Two Amazons known for their ability to dish out a screen full of lightning and to murder copious numbers of cows were created… Lightning Fury Javelin Amazons with a Bow switch to provide for the ability to kill most any monster
Blitzkrieg was created in 1.09 since the Lightning Fury Amazon is legendary for her ability to do clear the Moo-Moo Farm in that patch. Blitzkrieg references the World War II codeword for an overwhelming attack that keeps the target on its heels.
ShocknAwe was created in 1.13 since the Lightning Fury Amazon is well known for her viability to run end-game areas in this patch. ShocknAwe is the more recent codeword from Desert Storm that also relates to an overwhelming attack that keeps the target on its heels.
Both Amazons have become Matriarchs and have cleared the Moo-Moo Farm on Hell. I am proud to present these warriors to you:
Matriarch Blitzkrieg – 1.09 Hybrid Javelin/Bow Amazon
Character name : Blitzkrieg
Character type : Amazon
Character level : 82
Character exp : 821743062
LCS – Jav
LCS – Bow
Strength : 119
Energy : 15
Dexterity : 155
Vitality : 211
Stat Points Rem : 0
Skill Points Rem: 0
Life : 993 / 845
Mana : 184 / 136
Stamina : 381 / 356
Resists:
Javelin Switch: 75/75/85/69
Bow Switch: 64/39/80/50
Skills:
Javelin/Spear:
Prereqs: 1
Jab: 20/33
Lightning Fury: 20/36
Charged Strike: 1/14
Impale: 1/14
Fend: 2/15
Passive/Magic:
1 Point each in all skills (1/11)
Penetrate: 6/16
Bow/Crossbow:
Prereqs: 1/5
Multiple Shot: 5/9
Guided Arrow: 20/24
Fire Arrow: 1/5
Freezing Arrow: 1/5
End-Game Weapon/Shield:
Javelin Switch:
Code:
Blitzkrieg's Titan's Revenge
Ceremonial Javelin
Throw Damage: 81 to 212
One-Hand Damage: 81 to 156
Quantity: 140
(Amazon Only)
Required Dexterity: 109
Required Strength: 25
Required Level: 42
Javelin Class - Fast Attack Speed
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 93
Fingerprint: 0xa4fcd761
+20 to Strength
+20 to Dexterity
+196% Enhanced Damage
+25 to Minimum Damage
+50 to Maximum Damage
9% Life stolen per hit
+2 to Amazon Skill Levels
30% Faster Run/Walk
+2 to Javelin and Spear Skills (Amazon Only)
Replenishes Quantity
Increased Stack Size
Stormshield
Monarch
Defense: 452
Chance to Block: 72%
Required Strength: 156
Required Level: 73
Indestructible
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 90
Fingerprint: 0xd2b63f2c
+30 to Strength
+25% Increased Chance of Blocking
Damage Reduced by 35%
Fire Resist +19%
Lightning Resist +44%
Cold Resist +79%
Poison Resist +19%
35% Faster Block Rate
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 10
+307 to Defense (3.75 per Character Level)
Socketed (1: 1 used)
Perfect Diamond
Inserted into a Monarch
All Resistances +19
Required Level: 18
Item Version: Expansion
Bow Switch:
Code:
Buriza-Do Kyanon
Ballista
'Nef'
Two-Hand Damage: 100 to 370
Required Dexterity: 80
Required Strength: 110
Required Level: 41
Crossbow Class - Fastest Attack Speed
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 73
Fingerprint: 0x8cf18df
+35 to Dexterity
+196% Enhanced Damage
+101 Defense
Adds 32-196 cold damage over 8 seconds
Knockback
80% Increased Attack Speed
Freezes Target
Piercing Attack [100]
+205 to Maximum Damage (2.5 per Character Level)
Socketed (1: 1 used)
Nef Rune
Inserted into a Ballista
Knockback
Required Level: 13
Item Version: Expansion
Armor/Jewelry:
Helm: “Corpse Visage” Circlet (see below)
Armor: Skullder's Ire (Um)
Amulet: Mara’s Kaleidoscope (28@)
Ring 1: Raven Frost
Ring 2: Scintillating Ring of the Leech (Stylish Blue Ring – 15/4)
Belt: Thundergod’s Vigor
Gloves: “Dread Claw” Gauntlets (see below)
Boots: “Stone Greaves” Heavy Boots (see below)
Code:
Corpse Visage
Circlet
Defense: 20
Durability: 35 of 35
Required Level: 49
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 76
Fingerprint: 0x85ec69bf
Damage Reduced by 2
All Resistances +25
Adds 21-35 fire damage
6% Life stolen per hit
6% Mana stolen per hit
+1 to Amazon Skill Levels
+5 to Mana After Each Kill
Socketed (1: 1 used)
Scintillating Jewel of Burning
Required Level: 49
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0x8cb050e9
All Resistances +13
Adds 21-35 fire damage
Dread Claw
Gauntlets
Defense: 19
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Strength: 60
Required Level: 35
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 81
Fingerprint: 0x91478a3c
+16% Enhanced Defense
+20 to Attack Rating
22% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
20% Increased Attack Speed
Half Freeze Duration
+2 to Javelin and Spear Skills (Amazon Only)
Stone Greaves
Heavy Boots
Defense: 13
Durability: 14 of 14
Required Strength: 18
Required Level: 29
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 90
Fingerprint: 0x71f4207d
+71% Enhanced Defense
Fire Resist +6%
Lightning Resist +40%
15% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
30% Faster Run/Walk
14% Chance to cast Level 5 Nova when struck
Charms:
Acrobatic Grand Charm of Inertia
Acrobatic Grand Charm of Life
Acrobatic Grand Charm of Pestilence
Acrobatic Grand Charm of Sustenance
Shimmering Grand Charm
Harpoonist's Grand Charm of Venom
Harpoonist's Grand Charm of Storms
Harpoonist's Grand Charm of Sustenance
(Acrobatics to allow 1 point + skills for all the D/E/A, Pierce, etc. to get to the plateau for these skills)
Merc:
Weapon: Hone Sundan (AmnAmnSheal)
Helm: Blackhorn’s Face
Armor: Duriel’s Shell
Twinking:
Blitzkrieg relied on the bugged stacking of poison damage in bows for twinking – 5 JoE Envy Long Bow to start, then a switch to a 6 pEmerald Long Battle Bow at level 18. These worked especially well for her since she pumped Multiple Shot to deliver that ridiculously powerful poison dose to multiple targets. A combination of Angelic, Arctic (first), Death’s (later), and Cow King’s sets (just the boots from Cow King) were used with the twinking bow until Kuko Shakaku became available. One thing I really like was that fact that she was basically in endgame gear at level 42 (Buriza, Titan’s, skillers) which occurred in Normal Act 5.
I relied on Acrobatic Grand Charms to allow me to put just 1 point in all Passive/Magic skills (since many P/M skills plateau around 8-10) and, of course, Harpoonist’s GCs.
Play Style:
Blitzkrieg relied on a variety of attacks to deal with the range of targets. Lightning Fury of course used for crowds of monsters (even if some LI monsters were mixed in, LF took out all the rest, and mana leech even from the LIs kept the blue bulb full), Guided Arrow with the pierce from the Buriza was used to take down big targets, Fire Arrow was the primary PI solution, and the built-in cold damage from the Buriza was used with the piercing GA.
I played around with the tanking javelin skills, with overall disappointing results. Lightning damage from the javelin skills scale differently in 1.09 (narrow bands such as 250-350 damage versus the 1-700 damage you see in 1.13) and there are no synergies. I ended up going with Jab – it really worked pretty nice, actually. Pretty strong with a good Titan’s, very fast and mana-cheap – a good way to leech mana when needed. The most heartbreaking was Lightning Strike (which comes with a TGod’s) because you see the graphic that shows how AWESOME that skill SHOULD be, but then you see monster life bars not moving while all those fireworks are going on. QUITE the travesty.
As such, I played Blitzkrieg in a fairly balanced share of Bow and Javelin time. The bow skills are so strong in 1.09 that it’s hard to get away from that. However, I noticed a very irritating bug having to do with switching from Jav to Bow or vice versa – sometimes, it makes her get stuck in one place and unable move other than turning in place. She can shoot, but her attacks don’t land. She can pick up items that she can reach, and cast and enter a TP, but even in town, she still can’t move. I have to S&E when this happens.
Overall, however, she was a killing machine – the bow for large targets, LF for large groups (WOW it clears them out!). P8 for Normal and Nightmare, P3 for Hell. I worried about the Ancients, though, because I know what a challenge they were for my pure Bowazon. However, they turned out to go down plenty fast - the Merc and Valkyrie didn’t even really suffer.
Where she really shined in comparison to ShocknAwe was against bosses – the piercing GA from Buriza is just sick.
Blitzkrieg managed to stay close to ShocknAwe in levels…. until Hell, that is. Wow, what a difference between 1.09 and 1.13 on Hell leveling. Blitzkrieg just basically stopped gaining XP for a good spell while ShocknAwe kept marching on.
While 1.09 is an easier overall patch, there are some things about 1.09 that are more challenging than 1.13, such as the fact that Shaman bosses spawn with packs of Shaman (see screenie) and all those fire breaths can converge on your character to make a very dangerous situation.
Cows:
Well, no presentation of a LF JavaZon would be complete without a report on Cows. Yes, she can do them A-OK, but it’s not like they just melt on P8 the second a spark hits them. I actually found the Freezing Arrow I decided to dump a point in to be very handy. I like to run with the Merc and Valk, and since mercs in 1.09 are so much more fragile than 1.13 mercs, keeping the cows still (and, yes, even with a point + skillers, the freezing with the Buriza cold duration keeps the cows still for a very respectable amount of time) so the merc can work. The low FA level actually helps with keeping mana drainage manageable.
Finds:
Hellforge: Hell: Ko
I’ve amassed so much stuff in 1.09, I’m no longer impressed by another Raven Claw, Buriza or Butcher’s Pupil dropping, but she did find some notably neat stuff:
Ambergris Jewel of Prosperity – a very worthy replacement for an Ort rune
This Pul Rune actually put Blitzkrieg over ShocknAwe in the rune race until a very late Cham dropped for ShocknAwe
Matriarch ShocknAwe – 1.13 Hybrid Javelin/Bow Amazon
Character name : ShocknAwe
Character type : Amazon
Character level : 87
Character exp : 1288429275
LCS – Jav
LCS – Bow
Strength : 106
Energy : 15
Dexterity : 142
Vitality : 262
Stat Points Rem : 0
Skill Points Rem: 0
Life : 1085 / 1008
Mana : 209 / 144
Stamina : 432 / 412
Resists:
Javelin Switch: 75/75/85/62
Bow Switch: 75/75/66/43
Skills:
Javelin/Spear:
Prereqs: 1/13
Power Strike: 15/27
Charged Strike: 20/32
Lightning Fury: 20/35
Passive/Magic:
1 Point each in all skills (1/10)
Penetrate: 5/14
Pierce: 2/11
Bow/Crossbow:
Prereqs: 1/5
Strafe: 20/24
End-Game Gear:
Javelin Switch:
Code:
ShocknAwe's Titan's Revenge
Ceremonial Javelin
Throw Damage: 96 to 263
One-Hand Damage: 96 to 186
Quantity: 140
(Amazon Only)
Required Dexterity: 99
Required Strength: 15
Required Level: 42
Javelin Class - Fast Attack Speed
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 72
Fingerprint: 0xf4d2d4a1
+20 to Strength
+20 to Dexterity
+163% Enhanced Damage
+25 to Minimum Damage
+50 to Maximum Damage
9% Life stolen per hit
+2 to Amazon Skill Levels
30% Faster Run/Walk
+2 to Javelin and Spear Skills (Amazon Only)
Replenishes Quantity
Increased Stack Size
Ethereal (Cannot be Repaired)
Stormshield
Monarch
Defense: 462
Chance to Block: 72%
Required Strength: 156
Required Level: 73
Indestructible
Item Version: Expansion
Item Level: 90
Fingerprint: 0xf7574ca2
+30 to Strength
+25% Increased Chance of Blocking
Damage Reduced by 35%
Fire Resist +19%
Lightning Resist +44%
Cold Resist +79%
Poison Resist +19%
35% Faster Block Rate
Attacker Takes Lightning Damage of 10
+326 to Defense (Based on Character Level)
Socketed (1: 1 used)
Perfect Diamond
Inserted into a Monarch
All Resistances +19
Required Level: 18
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Bow Switch:
Code:
Windforce
Hydra Bow
Two-Hand Damage: 35 to 509
Required Dexterity: 167
Required Strength: 134
Required Level: 73
Bow Class - Fast Attack Speed
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 86
Fingerprint: 0x2a248bd8
+10 to Strength
+5 to Dexterity
+250% Enhanced Damage
Heal Stamina Plus 30%
6% Mana stolen per hit
Knockback
20% Increased Attack Speed
+271 to Maximum Damage (Based on Character Level)
Armor/Jewelry:
Helm: Stealskull (39)
Armor: “Chains of Honor” Archon Plate
Amulet: “Blood Collar” (see below)
Ring 1: Raven Frost
Ring 2: Bone Grip (see below)
Belt: Thundergod’s Vigor
Gloves: “Rune Fist” Bramble Mitts (see below)
Boots: “Eagle Blazer” Greaves (see below)
Code:
Corpse Visage
Blood Collar
Amulet
Required Level: 67
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 98
Fingerprint: 0xda14958a
+4 to Maximum Damage
All Resistances +14
+2 to Amazon Skill Levels
10% Faster Cast Rate
Bone Grip
Ring
Required Level: 48
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 90
Fingerprint: 0x64ab8bbd
+15 to Dexterity
+25 to Mana
Fire Resist +5%
Lightning Resist +12%
Cold Resist +5%
Poison Resist +5%
3% Life stolen per hit
4% Mana stolen per hit
Eagle Blazer
Greaves
Defense: 15
Durability: 24 of 24
Required Strength: 70
Required Level: 29
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 87
Fingerprint: 0x5b5dce6c
Fire Resist +32%
Cold Resist +40%
Poison Resist +6%
62% Extra Gold from Monsters
14% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items
30% Faster Run/Walk
Rune Fist
Bramble Mitts
Defense: 58
Durability: 12 of 12
Required Strength: 50
Required Level: 42
Item Version: 1.10+ Expansion
Item Level: 75
Fingerprint: 0x8cfcb5ca
+11 to Attack Rating
Fire Resist +29%
Cold Resist +9%
Adds 1-5 fire damage
3% Life stolen per hit
3% Mana stolen per hit
Charms:
Acrobatic Grand Charm
Acrobatic Grand Charm
Acrobatic Grand Charm of Balance
Shimmering Grand Charm
Harpoonist's Grand Charm of Craftmanship
Harpoonist's Grand Charm
Harpoonist's Grand Charm of Greed
Harpoonist's Grand Charm of Life
(Acrobatics to allow 1 point + skills for all the D/E/A, Pierce, etc. to get to the plateau for these skills)
Merc:
Weapon: eth Reaper’s Toll (Sheal) (from BobTheWarrior)
Helm: Vampire’s Gaze
Armor: Duriel’s Shell
Twinking:
What else? 1.09 Raven Claw! (Envy bow until then). Same mix of set for armor – Angelic, Arctic -> Deaths, Cow King’s boots, etc. For Nightmare, I made a Harmony for her. Very nice bow, that. I was going to make it in a Matriarchal Bow (surprisingly low lvl req, but WOW that Dex req), but I ended up making it in an Ashwood bow for the MUCH more reasonable Dex req.
Like for Blitzkrieg, I relied on Acrobatic Grand Charms to allow me to put just 1 point in all Passive/Magic skills (since many P/M skills plateau around 8-10) and, of course, Harpoonist’s GCs.
Play Style:
Lightning Javelin skills are just so much better in 1.13 than 1.09, it’s not even funny. ShocknAwe was truly a JavaZon who had the Bow on switch just for the LIs. CS is crazy good, and you can even play with Power Strike since it synergizes with CS. One problem though… it’s hard to leech enough mana to keep a fully pumped CS going on its own. She had an eth Titan’s and a Might merc to power some leech, but it was still often not enough. LF leeched mana better in 1.13 than in 1.09 though, but that probably WAS that eth Titan’s versus the non-eth in 1.09.
On the bow side, it made my head hurt to see how much weaker strafing with a WF in 1.13 was to MS/GA with a Buriza in 1.09. The merc’s Reaper’s helped a LOT, but that Decrep doesn’t last a real long time.
Overall, however, she was an easier character to play than Blitzkrieg because the Javelin skills (yes, including LF) are better in 1.13 and I didn’t have to switch as much. Plus I never noticed that “My boot’s on a magnet!” bug when weapon switching with this character.
ShocknAwe doesn’t like LI/PIs. And those happen pretty often in Hell, actually. The merc’s Reaper’s made them killable, but very slowly. I sure missed that bugged Fire Arrow.
Cows:
Well, no presentation of a LF JavaZon would be complete without a report on Cows. ShocknAwe does them mighty well – just as good as Blitzkrieg, actually, since the merc is so much tougher, he doesn’t need babysat. The Valk is way weaker because her HPs don’t scale with player settings as in 1.09, but she only costs mana, and LF leeches mana from cows very effectively.
Finds:
Hellforge: Hell: Mal (nice!)
ShocknAwe was getting pwned by Blitzkrieg’s Pul drop until a late Cham Rune dropped in an Act 5 Red Portal area (along with a nice Jade Talon).
Some really nice boots.
Thank you for reading.
PLANS?
Oh, ok.
1.09 versus 1.13 WW Sword Barbs, of course! Throwing every bit of wealth I have into this. Grief PBs versus crazy crafted 1.07 3os swords.|||Really nice write up. I enjoyed following your other thread, and look forward to seeing how those crazy 1.07 swords fare in your next project.|||Look like you've got a couple of very safe zons there!
I have to say though that you haven't experienced the full face-melting power of LF until you've equipped a razortail. (Not to mention, the repairs on TGods are super expensive)
GL with the barbs.
|||Grats on the chars!Mixing up Strafe and D/A/E is certainly not something I'd have done, but hey, you managed. As always, I have to fight the urge to pimp out Multiple Shot here. Lack of 'Infinity' on the second lady is surprising. I guess that's your no switching gear between chars thing, yes?
Nicely done!
--Greebo|||Thanks for the 'Grats to everyone.
@humbuggerer: Yeah, I'm all about safety. Especially in 1.09, TGod's can't be beat for safety since it makes MSLE a non-issue. My 1.13 Zon runs cows just fine as she's outfitted, so I'm not really seeing the need to change her gear.
@Greebo: You don't have to preach Multi-Shot to me - my 1.09 BuriZon put that to great use. I found D/E/A not to be an issue, especially on bow switch as I always got her some space before strafing. If she got crowded, jabbing with CS was her attack. And, yes, that Infinity remains with my Pally's merc. I really like being able to fire up any character I want to play without tinkering with equipment first, so I like them to be ready to step out of the Rouge Encampment at a moment's notice. But... I do SO MUCH want to experience a LF Zon with a merc sporting Infinity - I know from my Pally how many LIs that breaks, and I can't even imaging the carnage that would result in.
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