Diablo 2 help

[The Troubadour]

Hey there, everyone! So, I recently started re-playing "Diablo II", including the expansion and all current patches, and I need help: my character feels like he's underpowered even though on paper he shouldn't be. I'm playing a level 24 melee Paladin focused on Offensive Auras (specifically, I'm using Concentration now) and Combat Skills (mostly Zeal, with an occasional Charge, Vengeance or Sacrifice used as needed) and with a heavy investment on DEX to get my Block rate really high. This has been working out fine so far, but I'm currently at the end of Act 2 at the Tombs of Tal'Rasha and I'm having quite a bit of difficulty with the Unravellers and the Ghoul Lords! My Block rate is over 70%, and yet I never seem to block their projectile spells. Additionally, even though my Lightning Resistance is 69, the Charged Bolt from the Scarabs still deal a ton of damage.

Basically, am I doing something wrong with my build, or is this part of the game really supposed to be this difficult for a melee character?

Many thanks for the help!

[Winthur]

Additionally, even though my Lightning Resistance is 69, the Charged Bolt from the Scarabs still deal a ton of damage.

That's because multiple Charged Bolts are likely hitting you at the same time, as they kinda do that. If you're in melee, you can't really dodge them, especially when locked in Zeal animation. What might help is if you find something with Magic Damage Reduction, as it shaves off numbers off of every bolt that hits you. But yeah, otherwise just drink a lot of potions and tank it up, I guess. You can also try Charging into the scarabs and running out of their range when they light up.

My Block rate is over 70%, and yet I never seem to block their projectile spells

Block works against physical attacks, so arrows and melee swings. Unraveller use Unholy Bolt, which is like Holy Bolt but all of its properties benefit undead and harm the living; Ghoul Lords use Fireballs.

Get yourself more health. Having a lot of Vitality would help you greatly at this point in the game, and will help you tank these annoying casters. You can also Smite them between Zeals to stun them. You could slap Rubies into headgear or into your chest, too; at this point you might have cubed up a few Flawed Rubies. I generally do that a lot for HC characters, but you can also just drink copious amounts of reds if you're Softcore.

It's likely you wouldn't feel the Scarab lightning as much with the resists involved if you had more Vita instead of all that Dex. How much HP do you have?

If it makes you feel any better, your high Block should make Duriel fairly easy; melee with high block is probably the easiest way to just go mano y mano with him. Just drink like 10 Thawing Potions before the fight and keep some along.

[Keltest]

That's because multiple Charged Bolts are likely hitting you at the same time, as they kinda do that. If you're in melee, you can't really dodge them, especially when locked in Zeal animation. What might help is if you find something with Magic Damage Reduction, as it shaves off numbers off of every bolt that hits you. But yeah, otherwise just drink a lot of potions and tank it up, I guess. You can also try Charging into the scarabs and running out of their range when they light up.


Block works against physical attacks, so arrows and melee swings. Unraveller use Unholy Bolt, which is like Holy Bolt but all of its properties benefit undead and harm the living; Ghoul Lords use Fireballs.

Get yourself more health. Having a lot of Vitality would help you greatly at this point in the game, and will help you tank these annoying casters. You can also Smite them between Zeals to stun them. You could slap Rubies into headgear or into your chest, too; at this point you might have cubed up a few Flawed Rubies. I generally do that a lot for HC characters, but you can also just drink copious amounts of reds if you're Softcore.

It's likely you wouldn't feel the Scarab lightning as much with the resists involved if you had more Vita instead of all that Dex. How much HP do you have?

If it makes you feel any better, your high Block should make Duriel fairly easy; melee with high block is probably the easiest way to just go mano y mano with him. Just drink like 10 Thawing Potions before the fight and keep some along.

Adding to this, make sure your weapon is up to par. As a paladin you have a wonderful choice of scepters which automatically do bonus damage to undead, and give you some +skills to boot.

[Thomas Cardew]

Adding to this, make sure your weapon is up to par. As a paladin you have a wonderful choice of scepters which automatically do bonus damage to undead, and give you some +skills to boot.

Adding to this, how goods your shield? At 24 you should be able to make the ancients pledge rune word (ral+ort+tal?) Which is an easy way to get a good shield, and free your other slots to focus on other stats.

Also make sure you're using a merc. The one of the normal act 2 mercs will give you the defiance aura which raises defense, that's probably the best one for you right now.

[Keltest]

Adding to this, how goods your shield? At 24 you should be able to make the ancients pledge rune word (ral+ort+tal?) Which is an easy way to get a good shield, and free your other slots to focus on other stats.

Also make sure you're using a merc. The one of the normal act 2 mercs will give you the defiance aura which raises defense, that's probably the best one for you right now.

Defense is actually probably the worst one for you. Defense only helps against normal attacks, which first have to get through your block. The attack rating one is probably good if youre missing a lot, otherwise the healing one saves you on health pots between fights.

[Thomas Cardew]

Defense is actually probably the worst one for you. Defense only helps against normal attacks, which first have to get through your block. The attack rating one is probably good if youre missing a lot, otherwise the healing one saves you on health pots between fights.

With high Dex, his attack rating should be fine, so blessed aim is waste. I didn't remember the healing on being worthwhile at. Defense let's him be less picky about raw numbers on gear and focus on better affixes. At least that was my reasoning.

[The Troubadour]

But yeah, otherwise just drink a lot of potions and tank it up, I guess.

That's what I've been doing, but it's not fun having to run back to town after just 2 or 3 engagements, sometimes less.

Block works against physical attacks, so arrows and melee swings. Unraveller use Unholy Bolt, which is like Holy Bolt but all of its properties benefit undead and harm the living; Ghoul Lords use Fireballs.

Huh. But I could have sworn I've blocked projectiles from the... ...wraiths? I forget their name... ...that show up in Acts 4 and 5 with older characters. Are those physical attacks, then?

It's likely you wouldn't feel the Scarab lightning as much with the resists involved if you had more Vita instead of all that Dex. How much HP do you have?

Not as much as I should have, probably; I've only invested something like 1 point per level-up in VIT.

If it makes you feel any better, your high Block should make Duriel fairly easy [...]

It did! But Diablo will eat my character alive if things continue like this.

Adding to this, how goods your shield? At 24 you should be able to make the ancients pledge rune word (ral+ort+tal?) Which is an easy way to get a good shield, and free your other slots to focus on other stats.

I thought of that, but I don't have the Ort rune yet.
As for the merc, I'm still using the Rogue from Act 1. Should I change, then?

[Winthur]

Not as much as I should have, probably; I've only invested something like 1 point per level-up in VIT.

Oh, oof.
Man, Vit rules Diablo 2. Max block comes later and varies with shields and shield affixes, so keeping it high is nice, but Vit is an all-encompassing buff that's very reliable.
Pretty much any character build, statwise, can come down to enough Strength to carry items (I tend to get around 60 soonish for a Plated Belt), enough Dex for max block (or ignore completely if not, or max out if Dexazon), as much as possible into Vit and zero Energy.
Your resists will carry you a long way but it looks like you simply have no real health pool.
Get some points into Vit and maybe slam some Rubies somewhere for HP - standard procedure for Hardcore characters or someone who seems to desperately require some +Life.

EDIT: Also, the mechanics on block aren't actually too transparent because after checking around, it seems a lot of projectiles count as partially physical and will thus be affected by Block. Mephisto's "Ice Ball" works like that, for example.

[Keltest]

With high Dex, his attack rating should be fine, so blessed aim is waste. I didn't remember the healing on being worthwhile at. Defense let's him be less picky about raw numbers on gear and focus on better affixes. At least that was my reasoning.

Dex contributes to defense as well, but defense is easily the least important stat on armor to begin with, especially with a block paladin, because it just doesn't to a lot to protect you. Block is by far going to be his most important way to avoid enemy basic attacks, and his most reliable. Attack Rating versus Regen is more of a personal preference at this point in the game. Depending on how he has his points distributed, he could have a lot in Zeal, which gives AR, or more in Sacrifice for the damage. If the latter, I recommend Blessed Aim, otherwise the regen merc is probably his best choice because Zeal gives a whole bunch of AR.

[Thomas Cardew]

Not as much as I should have, probably; I've only invested something like 1 point per level-up in VIT.

I thought of that, but I don't have the Ort rune yet.
As for the merc, I'm still using the Rogue from Act 1. Should I change, then?

I second the OOF.

Switching merc is your choice. The most popular tend to be act 2 nightmare, as they can give the might aura for more damage, holy freeze for cold damage goodness and monster slow, or defiance for more defense. Blessed aim is a less common choice but not unheard.

Some people use act 3 mercs to deal with physical immune later or as an alternative damage type. Pairing a lightning Zon with a g cold or fire merc, for example.

[Keltest]

I second the OOF.

Switching merc is your choice. The most popular tend to be act 2 nightmare, as they can give the might aura for more damage, holy freeze for cold damage goodness and monster slow, or defiance for more defense. Blessed aim is a less common choice but not unheard.

Some people use act 3 mercs to deal with physical immune later or as an alternative damage type. Pairing a lightning Zon with a g cold or fire merc, for example.

Defiance is norm/hell. Nightmare is Thorns.

[Spore]

Keep in mind I played D2 last time about 7 years ago but I distinctly remember a paladin guide mentioning Str as needed, Dex and Vit two to one. (so either 1 Str 1 Dex 3 Vit, or 2 Dex 3 Vit), so my advice would 2-3 levels of pure vit.

That or rerolling/respeccing, maybe go for a Zeal Paladin with Fanaticism.

[The Troubadour]

Yeah, my aim is to get Fanaticism at level 30. I currently only have 4 points in Zeal to get the maximum number of hits, all others I invested in Sacrifice to increase damage.
I still have my respec from Akara. Do you guys think I should use it to rebalance my DEX and VIT, then?

[Keltest]

Yeah, my aim is to get Fanaticism at level 30. I currently only have 4 points in Zeal to get the maximum number of hits, all others I invested in Sacrifice to increase damage.
I still have my respec from Akara. Do you guys think I should use it to rebalance my DEX and VIT, then?

Your call. Come act 3 youre going to run into a lot more physical attacks than spell attacks until you hit the end of the act, so the high dex for good block might come in handy. Just don't pump any more into it.

You should absolutely upgrade your merc though. The act 2 mercs are absolute beasts.

[The Troubadour]

Your call. Come act 3 youre going to run into a lot more physical attacks than spell attacks until you hit the end of the act, so the high dex for good block might come in handy. Just don't pump any more into it.

I see. I'll leave it as is, then, and just invest more in VIT (and probably STR, too - I'm starting to fall behind on my equipment).

You should absolutely upgrade your merc though. The act 2 mercs are absolute beasts.

Oh, they're better than the Act 3 mercs, then?

Thanks a lot for the help, everyone!

[tyckspoon]

I see. I'll leave it as is, then, and just invest more in VIT (and probably STR, too - I'm starting to fall behind on my equipment).

Oh, they're better than the Act 3 mercs, then?

Generally, yeah, the Act 2 mercs are the best general purpose ones, because you can use their auras to amplify your strong points or cover your weak points; after a certain point the merc simply can't keep up with the player character for killing ability (thanks to limited gear slots, lower stats, and no inventory to fill up with charms) letting them benefit the main player character is usually the strongest option. Plus there's a few handy runewords you can shove in their polearms - Insight (adds a Meditation aura) is a popular one and pretty much completely removes mana management as a problem.

[factotum]

One quick question: are you playing single player? If so, are you aware of the /players command? Typing /players 8 into chat will scale everything so it's like an 8 player game, which means loot drops and XP gains are much higher--at the expense of all the mobs having a lot more health, of course. It's probably a bit late to be thinking about using it now, especially if you're already struggling, but using it from the start of the game means you're higher level at this point and thus everything is a lot easier.

[The Troubadour]

Single player, yes. I do know the command, but I didn't think to use it. Maybe I'll try it on a next playthrough.

[Spore]

Good luck then. Any build relying on a 30th level ability is having some dry spell just before that esp. without the 8 player modalities.

[Man_Over_Game]

One quick question: are you playing single player? If so, are you aware of the /players command? Typing /players 8 into chat will scale everything so it's like an 8 player game, which means loot drops and XP gains are much higher--at the expense of all the mobs having a lot more health, of course. It's probably a bit late to be thinking about using it now, especially if you're already struggling, but using it from the start of the game means you're higher level at this point and thus everything is a lot easier.

He could go to a prior area that has fewer spellcasters, where his blocking feature would see more use. That way, he can grind a bit, get a couple levels to pump into Vit, and take on his current area with renewed vigor.

[The Troubadour]

Won't that command make the remaining bosses - particularly Diablo - too difficult, though?

[tyckspoon]

Won't that command make the remaining bosses - particularly Diablo - too difficult, though?

You can toggle it on the fly - if you can't beat 8-player or 4-player Diablo just set it back to /players 1. But doing even one Act or half an Act at /players 8 should give enough extra XP and improved drops to make it over the hump, especially by letting him really get into the meat of the intended build with the level 30 skill and synergies unlocked.

[Keltest]

You can toggle it on the fly - if you can't beat 8-player or 4-player Diablo just set it back to /players 1. But doing even one Act or half an Act at /players 8 should give enough extra XP and improved drops to make it over the hump, especially by letting him really get into the meat of the intended build with the level 30 skill and synergies unlocked.

Having said that, if he cant beat Duriel by level 30, I don't think the problem is gear or skills. Duriel is tough, yeah, but not that tough.

I think the problem is more his merc being unhelpful and his vitality being too low.

[Winthur]

Having said that, if he cant beat Duriel by level 30, I don't think the problem is gear or skills. Duriel is tough, yeah, but not that tough

Gear really makes Duriel much easier, though, considering that all the ways a melee character can fairly easily dispatch the guy (without the risk of being instantly rent int twain) are readily available from vendors in some way: potions of Rejuvenation (through cubing) for emergency heals, regular healing potions for sustain, thawing elixirs for maxing Cold resistance and the Bone Shield of Deflection that Drognan offers for sale every so often - and Trubadour doesn't necessarily need the latter because his block is already skyhigh (though Bone Shield of Deflection would likely allow him to be at the maxed out 75% block with much less Dexterity and even without Holy Shield on; incidentally, Troubadour, do you have Holy Shield?).

He's, by accident, fairly well optimized against Duriel; you can control the amount of damage he can put out against you fairly well if you have enough avoidance to not get hit multiple times in a row by his multi-attack. He just has problems with the hordes outside of Duriel because he has no life to take a fireball to the face at all. And even his life problem could be probably fixed somewhat handily if he just slapped Rubies on any old socketed helmet or armor.

If you stick to close range, Duriel can't charge you, which also accounts for multiple player deaths in that encounter. With a proper defensive set-up, you can mostly outlast him. A 1 Concentration / 4 Zeal Paladin who kept his weapon up to date with levelling shouldn't have that hard of a time, and the Paladin build in question has a lot of block. Outside of that, he just spams a monster version of the Jab skill (covered by Block) and counts on Holy Freeze ticks to burst you down (which you can either account for with swapping to the Cold Resistance aura or just pre-drinking a ton of Thawing Elixirs, since their resistance duration stacks).

Just keep drinking Reds and have a finger over the rejuvs in case a lucky Jab does connect multiple times. Switch to some +Life gear for the encounter if you have any to give yourself a cushion. If you're not tackling Duriel at /players 8, he likely won't snuff you out in one hit, though.

[The Troubadour]

I did beat Duriel quite easily. He never even got near my hireling. I've also been doing ok so far in Act 3. That said, I will use the /players command; on the one hand, it feels a bit like cheating, on the other, anything that can cut down on the grinding is good.

[...] incidentally, Troubadour, do you have Holy Shield?).

I don't. Should I? I figured a naturally-high DEX would be enough.

[Man_Over_Game]

I did beat Duriel quite easily. He never even got near my hireling. I've also been doing ok so far in Act 3. That said, I will use the /players command; on the one hand, it feels a bit like cheating, on the other, anything that can cut down on the grinding is good.

You're still putting in hard work. The difference is, before you were trying to run a marathon, and now you're doing leg presses. Different kind of exercise to achieve the same goal.

[tyckspoon]

I don't. Should I? I figured a naturally-high DEX would be enough.

Yes; in addition to providing additional chance-to-block and thus freeing up a significant number of stat points to throw into Vit and/or Str for using higher-tier items, it also gives bonus Defence (reducing the chance that you need to block at all, because Defence works against the same kind of attacks that blocking does), and vastly increases the speed of your block animation, which is important because while your character is blocking you can't be attacking - if you get into a swarm of enemies you might not die, but it is very possible to get effectively stunlocked by repeated shieldblock animations. You don't need to invest a ton into it - 1 or 2 points and then +skill items will cover most of the benefit you can get from it without going into full maxing it - but it's definitely worth having.

(Paladins have the naturally fastest block animation as is, so you might not have noticed this being a problem, but Holy Shield will still cut it in half. IIRC it changes the block animation from visibly moving the shield to basically wiggling it a bit before going right back into attack ready.)

[factotum]

Won't that command make the remaining bosses - particularly Diablo - too difficult, though?

If you go through the entirety of normal difficulty at /players 8 you should be in your 40s level-wise by the time you reach Diablo, which makes you massively overlevelled for him. Doesn't make him quite a cakewalk but certainly makes him doable without dropping the players level down. Personally (and this is my personal opinion, your mileage may vary), I think dropping the /players level for bosses takes it over the edge into outright cheating--back when I played D2 I would play through the whole of Normal and Nightmare at /players 8 (bosses included), then drop it back to /players 1 for Hell because monsters are quite "bullet spongey" enough in that difficulty.

[noob]

Do not forget that if you have too many bad choices in your build akara can give a few rebuilds.(I believe you can get more by killing act bosses for essences and cubing them)
For low level holy thunder + zeal is among the best choices(high flat damage + attack rate) then at high level when you get better equipment you can switch to holy hammer(less op than it was at some time but it is possible it stills benefits from concentration) or fanaticism + zeal(I advise to do the switch only if you get equipment sufficiently good for being sure you are not weakening your character and holy hammer builds are all about getting +20 megatons of boost to paladin holy hammer level and the needed cast rate breakpoints(and mandatory defence) while fanaticism + zeal is about having the most hurtful weapon ever(so stuff like a phase blade with grief))
Do not forget to have holy shield active at any time.(I do not even know if there is paladin builds without)
It is not hard since it lasts a very long time with barely any point in it.
And if you get the unique paladin specific shield you will probably use it for a very long time.

[Anteros]

You can toggle it on the fly - if you can't beat 8-player or 4-player Diablo just set it back to /players 1. But doing even one Act or half an Act at /players 8 should give enough extra XP and improved drops to make it over the hump, especially by letting him really get into the meat of the intended build with the level 30 skill and synergies unlocked.

Alternatively, just use cheats because that's all you're doing anyway by doing this.