That’d work I think. I went into Aldur’s with the objective of making it viable for SS but also with the hope of giving it some potential as an Elemental Set given it has 6 Sockets(3 on Weapon, 2 on Helm, 1 on Chest).
However, one objective I had going into Set balance was to have some uniformity with regards to +Skills. If we cap Aldur’s to +4(+3 from Complete Set and +1 per Tree), then the other Sets would have to fall in-line. Tal Rasha is the one that yields the most at +6(to all) while Natalya’s currently yields the least at +3(+5 Shadow). That is why I added so many +Skills to Aldur’s and other Sets to bring them up to +6. Nerfing Sets like Tal Rasha doesn’t seem right so I simply buffed the others where I could. Did I go a bit overboard… perhaps but I’ve played with every Set here and Aldur’s in its current state is quite honestly the worst Set of the 7. So how about this…
- Change Bonus AR to 300% (2 Items)
* Change Magic Find to 100% (3 Items)
*Change +2 Elemental/Shapeshifting(Aldur’s Deception)
- Add 30% Faster Cast Rate (Aldur’s Rhythm)
- Add 50% Poison Resist (Aldur’s Deception)
- Add +2 To Summoning Skills (Druid Only) (Aldur’s Stony Gaze)
- Change 40-62 Damage to +200% E. Damage (Aldur’s Rhythm)
- Change 300 Defense to +150% E. Defense (Aldur’s Deception)
M’avina’s changes turned her into an all-around Bowzon Set as opposed to purely Frostmaiden and one that isn’t outright outclassed by the likes of Ice(which imo could be buffed considering the cost). All the changes I did were with the intention of buffing each Bowzon skill tree(Fire + Cold + Physical). Even Javazons could potentially see benefit from the Set with the Lightning attributes, albeit with considerable trade-offs as Javazons benefit a lot from 100% Pierce and +Skills(which this Set doesn’t really provide).
Yet if I must cut it down, I propose it be limited to the following:
Helm:
Add +33% Pierce(Complete Set)
Chest:
Add +20% Physical Resistance(Complete Set)
Bow:
Remove Magic Arrow
Add +1 Amazon Skills
Add Sockets(4)*
*I figure that by adding Sockets to the Bow, it’d give players the freedom to choose how they want to play her. They could plop a Nef + 3 40/15’s for Physical, 4 x Rainbow Facets and that would effectively yield what I want in the end.
Trang-Oul changes were basically to shore up its FCR. We don’t know when or if the Vampire FCR bug is ever going to be slayed but lets admit that 20% FCR is nothing for an Elite Caster Set. 60% FCR is much better. Ditto Tal Rasha since the changes help Lightning Tree the most while making Energy Shield far stronger.
For Griswold, most of what I proposed could probably be discarded. Namely the Shield and Chest in particular(save for %Enhanced Defense… purpose on that was to improve Elite upgrade impact). Yet the Helm would make Griswold pretty powerful against FCL damage while the Weapon suggestions would give it much needed FCR. As such, I’d recommend keeping the following:
Helm:
Fire Absorb(3 items)
Lightning Absorb(Complete Set)
Weapon:
Modify +Damage to +20% Faster Cast Rate(3 items + Complete Set)
Chest:
Modify +Armor to Enhanced Defense(110%)
Shield:
Add +1 Paladin Skills
As for Natalya… I did go nuts on her Set but in reality she truly does need it. Ignore Target Defense, as presently constructed, is inferior to -%Target Defense. At -100%, you get the benefit of ITD but working at all times(albeit at 50% efficiency in certain scenarios). The buffs to Elemental Damage were to buff both her MA and Trap trees that utilize Fire and Lightning Damage. Cold buffs are purely for MA(Blades of Ice/Phoenix Strike). Ditto Poison with respect to Venom and why they’re on the Claw itself. If I had to narrow the changes down, I’d do the following:
Claw:
Change ITD → -100% Target Defense
Add +1 Assassin Skills
Add +2 Martial Arts Skills(3 items)
Add Socketed(3 Sockets)*
*Like with M’avina if I simply add Sockets, then players have the freedom to customize her as they see fit. They can specialize in a Physical Attacker, Fire, Cold, Lightning or heck Poison if they really wanted to and combined with the 3 Sockets on Chest, could make for a really fun Assassin.
Helm:
Add +2 Trap Skills(3 items)
Chest:
Modify +Armor to %Enhanced Defense(100%)
Modify Sockets(1-3) to Sockets(3)
Boots:
Add 25 Fire Resistance(3 items)
Finally Immortal King is the one that got royally screwed by 2.43. At minimum the Helm deserves +1 Barbarian Skills so that it hits +6 overall with the rest of the Elite Sets. The Damage mitigation can go by the wayside honestly. Was just something I wouldn’t mind seeing but on reflection is probably too much. Yet I do feel the following would make IK quite strong:
Helm:
Add +1 Barbarian Skills
Maul:
Modify Sockets from 2 to 4
Armor:
Modify %Enhanced Defense(50% to 150% Complete Set)
Modify Enchant proc to CtC Level 14 Burst of Speed
Add Sockets(4)*
IK Armor is one of the rarest armors in the game so adding Sockets couldn’t hurt. Would permit players to buff w/e attributes they see fit. Defense(Pul), Physical Resistance(Ber), Physical Reduction(Sol), Magic Reduction(Mal), FHR(Shael), or bolster Resistance Caps(Ohm, Lo, Vex, Gul). There’s also 40/15 Jewels and 15/15 Jewels. Burst of Speed is a much better buff than Enchant. Without Warmth and Fire Mastery, all you’re really getting is Attack Rating and you already get a lot from the Set itself and heck if you really need Enchant, get an A3 Merc for a way better buff. Burst of Speed gives a bone to 2-H WW Barbs while allowing them to mitigate Decrepify and Holy Freeze.
Boots:
Modify Half Freeze to CBF
Add Magic Damage Reduced by 10(Complete Set)
