HC MF Energy Sorc Questions

[IceGuy]

Hey guys i just have a few question about the sorc im thinking of making.

I like most am very paranoid about dieing in HC thats why i want to build the energy sorc sense she would have the best chance staying alive for HC Meph runs.

So i have 2 questions
Should i go max block plus the energy shield or should i just add more to vit and energy. Its just my worst fear is teleing into the middle of a group of dolls with mana burn...

And what would be the best skill for taking down meph using the moat trick (would i even have to worry about using the moat trick with this build?)

I was thinking Inferno because it synergizes with warmth but ive never heard of anyone doing that before so i figured theres gotta be a reason why know ones done that.

So let me know what you guys think, thanks in advance.

[Socialism]

I probably wouldn't ask the sorceress forum for help on hardcore builds; you'll find a boatload of veteran players in the Hardcore forum who REALLY understand that it's not okay to "almost never die" when doing x, y, or z.

The basic, RELATIVELY cheap disposable sorceresses for Mephisto runs are Frozen Orb / Blizzard builds with maxxed out cold mastery.

Because you're asking how to build a Mephisto runner, I'm going to assume you want a magic finder. That said, cold sorceresses don't need a ton of +skills to kill Mephisto because of their inherent Cold Mastery -resistance effect.

Yes, go max block. Whistan's Guard (P Diamond) set shield is the game's best blocking shield for sorceresses, hands down. Upgraded Visceratuant gets a mention, so does an upgraded Moser's Blessed Circle; Eld/PDiamond or PDiamond/PDiamond. Stormshield's just dandy (but I assume you're not rich... neither am I). Rhyme Grim/Bone shield on switch with a Gull or Ali Baba.

Basic Orber Build:
20 Frozen Orb
20 Cold Mastery
1 Prereqs
1 Static Field
20 Telekinesis
1 Energy Shield
1 Prereqs
1-20 Teleport*
1-20 Warmth*

*Note: Here's where it's really up to personal preference. Experienced folks will tell you not to max out Ice Bolt until/unless you've got a really decent set of +skills/+cold damage backing you up. It's really, really not worth it low levels. Search for an older post of mine - I did the calculations and demonstrated that at some arbitrary +cold skills level (~7 or 8 or something), a fully synergized Frozen Orb will save you ~7 seconds of killtime vs. Mephisto. I don't remember. Search. 1-20 Teleport point - a 1 mana teleport means you will be able to teleport out of a manaburn pack if you aren't trapped in hit recovery. 1-20 Warmth point - similar thinking, negate the need for an Insight merc. Balance it out with teleport. Everyone has a theory.

Basic Blizzard safety build:
20 Blizzard
20 Cold Mastery
jam as many points into synergies (Ice Blast > Ice Bolt > Glacial Spike since you'll be spamming Ice Blasts between Blizzards - or Glacial Spikes if you're afraid of large mobs) as you can while keeping 20 into Telekinesis and 1 into Energy shield.

+skills will bring Energy Shield up to around, say, 50-60% damage taken from mana.

Right... I'm at work and I need a nap. Pardon the wordiness, I'm a stickler for conversational writing.

Oh, at a minimum, hit the 63% FCR breakpoint, and don't click the mouse button to teleport; hold it down.