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• #FBR
• #FCR
• #FHR
• #IAS

In Diablo 2, a second is divided into 25 frames. As a result, every action (animation) is measured in these frames. By reaching certain breakpoints, you increase the speed of the animations.

Recommended breakpoints will be marked red.

It is worth mentioning that further suggestions are rather PvP-oriented, yet they are pretty similar to PvE ones.

#FBR

FBR stands for Faster Block Rate. When you get hit with physical damage, you have a chance to block it (if you have a shield). During the block animation, other physical attacks don't deal any damage.

The maximum possible block is 75%. While running, the breakpoint is cut by 2/3 and becomes 25%. So, in most cases, it is better to walk than run. While walking the block is still 75%.

Assassin's unique skill Weapon Block only works when she is standing still or using WW. WB does not work while running or walking.

Block's animation length is different for every character. By reaching certain breakpoints, you'll be able to shorten this animation and, as a consequence, receive less damage.

Character	Weapon / Skill / Form	Block Frames
		17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1
Amazon	1H swinging weapon (*)	0	4	6	11	15	23	29	40	56	80	120	200	480
	Other weapons													0	13	32	86	600
Assassin	all													0	13	32	86	600
Barbarian	all											0	9	20	42	86	280
Druid	Human form							0	6	13	20	32	52	86	174	600
	Bear form						0	5	10	16	27	40	65	109	223
	Wolf form									0	7	15	27	48	86	200
Necromancer	all							0	6	13	20	32	52	86	174	600
Paladin	normal													0	13	32	86	600
	with Holy Shield																0	86
Sorceress	all									0	7	15	27	48	86	200
Character	Weapon / Skill / Form	17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2	1
		Block Frames

(*) 1-handed swinging weapons include 1-handed axes, clubs, 1-handed maces, orbs, scepters, 1-handed swords, 2-handed swords wielded in one hand, throwing axes, and wands.

FBR recommendations:

Amazon: Stormshield (Eld) = 35 (32)
Assassin: Stormshield (Eld) = 35 (32)
Barbarian: Stormshield (Shael) = 55 (42)
Druid: Stormshield (Shael) = 55 (52)
Necromancer: Stormshield (Shael) = 55 (52)
Paladin: Sacred Targe + Holy Shield = 0 (0)
Sorceress: Witstan's (Shael) = 60 (48)

#FCR

FCR is Faster Cast Rate. By reaching certain breakpoints, you increase spell casting speed.

For different builds, the recommendations are different, so I will explain the most popular builds below this table.

Character	Skill / Form	Casting Frames
		23	22	21	20	19	18	17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7
Amazon	all					0	7	14	22	32	48	68	99	152
Assassin	all								0	8	16	27	42	65	102	174
Barbarian	all											0	9	20	37	63	105	200
Druid	Human						0	4	10	19	30	46	68	99	163
	Bear form								0	7	15	26	40	63	99	163
	Wolf form								0	6	14	26	40	60	95	157
Necromancer	Human									0	9	18	30	48	75	125
	Vampire	0	6	11	18	24	35	48	65	86	120	180
Paladin	all									0	9	18	30	48	75	125
Sorceress	Lightning / Chain Lightning					0	7	15	23	35	52	78	117	194
	other spells											0	9	20	37	63	105	200
Character	Skill / Form	23	22	21	20	19	18	17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7
		Casting Frames

FCR recommendations:

Amazon: no need

Assassin:

• Ghost: Circlet (20) + TO (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10)= 70 (65)
• 102 Block sin: Hoto (40) + Circlet (20) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10)= 110 (102)
• C/C Sin: Griffon's Eye (25) + Craft Amul (20) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + 2x Rings (20) = 105 (102)
• W/S Sin: Hoto (40) + Spirit (35) + Circlet (20) + Craft Amul (20) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + 2x Rings (20)= 175 (174)

Barbarian:

• BvA: Magefists (20) + Arach (20) = 40 (40)
• BvC: Circlet (20) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Rare Ring (10) = 65 (63)
• DR BvC: Circlet (20) + Magefists (20) + Craft Amul (20) + Craft Ring (10) = 65 (63)

Druid:

• Block Druid: Hoto (40) + Craft Amul (10) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10)= 100 (99)
• Pelt Dudu: SB (50) + Spirit (35) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + 2x Craft Rings (20) = 165 (163)
  
• Hoto Dudu: Hoto (40) + Spirit (35) + Circlet (20) + Craft Amul (20) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10)= 165 (163)

Necromancer:

• Block Necro: Hoto (40) + Circlet (20) + Craft Amul (20) + Arach (20) + Magefists (20) + Ring (10) = 130 (125)
• Non-block Necro: White (20) + Spirit (35) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10) = 125 (125)
  

Paladin:

• Block: Hoto (40) + Spirit (35) + Craft Amul (20) + Magefists (20) + Ring (10)= 125 (125)
• Non-block: Hoto (40) + Spirit (35) + Circlet (20) + Craft Amul (10) + Arach (20) = 125 (125)

Sorceress:

• Fire: Rare Orb (20) + Spirit (35) + Tiara (20) + Craft Amul (20) + Belt (10) = 105 (105)
• Block Fire: Rare Orb (20) + Viper (30) + Tiara (20) + Craft Amul (20) + Arach (20) = 110 (105)
• Cold: DF (20) + Spirit (35) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10) = 105 (105)
• Block Cold: DF (20) + Magefists (20) + Arach (20) + Ring (10) = 65 (65)
• Lightning: Rare Orb (20) + Spirit (35) + Viper (30) + Griffon (25) + Belt (10) = 120 (117)
• Block Lightning: Eschuta's (40) + Viper (30) + Griffon (25) + Amul (10) + Arach (20) = 125 (117)

#FHR

After dealing a certain amount of damage, you have a chance to trigger FHR - Faster Hit Recovery. During this animation, the enemy tries to "recover" after being hit and he can't do anything.

Character	Equipped weapon	Hit Recovery Frames
		17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2
Amazon	all							0	6	13	20	32	52	86	174	600
Assassin	all									0	7	15	27	48	86	200
Barbarian	all									0	7	15	27	48	86	200
Druid; Human form	1H swinging weapon (*)				0	3	7	13	19	29	42	63	99	174	456
	Other weapons					0	5	10	16	26	39	56	86	152	377
Druid; Bear form	all					0	5	10	16	24	37	54	86	152	360
Druid; Wolf form	all											0	9	20	42	86	280
Necromancer; Human form	all					0	5	10	16	26	39	56	86	152	377
Necromancer; Vampire form	all			0	2	6	10	16	24	34	48	72	117	?	?	?	?
Paladin	Spears and staves					0	3	7	13	20	32	48	75	129	280
	Other weapons									0	7	15	27	48	86	200
Sorceress	all			0	5	9	14	20	30	42	60	86	142	280
Character	Equipped weapon	17	16	15	14	13	12	11	10	9	8	7	6	5	4	3	2
		Hit Recovery Frames

(*) 1-handed swinging weapons include 1-handed axes, clubs, 1-handed maces, orbs, scepters, 1-handed swords, 2-handed swords wielded in one hand, throwing axes, and wands.

FHR starts at 1/16th hp loss of health for most skills (1/8 for Bone Spear, GA, and some others) and increases, the larger the percentage of HP you take down is as follows:

37.5% of the time, if it deals 1/16th of your max HP
75% of the time, if it deals 1/8th of your max HP
100% of the time, if it deals 1/4th of your max HP

For Bone Spear:

37.5% of the time, if it deals 1/8th of your max HP
75% of the time, if it deals 1/4th of your max HP
100% of the time, if it deals half of your max HP

After analyzing this, we can make several useful conclusions:

No Bugbelt:

• In NvD at Spear dmg = 5900 - Druid should have >3980 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 75% to 37.5% (8 sorb Spirit)
• In NvB at Spear dmg = 5900 - Barb should have >8024 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 37.5% to 0%
• In DvB at Nado dmg = 5900 - Barb (40 fcr) with 46% DR should have >8656 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 37.5% to 0%
• In DvB at Nado dmg = 5900 - Barb (65 fcr) with 47% DR should have >8496 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 37.5% to 0%

Bugbelt:

• In NvD at Spear dmg = 6065 - Druid should have >4092 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 75% to 37.5% (8 sorb Spirit)
• In NvB at Spear dmg = 6065 - Barb should have >8248 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 37.5% to 0%
• In DvB at Nado dmg = 6086 - Barb (40/65 fcr) with 50% DR should have >8272 hp to reduce the chance of getting FHR'd from 37.5% to 0%

FHR recommendations:

Amazon: no need (if you think they need it, try to reach a breakpoint of 32)

Assassin:

• C/C Sin: SD (30) + Claw (7) + GC (12) = 49 (48)
• W/S Sin: Spirit (55) + SD (30) + SC (5) = 90 (86)

Barbarian:

• BvC: 6x SC = 30 (27)
• BvC:Tiara 2x Shael (40) + 2x SC (10) = 50 (48)
• DR BvC: Dungo (10) + CoA (30) + 2x SC (10) = 50 (48)

Druid:

• Wizzy Druid: Spirit (55) + SD (30) + Wizzy (10) = 102 (86)
• Pelt Druid: Spirit (55) + SD (30) + Pelt (10) + SB (7) = 102 (99)
• HotO Druid: Spirit (55) + Craft Boots (10) + 2x GC (24) + 2x SC (10) = 99 (99)

Necromancer:

• Spirit (55) + Craft Boots (10) + GC (12) + 2x SC (10) = 87 (86)

Paladin:

• Non-block: Spirit (55) + Fists (30) + SC (5) = 90 (86)
• Block: Spirit (55) + CoA (30) + Dungo (10) = 95 (86)

Sorceress:

• Fire: Spirit (55) + Boots (10) + 3x 7fhr Jewels in Tiara and Orb (21) = 86
• Cold: Spirit (55) + Boots (10) + 3x 7fhr Jewelss in Tiara and Orb (21) = 86
• Lightning: Spirit (55) + Boots (10) + 3x 7fhr Jewelss in Tiara and Orb (21) = 86

#FRW

It's pretty easy — the more FRW you have, the faster you run. But diminishing returns, so don't overdo it.

FRW recommendations:

Amazon:

• Circlet (30) + WT (30) + SC (21+) = 125+ <minimum
• Circlet (30) + WT (30) + SC (33) = 159 <maximum, full inventory of 3frw/20ar/20hp

Assassin:

• Enigma (45) + SD (30) + BoS (18+) = 135 + BoS
• Enigma (45) + SD (30) + Circlet (30) + BoS (18+) = 165+ <good to overstack Clay Golem's slow and walk Spirits/Spears

Barbarian:

• Enigma (45) + Gore's (30) + Increased Speed (42+) = 117+
• Enigma (45) + Gore's (30) + Circlet (30) + Increased Speed (42+)= 147+ <good to overstack Clay Golem's slow and walk Spirits

Druid:

• Enigma (45) + Boots (30) + Circlet (30) = 105
  
  

Necromancer:

• Enigma (45) + Boots (30) + Circlet (30) = 105
  

Paladin:

• Enigma (45) + WW (20) + Vigor = 65 + Vigor
• Enigma (45) + Boots (30) + Circlet (30) = 95 + Vigor <good to overstack Clay Golem's slow and walk Spirits/Spears

Sorceress:

• Fire: Enigma (45) + Boots (30) + Circlet (30) = 105
• Cold: Enigma (45) + Boots (30) + Circlet (30) = 105
• Lightning: Enigma (45) + Boots (30) + Circlet (30) = 105
  

#IAS

IAS is Increased Attack Speed. We still reach breakpoints, as we did before.

If you haven't found something you were looking for, then use this IAS calc.

IAS recommendations:

Amazon:

• GA, Multiple Shot; GMB, 15 lvl Fanaticism

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
0	11	2.27
6	10	2.5
22	9	2.77
46	8	3.12
92	7	3.57

Circlet (45) + Gloves (20) + HL(20) + Nosferatu's (10) = 95 (92)

• Fury, Bolt; Matriarchal Javelin

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
0	14	1.78
6	13	1.92
16	12	2.08
30	11	2.27
52	10	2.5
89	9	2.77

Javelins (40) Circlet (45) + Gloves (20) + HL(20) + Nosferatu's (10) = 135 (89)

• Fury, Bolt; Stygian Pilum

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
0	15	1.66
9	14	1.78
18	13	1.92
30	12	2.08
48	11	2.27
75	10	2.5
125	9	2.77

Javelins (40) Circlet (45) + Gloves (20) + HL(20) + Nosferatu's (10) = 135 (125)

Assassin:

There is a detailed guide on how to reach 9 frames for trap laying speed here.

For DC and DT simply use BoS. IAS will always be close to maximum (unless Clay Golem's slow. but you will lose too much trying to stack his slow, so don't even try to).

Barbarian:

• Whirlwind; Grief BA + Beast BA, 9 lvl Fanaticism - 34+ on each BA
• Whirlwind; Grief BA + Stormshield - 34+
  
• Berserk; Grief BA + Beast BA, 9 lvl Fanaticism

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
0	12	2.08
6	11	2.27
20	10	2.5
44	9	2.77

Grief BA (40) + HL (20) = 60 (44)

• Berserk; Grief BA + Beast BA, 9 lvl Fanaticism, Clay Golem's slow

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
52	13	1.92
72	12	2.08
102	11	2.27
152	10	2.5
259	9	2.77

If you prefer to kill with Zerk - you might try to overstack IAS against Clay Golem's slow to get 11 frames

Grief BA (40) + Circlet (20 fcr, 3x 15/40)(45) + HL (20) = 105 (102)

Paladin:

• Smite; Grief Phase Blade - 34 lvl Fanaticism

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
0	7	3.57
6	6	4.16

We easily reach it cause Grief spawns 30-40 IAS.

• Smite; Grief Phase Blade 40 IAS - 34 lvl Fanaticism, Clay Golem's slow

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
20	8	3.12
46	7	3.57
102	6	4.16

You might wanna put a 15 IAS jewel in your Circlet for 7 frames.

• Smite; Grief BA 40 IAS - 32/34 lvl Fanaticism

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
15	7	3.57
50	6	4.16

You might wanna put a 15 IAS jewel in your Circlet (or use 20% IAS Gloves) for 6 frames.

• Smite; Hoto Scourge - 20 lvl Fanaticism

IAS	attack speed [ticks]	attacks per second
0	8	3.12
6	7	3.57
35	6	4.16

You better use Fanaticism + Bloodfists if you are using Smite against Necro.

Bloodfists (10) = 10 (6)