Rares and Champions...

[Roland]

I generally roll with this:

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/de...bde!Yabbba

Sometimes I will switch out MS for Chakram with the Razor Disk rune (usually in co-op games where I have to expend more resources), and often switch back and forth between Elemental arrow with Ball Lightning or Rapid Fire with Withering Fire rune, depending on what I'm facing. I'm still experimenting with the passives, though Brooding and Vengeance are usually selected. Smokescreen and Prep are basically a must, since Caltrops and Shadow Power are a joke on the higher difficulties.

Caltrops is amazing. If you're not using it, you're missing out. Caltrops - Jagged Spikes deals 45% weapon damage per second to anything caught in it - and it stacks with multiple Caltrops. Combined with Numbing Traps and Cull the Weak passives I can tank a choke point against most mobs, or kite them enough to whittle them down with Multishot - Fire at Will and/or Impale - Impact. Caltrops is an AMAZING skill, and with Jagged Spikes it goes from a useful crowd control skill to an awesome damaging skill. I'd never give it up for anything. Also, don't underestimate Sentry. It's damage output is decent, especially with Spitfire Turret, but either Aid Station or Guardian Turret (haven't tried the latter) is a godsend in Hell.

If you want to stick with your current build, try changing Hungering Arrow - Devouring Arrow to Puncturing Arrow, Cinder Arrow, or Shatter Shot. Any of those should prove more useful, and probably more damaging. I haven't used Elemental Arrow much at all, but I'm assuming Ball Lightning is a constant-damage effect? If not, it's virtually worthless. Even so, I'd probably try Frost Arrow for damage and CC, Screaming Skull or Lightning Bolts for pure CC, or Nether Tentacles for tanking ability for those really hard champ packs. Vault - Action Shot or Trail of Cinders will help you with more damage until you get better weapons, and if you really need to Vault more than once you're either facing a ridiculously fast pack or you did something wrong in kiting. Preparation is useful, and the solid heal from Battle Scars is surely invaluable, but you might try something like Marked for Death - Grim Reaper, or Death Toll. One helps you kill packs of enemies, and the other helps keep your life topped up during the fight. Combined with life leech or life on hit, you should be able to stay pretty healthy throughout a fight, even while kiting. Multishot - Fire at Will doesn't get any better, honestly. Full Broadside is nice in theory, but I think the Hatred efficiency of FaW can't be beat, although Arsenal seems pretty cool, too.

http://us.battle.net/d3/en/calculator/de...cdV!cabZYa

This is my current build. It has served me well, virtually unchanged, since end of Normal / sometime in Nightmare. I swapped out Spike Traps for Multishot somewhere in Nightmare, and haven't looked back since. I dropped in Brooding as well, and swapped in Numbing Traps sometime in Hell. It's a sick combination. 15% more damage against slowed enemies, -25% damage taken from them, and the 60% slow / 45% damage from Caltrops makes me a beast while I'm able to stay mobile in a small area (or simply tank), although it's all still useful even if I have to kite halfway across the map. Companion - Bat keeps my Hatred high so I can Impale about 4-5 times (and the stun is immeasurable), and/or Multishot - Fire at Will for huge crowd reduction (especially when slowed).

The only thing I changed was taking Vault and Impale - Chemical Burn when facing Belial in Hell, but even that wasn't necessary - just a nice boost. Impact - Chemical Burn is great for bosses, especially ones that you can't stun, but I'd never give up Impale - Impact for the rest of the game. That stun is just too useful, and the high damage doesn't hurt either. Great for picking off Champs / Elites, and/or his minions one at a time.

Other day, I died to the Butcher on hell mode about 5 times in a row before finally succeeding, but this wasn't tedious it was challenging. I died because of something I did wrong. A couple times I didnt heal fast enough, and once or twice I was too close within range of his pull-in move and got 1-shotted. On the successful try I played a bit tighter and managed my resources better, and was able to defeat him. With many of the Champion packs though, you lose ALL control of your char, and are guaranteed death multiple times no matter how well prepared you are. This is NOT fun.

No, it's not overly fun. However, once you acquire a better weapon it will stop being 10 deaths, and instead be six, or three, or one. Your weapon is your greatest asset. Without it, you're going to struggle. You have to make one choice: farm for a better weapon, or buy one off the AH. I just bought one for 20k that took me from 8k DPS to 12k, and I didn't even need the damage for Hell (although I can enter Inferno now). If you don't want to use the AH at all, you're stuck farming, and best of luck to you (no sarcasm). Otherwise, buy that ONE item, and farm the rest. Hit 60, get your Nephalem Valor stacks and go to town. Blues and yellows rain down from everywhere (although they're mostly all crap - my last game gave me almost entirely +Int gear), and gold just drowns you.

If you're that stuck you can have my old weapon. It's not terrific, but it's solid enough - around 350 DPS, with over +100 Dex and Str. With some semi-decent +Dex gear you should be pushing well over 3k DPS easy with just that, if not higher. It may not make Hell a cakewalk, but it should improve your situation (unless your current weapon is better). Beyond that, I'm not sure what to tell you. Hell is an absolute kick in the balls, over and over and over, but with the right gear it becomes a cakewalk 95% of the time, and the other 5% is spent dying once (maybe twice) before mopping up that brutal champ pack.

Except that Invulnerable Minion / Frozen / whatever Blood Moon Clan Elite pack at the very entrance (stair trap) to the Underbridge in Act III (or whatever it's called). Fuck that.