My Very Newbie Necro Questions - thanks

[onomastikon]

Hello, I am very new here, I played D2 a bit about 6 years ago, this is my first time with LoD. Currently started a bowazon and a necro, I just love necros because I find almost all their skills interesting and fun. Right now I am only level 8, please dont laugh too much! Here are my questions I ask after reading much on these forums:

1. If I have a wand that gives, say, +2 to summon skellies, and I switch weapons with the w-key to, say, a dagger, extra skellies allowed with the +skills wand automatically get dispelled. But how is it with other skills? I cant seem to see the results. I ask because I want to experiment with poison dagger, but cannot see. Here are some example questions:
- I have a wand with +2 to golem, or to bone shield, or to skeleton mastery. I cast BS, Golem, and Skellies with this wand. Then I switch weapons to a dagger. Does my BS immediately go down in strength, my Golem lose power, and my skellies get weaker? What if I switch back 10 seconds later -- does my BS get strong again or must I recast? Golem stronger, skellies stronger again, or do they all require recasting for full strength?

2. I know this may be silly, but I want to have fun with poison dagger. I am only level 8, and I have no items and know nothing about this game anymore, but it just seems fun now to be able to switch between wand-and-shield and dagger-and-shield with a simple w-key.
However....
I cant seem to figure out how I can use the same shield in both setups. That is, I can equip the shield-and-wand in setup1, but when I hit "w" to get to the second setup, I can insert the dagger, but I cant snag my shield anymore to put it in place. Do I need TWO shields to do this? So that people who switch sets conceivably need 4 different items (say: dual-wielding 1&2, then new-sword plus shield?)??

thanks so very much

[onomastikon]

And one more question, thank you

3. I cant count fast enough. Does an item which gives +1 mana after each kill count if your minions kill that enemy?

Thank you very much

[GotFriana]

1- The extra skellies are lost but the ones that remain keep all the properties they were summoned with. Its the same for all other skills, golems included but if you remove +skills and recast you will recast at whatever skill level you have at the moment.
2- Either unequip the shield and re equip it on the second set up or get two of the same shiled. If you cannot equip an item in your second set up it may be for other reason, maybe your weapon is giving you strengh so when you switch weapons you dont meet the str required anymore for your shield. The items in set up 1 will be hidden when you switch to set up 2 but, you can unequip any item in set up 1, hold it on your cursor (dont click anything and you will be holding it) then with the hotkey you switch, you will still be holding the item and you can put it in the corresponding empty slot on set up2 provided you meet all the requirements.
3- No, mana or life after kill only counts for your own kills.

[medgar]

What GotFrianca said. Your remaining summons will be stronger, you just lose the extra ones. Hence if you find a skill shrine you should re-summon everything since they'll all be 2 levels stronger.

[onomastikon]

Thanks very much!
About #2 -- I think something isnt working. I tested it on my starting wand to make sure I meet all the requirements. If I equip it in my main hand in setup1, then hold it down, and equip it in setup 2, it is not there when I hit "w". In other words, I need to get 2 of the same (or very similar) things if I want to have both for a weapon switch, then?

[BlargX]

Using commands to do your switch may be making it too complicated. Just carry the dagger in your inventory and pop it on top of your wand, then put the wand that is now on your cursor back into your inventory. It is not lightning fast, but it's at least as fast as swapping shields about, and you don't have to worry about being without a shield at an inopportune time. That's especially nice when you are using the skills from a shield to summon, and taking the shield out makes some of your skellies disappear because your new shield-less skill level won't let you have that may skellies.

I've been doing this for the last 30 or so levels, because I found a shield with +2 or +3 skeletal mages, and I didn't want them poofing when I switched weapons. It's the only one with that much to +mages that I have. It's not bad; a dagger is only two slots. It's even easier if you're a fishymancer, so you are not under intense combat pressure anyway.

[bruticus]

Thanks very much!
About #2 -- I think something isnt working. I tested it on my starting wand to make sure I meet all the requirements. If I equip it in my main hand in setup1, then hold it down, and equip it in setup 2, it is not there when I hit "w". In other words, I need to get 2 of the same (or very similar) things if I want to have both for a weapon switch, then?

onomastikon - correct. if you have two different weapons (AoKL and good poison dagger, for instance) and you want to keep the same shield in a weapon switch, you'll need 2 of the same shield, one for each weapon on switch. 2 homunculus' for example. or, as the previous poster suggested, just use the inventory to change weaps and keep the same shield.

[onomastikon]

Thanks much people.
I'm really a newbie, by the way, so I dont know what AoKL is, and I've only heard about Homonculus. But I did find a Shrunken Head with some interesting stuff on it. (Well for my level anyhow.) Am now level 14 -- woo.
Is a "good" setup for me (not godly) a shrunken head with +1 to bone armor, blocking, +1 to golem mastery, a wand with +2 to skel mastery and +1 to CE, switch to a dagger with 2% life drain and 1% mana drain (put a chipped skull in), and lots of stuff that has +% faster recovery? Two items are rare, and also give some +mana and stuff I dont really need (like +1 to light radius and +11 to AR), but having rare stuff just seems nice.
Seems like I can hold my own. I havent died yet.
EDIT: How much would I have to trade for perfect skulls? Is this something I find later on in the game and cannot afford now?
EDIT2: Sorry, but I read that skeletons only do 1-2 damage up to level 8 in the skill. Even higher, I read, the damage is not that much. I seem to be doing ok now, but how will they hold up at higher levels, let alone Nightmare or Hell? Is the 1-2 damage modified by sometihng besides Mastery? Thanks
Thanks for your patience and help.

[GotFriana]

Thanks much people.
I'm really a newbie, by the way, so I dont know what AoKL is, and I've only heard about Homonculus. But I did find a Shrunken Head with some interesting stuff on it. (Well for my level anyhow.) Am now level 14 -- woo.
Is a "good" setup for me (not godly) a shrunken head with +1 to bone armor, blocking, +1 to golem mastery, a wand with +2 to skel mastery and +1 to CE, switch to a dagger with 2% life drain and 1% mana drain (put a chipped skull in), and lots of stuff that has +% faster recovery? Two items are rare, and also give some +mana and stuff I dont really need (like +1 to light radius and +11 to AR), but having rare stuff just seems nice.
Seems like I can hold my own. I havent died yet.
EDIT: How much would I have to trade for perfect skulls? Is this something I find later on in the game and cannot afford now?
EDIT2: Sorry, but I read that skeletons only do 1-2 damage up to level 8 in the skill. Even higher, I read, the damage is not that much. I seem to be doing ok now, but how will they hold up at higher levels, let alone Nightmare or Hell? Is the 1-2 damage modified by sometihng besides Mastery? Thanks
Thanks for your patience and help.

Congrats for the nice finds. Dont worry about trading for Pskulls, later you will be able to make your own Pskulls and other things. Just continue playing.
The skelletons gain damage later dont worry the skill works well, the damage displayed on the skill tabs is not always accurate. To increase their damage the Necro has a wonderful curse (1st on the curse tree) called Amplify Danage cast it on your enemies and every physical attack will do double damage on them. If you dont max Raise Skelletons and Mastery your skelletons will not be as powerful that s true but they will still provide good meat shields for you while you kill with other skills.

[bruticus]

onomastikon - AoKL = Arm of King Leoric - very good (best?) all around wand for a necro. here's a link to it on Arreat Summit:

http://battle.net/diablo2exp/items/exceptional/uwands.shtml

[Ed from Russia]

onomastikon - AoKL = Arm of King Leoric - very good (best?) all around wand for a necro. here's a link to it on Arreat Summit:

http://battle.net/diablo2exp/items/exceptional/uwands.shtml

It's the best wand for a Summoner. For bonemancers, poisonmancers and other other types there are better choices (e.g. White runeword, Boneshade, Death's Fathom).

[onomastikon]

Oh boy. I see. Heh I dont think Ill ever get stuff like that! But good to know...