Important Optional Quests in Diablo 2 Resurrected

Important Quests:

This is a quick list of optional but very important quests in Diablo 2 Resurrected! Even though these quests are not required to complete the game, they are absolutely worth going back and completing in each difficulty to get their rewards. These quests give a combined 12 skill points, 60hp, 30 to all resistance, 15 stat points and more! I can’t recommend doing these quests enough!

Den of Evil

1 skill point [Act 1]

Tools of the Trade

1 item imbue [Act 1]

Radament’s Lair

1 skill point [Act 2]

The Golden Bird

20 Hitpoints [Act 3]

Lam Esen’s Tome

5 stat points [Act 3]

The Fallen Angel

2 skill points [Act 4]

Hell’s Forge

gems and runes [Act 4]

Siege on Harrogath

1 item socketed [Act 5]

Prison of Ice

10 All Resistances and unlocks the ability to kill Pindleskin [Act 5]

How many skill points can quests give you in Diablo II?

Quests can give you a total of 12 skill points

Which quests give you skill points in diablo 2?

The quests Den of Evil, Radament’s Lair and The Fallen Angel give skill points in Diablo 2 Resurrected.

Which Diablo 2 quest gives resistances?

The quest Prison of Ice gives bonuses to your resistances in Diablo 2 Resurrected.

Diablo 2 Resurrected – Tips and Tricks

Maybe you will find some of these tips and tricks helpful! These range from the ability to toggle always show items to swapping between resurrected and legacy mode! Legacy mode is super cool!! Some of these tips are from my days of playing Diablo 2 and others are entirely new D2R features!

Diablo 2 Resurrected – Tips and Tricks

Auto Gold Pickup

Keep gold in your stash

Gambling refresh button

Always show items

Show health and mana text

Stamina potions

Tomes of Town Portal & Identity

Belt Tricks!

Mercenary overview

Legacy mode

Wrap up & bugs

Diablo 2 Leveling Guide – power leveling

This guide walks you through leveling a character quickly in Diablo 2! Generally, this path is followed by a group instead of being solo. You can solo level in these areas but I highly recommend making public games. Having other players in the game increases experience gain significantly. These areas are exactly the same in Diablo 2 and Diablo II Resurrected, so this power leveling path will work exactly the same for either version of the game!

Power Leveling Steps

Leveling Areas

  1. Level 1-15 Tristram

    Clear Tristram over and over. The fastest way is to either join or host your own public game. More players give you more experience, so shoot for a full game. To host your own game, you have to save Cain.

  2. Level 15-24 Tombs

    Clear Tal Rasha’s Tomb over and over. The fastest way again is to join or host your own public game. Once you can access the tome, you can create your own game, no additional quest is required.

  3. Level 24 Ancients – Normal Difficulty

    At this point you need to kill your normal Ancients to complete the Right of Passage quest. This will allow you to access Baal’s throne room for the best experience.

  4. Level 25-40 Baal or Chaos Sanctuary

    Once you hit 25 you will have a few options. You can now level in either the Chaos Sanctuary or by doing Baal runs. Chaos runs seem to give a little bit more loot, so if your drops have been lacking, I would recommend that.

  5. Level 40 Ancients – Nightmare Difficulty

    It’s time to kill your Nightmare Ancients for Right of Passage! Ideally, you should find a nightmare rush and also enlist help killing your Ancients. This will speed the process up a ton!

  6. Level 41-60 – Baal or Chaos Sanctuary (Nightmare)

    After obtaining level 41 and entering Nightmare mode it’s time to start doing Chaos or Baal runs. Both of these will require either a nightmare rush or playing through nightmare mode.

  7. Level 60 Ancients – Hell Difficulty

    After hitting level 60 it is time to get a rush in hell difficulty from Act 1 to Act 5. You will need help killing your ancients as well. They can be pretty tough in Hell difficulty.

  8. Level 61-99 Baal or Chaos Sanctuary (Hell)

    At this point you can start doing Chaos runs as soon as you get to act 4. This is really good experience and a nice way to find some valuable items. Once you complete Right of Passage you can begin doing Baal runs. Baal runs are going to give you the fastest exp/hr but Chaos is worth doing due to the drops.

That’s about it for this leveling guide! Hopefully this gets you into the 90’s without a problem. Experience really slows down after level 90. Enjoy the grind and I’ll hopefully see you in game!

Diablo 2 Installation Guide

Today we are going to be installing Diablo 2 in 2021! This process should be really quick and easy but Blizzard has definitely made it complicated. With this guide though, you will be playing Diablo 2 on Windows 10 in no time at all!

Installation Guide

Time needed: 30 minutes

Lets walk through the steps to install Diablo 2 Lord of Destruction.

  1. Purchase the game if you don’t own it already.

    If you don’t already own the game head over to https://shop.battle.net and purchase the game. You need to click Games and then Diablo II: Resurrected. On the Resurrected page you can find the Diablo 2 & Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction for around $10 each.

  2. Download the Installers

    Head over to https://account.battle.net and click Games & Subscriptions. Scroll to the bottom of the page to find Classic Games. Here you will see your CD Keys as well as links to download both of the installers. Download both installers and continue to the next step.

  3. Install Diablo 2

    Next we need to click on the Diablo 2 installer that we downloaded. Once it opens up, you will need to put in your name and license key to continue. After that it should download and install just fine. There are some javascript errors that will pop up but those can be ignored.

  4. Install Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction

    Once you have Diablo 2 installed, it’s time to install the expansion. Close out the Diablo 2 installer after it has finished and open up the Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction installer. A popup will appear asking for your Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction CD Key. Once you fill that in and continue, the install should be pretty quick.

  5. Play the game!

    Once the Diablo 2: Lord of Destruction installer finishes, you should be able to just open “Diablo II.exe”. I hope this guide was helpful and I really hope you have a good time playing Diablo 2!

FAQ

Can you install Diablo 2 through the Battle.Net Launcher?

Currently you cannot install Diablo 2 using the Battle.Net Launcher.

Where can I download Diablo 2?

You will need to use Blizzard’s https://Battle.Net website to download Diablo 2 and Diablo 2 Lord of Destruction.

How much does Diablo 2 and Diablo 2 Lord of Destruction cost?

Currently, both Diablo 2 and Diablo 2 Lord of Destruction cost around $10 each.

Can you install Diablo 2 on Windows 10

Yes! Diablo 2 can easily be installed on windows 10

Do you need Diablo 2 to play Diablo 2 Lord of Destruction

Yes, you need Diablo 2 installed to install the Lord of Destruction expansion.

Diablo 2 Horadric Cube Recipes

Upgrade Runes

The Horadric Cube can be used to upgrade runes! If you have, 3 Tir runes, you can place them into your Horadric Cube and click transmute. After your transmutation is complete, you will have 1 Nef rune in your Horadric Cube.

This can be very useful when you are only missing a specific rune.

Low Tier Runes

Low runes are very common drops and are used in many Runeword recipes.

  • Eld = 3 EL
  • Tir = 3 Eld
  • Nef = 3 Tir
  • Eth = 3 Nef
  • Tal = 3 Ith
  • Ral = 3 Tal
  • Ort = 3 Ral
  • Thul = 3 Ort
  • Amn = 3 Thul + Chipped Topaz
  • Sol = 3 Amn + Chipped Amethyst
  • Shael = 3 Sol + Chipped Sapphire
  • Dol = 3 Shael + Chipped Ruby

Mid Tier Runes

These runes drop less frequently than low runes but are used in many powerful Runewords.

  • Hel = 3 Dol + Chipped Emerald
  • Lum = 3 IO + Flawed Topaz
  • Ko = 3 Lum + Flawed Amethyst
  • Fal = 3 Ko + Flawed Sapphire
  • Lem = 3 Fal + Flawed Ruby
  • Pul = 3 Lem + Flawed Emerald
  • Um = 3 Pul + Flawed Diamond

High Tier Runes

These are very rare runes that only drop in hell difficulty. These runes are used to complete the most powerful Runewords in the game!

  • Mal = 2 Um + Topaz
  • Ist = 2 Mal + Amethyst
  • Gul = 2 Ist + Sapphire
  • Vex = 2 Gul + Ruby
  • Ohm = 2 Vex + Emerald
  • Lo = 2x Ohm + Diamond
  • Sur = 2 Lo + Flawless Topaz
  • Ber = 2 Sur + Flawless Amethyst
  • Jah = 2 Ber + Flawless Sapphhire
  • Cham = 2 Jah + Flawless Ruby
  • Zod = 2 Cham + Flawless Emerald

Secret Cow Level

The Secret Cow Level, which can also be known as the Moo Moo Farm, is a hidden level in Diablo II. To access the Secret Cow Level, you will need to create a portal in town using the following Horadric Cube recipe.

Secret Cow Level = Wirt’s Leg + Tome of Town Portal

Wirt’s Leg will have to be picked up from Tristram by clicking on Wirt’s body.

Potion Recipes

The following recipes can be used for any quality potion. You can also use any type of gem, skulls are included.

  • Small Rejuvenation Potion = Health Potion x3 + Mana Potion x3 + any chipped gem
  • Full Rejuvenation Potion = Health Potion x3 + Mana Potion x3 + any normal quality gem 
  • Full Rejuvenation Potion = 3x Small Rejuvenation Potion

These potion recipes are super useful when starting out and later on to keep a good supply of full rejuvenation pots!

Reset Talent Points

  • Token of Absolution = Essence of Suffering + Essence of Hatred + Essence of Terror + Essence of Destruction

Once you create the Token of Absolution it can be used to reset your stat points.

The essences are obtained from the following bosses in Hell difficulty:

  • Andariel and Duriel – Essence of Suffering
  • Mephisto – Essence of Hatred
  • Diablo – Essence of Terror
  • Baal – Essence of Destruction

Uber Tristram (Pandemonium Event)

The following recipe has to be crafted on Hell difficulty in Harrogath, which is the town in act 5.

  • Portal to either Matron’s Den, Furnace of Pain, or Forgotten Sands = Key of Terror + Key of Hate + Key of Destruction

The portals will be random but if you open 3 portals in the same game, you will get one of each. Once you have gotten all 3 items you can open the portal to Uber Tristram

  • Uber Tristram portal = Baal’s Eye + Diablo’s Horn + Mephisto’s Brain

Diablo 2 Runes

RuneNameStatsLevel
ElWeapons: +50 To Attack Rating, +1 to Light Radius
Armor: +15 Defense, +1 to Light Radius
Helms: +15 Defense, +1 to Light Radius
Shields: +15 Defense, +1 to Light Radius
11
EldWeapons: +75% Damage To Undead, +50 Attack Rating Against Undead
Armor: 15% Slower Stamina Drain
Helms: 15% Slower Stamina Drain
Shields: 7% Increased Chance of Blocking
11
TirWeapons: +2 To Mana After Each Kill
Armor: +2 To Mana After Each Kill
Helms: +2 To Mana After Each Kill
Shields: +2 To Mana After Each Kill
13
NefWeapons: Knockback
Armor: +30 Defense Vs. Missile
Helms: +30 Defense Vs. Missile
Shields: +30 Defense Vs. Missile
13
EthWeapons: -25% To Target Defense
Armor: Regenerate Mana 15%
Helms: Regenerate Mana 15%
Shields: Regenerate Mana 15%
15
IthWeapons: +9 To Maximum Damage
Armor: 15% Damage Taken Goes to Mana
Helms: 15% Damage Taken Goes to Mana
Shields: 15% Damage Taken Goes to Mana
15
TalWeapons: +75 Poison Damage Over 5 Seconds
Armor: Poison Resist 30%
Helms: Poison Resist 30%
Shields: Poison Resist 35%
17
RalWeapons: Adds 5-30 Fire Damage
Armor: Fire Resist 30%
Helms: Fire Resist 30%
Shields: Fire Resist 35%
19
OrtWeapons: Adds 5-30 Fire Damage
Armor: Fire Resist 30%
Helms: Fire Resist 30%
Shields: Fire Resist 35%
21
ThulWeapons: Adds 3-14 Cold Damage – 3 Second Duration
Armor: Cold Resist 30%
Helms: Cold Resist 30%
Shields: Cold Resist 35%
23
AmnWeapons: 7% Life Stolen Per Hit
Armor: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Helms: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
Shields: Attacker Takes Damage of 14
25
SolWeapons: +9 To Minimum Damage
Armor: Damage Reduced By 7
Helms: Damage Reduced By 7
Shields: Damage Reduced By 7
27
ShaelWeapons: 20% Increased Attack Speed
Armor: 20% Faster Hit Recovery
Helms: 20% Faster Hit Recovery
Shields: 20% Faster Block Rate
29
DolWeapons: Hit Causes Monster To Flee 25%
Armor: Replenish Life +7
Helms: Replenish Life +7
Shields: Replenish Life +7
31
HelWeapons: Requirements -20%
Armor: Requirements -15%
Helms: Requirements -15%
Shields: Requirements -15%
33
IoWeapons: +10 To Vitality
Armor: +10 To Vitality
Helms: +10 To Vitality
Shields: +10 To Vitality
35
LumWeapons: +10 To Energy
Armor: +10 To Energy
Helms: +10 To Energy
Shields: +10 To Energy
37
KoWeapons: +10 To Dexterity
Armor: +10 To Dexterity
Helms: +10 To Dexterity
Shields: +10 To Dexterity
39
FalWeapons: +10 To Strength
Armor: +10 To Strength
Helms: +10 To Strength
Shields: +10 To Strength
41
LemWeapons: 75% Extra Gold From Monsters
Armor: 50% Extra Gold From Monsters
Helms: 50% Extra Gold From Monsters
Shields: 50% Extra Gold From Monsters
43
PulWeapons: +75% Damage To Demons, +100 Attack Rating Against Demons
Armor: +30% Enhanced Defense
Helms: +30% Enhanced Defense
Shields: +30% Enhanced Defense
45
UmWeapons: 25% Chance of Open Wounds
Armor: All Resistances +15
Helms: All Resistances +15
Shields: All Resistances +22
47
MalWeapons: Prevent Monster Heal
Armor: Magic Damage Reduced By 7
Helms: Magic Damage Reduced By 7
Shields: Magic Damage Reduced By 7
49
IstWeapons: 30% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Armor: 25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Helms: 25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
Shields: 25% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
51
GulWeapons: 20% Bonus To Attack Rating
Armor: 5% To Maximum Poison Resist
Helms: 5% To Maximum Poison Resist
Shields: 5% To Maximum Poison Resist
53
VexWeapons: 7% Mana Stolen Per Hit
Armor: 5% To Maximum Fire Resist
Helms: 5% To Maximum Fire Resist
Shields: 5% To Maximum Fire Resist
55
OhmWeapons: +50% Enhanced Damage
Armor: 5% To Maximum Cold Resist
Helms: 5% To Maximum Cold Resist
Shields: 5% To Maximum Cold Resist
57
LoWeapons: 20% Deadly Strike
Armor: 5% To Maximum Lightning Resist
Helms: 5% To Maximum Lightning Resist
Shields: 5% To Maximum Lightning Resist
59
SurWeapons: Hit Blinds Target
Armor: Maximum Mana 5%
Helms: Maximum Mana 5%
Shields: +50 To Mana
61
BerWeapons: 20% Chance of Crushing Blow
Armor: Damage Reduced by 8%
Helms: Damage Reduced by 8%
Shields: Damage Reduced by 8%
63
JahWeapons: Ignore Target’s Defense
Armor: Increase Maximum Life 5%
Helms: Increase Maximum Life 5%
Shields: +50 Life
65
ChamWeapons: Freeze Target +3
Armor: Cannot Be Frozen
Helms: Cannot Be Frozen
Shields: Cannot Be Frozen
67
ZodWeapons: Indestructible
Armor: Indestructible
Helms: Indestructible
Shields: Indestructible
69
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Diablo 2 Ultimate Mercenary Guide

General Mercenary Facts

  • The mod – Prevent Monster Heal does not work on mercenaries. It has no effect at all.
  • Most other mods (Crushing Blow, Open Wounds, Chance to Cast on Striking, Faster Cast Rate, Faster Hit Recovery, Increased Attack Speed, etc.) work on mercenaries.
  • Mercenaries hired in normal difficulty have better final stats than those hired in Nightmare or Hell, and NM Mercs are better than those hired in Hell. The exception being the Nightmare Act 2 mercenaries, which cannot be hired in Normal (or Hell). The actual “character” level that you hire the merc at is irrelevant, only the difficulty you hire them in.
  • The highest level a merc can be is 98. Mercs skills have been downgraded slightly in 1.10 compared to 1.09 , with the exception of the Act 1 Rogue which will no do more damage.
  • Act 5 mercenaries regenerate their health fully in 16.4 seconds, all other mercenaries require 41 seconds.
  • Poison can absolutely kill your mercenary, even while in town. You on the other hand cannot die from poison in town.
  • Mercenaries benefit from items with +all skills. However, They do not benefit from +class skills or +skill tabs. This was removed in 1.10.

    Mercs will benefit from:

    +fire skills (when applicable)
    +specific skills (if they already have the skills (e.g. an act 3 merc will benefit from an Ormus Robes’ skill if he posseses that skill already, even though it says (Sorceress)
    + skills to Bash or Stun for the Barbarian as found on some items.
  • Synergies. Some mercs skills synergize – An example of this is the Barbarians Stun and Bash skills which synergize. Act3 Mercs skills also synergize. ( i.e. Glacial spike with Ice Blast for the cold sorc)
  • When mercs levels up, their current life is set to their new base maximum life. So, if a merc is under life bonuses from Battle Orders, Oak Sage, or equipment, you will see thier life drop. Don’t be alarmed when this happens, your merc isn’t about to bite the dust.
  • You can use healing potions or rejuvenation potions on your mercenary by selecting a potion and dropping it on their portrait in the top left corner of the screen. Another way to do this is to hold Shift and press 1, 2, 3 or 4 depending on the potions location in your belt. Yet another way is holding Shift and right-clicking on a potion in your belt.
  • Similar to giving a merc a potion using the portrait: you can give your mercenary equipment via the portrait. If they can use the item, it will work. If they are already wearing this type of item, it will be exchanged for the new one.
  • Mercenaries do not have a mana pool, so mana potions do not work on them. If you try to shift + 1 method to feed your merc a mana pot, he/she will thank you, although you yourself will drink the potion. They are simply granted “infinite” mana to cast spells. So, mana burn monsters will also not affect them.
  • If your merc is wearing either Gold Find or Magic Find gear, you will receive those respective bonuses to your drops when the merc makes a kill. Example, 100% MF on char, 125% MF on merc. If you make the kill, 100% MF is in effect. If the merc makes the kill, 225% MF is in effect.
  • Ethereal items will not lose durability when equipped on a mercenary.
  • The price of resurrecting your mercenary caps out at 50,000 gold.
  • Your Mercenary’s damage is penalized against certain things:

    Attacking Penalty
    ———————–
    Players 17%
    Hirelings 25%
    Golems 100%
    Monsters 100%
    Minions 100%
    Norm Act Boss 50%
    NM Act Boss 35%
    Hell Act Boss 25%

    They receive 100% damage from everything , except other players hirelings which will only do 25% of the listed damage to your Merc.
    They receive 200% damage for Bosses – that is why they can die fairly quickly.
  • Mercs cannot leach of Hell Bosses such as Mephi and Baal, and there is a bug when facing the council in Act III, Hydra’s will do a lot more damage than they should, there is no real way to negate this except to take your mercs resistances up above 75% with Guardian Angel.
  • Mercs donot receive any life from + to vitality items, this is another minor bug, so only equip your merc with items that give actual + to life.
  • Levelling – Mercs only get experience in 2 ways – firstly if YOU make the kill they get normal experience, if they make the kill they get normal experience plus bonus experience – calculated at roughly 2x. They receive no experience if you are in a party with other players and the other players make the kill.
  • They receive the most experience in an 8 player game when you are not partied and they make the kill. As a quick reference, the following table may be of some assistance for leveling.

    1-11——-A1
    12-18——- A2
    19-23——- A3
    24-31——- A4
    32-36——- A5
    37-43——- Ni1
    44-48——- Ni2
    49-52——- Ni3
    53-62——- Ni4
    63-73——- He1
    74-80——- He2
    81-83——- He3
    83-94——- He4
    95-99——- He5
  • Mercs are all hired at different Levels , their ranges very from :

			Normal	 NM	 Hell
Rogue Scout: 3-7 37-40 67-71
Desert Warrior: 9-13 44-47 75-79
Eastern Sorceror: 15-19 49-53 79-83
Barbarian: 28-32 59-62 80-84
  • Mercs Naturally have very high resistances, so, therefore, equip them with damage reduction gear instead of resistance gear.
  • Mercs can now equip the following auras:
    Holy Freeze: found on ‘Doom‘ Runeword for polearms (Act II mercs only)
    Holy Fire: found on ‘Hand of Justice‘ Runeword for all weapons.
    Thorns: found on ‘Bramble‘ Runeword for Armours.
    Sanctuary: found on Azurewrath, unique phase blade. (act III/VI mercs only)

Act 1 Rogue Mercenaries

(Two Types – Cold and Fire)

Note, they are Rogues, not Amazons. As such, +Amazon skill items will not work. Also, they cannot wield (Amazon-Only) bows.

– > They can only equip bows. Crossbows are not allowed.
– > Cast either Fire Arrow or Cold Arrow
– > Cast Inner Sight

Note : The mods Fires Explosive Arrows or Bolts and Fires Magic Arrow are quirky.

– > The Explosive arrows do not work. There is a graphical bug so that you see the explosion, but no damage is dealt and the Rogue does not get the Attack Rating bonus associated with the Exploding Arrow skill.

Note : Fires Magic Arrow does deliver magic damage, but the Rogue’s still do not receive an AR bonus.

– > Act1 Mercs can now give you a Vigor aura via Harmony, Thorns via Edge, and Fanatacism via Faith.

Rogue Equipment

They tend to stay out of harm’s way reasonably well, so life leech isn’t mandotory, but a little bit certainly helps.

Increased Attack Speed can help (check speed calculator). These mercs are good at activating Chance to Cast mods without being in the thick of the battle. Blinding, fleeing, amplify damage, etc.

Hit Recovery Speeds

Frames- FHR%
11—– 0
10—– 6
9—— 13
8—— 20
7—— 32
6—— 52
5—— 86
4—— 174
3—— 600

STATS

Fire / Cold Arrow (If hired from Normal – Note that these stats will all be lower in NM and HELL if hired from there. With the exception of attack frequency which increases at 2% per difficulty.

Comparisons

Fire Arrow—Fire Damage — AR Bonus
10———-21-24————91%
15———-36 -39 ———–136%
20———-63 -70 ———–181%
25———-111-126———–226%
30———195-222————227%
35———-315-357———–316%

Cold Arrow—Cold Damage — AR Bonus
10———-22-23————–91%
15———-34 -35 ————-136%
20———-53-56 ————-181%
25———-85-90————-226%
30———151-160————–227%
35———-256-270————-316%

Cold Arrow does a fraction less damage, however at level 35 ( Level 98 Merc with +6 All skills ) You could freeze a monster in Hell for almost 10 seconds, that’s impressive

Act 2 Desert Mercenaries

( 6 Types – 3 Available in Normal and Hell, and 3 Avaialable in NM )

  • A2 Town Guards are the most popular as they share an aura with not only your Character but with the entire Party. Sometimes the aura will not activate, if this happens then simply return to town then go back out.
  • The Same Auras do not stack – For example if you are a Paladin using might and your Merc is using might these will not add up, the game will simply cycle between the two.
  • Can use Spear, Javelin, and Polearm class weapons, except not the Amazon-only spears. They won’t ever throw the Javelins.

Equipment

Get him a big damage polearm. Mods to look for are: Crushing Blow, life leech, +life, resistances, Faster Hit Recovery, Chance to Cast amp damage or decrepify, Slows Target (especially on Holy Freeze merc).

For Armor always go for Ethereal with useful mods , the Runeword Stone is very useful and popular as well. Any Armor with plus skills is also very useful as these will boost their skills.

Helms – Tal Rashas mask is good at the start with its 10% Life Leach, when you find one upgrade to an Ethereal Crown of Theives. An Ethereal Shako wouldn’t go amiss either although you will need to socket this with some form of Life leach.

Keep in mind that you cant leach off all monsters – for example the undead.

Auras Available

Normal:

  • Combat = Prayer
  • Defensive = Defiance
  • Offensive = Blessed Aim

Nightmare:

  • Combat = Thorns
  • Defensive = Holy Freeze
  • Offensive = Might

Hell:

  • Combat = Prayer
  • Defensive = Defiance
  • Offensive = Blessed Aim

Prayer – regens life , Defiance – Increases Armor Class, Blessed Aim – Increases AR , Thorns – deals damage back to attacker , Holy Freeze – Slows Monsters , Might – Increases Melee Damage.

MERC SPECIAL SKILLS

Level—–Skill—–Effect

10——-Might—–130% damage
20——-Might—–230% damage
30——-Might—–330% damage

10——-Thorns—-610% damage returned
17——-Thorns—-890% damage returned
20——-Thorns—-1010% dam. returned

10——-H/Freeze—slow 48%
17——-H/Freeze—slow 53%
20——-H/Freeze—slow 54%

11——-Prayer—-Heals 12+
18——-Prayer—-Heals 21+
21——-Prayer—-Heals 27+

11——-Defiance—170% def
18——-Defiance—240% def
21——-Defiance—270% def

11——B/Aim—-225% to AR
18——B/Aim—-330% to AR
21——B/Aim—-375% to AR

ALL A2 MERCS :

11——Jab—–AR +100% Dam+15%
16——Jab—–AR +145% Dam+30%
17——Jab—–AR +154% Dam+34%
20——Jab—–AR +181% Dam+42%

Hit Recovery Speeds


Frames– FHR%
15—– 0
14—– 5
13—– 9
12—– 14
11—– 20
10—– 30
9—– 42
8—– 60
7—– 86
6—– 142
5—– 280

This is an excellent narration from Alter Ego and I have placed it here for your reference :

Offensive – Blessed Aim

Not the most popular aura for many characters, as most of the melee characters have sufficient skills to raise their AR and the Sorceress doesn’t really need much AR as she hits with her magicical attacks. However for variant builds such as the Melee Sorc, Ranger (bow/crossbow Paladin) and Meleemancer (melee Necro) where AR is of critical importance, the blessed aim merc can be very useful. This merc can also be very helpful to Werebears who also suffer from AR problems. With the introduction of several new uniques items which grant AR (eh. Charges of enchant, zeal etc) in 1.10 though, the actual usefulness of such mercs has been somewhat diminished.

Defensive – Defiance

A high level Merc with this aura, and good equip, is very hard to hit, even in Hell diff. So a character who has hired such a merc is equally difficult to hit. The advantages of this are straightforward to any character, you’ll get hit less often, therefore be less likely to die. This aura has a pronounced effect on the longevity of a Necro’s minions, even when the Merc is of a low level. This aura is often a “must-have” for characters aiming to have a huge defence stat i.e. Ironman barbarians or for hardcore players. Just bear in mind that several of the monsters in 1.10 now have attacks that completely ignore defense.

Combat – Prayer

The life regeneration that this aura provides is probably only of use to most characters as a way to ignore the effects of poison or of life draining items (Malice runeword for example). However to characters with life steal and high resists, this aura is going to prove to be of little use, and if the merc himself has a life stealing weapon, then the aura won’t be of too much use to him. It is probably best used for characters with no form of life leech(ie. casters). Still, it is probably better to just drink a potion.

This aura is of some limited use to the Necromancer and his minions as the continual life replenish will help keep them alive for much longer. In 1.10, the minions actually heal by themselves. I

Offensive – Might

A very popular aura for almost any character, as additional damage is always useful. The Merc himself will be doing a godly amount of damage at higher levels and quite happily tank for himself and for those who think that “the best defense is a good offense” this is the way to go.

This aura is probably of least use to a Sorceress as it does not add any benefit to her magical attacks, but should she run low of mana and be caught in a corner with only a melee weapon then, this aura will give her a chance of fighting her way free.

The effect of this aura on a Necro’s minions can create a virtual wall of death to descend upon the ranks of diablo minions. A few revived Frenzytaurs or raised skeletal warriors with a might aura on them can easily sway the tide of battle in the favour of the Necromancer.

A point to note is that even if you have a might merc whose lvl is sufficient to provide 100% extra damage this won’t automatically double the damage of your character. The formula below from Nikodemous from the Paladin forum explains how your might mercs aura factors into your damage.

Lets say your weapon does 100 points of average damage. (that being the average of the minimum and maximum shown directly on the weapon). You have +100% damage from WW

200 str = +200% damage

and the might merc has lvl 7 might, which gives (40+6*10) 100% bonus.

Total damage is:

(100 * (100 [base] + 200 [str] + 100 [ww] + 100 [might]))/100 = 500 average damage

All elemental damage is added to the total, with no % bonuses on top.

Combat – Thorns

The essential problem with Thorns is that you have to be hit for it to take effect, though admittedly the effect at high levels can kill many normal monsters outright. In 1.10, with the high ratio of monster HP as compared to the damage they do, thorns is more or less reduced to a novelty aura. It is nice to have around but not entirely useful.

The Necromancer Overlord is the character build that can make best use of this aura. With many minions running around the map all effected by thorns and with the possibility of an Amp Damage curse as well, this can create havoc for boss monsters that use phycial attacks i.e Hephasto the Armourer, Duriel and the Ancients. By wading through the thorns-aura’d minions to get to the player character, these boss monsters will take an awful lot of damage.

Defensive – Holy Freeze

Another very useful for aura for any player character, more so for the slowing effect on monsters than any damage done. The only other choice besides defiance for hardcore player, this aura, at high levels, will bring many enemies to a near stop. Demon Imps stop teleporting all of the place, flayers slow right down and explody-headed Slayers are easily avoided. For characters using thrown weapons, bows or magic, the slowed monsters make ideal targets.

The Necromancer Overlord (or a Corpse Explosion Necro) is the class most disadvantaged by this aura, as the increased number of bodies that shatter upon death greatly reduces the Necro’s potential revive, summon or corpse explosion fodder.

On Hell difficulty, cold immune monsters will still be slowed by this aura.

Important Note on Holy Freeze:

It seems that not all monsters are affected by this aura. Blood Lords, Moon Lords and Death Lords of act 5 seem resistant to its slowing effects. The Frenzytaurs are immune to freezing. So do not rely on your merc to slow these monsters down. Also its good to take into account the relatively small range of holy freeze eg. archers shooting.

Act 3 Iron Wolf

( Casters, Fire, Cold , Lightning )

Lightning is damage bugged, so only choose Fire or Cold Mercs.

These Mercs can be equiped with the most MF gear, around 300%.

Do not have blocking animations. “This means they do not getting blocking check at all. The Shield will just be there for the non-blocking attributes such as defense and any other magical properties that it has such as resisitances, fast cast, skills, etc.”

They have 3 types of attacks – Their primary low level spell , their secondary high level spell, and using their sword.

They will only use their sword in melee when they get swarmed. (sometimes)

The damage listed in their character info screen is only for their sword damage, and has no impact at all on their magic damage – their character info screen does not display their actual magic damage anywhere.

+Glacial Spike, +FireBall, etc. will help these mercs. The only places to get these are from Ormus’ Robes or two pieces of the Trang’s set. Note that the +Fireball bonus from Trang’s will be capped at +3.

Anything that is +sorceress skills, for example: +2 Fire Skills (Sorceress Only) will not work, but the +3 Fire Skills of Hexfire would.

Items that lower enemy resistance (such as the Crescent Moon runeword, facets, etc.) will benefit these mercs.

Can complete the Isenhart set (for whatever that’s worth)

Equipment

Spirit = Tal + Thul + Ort + Amn ( 4 Socket Shield or Sword)

Spirit Shield ( Ladder Only)
Spirit Sword ( Ladder Only )
Ormus Robes with + 3 to Fireball or Glacial Spike
Shako

With This Setup
70%-80% Fast Cast ( 18 frames to 13 frames)
+6 All Skills
+3 To FB or GS

Your Merc would then have :

Fire
50% FC ( 18 to 14 frames )
+6 All Skills

Cold
50% FC
+4 All Skills

You want +skills and Faster Cast Rate. Everything else is secondary because they tend to survive fairly well on their own unless you let them get swarmed. The new Spirit runeword is good for their weapon. You would need +strength on your helm/armor to let them use a Spirit shield since it can only be made in a Monarch, which requires 156 strength (146 if ethereal). They top out at 153 str at level 98 and have 137 str at level 85, just to give you an idea. You’ll need some +strength stuff to equip this shield at an earlier level.

Spells

  • Fire: Inferno and FireBall
  • Cold: Glacial Spike, Ice Blast, and Frozen Armor
  • Lightning: Charged Bolt and Lightning

Act 3 Mercenary Spells in Detail

The following commentary from Zath is accurate as of 1.10.

Fire:

– Level 32 Inferno: 356 damage/second. 60% chance to cast this spell
– Level 30 Fireball: 383 damage/shot. 30% chance to cast this spell.

Cold:

– Level 28 Frozen Armor: +165% defense, lasts 444 seconds, freezes enemy upon being hit for 111 frames in normal (4.44 seconds).
– Level 14 Glacial Spike: 150 damage/shot, freezes for 89 frames in normal (3.56 seconds). 19% chance to cast this spell after Frozen Armor is active (60/310).
– Level 32 Ice Blast: 613 damage/shot, freezes for 230 frames in normal (9.2 seconds). 77% chance to cast this spell after Frozen Armor is active (240/310).

Lightning:

– Level 17 Charged Bolt: 11.5 damage/bolt, 19 bolts total for 218.5 potential damage/cast. 60% chance to cast this spell.
– Level 29 Lightning: 258 damage/shot. 30% chance to cast this spell.

The lightning mercs are clearly lacking in damage output. Fire and cold mercs will deal significantly more damage, although the fire merc will have to hit multiple targets with each spell to reach his full potential. Overall, the cold merc may be the best choice with his Frozen Armor and Ice Blast.

Faster Cast Rate Breakpoints

Frames FCR%
18—– 0
17—– 10
16—– 15
15—– 30
14—– 40
13—– 60
12—– 90
11—–140

Hit Recovery Speeds

Frames FHR%
17—– 0
16—– 5
15—– 8
14—– 13
13—– 18
12—– 24
11—– 32
10—– 46
9—– 63
8—– 86
7—– 133
6—– 232
5—– 600

Act 5 Barbarian Mercenaries

(Only one type)

These mercs possess the skills Stun and Bash.

  • These are the only mercs who can use class-specific items (the barb helms)
  • “The act 5 mercanaries have a 5% chance of doing critical hits, the other mercanaries do not.” – Ruvanal
  • These mercs can complete the Sazabi Set.
  • They do not have or benefit from +sword mastery such as on Bloodletter
  • Act 5 mercs receive a 70% bonus to their poison resistance in all difficulties.” – Zath
  • “The Act 5 merc’s normal attack has 2 hits.” – Zath

Barbarian Mercenary Equipment

Big 2-handed sword – They do the listed damage for both 1 hand and 2 hand swords, so the 2 handers will almost always win out. Life leech, FHR, resistances, etc are also good. They’re about the same as A2 mercs except for the weapon differences.

Armor – always go for Ethereal with useful mods , the Runeword Stone is very useful and popular as well.

Helms – Tal Rashas mask is good at the start with its 10% Life Leach, when you find one upgrade to an Ethereal Crown of Theives. An Ethereal Shako wouldn’t go amiss either although you will need to socket this with some form of leach.

These Mercs should really have a minimum of 11-15% Life Leach to ensure they stay alive, as they are very zealous and tend to run off the screen to engage everything in sight.

Keep in mind that you cant leach off all monsters – for example the undead.

Damage Comparison (synergies)

Stun – the 1.2s = stunned for 1.2 second

Merc 
Level------Bash Damage -----------Stun Damage
1----------AR 20%,  Dam 55%------AR 15%, Dam 8% 1.2s
30--------AR 30%,  Dam 80%------AR 30%, Dam 24% 1.8s
50---------AR 60%,  Dam 145 ------AR 65%, Dam 72% 3.2s
75--------AR 95%,  Dam 225 -------AR 110 , Dam 128%4.5s
75 & 
+3 skills---AR 110, Dam 225 –------AR 125, Dam 152% 4.7s

Act 5 Barbarian Mercenary Hit Recovery Breakpoints

Frames FHR%
9—– 0
8—– 7
7—– 15
6—– 27
5—– 48
4—– 86
3—– 200

Diablo 2 Resurrected Acronyms, Terms and Abbreviations

This guide is meant to provide a comprehensive list of abbreviations, acronyms and terms used when playing Diablo 2 and Diablo II Resurrected.

Abbreviations in Alphabetical Order

  • 3D:  3 Diamond  Usually refers to a shield socketed with three perfect diamonds.
  • A1, A2:  Act 1, Act 2, etc.
  • AB:  Amazon Basin.
  • ABM:  Amazon Basin Member.
  • afaic:  As far as I’m concerned.
  • afaics:  As far as I can see.
  • afaik:  As far as I know.
  • afk:  Away from keyboard.
  • Ali Baba:  Blade of Ali Baba Exceptional Unique Tulwar.
  • alvl:  Affix Level.
  • Ama:  Amazon.
  • Amp:  Amplify Damage.  Necro curse to reduce enemies’ resistance to physical damage.
  • Ancients (AW):  The Ancients’ Way in Act 5.
  • Andy:  Andariel.  Act 1 super unique monster.
  • AoE:  Area of Effect.
  • AR:  Attack Rating.
  • Arkaine’s (Ark):  Arkaine’s Valor Elite Unique Balrog Skin.
  • Arreat’s:  Arreat’s Face Unique Slayer Guard.
  • AS:  Arreat Summit.  Battle.net’s website for D2.
  • Asn (asa, assy):  Assassin.
  • Atlantean:  The Atlantean Exceptional Unique Ancient Sword.
  • Atma’s:  Atma’s Scarab Unique Amulet.
  • BA:  Blessed Aim.  A Paladin offensive aura.
  • BA:  Bone Armor.  A Necromancer defensive skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • Baba (Barb):  Barbarian.
  • Bane:  Gladiator’s Bane Elite Unique Wire Fleece.
  • Baranar’s (Banana):  Baranar’s Star Elite Unique Devil Star.
  • Bartuc’s (Barts):  Bartuc’s Cut-Throat Unique Greater Talons.
  • Basher:  The Cranium Basher Elite Unique Thunder Maul.
  • BC (BCry):  Battle Cry.  A Barbarian warcry to decrease an enemy’s damage and defense.
  • BC (BCom):  Battle Command.  A Barbarian warcry to increase skill levels.
  • BG:  Blood Golem.
  • BH:  Blessed Hammer.  An attack skill on the Paladin Combat tree.
  • BK:  Bul-Kathos.  Usually refers to the Bul-Kathos set items, or the unique Bul-Kathos’ Wedding Band Ring.
  • BM:  Bad Manners.
  • B.net (Bnet):  Battle Net.  Blizzard’s game server for Diablo II.
  • BO:  Battle Orders.  Barbarian warcry to increase life and mana.
  • BoI:  Blades of Ice.
  • BoS:  Burst of Speed.
  • BP:  Bone Prison.  A Necromancer skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • brb:  Be right back.
  • brt:  Be right there.
  • btc:  Back to channel.
  • BS:  Blade Shield.
  • BS:  Bone Spirit.  A Necromancer attack skill.
  • btw:  By the way.
  • Burrito (Buriza):  Buriza-Do Kyanon Exceptional Unique Ballista.
  • BW:  Bone Wall.  A Necromancer skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • Cat 2:  Catacombs Level 2 in Act 1.
  • CB:  Charged Bolt.  Sorceress lighting tree attack skill.
  • C/C:  Claw/Claw.  Refers to an Assassin wielding dual claws.
  • CBF:  Cannot be frozen.
  • CCB:  Cruel Colossus Blade.
  • CCS:  Cruel Colossus Sword.
  • CB:  Crushing Blow.
  • CE:  Cold Enchanted.
  • CE:  Corpse Explosion.  A Necromancer attack skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • CG:  Clay Golem.
  • cg (grats):  Congratulations.
  • Chan?:  Go to channel.
  • Char:  Character.
  • CI:  Cold Immune.
  • CKN (Chu):  Chu-ko-nu.  Often refers specifically to the Demon Machine Exceptional Unique Chu-ko-nu Crossbow.
  • CL:  Chain Lightning.  Sorceress lightning tree attack skill.
  • clvl:  Character Level.
  • CM:  Claw Mastery.
  • CM:  Cold Mastery.
  • CM:  Community Member.  Any participant in the Amazon Basin community.
  • Conc:  Concentration.  A Paladin offensive aura to increase physical damage.
  • Conv:  Conviction.  A Paladin offensive aura to reduce enemy resistances.
  • CoS:  Cloak of Shadows.
  • CoT:  Claws of Thunder.
  • CP:  Crystalline Passage in Act 5.
  • CR:  Cold resistance.
  • Crit:  Critical Strike.
  • Cranium (C basher):  The Cranium Basher Elite Unique Thunder Maul.
  • C/S:  Claw/Shield.  Refers to an Assassin using a claw and shield.
  • CS:  Chaos Sanctuary in Act 4.
  • CS:  Cobra Strike.
  • CS:  Critical Strike.
  • CTH:  Chance to Hit.
  • CU:  Cursed.
  • Cube:  The Horadric Cube.
  • cya:  See you.
  • D2:  Diablo II.
  • D2M:  Damage to Mana.
  • dii:  dii.net.  A D2 reference and forum site.
  • D/A/E:  Dodge/Avoid/Evade.  Trio of Amazon defensive skills from the Passive and Magic skill tree.
  • DC:  Dragon Claw.
  • Decrep:  Decrepify.  A Necromancer curse that slows and weakens.
  • Def:  Defense.
  • DEX:  Dexterity.
  • DF:  Dragon Flight.
  • ding:  Player announcing they’ve just leveled.
  • Dmg:  Damage.
  • Doombringer (Doom):  Doombringer Elite Unique Champion Sword.
  • DR (DR%):  Damage Reduced.  Items with this mod reduce physical damage.
  • Dru (droolid):  Druid.
  • DS:  Deadly Strike.
  • DS:  Death Sentry.
  • DT:  Dragon Tail.
  • Dur 2:  Durance of Hate Level 2 in Act 3.
  • Eagle (Eaglehorn):  Eaglehorn Elite Unique Crusader Bow.
  • ED:  Enhanced Damage.  A mod that increases physical damage.
  • ED:  Enhanced Defense.  A mod that increases defense on an item.
  • ED/IAS:  Enhanced Damage/IAS.  Typically refers to a rare combination of mods on a jewel.
  • ENE:  Energy.
  • EF:  Extra Fast.
  • ES:  Energy Shield.  Sorceress lightning tree defensive skill.
  • ES:  Extra Strong.
  • Eth:  Ethereal.
  • EXP:  Experience.
  • Eye (EoE):  Eye of Etlitch Unique Amulet.
  • FA:  Freezing Arrow.  An attack skill on the Amazon Bow and Crossbow skill tree.
  • Face:  Arreat’s Face Unique Slayer Guard.
  • Fana:  Fanaticism.  A Paladin offensive aura to increase attack speed and physical damage.
  • FB:  Fireball.  Sorceress fire tree attack skill.
  • FBR:  Faster block rate.
  • FC:  Fire Claws.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • FCR:  Faster cast rate.
  • FE:  Fire Enchanted.
  • FG:  Fire Golem.
  • FHR:  Faster hit recovery.
  • FI:  Fire Immune.
  • Fists:  Magefist Unique Light Gauntlets.
  • FN:  Frost Nova.  Sorceress cold tree attack skill.
  • FoH:  Fist of the Heavens.  An attack skill on the Paladin Combat tree.
  • FoF:  Fists of Fire.  An Assassin attack skill on the martial arts tree.
  • FO:  Frozen Orb.  (Sometimes called just “Orb.”) Sorceress cold tree attack skill.
  • fps:  Frames per second.
  • FR:  Feral Rage.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • FR:  Fire Resistance.
  • Frosties:  Frostburn Unique Gauntlets.
  • FRW:  Faster Run/Walk.
  • FW:  Firewall.  Sorceress fire tree attack skill.
  • GA:  Guided Arrow.
  • Gaze:  Vampiregaze Exceptional Unique Grim Helm.
  • gc:  Grand charm.
  • gg:  Good game.
  • gfi:  Go for it.
  • gj:  Good job.
  • Grandfather (gf):  The Grandfather Elite Unique Colossus Blade.
  • GS:  Glacial Spike.  Sorceress cold tree attack skill.
  • GSA:  Goldstrike Arch Exceptional Unique Gothic Bow.
  • gtg:  Good to go (or Got to go).
  • Gull:  Gull Unique Dagger.
  • H:  Hell.  Typically abbreviated with an Act abbreviation (A2 H), or a Basin game name (abasinhch). The third and last level of difficulty in Diablo II.
  • Harley:  Harlequin Crest Elite Unique Shako.
  • HB:  Holy Bolt.  A Paladin combat skill.
  • hc:  Hard Core.
  • HCMTF:  Hit Causes Monster to Flee.
  • Hellslayer:  Hellslayer Elite Unique Decapitator.
  • Heph:  Hephasto the Armorer.  Act 4 super unique monster.
  • HF:  Holy Freeze.  A Paladin offensive aura to chill enemies.
  • HoBL:  Hand of Blessed Light Unique Divine Scepter.
  • Homunculus:  Homunculus Unique Hierophant Trophy.
  • Horn (Eaglehorn):  Eaglehorn Elite Unique Crusader Bow.
  • Hot:  Warning that a portal is dangerous to enter.
  • HoW:  Heart of Wolverine.  A Druid summoning skill.
  • HoZ:  Herald Of Zakarum Unique Gilded Shield.
  • HP:  Hit Points.
  • HS:  Holy Shield.  A Paladin combat skill to boost shield characteristics.
  • HS:  Holy Shock.
  • Jalal’s:  Jalal’s Mane Unique Totemic Mask.
  • IAS:  Increased Attack Speed.
  • ID:  Identify.
  • IG:  Iron Golem.
  • IIRC:  If I recall correctly.
  • IK Maul:  Immortal King’s Stone Crusher Set Ogre Maul.
  • ilvl:  Item Level.
  • IMHO:  In my humble opinion.
  • Immo:  Immolation Arrow.  An attack skill on the Amazon Bow and Crossbow tree.
  • IMO:  In my opinion.
  • Ire:  Skullder’s Ire Exceptional Unique Russet Armor.
  • IS:  Iron Skin.  A Barbarian mastery to increase defense.
  • ITD:  Ignore Target Defense.
  • Izzy:   Izual.  Act 4 super unique monster.
  • j/k:  Just kidding.
  • k:  Okay.
  • KB:  Knockback.
  • l337:  Elite.
  • LA:  Leap Attack.
  • lc:  Large charm.
  • LE:  Lightning Enchanted.
  • LEB:  Lightning Enchanted Boss.
  • LEM:  Lightning Enchanted monster.
  • LF:  Lightning Fury.  A skill on the Amazon Javelin and Spear tree.
  • LI:  Lightning Immune.
  • Lidless:  Lidless Wall Exceptional Unique Grim Shield.
  • Lightsabre:  Lightsabre Elite Unique Phase Blade.
  • LL:  Life Leech.
  • LM:  Lightning Mastery.
  • LoD:  Lord of Destruction.  The Diablo II expansion.
  • LoH:  Laying of Hands Disciple Set Bramble Mitts.
  • LOL:  Laughs out loud.
  • LR:  Lightning resistance.
  • LR:  Lower Resist.  Necro curse to reduce enemies’ magic resistance.
  • LS:  Lightning Sentry.
  • LS:  Lightning Strike.  A skill on the Amazon Javelin and Spear tree.
  • Lyc:  Lycander’s Aim Unique Ceremonial Bow.
  • MA:  Martial Arts.  Usually a description for an Assassin type of build, or reference to one of the Assassin skill trees.
  • Mara’s:  Mara’s Kaleidoscope Unique Amulet.
  • Mat:  Matriarchal bow.
  • MB:  Mana Burn.
  • MDR:  Magic Damage Reduced.  Items with this mod reduce magical damage.
  • Meph:  Mephisto.  Act 3 super unique monster.
  • Merc:  Mercenary.
  • MF:  Magic Find.
  • MI:  Magic Immune.
  • ML:  Mana Leech.
  • mlvl:  Monster Level.
  • Mod:  Modifier.  Adds a characteristic to an item such as a weapon or charm.
  • Mod:  Moderator.  An Amazon Basin member responsible for moderating a forum or channel.
  • Moser’s:  Moser’s Blessed Circle Exceptional Unique Round Shield.
  • MP:  Market Place.  Trading site for D2 at market.diabloii.net.
  • MP:  Multi-Player.
  • MPK:  Mana per kill.
  • MR:  Magic Resistant.
  • MS:  Multiple Shot.  An attack skill on the Amazon Bow and Crossbow tree.
  • MS:  Multi-Shot.  A mod available to boss monsters.
  • MSLE (MSLEB):  Multi-Shot Lightning Enchanted.
  • nbd:  No big deal.
  • Nec (necro):  Necromancer.
  • newb:  Newbie.
  • ng:  New game.
  • NM:  Nightmare.  The second level of difficulty in Diablo II.
  • nm (nvm):  Never mind.
  • n00b:  Newbie.
  • Norm:  Normal.  Usually refers to the first level of difficulty in Diablo II.
  • NR:  Natural Resistance.  A Barbarian mastery to increase resistance to magic damage.
  • NRG:  Energy.
  • Oak:  Oak Sage.  A Druid summoning skill.
  • Occy (Oculus):  The Oculus Unique Swirling Crystal.
  • OK:  Oblivion Knight.
  • OMG:  Oh my god.
  • OTOH:  On the other hand.
  • Pally (Pali):  Paladin.
  • PDR:  Physical Damage Reduction.
  • PI:  Physical Immune.  A monster immune to physical damage attack.
  • PK:   Player Killer.
  • PKK:  Player Killer Killer.  A player who kills player killers.
  • PN:  Poison Nova.  A Necromancer skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • PR:  Poison resistance.
  • PS:  Phoenix Strike.
  • PvM:  Player versus Monster.
  • PvP:  Player versus Player.
  • PW:  Password.
  • r:  Ready.  This is the standard signal among players in a group before triggering a monster urn/shrine or entering a particularly treacherous area.
  • Reaver (Messy Reaver):  Messerschmidt’s Reaver Elite Unique Champion Axe.
  • Req:  Requirement.
  • res:  Resurrect.
  • rl:  Real life.
  • RoF:  Rate of Fire.
  • RoF:  River of Flame in Act 4.
  • ROFL:  Rolling on the floor laughing.
  • sc:  Small charm.
  • sc:  Soft core.
  • Schaefer’s:  Schaefer’s Hammer Elite Unique Legendary Mallet.
  • SD:  Shadow Disciplines.  One of the Assassin skill trees.
  • Sec:  Hang on a second.
  • SF:  Static Field.  Sorceress lighting tree attack skill.
  • Shaft:  Shaftstop Exceptional Unique Mesh Armor.
  • Shako:  Harlequin Crest Elite Unique Shako.  (Technically, a Shako is the entire class of elite Shako helms, but the term almost always refers to its Unique version.)
  • Silks:  Silks of the Victor Unique Ancient Armor.
  • Sin (Sinner):  Assassin.
  • Skullder’s:  Skullder’s Ire Exceptional Unique Russet Armor.
  • Slow:  Slows Target.  Item mod that slows enemies.
  • slvl:  Skill Level.
  • SM (Master):  Shadow Master.
  • SM:  Slow Missiles.  A skill on the Amazon Passive and Magic tree.
  • SoJ:  Stone of Jordan Unique Ring.
  • Sorc (socer):  Sorceress.
  • SH (Spec):  Spectral Hit.
  • SP:  Single Player.  Usually refers to single-player mode of Diablo II.
  • Spear:  Bone Spear.  A Necromancer attack skill.
  • Spike:  Wizardspike Elite Unique Bone Knife.
  • Spirit:  Bone Spirit.  A Necromancer attack skill.
  • SS:  Stone Skin.
  • S/S:  Sword/Shield.
  • SS (Storm):  Stormshield Elite Unique Monarch Shield.
  • Stormspire:  Stormspire Elite Unique Giant Thresher.
  • STR:  Strength.
  • String (SoE):  String of Ears Exceptional Unique Demonhide Sash.
  • SW (Warrior):  Shadow Warrior.
  • SW:  Shock Wave.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • Tal’s Orb:  Tal Rasha’s Lidless Eye Set Swirling Crystal.
  • Tarn:  Tarnhelm Unique Skull Cap.
  • TE (Tele):  Teleport.
  • thx:  Thanks.
  • TGod (TGV):  Thundergod’s Vigor Exceptional Unique War Belt.
  • Tiamat’s:  Tiamat’s Rebuke Exceptional Unique Dragon Shield.
  • Titan’s:  Titan’s Revenge Unique Ceremonial Javelin.
  • TK:  Telekinesis.
  • TP:  Town Portal.
  • TP:  Teleport.  A Sorceress skill on the lightning tree.
  • TPJ:  Thomas Penfield Jackson.  Founder of the Amazon Basin.
  • Trav:  Travincal in Act 3.
  • TS:  Thunderstorm.  Sorceress lighting tree attack skill.
  • TS:  Tiger Strike.
  • ttyl:  Talk to you later.
  • Tucs:  Bartuc’s Cut-Throat Unique Greater Talons.
  • Twitch:  Twitchthroe Unique Studded Leather Armor.
  • ty:  Thank you.
  • tyt:  Take your time.
  • tyvm:  Thank you very much.
  • Ume’s:  Ume’s Lament Unique Grave Wand.
  • Valk:  Valkyrie.  A skill on the Amazon Passive and Magic tree.
  • Valor:  Arkaine’s Valor Elite Unique Balrog Skin.
  • Vamp:  Vampiregaze Exceptional Unique Grim Helm.
  • VIT:  Vitality.
  • w8:  Wait.
  • wb:  Welcome back.
  • WC:  War Cry.  A Barbarian warcry.
  • WF (Windforce):  Windforce Elite Unique Hydra Bow.
  • Wizardspike:  Wizardspike Elite Unique Bone Knife.
  • WoF:  Wake of Fire.
  • WoI:  Wake of Inferno.
  • Wote (WOE):  Wall of the Eyeless Unique Bone Shield.
  • WP:  Waypoint.
  • WSK (WK2):  Worldstone Keep Level 2 in Act 5.
  • WT:  WeaselTech.
  • WB:  WereBear.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • WW:  WereWolf.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • WW:  Whirlwind.  A Barbarian combat skill.
  • WWS:  Witchwild String Exceptional Unique Short Siege Bow.
  • YMMV:  Your mileage may vary.
  • y:  Yes.
  • yw:  You’re welcome.
  • Zerk:  Berzerk.  A Barbarian combat skill.
  • Zon:  Amazon.

Abbreviations by Category

Amazon Basin Abbreviations

  • ABM:  Amazon Basin Member.
  • CM:  Community Member.  Any participant in the Amazon Basin community.
  • TPJ:  Thomas Penfield Jackson.  Founder of the Amazon Basin.
  • WT:  WeaselTech.

Conversational Abbreviations

  • afaic:  As far as I’m concerned.
  • afaics:  As far as I can see.
  • afaik:  As far as I know.
  • afk:  Away from keyboard.
  • brb:  Be right back.
  • brt:  Be right there.
  • btc:  Back to channel.
  • btw:  By the way.
  • Chan?:  Go to channel.
  • cg (grats):  Congratulations.
  • cya:  See you.
  • ding:  Player announcing they’ve just leveled.
  • gfi:  Go for it.
  • gg:  Good game.
  • gj:  Good job.
  • gtg:  Good to go (or Got to go).
  • j/k:  Just kidding.
  • IIRC:  If I recall correctly.
  • IMHO:  In my humble opinion.
  • IMO:  In my opinion.
  • k:  Okay.
  • LOL:  Laughs out loud.
  • nbd:  No big deal.
  • ng:  New game.
  • nm (nvm):  Never mind.
  • np:  No problem.
  • OMG:  Oh my god.
  • OTOH:  On the other hand.
  • r:  Ready.  This is the standard signal among players in a group before triggering a monster urn/shrine or entering a particularly treacherous area.
  • rl:  Real life.
  • ROFL:  Rolling on the floor laughing.
  • Sec:  Hang on a second.
  • thx:  Thanks.
  • ttyl:  Talk to you later.
  • ty:  Thank you.
  • tyt:  Take your time.
  • tyvm:  Thank you very much.
  • w8:  Wait.
  • wb:  Welcome back.
  • YMMV:  Your mileage may vary.
  • y:  Yes.
  • yw:  You’re welcome.

In-Game Abbreviations

  • Ancients (AW):  The Ancients’ Way in Act 5.
  • BA:  Blessed Aim.
  • BO:  Battle Orders.  Barbarian warcry to increase life and mana.
  • Cat 2:  Catacombs Level 2 in Act 1.
  • CE:  Cold Enchanted.
  • CI:  Cold Immune.
  • Conv:  Conviction.
  • CP:  Crystalline Passage in Act 5.
  • CS:  Chaos Sanctuary in Act 4.
  • CU:  Cursed.
  • Dur 2:  Durance of Hate Level 2 in Act 3.
  • EF:  Extra Fast.
  • ES:  Extra Strong.
  • Fana:  Fanaticism.
  • FE:  Fire Enchanted.
  • FI:  Fire Immune.
  • HS:  Holy Shock.
  • LE:  Lightning Enchanted.
  • LEB:  Lightning Enchanted Boss.
  • LI:  Lightning Immune.
  • MB:  Mana Burn.
  • MI:  Magic Immune.
  • MR:  Magic Resistant.
  • MS:  Multi-Shot.  A mod available to boss monsters.
  • MSLE (MSLEB):  Multi-Shot Lightning Enchanted.
  • PI:  Physical Immune.  A monster immune to physical damage attack.
  • r:  Ready.  This is the standard signal among players in a group before triggering a monster urn/shrine or entering a particularly treacherous area.
  • RoF:  River of Flame in Act 4.
  • SH (Spec):  Spectral Hit.
  • TE (Tele):  Teleport.
  • TP:  Town Portal.
  • Trav:  Travincal in Act 3.
  • WP:  Waypoint.
  • WSK (WK2):  Worldstone Keep Level 2 in Act 5.

Amazon Abbreviations

  • Ama:  Amazon.
  • CS:  Critical Strike.  Damage enhancing skill on the Passive and Magic tree.
  • D/A/E:  Dodge/Avoid/Evade.  Trio of Amazon defensive skills from the Passive and Magic tree.
  • FA:  Freezing Arrow.  An attack skill on the Amazon Bow and Crossbow tree.
  • GA:  Guided Arrow.  An attack skill on the Amazon Bow and Crossbow tree.
  • Immo:  Immolation Arrow.  An attack skill on the Bow and Crossbow tree.
  • LF:  Lightning Fury.  A skill on the Amazon Javelin and Spear tree.
  • LS:  Lightning Strike.  A skill on the Amazon Javelin and Spear tree.
  • MS:  Multiple Shot.  An attack skill on the Amazon Bow and Crossbow tree.
  • SM:  Slow Missiles.  A skill on the Amazon Passive and Magic tree.
  • Valk:  Valkyrie.  A skill on the Amazon Passive and Magic tree.
  • Zon:  Amazon.

Assassin Abbreviations

  • Asn (asa, assy):  Assassin.
  • BS:  Blade Shield.
  • BoI:  Blades of Ice.
  • BoS:  Burst of Speed.
  • C/C:  Claw/Claw.  Refers to an Assassin wielding dual claws.
  • C/S:  Claw/Shield.  Refers to an Assassin using a claw and shield.
  • CM:  Claw Mastery.
  • CoS:  Cloak of Shadows.
  • CoT:  Claws of Thunder.
  • CS:  Cobra Strike.
  • DC:  Dragon Claw.
  • DF:  Dragon Flight.
  • DS:  Death Sentry.
  • DT:  Dragon Tail.
  • FoF:  Fists of Fire.
  • LS:  Lightning Sentry.
  • MA:  Martial Arts.  Usually a reference either to an Assassin type of build, or reference to one of the Assassin skill trees.
  • PS:  Phoenix Strike.
  • SD:  Shadow Disciplines.  One of the Assassin skill trees.
  • Sin (Sinner):  Assassin.
  • SM (Master):  Shadow Master.
  • SW (Warrior):  Shadow Warrior.
  • TS:  Tiger Strike.
  • WoF:  Wake of Fire.
  • WoI:  Wake of Inferno.

Barbarian Abbreviations

  • Baba (Barb):  Barbarian.
  • BC (BCry):  Battle Cry.  A Barbarian warcry to decrease an enemy’s damage and defense.
  • BC (BCom):  Battle Command.  A Barbarian warcry to increase skill levels.
  • BO:  Battle Orders.  Barbarian warcry to increase life and mana.
  • IS:  Iron Skin.  A Barbarian mastery to increase defense.
  • LA:  Leap Attack.
  • NR:  Natural Resistance.  A Barbarian mastery to increase resistance to magic damage.
  • S/S:  Sword/Shield.
  • WC:  War Cry.  A Barbarian warcry.
  • WW:  Whirlwind.  A Barbarian combat skill.
  • Zerk:  Berzerk.  A Barbarian combat skill.

Druid Abbreviations

  • FC:  Fire Claws.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • FR:  Feral Rage.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • HoW:  Heart of Wolverine.  A Druid summoning skill.
  • Oak:  Oak Sage.  A Druid summoning skill.
  • SW:  Shock Wave.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • WB:  WereBear.  A Druid shape shifting skill.
  • WW:  WereWolf.  A Druid shape shifting skill.

Necromancer Abbreviations

  • Amp:  Amplify Damage.  A curse to reduce enemies’ resistance to physical damage.
  • BA:  Bone Armor.  A Necromancer defensive skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • BG:  Blood Golem.
  • BP:  Bone Prison.  A Necromancer skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • BS:  Bone Spirit.  A Necromancer attack skill.
  • BW:  Bone Wall.  A Necromancer skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • CE:  Corpse Explosion.  A Necromancer attack skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • CG:  Clay Golem.
  • Decrep:  Decrepify.  A Necromancer curse that slows and weakens.
  • FG:  Fire Golem.
  • IG:  Iron Golem.
  • IM:   Iron Maiden.  A curse that magnifies and returns damage inflicted.
  • LR:  Lower Resist.  A Necromancer curse to reduce enemies’ magic resistance.
  • Nec (necro):  Necromancer.
  • PN:  Poison Nova.  A Necromancer skill on the Poison and Bone tree.
  • Spear:  Bone Spear.  A Necromancer attack skill.
  • Spirit:  Bone Spirit.  A Necromancer attack skill.

Paladin Abbreviations

  • BA:  Blessed Aim.  A Paladin offensive aura.
  • BH:  Blessed Hammer.  An attack skill on the Paladin Combat tree.
  • Conc:  Concentration.  A Paladin offensive aura to increase physical damage.
  • Conv:  Conviction.  A Paladin offensive aura to reduce enemy resistances.
  • Fana:  Fanaticism.  A Paladin offensive aura to increase attack speed and physical damage.
  • FoH:  Fist of the Heavens.  An attack skill on the Paladin Combat tree.
  • HB:  Holy Bolt.  A Paladin combat skill.
  • HF:  Holy Freeze.  A Paladin offensive aura to chill enemies.
  • HS:  Holy Shield.  A Paladin combat skill to boost shield characteristics.
  • Pally (Pali):  Paladin.

Sorceress Abbreviations

  • CB:  Charged Bolt.  Sorceress lighting tree attack skill.
  • CL:  Chain Lightning.  Sorceress lightning tree attack skill.
  • CM:  Cold Mastery.
  • ES:  Energy Shield.  Sorceress lightning tree defensive skill.
  • FB:  Fireball.  Sorceress fire tree attack skill.
  • FN:  Frost Nova.  Sorceress cold tree attack skill.
  • FM:   Fire Mastery.
  • FO:  Frozen Orb.  (Sometimes called just “Orb.”) Sorceress cold tree attack skill.
  • FW:  Firewall.  Sorceress fire tree attack skill.
  • GS:  Glacial Spike.  Sorceress cold tree attack skill.
  • LM:  Lightning Mastery.
  • Sorc (socer):  Sorceress.
  • SF:  Static Field.  Sorceress lighting tree attack skill.
  • Tele:  Teleport.
  • TK:  Telekinesis.
  • TS:  Thunderstorm.  Sorceress lighting tree attack skill.

Statistical Abbreviations

  • alvl:  Affix Level.
  • AR:  Attack Rating.
  • clvl:  Character Level.
  • CTH:  Chance to Hit.
  • Def:  Defense.
  • DR (DR%):  Damage Reduced.  Items with this mod reduce physical damage.
  • ED:  Enhanced Damage.  A mod that increases physical damage.
  • ED:  Enhanced Defense.  A mod that increases defense on an item.
  • ilvl:  Item Level.
  • mlvl:  Monster Level.
  • PDR:  Physical Damage Reduction.
  • slvl:  Skill Level.

Item Abbreviations

  • Ali Baba:  Blade of Ali Baba Exceptional Unique Tulwar.
  • Arkaine’s (Ark):  Arkaine’s Valor Elite Unique Balrog Skin.
  • Arreat’s:  Arreat’s Face Unique Slayer Guard.
  • Atma’s:  Atma’s Scarab Unique Amulet.
  • Atlantean:  The Atlantean Exceptional Unique Ancient Sword.
  • Bane:  Gladiator’s Bane Elite Unique Wire Fleece.
  • Baranar’s (Banana):  Baranar’s Star Elite Unique Devil Star.
  • Bartuc’s (Barts):  Bartuc’s Cut-Throat Unique Greater Talons.
  • Basher:  The Cranium Basher Elite Unique Thunder Maul.
  • BK:  Bul-Kathos.  Usually refers to the Bul-Kathos set items, or the unique Bul-Kathos’ Wedding Band Ring.
  • Burrito (Buriza):  Buriza-Do Kyanon Exceptional Unique Ballista.
  • CCB:  Cruel Colossus Blade.
  • CCS:  Cruel Colossus Sword.
  • CKN (Chu):  Chu-ko-nu.  Often refers specifically to the Demon Machine Exceptional Unique Chu-ko-nu Crossbow.
  • Cranium (C basher):  The Cranium Basher Elite Unique Thunder Maul.
  • Doombringer (Doom):  Doombringer Elite Unique Champion Sword.
  • Eagle (Eaglehorn):  Eaglehorn Elite Unique Crusader Bow.
  • Eye (EoE):  Eye of Etlitch Unique Amulet.
  • Face:  Arreat’s Face Unique Slayer Guard.
  • Fists:  Magefist Unique Light Gauntlets.
  • Frosties:  Frostburn Unique Gauntlets.
  • Gaze:  Vampiregaze Exceptional Unique Grim Helm.
  • gc:  Grand charm.
  • Grandfather (gf):  The Grandfather Elite Unique Colossus Blade.
  • GSA:  Goldstrike Arch Exceptional Unique Gothic Bow.
  • Gull:  Gull Unique Dagger.
  • Harley:  Harlequin Crest Elite Unique Shako.
  • Hellslayer:  Hellslayer Elite Unique Decapitator.
  • HoBL:  Hand of Blessed Light Unique Divine Scepter.
  • Homunculus:  Homunculus Unique Hierophant Trophy.
  • Horn (Eaglehorn):  Eaglehorn Elite Unique Crusader Bow.
  • HoZ:  Herald Of Zakarum Unique Gilded Shield.
  • IK Maul:  Immortal King’s Stone Crusher Set Ogre Maul.
  • Ire:  Skullder’s Ire Exceptional Unique Russet Armor.
  • Jalal’s:  Jalal’s Mane Unique Totemic Mask.
  • lc:  Large charm.
  • Lidless:  Lidless Wall Exceptional Unique Grim Shield.
  • Lightsabre:  Lightsabre Elite Unique Phase Blade.
  • LoH:  Laying of Hands Disciple Set Bramble Mitts.
  • Lyc:  Lycander’s Aim Unique Ceremonial Bow.
  • Mara’s:  Mara’s Kaleidoscope Unique Amulet.
  • Mat:  Matriarchal bow.
  • Moser’s:  Moser’s Blessed Circle Exceptional Unique Round Shield.
  • Occy (Oculus):  The Oculus Unique Swirling Crystal.
  • Reaver (Messy Reaver):  Messerschmidt’s Reaver Elite Unique Champion Axe.
  • sc:  Small charm.
  • Schaefer’s:  Schaefer’s Hammer Elite Unique Legendary Mallet.
  • Shaft:  Shaftstop Exceptional Unique Mesh Armor.
  • Shako:  Harlequin Crest Elite Unique Shako.  (Technically, a Shako is the entire class of elite Shako helms, but the term almost always refers to its Unique version.)
  • Silks:  Silks of the Victor Unique Ancient Armor.
  • Skullder’s:  Skullder’s Ire Exceptional Unique Russet Armor.
  • SoJ:  Stone of Jordan Unique Ring.
  • SS (Storm):  Stormshield Elite Unique Monarch Shield.
  • Stormspire:  Stormspire Elite Unique Giant Thresher.
  • String (SoE):  String of Ears Exceptional Unique Demonhide Sash.
  • Tal’s Orb:  Tal Rasha’s Lidless Eye Set Swirling Crystal.
  • Tarn:  Tarnhelm Unique Skull Cap.
  • TGod (TGV):  Thundergod’s Vigor Exceptional Unique War Belt.
  • Tiamat’s:  Tiamat’s Rebuke Exceptional Unique Dragon Shield.
  • Titan’s:  Titan’s Revenge Unique Ceremonial Javelin.
  • Tucs:  Bartuc’s Cut-Throat Unique Greater Talons.
  • Twitch:  Twitchthroe Unique Studded Leather Armor.
  • Ume’s:  Ume’s Lament Unique Grave Wand.
  • Valor:  Arkaine’s Valor Elite Unique Balrog Skin.
  • Vamp:  Vampiregaze Exceptional Unique Grim Helm.
  • WF (Windforce):  Windforce Elite Unique Hydra Bow.
  • Wizardspike:  Wizardspike Elite Unique Bone Knife.
  • Wote (WOE):  Wall of the Eyeless Unique Bone Shield.
  • WWS:  Witchwild String Exceptional Unique Short Siege Bow.