A recurring question that comes up frequently is “what’s the fastest way from 1 to 60” (for example here, here, here, or here). This guide seeks to answer this question and aims to provide overall hints for everyone, but also some more detailed tweaks to get there even faster. While some budget (a few million) helps, it’s not necessary and this can be done with a couple of hundred thousand gold. The only requirement is to have a level 60 friend. Note: if you don’t have a level 60 friend, use the LFG forum. By the way, I know that “power leveling” (I prefer speed leveling and will call it this in this guide) is a known concept, but the questions indicate that not everyone knows how easy it is and how much fun it can be. Therefore, I’ll try to avoid acronyms and jargon as much as possible in this guide.
Disclaimer: for those who dislike the idea of speed leveling, please read this.
Let me say that my natural reaction would be to agree with you - speed leveling in any adventure-based game sounds kind of wrong. You’re missing out on the story and the natural way of “learning” all the skills as you level up. Diablo, however, is very repetitive and you will or can repeat the story a hundred times (and many of us already played through all quests for hundred times before we decide to speed level). In terms of skills, leveling in Diablo (even if done solo and self-found) is so fast that skills just come and go too quickly in order to really “learn” them. Furthermore, the “pre-60 game” is just completely different than what’s to follow: as soon as you hit 60 you can let your stats explode by getting a few items from the AH. Certain game mechanics that require certain stats are possible at level 60 that aren’t before, and certain builds that work well on the way to 60 are useless on Inferno (my first char was an Arcane Orb wizard, solo and self-found, but I can’t get it to work now at 60 with 300k DPS).
That being said, if you’re completely new I’d advise you to level at least one character SOLO and SELF-FOUND to 60. Getting carried by a friend or using the AH too early will spoil you. If you have done that with one or more characters though, the way from 1 to 60 can be extremely boring and this guide is for you. This kind of “speed leveling” can actually be a lot of fun for both parties (the person carrying and the person that is carried).
Leave a comment if you have done this with any of the classes besides Archon wizard in respectable time and want to recommend a build!
Explanation/details:
Probably the best class to carry other people is a wizard, simply because the Archon beam clears the entire screen in one go. Here’s an example build. Some explanations: Speed is the most important thing, therefore you want Teleport (both as skill and as Archon rune). Disintegrate for the downtime (which will only happen at Diablo unless you make some mistakes); a Stone of Jordan reducing Disintegrate cost is not really necessary, but won’t hurt. I sometimes use Shock Pulse - Living Lightning instead of Disintegrate. The three remaining spells shine especially because of their runes (Shocking Aspect and the almost unknown Canoneer and Electrify). They’re nice “passive” spells that kill survivors you’ll miss - extremely helpful, as a single monster left behind can kill the low level character that is being carried. Shocking Armor saved my life a couple of times. For this reason, make sure to definitely pick Galvanizing Ward as passive and refresh all three buffs (Storm Armor, Familiar, Magic Weapon) every 4 minutes; even if you have to cancel Archon for that. However, none of your runs should last that long anyways.
I’ve heard that witch doctors work quite well as well. The pets kill monsters anywhere on the screen and protect the low-level character. As forum user gecko pointed out, witch doctors provide everything that is needed for the needs of power leveling, including killing all sorts of smaller and bigger mobs fast enough, but also taking care of the players. Note that for hell difficulty, he recommends switching two skills (see hell build) to deal with elite packs and mana issues.
Monks are a melee-only class and spirit generation makes carrying difficult. There are, however, plenty of people doing power leveling with monks. Forum user klemzelol mentioned that the typical Tempest Rush build worked fine, but resorted back to Archon wizard as of level 50. An interesting note is that Tempest Rush monks are so fast that it's difficult to follow them; but they have a nice Mantra rune that provides party members with 8% movement speed, which could greatly speed up the first 33 level before one can use Slave Bonds (see gear section below). Therefore, for the first 33 level I discussed some gearing/skill choices to be able to use Tempest Rush infinitely without the Mantra of Healing rune but the Mantra of Evasion - Wind through the Reeds instead.
While monks struggle to generate spirit, it's even worse for barbarians and fury. There's no fury generating gear, and without fury many spells are unusable. In particular, a Whirlwind barbarian does not work on normal difficulty.
Unless someone can prove otherwise, I’m going to discourage you from trying to carry a friend with a demon hunter. This is based on personal experience (having done extensive testing with demon hunter vs. wizards in particular) but also what has been said on other occasions about power leveling in other forums. However, for those who like to give it a shot, Bokrijder posted his builds here. Note that he suggests to swap Vault to Shadow Power and Tactical Advantage to Night Stalker for hell difficulty. While he managed to pull it off without the 4 piece legacy Natalya set bonus, it might not be a bad idea to take it into consideration if you have access to a legacy Natalya set just for the extra speed bonus.
Where to level?
Summary:
Monster power 10 only
Act 3, Keep 2 only
At level 25, kill Diablo to switch to nightmare difficulty
At level 50, kill Diablo to switch to hell difficulty
Explanation/details:
Keep in mind that the mob density patch in 1.08 did not affect lower difficulties. Therefore, unlike on Inferno, it is recommended to go to Keep 2 and Keep 2 only. I’ve tried several other areas that I know from my Archon farm runs have a high amount of mobs as well, but on average it will slow you down. Just for distraction we sometimes go to Rakki and down to the Fields of Slaughter waypoint, and you might go to Crater or Tower, but it will negatively affect your average XP gain - especially since the scorpions in Crater 2 got nerfed. The only other area to consider might be Whimsyshire, although it might only be better for certain level ranges (more on that later).
It works like this: the level 60 character opens a game with the last quest of act 3 selected, difficulty normal, Monster Power 10. As soon as the other person is there, go to Keep 1 waypoint and descend to Keep 2. You can check if there’s an elite right at the waypoint at Keep 1, but only if both players are well-synchronized in entering the Keep and if it doesn’t take more than 3 seconds. On Keep 2, kill everything until you’re at the end (don’t descend into Keep 3 if you want to maximize leveling speed). If you run into a dead end street, consider two things: 1) Does it take more than 5 seconds to walk out of the dead end street to proceed? 2) Does the level 60 character have more than 2 or 3 Nephalem Valor stacks? If the answer to either of these questions is yes, it’s better to restart. The low-level player should always be the first to exit (i.e., start casting the town portal); the 60 char should stay around for a few seconds to make sure that no mob interrupts or even kills the fragile character. Once in town, ESC+”leave”, rinse and repeat.
As soon as the character hits level 25 and 50 (or is at least at 90% of level 24 / 49) quit the game and open an act 4, MP10 game with the last quest on the same difficulty. Kill Diablo and remember to talk to the angel at the end to complete the quest and get the next difficulty unlocked (if you quit immediately after killing Diablo it will not unlock).
This mind sound boring to some - yes. But it’s “only” 2-3 hours and you see constant progress (a level-up every other minute). And the faster it goes, the sooner everything is over; adding another 2 or 3 zones to your run do not make it feel less boring, but will slow down the entire thing so much that it’s even more boring. Also keep in mind that there’s no Nephalem Valor for the below-60 player, therefore there is no incentive to kill anything but the high-density areas. The only exception is if you get an Enlightment or Fleeting Shrine buff just before the end of your run - I like to add a quick circle around the Fields of Slaughter in that case, or Crater 2 backwards (Tower of the Cursed 1 waypoint and walk up to Crater 2 entrance).
Gear with bonus experience and vitality as you see fit and as budget allows on several levels, in particular at level 25 and 50 to maximize XP gain and minimize probability of death. Also get pants+chest with sockets early on to use high-level vitality gems.
Explanation/details:
The Hellfire Ring is almost the most important item, because it has no level requirement. It is not necessary to craft a new one, though. If you want to get one for paragon leveling later on it would probably be a Hellfire Ring with main stat, but for the 1-60 race the only stat that matters (besides the 35% XP) is vitality. Take any of your Hellfire Rings that has the most vitality (or at least a socket to put an amethyst in there). If you consider doing several leveling runs, crafting a vitality-based Hellfire Ring would be the way to go.
The Cain Set has four items, but you don’t want the pants as this slot as a huge EHP source, especially for the last 10 levels in hell. Get Cain’s Sandals, Cain’s Scribe, and Cain’s Memory; the one bonus stat you want on all of them is vitality (if you can afford it). Furthermore, the helm needs to have a socket, it’s an absolute must, no matter the cost.
Get the highest ruby you can, this should be pretty obvious. Every percent of bonus XP counts. Your level 60 friend might just lent you his 31% gem if you don’t have one (remember: it speeds it up for both parties). You can and should get a helm with socket as early as level 15; witch doctors (Slit Tusk) and monks (See No Evil) can even get one at level 13 (the only class-specific items I’m going to recommend).
A Leoric’s Signet doesn’t cost that much anymore, so try to get one with as much bonus XP as possible. Again, you might also try to borrow it from someone.
Speed is the most important thing. Boots are the obvious slot to get movement speed, and your Cain’s Sandals (level 23) thankfully come with at least 10% all the time. Before that, you can speed it up a bit by getting The Crudest Boots at level 6 already. The one big item you probably don’t want to miss are Slave Bonds bracers at level 33 - that should bring you to level at least 20% and be sufficient till the end. If you’re a monk, you might even skip on these because of Fleet Footed - I felt that it was enough to keep up with the carrier. If you don’t have an Hellfire Ring and Leoric’s Signet, Band of Untold Secrets is worth a look; otherwise, Scrimshaw and The Executioner are the other two low-level movement speed legendaries.
Don’t underestimate bonus XP - the absolute value, not just the percentage as on a Hellfire Ring. Some of the first few levels, in particular without Leoric’s Signet, Cain’s Set, and any ruby in your helm, will feel quite slow. The bonus XP affix increases every two levels; it starts with up to 4 on level 3 and goes up to 24 on level 60 (which is theoretically accessible as soon as level 42, thanks to the -18 level requirement affix). A level 42 character could theoretically have as much as +308 bonus experience!
The other stat to look out for it vitality. You don’t gain any XP when you’re dead. Armor, all resistance, or any other stat won’t help you much on lower levels. Items with sockets are pure gold as they let you ignore level requirements and you can add high-level amethysts. You definitely want some vitality on levels 25 and 50 as you enter a new difficulty and you’ll be very fragile in the beginning. The items that can have highest vitality values are (in descending order): two-handed weapons (595 on level 60); one-handed weapons, shields, amulets (350 each on level 60); pants and chest (300 each on level 60). Check this list for details: a level 29 two-handed weapon that can be worn at level 26 can have up to 114 vitality - plus an additional 119 vitality from an vitality/strength double roll. 229 vitality on level 26 - that is huge!
Therefore, get items with bonus XP and vitality (and 2 or 3 sockets for pants or chest, respectively) for several levels; at the minimum, have some gear (at least 2-3 new pieces) prepared for the beginning (level ~3), level 25, and level 50. The more money and time you are willing to spend, the more intermediate steps/gear upgrades you can add.
I want to get just another minute faster - how?
Play multiplayer. Since 1.08, multiplayer games not only get a 10% (2 players), 20% (3 players), or 30% (4 players) XP bonus; this bonus is even multiplicative. What does this mean? On MP10, every player gets 200% bonus XP from Monster Power (note that this is different from Inferno). Adding a 30% bonus XP Leoric’s Signet will result in 230% bonus XP (200% from MP + 30% from Leoric’s Signet), which is a relative increase of 15%. Switching to a full group of four people, however, will increase your bonus XP to 260% (200% from MP * 1.3 for multiplayer). If you’re considering to level a new character, ask your friends or even post in the LFG forum if anyone else is interested. Or simply make your game available to public!
Preparation is key. It sounds strange as you add an hour beforehand, but it will only make your run faster by a few minutes; but keep in mind that the gear is neither account bound nor tied to a particular character. You can use it again and again and even lend it to a friend. Take a look at the gear suggestions again and consider creating a leveling set now. Many of the items have no buyout on the AH, but if you bid on them you can get them for as much as 500 gold or so - you might just need to wait for ~36 hours.
Level 60 gear is accessible as soon as level 42 (because 18 is the max value of the level requirement reduced affix). Level 42 items with 60 stats are very expensive, however; but somewhere before or at level 50 (when you make the switch to hell) you want one of these nice upgrades. Two or three such items can give you enough vitality to allow for a quite careless play style - you should not die at all. But it also allows for barbarians and monks (as leveling characters) to make some damage and get fury/spirit, and therefore might speed up runs (if the main character can even keep up with them). This is where it’s getting expensive, but the level ranges 42-50 and 53-60 are probably the slowest levels and largest time sinks on the entire “1-60 speed run” challenge.
Always make sure you're in range to get the XP. According to Bashiok, it's about "a screen and a half". klemzelol digged up this nice picture that explains it based on the minimap - only in a circle covering about 35% of the minimap you'll gain XP. Stick together, team!
Lots of people have done it in less than 2 hours and some claim to be able to do it in less than 90 minutes. I imagine if you go super crazy, acquire lots of different gear, max out on bonus XP, and level in a full group, this can be done in even less time. You could even go completely crazy and let the level 60 char scout for XP shrines before the leveling characters enter the game. Set yourself a goal and work towards it!
Let’s discuss!
What are your experiences with speed leveling? Any important points that I’ve missed? Anyone here who can provide builds for the other classes I’ve missed out so far? Share your thoughts!
If you have the time, watch Zaramos's video about his speed run in 1:33 (!) from 1-60. Check out his post here. Note that this was done in 1.07 and before the scorpion XP nerf, so Crater 2 (which he exclusively ran) is not recommended anymore. However, the 30% group buff was not available at the time, so you can even do it faster! He included some nice hints and tips in the beginning of the video as well.
I just want to throw in that Tempest Rush monk is extremely effective up to level 50. I would say even better than archon wiz, because of the movement speed. A full clear of Keep Depths 2 goes so fast that the lowbies gets thrown out of the game when you leave. Dinged 3 chars yesterday with Tempest Monk and it took 3 hours in total, but used archon from level 50 and up.
Here is the Monk spec used : eu.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/monk#acSXgQ!dZc!aZYbYZ
I just want to throw in that Tempest Rush monk is extremely effective up to level 50. I would say even better than archon wiz, because of the movement speed. A full clear of Keep Depths 2 goes so fast that the lowbies gets thrown out of the game when you leave. Dinged 3 chars yesterday with Tempest Monk and it took 3 hours in total, but used archon from level 50 and up.
Here is the Monk spec used : eu.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/monk#acSXgQ!dZc!aZYbYZ
Thanks! I'll include that in my OP later when I have time (watching soccer now). Just one question: wouldn't Mantra of Evasion - Wind Through the Reeds be better for the purpose of speeding up the low-level character? Since DPS and in particular EHP doesn't matter that much you could get the lost spirit regen back on gear...
Dinged 3 chars yesterday with Tempest Monk and it took 3 hours in total, but used archon from level 50 and up.
Wait... are you saying that you made 180 levels in 3 hours? That sounds... hard to believe. Some people claim to have done it in 90mins, but the best proof I could found was something around 2 hours.
[about the mantra of healing thing]
Yes that may be, but i think it is quite alot. Running without the templar ( obviously ) i had to put on the Xephirian Amulet to not go oos.
Dinged 3 chars yesterday with Tempest Monk and it took 3 hours in total, but used archon from level 50 and up.
Wait... are you saying that you made 180 levels in 3 hours? That sounds... hard to believe. Some people claim to have done it in 90mins, but the best proof I could found was something around 2 hours.
Well it was just my three friends, in the same group that i boosted that dinged. Just meant that it was a full group, for the xp buff
I regularly use my WD to power-level my friends from 1-60 and use this build.
With 3 poison based attack + 5 pets that can proc Bad Medicine, it ensure safety to the low lvl players. Pestilence can clear whole area fast & Acid Rain helps kill any remaining mobs while RoT to kill e packs. Using a high dps, intel/vit Skorn socketed with Ruby helps 1-shot almost everything. Hope this helps anybody wants to use WD to power-lvl friends up.
@klemzelol: Ah, I see. Yeah, with a full group you get so much more XP, it's actually even better.
I just played around a bit with my TR monk and bought him some cheap stuff. Almost everything on normal is 1-shot, and on hell it's too slow, so nightmare is the area of concern where I tried to fit things to go smooth. The problem in my opinion is that up to level 33 the char that is being carried has max 12% run speed, while the monk is like a blasting Speedy Gonzales. On levels 33-50 (or 33-60, if DPS is high enough) Mantra of Healing and therefore the typical TR spec with your typical TR gear might be fine. However, for level 1-32 I suggest a different spec that focuses on giving the low-level player an additional 8% movement speed. There are some things to consider:
We can't choose two 1-hand weapons for up to 5 spirit regeneration (SR), as this would result in way to high APS.
We don't want to use Inna's Reach as it has at least 1.21 APS.
A ~2 SR daibo without IAS has 1.1 APS, which means we want at least 11 SR (without Mantra of Healing rune). This is still better than to go with a Skorn and 1.0 APS but 2-2.5 SR less.
If your DPS is very low (hard to give a number, but about 80k should be enough to 1-shot everything on MP10 nightmare Keep 2 with Tempest Rush only), you need Sweeping Wind. Thus, you need 4 piece Inna's. Thus, you need Inna's pants. Thus, you have at least 1.19 APS. Thus, you need at least 14 SR (I felt that 12.5-13 SR with 1.19 APS was not really comfortable, bought a Manald Heal to compensate). It might be worth it to upgrade overall DPS rather than getting into this vicious cycle of "need more SR".
~2 SR from helm, ~2 SR from weapon, ~2 SR from SoJ, ~2 SR from Xephirian Amulet, 2 SR from Chant of Resonance passive, +35% from Guardian's Path => about 13-14 APS. That should be enough.
Manald Heal (if it doesn't drop DPS too much) or Exalted Soul (if Fleet Footed makes you too fast and thus is not needed) can help to get even more SR.
So, I did a test run with this setup (1.19 APS and 14.69 SR) and my spirit bulb was full 99% of the time. I guess besides TR+Tailwind and the three passives above I don't really have anything to recommend... I'll add this to the main post.
I regularly use my WD to power-level my friends from 1-60 and use this build.
With 3 poison based attack + 5 pets that can proc Bad Medicine, it ensure safety to the low lvl players. Pestilence can clear whole area fast & Acid Rain helps kill any remaining mobs while RoT to kill e packs. Using a high dps, intel/vit Skorn socketed with Ruby helps 1-shot almost everything. Hope this helps anybody wants to use WD to power-lvl friends up.
I regularly use my WD to power-level my friends from 1-60 and use this build.
With 3 poison based attack + 5 pets that can proc Bad Medicine, it ensure safety to the low lvl players. Pestilence can clear whole area fast & Acid Rain helps kill any remaining mobs while RoT to kill e packs. Using a high dps, intel/vit Skorn socketed with Ruby helps 1-shot almost everything. Hope this helps anybody wants to use WD to power-lvl friends up.
Thanks a lot, added it to the list!
You're most welcome.
Btw on Hell mp10 i do tend to switch Zombie Handler to Circle of Life & Summon Zombie Dog to Sacrifice-Pride to kill e pack faster while also helping me keep my mana pool full. I usually tell the persons i'm carrying to stay close to my dogs and when i see their health go down i blow up my dogs to keep them safe.
@Zaramos: WOW, impressive! That's insanely fast. Even though this was done in Crater 2 pre-scorpion XP nerf, it's still much faster than many "records" I've seen anywhere else. I wonder how close we can get to this one in Keep 2 now with the group buff as replacement for the insane scorpion XP. Nice, added it to the post!
@all: would you mind telling us the DPS on your speed runs? In particular for the last part (hell) I think DPS indeed makes a difference, and it would be nice to have a reference in mind when relying on other people's builds. Someone with 500k DPS gear probably has a bit more freedom in picking skills than someone carrying with 50k DPS ;-)
I did the same with keep lvl 2 with my 2nd barb i am currently trying to get the world record in plvl0-100 (in 50 hours)
I used the same gear in Depth 2 and i finished it in 1 hour 20 min to 60 patch 1.08
Just with a Wizzard carrying me even not 3 people, so i think 1 hour is possible if you min/max it
If you want to see me doing 0-100 in 50 hours check out my stream: everyday from 20:00-1:00 CET.
The good thing with Depths 2 is that the level is packed so closely with mobs, and rooms are often times just a wall apart, even if you have to go through a corridor to get there. So the lowbies can actually be outside of your view on the screen, but still get the xp.
This illustration i found in a barb complaint thread on reddit, shows the XP radius.
Edit: On the leveling run i did, the monk had around 110k dps, selfbuffed.
Profile : eu.battle.net/d3/en/profile/Klemze-1844/hero/17095899
Yay, good point. Completely forgot to mention range somewhere. Also included Bashiok's initial tweet regarding that topic. I wonder how many yards this are... based on this old picture, I think it's somewhere around 80 yards. My guess. Well, in most cases you want to be within 40 yards anyways, to get the Mantra if you're being carried by a monk ;-)
232 combined paragon levels just on your wizards. You seem to like that class, eh? ;-)
May I ask why you prefer to power-level with your monk instead of your 550k buffed Archon wizard? Have you done a comparison to find out that your monk is faster or is it just a subjective feeling?
I'm in the same boat by the way, my main is wizard (yet, considering switching to monk for now) but I really want to speed level with TR this week. 110k DPS, and that was not enough for TR on hell? Damn... I need to try this out.
232 combined paragon levels just on your wizards. You seem to like that class, eh? ;-)
May I ask why you prefer to power-level with your monk instead of your 550k buffed Archon wizard? Have you done a comparison to find out that your monk is faster or is it just a subjective feeling?
I'm in the same boat by the way, my main is wizard (yet, considering switching to monk for now) but I really want to speed level with TR this week. 110k DPS, and that was not enough for TR on hell? Damn... I need to try this out.
Heh, gotta love the wizards Best class in the game, so much fun
I haven't done any comparison, it is just the feeling i get when i speed through the instance so fast. In the beginning i used One With Everything, because i ran too fast. Then when they got some runspeed gear and abilities i put on Fleet Footed. If i see the lowbies lagg behind i just move the mouse from side to side until they catch up. It is kind of the same feeling as for ww barb ( not boosting ), they just sprint and ww, thing dies. I think also it is the reason world first level 100 paragon was a barb, the sprint spam etc.
I am not sure if 110k was too little, When we changed to nightmare, it was noticeable, howerver still basically oneshottable, but for Hell mode i changed to the wiz. And i was actually not aware we could go to Hell at level 25, i thought it was 30, so it could prolly have gone a bit faster there. But it was not really a record attempt of speedleveling, just tried to be effective.
Really appreciate the guide you are making, i learned of things i was not aware of with regards to items and levels etc.
Would be fun to do a really serious timed try, and equip 3 lowbies with full xp/runspeed gear in their bags and make sure they put it on at the correct times etc. Btw, are you on EU or US ?
Yeah, would be fun... I only have one gear set, if you had another one we would already have enough to equip two lowbies. I'm EU, like you, so we could totally do this at some point... but I probably won't have time this week. And I think I'd also like to test a bit more before doing this, but I'll start collecting a bit more gear in the meantime.
A recurring question that comes up frequently is “what’s the fastest way from 1 to 60” (for example here, here, here, or here). This guide seeks to answer this question and aims to provide overall hints for everyone, but also some more detailed tweaks to get there even faster. While some budget (a few million) helps, it’s not necessary and this can be done with a couple of hundred thousand gold. The only requirement is to have a level 60 friend. Note: if you don’t have a level 60 friend, use the LFG forum. By the way, I know that “power leveling” (I prefer speed leveling and will call it this in this guide) is a known concept, but the questions indicate that not everyone knows how easy it is and how much fun it can be. Therefore, I’ll try to avoid acronyms and jargon as much as possible in this guide.
Disclaimer: for those who dislike the idea of speed leveling, please read this.
That being said, if you’re completely new I’d advise you to level at least one character SOLO and SELF-FOUND to 60. Getting carried by a friend or using the AH too early will spoil you. If you have done that with one or more characters though, the way from 1 to 60 can be extremely boring and this guide is for you. This kind of “speed leveling” can actually be a lot of fun for both parties (the person carrying and the person that is carried).
What class/spec should my friend be?
Summary:
Explanation/details:
I’ve heard that witch doctors work quite well as well. The pets kill monsters anywhere on the screen and protect the low-level character. As forum user gecko pointed out, witch doctors provide everything that is needed for the needs of power leveling, including killing all sorts of smaller and bigger mobs fast enough, but also taking care of the players. Note that for hell difficulty, he recommends switching two skills (see hell build) to deal with elite packs and mana issues.
Monks are a melee-only class and spirit generation makes carrying difficult. There are, however, plenty of people doing power leveling with monks. Forum user klemzelol mentioned that the typical Tempest Rush build worked fine, but resorted back to Archon wizard as of level 50. An interesting note is that Tempest Rush monks are so fast that it's difficult to follow them; but they have a nice Mantra rune that provides party members with 8% movement speed, which could greatly speed up the first 33 level before one can use Slave Bonds (see gear section below). Therefore, for the first 33 level I discussed some gearing/skill choices to be able to use Tempest Rush infinitely without the Mantra of Healing rune but the Mantra of Evasion - Wind through the Reeds instead.
While monks struggle to generate spirit, it's even worse for barbarians and fury. There's no fury generating gear, and without fury many spells are unusable. In particular, a Whirlwind barbarian does not work on normal difficulty.
Unless someone can prove otherwise, I’m going to discourage you from trying to carry a friend with a demon hunter. This is based on personal experience (having done extensive testing with demon hunter vs. wizards in particular) but also what has been said on other occasions about power leveling in other forums. However, for those who like to give it a shot, Bokrijder posted his builds here. Note that he suggests to swap Vault to Shadow Power and Tactical Advantage to Night Stalker for hell difficulty. While he managed to pull it off without the 4 piece legacy Natalya set bonus, it might not be a bad idea to take it into consideration if you have access to a legacy Natalya set just for the extra speed bonus.
Where to level?
Summary:
It works like this: the level 60 character opens a game with the last quest of act 3 selected, difficulty normal, Monster Power 10. As soon as the other person is there, go to Keep 1 waypoint and descend to Keep 2. You can check if there’s an elite right at the waypoint at Keep 1, but only if both players are well-synchronized in entering the Keep and if it doesn’t take more than 3 seconds. On Keep 2, kill everything until you’re at the end (don’t descend into Keep 3 if you want to maximize leveling speed). If you run into a dead end street, consider two things: 1) Does it take more than 5 seconds to walk out of the dead end street to proceed? 2) Does the level 60 character have more than 2 or 3 Nephalem Valor stacks? If the answer to either of these questions is yes, it’s better to restart. The low-level player should always be the first to exit (i.e., start casting the town portal); the 60 char should stay around for a few seconds to make sure that no mob interrupts or even kills the fragile character. Once in town, ESC+”leave”, rinse and repeat.
As soon as the character hits level 25 and 50 (or is at least at 90% of level 24 / 49) quit the game and open an act 4, MP10 game with the last quest on the same difficulty. Kill Diablo and remember to talk to the angel at the end to complete the quest and get the next difficulty unlocked (if you quit immediately after killing Diablo it will not unlock).
This mind sound boring to some - yes. But it’s “only” 2-3 hours and you see constant progress (a level-up every other minute). And the faster it goes, the sooner everything is over; adding another 2 or 3 zones to your run do not make it feel less boring, but will slow down the entire thing so much that it’s even more boring. Also keep in mind that there’s no Nephalem Valor for the below-60 player, therefore there is no incentive to kill anything but the high-density areas. The only exception is if you get an Enlightment or Fleeting Shrine buff just before the end of your run - I like to add a quick circle around the Fields of Slaughter in that case, or Crater 2 backwards (Tower of the Cursed 1 waypoint and walk up to Crater 2 entrance).
What gear do I need?
Summary: (green = highly recommended, yellow = optional)
Explanation/details:
I want to get just another minute faster - how?
What are your experiences with speed leveling? Any important points that I’ve missed? Anyone here who can provide builds for the other classes I’ve missed out so far? Share your thoughts!
If you have the time, watch Zaramos's video about his speed run in 1:33 (!) from 1-60. Check out his post here. Note that this was done in 1.07 and before the scorpion XP nerf, so Crater 2 (which he exclusively ran) is not recommended anymore. However, the 30% group buff was not available at the time, so you can even do it faster! He included some nice hints and tips in the beginning of the video as well.
Ha. Bagstone.
Here is the Monk spec used : eu.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/monk#acSXgQ!dZc!aZYbYZ
Thanks! I'll include that in my OP later when I have time (watching soccer now). Just one question: wouldn't Mantra of Evasion - Wind Through the Reeds be better for the purpose of speeding up the low-level character? Since DPS and in particular EHP doesn't matter that much you could get the lost spirit regen back on gear...
Wait... are you saying that you made 180 levels in 3 hours? That sounds... hard to believe. Some people claim to have done it in 90mins, but the best proof I could found was something around 2 hours.
Yes that may be, but i think it is quite alot. Running without the templar ( obviously ) i had to put on the Xephirian Amulet to not go oos.
Well it was just my three friends, in the same group that i boosted that dinged. Just meant that it was a full group, for the xp buff
With 3 poison based attack + 5 pets that can proc Bad Medicine, it ensure safety to the low lvl players. Pestilence can clear whole area fast & Acid Rain helps kill any remaining mobs while RoT to kill e packs. Using a high dps, intel/vit Skorn socketed with Ruby helps 1-shot almost everything. Hope this helps anybody wants to use WD to power-lvl friends up.
I just played around a bit with my TR monk and bought him some cheap stuff. Almost everything on normal is 1-shot, and on hell it's too slow, so nightmare is the area of concern where I tried to fit things to go smooth. The problem in my opinion is that up to level 33 the char that is being carried has max 12% run speed, while the monk is like a blasting Speedy Gonzales. On levels 33-50 (or 33-60, if DPS is high enough) Mantra of Healing and therefore the typical TR spec with your typical TR gear might be fine. However, for level 1-32 I suggest a different spec that focuses on giving the low-level player an additional 8% movement speed. There are some things to consider:
Thanks a lot, added it to the list!
Btw on Hell mp10 i do tend to switch Zombie Handler to Circle of Life & Summon Zombie Dog to Sacrifice-Pride to kill e pack faster while also helping me keep my mana pool full. I usually tell the persons i'm carrying to stay close to my dogs and when i see their health go down i blow up my dogs to keep them safe.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9nc-Lu3lsg&pxtry=1
I hop it helps. I am using best lvl gear possible. it was In patch 1.07 so without 30% grp buff!
@Zaramos: WOW, impressive! That's insanely fast. Even though this was done in Crater 2 pre-scorpion XP nerf, it's still much faster than many "records" I've seen anywhere else. I wonder how close we can get to this one in Keep 2 now with the group buff as replacement for the insane scorpion XP. Nice, added it to the post!
@all: would you mind telling us the DPS on your speed runs? In particular for the last part (hell) I think DPS indeed makes a difference, and it would be nice to have a reference in mind when relying on other people's builds. Someone with 500k DPS gear probably has a bit more freedom in picking skills than someone carrying with 50k DPS ;-)
I used the same gear in Depth 2 and i finished it in 1 hour 20 min to 60 patch 1.08
Just with a Wizzard carrying me even not 3 people, so i think 1 hour is possible if you min/max it
If you want to see me doing 0-100 in 50 hours check out my stream: everyday from 20:00-1:00 CET.
http://de.twitch.tv/zaramos666
This illustration i found in a barb complaint thread on reddit, shows the XP radius.
Edit: On the leveling run i did, the monk had around 110k dps, selfbuffed.
Profile : eu.battle.net/d3/en/profile/Klemze-1844/hero/17095899
May I ask why you prefer to power-level with your monk instead of your 550k buffed Archon wizard? Have you done a comparison to find out that your monk is faster or is it just a subjective feeling?
I'm in the same boat by the way, my main is wizard (yet, considering switching to monk for now) but I really want to speed level with TR this week. 110k DPS, and that was not enough for TR on hell? Damn... I need to try this out.
Heh, gotta love the wizards Best class in the game, so much fun
I haven't done any comparison, it is just the feeling i get when i speed through the instance so fast. In the beginning i used One With Everything, because i ran too fast. Then when they got some runspeed gear and abilities i put on Fleet Footed. If i see the lowbies lagg behind i just move the mouse from side to side until they catch up. It is kind of the same feeling as for ww barb ( not boosting ), they just sprint and ww, thing dies. I think also it is the reason world first level 100 paragon was a barb, the sprint spam etc.
I am not sure if 110k was too little, When we changed to nightmare, it was noticeable, howerver still basically oneshottable, but for Hell mode i changed to the wiz. And i was actually not aware we could go to Hell at level 25, i thought it was 30, so it could prolly have gone a bit faster there. But it was not really a record attempt of speedleveling, just tried to be effective.
Really appreciate the guide you are making, i learned of things i was not aware of with regards to items and levels etc.
Would be fun to do a really serious timed try, and equip 3 lowbies with full xp/runspeed gear in their bags and make sure they put it on at the correct times etc. Btw, are you on EU or US ?