Wow lots of Qs

[DaemonAkuma]

Okay, let my ignorance shine forth.

I have opted to create the runic items necessary for Beast/Infinity(unecided on which one), Bramble, and Call to Arms. Now I planned on making the CTA on an item for a simple switch to the alt weapon set (derga) and putting Bramble onto the best(def) armor my lvl90 merc can equip(haven't checked that yet). Now, 2 Questions:

How can I get Beast onto my merc's weapon? With a poleaxe? On the site in the rune section it says: "Axes, Hammers & Scepters only." So what weapon would this incorporate into the act 2 merc weapon's equipability? Also, would fantacism be better v conviction on the Infinity weapon? I have carefully read on both of them and understand them insofar as a scholarly pursuit can afford, but am interested in real-life advice from people who have used them both in Uber situations.

Also, is there any way I can increase the odds of a higher lvl Thorns aura on my Bramble, or is it purely (and sadly) random? Thankee for answering my questions lol. This way i will have Might, Fanatacism, and Thorns on my minions along with bo and whatnot. Oh, and since I'm already asking dumb questions, is there any way (other than mf) I can increase the odds of recieving a Key from one of the 3 droppers? And what is "Splendor"; I checked the Runewords section and didn't see it. Is it incognito, like "Spirit"?
One more random Q...how much str would be deducted for the req on a piece of armor if it is ethereal? I ask so I know what armor to make for my merc's Bramble.

Finally, which has a better damage output: mastered F.Golem, or putting those points into skellie mage and just going with a 1-point gumby?

I know these are many questions...lol...but when they rae all answered, I should have a pretty good idea which direction to take with my necro. Thank you all!

[Eilo Rytyj]

Sadly, Beast cannot be made into Polearms or Spears. So no Fanaticism on act2 mercs.

The Thorns level is spawned completely randomly. Ethereal Hellforge Plate or Laquered Plate are the highest strength armors your merc would likely be able to use. You'd need to be using something like Andy's Visage on him to get the strength for Chaos/Sacred armor.

Ethereal items always have 10 less strength/dex requirements. It is applied AFTER -req% (from Hel rune or similar) if you must know.

MF doesn't affect Key drops from Countess/Summoner/Nihlathak. I don't think Keys are considered magic items.

"Splendor" is a runeword that's been around since 1.09 or something, Eth+Lum from memory. It can be made in Necro heads. a +3 RS/SM head with splendor in it would result in +4 to Raise Skelly and Skelly Mastery, the highest possible in the shield slot.

DON'T EVER PUT ANY POINTS INTO FIRE GOLEM AS A SUMMONER!!!!!1!!!11!

sorry for that, but 20 points into Magi will be far more powerful. 10 little Fire Magi will do more fire damage than 1 little Fire Golem, and will survive much better (as a whole). On his own, Gumby is the most powerful golem. Iron Golem is better if made from the right items... and kept alive... Blood Golem is almost as much of a joke as Fire Golem. It IS useful though, as it's a prerequisite for Revive. That's it.

[DaemonAkuma]

Thank you VERY much. The bad part: gotta remake my lvl90 Summoner lol.

okay, so then I'll go with Infinity instead of fanatacism. Gravy. Now I need an eth hellforge and eth colossus voulge...

[DaemonAkuma]

Oh one more quick question...what classes of weapons can Infinity be put on? i'm hoping one equippable by an act2 merc

[Eilo Rytyj]

Polearms. You're in luck.

You can still get fanaticism in a couple of ways, though:

Faith bow on an Act 1 merc. You'll miss out on the Might and Conviction aura if you do this.

Using Beast as a main weapon. Make it in a low requirement axe or scepter (double axe is lowest at 43 str, war scepter is 55 str). You can then still have your act2 merc with Infinity/Pride, and fanaticism too. You'll miss out on the +skills from your wand/thing by doing this though.

[DaemonAkuma]

Lol well that definately seals the deal on the Infinity. Thank you very much you have been extremely helpful. Now I just need the right ethereals and a couple more runes and should be in pretty good business.

[HYKO]

if u goin' to use infinity i suggest u spend some good points on CE
to take good advantage of the fire damage thats caused by CE

[DaemonAkuma]

Yes, and I planned on equipping Magefist as well :-)

[DaemonAkuma]

Would it be better to put Infinity in an ogre axe or a colossus voulge?

[xNamastex]

Best to make infinity in the fastest swinging weapon as possible. Conviction aura and CB are the 2 big sells on infinity for a summoner. Nothing will help with conviction as its always lvl 12. But for CB, the faster the weapon the more swings with CB you will get. You need CB to bring down Hell Diablo, Baal and Ubers effectively. Either an eth 4os Thresher or Giant Thresher would be fastest. Great Poleaxe would be second best. You will get into gear issues for uber runs with a Colossus V. due to the 200 str req. Just make sure you take off merc's weapon for Chaos runs as you won't need it really - IM kills!!

I have also used Pride on my merc as another option. After hundreds of baal, cows, and chaos runs switching between Infinity and Pride, I found the Infinity on merc is most effective and useful (no change in killing speed vs Pride - actually bit faster with Infinity). Pride has no CB and the damn Hit Blinds Target is annoying to say the least. The mages do some nice damage with the conviction aura.

As far as Beast goes, I spent the runes and made a nice Beast in a fast War Spike. My conclusion is that its overated. Little effect on overall area clearing speed. Actually made me more vulnerable as I had to lose 40 resists from my HOTO, 40%FCR off my teleport speed and loss of +3 to skills. I found I started to use it less and less and now its gathering dust on a mule. I like the CTA on switch better. Easier to use and more helpful. I haven't lost a skelly or a merc or my Iron Golem in a long time.

Make sure you max CE, Skellies, SM and Mages and you are set. Amplify, Decrepify, Lower resist, Dim Vision and Terror are the only curses you really need too.

Thats my $3 worth

GL

[DaemonAkuma]

Good idea; sacrifice little attack power for increased speed.

okay, so do any of you have an eth 40s thresher or a 50s double axe I can trade for? lol