[GUIDE] New Player Guide to MERCENARIES - Diablo 2 Resurrected

[@coolyoutubeluke]

"I'll put that to good use"

[@rayvincyful1]

I can't use that.

[@rylandtappe-inglis6325]

No you won't, shut up, I'm not stupid. Now go tank shots from The Cold One till you die four times so I can range him like we both know you're going to.

[@greegeree]

I'll put that to mediocre use for 2 seconds before getting deleted by some random rare spawn. Have fun spending 50k gold to res me again :P

[@KageNoTenshi]

“Thanks”

[@thelastlaughh8614]

@@KageNoTenshi The amount of times I’ve been seeing this daily. Without Fort or some high def armor he just dies on every champion mob.

[@phil6844]

The amount of gold I’ve blown on reviving mercenaries makes me cry 😭

[@blackoutgstar9949]

you can give them potions if on pc hold shift and the potion number

[@staviersss8039]

my sorc literally went broke in the middle of act 5

[@sugondesenuts69]

@@blackoutgstar9949 any idea how to do this on the Switch?

[@hangmingzhang5067]

if i get 10k everytime i had to rez a merc, id still have less gold than if i never got a merc... XD

[@Kr33t0s]

@@sugondesenuts69 zl and arrows i think

[@EmperorTerran]

Ok, hear me out. What I discovered when I play HC key hunting sorcesres that might be very valuable to mention in some videos. Lawbringer runeword sword - Amn+Lem+Ko It will get you 20% decrepify, sanctuary aura pushing away undead, monster rests in peace. It lacks dmg but baba merc is still able to kill countess in seconds or nihltak or whoever comes who is fire/cold immune for my soso. But the fact that I wont die to corpse explosion or dolls or those undead that drag sword.. its huge. Its the safest merc for keys hunting I had and I just came to possesion of all runes for infinity but I dunno if I even want to switch to infinity and respec to lighting or not. I really am comfortable with the dmg and the safety. There is also delirium helmet for additional crowd control and chance for confuse and terror, but I like decrep more

[@johnhardwick1736]

He did mention lawbringer in the vid

[@oguzcanoguz5977]

I get the undead and corpse explosion, but why do you not die to dolls?

[@EmperorTerran]

@@oguzcanoguz5977 they are undead and sanctuary aura pushes them away every 2 seconds. Sure I could die, but its far far far less likely than without sanctuarly. Also the dmg of the sword I have is kinda pathethic, so not one jab kill like with eth elite infinity merc

[@mauno100]

Ölö5ö58ööö

[@mauno100]

Ölllölöö

[@D2R2Ronin88]

Just a warning, if you're making an Insight for a merc, remember the str req on the weapon. I made one with a Collossus Voulge and it's 210 str requirement! Even at 85 he can't wear that without +30 Str from armor/helm.

[@jespergrothallermand8230]

Yeah did the same.. had to use +25 str og chest or helm :(

[@spacejaga]

Did it even tho for past half year was practicing like mad.... Now 87, used a tals mask with fal socketed to get it working... :)))

[@iamatlantis1]

Valid point for sure!

[@iamatlantis1]

kinda like when I had a superior archon plate enigma, those repairs were insane

[@viperswhip]

An Eth one? Don't bother if it is not Eth, but ya, generally I use a Cryptic Axe

[@simpicusmaximus]

I used to watch your content back when I was heavy into broodwar years ago. I'm so glad to see that you're a diablo 2 God and you made a bunch of stuff for it

[@davidgilbert3247]

Why everytime i think about something i need i open my cellphone and see a new llama video about it ? You're sick bro keep it up

[@yittmashups]

He could be a University professor of Diablo 2. What a fun class that would be.

[@JohnnyCasey]

Few things he missed --- All mercenaries except Iron Wolves (Act 3 merc) will do double the amount of damage depending on an equipped weapon. Desert Mercenaries (Act 2 merc) will do double dmg if they're equipped with javelins. One handed damage applies, NOT the throwing dmg. Barbarians (Act 5 merc) will do double dmg if they're equipped with one handed sword. Therefore, making Lawbringer on one handed sword is recommended. Rogue Scout (Act 1 merc) will do double dmg if they're equipped with bows. Yes, they can only equip bows, and that makes them always do double the amount of dmg. It's a bit oblivious about which dmg mod will be doubled or not. +damage mod from Grief certainly won't. Mercenaries from lower difficulty has better stats than those from higher difficulty. It's best to hire them in normal if possible. All mercenaries have 2 range for melee attack. Equipping a longer ranged melee weapons on your merc will not increase their attack range. Act 2 merc's Jab hits 2 times, not 3. Giving either thawing or antidote potions on your merc will not increase their cold/poison res and their maximum res, but will unfreeze/cure them.

[@Qwufi]

I didnt know that. Thank you!

[@jkkim6928]

Wow i had no idea giving me those potions would increase my res. Mind blown!

[@kentisbell839]

Nice addition thanks

[@CaleoGaming]

Thank you so much for your guides Llama, I'm quite new to Diablo 2 and just recently built a wind druid that you suggested and having loads of fun! I'm even trying to help/teach my other friend how to play their amazon based on your guides and they are really enjoying the game now also! :D

[@Preacher_.]

I kinda liked the "I raised him pokemon buff". Made it feel like an extra little buff that I had worked for.

[@T3AL]

Hey MrLlama, just wanted to say thanks for all your hard work. Your content is 10/10.

[@PretentiousLatinName]

for real! I wish 14 year old me would have had a MrLlama to guide my path. But now I'm ready!

[@ogolthorp]

Hey llama, I gotta say this channel is probably one of the most informative and open to feedback of basically any video game related channel on youtube. Your knowledge of the game inside and out and willingness to explain things from the ground up are great. I’m sure your numbers are exploding right now and you deserve every bit of it.

[@Fishbro]

Pro Tip: Tl Dr: Feed mercenary on console is left trigger held down while using from belt. On computer hold shift down before using them to feed your mercenary. Console players hold left trigger to activate alternative use abilities, which include alternative use potions (feeding your mercenary potions) Side note: You can give an act 5 Merc 2 different runeword weapons aswell.

[@corniani]

[@Ves189]

Great guide overall. Two things i missed were the increased dmg mercs take from bosses and how the aura of the act 2 merc scales with lvls though.

[@DwarfsRBest]

Man, if I had a single magic wish for this game, it would be to make all (or at least most) of the mercs badass in different ways. That way, you could hire different mercs based on what your character needs to overcome in a particular encounter, instead of just taking the obligatory Act 2 NM Merc

[@jkkim6928]

Amen brother. Everybody carrying act 2 merc bores the shit outta me

[@EBZ766]

Sending my love and respect for your work and effort. You are the reason I actually improved my knowledge and gameplay experience. Along the way, I have a new found love for Diablo 2. Thank you.

[@rylandtappe-inglis6325]

"There's no 'I raised him Pokemon buff'" I actually lold. thank you.

[@angelofbliss]

Is it possible to get a sockets guide as it’s own info vid? Ty for all the guides, constantly reviewing them for answers. Making life so much easier.

[@joemsaberon]

I think sockets have been covered in the runeword bases vid? kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z52oeImlh5ismZo

[@kickassandchewbubblegum639]

ya his reviews are a must if youre deciding to play this game a lot...diablo 2 isnt a weekend game...you have to commit to years and years to this game to get all the characters and items...it is a feat mrllama is a blessing to our community for sure and helping this games life go infinite...d2 never dies man...it didnt even need a remake..it would have survived another 20 years but now for sure 50 years lol btw...im not sure about this remake but in the og d2:lod your mercs mf stacks with yours...so their kills have the same mf as you...meaning if they carried a shako and other mf gear...ya its nice :P

[@angelofbliss]

@@joemsaberon yeah but I have to think about it and look for it. I prefer how he names it and that the topic, even if it’s small tip vids. To accompany his larger vids. Like his character build guides. He could have “addendums” , I guess.

[@craigferge4702]

@@kickassandchewbubblegum639 idk man i loved this game when I was younger when it came out, but coming back to it in D2R I realize the game is pretty outdated. Everything is clunky, you can beat the whole game in a couple hours, and there is literally nothing to do except repeatedly farm the same stuff that you beat within those first couple hours, except slightly faster. There's just no content in comparison to today's games

[@kickassandchewbubblegum639]

@@craigferge4702 whose to say they wont add an act or 2? or a whole thing for pvp added?

[@brothergrok]

On a PS controller, holding L2 then using the directional buttons can also give your mercenary a potion.

[@AKAAAK]

I think it would be nice if they added shouts/warcries to the Act 5 Barbs. That might make things a little more interesting

[@TaurusGaming717]

Dev's must have read this comment ;-)

[@AKAAAK]

@@TaurusGaming717 😁

[@tanete]

Reaper's Toll + Guillaume's Face is also a decent combo. Since you already have good life tap from the weapon, and decrepify for additional safety, you don't need even more life tap from the helm, so instead you can equip him Guillaume's Face, which gives 35% crushing blow and 15% deadly strike (and the weapon already has 33% deadly strike, so 48% in total). Guillaume's Face also has 30% faster hit recovery.

[@KSauceOnWu]

I appreciate this guide. Hope to see some of your D2R farming highlights.

[@pragmat1k]

I would like to say my boy Gulzar with Prayer has been really nice on my Windy Druid. Was doing Chaos runs in Nightmare with him and I could often go through an entire run without healing at all.

[@simodelafrog3690]

who?

[@pragmat1k]

My act 2 normal prayer merc is named Gulzar.

[@katherineminor3402]

My prayer merc sucked and never would run it when I was hurt. Or he would stand so far away from me that I wouldn't get the benefit

[@pragmat1k]

YMMV. Since I don't have a lot of FRW yet he was keeping up with me pretty well.

[@eugenstash]

New to D2 and you’re my go to for learning this game. Thank you for all your work

[@Xerrea]

6:50, remember back in the days when the merc levels was fixed, and you had to level them up afterwards? -All those long days with "just 5 levels more on my merc than he can use x/y/z".

[@iamatlantis1]

I was shocked the other day when I went to get an act2 hell merc finally, and he was matching my level. Pretty dope.

[@rabidbeaver3250]

Lol yes

[@InquisitorSinCross]

That casual "I have Tyrael's Might right now" knowing how long it took to get it on the Holy Grail Sorc just kills me.

[@gummydogs]

Dude dropped an Enigma on the GROUND! If I did that (only in my dreams), I'm 99.99% sure that would've been the exact time that AT&T would send me a middle finger.

[@ms.aelanwyr.ilaicos]

This happened to me back in 2010 and I put the game down for a decade

[@fitgamerdaddy7407]

Lol. Servers are fixed now. I have yet to be dropped once. I thought it was my 1 gig fiber that was costing it

[@jotaux3652]

I basically just gave up on my merc. I have the runes ready for an insight, got a tal rasha's helm, all I need is an armor piece with sockets. I'll try again when I can make a fortitude.

[@InfoRanker]

Why ethereal? Do the runewords make them not lose durability ?

[@oldenoughtowatchify]

sorry you didn't get an answer sooner - Ethereal items are slightly buffed but can't be repaired and Merc items don't lose durability when used! so if you get a good ethereal you want to give it to your merc

[@benrobinson375]

Some great advice. Rune words really make a massive difference to your mercs I have found. In Hell difficulty they are still very fragile though and serve better as a distraction instead of killing a lot on their own.

[@mercenaryninja]

happy birthday? been binging your content lately, thank you for all the work you've been putting in. :)

[@GrandNecro]

they need to buff other merc like allowing act5 barb to dualwield or have him be able to do a barb yell thing. or like give act 1+3 merc more damage/cast/attack rate.

[@OwnedByTheState]

Yeah. It would be sweet if they all had some kind of buff skills.

[@zitokeratin2643]

That bug is amazing for melee main characters to avoid him dying quite much!

[@CPT_IDPS]

Iv been enjoying your videos the past few weeks while I’m reliving my childhood. Thank you for all the great knowledge. I’m 100x better at reading maps and I lvl super fast now with all the sweet rune words I learned to make. Thank you sir

[@ItsDeebs]

I'm a L74 Necromancer. I've got my original Rogue sister. I didn't want to replace her. Silly attachment and all. So I improved her instead. Gave her brand new Runeword _"Harmony"_ Bow. She now does 314-830 dmg and has level 10 Vigor aura. Which makes my 31 minions move ridiculously fast. Skeletons can move from one side of the screen to the other in just over a second.

[@tanvaras9961]

Been enjoying your streaming of D2R whilst I am playing. Your guides are always top tier and easy to understand :)

[@Ratatosk80]

Favorite merc setup for me would have to be act5 barb merc with a lawbringer sword made in something like an eth legend sword. Then a treachery armor and cannot be frozen mod on helm. Yeah a reapers toll act2 merc does the same job but better. It's much more fun though with the barb merc. Also early on when you don't have gear (I play single player self found) a lawbringer is much easier to make rather than finding reapers toll. Also a very underrated easy to get armor for a merc is the spirit shroud. Exceptional unique lvl 28 item. Gives cannot be frozen and +1 skill. Cannot be frozen is very important and will help with the merc leeching life and doing damage.

[@7Hellzz]

They should update the game so that when you change your mercenary with another one, it's items drop on the ground in case you forgot to remove them.

[@cristiano1g]

You just sometimes have to play this game for yourself - this is not pokemon

[@hardryv3719]

Diablo 2 was never forgiving like that, truly a game of choice-consequence.

[@XxKidnoffxX]

@@hardryv3719 lol wtf, diablo 2 forgive a lot, it's a super easy game with the possibility of respects and limited monsters roll. You don't have a lot of surprises in D2, compare to PoE. But anyway, when you have good stuff on the merc, it's generally because it's your 'real' one, you don't gonna change...

[@jackblu475]

OR how bout they just switch the items over automatically... OR if they can't use everything they get put in your inventory OR if you don't have room a message appears telling you that hiring a new merc is not possible (remove your items from your merc!).

[@Rabijeel]

So, when your Boss fires you, you strip before leaving?

[@TheSnoopyclone]

As a casual player, I like act 1 mercs as they help out a lot with those annoying monsters that fly around, those annoying flayers and those crawling sand beast.

[@FalconTalk]

You autistically infiltrated my algorithm by me just simply just looking up two videos on necromancy . You’ve literally dedicated your life to this video game. Impressive .

[@Tom_Van_Zandt]

Does the Merc bug only work with the one named Azrael? My Merc is named Emelio. I mean, he can be a pretty bad boy sometimes...wait, serious question: Did they fix the Merc bug? I just tried it and went to the cows lvl and they immediately killed him.

[@TheNapoleonComplex1]

If I put magic find on a mercenary or fast/walk run does that count for me? I'm new to the game and this channel has helped a lot. Thanks!

[@andrewh9629]

Thanks for this, I knew very little about mercs and not 3 hours after watching this I did a Hell Countess and thought ah might as well do Andy. On the way there a boss pack drops CoT 11ll - probably the best item I have now and I wouldn't have even known it was good before this vid.

[@muphynman221]

What am I missing? Didn't he just lose his Fortitude, Bonehew, and Andy's when he bought the new rogue, but he doesn't care?

[@DEV3N87]

Probably has a 100 different enigmas anyway

[@GsxRaider]

I'm playing on console and would like to get the trophy for reaching 99 Do you have a leveling guide? Currently lv 73 Barb .

[@ZeriocTheTank]

I'm so tired of having the act 2 Merc with me. This time around I'm taking the barb Merc with me.

[@yittmashups]

Lvl 61 here in last chapter of Nightmare, still travelling with the first companion I was given as reward, and wouldn't have it any other way! Long live Eliza! ♥

[@jkkim6928]

True love lasts

[@RekijanGaming]

Saw this video today, tried to make a insight in a spear yesterday...

[@erictmtl24]

Hello llama, will like to know if you are going to make a video about mercenaries after the new patch

[@JenskeDnb]

Woah did he say thorns is useless? For main characters too? That's what I use. Should I not? Any suggestions?

[@samturner6061]

Barb: I am overburdened. Gulzar: Thanks! Rakanishu: Rakanishu!

[@bluebeerx]

What rune would you recommend socketing into a Reaper’s Toll? Ohm, Lo, Ber,? I’m trying to figure out what would be best to increase dps. My goal is ideally to put a 30 fire res/15ias jewel in my andy helm so not sure what rune would be best to maximize dps.

[@joellowe4460]

One of the best things about D2R release is the amount of content coming from your channel. Hope your channel really takes off!!

[@InfoRanker]

I guess they patched that merc bug? I just tried and and he's still getting targeted.

[@cursedsummoner]

Remember building a summon necro and wanting to do something different. So I went with an act1 merc with Harmony, while it's not optimal for damage, it was a lot of fun watching my skelies run around really fast.

[@MikaelWolf]

So what is the best weapon base to make Insight for my act 2 mercenaries? I didn't find this information.

[@5514alex]

Best is a thrasher

[@molnez]

Holy shit you are pumping out content like an absolute mad lad these days!

[@xxx0ox0]

Supply and demand and demand is high and he's making bank while we appreciate him. That's the beauty of capitalism

[@procow2274]

Ive seen in the remaster mercs displaying the wrong info on there character screen ( like for example a act2 normal merc being listed as having might aura instead of blessed aim )

[@MAZZAR0TH]

Also a holy freeze merc caps at lvl 17 holy freeze at level 55 but mine is capped at level 8. I actually swapped my previous merc who capped at level 6 for my current level 8. Weird. I hope this is just a bug because level 8 holy freeze radius is poo's.

[@rayvincyful1]

I also noticed that.

[@MrKethely]

Which act2 prayer merc is better? Normal or hell? Whats the difference?

[@janfiala2051]

As a noob, i like to get Act3 merc with cold spells for crowd control untill nightmare. But you explain things really well so i might actually learn something so thanks :)

[@simodelafrog3690]

act 3 merc can drop u pul mc rune only in hell meffisto

[@average311]

@@simodelafrog3690 I’ve never heard about that, is that really a thing??

[@muadek]

Does ANYONE use Act III mercs? Wouldn't they be a good option to have another element for mobs immune to your primary?

[@Jonbmx666]

Has anyone else noticed the act 2 merc seems to be bugged? I bought a nightmare might one but when in hell his aura turns to blessed aim. It never changed like that in legacy. It kept whatever skill you bought depending on what difficulty you bought him on. Very annoying.....

[@papazigzagify]

Same for me on ps5 i wanted the might one so bought him switched back to hell and it was a different one can you only use the merc you want for that difficulty?

[@mihaimihai7809]

@MrLlama tell me when the ladder is out, does it even worth playing d2 until then?

[@BrinkMira]

After a year of playing and trading I managed to get two perfect Last Wish phase blades (which both had +15% ED and +1 attack rating on the bases) which I put on my act 5 merc. I forgot to take them off when hiring a new merc. It was about 70% of all my wealth. Owie

[@BrinkMira]

I think I'm quitting the game tbh.

[@oldenoughtowatchify]

@@BrinkMira incredibly valid response after that :(

[@TalonsII]

I don’t know if it worked like this in normal D2, but going from normal to nightmare will make your act 2 normal merc upgrade to an act 2 nightmare merc. Keep winding up with a thorns merc when I go into nightmare.

[@Kyrazlan]

That's a known bug but I believe it's just a visual bug.

[@Ertealve]

Same here, my normal merc with blessed aim gets might automaticaly in nightmare. When going back into normal it switches back.

[@KabookiSan]

the pop filter you are using still picks up pops pretty good, might be too close to the mic

[@DKUmaro]

I wish you would have some very simple things for the merc up to the point that the player is farming baal nightmare. What I found great about the guided playthroughs is the early and easy equip with two sockets on everything and just use early rune words and you're good. Like here equip merc with any armor with sockets and put rubies or skulls in it or something. Only real decent suggestion is Honor, which is nightmare countess runes and might have included something like Malice for non-melee characters. This merc guide has kind of meaning to me like:"If you don't have all the good stuff, maybe consider (trash) like griswold's (not until Nightmare Baal) with p.rubies, stone (character level 66, ShaelUmPulLum), Duriel's shell (1:~4000 from Nightmare Duriel)." This guide makes it seem to me like merc is nothing worth using/caring about until hell and might as well have included a short:"until hell, don't bother" in it to cover everything before treading into hell difficulty. Probably more a critique of the game than the guide, but still, any mention would have been nice.

[@WOODDIGDIY]

I'm rolling with lawbringer, treachery 807 eth, and none eth Andy helm on a5 merc till I find a eth insight or reaper tolls. It works great on my hdin for player 8 chaos runs.

[@rgracon]

I miss the days of act 1 merc. with +3 to bow and crossbow gear -- lightning hose OP attack!!

[@tgraf60]

can you give an update or explain in more detail how some of the gear the merc has helps you out as well? like does giving him gold find gear buff your gold find as well? does anything transition like that?

[@jkkim6928]

I heard that if the merc kills the mob with the last hit, then his mf gets added to your mf for the drop. I assume it’s the same for gold

[@kentisbell839]

Was the whole reason I watched this video, for this question here

[@Divine.Oracle777]

Hello MrLlamaSC. Can You tell me what eth armour i shoud use on merc for Fortitude ? Yesterday i found 4os Dusk . I think i made it into IT . Sorry for my language. 🍀😉

[@Leonaidas]

would you want a fast attack polearm for the act 2 merc's? Does Magic find on Mercs stack with yours or is it a useless stat on them?

[@Spectre-wd9dl]

Don't underestimate the inner sight the act 1 mercs use. Its great if you're a tanky melee char to drop enemy defense and you'll chop through them quicker.

[@michaelofmarble2094]

That's something all the guides seem to miss, at lvl 78 with a skill lvl of 22 -935 to defense is nice. I only wish they would fix her pathing, so she stays behind you and not walk right in to a mob.

[@raynathanielcaparas8064]

Hi MrLIamSC, does the merc still die easily with fortitude?

[@alinstoian4393]

I had no idea about the inner cloister bug. I'll definitely do it as I'm farming cows. ty

[@micheleilciccione]

is that any budget helm for the mercenary? which kind of runewords to put into?

[@EraclesK]

I’m lv 80 upto pindle hell but still don’t have most of these runes , would you advise just farming countess on hell ? I’m a summoner necro

[@4doorsdoubletheoes]

MrLlama, have they fixed the aura stacking on mercs? I dont have the runes to try it, but its always been on my mind.

[@OmegaxGoDx]

So I'm having an issue with my merc. It doesn't matter which difficulty I hire them from, the aura automatically changes whatever auras the mercs from whatever difficulty ur on uses. (i.e my nightmare merc changes from holy freeze to defiance in hell.

[@Kyrazlan]

Visual only bug.

[@Ertealve]

Yupp, same here!

[@EbiLMunkeY]

My Diablo 2 Resurrected merc guide: 1: pick act 2 defensive merc on nightmare 2: ??? 3: profit jokes aside though, I'm one of the ones who wants to see minimal changes from the original, but I definitely wouldn't mind a buff to some of the other acts' mercs. Just give them auras or something to bring them up to par and make them even viable. Act 2 mercs would still dominate because of strong runewords etc etc but at least it would make some other fun options. Also act 1 mercs should be able to equip crossbows.

[@chrisjones6002]

For treachery is it better to use a high defense eth armor or something lower defense? I've heard some like lower defense so fade procs easier but I feel like more defense would be better. I have an eth lacquered plate, 3 socket 750 defense and 192str. I think it's a good base but just looking for opinions. The only bad thing is he needs 10 more str to wear it.

[@chrisjones6002]

Right now he has decent Ironpelt which isn't terrible I guess but he still dies more than I'd like.

[@fiable262626]

You should mention the savage polearm cube recipe. Getting 80% ed poleaxe or partizan is great for normal/ nm until you get insight.

[@lemboshauser4700]

You had the chance to mention it properly, but now ppl still have to Google for it.

[@fiable262626]

@@lemboshauser4700 kris+belt+staff+any diamond

[@mav_off9381]

i need your advice MrLlamaSC, my mercenary is lvl81 and it's strengh was at 184. I have the TAL helmet and the rest is ok. i want to wear a CV with 210 of strengh. What gear i need ? Thx in advance.

[@LowTempDabr]

Is it common for skilled Diablo players to use the full screen automap? I hate using anything other than top-left mini automap lol

[@dracus6877]

Thank you!!! Thank you!! for breaking this game down into detail.

[@bradleyswartz]

I really love all your guides im new to diablo 2 just got my stealth and leaf playing thru the acts now. Having some issues with mana always gotta go back too town

[@nk-dw2hm]

Watch his playthrough videos, fill almost your entire inventory with potions and ignore 99% of items that drop. You won't have to go back nearly as often that way

[@icycut9822]

Check out the insight rune word. Its a manareg aura on for your merc. Both auras apply to you and your party. Farm norm cows and use a socket quest in act5. Lama did a video about it: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ipKQnqyJa9KAe5Y

[@LSmallCatL]

It takes a bit to learn what your merc can take and what not. Having an Insight Merc that doesn't last on the boss requires you to position him/ yourself in a way that he gets the least amount of dmg to him as possible. Teleporting gives here a huge advantage as it is instant re-placing. For Andariel, just cast Blizzard and teleport back and forth, Merc shouldn't get any dmg except maybe poison. For Mephisto, you can teleport into a save distant that the Merc will ignore Mephisto however you need to clear at least one side of the entrance or he will pull other groups. It'd be great if you could put him in passive mode. If you don't have insight, keep looking for weapons with Lifesteal and over a few days you'll get something. It's night and day especially in Normal/ Alp.

[@CC-lu8ee]

Brilliant information, you've got my sub. Just a quick question when looking for bases for rune words. How important is it to get the nightmare/hell equivalent on polearms over normals? I ask because I've got rune words ready to go I'm just waiting on the right base to drop (only gotten normal level ones so far). Thanks again MrLama

[@theycallmewilson]

Which runeword? If insight you can make it asap with whatever available because the runes are cheap

[@CC-lu8ee]

@@theycallmewilson thank you very much :).

[@TibiaOtimizado]

why haven't you mention Chains of Honor and Breath of The Dying for the mercenaries?

[@CrazyThyme]

Question about the items on mercenaries, can you get the items back if you rebuy the previous mercenary or is it gone forever?

[@stephenphelan626]

Gone, sorry.

[@michaelengel7241]

Some days ago I entered hell difficulty for the first time. Looking at my mercenary, he had changed his offensive aura to the attack rating one. Back in nightmare - might aura :-/

[@Wumpert]

yeah i have the same problem but i find no infos on this online

[@LikeSilver1]

Thumbs up for the pokemon buff reference, was my exact thought when you brought the subject up. 😂😂

[@tylerwade3498]

Is there ladder on pc? Or can you make like insight on non ladder now?m

[@georgikukov5129]

Wow i learned smth new, Thanks Llama! I play D2 (not Resurrected) on a different server (not Battle.net) and they are running patch 1.11. And on this patch all of the mercenaries give auras, and only the barbs from act 5 have a chance to proc battle orders and battle cry.. Act 1 mercs give Fanatism aura, and act 3 Conviciton.. Damn i was gonna be in a surprise waiting for conviction aura from my Act 3 merc :D

[@reltius2993]

For insight on blizz sorc, is a normal polearm good enough or would I want to wait for an exceptional one?

[@danielpiche2346]

its a cheap runeword so i'd say go ahead. By the time you find a better one you'll have the runes too probably.

[@calm2348]

You've been crushing it with the videos lately

[@mikezharov725]

Hey MrLlama what would happen if you take a Eastern Sorcerer ( FIRE ) and arm him with 2 spirits ( + 4 skills) and 2 pieces of trang'ouls ( + 18 to fireball) would you get level 40+ fireball?

[@xvinx2446]

I've played this game for 20 years and I didn't know about that merc bug. Great stuff for my fishymancer!

[@miroslav8817]

Can you use two auras at same time? One from your character and other from mercenary?

[@loretozamoras4459]

I love the mercenary bug part. Thanks for the info.

[@bananamanx7910]

lol you got me there with drooping your mercs items so quickly! :D