revives question

[Grim9]

revives question

Hi, I'm playing a ranger paladin with a harmony bow, which gives 25 charges level 20 revive. I haven't played necros much, but I have noticed that some monsters are much better than others as revives. So I thought I'd go ask the experienced necromancers in this forum. Which monsters in the game do you think make better revives? Where can they be found? I'd really appreciate to have your opinion and any tip on how to move around with them, thank you.

 

[MasterMynd]

The Urdar class has Crushing Blow, which is always a bonus - especially against bosses. Find them in Durance and River.

One problem with summoners is that sometimes one summon will stop right in the middle of a narrow passage and block all the others from going through. For that reason, anything that flies is desirable in narrow areas. Wisps are my favorite. They go anywhere and don't obstruct anything. Find wisps in Tower and Arcane.

Ranged attackers are good for open areas. They have the room to move away from danger and they don't get in the way. Ranged attackers can be found almost everywhere. Just pick the type you like, based on the task at hand.

The Viper/Lizard types are sort of a special case. With their piercing Bone Spear they can be useful in tight places where everyone is lined up single file.

As for moving around with them: Unfortunately, I think they programmed ADHD into the AI for Revives. (Skeletons are much smarter.) They tend to wander, get lost, get stuck, or just go "poof" (before they're due to expire). Which makes them all but totally worthless in places with a lot of twists, turns, doorways and/or narrow passages - e.g. the Maggot Lair.

IIRC the charges are pretty expensive, so I'm guessing that you'll only be using the revives for special situations, so use whatever best suits each situation. Some general rules:

Ranged attackers for open areas
Flying types for narrow areas
Udars for Bosses

Good luck!

 

[MasterMynd]

I left out a couple things:

I said to use Flying types in narrow areas. Actually, that is not entirely correct. Arcane is composed almost entirely of "narrow areas", and Wisps work very well there because they do not have to follow the "foot paths". (i.e. they can cut corners by flying through "space".) The same thing applies to much of A4 where they can fly over places where "footsoldiers" have to go around. Tristram is another place where this applies.

Where it does not apply is narrow places where there are floor-to-ceiling walls. Wisps have to use doorways (and can block them) just like all others. (Although they can go through/between bars, as in the Jail levels.) So in these narrow "tunnel/dungeon" type areas, ranged attackers are better, especially those with "piercing" attack (Vipers, Gloams) when the monsters can be lined up (e.g. Arcane Sanctuary and parts of Maggot Lair).

 

[Grim9]

Thanks a lot. A very helpful and clear answer.That's exactly what I wanted to know.