Calling all druids... need opinions / advice

[whiskers]

So, heres the deal...

Been playing diablo2 since the release, so i'm currently involved in primarily pvp..

I currently am running a pnb necromancer (named Guardian_moloch incase you've seen me on useast)

I'm in a bit of a pickle at the moment, looking into making a new pvp toon to bum around on, but not too sure what i should go with..

OF course theres always the wind druids (but theres a billion of those... for a reason yes, but still... so many of those)

So why i'm calling in help, is for opinions on druid (or other) pvp builds i you think i should look at..

Always been a fan of the fire elemental druids, and FC Bear druids, but never actually played one, if i could get some opinions on these builds that would be amazing..

Thank you for the help in advance

[JoeJTang]

In my opinion, PvP
Wind > FC > Fire
Personally, I would make a Fire though since it requires less funding than a Fire Claws, and it's more original (though nowhere near effective as either a Windy or a FC).

[superjayson]

actually JoeJTang a fire druid is ALOT more expensive than an FC Druid.

[whiskers]

i can definately vouch that fire elementals are WAY more expensive than the fc druids... when you include price of skillers etc as well as the hard as hell to find gear lol...

Any more opinions thought?? still considering fire elemental the most... just something about them that appeal to me..

[Skull Bash]

i can definately vouch that fire elementals are WAY more expensive than the fc druids... when you include price of skillers etc as well as the hard as hell to find gear lol...

Any more opinions thought?? still considering fire elemental the most... just something about them that appeal to me..

They are expensive, there's no way around that, but the fun factor makes it worth it for me, just something about having a meteor shower follow you wherever you go...Anyway, it's more expensive than a fc druid, but so are alot of other classes/builds. Were you thinking of making a pure fire druid, or more of a hybrid?

[whiskers]

was thinking pure fire druid...

Equipment something like

Raven lore (5/5 facet) OR a rare 2 druid / 3 fissure or 3 volcano pelt
Enigma
Hoto
Spirit shield
Mara or 2/fcr/all res amulet
2X soj
Mage fist gloves
Sandstorm boots...


Not to sure if i should use hoto + Spirit, or hoto + Ss though... how important is max block + Dr for a fire elemental druid?

[eLeM3NTz3CP]

Id use spirit, takes away alot of fhr/fcr issues. Nado you're more close to the action so tanking helps (ss).

[superjayson]

FCR isnt as important with a fire druid. its an ever lasting debate if its better to load up on FRW and use less FCR to teleport periodically.
teleporting around with 99FCR isnt as fancy when all your fire skills are on timers..

also fire druids can be quite viable, but only IF you have the necessary gear which already explained is expensive and can be hard to get.

[eLeM3NTz3CP]

Ya but mass frw hard to obtain I mean...
40 boots
45 enigma
Then an inventory of frw smcs...5% hard to get if you dont have them..3%'s gonna need a ton of those..

Even teleporting slowly allows more movement.

[superjayson]

i find a combination of frw and teleporting to be key. too many people try and build and play their fire druid exactly like a fire druid and fail.

[Maeniel]

My first Druid was hardcore fire, but that was when LoD first came out. I remember running around in circles like an idiot while meteors fell down all around me. Oh, those were the days.

[whiskers]

Wow, topic just took off :P good :D

So i've decided to go with the fire elemental...

Already gotten a nice rare pelt for my boy

Red Wolf Helm
+2 druid
+3 Volcano
10% Fhr
life
no socket yet (will get 1)

The frw + teleport i've never really thought about before... what would be the best way of this does anyone think?? was thinking off the bat that the 45% from enigma + 20% (Or what ever it is with sandstorm) should be plenty.. no?

So would love some opinions / tweeks to my ideas

Gear:
Rare pelt (2 druid / 3 volcano / fhr / life)
Enigma (what armor should i use?? if frw is a problem... lighter armor?? Dusk shroud??)
Magefist gloves
Sandstorm boots
Hoto for weapon
Spirit for shield
Mara for amulet
and 2X Soj for rings... or should i be looking into some nice 10% fcr + str rings?


Skills:
Maxing -
-Fire storm
-Molten boulder
-Fissure
-Volcano

Rest in either A) Armagedon or B) spirit of oak...

Or is oak a 1 point wonder with all the + skills i'll have?


Stats:
base str
base dex
ALL Vita
base energy...



Once again, would LOVE some opinions / tweeks to my idea... wanna make this guy perfect :P really excited about him :D

Thanks in advance all

[Maeniel]

If you're going base str, make sure your enigma is light on the str. Mine isn't, at 118, and I already know I'm going to have to reroll and fix it someday. I wish I'd stolen my friend's Mage plate... but that's just something to keep in mind.

[Skull Bash]

Looks pretty good to me, just a few suggestions. Treks are nice for the fhr in certain situations, but for the most part I generally wear Aldur's boots for the 40% frw, as it's crucial for this build (You need a lot). The pelt is certainly unique and gives you style points (red pelts look great on fire druids imo), but I find myself using geddon and fissure far more than volcano. You might want to switch to a ravenlore for the -fire resist and +3 ele, you should be able to get one for a decent price, they aren't in very high demand. Any low strength armor should work, I prefer a mage plate but as long as it's low str you should be good. What are you planning on using for the cannot be frozen mod?

[superjayson]

use what ever armor you want. take style and the strength req into consideration.

[whiskers]

thats a very good point on the cannot be frozen thing... didnt even think about it...

What options again lol

i'll probably go with a ravenfrost?? or a cham in my helm maybe?

other options are what?? Trang belt?


Main reason i got my pelt vs Ravenlore is because i figure either its gonna be an easy kill, or their gonna sorb my fire in which case ravenlore wont have anything to add in comparison to my pelt with volcano has physical damage

Anyone know a website i can look at to see the different looks for druid in different armor variants? so i can pick what i want to make enigma in :P

[Voice]

here (http://www.geocities.com/alainpp66/ArmourAppearance.html)

And while i'm on ...

I recommend a good amount of faster run/walk ... if it is possible to glitch w/o screwing your setup ... go for it... IMO. However, do not down play the fcr as increased fcr does decrease the timer a small amount AND if you do have to teleport you can do so faster.

Now to contradict what i just said ... kinda ... the reason fire ele's are so hard to build is they require a lot of time(time being based on amount of dueling required until you get better) balancing faster run/walk and fcr on user based playing style due to the casting timer. I have seen fire druids who do well w/ no run/walk and others who do well who stack run/walk and rarely tele.

Good luck ...