This
build here is currently what I've been using in my melee heavy
(Monk, Barb, Barb, Wizard) composition in Hell
Difficulty. We've downed SK
in act 1 hell, but haven't tried to progress further.
Spells and Runes I use:
Crippling Wave with 5 spirit on Crit - I like the
reduced attack speed, and I have a couple + crit items
which help my spirit gen.
Cyclone Strike with Implosion - This is a key component
to the build. Every pull I group the mobs so my party
can AoE them down. The extra range is makes a huge
difference, especially when there are ranged /
runners. I MIGHT consider using the extra dodge if
things get too bad later on in inferno.
Blinding Flash with Faith in the Light - Blinding flash
was great in normal and nightmare. In Hell / Inferno,
the blind is reduced to literally a FRACTION of a
second. Its useful for "interrupting" attacks only.
This skill will probably be substituted today with
something more useful. Either Serenity (Tranquility /
Peaceful Repose) or Sweeping Wind (Blade Storm / Inner
Storm).
Breath of Heaven with Blazing Wrath - Heal... chose the
extra damage because my DPS is low, and I needed a
boost. My damage mitigation is good enough now that I
don't need to rely on the Circle of Life for larger
heal.
Seven Sided Attack with Sustained Attack - Been playing
with this a little bit, I use it mainly for single
target damage. I have the reduced cool down because I
also like to use it in situations where everything is on
CD, and life is low... It isn't imperative, just a nice
attack on a boss / champion pack. I'm sure there is
something better I'm missing.
Mantra of Healing with Sustenance - This is mainly for
my group. On bosses, I spam it every 4 seconds. The
ONLY reason I use this over "Time of Need" is because my
party doesn't have resistances yet.
The problem with "Time of Need" before you're geared is
that it increases based on percentage of the resists you
currently have. If you have 50 resist all, and use
"Time of Need", you literally only gain 10 extra to each
resist. Right now, I've got 300 resist all so I gain 60
extra resist all. My party members, on the other hand,
are all sporting less than 100, so this barely helps
them. Once they're all wearing a bit more resist gear,
I plan on switching over.
Other
General Tanking Thoughts and Strategy
For gear, I am wearing a MH and Shield. Initially, I
started stacking VIT and DEX over ARMOR and RESIST
ALL. The problem was that mobs would drain my HP faster
than i could restore it with potions, so I started
dropping VIT and DEX and picked up ARMOR and RESIST.
From what it seems, armor and resist are
multiplicative. I have ~ 5400 armor ( 66% damage
reduction to make it easy, I know its close to 66%, but
I'm at work and can't get exact numbers haha). I also
have 302 resist all, about 50% damage reduction.
So, when a mob hits me for 1000 damage, first the damage
is reduced by 66%. 340 damage remain. Now, you apply my
"resist" modifier for that type of damage, and it
reduces it by another 50%. I am now hit for 170 of the
initial 1,000 damage. Once you average in my 33(ish)%
dodge rate, only two out of three attacks hit me. Any
my shield blocks attacks as well.
So, initially I was 2 hander with 35,000 health. I
changed to MH + Shield, which landed me at 29,000
health. I still had trouble surviving in hell act 3&4
with 4,300 armor and 100 resist all. So I upgraded my
weapon, and grabbed gear with high armor, with resist
all. My damage stayed about the same, and my vitality
dropped substantially (to a mere 19,100 life!).
Now I'm at the damage reduction above, with 5400 armor
and 300 resist all. Although I have the lowest HP in my
party, I drastically outlast the rest of my
group. Arcane mobs hit my party for 3500 a tick, while
I only take 800 per tick. Normal, white mobs just do
not do damage to me anymore.
My suggestion if you're tanking: Prioritize Armor, then
resist all, then vit, then dex. I don't know the cap on
armor / resists yet, or the breaking points... so its
something to look into.
Also, I got some of my strategy builds from
Diablo 3 Gold Secrets By Peng Joon, there's a small fee for it, but worth
it.
Thanks for reading!
