View Full Version : question on Summoner
themaaaaan
10-10-2007, 20:00
Hi everybody!
Im quite fed up with all my previous sorcs, pallys and amas, so i thought id try something new/fun. Why not a summoner, cause IMO necro is the coolest looking char in DII.
So, my question:
I have a spare Enigma LP and Shako, and trading a Homunculus cant be that hard right? Add a lowly +1 necro skill amu / +3 summons, an arm of King Leoric, Marrowwalk and TO gloves and ill end up with... ehhr...
+5 all skills
+2 summoning skills
+6 curses (at the top of my head)
+3 raise skeleton
+4-5 skeleton mastery (depending on Marrowwalks)
30 raise skeleton (incl. +skills obvioulsy)
31-31 skeleton mastery (incl. +skills...)
Merc with CV Insight, Andys/Tals mask and Up'd Shaft
could i get away with this? I mean, will all my skellies die in two seconds in Hell or will i actually be able to play him all the way, without any more +skills.
keep it up!
Dude, you underestimate majorly. I have +5 total skills to my necro and I can solo the entire game on all difficulties. I did my first hell baal run yesterday solo.... You would be surprised how powerful necro's are. i have 10 skellies, 4 mages, and 13 revives. THat's all I need. I put one point into fire golem and golem mastery and swap to clay golem for bosses. My merc uses arrioc needle or something stupid like that with +4 to skills (what I waste, right?) and he does a total of like 2000 damage I think. My skellies are under level 25, mages are like level 8 i think....
It's all about curses and devoting your time to managing your crew and picking up drops. Keep your merc alive with full rejuvs and keep your horde full. I summon another revive every 30 seconds or so just to keep the team full.
My only complaint is the first corpses. I have to go back to blood moor with a merc and golem to get the first body. It's the only safe way to start your army at my skill level.
Why do you like using the fire golem in particular?
Dis Skillz
10-10-2007, 20:44
The ariocs' +4 to all skills adds to their might aura I believe, which increases your army's damage further. Not a waste I think =D
There is only one reason I use fire golem .... holy fire. It attracts enemies. That way, he's taking the hits a little more than my merc or skellies. Just a good tank really. I use clay on bosses for slow. But again, I stick to fire because I read that they attract more enemies than clay, and it seems to be true from my own observation as well.
As for the +4... wow I had no clue. That's awesome. I haven't noticed a damage increase, but it's hard to notice that kind of thing (I guess I'm not that observant)
If there's a golem that would better suit a summoner, I'm not stuck on any, each golem of mine has one point anyway. I would love to hear any input on golems. I have seen postings that favor different golems in different circumstances.
Interesting. My reading tended to suggest the fire golems died pretty quick, so I assumed they were hard to keep up, especially since they cost so much mana. And also that they could even attract stuff from offscreen, really mobbing you. Which might be scary when the golem then dies. Apparently, however you manage it, these problems don't really hold you back?
JubalBane
11-10-2007, 01:54
Themaaaaan: I run 8 player summoners all the time. I normally play pvm non-networked. I also play with only the equipment I find in the game. My current summoner is level 87 and has -50 in all resists and hasn't died yet. I have just started Hell act 3 with him. Normally my skill set up is:
1 point in all curses
20 in Skeleton Mastery
20 in Skeleton Warrior
20 in Skeleton Mage
20 in Revive
1 in Summon Resist
1 in Golem Mastery
1 in Clay, Blood, Iron, and Fire
I put the rest in Golem Mastery
I also use a Nightmare Act 2 Might Merc. I found that he can provide the first corpse in any act in Hell. I gamble for good Iron Golem stuff and the iron golem helps the merc with the first few corpses.
Normally I summon 8 skeletons, 8 mages, and as many revives as I can. I don't use Corpse Explosion so the revives really help me. Only summoning 8 skeletons and mages allows me to prebuff them and use weapon switch. If you summon more that the 20 point limit they tend to die on a weapon switch. But this set up serves me well. 8 is enough! Sorry about that I couldn't resist.
Also this is just my current one. I have completed the game many times with a similar set up. :wink:
No Corpse Explosion!?? I certainly wouldn't recommend that. It is amongst the Necros most powerful skills.
I never use mages. They do pitiful damage, and IMO the points are better spent in Corpse Explosion. I personally only use Clay Golem. I have invested a few points in him and his slow is up to over 50%, and he rarely dies. His slow is so good, i am able to use Amp Damage on Baal, greatly speeding up the kill.
At any rate, Summoners are very powerful. My current gear:
Shako
Rare +2 Necro ammy with Cold and Lite resists and MF(gambled)
Leoric(the bone prison can trap you, which can be annoying)
Homonculus
Skullders
Goldwrap
ChanceGuards
Rare Resist MF boots(They have 25% MF woot)
Some resist charms,and a Summoners Gc.
I had no problem killing even before I aquired this setup. Have fun!
I like mages so far, even though their damage is minor. It's the effects that I like them for -- freezes or poisons to slow down monster's regeneration. Plus, they're more bodies to get in the way of me and the bad guys. So it doesn't matter much to me that they aren't super-powerful. They make up for it.
I'm not sure if I'll max them. But you can max them and max corpse explosion too.
Do not go 20 point in revive, if u have endgame gear all + skills will make 1 point more then enough. Also CE is so awesome that u cant leave it out. I also like mages for same reason as blarg and i dont rly see where the extra points wud be spent better.
JubalBane
12-10-2007, 01:41
the reason I don't use CE is I like the challenge of not using any poison and bone skills. It gives my builds a more pure summoner feel. I kill very quick in 8 player hell games with out it. I am currently experimenting with a Nitromancer that will use CE for almost every kill but the first few in a fight. :smiley:
As far as the 20 in revive goes, I need more meat shields because I don't use godly gear. I am lucky to shop for a few +3 summon wands. I end up using heads I get in Nightmare Act 5 quest. I don't get godly runes and even if I occasionally do end up with one I don't get the rest for a rune word. I have never been able to experience the teleport of an Enigma :sigh:
I have had games with out any +skill equipment and I beat Baal in 8 players. I don't always have the patience to shop for wands :wink3:
That is the power of a Summoner. No gear required. However you need to shut down spirits and gloams with Dim Vision and more tanks mean more targets for opposing forces. You can get away with less points in Revive but you need more than 1 unless you plan on "adding" end gear you don't find in game. :wink3:
I don't have any points in revive, and this is my first run of Nightmare on any character, and I've already got six revives. :)
Even with one point in fire golem, he rarely dies. When he does die I don't really get rushed heavily because I have a mass amount of minions.
I will also point out that I may have +5 total extra skills from my items, but they were all self found on this char. Not everyone is that lucky, but I was.
I use CE heavily on tough areas, but because I have less than 50 points in energy or whatever, I don't have much mana to give to CE. i have to drink a potion every 4-6 CE's.
AnubisXy
13-10-2007, 08:05
one point in revive is all you need, with my endgame gear, I have over 20 revives with only one point invested and there is no way to keep them all up. I can't imagine having 40 up ever.
Mages are better than people give them credit for, give your merc an infinity and they do some real damage, phys immunes die so fast.
I will admit that i often get the PI mob that is either unkillable, or takes 10 minutes to drop. Perhaps I should revisit my mages. I have the ability to summon them, just never do.
Anu I went just the other way. My revive is up around 37 I have 13 skels running around and about 8 Skel Mages. I've no difficulty keepin them up but I do use enigma to keep my minions close to me and it stops them from wandering off.
Hi everybody!
Im quite fed up with all my previous sorcs, pallys and amas, so i thought id try something new/fun. Why not a summoner, cause IMO necro is the coolest looking char in DII.
So, my question:
I have a spare Enigma LP and Shako, and trading a Homunculus cant be that hard right? Add a lowly +1 necro skill amu / +3 summons, an arm of King Leoric, Marrowwalk and TO gloves and ill end up with... ehhr...
+5 all skills
+2 summoning skills
+6 curses (at the top of my head)
+3 raise skeleton
+4-5 skeleton mastery (depending on Marrowwalks)
30 raise skeleton (incl. +skills obvioulsy)
31-31 skeleton mastery (incl. +skills...)
Merc with CV Insight, Andys/Tals mask and Up'd Shaft
could i get away with this? I mean, will all my skellies die in two seconds in Hell or will i actually be able to play him all the way, without any more +skills.
keep it up!
With just 45 points skeletons are very sturdy, even in Hell. 20 mastery, 20 raise skeleton, 5 summon resist.
You should do great with that gear. Don't forget to use your curses and CE often!
Just be sure to concentrate your points in your skeletons, Raise Skeleton first, and then Skeleton mastery. With your +skills, you should be pretty strong very early, but if you diverge too much at the beginning, your skeletons will start to lag in numbers, life, and attack power. Arrive at full skeleton power sooner rather than later.
Top priorities worth putting skeletons aside for every so often even in the early game: amplify damage, clay golem.
Worth putting skeletons aside for later, if they are handling things well: corpse explosion, decrepify, golem mastery.
A must-have eventually: dim vision. But you can get along fine without it well into nightmare.
After maxing your skeletons/mastery, your main concentration should be on corpse explosion.
You can keep your golem as a one-point wonder, in clay and mastery, into your 60's if you like, even selecting no other golems, and doing so works quite well. Many people never add another point to clay golem or golem mastery. Your +skills will keep him viable.
HarbingersOfSkulls
16-10-2007, 21:18
Maxxed skeletons with maxxed skeleton mastery can handle even hell area's just fine...throw in a might merc and it's even that much better damage...add a beast weapon into the mix and it's like steroids for your skeletons.
I love mages and max them after skeleton mastery and getting my curses to decrep and dv...I find mages alot more useful overall compared to revives...but I still put 1 point into revives for certain area's so that I can use them if I need them.
Gumby is my golem of choice and has been my running buddy for many many years for all my commando's that I've made in the past...can't beat a cheap recastable golem that can cause slow that has more life than all the oter golems. Gumby + decrep = alot of slow moving bosses.
I use engima so that I can tele-stomp packs of monsters and get my horde all attacking bosses.
HoS
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