Diablo III: Not Just a Vitality Race!

[Avilan the Grey]

So... Anyone open to play on saturday night (Swedish time, and I do mean night, as in Midnight - 5am sometime) or sunday afternoon?

We are CET, so if you are say on the east coast of the US / Canada it's six hours difference.

Keep in mind that I only have low level characters.

[Runestar]

Do you folks think I should go with a digital download or the physical CD?

Surprisingly, the online download from blizzard costs $90 (in my local currency), while the boxed version is retailing for $89 outside (and word has it that some stores are selling for slightly less). One company even went as far as $70, but that has been plagued with controversy like mixed up cd-keys, so I will probably give that a miss. Not to mention walking out to buy a copy would be faster than downloading (assuming my local game store has stock).

I don't understand - shouldn't the online version be selling for less, since Blizzard doesn't have to contend with distribution costs and packaging? Why do I have to pay more? Are there any advantages and benefits to downloading it online I am overlooking, barring the convenience factor?

Thank you.

[Avilan the Grey]

Do you folks think I should go with a digital download or the physical CD?

Surprisingly, the online download from blizzard costs $90 (in my local currency), while the boxed version is retailing for $89 outside (and word has it that some stores are selling for slightly less). One company even went as far as $70, but that has been plagued with controversy like mixed up cd-keys, so I will probably give that a miss. Not to mention walking out to buy a copy would be faster than downloading (assuming my local game store has stock).

I don't understand - shouldn't the online version be selling for less, since Blizzard doesn't have to contend with distribution costs and packaging? Why do I have to pay more? Are there any advantages and benefits to downloading it online I am overlooking, barring the convenience factor?

Thank you.

Regarding the price issue; that's why I bought the DVD version.
Please note though that as far as I know, you do NOT need the disk in the computer after the installation is done.

[GolemsVoice]

The wizard is kickbehind, I can guarantee. You have a fine selection of spells for all ranges and splash damage needs, and there's nothing more satisfying than jumping into a group and unleashing all hell upon them with three AoE spells. The spells also have a wide range of utility, and are really different.

I also like the way the wizard dresses, her style is nice.

I'd rather have a large variety of options of various qualities, even if that inherently means that some options are worse than others, than only four nearly-identical options.

I don't know. Whilere there were indeed a lot of builds, some quite exotic, it was often:

Amazon: you can pick all the skills, but if you want to accomplish anything, these skills are useless. And if you want to accomplish something in hell, these other skills are useless. In fact, here's how you should skill for hell. Also, here's what weapons you should have, and what other gear.

[Dublock]

Please note though that as far as I know, you do NOT need the disk in the computer after the installation is done.

You should not need the DVD after you install, it should be the same as WoW, the DVD is only used to put it on your computer and thats it.

I beat the game on normal last night with my fiancee, her as a WD and I was a DH. Spoilers about the ending.

Spoiler

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Ok, cool ending. I saw the achievements so I knew a few things, but I was upset to see Cain die, I have more respect for Tyrael since he gave up a lot for the mortals and the Diablo lost some weight.

My fiancee managed to find a legendary weapon for a barb, required level...12 or 14. It is pretty good for that level but at our point it would be pointless. Also it was unique equipped, meaning that once a toon equips it, only that toon can equip it (I believe).

Normal was still pretty easy, I ended up dying a few more times cause I was a lot more fragile cause I put a lot more into dps then in health. I ended up with 2333 health and 577 dps, using 4 rares and the rest blues.

Gems start around level 17 since people were asking.

Edit: I thought people might be interested, we spent ~17 hours playing through the game, level 31 and 30. We did everything that we can do, all the events the game gave us, all the mobs the game tossed our way.

[Spuddles]

I think the Barbarian and the Demon Hunter is about the same thing as Fighter and the Rogue, or Barbarian and Amazon: Both rely on a single form of attack (Punch or Shoot) and it is just a matter of preference; do you want to left-click over and over from a distance, or from close up? I am aware that the Barbarian gets more skills and more variation but the starting skill(s) are just... boring.

I DO Love the female barbarian's design though. A believable female warrior. She looks feminine AND has arms that can realistically swing those axes!

Only 5 levels isn't enough to see a whole class, imo. At least unlock a couple active spells and get to a harder part in the game. DH in nightmare is a glass canon- I find myself running all over the map in tactical retreats, laying mines, then backflipping through hordes of slowed, snared enemies to pick up the delicious health globes, refilling my health, hatred, and discipline, then laying down an aoe mark of death and finishing them in a hail of arrow fire.

Cleave on the barbarian with the explody rune is awesome. Your enemies blow up! In my opinion, barb excels with party play, because you can tank so stupendously. Seriously, dying as a barbarian can be very hard to do.

[Adumbration]

Cleave on the barbarian with the explody rune is awesome. Your enemies blow up! In my opinion, barb excels with party play, because you can tank so stupendously. Seriously, dying as a barbarian can be very hard to do.

In addition most of the bosses are cakewalk due to your ability to spam stuns. I've only died with barbarian so far due to environment circumstances, such as 6-7 exploding types camping inside a closed door and all rushing against me before I can get a stun off.

The AoE is also quite wonderful. Run around and gather a whole bunch of enemies, wait for Revenge proc, pull and stun everybody in, use the revenge proc, use Overpower and then Ground Smash if necessary. Usually isn't. Save Earthquake or the warriors for elites or bosses.

[PEACH]

Only 5 levels isn't enough to see a whole class, imo. At least unlock a couple active spells and get to a harder part in the game. DH in nightmare is a glass canon- I find myself running all over the map in tactical retreats, laying mines, then backflipping through hordes of slowed, snared enemies to pick up the delicious health globes, refilling my health, hatred, and discipline, then laying down an aoe mark of death and finishing them in a hail of arrow fire.

Cleave on the barbarian with the explody rune is awesome. Your enemies blow up! In my opinion, barb excels with party play, because you can tank so stupendously. Seriously, dying as a barbarian can be very hard to do.

I never found nightmare that complicated, since the basic strategy of "fire six volleys of your cone of death, then deal with any blue/yellow monsters" still works.

[Spuddles]

There are no BoE items in D3. There havent been any for more than a year. http://gaming.stackexchange.com/ques...blo-iii-if-any

I never found nightmare that complicated, since the basic strategy of "fire six volleys of your cone of death, then deal with any blue/yellow monsters" still works.

Maybe I should try out that skill as my right click attack the hatred cost turned me off. I throw grenades with the more grenades rune and use elemental arrow with the frost rune, and play with pugs or my buddy who is a wizard. Two glass cannons need control.

Does elite monster seem to be higher density than in previous diablos? I feel like every couple screens there's an elite mob.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

This may not be the best place to ask this, but since Diablo III came out, I decided I may purchase it at some point in the future, once all the bugs are worked out and such.

As such, I decided to dig out the ol' Battle Chest and play the Diablo saga right from the beginning, cleaving as close to the canon as possible. As such, I have two main questions:

1. Diablo

Spoiler

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Canon's pretty clear on what happened in the first game: The Warrior was the one who fought Diablo, and then he jammed the Soulstone into his head and became The Dark Wanderer of the sequel. The wiki also informs me that this Warrior was none other than Prince Aidan, the son of King Leoric himself. Meanwhile, a Vizjerai Sorcerer also adventured beneath Tristram and was driven mad, becoming the Summoner, and the Rogue, Blood Raven was ultimately slain and resurrected as an demonic monstrosity.

So my questions for this game are more about mechanics than plotting. I have never finished Diablo 1 before, but I never really made it very far because even while playing as the high-health Warrior, I kept getting killed, and travelling back to town took forever. What's the best way to deal with these issues. Since I only have 100 gold, I can't afford much, and I doubt I'll be able to find that much in the first few levels, as opposed to the sequel where I could spend gold like water. What are some strategies for big bosses like The Butcher and King Leoric (I made sure to restart until I saw the water wasn't brown, so I'll eventually get the Leoric quest instead of the poisoned well one).

2. Diablo II and Lord of Destruction

Spoiler

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Having played through this before, I know what to expect, so my questions here are more related to story than mechanics. I'm wondering what character to take through the game, which one would make "the most narrative sense" as it were, in the context of the other games.

I'm thinking it might be the Barbarian, as I've heard the male barbarian of Diablo III is actually the same Barbarian that traveled through the second game, but I've also heard that that's not actually true. Still, the Barbarian remains a convincing choice due to the presence of Mount Arreat at the end, the Barbarian homeland.

The Paladin is a favorite class of mine, and like the Barbarian, it too has an Act that could somewhat be dedicated to it, namely Act III, which takes place in Kurast, the heart of the Paladin's religion. On the other hand, the Paladin kind of disappears afterwards, unlike the Barbarian, which has more of a sense of continuity (Arreat's destruction and the scattering of its people).

I don't know so much about how well the other classes tie in to the overarching story of all three games, as many of them are relative foreigners in all the places the acts take place in, and I don't know, apart from the Barbarian, how many have connections to the third game's story.

At the moment, it seems to lean strongest towards the Barbarian, but I could be sold on other ideas.

Any ideas? Advice? Criticisms?

[Spuddles]

Diablo 1:
Don't fight the Butcher. Do the first dungeon levels a couple times, to stock up on potions, gold, spells, and xp. Charge big swarms of fallen- if you kill one, their friends run away, you can hit them in the back as they flee. Carry a couple scrolls of identify, save game before you ID item. If it's cursed, load your game and toss it.

Save VERY frequently.

Never engage a black death zombie in melee. The do permanent con damage.

Put enough magic points to be able to cast firewall from a scroll, get a couple scrolls. Easy to kill butcher (and halls of monsters) that way. I save before using scrolls of firewall, in case their direction is off, So I can reload and get it right.

Diablo 1 is a pretty fiddly game, and there are real consequences to messing up.

Personally, I like sorcerer most, cause it is hardest at first, and spells get super cool.

[Karoht]

@Archpaladin
Yeah, you've got it mostly right. Here's some random stuff though, in spoilers.

Spoiler

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The book of Cain talks about the Barbarian adventurer in D2. The book does NOT explicitly state that the new Barbarian and the old one are the same person. However, I think they got the same voice actor back, so there might be a story connection.

The Templar is from the same religion as the Paladins from Kurast, and that religion is more fleshed out in book of Cain.
It's great because the book really details the tragedy that Mephisto inflicted on what was once a high and noble bunch of people, who were genuinely spreading good through the world.

As for the Butcher? Turn to Stone + Firewall + Beat his face in.
Leoric-One Scroll of Chain Lightning pretty much makes it a one-sided fight. Maybe a second for good measure.

[Spuddles]

Barbarian in diablo 3 could be the same one from diablo 2. Diablo 3 barbarian has gray hair, and d3 takes place 20 years after the events of D2.

Re spells in diablo 1:
By the time a warrior can find/cast flesh to stone and chain lightning, just left click the butcher and leoric to death. Butcher cant open doors, so get a bow or two, get behind a grate, and plink away for 2 minutes. I once broke a bow doing that. Left me in quite a pickle, as it was the only bow on a sorc.

[Bulldog Psion]

A pity I probably can't play this.

My computer has everything needed to play the game except, I believe, an adequately fast processor.

Am I correct in assuming that an AMD E-450 APU with Radeon HD Graphics processor with 1.65 GHz would be unable to play this game?

[ex cathedra]

I don't know. Whilere there were indeed a lot of builds, some quite exotic, it was often:

Amazon: you can pick all the skills, but if you want to accomplish anything, these skills are useless. And if you want to accomplish something in hell, these other skills are useless. In fact, here's how you should skill for hell. Also, here's what weapons you should have, and what other gear.

But there wasn't just one amazon build that worked in hell. Characters often were, at least to some extent, unique. Any given paladin could have been using one of more than half a dozen unique builds. There isn't any actual difference between two Wizards in diablo 3. Nothing really differentiates them. Once you level a wizard, you'll never have a reason to make another (aside from HC). Maybe that doesn't bother a lot of people, but the Diablo franchise is heavily based in the concept of replay-ability and the skill system seriously limits that.

Regardless, that paragraph describes D3 about as well as it describes D2, I imagine.

[PEACH]

Maybe I should try out that skill as my right click attack the hatred cost turned me off. I throw grenades with the more grenades rune and use elemental arrow with the frost rune, and play with pugs or my buddy who is a wizard. Two glass cannons need control.

That's why you take the "halved hatred cost" rune. It's still an amazingly big AoE with fairly high damage, and you get twice as many shots!

My build:

Refresh discipline+heal.
Dodge roll+shots nearby (probably gonna swap to either fire trail when I get it or less discipline cost).
Rain of arrows+tracking and following you.
Bigass cone+half mana cost.
Bolas+Bigger explosion (sub in your left click preference here).
Rapid shot+Missiles.

Strategy: Dodge away from anything that ever gets into melee. All fights with significant minion support open with volleys until things are dead and arrow rain; minimal minion support gets arrow rain+rapid fire. If you need healing/discipline/both, refresh and then tumble away. If it's one or two big targets, rapid fire arrow shooting.

Interesting note: Assuming hatred regenerates while you're shooting, it's probably quite possible to make an archer that can rapid shot (near) indefinitely.

[Karoht]

There isn't any actual difference between two Wizards in diablo 3. Nothing really differentiates them.

I have Frost Nova, you do not. How are we not different? Because at any time we CAN have Frost Nova?
I would say that our differences should lie on the battlefield, rather than what we CAN select from.

Once you level a wizard, you'll never have a reason to make another (aside from HC). Maybe that doesn't bother a lot of people, but the Diablo franchise is heavily based in the concept of replay-ability and the skill system seriously limits that.

Rather than get bored of playing my wizard at level 45, and starting over, I click a few buttons and try something new. And keep playing rather than not. How is the current skill system limiting this?

Play and Replay are not necessarily mutually exclusive terms here.

In the case of D3, I'm more likely to replay the game to see the story points again, much more so than I was in D2. The idea of making a whole new character to try a whole different build was just inefficient.


@Computer Troubles
Which graphics card do you have there Bulldog?
Also, there are guest passes for the game, you can always download that, try it out, and see what happens, prior to buying it.

Barring that, a new motherboard and processor bundle typically go for under $400, a whole new computer might only cost you $500-$700. Costco isn't bad for computers. New computer there that will comfortably play D3 will probably be in that 500-700 range.
Are you in USA or Canada or elsewhere?

[Bulldog Psion]

@Computer Troubles
Which graphics card do you have there Bulldog?
Also, there are guest passes for the game, you can always download that, try it out, and see what happens, prior to buying it.

Barring that, a new motherboard and processor bundle typically go for under $400, a whole new computer might only cost you $500-$700. Costco isn't bad for computers. New computer there that will comfortably play D3 will probably be in that 500-700 range.
Are you in USA or Canada or elsewhere?

Graphics card: AMD Radeon HD 6320 (looks like about 1.4 GB memory)?

The guest pass thing is an excellent idea. Thank you!

I'm in the USA.

Thanks for the advice!

[Archpaladin Zousha]

@Archpaladin
Yeah, you've got it mostly right. Here's some random stuff though, in spoilers.

Spoiler

Show

The book of Cain talks about the Barbarian adventurer in D2. The book does NOT explicitly state that the new Barbarian and the old one are the same person. However, I think they got the same voice actor back, so there might be a story connection.

The Templar is from the same religion as the Paladins from Kurast, and that religion is more fleshed out in book of Cain.
It's great because the book really details the tragedy that Mephisto inflicted on what was once a high and noble bunch of people, who were genuinely spreading good through the world.

As for the Butcher? Turn to Stone + Firewall + Beat his face in.
Leoric-One Scroll of Chain Lightning pretty much makes it a one-sided fight. Maybe a second for good measure.

Spoiler

Show

So this Book of Cain states it was the Barbarian who was the canon hero?

[Thiyr]

But there wasn't just one amazon build that worked in hell. Characters often were, at least to some extent, unique. Any given paladin could have been using one of more than half a dozen unique builds. There isn't any actual difference between two Wizards in diablo 3. Nothing really differentiates them. Once you level a wizard, you'll never have a reason to make another (aside from HC). Maybe that doesn't bother a lot of people, but the Diablo franchise is heavily based in the concept of replay-ability and the skill system seriously limits that.

Regardless, that paragraph describes D3 about as well as it describes D2, I imagine.

Honestly, that was one of my complaints about d2 in retrospect. Most characters were really, really limited in what they could actually use as builds (discounting item-based builds, which were difficult to pull off for the random factor, unless it was twinked). The (D2) barbarian had, as near as I can tell, 4 builds. Two were extremely niche and hard to work with, especially when alone (The bardbarian and the -double thrower-). Otherwise, you had frenzy barbarians and tweaks on the whirlwinder. And for 3/4 of those builds, the barbarian had, in reality, one skill tree. It had a passive tree and a buff tree, yes, but it was impossible to focus in one, and the other was quite difficult so as to be exceedingly rare to specialize in it.

The Paladin had (strangely) more solid options than most, being able to focus on zeal, vengance, hammer, or (for more niche bosskillers) the shield skills, all while being backed up by auras. Even then, they have two trees of passives, split down the middle offense and defense, that are all mutually exclusive. Amazons had either bow or javelin, and honestly I could never play them long enough to see if there was any notable difference in builds.

The necromancer could choose between which minion skills to pump, and which golem to pump, but ultimately those all...well, if it were d3 they'd be two skills with runes to swap out rather than separate skills, they're so similar. they had bone spells, which you got all of if you were using as any primary tactic, same with poision, and you had curses, which were kinda like barbarian shouts: you could go into them entirely, but it's really niche and hard to work with outside of a party environment.

I'm too lazy and have to go to work, sadly, so i can't continue this line of thought, but ultimately, it felt like the actually workable builds weren't as varied as they could be, and a lot of them fell apart once you hit hell, or tried to do bosses. Even a well-build minion-necro had a hard time with bosses about midway through nightmare. Sorceresses had to split their attention down two paths to deal with immunities, for the most part. And so many skill points got tied up in boring-but-useful passives that for me at least, a lot of levels felt...kinda boring, to be honest. Every six levels I got a new tool up to level 30, and after then my numbers got bigger. If nothing else, I give this skill system credit for keeping me interested in leveling for a lot longer, potentially (and having a good deal more potential variety for what can be done, imo)

[hamishspence]

Barbarian in diablo 3 could be the same one from diablo 2. Diablo 3 barbarian has gray hair, and d3 takes place 20 years after the events of D2.

This was originally the plan, but I believe they eventually retconned it- giving the D3 barbarian a different backstory.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

Okay, so the only connection one Barbarian has to the other is they're from the same people. Still, does this Book of Cain state the Barbarian was the hero of Diablo II, or is it vague enough that any class would make sense?

[hamishspence]

I don't have it to hand (lent it to my younger brother) but as I recall, it portrayed the events of D2 as involving a band of heroes- basically one of every class- including an assassin and a druid who joined the band on the way to Mount Arreat.

Since the game guide refers to Adria as Leah's mother - I think my speculation was incorrect- it's possible that while Gillian and Adria travelled to Caldeum, there's nothing important that happened to Gillian.

[Karoht]

Okay, so the only connection one Barbarian has to the other is they're from the same people. Still, does this Book of Cain state the Barbarian was the hero of Diablo II, or is it vague enough that any class would make sense?

It actually states the entire party was a bunch of badasses. Not just one singular person. This includes the additional party members such as the Assassin and Druid.

It also gives a much better reason why...

Spoiler

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Tyrael destroyed the Worldstone. But one should really read the book on that one. Suffice to say that the Worldstone was supremely important, and tied directly to the creation myth of the world of Sanctuary.

[Archpaladin Zousha]

It actually states the entire party was a bunch of badasses. Not just one singular person. This includes the additional party members such as the Assassin and Druid.

It also gives a much better reason why...

Spoiler

Show

Tyrael destroyed the Worldstone. But one should really read the book on that one. Suffice to say that the Worldstone was supremely important, and tied directly to the creation myth of the world of Sanctuary.

So what you people are saying is that to TRULY do a canon playthrough I need to go multiplayer and see if I can get one person of each class?

[Gnoman]

This may not be the best place to ask this, but since Diablo III came out, I decided I may purchase it at some point in the future, once all the bugs are worked out and such.

As such, I decided to dig out the ol' Battle Chest and play the Diablo saga right from the beginning, cleaving as close to the canon as possible. As such, I have two main questions:

1. Diablo

Spoiler

Show

Canon's pretty clear on what happened in the first game: The Warrior was the one who fought Diablo, and then he jammed the Soulstone into his head and became The Dark Wanderer of the sequel. The wiki also informs me that this Warrior was none other than Prince Aidan, the son of King Leoric himself. Meanwhile, a Vizjerai Sorcerer also adventured beneath Tristram and was driven mad, becoming the Summoner, and the Rogue, Blood Raven was ultimately slain and resurrected as an demonic monstrosity.

So my questions for this game are more about mechanics than plotting. I have never finished Diablo 1 before, but I never really made it very far because even while playing as the high-health Warrior, I kept getting killed, and travelling back to town took forever. What's the best way to deal with these issues. Since I only have 100 gold, I can't afford much, and I doubt I'll be able to find that much in the first few levels, as opposed to the sequel where I could spend gold like water. What are some strategies for big bosses like The Butcher and King Leoric (I made sure to restart until I saw the water wasn't brown, so I'll eventually get the Leoric quest instead of the poisoned well one).

2. Diablo II and Lord of Destruction

Spoiler

Show

Having played through this before, I know what to expect, so my questions here are more related to story than mechanics. I'm wondering what character to take through the game, which one would make "the most narrative sense" as it were, in the context of the other games.

I'm thinking it might be the Barbarian, as I've heard the male barbarian of Diablo III is actually the same Barbarian that traveled through the second game, but I've also heard that that's not actually true. Still, the Barbarian remains a convincing choice due to the presence of Mount Arreat at the end, the Barbarian homeland.

The Paladin is a favorite class of mine, and like the Barbarian, it too has an Act that could somewhat be dedicated to it, namely Act III, which takes place in Kurast, the heart of the Paladin's religion. On the other hand, the Paladin kind of disappears afterwards, unlike the Barbarian, which has more of a sense of continuity (Arreat's destruction and the scattering of its people).

I don't know so much about how well the other classes tie in to the overarching story of all three games, as many of them are relative foreigners in all the places the acts take place in, and I don't know, apart from the Barbarian, how many have connections to the third game's story.

At the moment, it seems to lean strongest towards the Barbarian, but I could be sold on other ideas.

Any ideas? Advice? Criticisms?

For Diablo 1, keep in mind that the classes are not that different, except for stat caps. The Warrior and Rogue are capable of learning every spell in the game if you boost their INT (in a related matter, INT only matters for learning spells. Keep a stockpile of INT-boosting items in town as you find them, and just use those whenever you find a new book. Similarly, you can use STR-boosting items to equip something, then remove them. The item will still work.)

[Corvus]

Got to the end of normal mode with my monk - now to start nightmare. (The hardest boss seemed to be the Act II boss oddly.)

My monk build seems to do the job well so far.

Level 31 build

I went with the elective turned off so I could customise a bit more.

Crippling Wave is a nice debuffer for the primary. As secondary I went with the focus power Cyclone Strike. Acts as a vortex to suck in all those ranged enemies or ones that try and run. Sometimes you can pull in too many, or enemies that explode and that can be a pain.

There is a lot of defence and self healing built in as well.

[Spuddles]

The d2 paladin had a ton of interesting builds. Holy bolter with auras was a party beast. But he couldnt do anything without another party member. In fact, there were a have dozen really cool paladin builds, but at least half of them were unlevable and unuseable without a party that played together. Now instead of having 4 paladin characters, I have one Monk, and change his build if I am gonna do some MF runs after work or play healing support with my buddies on the weekend. It's a much better system, imo.

If you want something that punishes innovation, I dunno, get a job at an american car company.

For Diablo 1, keep in mind that the classes are not that different, except for stat caps. The Warrior and Rogue are capable of learning every spell in the game if you boost their INT (in a related matter, INT only matters for learning spells. Keep a stockpile of INT-boosting items in town as you find them, and just use those whenever you find a new book. Similarly, you can use STR-boosting items to equip something, then remove them. The item will still work.)

They're actually quite different, but the differences arent readily apparent. Healing potions heal the most hp for warriors (two regular potions at any level can top a warrior off), and the least for sorcerers (stick with pots of full heal or healing scrolls). Attack with most weapons, and hit recovery, is fastest for warriors, slowest for sorcerers. Warriors recover mana very inefficiently, too.

The caps mean that stat dependent effects are pretty important. Stun lock occurs when you get hit for more that a certain % of your hp. Spells operate on a function of spell level and magic stat.

I recommend digging up a guide that shows you the guts of the game. Despite the only choices be stat allocation, the 3 classes play REALLY differently. Most of that has to do with attack/cast speed, and getting stun locked.

Also, at least for the later patches, those tricks won't work. While you could learn chain lightning, using the trick to learn chain lightning two would result in you just having chain lightning one, despite what your spellbook says.

[GolemsVoice]

I have to disagree with everyone who says that two characters won't be much different from each other. Because in fact, I've found that the character I had ten minutes ago can be completely different from the character I have NOW, because the flexible system of spells, runes and perks that can all be shifted in a minute can create a whole new style of play with just the click of a few buttons, encouraging you to find your own way and experiment, because there's no penalty.

In Diablo 2, you skilled wrong, well, you were stuck with that. And for a newbie, a lot of skills could sound very promising but turn out to be useless.

[Traab]

I have to say that currently im loving this game. My barbarian is virtually unstoppable, the only thing that kills me are stacked plague pools that I dont notice in time. Otherwise I literally tear a path through everything I see. I have tons of hp, and half my items heal me with everything I hit, and im generally hitting 6-18 monsters at a time, so lots of healing. Combined with my templar buddy, I stay alive through a lot of badness. The storyline is good, but the big letdown is that all the plot twists but one so far havent been a surprise in any way.

Spoiler

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The real identity of the emperor in act 2, adrias betrayal, the eventual use of the black soulstone. The only thing that even remotely surprised me was leah being diablos daughter.

All that being said, I have only just started act 4, so if there are more twists, I havent seen them yet. I also find it almost eye rollingly stupid that act 4,

Spoiler

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seems to consist of me having to beat the devil to death while all of heaven is helpless. Remind me why my people should be worshiping these panty waisted losers and weaklings again? If my barbarian can stab to death a being so powerful that the apparent ruler of heaven himself is helpless to beat him, then clearly they need to elect someone capable of fighting. Currently im seeing two likely options, Imperious weakens diablo before dying somehow, which lets me finish him off, or tyreal gets his wings back and helps to kick diablo ass. Ah well, ill find out later, either tonight or tomorrow. I dont like to play too long per session.

Ok, one last thing, I MISS MY SKELLYMANCER! I want my skeletal warriors, skeletal mages, my might aura merc, and my amplify damage, which allowed me to tear through anything and everything and never take a shot. So far my witch doctors pets arent that impressive.