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.

We have been avidly testing Patch 2.2.0 in the Patch Test Realm (PTR) and community excitement seems to be at one of its highest levels for what’s to come when these changes finally go live. Not only will there be plenty of features, which everyone loves, but there will be many new items and that’s what the game is truly all about. Today, we’re going to focus on a new non-Set item – Mortick’s Brace.

Why is it good?

If you’ve been playing Diablo III for any considerable length of time, you’ll either have experienced first hand the “joys” of Spin2Win Barb or have heard a story from someone who lived it for themselves. A big part of that build was the ability to keep Wrath of the Berserker (WotB), one of the Barbarian’s most iconic skills in D3, as a permanent buff through the use of certain skills. Well, it’s the dawn of a new era and the current Immortal King’s set rework that’s over on the Patch 2.2.0 PTR has enabled a new way to obtain permanent WotB. As a result, these bracers just found a new home as the #1 ancillary item for anyone enjoying the bonuses of that set.

There’s no arguing that Wrath of the Berserker is a powerful skill, with each rune delivering a different sort of major advantage. Being able to have them all at once, however, is incredibly insane. Here’s the result – major damage upon activation of the skill, a 50% reduction of any damage taken, a 50% increase to your damage output, extra damage from critical hits, and a ton of healing for every point of Fury spent. Oh, and did I mention that the base skill gives you bonuses to attack speed, critical hit chance, movement speed, dodge chance, and also leaves you immune to crowd control effects?

Who is it good for?

Barbs. Barbarians. Any Barbarian worth their salt is likely going to take these bracers and find a space for WotB on their bar. Even if you don’t have it up permanently, the effect truly enables a “God Mode” button for the duration of the transformation.

Where can I find it?

These bracers are a new item being introduced for Patch 2.2.0, so once the update goes live, you’ll just have to kill a few demons or convince Kadala to hand them over.

The Fluff

These ancient bracers belonged to the barbarian berserker Mortick, who believed them to be lucky and never took them off. In later years, enemies always gave him a wide berth, likely due to his battlefield prowess.

Highly likely. Without being an expert in lore, this is the first mention of the barbarian Mortick by my count, so it will be interesting to see if he makes any more appearances in flavor text or stories. One does wonder though if it was the perspiration of battle or perhaps the lack of showers that really drove this battlefield prowess to its highest potency.