FEND Guide ("beta")

[HegemonKhan]

introduction:

this is a "beta" (rough draft) guide for fend. this is because i never really explored or tried fend to make it good (work well as a build). so i don't know anything about how to make a fend amazon. i've looked for info-guides on fend but there really aren't any and the few there are is for lod and even those aren't very good or complete. so i am making one. i will need lots of help. so if any of u out there have fend experience and knowledge let me know. like what stat placement, skills and placement, gear, etc..
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my starting fendzon (fend skill using amazon):

i've started a fend amazon. she's currently clvl 50. she has fend maxed (20 pts). slvl 17 critical strike. slvl 18 pentrate. i will probably do 20 into the lvl 1 passive skill u cast that lowers monster def and highlights them (forgot what its called..) ...nvm...inner sight! skill (jsut remembered lol). i decided to make one without the dodge skills and valk. later i'll try to make one with these to see for myself how bad fend bug is and if u can avelvate it in anyway with good gear. for gear i am currently using: sig gloves, sig hat, death sash, gtoe boots, manald ring, manald ring, eltch (whatever its called) amulet, twitch armor, rare lance (~100% enh dam and 5% ML some AR and etc.). for stats i have 88 in dex for using lances and rest into str. decided to try a titan. base vit.
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I need help, advice, knowledge, experience, recommendations, opinions, etc:

*for PVM ONLY and NO hybrids (NO bow or javelin or jab/impale or lit skills) plz:

Stats:

is it better to go with (of course depends on gear too).....

1. high str and base vit, 88 dex for lance's dex req
2. high str and ~100 (some) vit, 88 dex for lance's dex req
3. less str and more vit, 88 dex for lance's dex req
4. 110 str for lance's str req, 88 dex for lance's dex req, rest into vit

Skills:

1. is it better to not do dodge skills and no valk or should u do them?
2. fend bug: how bad is it really? can u use the dodge skills with fend bug and work around/aleviate it or are they fatal to have due to fend bug. will high FHR help migitate fend bug and interuption due to dodge skill animations?
3. what skills and slvls?

Gear:

1. what gear in relation to what stats and skills (tell what gear AND stats AND skills in your reply posts, not just what gear, since what gear u use depends on what u do for stats and skills) ?
2. damage mods or IAS mods or skills mod or resists mod or def mod or ML/LL mod gear? or a balanced combination of whatever (tell what gear AND stats AND skills in your reply posts, not just what gear, since what gear u use depends on what u do for stats and skills) ?
3. what is good dream/godly/final gear (tell what gear AND stats AND skills in your reply posts, not just what gear, since what gear u use depends on what u do for stats and skills) ?

[fredsta54]

i had a fendazon last ladder season and she didnt work. i used a good lance enough ias geasr with resists and ll/ml and she sucked

[HegemonKhan]

i know fend is weak and buggy...thats why i'm trying a fendzon...i like challenges...i wanna make a weak build/skill into a strong/cookie cutter build/skill ..cookie cutters (hamnerdins, ww, fury, etc.) that already exist bore me. i wanna create NEW cookie cutters out of what is usually a weak skill/build (like fend) that everyone than starts to use....

but i can't do this alone, i'm far from the most knowledgible person here, so ima need u pros' help!!!

[Vodage]

I'm actually starting a Fend Zon as we speak.

On WSCL

But it might take me a while to level her.

Has it occured to you that you can fend w/harpoons? Harpoons have decent attack speed and a decent 1h average. That's what I'm gonna go for.

I might go Fend/Jab/Impale hybrid though.

I might put a point into Poison Javelin for prevent monster heal.

[ancalagon]

I'm actually starting a Fend Zon as we speak.

On WSCL

But it might take me a while to level her.

Has it occured to you that you can fend w/harpoons? Harpoons have decent attack speed and a decent 1h average. That's what I'm gonna go for.

I might go Fend/Jab/Impale hybrid though.

I might put a point into Poison Javelin for prevent monster heal.

Impale is horribe. I have tried making a build out of it, even with decent off gear and weapon IAS, attack speed is so unviable. That is why they give it an insane damage multiplier, to offset its slow attack speed.

Jab is overall the best IMO. Fend is very buggy.

[fledgeling]

Please note that I am not an expert on fend-a-zons. I've tried this build only once and got very dissapointed due to the fend bug. After some thoughts, I think this could be semi-viable (very slow and fragile, just like a 300dex bowamazon), if you skill her right.
Basically you have to avoid the bug at all costs, which means no points into evade/dodge/avoid - and to make matters worse no valkirie. As, I wrote before, I never did much testing, so I can be wrong - but around level 40, my amazon would often get miss-cycles in act nightmare. I believe that the monters there are level 25, thus they shouldnt hit me that much, yet I would often see my amazon attacking madly and doing 0 damage. Perhaps at level 85-90 it would be better, but I never bothered to try.
Jab seemed to be decent, but I never investigated it - just had one point.

Consequently, Id recommend you to skip dodge/evade/avoid. If you get bored at the character (at say level 75), perhaps remake it (dont delete! just move the items! - because I have a feeling that thte D/A/E variant will not work!).

I never checked the breakpoints, but I noticed that 40 (or even 30) IAS on weapon helped very much, she was attacking much faster. Unfortunately I only had a 170 dmg 40ias lance, and a 210 dmg 30ias lance, so it was really irritating.

What I would recommend is:
-40ias lance with high damage, life/mana leech, resists, perhaps attack rating
sadly +2 amazon skills is not that important
-goblin toe boots
-twitchthroe for normal/nightmare and then goldskin in hell (drop in attack speed, but at least some resists). You could experiment with boneflesh, but I dont think it is worth it. Perhaps a mageplate could do - for the 24fhr/resists.
-rings with life/mana leech, AR, resists (lol, dont use manalds, even a 20res 2% mana leech ring is better! also you dont need that much mana leech)
-amulet with prismatic resitance, perhaps +1/+2 amazon (+1 prism should be achievable), maybe even minimum damage/life leech
-death's belt and gloves (30 ias, resistance, cannot be frozen)

Im not sure if angelics are needed or not, you could always try to get some AR on your rings.
From my experience this build would have to collect a lot of life leech from it's equipment. As long as you would hit you could leech life back. Problems would start if you had to move from one monster towards another. With twitch the defense is really, really low. I remember that I could slowly walk in river of flames, but then the character would die because she couldnt run near the mages.
This would be some sort of a character focused on high leech with a fast/high damage weapon. Perhaps angelics would be required, personally I think around 3000 AR would be enough, so they could be dropped.

introduction:

this is a "beta" (rough draft) guide for fend. this is because i never really explored or tried fend to make it good (work well as a build). so i don't know anything about how to make a fend amazon. i've looked for info-guides on fend but there really aren't any and the few there are is for lod and even those aren't very good or complete. so i am making one. i will need lots of help. so if any of u out there have fend experience and knowledge let me know. like what stat placement, skills and placement, gear, etc..
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
my starting fendzon (fend skill using amazon):

i've started a fend amazon. she's currently clvl 50. she has fend maxed (20 pts). slvl 17 critical strike. slvl 18 pentrate.

I think these are the skills you have to max.

i will probably do 20 into the lvl 1 passive skill u cast that lowers monster def and highlights them (forgot what its called..) ...nvm...inner sight! skill (jsut remembered lol).

Perhaps you could try decoy to use it as a replacement for valkirie.
At level 20 decoys have around 200% of your life as far as I remember.

i decided to make one without the dodge skills and valk. later i'll try to make one with these to see for myself how bad fend bug is and if u can avelvate it in anyway with good gear.

please write some reports on how your character is doing, after all some guy defeaeted the game with pure valkirie :D



1. high str and base vit, 88 dex for lance's dex req
2. high str and ~100 (some) vit, 88 dex for lance's dex req
3. less str and more vit, 88 dex for lance's dex req
4. 110 str for lance's str req, 88 dex for lance's dex req, rest into vit


I would go pure vitality. Your character will be very fragile due to lack of shield/dodge. Amazons dont get that many points of life anyway.

1. is it better to not do dodge skills and no valk or should u do them?

IMO no d/e/a

2. fend bug: how bad is it really? can u use the dodge skills with fend bug and work around/aleviate it or are they fatal to have due to fend bug. will high FHR help migitate fend bug and interuption due to dodge skill animations?

not sure about fhr
I think range of your weapon (lance... eh) helps sorta, if they come near to you, this red monsters in act1 can surround you, you fend like crazy and always miss


2. damage mods or IAS mods or skills mod or resists mod or def mod or ML/LL mod gear? or a balanced combination of whatever (tell what gear AND stats AND skills in your reply posts, not just what gear, since what gear u use depends on what u do for stats and skills) ?

Search for the IAS breakpoints. I think there must be one around 40 (weapon)+30(death's)+20(twitch). I would drop the twitch, meaning slower attacks though...


3. what is good dream/godly/final gear (tell what gear AND stats AND skills in your reply posts, not just what gear, since what gear u use depends on what u do for stats and skills) ?

I think the gear is the same, death's, 340 damage lance with life leech, resitance, perhaps +2 amazon. Rings with life leech, 3x 30 resists, life, amulet with +2 amazon, prismatic resistance and 50 in one of the resists, life. Perhaps some rare armor with FHR.

In fact you could also test if some 30frw/10fhr/2x resists boots wouldnt be better than goblin. Crushing blow is important, but goblins do not allow you to move quick - which means more deaths... You simply get hit while running towards your enemies.

[WarlockCC]

Character Amazon
Weapon Lance
Attackskill Fend
IAS Frames per Attack Attacks per Second
0 % 9 2.7
9 % 8 3.1
24 % 7 3.5
54 % 6 4.1
120 % 5 5

You can't reach 120, so no need to try.