Based on feedback from my last guide and one user comment, I got the idea to cover some basic map reading and finding Mephisto in Durance of Hate Level 3.



This one is for you!

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You've maybe heard advice like "follow the left wall" to find Meph before. But I have the perfect map example that shows you why this is bad advice and why you need to start thinking in terms of map tiles in this game.

Here's the example from one of my runs tonight that I'm going to break apart piece by piece:



Now look more specifically at the waypoint and Level 3 entrance:



The yellow squares indicate that those parts of the map are the map tiles. The map generation rule for Durance Level 2 is that your way into the Durance Level 3 entrance tile is left of your waypoint tile. When I hit this map, I want to try to go the direction the arrow in the bottom right is pointing as much as I can. By the time I realize the map just isn't going to go that way, I start looking for ways I can get into the Durance Level 3 tile that faces left from the orientation of the waypoint tile.

This map is a good example because Durance Level 3 isn't to the left of the waypoint tile. But if I've explained this well, you'll see that the tile for Durance Level 3 still follows the map generation rule! (Refer to the red arrows again if you aren't following.)

To see what I mean, we just have to realize that this could have been our map too (and I bet we've all thankfully found one like this):



Now the final piece. This map is also a perfect example for why you shouldn't follow advice like "follow the left wall." If you had done that on this map, you'd have rage quit because... just look at that route vs. where the exit actually is. You'd have gone around the whole thing instead of doing what I did: Realized you got a weird map and cut over. I didn't even have to explore the whole map because I understand the rule I'm trying to explain here.



Once again, information like this is not unique to me. I learned it largely from MrLlamaSC's videos. The guys at Maxroll also have a helpful intro to map reading: https://d2.maxroll.gg/resources/map-reading. I give honor where it is due, and I am simply the messenger providing this info the to the d2jsp community in a (hopefully) accessible way. I hope you all find this useful!

This post was edited by Kerygma on Oct 12 2021 09:15pm

Thanks for putting this together

now do the one where it's randomly in the middle of the map

It still follows the rule but... RNG feels bad.

On that note, I should add that this guide is simply one that shows you how to use probabilities to your advantage. By following this advice and getting better at it, you will do faster Meph runs, on average. But that doesn't mean you won't get a bad map every few runs!

This post was edited by Kerygma on Oct 12 2021 09:47pm

Thanks Man lol,

i cant wait meph drives me bonkers.

I do this every day and it's very effective. I haven't read your stuff but I guess it's the same as I do.

Move to the exit of the part where your waypoint is and then head to the direction where your shield is. (Left) then depending on which side the exit is, the entrance will either be in top or to the right of the wall, which makes it easier to find. I always teleport around the outer side of the map clockwise.

Thanks.

I've read this but I'm still not sure if I actually understand it. Gotta try it later, to see if my interpretation of it was right

Ty for the info, will try it ^^

ty for these guides, appreciate the work