Quote (AyeCaramba @ Thu, Apr 2 2009, 10:07am)

Diadems. Any char > lvl 8.

Quote (AyeCaramba @ Wed, 1 Apr 2009, 23:07)

Diadems. Any char > lvl 8.

Quote (curious)

Section VIII: Imbue Quest:

The Imbue Quest in Act 1 is ignored by most people but is, if put to good use, another possibility of getting some incredible items. This section will explain how the quest works and give you some ideas of what make good imbue items and what is indeed a waste of time.

First thing to note is the quest requires at least char level 8 to be completed. Since the Smith does not need to be killed by the char returning the hammer to Charsi it is easy to "complete" for any level 8 char, even in nightmare and hell.

Charsi takes a normal item of your choice and crafts you a new rare item with it. She will not accept magical or socketed items - they must be white or gray (ethereal). The quality of the base item you give to Charsi does not matter: Any stats such as superior have no effect on the output: they will be removed and completely new modifiers are rolled.

There is no difference in how the quest works in normal, nightmare or hell. This means the same level 8 char has the same identical chances for possible affixes in all three difficulty levels. The formulas used to determine imbue results can be a bit complicated to follow, but begin to make sense if we look at them 1 at a time and consider which rules get priority:

For starters, the Char Level is used to determine the Item Level:
1). Item Level = Char Level + 4

Then the Affix Level will be determined. This involves comparing the Item Level and the Quality Level of the item to be imbued. If the Q-Lvl is higher than the I-Lvl, then the I-lvl will be reset to equal the higher Q-Lvl:
2). Affix Level = max [Q-Lvl, I-Lvl]

If the Q-Lvl is lower than the Item Level, then the Affix Level in 1). will be used. Should the item have a Magic Bonus, we can now determine the exact Affix Level
3). Affix Level = Item Level + Magic Level bonus

If the item has no Magic Level bonus, then one of the following formulas will be used (Numbers in brackets are rounded down):
4a). if I-Lvl < 99 - [Q-Lvl / 2] then A-Lvl = I-Lvl - [Q-Lvl / 2]
4b). if I-Lvl = 99 - [Q-Lvl / 2] then A-Lvl = 2 * I-Lvl - 99

(I apologize for including formulas here, but I saw no ther way to effectively cover the either/or that takes place when imbueing).


At what Char level should I imbue what item?
That can only be answered if one knows what modifiers one hopes to get on what type of item. So I'll start with some imbue item practical basics:

Armor, Helms, Shields:
Are all a waste of time because there are too many better unique, set and runewords available than any combination of possible imbue modifiers. Don't waste your time with these!

Circlets:
Circlets can get an array of incredible modifiers and is the reason I treat them seperately from helms here. To have a chance at all possible Circlet affixes, your char needs the following level:
Circlets: Char level 83
Coronet: Char level 78
Tiara: Char level 73
Diadem: Char level 8

Belts:
There are indeed some great modifiers available for belts (30 strength, 24% FHR, 60 life, etc.). However, better unique and set versions exist for most char classes. And crafted belts (Blood and Caster!) offer additional great alternatives, so I recommend not trying your luck with belts.

Gloves:
Theoretically, it is possible to imbue a kick-ass pair of gloves, but the chances are a lot lower than crafting great Blood or Hit gloves. Also, several good unique and set versions exist. Recommendation: No.

Boots:
Like gloves, it is possible to imbue a fantastic pair of boots. But the chances are so microscopic, and the selection of good uniques and set items so large, that this item type is also not recommended.

Weapons:
Rare weapons got a great boost in 1.10 and can now theoretically beat almost any unique or runeword presently in the game. We're talking 450% ED, 40% IAS and 9% LL as possibilities! And if you consider Charsi will imbue ethereal weapons and the suffixes "Self-Repair" and "Fast Repair" can both spawn on weapons and that the suffix "Cruel" only requires Affix Level 56... a whole new ball game has been opened in 1.10.
Many elite weapons can get the best damage modifiers with a charachter level of 8:

Axes: War Spike, Berserker Axe, Champion Axe, Glorious Axe
Bows: Ward Bow, Hydra Bow
Crossbows: Demon Crossbow
Daggers: Fanged Knife, Legend Spike
Javelins: Ghost Glaive, Winged Harpoon
Maces: Legendary Hammer, Thunder Maul
Polearms: Cryptic Axe, Great Poelaxe, Giant Thresher
Scepters: Caduceus
Spears: Ghost Spear, War Pike
Swords: Conquest, Cryptic, Mythical, Colossus Sword + Colossus Blade
Throwing Weapons: Winged Axe
Amazon Bows: Grand Matron Bow
Amazon Spears: Matriarchal Pike
Assasin Katars: Feral Claws, Runic Talons, Scissors Suwayyah


So what should I imbue?
Well, you have to decide that for yourself, but I personally recommend things that can get great results with a level 8 character. This includes Diadems, my personal imbue favorite. The elite weapons I listed above are also candidates to imbue that you should consider (Except for the crossbow, of course Wink ).
Another interesting possibility which you may not have thought of are ethereal Crystal and Dimensional Swords. A lucky roll and then an upgrade to Phase Blade (Indestructible!) and you have yourself 1 kick-ass sword. The ideal minimum character levels for these are: Crystal Sword = Char level 57, Dimensional Sword = Char level 70

Special acknowledgment and thanks to: RAMsesist.

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Quote (AyeCaramba @ Thu, Apr 2 2009, 09:51pm)

There is another reason to imbue Diadems, which to me is as important as the fact that they can always get all affixes when imbuing.

If the imbue is crap, and lets face it, a lot of them will be, the diadem can be re-rolled using 6 Pskulls until you get something worth keeping. Diadems are the only items you can do this with without degrading the affix level (by degrading the ilvl), since the affix level is basically fixed at 99.

Before anyone asks "why level 8"? - Level 8 is the minimum level to get the quest.