D2R Absorb

D2R Absorb

There are three types of absorption, one for each direct damage element type - Cold, Fire and Lightning. The effect will stop the listed percentage of damage(or a fixed value), then heal you for the amount absorbed.

  • Absorption takes place after Resistances are applied to the incoming damage. It is otherwise unrelated to resistance.
  • The effect has two stages, absorb then heal. If an attack reduces your health below zero after the absorb but before the heal, you will still die.
  • Absorption is available in two forms: Fixed value or percentage based. Percentage based is more rare and more valuable against high damage attacks.

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D2R Absorb Guide

Absorption is a special modifier that completely erases a certain amount of damage.

In D2R, damage absorption usually works on a damage of a specific type, as well as heals the user that amount of damage before they take damage from the rest of the hit.

There are two types of absorption modifiers: one that reduces damage by a specific number of hit points (e.g., "+15 Fire Absorb" on Hellmouth), and one that reduces damage by a specific percentage (e.g., "Cold Absorb 20%", as found on Raven Frost).

The value of absorption modifiers varies greatly due to how damage is inflicted:

Absorbing lightning damage is the most useful since lightning tends to hit in multiple small bolts. Ten points of lightning absorb can completely neutralize a Lightning Enchanted boss, if it's emitting dozens of 6-8 damage charges. In contrast, ten points of fire absorb, even after healing, would make hardly any difference against a 500 damage Meteor.

Absorb Magic Damage modifiers work against all types of non-physical damage.

Absorb Damage modifiers are very useful against elemental attacks, especially multiple small damage hits, such as those from Council Members' Hydras or Scarab Demons.

Absorb X% Damage modifiers are most useful against fierce elemental damage monsters.

Calculating Absorption

Absorption is calculated as follows:

  1. For elemental damage, calculate resistance first.
  2. Remove percentage absorption, if any.
  3. Remove hit point absorption, if any.
  4. Add healing, up to maximum hit points.

Example: A player with Raven Frost and 75% Cold Resistance takes 400 hit points of cold damage. The 75% resistance takes the damage down to 100 HP. The Cold Absorb takes 20% of that figure off, leaving 80 HP, and then those 20 HP are converted to healing, leaving a final damage of just 60 HP.

As a result of the formula, the effective damage reduction from Absorb is twice the listed amount: Raven Frost, for example, reduces cold damage by 40 percent.

The maximum effective percentage absorb that has any effect is 40%.

Absorb Type

Absolute or integer absorb is a fixed number of absorbed damage (of whatever type). For example, the Thundergod's Vigor unique belt has +20 lightning absorb. There is no cap on absolute absorb.

Percentage absorb is less common than absolute. An example is the Raven Frost unique ring, which has 20% cold absorb. Percentage absorb is capped at 40% per element, in v1.09+ D2X.

Order of Operations

This is the most frequently confused aspect of absorb. To calculate the actual damage taken, use this sequence.

Take the attack damage, then modify it by:

  1. calculate resistance
  2. calculate % absorb
  3. calculate absolute absorb
  4. add healing from absolute absorb (will not exceed your character's max hit points)*
  5. calculate remaining attack damage.

* Note that the healing from absolute absorb only functions if your character can be healed by that much. If they are at full health, they will not receive any healing. If you are 20 hit points down and get 50 healing from absolute absorb, only 20 will have any effect.

Example

10,000 damage attack to a character with 95% resistance to that element, 40% absorb to that element, and 55 absolute absorb to that element.

  • 500 damage after resist.
  • 100 damage after % absorb.
  • With 55 absolute absorb, 100 damage becomes +10 life. (100 - 55. 55 added to health. -45 remaining damage = +10)

High resistances and absorb (of both types) can turn the most devastating attacks into negligible damage, or even give you healing from them.

Example 2

Note that the resistance is the most important aspect, and that very high resistance is essential to make absorb a healing bonus.

If the character in the above example had the same absorb, but 75% resistance instead of 95%, the damage equation would change radically: 2500 after resistance, => 500 after absorb % => +55 hit points, -445 damage = 390 damage taken.

With 50% resistance it would be 890 damage.

With 0% resistance you would be dead. (5890 damage.)

Absorb Types and Uses

Lightning absorb is the most useful, since lightning damage tends to come in multiple small bursts, such as from Lightning Enchanted bosses or the multiple hits from a lighting bolt (from a Burning Soul). Absorb is less useful against fire and cold, since they more often hit in one big blast. Poison absorb is not found in D2.

"Magic Absorb" such as that found on the 'Spirit' Rune Word works only against magic damage and has no effect on elemental damage.

Physical Damage

Physical damage can be resisted but not absorbed. Similarly to elemental absorb, physical resistance comes in two forms:

Percentage physical damage reduction

  • Granted by the modifier "Damage reduced by x%"
  • Commonly known as DR%
  • Capped at 50%, but can be stacked to counter the effect of Decrepify and Amplify Damage which apply -50% and -100% physical resistance respectively.
  • Applied after integer damage reduction
  • Often found on items which are otherwise useful such as Stormshield Monarch or String of Ears Demonhide Sash.

Integer (absolute) physical damage reduction

  • Granted by the modifier "Damage reduced by x"
  • Commonly known as iPDR or iDR
  • Applied before percentage damage reduction
  • Since the best sources are often relatively rare magic items (there are exceptions like The Gladiator's Bane Wire Fleece and Gerke's Sanctuary Pavise) it is hard to stack iDR to an amount where it becomes useful. However, if you manage to stack upwards of 100 iDR you'll find yourself immune to many physical attacks.

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