Merc Choice
For this build as well as all other builds that utilize physical damage, get an act 2 might merc. His gear should focus on 2 things. + to all skills gear to get an increased level of might aura. Life leach to keep him alive is the other one. Easy way of doing this is to give him Tal Rasha’s hat and a simple spirit shroud armor. Some good weapons to give him would be anything that deals elemental damage if you are afraid of PIs. If that is not a factor, and money is not an object, give him a pride pole. If you cannot give him a pride, what about Arioc's needle? It has +2 to 4 to all skills and will raise his level of might thus increasing your damage. That might be a hard item to find as it is an elite unique. But since no one uses this weapon, you should be able to get it cheaply.
Middle game MFing
As you can see most of the basic gear can be had from normal Mephisto. He is an easy target to get to and to kill. With the amazon, you will not have to worry about dolls as you should have your clegaws on and should be either 1 hit killing them off screen or at the very least, knocking them back. I would suggest running normal Meph until you got gear that you feel satisfied with having. Some of the items you can run him for are as follows:
1 : 652 Chance Guards - {qlvl 20} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 26}
1 : 1410 Tarnhelm - {qlvl 20} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 26}
1 : 276 Cleglaw's Pincers - {qlvl 6} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 26}
1 : 729 Angelic Halo - {qlvl 17} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 26}
1 : 2313 Angelic Wings - {qlvl 17} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 26}
1 : 16192 Tal Rasha's Adjudication - {qlvl 26} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 26} ( yes it can be had from normal Meph with 0%MF.)
Once you feel satisfied with your gear, move along to normal D. From there complete normal mode and now we get to focus on NM andy. Again, since her drop can be bugged so that you always get the quest drop, we should run her until we get some more decent gear. Here are the odds of some interesting things that she can drop.
1 : 254 Manald Heal - {qlvl 20} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 254 Nagelring - {qlvl 10} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 514 Frostburn - {qlvl 39} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49} ( if you are having mana issues. Plus these can be sold for lots to the right buyer)
1 : 519 Rogue's Bow - {qlvl 27} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 573 Wizendraw - {qlvl 35} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 704 Goldwrap - {qlvl 36} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 704 Magefist - {qlvl 31} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 793 Twitchthroe - {qlvl 22} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 839 Chance Guards - {qlvl 20} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 897 Kuko Shakaku - {qlvl 41} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49} (good bow to use through nightmare)
1 : 1041 Peasant Crown - {qlvl 36} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 1041 The Spirit Shroud - {qlvl 36} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 1047 Skin of the Vipermagi - {qlvl 37} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 1769 Rockstopper - {qlvl 39} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 1778 Razortail - {qlvl 39} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49}
1 : 3813 The Stone of Jordan - {qlvl 39} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49} (best odds in the game for this item )
1 : 8248 Witchwild String - {qlvl 47} Catacombs Level 4 - {mlvl 49} (yes, one of our end game bows can be had this early. But you can see that you will get 2 SOJs before one of these drop here according to the odds. So if you get one, consider yourself lucky.)
From here, move along to NM Meph. Just like before, you should run him until you get what you are looking for. Usually most of the sought after items can be found from him. HOZ, Occy, ect. can all be had here. Some interesting drop odds for items here are below:
1 : 993 Kelpie Snare - {qlvl 41} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59} (good merc weapon. Stick an amn in it and he will live for quite a while.)
1 : 1151 Duriel's Shell - {qlvl 49} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}(good armor for you or your merc.)
1 : 1508 Witchwild String - {qlvl 47} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 1681 Raven Frost - {qlvl 53} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 2405 Shaftstop - {qlvl 46} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 2864 Lycander's Aim - {qlvl 50} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 3894 The Oculus - {qlvl 50} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 4642 Skullder's Ire - {qlvl 50} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 4642 War Traveler - {qlvl 50} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 6594 The Cat's Eye - {qlvl 58} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 8500 Herald of Zakarum - {qlvl 50} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 14171 Gore Rider - {qlvl 55} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
1 : 14171 Thundergod's Vigor - {qlvl 55} Durance of Hate Level 3 - {mlvl 59}
Just like normal, after you are satisfied with what you have gotten from NM Meph, move along and finish NM. Once in hell, we can finally begin to work on getting things from alvl85 areas.
Why run the ALVL85 areas?
Quite simply, these areas are the only areas in the game where every single item available in the game can drop. The drops are based on a complex formula that has some basic facts:
1. The highest and most difficult items to find in the game are from Treasure Class 87 (tc87)
2. TC87 items can be dropped in the alvl85 areas from either champ packs, or boss packs and their minions.
3. The game takes the area level and uses that for determining the monster level.
4. Pending the monster level, the game calculates what items can be dropped.
5. The game randomly picks a TC to drop from as low as 3 to as high as 87. Of course, it could always to pick the junkTC and give you gold, arrows, pots, ect.
6. Once a TC is chosen, a specific item is selected from that TC. ( this is why MF does not help runes dropping)
7. From here the game takes the odds of the monster to drop a specific quality of item ( magical, rare, set, and unique ) and factors in your MF.
a. For example you kill a champion monster in the pits. His mlvl will be 87 so all of the TCs will be available to you.
b. The game drops 2 pots from the junk TC as champs always drop 2 pots and another item.
c. The game picks a TC to drop from. If it chooses the rune or gem TC, then the MF calculations are skipped.
d. Since Champs always drop at least a magical item, the odds for a magical drop would be close to 100%. However we have to account for rares, sets and unique +items. So more realistically we are looking at odds like this:
i. Unique=1%, Set=3%, Rare=5%, Magical=91%
e. Those numbers are not accurate but we can use them for examples. So if for example you had on 100MF and you killed this champion monster, your odds of any unique dropping would be 1.71%. How is this? The game takes your MF and multiplies it by the percent the monster has for dropping that type of item. Below is a table that will list the MF levels and their effective MF for sets, uniques and rares.
i. 50% MF = 50% magical, 46% rare, 45% set, and 41% unique
ii. 100%MF = 100% magical, 85% rare, 83% set, and 71% unique
iii. 150%MF = 150% magical, 120% rare, 115% set, and 93% unique
iv. 200%MF = 200% magical, 150% rare, 142% set, and 111% unique my recommendation for best kill speed and amount of MF.
v. 250%MF = 250% magical, 176% rare, 166% set, and 125% unique
vi. 300%MF = 300% magical, 200% rare, 187% set, and 136% unique
vii. 350%MF = 350% magical, 221% rare, 205% set, and 145% unique
viii. 400%MF = 400% magical, 240% rare, 222% set, and 153% unique
ix. 500%MF = 500% magical, 272% rare, 250% set, and 166% unique
x. 600%MF = 600% magical, 300% rare, 272% set, and 176% unique
xi. 700%MF = 700% magical, 323% rare, 291% set, and 184% unique
xii. 800%MF = 800% magical, 342% rare, 307% set, and 190% unique
xiii. 900%MF = 900% magical, 360% rare, 321% set, and 195% unique
xiv. 1000%MF = 1000% magical, 375% rare, 333% set, and 200% unique
f. So as you can see, to change the drop percentage to 3% of a unique item from a champ boss, you would need 1000%MF on. This is not realistic to achieve in game without cracking the game or its items. I can attest to this as I have a single player character that runs the pits and she has fudged gear to have well over 2000% MF and she gets just about as many uniques from the pits as I do with my strafeazon on b.net.
ALVL85 running
Now that you have arrived in hell, greater than level 74 for the chance to hit formula, we can begin working on obtaining items from alvl85 areas. The first area that you can work on clearing is the Mausoleum. This is the dungeon found to the right of Blood Raven. This area is full of lightning immune monsters. There is not a single cold immune in the place so feel free to stock up on those cold damage charms. There will be between 3-6 boss packs in here. There will not be any ranged attackers in the place so there should be no fear of death in here. This area is full of undead so you will have a problem if you rely on leaching for mana. Bring some blue pots with you. You don’t even have to ask for a wp to get to this place as it is right past the cold plains area. The best plan for this area is to kill all the monsters you find. It is a relatively small area to run and there are goodies inside the barrels. The sparkly chest at the end will not drop anything special but it could contain some surprises.
After you make it to the outer cloister, turn around and go locate the Pits. The pits can be found by heading southwest from the outer cloister waypoint. Just follow the road and you will either come to the black marsh or the pits. Once inside the pits you will find 6-8 boss packs. Usually there are 4-5 on level 1 and 2-3 on level 2. One of these boss packs can be replaced with a champion style pack, and this is what we hope for as this means more chances at the elusive TC87 category. Usually there will be 2 champs, 1 ghostly, and 1 possessed. There is also a sparkly chest on lvl 2 that is like the one in the mausoleum. It can’t drop well, but it can contain some surprises. Be very careful of the ranged attackers. These will be lightning immune archers. If they spawn as a boss pack, it is usually a cursed, auraed combination. When that happens, do your best to kill the boss first. If you see your valk or merc go down really fast to them, it is time to S&E and start a new game. This makes the pits one of the most dangerous areas to MF, but the rewards can be soo good. Just take your time, walk and don’t run as these archers can spring out of nowhere. The best practice is to use your decoy as a scout. Cast a decoy at the edge of the screen where you are headed and your decoy will call out the monsters there. You will be able to see what kind of foes you are up against as they beat on your decoy as opposed to you. Using these basic tactics, I have yet to die in the pits with my zon. I will post screenies of what she wears and her stats at the end.
Next up after the pits would be the ancient tunnels in act 2. There are other area 85 areas, however no one really wants to run them. Such as maggot lair level 3, eew, and 3 temples in kurast, double eew. The ancient tunnels are exactly like the mausoleum. Full of undead, with a few leachables, and all lightning immune. I would not recommend this area for your zon as this area is better suited for a cold sorc. More on that later.
The next place to go is the river of flame / chaos sanctuary. You will want to get the City of the Damned wp so that you can start at the beginning of the river of flame. This is a rather difficult area to clear as there usually all types of resistant monsters here. There are also unique monsters that spawn for the shocker type of monster that get the nasty mod of physical immune. But, since you already have 1 point in magic arrow and have a few + to skills on, this should be enough to take down the PIs. If you have javelins on switch, feel free to use them as well. I would also recommend swapping out your gloves for Laying of Hands for the +350% damage to daemons in this area. Just about all monsters you will run into from here to killing Diablo will be daemons and this added damage is greatly appreciated. The only ranged attackers here are the pesky Abyssal Knights with their elemental damage spells. If you feel like tackling him, Hephasito is here at the forge. You can try to take him down, however he usually spawns with some pretty nasty mods. He drops like a super unique in that he has 2 item drops. Once inside the chaos sanctuary, all you really need to watch for is the Obvlion Knights and their pesky habit of casting IM on you or your merc. If you get hit with this curse, keep shooting arrows. This will not faze you one bit. However, if your merc or your valk get this curse, be sure to pull them back. It is not absolutely necessary to go to town to remove the curse, but you can if you would like. When I run chaos, I just let my merc die as me and my Valk can pretty much take care of everything that comes our way. Of the 3 seal bosses, the only one to be weary of is Lord de Seis. He will always have fanaticism aura and he is one of those pesky OKs that cast IM. I usually put up a decoy above where they spawn so that if they get the mod of extra fast, they go for the decoy and not me. And then there is Diablo. He is a good boss to kill as he can drop some really good stuff. Be sure to look for grand charms from him as these can get that elusive +41 to 45 life affix on it. If you do plan on running chaos with this zon, be sure to place some points in the javelin skills and get a decent javelin or spear to use to kill him. Pending on what you find will determine if you go Lightning strike / Lightning Fury OR jab. If you find a decent set of javelins ( lots of + to skills ) then go the lightning route. If you find a spear with lots of damage and life leach on it, then go the jab route. Be sure to be wearing your laying of hands gloves. I cannot stress how much faster this whole area clears wearing these gloves. If you have to sacrifice your knockback to get these gloves on, then that’s fine. But do not get rid of knockback and life leach and resistances ( fire and lit ) to put these gloves on.
The last area to run us World Stone Keep (WSK). All 3 levels are alvl85 and have loads of boss packs and champ packs. You also have the opportunity to run into souls as well as exploding dolls. HOWEVER, this is where delirium shines. Once the confuse curse is cast, all of the monsters are focused on attacking the other monsters instead of you. Swapping out the belt to put on Thundergod’s gets you lighting absorb. Of course you could also put on some wisp rings for the lit absorb. This is one area where knockback is a must. If you do not have knockback on your bow, leave the laying of hand in the stash until you get to the waves in the throne room. The confuse curse works on all the monsters except for the champs and unique bosses. And well, it also does not work on lister or his pack. This makes lister a very hard kill. I usually stand next to Baal for all the waves as only 1 or 2 monsters can come up the stairs. This also keeps my merc and valk close to me for protection. I usually cast a TP behind me after the first wave to get cured of the poison from the second wave. I also recast the tp so that if waves 3, 4, or 5 are particularly nasty, I have an escape route. Running the WSK is the most dangerous alvl85 to run. IT is not due to Baal at the end, he is a piece of cake with the laying of hands on. It is due to the possible nastiness that can spawn on the way there. Usually there will be a level with souls on it, if not 2. And sometimes it can be downright nasty with souls, dolls, and OKs. I have made a few runs with my zon, but my time is better spent in the pits as I can do 2 or 3 clears of the pits in the same time it takes me to do WSK2, 3, and throne room. WSK is, I hate to say it, better suited for a h-din.
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