D2R Item Bases - Merc Weapon Bases (Polearms & Spears)

Hello Guys and Gals Today I am going to go over the Base Items Polearms & Spears, to Cover the differences between them, what each of them are good for and why you would choose one over another.

In this Episode we will be covering the Thresher, Giant Thresher, Cryptic Axe, Colossus Voulge, Ogre Axe, Mancatcher, Ghost Spear, War Pike, Hyperion Spear, Stygian Pike, and Great Poleaxe .

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[pmgpc]

Thank you for this informative video GGM. I found an ethereal Giant Thresher recently and was fortunate enough to put 4 sockets into it using a Horadric Cube recipe. My Merc is using it for Insight right now until I get the runes for Infinity. Great job!

[thaddeuslyons]

GGM - you should make an excel sheet that shows which base is best for each RW

[lambchopsmtl]

Bro I learn so much from your vids, its unbelievable. Thank you for this break down.

[angelofbliss]

holy cows this is what i wanted just yesterday. defnitely good to have an updated list for merc; hope to see one for players

[StAntonioStefanov]

Great video, but needs a second part with the most popular set-ups and breakpoints, as some of the usual set-ups change which base is better for the specific runeword.

[game_jinx]

like and comment on such a great informational video for most to all current players. merc nuances matter their breakpoints and alike. 👍👌. thx G

[kuchikirukia]

Cool, I'm glad this confirms that the obedience I made in a (regular) mancatcher is good until I find an ethereal. I wasn't sure if the spears and polearms had different class speeds for a merc, I had just seen the -20 speed and figured it might be the best. Running Duress + Obedience with a +1 offensive aura/30% run/walk/+9 min damage helm which seemed like a pretty good gamble.

[drakedbz]

Something that I think is worth specifically calling out is that if you're making relatively cheap runewords, consider whether it's the merc's damage output that's the reason for the item. If not, it's ok to just throw it on whatever base you find that can work, so you can improve your farming speed. Getting an eth + superior + elite + correct base is often much more difficult than farming the runes for something like an Insight, but having the Insight means you can effectively solve your mana issues altogether in many cases.

It really depends on what stage your character/account is at in the gearing process, whether the base matters very much. That said, once you feel like you can comfortably (and reasonably quickly) farm the usual spots (cows, mephisto, pindleskin, eldritch, terror zones, etc) that your build is meant to farm, that's when I would suggest being more selective.

This video is great, it really helps in understanding the pros and cons of these bases! Best of luck everyone on the grind.

[michaelmagnon]

great video, pls consider making a video about the speed break points for popular polearms, with insight like using treachery and ias jewels in helm

[jimvick]

I've been playing offline and desperate to upgrade my mercs polearm... I found a eth ghost spear and made a perfect Obedience... which seems to have solved my problem... of both damage and resistances... as a singer barb with gull daggers, I needed things to die faster... Great informative vid.

[ZachIdso]

That runeword fury is another good one that can be done in those 3 socket bases. Fortitude has a really nice set of stats when placed into weapons too that seem to often get overlooked. Same thing with silence

[Tyrxx]

This is soooo helpful... so thanks a lot! <3

[matchi]

shouldve seen this one week earlier. Now I have a Ral Tir Tal Sol Mancatcher :D

[brokenclock]

Best Bases Summary:
(best option listed first)

Infinity- 4os eth Mancatcher, then 4os eth Thresher/Giant Thresher
Obediance- 5os eth Mancatcher, then 5os eth thresher/Giant Thresher
Insight- 4os eth Cryptic axe, then 4os Great Poleaxe/Thresher/Giant Thresher (spears won't work)
Pride- 4os eth Mancatcher, then 4os eth Thresher/Giant thresher
Crescent Moon- 3os eth Thresher/Giant Thresher (spears won't work)
Breath of the Dying- 6os eth Giant Thresher, then 6os eth Great Poleaxe

[superanderson]

Hey ging, isn't one of the reasons giant thresher/thresher is so sought after is the specific breakpoints for ias? I remember reading something a long time ago that the reason andy face with giant thresh/thresh is the dream because those two meet a certain breakpoint perfect for pairing with fortitude as you can just look to increase damage at that point, and as you pointed out it's take your pick between the two, thresh more top end, GT better minimum (consistent).

Edit: I really should have mentioned, specifically for infinity. That does not add any increase to weapon speed on that weapon.

[palpaladin]

I'd also suggest if you're gonna be using the Spear runeword yourself, range matters a whole lot. Pierce affects range over 1.5; so for BotD I'd say, use a +3 Mat spear. Whereas if I'm going to use Infinity, myself, then its in a Ghost spear. Taking advantage of the +5 range / pierce. Let the concentration aura, really make use of impale
I could imagine a WW barb would make good use of an Infinity Ghost spear as well, come to think of it.

[Maraxion]

At the end there you started talking about the speed from andarial visage or add more speed in a helmet. But have they changed that mercs dont get speed or ias from armours? Previously mercs only gained speed from the weapon.

[ukuleledude]

Atleast the addition of hustle has given another cheap and suprisingly good option for ogre axe and Hyperion spear. With the ias, fanat and burst of speed on hustle rw, Hyperion only needs 10 more ias to reach max speed.

[rudolfhanina]

95% of Mercenerry equip ist Andariel Visage 20% IAS and Armor RW Threachery 45% IAS . So Stigian Pike and Great Poleaxe is on same level and are very good for Infinity if your plan is AV + Threachery (65% IAS)=5 ticks (4, 16 APS). and dont need 15% IAS jewel to helm instead of RAL to negative -30% fire resistance.

[yourtubisfilled]

Thanks for the compendium. Awesome info. Made a great Obedience in a Tresher but when I gave it to my merc my mana drained too fast sadly. I need too much of the blue stuff! (On a WW + horking barb, first char on this account, solo self-found). Currently I have 5 mana stolen, +2 mana per kill, 9% damage goes to mana, but it doesn't seem to be near enough to run without Insight. Is there a typical way to compensate or just stack some more of the above?