Man, lemme tell you about trying to level up my Druid fast in Diablo 2 yesterday. Was pumped to smash stuff quick, right? But dude, that start? Oof. Painful crawl.
First things first, rolled a fresh Druid. Gotta start somewhere. Slammed points into Raven and Poison Creeper early on – figured birds pecking eyes out and a poison snake thing had to help chip away at stuff while I ran around like an idiot trying not to die. Honestly, felt like I was tickling the Fallen in the Blood Moor more than fighting ’em. Slow. So freaking slow.
The Temptation to Transform
By level 6, I was itching. Shifter time! Had that Lycanthropy skill staring me down. “Just one point,” I thought. Went Werebear first. Slammed the button, grew some fur and claws. Felt awesome! Big ol’ bear stomping around Act 1. Bashed some Zombies. Seemed tanky. Could take a few hits, which was nice since my gear was total garbage – some cracked sash, chipped gems, maybe a low damage club.
But man, even with Lycanthropy boosting my health, my damage? Sad bear noises. Swinging those paws felt like pushing through mud. Cleared Tristram? Took forever. Found myself just standing there trading hits forever with Griswold. Brutal. Okay, time to try the other shape.
Switching to the Wolf
Respecced real quick – thankfully, Akara helps out early. Ditched Bear for Werewolf at the same level. Whoof. Different vibe instantly. Faster. Snappier. Jaws snapping instead of slow paw swipes. More points went straight into Feral Rage right away. You hit stuff, you heal a bit and run faster? Heck yeah, that sounded good for running around!
Night and day difference.
- Got hit less cause I could zip around quicker.
- Things actually died faster, especially once Feral Rage stacked up its damage bonus.
- That life steal on hit? Lifesaver. Especially in the Catacombs fighting skeletons.
Found a crappy two-handed sword with slightly better damage? Equipped it. The wolf attack speed made it feel okay, even without fancy gear.
Pushed harder into act 2. Found a pack of Spear Cats. Pre-Bear me would’ve been murdered. As Wolf? Popped Feral Rage, ripped through ’em. Health went down, then up as I bit their faces off. Smashed through the Maggot Lair quicker than expected. The speed just made everything feel better.
Bear felt safer standing still, but Wolf let me avoid more mess and end fights faster. Less time getting smacked equals less chugging health pots, equals leveling quicker. Simple math, dude.
What Actually Worked For Speed
So yeah, early leveling? Wolf crushed it. By level 24ish, had points rolling into Werewolf itself, Lycanthropy, and Feral Rage maxed first. Gear was still mostly trash, but the strategy was solid:
- Run fast.
- Bite hard.
- Heal while biting.
- Repeat.
Rolled over mobs in Act 3 jungle with way less fuss than Bear ever managed. Tried switching back to Bear later just to see – nope. Still felt clunky for just getting levels quick. Damage felt meh without killer end-game gear supporting it.
Bear’s cool, looks badass, maybe good later, I dunno. But for that painful “level 1 to nightmare” grind? Wolf with Feral Rage is the ticket if you wanna go fast. Saves time, saves hair-pulling frustration. Best leveling move I made.