Javzon with a lemon twist

[shaftstop]

I've read pretty much all the guides I could find with search including looking back at a couple builds I had for a javazon.
I still fully planned to deisgn a good cowrunner but i wanted to try adn throw a bit of a twist into the build.
I wanted to try and design a good melee/elemental build.
My first zon I messed around with was 20jab/20pentrate/20valk (im not sure what happened there but) i pumped points into dodge/evasion skills and Citical strike, with the valk it was a very amusing spectical.

so I wanted to find out would I hurt myself to badly to maybe pick up jab and pentrate?
So maybe look something like...

20- Lightning Fury (frezny)
20- Charged Strike (best single target attack?)
20- Jab
20- Pentrate
5+ Valk
5+ Critical
5+ dodge/evade/avoid
Inner Sight? I've probably ran out of skill points long ago, but it seemed like a nice idea, I dont think I nessarily need 5 hard points in the dodge/avoid area just seemed like a nice round number to work with and if I had any +skills items, would just increase them further.

If this builds not possible in anyway without really killing my ability to go for 8player hell cow farming, would 20Lite Fury 20Charged strike still be enough to have good raw damage, I have a titans and a tgods atm not greatest titans its only 188 but I figured it was a good start.

[MuffinMan]

My build so far @ lvl 75
20 LF
20 CS
20 LS
1 point in all passive (or pump valk to at least lvl17 with plus skills included)
With titans on and a couple of skillers, you will be making massive lightning damage

Weapons at this time:
Titans. Mine are 211, but dont think that will make much of a difference.
Witchwild String for Physical Imunes, its actually doing quite ok!

Hell cowing alone with her is quite possible.

I recomend this guide if you havent read it:
http://forums.diabloii.net/showthread.php?t=127612

[shaftstop]

Yeah, I've actually peeked at that guide saw a few things that were helpful.
Im actually was thinking of hybriding my cower with a dueling build. Most people when they seen a zon already chalk up on stacked lighting res or absorb. When I had my Jab build I used demon arch to keep up with botds and smiters, or completely evading them all together. Trouble I had with that build was deciding my passives.
Now, that I have to have atleast two lightning abilities to keep my damage u, Im not sure how I will balance them.
I know if I try to pump up jab, i'll need pentrate. I used to normally take 20 inner sight, but I can leave that as 1 skiller and just use what +skills I have.

I already have most my gear outlined...
Titans, Rhyme (until I get raven), Lionheart, Stormshield, Aldur Boots, Tgod
thats about it for now but it seems like a good start.

[Common sense]

So is it ideal to have val at 17pts b4 item skills or just atleast 17 total?

[shaftstop]

I think if you want to get the upgraded weapons, im guessing you need atleast 17 hard points into i, im not sure if +skills help or not...
For now I might put atleast 1 point into it.

[MuffinMan]

So is it ideal to have val at 17pts b4 item skills or just atleast 17 total?
17 in total, but thats just my style. I like her to do some damage, even if in hell. A lvl 1 valk is just a perfect decoy/living bate as well, and you have a lot of points to spend elsewhere.
I *think* that even if you benefit from +skills to the passive tree, the valk will not benefit from these because all of her bonuses are calculated from the "hard points" (The same way as with synergies).
Please correct me if I'm wrong here!
So now I'm getting Avoid to a decent level; for both myself and valkyries sake.
Recommend going for at least 3 synergies on the java tree. Im thinking about making a 4 synergy lightning ama, her CS damage would be ridiculous...

[shaftstop]

I always though syngeries were affected by +skills too Ialways saw on screenmy damage would go up when I added +skills to zeal or frenzy syngeries

[MuffinMan]

Taken from Arreat Summit:
"Items that give bonuses to skills and skill levels will not add to Synergy bonuses. For example, an Orb with +3 to Fireball, when equipped, does not give any bonus to Firebolt."

[shaftstop]

Interesting, well no matter.
Think my zon will probably be fine with just 1 extra syngery.
Though I may plan to go for atleast 3, right now im working on finishing Lightning Fury, I kinda screwed up and put a point by mistake into peirce (current at 2 now) when you half tired its really good idea to just not grind levels ><
When I checked back here and looked at the guides
all of them recommended having pierce, was also said it was pretty much a play style thing, I just had hoped to give my zon abit of a pvp feel and pierce doesn't work in pvp. 2 hard points in pierce I dont think is going to completely wreck my build however.

[shaftstop]

Well...I decided at spur of the moment I'd get some syngeries after all.
I have 20CS/LF/LS, im wondering now is it worth spending points to get Power Strike for further increasing CS damage ?
I haven't really worked on any Passive abilities yet other then the 1 point wonders and im thinking maybe I should get Valk and Pierce up first