Max shadow skills?

[Nizzie]

Max shadow skills?

Hello all,

I started a new build of Assassin of mine, which looks a lot like ninja, but just for curiosity's sake, here is my goal:

20 Claw Mastery
20 Cloak of Shadows
20 Mind Blast
20 Shadow Master
20 Venom
5 Burst of Speed
1 Fade (pre-req and one-point-wonder)
1 Weapon Block (pre-req)
1 Shadow Warrior (pre-req)

Basically this is it. Now my question.. And this is where you guys come into play. I started playing D2 recently, although i have played it for a few months a year ago or something. I don't know "the gear" very much, so i'm kinda curious to see how far it can go.

In theory, how much +skills in shadow could we get, beneffiting from items?

Let's keep +skill charms out of the way please, i like my inventory space clean and empty, minus some small charms.

I know there is stuff like +3 shadow skills amulet and such, but other than that, how far could we push it?

If you guys are bored, it would be fun to do like 2 profiles:

- Ultimate gear, not only from skills but melee damage, defense, FHR, and etc etc

- Pure +Shadow Skills

The build goes very well and is extremely fun to play, and since i'm planning to extend it to high levels, i'd like a future taste of what kind of gear i could get to maximize my skills (since the Shadow skill tab is not synergized).

Many thanks to all that will answer my post/questions!

Regards,

Neenee
25 Opportunist Assassin
USEast SC NL
/w *nizzamne

 

[Naliworld]

Let's see...I'm probably missing something or other, but:

Helm: +3 SD
Amulet: +3 SD
Claw(s): +3 SD Claws x 2
Belt: Arachnid Sash (+1)
Boots: Shadow Dancers (+2)
Ring(s): SoJ x 2 (+2)
Armor: +2
Charms: +11
Skill Shrine: +2

Total: +32 Shadow Disciplines

I see a few problems with your build skillset, though:

1) Max CoS: Sounds good in theory, but in practice, it's a nuisance. CoS can only be recast when the original duration runs out(a lvl 20 CoS has a duration of 27 seconds), regardless of whether you've moved out of the spot you originally cast your CoS at. So, for example, after you've cast CoS and killed a mob under its effects, you still have to wait out the remaining duration before you can move on to the next mob, otherwise you won't be able to use CoS.

2) Max MB: The points are much better off used elsewhere, IMO. The conversion chance rises quite a bit, which can be annoying if you're in a multiplayer game, as everyone has to wait for the conversion to wear off on a near-dead monster you accidentally MB'ed. Even if you're playing alone and actually want the conversion effect, the returns drop off to less than 1%/point after slvl 10, so it's not a good point sink IMO. The added damage and stun effect(in PvM at least), are not worth considering. IMO, keep both MB at 1(or 10) and CoS at 1.

3) You don't have a skill that allows you to deal damage against multiple enemies, or a third element of damage(in the event you run into a PI boss with high poison resistance, for example). Even with the help of CoS and MB, things will be very slow going in Hell without a crowd-damaging skill. Consider sinking at least 40 points in PS & a synergy, or Traps.

 

[ilkori]

Minor nit: charms = +13 with 9 skillers, anni, and torch.

Otherwise, I agree with Nali 100%.

 

[Nizzie]

Thank you both for the replies!

Nali, i am perfectly aware of the weaknesses and this is exactly why i want to
shoot for this setup. Tough, underpowered is the challenge im looking for.

Although you put the finger on a good point: Cloak of Shadows. It would be great to be able to "re-cast" it in the middle of a fight instead of waiting 27 seconds to wear off before miving to another spot.

But i figured that with low damage, it would just "flow" with the game, since mobs in hell are pretty tough, it would take as much time.

Exemple.. if you have a high-damage build/equipment, you dont need CoS in order to kill, since it would slow you down, but with the physical resistance, poison immunes, or just with the difficulty level, coupled with very low damage, i figured you'd have plenty of time to re-cast CoS.

This is a very slow progression build, lots of strategy and thinking are necessary to do even simple things. I'm in act 3 normal and i can't just go in the middle of it and start hacking away, unless i have rejuv potions to waste.

Just my idea tho, you guys know more than me about this, so i'll acknowledge what you said, but i'll continue my build because it has one thing other builds dont have:

It's not damage
It's not flashy

But it's damn fun to play, and this is why we all play the game, to some extent, no?

Neenee
25 Opportunist
USEast, non-ladder, softcore
/w *nizzamne

 

[Naliworld]

More power to ya! :thumbsup: If you want to make the going a bit easier, though, you could divert some of the points in MB toward DC and use that as your main attack, unless you prefer to use Normal Attack.

 

[BIGeyedBUG]

The dificulty with CoS duration isn't merely a matter of how quickly you tear through opponenents, but also how many come from outside of its radius during it's duration. I guarantee you it will happen a lot, particularly with MB conversion attracting monsters from offscreen. It's not an unsolvable problem, but something to consider.

One thing you could do is use a Shadow Warrior instead of the Shadow Master. Unlike the SM, the SW will cast CoS fairly often if it's hotkeyed, and can overlap her casts with yours. The SW also offers other things, like a more controllable ability to use high level MB. Based on your description of how you're enjoying this build, I think the more tactical nature of the SW might suit you.

The major tradeoffs in this case is that you'd lose useful abilities in the SM that you won't be investing in yourself, and a lot of offensive potential later in the game. You might consider 1 point + in DS, especially.

All those points in CM and CoS might be well used with a 1 point BF too, though there are other ranged possibilities.