D2R Poison Javelin Amazon Build Guide for Season 8

When it comes to D2R Amazon Builds, the one that usually comes up is the Lightning Fury Javazon. Its damage is direct and can eliminate the minions of Hell in a matter of seconds. However, if you are tired of the same playstyle and would like to go in a different route, then perhaps you can try the Poison Javelin Amazon out.

Sometimes referred to as Poison Javazon, this build uses javelins enhanced with potent poisons that can kill monsters easily. The only main disadvantage, really, is that this D2R poison build deals damage over time. Other than that, this is a very effective farmer, especially against the killer cows in the Secret Cow Level.

Are you interested in playing the Amazon class in Diablo II: Resurrected? If so, join us as we dive into the Poison Javelin Amazon for D2R Season 8!

Why Choose the Poison Javelin Amazon?

If there is one D2R build that excels in farming The Secret Cow Level, it would be the Poison Javelin Amazon. The Killer Cows are extremely vulnerable to poison damage. And, this area is abundant with these enemies, making it the perfect farming place for D2R items.

Now, the Poison Javelin Amazon has two powerful skills at her disposal. The first is the titular Poison Javelin — a skill that prompts the Amazon to hurl a javelin in a straight line, leaving a poison cloud in its trail. Monsters who pass through this poison cloud will suffer damage over time.

The second skill in her kit is the Plague Javelin. This one is similar to the previous skill except that when the javelin hits an enemy, it creates an explosion of poison damage that covers a much wider area.

Because of the way the skills work, the Poison Javazon is best played as a character that constantly moves, kiting enemies to follow her and meet their demise. If there is one problem, though, this build does not work well against those that have immunity to poison damage. This is the reason why our version of the Poison Javelin Amazon incorporates Lightning Fury as well.

Lightning Fury allows you to throw a Javelin that splits into multiple lightning bolts whenever the initial target is hit. This is primarily used to deal with poison-immune monsters, but you also have the option of using it more frequently if you prefer.

Playstyle

Plague Javelin is your primary damage dealer. You simply hit your intended target, and it will create a huge poison cloud. Kite nearby monsters to that area of effect, and they, too, will be poisoned as a result.

Once you encounter monsters immune to poison damage, utilize Lightning Fury until they are dealt with. When you have the Sundered Charm, Rotting Fissure, in your inventory, you no longer need Lightning Fury. You could safely respec your skill points and allocate them to Valkyrie, Decoy, or Pierce.

If you prefer a more dynamic playstyle, equip the Death’s Web unique wand and a Monarch Shield with four Rainbow Facets to significantly reduce the poison resistance of monsters in the vicinity.

If that is too cumbersome, you can stick to the usual Call to Arms and Spirit combo to buff yourself up with Battle Orders and Battle Command. Additionally, cast Valkyrie when you need to reposition your powerful ally. Valkyrie can be utilized to take damage for you, so cast this skill whenever you are in a bind.

Stats

• Strength: 156
• Dexterity: 109 to 151
• Vitality: Spend the rest of the points here
• Energy: None

The amount of Dexterity that you should spend on your Poison Javelin Amazon really depends on your main weapon. If you are going with our recommendation, which is Titan’s Revenge, you only need 109 DEX to wield it. However, using higher-level javelins does require more dexterity, so allocate points to it to suit your needs.

Javelins in Diablo II: Resurrected only require a single equipment slot, meaning you can wield a shield on your offhand. As you can already tell by the amount of STR outlined above, you are going to use a Monarch Shield here. This is because the said shield has the lowest strength requirement among those that can roll with four sockets.

Energy can be left as-is. The Poison Javelin Amazon is one of the most mana-efficient builds in D2R, so if you are running into mana issues, then you are not playing the build right.

The rest of the points should be dumped into Vitality to increase your health pool. You need a relatively high amount of HP because you will kite and lure enemies to the poison clouds you create, some of which might hit you in the process.

Skills

• 20 points on Plague Javelin
• 20 points on Poison Javelin
• 20 points on Lightning Fury
• 20 points on Penetrate
• 20 points on Pierce
• 10 points on Valkyrie
• 1 point on the following:
• Jab
• Impale
• Lightning Bolt
• Inner Sight
• Critical Strike
• Dodge
• Slow Missiles
• Avoid
• Decoy
• Evade

When you start your journey in Diablo II: Resurrected, grab a suitable javelin and use Jab to kill enemies. Once you reach level 6, you will unlock Poison Javelin, so spend your skill points to improve its damage. Do not forget to allocate points to the other skill prerequisites as well.

After reaching level 18, you will then unlock Plague Javelin. Max this out first to eliminate enemies very quickly with powerful poison damage. At higher difficulty levels where monsters with immunity to certain damage types become more prevalent, start allocating points to Lightning Fury to deal with them.

Use the time between level 6 to level 18 to become acquainted with Poison Javelin. Do not aim directly at enemies because the bulk of the damage comes from the trail of poison that the skill creates. As a guide, look at the enemy you want to kill, point at the area beside them, and then click on the hotkey to execute the move.

Once you have mastered the said skill, it will be much easier for you to kite enemies with Plague Javelin because the playstyle remains largely the same.

Breakpoints

The Poison Javelin Amazon, unlike other D2R builds, does not put a major emphasis on Faster Cast Rate. Instead, turn your attention to improving increased attack speed (IAS) and Faster Hit Recovery (FHR).

IAS breakpoints are a bit tricky to calculate in Diablo II: Resurrected. This is because it considers some important factors, such as the weapon you are using and the skills that you intend to cast. However, a 95% increased attack speed is quite achievable and works with most javelins, so take this number as the base point.

For Faster Hit Recovery, we recommend that you achieve 86% FHR to reduce the hit animation to just six frames (from 11 frames). This greatly improves your survivability, particularly at higher difficulty levels and during party play. If that number is too high, the next breakpoint at 56% FHR is fine.

Poison Javelin Amazon Gear Recommendations

Attack speed, faster hit recovery, and + to skill points. These are the bonuses that you should prioritize when it comes to gearing the Poison Javelin Amazon. Read further to find out the best D2R items for this build.

Helmet

If you are a long-time Diablo II: Resurrected veteran, you might think that we will recommend the Harlequin Crest for the Poison Javelin Amazon. While it is one of the best unique items in the game, if you’re looking to maximize damage, the ideal helmet for this D2R poison build is a Diadem with + to Amazon skills and two sockets.

The two sockets are reserved for a couple of Rainbow Facet: Poison jewels, reducing nearby monsters' poison resistance by 10%. Additional bonuses on the item can include life, faster run/walk (FRW), and attack rating.

Body Armor

You have two amazing items that you can wear on this build. The first is Bramble — a D2R runeword that was specifically made to improve poison damage. If you get lucky, you could get a 50% boost to poison skill damage, which should make quick work of the enemy.

Aside from that, this item grants 50% FHR, so you only need to complement it with another item that grants north of 30% to achieve the 86% Faster Hit Recovery breakpoint mentioned earlier.

The Ral, Ohm, Sur, and Eth runes required to create this runeword are relatively affordable. However, if you want to get the full 50% poison damage, then you will need a healthy stock of these runes. In that case, we are happy to invite you to our D2R store, which is a good place to get amazing deals on various D2R items, such as the runes just mentioned.

When you feel that you no longer need a huge increase in poison damage, you could replace Bramble with Enigma. Besides giving you the power to use Teleport, you can reposition yourself to lure many more monsters than not having the said ability. This is the primary reason why Enigma is a staple D2R runeword for endgame farming.

Weapon

The Lightning Fury Javazon’s best friend is also one of the ideal weapons for the Poison Javelin Amazon. Titan’s Revenge has all of the things that can be of great benefit to the build, including +2 to Javelin and Speak Skills, +2 to Amazon Skills, and 30% FRW, among others.

You also have the option of upgrading the weapon’s base type from Ceremonial Javelin to Matriarchal Javelin using a Horadric Cube Recipe. Doing so will make the weapon’s inherent life-leeching effect more effective. Upgrading the base weapon type does increase its attribute requirements, so keep that in mind before you do so.

The other weapon you could utilize is one that has + to Amazon/Javelin skills and +% increased attack speed. If you prefer using this weapon, the 95% IAS breakpoint can easily be achieved.

Shield

The Spirit Shield is practically a no-brainer here. It has +2 to all skills, which makes your javelin abilities more potent. Furthermore, the 55% Faster Hit Recovery allows you to hit the much higher FHR breakpoint, which improves your survivability as well.

A good alternative to the Spirit Shield is a Monarch Shield with four Rainbow Facet: Poison jewels. Each jewel reduces the poison resistance of nearby monsters by 5%, for a total of 20%. Just make sure that the shield has other useful bonuses.

Weapon Swap

To maximize the build’s potential, you could put Death's Web along with the Monarch Shield (with four Rainbow Facet: Poison jewels) in the weapon swap. This unique wand is known for significantly reducing enemy poison resistance by up to 50%.

If you opt for this one, switch to the said weapon after throwing your Plague Javelins. Doing so will cause the poison clouds to deal significantly more damage to the minions of Hell.

Switching weapons in Diablo II: Resurrected feels a bit clunky when you have connection issues. So, if you are not comfortable with the more active playstyle, you could just replace it with the trusty Call to Arms. This is a weapon runeword that allows you to cast Battle Command and Battle Orders — useful buffs for farming endgame D2R items.

Shield Swap

• Spirit Shield
• Monarch Shield with Rainbow Facet: Poison

Gloves

Trang’Oul’s Claws could be looked at as a pair of gloves that are suited more for Necromancers, but the Poison Javelin Amazon can actually utilize it to a great extent as well. This is because of the bonus to poison skill damage, so even if these gloves do not increase your attack speed, they benefit your character nevertheless.

Achieving a higher IAS breakpoint is another route you can take for this D2R build. Hence, you could opt for a pair of gloves that has increased attack speed and + to Amazon skills.

Boots

War Traveler is a pair of unique boots that you can start wearing at level 42 onward. This unique item allows you to run faster, making it a bit easier for you to lure enemies to the deadly poison clouds. Besides that, the 50% MF is just amazing for endgame farming.

Not a lot of items in Diablo II: Resurrected can give poison resistance. If you need to protect yourself from this damage type, especially when you have the Rotting Fissure sunder charm in your inventory, then we highly recommend that you wear boots with 30%+ poison resistance. Grab a pair that can also grant an increase in FRW while you’re at it.

Amulet

As we have mentioned earlier, Faster Cast Rate is not a breakpoint you should focus on for the Poison Javelin Amazon. However, a relatively high number (48% or 68%) is always welcome, which is achievable if you wear some D2R items with FCR. Fortunately, you can acquire an amulet with Faster Cast Rate coupled with + to Amazon Skills as shown in the image below:

Rings

You can equip the combo of Raven Frost and Stone of Jordan and call it a day. The former makes you immune to being frozen, while the latter raises the level of your skills by one, in addition to a considerable boost in mana.

In case you do not know, Plague Javelin deals physical damage on the initial contact and is then followed up with poison damage due to the resulting area of effect. For this reason, you could use at least one ring with some attack rating and mana leech. Attack rating helps you hit enemies more consistently, even more so when you are using a ranged attack skill in Diablo II: Resurrected.

Belt

The Poison Javazon only requires one belt to be used and that is the Razortail. If you look at its bonuses, you will find that this unique belt makes it easier for you to pierce enemies with your javelin skills. This is also perfect for Lightning Fury since you want the said skill to hit multiple targets in one cast.

Charms

• Rotting Fissure: Mandatory. Put in your inventory to kill monsters that are immune to poison damage
• Annihilus: +20 Attributes and +1 to All Skills
• Hellfire Torch: Specifically with +3 to Amazon Skill Levels
• Gheed’s Fortune: Improves Magic Find and Gold Find
• Grand Charms: +1 to Javelin and Spear Skills, + to Life, at least one with +% Faster Hit Recovery
• Small Charms: All Resistances +5, +% Better Chance of Getting Magic Items

Mercenary

The conventional Act 2 Desert Mercenary is not bad for this build. However, we believe that the Act 5 Barbarian is better because he has the ability to wield a sword with the Plague D2R runeword on it.

This runeword enables the said mercenary to lower the poison resistance of nearby enemies, making your javelin skills even more effective. If you can afford them, we recommend that you put the Cham, Shael, and Um runes into a couple of Phase Blades for their innately fast attack speed.

Here is a rundown of the items your Act 5 Barbarian must ideally have:

• Weapon: Plague (preferably on a couple of three-socketed Phase Blades)
• Body Armor: Shaftstop
• Helmet: Vampire Gaze

Unlike most mercenary builds in Diablo II: Resurrected, the Act 5 Barbarian, in this context, is kitted with the Shaftstop for body armor and Vampire Gaze for the headgear. This is because the mercenary soaks up the vast majority of damage for you, so you do not have to worry about dying as you kite and kill enemies.

Shaftstop is known for providing a 30% damage reduction while Vampire Gaze can roll up to 20% more. The life and mana leech provided by the latter allows your mercenary to survive even in Hell Difficulty, especially when you have them use two Phase Blades.

Tips and Strategies

• Practice Kiting: If you are new to this whole idea, kiting is when you hit enemies and have them follow you wherever you go. You will need to do a lot of kiting, especially if you want to maximize both your Poison Javelin and Plague Javelin.
• Don’t Forget About Attack Rating: Plague Javelin must hit a target before the poison explosion occurs. Make sure that you have at least an 85% attack rating to ensure that the initial hit lands.
• Lightning Fury is Not Mandatory: Remember that Lightning Fury is allocated here only to address monsters that are immune to poison damage. If you do not need it anymore, you can spend the skill points on Valkyrie and Decoy to improve your powerful ally even further.
• Add as Many “Skiller Charms” as You Can: All skills in D2R become even more deadly when their levels are raised, but this is more pronounced for Plague Javelin. The poison clouds can slay the minions of Hell much faster if the Plague Javelin is at a higher level.
• Tired of Kiting? Use Decoy: Even though we recommend kiting as an effective method for killing monsters with this build, the playstyle may not be to your liking. If this is the case, you could cast a Decoy and place it a bit farther from your location. When the monsters start attacking it, you can kill them with a Plague Javelin or two.

Final Thoughts

Despite the prevalence of Lightning Fury Javazons, Diablo II: Resurrected has given the Poison Javelin Amazon a new breath of life. This build is capable of destroying a huge pack of monsters easily via consistent poison damage.

While this build is not a direct damage dealer as its lightning-based counterpart, the Poison Javazon provides you with a more dynamic playstyle; one that actually rewards you for kiting enemies and leading them to their deaths.

We have certainly enjoyed writing this full build guide for the Poison Javelin Amazon in D2R Season 8. We at RPGStash encourage you to try this out, especially if you want a different approach rather than the conventional Lightning Fury Javazon.

If you do, please share your thoughts and experiences. We would love to hear from you! In the meantime, do not forget to browse our fully-fledged D2R store for all your needs.

PROS

• Wrecks monsters as you throw your poison javelins
• Amazing survivability thanks to Valkyrie and Decoy
• Poison damage scales really well in later levels, making “Players 8” content trivial
• One of the best Secret Cow Level farmers in the game

CONS

• A bit “slow” compared to more direct-damage builds
• Not ideal for those who do not want to move often
• Kiting is necessary for maximum efficiency