
Glacial spike with Ice Blast for the cold sorc) Some mercs skills synergize – An example of this is the Barbarians Stun and Bash skills which synergize. + skills to Bash or Stun for the Barbarian as found on some items. an act 3 merc will benefit from an Ormus Robes’ skill if he posseses that skill already, even though it says (Sorceress) +specific skills (if they already have the skills (e.g. However, They do not benefit from +class skills or +skill tabs.
Mercenaries benefit from items with +all skills. You on the other hand cannot die from poison in town. Poison can absolutely kill your mercenary, even while in town. Act 5 mercenaries regenerate their health fully in 16.4 seconds, all other mercenaries require 41 seconds. Mercs skills have been downgraded slightly in 1.10 compared to 1.09, with the exception of the Act 1 Rogue which will no do more damage.
The highest level a merc can be is 98. The actual “character” level that you hire the merc at is irrelevant, only the difficulty you hire them in. The exception being the Nightmare Act 2 mercenaries, which cannot be hired in Normal (or Hell). Mercenaries hired in normal difficulty have better final stats than those hired in Nightmare or Hell, and NM Mercs are better than those hired in Hell. Most other mods (Crushing Blow, Open Wounds, Chance to Cast on Striking, Faster Cast Rate, Faster Hit Recovery, Increased Attack Speed, etc.) work on mercenaries.
The mod – Prevent Monster Heal does not work on mercenaries.