The Assassin is, in my
opinion, the most challenging character in Diablo II. Barbarians
and Druids (shapechangers, at least) are extraordinarily straightforward;
I'd recommend them to anyone just starting the game for their simplicity
and brute power. Sorceresses, I find, live and die by their skill
placement and are usually better off specializing in only a few
options. Paladins and Amazons have a variety of utility skills which
are of use in limited situations, and reward the experienced player
who knows when to change tactics, but I can usually muddle through
with a less-than-optimal strategy. None require as much attention
as the Assassin. The martial arts system is complex and time-consuming,
requiring her to hit more than once to unleash the most powerful
effects. Spending so much time in the thick of combat with a character
as frail as Assassins tend to be makes me nervous, and pulling off
the maneuvers correctly demands close timing and lots of concentration.
Trap Assassins are simpler, and work at range, which may be why
I don't enjoy them as much as martial artists -- the sense of risk
isn't nearly as strong.
There are, naturally,
some things about the class I dislike. The martial arts system is
a bit cumbersome, and mastering the timing needed to get the number
of charge-ups I want is tricky. I've pretty much given up on getting
only two charge-ups, especially with Burst of Speed at a high level;
the character hits too quickly for me to control her that well.
Traps are a nice idea, though I do not think she should be able
to put a trap anywhere she can see. It would be much more logical
if her traps were items she could either throw or set up next to
her, like real mechanical devices. The blade skills are awful, which
is a pity, as many real world assassins did their work with thrown
blades before guns were invented. And then there's her outfit: a
singlet cut very low in front and very high on the sides (so much
so that her belt rests partially on bare skin) with elbow-length
gloves, thigh-high boots, shoulder pads, and knee pads(?). According
to the expansion manual, Assassins are members of the secret order
of Viz-Jaq'taar; in the real world at least, secret societies stay
secret by having their members look like ordinary people. No real
ninja ever wore a "ninja" outfit; they wore the same clothes
as everyone else. I refuse to believe that a typical woman in the
Diablo II universe goes around dressed like that.
Now, what shall I do
with my Assassin? My goal with this tour is to play all seven characters
in ways I never have before. I've used various martial arts, and
feel confident of my mastery of the tree, so I shall ignore it and
use something else. I've used all the traps, so nothing from there.
That leaves Shadow Disciplines. My favorites of these are Burst
of Speed and Shadow Master, or Warrior if I'm using traps. Eliminate
them, and... hmm, not much left. For "auras", the tree
offers Fade and Venom. I rarely have difficulty getting enough resistances,
so Venom it shall be. On the other side of the tree are the "mentalist"
skills, which I haven't done much with: Psychic Hammer (useful but
weak), Cloak of Shadows (Blinding monsters: good. Blinding player:
bad!), and Mind Blast.
A potentially interesting
build comes to mind. While playing my Necromancer, I'd noted that
poison would be most useful with ranged attacks. Poison takes time
to work, and ranged attacks make time a luxury you can better afford.
The Venom skill adds a lot more damage than Poison Dagger, and can
be used with any weapon, including a ranged weapon. In all this
tour, I've yet to make a character with a strong ranged attack,
and should do at least one. Another tactic I haven't used much is
subversion: sowing chaos and disruption by confusing or converting
the enemy. Mind Blast has a chance to convert, making me friends,
or at least keeping the monsters busy while they die from poison.
This could work.
Now, what weapon shall
I use? Bows? Thrown weapons? I've got some nice crossbows on the
mules, including a Heavy Crossbow with six sockets that could be
fitted out with perfect emeralds. Crossbows are very slow for the
Assassin, but with poison and Mind Blast, she may not need to shoot
fast. Come to think of it, I wonder why the Assassin, someone used
to complicated mechanical devices, is so slow with the crossbow,
while the Druid is relatively fast? I would have thought Nature
Boy would be more practiced with normal bows. Ah... no point second
guessing Blizzard about this. Many things in the Diablo II universe
make no sense, but if I asked they might offer some bizarre, convoluted
explanation for them that would just make my head hurt. They might
even have a pseudo-rational explanation for the female characters'
outfits, though we all know the real reasons for those.
So my Assassin shall
be a ranged attacker, using crossbows. Her main skills will be Venom
and Mind Blast, with the goal of converting enemies and killing
from a long distance. I'll be putting points into Claw Mastery as
a prerequisite anyway, so I'll make her back-up weapons a pair of
claws in case things get rough. She'll use no summons; minions will
be mixed up fresh for each battle. Also, no mercenary. One thing
that bothered me with Varnae is that my merc killed monsters before
his poison had a chance to do its thing, and I don't want that to
happen again. Besides, the "lone hired gun" is a staple
of fiction; anyone who walks that lonely road should do so without
help. Moving fast and hitting hard before you know she's there,
then melting back into the shadows... that sounds like what an Assassin
should be. In keeping with the build, I'll give her a short bow
for starting equipment. Her name is Amanita, after a variety of
poisonous mushroom noble Romans used to bump each other off.
