Alright so yesterday I finally cracked and decided I gotta make that Fortitude armor everyone keeps drooling over in Diablo 2. Everyone says it’s the holy grail for mercs, right? Figured it was time to stop whining about my merc dying constantly and actually do the damn thing.
Phase One: The Frustrating Hunt For Stuff
First, obviously, needed the runes. Easier said than done. Spent hours running like a maniac:
- Countless Lower Kurast super chest sprints. My fingers got numb clicking those chests.
- Pindleskin runs until I nearly memorized his stupid garden layout.
- Even gambled gold like mad at Gheed hoping for a lucky break (spoiler: didn’t work).
Got real sick of seeing junk runes dropping. Felt like the game was laughing at me. Persistence paid off, though – eventually snagged the big ones: the El, the Sol, that juicy Dol, and finally, the elusive Lo. Nearly screamed when it dropped.
Phase Two: Base Armor Drama
Thought finding the runes was hard? Finding a decent base armor felt impossible. Everyone raves about Archon Plates, but good luck finding one with exactly 4 sockets and low enough Strength for my merc. Tried Ancient Armors, Hellforge Plates… felt like settling. Almost stuck a Loricated Mail in the cube out of sheer desperation. Finally, after trading half my stash, got my hands on a 4-socket Dusk Shroud. Not perfect, but definitely good enough.
Phase Three: The Heart-Stopping Moment
Cleared off my workbench like it was surgery. Seriously – swept off all the gems, runes, junk charms. Just the Dusk Shroud and the runes:
- Laid the El Rune in first. Held my breath.
- Then the Sol. Started sweating.
- Slid the Dol in. Fingers trembling now.
- Finally, dropped in that Lo Rune. Holy crap, this is it.
Clicked the cube button… felt like an eternity. The screen flashed. The “Fortitude” name popped up on the chest armor. YES! Literally jumped out of my chair and did a victory lap around the room. Almost kicked my cat. Sorry, Mittens.
Phase Four: Merc Showing Off
Equipped that beauty on my poor, constantly-dying Desert Mercenary Emilio. Took him straight to the Chaos Sanctuary. The difference? Unreal.
- He wasn’t getting one-shot by those annoying Venom Lords anymore.
- The “Chilling Armor” proc looked cool and actually helped him not die.
- His damage? Went through the roof. Was finally pulling his weight instead of draining my gold on res costs!
Final Thoughts & Mess-Ups I Made (Don’t Be Like Me)
Was it worth the grind and stress? 100%. But learn from my dumb mistakes:
- Check the base STR req! Seriously! Almost wasted runes on something my merc couldn’t even equip.
- Stash your other goodies. That one time I accidentally cubed a perfect gem… yeah, don’t be me.
- Be patient with the runes. Running the same spot 100 times sucks, but seeing that Lo drop makes it worth it.
- Double, triple-check the runeword order. Muscle memory almost made me put Sol before El once. Almost had a heart attack stopping myself.
Bottom line? It’s a ton of work, crazy nerve-wracking to socket, but man, when your merc finally becomes an immortal killing machine? Best damn feeling. Go make yours!