TSBoyer's Bowazon Guide v1.14d
The old guide -> Habakkuk's Bow & Fury ZvA Guide v1.13d was destroyed due to a change in policies so I figured I'd replace it.
This is a GM build designed around the use of legit items which are spawnable on all realms Ladder and Non-Ladder alike
Although some .08 gear is suggested for use it is not required to use this guide


Ladder Resets And Magic Finding On A Bowazon

The Faith GMB & Act 2 Might Merc Method:
- Normal Faith GMB lv14 to lv15 with Upgraded Ethereal Titan's and Stormshield on swap - Lacerator can be used over Titan's to proc Amplify Damage, see below under Switch Glitch
- Artisan's Diadem of Speed 45%ias/120%ed - Mav's Diadem with a plain 15%ias jewel can be used as "get me by" item
- Fortitude, any light version
- Goldwrap
- Laying of Hands
- War Traveler
- Cat's Eye or Highlord's
- Raven Frost
- Rare Dual Leech
- Torch, Anni, Gheed's - stack the rest of the inventory with Max/AR/mf% charms of any size, preferably SCs
* Act 2 Might Merc - Thresher or Giant Thresher Pride for Concentration Aura - Eth Andy's with FireRes/IAS jewel and any Eth Bugged Fortitude that is light armor
I suggest this method if the bowa is planned to convert in to a pvp character later - The act 2 might/conc merc synergizes better with a pvp bowa's gear

The Windforce & Act 1 Rogue Method:
This method has a few differences from the above method but is otherwise identical
- Windforce is used over Faith GMB - Socket it with Ohm for 50%ed or Ber for 20% Crushing Blow
- Atma's Scarab is used over Cat's Eye or Highlord's "The Amplify Damage is great but the 20% bonus to AR is also important while using Windforce"
* Act 1 Rogue is used over Act 2 Might Merc - Faith Great Bow lv13 to lv15 for Fanatacism - Eth Andy's with FireRes/IAS jewel and any Eth Bugged Fortitude that is light armor
I suggest this method if the bowa is strictly planned for the purpose of magic finding - This method is glassy but has slightly better kill speed

Both methods are excellent and will provide maximum 7fpa with top kill speeds, while maintaining around 150% to 200% magic find and plenty of space to pick up drops.
Both methods use the same general stat/skill allocations below:

STR: only enough to wear gear - DEX: add as much as possible - VIT: do not add - ENG: do not add
Bow Skills: 1 Magic Arrow - 5 Multi Shot - 20 Guided Arrow - 1 Strafe
Javelin Skills: 1 Jab - 1 Lightning Bolt - 1 Lightning Fury
Passive Skills: Base 1 all passives - 20 Critical Strike - 20 Avoid - 20 Evade
Extra skill points can be distributed based on preference but I advise adding more points to Valkyrie if you are using the Windforce method
Why add these skills? Multi Shot is the most effective mob killer, base 5 with +gear skills will be enough radius while keeping mana cost low.
Strafe can be more effective situationally if a mob happens to be lined up so that all the arrow pierce has a stacking damage effect but this doesn't happen often, base 1 is enough.
Strafe is also strong against individual targets that are standing alone, such as an act boss like Diablo. If there is even one other target in the area, Strafe loses it's effectiveness vs. a single target.
Guided Arrow is the highest and most reliable single target damage with the lowest mana cost provided on bowside, with exception for situations like Strafing against an act boss.
Magic Arrow & Lightning Bolt are important for killing physical immunes. Jab & Lightning Fury are important for dealing higher physical damage while blocking/tanking.
Every base 1 passive skill is important because of how +skill gear effects their effectiveness. Critical Strike is crucial to max for damage capability and Avoid/Evade is needed for survival.
Valkyrie is the most important amongst all the passives even at base 1. It is largely responsible for either method's ability to stop up a mob while gunning it down.

Where to magic find with these Bowazon setups?
Bowazons, due to not having teleport, have the most convenience while magic finding wide open areas so the valk/merc stay close and don't get clipped/stuck by walls.
Once an end-game setup is built, it is convenient to run this routine: Eldritch/Shenk - Pindleskin - Chaos Sanctuary - Council at Travincal - Cows.
Depending on the strength of the setup, players can solo these areas or sneak into full games and run them silently for better drop rates.
I'd also like to note that with the gold you pick up and/or get from selling items, use it to gamble rings. They're cheap and can roll useful stats for any class.
Whether it's a cast ring, damage ring, dual leech or a bit of a mix, rings have a high chance of being wanted and tradable.

How to play a walk through without a rush on day 1 of a reset when bowazon feels underpowered?
Unfortunately, bowazon is underpowered due to it's damage being very reliant on it's weapon and other gear provided.
Nevertheless, with a few tips, a bit of fg and a couple simple trades, it's perfectly possible to solo through norm, nightmare and hell in a couple days time or less, with garbage gear.
* Act 1 norm - Shop a 3os longbow from Gheed ASAP as well as socketed helm/armor. Put topaz/ruby/sapphires in the longbow and put small damage jewels into the armor. Save ALL charms that add any damage type.
* Act 2 norm - Focus on saving/mixing gems to get stronger socketed bow damage. Nothing that can be shopped will render higher damage than gem sockets at this point. Start trying to build mana leech on the bowa.
* Act 3 norm - Bows can be shopped here from the mercenary hire NPC that have enough physical damage to outweigh gem socketed bows. Around level 21, bows with good mods appear.
* Act 4 norm - Good pikes can be shopped here for a2 mercs. If the bowa manages to hit level 28, take a break and go trade for a Skystrike. Very important or the bowa will have no damage in act 5.
* Act 5 norm - At this point, it becomes crucial to have something like a Skystrike Bow at level 28 or a Riphook at level 31. If the bowa hits level 41 before the end of norm, get a Buriza ASAP.
* Nightmare - The Buriza will carry her through the rest of the game damage wise and make nightmare relatively easy. Just make sure the mercenary has a bit of life leech and enough physical damage to make the leech work.
* Hell - Mercenary becomes important as it plays a large role in damage mitigation. If needed, take time to trade for "get me by gear" like Crown of Thieves, Shaftstop, w/e weapon it needs and put them on the merc.
The bowa will be able to finish hell solo or with a group and be functional to follow chaos/baal games for purposes of XPing/Magic finding while it build it's end-game setup.

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PvP Bowazon - The Diamond Faith ZvA Setup
Why do I suggest Diamond Bow? Here is an elaborate explanation -> GMB Vs. Diamond & Shadow Vs. FOI

- Diamond or Shadow Faith lv14 to lv15 with Eth Cruel/Fool's 20%ias RepQuantity Matriarchal, Winged or Hyperion Javelins with Stormshield on swap. Upgraded Eth Titan's will suffice as a "get me by"
- Rare Diadem with +2 zon skills, 2os, +all res, +STR, +DEX, 30%frw socket the diadem with 2x 40%ed/15%ias jewels
- Fortitude, any light armor will do
- Verdungo's
- Knockback Gloves with +2 passive skills, 20%ias, +STR, +DEX or sometimes +res can suffice in place of +stats
- War Traveler
- Cat's Eye
- Raven Frost
- Rare Damage Ring, ideally a perfect one would be: +all res, +30mana, +9min, +12max, +10life rep The bowa shouldn't rely on ring stats for STR/DEX bugging due to how often it will use swaps such as wisp/dwarf/dual leech
- Torch, Anni, 3/xx/frws, 3/xx/20s, 5res/frws, 5res/20s If on NL, upgrade 3%frw SCs in to 5%frw .08 versions - SC distribution should provide 150+ frw and +20 res beyond max, not counting Anya quests
- Cube BO setup that sits in the bowa's inventory at all times - 6/6 CTA, Arach, Mara's, 2x BK rings
* Act 2 Might Merc - Thresher or Giant Thresher Pride for Concentration Aura - Eth Andy's with FireRes/IAS jewel and any Eth Bugged Fortitude that is light armor
This is a more expensive higher-end setup but very rewarding if taken the time to build properly. I suggest this route for players who want to build a trophy case bowazon.

Using Faith GMB over Diamond
A few simple swaps can convert to the use of Faith GMB, while keeping the rest of the gear setup identical
- Faith GMB lv14 to lv15 over Diamond
- Artisan's Diadem of Speed 45%ias/120%ed over Rare Diadem
- Nosferatu's over Verdungo's
This is a less expensive route that loses overall character sustain for a bit of bowside damage. I suggest this route for players who want to spend a moderate amount of fg to get a functional bowazon up & running.

Using Faith GMB on Europe with Bugged Belt
This build is identical to using Faith GMB over Diamond, with one notable difference and that is the use of Bugged Belt. The Bugged Belt only exists in the Europe realm and is essentially a Nosferatu's and Verdungo's combined.
This allows Europe bowas to run Faith GMB but still maintain all the defenses of a Diamond ZvA. Europe bowas with Bugged Belt combine all the strongest aspects of the above two setups, into one build.
Europe bowas should strive to run Faith GMB, 45/120 and Bugged Belt. Here is Jesper's Europe bowa guide based around Bugged Belt -> Zon Guide 1.13

Gear Swaps For All PvP Bowas
Character stash will have just enough space for all of this
- Eth Lacerator
- Double Upgraded Swordback Hold & Phoenix Shield
- .08 Gaze socketed with Ber
- Jeweler's of Whale socketed with enough 40%ed/15%ias jewels to 7fpa the bow you use in ZvZ, put defensive jewels in the other sockets.
- All non-Europe bowas should be carrying Verdungo's, Nosferatu's and T-God's
- Hotspur
- Highlord's
- 2x Wisps
- 2x Dwarfs
- Extra Raven Frost
- Rare Dual Leech Ring
ZvA strategy section will explain how, when and why to use these gear swaps

Whether you choose to use Diamond ZvA, GMB ZvA or are playing Europe with the Bugged Belt
Each of the above setups will offer maximum fpa bowside and javside with optimized player vs. player statistics
Each of the setups use a similar general stat/skill allocation, give or take a player's preference to tweak here or there:

STR: only enough to wear gear - DEX: only enough to wear gear and maintain max block - VIT: add as much as possible - ENG: do not add
Bow Skills: 1 Multi Shot - 20 Guided Arrow - 1 Strafe
Javelin Skills: 1 Jab - 1 Lightning Bolt - 1 Lightning Fury
Passive Skills: Base 1 all passives - 20 Critical Strike - 10 Dodge - 20 Avoid - 20 Evade
This stat/skill platform will take 94th level to complete
Why add these skills? 1 Multi Shot to keep the mana cost low, +gear skills will be enough spray in pvp. 20 Guided Arrow because it is the most important pvp bow skill. 1 Strafe for special circumstances.
1 Jab for locking up melees with poor position. 1 Lightning Bolt to surpass block rates/Eshield/bone armor and deliver open wound procs. 1 Lightning Fury to throw high damage attacks while javside.
Base 1 passives goes without saying, 20 Critical Strikes for the crucial damage output, 10 Dodge, 20 Avoid and 20 Evade for peak gains.

Here are a few helpful images of a Diamond ZvA Setup, a General Skill Allocation and Bowazon Breakpoints:






Note that Hydra Bow has the same breakpoints as Grand Matron
And that Winged Harpoons & Hyperion Javelins also share the same breakpoints as Matriarchal Javelins
If the images are for whatever reason blocked again, GOOGLE: D2 ias calculator to easily find and understand character breakpoints

ZvA PvP Gear Swapping & Strategies
Gonna copy/paste this from old guide to save time




GM Bowa vs. Bowa -.08 Gaze-Jeweler's Of Whale- Swordback Hold
In ZvZ PvP Ladders, the standard ruling bans the use of Fortitude Armors due to the +% chance to proc Chilling Armor
Chilling Armor has a way of negating ranged missle attacks, wearing Fortitude Armor generally results in elongated matches that are impractical on participants scheduling
Thus the reason why Jeweler's Of Whale is an important ZvA into ZvZ gear swap for this build
You'll need this armor if you want to participate in ZvZ PvP Ladders or just have proper form in a ZvZ ft5 match up

.08 Gaze + Verdungo's = 48% DR on Bowside and Javside switches
This is important because it is extremely easy to get hit bowside in Bowa vs. Bowa and you'll want as much DR as possible on your bowside

You won't need the DR% from the Stormshield since you'll be wearing the .08 Gaze
This allows you to use Swordback Hold (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)
The Open Wounds hits even harder if you can manage to land a Jab on the opposing Bowa

Basics:
* If you aren't firing arrows, always have your javside out so you can block incomming arrows from your opponent
* When you know incomming arrows are going to hit you, always have your javside out for block and make sure you are walking, not running (walking allows max block while running does not)
* Always have your Valkyrie summoned and make plenty use of Decoy, this helps soak Guided Arrows and can mislead your opponent directly (with well placed Decoys)
* ZvZ is all about interpreting your opponents movements and trying to lead them into your own attacks, it's a good idea to switch up how you move and lay down fire as to keep your opponent confused

Techniques:
* Maintaining namelocks while switching from Fury to Guided Arrow - This is important for launching a successful offensive charge in ZvZ
First make sure your bowside switch has Guided Arrow set on it's right click
When your opponent is on-screen and tries to retreat, make sure your on javside switch and namelock him with Fury as he retreats
While maintainging your namelock (holding down right click), switch your right click hotkey over to Guided Arrow while still on javside switch
Now weapon switch back to bowside, you'll maintain your namelock with Guided Arrow and immediately begin gunning down your opponent
* Hitting with Jab - This is a difficult to do power maneuver in ZvZ but if done correctly you'll gain the upper hand quickly due to Swordback's Open Wounds
When things get close range, both zons will enter sort of a *rock/paper/scissors* contest where both try to juke eachother out switching between Guided Arrow, Fury and Jab
This rock/paper/scissors can only be won by good interpretation skills of when to use what and how to lead your opponent into a false sense of upper hand
When you have a good sense of your opponents patterns and you know he is going to switch bowside and try to Guided Arrow you, go in for the Jab
* C/Ting - The most difficult technique to launch in a ZvZ
Your opponent will often hover just offscreen during a ZvZ, if you can get fast at C/Ting, this is a great time to spring a few free hits
Just get your practice in before hand becaus a failed C/T which diverts your focus often turns into you taking a few free hits from your opponent

BMing a Bowa:
If you really want to BM another Bowazon, use Lacerator and Swordback paired (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)
And use Slow Missles





GM Bowa vs. CSer- 1x Wisp Projector
If you have more FRW than the CSer this should be a very easy match, if you have less FRW than the CSer you're going to have problems

Basics:
* CSers can be very good at timing telestomps, always run left, right or directly down to get away from the CSer when it telestomps
* If she hits you, remember to WSG out and away from the Charged Bolts, otherwise the CSer will dodge lock you and more than likely kill you

Techniques:
* Just WSG through CS, keep backed up and Guided Arrow the CSer down, use Fury if you gain good distance for extra damage

BMing a CSer or BMing back against FCers
2x Wisp Projectors - T-god's - Phoenix Shield and Highlord's Wrath for the extra 35% Lightning Resists





GM Bowa vs. Hybrid Zon - Stay GM, use your common sense on what to swap in and out, depending on the hybrid's build structure
Generally you'll come across different variants of these 3 hybrid archtypes:

Basics on:
* Telebowa - This won't be able to outgun your onfoot Bowa wearing Fortitude and is easy to frame lock due to slow FCR breakpoints on Amazons
Javside Furying into Guided Arrow namelock works wonders against Telebowas (See techniques in Bowa vs. Bowa)
* Plague Zons - This can be a problem if hit by Plague Javelin and definately a problem if the zon has more FRW than you do and Teleport
The answer here is superior FRW and putting #1 priority on your defenses rather than your offenses, do not get hit by Plague Javelin
* CSers with mixtures of Bow & Plague - Once again this can be a problem depending on how much FRW the zon has and if it's using Teleport
The answer realy is superior FRW and making sure that you do not get hit by Plague Javelin

BMing Hybrid Zons
Lacerator (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)
and Swordback Hold is an excellent way to BM any Amazon, as well as any/all Lightning Absorb gear that you have





GM Zon vs. Ghost - General Outfit
Ghosts are difficult for Bowas because they have many ways of initiating your blocking/dodging and FHR frames before ever actually WWing you
This allows them to hit you with WW while you cannot block/dodge because your animation frames are already initiated when they WW you

As the Ghost approaches you, it's Shadow Master will usually cast Mind Blasts at you, initiating your FHR frames
When the Ghost telestomps, the Shadow Master will physically strike you, initiating block or dodging frames
The Ghosts Blade Shield also initiates FHR frames
Now when the Ghost actually WWs you, it has a much greater chance of hitting you with WW than a Barbarian, this is why they Ghosts are difficult

Basics:
* Only move left, right or directly down while WSGing and avoiding telestomps
* Try to Guided Arrow/Multi-Shot the Shadow Master down while the Ghost is approaching you, don't even worry about the Ghost until the Shadow is dead
* Switch to javside when the Ghost is close and don't stop to Fury until the Ghost telestomps into a WW, giving you time to stand still and fire

Techniques:
* Rushing directly towards the Ghost when it is about to Teleport - This requires interpretation skills
Once you've got a solid gauge on the Ghost's patterns on-screen for telestomps, run at your opponent when you know he's about to teleport and WW
If you can get good at this, when the Ghost lands and WWs, you'll already be running 180 degrees away from it, already clear of the WW and ready to Fury
* Decoy - Learn to be sneaky and confusing with how you setup Decoys, this can give you alot of free fire time when a Ghost telestomps the wrong target


BMing a Ghost:*
Lacerator, Just make sure you don't get hit (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)





GM Zon vs. Trapper - 1x Wisp Projector
A ZvT against a C/C Trapper is a pretty equal match up but a ZvT against a W/S Trapper is much more difficult

Basics:
* ZvT is all about knowing how to WSG out of animation frame locking
* Use Guided Arrow/Multi-Shot on the Trapper's approach, try to drop the Shadow Master before the Trapper is on-screen
* When the Trapper is on-screen, try for a namelock with Guided Arrow before he can namelock you
* Never stand in traps, as soon as traps appear, just WSG away and force the Trapper to re-approach you, this is how to gain the upper hand
* Always have Valkyrie and Decoy summoned, this is important for distracting traps just long enough to get a good namelock

Techniques:
* Quick defense with Jab - This makes Trappers reluctant to chainlock you with Teleport/Mindblasting
If the Trapper is being very aggressive, switch to javside and Jab him the next time he tries to chainlock you with Teleport, the IAS/fpa on Jab is much faster than Trap Laying IAS/fpa
This must be done quickly before the Trapper can lay a single trap but if you can do this correctly and do it every time, you won't be forced to WSG so much, giving you more time to fire
The Trapper will be forced to play mid-range instead of telestomping you at close-range
* Hitting with Fury - Sharpen up on your interpretation skills on where your opponent is going to land
Fury deals much more damage than Guided Arrow which in turn causes much more FHR animation
Learning to hit with Fury against a Trapper is a vital boon to doubling your damage output and leads into:
* Maintaining namelocks while switching from Fury to Guided Arrow (See techniques in Bowa vs. Bowa)
* Standing near walls and in corners (This limits the Trapper's choice in approach pattern and allows you to more easily achieve a namelock)
* Running around corners while WSGing - This is important for breaking aggressive namelocking/chainlocking when all else fails

BMing a Trapper:
Wisps - Dwarfs- T-God's - Hotspur - Phoenix, all ways to absorb the Trapper's elemental damage and jack up your Fury damage





GM Zon vs. Barb - General Outfit
ZvB is an equal match up, generally the better player wins but beware of experienced BvCers who are patient
The best Barbarians are very patient Barbarians, they know how and when to execute a good tele/ww stomp
And when to teleport away, avoid your Fury and create a re-approach

BvCers are more dangerous to Amazons than BvA's with shields, due to dual wielding and it's fast consequative attacks
The dual wielding can more easily get under your block/dodge frames and hit you than a BvA who is using only a one-hand weapon and a shield
A BvA using a shield is definately a more powerful tank but has a very difficult time actually hitting an Amazon

Basics:
* Beware of far diagonal teleports (When the Barbarian uses C/T to teleport) This can be very sneaky, especially teamed with desynch
* Don't underestimate Barbarians who get WW locked, WWing locks desynch hard and can never really be gauged, make plenty of space between you and the Barb
* Use Guided Arrow on the Barbarian's approach and quickly switch javside when he is close
* When the Barbarian lands and WWs, move 180 degrees away from where he is WWing (The exact opposite direction of the WW's path)
* Only move left,right and directly down when avoiding WWing
* Be aggressive with Barbarians, do not let them utilize high life rep or far teleports

Techniques:
* Maintaining namelocks while switching from Fury to Guided Arrow (See techinques in Bowa vs. Bowa), Use this same technique when the Barb retreats for his re-approach
* Rushing directly towards the Barbarian when he is about to Teleport - This requires interpretation skills
Once you've got a solid gauge on the Barb's patterns on-screen for telestomps, run at him when you know he's about to teleport and WW
If you can get good at this, when the Barb lands and WWs, you'll already be running 180 degrees away from him, already clear of the WW and ready to Fury
* Decoy - Learn to be sneaky and confusing with how you setup Decoys, this can give you alot of free fire time when a Barb telestomps the wrong target

BMing a Barbarian:
Lacerator, just make sure you do not get hit (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)
If all goes well after Amp proc, a good namelock with Guided Arrow and knockback is usually the end of the match
Just be ready to weapon switch back to laceratorside(javside) if the Barb is about to teleport





GM Zon vs. Druid - General Outfit
ZvD can be a very easy match up or one of the most difficult, depending on how experienced the Druid is
Experienced max FCR Vita Druids are usually more dangerous than max block Druids
Max block Druids lose a frame of FCR and believe it or not, matters everything for their ability to get away from Fury and Guided Arrow namelocks
You'll find that max block Druids are much easier to avoid and namelock than a good max FCR Vita Druid
Max FCR Vita Druids (If experienced), are fast at getting in and out, resummoning for cover and escpaing namelocks in general
A good Druid will never stay on-screen stomping you unless he has his summon cover up, this makes them very difficult to hit

Basics:
* Multi-Shot the Druid's summons down before he gets on-screen
* Learn well to WSG out of telestomping Druids, Tornado creates aweful frame locks to an Amazon
* Only move left, right and directly down while WSGing out of telestomps
* Namelock the Guided Arrow as soon as the summons are down but always be ready to WSG away preemptively

Techniques:
* Using javside to down summons - Important
If a Druid is too fast and sneaky to Multi-Shot down his summons on his approach, you'll need to use javside/Fury if he gets too close
Javside is important because (A) Damage Reduction on Stormshield, (B) Stormshield Blocks and (C) Fury hits hard and FHR locks well, which leads to:
* Maintaining namelocks while switching from Fury to Guided Arrow (See techinques in Bowa vs. Bowa), Use this same technique when the Druid retreats for his re-approach
* Standing by walls or in corners - This is a great way to better line up your Multi-Shots, it helps narrow down where the Druid will be comming from
Just don't stand too close to the wall or too far into the corner
* Strafing can sometimes work great vs. Vita Druids, considering he is the only target for strafe to hit


BMing a Druid:
Lacerator is just unfair vs. Druids (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)





GM Zon vs. Necro - Phoenix or Swordback Hold
This is the most difficult match up, everything about a Necromancer is stated to take apart an Amazon
Since Amazons rely entirely upon IAS/FRW, Necromancers can heavily exploit the use of their skills to dominate any IAS/FRW based character
(Bone Armor) --> Does a great job of soaking hits as the Nec gets his initial stomp time and it's easy as hell to recast
(Clay Golem) --> Does a great job of summon covering the Nec and even has a nice huge amount of Slow Target when it hits you, it's also easy as hell to recast
(Decrepify) --> Forces you to keep running and WSGing till it wears off, hopfully you have enough FRW to manage, you won't be able to attack at all until the duration runs out
(Bone Prison) --> Immediately ends your ability to move at all, making you a sitting duck for Bone Spirits and telestomps
(Bone Spirit) --> Bone Spirit trains force you to keep moving, this is actually more pressure than even Mind Blasting and often results in not being able to stop and fire at all
You'll be lucky to dodge Bone Spirit Trains after being hit with Decrep, Clay or Bone Prison, if not all three at once

Basics:
* Multi-Shot down the Clay Golem while the Necro is far offscreen, switch to javside with Phoenix when he is on-screen and get the first namelock (This is your 3 second opening to gain the upper hand)
* If Decrep'd - Just WSG around and try to avoid Bone Spirits and telestomps until the duration wears off, if the nec is too fast and can catch you, try to Jab him when he stomps
* If Slowed by Clay Golem - Just WSG around and try to avoid Bone Spirits and telestomps until the duration wears off, if the nec is too fast and can catch you, try to Jab him when he stomps
* Only move left, right or directly down while WSGing and avoiding telestomps
* Pay close attention to Bone Spirit trains, do not get locked up in them
* Make sure to WSG while being hit with Teeth

Techniques:
* If Bone Prisoned - If it's a 1v1 and only 2 people are in the game, use Multi-Shot to spam down the prison and get out before the Necro telestomps
If it's a pub game and 8 people are in, the Bone Prison will have amplifed life just like monsters in 8 player games and you won't be able to drop the Bone Prison fast enough to escape
In this event, it's best to switch to javside with Phoenix and try to gun down the Necromancer with high powered Fury
If he telestomps into you, try to Jab lock him before he can fire at you
* Hitting summon stacked Necs - Jab lock goes under summons and hits a Nec's namebar directly, this is an easy way to hit summon stack necs
* Make clever use of objects in the field such as boulders, trees and houses to kill Bone Spirit Trains
If a Bone Spirit Train is following you, move around an object and let the Spirits run into the object as they try to follow you, this will kill the Bone Spirit Train
* Keep Valkyrie and Decoy cast at all times, this helps distract IBS and strikes from Clay Golems
It can also even help with frame locking the Necromancer if he lands next to the Valk
Clever use of Decoy can also help confuse the Necromancer on his stomps if used wisely
* Strafing can sometimes work great vs. Vita Necromancers, considering he is the only target for strafe to hit

BMing a Necromancer:
You'll never be able to BM a Necromancer worse than he can BM you
But if you insist, your best chance is Lacerator (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)
and Slow Missles




GM Zon vs. Charging/Smiting Hammerdin - General Outfit
There is a misconception that Paladins (Particularly Charger/Smiters) can easily beat Amazons, with a well built Amazon, this is indeed an equal match up
You'll end up finding that plain Charger/Smiter builds are easy to kill with proper movement while using Fury
And plain Hammerdins are even easier to kill while just using Guided Arrow and making sure to avoid desynched telestomps
The real challenge is when a player is smart enough to use a Charging/Smiting Hammerdin Hybrid
He can lure you into a false sense of security by hammering (you'll need to use Guided Arrow to hit him)
And then suddenly switch into Charging/Smiting while you're bowside (you're easy to hit while bowside)
Then as soon as you switch back to javside, he can again begin hammering
It's all about who can manipulate the other players movements and lead them into a vulnerable attack pattern

Basics:
* Guided Arrow against hammer patterns
* Javside Fury against Charging/Smiting patterns
* If you see the Paladin go offscreen, he's trying to desynch back to you for a surprise attack, switch to javside and keep moving until you see him again
Well placed Charged desynched telestomps can be very tricky to interpret, don't worry about attacking until you know where the Paladin is or can well interpret where to place a Fury
* Only move left, right or directly down to avoid telestomps

Techniques:
* Begin a match with Valkyrie and Decoy summoned very close to you, they get in the way of Charging/Smiting and offer relief from the initial pressure
* When a Paladin is Charging you, walk away from him while you Fury (Walking allows max block) he'll have little chance to get through high Evade% and max block
* When the Paladin begins trying to Smite you, run directly 180 degrees away from him while Furying (Blocking won't help vs. Smite but the DR% will)
* When a Paladin starts telestomping with Smite, be sparatic with your choices of moving left, right or downward - This helps confuse the Paladin as how to actually catch you with Smite
* When a Paladin is trying to desynch telestomp with Blessed Hammer, use Guided Arrow and use your common sense on when he is obviously setting up for a telestomp
* When a Paladin is just running around spamming desynched hammers, just don't follow him

BMing Charging/Smiting Hammerdins:
Charging/Smiting is very hard to BM but a pure Hammerdin is easily BMerd with Lacerator (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)





GM Zon vs. V/T - Wisp Projector
FoH alone or Charging/Smiting alone is predictable and just not enough to kill a good Amazon
Combining both efforts however, makes for a nasty Hybrid Paladin capable of exploiting the weaknesses of bowside switching to javside
Just like with Charging/Smiting Hammerdins, this is all about who can manipulate the other players movements and lead them into a vulnerable attack pattern

Basics:
* Guided Arrow vs. FoHing patterns (Stand still and namelock, benefit from the full Avoid%) Just switch back javside as soon as you see him Charging or if he teleports near you
* Javside Furying vs. Charging/Smiting patterns (Careful with this, they like to force you to run and expose a lower Evade %, then they switch to FoH and slam you)
* Try your hardest to stay out of Conviction radius
* If you see the Paladin go offscreen, he's trying to desynch back to you for a surprise attack, switch to javside and keep moving until you see him again
Well placed Charged desynched telestomps can be very tricky to interpret, don't worry about attacking until you know where the Paladin is or can well interpret where to place a Fury
* Only move left, right or directly down to avoid telestomps

Techniques:
* Begin a match with Valkyrie and Decoy summoned very close to you, they get in the way of Charging/Smiting and offer relief from the initial pressure, they also help distract FoH targeting
* When a Paladin is Charging you, walk away from him while you Fury (Walking allows max block) he'll have little chance to get through high Evade% and max block
* When the Paladin begins trying to Smite you, run directly 180 degrees away from him while Furying (Blocking won't help vs. Smite but the DR% will)
* When a Paladin starts telestomping with Smite, be sparatic with your choices of moving left, right or downward - This helps confuse the Paladin as how to actually catch you with Smite
* When you know FoH is going to hit you, stand still and benefit from your full Avoid% to have the best chance of not getting hit

BMing a V/T:
You can't really BM a V/T, even using Lacerator drops your shield's block speed too much to be able to defend against Charging/Smiting
And wearing too much Lightning absorb will drop your DR%
Just NK it so it can't get it's body to begin with!





GM Zon vs. Sorc - Swordback Hold - All Absorb Gear
Woe to the Sorceress who has to duel a well built Amazon, ZvS is always the easiest match up

Basics:
* Guided Arrow and Strafe
* Only WSG out of stomps to the left, right and downward
* When a sorc stands still and machine gun fires projectiles, just walk circles around her
* Do not use Valkyries and Decoys, splash damage from Fireballs and Glacial Spikes will get you killed from your summons
* Against Blizzard, never stop and fire until you know the Sorc has cast a Blizzard, you have moved from it's radius and have time to fire while the Blizzard timer is resetting

Techniques:
* Against E-Shield - (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch)
* Don't like getting hit by Blizzard? - Try standing directly next to a wall or in a corner - This cuts out half of Blizzard's potential damaging graphics

BMing a Sorceress:
Lacerator And Swordback Hold (See Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch) and exploit All Absorb Gear
Use plenty of Slow Missles

This post was edited by TSBoyer on Jul 7 2017 09:11am

Frequently Asked Questions

Why use Normal Diamond/Shadow Faiths over GMB or FOI Bows?
Read this -> GMB Vs. Diamond & Shadow Vs. FOI

Which Javelins Are Good To Use In PvP?
Matriarchal Javelins, Winged Harpoons and Hyperion Javelins are all good to use in pvp. They are the fastest types and all share the same breakpoints but Matriarchal is better of the three.

How Much Fast Run/Walk Should A Bowazon Have?
Never go below 150%frw. Ideally, if a player can afford 5%frw SCs, they should aim at more around 170%frw.
The more frw the bowa has the better but keep the bowa's base life value "before BO" around 1800 at least. Do not drop lower than 1800 for the sake of frw.

What Causes Desynching? How To Gain More Desynch?
Desynch is a simple display error.
This example will show how it works:
* Amazon has 90% FRW coming from the gear she is actually wearing (Diadem, Amulet, Boots).
* She has an additional 60% FRW coming from her inventory of SCs.
* Opponents will see the Amazon moving as if she only has 90% FRW when in reality she has 150%.
* About every 10-15 seconds, the server will auto re-adjust where players actually are displayed on-screen.
* When the server re-adjusts, it will show the zon (desynch) and pop up where the 150% run has actually taken her.
The game correctly displays FRW that is worn on-gear but if the gear is STR glitched, the FRW will count for off-gear desynch.
The game does not correctly display off-gear FRW, such as FRW SCs and certain skills such as Charge.
Desynching has nothing to do with how much total FRW is on the zon, it has to do with the ratio of FRW on-gear Vs. FRW off-gear that is worn.
This is why naked Amazons desynch so hard, because while naked, all of the FRW bonus is comming from off-gear source.
WSGing can help with desynch but this entirely depends upon what is being flashed with the WSG.
If Eth Titan's are worn instead of Rare Javelins, the WSG will be flashing and changing the FRW everytime the zon WSGs, as well as flash a +50 STR bonus on STR glitched gear.
This does all sort of things to confuse the server as how to display the zon client-side to opponents.
A high STR zon for whatever reason (who is not STR glitched) and wearing Javas with no FRW (Rare Matriarchal), will gain no desynch from WSGing.

Swordback And Lacerator Switch Glitch?
Put Lacerator and Swordback paired on weapon switch #2, this grants 83% chance to Open Wounds and 33% chance to proc Amplify Damage
Fire 3 or 4 Guided Arrows, then switch and hold out the Lacerator and Swordback as the Guided Arrows hit the opponent.
When the arrows hit they will benefit from the 83% chance to Open Wounds and 33% chance to proc Amplify Damage.
This glitch works with every type of +% chance to proc on any weapon type on any class.

What is WSG?
WSG = Weapon Switch Glitch
Whenever W is pushed for weapon switch, it completely resets the animation frames that the character is currently displaying.
So when W is rapidly pushed over and over, it will keep resetting animation frames (such as FHR frames).
And allow characters to walk out of situations that would otherwise perma-lock them (such as mind blasts from an Assassin).
Learning how to WSG well is essential for bowazon gameplay.
I suggest setting a 2nd hotkey for weapon switching, try using W and E.
This way you a player can more rapidly alternate WSGing.

What is C/Ting?
C/Ting refers to the use of pushing C (bring up character screen) and pushing T (bringing up skill tree).
C/Ting is a risky maneuver that allows a bit more range with where the cursor is allowed to click.
Pushing C allows it to happen to the left, pushing T allows it to happen to the right.
Let's say an opponent (in a ZvZ match) is only a couple yards away, offscreen to the left.
A player would C/T by right clicking and holding at the ground with Guided Arrow, the move the cursor as close to the opponent as he can.
Now he pushes C to bring up the character screen without letting off of the locked Guided Arrow fire.
The display of the character moves towards the right of your screen about 3 yards.
This in turn, also adds about 3 yards onto the activation radius of the screen to the left.
Now he continues to hold on to the lock with Guided Arrow as he move his cursor even further left towards the opponent.
The cursor will move over the C character screen but will maintain it's Guided Arrow locked on the ground.
If the opponent wasn't too far offscreen before C/Ting, the elongated ground click will cause Guided Arrows to still chase him.

Should Poison Small Charms Be Used?
37x 451 Poison SCs is 17,414 poison damage over 12 seconds but after modifers it is much much lower actual damage than it seems.
Subtract 75% poison resistance, this results in 4,354 poison damage over 12 seconds.
Apply the PvP modifier which reduces all attacks to 17% of their original value, this results in 741 damage over 12 seconds.
The actual damage is only 62 extra damage per second and can be even further nerfed by common gear such as Andarial's Visage.
451 Poison SCs are also double mod'd to have that type of poison damage.
A bowa will miss out on important mods such as (+%frw) (+%to all res) (+life), these mods are crucial for making an bowazon durable.
If a bowa really want poison damage, it should try stating for Plague Javelin, which is far more effective.

What Weapons Effect Amazon Block Speed?
Amazons have amazing block speed with all Javelin types and with Throwing Daggers.
With any other weapon type in hand, Amazons have terrible block speed.

10/10

For an MF zon, there are much better setups, imo, and they're cheaper and attainable earlier in the game. There's a great guide out there for a WWS mf'er, and it clears a lot of good MF areas in a hurry, in addition to costing maybe 15% of what these builds do.

No mention of Razortail, at all. 100% pierce is going to help more clearing areas and MFing than the 30% boost from Goldwrap, not to mention you don't need the IAS with Faith.

You suggest gloves with knockback, Atma's in one case, and soc'ing a Ber rune for CB, but then say Strafe is a situational skill? KB, CtC, CB, those only carry on the two middle arrows of MS. And you're using MS without 100% pierce. If you want those mods to do anything meaningful, use Strafe. Multi got cut down a few versions ago.

Bow builds should ALWAYS max penetrate. Especially with high str bows like WF. Even with max penetrate, 300+dex, Atma's, and AR boost from Fanata, hit chance in a lot of lvl85 areas is in the high 70s.

For straight MFing without tele, Harmony on switch for the lvl10 vigor is awesome. It's also a good bow early in game if you don't have anything better.

Proc'ing amp is gonna kill faster in hell, for a far lower cost, than Fortitude and Pride. When you figure in Might or Fanata, plus high dex, plus LoH, the marginal benefit of that ED doesn't match Amp for cost effectiveness. Plus, most MF targets are demons, CoH makes up for low res, adds MF, adds LL, dmg vs demons, and str do you have more points for dex for more damage and hit chance. Otherwise, there's Skullder's for MF

There's about zero reason to go dual tree for MF. If you wanna kill PIs, there's FA and MA. If you rock WWS, you've got lvl20 MA off the bat. And WWS requires only one point in CS as a prereq, you can spend the rest on evade skills, getting dmg up, and penetrate so you can hit something.

Lots of trophy room gear mentioned, decent leveling strat, though riphook with cleg gloves can get you thru NM just fine w/ Strafe. So far as synergizing gear and skill choices for an effective MF build that you can get to quickly early on ladder, this is not it.

5/10

Holy shit of wall / 10

why


this is pointless


you do. 95 = 45helm+20gloves+20amu+10belt


no way
faith has itd and +300%ar

@ Khboer
Out of all the incorrect information and uninformed assumptions that you posted, you did manage to bring up one good question that actually needs to be addressed.
That question is why no Razortail? Most of us have believed Razortail to be a WF spec essential for many years now, even myself.

Let's look at facts concerning Goldwrap vs. Razortail:
* The WF build, when complete with Goldwrap, will have a total of level 5 Pierce, which is already 55%.
* Adding Razortail to this setup will add +30% to the Pierce, making it 85%. When doing this, note that you must sacrifice Ohm or Ber from the WF in place of a 40/15, which downs act boss kill speed and even mob skill speed.
* Looks good on paper right? It even does to me. But what about practical application when comparing and contrasting the difference in use of Goldwrap vs. Razortail?

Reality of Multi Shot vs. Strafe:
* Keep in mind that base 5 Multi Shot with +gear skills will be level 9, which will spray 10 arrows and cost 12 mana. "Adding extra points to this skill with higher levels is a good idea in pvm"
* Strafe will be level 5 with +gear skills and only 1 level away from it's optimized 10 shots per attack "which arguably you should add base 2 points to strafe on this build to achieve level 6 and 10 attacks".
Strafe caps at 10 attacks per shot at level 6. The level 5/6 will also offer 25%/30% bonus to ED% but this adjusted AFTER the strafe being a 3/4ths weapon damage attack.
In other words, spending the points to pump strafe damage past the level 6 ten attack cap is a bad idea. Strafe gets it's damage from the 10 attack cap, not from small damage boosts past level 6.
You won't gain much damage by maxing strafe and you'll lose important survival mechanisms in the process.
* Multi Shot is easily the better attack. In 99/100 situations, monsters come at you slightly staggered and not in an ant trail line. This means that Multi Shot will hit each monster more frequently than Strafe.
On some occasions "like when grand vizier spawns against the south lava wall, all in a line", Strafe is a better attack but there aren't many instances in the entire game, where this is advantageous.
And running around to try and herd monsters into a line is a waste of time and DPS "damage per second". Multi Shot base level 1 is always a better attack than even maxed Strafe. On high level Bowas with +skills anyway.
Strafe is great vs. act bosses after amping them or even certain hard to kill specials after the minions die and it is alone but even a single extra target will down the DPS of Strafe to where Guided Arrow is a better single target DPS.
Shouldn't forget to mention that Multi Shot also hits creatures two screens away from the bowazon without targeting.

Now the application of Goldwrap vs. Razortail while using Multi Shot and sometimes Strafe
Here is what I find while testing these two items:
* The 85% pierce with Razortail vs. 55% without seems amazing, in the mind.
* Go to play with Razortail and the 10 arrow spray multi "which is more often than not, the main mob killer"
* Notice that most mobs are 6-8 creatures or less. On occasion see 10-15. On rare occasion see 15-30 and almost never see 30+ unless herding in Hell Cows.
* When a 6-8 mob approaches, they are almost never in an ant trail line and distribute themselves around valks/mercs quickly. Only 1 or 2 may be hiding directly behind another creature.
this means that hitting these creatures is mainly centered around the Multi Shot spray, not pierce. So let's say that 6-8 monsters bulk up in a little group. The player holds the cursor
further out away from the Bowa as to direct and condense the 10 arrow spray tightly across the 6-8 mob. With the way Multi Shot works, only one arrow from a single cast volley can hit a single target.
This creates an effect where, say 3 monsters out of the 8 are somewhat in an ant trail 180 degrees away from the bowa. The bowa casts a single multi volley while clicking near the edge of the screen so it is tight, across the mob.
10 arrows pass tightly across the 3 monster ant trail and even without a single point into pierce, they all get hit anyway because the arrows are so tightly cast and fired in the same area.
This in itself is like a piercing effect and players need to learn how to use it with far clicks on edge of screen. If you were to add 55% pierce on to this, you'll see that it is plenty.
If you were to use Razortail, you'll see that it is too much pierce and that it creates situations when 1 or 2 arrows are doing all the work "getting the hits" while the 8 or 9 others are doing nothing at all "not even touching creatures".
Remember how multi shot works. When a single volley passes through something, only 1 arrow from that volley can hit a single given target. Optimize the use of your multi spray, don't waste it.
* When a 10-15 mob approaches it's the same deal. They'll all bulk up around the valk/merc and create a larger mob that makes pierce become a bit more advantageous.
Again, the 10 arrow spray, when properly placed will do most of the work but in this situation the 55% pierce becomes important to have and it is plenty. 85% pierce will again
create situations even with a 10-15 mob, where some arrows in the cast are actually doing nothing at all. They aren't even hitting a single target. This is a waste of of the multi shot resource.
* When a 15-30 mob approaches, yes superior pierce is a great idea to have but how often does this really ever happen? The only time I see this happen is if a player's damage is poor to the point
that they have to keep kiting around while trying to kill a mob and accidentally start drawing agro from other mobs. This is a flaw on the player's part and it shouldn't be happening in any other area aside from Hell Cow herding.
If a player has top bowa kill speed and knows how to use it from the above listed specs, they'll almost never encounter mobs larger than 15 because they will kill everything too quickly for this to be a problem.
This simply fact renders the use of Razortail 85% pierce mostly useless in the face of understanding how to properly use Multi Shot with 55% pierce.
* When a 30+ mob approaches the bowa, this means the bowa must be herding in cows. In this event, absolutely use Razortail if this is your primary activity.
This 85% pierce will mostly certainly make the difference here but otherwise, 55% is more than adequate for mf'ing other areas of the game.
And when you're mfing, Goldwrap +30%mf is pretty awesome to wear.
* About Strafe - SOMETIMES it's advantageous to use but you'll be using it like 1/10th of the time. The rest of the time Multi Shot will be more advantageous.
Strafe with Ber is amazing for clearing act bosses or otherwise high life value creatures that are alone in 8 player games while XPing/MFing solo.
And pierce doesn't matter at all when strafing a single target, which is what it's mainly used for.

This post was edited by TSBoyer on Jul 7 2017 05:58pm

33



this doesn't make sense
if you use RT, you put enough points in pierce to get 100%, ie total lvl9 pierce
if you don't, you just max pierce and get 89% or something

What doesn't make sense about this?

Level 5 pierce 55% + correction of 33% Razortail = 88% pierce.
Read these links -> http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/skills/amazon-passive.shtml -> http://classic.battle.net/diablo2exp/items/exceptional/ubelts.shtml

Read the previous post to see the logic in why a magic find Bowazon does not need 100% pierce, regardless of if is coming from skill value or Razortail.
Furthermore, running a Windforce setup means that a Bowazon has only the Valkyrie to agro/tank.
Valkyries gain passive sustain from the Bowazon's points added to Dodge/Avoid/Evade.
Choosing to take points out of Dodge/Avoid/Evade for Pierce lowers the Valkyrie sustain and creates situations where the Bowazon is kiting backwards for positioning too often which = a loss in DPS "damage over time".

Looking at numbers on paper is a lot different than practical application and seeing reliable mechanics.
Bowazons do not need anymore than 1 base point into Pierce and they don't need Razortail.
If you want to argue my points made that's fine but at least do it with some kind evidence and not just blank shots for the troll.