FCR will cast at the same speed as a Sorceress with 0%. Luckily we only need it for casting Slow Missiles, really. Don't bother, I say.
Also, if you were thinking about teleporting in one way or another, this is what is telling you not to. You
really don't need it do deal with monsters anyway.
FBR Frames
0% 5
13% 4
32% 3
86% 2
600% 1
These breakpoints apply when using Javelins. I have never worried about them, honestly. Maybe I am wrong in doing that, but I do well enough. =þ
Dodge, Avoid and Evade animation speedsThey are fixed at 8 frames. Nothing can reduce that animation duration.
Verified by Tommi. Why high pierce percentages are worth itUntil now, I've been telling you to just "trust me" when I tell you to get high pierce chances. You don't have to. You can see it yourself.
The thing is that you don't pierce
once, as hovering over the Pierce skill seems to imply. It can happen several times. But for that to happen, you must get the javelin to pierce
every single time. And that's where the extreme pierce chances become worth it.
Finding the "real" chance is simple. The effective chance to deal damage an "n" number of times with a pierce chance of "x" is simply "x^(n-1)" (assuming you actually hit something). This is a natural consequence of two facts:
1. If the pierce check fails once, all other potential pierce checks are not performed.
2. You will always deal damage at least once, whether the first pierce check fails or not.
A "formula" could look like this:
a
n = x^(n-1)
Where "a
n" represents the chance for the javelin hitting an "n" number of times using an initial piercing chance of "x". There's probably (definitely, even) a better or more simple way to show this, but seems to work for me. It is flawed, though. Try giving x a value of 0 (which it really can have) to see why.
A number of outside factors can prevent the javelin from piercing its rightful number of times, the most obvious being the javelin not reaching a pierce-able target. I have been told that there is a range limit to consider, and that the javelin can never pierce more than five times (meaning no more than six hits).
You want examples? Let's say we want to find out how our chance for the javelin to hit six times improves with a greater piercing chance.
First, let's assume a level 5 Pierce = 55 percent chance to pierce.
a
6 = (0.55)^(6-1) = 0.0503284375... ≈ 5%
Ouch. Not very pretty. Let's boost the Pierce skill level up to 25 = 89 percent chance.
a
6 = (0.89)^(6-1) = 0.5584059449... ≈ 56%
Now that's better. We now have a 56% chance of reaching our full damage potential. But at the cost of completely maxing the Pierce skill, most likely. What I will do now is to try a level 9 Pierce (can be reached with a very low number of hard points), and Razortail. The skill gives 69%, the belt gives 33% for a total chance of 102%. The effective chance is logically lowered to 100%. Now we have this:
a
6 = (1.00)^(6-1) = 1 =
100%We will always pierce, provided nothing interrupts us.
The effective difference between having a very high pierce chance from the Pierce skill only and having an initial chance of 100% using Razortail and a low Pierce skill level is
huge. This is why I pick Razortail.
Please run over my numbers for me... this wouldn't be the first time something idiotically simple "kills me".
Also, if you (understandably) don't feel like calculating, there is Leela's Pierce Table. I could have made this section contain that link only... but the thing I don't like is that even though she does include pierce chances up to Pierce slevel 60, Razortail isn't mentioned at all. :'(
http://www.battle.net/forums/thread.aspx?f...tmp=1#post17150