Arelax’s Non-Ladder ZvZ Bowazon GuideThis character is built specifically for ZvZ. It is built around the following rules:- Faith bows are allowed.
- Fortitude armors are banned.
- No non-amazon skills (Enchant, BO, Teleport, Werebear, etc).
- No cube in inventory.
- No chance to cast % curses/skills (Exceptions include: torch, default spawn mods from crafts).
- No slow target (Nosferatu's Coil is Banned).
- No poison dmg (Plague javelin, charms, etc).
- Regular throw, Jab, Lightning Fury and Bolt are allowed but don't abuse it (Javazons are not allowed).
- Multi is allowed but don't abuse it (keep the 3-volley rule in mind).
- Inventory checks can be requested at anytime during a duel.
- Maximum Replenish Life is 22.
- Open wounds is limited to 75%.
- Slow missiles is NOT allowed.
- Inner sight is allowed.
- Do not leave blood moor.
- Do not Prebuff.
- Do not Prespam.
- Do not use mercs.
- Change sides on map every duel if agreed upon.
- You are not allowed to cross the bridge if a bridge is present.
- Playing overly defensive, Circling around walls/Constantly staying near a bridge/house etc, isn't GM.
- Halting the duel to buy more arrows is allowed if agreed upon.
- Duels take place in Nightmare, map must be cleaned before the match starts.
Breakpoints:150frw (with titans out)
2k+ life (w/out bo)
4k+ bow dmg (no poison)
95ias bow/javs
Max block
75+ Light Res
Max life rep
FHR=0
Skills:Javelin TreeJab – 1 point – this is very useful if you can get close enough to another zon with their bow out.
Lightning Bolt – 1 point – this is very effective vs. characters with low light res
Lightning Fury – 1 point – this is truly a 1 point wonder, does amazing physical damage and allows you to keep your shield out for max block/dr. Use this whenever a physical opponent is close to you.
pre-reqs - 1 to poison javelin, 1 to plague javelin
Passive & Magic TreeCritical Strike – 20 points – you only need 19 if you’re using cats eye to get to 72%, but if you swap on hlords you need 1 more point to hit 73%.
Valkyrie – 1 point – this is optional but valk is a great meat shield and I recommend it.
Dodge –1 point – the only time you’d need dodge is if you get jab’d, which in my experience rarely happens. Fury/bolt will destroy someone trying to jab you.
Avoid – 19 points – to give you 69%. Avoid is the most important passive as furys/bolts and arrows are all missiles.
Evade – 19 points – to give you 59%. Evade is the next most important passive skill as it protects you from missiles while on the run. You can do 20 points, which will give you 60% with highlords if you plan on using hlords often.
pre-reqs- 1 to inner sight, 1 to slow missile
Bow & Xbow TreeGuided Arrow – 20 point – Adds damage, lowers mana cost
Multiple Shot – 14 points – To give you the max 24 multi arrows with the 3bow/xbow bonus of faith gmb. I use multi a lot as it is very powerful, so I recommend getting the max amount of multi arrows.
Pre-reqs– 1 to cold arrow, 1 to magic arrow
Stats:When it comes to stats, the goal is to add the most as possible to Vitality. You want to use enough strength to wear your gear, enough dex for max block, and the rest goes into vita.
Note on strength glitching – I strength glitch my character, meaning when I use titans on switch with a monarch shield, the strength/dex on my titans allows me to wear the monarch. This is fine, but if you die with your bow out, you will have to pick up your body, then hit w, and pick up your body again. If you die with your bow out, and leave multiple bodies in game and then leave, you will probably pop(lose) your shield and possibly other gear. It is good practice to never leave a game without your body.
Strength – Whatever you need for your shield (with titans out)
Dex – the amount needed for max block with titans/shield out.
Vitality - rest of points
Energy – delete C:/program files/Diablo II if you put any here.
Gear:HelmsOption 1: 08 Vampire GazeWith 25dr this helm is the best choice. It also has 8%ml/8%ll which creates a nice “hit indicator” aka the blue/red swirls over your head to let you know when you’ve hit someone.
Option 2: ShakoNo need to laugh. With the stats and bonus to life, shako adds about 160life, which is comparable to 24frw. It also gives 2 skills and 10%damage reduced. The mana can’t be overlooked either as multishot costs a lot of mana and in long duels the mana will surely help.
Option 3:30frw/120ed/45iasThis helm pairs well with either Shaftshop armor or Bugged Tals. The 30frw makes up for the frw loss due to wearing the heavy armor and then some. If you socket the shaftshop or btals with a 40/15 then you’ll have enough ias to be able to use faith gmb.
Option 4: 30frw/24DR (3x Ber)This helm is like a vamp gaze only instead of a socket and the “hit indicator” you get 30frw. 30frw is equal to 200life if you’re using 3frw sc’s (120 life with 5frw sc’s)
Helm Socket choices:Ber– Ber to give you high DR with bow out. This is recommended, but you can also ber your shield to have for ex. 40dr bow/48dr shield and then put a dmg/rep life/light res jewel here, depending on what you need.
Jah Rune - Adds 5% to max life. Ber would probably help you out more but if you dont need one then this is a nice option.
Godly rare/magic jewels/Runes- 40ed/9dex, 40ed/10min, 30ed/9dex/3 life rep/30 light res, 24ed/18min/9dex
Weapon 1Option 1: Faith Grand Matron Bow– Best bow in the game. Requires 95ias, but meeting this breakpoint will also give u 95ias on your javelin side, where 90ias is the ias needed for max throw speed when using fury/bolt. No matter what people say, Faith GMB has the highest average damage and also the potential for very high dmg critical/ds shots.
Option 2:Faith Diamond Bow– A lot of people like this bow because of its high minimum damage and consistency. Its average damage is less than that of faith GMB but when you hit your opponent you will know what to expect damage wise. It’s consistent but has no potential for very high dmg hits. The ias breakpoint for this bow is only 65ias so you can swap out 2x 40/15’s in your armor for rare/magic jewels or runes. This will enable you to reach more life, your life rep limit, max lightning res, and other targets more easily, but you sacrifice damage and max throw speed on your javelin side(unless you use a shield with ias).
Option 3:Faith Shadow Bow– This bow is good for the reason that it only requires 65ias so like the diamond bow, you can use some rare jewels in place of 2x 40/15’s. It has similar minimum damage to faith gmb and far greater maximum damage than faith diamond bow.
Weapon 2Option 1: Eth Upped Titans – Stats/ phys dmg/frw/replenish/ 2zon/2jav skills. These javs add 40 stats, that’s 120 life, plus 30frw which equates to 200 life, so in total these javs add 320life v s. other javs one could choose. They have very high physical dmg for bolt/fury and they replenish. There really is no other option in my opinion.
Option 2:Rare Eth Javelins – These javelins can spawn with 500ed. They can do insane amount of physical damage which helps a lot when you are in fury/bolt battles. Good bonuses on these would be 40ias/high ed/replenish is a must.
ShieldOption 1:Double Upped Swordback Hold– If you don’t know what this shield is, look it up. It has 20% increased chance to block and 50% chance to do open wounds. When double upped it requires only a little more dex to use than a jmod or stormshield. The main benefit of this shield is the 50% open wounds. When you shoot an arrow and switch to this shield before it hits your opponent, the 50% chance of open wounds is taken into account and you can thus deal a nice hit + open wounds on your opponent. At a high lvl, open wounds can do 300+ dmg over 8 seconds. When engaged in a fury/bolt battle, this shield will work wonders as open wounds can spawn on either fury or bolt strikes.
Socket options: Ber if you need more DR, rare jewel with ed, dex, life rep, light res or whatever you’re lacking.
Option 2: Jewelers Monarch of Deflecting(JMOD) – This shield is good because it helps you reach max block easily and then gives you 4 sockets with which to put anything. Ideally you want to start by socketing it with a ber if you have 45 or less damage reduced. Next you need atleast 1 jewel with -15req to bring the strength requirement down to 133, after that I would go for jewels with ED, light resist, life rep, and dex to help you reach max block faster. Basically get jewels that will help you to reach whatever goals aren’t yet met, whether it be 75 light res or the life rep limit.
Option 3: Phoenix Monarch – This shield will require a lot of extra strength to wear and even more dex to reach max block. This shield, however, adds massive physical damage, up to 400ed, which will destroy your opponents when engaged in a fury/bolt/jab duel. It also has 50 life and up to 400 def vs. missile which will help a little bit.
Option 4: Stormshield – on most cases you should already have enough damage reduced that this shield will just be overkill with it. If you already have 40+ damage reduced with bow out, then I’d highly recommend you don’t use this shield. There are much better options and the DR is the only real bonus to this shield. If you have a high dmg/low dr build with bow out, then this shield is right for you.
Option 5: Whistans Guard= Whistans guard has 40% faster block rate and 55% increased chance of blocking. This means that you will be able to reach max block with little dex added which results in more life. The faster block rate will put you at the 32fbr breakpoint, but I haven’t found this to cause a big difference in your chance to block. This shield will help you reach higher life, but with less dex your damage will suffer and with no other bonuses, it might be harder to reach other goals of this build.
Shield Socket choices:Ber Rune– Ber to give you max DR with shield out. If oyu have 45dr or less with your shield out then put a ber in here.
Jah Rune - Adds 50 life
Lo Rune - 5% to max light resist. 1x Lo rune wont help much, but 2x Lo Runes will make you almost immune to light bolt. This is a nice choice if you engage in jav duels often.
Eld Rune - for increased chance to block, this can save you up to 15dex or so, which is alot of life, Jah rune would probably be a better choice though, unless you put it in a shield that you use on switch and dont want the dex invested at all times.
Godly rare/magic jewels/Runes- 40ed/9dex, 30ed/9dex/3 life rep/30 light res, 24ed/18min/9dex, 30ed/8dex/-15req, 30ed/8dex/30lightres/-15req
ArmorOption 1: 4os/100life Jewelers Armor of the Whale – The following types are “light” armors and will not cause a frw penalty: Dusk Shroud/Whyrmhide/Scarab Husk/Wire Fleece/Archon Plate. Archon plate is shoppable so it is the most common, the others are far more rare and thus sexier, but get what you can afford. The most common jewels to socket in this armor are 4x 40ed/15ias jewels, to enable you to reach your ias breakpoint with faith gmb. If you are using faith diamond or faith shadow bow, then you should use 2x 40ed/15ias jewels and then two rare jewels or runes of your choice.
Option 2: Shaftshop– Eth bugged are very sexy, but regular are just fine too. Shaftshop is a very nice alternative to the 160-60 but overall the 160-60 is a little better. If you plan to use a faith gmb and shaftshop then your only choice for a helm is a 120ed/45ias/30frw, when comparing this build to a 160-60-100life with gaze(ber’d), the 160-60 build is better because it gives you virtually the same stats except you’ll have 3DR more with gaze. If you plan on using a faith diamond bow or shadow bow, then you have different options and can use a rare circlet or other helm in its place. That’s the only time I’d recommends using shaft.
Option 3:Bugged Tals– for those that can afford this, Bugged Tals is by far the best zon armor in the game. I’d socket it with a 40/15 and use a 120ed/45ias/30frw helm with faith gmb, but you may also use a diamond/shadow bow and have other options regarding the helm. In any case, Bugged Tals is the best armor because its base frw nearly makes up for it being a heavy armor, it give you 40@res, 25dr, and 2 skills.
Helm Socket choices:40ed/15ias Jewel - For the most part you want to use these. Use as many as you need to reach the ias breakpoint of your bow.
Ber Rune- 8% Damage Reduced. If you have low damage reduced with bow out, then this is a good option.
Jah Rune - 5% to max life. If you have enough damage reduced already, and dont need any mroe ias, then Jah rune is a good option.
Godly Rare/magic jewels - 24ed/18min dmg/9dex, 40ed/10min, 40ed/9dex, 10-15 damage(use only if you dont have ED on your armor, unlikely), 30ed/9dex/3life rep/30 light res
GlovesOption 1: 2 Passive/20ias/knockback gloves - The 20ias are a must. Knockback is very nice to have and can stun your enemy, but is not completely necessary if you like to keep your duels at a distance. If you like to come up close then I’d highly recommend knockback. 2 passive will help you reach your passive goals easier and can allow you to place extra points elsewhere. Good bonuses in order of importance: Strength/Dex, Light resist, life rep, attack rating, life/mana leech(if not using gaze)
And make sure they are low strength required gloves, because if you use vambraces(106str req) then you wont be able to wear them until you already have enough strength and then the strength the gloves provide will be overkill and not help you to gain any life.
Option 2: 2passive/20ias/str/dex gloves - If you cannot afford knockback gloves, or plan to keep your duels at a distance, thus not needing knockback, then you can use rare gloves with more stats/light res which are harder to come by on knockback gloves. Ideal gloves would be 2passiv/20ias/15strength/15dex/30light resist. And again make sure they are low strength required gloves, because if you use vambraces(106str req) then you wont be able to wear them until you already have enough strength and then the strength the gloves provide will be overkill and not help you to gain any life.
BootsOption 1: War Travs – Strength/life/dmg these boots were made for a bowa. The 15-25 damage is a lot of damage when multiplied by your ed. The stats count for 60life too. And lets not forget that 50mf!!11!
Option 2: Gore Riders– On paper gore riders are better than war travs because of the deadly strike, open wounds, and crushing blow. The deadly strike will increase your overall chance to do double damage by about 4-5%. Crushing blow is severely nerfed for ranged attacks but its still there to do something, open wounds of course is very nice to have and can hit for 300+ damage when your level is 90+
Option 3: Soul Spurs– 30frw/33 stats/47 light resist makes these boots very nice. When comparing them to war travs, the comparison breaks down to 79life/47light resist vs. 15-25 damage.
If you need the light res, then you’ll need to use 4x 11light res sc’s with war travs losing out on 12max dmg/80ar, which breaks the comparison down further to 79life/80ar/3lr vs. 15min dmg/13max dmg. In my opinion the damage outweighs the life loss.
Option 4: Aldurs boots – These boots have 40frw/50life. If you don’t need the light res from soul spurs, then these boots will actually add more life. 10frw+50life ~ 110life, compared to the 33stats ~ 99life from soul spurs. However, When compared to war travs or gore riders, it’s the same thing as the comparison between soul spurs and war travs, its some extra life for a loss of dmg. It just depends on whether you want to go for max life, or have a better dmg/life balance.
BeltOption 1: Verdungos – 40vit/13 life rep/15dr. The 15 dr is a must. The 40vitality is 120life which is very nice. The life rep varies from 10-13 so get the one that will put you right at the maximum life rep limit with your other gear. This belt really is the only option for any bowa.
Option 2: Crafted str/life/open wounds belt – These belts can have up to 30strength and 80 life. Usually all that strength isn’t necessary but if it is this belt can add more life than verdungos, plus it can have up to 10% open wounds. However, you are losing out greatly by not having life rep and/or damage reduced. The only instance one should use this belt is if they can somehow get max damage reduced with their other gear and don’t need the 15dr that verdungos offers. This is a very rare instance.
AmuletOption 1: Cats eye– 20ias is a must for most builds, 30frw is comparable to 200life, and 25 dex is equal to 275 life. Overall this ammy adds 20ias and 275life (195 if using 5frw sc’s). This is the best option in my opinion.
Option 2: Highlords– this amulet also has 20ias, but also carries with it 35light res, 1 skill, and 35%deadly strike. When compared to cats eye, the breakdown is: 275 life vs. 1skill/35%ds/35 light res. The 1skill to critical strike and 35%ds will give a zon about 9-10% higher chance to do double damage. So the breakdown then becomes: 275 life vs. 1 skill/9-10% chance to do double damage/35 light res.
With critical strike already at 72%, I don’t see it worthwhile to sacrifice 275 life for a 10% increased chance to do double damage. The light res and skill help a little, but not much. Highlords is a very good option though and on paper it raises your average damage enough to justify the sacrifice in life, thus beating cats eye. But like I said, that’s on paper.
Option 3: Rare Amulet – If you can reach your ias breakpoint some other way and don’t require 20ias on your ammy then you might be able to find a rare zon amulet that is worthwhile to use. Remember that Cats eye is basically like adding 275 life, so finding an ammy that gives you this amount of life in frw/stats/life is very rare. Example: 2 zon/10frw/30strength/20dex/60 life = 270 life, 5 less than what cats eye will give you, and imagine how hard it would be to come across a perfect amulet like that. The 2 zon skills would be a bonus worth the 5 life, but overall 2 skills doesn’t help much for a zon, you usually don’t need any extra skills past lvl 95.
Ring 1Option 1: Ravenfrost – cannot be frozen/dex/ar. If you get frozen I na zon duel, you are dead. So having a raven is a must. The only way around it is by putting a cham in your helm or armor, in which case you can use two rare rings instead.
Ring 2Option 1: Rare/Crafted Ring - The ideal ring is 120AR/20str/15dex/40life or 9life rep/Light Resist. Get a ring as close as possible to this. If you already meet light resist and/or life rep requirements, then getting a ring with 9min damage is not a bad idea either.
Inventory:Since our goal is 150fw and max light res, use enough frw sc’s to reach 150 frw, then use 3/11 light or 20/11 light if you need light res, and the rest is 3/20/20’s.
I have 90frw from my gear, so I need 60 frw in my inventory. Using 5frw sc’s will allow you to use less frw sc’s and more life charms, so obviously they are better, but personally I can’t afford them. I also reach 75 light res with my gear so I don’t need any res charms.
Summary of my charms:
20x 3max/3frw/20ar
17x 3max/20ar/20life
20/20 torch
20/20 anni
Stash Gear:For GM ZvZ duels I stash a 30frw/3soc helm with 3x Ber’s in it to use with highlords if I feel lucky and want the highlords deadly strike.
For ZvZ duels with people who don’t follow the rules, I stash an AP Fort, Nos coil, 120ed/45ias-30frw helm and some 3frw/11light res sc’s. Most pub zons use fort/nos so its important to have it if you want to zvz with people who don’t have zvz gear.
This post was edited by Arelax on Aug 9 2011 03:22pm