Yeah thats what I feared... problem being relying on kiting around hydra is not exactly fun sigh.Originally Posted by magicrectangle
Hydra kiting works really well with arcane orb and slow time. Those might make it feel more fun to you.
Is there any way to not use force armor with low hp and crystal shell ? :/ I feel kinda forced to use it
I don't think so, but if you find one let me know.
Not that I really mind, force armor is great, and I don't need prism for my build to work.
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculato...dSX!abX!babaZa
I've been using this build since nm, until act 2 hell. It works well for me both in groups and solo.
Level 60 currently in Inferno Act 1, playing solo and getting my *** kicked at the Drowning Temple, not enough vitality or AR or DPS to kill them quick enough. But I think my build is pretty solid if I have enough stats to stay alive, which holds true before Drowning Temple.
Build is here http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculato...OkQ!cfU!YYaYYZ
Arcane Power Regen
I have 45% increased attack speed so I use the Prodigy passive together with magic missile with Attunement rune to maximize my regen. I'm realising though that I don't really have the time to spam my signature in Inferno so I will probably switch back to Astral Presence, but I'm not really happy with how weak Astral Presence is, it seems like it will take me too long to kite without Prodigy. Also I realise this doesn't synergize at all with Galvanizing Ward.
Normal Mobs
If they're stationary then I use Meteor with Comet rune then arcane orb kiting, magic missile on the ones left with high health to gain back energy, then orb again. Always Energy Armor and Diamond Skin/Teleport obviously if I'm in trouble.
Elite Mobs
If they're slower than me then I kite with arcane orb and use MM to regen, comet occasionally to slow them down more. Diamond Skin/Teleport if I'm in trouble (Vortex, walling, etc.).
If they're faster than me then I only use 1 arcane orb + 1 comet because it takes less casting time and slows them down, sometimes I will only use comet because I can sink my AP quickly without stopping. I also frequently use teleport to go off-screen and poke at them with arcane orb.
Also if there is walling between the elites and myself then I use Comet since obviously Arcane orb won't reach them/will hit the wall.
Wow!
Very similar with my play style but instead of WoF, i use frost nova. I used electrocute too before, but then i realized i would hit more enemies using shock pulse (piercing orb).
I dont use hydra yet... they dont fit my taste as of now.
Cheers!
Interesting build! Meteor with Comet rune looks like a viable option to Blizzard. Do you think it would work without Temporal Flux or do you feel like you need both slows?
The only thing I'm missing in this build is the Venom Hydra. But I guess you have to make some sacrifices to damage for better survivability
Re: switching out temporal flux, I feel that outrunning elite mobs is the most important part of surviving inferno, also because it gives you more time to cast spells.Interesting build! Meteor with Comet rune looks like a viable option to Blizzard. Do you think it would work without Temporal Flux or do you feel like you need both slows?
The only thing I'm missing in this build is the Venom Hydra. But I guess you have to make some sacrifices to damage for better survivability
I found the meteor with comet is good for moderate speed elites, but I ultimately thought that it was not quite sufficient against the faster elites, if you choose to ignore these however you could probably still do well with this build. The other issue is the delay the start, because it means that you allow elites to get right up towards you before dealing damage. I may try it again in future but there were a lot of cons to it and not that many pros (higher damage, infrequent cast rate, instant damage; that is granted that you hit the elites). It is however infinitely more feasible as a party build with a barb to tank.
I have since revised it with Blizzard and the 22 yard rune (forgot its name) while also switching arcane orb to the 20 yard rune, my justification for this was that arcane orb normally is too small an AoE to hit all the elites, so you usually end up with the stray elite chasing you or you will miss 30% or more of the elites when they are in a group. I made some other changes too which you can see in the revised build below. I think I will ultimately try for something more damage focused such as by replacing teleport with enchant weapon and maybe getting cold-blooded instead of galvanizing ward (if you have enough life regen with items it becomes a somewhat useless passive), but I am not sure yet.
Current build
http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculato...lOQ!XfU!cbaYYZ
Inferno Act 4 + ... The most important thing here people is not your skills but the gear you use them with. If you notice all ilvl under 60 gear will not have resistances. Everyone will be busy trying to max their vit/int, but most likely not care about their strength and the likes. It is important to realize that damage reduction is the is the single most important aspect once in inferno. It's hard to realize before then, but when you are doing 50k dps but only have 15k life and 50% damage reduction will not net you anything but frustratation. This is simple, to optimize your time playing you must die as little as possible. I can't stand running from check points only to find the elite pack with full regen. With that being said here is my build:
Blizzard SnowBound: I use this because I can throw up a wall of blizzard accross the whole screen slowing everything down.
Eletrictute Blast: Probably the most effective missle type aoe attack in the game. This nifty rune allows the eletricute missle to pass through enimies and has an extremely high cast rate.
Archon (increased power): Need to use this vs tough packs. I have little patience. So my goal is to wall the screen with blizzard, eletricute then pop archon. Highly effective vs elite mobs late game.
Diamond Skin (crystal shell): The idea here is that you need to have enough dps to kill everything on screen within 6 seconds. This should be your goal and saftey net.
Magic weapon (force): provides a nice damage boost helping towards the idea of being able to pop diamond skin and elimate everything within 6 seconds.
Energery Armor (anything but force): the idea here is that I have enough resistances and damage reduction that no attack does more than 10% of my life. So why should I worry about 35% ? (under extreme circumstances, bosses or hardcore maybe)
Passives:
Cold blooded: for blizzard / self explan
Blur: for damage reduction, again touches upon the idea of reducing damage taken
Glass Cannon: if your resistances are high enough then you can use glass cannon. If not i wouldn't recommend using this. Try gav ward for some nice life regen if you lack life leech. Evocation can be nice to cycle archon (pure power) with diamond skin.
For lower levels:
Try evocation with wave of force, nova and diamond skin. You can cycle through the skills while using force armor and never take any damage. I did this through nightmare without dying.
Most importantly. Try to derive damage from your weapon on hand rather than maximizing your vitality and intellegence. I've trying improving intellegence to the point of diminishing returns because my strength and vit got far too low. With my skill selections I never really run into any power issues. I've been working on trying to subistute archon for a more practical 24/7 skill, but my dps is not high enough yet to take on the super elites.
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