alice_ashpool
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watched that llama holy fire auradin video and lol
The Core of Diablo
- Thread starter Telumatan
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This is such a cool character concept. I always felt that ravens were heavily underpowered, and it's great this is now getting changed. Using ravens almost like spells, it's cool.
Hey, that's awesome! If a non-assassin fan says that using finishing moves is now fun, then it's a job well done.
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O_Bruce
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Hey. There's something I'd like to share regarding the upcoming 2.4 patch.
So, the public test realm is down for some time now and it is known that the developers will still make PTR to test out the ladder in the said patch. So far, the community's expectation was that there won't be many changes from what was presented during the initial PTR. Until this little gem appeared on Reddit:
It is a build guide for summon druid for patch 2.4. Seems alright, yes? The neat thing is the reply from the official community manager:
I (and not only I) think that this is hinting at some more significant changes still coming up (I expected adjusting some numbers at most... or any other change not significant enough to require a new guide). Which is pretty neat and make me wonder what % and which community feedback is going to be implemented.
So, the public test realm is down for some time now and it is known that the developers will still make PTR to test out the ladder in the said patch. So far, the community's expectation was that there won't be many changes from what was presented during the initial PTR. Until this little gem appeared on Reddit:
It is a build guide for summon druid for patch 2.4. Seems alright, yes? The neat thing is the reply from the official community manager:
I (and not only I) think that this is hinting at some more significant changes still coming up (I expected adjusting some numbers at most... or any other change not significant enough to require a new guide). Which is pretty neat and make me wonder what % and which community feedback is going to be implemented.
O_Bruce
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New PTR is starting on March 2nd, testing the ladder, Diablo clone and balance changes. Just a heads up, the patch notes need to be read with previous patch 2.4 notes in mind, since the recent ones don't take the consideration many changes previous PTR has made already.
news.blizzard.com
My short take:
- Summoning Druid changes aren't that drastic, but they made a summon druid build more fun.
- I think the Shapeshifting changes for Druid also look pretty cool. I want to play as unstoppable, bearly affected by anything Bear killing machine.
- Armageddon not requiring investing in every other elemental skill is great. Also, will be more reliable.
- Changes for Necromancers aren't significant, Skeletal Magi were ignored which is a shame - the consensus of the community was they were too weak.
- For Barbarian, I like the changes to Leap Attack and to Masteries. Throwing Mastery especially.
- I literally don't know what Wake of Inferno change on Assassin means.
- Cheaper nova is ok, I guess.
- I actually want to play Fist of Heavens/Holy Bolt Paladin. Quite a surprise, given how I hate Paladins.
- Barb and Rogue merc are able to use +Barb/+Amazon skill bonuses which is great. Rogues with new bow runewords in Grand Matron Bow could get +6 to their arrow skills level, which is crazy good.
- We will have either a brand new Barbarian merc or at the very least a new variation of one. The way he is described, he will be great for ranged characters, as he is supposed to taunt enemies into attacking him. A Frenzy tank is what he appears as.
- Act 3 mercs are sad.
- Grateful for tons of bugfixes!
- But still Deckard won't identify stuff in the cube!
Diablo II: Resurrected Patch 2.4 PTR | Ladder Testing | Has Ended
The upcoming PTR 2.4 test goes live on March 2 and will focus on ladder functionality, Uber Diablo updates, and additional balance changes since our previous PTR.
news.blizzard.com
My short take:
- Summoning Druid changes aren't that drastic, but they made a summon druid build more fun.
- I think the Shapeshifting changes for Druid also look pretty cool. I want to play as unstoppable, bearly affected by anything Bear killing machine.
- Armageddon not requiring investing in every other elemental skill is great. Also, will be more reliable.
- Changes for Necromancers aren't significant, Skeletal Magi were ignored which is a shame - the consensus of the community was they were too weak.
- For Barbarian, I like the changes to Leap Attack and to Masteries. Throwing Mastery especially.
- I literally don't know what Wake of Inferno change on Assassin means.
- Cheaper nova is ok, I guess.
- I actually want to play Fist of Heavens/Holy Bolt Paladin. Quite a surprise, given how I hate Paladins.
- Barb and Rogue merc are able to use +Barb/+Amazon skill bonuses which is great. Rogues with new bow runewords in Grand Matron Bow could get +6 to their arrow skills level, which is crazy good.
- We will have either a brand new Barbarian merc or at the very least a new variation of one. The way he is described, he will be great for ranged characters, as he is supposed to taunt enemies into attacking him. A Frenzy tank is what he appears as.
- Act 3 mercs are sad.
- Grateful for tons of bugfixes!
- But still Deckard won't identify stuff in the cube!
O_Bruce
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Some more takes after actually testing some stuff:
- New act V barbarian is a Giga Chad. He is fast, deals a lot of damage, and is an excellent tank. This is the way I want mercenaries to be improved: they don't all need auras like act 2 merc, just let them be excellent in different areas. That being said, you can equip that act 5 mercenary with some items that would support you. Lawbringer to proc Deceprify curse and for Sanctuary aura. Last Wish for Might aura (although that requires 5 high runes). Dual Plague for more chances of procing Lower Resist. Things like that. Or you can spec in a sheer physical DPS.
- Summon Druid is more fun and effective. Also, works well with already mentioned Giga Chad if he has Lawbringer and decreases/breaks physical resistances/immunities of enemies. Especially because Druids doesn't have curses.
- I like that Armaggedon is more viable for Fire Druid (and that costs fewer skill points total). Fire Druid is fun to play through the game, even in hell difficulty because of many fire spells having physical damage component to them - so fire immunes aren't that much of a problem.
- I'm still trying to figure out some dual-element Sorc combinations. Nova + Hydra wasn't that effective.
- Holy Bolt + Fist of Heaven Paladin absolutely destroys Chaos Sanctuary. That being said, the build struggles against enemies that are neither undead nor demons - but you have plenty of free skill points to do something about it. You can invest in Prayer, to boost healing on Holy Bolt, thus supporting your Giga Chad as he kills stuff for you. You can invest in a Conviction aura to make the lightning part of FoH more effective. You can invest in some melee skills if you want. You have options. Will make an interesting playthrough through the game.
- New act V barbarian is a Giga Chad. He is fast, deals a lot of damage, and is an excellent tank. This is the way I want mercenaries to be improved: they don't all need auras like act 2 merc, just let them be excellent in different areas. That being said, you can equip that act 5 mercenary with some items that would support you. Lawbringer to proc Deceprify curse and for Sanctuary aura. Last Wish for Might aura (although that requires 5 high runes). Dual Plague for more chances of procing Lower Resist. Things like that. Or you can spec in a sheer physical DPS.
- Summon Druid is more fun and effective. Also, works well with already mentioned Giga Chad if he has Lawbringer and decreases/breaks physical resistances/immunities of enemies. Especially because Druids doesn't have curses.
- I like that Armaggedon is more viable for Fire Druid (and that costs fewer skill points total). Fire Druid is fun to play through the game, even in hell difficulty because of many fire spells having physical damage component to them - so fire immunes aren't that much of a problem.
- I'm still trying to figure out some dual-element Sorc combinations. Nova + Hydra wasn't that effective.
- Holy Bolt + Fist of Heaven Paladin absolutely destroys Chaos Sanctuary. That being said, the build struggles against enemies that are neither undead nor demons - but you have plenty of free skill points to do something about it. You can invest in Prayer, to boost healing on Holy Bolt, thus supporting your Giga Chad as he kills stuff for you. You can invest in a Conviction aura to make the lightning part of FoH more effective. You can invest in some melee skills if you want. You have options. Will make an interesting playthrough through the game.
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Sounds like a tooltip (text) change only:
Wake of Inferno
- Added yards calculation to the Wake of Inferno tooltip
- Attack rating increased by 10%
Great updates as always, thanks for your insights!
This made me smile. I hope this "feature" will be considered a bug eventually.
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2.4 launches April 14th, Ladder launches April 28th
Diablo II: Resurrected 2.4 & Ladder Update - March 24th
Hi all We wanted to provide an update to the Diablo community regarding the latest on the 2.4 balance changes patch and our very first Ladder season. First, we just wanted to thank everyone for the feedback and testing over the last several weeks as we honed in on various database, server, and...
us.forums.blizzard.com
"Originally, we planned to have this update out by the end of this month, but unfortunately ran into some snags. I know your first reaction may be “HERE WE GO AGAIN!” which everyone has every right to say as getting this update perfected for Ladder has been quite a journey. "
"Since last week’s maintenance, the team has been able to identify and address all these issues—we will be doing another maintenance for D2R to implement these changes to production on March 29. We expect downtime to be around six hours for these changes. These updates will allow for us to have an improved experience during high load times where we would otherwise need to rely on longer queue times and higher rate limiting on game sessions during very high traffic situations.
With that maintenance, we should be good to go for getting 2.4 out to users. 2.4 is currently planned for an April 14 release—Ladder will follow two weeks later on April 28."
O_Bruce
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Another update blog for Diablo 4.
news.blizzard.com
Long take short: I love the envoirments. I am just concerned that in some tilesets, dungeons might be too lineart and thus less interesting to navigate.
Also on another note, one of the community manager, as I heard, explained why those blogs aren't focused that much on the mechanics. The overall vibe is that they are being added and those that exist are constantly builded upon, so it would be the best for players to test these mechanics themselves before having a meaningful discussion about them and provide the feedbacks.
So... some kind of alpha-beta tests this year? Maybe?
Diablo IV Quarterly Update—March 2022
Today we have artists here to talk about their craft and everything that goes into building the world of Sanctuary.
news.blizzard.com
Long take short: I love the envoirments. I am just concerned that in some tilesets, dungeons might be too lineart and thus less interesting to navigate.
Also on another note, one of the community manager, as I heard, explained why those blogs aren't focused that much on the mechanics. The overall vibe is that they are being added and those that exist are constantly builded upon, so it would be the best for players to test these mechanics themselves before having a meaningful discussion about them and provide the feedbacks.
So... some kind of alpha-beta tests this year? Maybe?
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I like these updates! Aesthetic looks nailed in those screenshots / descriptions, I think. Usually in games, perk / skill mechanics are getting tweaked until the very release. So far, Diablo 4 has been looking promising. But then again, I remember being hyped for Diablo 3 for many years prior to its release...
O_Bruce
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About the hype, understandable. Many people were in this place.
Though to be honest, what makes me kinda optimistic is the developers' mindset and approach. Where during Diablo 3, the mindset ranged from "trust us, we know what we are doing" to "you'll buy it anyway" coupled with more cryptic development, Diablo 4 one seems to be more open and with developers being more humble and taking players feedback into consideration.
Though to be honest, what makes me kinda optimistic is the developers' mindset and approach. Where during Diablo 3, the mindset ranged from "trust us, we know what we are doing" to "you'll buy it anyway" coupled with more cryptic development, Diablo 4 one seems to be more open and with developers being more humble and taking players feedback into consideration.
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Diablo II: Resurrected Patch 2.4 | Ladder Now Live
Read on to learn more about Patch 2.4 balance updates and the official Ladder launch.
news.blizzard.com
Hey, it's ALIVE! @O_Bruce Do you plan to play soon, considering the new build?
One minor tweak that I dig:
- Arrow and Bolt max quantity increased to 500
O_Bruce
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Hello there, as one wise clone wars general once said.
I just wanna say that I'll start streaming my hardcore druid playthrough, starting today at somewhere between 10:00 pm to 10:15 pm, CEST timezone (Warsaw time).
I do plan to post updates here sometime afterward, but I also would like to have an opportunity to speak to people (and train my spoken English) as well while at it.
Link to my twitch profile is here:
I just wanna say that I'll start streaming my hardcore druid playthrough, starting today at somewhere between 10:00 pm to 10:15 pm, CEST timezone (Warsaw time).
I do plan to post updates here sometime afterward, but I also would like to have an opportunity to speak to people (and train my spoken English) as well while at it.
Link to my twitch profile is here:
Urdnot_Wrex
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That's a really cool idea! I tried to watch, but only had mobile internet, way too slow to catch more than a few seconds and then loading, loading, loading...
Next time, I hope! Keep going!
O_Bruce
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Mal the Summoning Druid - Part 1
Mal starts his journey in the Blood Moor and swiftly reaches level 2. Naturally, being a future summoner, he invests the first skill point into Werewolf. This is because Mal is a hardcore character, and so an additional Life bonus from shapeshifting forms is actually a good bonus. Plus, Mal intends to spend 1 point into Lycanthropy, before adding an additional 1 point into Werebear at level 6, Maul at level 12, and finally into Shockwave at level 24. That would be 5 points total that are not into the summoning tree. The rest, however, will go into summons.
For experience, Mal decided to visit the Cave at Cold Plains. He knew Coldcrow could be dangerous for earlygame, but luckily he had support of his badass crow and some throwing knives he previously found.
After reaching character level 6, Mal learned to shapeshift into a Werebear and gained an Oak Sage and Spirit Wolf as an ally. With that, he earned victory over a Blood Raven
Sometime after receiving a Rogue companion from Kashiya, Mal found a Wolf Head that enabled him to summon Poison Creeper. It provided an addicional AoE poison damage, which was really nice at this point of the game.
After facing some super unique monsters like Rakanishu or Treehead Woodfist, Mal finally found his way into the city of Tristram, where Deckard Cain was imprisoned by Diablo's minons. Mal deduced it was Azmodan who actually planned the entirety of Tristram's downfall - after all, the most brilliant strategist of the burning hells surely would live Deckard Cain alive.
Or maybe sharing Griswold's fate would be too easy?
While making his way towards the Rogue Monastery, Mal visited the Forgotten Tower and faced a bloody Countess. She didn't put up any notable fight, and left El and Ral runes as treasures.
Likewise, Mal took hist time to recover the Horadric Fall-... Mallus for Charis from the Monastery's smith. The demon that was guarding the artifact that excited Charsi so much was not as tough as he looked. He was bitten by dogs and mauled to death.
After destroying unnatural freaks on his way through multiple levels of Catacombs, Mal finally faced the Maiden of Anguish. Being in his Werebear form and guided by rage and primal instincts, he attacked furiously* with his companions and Mauled the demoness with all his might. Despite this, he didn't forget to help his Rogue archer when she was in need.
The Demoness fell under pressure from the raw forces of nature and left behind a horrible scream, as well as treasure. His Rogue companion, despite surviving the battle, saw too much horror and needed a well-deserved rest after contributing to reclaiming the Monastery. Rogues were thankful, and so another archer accompanied Mal in his travels to the East.
Mal's stats and skills:
*Basically, I went full YOLO without any preparation
Mal starts his journey in the Blood Moor and swiftly reaches level 2. Naturally, being a future summoner, he invests the first skill point into Werewolf. This is because Mal is a hardcore character, and so an additional Life bonus from shapeshifting forms is actually a good bonus. Plus, Mal intends to spend 1 point into Lycanthropy, before adding an additional 1 point into Werebear at level 6, Maul at level 12, and finally into Shockwave at level 24. That would be 5 points total that are not into the summoning tree. The rest, however, will go into summons.
For experience, Mal decided to visit the Cave at Cold Plains. He knew Coldcrow could be dangerous for earlygame, but luckily he had support of his badass crow and some throwing knives he previously found.
After reaching character level 6, Mal learned to shapeshift into a Werebear and gained an Oak Sage and Spirit Wolf as an ally. With that, he earned victory over a Blood Raven
Sometime after receiving a Rogue companion from Kashiya, Mal found a Wolf Head that enabled him to summon Poison Creeper. It provided an addicional AoE poison damage, which was really nice at this point of the game.
After facing some super unique monsters like Rakanishu or Treehead Woodfist, Mal finally found his way into the city of Tristram, where Deckard Cain was imprisoned by Diablo's minons. Mal deduced it was Azmodan who actually planned the entirety of Tristram's downfall - after all, the most brilliant strategist of the burning hells surely would live Deckard Cain alive.
Or maybe sharing Griswold's fate would be too easy?
While making his way towards the Rogue Monastery, Mal visited the Forgotten Tower and faced a bloody Countess. She didn't put up any notable fight, and left El and Ral runes as treasures.
Likewise, Mal took hist time to recover the Horadric Fall-... Mallus for Charis from the Monastery's smith. The demon that was guarding the artifact that excited Charsi so much was not as tough as he looked. He was bitten by dogs and mauled to death.
After destroying unnatural freaks on his way through multiple levels of Catacombs, Mal finally faced the Maiden of Anguish. Being in his Werebear form and guided by rage and primal instincts, he attacked furiously* with his companions and Mauled the demoness with all his might. Despite this, he didn't forget to help his Rogue archer when she was in need.
The Demoness fell under pressure from the raw forces of nature and left behind a horrible scream, as well as treasure. His Rogue companion, despite surviving the battle, saw too much horror and needed a well-deserved rest after contributing to reclaiming the Monastery. Rogues were thankful, and so another archer accompanied Mal in his travels to the East.
Mal's stats and skills:
*Basically, I went full YOLO without any preparation
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O_Bruce
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Mal the Summoning Druid - part 2
First of all, Mal decided to not use desert mercenaries from Greiz. Mal's spirit wolves were defensive enough without the support of auras, and they could be re-summoned at any time. As for offensive capabilities, the rogue archer already takes care of that with her Inner Sight. So, Mal kept her around for the support of his canine minions and also for her exploding arrows.
His first task was to hunt Radament the Fallen in the city's sewers. The Horadric mummy's venom was proven to be nearly lethal, forcing Mal to rely on strategic retreat, but in the end, the Druid prevailed. Aside from the Book of Skills and the Horadric Scroll, Mal has found an interesting Antlers:
The ability to cast Fissure despite not specing up in elemental skill tree has come in handy. It required a bit of caution, though, because Mal couldn't turn into a Werebear while rellying on the spell.
Mal went up to collect Horadric cube and the artifacts needed to reach Tal Rasha's chamber. The Cube was not a problem at all. Afterwards, thanks to abillity to cast Fissure, Mal could kill Coldworm the Borrower without neither him nor his minions entering the maggot's chamber.
In the Lost City, Mal has found
Mal was unstoppable in his quest. Claw Vipers were nothing. The summoner in the Arcane Sanctuary, while possessing powerful spells, was still ripped to shreds by Dire Wolves. Feeling full of power and confidence, Mal cleansed the Tomb of Tal Rasha before entering the great chamber, using the Horadric Staff. Mal expected to battle The Lord of Destruction, instead, he encountered the Lord of Pain. The maggot demon might as well have taken lives of much less experienced adventurers than Mal, but now has found his match.
The wolves ripped the demon to shreds. Mal found out he arrived to late - Baal was already been freed by Diablo, and the Archangel Tyrael warned the druid that the Prime Evils were to free the last of their brother - Mephisto. That led Mal to city of Kurast.
The druid and his pets said goodbye to Meghan and hired Jarulf, the fire sorcerer and the member of the Iron Wolves. His Fireballs were powerful weapons of destruction, capable of damaging multiple opponents, and Enchant spell significantly improved the Wolves' offensive capabilities.
First of all, Mal decided to not use desert mercenaries from Greiz. Mal's spirit wolves were defensive enough without the support of auras, and they could be re-summoned at any time. As for offensive capabilities, the rogue archer already takes care of that with her Inner Sight. So, Mal kept her around for the support of his canine minions and also for her exploding arrows.
His first task was to hunt Radament the Fallen in the city's sewers. The Horadric mummy's venom was proven to be nearly lethal, forcing Mal to rely on strategic retreat, but in the end, the Druid prevailed. Aside from the Book of Skills and the Horadric Scroll, Mal has found an interesting Antlers:
Mal went up to collect Horadric cube and the artifacts needed to reach Tal Rasha's chamber. The Cube was not a problem at all. Afterwards, thanks to abillity to cast Fissure, Mal could kill Coldworm the Borrower without neither him nor his minions entering the maggot's chamber.
In the Lost City, Mal has found
Mal was unstoppable in his quest. Claw Vipers were nothing. The summoner in the Arcane Sanctuary, while possessing powerful spells, was still ripped to shreds by Dire Wolves. Feeling full of power and confidence, Mal cleansed the Tomb of Tal Rasha before entering the great chamber, using the Horadric Staff. Mal expected to battle The Lord of Destruction, instead, he encountered the Lord of Pain. The maggot demon might as well have taken lives of much less experienced adventurers than Mal, but now has found his match.
The druid and his pets said goodbye to Meghan and hired Jarulf, the fire sorcerer and the member of the Iron Wolves. His Fireballs were powerful weapons of destruction, capable of damaging multiple opponents, and Enchant spell significantly improved the Wolves' offensive capabilities.
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Level 21, a tad early for Act 3, be careful. It's so cool to see a summoner druid being viable! 
