TABLE OF CONTENTS
Blizzard Sorceress Introduction & Overview
The Blizzard Sorceress is the most popular character build in the game as the 2.4 patch lowered Blizzard’s cooldown to 1.8sec, and the 2.5 patch introduced Sunder Charms which remove monster immunities. Together these effects made the Blizzard Sorceress the strongest build in the entire game. Is it a viable ladder starter, can solo any game content, is an extraordinary magic finder, can move incredibly fast via teleport, and can be geared for Hardcore. As the name suggests, the primary attacking skill is Blizzard, while the secondary is either Ice Blast, or Static field, both of which can be casted during the cooldown of Blizzard.
🔸 Easily Soloes any game content even in Player 8 difficulty
🔸 Hell Chaos run and Hell Baal run both within 2-3 minutes
🔸 Harcore viable
🔸 The best build for Magic Finding
🔸 Optimal Ladder Starter
The build can farm literally anything, including Terror Zones, the Cow Level, Chaos Sanctuary, Baal, Act Bosses and Superuniques, or even Uber Tristram. Most monster will be one-shotted by Blizzard, and the damage is delivered over a wide area. Playstyle depends on your level of experience, using Blizzard in a combination with other skills effectively can be quite difficult. You will be able to decimate anything that comes your way even in budget gear, so if you look for a relatively cheap but effective character to play, look no further.
Blizzard Sorceress Pros and Cons
Pros
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Cons
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Blizzard Sorceress Gameplay
Playing solo: Once you have a Cold Sunder charm, you will be able to easily solo the entire game. You should use teleport for movement, and spam Blizzard and Ice Blast to quickly kill monsters. If you play on player8 difficulty or against high-life monsters, you can use static field to lower their life quickly. Get an Insight weapon for your mercenary as soon as possible, and use an Act2 Prayer merc for better mana recovery. If you play the character as a ladder starter, try to get a Spirit Crystal sword and Spirit Monarch as soon as possible. Blizz Sorcs have crazy MF potential, in good enough gear you can reach up to 1k% Magic Find!
Playing in a party: In parties, members can take advantage of your fast teleporting ability in order to reach bosses quickly. Having a paladin with Conviction aura or a necromancer with the Lower resist curse can further increase your damage. Even without these boosts, you will be the main damage dealer of the party. Survivability can be boosted by many ways, including Paladins with Defensive Auras, a Barbarian with high level of Battle Orders and Shout skills, a Druid with high Oak Sage, or several of the Necromancer Curses.
Playing Hardcore: The character is suitable for hardcore, but you will need to be careful not to teleport in the middle of monster packs. You can protect yourself against elemental damages by wearing a Guardian Angel armor and reaching 90% to all resistances. Against physical attacks you can either wear a Stormshield in combination with a Verdungo’s Hearty Cord, or go for a Ber+Ber socketed Crown of Ages + Chains of Honor + Phoenix Monarch setup with additional +Max resistances items and elemental damage absorption items. Only move by teleport, and make sure to walk instead of run to preserve your defense. Always wear a Call to Arms in order to buff yourself with Battle Orders, as without one, you are much more likely to die. Have a Raven frost ring in one of your ring slots for Freeze immunity. Use an Act2 Prayer Mercenary equippped with an Insight polearm (preferably ethereal Thresher).
Blizzard Sorceress Breakpoints
Note: Each second in the game consists of 25 frames or “ticks”. Your breakpoints decide how many frames it will take until you can attack/cast a skill/recover from a hit/ block a new hit.
Faster Cast Rate
- Aim for 63% (9 frame), 105% (8 frame) or 200% (7 frame) Faster cast rate.
Faster Hit Recovery
- Have at least 20% FHR (11 frame recovery). Reaching the 30% (10 frame) or 42% (9 frame) breakpoints are even better. More FHR is unnecessary.
Faster Block Rate
- Having FBR on your gear is very beneficial. Your base FBR is at 9 frames, and the next breakpoints are at 7% and 15%, 27% and 48% (5 frames).
Blizzard Sorceress Skills
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Cold Spells
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Lightning Spells
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Fire Spells
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Skill notes: *Cold mastery is capped at level 37 (-200% Cold Resistance), so don’t put more points on it once you reach lvl37. Use Ice Blast in combination with Blizzard, you can spam it while waiting on Blizzard’s cooldown.
Blizzard Sorceress Stat Points
Strength
Allocate enough Strength points to be able to wear your gear.
Dexterity
Allocate enough Dexterity points to be able to wear your gear. If you wear a Guardian Angel and Stormshield on Hardcore, put enough points on dexterity to have 75% chance to block.
Vitality
Put all your remaining stat points on Vitality once you are able to wear your gear.
Energy
Don’t put any points on it.
You can re-stat your character by the quest reward of Akara’s Act1 Den of Evil Quest, or by using Token of Absolution.
Blizzard Sorceress Mercenary
You should have an Act2 Prayer Aura mercenary equipped with an Insight runeword weapon for optimal mana recovery.
Blizzard Sorceress Item setups
Ladder Blizz Sorc Gear
Helm: Lore / Peasant Crown / Tal Rasha’s Horadric Crest
Amulet: Any amulet with +skill, + all resistances or +Faster Cast Rate
Weapon: Spirit Crystal Sword / Wizardspike
Switch Weapon: none
Shield: Spirit Monarch / Moser’s Blessed Circle
Switch Shield: none
Body Armor: Stealth / Skin of the Vipermagi
Belt: Tal Rasha’s Belt / Trang Oul’s Belt / Nightsmoke / Crafted Caster Belt
Rings: Any ring with 10% FCR and other useful stats like allresist, life, magic find, etc.
Gloves: Magefist / Trang Oul’s gloves / Frostburn
Boots: 30% FRW boots with additional resists
Charms: Cold Sunder Charm, Any charm with +skill, life, resist or FHR will help.
Notes: Aim for 75% all resistances. You can use magic and rare items in any of your gear slots, and can also use them for your Mercenary.
Mercenary Gear
Helm: 3*Perfect Diamond socketed helm / Tal Rasha helm socketed with Perfect Diamond
Body Armor: Any useful rare body armor
Weapon: Insight Polearm
Advanced Blizz Sorc Gear
Helm: Nightwing’s Veil socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet
Amulet: Mara’s Kaleidoscope / 2 to Sorceress skills 20% FCR crafted amulet
Weapon: Heart of the Oak Flail / Death’s Fathom socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet / Obsession runeword in a +3 to Blizzard Staff
Switch Weapon: Call to Arms Crystal Sword
Shield: Phoenix Monarch / Stormshield / Spirit Monarch
Switch Shield: Spirit Monarch
Body Armor: Chains of Honor in an elite light body armor / Skin of the Vipermagi socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet / Ormus’ Robe +3 to Blizzard
Belt: Arachnid Mesh / Snowclash
Rings: Raven Frost / Rare of crafted 10% FCR rings / Stone of Jordan
Gloves: Trang Oul’s Gloves
Boots: Natalya’s Boots
Charms: Cold Sunder charm, Annihilus, Hellfire torch, Gheed’s Fortune, Small Charms with @all resistances, life, faster hit recovery, Cold Skillers (with +life, +FRW or +FHR optimally)
Mercenary Gear
Helm: Andariel’s Visage or Crown of Thieves (preferably ethereal, socketed with Ral/Um rune)
Body Armor: Ethereal Fortitude or Treachery armor
Weapon: Insight runeword in an elite two-handed ethereal Polearm, preferably Thresher
Magic Find Blizz Sorc Gear
Helm: Harlequin Crest Shako (Socket it with Ist rune)
Amulet: 40-50% Magic Find amulet
Weapon: Wizardspike / Heart of the Oak flail
Switch Weapon: 6*Ist Crystal Sword
Shield: Spirit Monarch
Switch Shield: 4*Ist Monarch
Body Armor: Skullder’s Ire socketed with Ist
Belt: Upgraded Goldwrap
Rings: 2*Nagelring
Gloves: Upgraded Chance Guards
Boots: War Traveler
Charms: Cold Sunder charm, Annihilus, Hellfire torch, Gheed’s Fortune, Small Charms with 7% Magic find (and also @all resistances if possible)
Mercenary Gear
Helm: Andariel’s Visage or Crown of Thieves (preferably ethereal, socketed with Ral/Um rune)
Body Armor: Ethereal Fortitude or Treachery armor
Weapon: Insight runeword in an elite two-handed ethereal Polearm, preferably Thresher
Hardcore Blizz Sorc Gear
Helm: Harlequin Crest Shako (Socket it with Um rune)
Amulet: Metalgrid
Weapon: Heart of the Oak Flail / Wizardspike
Switch Weapon: Call to Arms
Shield: Stormshield Monarch
Switch Shield: Spirit Monarch
Body Armor: Ethereal Guardian Angel socketed with Zod rune
Belt: Snowclash
Rings: Raven Frost / Rare or crafted 10% FCR ring with resists and/or life and mana
Gloves: Trang Oul’s Gloves / Frostburn
Charms: Cold Sunder charm, Annihilus, Hellfire torch, Gheed’s Fortune, Magic Small Charms (with +all resistances, +life or +faster hit recovery)
Note: Aim to overprotect yourself for situations when you get cursed with spells such as Lower Resist and Amplify Damage or get under an effect of an aura such as Fanaticism or Conviction.
Mercenary Gear
Helm: Andariel’s Visage or Crown of Thieves (preferably ethereal, socketed with Ral/Um rune) / Kira’s Guardian Tiara socketed with Um rune
Body Armor: Ethereal Fortitude or Treachery armor / Ethereal Upgraded Guardian Angel socketed with Um rune
Weapon: Ethereal Insight runeword in an elite Polearm base (preferably Thresher)
Tal Rasha Blizz Sorc Gear
Helm: Tal Rasha’s Horadric Crest socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet
Amulet: Tal Rasha’s Adjudication
Weapon: Tal Rasha’s Lidless Eye socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet
Switch Weapon: Call to Arms
Shield: Spirit Monarch
Switch Shield: Spirit Monarch
Body Armor: Tal Rasha’s Guardianship socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet
Belt: Tal Rasha’s Fine Spun Cloth
Rings: 2*Stone of Jordan / 10% FCR Rings with useful stats
Gloves: Trang Oul’s Gloves
Boots: Natalya’s Boots
Charms: Annihilus, Hellfire torch, Gheed’s Fortune, Magic +Cold Skills grand charms, life, mana, resist or FHR small charms
Mercenary Gear
Helm: Andariel’s Visage or Crown of Thieves (preferably ethereal, socketed with Ral/Um rune) / Kira’s Guardian Tiara socketed with Um rune
Body Armor: Ethereal Fortitude or Treachery armor / Ethereal Upgraded Guardian Angel socketed with Um rune
Weapon: Ethereal Insight runeword in an elite Polearm base (preferably Thresher)
200% FCR Blizz Sorc Gear
Helm: 2 Sorceress Skills 20% FCR Circlet (preferably 2 socket with 2*+5/-5% Cold Facet)
Amulet: 2 Sorceress Skills 20% FCR crafted amulet
Weapon: Heart of the Oak Flail
Switch Weapon: Call to Arms
Shield: Spirit Monarch
Switch Shield: Spirit Monarch
Body Armor: Vipermagi socketed with +5/-5% Cold Facet
Belt: Arachnid Mesh
Rings: 2*Rare or crafted 10% FCR ring with resists and/or life and mana
Gloves: Trang Oul’s Gloves
Charms: Cold Sunder charm, Annihilus, Hellfire torch, Gheed’s Fortune, Magic Small Charms (with +all resistances, +life or +faster hit recovery)
Mercenary Gear
Helm: Andariel’s Visage or Crown of Thieves (preferably ethereal, socketed with Ral/Um rune) / Kira’s Guardian Tiara socketed with Um rune
Body Armor: Ethereal Fortitude or Treachery armor / Ethereal Upgraded Guardian Angel socketed with Um rune
Weapon: Ethereal Insight runeword in an elite Polearm base (preferably Thresher)
HotO only works in staves or maces.
Thank you! Guide corrected.