Questions about playing untwinked party

[fakeplastic]

Hello, it's been a while since I last played diablo2, but me and some of my friends were hoping to start a run through of the game in hardcore untwinked (probably over LAN instead of bnet, so no trading/item sharing outside our new characters). I've played several characters through hardcore before, but never without rushes/baal runs/etc, so I'm looking for some answers to some questions before we start. We have 5-6 people, 2 of us have a lot of previous d2 experience (but from a few years ago), 2 have played a little bit, and 1 or 2 have never played yet.

1. I'm wondering what character builds we should use. I know we will need a barb and druid for the extra hp from battle orders and heart of the oak (i think that's the one that gives hp). I know once of us will play a sorc. What would you guys suggest for the 4th/5th, and possibly 6th, character? I was thinking a trapsin would be good because you can scout ahead. I've never really played paladin, so I'm not sure if there is a paladin build that is amazing for a HC party.


2. Considering the characters you suggest, who should play which character? Should the noobs take the barb/druid? I'm thinking the sorc should go to the most experienced players since she is so fragile. What about the other characters?


3. How realistic is it to play through the game in it's entirety without doing any sort of runs or magic finding at some point? Wouldn't we be underleveled in hell without doing any runs?


4. Any other suggestions/tips?


Thanks a lot!

[testyfish]

If you've got a group of six, I can't imagine a party that wouldn't do well. However, I'd advise that you grab two pallies, one of whom goes vengence/conviction, and the other can go zeal/fanaticism. If you have those two auras, throw in a summoner (druid or necro, or both), and the last two can play whatever you want...maybe a lit ama and a fire/orb sorc.

In my experience, the hardest part of playing with a group on LAN is keeping everyone interested, so I'd advise you let people play what they want. =D

All that said, keep in mind that there are some on this board far more experienced than I. If they contradict what I say, listen to them. =D

[oOmpie]

If you've really got a group of 6 showing up all the time you can just go with whatever you feel like, imho.

A Barb would be mandatory indeed for BO but other than that there are (imho) no real must haves. Just make sure there is diversity in damage type and some tanking minions (not necessarily skelies) is always a good thing.

Imho you should do some runs to get lvled before entering a new difficulty.

Perhaps you could try and let the new guys play characters that have lots of life and get their resistances maxed without too much difficulty. On the other hand you wanna be pretty sure that the source of life for the team isn't gonna get himself killed ^^

[Tai.]

If you want the mathematically best all around build for teamplay this is the way to go:

6 People:
Static Field Enchantress
Conviction Zealot
Super Summoner
Orb/TK/Teleport sorceress
Frenzy Barbarian
Assassin with 20 Death Sentry (light trapper probably best bet)

Good versatility, wide range of damage sources and types. All characters synergize each other and provide the most intrinsically powerful combination. 2 Lightning sources, 1 cold source, dozens of fire sources, conviction, lower resistances etc.

That being said if you're playing with a group who is new to the game I'd switch it up a bit as a few of those builds are balancing on a razor's edge much of the game.

More basic all around team:
Trapper Assassin
Barbarian (1 Hand WW might be safest)
Orb/TK Sorc
Summon Necro (DV for safety probably best)
Hammerdin (I hate listing this sooo much)
Last spot should arguably go to a second Sorceress (Fireball/Orb maybe?)

This gives you a series of strong solo builds so nobody gets bored of static/chanting or being conviction provider. Moderate versatility, moderate safety. Single source of lightning damage, one source of cold damage (maybe 2) and possibly one source of fire and one source of overpowered magic damage *grumble*. If you run the numbers despite the stronger individual characters it's a weaker party.

Hope that helps a bit
-Tai