new player

[wickedswami]

Hey guys, after years of having lost my cd-key to bnet, i finally got a new one (don't worry, it was legal, from a friend) so i'm back to playing online diablo2

i started a meteorb which is now lvl 30 and some person was kind enough to give me leaf, so i at least do some damage

my question is now, since i have no other gear whatsoever. What is the best way to get better gear?
atm i'm in nm act 1, and i'm lvl 30.

I got from 22-30 from baal runs, but now i'm in NM, i can no longer see the games. So is there a channel i can find them? or am i new screwed?

all ideas would be welcome

[Mursilis]

You're a bit low for NM, so some Normal Baal runs would do you good. While you can't see them anymore with your NM character, any Normal character can. Log in with a Normal character, find a game you want to join and copy down the name. Then login with your NM character and join that Normal game. Or you can just create your own Normal game as host.

Once you've leveled up a bit you should then have found some interesting drops and be at a point where you can tackle NM. Once you get to Mephisto in NM run him for a while to upgrade your equipment in preperation for Hell.

[wickedswami]

i made it to lvl 60 today, i have leaf and stealth armor, that's about it. picking up all topazes along the way for some mf armor, but the most important thing atm seems to be resistance, because those lightning-snipers (all kinds of them) are a real pain. (maybe i should do anya )
hope i will be able to kill nm mephisto soon, then i can finally get some descent items.

I'm starting to have doubts about meteor.
I played a blizzard sorc not long ago, and i found i could aim blizzard a LOT better then meteor. In teamgames, by the time my meteor strikes, the units are mostly dead and in solo, it's hard to know where to place the meteor so it hits them, without them hitting you. Maybe a merc would help here, but i'm afraid a lac of items will make my merc-revive costs too expensive.

Overall i am enjoying myself in the game, it's been ages since i played on bnet and the community seems to be better then when i knew it.

[SnickerSnack]

I'm starting to have doubts about meteor.
I played a blizzard sorc not long ago, and i found i could aim blizzard a LOT better then meteor. In teamgames, by the time my meteor strikes, the units are mostly dead and in solo, it's hard to know where to place the meteor so it hits them, without them hitting you.

For one, I use a merc, so it is a bit easier. Second. If you cast meteor between you and the enemy and then use fireball to make them go into hit-recovery when they're right under the meteor, it will hit them. Then alternate, meteor and FB. It take some practice, but I find that it works well.

Are you using a single element? If so, consider getting just one point in Glacial Spike, it freezes. Then, spam GS to hold enemies in place and then cast meteor intermittently. I often play meteorbs, that's meteor and Frozen Orb. Checkout the guides in the sorceress forum for that.

[wickedswami]

it's a meteorb i'm making, the one from the sorc forum (with a different buildup though)
i still find it wierd to use 2 timered spells
Think i'll end up using forb+fireball most of the time..
i'll try the trick with the hit recovery.
what merc should i get? prayer of defiance? (i'm goin all vit, no dext btw)

[Mursilis]

That's probably the issue. The build's name is a bit misleading, as you don't use Meteor all the time. Instead most people use Fireball the most from the Fire spells tree. Meteor is used more for when your mercenary is tanking enemies and they are stationary, or for enemies that are always stationary anyway. Otherwise, as you noticed, it's a bit tough to ensure you actually hit your target.

Common mercenaries would be either the Holy Freeze or Defiance Act II merc. Which one is better is a lively debate that has been going on for years, so there isn't really a best answer there. Try them both out and see which you like better.

[wickedswami]

so i've reached the point where i can kill NM mephisto by myself. Not having the steady map as i used to have in single player makes this quite the effort though. my manapool isn't that big, and neither is my fcr, so teleporting all the way to mephy is out of the question, resulting in sometimes over 10min searches for the durance of hate lvl3, completely destroying the idea of efficient mf-ing.
So i decided to take on pindle. He's just as easy for me, but my question is: Are NM pindleruns worth anything? and how much mf would be required to find some descent stuff (as in stuff that would make me able to kill hell meph)?

P.S.: i'm lvl 75 atm, with a leaf staff, naj's armor, magefist and tal's belt. Other stuff is rather worthless (some+mana, a very small amount of resist etc)

[solo eye]

The only NM run that I do, or have heard anyone claim that has any merit is Mephy.
At lvl 75, your Frozen Orb should be owning in NM, but most of my kill speed comes with spamming Fireball. How many skill points do you have in Firebolt, Fireball, Meteor and Mastery? I feel it is more efficient to max Firebolt and Fireball before getting too excited about Meteor.

With regard to Meteor being unwieldly, try this:

- get the attention of a pack that is not FI
- cast Meteor on yourself
- run in the direction opposite that of the pack
- the monsters should pursue, right in the path of the Meteor, that falls on their heads and burns them to, oh, so many, cinders.

You will need to be cogniscient (sp?) of the monsters speed. In this way you can time the Meteor casts to "lead" the pack into the blast.

Happy incineration!

*solo-eye

[solo eye]

Also, not sure if you would use this in your playbook or not, but the gems other than the topaz's that you state you are currently keeping could get you some rather useful, but not godly, gear in a different kind of run. The run to the trade forum, lol.

[wickedswami]

that's exactly why i'm keeping the gems
i'm lvl 79 new, frozen orb maxed and 17-ish points in cold mastery (cuz that's what the guide says)
a 10-15-ish in firball, meteor maxed and everything else (except for prereqs) in mastery (also about 10 points)

gear atm is: naj's armor, wizspike (friendly people on bnet), lore helmet, crappy boots&gloves, crappy rings&ammy's.
maybe i should try hell andy for some good rings (nagel, maybe soj..)

is there a trick as to finding DoH lvl 3 faster? (as in: holding the left or right wall or sth like that)
i'll go see how fast he dies now

P.S.: i also found a 3socket helm, currently holding 2 ptopazes for some mf, and another friendly bnet person gave me gheeds (but a low% one) so i'm starting to get some mf..


NM mephisto is indeed rather easy to kill. Some wierd internet lags won't let me continue though.
Anyway i fould a PUL from NM hellforge (yay). what should i get for it (planning to get full tal's set)