by JR Cook - 9 years ago     show comments

Books have often been society’s only bastion of light for passing along knowledge that would otherwise be lost to time or convoluted by the oral tradition. In order to provide new and old adventurers with as much knowledge of what to expect on their journey in Sanctuary, we created this tome of knowledge – Ars Arcanum. We will regularly feature a Legendary weapon or armor piece, discussing its stand-alone powers and capabilities, as well as how it may synergize with new builds or other items.

This week, I’ve decided to mix things up by selecting an item that Crusaders have essentially zero interest in. There are arguably two gear slots with massive flexibility in the current end-game meta and today, we’ll be looking at one of them – bracers. I would like to submit for highlight Krelm’s Buff Bracers, one of the new items introduced in Patch 2.1.

Why is it good?

These bracers are good for a multitude of reasons. Easiest to see, they’re part of a set, which means that simply by equipping its brother, Krelm’s Buff Belt, you gain a sizeable Vitality boost. Nothing to sneeze at, especially from the perspective of Hardcore play. The second great quality lies in its Legendary passive effect. Immunity from Knockback and Stun is great. Whenever you can avoid crowd control (CC) effects without it requiring a hair-trigger activation of a skill, that’s a bonus (…or a buff, heh). Add on to that that Knockback also includes Vortex? Now we’re really talking. You know what kills a lot of players? Vortex. You’re doing fine, you’re doing fine, you kill a few of the elites and they have Molten but you’re so far away. How could that ever affect your day or play? Welp, here comes Vortex. Sorry; that once far away Molten explosion is now in your face. Krelm’s Buff Bracers will help you say, “Never again!”

Lastly, but perhaps most importantly, this is an example of the “old school” set design, most notably seen in Diablo II, where each item gave a partial bonus as you assembled the set PLUS the standard bonuses for multiple set items equipped at the same time. We currently see this from Krelm’s set and from Danetta’s Hatred (Danetta’s Revenge and Danetta’s Spite). Could this be one of the directions the team proactively chooses in future Set creations? We may just know more about that this coming weekend…

Who is it good for?

As noted in my preamble, the Crusader need not apply here. Having a skill that makes you immune to crowd control effects makes using these bracers a little repetitive, even if you don’t have permanent up time. That means you don’t see many Crusaders, Barbarians, or Monks wearing these. The latter is mostly in this category since their end-game build in the current meta sees the bracer slot dominated by Aughild’s Search. That leaves the other three classes – Wizard, Witch Doctor, and Demon Hunter – to benefit greatly from the utility in avoiding these CC effects, especially Vortex. In general, these bracers are less popular in Softcore than they are in Hardcore, since surprise deaths don’t quite matter as much in the former over the latter.

Where can I find it?

This item is currently exclusive to Seasonal play and only in Torment after that. They can also be gambled from Kadala. Once Season One ends, all character designations will be able to try these bad boys out.

The Fluff

“Twas hitherto eons past from whence Krelm Thurmgrep the Immodest didst thitherward dash forth thusly upon the Blazing Wastes clad only in his bogodile skin belt and bracers to face the loathsome Oglak beast and slew him thence mightily with nigh but his bare hands thereupon.” -Excerpt from Fanciful Folklore and Stories Meant to Frighten Small Children

The flavor text here is hilarious. As we know, the bogadile is the fearsome creature we see featured in the Witch Doctor Pirahnas skill rune aptly titled Bogadile. Those things look pretty vicious from what I’ve seen, so Krelm had to have been a pretty legit fighter to wrestle one down with just the buffs provided from his belt and bracers alone. Future achievement? Probably not.