Diablo 3 Follower Mechanics: Your Ultimate Guide to Sidekicks (Who Actually Help)
Adventuring in Sanctuary can be lonely. Demons surround you, but your followers can help. They are not just decorative. They are valuable allies, boosting your gameplay. Let’s explore follower mechanics in Diablo 3. Optimize your companions. Make those Nephalem rifts less solitary.
Understanding Follower Gear: Gearing Up Your Sidekick
What is follower gear? Think of it as their wardrobe. It is about function over fashion. Equip your follower like your own character. Here’s a neat fact: followers get a 2.5x multiplier to their main stat. Yes, you read that right. It’s like they’re caffeinated for battle. Gearing them up is achievable, even without fancy augmentations.
For follower gearing, keep it simple. Focus on standard main stat gems for sockets. Legendary Gems don’t work for followers. Regular gems are best. Jewelry slots? Load them up! This method boosts their primary stats. This enhances abilities and overall effectiveness. It is budget-friendly power-dressing for your companion.
Follower Skills and Abilities: CDR is Your Friend
Want your follower using skills more often? Of course! Here’s a pro tip: Cooldown Reduction (CDR) helps followers immensely. If you push into higher Torment levels, CDR is crucial, especially for the Templar. Imagine the Templar healing you more frequently. He won’t wait around for cooldowns. If you chose healing skills for him, more CDR means better survivability for you. It’s simple, but it changes the game for utility. Don’t underestimate the power of making their abilities available.
Follower Item Shenanigans: What Works and What Doesn’t
Let’s discuss item interactions. This part is crucial for optimization.
- Legendary Gems: Mostly a No-Go (with a couple of exceptions) Legendary Gems on followers? Generally, it’s no. They do not benefit from legendary powers. However, a couple of exceptions exist: Esoteric Alteration and Mutilation Guard. These work and make followers significantly tankier. This is useful for keeping them alive in faster content, where they need to stay in battle. If you use an Enforcer gem, your follower benefits too, boosting their pet damage if any pet skills are active. While your follower can’t harness Legendary Gems broadly, these exceptions are vital for survival.
- Set Bonuses: Green Gear Goodness Great news! Followers benefit from set bonuses. If you find extra set pieces that boost their survivability, equip them. They may not trigger bonuses reliant on player actions, but the inherent stat boosts and effects apply. It’s a budget-friendly way to enhance their skills. Check the Diablo Wiki’s Set Items page for available sets that work for followers.
- Soul Shards: Rank Matters Remember Soul Shards from Season 25? If you’re non-seasonal and have some, here’s the lowdown: Rank 0 and Rank 3 powers don’t apply to followers. Sorry for the letdown. But standard upgrades from Rank 1 and Rank 2 apply. If you have shards with decent stats, use them to boost follower’s basic offensive and defensive stats. It might not revolutionize performance, but every bit counts.
- Broken Crown: Gem Duplication Trickery Ah, the Broken Crown. Does it work on followers? Absolutely! When equipped, the gem’s power emanates. However, the emitted gem isn’t based on what’s in your Crown. It’s based on your helmet gem. Confusing? Yes. Useful? Definitely. If you need a specific gem, wear the right one in your helm, equip the Broken Crown, and enjoy gem duplication. This works if the Crown is on your follower or in Kanai’s Cube. Clever, right?
Emanating Items: Sharing is Caring (Sometimes)
Emanating items share legendary power with your party. When equipped on your follower, some powers emanate to you. The Broken Crown is one example. Look for other emanating items that could benefit your build when equipped on your follower. This adds another layer of optimization to consider when maximizing your setup.
Follower Stats: Hitting the Cap (and Why It’s Easier Than You Think)
Follower stats, mainly main stats like Strength, Dexterity, and Intelligence, cap at 25,000. Usually, reaching 25,000 on your character is hard. But followers get that 2.5x multiplier! This makes hitting this cap easier for them. Main stats directly boost a follower’s damage and skills. Reaching this cap maximizes their contributions to your demon-slaying quests. Stack those main stats and watch your follower become a more formidable force.
Follower Types and Best Choices for Each Class: Picking Your Perfect Partner
Did you know there are follower types? Robert Kelley identified five: Exemplary, Conformist, Passive, Alienated, and Pragmatic. In Diablo 3, it boils down to three core followers: Enchantress, Scoundrel, and Templar. Choosing the right one for your class is crucial.
- Wizard: Enchantress or Scoundrel, based on needs.
- Enchantress: Think speed farming and cooldown reduction. For Wizards, the Enchantress helps you zip through rifts quickly. Her crowd control and utility skills, enhanced by CDR, speed up farming runs.
- Scoundrel: Greater Rift progression and damage? The Scoundrel excels here. His critical hit damage buff boosts your damage further in higher Great Rifts where each damage counts.
- Templar: Need survivability? Hardcore player? Struggling to stay alive? The Templar can save you! His healing abilities are lifesavers, especially for squishier or resource-hungry builds.
- Monk: Scoundrel for LoD WoL (Legacy of Dreams Wave of Light) Monks. Running a Legacy of Dreams Wave of Light Monk? The Scoundrel is generally the best follower. The increased crit damage buff synergizes with LoD WoL, helping you inflict more damage.
- Demon Hunter, Crusader, Necromancer: Enchantress for CDR, usually. Notice a trend? For Demon Hunters, Crusaders, and Necromancers, the Enchantress often ranks highest. Why? Cooldown Reduction! Many builds benefit from CDR, and the Enchantress provides crucial support here.
- Barbarian: Templar for Healing. Barbarians appreciate sustain. So the Templar is a good choice for Barbarians, providing healing during combat. While they’re tanky, extra healing aids survival.
Nemesis Bracers: Champion Spawning for Extra Loot
Quick note about a useful item: Nemesis Bracers. Want more champion packs? Equip Nemesis Bracers or cube their power. Activating a shrine or pylon spawns a champion pack. More champions equal more loot, including Death’s Breath, a vital crafting material. It boosts your farming efficiency when combined with speed-farming builds.
Quick Item Shout-Outs: A Few Noteworthy Mentions
- Cluckeye Legendary Bow: Yes, it’s a bow. It exists in Diablo 3. Moving on.
- Pig Sticker Legendary Dagger: Another weapon in Diablo 3. Daggers are stabby. Still with me?
- Ring of Royal Grandeur Legendary Ring: This ring is a build-enabling powerhouse. It works best for set-based builds. Reducing the needed set pieces opens up build customization.
- Thunderfury, Blessed Blade Of The Windseeker: Templar’s Best Friend. Remember Thunderfury? Not just a mouthful, it’s a prime main hand weapon for Templar. This sword suits any melee class searching for a top weapon. The proc on Thunderfury aids in crowd control and damage mitigation, making it a top-tier choice.
- Eternal Collection Bonuses: Switching it Up on Switch. Playing Diablo 3 on Nintendo Switch? The Eternal Collection includes fun cosmetics. You get a Cucco companion pet, a Triforce portrait frame, and a Ganondorf-inspired transmog set. Plus, unique cosmetic wings. It’s all about the look while slaying demons, right?
Gem Fragments and Occult Gems: Gem Farming 101
- Farming Gem Fragments: Infernal Hordes is Your Hotspot. Need gem fragments? Infernal Hordes is the best way to farm them. Dive into those hordes and start smashing demons for gem fragments.
- Unique Occult Gem Cost: Prepare to Grind (a little). Crafting a unique Occult Gem? Expect to spend around 375,000 gem fragments. It’s a considerable chunk. So, ensure your gem fragment farming is up to par.
Gameplay Mechanics: Difficulty, Levels, and Paragon
- Difficulty Scaling: Enemies Match the Game Creator’s Level. Diablo 3’s difficulty scaling is clear-cut. Enemies scale to the level of the player who created the game. Playing with friends of varying levels? The game adjusts to the host’s level. Remember that when in a party!
- Level Cap: 70 is the Magic Number. Character level cap in Diablo 3? It’s 70. Hitting level 70 marks the start of the endgame grind – Paragon levels.
- Paragon Levels: The Grind Never Ends (Literally). About Paragon levels, there is no cap! Keep leveling up your Paragon endlessly, boosting your character’s stats. The Paragon grind is a marathon, not a sprint. Settle in and enjoy the endless progression.
Other Diablo 3 Tidbits: Unicorns, Cows, and Strong Swords
- Types of Followers (Again): Yes, we mentioned Robert Kelley’s follower types before. Just reinforcing that it’s a real thing… in follower theory, not really in Diablo 3 gameplay.
- Whimsyshire and the Secret Cow Level: Easter Eggs of Slaughter. Whimsyshire, known as the secret unicorn level, offers a whimsical take on the Secret Cow Level from Diablo 2. If you miss bovine-themed mayhem, Whimsyshire is your pastel-colored spot. Just no cows here… only unicorns and teddy bears.
- Strongest Weapon in Diablo? Diablo 4’s Grandfather Enters the Chat. While discussing Diablo, the Diablo 4 sword “The Grandfather” may be the strongest weapon in the new game. With great base stats and a massive crit damage multiplier? Sounds grand indeed. For Diablo 3 weapon rankings, see guides like DualShockers’ Diablo 3 Best Weapons list.
- Hours to Beat Diablo 3: A Quick Campaign. Focusing solely on Diablo 3’s main story? Expect around 13.5 hours of playtime. That’s just the start. The true Diablo 3 experience lies in adventure mode, rifts, and endless endgame content.
So there you have it – a peek into Diablo 3 followers and mechanics. Go forth, gear up your sidekick, and conquer Sanctuary with your trusty companion. Remember, a well-geared follower is a happy follower (and a more effective demon slayer).
