Thaddeus

Diablo II Notation Basic Class Skill Item Ally Quest Area Monster Tale Iron Frenzy Hardly-Able GotDex Poorman Homocide Squad Kwikwilyaqa Terror in the Tower Guardian Thorn SenSitiveSkin nOOdists Advance Mizor I II III IV V Xanthippe I II III IV V Thaddeus I II III IV V Tearlach I II III IV V Varnae I II III IV V Amanita I II III IV V Bodiccea I II III IV V The Paladin is probably my favorite character. The breadth of skills he has really make him the best generalist -- he can change his tactics to fit almost any situation, recover quickly, and play the game in a great variety of ways. While he's never overwhelmingly powerful, he's never helpless; I consider that a good balance in a character. To my way of thinking, a character who makes the game too easy is as unsatisfying as one for whom it's too hard. I've played martyrs and zealots, chargers and rangers, smiters and missionaries, but one variant I never got around to trying was the hammerdin, a specialist in Blessed Hammer. Not sure why, it sounded intriguing, but I never did it. This seems like a good time to make one, especially since Mizor found and muled a fairly nice hammerdin scepter. So... what goes into a good hammer man? Blessed Hammer is hard to aim, difficult to use in tight spaces, and not much good for dealing with single tough targets like bosses. Fortunately, I am a believer in back-up skills, and the Paladin is excellent for that. Charge for the lightning enchanted, Zeal for leaching, and Vengeance for the physical immunes should do. Forget about Fist of the Heavens and Conversion, as tempting as it might be to turn Lister's buddies against him. The only aura that enhances Blessed Hammer is Concentrate, and only at half effect, so Concentrate will be my aura of choice. Concentrate gives no attack rating bonus, so I will need dexterity. I will also need some energy, unlike most Paladins, so he won't be as strong or tough as my usual. My only other choice of offensive aura is Holy Freeze; it's just too useful not to take. For defensive auras, Meditation and Redemption should do nicely. Blessed Hammer is a broad-area attack, and should work best if the monsters are all close to the Paladin in a bunch. This will take some herding, which is harder if there's a mercenary distracting some of the beasties. Our holy warrior shall go mercless. Equipment-wise, I've got that war scepter, an "Ancient's Pledge" pally shield, a ring with loads of mana, Frostburns, some socketed stuff and the necessary runes. All I'll need is a good weapon switch, a war hammer or a big ol' maul. It's a hammer, right? What kind of man should this Paladin be? Some background: the Paladins are from a western group who split from the traditional church during a great and bloody crusade. The western rebels felt their duty was the protection of rights, not punishment of wrongs, a defensive role. The skill Blessed Hammer also has a defensive, protective origin; a group of nuns sacrificed themselves to protect the Hammer of Ghrab Thaar from an undead invasion. Our Paladin should think of himself first and foremost as a defender. Other people's needs should weigh more heavily on him than his own, and his use of the hammers means he'll rely less on the strength of his arm than the power of his faith. Devotion to others and to the light, self-sacrifice, and calm concentration. He sure won't be much fun at parties, but being more mature and less profane than Xanthippe isn't a bad thing. My weapons of choice will be hammers (even the war scepter looks like a hammer on the game sprite) so his name ought to evoke that... Maxwell? M.C.? No, something with a little more dignity. Thaddeus. Sounds vaguely like *thud*. Chapters Act I Act II Act III Act IV Act V 1-7 8-15 16-23 24-27 28-34 Epilogue Stony, Patriarch Thaddeus (Diabloii.net) Source This is the third part of Stony's Grand Tour, written between 10 May 2002 and 22 August 2002, and originally posted in the Diabloii.net Single Player Forum. While almost all original posts are long gone, Vesper, one of our Community Members, contacted him and was given the original documents, and permission to reproduce them at the Amazon Basin.