ZagdemFrostKick

Intro

Welcome to the Frostkick Assassin guide, a unique blend of martial arts and elemental damage. This build combines the power of Dragon Talon with the area-of-effect potential of Blade Shield, all while leveraging the Blizzard procs from Nord's Tenderizer. It's a fun but not so effective build that mixes physical damage with cold, providing good clear speed and boss-killing potential.

Tell ChugThatEstus thank you

The idea came while playing with Chug's Blade Fury guide, so I thought I should thank him. BF wasn't for me, but I had fun and this would never have happened without you :)

Project Diablo 2 Changes

Ability Changes

Dragon Talon now has 2 synergies and caps at 3 consecutive kicks.
Blade Shield has been reworked to be more effective.

Item Changes

Nord's Tenderizer now has a chance to cast Blizzard on striking.

Viability

Can I level as this build?: Yes, but traps would be faster early on.
Early Ladder Viable: Yes.
End Game Solo Viable: Yes, you can do T1 maps reasonably fast. It isn't the best end game build ever though.
End Game Group Viable: I think this would be trash.
Hardcore Viable: Potentially, but requires careful play and good defensive gear.
Uber Trist Viable: I would not try that.
Uber Diablo Clone Viable: I would not try that.

Feedback

Overall, I think this build works, nothing more. Its strength lies in the price : for a few wss you can clear chaos and maps because Nord and Blackoack are very cheap. It is slow, but it works, and it is safe. So. You can :)

I wanted to try it and make a guide so y'all know what to expect if you try. In case the team reads this : you can buff Nord again, it is still far from being OP :p

Early Ladder Gear

Focus on getting Nord's Tenderizer as soon as possible. For other slots, aim for gear that provides attack rating and %pdr.

End Game Gear

Weapon

Nord's Tenderizer (main weapon)
You could try other proc weapons like Earth Shifter and Warshrike. It might work, didn't try :p

Helmet

Kira's Guardian (for cannot be frozen and resistances)
Nightwing's Veil (for cold damage boost)
Guillaume
Gaze

Armor

Shaftstop (for damage reduction and life)
Ormus' Robes (with +cold skill damage)
Stone (for high defense)
Leviathan (for high defense)

Amulet

Metalgrid (for attack rating and resistances)

Shield

Blackoak (for -resistances, also boosts defense quite a lot)

Rings

Raven Frost (for cannot be frozen and attack rating)
Dual leech ring
Dwarf (for block)

Gloves

Dracul's Grasp (for life tap proc and strength)
Frostburn (for increased mana and cold damage)

Belt

Nosferatu's Coil (for deadly strike and slow target)
String of Ears (for damage reduction)

Boots

Gore Rider (for deadly strike and crushing blow)
WT (which I have not tried, but I think I should)

Mercenary

Act 2 Defensive Mercenary with Infinity is probably BiS (but I ran A5 might to test because this isn't a late game build :p)
Weapon: Infinity (if you can afford it)
Armor: Gloom is really underrated, it is a great early ladder armor

Corruptions and Charms

Look for corruptions that add sockets, or cannot be frozen
Charms : max/ar or +cold damage, both work

Stats and Skills

Stats

Strength: Enough for gear (could be a lot with upped boots)
Dexterity: Enough for max block (75%, hard to reach) or to wear gear (if you don't block)
Vitality: Everything else
Energy: None

Skills

20 Dragon Talon and synergies
1-5 Fade
20 Blade Shield and remaining points in its synergies

Breakpoints

FHR : 27/48/86
IAS : 30 is enough, 50 and 95 is better but not needed

Farming Locations

This build excels in areas with mixed monster types due to its dual damage types. Good farming locations include:

Chaos Sanctuary
Worldstone Keep
Most T1 maps, especially those without cold/phys immunes

Remember to use Dragon Flight to position yourself efficiently and let your Blade Shield and Blizzard procs help clear surrounding enemies while you focus on kicking primary targets.