Tristram Builds & Keys Runners

Tristram Builds & Keys Runners

Hi all. Tristram run has become a norm or the ultimate goal for most players now. I search this site and notice that "Official" Tristram building guides for every kind of character are hot and well discussed, except Amazon. If I have missed the Amazon (Bowzon/Javazon) uber guide, pls kindly provide a link to me.

In order to run tristram, you must obtain keys either by running it urselves or buy them from others. I am not rich enf to have some one run them for me; so I must have some characters to do it and do it fast & safe.

I currently have a Smiter to run TK & DK and a Cold/Light soc to run HK. Both merc equipped with Reaper's. I just wonder what other build can do it more efficiently. Also, will my merc of soc equip with "Infinity" or "Doom" speed up the HKey run.

Thanks for sharing.

 

I would say hammerdin is a fast char to do key runs, but I suggest do only d-key runs ... with 6 d-keys you can get 1 organset (on west at least where d=3t and d=2h) ... I found it much easier and faster then run all 3 though with hdin either way fast ....

 

i only run t-key h-keys. both are very easy with just a sorc with insight.
summoner takes about 1 minute
countess takes 30seconds from when i find the tower.

i have also tried ubering with my bowazon...it's desperately hard due the fact 50% are those ugly skeletons and other undeads, though i have never tried running with a pair of dracs... does dracs work with arrows? lol not sure... but obviosuly the only way u survive is lifetap.

oh yer...i don't think infinity will help run hkey ani faster...since all ur killing is just 1 summoner. just my 2 cents

 

Tx Kull for your advice. As I understand it, rest-in-peace or kill-him-b4-he-kill-u are the strategies for DKey run. I have a Hammerdian but why is he better than a smiter? The two things that slowdown a smiter is snake-spike (??) and PI. If he can get to him upclose, a smiter can finish him with 2-3 hit. I believe a Hammerdian can take care of PI but can he finish him fast enf to avoid his CE?

Pls don't get me wrong. I just unfamilar with a hammerdian. (Never use those hammer in the most effective way :-((

 

Hammerdin for running D and H. I don't bother with T. Her drop rate is WAY off from the other two. In 15 runs I'll typically have at the very least 2 D and H, and NO T.

2x Hate will get you a T. A D will get you a T. Seems like overkill, but few people will trade 2 T for 1 D. The D runs are fast and easy with a nigma hammerdin.

Smiter of course of the ubers. I don't know that a zon could do it solo, but I've read sorcs that can do it so i suppose a zon might be able to. Your merc would have to be ultra-uber though I'm thinking. plus valk and decoy.

 

A Hammerdin can reach Nihlathak much faster than a smiter can. Also, a few hammers and Nihlathak should be down, and you can continue spamming until the rest of the minions are dead. Since you need to clear out the minions (after killing Nihlathak) in order to collect the drops, I'd prefer a caster over a melee char.

Actually, the Countess' chance to drop a Key is pretty similar to the other guys.

 

75% fcr is easy to get with hdin and 125% also not that hard .... just tele into the face of nihla and start to spam hammers out which will kill multiple monsters and you can heal with redemption at any time (or use up the corpses be4 nihla ce them) + none of the monsters are immune to hammers ... I had only problems and few deaths when nihla was cursed and snakes were near to him ... best part when he drops 2 keys in the same run

Please note also that countess and summoner can't be found easily w/o cheating while for Nihla there is a way to find him, here it is .... go always to the left and there are 4 possibilities:
1. he is there, best part
2. evil urn --> he is at the upper side
3.champions --> he is at the right side
4. neither evil urn nor champions --> he is at the down side

 

Teleporting or running very fast are important to getting keys in a decently fast fashion. The amazon has horrible fast cast breakpoints, and lacks the toughness of a barb to run through hordes of monsters, not to mention d/a/e lock.
As for ubers...it would be very difficult for a bower, as CB works something like 1/16th of the time with ranged weapons. For a javer, you'd have to use one of the physical damage skills, namely jab, which means very little damage and not as fast as zeal. I think Lilith would be impossible. Go into d/a/e animation once and the poison will kill you before you can hit again.

 

oh, and Natures Peace is almost an absolute must for nihi runs. Sure, redemption does the same thing, but 1) its an aura and Conc is far better to use, even if overkill and 2) NP is immediate. No chance of him getting in a hit with CE.

 

NP is not a gurantee. Sometimes my merc kill one b4 I spot him did so and sometimes there are those self-exposed monsters running around and left corpses for CE.

 

I don't even take my merc anymore. No point. either he dies right away from the witches, or he stays alive but really his help isn't needed.

 

Ditch the merc unless you really need him for tanking or killing immunes. Also, ignore Nihlathak and head straight for the minions. Once you take him out, the minions are no longer a threat.

 

I am using an IK barb for the Destruction key run. He WWs through everything and gets there fast and has no trouble with anything once there. If I am only doing the one run I sometime get temporary restrictions from the runs being so fast.

IK is a cheap set up on NonLadder and currently cheap on ladder too as the season may be over soon. IK is pricey at the beginning of ladder however.

 

Hammerdin, easiest by far. Equip with insight, 75% FCR and nigma can pretty much do key runs without any fear.

 

My Frenzy barb does the whole thing and the only really overpowered item he has is a grief PB. Jump attack is great for getting past large packs of monsters. Also great for Nithlak, jump into the middle of the pack then frenzy him to death, even with a couple of CE's he's leeching enough to cope. He could take down all the mini ubers even before I got the grief, the only thing that gave him a problem was Mephi and a lightsabre in his offhand gives him enough protection with its light absorb.

 

I use the same character I use for killing the ubers to run D keys... Zeal/smite hybrid... I use charge to run faster, kill something to get my mana back, and charge some more... With so much life tap, CE is all but nerfed...

*Requiem_Death