Build help

[Isshy]

Hi. I am building my first sorc and could use a little help. I started out to make a blizz sorc but am wondering if I could effectively dual tree due to all the cold immunes. Here are my current stats:

Char Level 67

Strength-75
Dex-25
Vit-110
Energy-35
175 saved points

Skills:
20 Ice Blast
20 Blizzard
1 Cold Mastery
1 Teleport
1 Static
1 warmth
24 saved points

Act 2 Defiance merc

I have decent gear (Shako, Soj, BK ring, tals ammy, vipermagi, eshutas, archnid etc. ...some of which I cant use yet) Any gear suggestions are welcome! I also have a set of MF gear but don't have the strength to use skullders/war travs yet...should i look for STR charms or just spend the 20 points in strength? I'm probbly gonna go vitality instead of dex/block. Would you agree with that choice?

I want this to be a MF sorc that can do Hell baal, mephy, pindle, council, the pit, countess etc. I would like to be able to rush people but the magic finding is more important. (I dont mind switching equipment to rush people).

So is dual treeing a viable option at this point? If so what would you recommend? I really just want a way to deal with cold immunes without relying on my merc ...any/all opinions and advice on any/all subjects would be highly appreciated!

[kuafu]

You can still change to a blizzballer (http://forums.diabloii.net/showthread.php?t=214093). The guide suggests 20 points in glacial spike instead of ice blast, but they're the same for synergizing blizzard; you just can't use ice blast as an effective attack directly.
Edit: actually some of the discussions in the guide suggest that ice blast is better than glacial spike, so you might be just doing fine:smiley:. You can read the whole thread and form your own opinion (I didn't finish reading the whole thing).

[melianor]

With your current points i would also suggest a blizzballer build, like kuafu does. Very fun to play and viable for MFing in your areas.

[Superhal]

imho, just put 156 str for pvm. it will save you a lot of hassle.

i would say stick to blizz. get an infinity wep later. imho, going away from single tree is just out of the frustration of the moment. you will regret it later when you are in hell on higher player levels. (conversely, if you are only going to play p1-2, then dual tree is fine.) i haven't experimented with cold at all (only lightning/fire) but infinity breaks just about everything.

[Isshy]

Hi. Thanks for the replies.

Superhal: You said 'I haven't experimented with cold at all (only lightning/fire) but infinity breaks just about everything.' If you mean that it makes cold immunes no longer immune to cold i think thats not correct. I borrowed an infinity to try on my merc and the cold immunes were still immune.

I plan on having +16 skills or more from items which will bring me to that golden +17 Cold mastery I've read about so I'm guessing with that many +skills the dual tree will be more viable.

Do you think that Chain Lightning would be doable or is fireball definitely better? CL would save me 3 points on prerequisites and I like the range and auto-targeting.

[Spellreaver]

Hi. Thanks for the replies.

Superhal: You said 'I haven't experimented with cold at all (only lightning/fire) but infinity breaks just about everything.' If you mean that it makes cold immunes no longer immune to cold i think thats not correct. I borrowed an infinity to try on my merc and the cold immunes were still immune.

I plan on having +16 skills or more from items which will bring me to that golden +17 Cold mastery I've read about so I'm guessing with that many +skills the dual tree will be more viable.

Do you think that Chain Lightning would be doable or is fireball definitely better? CL would save me 3 points on prerequisites and I like the range and auto-targeting.

They are both good spells, but if you're thinking of a blizzballer, fireball really makes the build shine. Its minimum damage beats the minimum for lightning and the synergies (fireball w/meteor) are a potent combination.

But I've successfully used blizzard/chain lightning combo on my tri-sorc to excellent effect as well. She's level 80 and in Act 2, Hell, and doing it solo (SP). Unlike fireball, chain lightning will hit creatures even off screen, thus having a better area of effect than fireball... the rebound effect is also handy for increasing damage.

Largely, its a personal choice, but fireball has the potential for greater damage/impact than lightning, whose only plus is its crowd killing potential at high levels. As far as immunities, I've encountered an equal number of lightning or fire immunes in Hell, so no help there. I've heard there are more fire immunes, but am no expert on Hell difficulty or immunites.

Hope this helps you finish your build.

[Nebulus]

imho, just put 156 str for pvm. it will save you a lot of hassle.

i would say stick to blizz. get an infinity wep later. imho, going away from single tree is just out of the frustration of the moment. you will regret it later when you are in hell on higher player levels. (conversely, if you are only going to play p1-2, then dual tree is fine.) i haven't experimented with cold at all (only lightning/fire) but infinity breaks just about everything.

DO NOT PUT ANYMORE INTO STRENGTH. I really want to emphasize on this point. You can easily add extra strength with gear.
War travs = 10 torch = 15-20 anni= 15-20 shako =2 Chain of Honor(CoH)= 20
85 +72= 157 enough for a spirit shield
Or if you can get Mara's ammy add another 5 to all attributes
Infact you can aquire spirit shields with abour 135 stength requirement meaning you won't even need any additional points in strength

[Isshy]

Thanks. Ya i figured on those strength increasing items so I didn't take Superhals 156 strength advice (thank goodness). I have 86 in strength at this point and that'll probably be enough. What sheild can you make spirit in that only requires 135 strength?

More opinions on Chain lightning vs fireball/meteor would be nice. (Im up to level 76 with 34 saved skill points I'm waiting to spend hehe).

[kuafu]

156str is the minimum for a spirit shield that sorc can use, because spirit can only be made in 4os shields. Excluding pally-only shields, there're only Monarch, Aegis and Ward that can get 4 sockets. Monarch has 156str requirement, and the rest two are (much) higher, which makes 156str the minimum for sorc's spirit shield.

[Isshy]

Maybe an ethereal monarch could have lower requirements?

Does the minus lightning resist from infinity on merc apply to sorcs chain lightning? Is there a set range for it? -50 or so enemy lightning resistance seems like it would help make CL better. (Still haven't decided on Chain Lightning or fireball/meteor...)

I appreciate the replies thanks for the helping the newbie sorc that I am.


P.S.-which is better for running Baal in hell? Chain Light or Fireball/meteor?

[kuafu]

Maybe an ethereal monarch could have lower requirements?
Yes you can, if you don't mind it breaking at some point, and you'll need to get a new one afterwards. Some rich duelers do that with ethereal items.

Does the minus lightning resist from infinity on merc apply to sorcs chain lightning? Is there a set range for it? -50 or so enemy lightning resistance seems like it would help make CL better. (Still haven't decided on Chain Lightning or fireball/meteor...)
No, the lower lightning resist only applies to the bearer of the item. So the chain lightning triggered from Infinity will benefit from that, but the chain lightning from your sorc will not, unless your sorc carries the Infinity herself (which is a viable in some builds).
The stats of Infinity can be found here (http://www.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/runewords-110.shtml). It's -45% ~ -55% enemy lightning resist.

P.S.-which is better for running Baal in hell? Chain Light or Fireball/meteor?
Both are quite viable. I'd say chain lightning is probably a little faster, if you have top gears.

[Isshy]

Ok I must be the most indecisive person in the world and i apologize for that. I just don't want to regret my choice. I'm level 80 with 42 saved skill points and here is how I see it at this point. I could:

1)Pure Cold. Best for attaining high character levels in 8 player hell. Not great for magic finding Baal or for rushing hell due to cold immunes. Great for Mephisto. Relies heavily on Merc.

2)Blizzballer less power to kill but can handle most monsters in the game. Harder time in 8 player hell.

3)Blizz/Chain Lightning. Least powerful of the three. Mana intensive but good for Baal runs in p1-p2 games.

Would you agree with this assessment?

[Isshy]

Well I went with a Blizzballer. It seems pretty good to me so far. Thanks for the help everyone!