H90: savage shields GR 120 2:08 to spare

This is the S&B setup that I’m going to start testing tomorrow. It’s missing some optimalization (cc on helm, Frenzy% on belt, etc…)

https://www.d3planner.com/952575582

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yeah, who needs hard-to-get rolls like frenzy% on belt? Just roll with it!

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Again, my dreams of a S&B setup are dashed to pieces. :sob:

Did you try it out? I mean, I’m sure it’s not going to be as good as a dual-wield setup, but I bet it can do 115 or something with 15k STR. I wouldn’t worry too much about that 15 dibs on belt.

I’m not sure what kind of returns you’re going to get on the Frieze of Deflection. If it doesn’t seem to be giving you much, try using a Lidless Wall, if you’ve got a good one. Or a Stormshield, which adds a ton of defense (melee reduction and block both work on arcane beams, which are one of this build’s biggest weaknesses).

And, somewhat shockingly, you can get to an 9F/8F regular/WOTB Frenzy, even using a shield. Just need 7% on OK plus 2 more 7% rolls on other gear.

I also wouldn’t bother with TS: Demoralize. Most mobs are going to attack you anyway, and dropping Falter costs you a lot of damage (way more than missing 15% on the belt).

I’d also go back to WC: Veteran’s Shout. 60% dodge is awesome, and with your added defense from Shield + S&B, it’ll be way harder for you to get 1-shot by stuff that gets through.

Edit: Just 1-keyed a 115 without any problems using OK + Stormshield, S&B passive, 16k STR. And my setup is definitely not ideal:
https://www.d3planner.com/119500240

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You inspired me to give it another go. Freez of Deflection as horrible proc, virtually non-existent. I’m going to give S&B another go. I have two Primal Stormshields and several near Primal rolls (including Lidless shields). Lidless seems like it’ll be the best alternative.

Yeah, it is pretty shocking.

Stormshield is a great, easy to find item that will be great for this setup. I’ve never tried it, but can Lidless’s elemental damage be re-rolled from Physical to Cold?

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Good question. I’ll have an answer later today, if not tomorrow.

Lidless rolls a random element, not always physical. And you can re-roll the element , just like enchanting a bracer or amulet.

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Yep, I have 2 or 3 of every Element (variety is good for testing purposes).:grin:

You know, DH, with a shield (especially a Stormshield) plus S&B, that might actually be enough defense to drop WC for Ground Stomp. If you cast it right before your CoE element comes up, that should add a good chunk of damage.

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Very true, I just found a Storm with 10% CHC/ 8% CDR/ Str/ Vit. I’ll try what you suggested tomorrow.

Sure can.

Mm. Juicy. I like that shield.

Yeah, I think a S&B option is good for low-Paragon players or those who don’t want to fish. 30% DR from the passive is no joke. Shame it’s tied to shields, which are so rarely utilized by the class, and not something more useful like 2H Mighty Weapons, ya know?

But cool idea, y’all. I like the initiative!

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https://www.d3planner.com/702486329

This is what I’ve tested. I haven’t played a lot of H90 and I recognize that I’m not a good tester, but I’ve definitely noticed that the gap between S&B and DW has significantly narrowed. It felt good defensively and offensively. Because of the distractions that my children presented :neutral_face: during my game play yesterday and today, I did one run of DW as prescribed by the guide and one with the of above S&B setup. I did half runs with both setups at GR 115. The progression seemed so on para that at this time I can’t really distinguish one run from the other. I can say that GS didn’t play very fluid, so dropped it from the Skill bar. Anyways, there is more testing to be had.

Interesting. Never got one that didn’t have Physical damage.

Good old RNG. I’m glad you posted something. I tried to post the following a couple of minutes ago, but I couldn’t. I must have dropped in my permission levels. I did my actual first clear @ GR 115 with 4:00 minutes to spare. I only have one augmented piece of armor. It was a decent rift. My next goal is to run a DW GR to see if it blows S&B out of the water, which it should. This will tell me by how much S&B is an inferior product.

I just cleared a 118 and then a 120 using Stormshield + S&B. I did try out trading WC for Stomp, and found that while I did see a significant damage increase, it made me too squishy and I was dying constantly.

The 118 felt modestly challenging. The 120 felt very hard. Spent about 8 keys getting it, I think, compared to a comparable number getting a 123 dual-wielding. STR with each setup was comparable, 16.1k with Shield, 16.5k DW.

I WOULD say that a S&B setup is about 3 GRs behind, BUT: I don’t have any freeze / stun on gear, unlike DH. A perfect Undisputed with STR, VIT, AllRes, Frenzy%, and 5% Freeze, and perfect gloves with AS, CDR, CHC, CHD, 5% Stun, would almost certainly make a significant difference: maybe 1-2 GRs worth. A setup with a perfectly rolled Lidless Wall might be only 1 GR behind in terms of damage, though I must admit, the melee reduction on Stormshield comes in super handy.

As a longtime Leapquake player, it’s still shocking to me how fast this build kills RGs. Boss on the 120 was Ghom, put him down in about 45 seconds I think.

BTW, DH, I just looked at your character, and it looks like you don’t have a rune selected for Frenzy. You’ve got Cold% on your gear, so I think you want to switch to Sidearm.

If it turns out that a S&B setup is only a few GRs behind in terms of damage output, that would be very interesting indeed.

And yeah, this build absolutely shreds solo RGs. That’s my favorite part, in fact: the one on one vs the RG!

Wish I had more time to log in lately, but this dissertation won’t write itself. Hopefully this week I’ll be able to farm the new set since classes were cancelled.

Well, let’s see…

With basically the same rolls on all the consistent gear, a S&B setup is only 1 Frame slower for both Regular and WOTB: 9F/8F S&B vs 8F/7F DW. That drops you about 12% damage (88% of DW).

Trading 130% CHD for 10% CHC drops you about 6.4% damage (93.6% of DW).

-1 offensive passive is probably about -10% damage. (90% of DW).

Assuming you use Lidless, Elemental % is the same.

So .88 * .936 * .90 = .74 , i.e. S&B does roughly 74% the damage of DW.

That’s about 2 GRs. DW damage = 100. S&B damage = 74.
74 * 1.17 * 1.17 = 101.3

I didn’t have the toughness to do it, but this setup would reach a point at which it could drop WC for Stomp a bit sooner (in terms of Paragon) than a DW setup would. Making that skill change actually changes the hard CC rolls you might want on gloves and belt. Because with Stomp you can control when you CC, you want to avoid ccing mobs at all except during CoE cycle. You would also probably want to avoid the Wrenching Smash rune since the pull applies 40% CC resist instantly.

DW:

https://www.d3planner.com/374783749

To my surprise, I cleared 1 minute behind my S&B clear with an equally decent GR 115. I honestly was expecting a far better clear, even if the GR poor one, but that’s not what happened. I only died twice. Maybe my DW is not as optimal as I think it is. I’m kind of at a loss

You are totally right, I’ve playing without a selected Rune (Sidearm). Should have better clears the next time I login.

I experienced the same.

May want to drop Relentless for Ruthless. Also, did you have a conduit in either rift? That can make a big difference in this build.