Guide BUILD ASSASSIN

ASSASSIN

I. Lightning Sentry Traps


I. Lightning Sentry Traps


Skill points:
20 - lightning sentry
20 - Death sentry
20 - charged bolt sentry
20 - shock web
1 - Into all shadow disciplines except for venom.


Gear
Helm - 1 Shako 2 Magic Circlet with 2-3 to traps fast cast rate ...
Armour - 1 Templar's Might 2 Tirael's Might 3 Enigma 4 Chains of honor
Shield - 1 Spirit 2 Stormshield 3 Sanctuary
Weapon - If you chose Claw + Claw use 2 x +2 trap, +2 light sentry, +2 Death sentry magical claws. IF YOU use weapon and shield the best choice is Heart OF THE OAK
Amulet- Mara's amulet.
Rings- Stone of jordan and Bul kathos
Belt - 1 Arachnid mesh
Gloves - 1 Magefist
Boots - 1 Sandstorm trek 2 War travel
On spawn use a call to arms and spirit


Stats points
Strength how much you need to use your items
dexterity how much you need to use your items
energy 0
vitality all remaining points


Mercenary
weapon 1 Infinity 2 Insight
armor 1 fortitude 2 stone 3 duress
belt 1 nosferatus coil 2 verdungo's Hearty Cord
boots 1 gore 2 sands war boots
helm 1 andariel visage 2 giant skull 3 white helm with 3X fal rune if you need str
amulet 1 highlord
ring 1 carrion wind 2 nature peace 3 raven frostBUILD - Paladin
gloves 1 Dracul's Grasp 2 any gloves with 20 increased atack speed

 

Can some1 give me nice WW Sin build? Fully pvp.
Also why is it better ot use enigma and not Bramble?

 

Hello,

You will find a good guide here.

This guy explains everything about the WW build,tactics,gear and much much more.

Imo for Enigma is the best choice,bramble is used when fighting WW barbs or Smiters but is not really a must.

 

This is a really bad build. Faster cast rate doesn't even affect assassins. Attack speed determines how fast they set down traps.

 

Why you have to write stupid posts .. FCR doesnt affect traps but affect TELEPORT ..

 

Coutersy of Bui @ jsp .. really great guide that has alot of variation with accurate info and arguments ,you should read it and adapt your build on it , good luck mate.

Introduction:

Hello, my name is Bui and my specialty is Assassins. In this guide, I will explain several key points and give you the step by step instructions on how to make a Ghost Assassin like mine.

Whirlwind (WW) Assassins generally branch out into two different types: Ghost and Hybrids. Unlike Hybrid Assassins who use a mix of traps and WW, Ghosts focus on the pure aspects of whirlwind and high stun lock. Where they lack in trap damage, they make up for with powerful WW damage, better Attack Rating (AR), and an enhancement to one of the assassin’s most valuable abilities – Stun. This gives them a huge edge over casters, but puts them at a slight disadvantage against high defense opponents like Paladins and Barbarians. With that being said, you will still be able to beat the majority of your uphill battles – even against the Ghost Assassins’ worst nightmare, the “WW Barbarian”

In contrast to what many people think, the key success to a Ghost Assassin is not so much as having high Venom damage and Open Wounds, but a powerful Physical Whirlwind in conjunction with venom and open wounds. The “hit and run” style that was used in the past, where people built their sins based on high venom damage and weak physical is outdated and ineffective with modern day gear. There are 2 main reasons behind this: 1) In a quick succession of attacks (Whirlwind or Dragon Claw), venom will not be effectively applied to every strike due to the .4 second delay; 2) The penalty for Venom (Poison) can vary from 75% to 85% in resists for Good Mannered dueling in addition to a 75% Poison Length Reduction while physical is only reduced up to 50% at max (with a high chance to critical hit). Due to this, a physical damage approach is more effective in actual combat than the traditional high Venom damage approach.

There will be several times in this guide where I may bring up what option is most effective in Ghost vs. Ghost. Despite the fact that Ghosts were invented for countering casters, it can be challenging (and fun) defeat other Ghosts in a mirror match.

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Oni – 65% FCR Statistics Summary:

• 4,400+ life
• 4,800+ Whirlwind Damage (Chaos), 4,600+ Whirlwind Damage (Fools)
• 10,000+ Attack Rating (Chaos), 20,000+ Attack Rating (Fools)
• 37% Deadly strike (DS) for both claws
• 23% Critical strike (CS) for both claws
• 25% Open Wounds (Chaos)
• 250 Mind blast Damage
• 50% Damage reduction (DR)
• 62% Weapon Block
• 27% and 48% FHR Breakpoints available

65% FCR Setup


Oni – 42% FCR Statistics Summary:

• 4,400+ life
• 4,700+ Whirlwind Damage (Chaos), 4,500+ Whirlwind Damage (Fools)
• 10,000+ Attack Rating (Chaos), 20,000+ Attack Rating (Fools)
• 52% Deadly strike (DS) for both claws
• 23% Critical strike (CS) for both claws
• 15% Crushing Blow (Chaos), 15% Crushing Blow (Fools)
• 45% Open Wounds (Chaos), 20% Open Wounds (Fools)
• 200+ Mind blast Damage
• 50% Damage reduction (DR)
• 62% Weapon Block
• 27% and 48% FHR Breakpoints available

42% FCR Setup


FAQs:

45% FCR vs. 65% FCR vs. 102% FCR
• 45% FCR: Only when you are facing another ghost sin or BVC and you feel mobility is not as important as a higher WW damage output.
• 65% FCR: You will be using this one 95% of the time. It will give you the best damage and mobility output.
• 102% FCR: Can be used against extremely fast Necromancers and 200% FCR sorceresses to help you catch them easier.

How to WSM Bug your claws (to increase trap laying speed)
• Place your slower claw over your glove side, and place the faster claws over your boots side
• Click on the glove side claw to pick it up and click once more to wear it again
• Now your weapon IAS will take effect from your boot side (Faster) claw giving you faster speed to lay traps quicker. You can check to see if you did this properly or not when you WSM your Chaos with Fools Claw. The AR of the chaos will be displayed initially, but once done properly, a much higher AR from the Fools will now be shown in the Attack Rating Box on your character screen.
• This will have to be redone every time you switch weapons. It may be a little inconvenient at first, but you will quickly get used to it and learn to appreciate the huge bonuses from it.


Fade
• What are the benefits of Fade? (Curse reduction, Damage Reduction, and Resists)
• How exactly does the hidden bonus works? Every 1 point in fade = 1% more DR. That means, level 42 fade you will get a hidden 42% DR. (Every point counts, not just base points)
• How many point are needed to keep 50% DR? This depends on what the rest of your gear.
• Remember to cast Fade with CTA and Spirit out to gain an additional 3 to all skills, unless you have claws that offer more +points to this skill

Mind-blast and Stun-lock
• When your opponent is low on life, you can mind blast lock them and get the kill instead of trying to come close and risking a chance to get hurt. Your mind blast should be maxed and do a lot of damage.
• When you mind-blast someone they will have a swirly affect above their heads. This means that the next attack, regardless of how weak or powerful it is, will put them in FHR animation.
• Stun lock is done by setting traps on the ground and spamming mind blast when your opponent is getting hit my traps. If you attack them quick enough, you can put them in FHR lock over and over again. Use that opportunity to deal as much damage as possible.

What is WSG?
• Weapon Switch Glitch (WSG). The default key for this technique is W.
• When you are in the middle of a continuous attack (Ex: locked by traps), If you switch to your other weapons by pressing W it resets the lock and you will not be put into FHR motion until another attack hits you (Giving you time to escape)
• By rapidly pressing W and running away from the source of attack (usually south), you can prevent yourself from being stun locked for too long.

What is Tri-Whirlwind and DoD?
• Tri WW is a style that can be used to deal out high damage rapidly while leaving little room for escape. If is done by WWing in a triangle around your opponent.
• Dance of Death (DoD) is when you Tri WW where you repeat the triangle motion nonstop

What is a Fool's-claw?
• Fools Mod provides a huge boost in damage along with attack rating. Your claw with this mod is used on the "boot side" and WSM Bugged to help your assassin achieve the needed AR to hit higher def chars such as Barbarians and Paladins.
• Generally, you will want to aim for more % Open Wounds (Um runes are the common choice). Another common option is Lo for more deadly strike, but with the way my character is built, your Ghost Assassins will already have such a high % of Deadly Strike that using more may result in diminishing returns.

This post was edited by Markro on Jul 30 2013 09:25am
Azn Masta
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#3 Jul 25 2011 05:58am
Group: Member
Posts: 29,128
Joined: Apr 30 2004
Gold: 390.01
Warn: 10%
Main Gear:

Helm:
2Assassin/20FCR/Visionary/Life/Dexterity/2Socket Circlet (2x 30ED/60AR/9Str/9Dex Jewels)
This will be your main helmet of choice. Try to aim for one with stats as close to the ones listed above for optimal results. However, a magic 2Assassin/20FCR/2Soc circlet is also acceptable. The jewels will give you a huge boost in both damage and attack rating. The Visionary Mod on the helm is EXTREMELY useful as Attack Rating is directly related to damage output.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniCirclet.jpg

.08 Valk (30ED/60AR/9Str/9Dex Jewel)
It gives 30%FRW, 30%FHR, 30%IAS, and 30%FCR all in 1 helm. This helm will mainly be used against 3 opponents. It lets you hit 102% FCR + 48% FHR Breakpoint + 30% IAS (to counter golem slow) against Necromancers. It lets you hit 65% FCR (You need to take off you FCR ring and replace it with an absorb ring), 48% FHR BP, and some FRW (To escape trap locks easier and perform Desynch’d WWs). It lets you hit 102% FCR BP.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/Oni08Valk.jpg


Armor:
Enigma (Archon Plate)
This armor is the main part of your build. It gives you the STR needed to wear. Try to aim for the highest defense “Light” Armor you can use with your strength. While something like a Gothic Plate may look good, it will slow down your FRW (DoD and ability to avoid attacks).

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniEnigma.jpg

Enigma of Duress
This Enigma is used in the same way as a regular enigma except it lacks 5% life and 8% DR. You may choose to use this armor to hit the 48% FHR Breakpoint for dueling trap assassins and necromancers. It also offers nice resistance so you can use it against any opponent that does not deal physical damage.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniEnigmaofDuress.jpg


Belts:
Arachnid’s Mesh
This is the best overall belt for your Ghost. The 20% allows you to easily hit your FCR BPs. The 1 to all Skills will boost your damage and life (Battle Order Level), the mana will allow you to have more mana to chase down your opponents, and the slow will allow you to weaken your opponents (FRW and IAS Speed)

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniArachnidMesh.jpg

24% FHR/10% Open wounds/80 Life/3Life Leech/30 Strength/30% Poison Resistance Belt
This is the belt used in Ghost v Ghost. Combined with a 5% FHR Small Charm, this gives you enough FHR to attain the 27% FHR Break point after taking off dancers. It also gives you a boost in open wounds, life, and strength (Boosts WW damage) as well as resistance to allow you to use less resistance small charms and more charms to boost attack rating.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniOWBelt.jpg


Rings:
Raven Frost
This provides the “Cannot be Frozen” (CNBF) mod which is useful for quick DoD and escaping attacks. It also gives a huge AR and mana boost as well.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniRavenFrost.jpg

10% FCR/120Attack Rating/25 Strength/15 Dexterity/3Life leech/20 life Crafted Ring
Simply the best all around FCR ring for this build. The 10% FCR lets you get 65% FCR BP, the Attack Rating allows you to hit your opponents easier, the 25 Strength allows you to wear Shadow Dancers, the 15 Dexterity boosts Attack Rating, and the 20 to life is a nice bonus.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniFCRRing.jpg


Gloves:
Trang-oul's Claw Gloves
It gives 20% FCR, cold resists, and Poison damage (+25%). These gloves are the BEST and ONLY choice for your assassin.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniTrang-OulsClaws.jpg


Boots:
Shadow Dancers
It gives 2 to Shadow skills, 30%FHR, and 25dex (To wear claws). This is a must have for your Ghost. It will be your main source of FHR (aside from Guillaume's Face and perhaps some FHR small charms)

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniShadowDancers.jpg

Gore Riders
These are the boots you will use in 42% FCR mode. It gives a nice boost to open wounds, crushing blow, and deadly strike.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniGoreRiders.jpg


Amulet:
Highlord’s Wrath
This amulet provides 1 to all skills, 20%IAS, and most importantly Deadly Strike based on character level. At level 99, you will get a 37% DS to both of your claws. That mod will single handedly beat the damage output from crafted amulets like Storm Hide. The 20%IAS lets you hit 9Frames Trap speed (42%IAS).

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniHighlordsWrath.jpg

2 Assassin/20FCR/60life/STR/20Mana/10Mana Regeneration Crafted Amulet
This also allows you to achieve the 102%FCR BP. This amulet also lets you keep your 65% FCR if you ever need to take off your FCR ring to wear an absorb ring.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniFCRAssassinAmulet.jpg


Claws:
Glitched Chaos (Suwayyah):
This is the highest damage Chaos claw available in the game. Even though it is not a fast claw, when WSM bugged, its normal speed won’t matter and will be just like using 2x fast claws. So basically, you can gain all the power of the powerful claw, and face no drawbacks of having reduced speed. 354% ED is perfect, the original duped version was made on a 14% Superior 3 open socket claw.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniGChaos.jpg


Regular Chaos (Feral or Runic):
If you cannot get a GClaw, you can still make an effective Ghost with a regular Chaos (Feral or Runic). All you have to do is reverse the concept of WSM. Instead of using a strong Glitched chaos claw and a faster/weaker feral Fools claw, you will use a strong Warfist fools claw and a faster/weaker feral chaos. Try to aim for a claw with mods like: Fade/Weapon Block/Lightning Sentry to save maximum points.


Fools Claw (Feral or Warfist)
You two options in a Fools Claw are either Feral or Warfist (Feral is used to allow you to get max trap laying speed while Warfist is used for optimal damage output). Try to aim for a Fools claw with 30+IAS/250+ed/Fools Mods/eth repair. The higher the damage of the claw, the better it is. When torn between a high damage claw with one socket and a low damage claw with 2 open sockets, generally the high damage claw will be better.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniFoolsClaw_zps9fefba95.jpg

Glitched Fury (Suwayyah):
This is the highest damage Fury claw available in the game. It offers you 33% DS, 66% OW, and a nice 20% boost to AR giving you a very deadly whirlwind. Unfortunately, as a suwayyah base, it will not allow you to get 9frames for trapping. It is still useful in some situations, but I personally do not recommend this as Fools claw have the potential to outshine this so much.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/AznMastaBui/Diablo/OniGfury.jpg



**NOTES**
• Remember to switch to CTA/Spirit Side when casting Venom, Fade, and other buffs to gain the +3 to all skills.
• The Attack Rating bonus shown on screen after WSM bug from the fools ONLY applies to the fools itself, not both claws. Each claw’s AR acts independently of each other so even if you use a Fools, you will still need to keep a decent attack rating on your Chaos side (10,000+ Attack Rating is highly recommended on both sides).



Stashed-Gear
• Absorb Rings (Wisp/Dwarf/Raven)
• 20/11s for stacking Cold/Fire/Lightning/Poison Resist Small Charms
• 1x 5Faster Hit Recovery/3Max Damage/20 Attack Rating Small Charm
_____________________________________________

Recommended Gear

42% FCR Setup (Power)
• Helm - 2Assassin/20FCR/Visionary/Life/ Dexterity/2Socket Circlet
• Armor - Archon Plate Enigma
• Amulet - Highlord’s Wrath
• Boots - Gore Riders
• Ring 1- 10FCR/120Attack Rating/25 Strength/15 Dexterity/3Life leech/20 life Crafted Ring
• Ring 2- Raven Frost
• Gloves - Trangs-Oul Gloves
• Belt - 24% FHR/10% Open wounds/80 Life/3Life Leech/30 Strength/30% Poison Resistance Belt
• Claws - Glitched Chaos (Suwayyah) + Fools claw

65% FCR Setup (Standard)
• Helm - 2Assassin/20FCR/Visionary/Life/ Dexterity/2Socket Circlet
• Armor - Archon Plate Enigma
• Amulet - Highlord’s Wrath
• Boots - Shadow Dancers
• Ring 1 - 10FCR/120Attack Rating/25 Strength/15 Dexterity/3Life leech/20 life Crafted Ring
• Ring 2 - Raven Frost
• Gloves - Trangs-Oul Gloves
• Belt - Arachnids Mesh
• Claws - Glitched Chaos (Suwayyah) + Fools claw

102% FCR Setup (Speed)
• Helm - .08 Valk
• Armor - Archon Plate Enigma
• Amulet - 2sin/20fcr/60life/STR/20mana/10mana Regeneration Crafted Amulet
• Boots - Shadow Dancers
• Ring 1 - 10FCR/120Attack Rating/25 Strength/15 Dexterity/3Life leech/20 life Crafted Ring
• Ring 2 - 10FCR/120Attack Rating/25 Strength/15 Dexterity/3Life leech/20 life Crafted Ring
• Gloves - Trangs-Oul Gloves
• Belt - Arachnids Mesh
• Claws - Glitched Chaos (Suwayyah) + Fools claw

This post was edited by Markro on Jul 30 2013 09:25am
Azn Masta
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#4 Jul 25 2011 05:59am
Group: Member
Posts: 29,128
Joined: Apr 30 2004
Gold: 390.01
Warn: 10%
Charms: (65% FCR and 102% FCR)

1x 20/20 Torch
1x 20/20/10 Annihilus
6x 45 Life Shadow Grand Charms
9x 3Max, 20AR, 20 Life Small Charms
10x 20 Life, 5 Resists All Small Charms

Charms: (42% FCR)

1x 20/20 Torch
1x 20/20/10 Annihilus
9x 45 Life Shadow Grand Charms
3x 20Life/11 Poison Resist Small Charms
1x 5FHR, 3 Max, 20AR Small Charm
6x 3Max, 20AR, 20 Life Small Charms

**NOTE**
• You may need to use a few 15Life/70Mana Small Charms against some opponents to increase mana. The maximum recommended amount is 3.
• Against Cold Sorceresses, replace your 10x 20Life/5Res all SCs with 10x 20/11 Cold Res Small Charms to stack. You may choose to stack cold resist with resist boots as well.
• Against opponents that do not deal elemental damage, switching out your 20/5s for 3Max, 20AR, 20 Life Small Charms will give you a great boost in damage and attack rating.
• Against trappers, use 48% FHR (Enigma of Duress) and enough 20/11 Light res Small Charm to reach max resist without fade, and a wisp. Running burst of speed, will allow you to move quicker to perform faster attacks and WSG out when you get caught.
• Do NOT use any poison Small Charms. Any amount of poison damage used on your assassin will have its damage reduced to the length of .4 seconds due to venom. This renders poison charms useless.


Stat Distribution:

Strength – Enough to Wear Gear
Dexterity – 0-60 Points; since this adds AR and damage, skill it accordingly.
Vitality - Rest
Energy - Base


Skill Distribution:



**NOTE**
• Some people find Dragon Flight is not needed. It is a personal preference, at level 99 you will be able to get it anyway if you wish.
• I find it very useful as it can allow you to set up you next attack and catch people off guard due to the delay in timing. Dragon Flight can allow you to “snipe” opponents that are barely off your screen or those who move too fast for you to catch a regular name lock. For people who play defensively, I like to teleport on them. This usually prompts them to teleport away. As soon as I see this, I dragon flight again and once they teleport away, it will go with them and allow you to appear right on top of them.


Recommended Hotkeys

Q=Dragon Claw
W=Weapon Switch
E=Battle Command
R=Battle Order
T=Physic Hammer
A=Whirlwind
S=Dragon Flight
D=Teleport
F=Venom
G=Fade
H=Burst of Speed
Z=Mind blast
X=Wake of Fire
C=Cloak of Shadows
V=Lightning Sentry
B=Shadow Master


FCR/FHR/Block Tables



FCR
65% FCR is the recommend one.

Faster Hit Recovery
An Assassins’ 27% FHR is the same as a Sorceress’ 142% FHR or a Necromancer’s 86% FHR. Therefore shadow dancers (30%FHR) will give you the FHR you need most of the time. The only time you may need more FHR is against other assassins or necromancers. Going any higher than 48% FHR will result in diminishing returns for a Ghost Assassin.

Weapon Block
Level 26 - 60%
Level 31 - 61%
Level 36 - 62%
Level 42 - 63%

**NOTE**
• 61%-62% is the recommended amount.


Attack Rating (AR) and Chance to Hit (CTH)

The higher your Attack Rating (AR), the more often you will hit in battle. Thus, AR and damage output go hand in hand with each other.

To make this simple, here is a graph comparing two different defense ratings and attack ratings. You can see how your chance to hit will be influenced by how much defense they have and how much AR you have. There are no huge diminishing returns until the 22,000AR mark, but having at least 10,000AR on the Chaos Claw side is highly recommended.

Formula for Calculating CTH
Chance to Hit: 100 * AR / (AR + DR) * 2 * alvl / (alvl + dlvl)

AR = Attack Rating of Attacker
DR = Defense Rating of Defender
alvl = Level of Attacker
dlvl = Level of Defender



This post was edited by Markro on Jul 30 2013 09:26am
Azn Masta
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#5 Jul 25 2011 06:00am
Group: Member
Posts: 29,128
Joined: Apr 30 2004
Gold: 390.01
Warn: 10%
Dueling Strategies

Amazon:
• Bow: Stay on them constantly and MB to prevent them from shooting you. They will not be able to do much. Just remember, WoF covers a wide range and LS covers a far range. Use the two as a combination for optimum stun. If they are fast, you may not have time for more than a 1-2 traps before they will WSG out. Try to WW them with their bow out for more damage; when you get the chance, DOD them. Bowzons are extremely fast and nimble and will try to WSG + bow you down if you make a mistake. Do not give them any room. If you shadow dies, recast it if possible while keeping them at bay, or teleport out and recast and charge back into the fry.

• Charged Strike: Set a few traps around them and spam MB to get a swirly to start FHR. You will not be able to FHR Amazons like usual characters due to their Dodge abilities. However, if it comes down to it, you can DoD faster than they can block and attack back. In a tanking duel, you will win. A smart Amazon will realize this and attempt to play the “hit and run” game, only Using CS when you make a mistake. Mind Blast them to prevent them from trying to run away and keep a lock. If they WSG to escape this, WW them in the direction they are running and they will get hurt badly. Your high physical/venom and open wounds will eat them up and you can mind blast to get the last kill. If they happen to be a Far cast Amazon, through on T-gods and a wisp and do the same thing, but try to get a few traps out if possible.


Barbarians:
• BvC/BvA: These guys are a nightmare for ghost assassins. They have more life, damage, WW speed, AR, and defense. The only thing you have against them is your weapon block, open wounds, and mind blast + traps. I suggest you use that whenever possible and as much as you can. A good strategy is to set a few traps behind you or around you and try to have them stomp you. If you Tele away right as they do this and they will land right into your traps. Spam a few MB’s and pray they get put into FHR. If they do, try to sneak in 1-2 fast WW’s and run off to let OW drain them. If they are far away, spam MB on them to annoy them and force them to attack you. You can try to sneak in a few blade sentinels for extra chance to open wounds. If forced to trade WWs, NEVER WW in the same path as they do. They have more physical damage than you and will out hit you. Try to do a pass through them so you both only check each other once. Also, try to aim your quick drive by WW’s at the end of their WW so they get hit, but you do not. Against some barbs, you may be able to out power them using Gface since Crushing blow really hurts characters that have high life. Depending on how the barb plays, decide if 42% FCR or 65% FCR is better suited for that match.

• Conc./Zerk/Melee Barbs: read ZEALOT.


Necromancer:
• PNB: These guys are one of the hardest classes for any assassin if they are smart and know what to do. Your claw block will be a life saver here by cutting their chance to hit you in half. But you will still be in trouble if you run into a train of IBS. Just remember that necromancers need distance to attack you, so if you can stay on top of them and force them to run all the time, they won’t have much time to retaliate. After all, the best defense is a good offense. Most necromancers will spam IBS and teleport away as soon as you come close to lure you into a spirit train and tank you with bone prisons/bone spear when you make a mistake. I recommend you teleport up at an angle to avoid IBS and set traps to make them move. When they are moving, they cannot attack, so keep a lock on them and stomp on them with dragon claw. Do not engage without a shadow, it is extremely risky because you never know if there are any IBS around. If the shadow does mid chase, it is better to run off to recast and chase again. If done correctly, not only will your shadow master stack and prevent him from harming you, but they will get stunned and be forced to WSG out of your attack. When you see this, WW them in the same direction they are running. If they chase you, set a few traps ahead by predicting their movements and teleport into the traps to try to get them locked. This duel involves a lot of "Making the Right Call at the Right Time."

• Poison Nova: MB them as soon as you see them and try to get a lock for WW. These guys don’t have good FHR/Damage/DR/Block/Life because they tend to focus more on damage. Try to find out which one they are missing and use that to your advantage. Nova has a short range, so they have to come close to hurt you, so use this opportunity to make then fall into your traps so they get stunned. You should be able to tank a good deal of novas before you die, so you have a few chances to redeem yourself if you miss. You can use 20/11 poisons if you feel the need. Treks will work as well.


Sorceress:
• Blizzard: Your claw block gives u a good chance to block their blizzard without getting hit once. Teleport in a zigzag pattern as your approach them to confuse them. Once they are on your screen, stun them and start DoD. If they WSG, they still get hit badly by WW and traps. Repeat this until they are worn down to 1 hp and use traps or teleport/WW stomp to get the kill. If they blizzard on themselves, set traps around them, and MB them out of their own blizzard while traps stun them. When they are stun locked, just DoD them until they die. If you really need to, you can go to stash and switch on those 20/11s to stack against their cold mastery.

• Fireball: You should be able to catch 90% of these guys quite easily. Fast ones are a little tricky, but try to predict their movements and get name locks. Dragon flight assists here to catch godly fast ones because even if it doesn’t hit, it places you on the same screen with them and that allows you to set up your MB locks. Try to get them locked with traps and then start DoD. If they WSG, just WW them in the same direction they are running. If they play defensive, you can use 102% FCR to catch them easier.

• Lightning: Avoid their powerful lightning and get a stun lock. Read how to duel Fireball sorceresses and apply the same concept.


Paladins:
• Hammerdin: These are annoying if they're good synchers. There are two types of Hammerdins, the ones that stomp you, and the ones that run around and set up hammers and pray that you will run into those hammers. If they are offensive, just set traps around you and WW around while waiting for them to stomp you and getting hurt from your WW. If they are defensive, let them play defensive and set traps all over the floor around you while spamming MB and physic hammer in their direction to predicting their synches. If you get them stunned or see them hesitating, go for a WW or two and run away. Repeat. If they don’t get stunned, just keep MB'ing them till they teleport on top of you or until traps/MB eat away their life and they die. There have been occasions where I have simply relied on MB and level 1 Traps to kill these guys if they're too defensive.

• Smiters: You have the ability to block their attack and merely get stunned from it. Try to set a few light sentries and maybe 1 WoF to force them to attack you as you spam MB. When they attack you, WW away in a zigzag motion. Remember to WW away from them and not through them. Force them to come to you, by MB'ing them as traps wear them down. The smart one will stay off screen and run in for a quick smite or two and run off again. Use your LS to predict their synch and WW away from it as your LS chips away their life. Repeat as needed. VT’s are a little trickier because they don’t need to smite you to hurt you. Try to keep a consistent lock with MB and traps to prevent them from FOH’ing too much. You can use 20/11 light resist small charms if you need.

• Zealot: Unless they are teleport zeal you, they are hopeless. Set a few LS and MB them to force them to attack you. When they do, just WW zigzag away. The traps +MB will weaken them, and the KB from fool’s claw will prevent them from hitting you. If they are teleport zealers, then set traps and WW away predicting their movements so that they don’t get directly on top of you. It takes good timing to beat a smart teleport zealer.


Druids:
• Elemental: They can barely get enough FHR to escape your WoF traps and Mind blast. Throw on WW on top of that and they have no chance to beat you. The smarter ones will run around and wait for you to make a mistake and stomp on you for a few quick Tornados and run off again. They will also try to set up their Tornados so when you chase them or attack, you run into a bunch. Just remember to always keep a trap or two around your body even as you chase them incase that happens. Worse comes to worse, sit in your pile of 5 traps and switch to CTA to rep your life back and repeat the chase.

• Rabies or Rabies/Fury Hybrids: Remember to not use shadow master for this match up. If they infect your shadow and you teleport, you will get infected as well. The best way to take out these guys is to chase them down with traps and keep a safe distance, if you see the chance to attack them do a quick teleport in WW and run out to avoid getting hit. If they are close you don’t have time to teleport, WW in a downward zigzag motion to hit them and prevent yourself from being infected. If you get hit, go all out with traps and DoD, you will need to try to kill them as quick as possible before their Rabies can get to you.

• Fury: read ZEALOT.


Assassins:
• Trapper: A good and/or defensive trapper is very hard. If you fight a good trapper who knows how to avoid getting hit with WW, just remember, you don’t have to chase them. If they want to do damage, let them come to you. Try to lure them by placing traps at 1 side to force them to run into either your WW or more traps on the other side. When you get the chance, MB them, and set up your traps while avoid getting hit by theirs. Trapping in a circle works wonders on some of these guys. When they are off guard teleport in DoD them and set some traps while they try to get away. Once you have a lock, try to keep the chain lock and get a quick WW in. If they play the box + l8z game, remember that if both players have 1000 life, it takes more traps for them to kill you, then for you to kill them with WW so just sit back and rep until you see a chance to attack again. You may want to use CTA + DolDolDolDol shield for 40life rep.

• Bramble/Fort: They don’t have teleport. Set traps and stay out of their range, you should never lose to one of these despite their damage. Their only method to get close to you is Dragon Flight. When they try to DF you, WW away to hit them mid flight and then teleport away and set more traps. Try to FHR lock them and go in for a WW. Usually these builds have a lot less life than you. Use a combination of drive by hits + OW to win.

• Hybrids: You will have more WW damage and more life than most Hybrids. Try to force them to stay on the run and/or trade WW’s with you. Your maxed out mind blast will mean that your shadow will cast it a lot more than theirs will and allow you to catch them. That being said, don’t run blindly into their traps – you will get slaughtered. A good hybrid is pretty difficult to beat, but if your timing is right, it is very possible. Drive by WW and quick DOD’s are you friend here. Remember how you dueled against barbs? Well they will try to duel you the same way. Except barbs don’t have mind blast and traps, and you didn’t have traps that hurt. Use a wisp, you will need it.

• Ghost: Mirror Match. It comes down to who has more life, who has more damage, and who has better timing/dueling skills. If you hit harder, try to force them to trade hits with you. If they hit harder, try to use more MB and drive by WW’s. Stun locking is useful as well because you might be able to get “free hits.” Use blade fury or sentinels and everything else up your sleeves. Do not forget to use cloak of shadows, it lets you hit them easier and makes it harder for them to hit you. In the end, the better ghost will come out on top.


Conclusion
The Ghost Assassin if played correctly, in my opinion, is one of the most fun and challenging classes on Diablo II. Of the three types of assassins: Ghost, Trap, Hybrid, they are also the most difficult to master. They require good timing, good name locks, and quick thinking. Ghosts were created for the purpose of annihilating casters, so they may have more difficulty against characters like Barbarians and Paladins. Good necromancers tend to hold an edge over every type of assassin, but a well played Ghost can put up a great fight because of their maxed out Mind Blast.