Re-posted from the official forum
It seems like some people are having issues figuring out what they want to do or how to get started in creating a build for their wizards. This guide is designed for beginner wizards and it is highly, highly advised that one plays through the game from levels 1 through 70, experimenting along the way, in order to get a better grasp of what's in the wizard's arsenal.
Complementary Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Dk8xiG1ic0
1. What's the focus?
What are you building around? First understand the term "spender." Every class, including the wizard, has spenders. These are spells that consume your resources and are regarded as your primary damage dealers. Common spenders include Arcane Orb and Meteor. These are traditional spenders and they generally have no cooldown and can be cast in succession for big damage as long as you have the resources to sustain them.
Another type of spender is the channeled spell. These include Arcane Torrent, Ray of Frost and Disintegrate. The goal is to try and stand still without moving so you can continuously dish out heavy damage. The more you move around, the more you're not channeling, the less damage you'll be doing.
So we pick a spender to build on. Let's say we pick Arcane Orb - Frozen Orb. This skill will be our primary damage dealer. We will kill the majority of the content with this skill. If we're running multiple spenders (say, Frozen Orb along with Energy Twister - Mistral Breeze), chances are we're going to run out of resources very fast and we'll be sitting around wondering what went wrong. This also applies to combining a traditional spender with a channeling spell. If we're running Frozen Orb with Ray of Frost, we have an issue. If we're channeling Ray of Frost, we're not using Frozen Orb. If we're casting Frozen Orb, we cannot channel Ray of Frost. So a skill is wasted. So generally speaking, we focus on one spender. Now we have to figure out how to sustain this spender to keep it going constantly throughout a fight.
Current build progress
2. Supporting the spender
There are several ways to go about this. The most basic way is to run a signature spell that aids in recovering resources. Skills like Spectral Blade - Siphoning Blade, Electrocute - Surge of Power, and Shock Pulse - Power Affinity all have their uses. You can also use any signature spell with the Prodigy passive to aid in resource generation. There's also resource cost reduction and arcane power on critical hits (APoC) on gear. But to keep it simple, let's say we're going to support Frozen Orb with Spectral Blade - Siphoning Blade.
The situation is that we're running Frozen Orb, spamming it on enemies. At some point or another, we might run out of resources. Now's the time to recover the resources by hitting a few targets with Siphoning Blade. You'll recover a lot of resources in a short period of time, allowing you to start casting a series of Frozen Orbs again.
Now that we have this little combination going, we can focus on controlling scenarios. This means running spells that aid in defense, especially positioning, or supplementary damage. Spells like Teleport, Mirror Image and Slow Time are phenomenal for defense and setting ourselves up in a good spot. Blizzard, Hydra and Explosive Blast are samples of supplementary damage. These skills tend to be "cast and forget." Remember, our main damage dealer right now is Frozen Orb.
Let's say we're running Slow Time - Point of No Return as a defensive spell. We can use it to stun enemies, allowing us to reposition ourselves as necessary. We can also pick a spell to add supplementary damage, like Hydra. We have to think carefully now. Frozen Orb is a ranged AOE spell, so we'll likely be doing our best to cast the spell at a distance to maximize damage before enemies get too close. That means we can go with two different play styles. We can run Blizzard as supplementary damage (since we can't stack it), casting it before Frozen Orb to set up a snare. We can also run Explosive Blast, just to cast when enemies get too close.
Or, we can forgo the supplementary damage and pick a second defensive spell. Do we want more mobility in the form of Teleport? Or do we want Mirror Image for breaking crowd control effects? One thing about Mirror Image is that illusions are able to cast certain spells, which I will cover in the next part.
Current build progress
3. Managing synergies
Every build needs synergy. Take a look at the old CMWW build. That build was the epitome of synergy. Wicked Wind triggers Critical Mass, Critical Mass refreshes Frost Nova for repeated crowd control and refreshes Diamond Skin for pseudo-permanent invulnerability. It also refreshes Explosive Blast to turn a spell meant for supplementary damage into the primary damage dealer. Wicked Wind also triggers Storm Armor - Shocking Aspect for significant supplementary damage. Everything clicked together to form the build that functioned with different engines churning simultaneously.
So what kind of synergy can come from a build focusing on Frozen Orb? Frozen Orb slows enemies by default because it's cold-based. Keeping that in mind, remember we're also running Slow Time - Point of No Return as a way to position ourselves and to also stun enemies. A spell that works very well with Slow Time is Mirror Image. Illusions from Mirror Image can cast their own Slow Time (meaning more stuns in this build) and they can also cast Frozen Orb. They only deal 10% damage, though (with the exception of the Mirror Mimics rune, which allows illusions to deal 20% damage). So now what rune do we pick for Mirror Image? Do we pick Duplicates so we can get five extra Slow Time casts up? Or do we pick Mocking Demise for added stun a little more damage? Let's go with Duplicates so we can get more layers of Slow Time to stun enemies.
Now, if you're familiar with the wizard class, know that the Illusionist passive can reset Teleport, Mirror Image and Slow Time instantly if you take 15% or more of your max HP's worth of damage within 1 second. This means if we're in a situation where we cast Mirror Image, which then results in 5 extra Slow Time bubbles to stun enemies, we can instantly refresh all the bubbles and Mirror Image if we intentionally try to take some damage. In the scenario where we end up taking too much damage, we can repeatedly cast Mirror Image and Slow Time to escape. This is where running Teleport (instead of Mirror Image or Slow Time) can also help.
By slowing enemies with Frozen Orb, constantly stunning with Mirror Image + Slow Time, we have a build that's capable of maneuvering around the map to capitalize on attacking from a safe distance. In other words, it makes for a solid kiting build.
Current build progress
4. Rounding out the build
With a spender in place, a way to sustain it, along with basic synergies to keep a build running, all that's left for us to do is to start padding the build and rounding it out. Usually the options are buffs, in the likes of Magic Weapon, Familiar and/or an armor spell, or with one of the aforementioned spells in addition to a source of supplementary damage (like Blizzard). Magic Weapon is a common choice just because of the straight damage boost that costs nothing but an active skill slot. For the sake of simplicity, let's pick Force Weapon.
Now for the last slot most people pick an armor spell. Do we want Storm Armor - Scramble to help with mobility? Or do we want Pinpoint Barrier for added crit chance to aid with any APoC we have on gear? Or do we want Prismatic Armor for added survivability? I wouldn't recommend Storm Armor - Power of the Storm because there's really not that much of a difference between an Arcane Orb that costs 30 AP versus 27 AP. We're going to run out of resources by the time we cast ~4 Orbs unless we stack bonus max AP and plenty of resource reduction stats so it's more gear dependent. In addition, since we're already running Siphoning Blade to aid in managing resources, Power of the Storm is likely not needed at all. Let's run Scramble to aid in mobility.
Now we need to pick the last couple of passives. Blur is always nice for added survivability. Power Hungry could be worth looking at for resource management, but that involves moving around the map to pick up health globes, which costs us time in casting more spells to deal more damage. Perhaps Glass Cannon or Cold Blooded for more damage? Or Astral Presence to aid in more resource management (if necessary)? How about Dominance for more survivability? The thing about Dominance is that shielding wears off quite quickly on higher difficulty levels, where it's also less likely to ramp up the shielding effects in short periods of time due to higher HP levels on enemies. There are plenty of options, but we'll go with Blur for defense and Cold Blooded for offense.
Finalized build
5. Notes and variations
The way to play the build is very simple. We start off at a distance to cast Frozen Orbs while our enemies make their way to us (if they survive). At any point where resources become scarce, we cast Siphoning Blade a few times to recover AP, then repeat with more Frozen Orbs. At any point where enemy numbers start becoming a little overwhelming, we defend ourselves with Point of No Return. If necessary, we cast Mirror Image for additional Slow Time bubbles. If one cast of Slow Time is enough to stun enemies long enough for Frozen Orb to finish them off, that's good, we can save Mirror Image for other situations.
And that's really it. Here's an older video of a variation of the build running during RoS Beta:
http://youtu.be/OYsWWxDCZPo?t=3m52s
*Build uses high resource reduction so spamming Frozen Orb is a lot easier and straightforward
The play style is similar in the build we put together, though ours might be a little slower in terms of performance (based on standard gear).
Now we can talk about variations. Instead of Frozen Orb, we can use Meteor instead or any other Arcane Orb rune outside of Arcane Orbit (which sort of serves the role as a spender/supplementary damage source).
Then the build looks like this. Still works, we just need to manage the resources a little more closely as Meteor costs 10 more AP than Arcane Orb.
We can also shift one of the defensive spells to Teleport so it looks like this.
Note how I selected Calamity. If we take enough damage to trigger Illusionist, Calamity can be cast multiple times to chain stun enemies. This can be combined with Point of No Return for even more stuns.
Now what if I change Meteor to the Thunder Crash rune? And swap out Cold Blooded (since we're not using cold spells) to Paralysis? Now the build looks like this.
We can also sub Siphoning Blade for Electrocute - Surge of Power. Now we have a lightning wizard build. It focuses on chain stunning with Paralysis and pumping out some good damage with Thunder Crash. We can also add supplementary crowd control via Calamity and Point of No Return.
These builds all follow the same simple template:
1 spender (traditional or channeling)
1 support spell (e.g. signature spell)
Combination of supplementary damage source (Blizzard, Explosive Blast, Hydra), defensive spells (Diamond Skin, Frost Nova, Teleport, Mirror Image, etc.), and/or buffs (Magic Weapon, Familiar, armor spell) that can synergize with each other and/or with the spender.
A build looking like this will likely not perform optimally.
Looks like a massive arcane-centered build, but there are issues. Two channeling spells mean one of them cannot be used while another is active. If you're Disintegrating, you cannot cast Arcane Torrent nor Meteor, meaning spells on the active bar are wasted. If you're dropping Meteor, especially Star Pact that consumes all your AP, then two channeling skills aren't being used. This is why we focus on one spender, traditional or channeling.
By moving a few skills around, we can get something much more focused.
The build has a spender in the form of the channeled Disintegrate. Thrown Blade, perhaps in combination with a healthy amount of APoC, can be enough to recover resources. Teleport serves as a repositioning and mobility tool. Arcane Attunement is a supplementary damage source that can buff up Disintegrate (the ability snapshots, too, so the entire channeling duration is buffed until you let go of the mouse button... or get interrupted). Familiar works very well with channeling spells, so there's the synergy. Cannoneer happens to deal very solid AOE damage so it's a great choice to serve as supplementary damage. Power of the Storm aids in sustaining channeling spells, so that's a good pick to round out the build. Temporal Flux allows all arcane damage (in this case, every damaging spell in the arsenal) to slow enemies. Blur for more survivability so you can stay in one spot longer to channel. Illusionist, as mentioned before, to allow multiple recasts of Teleport.
Let's use another example of a focused build, like this one.
This is one of the more recent renditions of the Sleet Storm build. Sleet Storm is the spender. Glacial Spike aids in recovering resources with Prodigy. You don't necessarily have to use Prodigy either. Safe Passage reduces damage, allowing you to stand your ground with Sleet Storm for a longer period of time. You can also run a different defensive spell, maybe Fracture/Reversal Teleport or Slow Time - Time Warp. Magic Weapon works well. Force Weapon may or may not be the ideal choice considering it knocks enemies around (it can potentially knock enemies outside Sleet Storm's AOE). Ignite makes for decent supplementary damage. You probably get the rest by now. There's not too much synergy in this build other than the good ol' Familiar + channeling spell combo.
Let's look at a more up-to-date example, a variant of the Firebird build:
In this build, Blizzard becomes the main spender while Molten Impact and Blazar, both cooldown-based skills, act as supplementary damage. In addition, the build revolves around the 6-piece Firebird set so most of the damage will be coming from the gear. The defensive spell is Safe Passage, which provides mobility and positioning, shining most when combined with Illusionist. Evocation supports Molten Impact, Blazar and Safe Passage.
Closing statements
Hopefully this helps some newer wizards out in constructing a functional build. Too many times have I seen builds centered only on supplementary damage sources (Blizzard) that cannot stack with each other or cannot be cast successively while maintaining reliable performance. Too many times have I seen builds running multiple spenders (e.g. two channeling spells), conflicting with each other for sustained use.
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Jaetch posted a message on How to Create a Build [Patch 2.0+]Posted in: Wizard: The Ancient Repositories -
50
Pyrrhic posted a message on Adria more powerful than we know? (Spoilers)"Corruption has the strength of deceit, but innocence holds the power of purity." - Adria, DiabloPosted in: Lore & Storyline
Is Adria just a 'cultist' or corrupted mortal, or is she something more than that?
I'm skeptical that they were planning it way back then, but the townsfolk in D1 cast her as a super duper magic user, or something not human.
Why don't that old crone do something for a change? Sure, sure, she's got stuff, but you listen to me - she's unnatural! She doesn't eat or drink, and you can't trust somebody that desn't drink at least a little.
The witch, Adria, is an anomaly here in Tristram. She arrived shortly after the Cathedral was desecrated while most everyone else was fleeing. She had a small hut constructed at the edge of town, seemingly overnight, and has access to many strange and arcane artifacts and tomes of knowledge that even I have never seen before.
Adria is wise beyond her years, but I must admit - she frightens me a little. Well, no matter. If you ever have need to trade in items of sorcery, she maintains a strangely well-stocked hut just across the river.
While I use some limited forms of magic to create the potions and elixirs I store here, Adria is a true sorceress. She never seems to sleep, and she always has access to many mystic tomes and artifacts. I believe her hut may be much more than the hovel it appears to be, but I can never seem to get inside the place.
Adria truly bothers me. Sure, Cain is creepy in what he can tell you about the past, but that witch can see into your past. She always has some way to get whatever she needs, too. Adria gets her hands on more merchandise than I've seen pass through the gates of the King's Bazaar during High Festival.
Doesn't eat, drink, or sleep allegedly, able to get whatever she wants, most of the town is scared of her.. She seemed to know a lot about what was really going on too.
"No Mortal can truly understand the mind of the Demon. Never let their erratic actions confuse you, as that too may be their plan."
"There are many artifacts within the Labyrinth that hold powers beyond the comprehension of mortals. Some of these hold fantastic power that can be used by either the Light or the Darkness. Securing the Anvil from below could shift the course of the Sin War towards the Light."
"This is a place of great anguish and terror, and so serves its master well. Tread carefully or you may yourself be staying much longer than you had anticipated."
"You will become an eternal servant of the Dark Lords should you perish within this cursed domain. Enter the Chamber of Bone at your own peril."
"The Heaven Stone is very powerful, and were it any but Griswold who bid you find it, I would prevent it. He will harness its powers and its use will be for the good of us all."
So since we now know she was apparently an agent of Diablo, we can assume she was there to make sure things went according to plan. What is this plan?
From the D2:LoD instruction manual:
"And a child will cradle Terror in his breast as the heart of man falls under the shadow.
A Wanderer will pass through the ancient lands trailing chaos in his wake.
The Three Brothers will be reunited as the mortal world trembles before their might.
And so it was foretold that the Three, once reunited, would be shattered again—
And the last of them would set his sights on the holy mount. The warnings held that
Their defeat would be illusory—that the final gambit had yet to be played..."
+ + +
And now at last the storm surges forth from the southlands, and the hand of Destruction
Reaches out to undo the workings of the Ancients. The tides of Hell surge—ready to smash
Down upon the shores of the mortal world—to drown the guilty and the innocent alike.
That was from something called Prophecies of the Final Day by the way.
Druid lore excerpt:
They created a new culture and language, cutting themselves off from their Barbarian cousins and their ways, vowing not to return to the Steppes of Mt. Arreat until the time of the Uileloscadh Mór, the final battle between the men of the world and the demons of the Burning Hells.
At the Túr Dúlra, the greatest of the Druid Colleges, stands the magnificent oak Glór-an-Fháidha. This tree is the most revered source of the Druids guidance and teachings. Under its branches, for centuries, the Druids of Scosglen have been honing not only their powerful arsenal of natural magic, but also the martial skills they have retained from their Barbarian forefathers. They have done this because they believe themselves to be the world’s last line of defense when the time of the great conflict comes, a time they believe is at hand. Lashing out in fury at the recent insurgence of denizens of the Burning Hells, and at the Leathdhiabhala, demonic corruptions of the very creatures they have vowed to defend, the Druids have, at last, emerged from their forests, marching toward their final stand against the minions of Chaos.
In D3 we have the Prophecy for the End of Days, which is a 'warning about Hell's ultimate invasion of our world,' and the pieces of the puzzle mentioned in it seem to be coming true. We were also supposed to learn why the Hells didn't invade 20 years ago in the game.
And at the End of Days, Wisdom shall be lost (Malthael being gone, or the mortal Tyrael's demise in X1?)
as Justice falls upon the world of men. (Obvious events of D3, or that Tyrael became aspect of Wis., leaving Justice to Nephalem)
Valor shall turn to Wrath - (Imperius raging over Hell invading, or Imperius waging war on the impudent Nephalem)
as all Hope is swallowed by Despair. (In-game events, or tied to the above, Imp's betrayal. sends Auriel into despair)
Death, at last, shall spread its wings over all -(All these lines reference angels/aspects, Malthael returns as Death?)
as all Fate lies shattered forever. (In-game event of the Hero 'shattering' the fate that Heaven lost that day, or a future event where Ithereal gets destroyed, probably by Malthael/Imperius)
So we know the culmination of this storyline, which they have claimed will get resolved in D3, is this final battle/ultimate invasion of Sanctuary by Hell. Something that has been prophecized for centuries and something that the Evils themselves seem to know all about.
I think Diablo/Evils knew what would happen in D3 as well, I forget what he says exactly but why would he send Adria away to be used later if he, and the angels, were sure he would succeed in the attack on Heaven, since it was kind of 'written in stone' on the Scroll of Fate?
My answer, he wouldn't, he knew he would be stopped, in fact, he and Belial/Azmodan wanted to be stopped. Ever look at the various forums and see all the complaints about 'beLIEal more like beFAILal amirite?? lol y is azodon tellin me where he attack??? teh gaem say he the gr8est general. y iz diab0 tellin me bout his hell gaets????' They were leading you along to do exactly what they wanted you to do.
Sidebar: The Prime Evil, supposedly Diablo in the game. The following is said by Tyrael while on the quest, Prime Evil.
Player:
What do you speak of when you say the Prime Evil?
Tyrael:
It is the sum total of all seven Evils housed within one body. There is an ancient legend, known only to a few, of the great Dragon, Tathamet, who was the original embodiment of evil.
The legend says that he was ripped apart during an epic battle with Anu, and that the Burning Hells are composed of his remains.
Player:
Who is Anu?
Tyrael:
Just as Tathamet was the ultimate evil, Anu was the ultimate good. It is said by some that the Crystal Arch is all that remains of this great warrior.
Player:
Then Diablo seeks to become the Dragon once again?
Tyrael:
In a manner of speaking, yes.
So, either one Nephalem can be more powerful than what is basically one of the (accidental) creator gods of the entire universe, or Diablo was merely supercharged with the souls of the other Evils, and not really the Prime Evil, which even the CE artbook shows as a hydra thing. (Coincidence, D3 was codenamed Project Hydra?)
Also said by Tyrael:
But the Black Soulstone is flawed and cannot contain that many demons for long. We must capture Azmodan within it and shatter it... lest all these Evils be reborn.
Obviously that didn't happen because for reasons we will likely only know in the expansion, Diablo's body was just tossed over the side of Heaven, and the Black Soulstone was left intact.
Now, I don't know if it means anything, but it's near the end of the artbook. They're either concept art for the Child Emperor, or possibly for the future plot. Right below what looks to be a Cultist drawing, there are 3 children sitting 'Indian style' with elaborate headdresses. The middle one has a mostly different clothing style than the other two, while the other two are almost identical to each other. They both have 'face paint' or tattoos in red and blue on their face and bare chests, their eyes are shut with the 'paint' filling in their eyelids, and have what looks to be a 'third eye' possibly tattooed on their forehead. They also have some black jewelry on around their neck, upper left arm, and wrists.
"There is much about the future we cannot see, but when it comes it will be the children who wield it." - Adria, Diablo, talking about Wirt
So, we know if the BS isn't destroyed, the evils will get loose. The Nephalem are super powerful. Diablo possibly wants to re-make the Tathamet hydra. Theory: the Evils will possess children that Adria and/or Triune cultists have been raising after the Worldstone was destroyed, giving them massive power. Enough power to reform into Tathamet and smash the Heavens once and for all. (We, of course, thwart this plan by rescuing Princess Leah (has to be a reason they retconned Warrior into Prince Aidan) and find out her family's destiny is to bring back Anu and/or defeat Tathamet, which is why Diablo and the Evils were working to corrupt and destroy the Leoric bloodline)
Update: Some support for Princess Leah/Leoric bloodline's greater purpose?
So as we know, Mephisto was soulstone'd under the Zakarum Temple of the Light and was eventually able to corrupt them. What did those manipulated leaders do? Proclaimed Leoric king of Khanduras. The Archbishop Lazarus (bastard led us into a trap!) was 'intent' on Leoric choosing the 'broken-down monastery' as his seat of power. (Hmm, wonder why.. )
http://d3db.com/lore/i/leorics-journal-part-1
We have just arrived in Tristram, and I must say I'm a bit dismayed. This place is a backwater filled with serfs and an ancient, broken-down monastery, hardly fit for the king of Khanduras! I cannot fathom why Lazarus was so intent on this becoming our new seat of power.
http://d3db.com/lore/i/the-skeleton-king
The Zakarum high priests in Kurast proclaimed Leoric king of Khanduras many years ago. He ruled well until Diablo's influence drove him mad, and the loyal knight Lachdanan was forced to slay him. Afterward, Diablo himself raised Leoric from the dead as the Skeleton King until the monarch's son Aidan vanquished him.
However, the Diablo 1 lore almost seems to imply that Lazarus wasn't under demonic control until they had 'settled' and Diablo used his powers to coerce and eventually corrupt him.
Sensing that freedom was within his grasp, Diablo entered the nightmares of the Archbishop and lured him into the dark, subterranean labyrinth. In his terror, Lazarus raced throughout the abandoned hallways until he at last came to the chamber of the burning Soulstone. No longer in command of his body or spirit, he raised the stone above his head and uttered words long forgotten in the realm of mortals. His will destroyed, Lazarus shattered the Soulstone upon the ground.
...
Lazarus too, had fallen under the sway of the Demon, keeping close to Leoric at all times.
He also was apparently "a guardian of Mephisto's soulstone in Kurast" so it's up in the air, but I think he wasn't, as far as D1 is concerned, corrupted until they got to Tristram and Diablo reawakened, while in Diablo 3 he likely was corrupted from the get-go.
The wording is kind of vague, for what we are talking about here, but this piece also sounds like Leoric just came in on his own volition in D1 and was all 'For the glory of the Light! I am your king! I shall save you from the ever encroaching darkness! I claim this ancient Monastery as my seat of power in the name of the Zakarum!'
It was then that the great northern lord Leoric came unto the lands of Khanduras and, in the name of Zakarum, declared himself King. Leoric was a deeply religious man and had brought many Knights and Priests with him that comprised his Order of the Light. Leoric and his trusted advisor, the Arch Bishop Lazarus, made their way to the city of Tristram. Leoric appropriated the ancient, decrepit Monastery on the outskirts of the town for his seat of power and renovated it to match its time-lost glory.
It could just as easily be interpreted as what we know from the D3 lore, (although it has been retcon'd that he is an eastern lord now) that the corrupted High Priests told him 'Go be king here, in the name of Zakarum' and Lazarus was all 'Hey look, this building looks cool, right? What do you mean it's a dump? Castles are like so last year, you should just pick this place, I mean, we're already here, no?'
Personally, I'm thinking it was some minor retcons to go along with their current plotline, if solely for the fact that they felt the need to give the Warrior a backstory as a son to King Leoric of all things. For all that we saw of it in the game, the Warrior might as well have been just some nameless Warrior or Gheed's brother, as from what I remember, the whole 'Oh my Heavens, Leah is actually the heir to the throne!' plot hasn't come into play....yet.
Possibly going along with the whole 'The Evils were/are playing you like a fiddle' theory, Jay Wilson in some 2011 interviews (although he's talking about Diablo 2's perspective of course):
If the player thinks they outsmarted the forces of Hell and evil and they basically won, well, they are in for a big shock. Because what they are going to discover in Diablo 3 is that things have gone pretty exactly the way Hell wanted them to go all along.
What we really wanted was the idea of a story where we do have some time away, it’s about 20 years later, and things have actually gotten better because evil’s been “destroyed”. But the truth is that it’s actually all just been a ruse, it’s all part of the plan. It’s really just making sure everyone’s nice and complacent for the real war that’s coming. -
5
Pyrrhic posted a message on [Spoilers/Poll]Possible Plot expansionsFrom what I noticed in-game and from some out of game sources, if they are going to only have two expansions:Posted in: Lore & Storyline
X1 - Save the Princess!
New classes: Templar Knight and Necromancer? Druid? (Templar Knight uses angelic runeblades/angelic spears and perhaps is like Paladin mixed with Javazon with some angel-ish powers. Necro is of course our old Necro with some improvements and refinements, same with Druid.)
Starts in Kingsport/Westmarch. You arrive on a ship or however, Kormac runs off on his own to challenge his Templars, Eireena possibly goes after him. You end up in a big battle with the Thieves' Guild. Finish that up, pay off the Merchant Guild, free his brother, pursue Kormac.
Battle your way into the Templar stronghold, demand answers. Reveal who and for what reason the Templars were given plans for angelic weaponry and set up to fight off an angel invasion.
King of Westmarch is revealed to be under demonic influence, hence his not sending reinforcements to battle an 'imaginary' enemy in Act III. Demon turns out to be one of Azmodan's Sin Lieutenants, new motive to destroy them all. Greed, Envy, Wrath, Pride, and Sloth remain to be seen.
At some point Leah plotline brought back into play. Seek out Cult of Rathma for assistance saving her. Journeying through the "Unformed Land" results in a history of the Leoric bloodline, revealing why that one family in particular seems to have such an affinity to Diablo. Lachdanan's spirit aids you in order to help Leah, fulfilling his promise to 'repay the (D1 hero) from beyond the grave if he could,' from a certain point of view. Spirits of the Warrior, Rogue, and Sorceror, perhaps, help you defeat some kind of boss in here. Lazarus?
Leah finally saved, brought back. Has a 'Uncle Deckard! I now know what you meant!' moment regarding her greater purpose. Adria has of course recovered the Black Soulstone, fight her and claim it. At some point Tyrael is killed, soul stored in the BS, leading to..
X2 - The End of Days
New classes: Assassin, Vizjerei, 'Dark Wanderer' (Assassin is of course based on D2 assassin with some tweaks, Vizjerei is more focused on elemental magic compared to the wizard's arcane, and 'Dark Wanderer' is a demonic power user)
…And, at the End of Days, Wisdom shall be lost
as Justice falls upon the world of men.
Valor shall turn to Wrath-
and all Hope will be swallowed by Despair.
Death, at last, shall spread its wings over all-
as Fate lies shattered forever.
So, either this prophecy occurred in the game and we take it at face value, that yes Malthael is gone, Tyrael fell, Imperius is mad as, no pun intended, hell, Auriel was attacked by Rakanoth, Lord of Despair, Diablo/the battles resulted in a lot of deaths, and the pre-determined fate that the angels would lose was shattered by the Nephalem hero.
Or, we may have only been led to believe these events occurred, and it was all a set-up for the future story. Tyrael the mortal abandoned Justice (claiming it had been met that day, despite himself saying only by destroying the Soulstone would the evils be destroyed) and took up Wisdom.
Hmm, a mortal is now Wisdom, which is going to be 'lost' when this whole prophecy kicks in, and Justice may 'fall' upon the world of men, meaning the Nephalem have to mete out future Justice since there isn't an Aspect of it at the moment.
Valor goes Wrath mode and wants to destroy the nephalem before they destroy the angels, especially since they were able to defeat the Prime Evil when he could not. Imperius' actions cause Auriel to lose hope, leading to despair. Archangel Malthael returns as the Aspect of Death and joins Imperius' crusade perhaps. Ithereal ends up 'shattered' and sent to their version of the Abyss for trying to stop Imperius.
Either way works I suppose for what might come next.
That prophecy is, according to Deckard Cain himself in-game, a warning about an 'ultimate invasion' of Sanctuary by the Hells.
The Prophecy of the End Days is contained within the Horadric tomes I inherited from my ancestor Jered Cain.
It is a warning to those who could interpret it regarding Hell's ultimate invasion of our world, written by many different people throughout history in many different lands.
Now, we know Diablo, Baal, and Mephisto all still had their armies since they were invading the Heavens. As far as I can recall, we only fought Belial and Azmodan's forces in Sanctuary. So, either all these ancient prophets (and who/whatever was giving them this vision) didn't account for random Nephalem to completely stop this 'ultimate invasion,' or the invasion has yet to come.
So, if the second interpretation of the prophecy is true, that would leave a very fractured Angiris Council, the perfect time for an 'ultimate invasion' of Sanctuary by the Hells to corrupt and 'use them as weapons,' which Tyrael says in a dialogue was the demons' goal. Meanwhile, Imperius was also planning an invasion, and thus three forces meet on the fields of Sanctuary: angels, demons, and nephalem.
The Wrath animation has Deckard Cain talking about how he fears the angel-demon war will soon engulf Sanctuary. and that the 'wrath of angels' cannot be quenched.
You also have the Templar order having been established by someone/thing to fight off angels.
There was also that Book of Cain interview, where 'Angels in Diablo are as nice as angels in our world' got an immediate 'Nnooo.' answer. 'I am afraid of Imperius' was also answered with a 'yes'
The lore in the D2 manuals is mostly about a 'final battle between men and demons' occuring in the future.
And, perhaps one of the biggest things, the Black Soulstone specifically being mentioned that it can hold demons and angels.
I think there may be some more hints towards the 'ultimate showdown' on Sanctuary, but I don't remember them at the moment.
So, there's these huge invasions going down, the Prime Evils possess Nephalem in order to get enough powers to re-form the Tathamet dragon. In any case, somehow this thing comes back.(The CE artbook has some art of Tathamet and Anu, it's in the first area after the classes I think if you have it, the opposing page has some really weird things, too) Leah realizes her true purpose is to bring back Anu to fight the dragon, does so using black soulstone/witch powers/family legacy. Big final battle with Anu and Tathamet duking it out while you run around on Tath and fight the various heads, things go boom, stage set for Diablo 4/'Domain of Diablo'
Some other things that may play a part:
Covetous Shen's Dirgest gem: Very likely this is going to be involved in some form, possibly as a boss you get to fight, depending on what it really is.
Scoundrel Relic: Said to be about the size of a fist and scarlet, possibly the same thing as Shen's gem? Or the heart of someone/thing? Don't remember enough about it.
Lilith/Inarius: Big role in the creation of Sanctuary, seems like we should see more of them. The above Book of Cain interview confirms that Inarius is still in Hell prior to the events of D3 at least.
Druids: Their Diablo 2: LoD lore says: "They created a new culture and language, cutting themselves off from their Barbarian cousins and their ways, vowing not to return to the Steppes of Mt. Arreat until the time of the Uileloscadh Mór, the final battle between the men of the world and the demons of the Burning Hells.
They have done this because they believe themselves to be the world’s last line of defense when the time of the great conflict comes, a time they believe is at hand."
Diablo 2 Heroes: That above Book of Cain interview confirms to us that 'Not all of them' are alive. If this ultimate invasion goes down, you can bet they will be involved, either helping us or corrupted like the original Diablo heroes.
Those giant things in 'eternal torture' in Act III: These things are pretty messed up, they have their hands nailed to their shoulders etc. The following lore mentions Inarius' followers 'shar(ing) an even darker fate' (darker than death). Maybe this is mentioned in the books, but those giant things look like they have attachments for wings on their back, might the 'even darker fate' involve being trapped in some giant, eternally tortured, body?
UPDATE: Had an epiphany a bit ago, remember in D2 how Izual was, you guessed it, trapped in a demon's body? If these are what happened to those Inarius followers, well, there you go.
http://d3db.com/lore...anctuary-part-4
In the end, Lilith was banished and Inarius was given over to the demons, who have tortured him in the Hells ever since. Most of Inarius's followers were killed; those who remained shared an even darker fate. Despite the tragedy, I believe the nephalem may yet play a part in resolving the Eternal Conflict.
http://d3db.com/lore/i/colossal-golgor
Could this demon be Dirgest? Or is it something we already know about from the books or something.
The colossal golgor is merely a colossal myth! In folklore, they are sons of an infamous demon who smashed half of Hell in anger after the Prime Evils were defeated during the "Dark Exile." Why, if I had a gold coin for each of these tales, I would be a wealthy man indeed!
http://d3db.com/lore/i/grotesque
The grotesques may seem slow and senseless, but they hide many dangers within their hideously malformed bodies. A set of spikes lurks beneath the monsters' flesh, and foul parasites nest within them. It is said that these horrors themselves are constructed by a greater evil... a darkness that I cannot even fathom.
http://d3db.com/lore...he-mallet-lords
The mallet lords are brutal overseers second only to the seven Evils themselves. The mallet demons rule the seething outer reaches of the Hells that surround the central realms, and have long refused to join any of the Lesser Evils' armies. Surely the destruction would be unthinkable if such a thing ever came to pass. - To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
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Ok so Nephalem rifts are random areas that have random enemies. They have a better loot drop chance and at higher levels can drop Greater Rift Stones once you beat a boss that appears when you finish filling the progress bar that appears when you first enter. The greater rift stones are used to enter Greater Rifts. These are used to access rifts that have to be beaten within 15 min. They drop NO loot during the rift but once you beat the boss you get special gems that give great bonuses when socketed into amulets or rings and can level those gems up this way as well. the experience in these GRs are also much higher and have better drops at the end. Greater rifts can also go above the Torment X difficulty.
Paragon Levels are infinite, but you will max out the capable bonuses at lvl800. After that it is just main stat and vit.
You should be working to do rifts and getting legendaries to suit the build you want, Greater Rifts to get the gems you want and level them up, Bounties can be done to get crafting materials for kanai's cube to extract powers once you get what you need.
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I love it when people say it should only take 25-30 hours. I want to really know what people are doing that cause this. For me with my life and responsibilities I am lucky to finish one or two steps of conquest. let alone all but the final one for stash tabs. Even with the time I get I probably played a good 50-100 hours last season never got past GR equivalent of T8 let alone speed running it. If people really feel it's that easy to even compensate for RNG and shite drops than please let me know what I am doing wrong. I guess I am just not "efficient" enough.
Though to answer the OPs question from the leaderboards and from my experience on PTR Wizards, WD, and DH are best for speed DPS
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This... Jesus I was doing that and face-rolling it with 300 resists albeit certain combos i had to concentrate for but for most face-roll. rethink your build man. I could suggest this one http://us.battle.net...YXgk!ZUY!cZccYa its what I use most times certain situations call for other switch ins.
EDIT: saw you meant act 2 both times. Still with 1100 resists shouldn't be that hard unless you got really bad luck with the affixes.