This guide covers Defenses in Torchlight Infinite, (Armor, Evasion, and Energy Shield), each of which increase your Hero's survivability. These Defenses have their own unique mechanics and improve your ability to survive the challenges of Leptis in different ways.
- Energy Shield is an alternative to Life.
- Damage applies to Energy Shield before Life.
- Armor reduces your Physical damage taken.
- It applies to Non-Physical damage at 60% of the normal effect.
- Evasion gives you a chance to completely avoid damage from an Attack or Spell hit.
- Your Evasion Rating is reduced by 40% when Evading Spells.
Energy Shield
When your Life reaches 0 you die, so many players protect their Life with Energy shield. Low Life builds take this to an extreme, Sealing their Life with Seal Conversion to run more Aura Skills for higher damage and better defenses.
Here's a quick comparison of the differences between Life and Energy Shield Mechanics:
Energy Shield Mechanics
- Found on Int Armor.
- NO Restoration Skills.
- Restored by Charge automatically.
- Recovered through Shield regain.
- Increased by Energy Fortress.
- Usually weak to DoTs.
Life Mechanics
- Found on Str, Dex, and Int Armor.
- Several Restoration Skills.
- Restored by Life Regeneration on Gear.
- Recovered through Life Regain.
- Recovered by Rejuvenation.
- Usually strong against DoTs.
Energy Shield Charge
Energy Shield has a built-in recovery mechanic called Charge. This begins when you haven't taken damage for 2 seconds and is interrupted by damage. Charge can be started faster by lowering your Charge Interval through effects such as Medium Talent from the Magister Tree, or Blessing Pendant.
By default Charge restores 20% of your Maximum Energy Shield per second, but this is increased by scaling Charge Speed. Normally Charge is interrupted when you take damage. However, effects like Light Hunter Belt and Barrier of Radiance change this.
Some effects also increase your Charge meaning you restore more Energy Shield per second. For example with Barrier of Radiance you go from recovering 20% to 30% per second. The higher your Energy Shield Charge rate the faster you are able to hit full Energy Shield.
which enhances Energy Shield Charge
Pro Tip: If you're struggling with Energy Shield Charge add the Defense Skill Forced Start.
Armor
Stack Armor to mitigate up to 80% of your damage taken from Hits. By default Armor is fully effective against Physical Damage, and 60% as effective against non-Physical Damage. Increase Armor's efficiency against non-Physical Damage with the Non-Physical Damage, +#% Armor Effective Rate Affix.
Armor Formula
The Armor Mitigation Formula is X / (0.9 X + 3000 + 300 Min (Enemy Level, 90)) with X being your exact Armor value.
Armor's Physical and Non-Physical Mitigation is capped at 80%. But your Non-Physical Damage Mitigation is 60% of the Physical mitigation. This can be increased with the +#% Armor Effective Rate stat.
Applying Armor
The Ember Armor major Talent makes your Armor much more effective at mitigating Elemental Damage. This doesn't replace your Resistances, instead making them vastly more potent.
To further mitigate Physical damage use Physical Damage taken as Elemental from an item like Dragon Breath Armor. Alternatively, crafting Rare gear with Non-Physical Damage, +#% Armor Effective Rate raises your defenses against Elemental and Erosion Damage.
Evasion
When you Evade a hit, you take no damage. Because Evasion's major weakness is consecutive hits, pair it with Deflection to make a well-rounded defensive package.
Deflection
Deflection is a defensive buff which reduces your damage taken by 10% per layer. You can have up to 3 layers of Deflection, and Deflection resets whenever you take a hit. Your Evasion rating prevents most hits from landing, and your Deflection to mitigates the hits that make it through.
Evasion Formula
Evade Rate=1-1.15* Attacker‘s Accuracy/(Attacker's Accuracy+0.5*Defender’s Evasion^0.75).
With Evasion Rating you have up to a 75% chance to evade Attacks and Spells based on the difference between your Evasion Rating and the monster's Accuracy Rating. The highest Accuracy of all monsters is 1,247 and you have 40% less Evasion Rating against Spells. With 185,000 Evasion Rating you hit the 75% cap for Attacks, and have a 66.5% chance to Evade Spells.
Applying Evasion
To enhance your ability to gain Deflection, use the Major Talent Master Escapist. Normally, it's difficult to reach the Spell Evasion cap of 75%, and many bosses use both Attacks and Spells. So clever hunters use the Flash of Brilliance Talent to make their Evasion fully effective against Spells.
Evasion builds don't have the raw Mitigation provided by Armor. They lack massive health pool, and innate recovery from Energy Shield. But a little Evasion Rating goes a long way, and Deflection smooths your damage intake making you less reliant on Defensive skills. This makes Evasion the most cost-efficient option among the defenses covered in this guide.
Resistances & Other Stats
This defenses guide focuses on Armor, Energy Shield, and Evasion. But these aren't the only ways to prevent damage in Torchlight Infinite.
While not classified as Defenses, many stats contribute to your survival in different ways. Some reduce the damage you take, others give you a chance to avoid taking damage in the first place. Most of these stats multiply together when combined, so that you cannot become immune to damage.
Making a well rounded tanky build involves dealing with Physical, Elemental, and Erosion damage. Remember, avoidance prevent consecutive hits, and recovery to help you heal back up after you take damage making them an important consideration when planning your defenses.
- Resistances reduce the Elemental and Erosion damage you take.
- Resistances normally cap at 60%, Maximum Resistance stats increase this, hard capping at 90%.
- With Damage taken as you take one type of Damage as another IE: Poison Immunity.
- This is capped at 100%.
- Combine Damage Transfer with minions so that they take portion of Damage for you.
- Transfer is capped at 75%.
- Block is a chance to take reduced damage from an Attack or Spell based on your Block Ratio.
- Block Chance is capped at 100%, Block Efficiency is capped at 75%
- Avoidance is a chance to avoid taking any damage.
- Avoidance is capped at 80%.
- Additional Damage Reduction reduces all damage you take.
- Additional Damage Reduction is capped at 90%.
- Many forms of Additional Damage Reduction come with conditions.
- Deflection reduces your damage taken by 10% per layer and you can have 3 layers.
- This can be increased through modifiers on gear.
Summary
The Torchlight Infinite Defenses Guide covers the following key mechanics;
- Energy Shield takes damage before your Life.
- You automatically begin Energy Shield Charge based on your Charge Interval and Charge Speed.
- Damage Interrupts Energy Shield Charge.
- Armor excels at mitigating Physical Damage.
- Armor mitigates non-Physical damage at 60% of its normal effect.
- Mitigation from Armor caps at 80%.
- Evasion rating gives you a chance to take no damage from an Attack or Spell.
- You have 40% less Evasion rating against Spells.
- Chance to Evade is capped at 75%.
- Pair Evasion with Deflection to mitigate the hits you fail to avoid.
- Defenses aren't your only option when it comes to increasing survivability.
- Resistances, Damage Taken As, Damage Transfer, Block, Avoidance, and Damage Reduction improve character durability.
Credits
Written by Tenkiei
Reviewed by Xtra37, Raxxanterax