DiabloFans

Hey, I've been playing on my DH and whenever I use bola shot or hungering arrow (possibly other projectile based attacks too) I get lag. It's like my character bounces between where she's going and where she was. Anybody else seeing that? It could be my comp too because it's got the bare minimum requirement.

Also, when I click on the Auction house, it doesn't let me get into it. It says that the game cannot access my pay account or something like that. Any thoughts?

So, that's how many builds that can be made with all characters. If you're trying to do the same calculation and come up with a different number, that's cool. It's probably because I calculated that there are 6 rune possibilities because there are 5 types of runes as well as unruned.

Each class also has different numbers of possible builds.
Barb: 8421580000000000
DH: 9257550000000000
Monk: 3128020000000000
WD: 10226200000000000
Wizard: 16241300000000000

I'm pretty sure this has been done before but I thought I'd put it up anyways. Hope you enjoy.

They gave the monk mantras then realised that it meant the monk had to have a skill UI button used up just to keep the mantra up. This was a problem because it meant that the monk had fewer "active" skills to use. The solution was to lower the cooldown and give the mantra a double potency effect for a few seconds encouraging the player to keep using it. So, my question is, why not do the same thing for the demon hunter? The dogs are basically an aura that does damage to up to 4 monters at a time. I know some of you may say that you can get the spell sacrifice which can be used in conjunction with zombie dogs so that you are constantly summoning and exploding your dogs. But should a WD beforced to get sacrifice if they decide to get zombie dogs just to keep the skill active? I don't think so. What I think should happen is that when zombie dogs are summoned, they explode from the ground doing AoE damage. Either that or give them a bonus to movement and attack speed for a short duration after summoning. What do you think?

I don't know how many of you are doing this too but I'm just sitting at my computer on the DiabloFans facebook page repeatedly hitting F5 to reload the page in the hopes that I can be one of the top 5 people to answer the next question. I got bored so I decided to put on some music. So here I am, listening to music late at night on a weekday when I should really go to bed repeatedly hitting the same button over and over again hoping for rewards. Why does this seem so familiar? Oh yeah! I played WoW.

On that note, I really like the new system for skill UI. The idea of a resource generator and resource spender as your two mouse buttons is not only very easy to use but it is also reminscent of original D2. It helps keep that feel that I've loved so much. On top of that, while keeping the original D2 feel, it doesn't have the same drawback that D2 did because we have 4 other buttons for our other skills and don't have to scroll between which skills are assigned to our mouse buttons. Well done Blizzard, well done.

Quote from melanchior

On the Haedrig subject it could be like what people see on TV / movies. An example was in an eposide of Walking Dead with Sophie walking out of the barn and Rick had to shot her, but you could tell it hurt him to do so. Just something that had to be done but what do you do. Let them "live" and destory everything else that means something to you?

Most epic Walking Dead scene ever! I agree! When I compare the scene with Rick Grimes to the one with Haedrig Eamon I have to ask myself why I enjoyed Rick's scene but was jilted by Haedrig's. I think one of the differences is that Rick never said "I can't do it" wheras Haedrig did. I think they both recognized that it had to be done. Haedrig says something along the lines of "not now... I have to put down the people in the cellar but how can I do it?" It just seems like a major jump from when he says "I can't do it" yet seconds later he's doing it. In essence, I just think it could have been handled better.

Quote from Axtroz

In the end it is just a game, no need to make psychological profiles of any NPC.

No disrespect intended but I have the opposite opinion. Character development makes the story (Damerflinn, you're the author so feel free to correct me). I guess, we don't necessarily need a psychoanalist's perspective into the minds of the characters to enjoy the story. However, a basic ability to relate to why the characters are making their choices and their behaviours changing over time helps me understand the characters and, in the process, the story as well. Axtroz, what do you think?

Phrozen and Damerflinn, you also spurred another thought in my mind about the behaviour of the undead. It's a good point about the Skeleton King knowing about why he was woken up. I never thought of that. I guess some things which are fluid to me are not fluid to others. But more to the point: I like the idea of traditional undead psyche. The undead tend to repeat past experiences and attach themselves to physical objects which they can no longer hold causing them to remain in our world. The idea of the crown being the object of the S.K.'s desire and what is needed to make him corporeal/defeatable does make sense. Adding the line in Cain's monologue "we need the crown to make him corporeal so he can be defeated" doesn't seem to be too hard and would have added to the fluidity. Also, from my understanding of the S.K., he was such a righteous person that he became mostly evil yet never fully lost control to Diablo, yet now he's all evil. One of the aspects of the undead is that they incorperate the living into their undead narrative. As an example, the ghost of a king who was killed by his trusted soldiers may mistake any random passerby as somebody attempting to assasinate him. In my opinion, if we saw the S.K. confuse the D3 hero as a betrayer, it would fit better with the theme of the undead and the fluidity of the S.K.'s story.

I bet there's a billion topics on this already but after a few days of thinking about it, I thought I'd post what's on my mind. I'll be posting the things that I like about it and the things that I don't like. Also, if you have any thoughts you'd like to contribute, please feel free

Firstly, when they first showed runes and how awesome they were going to make the skill look and perform, one of the things that was mentionned was that we'd need the higher level runes for inferno mode. I was really looking forward to this. The idea of needing those high level runes, doing multiple boss runs, trading and doing anything/everything to get these runes was something that had a lot of appeal. The reason for this was because it reminded me of the item grind found in D2. Hunting for keys, runes and unique elite items was something that I thrived on. On the flip side, the idea of runes, as opposed to items, being what determined entry into end-game isn't something that I liked. The game is focused on gear and it should be that way. So, all in all, I'm happy with the change. Furthermore, as much as I would have enjoyed rune hunting, I know that I'll still be doing hunting, just now it is only for items.

Secondly, I was also looking forward to having runes with additional bonuses such as +precision and attack. However, I think that the reason for cancelling this feature makes sense: it would cause our inventories to fill up with runes. I still feel that there is room for this, for instance, the mystic could have broken down runes into resources which don't take up space and these resources could have been used to reroll the bonuses on runes. For example, runes could be broken down into "rune dust" and would show up like gold (rather than take up space) with the mystic. Lower runes would break into 1 or 2 dusts and higher ones would break into 7-10 dusts. Rerolling a rune's stats would take 10 dust per rune rank. That being said, I think it would be very complicated and time consuming when really I'd rather be smashing monsters. Also, the way the rune system is now makes the characters completely customizable. If I wanted to make a completely random build, I could.

What are your thoughts?

Haha, that's a good point. I mean, the idea of a meteor starting a demonic invasion is so Warcraft 3. Who knows, maybe the Nephalem become the Xel'Naga. Which reminds me, does it seem to you like there is less and less original story content to blizz games? I mean, if they have an idea from the warcraft universe that would work in the starcraft/Diablo universe, why not use it? I can understand that. But is there a point when it becomes too much? Personally, if I said "the meteor signals the demonic invasion and afterwards people start having trouble with the undead" I could be talking about D3 or War3. Likewise, the similiarities between the zerg and the Warcraft 3 Undead in the story line are super similar. The undead were used by the Demons to destroy any opposition just like the zerg were used by (what we think is) the Xel'Naga. These things, although, interesting plot lines just feel too "copy-paste" for me. What do you think?

<sub>Green skins eh? I'll keep that in mind haha. Still, your avatar looks pretty epic.

I'm glad to hear that there are still some immersive story that has been found in D3, or at least in the beta. Phrozen, you also raise a couple good points. First, that earlier games helped set up the universe so there was much more of the mystery aspect I spoke about earlier. Now that D3 is out and that it's a much bigger game, they can really flesh out the story. In essence, the style of the story has to be different from one game to the next.
Second, it is true that there really isn't much to go on because of how much Blizz is trying to keep hidden. I am also trying to keep as much hidden as possible so I have not really sought out too much of the datamined spoilers. I also have not read the books but it is on my to do list. That being said, I am up to date on the lore from the wiki site and from ForceStrategy Gaming Diablo Cast episodes where you speak about the lore in the books. Again, I can't wait for release/beta so I can spend hours going over the lore. That will be my favourite part.</sub>

Wow, I can't believe I attracted the attention of two moderators. I'm flattered.
I had a couple other thoughts on this recently. Having only played D2 (but seen D1 on multiple occasions), I became familiar with the layout for tristram. Is it me or does D3's Tristram not really resemble prior layouts? I know there are similar locations like the blacksmith and Adria's house but I'm not sure if they're even in the same spots they used to be in. Also, what would really help me get a better feel for it would to actually get my hands on the beta. That way I would know for sure.

Also, one of the surprising elements that made Starcraft 1 and D2's stories so appealing was that they refered to things that the player had no idea about. For intance, SC1 spoke about the Xel'Naga like we all knew what they were talking about and D2 talked about the lesser and greater Evil's the same way. Normally, I would think I would have a problem with this because I can't relate to what the character's are refering to. However, it seemed this element made the SC1 and D2 universe much more immersive: It gave impression there was a dynamic world to discover. Phrozen, I've heard you on podcasts and I know you're a lore expert so I'm wondering what your thoughts are on this and also why/if this element does not seem to be in D3?

Kariostkt,
If I understand correctly what you're saying, it is that Blizzard is making games not books therefore it's not their priority to make the best plotlines in their games. This makes sense to me. What I'm wondering is how come Diablo 1&2, Warcraft 1-3 and starcraft have such great plot lines whereas Blizzard's later games seem to have lost that aspect?

I also agree that it's hard to say what is plausible and unplausible is hard to define in a universe where magic exists. That being said, even the supernatural aspects to fantasy tend to abide by certain rules. Take for instance the Game of Thrones series. Despite being in a fantasy world, the fantastic apsects, such a dragons, wights and the "others" act in a fantastic way while still abiding by certain consistancies.

Zaxlor,
Thanks for your reply. I found it very informative. When it comes to Haedrig, your reasoning makes a lot of sense. Once again, should we expect programmers to spend an extra few months and thousands of dollars on a cutscene just to make the story more fluid or would I rather just a few words of dialogue and move quickly on to bashing monsters? Probably the latter. That being said, what if when Haedrig faces his wife's zombie, he says "I... I just can't do it" and runs to the corner in a fetal position?

As for bypassing the skeleton king, what I meant to say was that the hero knows a lot about an area which is supposed to be new to him. Instead of the hero recognizing that the Skeleton king blocks his path, what if Cain informed him of this fact. I think that would make more sense because cain spent a few days down there. What do you think?

In essence, I guess I'm wondering if there wouldn't be a cheap and easy way to make a more fluid plot using the tools and game features already available to blizzard?

I'd like to start off by saying that Blizzard is doing a quality job with the storyline in D3 and that in no way do I think that I could do a better job. What I would like to do is point out a couple things that I think aren't as fluid as I'm used to and hoping to see if people agree or can point out how I can see things better.

Generally speaking, Blizzard has put out some fantastic story lines. Warcraft 1&2, Starcraft and Diablo 1&2 are perfect examples of this. Warcraft 3 had some bits that I wasn’t too sure about because it left me with questions yet still epic. Usually, a good storyline is one that has closure, one that I can relate to and is plausible in the setting.

When it comes to D3, or at least the beta, there are a couple things I don’t find plausible. This worries me because in the first 1/3 of the beta there are already issues.

Firstly is Haedrig who is tasked with killing his friends and his wife because they’re infected but can’t bring himself to do it. I can relate to this. The hero then tells him “It must be done!” And that seems to be all the convincing Haedrig needs go beat his wife to death. I don’t find this plausible. Obviously Haedrig is having some serious issues and these issues won’t be resolved by some stranger saying “your feelings are irrelevant, go kill them anyways”. Also, the moment you enter the area with the zombies, Haedrig will go about bashing skulls independent of the hero like he had no qualms to begin with thereby contradicting his previous actions.

Secondly is the final showdown with the skeleton king. The context of D3 is that a physical beat-on-each-other-with-weapons-and-spells is how the player interacts with monsters. So when the skeleton king says “you’ll never defeat me”, I interpret this as a statement of bravado prompting an immediate act of violence. This would flow perfectly within the context of an Action RPG. Instead, he retreats. Also, why do they need to find the crown to defeat him? Does the Skeleton King know this and that’s why he’s running? Why does the hero assume that the skeleton king is stopping him/her from finding the fallen star? How does the hero, who is new to Tritram, know so much about the layout of the cathedral to know s/he can’t bypass the skeleton king?

When you’re reading this, please note that I’m not looking for answers to these questions. What I’m looking for is a plot that prevents these questions from popping up. If you have a suggestion for a plot that doesn’t generate these questions please let me know. Also, if you do not have a problem with the plot because it doesn’t generate these questions for you, please feel free to explain.

The sun rises on new Tristram
Where an epic rap battle
is about to begin

Mayor Holus: “A weird looking amphibian in my town,
likely more troubles to give me a frown”

Binkles: “Yo yo dawg, I’m Binkles the frog
Checkin’ out New Tristram right out of my bog
By my yellow spots, I don’t mean any harm
Just seein’ if there’s some epic loot to farm

Mayor Holus: “Well, we don’t need you, a spotted pest,
I have 5 new heroes to do my behest”
Barbarian, Monk, and Wizard are three
Witch Doctor and Demon Hunter will make you flee

Witch Doctor: “Yo, I’m the ‘W’ ‘M’ to the magic finding ‘D’
Hailing all the way from jungles in Taganzie
Binkles, you’re just a tiny little guy
I summon three of you with a mighty cry

Binkles: “Dude, I’m a frog and you summon toads,
Get out of my sight and hit the road.
Can’t tell the differences, it’s even in my name,
Idiot, have fun surviving Diablo endgame.”

Demon Hunter “Binkles, what could you possibly do to a foe,
Have you seen my legendary long bow?
It’s cool shelf bro, using bombs and a crow.
I’ma kill all the demons, just so you know

Binkles: “Cool shelf? The old meme, cool shelf?
Seriously, you ain’t nothing but a wannabe night elf
“If you think bows and pets are new and cool
go back to WoW you 12 year-old-tool.”

Wizard: “Arcane is the name of the game,
It’s the power behind my fame.
Haven’t heard of me, well that’s a shame
Haters, I’ll consume you all with lightning and flame”

Binkles: “Arcane is lame, a few sparkles and you’re out of power
Fool, you go out there and you won’t last an hour.
Being green ain’t easy but it’s where it’s at.
You got no parlor trick that can compete with that!”

Monk: “Holy crit! Yeah, I’m in the room
The most disciplined Sanctuary toon
My bo staff and shukos will spell your doom
My auras heal but you’d be dead too soon”

Binkles: “I hear you call down pillars of the church?
But your skillz aren’t awesome, it leaves you in a lurch.
Double dotted forehead and shining scalp, it’s so bright
Give your bo staff back to Napoleon Dynamite.

Barbarian: “I defeat enemies with pure brute strength, you see,
Your rhymes are good but they can’t defeat me.
My biceps make demons cower and ladies swoon,
I’ll slam my hammer and send you to the moon.”

Binkles: “You can’t rap battle with me, I invented hip-hop.
Ribbit! Magic Finder, you know I won’t stop.
You might be best at moon physics and item farming
But give me and kiss and we’ll see whose prince charming.”

The sun now set on the battle, with Binkles the victor
Looks like he’s a New Tristram permanent fixture.

The sun rises on new Tristram
Where an epic rap battle
is about to begin

Mayor Holus: “A weird looking amphibian in my town,
likely more troubles to give me a frown”

Binkles: “Yo yo dawg, I’m Binkles the frog
Checkin’ out New Tristram right out of my bog
By my yellow spots, I don’t mean any harm
Just seein’ if there’s some epic loot to farm

Mayor Holus: “Well, we don’t need you, a spotted pest,
I have 5 new heroes to do my behest”
Barbarian, Monk, and Wizard are three
Witch Doctor and Demon Hunter will make you flee

Witch Doctor: “Yo, I’m the ‘W’ ‘M’ to the magic finding ‘D’
Hailing all the way from jungles in Taganzie
Binkles, you’re just a tiny little guy
I summon three of you with a mighty cry

Binkles: “Dude, I’m a frog and you summon toads,
Get out of my sight and hit the road.
Can’t tell the differences, it’s even in my name,
Idiot, have fun surviving Diablo endgame.”

Demon Hunter “Binkles, what could you possibly do to a foe,
Have you seen my legendary long bow?
It’s cool shelf bro, using bombs and a crow.
I’ma kill all the demons, just so you know

Binkles: “Cool shelf? The old meme, cool shelf?
Seriously, you ain’t nothing but a wannabe night elf
“If you think bows and pets are new and cool
go back to WoW you 12 year-old-tool.”

Wizard: “Arcane is the name of the game,
It’s the power behind my fame.
Haven’t heard of me, well that’s a shame
Haters, I’ll consume you all with lightning and flame”

Binkles: “Arcane is lame, a few sparkles and you’re out of power
Fool, you go out there and you won’t last an hour.
Being green ain’t easy but it’s where it’s at.
You got no parlor trick that can compete with that!”

Monk: “Holy crit! Yeah, I’m in the room
The most disciplined Sanctuary toon
My bo staff and shukos will spell your doom
My auras heal but you’d be dead too soon”

Binkles: “I hear you call down pillars of the church?
But you’re skillz aren’t awesome, it leaves you in a lurch.
Double dotted forehead and shining scalp, it’s so bright
Give your bo staff back to Napoleon Dynamite.

Barbarian: “I defeat enemies with pure brute strength, you see,
Your rhymes are good but they can’t defeat me.
My biceps make demons cower and ladies swoon,
I’ll slam my hammer and send you to the moon.”

Binkles: “You can’t rap battle with me, I invented hip-hop.
Ribbit! Magic Finder, you know I won’t stop.
You might be best moon physics at item farming
But give me and kiss and we’ll see whose prince charming.”

The sun now set on the battle, with Binkles the victor
Looks like he’s a New Tristram permanent fixture.

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