Summoner max block for PvM?

[Etemenanki]

I have a summoner, level 70 or so, in Nightmare and about to go to Hell. He is your typicaly maxed skellies and skelemages summoner.

I have like 200+ stat points saved up. I could either drop 150 or so in dexterity, and with something like Homunculus I'd have max block or close to it, OR I could drop that same amount into Vitality and get 300 hitpoints.

Right now, my Vitality is at base 100, Strength is base 55.

[JoJeck]

I have a summoner, level 70 or so, in Nightmare and about to go to Hell. He is your typicaly maxed skellies and skelemages summoner.

I have like 200+ stat points saved up. I could either drop 150 or so in dexterity, and with something like Homunculus I'd have max block or close to it, OR I could drop that same amount into Vitality and get 300 hitpoints.

Right now, my Vitality is at base 100, Strength is base 55.

You should not really be in combat so the only thing your blocking will protect you against is devilkins raised behind your wall of minions and spears/ arrows shot over the top. The main causes of trouble for a necro in Hell are elemental damage and especially cold enchanted explosions and the Burning souls in the WSK. Blocking won't help against elemental damage but resistances and higher hit points will. I would go with the extra life and often my necros carry at least 100 extra life in 20 life small charms and the like, that seems to help surviveability.

[Evrae Altana]

I agree. Your minions should be taking most of the hits, not you.

[Veromenth]

And with Homunculus you already have damn near max block.

[Etemenanki]

If you don't invest in dexterity, you will not even have 5% blocking, even with Homunculus.

[Evrae Altana]

If you don't invest in dexterity, you will not even have 5% blocking, even with Homunculus.

It's true without dexterity, you'll won't hit max block with Homunculus...but it will be above 5%.... :uhhuh:

[Etemenanki]

Homunculus = 72% Blocking

Total Blocking = [(Blocking * (Dexterity - 15)) / (Character Level * 2)]

Level 99 Necro with 25 (base) Dex:
x = [(72 * (25-15)) / (99 * 2)]
x = [(720) / (198)]
x = 3.63...

Just out of curiosity, let's find out how much dexterity it would take at level 99 to get 5% blocking.

5 = [(72 * (y-15)) / (99 * 2)]
5 = [(72y-1080) / (198)]
(198)5 = 72y-1080
990 = 72y-1080
2070 = 72y
y = 28.75

So, in fact, you will eventually have less than 5% block with Homunculus if you have base dexterity, but it takes very little additional dexterity to get you over the 5% mark.

Just out of curiosity, let's assume +50 dex from gear/charms, and see how much block you'll have with 75 dexterity.

x = [(72 * (75-15) / (99 * 2)]
x = [(4320) / (198)]
x = 21.81...

So, that's not too bad. With another 125 dex points, though, you're gaining like 55% block, which can negate an entire physical attack, versus 250 hitpoints that don't reduce the damage done to you at all. To me it seems like maxing block and worrying about your resists would be the most important things.

[Verbatim]

I think it depends on where you are a bit...max block is definately useful vs. fallen, and vs. those little exploding undead flayers in Meph's Durance--who love to run past your skeletons at high speed and stab you, and are nearly impossible to see, not to mention the fact that an explosion can sometimes 1-hit kill, if you're not smart enough to get out of the way before your skellies finish one off. Max block would give you a 75% chance to survive an explosion that would otherwise 1-hit kill. If you can get enough vit to always survive, I suppose that might be better, but if one of those flayers gets a couple hits in on you and gets your bone armor/vit down before dying, you'd be a gonner, with little chance to survive via block.

I wouldn't say extra vit is particularly useful vs. souls, though...the best approach for souls is to get 75% res, and then swap out your belt for a T-god's, and add an extra 10-11% lit res charm to your inventory (to reach 85% lit res via T-god's +10% max). If you do that, you'll *gain* life whenever the souls attack, so it doesn't matter how many points you've put (or wasted) in vit.

[Bigrob]

no block for summoner

[Bigrob]

no block for summoner.