43 replies to this topic

[FrostElfGuard]

I translated the following guide for the Shadow Warrior... and I think it should go to the wiki (and perhaps be prettied up:))

I have 2 (I think) others translated too. Dryad and Inquisitor.

Is this the place we should discuss how/where to do this kind of thing?

I think we should have a game patch level section... and a section for modifications to the guide based on game patch level.
What works in fall of 2008 won't necessarily work in 2.35+--they could do more than bug fixes--they might rebalance the CAs for
instance.


Best witches,


Frost/Dave



=====

Shadow Warrior: Pure Summoner by Montaux (translated from German)
[Guide] Der General - Pure Summoner
by Montaux 2008-Nov-29


Preface

Why a pure summoner?

I like to play a character that sits back and lets his minions do his dirty work. In Diablo II, this character was the Necromancer {Frost's edit: and the Druid}. In Sacred 1, this was the Vampiress (which was a disappointment). {Frost's edit: probably because the summons all were canceled when the Vampiress TiK (Turn into Knight), ie her buff of Vampiress mode expired. --though you could get around this with a 28 days later Vampiress build that TiK's while a primary summons is still being cast.}

The Shadow Warrior Summoner is very much improved in Sacred2, and has become my favourite!

The SW acts as a General, encouraging his troops, summoning new ones as required and generally not getting his own hands dirty. He even can cloak himself in Shadows so that he is not targeted...



Attributes (each Attribute is bright yellow too)


Strength
Increases melee damage. We don't melee. So, no points.

Dexterity
Increase physical damage for ranged attacks, defense and attack values.
Again, we don't do any of these things, so again, no points.

Stamina
Shortens regen times for combat arts. Most of our points will go here.

Intelligence
Increases spell damage. No points, no spells. Our minions do the damage.

Willpower
Decrease incoming spell damage. You could put some points here, but I don't advise it.

Vitality
Increase maximum life points and life point regeneration. You can put points here from time to time. {Frost's note: in hardcore, you could put all your points here, since dead is dead.}



Skills (in Green, then each skill in Green)

Astral Lord Lore
Increases damage, critical chance, and cast speed for this aspect.
Our minions need damage multipliers. Keep at char level.

Astral Lord Focus
Improves regeneration and raises max Combat Art level for this aspect.
Our main strength. Keep at char level too.



Concentration
Improves regeneration for all Combat Arts, and allows the use of up to three simultaneous buffs when mastered.

Concentration lets us have more buffs active. At level 75 we can have 3! It reduces regen times for all combat arts. More more could you want? Take it to level 75, and then add more if want.


Hafted Weapons - Increases attack speed, chance to hit, and max item level usable without penalties when wielding a hafted weapon.
We're not planning on melee fighting, but when we do, we want to be able to hit VERY HARD. Axes and hammers have the highest base damage, so I chose this skill. Take this skill to 5 to unlock Speed Lore skill. Then you can ignore this skill, increasing it, as appropriate, with equipment.

Speed Lore - Increases attack and defense, and run speed.
Increase as desired.


either
a) Death Warrior Focus
Improves regeneration and raises max Combat Art level for this aspect.
or
b) Malevolent Champion Focus
Improves regeneration and raises max Combat Art level for this aspect.

Our only skill supporting this tree. We won't be boosting this with equipment.

Armour Lore - Improves resists, increases maximum item level without penalties, and decreases regeneration penalty from armour.
Without this skill our armour will be bad. Put as many points and you need to offset the regen penalty from good (strong) armour.

Toughness - Improves resists and provides minimal % damage mitigation.
Protection from damage. Can be ignored at the start, but later you'll need to invest here.

Constitution - Increases health and health regeneration.
More life points = more damage we can take. Also boosts effect of health potions since they are based on hit point percentages. At level 75, we regen even in battle. Again, you can ignore this early on... put points into it later in the character's lifetime.

Last skill: Free choice, suggested choices are:

a) Combat Reflexes - Improves Evasion statistic (chance to dodge attacks), and reduces the chance of receiving a critical hit from an attack.
b) Spell Resistance - Increases resistance to spells and protection from spell-based critical hits.
c) Pacifism - Reduces damage taken in PvP (all possible ramifications still unknown).
d) Blacksmith - Allows the player to socket items and exclusive enhancements without having to use a Blacksmith.
e) Divine Devotion - Improves regeneration of the Divine Gift (God spell) and unlocks some additional attributes.





Combat Arts (in Red, each CA in red)

Nether Allegiance (Buff) - "Ghostly cohort" (Astral Lord Aspect)

Our main CA. The skeletons summoned will keep us from harm and kill our opponents. Only drawback is they are someone autonomous. They attack what they choose to attack. That's ok. We can dispel them at will and resummon them. Read as many runes as you're allowed by your current Astral Lord Focus skill level. This is your primary source of damage.

Rallied Souls - "Battle command" (Astral Lord Aspect)
Our second conjure combat art. Keep the regen at 2 or 3 seconds (without buffs... always be prepared to be stripped of your buffs and your character won't die when it finally happens). You'll need this to resurrect opponents as your skeletons kill them.

Augmenting Guidon (Malevolent Champion Aspect)
A stationary banner which increases defense and attack values for every party member within its range.

Our main support skill. Boost attack and defense values so our guys never miss. Keep the regen for this under 20 seconds.

Spectral Hand - "Ghosthand" (Astral Lord Aspect)
Conjures a spectral hand to strike the target opponent.
Our main attack CA. This works well with our skill selection. Affected by Astral Lord skills, concentration and stamina attribute. It can't be stopped by obstacles, and uses the equipped weapon as a damage base (thus the heavy damage axes/hammers). Read just one rune. Upgrade the weapons as the character increases in levels.


Skeletal Fortification - "Bone Tower" (Astral Lord Aspect)
Summons a stationary skeletal tower that will fire projectiles at opponents within a certain radius.
A quick summons, it doesn't deal all that much damage--compared to Spectral Hand. On the other hand, it works on its own once summoned. Not needed in every combat. Definitely use in every boss fight. Read as many runes as you can so that the regen just stays under the duration.

Shadow Veil - "Geistform" (Astral Lord Aspect)
The Shadow Warrior will temporarily become invisible. When he executes short-range attacks or casts spells his shadow veil will be lifted, rendering him visible.
Initially just a convenience, later this becomes almost Godmode. With the right modification choices it becomes a permanent buff. From CA level 40 we have a 100% chance of remaining veiled when casting a spell. This maybe considered an exploit, but it simplies our life immensely. Read as many runes as you can of this, until you hit 100%, 25 runes read. Then, read runes as required to prevent discovery by opponents.

Reflective Emanation (Buff) (Malevolent Champion Aspect)
Reflective aura with a certain chance to mirror close combat damage back at the attacker.
At high levels this will be our 3rd buff. With the right mods, most everything will be reflected both for the SW and his minions. Level 75 unlocks mastery. Read as many runes as you can while still keeping the regen under the duration.

Belligerent Vault (Malevolent Champion Aspect)
The Shadow Warrior leaps purposefully towards his target.
Read one rune here. Used as a shortcut over rivers and across cliffs and such.




Modifications of Combat Arts

Nether Allegiance - Ghostly cohort (Astral Lord Aspect)


Bronze
* Accomplice - Summons an additional soldier. (+1)
* Sharp Blades - The spectral soldiers inflict more damage.

Using math: Sharp Blades gives +20 to 30% damage. So: 3 skellies gives 130% *3 = 390%. Additional skellie gives 100% *4= 400%. So, pick accomplice. {Frost's note: I'd pick more damage per hit to overcome the increasing damage at the higher levels {Plat + Niob} Don't want the damage washed out.}


Silver
* Commander - Summons another additional soldier. (+1)
* Spectral Shield - Equip summoned soldier with greatly enhanced shields.

Hmmm. We can't really measure the increase in defense from Shield... so I'll go with another skellie again. 5 is better than 4. (or 3!) {Frost's note: I'd go with higher defense if planning on playing in Niob.}


Gold
* Balm - Increase life regeneration of the spectral soldiers. (50% increase)
* Elite Equipment - Upgrades the spectral soldiers' armor. (7.5% + 5.5% per CA level (?))

Hmmm. Increased health regen vs increased armour. 300 armour was the original increase, which is quite considerable. This was toned down to 30 armour per rune by Ascaron with 2.34 patch. Still recommend the Elite Equipment. Perhaps Ascaron will increase this amount with a future patch since I consider 30 too small per rune for a Gold modification.






Rallied Souls - "Battle command" (Astral Lord Aspect)

Modifications
Bronze
* Armament - The animated corpses will receive an armor bonus. (7.5% + 5.5% per CA level increase (?))
* Dark Realm - Increases the effective range of the conjuration. (50% increase)

Your choice. Both good.


Silver
* Vivification - The animated corpses live considerably longer. (50% increase)
* Demand - Chance to animate an increased number of corpses. (80% increase)

Your choice again, both good.


Gold
* Contagion - Adds a chance for the animated corpses to infect their victims, turning them into undead servants. (30% + 0.1% per CA level chance)
* Furor - Animated corpses inflict more damage. (5% + 5% per CA level increase (?))

Again, both choices are good. Each has advantages and disadvantages... your choice.


Augmenting Guidon - (Malevolent Champion Aspect)
A stationary banner which increases defense and attack values for every party member within its range.

Bronze
* Elite - Increases attack and defense values by 50%. (50% increase)
* Ensign - Expands the area of effect. (50% increase)

Elite: the increase to attack and defense is calculated last, so any additional boosts will also gain the bonus. {Frost says it would be harder to keep track of the skellies that wandered off anyway.}


Silver
* Healing - Heals party members within area of effect. (8hp/s + 2hp/s per CA level)
* Tutor - Grants more experience from opponents within area of effect. (10% + 0.2% per CA level increase)

Boost the healing or boost the xp? What's not to love? Tutor stacks with mentor potions. Your choice.


Gold
* Fear - Reduces attack values of all opponents within area of effect. (130 + 1 per CA level decrease)
* Leadership - Increases attack and cast speed of allied units within area of effect. (10% + 0.2% per CA level increase)

I prefer leadership: more damage, more satisfying. Fear could be used by the defensive player. {Frost's note: Reduction of enemy attack values = less hits. Increased damage is good too. In Niob, you want both. What would be interesting is to see which of the two is more useful... which is all about game balance... which could be changed in each patch.}


Spectral Hand - "Ghosthand" (Astral Lord Aspect)
Modifications
Bronze
* Swiftness - Increases attack speed. (20% increase)
* Clout - Increases the damage the spectral hand inflicts. (50% increase)

20% increase in attack speed versus 50% more damage. Damage FTW! Choose Clout.


Silver
* Chill - The spectral hand inflicts additional ice damage. (4% + 1% per CA level)
* Intent - Increases the chance to land critical hits. (19.8% + 0.2% per CA level chance)

Hmmm. A little bit of elemental damage versus crit. Hmmm. CRIT! Crit can mean 1000s of damage in Niob!


Gold
* Double Attack - Chance to strike twice with one hit. (25% chance)
* Destruction - Increases all damage types of the spectral hand. (17.4% increase)

Hmm. Increased damage versus... increased damage. If you're a gambler, take Double Attack. If you like knowing how much more you'll get, take Destruction. Both are good.


Skeletal Fortification - "Bone Tower" (Astral Lord Aspect)

Modifications
Bronze
* Rapid Fire - Increases the skeletal tower's firing rate. (50% increase)
* Focus - Reduces the cooldown time for the skeletal tower. (100% + 1% per CA level decrease)

Your choice. If you want two towers up at one time, choose Focus. If you want a more effective tower, choose Rapid Fire. {Frost's note: Since the tower is stationary, I prefer the shorter regen. I can optimally place the next tower myself sooner. Though you might want the higher DPS from a tower that shoots more projectiles... might be needed in Niob to be effective.}

Silver
* Ice Shards - Adds ice damage. (40% from base physical damage)
* Arcane Power - Adds magic damage. (40% from base physical damage)

Ice or Magic damage. Your choice. {Frost's note: this choice will affect what parts of the game you grind for levels in. Pick one that will be a weakness {in general} for your chosen enemy type.}

Gold
* Scatter Shot - Adds another projectile to the skeletal tower. (The extra projectile will always fire if there is another monster nearby, so is the recommended mod.)
* Perforate - The arrows pierce through their targets and continue on their flight path. (100% chance to pierce, but slim chance there is another monster directly behind the first.)

Since the monsters rarely line up with the fortress, I'd pick Scatter Shot more projectiles=more damage.




Shadow Veil - "Geistform" (Astral Lord Aspect)

Modifications
Bronze
* Creep - Opponents have to get closer to detect the Shadow Warrior while he is walking amongst them with Shadow Veil active. (+100% effectiveness (?))
* Avoidance - Reduces the effects of incoming detrimental spells. (3% + 2% per CA level)

Creep, since with current game balance, we will be undetectible if we put a lot of runes into Shadow Veil and boost the hiding values.

Silver
* Nimble - Increases run speed while Shadow Veil is active. (10% + 0.2% per CA level)
* Fade - Greatly reduces the detection radius while casting spells. (50% + 1% per CA level)

Run fast or be undetectible while casting spells. Take Fade--we want to be able to act freely.

Gold
* Sinister Pact - The effect of Shadow Veil is permanent rather than temporary. (changed to buff)
* Shadowmaster - Significantly reduces the regeneration time of Shadow Veil. (50% decrease)

Sinister Pact. Make this a buff. Then we permanently invisible. Drawbacks are we are missing a 3rd buff slot until char level 75, and our regen will be longer until we can get to the sweet spot (when we have the skills to support the 3rd buff). So, a payoff in late game (Plat/Niob).
{Frost's note: playing impaired at lower levels teaches caution--which is a good lesson if you're planning on HC Niob!}


Reflective Emanation (Buff) (Malevolent Champion Aspect)

Modifications
Bronze
* Tough - Adds a chance to reflect stun effects. (20% + 2% per CA level chance)
* Backlash - Adds a chance to also reflect ranged attacks. (20% + 2% per CA level chance)

Choose Backlash. There is a lot more projectile attacks in the game rather than stun attacks. {Frost's note: I prefer Tough, 'cause I can weave {move the character away from projectiles}, and I HATE to be stunned.}

Silver
* Unstoppable - Adds a chance to reflect root effects. (20% + 2% per CA level chance)
* Antimagic - Adds a chance to reflect incoming spells. (20% + 2% per CA level chance)

I would choose Antimagic. Again, it much more common than root effects. And damage is more deadly. {Frost's note: I'd choose Unstoppable--I do not EVER want to be stuck standing "taking it". Though, I can see Antimagic is good too.}



Gold
* Riposte - Adds a chance to increase to reflected damage. (14% + 1.4% per CA level chance)
* Idol - Extends the reflective effect to all party members. (50% effectiveness to party members)

We take Idol. We plan on using the skellies to do our attacking, so they need to reflect on the opponents.




Belligerent Vault (Malevolent Champion Aspect)

We aren't planning on using the Vault to attack, just as a shortcut over rivers and such.




Playing (in bright blue)

In general: Nether Allegiance and Shadow Veil should be on all the time.
Once you have 25 runes read in SV, you'll be set. However, you must still be aware that area effect attacks will still hit... so be nimble. Be quick. And jump over that candelstick!

Single enemies / Single boss (bright blue)

Ghost Hand them. Should be all you need. Throw up an Augementing Guidon for bosses. It'll help you and your allies (Ghost Hand, Skellies, + Skellie Fortress).

Small Groups (bright blue)

Ghost Hand, Augementing Guidon, Skellie Fortress. Your Nether Allegiance will help too.

Large Groups (bright blue)

Start with Skellie Fortress. Augmenting Guidon. Rallied Souls as opponents die. Put in the occasional Ghost Hand. Have fun.





So, this is my guide.

Of course constructive criticism is welcome... flames...well, just hold them in 'till you explode please. And yeah, Shadow Veil can be viewed as a permanent cheat. But hey, the game was designed that way, and I like to use it. {Frost's note: Any errors are mine. Sometimes the German translation is pretty weird, so I've just had to guess sometimes. Sometimes I took the intent and jazzed it up using English idioms instead of German ones. If any bilingual people read this, please comment on better translation and thanks in advance!}

NEW:
I had a great time making a video that shows off this build. It's on youtube here:
YouTube - Sacred 2 - Level 30 SK in Niob


====

comment from MaskÖ 10-Dec-2008:
Since the damage comes from the minions, you can equip your character with tons of MF and XP gain.

comment from MrYTitus 13-Dec-2008:
Test proves Ancient Magic affects only the damage of Skellie Fortress. Nothing else.

comment from Princess Asura 14-Dec-2008:
I have played this character to level 33 and have reached Platinum. This is no fun since there is no challenge.

comment from Wienerschnitzl 05-Jan-2009:
I had a hard time with the Ghost on Christmas Island! It takes a looong time to take down this boss!

response to Wienerschnitzl from ScHmiDi 06-Jan-2009:
That's why I took Divine Devotion and Testa as my God.
God of Science (Shadow)
He is the spirit who brings life to dead and mechanical things.
Divine Gift: Will-o-wisp - Several will-o-wisps appear out of nowhere. Animated by Testa's spirit, they assist the hero by healing his wounds and absorbing incoming damage.

response to Wienerschnitzl from Montaux 07-Jan-2009:
Probably due to the high physical resistance that boss has.
Use a fire or poison based weapon. Or go away and level up and come back (so your attack rating + damage are higher). Or ask another player (online) to help you.

comment from Daniel35102 13-Feb-2009:
Here is my version:

Astral Lord Lore
Astral Lord Focus
Tactics Lore (for damage from weapons)
Damage Lore
Concentration (3 buffs)
Hafted Weapons
Speed Lore
Armour Lore
choice: Toughness, Constitution, Combat Reflexes, Magic Resistance.

I took Tactics Lore because sometimes you're stripped of all your minions.
Particularly in Niob.

What do you recommend for the last 2 skills? I don't have a Blacksmith or MF finding character yet.


response from Wienerschnitzl 17-Feb-2009:
Yes, help is the only way. For example the Octagolamus. In plat and beyond he's deadly. The Skellie tower and the Skellies can barely scratch him. He's level 86, and the Skellies are level 101!


question from Daniel35102 on 23-Feb-2009:
How to boost damage of all the parts?

response from Jinzo-1995 on 25-Feb-2009:
Skellie Fortress: Intelligence, Ancient Magic, Tactics Lore.
Rallied Souls (Ghost): Tactics Lore and Astral Lord Lore.
Nether Allegience: combat art levels in Nether Allegiance ONLY.

Edited by gogoblender, 26 July 2009 - 06:50 PM.

[gogoblender]

Hi Frosty!

There is a sacred 2 Guides section here

http://darkmatters.o...p?showforum=357


...and a shadow warrior sub section for guides here


http://darkmatters.o...p?showforum=363




gogo

p.s. moved to Shadow Warrior Guides section

[Von Bek]

Say, just a note, I've found that the Spectral Strike skill does not hit like a spell. It has an attack value just like a regular attack and its dmg is based off or Str and Int and I believe tactics lore and NOT the Astral Lord Lore skill, which is extremely odd. I've made a much similar build and had to test these things when they started going a bit weird on me. Due to this, taking Tactics Lore would help because it's going to increase your Crit rate (which Astral Lord will ALSO do, so you can get a ridiculous amount of crit with this skill).

[insanepaine]

The only issue I have is after I changed Shadow Veil into a Buff, I turn visible when I attack with my sword. But this is a summoner so I shouldn't be attacking.

[Vistu]

I must say, I started on this build and have taken from it and added some of my own. A very nice build, thank you for posting it and helping out a total newb to the game with some really good ideas.

[Fanaszen]

Astral Lord Lore
Increases damage, critical chance, and cast speed for this aspect.
Our minions need damage multipliers. Keep at char level.

Astral Lord Focus
Improves regeneration and raises max Combat Art level for this aspect.
Our main strength. Keep at char level too.








I love this build and I have made a similiar build to it. I do have a question on Astral Lord Lore though. Since we do not cast any spells and our minions/Skeletal Fort does all the damage why would we use any skill points in this? From what I read on the skill description it only affects the SW spells and no where does it say it helps the minions. I could be reading this wrong and if so please someone correct me.

Thanks in advance for any replies!

[Slayer89]

Astral Lord Lore
Increases damage, critical chance, and cast speed for this aspect.
Our minions need damage multipliers. Keep at char level.

Astral Lord Focus
Improves regeneration and raises max Combat Art level for this aspect.
Our main strength. Keep at char level too.








I love this build and I have made a similiar build to it. I do have a question on Astral Lord Lore though. Since we do not cast any spells and our minions/Skeletal Fort does all the damage why would we use any skill points in this? From what I read on the skill description it only affects the SW spells and no where does it say it helps the minions. I could be reading this wrong and if so please someone correct me.

Thanks in advance for any replies!

Doesn't appear to help the minions in any way. On my shadow warrior I just put in enough points to be able to modify the minions 3 times, then an occasional point in Focus. I'd recommend relying on using Nether Allegiance runes to pump your minions to a higher level, and just putting some points toward Focus for the regen time.

[CpX]

Hey, I'd rly like to use this build.

But I'd like to have the skill so I get better item drops. Can someone help me with what to spare to get this?

I'm gonna farm a lot with this one

I'm very new to the game, and what skill that benefits what, I really still haven't got the best clue, I've read the last 3 days, and I want a 2 hander build, and summon ability. Though this is pure summoner... But I'll try

advice....

Hey, I'd rly like to use this build.

But I'd like to have the skill so I get better item drops. Can someone help me with what to spare to get this?

I'm gonna farm a lot with this one

I'm very new to the game, and what skill that benefits what, I really still haven't got the best clue, I've read the last 3 days, and I want a 2 hander build, and summon ability. Though this is pure summoner... But I'll try

advice....

Sry, coulndt activate the email notification in edit menu, so ...

[wikibone21]

what are the Attributes

[gogoblender]

Welcome to DarkMatters, Dakota. The Attributes are listed in the build up above I think, about a third of the way down with explanations to where he's putting in points and why.


gogo

[nomad13]

Isnt it better to take dual wield into consideration here so the Summoner can have more sockets to put more +skiills ?

[zerlan]

ok, are you supposed to level up any combat skills, read runes? or leave it at level 1?

[Cragnous]

Hello all,

I'm brand new to this game but I have been doing my research for about a week now and I am also a big Diablo 2 player. Now I want to start a game with my friend and as I know that this game can be quite hard to learn and to progress, I though about each selecting 2 builds that have been tried and tested. Now since we'll be starting from scratch, we wanted builds that required little equipement. We also don't want 2 mages, so we figured 1 mage and 1 thank that is not dependent en equipement and that's exactly where a Summoner comes in.

So how's this build, it seems perfect for what I want to do but it lacks a lot of information that other builds have. My friend will be playing a Fire High Elf. Any thoughs?

[essjayehm]

Hello all,

I'm brand new to this game but I have been doing my research for about a week now and I am also a big Diablo 2 player. Now I want to start a game with my friend and as I know that this game can be quite hard to learn and to progress, I though about each selecting 2 builds that have been tried and tested. Now since we'll be starting from scratch, we wanted builds that required little equipement. We also don't want 2 mages, so we figured 1 mage and 1 thank that is not dependent en equipement and that's exactly where a Summoner comes in.

So how's this build, it seems perfect for what I want to do but it lacks a lot of information that other builds have. My friend will be playing a Fire High Elf. Any thoughs?

Well, I see there is some info lacking, but what did you want to know? This (SW + HE)seems like a good couch co-op team, so there should be no issues there, and the Elf could even take Bargaining skill to get those elusive +all skills jewellery... really the only equipment you need on console.

Welcome to the boards, Cragnous! This game is a little less gear-intensive than D2, as long as you get your skills chosen correctly (don't take Blacksmithing!).

[Cragnous]

Ok so I've started this build and it's doing great, I even made some modifications to it and planning on doing some more. However, I do have a few questions.

For Spectral Hand, why does the guide recommend only reading 1 rune. Because it'll make you re-cast it faster? But won't only 1 rune make it weak?

For Reflective Emanation, is it better to reflect stun and root or ranged and spells?

For Rallied souls, how does the Contagion work? Do they have to do the killing blow? And what's better, them living 50% longer or conjuring more souls per casts?

Thanks

[essjayehm]

Ok so I've started this build and it's doing great, I even made some modifications to it and planning on doing some more. However, I do have a few questions.

For Spectral Hand, why does the guide recommend only reading 1 rune. Because it'll make you re-cast it faster? But won't only 1 rune make it weak?

For Reflective Emanation, is it better to reflect stun and root or ranged and spells?

For Rallied souls, how does the Contagion work? Do they have to do the killing blow? And what's better, them living 50% longer or conjuring more souls per casts?

Thanks

Mmmmm, questions

Spectral Hand - Eating/memorizing a rune will give +1 to your CA level, but also increases the regeneration time. The 'better' way to increase combat art levels is by finding gear that gives a bonus to your combat arts. When you have bonuses from gear that increase Spectral Hand (SH), the regeneration time penalty from increasing the combat art level is halved as compared to eating/memorizing a rune. You can even socket runes into sockets to take advantage of this "mechanic".

Reflective Emanation - on console, ranged and spell damage are nowhere near as powerful as close combat damage, but can still kill an underprepared toon. If you care about not dying, always take the ranged and spell reflection mods. That said...

Stun is pretty rare (The Crystal boss and the 4 Nameless Guardians spring to mind, but not much else) so choosing between ranged and stun, I always opted for ranged.

Root is very annoying, but I always went with spells when I used RE, "just in case". IMO (opinion, not tested) on console, you probably should take the mod for reflecting root. The fact that spells are not very dangerous on consoles and the absolute fustration from being rooted evey 2 seconds while traversing the Swamp area add up (to me) to take the reflect root modification.

Rallied Souls - I don't think I ever figued the 'correct' way to mod this for console play. I definitely don't know much about the Contagion mod (how, or even if it works), I apologise. Choosing between living longer and raising more souls, I preferred living longer. When you "rally" a soul, unmodified, you have a chance of 0, 1 or 2 souls; and with the mod for more souls, you get a chance to raise 0, 1, 2, or 3 souls. I think that having a soul live 50% longer keeps more souls on the field at any one time than having a (chance of getting a) 3rd soul.

[Cragnous]

Always thanks for you input.

I understand most of the runes and CA level mechanics but I have a few questions regarding them.

-Can you unsocket runes or must you use new ones when you change equipement?

-From what I can gather, if it's a Buff, you don't care about regen speed so that means you can eat as many runes as you like. For a timed spell like Skeleton Fortification, sure you can opt to have more than 1 at a time but you can also eat as many runes as long as the regen time is under the duration time. As instant spells, it's best to eat only 1 rune and work with sockets and +CA skills. Is that about right?

[lujate]

On the consoles, you can un-socket anything except blacksmith's arts. When you do, you lose all but one of the items (including blacksmith's arts).

Reading buff runes (except for the HE's Grand Invigoration) increases the regen for ALL of your Combat Arts. Check out the buff suits page on the wiki for a work-around.

[Cragnous]

Wow interesting read.

So basicly I should always never read more than 1 rune of a CA, except maybe for that HE Buff?

[essjayehm]

Wow interesting read.

So basicly I should always never read more than 1 rune of a CA, except maybe for that HE Buff?

That's a pretty good rule of thumb for the first 50-75 levels or so. After that point, it really starts to depend on your skill choices (and which ones you sunk points into) and gear selection. Buff suits can throw a really, really big monkey wrench into the mix!

This is the trickiest subject to tackle, because of all the factors that contribute to regeneration times.

Testing on the console is not too hard. You can save up a few skill points, or runes, gear, etc, and then test a few different ideas. Sink your points into a Focus skill, and/or eat some runes (change gear around, etc) and see how it affects your regen times. Then quit to dashboard via the "console button" will allow you to quit Sacred without saving your character progress.

Hope it is not too obvious, but the ideal regeneration time for spamming a CA is to keep regen time roughly equal to the animation time of the CA. Animation times are governed by weapon type and attack speed for weapon-based Combat Arts; or cast speed for spell-based Combat Arts. Both 'speeds' start at 100%, and cap out at 150% (but the Inquisitor can acheive max. 170% attack speed with one of his Combat Arts). Of course, each CA does have a 'unique' animation, so those are slightly different as well.