Rödluvan: I burned most things to the ground, except the pesky burning dead. To be red and fire resistant – what an outrage! The nasty scarab beetles were not much of a problem because they fell so quickly to my exploding arrows. Those beetles are just wannabe-beetles! Nothing like my beetles in Lut Gholein.

When I had just stumbled on the ruins of a lost city in the middle of the desert (what kind of moron chooses that place to be the site of a city? No water, no grass, no shade...) everything went dark. It was like an eclipse all of a sudden. When I returned to town Drognan was mystified about the length of it. The fact that it came out of nowhere did not concern him. He did in any case blame the claw vipers. They had a temple next to this city. It was defended by a primitive and ineffective fire tower. Lame compared to my socketed hunter’s bow.

Their next defence was more clever, but not so reliable. Waheed was suddenly magically removed from the world, but then he reappeared! It was a devastating spell without doubt, but not so reliable. Waheed later said that this flashing back and forth reminded him of something, but he couldn’t remember exactly what. He decided to call this strange experience a “flashback”, strange as it sounds.





In the Arcane Sanctuary I did at least not stop to watch the sky or other absent-minded things, but went straight to the summoner once I found him and shot his minions and him to dust.

Baal had left once we got to the tomb. Perhaps we would have caught him if Cain had given that mission a bit of priority instead of putting it last of all the quests of this act. Duriel was very annoying because he kept following me and not my subtly casted decoy! Such insolent behaviour is appalling!

Maltatai: Snövit, how did you fare against Baal?

Snövit: Much better than the incompetent red fellow around here. I managed to distract Duriel with my decoy and mercenary.

Rödluvan: That was pure luck!

Maltatai: Yes, yes, any good finds in the act?

Rödluvan: Yes, I gambled a nice pair of gloves with 27 lightning resist and 20 magic find, a decent circlet with life leech and 40 cold resist and some cold damage, a rare belt with 19 lightning resist and 12 cold resist. I also found a nagelring!

Maltatai: I’m starting to detect a certain pattern here... Preparing to run Mephisto?

Rödluvan: Actually not, I just found those things randomly. I sorely miss fire resistance – ironic, I know.

Maltatai: Thank you. What did you find Snövit?

Snövit: I have a circlet with lightning damage and mana leech, a ring with life leech and 21 cold resist while the other has 22 magic find and 10 lightning resist. I have also a stored circlet with cold and lightning resist and Kasim has one with 39 fire resist. Haha, you can’t have it, you can’t have it!

Rödluvan: You immature git.

Maltatai: Congratulations on finishing another act on player 8 with no lost mercenaries, and not starting a civil war among the Amazons in the process. Over and out.

This post was edited by Maltatai on Nov 12 2016 12:28pm

Off topic for what? Don't be dumb. This is a true WT. The real way to play a ROLE PLAYING game. I just feel sorry for myself i never had that spirit.

Keep it up!

Yes! At least someone else appreciate the imagination part of gaming.
I can appreciate the relaxing way of playing characters that you have no specific backstory or attachment to as much as anyone else, but something that has always sort of saddened me is how most build guides and discussions seem to focus exclusively on how to play through the game fastest and most "efficient", and not how to have the most fun during the ride. Like, the ultimate achievment is playing the way the ultimate bot would...

Episode 7. The Swampy Jungle

Maltatai: After not so long time of playing our protagonists have another update of thrilling adventures to share with the world. Rödluvan was the first to be playing so it seems logical that she is the first to tell about it.

Rödluvan: When I arrived in Kurast I was greeted by the stench of rotting fish and a very elegant sorcerer speaking about the lack of sanity in the town. Most welcoming... He was dressed all in red. More inhabitants of Kurats shared his excellent taste, like Natalya the advertising model. It is really lame that she doesn't acknowledge other assassins when she has been a walking spoiler for that class since the beginning of time. But her cape is bright red. The most stylish were the Iron Wolves mercenaries. Dressed all in red except a bit of armour.

I hired one of them, Telash the lightning mage. I figured that the Amazon community could use some buffing of the public education - so what could be better than a lightning mage to bring some enlightment to the people?

Maltatai: :doh: SO. LAME. Enlightment. So unbearably lame.

Rödluvan: Don't be such a bore :smug:. We tore through the endless heaps of annoying little kids with blowguns and cuttlery in no time. After finding a random statuette it turned out that Meshif just happened to wish to trade it for a golden bird which just happened to contain magical ashes of a dead sorcerer which Alkor used to create a very healthy potion for me.

Maltatai: Wait, so you actually drank the ashes of a burned corpse?

Rödluvan: Ehrrm, yes. Hmm, I feel a bit sick. Excuse me for a moment.

Maltatai: Snövit, could you in the meantime tell us about your first impressions of Kurast?

Snövit: The town is filled with morons. Alkor is kinda fun, though. He said he doesn't like to be disturbed while studying the first time I met him, but I don't think he really meant it because he is always happy when I visit him. His potions are best left untouched but his comments on things in the jungle are great. This is my favourite:

"Hratli is only good for making his silly magic weapons. It's not like he's got the stones to actually go out and use them on anything"

After the statue business Cain sent me out to collect body parts of a dead priest. What is it with people in this place - first a drink of someones ashes and now gathering body parts?

Maltatai: This is after all the homeland of the necromancers...

Snövit: The first body part was Khalims eyeball. It was kept in a treasure chest in a cave filled with spiders. I have no idea why spiders would keep chests or why they hadn't eaten the eye if they were so eager to keep Khalims relics from being gathered. The spiders were lead by some chieftain that was known as Szzark the Burning. He had a pack of red spiders near the chest. The red spiders were of course the most evil ones.

Rödluvan: No they weren't! You just say that because they were read!

Snövit: You are probably in league with them, redling!

Maltatai: Don't start again. Rödluvan, how did you fare against the spider lord?

Rödluvan: He was a total coward. He hid in a little closet and strangely had no minions at all...



Snövit: HA! I told you! They are conspiring! I bet she wil be the next spider queen.

Rödluvan: While you will be queen of mosquitoes or other bloodsuckers. Or maybe of parasites. Anyway, me and Telash blasted our way throught flayer pack after flayer pack. After a slimy trip to the slimy dungeon I made it to Kurast. It was simple and unchallenging. Is that intended?

Maltatai: Sort of. I just don't like the jungle very much so I generally have characters assemble most of the gear they use in act II and then just run through, getting experience but not stopping for anything else.

Rödluvan: In Kurast I once again had to go down into slimy dark passages - this time the sewers. I had been given a map where the place of the second level was marked with an archetypical "X" but the place has freaking X:es everywhere! Who designed those pillars?! I had to go through the whole place before I found the stairs down.

Snövit: You are just an incompetent cartographer. I bet you simply got lost. Watch MY sewer map!



Rödluvan: You spoilt brat!

Snövit: Now that I have hijacked the post I might as well go on and tell about the centre of Kurast. It was filled with religious fanatics, walking trees and leapers and vulture demons. The last ones are really annoying. They can't be harmed while in the air so you have to wait until they land.

Maltatai: Excuse me, what are those bows for?

Snövit: Don't blame me, I didn't design this stupid game! While running around downtown Alkor sent me to find a tattered book that supposedly contained important information. I had no objection, but it would have been nicer to know what was actually written in the book and how it would help us. The book was hidden in one of six temples scattered randomly in this spiritual city. I was actually stairtrapped by a bunch of red (of course) monsters in one of them. So much for being spoiled!



The Council and Mephisto were both easy although Mephisto was mean to Kasim and nearly killed him.

This post was edited by Maltatai on Nov 17 2016 11:02am

Maltatai: How did you fare, Rödluvan?

Rödluvan: At least as good as that capitalist hag. No big trouble, just time-consuming. Why must I do bosses on /players8?

Maltatai: It's cooler and more macho. Have you found anything good?

Rödluvan: Yes, I got Duskdeep and Griswolds Edge for Telash. I have also made him a Stealth leather armour and Ancients Pledge shield. AND I finally have some mana leeching, having found a 7% Manald Heal! I have also found a nice shimmering jewel of envy, but I don't know where to put it yet.

Snövit: I have found lots of runes and made Zephyr in a stag bow. The extra speed is much appreciated. I have evn managed to get a perfect ruby from a gem shrine. Will probably use it for a blood belt. I have a 14 ED/+5 max damage jewel to put somewhere before it becomes obsolete. But all that pales in comparison to what I found when a flayer pack dropped two set items, one which was useless. The other, however...

Maltatai: I think I can guess where this is going (even without having plyed the character in question)...

Snövit: BEHOLD! THE HOLY GRAIL OF ARCHERY!



Maltatai: What, the splint mail?

Snövit: Don't you dare spoil my triumph with your mockery! Tremble before the might of knockback and hit slows target 25%!

Rödluvan: Snövit, what colour are those gloves?

Snövit: Why, they are... no. No. NO! NOOOOOO!

Maltatai: Maybe you can keep them despite beng red. Slowing is after all associated with cold. But I think Rödluvan may have one or two comments about it...

Snövit: Don't say a word! Not one word!

Rödluvan: Or else?

Snövit: Or I'll... I'll trap Telash in Kurast and you will have to go to hell without a hireling!

Rödluvan: Pfeef! That's impossible.

Snövit: No it isn't. I trapped Ormus next to the pyramid after delivering the Gidbinn. Now he will forever stand in the same spot. So watch it!



Maltatai: Aren't you supposed to be heroes or something. Trapping poor Ormus in the maze of his own lousy ai, that's not nice.

Snövit: Ah, He'll be released as soon as I start a new gaming session. So you better start with me in act IV.

Rödluvan: No! Do not yield to such appaling extortion!

Maltatai: I am not. But it is actually Snövits turn to start first. The next episode will be about the smoking fires of hell itself. Over and out.

Yes the cooldown on Immolation arrow is a bit annoing but you shoot one immolation then two exploading inbetween. Maggot lair with Immolation arrow is so fun

Nevertheless good luck.

Amazing topic so far!

im 2 lazy to read the walls of text but i enjoy the pics

Episode 8 Big D

Maltatai: Coming back from the fiery Act IV, we are thrilled to hear of the latest adventures of Rödluvan and Snövit. Who would like to start?

Rödluvan and Snövit:

Maltatai: What’s wrong?

Rödluvan: Telash died.

Snövit: Kasim too.

Maltatai: I’m sorry to hear that. I take it that they fell at the end of the act? Normal Diablo is just hopeless when it comes to saving mercenaries, unless you are very lucky.

Snövit: It’s so damn frustrating! I was able to stay hidden and snipe him from afar with guided and magic arrows and ran away to keep Kasim safe. I got him down to less than a quarter and THEN, right after I get back from town, Kasim heads straight from the town portal towards Diablo and is slain in a frame. Booooo!



I had found this excellent spot across a moat and could send arrow after arrow flying at the red scumbag. The guided arrows were a big disappointment – they are more like misguided arrows. The only redeeming quality is that they can get stuck in walls, which is a little fun.



The journey to Diablo was uneventful and slow. Frozen and magic arrows work well against the demons and others here, although they have lots of hitpoints. They also look good together with my blue valkyrie. Venom lords were especially slow to go down. I managed to shoot some of them from afar



This post was edited by Maltatai on Nov 19 2016 08:13pm

Now this blessing is without doubt the most beautiful one, but I fail to see the point of resisting cold in the middle of a river of lava...



Maltatai: Rödluvan, how was your trip through the burning hells?

Rödluvan: I started with realising how utterly useless my Ral:ed hunters bow was against the fire-addicted demons. It was dark times (even for being in a place where all the ground is made up of dusty coal and black rock). I didn’t know what to do. Telash was sometimes of great help against packs of demons. Eventually, I decided to take a break from archery and made a Malice flail. THAT worked wonders, and the blood had a lovely red colour!

Maltatai: Yes. It must have been very stylish...eugh...

Rödluvan: When I had resolved to having to take down Diablo by open wounds, I found the most excellent thing- An Amn rune dropped! I promptly put it in a kris along with a Tir rune. In addition, I had bought shimmering and deflecting bone shields, so my blocking and fire/cold/lightning resistance was maxed. I felt ready to tank anything to keep Telash alive. I meleed Hephasto.



I meleed demons and undead knights. In ancient days such practise was suicidal thanks to some sort of maiden, according to the old records, but now it seemed to work well. When clearing out the Chaos Sanctuary my eyes fell on a mysterious ancient shrine. It had a mystic inscription that read:

“DANGER. DO NOT TOUCH”



This post was edited by Maltatai on Nov 19 2016 08:12pm