Stat/Skill assignments for leveling your Hammerdin.
- Thread starter ian_linington
- Start date
Tanatus is completley right. If you are a hammerdin, hit lvl 18, and cant kill with your hammers then you really do need to print out a guide and read it as your playing. Pumping BA before your hammers, gives you fantastic hammer damage at lvl 18.Tanatus said:
Are you sure its just Travincle? I thought I remember it actually being the upper,lower,bazzar of kurast region.
Uzziah
Diabloii.Net Member
It's anywhere above area_lvl 50 so that you get above ilvl 50 with your charms. Its really insignificant as to the exact ilvl since there are only a few further affixes after +skill trees and of those several are desirable. Act 3 nightmare and up is where you want to hunt grandcharms, cows drop alot of charms (hint hint).Tsume said:
A n00b's perspective...
Just thought I'd give you guys a good laugh and throw in my 1 cent...
I am just starting ladder, coming over from SP where I played for a long time before I found Atma. So I am used to playing untwinked and not trading, so I have a different perspective on the Hammerdin.
These are my suggestions based on my limited experience. Ergo, this is how you MUST build a hammerdin!
Boost BA synergy before vigor: mainly for 5% passive to hit, because you will be meleeing well into your 40's with no AR-boosting aura. You should be walking most of the time anyway, picking fights and picking up - because you need the XP's and the items and the gold to gamble nice rare jewelry. So no zooming to the next wp.
Boost Conc aura before maxing BH: Because you will be meleeing alot, and so will your merc, both with crap weapons you found on the road. So it's something like 1 BA/1conc/1BH, repeat until you hit the transition to all hammers.
About meleeing: resist the temptation to put ANY points in zeal or a holy element. Just shop for the right weapon with +skills. I prefered zeal, for speed, you may prefer holy freeze for the slow. Of course, with Fazel I now have both.
About blocking: Since your gonna have to get close, you need to block. And since you gonna want HShield eventually anyway, go ahead and get it to slvl 5 or so as soon as possible, and maintain enough dex for max block.
Once you transition to all hammers: Make sure you have redemption, at least slvl 5 HShield, and then max BH. After that, alternate between conc and the remaining synergies.
Items: Look for resists, FCR, resists, +skills, +mana/mana per kill/+mana recovery, resists, a big belt for blue pots, FRW, FHR, resists, +light radius... Leech is only needed when you melee, and mana leech especially as you transition to all hammers. After switching to all hammers, use redemption instead of mana leech - has added bonuses of preventing resurrection and of pissing off the pasty white dudes.
Me: My scl hammerdin is just now transitioning from melee to hammers as we speak, at lvl 50. OK, I found a pretty big +zeal beatstick/some +skills and I really like to bash things. I also don't like drinking blue pots all the time. But me and Fazel are moving right along, beginning A3 NM (Maggot's Lair was a cakewalk). I haven't died yet, either, and neither has Fazzie (OK, I just got him...). Hammers near 1k, mainly for the big packs and bosses. One added benefit of the slow transition from melee is that Fazzie stays right at my lvl or 1 under.
In the end, he will end up as the same hammer spammer everyone else has, and no one will be the wiser: maxed BH/BA/Vigor/Conc, rest in HShield and one point in the utility skill redemption (maybe one in meditation, too). Just took a different road to get there, one I am kinda enjoying at the moment...
DudSpud *donning asbestos suit*
Just thought I'd give you guys a good laugh and throw in my 1 cent...
I am just starting ladder, coming over from SP where I played for a long time before I found Atma. So I am used to playing untwinked and not trading, so I have a different perspective on the Hammerdin.
These are my suggestions based on my limited experience. Ergo, this is how you MUST build a hammerdin!
Boost BA synergy before vigor: mainly for 5% passive to hit, because you will be meleeing well into your 40's with no AR-boosting aura. You should be walking most of the time anyway, picking fights and picking up - because you need the XP's and the items and the gold to gamble nice rare jewelry. So no zooming to the next wp.
Boost Conc aura before maxing BH: Because you will be meleeing alot, and so will your merc, both with crap weapons you found on the road. So it's something like 1 BA/1conc/1BH, repeat until you hit the transition to all hammers.
About meleeing: resist the temptation to put ANY points in zeal or a holy element. Just shop for the right weapon with +skills. I prefered zeal, for speed, you may prefer holy freeze for the slow. Of course, with Fazel I now have both.
About blocking: Since your gonna have to get close, you need to block. And since you gonna want HShield eventually anyway, go ahead and get it to slvl 5 or so as soon as possible, and maintain enough dex for max block.
Once you transition to all hammers: Make sure you have redemption, at least slvl 5 HShield, and then max BH. After that, alternate between conc and the remaining synergies.
Items: Look for resists, FCR, resists, +skills, +mana/mana per kill/+mana recovery, resists, a big belt for blue pots, FRW, FHR, resists, +light radius... Leech is only needed when you melee, and mana leech especially as you transition to all hammers. After switching to all hammers, use redemption instead of mana leech - has added bonuses of preventing resurrection and of pissing off the pasty white dudes.
Me: My scl hammerdin is just now transitioning from melee to hammers as we speak, at lvl 50. OK, I found a pretty big +zeal beatstick/some +skills and I really like to bash things. I also don't like drinking blue pots all the time. But me and Fazel are moving right along, beginning A3 NM (Maggot's Lair was a cakewalk). I haven't died yet, either, and neither has Fazzie (OK, I just got him...). Hammers near 1k, mainly for the big packs and bosses. One added benefit of the slow transition from melee is that Fazzie stays right at my lvl or 1 under.
In the end, he will end up as the same hammer spammer everyone else has, and no one will be the wiser: maxed BH/BA/Vigor/Conc, rest in HShield and one point in the utility skill redemption (maybe one in meditation, too). Just took a different road to get there, one I am kinda enjoying at the moment...
DudSpud *donning asbestos suit*
BattleQueen
Diabloii.Net Member
Splendid guide. :thumbsup: But it really doesn't have to be rocket science, just common sense. If you had pumped up Blessed Aim early on, by the time you get your Blessed Hammer at lvl 18, the synergised lvl 1 hammer dmg is good enough for you to ditch melee attacks.
DudSpud took a different route but he still enjoyed it. That's the real issue: FUN. The journey is supposed to be fun. If you're following a guide to a T and find that you're not having as much fun, by all means feel free to diverge. You'll still end up with the same similar build. :lol:
DudSpud took a different route but he still enjoyed it. That's the real issue: FUN. The journey is supposed to be fun. If you're following a guide to a T and find that you're not having as much fun, by all means feel free to diverge. You'll still end up with the same similar build. :lol:
Masticophis
Diabloii.Net Member
I have read most of the posts in this thread, but not all of them. If I am repeating anything just ignore it.
A few of the posts state that you should be melee till high 40's. This is the worst thing you can do. I have limited time to play, due to job/family responibilities, so here is my start for building ANY chars.
Find a perm/play game, bring in my newly created char, along with my enchantress.
Enchant the new char, give dark, marsh, cats wps...
New char does 3200 dmg at lvl 1. Using a bow/arrow combo, I go through the dark wood area, clearing. At lvl 6, I am now clearing the Black Marsh area. At lvl 12, I take my cats2 wp, and clear my way down to andariel. I'll kill Andy at lvl 15.
Act2, get wp's for Far Oasis and Lost City. I put on Raven Claw bow, and grab three lvls in Far Oasis. I get the last 2 lvls from Lost City. I am now lvl 20 in less than 15 mins.
Opening a cow lvl in the same game, I grab the exp shrine I had already hunted out. Get in the cow lvl and go from lvl 20-25 in less than 5 mins. So I have gotten 25-26 lvls in 20-21 mins.
Rush my char through Baal, and start on nm...
Finding another game thats at least got 4-5 people in it. Bring chanter and char in, chant open cows, find exp shrine. One cow run usually gets me to lvl 32 in about 6 mins. Repeat twice for lvl 40. At lvl 40, I have rushed my pally to baals, and geared him up with the following :
Pcrown
Suicide Branch
Magi
Nightsmoke belt
I have a rare pally only shield thats 1 to skills all res 25 so thats what he uses till HOZ
Waterwalk boots
i have ravenfrost + dwarfstar ready for him at lvl 45.
Basically just getting his gear ready for him.
Since I am able to do baals with him, I find a good game to join that has 3-5 people already in it.
Grab my lvl 90 sorc, and baal solo (just me and sorc). I'll get three to four lvls in that run. I am then able to grab all his gear that i listed and equip him.
From there , you can either continue to baal ur char with another char, or solo baal in full games. At lvl 60, do baal, and rush hell. I do the same in hell till he's 65-70. Then he can usually hold his own with help in baals.(hell)
This pally was built from lvl 1 to 78 in less than two hours. His final gear at lvl 81 is as follows :
Enigma
Shako
Hoto
BK ring
Ravenfrost (being replaced by an soj soon)
Arach Sash, switched with tgods for tele to throne.
+65 life waterwalks
2/2 Seraphs ammy
Magefist gloves
+3 bo CTA with lidless
190% Um'd HOZ
19/20/10 anni
3 PCombat charms
10 x various small life charms (varies from 13-20)
With this gear he's doing 12k dmg if I remember correctly. I am lvl 93, and #65 on the HC-USeast ladder (pally). I have maxed BH, and its synergies, Holy Shield almost maxed. 1 pt to Med, Clense, and Redemption. I have three skills left to use, and they will be going to Holy Shield. He has 2200 life w/o bo, and 12k defense when HS is active. He uses a Defiance merc from normal act2, lvl'd to lvl 93.
Thats my strat for building any chars, but the most recent is this pally. He was built solely for clone killing, hence his name : X-CloneKiller but has been doing rushes for hell forges lately. Good way to get high runes most of the time.
-Masticophis
A few of the posts state that you should be melee till high 40's. This is the worst thing you can do. I have limited time to play, due to job/family responibilities, so here is my start for building ANY chars.
Find a perm/play game, bring in my newly created char, along with my enchantress.
Enchant the new char, give dark, marsh, cats wps...
New char does 3200 dmg at lvl 1. Using a bow/arrow combo, I go through the dark wood area, clearing. At lvl 6, I am now clearing the Black Marsh area. At lvl 12, I take my cats2 wp, and clear my way down to andariel. I'll kill Andy at lvl 15.
Act2, get wp's for Far Oasis and Lost City. I put on Raven Claw bow, and grab three lvls in Far Oasis. I get the last 2 lvls from Lost City. I am now lvl 20 in less than 15 mins.
Opening a cow lvl in the same game, I grab the exp shrine I had already hunted out. Get in the cow lvl and go from lvl 20-25 in less than 5 mins. So I have gotten 25-26 lvls in 20-21 mins.
Rush my char through Baal, and start on nm...
Finding another game thats at least got 4-5 people in it. Bring chanter and char in, chant open cows, find exp shrine. One cow run usually gets me to lvl 32 in about 6 mins. Repeat twice for lvl 40. At lvl 40, I have rushed my pally to baals, and geared him up with the following :
Pcrown
Suicide Branch
Magi
Nightsmoke belt
I have a rare pally only shield thats 1 to skills all res 25 so thats what he uses till HOZ
Waterwalk boots
i have ravenfrost + dwarfstar ready for him at lvl 45.
Basically just getting his gear ready for him.
Since I am able to do baals with him, I find a good game to join that has 3-5 people already in it.
Grab my lvl 90 sorc, and baal solo (just me and sorc). I'll get three to four lvls in that run. I am then able to grab all his gear that i listed and equip him.
From there , you can either continue to baal ur char with another char, or solo baal in full games. At lvl 60, do baal, and rush hell. I do the same in hell till he's 65-70. Then he can usually hold his own with help in baals.(hell)
This pally was built from lvl 1 to 78 in less than two hours. His final gear at lvl 81 is as follows :
Enigma
Shako
Hoto
BK ring
Ravenfrost (being replaced by an soj soon)
Arach Sash, switched with tgods for tele to throne.
+65 life waterwalks
2/2 Seraphs ammy
Magefist gloves
+3 bo CTA with lidless
190% Um'd HOZ
19/20/10 anni
3 PCombat charms
10 x various small life charms (varies from 13-20)
With this gear he's doing 12k dmg if I remember correctly. I am lvl 93, and #65 on the HC-USeast ladder (pally). I have maxed BH, and its synergies, Holy Shield almost maxed. 1 pt to Med, Clense, and Redemption. I have three skills left to use, and they will be going to Holy Shield. He has 2200 life w/o bo, and 12k defense when HS is active. He uses a Defiance merc from normal act2, lvl'd to lvl 93.
Thats my strat for building any chars, but the most recent is this pally. He was built solely for clone killing, hence his name : X-CloneKiller but has been doing rushes for hell forges lately. Good way to get high runes most of the time.
-Masticophis
I have very limited playing time as well, but this is not the worst thing - I -can do because:Masticophis said:
A) I actually like questing.
B) I don't have lvl 90 enchant sorc, enigma, hoto, hoz, etc. But I do have a rare +3 zeal rune scepter!
For me, the fun is in the challange and the journey. Maybe when this becomes boring I will follow your method. For now, my lvl 50 Hammerdin is still swinging.
DudSpud
timeflight81689
Diabloii.Net Member
DudSpud,pretty much what i am doing is taking my time.My hammerdin is only level 26,i just finished off Izual.i am meleeing right now.
DudSpud said: