Diablo 3 hardcore

There's this game called Diablo 3 by Blizzard that I'm spending quite a fair bit of my time on. Having played the normal aka softcore mode using all the different characters available, I thought I'll try the hardcore mode for the wizard character. They said it's going to be a wild ride and it sure is. In hardcore mode, you can only die once and if you do, your equipment that you carry with you when you die will be erased. The gold that you kept will be saved for future hardcore characters though, so at least you don't have to begin everything from scratch, as I do when you switched from softcore mode to hardcore mode.



When you begin to realise that dying actually matters, not just in terms of the huge repair cost in light of the recent patch, you start to see things in a different light. Things that you take for granted, like wading right into the thick of battle, going off to the toilet while you're in the dungeon and taking on something bigger and meaner than what you can fight...all of these starts to become an important factor in deciding your longevity. I think everyone who plays hardcore mode knows that their character is going to die one day, but they still play it, although more cautiously (and justifiably so) than softcore mode.



I think there's a lot of relevance between playing hardcore mode in Diablo 3 and life itself. The lessons that I take away from playing hardcore can thus be equally applied to the game of life. Except that in life, you can only play hardcore. There's no ifs and no buts, no server lag excuses. If you die, you die. So make the best use of your life. The memory of the deceased will live on, even if the life and body did not.

Draziw....I'm never really imaginative, so says Zoltan Kulle

Hardcore lessons:


1. Buy the best gear that your money can afford. Constantly upgrade yourself. There's no point hoarding so much especially when you do not know when you are going to be killed by the next monster or server lag. Whatever left that is in your bank account will be left aside for the next character. Therefore money that is not spent on yourself now is not yours.


2. Spend more on vitality (aka health). If you know you only have one life, you had better spend more time building up on your vitality. More vitality, more health, and you last longer.


3. You have to play the game cautiously, but you can't play it too cautiously. If you spend so much on vitality and ignore your damage per second (DPS), you're just running on the treadmill - you can't move on. Take risk when you are ready, if not, your self doubts and lack of confidence means that you are depriving yourself of life itself, even though you are trying to prolong it by playing it safe. That is not the way the game is meant to be played.


4. Choose the right partner. Even though I played the game solo, there are times that I wish there's another hardcore character to team up with me. When choosing partners, it can be a double edged sword. Once another character joins in  your team, the monsters' health doubles - it actually become harder to kill. Hence, it's important that your partner knows what he is doing in order to maximise each other's ability. If not, he's just dead weight and will drag you down. Imagine you fighting solo for 100% of the monster's health, and you fighting solo for 200% of the monster's health while your partner is idling somewhere. It's just not right.


For all the Diablo 3 players out there, happy gaming!