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?
1) 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.
2) 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.
3) 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.
4) 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*.
