Diablo starts with you choosing your character. You have three choices:
Rogue (which is the best one...of course)
Warrior (a meathead by any other name)
Mage (deadly when an accomplished spell caster)
All have their own set attributes that you add on to every time you go up a level by gaining experience.The att's are set to the strengths of each character.
The Rogue is female *of course the best one would be....impartial here >)* who's strength lies with the bow. The Warrior's strength is the sword and the Mage's is of course...magic. All three have the ability to use all weapons and spells but not to the higher degree that each specializes in.
The ultimate purpose is to move through the levels down to Hell where you meet the bad boy himself...Diablo...
Nasty sucka eh? He sure does pack a wallop when going man to man...or woman to thing...I like to think (have you figured out that I'm a rogue at heart?)
You start off in the town of Tristram where almost everyone has been decimated...only a few have survived Diablo's evil minions. Once there you are beseeched to start your quest...there are 4 main ones that lead into many more minor ones along the way. Your first one starts in the dungeons of the church. Once there you fight your way through to the catacombs. You delve even deeper into the underground towards the caves and ultimately come into Hell.
Each level has 4 sublevels to it making up 16 levels altogether. You might think that is very small but I tell you...trying to get through each sublevel is hard and time-consuming and to play the game from start to finish would probably take over 20 hours...not only that the replayability is phenomenal since the game regenerates the labyrinth sublevels every time so you never play the same level twice.
The maximum attributes you can achieve for every character are as follows:
Rogue
Warrior
Mage
Strength
55
Strength
250
Strength
45
Magic
70
Magic
50
Magic
250
Dexterity
250
Dexterity
60
Dexterity
85
Vitality
80
Vitality
100
Vitality
80
If you noticed each one has a maximum that far outweighs the others. Thus if are playing as a Rogue then pump up the Dexterity first...a Warrior then Strength...the Mage then Magic. Pump up the rest according to your needs (ie needed strength for a better sword or bow...vitality so you don't die as easy, etc.)
You will meet many people in Tristram's town center and most will help you.
Cain, the town Elder, is by the fountain in the center of town. He is good for identifying items you have found that are of an unknown quality. 100 gold pieces for every IDed item
Griswald, the blacksmith, is there to help repair your damaged items before they become so damaged you lose them all together...so repair often, help you sell excess stuff that you have found for gold pieces, and to sell you items that might be better than what you could ever find...though not always.
Pepin, the Healer, heals you for free but also sells potions and scrolls for healing & scrolls of resurrection (very handy to have when playing multiplayer to help a friend out) for those trips down to Hell.
Adria, the Witch, sells potions of mana (for your spell casting) and magical items (elixirs, scrolls, books, & staffs) that also come in very handy when going down
Wirt, the peg-legged boy, is a little shit who sells you unusual stuff for exorbitant amounts of gold yet...some purchases can be worth their weight in gold. He charges 50 gold pieces to just take a look at what he has but it is worth it sometimes.
The rest of the town people are just bit players but if you are playing single games the info they give you involving your quests are helpful to say the least.
A few tips for a newbie...
set and learn your hot keys...they are very handy in the heat of battle...especially the spell casting ones (F5 - F8)
when exploring always go slowly and carefully...don't rush into a room or corridor. Ya never know what is hiding there and how many there are...take little steps and you'll survive longer.
always clear the level before going down to the next one....ya never know when you might have to go back up just to save your ass and then find a couple of creatures waiting for you there to snuff you out.
learn you character's special skill and use it...the rogue disarms traps, the warrior repairs worn armour and weapons, the mage recharges staves.
stick with what your character's strong points are...don't use a sword in the beginning if you are a rogue...use a bow....same with warriors using magic only or mages using swords. When you have climbed in levels to adequately defend yourself, then you can try using other weaker defenses.
when concerning shrines, if you are a rogue that will use magic or a mage stay away from Fascinating, Sacred, & Ornate shrines...the increase in a spell is offset losing 1/10th of you mana and it is NOT worth it in the long run...spells can be had for free from the libraries in the sublevels with out any loss of mana.
STAY AWAY from the Secluded shrine..."the way is made clear when viewed from above"...it will complete your automap which sucks when you use it to see what has been cleared and what hasn't.
always carry a town portal shrine or get the town portal spell book...this casts a portal directly to town which can be very helpful when deep in the earth...climbing up, each level you cleared before, to get to town is tedious and time consuming and town portal is a nice fix for that problem
when you ultimately do go after Diablo...lead him to the spiral, you'll know what I mean when you get down there, and leave him there so you can clear the rest of the level's demons before taking on the big boy by himself...very helpful.
when playing with others...before accepting anything unique...always make sure YOU id it not them (if you want to be a legit player and all)...some players give duped stuff away and that ends up tarnishing you
The final thing about Diablo
When playing over b.net...watch out for pk's...player killers. They lead you into a game and down to a level only to kill you...which is very easy...to either take your stuff or get a sick, perverted thrill outta killing you. Only play with people you know, have talked to for a while, or know from other players as being legit. Don't hack or dupe (a method of duplicating stuff for whatever means - something I have NO idea how to do so don't ask me)!! If you do...you SUCK!!!!!!!!!
