With all the players coming back to D2 and all their questions, I've decided to make a small newbie guide that can hopefully address many of your questions. This guide is made assuming you'll be playing on bnet, there's no reason not to.
Suggested untwinked (item-less beginner) builds
I won't go into details on actually building the character, you can look up the guides yourself. I'm dividing this into 3 categories. Also, there's a good chance you can find some free items from more experienced players, making many more builds viable.
1. I just want to play. I'm staying in normal
- Stop reading this guide and go make whatever your heart desires. Frequent death should be the least of your concerns, you just want to have fun.
2. I just want to play but decorating Chaos Sanctuary with corpses isn't my idea of fun. I'm going to nightmare/hell
- Amazon - Lightning fury/Charged strike is your best bet untwinked. For aspiring bowazons, whatever bow you will probably find by yourself will become painfully slow at killing by act 5 normal. If you insist on bows, I suggest freezing arrow and ample amounts of pierce. Both of my suggestions will require constant mana pot chugging (which are not a problem to buy in D2) until you get some good mana leech.
- Assassin - Lightning or fire trapsin. Fire trapsins become unviable in hell. Dragon talon with maxed venom and mindblast support.
- Barbarian - Nothing is terribly good for the complete newb going past normal. Concentration or Whirlwind I guess. However, without decent gear, you probably find yourself becoming a BO (battle orders) dispenser for the rest of the party, so max that first.
- Druid - Windy druid. For the meleer's: fireclaws/shockwave, maul/shockwave, feral rage, or rabies. None will be terribly good, but they are better untwinked options than a barb. All you need is a very fast weapon for fire claws or rabies. All druids should use oak sage.
- Paladin - Hammerdins, easy to make but very expensive to properly gear. Zealots with max block, the most newbie friendly melee build.
- Necromancer - Summoner, easy and high rates of survivability.
- Sorceress - Rather than list the good skills, I will list the bad ones for newbs. Hydra, frost nova, inferno, blaze, and telekinesis. Just remember to specialize in one or 2 skills.
3. I have a lot of time and eventually want to have some good gear.
There could be many choices here, but this is the strategy that in my opinion is the easiest.
Blizzard sorceress doing mephisto runs. Do the moat trick.
As seen here from a quick google
You can also do it on the north side of the map if the south side is occupied. Mephisto can't attack you if done right, while you can blizzard him. At first, pull any council members away from the area and then tele back to your spot when it's safe. If you get rising sun ammy, you'll be able to tank the council's hydras.
Once you get enough for enigma, you should make an mfing hammerdin, then you'll be able to mf everywhere.
You can also look into botting. :evil:
Some thoughts on stat placement
- Strength - Enough to wear your gear. Increasing strength to increase your physical damage is generally a waste.
- Dexterity - This one is harder to determine. If you want block, use this formula:
DEX needed for max block = [(150 * character lvl) / % blocking on shield] + 15
Otherwise caster only need enough for gear. Preferably, meleers don't invest anymore in dex either, but as an untwinked character, you may find yourself needing attack rating, so a few points could help. Never boost dex because you want more defense rating.
- Vitality - Everything else
- Energy - Meleers, none. Preferably, casters don't invest anymore in energy either, but as an untwinked character, you may find yourself needing mana, so a few points could help. Energy shield users are an exception, since your mana becomes your life.
Leveling methods
1. Level by playing the game.
2. Easy to do level method not much faster than option 1.
1-15- Trist runs
15-20 (or 21) - Tomb runs
20-24- Cows
24- Ancients
25-39 - Baal
Go to NM
40 Ancients
41-60's NM Baal
Go to Hell
60's+ Hell Baal
Personally, I would spend 60-70 in Hell Chaos.
3. Method if you have a high level friend, or feel lucky about receiving free rushes
Google bug rush
Bug rush to NM
Bug rush to Hell
Hell Chaos to 60's
Hell Baal
4. What I do with 2 cd key sets, because it's hard to find a 3rd person to take the baal quests for bug rushing.
1-24 Enchant the low level and do method 2 solo.
25-40 NM chaos
40-70 Hell chaos
Hell baal
5. Uber Trist. As a newb or intermediate player, you won't be able to do it.
Useful resources.
Build planner
Attack speed calculator
Info on items
Personally, I prefer reading the amazon basin forums for technical discussions and build ideas. They also vow not to use duped items (like high runes), so the builds posted there are cheaper.
Suggestions welcome.
*HappyBunny *RubberBunny
USWest nonladder sc
Suggested untwinked (item-less beginner) builds
I won't go into details on actually building the character, you can look up the guides yourself. I'm dividing this into 3 categories. Also, there's a good chance you can find some free items from more experienced players, making many more builds viable.
1. I just want to play. I'm staying in normal
- Stop reading this guide and go make whatever your heart desires. Frequent death should be the least of your concerns, you just want to have fun.
2. I just want to play but decorating Chaos Sanctuary with corpses isn't my idea of fun. I'm going to nightmare/hell
- Amazon - Lightning fury/Charged strike is your best bet untwinked. For aspiring bowazons, whatever bow you will probably find by yourself will become painfully slow at killing by act 5 normal. If you insist on bows, I suggest freezing arrow and ample amounts of pierce. Both of my suggestions will require constant mana pot chugging (which are not a problem to buy in D2) until you get some good mana leech.
- Assassin - Lightning or fire trapsin. Fire trapsins become unviable in hell. Dragon talon with maxed venom and mindblast support.
- Barbarian - Nothing is terribly good for the complete newb going past normal. Concentration or Whirlwind I guess. However, without decent gear, you probably find yourself becoming a BO (battle orders) dispenser for the rest of the party, so max that first.
- Druid - Windy druid. For the meleer's: fireclaws/shockwave, maul/shockwave, feral rage, or rabies. None will be terribly good, but they are better untwinked options than a barb. All you need is a very fast weapon for fire claws or rabies. All druids should use oak sage.
- Paladin - Hammerdins, easy to make but very expensive to properly gear. Zealots with max block, the most newbie friendly melee build.
- Necromancer - Summoner, easy and high rates of survivability.
- Sorceress - Rather than list the good skills, I will list the bad ones for newbs. Hydra, frost nova, inferno, blaze, and telekinesis. Just remember to specialize in one or 2 skills.
3. I have a lot of time and eventually want to have some good gear.
There could be many choices here, but this is the strategy that in my opinion is the easiest.
Blizzard sorceress doing mephisto runs. Do the moat trick.
As seen here from a quick google
You can also do it on the north side of the map if the south side is occupied. Mephisto can't attack you if done right, while you can blizzard him. At first, pull any council members away from the area and then tele back to your spot when it's safe. If you get rising sun ammy, you'll be able to tank the council's hydras.
Once you get enough for enigma, you should make an mfing hammerdin, then you'll be able to mf everywhere.
You can also look into botting. :evil:
Some thoughts on stat placement
- Strength - Enough to wear your gear. Increasing strength to increase your physical damage is generally a waste.
- Dexterity - This one is harder to determine. If you want block, use this formula:
DEX needed for max block = [(150 * character lvl) / % blocking on shield] + 15
Otherwise caster only need enough for gear. Preferably, meleers don't invest anymore in dex either, but as an untwinked character, you may find yourself needing attack rating, so a few points could help. Never boost dex because you want more defense rating.
- Vitality - Everything else
- Energy - Meleers, none. Preferably, casters don't invest anymore in energy either, but as an untwinked character, you may find yourself needing mana, so a few points could help. Energy shield users are an exception, since your mana becomes your life.
Leveling methods
1. Level by playing the game.
2. Easy to do level method not much faster than option 1.
1-15- Trist runs
15-20 (or 21) - Tomb runs
20-24- Cows
24- Ancients
25-39 - Baal
Go to NM
40 Ancients
41-60's NM Baal
Go to Hell
60's+ Hell Baal
Personally, I would spend 60-70 in Hell Chaos.
3. Method if you have a high level friend, or feel lucky about receiving free rushes
Google bug rush
Bug rush to NM
Bug rush to Hell
Hell Chaos to 60's
Hell Baal
4. What I do with 2 cd key sets, because it's hard to find a 3rd person to take the baal quests for bug rushing.
1-24 Enchant the low level and do method 2 solo.
25-40 NM chaos
40-70 Hell chaos
Hell baal
5. Uber Trist. As a newb or intermediate player, you won't be able to do it.
Useful resources.
Build planner
Attack speed calculator
Info on items
Personally, I prefer reading the amazon basin forums for technical discussions and build ideas. They also vow not to use duped items (like high runes), so the builds posted there are cheaper.
Suggestions welcome.
*HappyBunny *RubberBunny
USWest nonladder sc
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