New to assasins

Been thinking about making an assasin, though don't know which build to go for.

There seems to be alot of acronyms I am not known with.

Whats the "best" build? Fast killing speed, survivability etc.

Items is not an issue |||Trapper is probabaly the best choice. It's very cheap, but it can get pricey (as all characters can) when you get to the endgame gear. Very safe, effective. And it kills packs of monsters better than any other Assassin builds.

Kickers are the most fun, can be a little dangerous. Can also clear packs of monsters, but a little slower than a Trapper is capable of. The Kicker shines against single monsters. Specifically bosses. A kicker can drop a boss in a matter of seconds, trappers are slower boss killers.

Kickers rely on Crushing Blow and fast kicks to drop a monsters health based on %'s and not total damage. So it stays effective throughout the entire game.

Trappers rely on +skills towards the end of the game, but a lot of this you can get from shopping +trap skills claws, and gambling trap circlets/ammys.

I have personally played both builds untwinked through Hell. In Hardcore no less, so once you get the tactics down and know where to pick your spots, they are both very viable.

This guide by Ilkori http://diablo.incgamers.com/forums/s...d.php?t=405240

Is like the Kicker bible. It explains pure kickers, Kick/Trap hybrids (my personal favorite) and all things in between. It's a great read.|||Not to hijack the thread but I am new to assassins as well. What about the claw builds? Are these skills non-viable: Tiger / Cobra / Phoenix strikes and the elemental stuff (Fists of fire, Blades of Ice, Claws of Thunder)?

I like the idea of the 3 hit combo but only if it is reasonably viable for hell.|||Quote:








Not to hijack the thread but I am new to assassins as well. What about the claw builds? Are these skills non-viable: Tiger / Cobra / Phoenix strikes and the elemental stuff (Fists of fire, Blades of Ice, Claws of Thunder)?

I like the idea of the 3 hit combo but only if it is reasonably viable for hell.




I always suggest Kickers and Trappers for the sole reason that later on they go on to "bigger and better things." Kickers, are right up there with Summoners/Smiters in their effectiveness at dealing with Ubers.

Trappers, especially if you get an Infinity/Enigma later in the game, are great for MF'ing areas and bosses.

The only claw sins I ever play, are untwinked for the fun of actually playing through the game. Even when extremely decked out I find their uses limited. This might be my personal opinion, but I've never seen a Claw using assassin clearing Hell Chaos or Baal efficiently.

You may be able to get it done, but nowhere near as quickly as the other builds. But if it's just the fun of playing through the game that you are after, they are definitely viable.

I also think it's a little more gear dependant than the other builds. You will need a nice claw like a Bartucs or better. The other builds can be completely built around gambled/shopped items, cheap runwords and easy to find set items (Guillaumes). A kicker though, will need a good pair of boots. If you can get Gore riders you are set for the entire game. You can find cheap alternatives like rares with good kick damage that will work though.

I find Kick much more fun than claws though. Try your claw build, with the new respec feature if you don't like it you can always change your build later on depending on what gear you find for her.|||my $0.02:

build an ilkori'sin (aka: a kick/trap hybrid).

most effective pvm slaughter machine evarrr!!11!!

you don't need funky gear to make it work either, here are some gear suggestions:

hat: guillaumes face

ammy: something with +skills and resistances (maras is awesome, rare +2'sin/minor res is fine)

armour: Treachery, Lionheart, Skin Of The Vipermagi, Duress are all hell viable.

belt: string of ears, verdungos, bladebuckle, nos coil, some nice rare with fhr, res, stats, life.

weapon: anything decently fast with some crushing blow. Black Flail is a proven performer, best possible is a Stormlash.

rings: one ravenfrost and who really cares for the other one. some mana leech is useful.

glove: Dracs are the preffered glove, look for leech, life, stats etc on others (bloodfists are an awesome standby)

shield: Whistans, Gerkes, Sanctuary (Ko+Ko+Mal runeword), Stormshield, Mosers......

boots: up'd gore riders are the preferred boot, 2x up'd Goblin Toes are also serviceable.

skills:

enough in d-talon for a 3 or 4 kick volley.

1pt dragon-flight, Shadow Master and Venom

max: lit sentry, death sentry, charged bolt sentry

spares: Shockweb.

stats:

str: enough for gear

dex: enough for max block with the shield of your choice

vit: as much as possible

energy: base.|||Previously I'd have said Kicker but now Ghost. Really fun and fast to play and even without Death Sentry she slays. Also, if you get tired to PvM there's always a chance to PvP with her.|||Ghosts in PvM aren't nearly as reliable as a K/T.|||Quote:








my $0.02




Thanks for your posts Meph and Sass, I'm going to respec my MA sin to a K/T hybrid. 2 questions though:

I have a pair of Ethereal shadow dancers (perfect dex roll). Would these be comparable to upped gores?

Does kicking use durability? If I'm going to end up breaking my shadow dancers, I'll just up my pair of gore riders that my paladin runs around in.|||Kicking won't use durability, but getting hit will as normal, so just be careful if you use them.|||the gores offer a little crushing blow which is their main attraction. the OW is superfluous with Dracs.

2x up'd Goblin toes are a pretty nifty PvM kick boot.

imho: 'dancers are PvP boots. gores outdamages them over time.