Sorceress Lightning Spells

ADVERTISEMENT
From Diablo Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
Sorceress Skills

The Sorceress' lightning spells tend to feature the lowest and highest possible damages, so it's important that you average out your true killing power. Many of these skills are not hugely damaging, but they are meant to be used repeatedly and very quickly, and can be devastating when employed with speed and skill. Higher mana regeneration and especially faster cast modifiers are very useful to Lightning Sorceresses.


Charged Bolt[edit]

Required Level: 1

Prerequisites: None
Synergies:

  • Lightning: +6% Lightning Damage Per Level

Description:
    Charged bolt is one of the first skills a sorceress can learn, and is one of the few level 1 skills that scales well end game. Unlike most other lightning skills, which do 1-x damage, charged bolt does very stable damage. At its maximum potential, Charged Bolt casts a total of 24 bolts at around 500 damage each, roughly 13,000 damage per spread. Each bolt is consumed as it hits, the rest passing through if the enemy dies without consuming all the bolts. Generally the closer your enemy is to you, the more bolts they will absorb, although this also depends on the angle between you and the enemy. Charged bolt is also one of the best skills in the game for scaling with negative enemy resist gear. Charged bolt with an Infinity runeword can kill Diablo or Baal or even Über Diablo in less than 5 seconds in hell difficulty.

PvP:
    Like other skills of this type, Charged Bolt is more susceptible to point absorb than large damage, single hit attacks. However, with stacked negative enemy resist, Charged Bolt also has the potential to kill many players in one hit (which few people expect).

Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana

Damage

Bolts

Slvl Mana

Damage

Bolts

Slvl Mana

Damage

Bolts

Slvl Mana

Damage

Bolts

1 3.0 2-4 3 6 5.5 4-6 8 11 8.0 7-9 13 16 10.5 9-11 18
2 3.5 2-4 4 7 6.0 5-7 9 12 8.5 7-9 14 17 11.0 10-12 19
3 4.0 3-5 5 8 6.5 5-7 10 13 9.0 8-10 15 18 11.5 11-13 20
4 4.5 3-5 6 9 7.0 6-8 11 14 9.5 8-10 16 19 12.0 12-14 21
5 5.0 4-6 7 10 7.5 6-8 12 15 10.0 9-11 17 20 12.0 13-15 22


Charged Bolt Builds[edit]




Telekinesis[edit]

Required Level: 6

Prerequisites: None
Synergies: None

Description:
    Telekinesis can be used to pick up objects, activate triggers, or to strike enemies, stunning and knocking them back with some minor damage. TK was a very useful skill in earlier versions of Diablo II, since it picked up anything, and with this Sorceresses were always the quickest to grab the loot when a monster popped. Patches have since greatly limited what can be picked up with it, so it's much less useful, and much less annoying to other players, than in the early days.

  • Telekinesis will only pick up scrolls, potions, keys, gold, arrows and bolts.
  • TK will not stun or knockback bosses or SuperUniques.
  • TK is very convenient. Use it to activate shrines, waypoints, and stairways, to open chests (including the Town Stash), to release the seals in the Chaos Sanctuary, and so forth.

PvP:
    Telekinesis isn't particularly useful in PvP, but if you have large amounts of negative enemy resist it can be used to kill people while they are naked. Damage wise this skill simply isn't practical, its uses lie in its other abilities.

Mana: 7
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Damage

Slvl Damage

Slvl Damage

Slvl Damage

1 1-2 6 6-7 11 11-12 16 16-17
2 2-3 7 7-8 12 12-13 17 17-18
3 3-4 8 8-9 13 13-14 18 18-19
4 4-5 9 9-10 14 14-15 19 19-20
5 5-6 10 10-11 15 15-16 20 20-21




Static Field[edit]

Required Level: 6

Prerequisites: None
Synergies: None

Description:
    Static Field hits every monster in range, instantly chopping 25% off of their current hit points (similar to crushing blow). This is the single most damaging spell or skill in the entire game, under the right circumstances. Static Field is affected by the lightning resist of your enemy; if that resist is positive then Static will do less than 25% of their life in damage, and if their resist is negative (e.g. facets, conviction, lower resist) it will do more, up to 50% of their total life in one cast vs an enemy with -100 lightning resist. Static Field cannot kill an enemy by itself, and additionally has a penalty in nightmare and hell difficulties. In nightmare, static will not do damage to any monster with 33% or less life remaining (and will not bring it below 33%), and in hell, static will not bring any monster below 50% health.

PvP:
    Static Field, like all other damage skills, only works at 17.5% of its normal effect versus players. Even with negative enemy resist, this skill will not do significant damage in PvP.

Mana: 9
Damage: 25% of monster life
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Radius

Slvl Radius

Slvl Radius

Slvl Radius

1 3.3 6 6.6 11 10.0 16 13.3
2 4.0 7 7.3 12 10.6 17 14.0
3 4.6 8 8.0 13 11.3 18 14.6
4 5.3 9 8.6 14 12.0 19 15.3
5 6.0 10 9.3 15 12.6 20 16.0


Static Field Builds[edit]




Lightning[edit]

Required Level: 12
Prerequisites: Charged Bolt
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Lightning.

Details: The Lightning skill fires a long stream of concentrated shockage, passing through every target in a straight line. Lightning is best used against mobs, or in narrow corridors, so multiple monsters can be hit with each cast.

Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana

Damage

Slvl Mana

Damage

Slvl Mana

Damage

Slvl Mana

Damage

1 8.0 1-43 6 10.5 1-86 11 13.0 1-142 16 15.0 1-207
2 8.5 1-51 7 11.0 1-95 12 13.0 1-155 17 16.0 1-228
3 9.0 1-60 8 11.5 1-103 13 14.0 1-168 18 16.0 1-250
4 9.5 1-69 9 12.0 1-116 14 14.0 1-181 19 17.0 1-272
5 10.0 1-77 10 12.0 1-129 15 15.0 1-194 20 17.0 1-293


Lightning Builds[edit]




Nova[edit]

Required Level: 12
Prerequisites: Static Field
Synergies: None.
Details: Nova casts an expanding ring of lightning that strikes everything in its path, extending nearly to the edge of the screen. Nova is one of the most powerful skills in the game, but must be used wisely to be effective. It's best against mobs, ideally ones that are all around the Sorceress, when it will hit dozens of monsters per use.

  • Nova Sorcs require very fast casting speed, a lot of mana, and the nerve to stand very close to monsters all around them.
  • Nova is not a very good boss killer, since the damage per cast isn't that high; its strength comes when used against numerous monsters at once.
  • Nova works very well when paired with powerful, casting delay skills like Meteor and Hydra.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana

Damage

Slvl Mana

Damage

Slvl Mana

Damage

Slvl Mana

Damage

1 15 1-20 6 20 31-60 11 25 64-103 16 30 99-148
2 16 7-28 7 21 37-68 12 26 71-112 17 31 107-158
3 17 13-36 8 22 43-76 13 27 78-121 18 32 115-168
4 18 19-44 9 23 50-85 14 28 85-130 19 33 123-178
5 19 25-52 10 24 57-94 15 29 92-139 20 34 131-188


Nova Builds[edit]




Chain Lightning[edit]

Required Level: 18
Prerequisites: Charged Bolt, Lightning
Synergies: The following skills add to the damage of Chain Lightning.

Details: Chain Lightning jumps from target to target, and can be quite impressive when cast on a cluster of enemies. It's much less effective against single targets, and is slower to hit enemies than Lightning, which passes straight through as quickly as the Sorceress casts it.

Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana

Damage

Targets

Slvl Mana

Damage

Targets

Slvl Mana

Damage

Targets

Slvl Mana

Damage

Targets

1 9 1-40 5 6 14 1-95 6 11 19 1-156 7 16 24 1-221 8
2 10 1-51 5 7 15 1-106 6 12 20 1-169 7 17 25 1-236 8
3 11 1-62 5 8 16 1-117 6 13 21 1-182 7 18 26 1-251 8
4 12 1-73 5 9 17 1-130 6 14 22 1-195 7 19 27 1-266 8
5 13 1-84 6 10 18 1-143 7 15 23 1-208 8 20 28 1-281 9


Chain Lightning Builds[edit]




Teleport[edit]

Required Level: 18
Prerequisites: Telekinesis.
Synergies: None.
Details: Teleport moves the Sorceress instantly to any valid location she can point her cursor at. This skill will pop her over creeks, past any number of monsters, through walls, etc.

  • Teleport is a great time-saver, as well as a way to escape monsters. This makes the Sorceress the best character for doing speedruns, the only parts that cannot be skipped are Act Bosses that must be killed to advance to the next stage.[1]
  • With each Teleport all of a character's minion(s) will all reappear directly on top of them. This is very useful to keep them organized and to best use them to position monsters for destructive spell damage.
  • Items that grant Teleport or teleport charges are quite popular for all characters, especially when used in duelling or Magic Finding.
  • One skill point in Teleport is enough, as additional points in Teleport do nothing but reduce the mana cost.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana

Slvl Mana

Slvl Mana

Slvl Mana

1 24 6 19 11 14 16 9
2 23 7 18 12 13 17 8
3 22 8 17 13 12 18 7
4 21 9 16 14 11 19 6
5 20 10 15 15 10 20 5


Teleport Builds[edit]




Thunder Storm[edit]

Required Level: 24
Prerequisites: Charged Bolt, Static Field, Lightning, Nova, Chain Lightning
Synergies: None.
Details: Thunder Storm shoots down a single bolt of lighting every second, hitting a randomly-selected monster. It can not be aimed or controlled, and works in a passive fashion for as long as it's active. The damage is not substantial, but this is a very convenient spell since it works by itself and always hits, making it quite helpful to finish off running monsters, to add damage to a boss, etc.

Mana: 19
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Damage

Duration

Slvl Damage

Duration

Slvl Damage

Duration

Slvl Damage

Duration

1 1-100 32 6 51-150 72 11 101-200 112 16 151-250 152
2 11-110 40 7 61-160 80 12 111-210 120 17 162-261 160
3 21-120 48 8 71-170 88 13 121-220 128 18 173-272 168
4 31-130 56 9 81-180 96 14 131-230 136 19 184-283 176
5 41-140 64 10 91-190 104 15 141-240 144 20 195-294 184


Thunder Storm Builds[edit]




Energy Shield[edit]

Required Level: 24
Prerequisites: Charged Bolt, Telekinesis, Lightning, Teleport, Chain Lightning
Synergies: Points in Telekinesis boost the effectiveness of Energy Shield, decreasing the absorption by 6.25% per point. (See below.)
Details: Energy Shield allows the Sorceress to redirect damage from life to mana. Instead of attacks costing her life, some % of them (increasing with more points in the skill) will subtract from her mana instead.

  • The use of this skill varies a lot between Sorceresses. Since only a % of the incoming damage is redirected, this skill needs a fair amount of points to be useful.
  • High hit point or low mana builds will find this less necessary or useful.
  • Telekinesis improves this skill by making the damage absorption more efficient. By default, each point of damage redirect to mana consumes 2 mana points. So with lvl 7 Energy Shield absorbing 50% of damage, 10 points of damage would take off 5 life and 10 mana. If that same Sorceress had 8 points in Telekinesis, the mana cost would be cut to 7.5 mana. With 16 points in TK, the mana loss would only be 5, a 50% decrease.
Mana Cost: 5
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Absorbing

Duration

Slvl Absorbing

Duration

Slvl Absorbing

Duration

Slvl Absorbing

Duration

1 20% Dmg 144 6 45% Dmg 444 11 61% Dmg 744 16 71% Dmg 1044
2 25% Dmg 204 7 50% Dmg 504 12 63% Dmg 804 17 72% Dmg 1104
3 30% Dmg 264 8 55% Dmg 564 13 65% Dmg 864 18 73% Dmg 1164
4 35% Dmg 324 9 57% Dmg 624 14 67% Dmg 924 19 74% Dmg 1224
5 40% Dmg 384 10 59% Dmg 684 15 69% Dmg 984 20 75% Dmg 1284


FAQ[edit]

Q: What does telekinesis do for energy shield?

A: Energy shield takes 2 points of mana for every point of life it absorbs. Each point you spend in telekinesis reduces this by 0.0625 point. This means that after 16 points you’re only losing half the mana compared to zero points, or one mana per absorbed life. At 20 points you’re only losing 0.75 mana per absorbed hit point.

Q: So if you get a level 32 telekinesis you’re losing no mana through energy shield?

A: No, it only works with actual invested points, so level 20 (1:0.75) is the limit.

Q: How much damage can energy shield absorb?

A: It’s capped at 95%, which is at skill level (slvl) 40. After that only the duration of energy shield increases.

Q: What is the energy shield bug?

A: It doesn’t exist. This ‘bug’ you might’ve heard about, is simply an intended change from blizzard. This change is that energy shield is now applied before resistances, meaning your mana gets drained four times as much as it used to with maxed resistances. Telekinesis doesn’t totally make up for this, but it helps.

Q: Is energy shield applied before the PvP penalty?

A: No. This is good since this means 6 times less mana draining.

Q: How do I calculate damage taken to mana and life with energy shield?

There’s a formula for that:

Damage to life = InitialDamage*(W/100)*(1-X/100)*(1-Y/100)*(1-Z/100)

W = PvP penalty (for most, if not all attacks 17%)
X = % resistance (or damage reduction in case of a physical attack)
Y = % chance to block (in case of a physical attack or blockable elemental attack)
Z = % energy shield

Fill in zero if you have zero resistance or block or damage reduction.

For example if you take 12,000 damage hit from a fire ball when dueling another sorceress with maxed telekinesis, resistances and 95% (max) energy shield:

Damage to life = 12,000*0.17*(1-0.75)*(1-0)*(1-0.95) = 25.5 life lost

For damage to mana another formula can be used:

Damage to mana = Damage*(2 – 0.0625x)*(W/100)

x = slvl telekinesis W = pvp penalty

Take the same example as above, with the fire ball hitting:

Damage to mana = 12,000*(2-0.0625*20)*(0.17) = 1530 mana lost

Q: Is damage to mana % effective in combination with energy shield?

A: No. Since damage to mana is now subtracted from the actual damage you take, in our fire ball example, it would take (1,500/25)*100 = 6,000% damage to mana in order to restore the lost mana. The higher your energy shield gets, the less you benefit from %damage to mana.

A formula for this is: Damage to mana/Damage to life*100 = Amount of DmgToMana% needed to fully restore lost mana

Q: Is Energy shield viable?

A: Yes, this build is very powerful in both PvM as in PvP, the main problems are getting enough damage output, and mana burn monsters in PvM.

Q: I don't get all this math, in simple language, what can ES do for me?

A: It can absorb 95% of all damage you take, given that you can keep your mana high enough. Your lost life will be very minor, but your mana takes heavy beat. Telekinesis helps reducing the cost of mana.

Q: Does energy shield absorb all attacks?

A: No, it doesn't absorb poison and open wounds. There's also reports of a bug where it doesn't absorb charge either.

Input (still) very welcome, when constructively and at least somewhat nicely brought.

v1.1:[edit]

  • Fixed formulae
  • Added some information
  • Corrected pvp penalty
  • Slightly edited layout
  • Minor spelling corrections

FAQ by soepgroente

Energy Shield Builds[edit]




Lightning Mastery[edit]

Required Level: 30
Prerequisites:: None
Synergies: None.
Details: Lightning Mastery works just like Fire Mastery; by substantially boosting the damage of every skill in the skill tree. Maxing this one out is a priority for most Lightning Sorceresses.

  • In early versions of the game, Lightning Mastery instead reduced the mana cost of lightning spells. At that time, each of the three masteries were unique.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Damage

Slvl Damage

Slvl Damage

Slvl Damage

1 +50% 6 +110% 11 +170% 16 +230%
2 +62% 7 +122% 12 +182% 17 +242%
3 +74% 8 +134% 13 +194% 18 +254%
4 +86% 9 +146% 14 +206% 19 +266%
5 +98% 10 +158% 15 +218% 20 +278%


Lightning Mastery Builds[edit]