05-20-2005, 03:27 AM
Sirs/Readers,
Welcome, to another guide, for the Druids, yes, I love them, because they are very flexible. And the name implies, this guide is still a young, and there is room for improvement.
Okay, i'm going to introduce a pretty uncommon build, the Mauler. Some of you may have seen them, some of you may not have seen them.
I am writing this guide mainly, because it is not talked about here, so I would like to bring it out into the open. If you are here to flame me on not being creative/or it being weak/ and such, I strongly urge you to leave. This guide is in it's early stages, and i strongly say that there is still room for much improvement. After all, it's a guide. So remember this, especially flamers.
This guide will be updated, as i see fit, for now, it's more of what to get in the end, how to get there, i'll post it and update it in the future.
This build specializes in stunning, and the skill implies, Maul, while using other stuff to help him to survive. He is a great tanker, i can't stress this enough, a great party Statue, capable of taking loads of damage. Okay, before we move on, let's remember this, that this guide was made using stuff obtainable on through non-ladder-Offline. okay? So alot of damage can still be improved, and that is why you are here to read and comment on this. Okay, let's get down to business.
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Stat Distribution:
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Strength: 90. Yeap, just that much.
Dexterity: 170. This is a nice number to have because of the extra block rates, and the nice attack rating as a base
Vitality: Everything else lies here, should be around 310
Energy: None, Maul costs 3 as a fixed cost, so just buy Mana potions. Your life leech will be incredible, trust me.
Note: These stats are calculated without an Annihilus charm. And with a +25 Strength Beast
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Skill distribution
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Okay, for this section, it's very basic, and I chose certain skills over others, i'll explain it soon.
What to get at level 99?
1 Werewolf
20 Lycanthrope
20 Werebear
20 Maul
20 Shockwave
20 Heart of Wolverine
1 Oak Sage
8 Left overs.
I'll let you decide on the left overs.
Here are some extra information on your main two skills.
MAUL
SHOCKWAVE
Okay, basically, why did i choose Heart of Wolverine over Oak Sage? Simple, Werebear already gives tremendous amounts of life till it's ridiculous to want to add anymore. I'll show you a picture shortly. You'll agree, besides, the % damage reduction makes you insanely tough, coupled with insane defense. So yeap, life is not an issue.
Also, the damage given by Heart of Wolverine is multiplied with our lovable Maul.
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Equipments
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Weapon 1: Beast made from a War Spike. You just need around 25 strength for the Beast, it should do.
Weapon 2: None yet, basic choice would be a Call To Arms
Helm: Jalas socketted with an Um rune, for more resistance, for this guy, resistance is very important, trust me.
Shield: Stormshield Monarch, God I love this shield, Socket this baby with a Shael Rune or Um rune, whichever you prefer, but I chose Shael because i don't want to be a sitting duck while blocking forever.
Gloves: I chose Dracula's Grasp Vampirebone Gloves, Some people might contemplate on using Soulrend, but it is not worth it, the Dracula is obviously better, after all, the mana potion fixes everything.
Belt: Verdugo's Hearty Cord Mithril Coil. Why i chose this is really just for the % reduction. Other than that, who wants to pass up +40 Vitality? Honestly?
Boots: Gorerider War Boots. This is self explanatory, no other boots can give this extra damage. It does not show on screen, but it works silently and effectively behind the scenes.
Amulet: Angelic Amulet
Ring 1: Raven Frost
Ring 2: Angelic Ring. The attack rating is incredible. You'll need it because Maul does not give alot of attack rating.
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Inventory Items:
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8 Shapeshifting Grand Charms of (Any Magical traits here, it'll be better)
8 Small Charms with Resistance(Preferably 5% to all, this is to get max resists)
1 Annihlus Charm (optional)
2 Tomes. (^_^)
Now, really, the purpose of these charms are not really to boost your Maul damage, why? Because Maul is dependent on the Weapon, and to be honest with you, I'm not happy with War Spike's damage, but i'll have to do, till i find a substitute that has a natural 10% attack speed, and is one handed. Very hard indeed.
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Gameplay:
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Now, by the time you have these items, you'll notice one thing, he is considerably hard to kill. Very.
Okay, this is good, however, his damage is not as good nor as fast as a Fireclaw druid. This is only temporary, hopefully in the future, this can change.
So, this guy is pretty straight foward.
-Make sure you have your Heart Of Wolverine at all times. Very important.
-Make full use of Shockwave, with that items, you'll be able to stunf or like 20 seconds+, giving you a full happy day of doing your own business.
I think that's about it, when i played him in hell, with /players8 on, he seemed fine, slow on the kill for some monsters, but that's because of the weapon, but mostly okay, because of the life leeching.
Nothing much to say really, play it and try it out, you'll be laughing with Shockwave, it's so funny really, against mobs, you can practically play bowling.
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Possible Questions
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a) Why do you even want to play this build when the Fireclaw Druid is so much faster on the kill?
Like most players, because you like it. Ask why a poor sorceress who can't afford an Infinity for her mercenary, still plays a Pure Blizzard Sorceress in hell mode? same reason, because they like it. So what if some characters are strong, as long as you have fun with yours, you live up to the expectations of the word "Fun and Games".
b) The screen shows very little damage, I'm disappointed.
Okay, don't be fooled by this, there alot of stuff working behind the visuals because of the Crushing Blows, Death Blows, Open Wounds, and such.
c) He does not have max resistance in hell, what should i do?
He should, only if you did get the 8 small charms with 5% to all resistance, as mentioned in the guide.
d) How is his attack speed?
It's cool, around 3 attacks a second, so yeah, It's greatly due to the level 9 Fanaticism Aura. It's obviously not as fast as a Shaeled Phase Blade.
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Pictures and Fun
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Bear Bear 1
-Nightmare Mode, activated Heart of Wolvering, Might Mercenary
Want more pictures? Feel free to ask for it!
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Some things to know about the guide:
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
The guide was made using Non-ladder-offline items, once again, i stress that, for you Ladder players, this guy can be improved tremendously.
The base life and mana of this guy is manually configured, because my editor did not do it for me. IF you want to know, i just assumed at level 99, without adding any stats, his life would be 300, mana 200, stamine 350. Just like that, so it might be more, it might be less, i'm not sure, but it should be close.
Also, I'm more of a normal player oriented guide maker, meaning, that the bear is mostly for normal Diablo 2 Game play, not for pvp specifically. But in Pvp, i think...the moment your shockwave touches him..-_-" Good game? Not too sure, have not tried it.
I wrote this guide mainly because someone asked me to, so yeah, here it is.
That's about it.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Conclusion
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
I hope you enjoyed reading the guide, if you have ideas, feel free to post them as i am really looking forward to making this guy stronger.
I hope this guide helped you if you were planning on making a Mauler.
In the future, I might add in the Mercenary section, Leveling Section, Merc-Leveling section, that kinda basic stuff, just for the fun of it.
Do have a nice day.
Welcome, to another guide, for the Druids, yes, I love them, because they are very flexible. And the name implies, this guide is still a young, and there is room for improvement.
Okay, i'm going to introduce a pretty uncommon build, the Mauler. Some of you may have seen them, some of you may not have seen them.
I am writing this guide mainly, because it is not talked about here, so I would like to bring it out into the open. If you are here to flame me on not being creative/or it being weak/ and such, I strongly urge you to leave. This guide is in it's early stages, and i strongly say that there is still room for much improvement. After all, it's a guide. So remember this, especially flamers.
This guide will be updated, as i see fit, for now, it's more of what to get in the end, how to get there, i'll post it and update it in the future.
This build specializes in stunning, and the skill implies, Maul, while using other stuff to help him to survive. He is a great tanker, i can't stress this enough, a great party Statue, capable of taking loads of damage. Okay, before we move on, let's remember this, that this guide was made using stuff obtainable on through non-ladder-Offline. okay? So alot of damage can still be improved, and that is why you are here to read and comment on this. Okay, let's get down to business.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Stat Distribution:
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Strength: 90. Yeap, just that much.
Dexterity: 170. This is a nice number to have because of the extra block rates, and the nice attack rating as a base
Vitality: Everything else lies here, should be around 310
Energy: None, Maul costs 3 as a fixed cost, so just buy Mana potions. Your life leech will be incredible, trust me.
Note: These stats are calculated without an Annihilus charm. And with a +25 Strength Beast
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Skill distribution
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Okay, for this section, it's very basic, and I chose certain skills over others, i'll explain it soon.
What to get at level 99?
1 Werewolf
20 Lycanthrope
20 Werebear
20 Maul
20 Shockwave
20 Heart of Wolverine
1 Oak Sage
8 Left overs.
I'll let you decide on the left overs.
Here are some extra information on your main two skills.
MAUL
Quote: Werebear Only Effect: A Druid in Werebear form uses his mighty paws to rend brutal gashes in the flesh of his enemies. Using this ability, the fury of his assault increases with every opponent he kills.
The more hits you get in, the higher the damage bonus will grow. For Skill Level 1, the first hit is +20%, but by three hits, it will now be +60%. The "green ball" will spin around your character indicating the power level of Maul. The bigger the ball, the more damage you'll be doing.
+20% Damage Per Charge Level
Attack Bonus: 3% Plus, 3% Per Level
Mana cost: 3
Level 20 Bonuses: 20-260% of damage
210% to attack
3.4 seconds of stun length
SHOCKWAVE
Quote: Werebear Only Effect: With a tremendous roar, the Druid shakes the earth, stunning any enemies in the surrounding area with the resultant tremor.
Mana Cost: Varies and increases with level.
Level 20 Stun Length: 13 Seconds
Okay, basically, why did i choose Heart of Wolverine over Oak Sage? Simple, Werebear already gives tremendous amounts of life till it's ridiculous to want to add anymore. I'll show you a picture shortly. You'll agree, besides, the % damage reduction makes you insanely tough, coupled with insane defense. So yeap, life is not an issue.
Also, the damage given by Heart of Wolverine is multiplied with our lovable Maul.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Equipments
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Weapon 1: Beast made from a War Spike. You just need around 25 strength for the Beast, it should do.
Weapon 2: None yet, basic choice would be a Call To Arms
Helm: Jalas socketted with an Um rune, for more resistance, for this guy, resistance is very important, trust me.
Shield: Stormshield Monarch, God I love this shield, Socket this baby with a Shael Rune or Um rune, whichever you prefer, but I chose Shael because i don't want to be a sitting duck while blocking forever.
Gloves: I chose Dracula's Grasp Vampirebone Gloves, Some people might contemplate on using Soulrend, but it is not worth it, the Dracula is obviously better, after all, the mana potion fixes everything.
Belt: Verdugo's Hearty Cord Mithril Coil. Why i chose this is really just for the % reduction. Other than that, who wants to pass up +40 Vitality? Honestly?
Boots: Gorerider War Boots. This is self explanatory, no other boots can give this extra damage. It does not show on screen, but it works silently and effectively behind the scenes.
Amulet: Angelic Amulet
Ring 1: Raven Frost
Ring 2: Angelic Ring. The attack rating is incredible. You'll need it because Maul does not give alot of attack rating.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Inventory Items:
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
8 Shapeshifting Grand Charms of (Any Magical traits here, it'll be better)
8 Small Charms with Resistance(Preferably 5% to all, this is to get max resists)
1 Annihlus Charm (optional)
2 Tomes. (^_^)
Now, really, the purpose of these charms are not really to boost your Maul damage, why? Because Maul is dependent on the Weapon, and to be honest with you, I'm not happy with War Spike's damage, but i'll have to do, till i find a substitute that has a natural 10% attack speed, and is one handed. Very hard indeed.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Gameplay:
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Now, by the time you have these items, you'll notice one thing, he is considerably hard to kill. Very.
Okay, this is good, however, his damage is not as good nor as fast as a Fireclaw druid. This is only temporary, hopefully in the future, this can change.
So, this guy is pretty straight foward.
-Make sure you have your Heart Of Wolverine at all times. Very important.
-Make full use of Shockwave, with that items, you'll be able to stunf or like 20 seconds+, giving you a full happy day of doing your own business.
I think that's about it, when i played him in hell, with /players8 on, he seemed fine, slow on the kill for some monsters, but that's because of the weapon, but mostly okay, because of the life leeching.
Nothing much to say really, play it and try it out, you'll be laughing with Shockwave, it's so funny really, against mobs, you can practically play bowling.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Possible Questions
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a) Why do you even want to play this build when the Fireclaw Druid is so much faster on the kill?
Like most players, because you like it. Ask why a poor sorceress who can't afford an Infinity for her mercenary, still plays a Pure Blizzard Sorceress in hell mode? same reason, because they like it. So what if some characters are strong, as long as you have fun with yours, you live up to the expectations of the word "Fun and Games".
b) The screen shows very little damage, I'm disappointed.
Okay, don't be fooled by this, there alot of stuff working behind the visuals because of the Crushing Blows, Death Blows, Open Wounds, and such.
c) He does not have max resistance in hell, what should i do?
He should, only if you did get the 8 small charms with 5% to all resistance, as mentioned in the guide.
d) How is his attack speed?
It's cool, around 3 attacks a second, so yeah, It's greatly due to the level 9 Fanaticism Aura. It's obviously not as fast as a Shaeled Phase Blade.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Pictures and Fun
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Bear Bear 1
-Nightmare Mode, activated Heart of Wolvering, Might Mercenary
Want more pictures? Feel free to ask for it!
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Some things to know about the guide:
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
The guide was made using Non-ladder-offline items, once again, i stress that, for you Ladder players, this guy can be improved tremendously.
The base life and mana of this guy is manually configured, because my editor did not do it for me. IF you want to know, i just assumed at level 99, without adding any stats, his life would be 300, mana 200, stamine 350. Just like that, so it might be more, it might be less, i'm not sure, but it should be close.
Also, I'm more of a normal player oriented guide maker, meaning, that the bear is mostly for normal Diablo 2 Game play, not for pvp specifically. But in Pvp, i think...the moment your shockwave touches him..-_-" Good game? Not too sure, have not tried it.
I wrote this guide mainly because someone asked me to, so yeah, here it is.
That's about it.
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
Conclusion
+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+_+
I hope you enjoyed reading the guide, if you have ideas, feel free to post them as i am really looking forward to making this guy stronger.
I hope this guide helped you if you were planning on making a Mauler.
In the future, I might add in the Mercenary section, Leveling Section, Merc-Leveling section, that kinda basic stuff, just for the fun of it.
Do have a nice day.
