Darrel Hoffman
2004-02-20 06:03:53 UTC
Just discovered something very interesting about Exploding Arrow. If you're
Enchanted when you fire it, the Enchant damage will work on the splash
damage as well as a direct hit. Why is this significant? There are several
bows which fire Exploding Arrows automatically. They use no mana to do so,
and thus can be used effectively by almost anyone. They are:
Raven's Claw - Long Bow - Lvl 15
Hellcast - Heavy Crossbow - Lvl 27
Kuko Shakaku - Cedar Bow - Lvl 33
Demon Machine - Chu-Ko-Nu - Lvl 49
Blood Raven's Charge - Matriarchal Bow - Lvl 71
(Doesn't count since it's Amazon only, and has a high lvl req, but might be
worth trying out this way. I don't have a 'Zon that high yet, so I can't
say...)
In addition, Kuko and Demon Machine both have Piercing Attack, which means
that in a dense pack of monsters, you can fire an arrow and do splash damage
(+ Enchant) several times to all the monsters. Throw on a Razortail to get
a little more, and all of a sudden, any character can effectively use a bow
all through Normal and most of NM. (In Hell, the Fire Immunes will be a bit
of a problem. I use a 4-PEmerald bow on swap to deal with them, but it
ain't easy.) I think that anybody who has 2 computers and 2 copies of the
game should strongly consider making an Enchantress. No other skill in the
game is as effective at bringing up young characters past those tender
levels before they get their good skills. Paladin/Druid HotW auras don't
work, because their damage increase is percentage based and not a straight
addition, making them less effective if your base damage is very low to
begin with. Plus, auras only work if you're within range of the
Paladin/Druid the whole time. (Very impractical if you're using 2 machines,
since you can't easily control both chars at once...) With Enchant, you
cast it on your other character once every 10-15 minutes. A decent Enchant
on a newbie character lets that character kill pretty much anything in the
first 3 acts in Normal in a single hit. (Maybe a few more for the act
bosses.) Now, if that newbie character is also equipped with an Exploding
Arrow bow (Raven's Claw is the earliest you can equip), and they put on a
Razortail once they hit Lvl 32, (Kuko is available at 33, which helps even
more), you can easily get any character to Lvl 50 or so in practically no
time. By that point, they'll be able to have at least one good skill maxed
out, which should allow them to not need the Enchant anymore. If you have a
3rd machine and copy of the game, I'd say you should also build a warcry
Barb, with maxed Shout, Battle Orders, and Battle Command (for duration
synergy). This may be the most effective way to rush new characters to
mid-levels to try out different builds.
Darrel Hoffman - Lvl 26+2 Game Guru
(Now considering an Explodabarian, Explodassin, Explodomancer,
Explodadin...)
Enchanted when you fire it, the Enchant damage will work on the splash
damage as well as a direct hit. Why is this significant? There are several
bows which fire Exploding Arrows automatically. They use no mana to do so,
and thus can be used effectively by almost anyone. They are:
Raven's Claw - Long Bow - Lvl 15
Hellcast - Heavy Crossbow - Lvl 27
Kuko Shakaku - Cedar Bow - Lvl 33
Demon Machine - Chu-Ko-Nu - Lvl 49
Blood Raven's Charge - Matriarchal Bow - Lvl 71
(Doesn't count since it's Amazon only, and has a high lvl req, but might be
worth trying out this way. I don't have a 'Zon that high yet, so I can't
say...)
In addition, Kuko and Demon Machine both have Piercing Attack, which means
that in a dense pack of monsters, you can fire an arrow and do splash damage
(+ Enchant) several times to all the monsters. Throw on a Razortail to get
a little more, and all of a sudden, any character can effectively use a bow
all through Normal and most of NM. (In Hell, the Fire Immunes will be a bit
of a problem. I use a 4-PEmerald bow on swap to deal with them, but it
ain't easy.) I think that anybody who has 2 computers and 2 copies of the
game should strongly consider making an Enchantress. No other skill in the
game is as effective at bringing up young characters past those tender
levels before they get their good skills. Paladin/Druid HotW auras don't
work, because their damage increase is percentage based and not a straight
addition, making them less effective if your base damage is very low to
begin with. Plus, auras only work if you're within range of the
Paladin/Druid the whole time. (Very impractical if you're using 2 machines,
since you can't easily control both chars at once...) With Enchant, you
cast it on your other character once every 10-15 minutes. A decent Enchant
on a newbie character lets that character kill pretty much anything in the
first 3 acts in Normal in a single hit. (Maybe a few more for the act
bosses.) Now, if that newbie character is also equipped with an Exploding
Arrow bow (Raven's Claw is the earliest you can equip), and they put on a
Razortail once they hit Lvl 32, (Kuko is available at 33, which helps even
more), you can easily get any character to Lvl 50 or so in practically no
time. By that point, they'll be able to have at least one good skill maxed
out, which should allow them to not need the Enchant anymore. If you have a
3rd machine and copy of the game, I'd say you should also build a warcry
Barb, with maxed Shout, Battle Orders, and Battle Command (for duration
synergy). This may be the most effective way to rush new characters to
mid-levels to try out different builds.
Darrel Hoffman - Lvl 26+2 Game Guru
(Now considering an Explodabarian, Explodassin, Explodomancer,
Explodadin...)