Problem with fishymancer

[Chosen]

Hey all I'm working on a fishymancer, my current lvl of both skel summ and skel mast. are both at lvl 5 and the most skelliees I can have is still only 3 is this normal or do I have a bug on this player??

I thought it was 1 skelaton per lvl of summon skelaton....??

I should have 5 skeletons at my command should I not??:scratch:

[Keliroth]

As far as I know it is not always +1 skeleton each point added. On any summoner-necro i made, it takes 2 - 3 points to gain 1 more skeleton at some levels.

[LozHinge the Unhinged]

I'm told it used to be one skele per point in a previous patch.

IIRC, 1.11b, you get one skele per point up to Level 3, then a skele every three points thereafter. One more point and you'll get a fourth.

You haven't asked for one, but I'd like to offer a tip - max Raise Skeleton before putting more points in Mastery. It isn't compulsory but it helps :grin:

[krischan]

BTW, a necro has no problem to get bonuses to RS and SM at early levels. You can shop for wands with a L1 character (which ensures that no L6 skills will appear) and identify all necro heads you find.

[DaveW]

Hey Chosen
LozHinge the Unhinged wrote:
'You haven't asked for one, but I'd like to offer a tip - max Raise Skeleton before putting more points in Mastery. It isn't compulsory but it helps.' I agree with that. Also make sure you get Amp as this will help your skellies in melee combat. And before you face Duriel, make sure have a point in Decripify. You do have the Fishymancer guide right? Check the SPF for the sticky if you don't have it. Good luck.

[Chosen]

Thanks guys for all your help...

My first fishymancer so I am trying to do the best build I can. As I get higher I was going to go for some runewords that give auras to help my skleletons later.

Any suggestions on what auras would be good for my skeletons??

[Mursilis]

Might and Fanatism are the best. Might you can get from an Act II mercary and Fanatism from a Faith wielding Act I rogue. As for which one is better, I can't say as I've only used Might.

[Sindus]

You can also get fanat from a "beast" weapon.

Personally i use a might merc equipped with an insight polearm. The skellies get a boost and i get infinite mana to spam curses and CE with.

[Heskla]

I'm told it used to be one skele per point in a previous patch.

IIRC, 1.11b, you get one skele per point up to Level 3, then a skele every three points thereafter. One more point and you'll get a fourth.

You haven't asked for one, but I'd like to offer a tip - max Raise Skeleton before putting more points in Mastery. It isn't compulsory but it helps :grin:

Above is correct. Max RS first, later SM. Find a wand and a necroshield with +2 or 3 to RS as soon as possible. +skills is all you need.

[Khalagad]

Might and Fanatism are the best. Might you can get from an Act II mercary and Fanatism from a Faith wielding Act I rogue. As for which one is better, I can't say as I've only used Might.

Note that he's talking about a NM Act II Offensive merc.

[JME]

NM Act offensinve merc for might.

Use an insight at low levels when you have mana issues. Later on, mana should only become a problem when you are summoning, which shouldn't be much. In the rare case you have to use CE enough for mana to become an issue, just take a potion.

As end game gear, I'd use a pride (concentration) or infinity (conviction). Pride is nice with it's conc aura (which raises the damage of your skeles too), AR boost, hit blinds target, and DS. However, the relative damage on the weapon is low and freezes target can result in more shatters, which is annoying at times.

Infinity, on the other hand, has good CB (better than DS imo), FRW (he can keep up with you better when not teleing), PMH, and good damage. In addition, the conviction practically negates the need for AR meaning he, your skeles, and anyone in your party hits more often, your mages will do better damage, and 50% of your CE will do more damage. In the end, I lean towards infinity but the choice is up to you. I also like a fort, COH, or duress on my mercs but if you really want more auras you could always throw a bramble on one for the thorns.

Good luck.

[Chosen]

Excellent!!

Thanks you guys!!!!!!!:wave:

[Lanceor]

Actually, I'd save the expensive runewords like Pride, Infinity and Beast for another character.

A Fishymancer is all about survivability and ability to tackle just about everything, not killing speed. At high levels, your Skeletons survive just fine without those uber runewords, and most of your killing speed will be from Corpse Explosion anyway.

If you want killing speed after you've built up some wealth, splash the runes on a different build. :wink3:

[JME]

Actually, I'd save the expensive runewords like Pride, Infinity and Beast for another character.

A Fishymancer is all about survivability and ability to tackle just about everything, not killing speed. At high levels, your Skeletons survive just fine without those uber runewords, and most of your killing speed will be from Corpse Explosion anyway.

If you want killing speed after you've built up some wealth, splash the runes on a different build. :wink3:

If the fishymancer is his favorite build, or one of them, and he can afford it there is no reason not to splurge a little. On the other hand, if resources are quite limited, than you are absolutely correct.

EDIT: However, since you did note that CE is basically the big killer of the summoner, I hope you noticed my point on infinity. 50% of CE is fire and 50% is physical. Therefore, infinity helps your merc (in several ways), your mages, your skeles, your revives, and you. Not too bad IMO.

[buttershug]

At one time you did get one useless skelly for each skill point.
Diablo would use his ring of fire and all of your skellies would instantly die.

[krischan]

These days are over. However, it seems that normal Diablo is still the toughest act boss for a summon necro who quests through the game solo.