Inferno question I would LOVE to find a solid answer to

[Lorsk]

I think there will certainly be (legendary) items that drop of act 1 and 2 mobs that will be best in slot for some builds / classes. Higher item level does not necessarily equal better item. Also I doubt all best in slot gear is squeezed into the last two acts. But you will likely have the best chance on getting it there.

What you're saying seems logical and the common-sense way for them to do it, I just really hope you are right.....

[Deleted]

I think yes, BiS is acts 3-4 of inferno, but they're fairly rare, and may possibly be class/build specific, such that lower weighted items may perform better. I think it will be more efficient to farm earlier acts faster for the lower chance vs grinding very slowly the last acts for the slightly higher chance. Once you're ALMOST BiS, then maybe the only way to get better gear will be from the later acts, but it'll sorta be like grinding 11/12 ICC hc for gear til you're BiS before LK, or 6/8DS before spine hc.

[Yoshimiko]

Unless I'm mistaken, Items that will drop in inferno will all be 60, 61, 62, 63. I think this is pretty clear how it'll work.

Level 60 from Act 1, and act 4 of hell. 61 from Act 2. 62 from Act 3. 63 from Act 4. I'm sure there will be some outliers, but there ya go.

Now, that being said, something should be noted about this. The best possible crafted gear is only level 62, and this level directly reflects the bonuses it gets from random affixes. This means, the best possible gear will be dropped, in all situations, due to how much better 63 gear is than 62, in act 4. That being said, the best gear you'll get on your own will most likely be crafted, or Legendary.

[Riptide]

they've said some of the best gear in the game can drop in hell difficulty since item stats are random. it's all in how lucky you are.

The highest tier of affixes will be in acts 3 and 4 of inferno. Making a perfectly rolled item superior to anything else in the game. However, getting a perfectly rolled rare is harder than winning the lottery 6 slots, 25+ affixes, 50-100 ranges. Though it's dependent on what affixes you desire.

The bold part kinda implies two things tho. Yes there will be loot available only from act3-4 inferno which will be "BiS". But it kinda also seems like the "several" part implies there is stuff that drops from earlier content that would beat out other random drops from act3-4 inferno?

There is no BiS in diablo. It is all based on builds. There will not be 1 item that everyone needs unless it's part of that build. But yes the stuff from earlier act and even in hell could very well be better than what you've gotten in act3/4 inferno.

Also while you may not need to be in act 3/4 to get your perfect item. Depending on what base item and affixes you want, it will have the best chance of dropping in act 3/4 as everything will be capable of dropping there. Increasing the mlvl increases the base quality range.

Unless I'm mistaken, Items that will drop in inferno will all be 60, 61, 62, 63. I think this is pretty clear how it'll work.

Level 60 from Act 1, and act 4 of hell. 61 from Act 2. 62 from Act 3. 63 from Act 4. I'm sure there will be some outliers, but there ya go.

Now, that being said, something should be noted about this. The best possible crafted gear is only level 62, and this level directly reflects the bonuses it gets from random affixes. This means, the best possible gear will be dropped, in all situations, due to how much better 63 gear is than 62, in act 4. That being said, the best gear you'll get on your own will most likely be crafted, or Legendary.

This is true except there's two points I'd like to make. The first is the higher the difficulty the higher the affixes, but that doesn't mean the "best" affixes will be in act 4. It also doesn't mean that theirs a complete upgraded tier of affixes in act 4. It didn't work that way in diablo 2 but speculating otherwise would be just that. Speculation. This is relevant to crafting as well.

The other point is the item database is not up to date and it's very possible that they add crafting recipes. The problem is the crafting recipes need to be capable of producing the best items or the value of gold diminishes severely over time. Whereas if the items are capable of being the best, it will be the only true gold sink. The other stuff is not a big enough gold sink for most long time players. Anyway, the item database gets updated this Monday, so I guess we'll see.

[Rocketsurgeon]

Riptide really nailed it. Without true BiS since each build of each class may want something different and different players want various stats to various degrees within those builds, the main drive behind items in Diablo is to get something subjectively better than what you have. Since the drops have random levels of random bonuses, there is a chance you'll get a hell item that's better for you than anything you'll ever see in inferno.

If I can cruise Inferno act 1 safely and quickly while act 3 is stomping me, I'll be in act 1 farming most of the time with jumps back into the deep end of the pool when I'm feeling ballsy. Especially from a hardcore perspective While the drops I get in act 1 might not have the potential to be quite as good as the best act 3 has to offer, they do have the potential to be better than anything I own. I'll also be getting more of them thanks to my clear time. Add in a brisk trade with people who want gear that I don't care for who might have things I need and I'm happy to keep visiting act 1. Speaking of trade, there is no loot so valuable as minimum req loot. If I have level 63 armor and level 60 armor to sell and most people aren't above 60 and are failing miserably at breaking into Inferno, my level 60 loot to help them pass the barrier will be at a premium I think. I could be wrong there.

Then we add in the valor buff. If Blizz is to be believed about difficulty and, if I'm able to clear act 4 inferno, I might not be able to do it as quickly, successfully, or as thoroughly as a previous act. Maybe I can't clear even act 2 from start to finish without swapping abilities. If I can do it in act 1 then I'll have the fully stacked buff up to get more gear which will make it competitive with the prospect of higher tier gear drops in the following acts.

So while act 4 inferno may have the potential to drop the absolute best gear that could possibly exist, that doesn't mean its the best place to be. It comes down to how you like your playtime and gambling odds. I like to bang my head against fewer walls and get more chances to find upgrades as opposed to more pain for fewer chances of an even better upgrade.

[Lathais]

Well, I'm sure the Act 3-4 stuff will have maximum stats higher than Act 1-2, however, the chance of getting something with Max stats will be so slim that the piece you get in Act 1-2 will be better than anything you find for a really really long time. It will be worthwhile to farm cause something with Max stats from Act 1-2 will be just as good as something with Average stats in 3-4.

Also, this isn't WoW, there really won't be BiS since everything is randomly generated. BiS practically does not exist or will be nigh impossible to attain.

[iDot]

As per Blizzard most of the non-hardocre-player will not be able to defeat act 3 + 4 in inferno. Most of the players will be happy to be able to kill at least something in Act 1 and 2.

Inferno mode is heroic mode in WoW... and Act 3 and 4 as per Blizzard is HC Lich King, Madness whatever without buffs... so, perhaps 2 or 3% of the players will defeat this mode, unless the average D3 player is much better than the average WoW-player.

In WoW you are depending on 9 or 24 other people to do there job, and not make any mistakes.
In Diablo as has been said, you can actually SOLO inferno, yes it will be hard, but wont make you dependent on others.

[Deleted]

Guest-869: Are there any non-set Legendaries that will only drop in Inferno Act III and IV?
Jason Bender: Yes. Legendary items are dropped based on the level of the monster or chest, so we have several at the max level that can only be found in the end of Inferno.

rares were much better than legendaries in d2 just cuz of randomization, remains to b seen how d3 ends up

[Riptide]

Guest-869: Are there any non-set Legendaries that will only drop in Inferno Act III and IV?
Jason Bender: Yes. Legendary items are dropped based on the level of the monster or chest, so we have several at the max level that can only be found in the end of Inferno.

rares were much better than legendaries in d2 just cuz of randomization, remains to b seen how d3 ends up

It's simple to answer that now. Legendaries also have some random properties this time around, so as long as the pre-determined stats on the legendary were ideal for your build and the random properties rolled well. It can very likely be the best item for your build, especially if legendaries still have affixes that aren't attainable on rares while being capable of getting all rare affixes.

[Deleted]

It's simple to answer that now. Legendaries also have some random properties this time around, so as long as the pre-determined stats on the legendary were ideal for your build and the random properties rolled well. It can very likely be the best item for your build, especially if legendaries still have affixes that aren't attainable on rares while still being capable of getting all rare affixes.

you might want to stick to legendaries in major pieces like weapons from what "ive seen so far" but it remains to b seen how some other slots "handle", like i said there were some crazy items in d2 just due to randomization for instance amulets with x skills, xx faster cast rate, xxx mana, xxx life, xx resistances that you wouldnt come across in the legendaries

[Deleted]

I am still convinced Inferno will be really hard, and most people concerned in which part of Inferno BiS gear drops have a flawed WoW-BiS-mentality; First you have to see whether you are even able to beat Inferno Act 1/2 before you worry about having to farm it. Also "BiS" will probably take people weeks or months of playing to achieve, and will not be as easily obtainable as BiS in WoW.

[Buckeye]

Why are people complaining about not being able to get the best items in any act? Any player can solo inferno, if you're good you get good items, if you're bad, well tough shit. It's finally a game rewarding personal skill with the best gear, or whoever has the deepest wallets, however those people usually suck =).

[Sanguinare]

in "hardcore" if you die you start from level one and loose all the gear you had so if you are going to truly take on this game not only the top difficulty but the one that has the most risk then you will get a lot of play on inferno act 1-2 even if it is not bis.