Jay Wilson has mentioned that Blizzard will soon deliver an update on PvP for Diablo 3. With only 2 months remaining of 2012, I’m 50/50 on the PvP patch going live this year. This is what Jay had to say when asked about it.

Here’s hoping they bring a robust and competitive PvP system to the game and that they get it right the first time. Builds for PvE didn’t turn out to be as much fun as I had hoped but obviously PvP might change that.

Although we’ve seen the addition of Monster Power and the Infernal Machine to the game, I’ve been on an extended break from Diablo 3. That’s not to say the site has been abandoned, I’m sure I’ll pick it up again between now and the PvP patch is what I’m really keen on and something the game surely needs to build a better community.

I’m sure I’m not the only one that feels this way – the game had a rough start but I think it’ll get there in the end if PvP is done right (more on this later).

Side note – if you’ve been trying to email me during the past fortnight, I wouldn’t have received your mail as I forgot to change the MX records when changing hosts. This is also why forum registration emails were not being mailed out. It’s fixed now though. Sorry!

Moving on.. With the increased survivability of WD pets in patch 1.0.4, I’ve been messing around with a pet build which uses thorns/regen gear. This is something I’ve been wanting to do for a while but wasn’t really possible prior to 1.0.4. I spent a relatively small amount of gold to put together a set of gear that is around 15,000 in thorns and 1500 hp regen per second.

Before the latest patch, WD pets really couldn’t do much let alone go toe to toe with the bosses of each act, so I set about to see if the WD pets could solo each boss. Result? They can! The Butcher and Belial can be defeated without a recast while Azmodan and Diablo require some re-summoning. I do wonder if it’s possible to make an AFK Witch Doctor with a perfect set of gear. I’d love to put a set like that together but not only is the gear hard to find maxed but it’s quite expensive.

What stats do I look for on gear for a thorns build?

• Intelligence
• Stamina
• All Resistance
• Physical Damage to Attacker
• Life Regeneration

With those 5 stats, you can put together quite a good set without breaking the bank. Adding extras into the mix like crit chance, crit damage and sockets is not only expensive but difficult to find with high stat levels. It’s something I intend to pursue as I’m interested in how such a build might work when PvP is patched into the game.

Build – Mouse over for a preview.

Given I was not dealing any damage myself in these 4 videos, the only skills that matter for this thorns build are the passives. Fierce Loyalty allows your pets to gain 100% of your thorns gear and regen. Jungle Fortitude gives you and your pets 20% reduced damage while Zombie Handler gives us the additional Zombie Dog for a total of 4. As all 4 bosses are single targets 95% of the time, I didn’t spec the pets for any AOE abilities (they are poor unless there are enough trash mobs around as in Act 3).

Anyway, the videos!

The Butcher

 

There really isn’t much to say about The Butcher. He’s easy for players and pets.

Belial

 

Belial can be problematic for a lot of players and I was actually surprised that the Witch Doctor pets were able to withstand all of Belial’s damage without need for a re-summon, I had expected otherwise.

Azmodan

 

The hardest of the 4 to kill via the pets only method. With a bit more attention, it would be easy enough to direct the meteors away from the pets but the time to kill is vastly increased in comparison to The Butcher and Belial.

Diablo

 

Easier than expected and I was only caught out a few times in Phase 2 where both pets were dead and on CD. Shadow Clones are just as brutal to pets as they are players.

ThereNext up, I’ll attempt to 4 box all 4 bosses in the same manner and see just how well pets stack up in a full game.

Of all the changes made to each class in patch 1.0.4, it’s fair to say that the biggest ones were made to the Witch Doctor. Zombie Bears + Vision Quest, which has long been a staple of the WD, is no more. As fun as bear builds have been, I’m not sad to see the back of them. It made playing the WD very one dimensional.

1.0.4 Witch Doctor Builds

What builds are working for the Witch Doctor post 1.0.4? I’ve been using a Plague of Toads build that combines Rain of Toads with Zombie Dogs and the Gargantuan. It’s really fun to have both types of pets finally Inferno capable. It’s still early days and I’ve not figured out a replacement build for the variety of bear builds previously used but the build below has been working well with my 4 WD multibox setup.

Build – Mouse over for a preview

While Rain of Toads may not be the highest DPS spell, it’s ideal for use as a primary attack for a few reasons. First, it can be sustainably chain cast for an infinite amount of time. Second, it’s an AOE based attack which can clear large packs of trash quickly. Third, it fits a similar play style to the old bear builds in which your focus is really only the 1 attack. This makes it great for grinding the new Paragon levels for extended periods of time.

3 Skills Not Crucial

The next 3 choices are not crucial to a toads build and you may consider switching them out for other skills.

I’ve been using Grasp of the Dead with Unbreakable Grasp as my secondary attack. GotD did get a buff in patch 1.0.4 and it does do some nice damage now. Spirit Walk with Jaunt is always useful for escape or for quickly running into a pack of mobs to get a 5 stack Soul Harvest with Soul to Waste for the added duration. I’ve tried swapping some of these out for Big Bad Voodoo when killing champion packs but I prefer the near constant buff of SH for trash and champion packs than saving BBV for when packs are found.

As for Zombie Dogs, I’ve been going with Leeching Beasts for some HP return when fighting packs that reflect damage. For the Gargantuan, Humongoid provides him with an AOE attack and as I can now multibox in Act 3 and 4 where many larger packs are to be found, I’ve found it to be a better choice than the others due to it constantly being available as opposed to something like Restless Giant with it’s 2 minute CD. You may consider changing the skill rune but Humongoid is good regardless of solo, party or multibox play.

Passive Skills

As this build is not mana intensive, Pierce the Veil is a no brainer. Jungle Fortitude is worth taking as this build relies upon both Zombie Dogs & the Gargantuan. I’d be tempted to swap this out if I was only using Zombie Dogs. I continue to use Spirit Vessel as a means of escape and saving on repair costs.

Why am I not using Zombie Handler for the additional dogs? Well, I’m 4 boxing and the additional ZD’s are of almost no use because they cannot fully encircle trash or champion packs and some stand around with little to do. Given ZD now has a 45s CD, it’s pretty simple to recast every 45s to keep all 3 dogs up. If I was playing solo though, I’d swap out Spirit Vessel for Zombie Handler.

Overall, I’m really happy with the changes made to the WD class. When I read that VQ had been changed (nerfed), I was quite hesitant about it but the update has enabled the WD to now play a large variety of builds which are Inferno capable.

Enjoying your class since the 1.0.4 patch? Found the changes to be good or bad for your preferred playstyle? Why not guest post on the blog and share your thoughts with others!

As I suggested in another post, patch 1.0.4 would go live before the launch of Guild Wars 2 and what do you know, it’s rolling out right at this moment. A whole host of new features is breathing life back into the game and because of this, I’m looking for people who would be interested in guest blogging and sharing their strategy for any of the 5 classes.

Interested? Read on for more details.

The type of content I’m looking for from guest bloggers should be focused on various strategies for all aspects of the game. Whether it be solo Inferno build guides for a specific class, Paragon farming strategies or anything else related to builds and min/maxing, if you want the opportunity to get featured on the blog, this is your chance to do so.

What Are The Requirements?

To be eligible to guest post, your article should be no less than 350 words as well as being original. Copied content from other websites won’t be accepted. Please include any relevant links to builds and images you wish to use in your article on our website. Your article will be exclusively available on this website and not copied elsewhere.

What Do You Get Out Of It?

In return for your great content, we’ll help to promote your own website, twitch/youtube channel or whatever else it is you want to highlight about yourself. Your byline will explain who you are, what you do and include a link back to your site.

How To Get Started?

Please send your email in plain text to info [at] diablo3builds.com with all relevant information pertaining to your guest post. If you have any questions, please feel free to send an email.

I’ll continue to post my own articles here but given my focus on the witch doctor class, I can’t focus on all 5 classes which is why I think guest blogging would be mutually beneficial.

I must apologize for the lack of updates over the past few weeks. I’m sorry but I’ve had little motivation to play and it almost seems pointless until 1.0.4 hits. I think it’s forgivable considering Blizzard themselves have been just as quiet on how they intend to breath life back into the game.

Earlier today, Bashiok announced an announcement (must be desperate to maintain our attention) regarding patch 1.0.4 and I thought I’d take the time to look at the people working on the changes he mentioned.

Who is Wyatt Cheng? He’s the technical designer behind Diablo 3 and was the prime developer behind the Demon Hunter class. He previously worked on TBC expansion for WoW although I can’t find any information regarding the length of time he spent on that project.

It’s difficult to say what changes he has in store for the game but one likely change will be the disparity between melee and ranged. Wyatt Cheng previously stated:

You can read more about his thoughts on game design at his blog but he only blogs about other games and not those he works on at Blizzard.

Given his history with Games Workshop, I am hoping the updates to the legendary and set items will over deliver. I’ve looked but I can’t find any info regarding if he was responsible for the abysmal gear to begin with. He was previously the Creative Director for SC2.

No doubt about it, MF needs a change but I have fears Jay will over promise and under deliver yet again. Because you’re punished for grouping with others with low amounts of MF through the group average mechanism, there is currently zero incentive to group up with others. Removing the penalty and adding in-game gear swap would be ideal but I doubt those are the changes we’ll get. Looking at the suggestions Blizzard previously made for fixing the system (and I wonder if all the suggestions were made by Jay), it’s hard to speculate on what the changes will actually entail.

My biggest fear with any change is it will require me to re-gear my character and/or make my current MF sets worthless. Given I spent considerable time/gold gearing up 4 WD’s for my 4 WD high MF farming team, it’ll really sting if that’s how it works out.

If you love the DH class, you’ll think this is a good move. If you hate the DH, you’ll think it’s bad. Personally, I think it’s a good move as most classes only need minor tweaks to improve their gameplay.

The big question is when will patch 1.0.4 go live? Soon – I believe within the next fortnight for 2 reasons. First, I think Bashiok’s earlier post today was meant to wet our appetites and was a heads up that the patch is coming very shortly. Secondly, Guild Wars 2 launches on August 28th. A lot of people are considering moving on from D3 to GW2 and are unlikely to come back regardless of the changes made to the game. I think Blizzard will need to get the patch out quickly while maintaining quality if they are to maintain our attention on the game.

One has to wonder what impact all these unexpected changes to the game have had on the development of the PvP system.

Small update – System of Excellence is a new function in patch 1.0.4 but as to how it interacts with MF is yet unknown.

 

There are several things I want to talk about when we are looking at Daniel Chan’s Diablo 3 Billionaires Guide, and let me start off by saying I was very skeptical when first hearing about somebody (Daniel Chan) achieving a billion gold in Diablo 3. So I decided to see what all the hype was about and see what Daniel Chan had to offer that I didn’t already know.

When you first log into your new account you’re greeted with a nice looking and VERY simple members area where you’ll find all the tips and strategies nicely laid out for you to dive right into. You’re also going to be on the Welcome page where you will see the courses and blueprints that take you by the hand and show you step by step with images and clear information how to start making some real huge numbers in the Gold and Real Money Auction House. The following course’s and blueprints can be found in this guide

1 – 60 Gold Making Report

This level 1 to 60 Gold making report is great, it takes you through 11 different strategies that you will use from when you first make your new character till you’re a level 60 with millions of gold and awesome gear! You’ll learn strategies like the Dank Cellar / Rat Run to the Act 1 & 2 Inferno Elite Farming Guide that only the pros are using today.

A Sneak-Peek at some of the guides you’ll find in this section of the course plus many more:

• Old Ruins Goblin Run
• The Ancient Path Goblin
• Siegebreaker Run

 

>>>>I’ve Heard Everything I Need Too Just Show Me The Guide<<<<

 

Auction House Domination

In the section of the guide you’re going to learn A LOT. I was very surprised on how much good information there is. I probably used this section the most, as I didn’t know how many strategies there really is when coming to doubling even tripling your gold in days. Another great tool, is how this guide goes over realistic gold/RMAH prices and what you should be getting for the stats you just found on that new rare item. I see all the time people in the Trade Chat asking for price checks, (even I have been one of them) this is time wasted when you can have the knowledge to quickly get your item up and sold for top dollar.

A Sneak-Peek at some of the guides you’ll find in this section of the course plus many more:

• Negotiating the D-III Auction House
• Quick Trading – Multiplying Gold with Materials
• Rings, Amulets, Shields (goes over pricing so you don’t sell too low)
• High Level Item Selling & Pricing
• Crafting For a Profit – Blacksmith
• Tips for Winning Bids at Good Prices

Diablo 3 Basics

Don’t let the title of this section of the guide fool you and skip over it. I know even the pros can learn a few things when starting a new character, as this section goes over a detailed leveling guide for all the classes that will have you farming Inferno in no time at all. You’ll then have a detailed Boss walk through guide that goes over learning all the bosses abilities as well as how to best beat him (boss) with your class that you choose. Last but not least there is a follower’s guide that goes over the skills and recommendations for the class and build you are using.

>>>>I’ve Heard Everything I Need Too Just Show Me The Guide<<<<

Smart “Grinding” Guide

If you’re going to get into MFing and I hope you do as it doesn’t take a lot of gold to acquire MF gear (as of right now) and the ROI is very high, I highly suggest going over the section and taking your time – even print off the page can help as a great reference to have beside you when starting your farming runs.

A Sneak-Peek at some of the guides you’ll find in this section of the course

• Harnessing Nephalem Valor
• Quick Farming Methods
• Farming Rare Items
• Outdated/Nerfed Runs ( this section gets updated as Blizzard nerfs aspects of the game)

Detailed Boss Encounters Video Walkthroughs

I don’t know about you but I am a lot better at learning visually and this section is great for that. Daniel Chan goes over each boss encounter with high quality videos teaching what to do for each fight as well as there is a video for every class from Normal Difficulty to Hell. The one thing I didn’t really like in this section was there are no videos for the Inferno Difficulty; with a lot of people working their way to Inferno, it would be nice if Daniel adds to this part of the guide.

Conclusion

>>>>I’ve Heard Everything I Need Too Just Show Me The Guide<<<<

I know you guys are bombarded with Diablo 3 guides everyday all day and I know for a fact there are some awful guides out there but after taking the time and going over this guide with the mind set to pick out the good and bad information, I can honestly say I had a very hard time finding bad/ill-informed information and that buying this guide has helped me out a huge amount in my own gaming and also bring you guys top notch articles and free information.

The past few weeks have brought a lot of changes to the game. We’ve seen Inferno nerfed, repair costs increased (and adjusted again) while drop rates have also been changed twice. The latest change to Inferno drops increased the drop rate of i61-63 across all 4 acts.

Drop rates as they currently stand:

Does that mean farming Act 3 & 4 is the only way to maximize your return on time invested in farming? Not necessarily. Allow me to explain why I think farming Act 1 may be the better option at this point in the game.

Regardless of class, provided the Inferno build you’re using allows you to avoid or mitigate large amounts of damage for a short period of time means you can ignore resists and stack your primary stat + magic find. That’s simply something you cannot do in Act’s 3 and 4 of Inferno.

MF gear is not (currently) overly expensive and building a set that gives you a base MF of 200%+ before you’ve attained any Nephalem Valor stacks is easily doable. With the right gear + 5 stack NV, you can run around in Act 1 with MF in the range of 325%+.

Having a high MF while farming doesn’t just benefit you while killing champion packs, it has the added benefit of enabling trash to drop lots of good items as well. In fact, the majority of my legendary and set item drops have come from trash mobs. While most legendaries and set items are not impressive, once the update to such items goes through, their appeal will increase as will the desire to see them drop. Regardless of ilevel, an increased rate of killing mobs means more opportunities for loot to drop.

While farming Act 1 instead of 2/3/4 means you’re less likely to get that perfectly rolled i63 you’re after, there are plenty of things that can offset this loss.

First, a perfectly rolled i61 can be just as good as a mid range i62 or low end i63. A perfectly rolled i62 can be just as good as a mid range i63. Given i61 and i62 drop rates in Act 1 are somewhat comparable to Acts 2, 3 and 4, farming Act 1 still makes sense if you’re not after a perfectly rolled i63 (which is more than likely going to acquired via the AH/RMAH than dropped in game).

Farming in full MF also means that you’ll have an increased drop rate of rares and magics from trash mobs. More items to salvage means more opportunities to receive Fiery Brimstones. The prices for these items have skyrocketed over the past fortnight. You can look at these as a secondary or by-product of your time spent farming. Inferno quality mat prices continue to hold steady (you can read more about this in my newsletter) while others have become near-worthless.

Another by-product of farming Act 1 is the repair savings you make. Even in full MF + main stat gear, it’s possible to do repeated full clears without it costing you many thousands of gold in repairs due to deaths. Compare that to Act’s 3 & 4 where it’s easy to be repeatedly killed in full resist/stam gear, costing you a small fortune in the process to attain items that are usually no better than the ones that drop in Act 1.

Having a good supply of well rolled i61 and i62 means you’ll have items you’re willing to sell on the RMAH at steep discount to the perfectly rolled i63′s which are selling for $250. The $250 price tag is out of reach for the majority of Diablo 3 players. Because of this, there are more buyers in the lower end of the market who realize they can’t get the best item cheaply but they can get something comparable for $5-$25. As more and more people sell junk items and build their Blizzard balance, these players are more likely to treat their balance as play money and purchase these lower end items on a whim instead of saving up.

Finally, there is 4 boxing (and this is what I’m currently excited about). I’m putting together a team of 4 WD’s where 3 will wear max MF in each slot while my main will wear full DPS. If you can pull 35k+ DPS, you’re already aware that you can solo champion packs in a 4 man group in Act 1 with relative ease.

Most players are not aware that while playing in a group, their MF becomes the average of all 4 players instead of their own amount of MF in gear. If 3 players are wearing full DPS gear while only 1 player is full MF, the MF player not only gimps his MF but DPS as well. The ideal strategy would be for 3 players to wear max MF while the 4th glass cannons everything; good luck organizing that in public games.

Most multiboxers are having more luck keeping their group alive in full MF in Act 1 than Act’s 3 & 4. Because farming items is a time investment, multiboxing a 4 player group increases your item acquisition rate 4 fold without any further time investment required (beside leveling the characters).

Are you having more fun or luck farming in Act 1 or do you prefer to farm Act’s 3 & 4 in the hope of finding that perfect item for yourself or to sell? Let me know in the comments below.

If you’ve completed Inferno mode, you’re probably beginning to find that the Diablo 3 end game is quite lacking and that there is little reason to continue playing. With a complete lack of PvP and still no date set for the introduction of it, what reason is there for gamers to keep playing in the interim?

Kripparrian provided his thoughts into what Blizzard could to do ensure people don’t grow bored of the game and quit. Some of his suggestions are interesting and would make the end game fun although it’s hard to see Blizzard actually implementing them any time soon. Given such changes need to be designed, test and pass QA before going live, it could months before we even hear hints of them introducing a true end game.

To summarize his comments:

General

• End game equipment should be nerfed while base stats should be boosted.

• Repair costs should cost nothing as it allows players to go backwards instead of forwards. You can’t expect people to have fun while they constantly lose large amount of gold.

• The game has no current ladder potential (strongly advocates a ladder type system) which is part of the reason Diablo 2 had such longevity.

• Fears Blizzard will put out a garbage PvP patch as they know people are growing bored of the game and will quit.

PvE

• Introduce “Champion Levels” or bonus levels which are long levels which provide small bonuses such as allowing multiple followers to be used at once or perhaps starting the game with 1 stack of neph valor.

• End game shouldn’t be farming items as once you’ve beaten Inferno, there is little reason to farm more items.

PvP

• Create a PvP experience system.

• Nerf stats such as crit as PvP will become a game of whoever crits firsts wins.

Athene followed up with his own commentary which copied a lot of Kripparrians ideas. He did make one interesting remark regarding the frustration players are feeling in having to use 2 AH’s instead of 1. Athene suggested that only Gold should be bought/sold as it would reduce the complexity of the AH and RMAH.

Personally, I’m up to Diablo on Inferno mode but I’ve lost the motivation to complete it due to current WD bugs as well as the IAS nerf (all of my gear was IAS based). I’ve been spending more time trading and analyzing the AH and RMAH instead of actually playing the game. I’m still hopeful that PvP will add longevity to the game but who knows where we’ll be in 12 months time.

Hopefully Blizzard will take a good hard look at the end game and create something that will last for years to come.

Your thoughts? Leave a comment below and let me know what you think of these player suggested changes or what changes you would make.