And they said a Melee Necromancer was impossible...

[TheHunter25]

For all out there who disblieve a Necromancer can survive in Hell, and I know there are a lot of skeptics, then listen to how I made one work...
First off, it's important to know that a Melee Necro's equipment is key--
Chains of Honor -- Superior Boneweave
Passion -- Superior Legendary Mallet
Storm Shield
Perfect Vampire Gaze
Goreriders
Lavagouts / Steelrends
Nosferatu's Coil
Highlord's
Perfect BK Ring
Perfect Ravenfrost
The reason for this equipment is such--
Chains of Honor grants +2 to skills (helpful for Zeal), excellent resists, LL, Damage Reduced 8%, Strength for more damage, and even a little MF.
Passion is a cool enough runeword because of the skills it gives you, Zeal, and for physical immunes, Berzerk. Zeal increases damage and attack rating, the latter being the bigger problem IMO, and gives you extra attacks. What one must keep in mind tho is that to really maximize this effect, enough +to skills is required to get the full five hits. Also, Passion gives IAS which is necessary, and a huge bonus to attack rating based on a percent. Hit Blinds Target is nice for not taking damage, tho admittedly hit causes monster to flee is annoying. Also, Legendary Mallets have the best dmg range of one handed weapons and it looks really cool.
Stormshield is necessary for its high defense, good blocking percent, resists, and damage reduced. For more resists, one could socket with an Um, or for more damage, one could use a 40/15ias which I am looking into.
The Gaze is great for dual leech, damage reduced, and cold damage. Mine is perfect and I'm working on upgrading.
Goreriders are good for their obvious melee bonuses, and Lavagouts have enchant and ias and fire resist, while Steelrend have huge bonuses to strength, ed%, and crushing blow.
Nosferatu's Coil is cool because it's got ias, slows target, LL, and +to strength.
Highlords is necessary because of the +to skills, bonus to AR, and chance of deadly strike, plus lit resists. BK Ring gives life leech, life bonus and +1 to skills, finally making Zeal do 5 hits, and Ravenfrost gives Dexterity and bonus to AR, cannot be frozen, cold damage, and cold absorb.

As for skills--

The problem with the melee necro is that he doesn't really have any skills he needs to max. So here's what I did:

+1 to each skill on curses list because LR is important, as well as attract, amp, and sometimes iron maiden.
+1 to teeth and maxed Corpse explosion
+1 to fire golem and maxed Golem mastery
The rest of the skills are pumped into lower resist, amp, a few into attract, and nothing else matters

Killing strategy is key: Amp a group of enemies and attract the most powerful. Run in and zeal a few times then ce. With enough leech you don't even need to go crazy with ce. Also, my necro does 950-1500 per zeal hit, and can usually take on a minion of distruction in about three seconds. Not too shabby. If anybody is interested in more detail, look up Fellstrider on USast. Peace all

[patheticloser]

I am interested, interested how you got the bad@$$ items. Did you game 24/7 for months on end? Did you use your VISA card on e-bay? Of course if you can afford to get items like that you could do anything with any character class. In fact you prove this point quite well, you can do things that should be impossible, if you have the right gear.


IMHO a guide that assumes you have the absolute best gear is of no use. People who have the gear don't need the guide, people without can't use the guide.

[Indemaijinj]

Are you envious Patheticloser? ;)


I don't really think this was intended to be a guide, more like a little personal rant.


BTW, there are several skills that can aid a melee-necromancer. He can play Divide and Conquer with curses and Bone Prisons. He could go skelliemancer and charge alongside a mob of angry minions (not cowering behind them like the standard skelliemancers).

He could even drop a Poison Explosion now and then to prevent mob regeneration and whatnot.

[Hex]

I am interested, interested how you got the bad@$$ items. Did you game 24/7 for months on end? Did you use your VISA card on e-bay? Of course if you can afford to get items like that you could do anything with any character class. In fact you prove this point quite well, you can do things that should be impossible, if you have the right gear.


IMHO a guide that assumes you have the absolute best gear is of no use. People who have the gear don't need the guide, people without can't use the guide.

I dislike people that moan and complain. I went into a duel game and got called an ebayer because I have enigma. Had they known what else I used they wouldn't have said anything. I worked hard for my gear and it pisses me off when people like you ***** and complain about it. I mean come on dude play the game for a month or so like I did. I mf'd for about 2 monthes straight.

[Zero-unit]

Hm..Knowing you are using a Legendary Mallet on a Necromancer I must say thats one slow Zeal your making. If anything you would even need a large amount for a Phase Blade to reach 7/4, speed is always the alternative for zeal.

Dr@kE~

[Corpseus]

Yeah getting good gear simply takes comitment, trading smart, and a plan or goal that you don't deviate too far from. Don't build on a whim, but plan out what you want and work to get it. Also if you want good gear you need to mf, end of story.

[DistortedRiff]

Pathetic, its really only the chains that are super high end. I've played for 3 months in 1.10 and have aqcuired everything but the passion mallet (I made one for fun in a phase blade because I found 3 dols in 1 day :)) and the perfect perfect gaze (close to perfect though ;) )

[memememe173]

IMO Passion in a Ledgendary Maller is not a god choice. WAAAAY to slow

[Mad Mantis]

For all out there who disblieve a Necromancer can survive in Hell, and I know there are a lot of skeptics, then listen to how I made one work...

Welcome Newcomer to The Darkness. Grab a brew :drink: and feel free to raise some corpses.

A Meleemancer is very doable. I am in the process of writing a guide. My only question is: "Did you try to make him untwinked?"

Any build can succeed with badazz weapons, but not untwinked.

[TheHunter25]

Lol well now lets see--First off, everything I've collected I've either found or traded legitely. I never scam anyone or cheat people out of equitable trades. That sort of stuff makes the game not fun. And I didn't go to ebay because for one, I'm broke and wouldn't pay money for Diablo past the CD price (uo anyone? not me) and the whole point of the game is to pretty much find good items and have a good time doing that. What's the point of playing if you spend a quick bill on ebay and become godly overnight? Just because I've done a fair bit of mfing in all the right areas with decent mf doesn't mean I got my stuff from ebay people.

And you're right--it's not really so much as a guide but an example for a melee necro that I'm very proud of. I think he works out very well and doesn't really ever have a problem. I forgot to mention he has an act 2 merc for blessed aim and tons of strength for the 189 requirement of Passion. As far as weapon choice, know this: it's not just about making the most badass character ever, or rather making a cookie-cutter build, it's all about making a build that's custom and unique. I happen to like legendary mallets and the speed with which I attack due to my planned equipment is very fast. It's not lightening fast, but like I said, it can kill a minion of destruction easy in about three seconds, which is not bad for me. I think they are cool weapons with the most 1h dmg on them with the most speed comparative. Besides, my 09 necro used shaeffers to good effect and I wanted something similar. Really tho, it's a cool build. Just a little proud :)

[BleedBlack]

Lol well now lets see--First off, everything I've collected I've either found or traded legitely. I never scam anyone or cheat people out of equitable trades. That sort of stuff makes the game not fun. And I didn't go to ebay because for one, I'm broke and wouldn't pay money for Diablo past the CD price (uo anyone? not me) and the whole point of the game is to pretty much find good items and have a good time doing that. What's the point of playing if you spend a quick bill on ebay and become godly overnight? Just because I've done a fair bit of mfing in all the right areas with decent mf doesn't mean I got my stuff from ebay people.

And you're right--it's not really so much as a guide but an example for a melee necro that I'm very proud of. I think he works out very well and doesn't really ever have a problem. I forgot to mention he has an act 2 merc for blessed aim and tons of strength for the 189 requirement of Passion. As far as weapon choice, know this: it's not just about making the most badass character ever, or rather making a cookie-cutter build, it's all about making a build that's custom and unique. I happen to like legendary mallets and the speed with which I attack due to my planned equipment is very fast. It's not lightening fast, but like I said, it can kill a minion of destruction easy in about three seconds, which is not bad for me. I think they are cool weapons with the most 1h dmg on them with the most speed comparative. Besides, my 09 necro used shaeffers to good effect and I wanted something similar. Really tho, it's a cool build. Just a little proud :)

I agree. Alot of prefrences in what I use is all about style. And I'll tell you what, smacking stuff with a huge azz mallet is as styleful as it gets...

Good job on your necro! :D

[Dazuni]

I was looking at passion and I am so glad that some one did it. I have like 2 dol and need to get the rest of the runes, I think I can get it easy if I trade.. I have a tal belt laying around.

That said, I have changed my melee necro a bit since then, he is now using malice fanged knife with poison dagger, I am still to try him out fully, I am at level 52 and need to wait a while to get Marrow walk level 66.

I do have a facination with hammers, noticabley I did try to use wind hammer when my last necro finds it, failed misably as he run out of strength. this idea with mullet seems good. I was planning to get a passion staff, which means low req, but no block. what about 1 handed axes?

I just looked up axes, small crestsnt seems good too for this.

Does any one know if the AR bonus of Poison Dagger stack with Zeal / Berserk AR bonus??

[ElvishLegion]

No the dagger doesnt stack with zeal/zerk as you have to have it on your left click for it to work. Passion is only an OK weapon for meleemancers, the zeal speed on a phaseblade from recent test never gets any faster, and if it doesnt its just not worth the lose of gear. With all that top end gear you can really make any char do well (not to rain on you) and there arent very many people here that think a meleemancer is impossible, mantis is writing a guide (it better be good mantis its takeing ages) and im working on a daggermancer and guide it just takes a little more careful playing when useing such a fragile build in melee, but congrats. Now do it in hardcore haha.

Elvish

Edit: CE is kinda mana draining, so that must be fun, and passions flee and blind will over right amp a lot, how did you get around that? Let things run, that is to much of a pain for me, (glad daggers cant get 4 sokets or id have to try a zealing dagger mancer haha)

[Mad Mantis]

mantis is writing a guide (it better be good mantis its takeing ages)

He, I am making an unrushed, untwinked, summonless, hardcore Meleemancer guide. It takes time. Not to mention the other builds I am including.

[ElvishLegion]

He, I am making an unrushed, untwinked, summonless, hardcore Meleemancer guide. It takes time. Not to mention the other builds I am including.


Oh, hardcore I see. Yeah I think the point in clay for my daggermancer was a waste...he dies before hes any real use and thats only in act 2 normal! My merc OTOH is owning it up, no real problems there. Mad are you going to include a coverage on CE? That kinda takes away from melee if you ask me

Elvish

[Mad Mantis]

Oh, hardcore I see. Yeah I think the point in clay for my daggermancer was a waste...he dies before hes any real use and thats only in act 2 normal! My merc OTOH is owning it up, no real problems there. Mad are you going to include a coverage on CE? That kinda takes away from melee if you ask me

The fact that I am trying for HC means that I can only progress very slowly. The fact that I can not play all the days in the week and that it is untwinked also doesn't help.

Because the gear must be selected with melee combat in mind I found that I can not get a lot of +Skills if I go untwinked, that is why I didn't go for summons. Although I am working on a hybrid.

My Meleemancer has only the pre-req point in CE. I haven't used it yet and I will not use it. My melee weapon should kill all the monsters, not just one and then CE.

Act 2 Mercs are by far the best for a Meleemancer. The aura is VERY helpful.

[Soepgroente]

Only a pure psychic hammer assassin wouldn't work with that kind of equipment (assuming no mercenary)

But hey, nice shot. I'd say hammer one creature down and use CE on the rest. Many skeletons kind of defeat the purpose of a meleemancer imo. Lots of crushing blow should take care of act bosses.

BTW- can't you get the attack rating bonus from poison dagger with a non-dagger? You won't do the poison damage but i think if you select the skill you'll have the attack rating. You can't zeal with the bonus though :(

[Mad Mantis]

can't you get the attack rating bonus from poison dagger with a non-dagger?

The AR transfers to any weapon using the normal attack button rather than the throwing button. No mana is used and no poison is added to the damage.

[Armor_Biff]

I have a similar necromancer, minus the uber gear. He is level 78 in hell act 2, wearing these items and it works ok so far:

Shako
Highlord's
Passion Scourge
Lionheart Boneweave
Spike Thorn with 18% DR
Lavagout
Ravenfrost
Thundergods
Rare ring with AR, LL, 2 resists...
Marrowwalks

Does anyone know the breakpoints for zeal ?? The german weapon speed site didnt have any info about it for non-paladin classes.