lld smiter suggestion?

[FishrFriends]

hi ive been doing mostly pvm but now i want to make a lld character for fun and i decided on a smiter.I have some vague idea about how to make one but i need lots of advice. heres what I come up with

Stats
str-enough for gear
dex-enough for max block
vita-rest
energy-none

Skills
20-smite
7-holy shield
1-finatic
rest-defiance?

Gear
Helm-Peasant Crown
Armour-up'd twitchrhroe
Weapon-Steel Naga
Shield-up'd Swordback hold
Belt-Deaths Belt
Glove-Deaths Glove
Boots-Goblin Toe
Ammy-a good rare
Rings-good rares

This is what i think and i need to know what rings and ammy to look for as well as what to socket with.

[Queen Mebd]

Howdy there, I've made a couple lld smiters, one at 18 and another at 30. Well the level 30 was more of a v/t, but they're just a smiter with the extra points distributed a little differently. Gear wise you're not too far off. At level 30 a smiter is primarily concerned with loading up on as much + skills from gear as possible. A gear setup could look like:

helm = Peasant Crown, the skill is great, as is the fr/w, the 20 vit is like 60 life, it's hard to beat a pcrown
wrmour = Spirit Shroud, Vipermagi when you need the res
weapon = military pick with six shaels if you're using concentration
weapon alternative = war scepter with + fanaticism
shield = up'd Swordback hold, Rhyme barbed shield, a nice blue or rare with combat skills, deflecting mod, sockets
gloves = Bloodfists, juicy life, some ias, and the fhr
belt = String of Ears, the big thing here is the pdr/mdr
boots = Goblin Toe, right on, I can't imagine building a smiter without some cb
amulet = a good rare, pcombat, life, res, maybe stats
rings = SoJ's, again for the plus skill, the mana bump doesn't hurt either

socketing = prubies are always great for the life boost, plus it takes some pretty crazy stat jewels to beat a ruby in terms of life optimiazation, also ed/stat or ed/def jewels are always nice options too

charms = plain 15 lifers are good to aim for, you've got it relatively cheap compared to builds needing life/mana or max/ar/life small charms, life/def smalls are nice to pick up as well

With level seven fanaticism you need 50 ias to hit six frame smiting if memory serves me right. A plain old +3 fanaticism blue can get two sockets from Larzuk, drop in two shaels, and with Bloodfists you easily hit 50 ias. This is another area where the plus skills really help. Of course you can get other mods on scepters besides a fanaticism staffmod, the most useful would be paladin or combat skills, ias, and useful ctc effects (amp ^_^). I've found the best place to shop these is Drognan in hell for the sheer number of scepters he sells, and if the town gate is right next to him, it's easy to reset his wares.

Skill wise you're spot on, max holy shield for your level, max smite. You'll have a point in charge as a prereq, which is good for mobility. If you're going the mpick route, you can dump the remainder of the points in concentration for more aura ed. If you want to give ar dependent melee characters more trouble, defiance for the holy shield defense bonus synergy is always an option (if you're using a fanaticism war scepter for that aura). What I did on mine was adding points into holy shock to synergize fist of the heavens, you've got a lot of flexibility when it comes to those remaining few skill points.

Hoped the little mini dissertation there helped. If you have any more questions, be sure to reply.

[FishrFriends]

i have some questions does max dmg jewel and charm affect my smite dmg much? does the dmg from my weapon affect smite dmg. and how much +skill affect dmg compare to a more powerful weapon or shield as well as how useful is open wound and deadly strike. Also the lvl30 v/t sounds pretty good too im thinking one point in conviction,foh,finatic and everything left in holy shock after maxing smite , holy shield.

[Queen Mebd]

Here's a little table of things that work and don't work with smite taken from Ragnarod's 1.10 Paladin FAQ (http://strategy.diabloii.net/news.php?id=539#Smite):

Things that work with smite:

Crushing blow
Chance to cast something on striking
Hit blinds target
Hit freezes target
Open Wounds
Enhanced Damage
Prevent Monster Heal
+Damage modifier on the Redeemer and Astreon's Iron Ward
Curses such as Life Tap, Amplify Damage...

Things that won’t work with smite:

Life or Mana leech
Deadly Strike
Elemental Damage
+Max/Min Damage

Skills and hitting the fastest possible speed are what you want to focus, a more powerful weapon will be one with more skills (fanaticism, combat skills or paladin skills if you're luck/patient shopping). Open wounds will work quite well, deadly strike and + max damage will not however. Smite damage is based on the shield type, that's why barbed shields, be they an upped Swordback, Rhyme, or magic/rare will deal the most possible at this level.

As for the v/t setup, most use a scepter that has points in conviction and fist of the heavens, as you do have extra points, but not all that many. These are even harder to shop than a decent + fanaticism scepter, as you really want both staffmods. You'll get a lot of scepters that are so close to being useful, ones with +1 paladin, +3 foh, +3 conversion. Patience is key when trying to turn one of these up, set aside a good chunk of time you can devote to shopping, and be sure to take a break every now and then. If you just starting you first lld smiter, I'd recommend just making a smiter and getting the feel for one. If you like it enough to make another, get shopping for some better scepters, you can hybridize in more than just foh, there's always charge too (which looks like a lot of fun for titan builds).

[sweetalmonds]

Here's a nice guide if you decide to go with lvl18 dueler
http://forums.diabloii.net/showthread.php?t=552778

[CorduroyAunt]

Ok guys i made a level 30 lld smiter and he does 700 damage with 703 life and 60 ias, my duel record is 179-3 i need 200 >.< but i have beaten level 90 sorcseresses with him. he is great. Im new to these forums so i dont know how to post a picture but if you tell me i will:coffee: