Quote (MajinKaisa @ Tue, Jul 7 2009, 04:26pm)
6% Chance To Cast Level 11 Fade When Struck
you can get better fade from a much cheaper runeword called Treachery, while being a very good merc armor, borrow it from him/her to buff the fade on yourself
this should not be necessary anywhere other than uber trist
relying on ctc fade for protection is a poor idea, before its cast you're very vulnerable and theres only one way to get it to cast, get attacked... see the logic gap? if you're standing in fire to get it to cast every game you enter to mf in then you are wasting your time.
NOTE: not everyone wants to change armors to pre-cast Fade from Treachury
10% Chance To Cast Level 18 Life Tap On Striking
The ONLY place you need lifetap is in uber tristram, ONLY
if you are relying on it to cast on striking, your are vulnerable until it does, ctc on striking.. see the logic gap?
rather if you were to use a wand/dagger on your switch or Marrowalk boots, equipped with charges, you are safe from the beginning
if you are using it to recast after the initial then Dracul's Grasp gloves give you plenty, if you are not hitting often enough to cast it via draculs you arent likely to be benefiting from lifetap in the first place, these gloves also provide open wounds necessary to keep the ubers from regenerating their life, actual life leach, life after each kill and strength bonuses.
NOTE: Depends on the build... and LOH is the most common PvM gloves out... and Gore Riders for OW/CB etc
for general PvM gameplay, you want a curse that will make you do more damage and break immunes, Decrepify and Amplify damage do this, they are your best friends
lifetap overrides these better curses and will make you kill slower
decrepify is easily achieved through a mercenary wielding The Reaper's Toll which is a wonderful weapon that actually does a lot of damage itself, Lawbringer is also a decent choice,
amplify damage can come from wearing Atma's Scarab, Lacerator has a high ctc on striking too (but its own issues for pvm), and The Gavel Of Pain has charges so you can cast it wherever whenever you need it, Brand has a very high ctc when struck and you can put this on a rogue
NOTE: Depends on the build...
having one of those curses will increase your effective damage astronomically, as well as break the physical immunity of many monsters, and increase the effectiveness of crushing blow
20% Chance To Cast Level 20 Charged Bolt On Attack
this mod is practically useless, it will not do enough damage to make a difference
maybe on a fully synergized lightning sorceress with lots of -enemy lightning resistance gear, but lets face it, she probably won't be swinging this thing, and if she is it won't be very fast leaving better options for her even.
NOTE: Again depends on the build... like Conviction/Zealer...
Level 17 Might Aura When Equipped
this is lower than the might aura offered by an offensive town guard hired in nightmare mode, this is the proper merc for most melee characters anyway for their aura and availability of weapons
some people may use this on their off hand to provide bonuses for other things that do physical attacks, maybe a summoning character or a wolf barbs unused hand, but for the most part there are better options for this as well, like Beast or something else depending on the case
NOTE: Check the level or your MERC first before you say that a MIGHT aura merc will give more damage...
+330-375% Enhanced Damage (varies)
This may sound like a lot, it sort of is, but not really if you are relying on this to kill monsters in a full game
this item does not have Indestructible mod, meaning it cannot be made in an Ethereal weapon and thus loses an effective +150% Enhanced Damage from the weapon itself!
it also does not have xx% Deadly Strike, which gives you an overall chance to double your damage
as such, it will always doe less damage than weapons like: Grief, Death, Oath, Breath of the Dying,
it suffers from repair costs as well
NOTE: These are negotiable things for the person using the item and their build... Phaseblade: For Speed and 0 Durability... less dmg/range... but still effective... depending on build and where people game... not everyone enters a full game... there are alot of gamers that play in private games
Ignore Target's Defense (ITD)
this is a good mod, it effectively almost nullifies the need for attack rating to effect your chance to hit
however it does not work on champions, uniques, superuniques and bosses
but Grief has this too...
60-70% Chance of Crushing Blow (varies)
this is a good mod too great for killing bosses, but you can get it from other sources, and more than 100% does not help
Stormlash, Gore Riders, Duress, Goblin Toe, Death, Stone Crusher, Heaven's Light, Astreon's Iron Ward and many many many more weapons and armor add this mod, it is not hard to come by, you can get it from other places
in the case of a dual wielding character, it only applies to the one hand that it is in.
NOTE: Too many combinations just to reach 100% CB from multiple items can decrease the effectiveness of other items that could be utilised for greater use on a PARTICULAR build... Stone Crusher has range 1, then there are the requirements... before listing other items... check on what failures they have.
Prevent Monster Heal
this is pretty much useless as like ITD it does not work on champions, uniques, superuniques and bosses, which are the only mosnters with appreciable regenerate
it also stops working if you go a couple screens away, or to a different area (like town)
NOTE: Depends on where you are with your character... Torch Farming for example with a Conviction/Zealer... it helps with the mobs.
Hit Blinds Target
this is a curse that will override better curses
if you rely on lifetap as a smiter, it will remove it and you cannot leach back life (which you can get from other sources)
if you rely on amp/decrep to remove physical immunity, that is gone too
you do less damage and are in more danger, except that one mosnter may not attack you if it is a ranged opponent, way to go, one down, dozens to go... see the logic gap?
LOGICAL: it can override other curses... agreed especially on the fact that you want Lifetap... but once again it depends on the build... Zealer has chances of recasting other curses with speed.
+(0.5 per character level) 0.5-49.5% Chance of Getting Magic Items (Based on Character Level)
Novelty mod, useless as far as killing is concerned, not enough to worry about, i wont even bother trying to list the other items that have this mod, they are not hard to come by
Yes a Novelty Mod:... thing is... it comes in handy with every other mod listed on the weapon
Yes: Lastwish is a waste of runes:... Thing is... if the person has the runes/funds or trading knowledge to get this item... then so be it.
The combination of MOST of the mods are great... utilising the benefits of other items.
This item is useful to certain people, how they play, what they like to have in their possession (sp) and of course their character build.
It is only useless to those people that think of the game statistics and not having fun in gaming.
You want the best possible damage output... so you will undoubtedly go for what you feel is the best.
Damage output is not necessarily the best option for some people.