Baal Runs / Hammerdin

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sat Oct 15, 2005 1:26 pm

Guys - I read a post or two about doing Baal Runs. Well, I just beat him, picked up the good items, didn't go through the portal or talk to Tyrael, yet the game ended with the movie of him smashing the soulstone. Did I screw up somewhere ?. I was hoping to make a few passes at him hoping to get some good items. I did add a Halabred(... slows target /open wounds / target defense etc..) + Partizan(...phy dam off the charts); not sure which one is better, so I kept both for my Merc. This wil be used with my Assassin/Trapper character.
Thanks to everyone(...Dottie/Noober/Moltovir/C Elegans) for their help with the build = just finished Normal mode.
1) If there is a way to defeat Baal more than once, could someone tell me how.
(...if I screwed up I'll be ******, as he was easy to beat and dropped 3 Gold items)

2) I'm thinking of doing a Hammerdin build.
I found the following build on the net = didn't see a stickey build here for this character
Could someone tell me if the build is sound; should I make some changes ?
This is the info/build I found. He makes reference to it being developed during the 1.10 beta patch ?

Any help would be appreciated.................>
(Hammerdin)
"I’d suggest your stats looking something like this:

Strength – enough for your gear if you already have it, but if you’re playing from scratch, it never hurts getting some more to give you a higher flexibility when choosing gear. For example, imagine you find an armor better than your current one, but because you’re only getting strength for your ideal gear, you can’t wear it. My paladin, for example, has around 165 base strength, but you probably can get by with less

Dexterity – you should be getting enough dexterity to reach a decent block rating with holy shield on, but I don’t suggest getting much extra dexterity, since you’ll eventually find a nice shield with good block. My paladin has around 125 base dexterity, I’d say that’s enough

Vitality – all your remaining points go there, you need as much life as you can get!

Energy – I’d suggest using no points in energy, since paladins only get 1.5 mana per energy point, and you’ll have enough mana with no points here. If you really feel your mana is too low, you can get some points here, but you might regret it later when you upgrade your gear

Now for skills, the ones I suggest are:

Blessed Hammer – the skill that gives the build its name, and your main (and probably only) attack. It has been enhanced in this patch, deals full magical damage and ignores the magic resistance from Undead and Demon monsters, which means it’ll hurt nearly every monster you find. 20 points here is a must

Concentration – this aura is the only one that enhances the damage from Blessed Hammer, another skill to max. 20 points here

Vigor – this ever useful aura is now a synergy for Blessed Hammer, and will increase the damage from it by quite a lot. 20 points here too

Blessed Aim – this is the second synergy for Blessed Hammer. I suggest getting 20 points in it for a pure Hammerdin, but if you wish to get a secondary attack, you can get by with less. 1-20 points

Holy Shield – this skill will really help you to get your block to 75%, and will give you a nice amount of defense. Getting it to around level 10 after +skill items is enough, but you can max it if you have enough spare points. 1-20 points

Charge – if you want a support skill, this one is your best bet. It deals a ton of damage in 1 hit, isn’t affected by IAS so using Concentration isn’t a problem, and has a common synergy with Blessed Hammer (Vigor), so you only need a decent weapon on switch to use it effectively. The problem is Charge is currently very buggy in the beta, that’s why I decided not to spend points in it, but it should be fixed in the final release. 1-20 points "

**** Any help on both questions would be greatly appreciated ****

moltovir · Post by **moltovir** » Sat Oct 15, 2005 3:25 pm

To run Baal again and again until the end of times, just go to the Worldstone Keep 2 waypoint, go from WSK 2 to WSK 3 and from there to the Throne of Destruction. In the throne room, beat Baal's 5 groups of minions, and when Listor the Tormentor and his pack fall you can follow Baal into the Worldstone Chamber.

Standard Hammerdin build:

20 Blessed Hammer (maxed first)
20 Vigor
20 Blessed Aim
20 Concentration
where you make sure that the skill level of Vigor + the skill level of Blessed Aim (without +skills from gear) is at least 10 levels higher than the Concentration skill level (with +skills from gear) for the best damage return per skill point. 1 point in Charge is enough, because you're only going to use it against one or two monster types.

You need enough in Holy Shield to have 75% block when it's active, so just add points when it's necessary. Don't put too much in HS - points in dexterity have the same effect, though smaller, but skill points are more valuable than stat points. Generally level 10 Holy Shield is enough by endgame for most paladins (endgame = +- level 85).

Never put anything in energy, but get an Act 2 merc (a defensive merc from nightmare difficulty is the safest choice, use a defensive merc from normal until you get to NM) and equip him with an "Insight" runeword polearm for instant mana regeneration.

From the moment you're level 25, try to find a 4 socket Chrystal Sword and a 4 socket paladin shield with high +resists (+20-35). Use your higher level characters if necessary. Make "Spirit" runewords in both the sword and shield, this will give you lots of +skills, faster cast rate, life and resists at an early level for a cheap price.

If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sat Oct 15, 2005 8:03 pm

Moltovir - thanks you; as always.
I did the WSK waypoint to WSK3; defeated all the groups; went to WC and then I defeated Baal. Does defeating Baal end the game ?. Should I have stopped after killing Lister ?. I wanted to keep defeating Baal = is that possible ?

Thanks for the build info.
I'm printing it out

Moltovir, you know me, asking questions isn;t a problem

Dottie · Post by **Dottie** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:32 am

@Joe: The only monster that disappears from the game after you have defeated it is the ancients. Everyone else is still there, you just have to start a new game on the same difficulty level, and all will be fine.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 2:06 am

Dottie - If I start a new game on the same difficulty level, do I have to slug through all the acts just to get back at Baal.
I was hoping to start the Baal run from WSK2 waypoint.

Dottie · Post by **Dottie** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 2:27 am

Not at all, all the waypoints you have claimed will still be there when you start a new one. Just take the waypont to act 5 wk 2 like moltovir says.

Deadalready · Post by **Deadalready** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 10:25 am

Never max Blessed Hammer first, it's the last skill you'd want to max with a Paladin.

With basic mana reserves it's simply unreasonable (and wasteful) to keep up with the huge mana requirements of a high level Blessed Hammer (early on), definitely improve concentration faster than Blessed Hammer until enough "+1 to mana after kill" items are collected. Even with enough "Triumphant" items I'd still go with a higher level Concentration or synergy, I might do slightly less damage but I can stay in a battle much longer and support mana reserves longer.

Not every character is able to collect the runewords required for build recommendations.

Dottie · Post by **Dottie** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 11:41 am

[QUOTE=Deadalready]Never max Blessed Hammer first, it's the last skill you'd want to max with a Paladin.[/QUOTE]

I have not played Paladin very much, but the relative mana cost decreases with a higher Blessed hammer, and quite fast too. So I would advice against this strategy.

moltovir · Post by **moltovir** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 12:51 pm

With the Insight runeword you never have to worry about mana and it costs nothing (highest rune is a Sol). Every character is able to get a Sol simply by running the Nightmare countess 5-10 times. Sol's drop as early as Act 3 normal.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 8:39 pm

Dottie - oh, I feel stupid now

I never thought about the waypoints.
Will do so on this character when I get to Baal.

Moltovir - I looked up my runeword chart and didn't see Insight. I'm guessing it's only available in online/ladder play ?

Since I only play PvM, that won't help me :-(
After reading the post on how the resists drop in NM and HELL, I'm thinking HELL will be a bit more than I can handle.

I did save a bunch of skill points with my Assassin/Trapper = hope to get +8 skills gear to allocate the points elsewhere ... then maybe I can take this character online and play vs you fine folks ... maybe then I can add those runewords ... when the time comes, I'll ask about online/ladder play ... as Moltovir/Dottie already know, "I'm full of questions"

Not sure now if I try the Strafezon or Hammerdin.
I'm trying to alternate characters based on perceived strategy = mix up the gameplay

Thanks for all your board help ... the stickeys etc
Easy to reference means less replaying and sooner I go to HELL; pun intended.

Dottie · Post by **Dottie** » Sun Oct 16, 2005 10:40 pm

[QUOTE=joe05]then maybe I can take this character online and play vs you fine folks ... maybe then I can add those runewords ... when the time comes, I'll ask about online/ladder play ... as Moltovir/Dottie already know, "I'm full of questions"[/QUOTE]

Just so you know, if you sooner or later want to play on the ladder you have to do so with a new character. You can not import one you have already created.

Deadalready · Post by **Deadalready** » Mon Oct 17, 2005 7:58 am

When'd they change the mana requirements for Blessed Hammer?

~

Edit: err according to the Blizzard site it still costs an increasing amount of mana like I remember it.
http://www.battle.net/diablo2exp/skills ... ssedhammer

Dottie · Post by **Dottie** » Mon Oct 17, 2005 9:30 am

I did say relative mana cost. If you divide the damage by the mana cost you will see a significant decrease.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Mon Oct 17, 2005 8:26 pm

Dottie - yikes, that means starting from scratch vs players who are much better than me.
I'd be one of those "meat shields" mentioned on this board

Oh, well, guess we try to do the best in PvM.
Thanks for your help.

moltovir · Post by **moltovir** » Tue Oct 18, 2005 9:06 am

In a good Diablo 2 game, you play with people, not versus them

Although good pubbie games are getting rarer and rarer.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Tue Oct 18, 2005 1:49 pm

Moltovir - oh, I see.
Again, the newbie in me comes through

That would make it much easier.
After working thru all the characters, I might give "ladder" a try ?
First, I need to figure out the best character per my limitations.
So far Assassin-Trapper OR Necromancer-Summoner.
Not doing well with the Strafezon :-(
Same as the Barbarian, just too much constant "gameplay".
I like to set those traps or watch the "wild dogs(Skels) run wild"

Maybe the Hammerdin, Wind Druid or Sorceress will also be to my liking ? ... I'm using all the builds from the stickeys ... the Hammerdin is your build = if it's like your Necro-Summoner build, I'll be in good shape !
Well, thanks for the info = I'd imagine after all the years and new games, the numbers for online would dwindle ... shame, I find these "older" games much more enjoyable than the newer ones :-(
I've spent more time On Diablo 2:LoD than my previous 20+ ... no lie
Still have 3 characters + the harder difficulties to do.
I keep playing, hoping to find those "Godly" items OR Runes = my only hope as I see it to make it through Hell
Without this board, I doubt I'd have put this much time/pain into this game = but it's so darn addicting
Now, if I just knew what I was doing; looking to find etc, I'd be in good shape; character-wise

I'm just following Dottie's advice from "post #1" ... yellow/gold/runewords
So far, so good

FireLighter · Post by **FireLighter** » Tue Oct 18, 2005 5:22 pm

If you get a hammerdin that can dish it out and tank it, keep doing normal baal until you find a viper magi as they will help tremendously in nm for the fast cast, +1 to skills, and 25(?)-35 resist all. And maybe later upgrade it to wyrmhide armor. (It is unique serpentskin armor and baal is the only place on normal that can drop it.) Good hunting!

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:09 am

FireLighter - I'm always looking for "good hunting" areas. Beats chasing those little knee-biters and getting piddly points and no drops

I've decided to do The Strafezon first; then the Hammerdin.
I'll try Baal runs with her and see how it goes.
Thanks for the info = if I'm going to expend the effort, at least I might get some goodies

FireLighter · Post by **FireLighter** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 1:13 pm

With the best gear (enigma, HotO, Maras ammy, sojs, arach, magefist, war travs, HoZ, Shako (or 2 paly skills resist 20 fcr circlet type helm) and charms) your pally should do around 13k damage with concentration, hammer, and syns maxed.

If you're playing solo as in single player you could get an editor and get those items no problem just to see the kind of damage you can do. I myself did that dmg with my hammerdin in 1.10.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Wed Oct 19, 2005 8:16 pm

FireLighter - thanks for the info.
I know Enigma, the rest, well, I'll look at your abbreviations vs what I find.
I'm assuming these will be found in NM or HELL.
So, I may come across them when I do NM with my other characters.
As I'm going thru one character at a time and then starting from character one for NM.

I may be going to the Hammerdin sooner than expected, as the Strafezon isn't exactly the stand-off type character I expected. Seems I miss so much, I melee with a bow

Plus, the info said a good MF ?
I found Emeralds out the whazoo. Only 5 chipped Topaz, and I'm about to fight Anadriel. So, I can't even try to get my MF to 50+.
Maybe if I do each area 5+ times I might make up for the low MF items ?
Not sure how the game works, where drops are concerned.
If the drops are solely based on MF items on each character, then I'm in trouble.
Since this build recommended no/low STR/VIT, I really have little leeeway in wearing less unique/godly equipment ... that's if I find any :-(

Thanks for your help = I'm copying your info and putting into my Hammerdin file