couple of old questions....

[TheHeretic]

Ok I have now got ATMA still havent used it yet. will prolly tommorrow. Now with ATMA can I grab things off of character and move around or just do it once at the end of the session. Again not really sure how it works. And can I do it on BNet servers. I assume that is where everyone plays.

Now for those doing endless runs...How?? I know me personally it takes me about 15 minutes to do Mephisto or even about that long to do whatsername at the end of Act 1. Am I missing something to do here!? And after everyone I have to exit them game and than come back in after doing those two. Mephisto is usually somewhat easier to do but both are a pain.

I know I am in normal and am not getting the great things but.... I had a machine go "freeze up" on me and lost everything one day with me going against Diablo so... I than decided to basicly just do a lot to try and get some decent stuff back. Nor did I knwo the Norckozon (SP) was that somewhat hard to get. So I have now done about a dozen on the countess in lvl 1 and a about 5 or 6 Mephisto runs and than even went after Hellphasto. Yeah soooner or later I will finish Act 5 and move on to NM but......

And another quick question Without rushing or using anything other than what I get in the game what is some of the better ways to move up each lvls?

Just a couple of questions. although the answers will prolly make me ask more. I have played for quite a few years but have now started to seeing how I can get a player to something over 50 or so (ok 90+ if I am decent) and was just wondering how others do it.

Even if you know but dont want to spell it all out I will take addy to go and look at things. Although there are some here that have done some incredible things here.


TheHeretic

[bill_n_opus]

- most people here play Single Player, hence the SPF (Forum). That means we play solo games privately on our own comp. Not BNet.
- because of this we can use ATMA to great effect. A Tenshi Muling Application by our very own Doc Tenshi.
- Usually, most people will enter ATMA while their characters are not playing in D2 and then you can create stashes (for runes, rares, uniques etc ...) and move items back and forth from your characters and mercs and such.
- MF'ing (Magic Finding) and running Bosses like Meph/Pindle is much, much easier with Single Player because we have static maps unless we change our difficulty (like from Hell back to NM and then back to Hell).
- so, you find a Meph map that you really like, close to the Durance2 Waypoint and then you can run the hell out of it, over and over and over again.
- some people "quicken" their gameplay using items through ATMA that you cannot usually use. Like using Khalim's Flail for starting chars. No requirements and it kicks holy azz for the first couple of acts or so. Stashing great items for low level chars will help people "rush" through the game.
- using ATMA it allows us to eventually play chars that we wouldn't usually be able to play. Like collect the pieces to the Tal's set or the IK set so when you're ready to go you just slap on the pieces at the earliest point/convenience.
- using ATMA it allows us to channel our time and resources to endeavours like The Grail which keeps our interest in the game. Or level 99 ... which is really, really hard nowadays.

That's off the top of my head. Hope you enjoy the game. When you get the hang of ATMA give Doc Tenshi some props in the stickied thread for ATMA.

If you end up wanting to use all the runewords that we don't have available in Bnet then you can use RTB's mods and give him props too. That's available in the 1.11 stickied thread.

[Bull(R)]

And can I do it on BNet servers. I assume that is where everyone plays.

Nope, you cannot use ATMA over Battle.Net. You generally need a friend to stay in game for you to mule, which is why Atma was created for Single Player as it is not quite as easy to do this here.

Now for those doing endless runs...How??

As was mentioned, in Single Player we play with static maps; therefore we will always know the proper way to get to the next level. Although it is not difficult to do on battle.net (which I still play very often). For Mephisto generally 'hug' the wall and travel in a clockwise motion, it will get you to the stairs down in the shortest amount of time (in my experiences anyways).

And another quick question Without rushing or using anything other than what I get in the game what is some of the better ways to move up each lvls?

I'd love to help provide input here; however, I'd have to know what type of character and build you are referring to If you check the strategy website (strategy.diabloii.net) there is a level up guide there, which gives you the general idea of where to be at a given level.

Just a couple of questions. although the answers will prolly make me ask more. I have played for quite a few years but have now started to seeing how I can get a player to something over 50 or so (ok 90+ if I am decent) and was just wondering how others do it.

No matter where you play, the only way to level this high is to do repetative runs of WSK (worldstone keep) + Baal and/or CS (chaos sanctuary) + Diablo. For my level 98 (on USEast Ladder) a typical run includes both the CS and WSK (with the top 2 leveled people getting Baal and Diablo).

[Llathias]

Also in single player, there is an in-game command as "/players X" where X is any number from 1 to 8. it simulates a realm game with X number of UNpartied players in your game (i.e. monsters have more life, give more experience and have less chance of not dropping anything).

Another good thing about SP is, since you'd normally play by yourself, at your own pace and without being rushed, you get to learn the game well in a rather short time. I'd say, in no more than 3 months, you'll be able to finish Hell difficulty (in softcore, preferably). You'll also know the proper names of Andariel, Hephaesto, Izual, Qual-Khek etc...

Ahh! and there's no lag in SP!!!

Edit: I've been playing for more than a year and don't have a single pat/mat, but I have many builds going on, little available time and am running a lot for my top-level characters are all melee and need decent stuff.

[Shagsbeard]

Here in single player land, there's one added bonus that most people overlook. It's that everyone in your game is 'legit'. On battlenet, most players are playing with a rule set that I personally wont play with... using duped items or items traded with players that have used duped items. I doubt there are many 'legit' items left on the servers short of basic starting equipment. By the way... you're going to ask... 'legit' means obtained using the same ruleset as the player using the term. ATMA is 'legit' for me, because I use it. Others find it not so. So 'legit' is relative to the person using it.

In single player everything is 'legit' by default. It only becomes an issue when you enter into MP games or start trading with people.

[TheHeretic]

mmm ok well than I guess its almost back to the solo playing. Ok so more often than not I am solo on B-net so.....

Ok well for the most part that answered most of the questions.....

OK how often should I see green items. Last character had 5 or 6 in the first 20 lvels. Now I havent seen but one in the last 3 or 4 months. Guess thats rules of how things drop.

Thanks for those that answered.

And for the one who asked. I normally play a sorcerer and will usually do Cold and Fire. I really dont use any type of how they should be done or not done. But I now I need to work on one of them a bit to make him a better Sorc.

How much do any of you do runecrafting? Or is it just better to get the items and use them instead?


TheHeretic

[sirpoopsalot]

If you're almost always single on BNet, you may just as well play offline single player - no lag/drop off, no risk of hackers/spammers/a**holes, and the map stays the same. ATMA is awesome too.

If you'd like to play multi-player there is a thread at the top of this forum with games. If you're used to BNet though, be advised that most of the people here expect more courtesy and cooperation than you'll find in random BNet games with strangers. Don't be intimidated by that advice, just be polite, try to help others in the party, and don't steal all of the good drops and you'll be welcome. Also, let everyone know if you're playing with mod's such as RRM or RWM.

... Guess thats rules of how things drop.
...

Yep, it's pretty random on your drop results - currently my latest character has found 4 Hel runes while questing, but none from Thul to Dol. To improve your chances of finding green or gold items, equip gear with the +X% to Magic Find property (generally called MF). The easiest way to do this when starting out is by saving your topaz's (gems) and putting them in socketed armor and helms.

It also makes a difference in which monsters you fight. Spending an hour running an act boss is much more likely to help you find a unique item than when you're questing or just killing random monsters.

And for the one who asked. I normally play a sorcerer and will usually do Cold and Fire. I really dont use any type of how they should be done or not done. But I now I need to work on one of them a bit to make him a better Sorc.

For single player I would definitely recommend specializing your skills (focus on one skill and it's synergies, with support from 'one-hit-wonders' such as Warmth and Teleport), and trying to cover almost everthing with your equipment (improve resists, life, faster hit recovery, mana, mana regeneration, +skills, etc.). In your case, it seems like you may want to focus on one skill tree as a primary (for example, fire), and use the other as a backup - it's really your preference, but be advised that every monster in Hell difficulty has at least one immunity, so you'll need an alternative way to kill things when you get there.

If you want specific advice, please provide a little more detail about the build you're using (especially stats, skills and equipment). For example:

Life: 222
Resists: 40/55/23/11
Strength: 44
Dex: 33
...

Fireball: 20 skill points
Frozen Orb: 8 skill points
Warmth: 3 skill points

Armor: Skin of the Vipermagi
Helm: Tal's Mask
etc.

Although, a lot of the advice you'll get may lead to a "cookie-cutter" approach (i.e. the build is capable of finishing the game, but it's been done a few hundred times). If you want to try something 'new', it's likely to be somewhat under-powered, so you'll need some patience with this path.

Still, there are some smart players around here, and there's always something new to learn from their advice.

How much do any of you do runecrafting? Or is it just better to get the items and use them instead?

It really depends on each players preference and needs. Crafting can be really useful if you are lacking in certain modifications. Does your barbarian need life leech and crushing blow? Crafted 'blood' gloves are relatively easy to create, and would provide what you're looking for. Sometimes unique/set items are best though.