Introduction to MLD Bowazons

At 49 you are using Guided Arrow (GA) as your main attack with Shield and titans and/orRare Javs on switch.

MLD Bowa's are one of the strongest builds that you can make at LvL 49. They use bows that rival Faith and Javelins that a HLD would dream about. They have very few counters and have consistently won 49 tournaments over the last number of years. In short, they rock. I have made countless 30/39/49/59 and High LvL Bowa's. While I have limited experience in high level dueling over the last decade, I have played vs virtually every MLD player. I explored Dex vs Vit, Jav, Plague, Bow and Fury builds. I hosted, played and won several 49 tournaments and I have spent years upgrading my bowa.

Dex Vs Vita

For the purposes of PvP, there are two types of Bowa's - Dex Builds and Vita Builds. Dex build - More damage, Less Life ( Also described as a Glass-Cannon). Vita Build - More Life, Less Damage. I advocate both builds but recommend Dex Build to new players.

The Reason for Dex Build:


The Reason for Vita Build:


Resistances & Setup's

You DO actually need resistances. If you only 1v1, you can get away with minimal resistances, most of the time, however if you compete in alot of TvT's (like me!), you will need to have as much + resistance from gear that you can get, without sacrificing too much to your life, damage or frw. The more items that you can get with dual, or even tri-res, the better.

You will generally only have 1 setup; Your stash gear will supplement this depending on your opponent(s).

VS physical attacks (Read: Amazons/Paladins) you will want % Damage Reduction. VS all elemental attacks you will want resistances. As a general rule I will nearly always wear the belt, String of Ears; Vs Fireballers I will always wear 85% Fire Resistance; Vs Cold 250% Cold Resistance and vs V/T 150% Light Resistance. My plan for resistances evolved over time into "have as much base resistance from items as possible to prevent overcrowding in stash."

Breakpoints:

You dont need FCR or FHR. You do however, need IAS. IAS requirements are based on your bow type.

Shadowbow: 105% total IAS required. Matri Bow/Bladebow - 145% total IAS required. Spiderbow: 125% total IAS required.

Note: If you plan on using a Vampire Gaze (VG) setup, (VS Paladins & Bowa's) you should aim for a bow with an additional 10% IAS in order to maintain the required breakpoint. Note however that any version of VG is a luxury, not a requirement.
Note: If you are using Rare Stygian's on switch, you will want to aim for 125% IAS on shield slot. You won't need to worry about IAS with Matri Javelins (90)

This post was edited by ferdia on Jul 27 2013 06:48pm

Bow

Your entire build is based around your bow. If using a shadow bow aim for the following: 80-330 damage (360+ Max = trophy). You don't need ias on a shadow. If you are using a Matri bow, aim for the following: 100-250 damage (its hard to improve on this greatly). You kind of need 20ias to spawn on your Matri because the aim is to get to 35IAS. Get as much damage as you can from your weapon regardless. Note + 10 IAS on a Shadow enables optional jewel choice in circlet or VG setup. In relation to CTC amp; Its generally considered BM; Its banned from tournaments; Its better on a 7FPA bowa (matri) then a 8fpa bow (shadow) because it fires faster; 1.08 saracens amulet will give you increased CTC Amp; some people use it in pubs.



Switch Slot

In conjunction with your Bow, you have a 2nd slot. The standard is a Jewelers Kite of Deflection and Eth Titans. You want Jewels with a combination of ED, STR, DEX + Adds. An alternate to a magic 3 sox shield would be something similar to the Hyperion shown below (i.e 600+ defence), resox with x2 - requirements, ED, STR & Dex jewels ( vs Paladins Charge Skill ).



Rare Javelins

Rare Javelins complement the build, they are not a requirement. However, they make a strong build way stronger. The two drawbacks are; 1. Loss of mobilty and 2. cost. In terms of loss of mobility, it can be made up from charms, or simply accepted. In terms of cost - as more and more of these javelins hit the market, the prices continue to reduce. Aim for any Stygian or Matri with over 300ed and Eth Repl. Examples of Rare Javelins are found below. The stygians shown below - Plague Pale, are better then 450ED Matri's (tested ^___^'), but in general the difference in damage between Matri's and Stygians with the same ED is negligable (at 49).



Note: 125 IAS for Stygians required, 90 IAS for Matri's.

This post was edited by ferdia on Jul 27 2013 06:53pm

Items: The first thing that the items you use need to do is enable you to reach your IAS Breakpoint. i.e. 105 IAS for a Shadow Bow or 145 IAS for a Matri Bow. This is attained by getting enough 15ias 30 ed Jewels to fill your items - Circ 2sox (30IAS), Armor 4sox (60IAS), Gloves (20IAS) and potential IAS on the bow itself.

Circlet: Magic 3PSM 30FRW 2 O/S – Socket with x2 15ias 30ed. If you have IAS in your Shadow Bow you have 1 free socket in your gear which does not require an IAS jewel. Rare 1ama or 2psm, 30frw, life, mana, 2 O/S, Vampire Gaze - Used when you have IAS on your shadowbow to enable you to maintain your attack speed while losing a socket in your headgear., 3 Sox helmet 30 life, for when you need to make up the additional IAS if its missing elsewhere (i.e. no IAS on your Matri Bow).

Amulet: Magic 3passive&magic 100 life, Magic 100 life 120 mana, Crafted 1ama10frw High Life, Rep Life, Dex, Res, Rare 1ama / 2psm High Life, Rep life, Mana, Res // Pre-Lod Rare, Nokozan - vs Fire Sorc's.

Armor Jewels Dusk of the Whale, 4 Sox, 80-100 Life. Socket with x4 15ias 30ed. You can get away with Gothic, Ornate or Full Plate if you are on a budget, (or Red-Style Factor) but remember there is a FRW penalty associated with these armor's and your inventory alone is going to cost a bit (3/xx/20's).



Boots: Eth Wartravelers – Damage and Life, the two things we are trying to pump as much as possible. Plain War Travelers work as well. Rare Pre-Lod Stat + High Resistance boots. Boots such as StormTracks provide mass resistance and dual stats - all good.

Gloves: 3PSM / 20IAS is the basic gloves, but all bowa's should aim for 2PSM 20IAS + STR + DEX + Adds. The Ideal would be 2Passive&Magic, 20IAS, 9STR, 15 DEX and 30Light, 30Cold Res.

Belt: String of Ears, Craft Open Wounds High Life + Res Belt, Mavina Belt, Pre-Lod Belt STR+DEX + Life + Res. Magic belts 100 life + 30 single resistance are viable as well.

Rings: 1 Ravenfrost at all times. 1 rare ring or a 2nd raven if you are poor, The ideal rare in my eyes would be: 15Str 15Dex 9 Rep life 90 mana 30 cold res 30 light res. As with all rare's, you won't often find perfection, and quite often you may want to upgrade several times to improve your character.



Charms 30+ sc's 3/xx/20's you wont need AR unless you are skilling jab and/or Multishot. 10+ (use stash as well) sc's 5frw/xx/3max (3frw if ladder). You can actually play with no FRW from charms, but the more frw = easier to escape.

Stash Items You dont NEED all of this, but they all help to varying degrees:

4sox 100life armor x4 15IAS 30 Cold res & 4sox 100life armor x4 15IAS 30 Light res. Otherwise you can make up the elemental resistances in charms (Cold/Light/Fire/Poisen). Charms = more damage since your ED armor gives alot of damage.
Nokozan Amulet and/or Infernostride Boots
Vampire Gaze 1.08 (25DR) or the standard 20DR one, sox 15iAS 30 ED
Rare pre-patch belts (or simply rare belts with life / Res), Crafted Belts with High Life + Res, Mavina Belt, Thundergods. String of Ears is what you wear 90% of the time.

This post was edited by ferdia on Jul 27 2013 06:56pm

Stats: 2 Builds, Dex and Vita.

Dex - Enough Str for gear, all other points to Dexterity. Maxed GA with a Shadow Bow should give you 3K+ damage. (2.5K+ with Matri)
Vita - Enough Str and Dex for gear, all other points to Vitality. Maxed GA with a Shadow Bow should give 2.5K+ damage. (2K with a Matri)

The damage you do is dependant on the items you have. Dex Build can actually attain close to 4K GA with perfect damage gear.

Skill Placement There are several ways to use your skill points, all versions will have 1 Point Fury and Maxed GA, after that its all dependant on playstyle.

1. Max GA. 65%+ Crit, with items 5+ Dodge, 10+ Avoid, 10+ Evade
2. As above but also with 1pnt Valk
3. As above without Valk but with LvL 10~12 Multi
4. Optional Jab.

I tend not to use Multi in favour of passives. I feel its too easy to avoid multi to warrant its use, I also don't bother with Jab as I don't like taking risks. getting close to another character is a risk I dont like at 49 where the damage dealt is at a level higher then any other dueling bracket in this game.

The skill placement is heavily dependant on the items you use. Rares are challenged by magic items on a Bowa as: Gloves, Circ and Amulet can get + 3PSM each (to a total of +9 all PSM skills), whereas rares will only grant +1 or +2 PSM each. (to a total of +5~6 PSM).

General PVP Strategy

Leave town, find a spot, and fire at where you think your opponent it, or will be going to :). When people refer to C/T ~ its where you pull up either your Character Screen or the Skill Tree speed bar. if you hover your mouse in the corners it actually makes GA fire and home further. its a useful trick - best applied when you see your opponent on the minimap. Another useful trick namelock GA. I will assume people know how to do it. Another trick is the successful use of decoy/valk to mislead or distract your opponent, it needs practice ofc, but it does work. Reminder: Wear DR (read: String) vs Melee & Resistances vs Elemental attacks. You should be wearing around 100FRW most duels. Don't hero - just pick away at your opponent until he's dead.

Bowa Zons.

Vita Build is better then Dex Build in mirror matchup. Always wear String of Ears. Use Valk / Decoy as appropriate. FRW is not needed here (but some playstyles use alot of frw). When in doubt, walk, on shield slot. try to always know where your opponent is (this helps to avoid being invisi'd) some rep life helps. damage, passives, life, and alot of practice. Take your time, even when low on life. I usually switch to shield if a zon enters my screen (with rare javs you can 1 hit most of them.). C/T as appropriate. NL as appropriate. You won't get alot of chances to namelock since entering your opponents screen will usually end the duel pretty fast. The trick is to namelock your opponent while he is moving away from you (applies vs Nec as well).

FC Zons / Rabies Druids / Assa Kicker

Dex Build is better then Vit Build vs these builds as the longer the match goes on the chances they have to catch you. If they catch you, you will probably die. Things that help are: FRW, Insane damage, resistances, WSG. If they are faster then you (they usually are) don't try to tank them. Try Fury, move, Fury. GA, move, GA works to a lesser extent. Fury druids can't catch you, Pure WoF is not viable. manual FC is banned on europe but not on other realms. Vs a skilled Java you need insane damage.

WW barb.

I find Dex Build works best here. Gllitch-Switch (AKA WSG) occurs naturally when you switch between slots. Even when not mashing the keyboard, it can be hard for your opponent to know where you are. Practice alternating between GA and Fury while moving around your opponents screen in non-readable patterns. If your about to get hit, switch to shield+walk. with practice you should get alot better in these duels over time. Never try to tank a barb, even when he is 1 life and you are max life. Its suicide, trust me. Fury hurts barbs alot. I found that a Plague / Bow Hybrid did best of all ama types vs a MLD Barb.

vs NameLock WW Barbs (considered BM), i.e. a barb that exclusively uses nl - walk, fire light fury's at him and then run for it. You should then switch to walk and fire blind at where the WW'ing barb should be comnig from. As soon as you hear the sound of your shield blocking a hit, switch to run and repeat the process after 1 - 2 screens. While there is a skill involved in killing them, there is also a skill involved on the barb side. A very good NL WW Barb will kill you outright. Its not commonly used or known, but there is an add-on to the strategy which makes it very difficult for amazons. Thankfully there are very few barb players that actually know how to use NL WW properly, and those good enough at it are good enough to duel you without using NLWW.

vs Tele Barbs (considered BM). A good Tele barb will own you. Completely. As simple as that. He does not even need a shield. If he knows how to teleport properly you have no chance. A poor tele barb you might beat, but not a good one. Best idea is to make him your friend, get someone else to kill him (few 49'ers will be able to) or save/exit.

ES Fire(ball) Sorc

Vita Buld is better then Dex Build here. This is one of the hardest matchup's for a bowazon. To be succesful vs a good one you need +max fire res (WW or Noka), over 1k life ideally, good damage and excellent movement. There are 2 types of FB sorc players - those that constantly telestomp and those that fire from middle/long distance. There is no right or wrong way to play, but you need to be able to adapt to your opponent.

Vs Telestompers, try to fire 2 arrows, move, 2 arrows, move. A little trick is to run in tiny semi circles when they are in your screen.
Vs middle/Long Distance fireballers ~ Try to dodge the fireballs while firing GA. trust me, its not as easy as it sounds

I wont put in any other type of fire sorc here. Hydras used to be used by some 49's years ago but the build has disappeared from europe and Firewallers - so long as you are always moving you can't realistically lose (with practice).

Blizzard Sorc

7FPA is better then 8FPA vs Blizzard Sorc's. Vita Build is also ideal. Dont bother trying to namelock a good blizzard sorc, just fire at where you think the sorc will be. if you do not stack res you will probably die in 1 hit. Blizzard sorc's have serious mana problems, and firing at a fast rate can really mess them up. This is a hard matchup and quite often its best to have a stack of arrows outside town (longest duel you will ever have is likely to be vs a Blizzard Sorc).

Orb Sorc's are not common anymore. The trick vs this build is to keep moving and never eat a full orb. 7FPA is ideal again here.

Light Sorc

Always have a valk out (to take the TS hit) and at the start of the duel have a decoy out as well. Never Tank. Move, then shoot, and repeat. These duels are usually pretty fast. Running along a wall to reduce the avenues of attack is recommended.

Bone Necro

Dex Build is better then Vita Build vs a Nec (since the nec recasts bone armor). This is one of the few matchups where you will see a noticable BIG difference in win/los ratio's between Dex and Vita Setups.

Dex Setup - Approach, fire GA, Approach, Namelock, kill.
Vita Setup - Be more careful, but the same principal applies. dont tank, the nec can stunlock you, you can't stunlock him.

Namelock is the fastest way to end these duels, but necro's will try their best to stop you from getting the NL. A good nec will have alot of FRW, regular recast of Bone armor, great damage, repl life, use walls to great effet and stunlock capabilities (Yuck).

Light Assa

Frw is key, rep life helps and always use titans. use glitch switch if caught in a MB/trap combo and run out as far and as fast as you can. try to ensure the assassin does not namelock you. Note that Pure WoF is not a viable build @ 49 (it is at 30 though).

Paladins

All paladin builds are hard for a bowa. Vita Setup ideal here. If its Foh you need alot of stack. if its a Hammerdin you need to learn where to run/walk avoid tele/invis hammerdin. If its a charger, you will probably die (he does 14K+ crits usually). At the end of the day a 49 paladin just has to charge you to kill you. Ways to have a better chance at winning these duels include :

1. Use the terrain (get them stuck on a puddle and namelock them)
2. Always wear SOE - charge is simply too strong. If allowed, put Gaze on too.
3. This it the matchup where you get to show off your rare javs.
4. Walk, dont run, or learn to run/walk safely.
5. Switch between slots, try to get 2 arrows out and then switch to a fury. try to lure your opponent into giving you a free hit.

This post was edited by ferdia on Jul 27 2013 07:00pm

Credits

Alongcomesmary - For a long time my rival in Bowa Upgrading
Snatch - Long time Bowa rival in 49 Tournaments
Phazz - Current rival in terms of gear
The owners of characters Phoe, Weakyz and ElishaCuthbert - for inspiring me to build a better bowa.
Mrhandsome - Jim - the best all round player I ever met, who demonstrated the viability of Vita bowa's @ MLD.
Guild LIB - for granting access to 30 Bowa's, Guest Accounts, and for being all round cool.
Every Bowa player I ever played, whether GM or BM, its all experience!
Jikan / Pharao for the pic I erm, borrowed from his 18 ama TR thread ^___^'
Everyone in Low Level Dueling forum

Elusive's Guide (MLD) - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=15260956

LvL 18 Bowa's

mikeyjd bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=50584582&f=103&o=0
painof-life's bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=41629351&f=103
jikan's bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=65110325&f=103

LvL 30 Bowa's

yeawhatup Bowa/Plague: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=52671370&f=103
raul_duke bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=66013368&f=103
s1ain bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=66366736&f=103
Cadagan CS Zon: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=56206118&f=103&o=0
thebadluitenant bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=66049313&f=103

MLD Bowa's

Ferdia - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=55795849&f=103
botb bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=49928704&f=21&v=1
Hellskin's bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=55921454&f=103
Angel_Elite's Bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=37159864&f=103&o=0
deznuts bowa: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=66076454&f=103&o=0

HLD Bowa's

Buddistmonkey - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=61754638&f=103
brainpower777 thread - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=33419688&f=103
vag11na - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=67782174&f=103

HLD Bowa Guides

Habakkuk's Bow & Fury ZvA Guide v1.13d - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=59891830&f=87
Jesper's Zon Guide 1.13 - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=49099908&f=87
Arelax’s Non-Ladder ZvZ Bowazon Guide - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=56891820&f=87&o=0
Hackzone’s 1.13 Tri-hybrid Pv@ll Amazon Guide - http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=47157433&f=87

IAS Breakpoint Table http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=60602572&f=87
LLD Guides: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=59272240&f=143&o=0
HLD Guides: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=68124660&f=87

This post was edited by ferdia on Jul 27 2013 07:01pm

lovely guide, well done
after reading this, there should be no open question about how to build a bowa :_D





thats the only point i dont like, as far as i know WSG is banned, never the less its a lame tactic

/E the guide should be stickied

This post was edited by CarloAnalo on Jul 27 2013 06:56pm

Not sure if your idea of WSG is the same as mine In terms of WSG, switching even once = WSG. i.e. When a Kicker is approaching - and has cast a trap, and a MindBlast at you, by switching ONCE ONLY to jav Slot, Firing Fury, and then switching back to GA and firing - this is WSG. I'm not talking about mashing the keyboard to excessively switch slots here (which completely negates stun animations etc, turns the user invisible and causes the character to jump screens etc), we have all had that conversation many times during 49 tournaments. I would note however that keyboard mashing is used by some people at other dueling brackets. TY4Feedback. I'll ask to get it stickied in a few days.

To clarify as well - the Hyperion is on West, I could not find anything similar on Europe to use as an example.
I had meant to post this over a year ago but got lazy

This post was edited by ferdia on Jul 27 2013 07:16pm

wow this had better get stickied before something happens to it

Thanks Ferdia what a wonderful look into Bowas

ich will auch amason spielen kaputt sauerkraut wurst