Sorceress
The Sorceress is Diablo 2's true mage, a character bristling with powerful magics of every kind.
Background
A rebellious woman who has wrested the secrets of magic use from the male dominated Mage-Clans of the East, the Sorceress is an expert in mystical creation ex nihilo. Though somewhat lacking in the skills of hand-to-hand combat, she compensates for this weakness with fierce combative magic for both offense and defense. Solitary and reclusive, the Sorceress acts based on motives and ethics inscrutable to most, and sometimes seems capricious and even spiteful. In reality, she understands the struggle between Order and Chaos all too clearly, as well as her role as a warrior in this battle.
Starting Attributes Starting Stats Gain Each Level Gain Each Point
* Strength: 10
* Dexterity: 25
* Vitality: 10
* Energy: 35
* Hit Points: 40
* Stamina: 74
* Mana: 35
* Life: +1
* Stamina: +1
* Mana: +2
* 1 Vitality point gives 2 Life
* 1 Vitality point gives 1 Stamina
* 1 Energy point gives 2 Mana
History
The female mage clan of Zann Esu is one of the oldest of the ancient clans, although little is actually known about them. Centuries ago, the fourteen powerful covens of Esu witches convened for the first time in generations. What they discussed is not known, but the witches left behind their former lives and, as a group, disappeared into the Eastern Jungles.
The exact location of their community is a mystery. Until recently, their only contact with the outside world occurred during the recruitment missions. Once every seven years, the Zann Esu visited certain families across Sanctuary. These families had one thing in common -- they each had a seven-year old daugther. Always good-natured and polite, the Zann Esu visitors would meet the girls, ask a few questions, and then leave. A select few of the girls were visited a second time and offered apprenticeships. The families of those chosen enjoyed good fortune for many years after.
The Zann Esu, or Sorceresses as they are generally known, are on a quest for purity, the pursuit of the perfect magic. They feel the other disciplines of magic are haphazard, and have instead chosen to focus strictly upon elemental magic. They mold the base elements into whatever magical forms they need -- threatening all other magic disciplines with obsolescence. In order to achieve perfection in these elemental transmutations, they choose only those daughters of Sanctuary with the highest level of attunement to the magical elements.
The Sorceresses believe that it is through the search for perfection that they will attain ultimate purity and ascend to their destined role as the most powerful mages in Sanctuary. For centuries they have studied in secret, perfecting their art and bidding their time until the Emergence of Evil. Then, they will face their greatest challenge, either proving the purity of their magic or fading from existence.
The Zann Esu oracles have decreed that the time of the Emergence is at hand. The destruction of the Prime Evils is to be the great test of their clan. Recently, Sorceresses have appeared mysteriously throughout Sanctuary to do battle with the minions of evil wherever they are found.
Traits and Abilities
A fetish sorceress
Athletic, affable, and self-assured. Sorceresses hardly seem like scholarly bookworms hidden away from civilization. Sorceresses possess many of the same skills as the male members of the Eastern mage clans, but excel at the use of elemental magic. Like most mages, they consider melee combat vulgar and use magic almost exclusively to fight their enemies.
Sorceress Cold Spells
The Cold spells have less raw damage than fire or lightning, but add the bonus effect of chilling or freezing the target, and thanks to Cold Mastery's ability to lower resistances, these spells can be the strongest in the game, despite their lower total damage numbers.
Cold vs. Frozen
* Chilled monsters are slowed, often for quite a time. They have a % chance to shatter into pieces when they die.
* Frozen monsters are stunned into motionless until they thaw. The Freezing effect usually lasts just a second or two. Boss monsters can not be frozen (just chilled). All frozen monsters will shatter into ice cubes when they die, leaving no corpse.
Contents
* 1 Ice Bolt
* 2 Frozen Armor
* 3 Frost Nova
* 4 Ice Blast
* 5 Shiver Armor
* 6 Glacial Spike
* 7 Blizzard
* 8 Chilling Armor
* 9 Frozen Orb
* 10 Cold Mastery
Ice Bolt
Required Level: 1
Prerequisites: None
Synergies: The damage of Ice Bolt is boosted by points in the following skills:
* Frost Nova: +15% Cold Damage Per Level
* Ice Blast: +15% Cold Damage Per Level
* Glacial Spike: +15% Cold Damage Per Level
* Blizzard: +15% Cold Damage Per Level
* Frozen Orb: +15% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: This spell shoots a small snowball that damages and slows the target. There is no splash, the spell slows rather than freezes, and the damage isn't high enough to use it long term, even with the huge cluster of synergies added in recent patches.
Mana 3
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Damage
Duration
Slvl Damage
Duration
Slvl Damage
Duration
Slvl Damage
Duration
1 3-5 6.0 6 8-12 13.0 11 16-23 20.0 16 26-36 27.0
2 4-6 7.4 7 9-14 14.4 12 18-25 21.0 17 29-39 28.4
3 5-8 8.8 8 10-15 15.8 13 20-28 22.8 18 32-42 29.8
4 6-9 10.2 9 12-18 17.2 14 22-30 24.2 19 35-46 31.2
5 7-11 11.6 10 14-20 18.6 15 24-33 25.6 20 38-49 32.6
Frozen Armor
Required Level: 1
Prerequisites: None
Synergies: Frozen Armor is boosted by points in the following skills:
* Shiver Armor: +10 Seconds Per Level
* Shiver Armor: +5% Freeze Length Per Level
* Chilling Armor: +10 Seconds Per Level
* Chilling Armor: +5% Freeze Length Per Level
Details: Provides a defense bonus and freezes any melee attackers that strike the Sorceress. Only one of the Frozen Armor, Shiver Armor, Chilling Armor defensive spells may be active at once.
* PVP: Chills, rather than freezes.
* Since few Sorceresses choose their equipment with an eye to raising their defense, this spell isn't especially useful to most builds.
Mana: 11
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Defense
Duration
Freeze
Slvl Defense
Duration
Freeze
Slvl Defense
Duration
Freeze
Slvl Defense
Duration
Freeze
1 +30% 120 1.2 sec 6 +55% 180 1.8 sec 11 +80% 240 2.4 sec 16 +105% 300 3.0 sec
2 +35% 132 1.3 sec 7 +60% 192 1.9 sec 12 +85% 252 2.5 sec 17 +110% 312 3.1 sec
3 +40% 144 1.4 sec 8 +65% 204 2.0 sec 13 +90% 264 2.6 sec 18 +115% 324 3.2 sec
4 +45% 156 1.5 sec 9 +70% 216 2.1 sec 14 +95% 276 2.7 sec 19 +120% 336 3.3 sec
5 +50% 168 1.6 sec 10 +75% 228 2.2 sec 15 +100% 288 2.8 sec 20 +125% 348 3.4 sec
Frost Nova
Required Level: 6
Prerequisites None
Synergies: Frost Nova's damage is boosted by points in the following skills:
* Blizzard: +10% Cold Damage Per Level
* Frozen Orb: +10% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: Creates and expanding ring of ice that damages enemies with cold damage and slows enemies. The radius is the same as that of Nova, about 2/3 of the visible screen.
* This spell doesn't do enough damage to kill effectively with, but it's a great defensive aid, instantly chilling every monster within a dozen yards of the Sorceress.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
Chill
Slvl Mana
Damage
Chill
Slvl Mana
Damage
Chill
Slvl Mana
Damage
Chill
1 9 2-4 8 sec 6 14 12-16 13 sec 11 19 25-32 18 sec 16 24 40-49 23 sec
2 10 4-6 9 sec 7 15 14-19 14 sec 12 20 28-35 19 sec 17 25 44-54 24 sec
3 11 6-9 10 sec 8 16 16-21 15 sec 13 21 31-39 20 sec 18 26 48-58 25 sec
4 12 8-11 11 sec 9 17 19-25 16 sec 14 22 34-42 21 sec 19 27 52-63 26 sec
5 13 10-14 12 sec 10 18 22-28 17 sec 15 23 37-46 22 sec 20 28 56-67 27 sec
Ice Blast
Required Level: 6
Prerequisites: Ice Bolt
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Ice Blast.
* Ice Bolt: +8% Cold Damage Per Level
* Glacial Spike: +10% Freeze Length Per Level
* Blizzard: +8% Cold Damage Per Level
* Frozen Orb: +8% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: Shoots a large snowball that hits with splash cold damage, freezing the target and chilling nearby monsters.
* PVP: Players are chilled, not frozen.
* Bosses, Champions, and SuperUniques can not be frozen.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
1 6.0 8-12 3.0 sec 6 8.5 46-53 4.0 sec 11 11.0 106-116 5.0 sec 16 13.0 182-194 6.0 sec
2 6.5 16-21 3.2 sec 7 9.0 54-61 4.2 sec 12 11.5 122-132 5.2 sec 17 14.0 205-218 6.2 sec
3 7.0 23-29 3.4 sec 8 9.5 61-69 4.4 sec 13 12.0 137-147 5.4 sec 18 14.0 227-241 6.4 sec
4 7.5 31-37 3.6 sec 9 10.0 76-85 4.6 sec 14 12.0 152-163 5.6 sec 19 15.0 250-264 6.6 sec
5 8.0 38-45 3.8 sec 10 10.5 91-100 4.8 sec 15 13.0 167-179 5.8 sec 20 15.0 273-287 6.8 sec
Shiver Armor
Required Level: 12
Prerequisites: Frozen Armor, Ice Bolt, Ice Blast
Synergies: Shiver Armor receives bonuses from points placed in the following skills:
* Frozen Armor: +10 Seconds Per Level
* Frozen Armor: +9% Cold Damage Per Level
* Chilling Armor: +10 Seconds Per Level
* Chilling Armor: +9% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: Provides a larger defensive bonus than Frozen Armor, and damages melee attackers. It chills, rather than freezes, as Frozen Armor does.
Mana: 11
Cold Length: 4 Seconds
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
1 +45% +6-8 130 6 +75% +17-22 190 11 +105% +31-39 250 16 +135% +47-58 310
2 +51% +8-11 142 7 +81% +19-25 202 12 +111% +34-43 262 17 +141% +52-63 322
3 +57% +10-14 154 8 +87% +21-27 214 13 +117% +38-46 274 18 +147% +56-68 334
4 +63% +13-16 166 9 +93% +25-31 226 14 +123% +41-50 286 19 +153% +61-73 346
5 +69% +15-19 178 10 +99% +28-35 238 15 +129% +44-54 298 20 +159% +65-77 358
Glacial Spike
Required Level: 18
Prerequisites" Ice Bolt, Ice Blast
Synergies: Points in the following skills provide a bonus to Glacial Spike.
* Ice Bolt: +5% Cold Damage Per Level
* Ice Blast: +5% Cold Damage Per Level
* Blizzard: +3% Freeze Length Per Level
* Frozen Orb: +5% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: Shoots a large snowball that hits with substantial damage and a large splash effect, freezing the targeted monster and anything within 2.6 yards.
* A very popular support skill; many Sorceresses map this to their left click button for emergency use (clicking on open space with targeted spells on the left click will simply run to that spot, just as having Attack or other melee skills on the left click does).
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
Slvl Mana
Damage
Freeze
1 10.0 17-26 2.0 sec 6 12.5 56-67 2.6 sec 11 15.0 114-128 3.2 sec 16 17.5 185-202 3.8 sec
2 10.5 25-34 2.1 sec 7 13.0 63-75 2.7 sec 12 15.5 128-143 3.3 sec 17 18.0 201-218 3.9 sec
3 11.0 33-42 2.2 sec 8 13.5 71-84 2.8 sec 13 16.0 143-158 3.4 sec 18 18.5 216-234 4.0 sec
4 11.5 40-51 2.3 sec 9 14.0 85-99 2.9 sec 14 16.5 157-173 3.5 sec 19 19.0 232-250 4.1 sec
5 12.0 48-59 2.4 sec 10 14.5 100-113 3.0 sec 15 17.0 171-188 3.6 sec 20 19.5 247-266 4.2 sec
Blizzard
Casting Delay: 1.8 Seconds
Required Level: 24
Prerequisites: Ice Bolt, Ice Blast, Frost Nova, Glacial Spike
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Blizzard:
* Ice Bolt: +5% Cold Damage Per Level
* Ice Blast: +5% Cold Damage Per Level
* Glacial Spike: +5% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: Blizzard is an area effect spell, calling down an icy storm that chills and cold damages everything over a wide area. Targets are chilled, not frozen, and the damage is dealt over time instead of all in one blast, but the total damage dealt is the highest of any spell in this tree.
* Blizzard requires a certain play style, since its damage is dealt over several seconds to an area, instead of in a more targeted shot like most Sorceress spells. Monsters will need to be herded together, or a tank used to get them to hold still while Blizzard rains down its damage.
Duration: 4 Seconds
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
DPS
Slvl Mana
DPS
Slvl Mana
DPS
Slvl Mana
DPS
1 23 51-86 6 28 138-178 11 33 276-322 16 38 448-500
2 24 69-104 7 29 155-196 12 34 310-357 17 39 500-553
3 25 86-123 8 30 172-215 13 35 345-393 18 40 552-606
4 26 103-141 9 31 207-250 14 36 379-428 19 41 603-658
5 27 120-159 10 32 241-286 15 37 414-464 20 42 655-711
Chilling Armor
Required Level: 24
Prerequisites: Frozen Armor, Ice Bolt, Ice Blast, Shiver Armor
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the effects of Chilling Armor.
* Frozen Armor: +10 Seconds Per Level
* Frozen Armor: +7% Cold Damage Per Level
* Shiver Armor: +10 Seconds Per Level
* Shiver Armor: +7% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: Chilling Armor provides a slightly smaller defensive bonus than Shiver Armor (but larger than Frozen Armor). While the other two boost special effects against melee attackers, this one reacts to incoming projectiles by firing an Ice Bolt back in the direction of the missile.
* Since most Cold Sorcs have a constant stream of ice covering most of the screen, the damage returned from this defensive spell is largely irrelevant at higher levels.
Mana: 17
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
Slvl Defense
Damage
Duration
1 +45% +5-8 170 6 +70% +11-17 200 11 +95% +21-30 230 16 +125% +34-45 260
2 +50% +6-10 176 7 +75% +12-18 206 12 +100% +22-33 236 17 +130% +37-49 266
3 +55% +7-11 182 8 +80% +14-21 212 13 +105% +26-35 242 18 +135% +41-53 272
4 +60% +9-13 188 9 +85% +17-24 218 14 +110% +28-38 248 19 +140% +44-57 278
5 +65% +10-15 194 10 +90% +19-27 224 15 +120% +30-41 254 20 +4-6 164 —
Frozen Orb
Casting Delay: 1 Second
Required Level: 30
Prerequisites: Ice Bolt, Ice Blast, Frost Nova, Glacial Spike, Blizzard
Synergies: Each skill point in Ice Bolt adds: +2% Cold Damage Per Level
Details: One of the more awesome spells in the game, Frozen Orb fires out a glowing orb of ice that spins across most of the visible screen, emitting dozens of tiny Ice Bolts in all directions.
* Frozen Orb requires some skill to use, since the damage is highest right where the orb is targeted, and especially at the point it expires with one final swirl of ice. Enemies must therefore be within effective range, and not blocked by walls or other obstacles.
* As with all casting delay Sorceress skills, Frozen Orb can and should be teamed with another spell that can be cast during the second delay.
* In earlier versions of D2, this spell was bugged so that monsters the Orb passed over took minimal damage. It was therefore necessary to aim just to the side of targets. This bug was fixed in v1.09.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Cold
Cold Dur.
Slvl Mana
Cold
Cold Dur.
Slvl Mana
Cold
Cold Dur.
Slvl Mana
Cold
Cold Dur.
1 25 +40-45 8 6 27 +90-95 13 11 30 +146-151 18 16 32 +206-211 23
2 25 +50-55 9 7 28 +100-105 14 12 30 +158-163 19 17 33 +220-225 24
3 26 +60-65 10 8 28 +110-115 15 13 31 +170-175 20 18 33 +234-239 25
4 26 +70-75 11 9 29 +122-127 16 14 31 +182-187 21 19 34 +248-253 26
5 27 +80-85 12 10 29 +134-139 17 15 32 +194-199 22 20 34 +262-267 27
Cold Mastery
Required Level: 30
Prerequisites: None
Synergies: None
Details: Cold Mastery provides a constant passive bonus by lowering the resistance of all the targets of her spells.
* Resistance is only lowered to her spells; not for others in her party, including cold-using minions.
* Cold Mastery does not break immunities, but can reduce resistances into negative values, greatly increasing the damage of her spells.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Enemy Resistance
Slvl Enemy Resistance
Slvl Enemy Resistance
Slvl Enemy Resistance
1 -20% 6 -45% 11 -70% 16 -95%
2 -25% 7 -50% 12 -75% 17 -100%
3 -30% 8 -55% 13 -80% 18 -105%
4 -35% 9 -60% 14 -85% 19 -110%
5 -40% 10 -65% 15 -90% 20 -115%
Sorceress Fire Spells
The Sorceress' fire spells provide the highest total damage of any of her skill trees, but tend to be slower to use and to require more exact positioning and aim to use to their greatest effect.
Contents
* 1 Fire Bolt
* 2 Warmth
* 3 Inferno
* 4 Blaze
* 5 Fireball
* 6 Fire Wall
* 7 Enchant
* 8 Meteor
* 9 Fire Mastery
* 10 Hydra
Fire Bolt
Required Level: 1
Prerequisites: None
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Fire Bolt.
* Fire Ball: +16% Fire Damage Per Level
* Meteor: +16% Fire Damage Per Level
Details: Shoots a small ball of fire. Fire Bolts hit only one target and have no splash damage.
* A new Sorceress starts out with a staff of +1 to Fire Bolt.
Mana: 2.5
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Damage
DPS
Slvl Damage
DPS
Slvl Damage
DPS
Slvl Damage
DPS
1 3-6 8.7 6 10-13 22.1 11 19-25 42.3 16 29-40 66.3
2 4-7 10.6 7 12-15 26 12 21-28 47.1 17 33-45 75
3 6-9 14.4 8 13-16 27.9 13 23-31 51.9 18 37-50 83.7
4 7-10 16.3 9 15-19 32.7 14 25-34 56.7 19 41-55 92.3
5 9-12 20.2 10 17-22 37.5 15 27-37 61.5 20 45-60 101
Warmth
Required Level: 1
Prerequisites: None
Synergies: None.
Details: Warmth increases the Sorceress' mana regeneration rate. A mandatory skill for all Sorceresses, the only question with Warmth is how much is enough. This depends largely on the build; Sorcs who cast a lot of high mana skills, such as Nova, will want more points in this skill, while a Sorceress who specializes in Blizzard or Hydra will not need as much mana.
* Mana regeneration rate is based on your total mana pool; more mana means more will regenerate per second.
* If a Sorceress has mana regeneration items as well, the formula is: (BaseRegenrate*Warmth)+item.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Slvl Mana
Slvl Mana
Slvl Mana
1 +30% 6 +90% 11 +150% 16 +210%
2 +42% 7 +102% 12 +162% 17 +222%
3 +54% 8 +114% 13 +174% 18 +234%
4 +66% 9 +126% 14 +186% 19 +246%
5 +78% 10 +138% 15 +198% 20 +258%
Inferno
Required Level: 6
Prerequisites: None
Synergies:
* Warmth: +13% Fire Damage Per Level
Details: Inferno turns a Sorceress into a human flamethrower, capable of emitting a massive spout of flame for as long as the spell is kept active.
* More points increase the damage and the range of this skill, making it capable of cooking dozens of enemies at once, if they are tightly packed.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
DPS
Range
Slvl Mana
DPS
Range
Slvl Mana
DPS
Range
Slvl Mana
DPS
Range
1 7 12-25 3.3 6 8 59-71 5.3 11 8 108-122 8.0 16 9 159-175 10.6
2 7 21-34 3.3 7 8 68-81 6.0 12 9 118-132 8.6 17 10 170-186 11.3
3 7 31-43 4.0 8 8 78-90 6.6 13 9 128-143 9.3 18 10 181-197 11.3
4 7 40-53 4.6 9 8 88-101 7.3 14 9 139-153 9.3 19 10 192-208 12.0
5 7 50-62 5.3 10 8 98-111 7.3 15 9 149-164 10.0 20 10 203-220 12.6
Blaze
Required Level: 12
Prerequisites: Inferno
Synergies: None. Details: Blaze leaves a trail of fire behind the Sorceress as she walks or runs along, for as long as she keeps the spell active.
* An interesting spell; this one can not be cast at anything; only created on the ground behind the Sorceress. It's therefore useless against shamans, ranged attackers, and other monsters that do not pursue.
* Blaze is essentially a novelty spell, something fun to play with early on, but not practical or damaging enough to use long term.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
Duration
Slvl Mana
Damage
Duration
Slvl Mana
Damage
Duration
Slvl Mana
Damage
Duration
1 11.0 18-37 4.6 sec 6 13.0 65-84 9.6 sec 11 16.0 126-145 14.6 sec 16 18.0 196-215 19.6 sec
2 11.5 28-46 5.6 sec 7 14.0 75-93 10.6 sec 12 16.0 140-159 15.6 sec 17 19.0 215-234 20.6 sec
3 12.0 37-56 6.6 sec 8 14.0 84-103 11.6 sec 13 17.0 154-173 16.6 sec 18 19.0 234-253 21.6 sec
4 12.0 46-65 7.6 sec 9 15.0 98-117 12.6 sec 14 17.0 168-187 17.6 sec 19 20.0 253-271 22.6 sec
5 13.0 56-75 8.6 sec 10 15.0 112-131 13.6 sec 15 18.0 182-201 18.6 sec 20 20.0 271-290 23.6 sec
Fireball
Required Level: 12
Prerequisites: Fire Bolt
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Fireball:
* Fire Bolt: +14% Fire Damage Per Level
* Meteor: +14% Fire Damage Per Level
Details: A substantial upgrade from Firebolt, Fireballs are larger and more damaging, and they hit with splash damage, burning the target and any nearby monsters too.
* This spell was unused for many versions of Diablo II, but since all the synergies were added it's become more popular for variants, and duellers.
Radius: 1 Yard
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
1 5.0 10.5±4.5 20.2 6 7.5 50.5±7.5 97.1 11 10.0 108±10 207.7 16 12.5 176±13 338.5
2 5.5 19±5 36.5 7 8.0 59±8 113.5 12 10.5 121.5±10.5 233.7 17 13.0 192.5±13.5 370.2
3 6.0 27±6 51.9 8 8.5 66.5±8.5 127.9 13 11.0 135.5±11.5 260.6 18 13.5 209.5±14.5 402.9
4 6.5 35±6 67.3 9 9.0 80.5±9.5 154.8 14 11.5 149±12 286.5 19 14.0 226±15 434.6
5 7.0 43±7 82.7 10 9.5 94±10 180.8 15 12.0 162.5±12.5 312.5 20 14.5 242.5±15.5 466.3
Fire Wall
Casting Delay:: 1.4 Seconds
Required Level: 18
Prerequisites: Inferno, Blaze
Synergies: None.
Details: A wall of flame springs up in both directions from the spot the Sorceress targets for ignition.
* One of the most damaging spells in the game, Firewalls can be stacked up to increase the damage to truly horrifying levels.
* Monsters must stand still in the flames for the damage to truly cook into them, so using natural obstacles or minions to tank is a necessary strategy.
* Some monsters have enough AI to attempt to avoid the flames.
Duration 3.6 Seconds
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
DPS
Radius
Slvl Mana
DPS
Radius
Slvl Mana
DPS
Radius
Slvl Mana
DPS
Radius
1 22 70-93 4 6 27 281-304 11 11 32 562-585 18 16 37 890-914 24
2 23 112-135 6 7 28 323-346 12 12 33 628-651 19 17 38 989-1012 26
3 24 154-178 7 8 29 365-389 14 13 34 693-717 20 18 39 1087-1110 27
4 25 196-220 8 9 30 431-454 15 14 35 759-782 22 19 40 1185-1209 28
5 26 239-262 10 10 31 496-520 16 15 36 825-848 23 20 41 1284-1307 30
Enchant
Required Level: 18
Prerequisites: Fire Bolt, Warmth, Fireball
Synergies:
* Warmth adds +9% Fire Damage Per Level
Details: Temporarily grants bonus fire damage and boosts the Attack Rating of any friendly player or minion. Enchant must be cast directly on the recipient.
* This skill is largely a novelty or support skill for most Sorceresses, though some few variants specialize in it.
* The benefit to minions is considerable, which can make it worthwhile for a Sorceress to carry an Orb with +enchant on it. When added to her usual +skills modifiers, this can be worth using, thanks to the long duration of the skill.
* Enchanted characters and minions will display their damage in red numbers. When the red goes away, the spell has worn off.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Dmg.
Dur
AR
Slvl Mana
Dmg.
Dur
AR
Slvl Mana
Dmg.
Dur
AR
Slvl Mana
Dmg.
Dur
AR
1 25 8-10 144 +20% 6 30 16-24 264 +65% 11 35 31-44 384 +110% 16 40 50-69 504 +155%
2 26 10-13 168 +29% 7 31 18-27 288 +74% 12 36 35-49 408 +119% 17 41 56-76 528 +164%
3 27 11-16 192 +38% 8 32 20-29 312 +83% 13 37 39-54 432 +128% 18 42 62-83 552 +173%
4 28 13-19 216 +47% 9 33 23-34 336 +92% 14 38 43-59 456 +137% 19 43 68-90 576 +182%
5 29 15-21 240 +56% 10 34 27-39 360 +101% 15 39 46-64 480 +146% 20 44 74-97 600 +191%
Meteor
Casting Delay: 1.2 Seconds
Required Level: 24
Prerequisites: Fire Bolt, Inferno, Blaze, Fire Wall, Fireball
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Meteor:
* Fire Bolt: +5% Fire Damage Per Level
* Fire Ball: +5% Fire Damage Per Level
* Inferno: +3% Average Fire Damage Per Second Per Level
Details: A flaming ball of rock is called down from above, dealing explosive damage to the target and leaving a patch of fiery burning earth behind.
* Meteors deal 100% fire damage, despite looking like a flaming stone on the way down.
* The firefield left by a Meteor is less damaging and much smaller than that of a Firewall, so the key to using this skill effectively is to nail the targets with the meteor itself, as well as the firefield. This can be tricky with the casting delay, since it takes 1.2 seconds for the Meteor to reach the point you target. Use a tank to hold monsters still, or learn to "lead" the target.
* Meteors can be used anywhere, even in underground levels. Hey, it's magic!
Radius: 4 Yards
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
Slvl Mana
Damage
DPS
1 17 88-110 35-58 6 19 214-247 84-107 11 22 393-437 138-164 16 24 608-663 199-222
2 17 113-137 44-67 7 20 239-275 93-117 12 22 436-482 150-175 17 25 696-752 213-236
3 18 138-165 53-77 8 20 265-302 103-126 13 23 479-528 164-187 18 25 782-841 227-253
4 18 163-192 63-89 9 21 308-347 114-138 14 23 522-573 175-199 19 26 869-930 243-267
5 19 189-220 72-98 10 21 350-392 126-150 15 24 565-618 187-210 20 26 955-1019 257-281
Fire Mastery
Required Level: 30
Prerequisites: None
Synergies: None
Details: This skill passively raises the damage of all the Sorceress' fire skills, and is an essential skill for any fire sorceress.
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Fire Dmg.
Slvl Fire Dmg.
Slvl Fire Dmg.
Slvl Fire Dmg.
1 +30% 6 +65% 11 +100% 16 +135%
2 +37% 7 +72% 12 +107% 17 +142%
3 +44% 8 +79% 13 +114% 18 +149%
4 +51% 9 +86% 14 +121% 19 +156%
5 +58% 10 +93% 15 +128% 20 +163%
Hydra
Casting Delay: 2 Seconds
Required Level: 30
Prerequisites: Fire Bolt, Warmth, Fireball, Enchant
Synergies: Hydra's damage is boosted by points in the following skills:
* Fire Bolt: +3% Fire Damage Per Level
* Fire Ball: +3% Fire Damage Per Level
Details: Hydras are three-headed dragons composed of pure flame. The heads each fire a constant stream of Fire Bolts, dealing damage to the target, but not splashing to the sides. The Hydra causes no damage itself; there's no area of effect damage simply from the flaming dragon, it has to shoot targets to hurt them.
* Each three-headed Hydra lasts for 10 seconds, so with the 2-second casting delay it's possible to have 4 or 5 of them active at once. Individual Hydras aren't that effective, but when several of them are firing at once, the damage adds up quickly.
* Some skill is necessary in placing Hydras. It's best if several of them can concentrate their fire on the same monster, so casting a bunch of them in a row to one side is usually the best tactic, instead of simply popping them up all throughout a mass of enemies, where their shots will be dispersed into numerous targets.
* As with other casting delay skills, it's best to pick an alternate skill to use in between each Hydra cast. Firewall or Meteor work or if you want to diversify your damage Frozen Orb, Blizzard, or Nova work well.
Duration: 10 Seconds
Skill Level Progression [e]
Slvl Mana
Damage
Slvl Mana
Damage
Slvl Mana
Damage
Slvl Mana
Damage
1 20 12-17 6 22 36-46 11 25 66-81 16 27 100-121
2 20 17-23 7 23 40-52 12 25 72-89 17 28 109-131
3 21 22-29 8 23 45-58 13 26 79-97 18 28 118-141
4 21 26-35 9 24 52-66 14 26 86-105 19 29 127-151
5 22 31-40 10 24 59-74 15 27 93-113 20 29 135-161
Sorceress Lightning Spells
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.
Contents
* 1 Charged Bolt
* 2 Telekinesis
* 3 Static Field
* 4 Lightning
* 5 Nova
* 6 Chain Lightning
* 7 Teleport
* 8 Thunder Storm
* 9 Energy Shield
* 10 Lightning Mastery
Charged Bolt
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
Telekinesis
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
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
Lightning
Required Level: 12
Prerequisites: Charged Bolt
Synergies: Points in the following skills boost the damage of Lightning.
* Charged Bolt: +8% Lightning Damage Per Level
* Nova: +8% Lightning Damage Per Level
* Chain Lightning: +8% Lightning Damage Per Level
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
Nova
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
Chain Lightning
Required Level: 18
Prerequisites: Charged Bolt, Lightning
Synergies: The following skills add to the damage of Chain Lightning.
* Charged Bolt: +4% Lightning Damage Per Level
* Nova: +4% Lightning Damage Per Level
* Lightning: +4% Lightning Damage Per Level
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
Teleport
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
Thunder Storm
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
Energy Shield
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 Duration
Slvl Duration
Slvl Duration
Slvl Duration
1 20 Dmg. 6 45 Dmg. 11 61 Dmg. 16 71 Dmg.
2 25 Dmg. 7 50 Dmg. 12 63 Dmg. 17 72 Dmg.
3 30 Dmg. 8 55 Dmg. 13 65 Dmg. 18 73 Dmg.
4 35 Dmg. 9 57 Dmg. 14 67 Dmg. 19 74 Dmg.
5 40 Dmg. 10 59 Dmg. 15 69 Dmg. 20 75 Dmg.
Lightning Mastery
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%
