PureRage-DoD wrote:
cb and crushing blow with low damage weapons for bosses with iron maiden works just fine.
Even with the reduction in crushing blow that is upcoming, this is still going to be valid.
The real important part is the lower dmg weapons. Iron Maiden has been significantly reduced in Hell Unleashed compared to previous years and a well put together character should be able to avoid a 1 hit death from IM, *unless* they are using some super powered weapons.
The BK set used to be a great boss managing set for a frenzy barb (was one of my personal favorites), but with the community feedback being pretty unanimous on increasing its damage it will likely no longer be a good candidate. I would suggest blood craft weapons with lots of Amns or Skulls for very large leech.
Bone cages are a real threat though as their leech coefficient is zero - which means no leech at all. That is really bad news. I played a hardcore martyr paladin back on b.net and learned the hard way about unleechable items in the game in terms of damage return. If you really start paying attention to what you hit and how it effects your life bulb you will start to realize that there are pretty drastic differences in leech rates among monsters in Hell.
Some degree of IM though is a very good thing though as it keeps high life melee players on their toes. Rather than just clicking on a boss and popping a juv now and then, they have to actively listen to what attacks are being utilized (for example listen for bone cages), move around a bit, and strategically attack when they can.