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[MattNo5ss]

MAGE GUIDE BY MATTNO5SS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

- What is a Mage?
- Acronyms
- Skills
- F.A.Q. on Skill Selection
- Statistics
- Equipment
- Mercenary
- PvM Strategies
- PvP Strategies

WHAT IS A MAGE?

The Mage is a rarely seen Paladin that can excel in both PvM and PvP. He utilizes two very powerful spells, Blessed Hammer and Fist of the Heavens. Blessed Hammer is nerfed some, it's nearly impossible to resist magic damage so who needs 10000+ of it anyway. Fist of the Heavens is hardly nerfed at all, only Conviction might be a little lower. In PvM, he can switch attacks so his aura will cater to his party's needs and still remain powerful. In PvP, he is a character that no one can take lightly due to his close (Blessed Hammer) and long range (Fist of the Heavens) power; he is near impossible to get close to and just as hard to survive outside his "Hammer Field". The Mage is a unique and versatile character, and most fun Paladin that I have played. Enjoy.

ACRONYMS

Ones that I've used:
FCR - Faster Cast Rate
FHR - Faster Hit Recovery
FRW - Faster Run/Walk
FoH - Fist of the Heavens
PvM - Player -vs- Monster
PvP - Player -vs- Player
V/T - Vindicator/Templar (Smite/FoH)

SKILLS

Main Skill Accolation
20 Blessed Hammer - One of your main attacks; deals magic damage, which cannot be resisted/absorbed.
20 Fist of the Heavens - One of your main attacks; high lightning damage coupled with Conviction can be deadly.
20 Blessed Aim - A synergy of Blessed Hammer.
20 Holy Shock - The only synergy of Fist of the Heavens.
1 Holy Shield - Adds defense and greatly helps in achieving max block.
1 Concentration - This aura boosts Blessed Hammer's damage; Your +skills will boost this.
1 Conviction - This aura boosts Fist of the Heavens' damage by reducing enemies' resistances; Your +skills will boost this.

Leftover Skill Accolation
Vigor - A synergy of Blessed Hammer.
Conviction - This aura boosts Fist of the Heavens' damage by reducing enemies' resistances. Put leftovers here if you will be dueling a lot of other Conviction using Paladins (FoH, V/T, Mage, Auradin).

F.A.Q. ON SKILL SELECTION

Q: Why put points in Blessed Aim/Vigor instead of Concentration?
A: I'll give an example. Lets say your Blessed Hammer does 1000 damage with a Level 1 Concentration (+60% damage/+30% for Blessed Hammer). Concentration boosts damage indirectly by +15% per skill level, but it is only 50% effective with Blessed Hammer. This means that if you add a skill point in Concentration your Blessed Hammer damage will be boosted by 7.5%, so you will now be doing 1075 damage. Now lets see what would have happened if you had added a skill point into Blessed Aim/Vigor instead. Blessed Aim/Vigor boosts Blessed Hammer's damage directly by 14%, this means that the 14% damage gained by putting a point into Blessed Aim/Vigor will be added to Blessed Hammer before Concentration boosts the damage. So you will now be doing 1140 damage before the Level 1 Concentration (+30% Blessed Hammer), and after the aura will be doing 1482 damage with Blessed Hammer. As you can see 1075 < 1482, so add to synergies not to Concentration.

Q: Why only one point in Holy Shield?
A: When my Mageadin had his full gear he had +20 to Combat Skills, which made Holy Shield Level 21 (142 Dexterity needed for max block with Herald of Zakarum). I also had 15 skill points left, so I put all of them into Holy Shield to see how much Dexterity I would save, and it was only 3 points. So that's why I don't suggest any more into Holy Shield.

Q: Will this character do a lot of damage with skills spread out like that?
A: The damage on my Tested Level 99 "Decked-Out" Mage was 8596-8654 magic/unblockable Blessed Hammer + Concentration damage and 5748-5868 Fist of the Heavens + Conviction (-125 Resists) damage. If you call that a lot of damage then "Yes", if not then "No".

Q: How will I effectively use two attacks and two auras?
A: My suggestion would be to put Blessed Hammer/Concentration on one weapon switch and Fist of the Heavens/Conviction on the another for quick and easy changing between the two. Some people may be good at using hot keys, and will hot key the two attacks and use the mouse wheel for the auras.

STATISTICS

Strength - Enough for gear.
Dexterity - Enough for max block with Herald of Zakarum.
Vitality - Rest here.
Energy - None.


EQUIPMENT

Weapon #1: Blessed Hammer + Concentration
"Heart of the Oak" Flail - Best caster weapon; +Skills, High FCR, and Resists.
"Spirit" Sword - Easy-to-make weapon with +Skills, FCR, and FHR.
Wizardspike - Good low/mid level weapon; no +Skills, but great FCR and Resists.

Weapon #2: Fist of the Heavens + Conviction
"Call to Arms" FoH/Conviction War Scepter - Battle Orders, +3 FoH, and +3 Conviction
"Heart of the Oak" Flail - Same as above.
"Spirit" Sword - Same as above.
5 x 5/5 Lightning Faceted "Fist of the Heavens" War Scepter - A lot of damage, but you lose FCR and Resists.
Wizardspike - Same as above.

Shield #1: Blessed Hammer + Concentration
Herald of Zakarum - Best Paladin shield available.

Shield #2: Fist of the Heavens + Conviction
"Spirit" Paladin Shield - Easy-to-make shield with +Skills (boosts Battle Orders), FCR, FHR, and Resists.
Herald of Zakarum - If you would rather have more damage than the life given from the extra +2 BO go with this.

Armor
"Enigma" Mage Plate - Shouldn't a Mage wear a Mage Plate? Great caster armor; Huge strength, +Skills, and FRW.
"Chains of Honor" Armor - Great armor if you need resists, and it also has +Skills.
Skin of the Vipermagi - +Skills, FCR, and Resists; what more could you want from a caster armor?

Helmets
Harlequin Crest - Best all-around caster helm; +Skills, Life/Mana, and DR.
Griffon's Eye - May be better than Shako since is has +Lightning Skill Damage; Also FCR and +Skills.
Rare/Magic Circlet - Look for +Skills, FCR, Stats, and/or Resists.
Peasant Crown - Good low/mid level helm.
"Lore" Helm - Easy-to-make helmet with +Skills.

Belts
Arachnid's Mesh - THE caster belt; +Skills and FCR.
Crafted Caster Belt - FCR; Look for Strength, FHR, and Life.

Gloves
Magefist - For the FCR.
Trang-Oul's Claws - For the FCR, and if you need Cold Resist.
Wizardspike Light Gauntlets - West-Only duped gloves with the same stats as Wizardspike Bone Knife.

Boots
Tearhaunch - Greatly overlooked boots with FRW, Strength, Resists, and +Vigor.
Sandstorm Treks - FRW, FHR, Strength, and Vitality.
Rare Boots - Find some with FRW, FHR, Stats, and/or Resists.

Rings
Stone of Jordan - For the +Skills and Mana.
Rare/Magic Ring - Look for FCR, Strength, and/or Resists.

Amulets
Mara's Kaliedoscope - +Skills, Stats, and Resists.
Crafted Caster Amulet - Look for +Skills, High FCR, Stats, and/or Resists.
Rare/Magic Amulet - Look for +Skills, FCR, Stats, and/or Resists.

Charms
Anni - +Skills, Stats, and Resists.
Hellfire Torch - +Skills, Stats, and Resists.
Combat GCs - More damage; Try to get Life or FHR second mods.
Offensive GCs - Increases your Conviction Aura.
Resist SCs - Resists are kinda low, especially with FoH Stick. Try to get Life or FHR second mods.
Life SCs - More life is always good.


MERCENARY

Act 2 Holy Freeze

Weapons
"Insight" Polearm - Great for any caster b/c of the Meditation aura; also has good damage,
Eth Upped Hone Sundan - Ultimate Act 2 Merc weapon; A lot of damage, 45 CB, and 3 sockets for Amns.
Hone Sundan - 45 CB and 3 open sockets for Amns runes.
"Obedience" Polearm - Good damage, 40 CB, Resists, and FHR; only bad thing is no life leech so he'll need from the helm.
Bonehew - Good damage and 2 sockets for Amn runes.
Tomb Reaver - Good damage, Resists, and 1-3 sockets for Amn runes.

Armors: Get max resists
"Fortitude" Armor - 300% ED and up to 30 resists.
"Chains of Honor" Armor - 65 resists.
"Smoke" Armor - 50 resists.

Helmets
"Delirium" Helmet - Greatly helps with crowd control (Try your best to get this).
Vampire Gaze - Good leech and DR.
Guillaumes Face - 35 CB, and FHR (with Hone Sundan that's 80 CB!).


PvM STRATEGIES

- If you are soloing (Rushing) you will probably want to use Blessed Hammer since it deals magic damage.
- If you are in a party (Questing, Baal) it would be a good idea to use Blessed Hammer/Concentration when your party members are mainly physical damage dealers (Concentration helps them) and Fist of the Heavens/Conviction if your party consists of mainly casters (Conviction helps them).


PvP STRATEGY

Note: I'm not an avid PvP player, but this is a general idea.

Absorb Gear: Use when needed
Fire Absorb - Hotspurs, Dwarf Star Rings, and/or Rising Sun Amulet.
Cold Absorb - Raven Frost Rings.
Lightning Absorb - Wisp Projector Rings and/or Thundergod's Vigor War Belt.

-VS- Melee
Use "Hammer Field" to protect yourself and cast FoH while they stand/run outside your "field".

-VS- Caster
"Enigma" Armor helps greatly. Always be on the move, never stand still. Cast Hammers to make a small "field", then run back to try to lure them through your "Hammer Field" as you cast FoH. Repeat.

From REP and Mikedge
From their words, FoH is used to stun opponents and Charge can be to great use. Use FoH to stun opponenets and then either Charge them and spam/desync Hammers or even Tele and spam Hammers.
___________________________________________________________________________

Edited by mattno5ss, 17 August 2006 - 09:19 PM.

[kibbles]

Question. for the FoH weapon you listed that a 5 jewel blah blah blah and you lose FCR but FCR doesnt effect FoH so whats the point? only for tele but you have hammers if someone gets close. I would suggest using a 25/25 3foh light rod over hoto. also I would put trangs > magefist with +30% cold resist ftw. and one last mention how about griffons instead? FCR -/+ light skills ect.

[Kevin]

nice guide matt. Ive always wondered how the mixed the skill layout between these 2 builds. Although i think some of them do more hammer damage? Most ive talked to did any average of 7-8k. I dotn know if the dropped more points into hammer synergies then you though.

[REP]

I believe Mike is writing a guide on this as well.

Here's some bits of advice on your build in PvP:
When Hammering, Charge is your friend
When FoHing, Charge is DEFINATELY your friend

and some gear suggestions:
Griffs is a nice Circ (+1 Skills, 25 FCR, Light Damage mods)
Eth Treks, duh (Str, Vita, FHR)

and one question:
Would using a +3 FoH/-3 Conviction CTA work? I know many v/t's do that, so I'm sure this build could.

[Mikedge]

Lemme just say my two cents on this build. I've made most of the hybrid pallies [the ones that count atleast, vt-mage-vanquisher(smiter/hammer)] and i gotta say mage's are very good. I suggest you put less into FOH and pump up holy shock more because holy shock in the end is better then the foh. Even more so if youre trying to go dual pvp and pvm, I'm generally a fan of holy shock being 2 pts below FOH because of the good dmg itll have. Plus, BH should be doing 7-8k with 5-6k foh. Foh is secondary, it's basically used for its stun capabilities and the dmg if the character has no res and the convict crushes all of it. Although well built characters will not be phased by the foh but they WILL be stunned which gives you a lot of time to charge and desycnh hammers all over or even to tele+spam. And if you really do want more FOH-holy shock dmg, put less into hammer syngeries.

Thats just my pvp thoughts on a mage. PS - mages PK any and all vt's.

I've been trying to decide whether to type up a guide for vanquishers because I don't see enough of them and the ones I do see are very good.

Also, you should include the elite-crafted items as well for this build for the richer players.

PS - REP, what vts are you talking about because I've NEVER seen any vts use anything besides a grief. I mean possibly a TV uses it. But I think a big part of casting the hammers is the FCR so you can really only use HOTO.

Edited by Mikedge, 28 March 2006 - 10:50 AM.

[MattNo5ss]

FoH Stick
-----------
The main reason I don't like the 25/-25 FoH Stick is b/c you wont have max resists with it. You will need charms to boosts your resists back up.

Damage
----------
As for the damage, I was doing 4.6k hammer b/c I had 15 skill pts left and no Combat Charms. If I use my 15 skill pts in Vigor ill be doing 6.8k with no charms. If I add charms too ill be doing 8.5k Hammer and 6k FoH. I guess I shouldve stated that in the guide, sorry.

Updates
----------
Add a "decked out" Mageadin's damage, 8.5k Hammer and 6k FoH.
I totally forgot about Griffon's Ill be sure to add that.
Thanks for the PvP advice, I'll insert that as well.

Thanks for all the input. If there is anymore it is welcome. Peace.

Edited by mattno5ss, 28 March 2006 - 09:23 AM.

[MattNo5ss]

Update
--------
Added small Mercenary Section (I had forgotten about it)

[Mike]

Not bad matt, however, the foh on one switch/hammer on the other will not work very well in pvp. It takes a second to switch, and you can get popped in the face in that second. Plus you lose out on a cta, which is crucial.

Instead, i recommend using hotkeys to switch skills on the same weapon set.

I personally use

on left:
z: hammers
x: foh
c: charge

on right:
f1: concentration
f2: tele
f3: conviction
f4: holy shield

I would aim for the 125 fcr breakpoint for pvp, so you will still have 75 fcr if you choose to equip a grief for those pesky casters. (trust me, it helps)

Desynching is your best friend vs melee characters. I rarely foh them.

I use foh most often vs all zons and bone necs mainly to keep distance, and because most necs in public games are max block, making charge kind of useless.

Sorces are another story, if they are es. This is where you will want the grief the most. Charge the fuck out of them, and if they block charge out and foh. Then repeat the process and hope for the best. Or you could try to tele/hammer them if you have a 125fcr setup.

Windys can be very tricky. Foh is pointless vs them, so rely on desynching hammers mainly, will the occasional charge with grief, if you have it equiped/get the chance. I highly recommend a stormshield vs windys. Max DR is crucial.

Too tired to elaborate futher atm, just got home from texas tonight. :)

[REP]

progknowsys, on Apr 4 2006, 11:45 PM, said:

Not bad matt, however, the foh on one switch/hammer on the other will not work very well in pvp. It takes a second to switch, and you can get popped in the face in that second. Plus you lose out on a cta, which is crucial.

Instead, i recommend using hotkeys to switch skills on the same weapon set.

I personally use

on left:
z: hammers
x: foh
c: charge

on right:
f1: concentration
f2: tele
f3: conviction
f4: holy shield

I would aim for the 125 fcr breakpoint for pvp, so you will still have 75 fcr if you choose to equip a grief for those pesky casters. (trust me, it helps)

Desynching is your best friend vs melee characters. I rarely foh them.

I use foh most often vs all zons and bone necs mainly to keep distance, and because most necs in public games are max block, making charge kind of useless.

Sorces are another story, if they are es. This is where you will want the grief the most. Charge the fuck out of them, and if they block charge out and foh. Then repeat the process and hope for the best. Or you could try to tele/hammer them if you have a 125fcr setup.

Windys can be very tricky. Foh is pointless vs them, so rely on desynching hammers mainly, will the occasional charge with grief, if you have it equiped/get the chance. I highly recommend a stormshield vs windys. Max DR is crucial.

Too tired to elaborate futher atm, just got home from texas tonight. :)

:o welcome back from Texas, maybe you and Matt can work together to improve this guide, because, Matt = PvM half of Strategy section, and I = PvP half.

[boYFromAuS]

ew this guide smells bad
even weemans 'arctic blast druid' guide is better

[Mike]

boYFromAuS, on Apr 15 2006, 01:54 AM, said:

ew this guide smells bad
even weemans 'arctic blast druid' guide is better

Care to elaborate?

[MattNo5ss]

Minor Update
---------------
- Title change to more clearly specify the guide's contents.
- Added "Call to Arms" FoH/Conviction War Scepter as recommended FoH weapon.

[REP]

boYFromAuS, on Apr 15 2006, 02:54 AM, said:

ew this guide smells bad
even weemans 'arctic blast druid' guide is better

Have you ever seen a real Magedin? They are one of the MOST effective characters in Diablo 2 PKing, so I'd advise you to keep your mouth shut. Matt and I are Strategy Moderators for a reason, and I'm sure if you asked around, everyone would say that we are definately knowledged in Diablo 2. I'm pretty sure that this guide is better than THIS LINKY LINKY CLICK ME

[GotRice]

Hmm maybe only 1 into holy shield and that 19 poitns can be spend elsewhere?

[REP]

GotRice, on May 23 2006, 04:39 PM, said:

Hmm maybe only 1 into holy shield and that 19 poitns can be spend elsewhere?

Holy Shield does have 1 point. You're looking at Holy Shock.

Mikedge, on Mar 28 2006, 11:16 AM, said:

PS - REP, what vts are you talking about because I've NEVER seen any vts use anything besides a grief. I mean possibly a TV uses it. But I think a big part of casting the hammers is the FCR so you can really only use HOTO.

I know this is a really late reply, but for those of you who are trying to figure this out, my V/T uses it, and he's one of the top PKers on East. And it uses a 3 FoH/Convic CTA Scepter on SWITCH, which saves skill points so I don't need Conviction.

Edited by REP, 23 May 2006 - 12:52 PM.

[GotRice]

REP, on May 24 2006, 12:49 AM, said:

Holy Shield does have 1 point. You're looking at Holy Shock.

O fuck me =/. Is holy bolt a synergy of hammer or vise versa?

[REP]

GotRice, on May 23 2006, 04:51 PM, said:

O fuck me =/. Is holy bolt a synergy of hammer or vise versa?

Wow, read bad much today, Holy Shock*** is a synergy to FoH, Holy Bolt is a synergy to FoH as well, but it only increases the Holy Bolt damage to Undead, so it doesn't help much.

[GotRice]

I said Holy bolt. Is it a synergy TO hammers.

[REP]

GotRice, on May 23 2006, 05:03 PM, said:

I said Holy bolt. Is it a synergy TO hammers.

No

[Agent666]

SHOULD I MAKE THIS OR A V/T I HAVE HAD A V/T BEFORE AND IT WAS GOOD BUT I HAVEN'T MADE ONE OF THESE AND IT SEEMS GOOD AND I PLAY EAST LADDER SO WHAT DO YOU THINK BECAUSE I THINK I WANT TO MAKE ONE ARE THEY BETTER POSSIBLY THEN V/T IN YOUR OPINION. ok

e-raged noob out.