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[LordCanti]

What would you recommend instead?

You need archery at least, so that's two slots. I think Sharpshooter is more useful than steady aim in solo runs, so I run sharpshooter, and the third passive usually alternates between Brooding/Steady Aim/Night Stalker.

Generally, I'll use Tactical Advantage to gain the ability to actually escape from champ mobs/find the next check point, and then Cull the Weak for bosses (unless they spawn mobs, in which case I don't use Rapid Fire + Web Shot like I would otherwise).

Speaking of soloing specifically.

A dh that doesn't use Ss. Now I've seen it all. That and preparation are requirements in hell+.
Edit: unless you're not saying that you don't use it. Can't tell.

I don't use it. If the math isn't on my side and it really does add a ton of additional damage, let me know. The 15% guaranteed additional damage that Cull the Weak brings against slowed enemies seems more substantial to me.

I just solo'd SK in Inferno (it's as far as I've gotten). I can't take on champion mobs at all in Inferno, but normal mobs go down so quickly that I'm not too worried about Crit building up every second.

 

[kirblar]

well. I just brought 3 items and tripled my dps. 40k total spent.

Hell just went from challenging to...rather easy. I don't know how I feel about this, to be honest. Find a little bit of challenge? Spend what amounts to pocket change and buy your way into kicking ass.

I was doing fine with my 2000 base damage with Magic Weapon boost to 2700 or whatever. It was a little tougher in the sense that I had to be more patient and take my time with bosses, yellows and blues. Now? I mean fuck, left click is 5k-6k, criting at 14k. right-click (arcane orb) is criting above 20k.

I'm a bit worried about the game. I'm not sure how the game ramps up in difficulty on harder settings, but the fact that it's so easy to buy your way out of a challenge so easily is distressing.

Currently in Act I, stage 6 of Hell. With this dps, it feels like I'm simply playing Nightmare again, and I haven't even bought any of the +200 intelligence items yet. :-/

Yeah, the trivialization of difficulty w/ AH buys is a big problem here. I totally get why they implented the AH like they did, but I suspect it may hurt the game in the long run.

 

[Boken]

Sharpshooter isn't that great in groups.

Tactical advantage synergises well with the stun vault

 

[LordCanti]

Sharpshooter isn't that great in groups.

Tactical advantage synergises well with the stun vault

If I use vault at all, I use the rune where it doesn't cost any discipline (but on a cool down). Discipline is too precious to not spend on the spell that makes you invincible and invisible.

I've saved so many group boss efforts by luring a boss away from the others corpses and then shadow powering back to them to revive before the boss realizes I'm gone. Did

Spoiler

Diablo

in hell that way. It came down to me not dying maybe three times.

 

[thetrin]

I for one don't see any appeal at all in grinding from 1 to max over and over again trying new builds. That is not "replayability", that is just doing something less interesting than just farming with your maxed out character. Experimentation can be interesting I suppose, but that's not worth having to reroll every single time.

The funny thing was that I was just about say "you could have a passive talent tree and change points around as you want" but then I realized you already just choose what passives you want, and putting points into them really doesn't add anything if you can't use as many as you want anyway.

I don't know how a DH couldn't get one shot. His dodge, with all that Dex, is only 38%. If you stack vita, your DPS is crap. If you stack Dex, your vita is crap. I'm not sure how a DH is supposed to win.

Does DH get a passive like Monk where their armor is increased by 100% of some unrelated stat? Because Monks get that for DEX, and it helps to make you both tanky, and high DPS.

 

[cpp_is_king]

I haven't played a Demon Hunter, so can someone give me an idea if this is worth a crap?

The stats seem pretty melee oriented and quite good at a cursory glance, is it worth anything?

 

[kirblar]

Best thing to do is do an AH search for an off-hand w/ similar stats and see how much they're going for.

 

[KuroNeeko]

Man, not only is shock pulse the best signature spell, it has by far the most satisfying sound of ALL the wizard spells. Boom boom bass explosion.

I don't like how it feels. Does do a crap load of damage though.

Magic Missile has been kindest to me in terms of shoot and run. Still, I like Spectral Blade and Electrocute the most. Spectral Blade just "feels" brutal, and Electrocute is just good ol' Chain Lightning fun.

 

[LordCanti]

Does DH get a passive like Monk where their armor is increased by 100% of some unrelated stat? Because Monks get that for DEX, and it helps to make you both tanky, and high DPS.

Nope. Shadow Power has a "reduce incoming damage by 65%" rune, but the discipline cost is so high that you can only do it two times (maybe three if you get +discipline items). It only lasts 3 seconds each, so a maximum of 6 to 9 seconds where you aren't getting absolutely hammered by enemies. At the end of that, you're dead.

I haven't played a Demon Hunter, so can someone give me an idea if this is worth a crap?

The stats seem pretty melee oriented and quite good at a cursory glance, is it worth anything?

Like someone else said, check similar items at the same level. At a glance, I'm noticing that it doesn't have any +dex. That may bring the value down, since someone could potentially get a lot of +dex out of that slot (for a big DPS boost).

 

[DTKT]

Yeah, the trivialization of difficulty w/ AH buys is a big problem here. I totally get why they implented the AH like they did, but I suspect it may hurt the game in the long run.

Agreed. It totally breaks any interest in loot.

 

[mxgt]

10k off AH, +350 dps gain

Kind of a joke, really. I shouldn't keep doing it but I can't help it.

 

[Rentahamster]

What the hell, did they recently change it so that boss packs in inferno become buffed if you take too long to kill them or was it always like that?

Abou screenshots, is there a screenshot directory that they get saved to if you press print screen?

 

[KuroNeeko]

Agreed. It totally breaks any interest in loot.

Yeah, I've already made it a rule not to buy anything off the auction house. I'm not even browsing the loot. I'm still iffy on whether or not I'll allow myself to put items up on it since the potential for massive gold could break the game for me.

I may go back later down the road and pay for finish off item sets. We do still have item sets in D3, right?

10k off AH, +350 dps gain

Kind of a joke, really. I shouldn't keep doing it but I can't help it.

Wow, dat INT!

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Agreed. It totally breaks any interest in loot.

I have to agree completely. 99.9% of my pickups just get sold at the shops now.

the excitement of item drops is basically non-existent. I would like to find a Legendary one day, just to have one.

Yeah, I've already made it a rule not to buy anything off the auction house. I'm not even browsing the loot. I'm still iffy on whether or not I'll allow myself to put items up on it since the potential for massive gold could break the game for me.

I may go back later down the road and pay for finish off item sets. We do still have item sets in D3, right?

there are still item sets.

...and I do not have your resolve regarding the AH. I'ma be a buying sommbitch.

 

[LordCanti]

I haven't really spent much in the AH. When I go there, I'm pretty thrifty (under 20k or I'm not buying it). I've gotten some real steals for 5k-10k, and that seems to be the "I want this to sell now, just buy it already" price.

What the hell, did they recently change it so that boss packs in inferno become buffed if you take too long to kill them or was it always like that?

Abou screenshots, is there a screenshot directory that they get saved to if you press print screen?

Check to make sure that the screenshot button is actually Print Screen (in the options/key bindings).

Then, if you're using Windows, it's My Documents/Diablo 3/Screenshots (or Libraries/Documents/Diablo3)

 

[KarmaCow]

Abou screenshots, is there a screenshot directory that they get saved to if you press print screen?

It should be

C:\Users\<Name>\Documents\Diablo III\Screenshots

at least in Windows 7.

 

[Thoraxes]

What the hell, did they recently change it so that boss packs in inferno become buffed if you take too long to kill them or was it always like that?

Abou screenshots, is there a screenshot directory that they get saved to if you press print screen?

Default is:

C:\Users\YourUserName\Documents\Diablo III\Screenshots

 

[ViewtifulJC]

Kind of a joke, really. I shouldn't keep doing it but I can't help it.

Yeah, it's kinda killin' my interest in loot drops. I can take my chances and roll the dice for loot, maybe get some MF gear, farm areas and search all the optional dungeons, orrrrr I can just spend some gold online and get more then I need.

 

[Rentahamster]

Ah, thanks for the info about the screenshots guys. Anyone know anything about the inferno boss packs?

In other news, I don't even use signature spells anymore. I have enough arcane power regen to use disintegrate constantly.

Feels good man.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

What the hell, did they recently change it so that boss packs in inferno become buffed if you take too long to kill them or was it always like that?

Abou screenshots, is there a screenshot directory that they get saved to if you press print screen?

what kind of buff do they take?

 

[LordCanti]

It's time for sleep, but before I go, I have one screenshot to share. I call it "frustration"

Act 2 Boss Spoiler

This was in Nightmare a few days ago (I dread doing this fight in Inferno soon).

Spoiler

Notice the health bar. I nearly picked my monitor up and threw it out a window

 

[KuroNeeko]

...and I do not have your resolve regarding the AH. I'ma be a buying sommbitch.

Well, after seeing the 2-handed staff you bought on the auction house, I'll admit I was tempted. I'm going to stick strictly to trades and what I can collect myself (except for set items.)

 

[red731]

It's time for sleep, but before I go, I have one screenshot to share. I call it "frustration"

Act 2 Boss Spoiler

This was in Nightmare a few days ago (I dread doing this fight in Inferno soon).

Spoiler

Notice the health bar. I nearly picked my monitor up and threw it out a window

Did you flip a table? I would

Yo man, that was fast edit, not sure if anyone would not notice that - its the main thing I looked at

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Well, after seeing the 2-handed staff you bought on the auction house, I'll admit I was tempted. I'm going to stick strictly to trades and what I can collect myself (except for set items.)

forget the staff. I sold the staff for the price I got it for and bought this for 15k.

I mean look at that. Ridiculous.

 

[Shouta]

well. I just brought 3 items and tripled my dps. 40k total spent.

Hell just went from challenging to...rather easy. I don't know how I feel about this, to be honest. Find a little bit of challenge? Spend what amounts to pocket change and buy your way into kicking ass.

I was doing fine with my 2000 base damage with Magic Weapon boost to 2700 or whatever. It was a little tougher in the sense that I had to be more patient and take my time with bosses, yellows and blues. Now? I mean fuck, left click is 5k-6k, criting at 14k. right-click (arcane orb) is criting above 20k.

I'm a bit worried about the game. I'm not sure how the game ramps up in difficulty on harder settings, but the fact that it's so easy to buy your way out of a challenge so easily is distressing.

Currently in Act I, stage 6 of Hell. With this dps, it feels like I'm simply playing Nightmare again, and I haven't even bought any of the +200 intelligence items yet. :-/

Act 1 is still pretty easy on Hell aside from a few random Champion packs. Act II is where you start getting the crazy regular mobs and then super asshole champions due to the type of critter they are.

And that weapon is similar to mine 'cept mine has 200 dex and 335 Damage.

 

[Mr Swine]

Lvl 17 with my Witch Doctor and the game is so good wish it was a bit harder (playing it on normal)

 

[Rentahamster]

what kind of buff do they take?

It was like some kind of engrage timer. After about 10 minutes of kiting them around, they all of a sudden did less damage and then two shotted me.

 

[dimb]

It's time for sleep, but before I go, I have one screenshot to share. I call it "frustration"

Act 2 Boss Spoiler

This was in Nightmare a few days ago (I dread doing this fight in Inferno soon).

Spoiler

Notice the health bar. I nearly picked my monitor up and threw it out a window

I used Sprint on the fight on Hell and felt like I was cheating. Had to revive Ferrio like 10 times though.

 

[Totakeke]

Just started Hell, halfway through Act I, and I'm disappointed at the difficulty. You guys overhyped it for nothing. There's barely much of a jump from Nightmare.

Edit: Oh, didn't read latest few posts which says the same thing! I'm at 4k dps with 10k hp and I'm underwhelmed.

 

[bloodforge]

Damn, my latency is down to 50ms. First time I've seen it below 250 since launch.

 

[Neki]

I basically sit at the AH waiting for new weapon to buy, because Inferno is not kind to anyone.

 

[Magnus]

Tryin all the classes out briefly after clearing Normal on my Wizard (and still loving that class more than anything)

Monk is neato; more mobility than I thought for a melee class. A straight up heal spell! Didn't know we had one in the game. Good times.

DH is so fucking boring. They look so cool in some of your screens, but damn.

Witch Doctor is fucking hilarious; I'm like level 6 and already tossing jars of fucking spiders around, summoning zombie pits of hell and shooting storms of fire bats out of my hands. Frontload Cool Factor award goes to the WD. Amazing.

Haven't tried the Barb yet; seems like all my friends are rolling with that, so I figured it'd be redundant. Why does everyone gravitate so much to the Warrior type class in every game I play? lol Big weapons? Smashy smashy? I always seem to go for the caster type first...


Also, damn, I finally understand why this game thrives on MP. I mean, I'm glad I experienced it once solo the whole way through. But now, I'll never play solo again if I have a choice. It's so much fun seeing so much happen on the screen at once, and class synergy can be fun and unexpected.

So, my question:

Is there a good summary somewhere of EVERYTHING that changes when you jump into a coop game?

I know that enemy strength/health goes up, but does it like...just double, and triple and quadruple (for 2, 3 and 4 players respectively)? Does more or less loot per player drop? Does number of players affect what actually drops? Do any skills get boosted on their own? Etc.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

Act 1 is still pretty easy on Hell aside from a few random Champion packs. Act II is where you start getting the crazy regular mobs and then super asshole champions due to the type of critter they are.

And that weapon is similar to mine 'cept mine has 200 dex and 335 Damage.

It was like some kind of engrage timer. After about 10 minutes of kiting them around, they all of a sudden did less damage and then two shotted me.

Understood.

I wish the game could get harder without getting cheaper. I'm sorry, but locking me in place, the dropping the pool of fire under me isn't fun or fair. It's bullshit.

 

[CarbonatedFalcon]

Understood.

I wish the game could get harder without getting cheaper. I'm sorry, but locking me in place, the dropping the pool of fire under me isn't fun or fair. It's bullshit.

So you take a skill like Smoke Screen that frees you from snares?

 

[Magnus]

I can see myself coming back to this game off and on for years, like a fighter, or WoW, or whatever. Awesome to have another go-to game to get my kicks in.

I can also see myself getting totally sick of the same acts/environments over and over again. Definitely understanding why the random dungeons are what they are now. Without the random, it'd be mind-numbing.

Still...is the next time we'll see any new dungeons, maps, classes or anything be an expansion? Doesn't feel like there's enough here. Or is it a possibility such things could drop in major content patches, like WoW?

 

[KuroNeeko]

Act II is where you start getting the crazy regular mobs and then super asshole champions due to the type of critter they are.

I want to believe you, but it seems like that line (Act "where you are now" is easy, just wait until "Difficulty level higher than where you are at" + "Later Act") is getting tossed around a lot. When really the bottom line is that players are adapting to the difficulty more quickly than the devs intended and that defining line keeps getting pushed back. I think there are a few issues that either the devs didn't forsee or gave up on addressing.

1) Players these days are a lot more knowledgeable about game systems in general.
Even if you make an uber difficulty level, people are pretty good about finding dominant strategies and putting them into use. Plus, once one person finds them they're good about sharing that information which leads me to...

2) Players are a lot more connected these days.
Once the dominant strategy gets out, it takes only a few clicks to find that information for yourself and then adapt it to your game. I mean ten or fifteen years ago, half the fun was trying new builds and experimenting for yourself. Now you can just go online and reap the benefits of someone else's efforts. Also leads a lot people to worry about what is the "best" build or are they "doing it wrong" by choosing one skill or another.

3) The auction house will make things too easy.
In a game where finding / grinding loot is the carrot on the stick, giving people the option to sell / buy loot that other people have found is going spell an early death for this game. I don't even think they'll get the chance to really profit off the paid auction house because once players get to a point where their characters can farm Inferno, the market will dry up (because there really is no need to level up more than 1 of each class.)

I don't know, the whole thing just smacks of them going for the quick buck. I can't believe that they'd be this blind to the ramifications of the skill progression system, influence of auction house, and lack of meaningful stats - so I'm left wondering if they're just inept or gunning for the short term profit.

Hope I'm wrong! I was planning on playing this for a loooong time. May have to fall back on hardcore and self-enforced rules though.

Witch Doctor is fucking hilarious; I'm like level 6 and already tossing jars of fucking spiders around, summoning zombie pits of hell and shooting storms of fire bats out of my hands. Frontload Cool Factor award goes to the WD. Amazing.

Too be honest, I'm a hardcore sorc player from D2, but I'm just DYING to take the Witch Doctor into hardcore. I don't know what I'm going to make yet but the class just looks like fun with its zombie clowns and curses.

 

[Johnlenham]

That's an interesting concept. I might try this.

Its supposedly a "broken" setup, something about the Crits of one thing stack across the board rather than just for the skill.
Ive been using it on nightmare and it can wreck stuff given the chance.

 

[Dresden]

I can see myself coming back to this game off and on for years, like a fighter, or WoW, or whatever. Awesome to have another go-to game to get my kicks in.

I can also see myself getting totally sick of the same acts/environments over and over again. Definitely understanding why the random dungeons are what they are now. Without the random, it'd be mind-numbing.

Still...is the next time we'll see any new dungeons, maps, classes or anything be an expansion? Doesn't feel like there's enough here. Or is it a possibility such things could drop in major content patches, like WoW?

It'll have to be a new expansion. They're not trying to keep subscribers pay, and any major content patch is something they can just charge for.

 

[Magnus]

The notion of hardcore makes my head throb. I don't know how it's such a popular mode. If you die, you're literally left with nothing, not even the ability to run around in town as your character. It's just gone. I can appreciate the intensity of the challenge, and how it'd really force you to play in a tighter fashion, but damn, is the stress and the risk of the server crapping out on you worth it?

It'll have to be a new expansion. They're not trying to keep subscribers pay, and any major content patch is something they can just charge for.

Word, yeah, didn't even think about that. All they care about is that you bought the game, naturally.


Oh, better join the list!

GAF: Magnus
Battletag: budrickton#1762
Region: Americas
Class: Wizard
Mode: Softcore

 

[CarbonatedFalcon]

I can see myself coming back to this game off and on for years, like a fighter, or WoW, or whatever. Awesome to have another go-to game to get my kicks in.

I can also see myself getting totally sick of the same acts/environments over and over again. Definitely understanding why the random dungeons are what they are now. Without the random, it'd be mind-numbing.

Still...is the next time we'll see any new dungeons, maps, classes or anything be an expansion? Doesn't feel like there's enough here. Or is it a possibility such things could drop in major content patches, like WoW?

PvP patch. Any new PvE content that isn't balance related will probably only come with an expansion, which we'll likely get sometime in 2014 at the earliest.

 

[dLMN8R]

I'm still only just toward the end of act II on Normal difficulty...taking my time (and my parents were visiting!). Loving the hell out of it though.

My biggest criticism of the game is the same criticism I had of Diablo 2 - randomized levels fucking suck. I vehemently disagree with the notion that randomized levels "increase replayability", as if not knowing whether the path continues left or right is the reason why I'd want to play through the game again......

No, of course not. There are a billion other reasons to play through the game multiple times. All randomized levels gets you is checkpoints and portals that appear in the most retarded locations, context-less levels that don't feel naturally designed at all, and endless pointless hallways that suddenly end. It's just so arbitrary and pointless.


Just like how playing Torchlight 2 made me want to play more of Diablo 3's vastly more interesting gameplay and skill system, Diablo 3 also makes me want to go back and play a ton of Titan Quest so I can experience those masterful hand-crafted levels again.

 

[Totakeke]

Even without much use of the AH, it's still quite easy up to Hell. AH isn't really the cause here. Even with exploiting the AH, so if people can buy an item just to trivialize the difficulty levels, then the problem lies in the itemization because items DO have level requirements.

*sigh*, I'll look forward to Inferno.

Oh yeah, there's still PvP.

 

[eek5]

How good are these numbers for grinding a character from 53 to 60?

The second to the last boss in Act 2 Hell gives 95k and has a waypoint right outside his area. I haven't timed it but it takes less than 5 minutes for me (barbarian). After you get past 55, I think it's way better to do this than the nightmare stuff

 

[KuroNeeko]

Oh yeah, there's still PvP.

True. I don't know about you but, I'm not really looking forward to PvP. I mean, honestly, if you're into PvP there are a crap load of games out there that do it better. Personally, I'd rather they spent the time and resources on a stronger, richer co-op experience. To me, Diablo has always been about man vs. computer - especially hardcore. Just you and your skills pushing the limits. Sucks that we'll have to do it on a laggy server that could just as easily kill you as a lightning-enchanted elite in D2, but you make do with what you have or don't play the game at all.

 

[Thrakier]

10k off AH, +350 dps gain

Kind of a joke, really. I shouldn't keep doing it but I can't help it.

Just imagine how happy you would've been if you found it yourself. Now you have to live with it for the next....50 hours? ;D

 

[Perkel]

randomized levels fucking suck

no they don't they would suck for proper RPG but for hack and slash it's the only way to go.

 

[ixix]

Man, Inferno is stupid. I guess it's sort of hard, but not in a way that encompasses any of the good meanings of the term. I'm just skipping the bulk of the game at this point, and it's really feeling like that's what I'm meant to do.

Oh well. At least I'm on the home stretch.

 

[dLMN8R]

no they don't they would suck for proper RPG but for hack and slash it's the only way to go.

How? Why? Titan Quest wasn't any worse of a game because of its randomized levels, but it was better in many ways. Its world actually made sense. There weren't random checkpoints scattered in stupid locations.


I love a lot of things about Diablo games, and Diablo 3 is a better game than Titan Quest in almost every way. But not once in over a decade of the series' history has level design ever been memorable in Diablo. Titan Quest has countless memorable events entirely because of its level design, that I can still remember today years after the last time I played it.

 

[Shouta]

I want to believe you, but it seems like that line (Act "where you are now" is easy, just wait until "Difficulty level higher than where you are at" + "Later Act") is getting tossed around a lot. When really the bottom line is that players are adapting to the difficulty more quickly than the devs intended and that defining line keeps getting pushed back. I think there are a few issues that either the devs didn't forsee or gave up on addressing.

Act I has nothing that's particularly dangerous mob-wise. The big fat ones that explode when you kill them are about the most dangerous thing I think. Otherwise, it's very vanilla in terms of mobs. Not too different from D2. Plus, the waves become bigger and bigger as you go through the game so. If you're prepared, you should be ok but that aside, the later acts do toss more dangerous stuff compared to earlier ones. Balanced or not is another.

Champion mobs in this are just as asshole as they are in D2 at higher difficulities >=(

 

[BlazingDarkness]

I still don't like the idea of the AH

At least items purchased off of there should be flagged as such, so actual loot from mobs keeps it's value