Soothsayer - How am I going?

[hambo12]

Just looking for some ideas and feedback on my Soothsayer build.
This is my first build in TQ, and I am on level 39.

Stats:

Health:2070
Life:1062
Str:50
Int:402
Dex:150

I have 1 unused point

TitanCalc:
http://www.titancalc.com/TitanCalc.a...-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

I have 9 unused points.

I have just got to the Wusao caverns in Epic, and have noticed that my Liche King is dying fairly quickly, mainly by many skeleton warriors and elder Dragonians (?).

I rely on my Liche King a lot for taking out mobs, and after he has died, I am in serious trouble if I dont recast quickly. Wolves are handy, Nymph doesnt do much at all, apart from being a distraction sometimes. The outsider is tough, but doesnt last long.

How should I proceed with this build in order to have a chance in Legendary?
Should I focus on the Liche King skills, or should I try for Ternion?

[yerkyerk]

I would go for a pet-dependant build. Take all points out of Ternion and Life Drain. Try to equip as many +skill items as you can. For now, take all but 1 point out of the Nymph, you can try maxing her if you have some spare points, as you said yourself, she isn't doing much.

Put at least one point in the following; Deathward, Spirit Ward tree, Deatchill Aura tree, Plague Tree, Call of the Wild Tree, Dissemination.
Try to get around -90% to -100% recharge for Regrowth and put some more points in Regrowth.

Soothsayer has a very nice working triangle for Dark Covenant - for that, you have to max Dark Covenant (mainly for the duration), it's synergy (for some great damage), get refresh at level 11 or 12 (not higher or lower, unless you got some -%recharge equipment) and some good amount of points in Regrowth.
You cast Dark Covenant and immediately after that, you cast Refresh. By the time Dark Covenant has worn off (about 30sec), it can be recast immediately again. This will solve all your mana problems and give you and your pets a very decent boost. Use Regrowth to restore lost life.

Also - I would stop putting points in intelligence for now, if you take my advice that is (pet-dependant builds don't need intelligence for damage). One of the best items for a Soothsayer is Stonebinder's Cuffs, since it gives +3skills. But the requirements for that are a lot of dexterity and a little strength. I messed up with my first Soothsayer by investing points in intelligence. A shieldbearer would probably make the most resilient Soothsayer. But your character is probably too messed up in attribute points to make a shieldbearer. Doesn't matter that much though, INT-based items are good enough to make a build that easily sweeps through Legendary.

[Matseb2611]

And don't worry about Lich King dying. Pets die a lot in normal difficulty, especially in Act 4, but in epic and legendary their stats get much better.

[hambo12]

Ok, Ive done as you said and changed my build to a more pet dependant build. Things are starting to look a lot better.

But a couple of questions:

1. I now have a couple of "+skill to all" items, and noticed that if the skill has no points in it, it does not increase by 1. Is this right?

2. Also, I notice that if I have a skill full, it still increments by 1, making it 17/16. Do they still have effect after they exceed the maximum, or should I take one point out?

3. I noticed that some skills I cannot cast or activate. For example, I have 1 point in each of the deathchill aura skills tree:

1 x Deathchill aura
1 x ravages of time
1 x necrosis

But I can only cast Deathchill aura. Is this correct? Are the others just synergies?

[linksu]

1. yes. you need at least 1 point in skill to benefit from +skills.

2. skills can go up max + 4. so liche can be at level 20 (20/16).

3. ravages of time and necrosis are synergies. those are active while deatchill aura is active.

[hambo12]

Ok Ive taken the above advice and easily finished Typhon on Epic difficulty, so thanks! Ive also found some stonebinders cuffs, so I am focusing on upping my str to wear them!

I currently have the folliwng setup (Level 43 with 5 unused skill points):

http://www.titancalc.com/TitanCalc.a...-3-0-0-5-0-0-0

Im a bit lost on where to go from here however. I am having no troubles with energy, as I have a couple of -% energy cost, +% energy regen etc, so I am a bit sceptical about dark covenant at the moment.
Any advice on what skills to focus on at the moment? I use regrowth, refresh and Plague heavily and they seem to be doing the job...

[yerkyerk]

Well, congrats on beating Epic Typhon!

If you can get Refresh at level 11/12 and Dark Covenant at level 10 - I'd go for that. It will give you all the mana regen you'll need and with Unearthly power it gives a really powerful damage dealing bonus which can keep on constantly.
Susceptability (synergy for plague) deserves at least 1 point, so do Permanence of Stone (Heart of Oak synergy) and Unearhtly Power (Dark Covenant Synergy).

Things where you can take out points (imho) Deathward - it's a one point wonder. So are Spirit Ward and Spirit Bane (they're only aimed at undeads, too limited).
For now you might choose to only have 1 point in Nymph - she's not that great, you can max it later on in the game. Perhaps also only have 1 point in Dissemination (Regrowth and Accelerated Growth in the same tree are way better).

You might want to consider 1pointing Vision of Death - it's a somewhat useful skill and it's great fun to use - it's especially useful with Plague.