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Max chance to block in D2?

Discussion in 'Diablo 1 & 2' started by Eyebreaker7, Sep 21, 2016.

  1. Eyebreaker7

    Eyebreaker7 Someone clean my litter box Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    My pally has a shield that has defense of 70 and a CTB of 70 also. Does the CTB still cap out at 75% ?? He has a Strong Bone Shield of Deflecting with 2 El runes to raise the defense up to 70. I know I'll need a better shield but I'm curious how good it is for my level 21 Pally? When/where should I be expecting better shields?
     
    Eyebreaker7, Sep 21, 2016
    #1

  2. xosmi Gems: 20/31
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    Yes, CTB still has a cap. keep in mind that the mouse-over chance to block% displayed on your character screen calculates this fro mthe last monster you fought.
    To get an accurate end-game block% you'll want to fight diablo/baal on hell difficulty first before checking the value.

    defense value on a shield does not factor into your chance to block - only the base% on the shield, as well as any granted by a runeword/skill (holy shield ads 35% at lvl 20) and your dexterity.
    Also, keep in mind that your block chance decreases drastically when you are running - if your normal block chance is 60% while walking, standing still, it can be as low as only 20% when running.
    A good trick is to keep the shift bar pressed down while you are engaging enemies in melee range, forcing your character to walk - then release the key when you want to move over to the next monster pack.

    I'd advice you to use a block chance calculator to get a rough idea of the amount of dexterity you want to have for your end-game build - but from memory my old hammerdin using a monarch shield (with a base 40% block chance) and lvl 20 holy shield (+35%) needed a total dex value of 175 (after bonuses from gear) to maintain 75% block in act 5 hell.
     
    xosmi, Sep 21, 2016
    #2
  3. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    The paladin actually has the benefit of decent paladin-only shields that can take a four socket runeword and not have a massive strength requirement (for, say, a monarch). Your chance to block only vaguely correlates with whatever the shield says. It is severely impacted by your level and dex and, as xosmi noted, it gets royally gutted if you are running.

    If you want to go max-block, you are going to need to invest in dex as you go up and you are going to want to use a high-block shield to begin with. You are going to want to use a Herald of Zakarum if you can get your hands on that, which is a sweet shield with a high chance to block:

    Defense: 422-507 (varies)(Base Defense: 144-168)
    Required Level: 42
    Required Strength: 89
    Durability: 50
    Chance To Block: 82%
    Smite Damage: 20 To 28
    (Paladin Only)
    +150-200% Enhanced Defense (varies)
    30% Increased Chance Of Blocking
    30% Faster Block Rate
    20% Bonus To Attack Rating
    +20 To Strength
    +20 To Vitality
    All Resistances +50
    +2 To Paladin Skill Levels
    +2 To Combat Skills (Paladin Only)
    (Only Spawns In Patch 1.09 or later)

    If you can't get your hands on that, you can try a Alma Negra, which can be decent:

    Defense: 461-511 (varies)(Base Defense: 138-164)
    Required Level: 77
    Required Strength: 109
    Chance To Block: 78%
    Smite Damage: 35 To 58
    Durability: 68
    (Paladin Only)
    +180-210% Enhanced Defense (varies)
    +1-2 To Paladin Skill Levels (varies)
    20% Increased Chance of Blocking
    30% Faster Block Rate
    +40-75% Enhanced Damage (varies)
    40-75% Bonus to Attack Rating (varies)
    Magic Damage Reduced By 5-9 (varies)
    (Only Spawns In Patch 1.10 or later)


    Frankly, any regular elite shield or unique pallie shield just doesn't carry the base chance to block to justify spending the dex points to get to max block IMO. Many people with pallies make a Spirit runeword in a pallie shield that has relatively low strength (like a sacred rondache or sacred targe), but the goal is high resist-all, not high block. You could make a sanctuary in a pallie shield, which would give you some nice benefits and is not terribly expensive (Ko-Ko-Mal):

    +20% Faster Hit Recovery
    +20% Faster Block Rate
    20% Increased Chance of Blocking
    +130-160% Enhanced Defense (varies)
    +250 Defense vs. Missile
    +20 To Dexterity
    All Resistances +50-70 (varies)
    Magic Damage Reduced By 7
    Level 12 Slow Missiles (60 Charges)

    Note that you can get good resists with it, +20% chance to block and +20 to dex, all good for a max block character. Plus, if you're putting it in a pallie shield that comes with +40 or so resist all on the o-skills side of things, that would be great. No general plus skills, but you can't have everything.

    If you're rune-poor, you can make a Rhyme shield (shael-eth) which also gives +20 to block, but is otherwise inferior to sanctuary except that it has cannot be frozen and a little MF.
     
    dmc, Sep 21, 2016
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  4. xosmi Gems: 20/31
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    Yeah, the only reason i was running with a monarch was for the runeword in it, i did have a herald of zakarum on switch.
    That said, a hammerdin build can easily spare the dex points to get max block even with a monarch and still leave enough room to get enough vitality to stay alive even on a4/5 hell.
     
    xosmi, Sep 22, 2016
    #4
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