I couldn't find an Act Three game so I decided to create one. A level sixteen Paladin quickly joined me. I decided to keep my existing mercenary for the Aura instead of getting an Act Three mercenary from Asheara. We left town, and proceeded to wend our way through the Spider Forest in search of the various parts to Khalim's Will. We had only been playing about three minutes when a level 99 Druid joins the game. This is the first time I had seen a level 99 individual. He tells us that he was bored and wanted to know if we would like him to rush us through to Act Five. The Paladin and I both indicate that we would greatly appreciate any help he was willing to offer.
The Druid opened up a Town Portal to the Durance of Hate Level Two waypoint; we both took it and activate the waypoint. We then shadowed him and offered what assistance we could as we searched out the stairs to Durance of Hate Level Three. Upon arrival at the third level, the Druid cleared the entryway and killed Bremm Sparkfist and Maffer Dragonhand. Once again, we shadowed him and offered what support we could. We quickly made our way to Mephisto, who the Druid took down next. The Paladin and I both scooped up the treasure that dropped and proceeded to Act Four, where we found a Town Portal already open to the River of Flame. Although I had increased my level in Act Three to eighteen, I didn't want to miss out on any experience points, so I entered the portal and again shadowed the Druid. He quickly led us across the River of Flame and into The Chaos Sanctuary, leaving the bodies of our enemies piled behind us.
Once again, the Druid made easy work of everything he came across while the Paladin and I swept up the gold and magic items that dropped. All the Seals holding Diablo were broken and their corresponding bosses eliminated. Diablo lasted only about two seconds longer than any of the monsters. A couple of decent items dropped, including a rare pike. Unfortunately my Act Two mercenary was too weak to use it, so I kept it in my stash for later.
We went back to town and talked with Tyrael, who opened the portal to Act Five - Harrogath.
I noticed that I had reached level nineteen and used this time to distribute my points. As I had surpassed level eighteen, I decided to distribute my skill points to prerequisite skills instead of Sword Mastery.
Level 18: 5 Vitality; 1 Leap Attack
Level 19: 5 Vitality; 1 Iron Skin
The Druid suggested that we go back to Act Three in Kurast to level up to twenty, and then he would take us to The Ancients to get that quest. We graciously accepted his advice and went back to Act Three, where he opened a portal to Upper Kurast. We went through, activated the waypoint, and proceeded to split up and kill as much as possible. We ended up clearing both the Kurast Bazaar and Upper Kurast before both the Paladin and I had reached level twenty.
Upon reaching twenty, I quickly distributed my points. Once again, I opted on spending my skill point on a prerequisite rather than increasing Sword Mastery.
Level 20: 5 Vitality; 1 Concentrate
We then went back to Act Five, where the Druid had opened a Town Portal to the Ancients' Way. We went through the Town Portal and activated the waypoint. We then followed the Druid to the exit, leading to the Arreat Summit where we, in turn, found the three Ancients. I read the pedestal and brought the Ancients to life. The Paladin and I pretty much ran for our lives while the Druid made quick work of each of the Ancients. "Ping!" Five levels gained!
I was now at level 25. I journeyed back to town to level up my acquired points.
Level 21: 5 Vitality; Sword Mastery (13)
Level 22: 5 Vitality; Sword Mastery (14)
Level 23: 5 Vitality; Sword Mastery (15)
Level 24: 5 Strength; Battle Orders (1)
Level 25: 5 Strength; Increased Speed (1)
The Druid asked what weapons we were using, so I showed him. He then said he would be right back. He left the game, and while I was working on distributing my points, he re-entered the game with a level 99 Barbarian. We asked how many characters he had that were level 99, and he indicated that he had four hardcore characters that were level 99. He gave me Bloodletter for free!
Bloodletter is a unique sword. This one had "+3 to Sword Mastery" and "+3 to Whirlwind". He also gave the Paladin a weapon as well. All he asked for was that we "be kind" and for us to return the favor to another new player down the road. He then left the game.
This was a very cool person. It is always a treat to meet people who are truly nice and helpful. His account was something like "N300ZX". There was more to the account name than that, but that was the part I remembered. All in all, a very cool experience!
It was time to level Hard-Xore up a bit before tackling more quests. The best place to do that is in the Bloody Foothills, just outside of Harrogath. I said my goodbyes to the Paladin and went in search of a "Bloody Run" game. I quickly found one with five other people, joined, and partied with the rest.
The next two hours of adventuring were spent doing "Bloody Runs", which are repetitive games where all of the people work to clear the Bloody Foothills of all monsters. This practice is a quick, efficient, and relatively easy method of obtaining levels. At the end of the 2+ hours, I had increased my level to 34. Instead of detailing each and every step of the various runs, here are the highlights during that time.
Level 25: I found the unique weapon Maelstrom. I traded that to a Necromancer for the set items Cathan's Seal (ring) and Sigon's Sabot (boots).
Level 26: I found the unique weapon Hexfire. I put it in my stash.
Level 30: Switched my primary weapon to Bloodletter ("+3 to Whirlwind", "+3 to Sword Mastery"; Minimum Level Requirement: 30)
Level 34: Traded Cathan's Seal for the set item Hwanin's Blessing and a Large Charm that adds 1-15 lightning damage.
Note that I had also upgraded my helm to one with three sockets, which I had found in the Bloody Foothills. I plan on enhancing it with the runes Ral, Ort and Tal, which I will receive for completing the second quest of Act Five. This will help my resistances, in preparation for Nightmare difficulty.
This is how I distributed the acquired Skill and Attribute points:
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