Alright, so I’ve been grinding Diablo 3 like crazy lately, specifically with my Necromancer. Wanted to figure out which build actually handles those brutal high-tier Greater Rifts without crumbling like old cheese. Spoiler: it ain’t all sunshine and rainbows.
Starting Out Real Messy
Kicked things off with the good old Rathma’s Army build. Followed some ancient guide online, geared up my skellies, popped that Army of the Dead skill, and charged headfirst into a GR90. Dumb idea. Got absolutely wrecked the second I walked in. Those demons swarmed my fragile mage bones faster than I could say “revive.” My skeletons evaporated, my mages got punted into oblivion, and I had a corpse explosion party going on – problem was, I was the main course. Died. A lot. Ended up throwing my hands up. This build needed babysitting way too much for my liking.
Swapping Gears Like A Maniac
Alright, Rathma was dead to me. Time for something chunkier. Heard Bone Spear builds were smashing things, so I dug through my stash. Found some Masquerade pieces, slapped ’em on. Key things I hunted down:
- Grasp of Essence gloves? Check.
- Coven’s Criterion shield thingy? Took ages, but got it.
- That sweet, sweet Ring of Royal Grandeur to save some slots? Painfully farmed it.
Took like two nights of pure grinding just to get stuff kinda usable. Paragon levels climbing helped patch up some holes in my crappy gear. Felt like duct taping a car together.
Testing Bone Spear in the Meat Grinder
First decent run felt smoother. Started spearing stuff at range, things actually died before they reached me! Felt good, man. Pushed into GR100s. Damage? Yeah, it was there. Big yellow numbers popping off elites felt juicy.
But… dang, the squish factor. If anything looked at me funny, or one of those stupid ghost hands grabbed me? Lights out. Had to dance around like crazy, constantly watching those pesky ground effects. Concentration levels needed to be maxed out. Even one misstep meant staring at the death screen. Got frustrating real quick, especially in rifts packed with lasers or poison everywhere.
Digging Deep for the Real Deal
Was kinda ready to give up, ngl. Then remembered seeing whispers about Legacy of Dreams builds being tank monsters. Raiding my stash, hunting forgotten ancient pieces covered in digital dust. Found a decently rolled Iron Rose, some ancients with okay stats. Paired it with the Blood Nova setup and a crap-ton of damage reduction gems/gear.
Hopped into another GR run. Instantly felt different. Wasn’t doing the insane burst damage of the Bone Spear, but man, I could just… stand there. Letting the Siphon Blood do its thing, novas popping constantly. Elite packs hammering me? Barely scratched my health bar. No frantic running for my life.
Pushed into higher tiers I couldn’t even sniff before. The sheer toughness let me be lazy, focus on positioning rather than surviving every single trash mob. Cleared stuff consistently slower than Bone Spear blasts, sure, but way, WAY more reliably. Didn’t feel like a glass cannon ready to shatter.
So What Actually Works Up High?
Based on getting my virtual butt kicked repeatedly?
- Raw Power & Skill? Bone Spear Masquerade. Hits like a truck if you’re fast enough.
- Want to Live & Just Get It Done? LoD Blood Nova. Tanky as hell, stupid easy to pilot.
Rathma felt flimsy at high levels for my playstyle. Bone Spear needs crazy good reflexes and near-perfect gear to feel safe. But that Legacy of Dreams setup? Pure, beautiful cheese. Slapped on some extra toughness gems, maybe sacrificed a bit of damage, and it handled GR110s for me last night without breaking a sweat. Felt like I was cheating. Sometimes being a brick wall beats being a lightning bolt. Gonna keep pushing with this bloodsucker.