Welcome to The AfterMath!
This game is a multi-player modification (mod) of a great Blizzard classic: Diablo II. This mod includes a plethora of exciting changes that enhance game play for players of all ability levels. Every effort has been made to make this one of the most dynamic and fun Diablo II mods out there! Players can expect significant changes to gear, player skills, monsters, maps, and quests. Below is a general explanation of the changes someone familiar with Blizzard’s original game will experience. If this general description is of interest, please download the entire patch overview to see all the details!
Quick Links
AfterMath Rules • • • Mod Overview • • • Getting Started
Character Information • • • Items/Gear • • • Cube Recipes
Crafting & Tempering • • • Gems • • • Runes & Runewords
The AfterMath Trailer - Take a look!
Gear
One of the biggest drawing points in the diablo series has always been the sight of that shiny new sword, lavish piece of armor, or mystical piece of treasure falling out of a dead enemies hands, staring right back at you. You will experience the same sense of wonder and excitement here on AfterMath!
- In the original expansion pack, a player could find 128 set items belonging to 32 different sets, nearly 400 unique items, 40 rune words, and 148 various cube recipes.
- AfterMath has 218 set items belonging to 53 different sets. Each set can not only drop from any monster, but also drop from a specific boss making the collection of sets easier to complete in a timely fashion.
- AfterMath has 250 unique items, the vast majority of which now have their own unique item graphics as well. The unique items in this modification are split into 2 categories: cursed and penalized. A cursed unique must be un-cursed to be used effectively. Penalized unique items are similar to the original unique items found in Diablo I – possessing powerful bonuses and nasty penalties. As an example of the penalized unique item, consider a sure favourite among the players: the ring “When Fools Rush In”. This ring grants the player an enormous experience bonus but permanently reduces the characters statistics should he or she die in combat while wearing the ring.
- AfterMath has 60 rune words that in general grow more powerful as your character advances in experience. All runes in the game drop with a significantly higher frequency than found on Battle Net. This change allows all rune words to be created and enjoyed. However, it should be noted that using powerful runes outside of a rune word will hurt your character, so choose carefully what runes you use if you decide not to use a rune word.
- AfterMath has 1852 cube recipes – over 1700 more than the original game! Five new gem types have been added and players can craft with all 10 gem types available starting at character level 11. Recipes also exist for adding 1, 2, 3, 4, or even 5 sockets to gear! Items socketed into gear can be removed or destroyed as well. Gear can be upgraded. Portals can be opened by transmuting treasure and items found along the journey to Baal. Also, the first customizable unique has found it’s way into The AfterMath – allowing players to create their own tailored charm that suites their character’s needs!
- One last item worth mentioning is skill books. Just like Diablo I, your character can grow more powerful by finding skill books that permanently improve your character’s skill level in a particular skill. However, just like Diablo I, you must meet the requirements to use it.
Player Skills
Just as the changes to player gear are vast, so too are the changes to player skills. The first thing a new player might notice is that skills have statistical requirements just like Diablo I. A talented melee character will never reach the highest ranks in his profession without a steady investment into statistics like Strength or Dexterity. The same goes for the sorceress. A powerful sorceress must invest in her energy if she wishes to reach the highest magical damages her character is capable of. In general, these statistical requirements for skill advancement force players to think and balance out their own playing style in terms of damage, defense, health points, etc. Though in terms of hard numbers, this change doesn’t seem significant on the surface but when playing the game, this change will require you to think and balance. It’s definitely a change in philosophy!
AfterMath Bestiary
Ah, the bestiary! For players who are new to The AfterMath, it will not take you long to realize these monsters fight back. Hard. Each monster that can attack with a skill, will do so. Every monster will retaliate and some monsters can even summon others, so if you are unprepared, you will die rather quickly. In terms of numbers, The AfterMath contains more than 130 new monster animations borrowed from other Blizzard games including Diablo I! Players can battle against nearly 100 new bosses all armed and quite deadly to the unprepared. New players will also notice that certain monsters will auto heal after 20 seconds if they are left unengaged during this brief time. Therefore, when the time comes to engage Diablo or some other boss – come prepared for a battle to the death - or you will have to fight him again and again .The days of casting Town Portal and chipping away at a boss monster until you eventually win are over.
Difficulties
One last note concerning monsters in this game deals with player experience and advancement. The Normal difficulty level in this modification is admittedly not that difficult and will take a new character all the way to approximately level 55. This change from previous patches has been done to allow new players the time to get used to how things work in this game. There are many changes to get used to and so Normal is the place to teach these changes. Nightmare is much more difficult but doable by most in a party of competent players. Soloing will become quiet difficult in places during this difficulty. Characters at the end of Nightmare will be approximately level 95 – only 5 levels from the end! Hell, however, is exactly that: Hell. Yes, character builds will be essentially complete but the game has been coded with the goal of 1 in 10 being able to finish it. This difficulty setting is only for the truly best (or masochistic) among us. Most players are expected to not play this difficulty level – not even in a party.
Maps and Quests
Here on The AfterMath, there have been a multitude of mapping and quest changes. NPC’s that advance a character from one act to another have all been moved out of town. The Horadric Cube has been moved under Tristam’s Cathedral. Izual’s quest and the Act 5 Mercenary quest have all been changed significantly. In terms of sheer numbers, AfterMath currently has 234 levels compared to 132 in the Lord of Destruction expansion pack. Several new levels in this game contain mapping graphics that are completely new to Diablo II. Lastly, 12 new waypoints have been added allowing players to travel around and return to distant places quickly.
If this small overview interests you at all, and you wish to find out more, please download the AfterMath 1.09 Patch overview. The patch overview contains a detailed listing of everything discussed here plus a lot more. And once again, welcome to the AfterMath!
Cheers!
- The AfterMath Dev Team
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