Optimizing Followers and Legendary Gems in Diablo 3

As an experienced Diablo 3 player, I often get asked about tossing Legendary Gems onto followers. Newer players assume sockets mean you should jam in your best gems. However, while followers excel at aiding your hero, these gems offer no benefits on them.

What Makes Followers and Gems Tick in Diablo 3

Before analyzing why gems don‘t function on followers, let‘s peek under the hood at how these game elements work from a technical perspective.

Followers are NPCs or non-player characters with predetermined behaviors and abilities. They have set skill options, item slots, damage ranges, etc. Their combat mechanics are simpler than the player‘s. Followers are coded to provide bonus effects to the hero based on their skills and gear.

Legendary Gems have complex interactions and dynamic effects. They grow in power by leveling up in Greater Rifts. Their abilities trigger based on various combat conditions using smart loot logic. Gems amplify your capabilities beyond a normal character.

So while sockets on gear imply gems should work for anyone, followers lack the underlying programming framework to fully utilize legendary gem effects. Their simplistic NPC nature prevents complex gem interactions.

Here‘s some example follower pseudocode handling a socketed gem:

If gem_socketed:
   Passively display gem 
Else:
   Nonequipped socket

Now contrast with legendaries running combat checks like:

On attack:
   If gem = bane_of_powerful: 
     If enemy = elite:
        Add damage_bonus
   Else if gem = esoteric_alteration:
     Add resistance_bonus

Followers simply aren‘t built to leverage these dynamic gains. Their static design limits gem potential.

The Evolution of Followers vs Legendary Gems

Both followers and legendary gems have undergone major changes throughout the Diablo series:

Diablo 2

Followers:

• Could equip limited gear
• Minimal combat impact
• Mostly for lore flavor

Legendary Gems:

• Did not exist as a concept

Diablo 3 Vanilla

Followers:

• Expanded gear and skills
• Noticeable but minor combat boosts
• Focus on utility over damage

Legendary Gems:

• Did not exist yet

Diablo 3 Reaper of Souls

Followers:

• Special item slots for rings, amulets
• Unique legendary powers
• Relics to prevent death

Legendary Gems:

• Introduced as end-game socketable gems
• Special effects scale with ranks
• Major damage and utility gains

While both systems evolved to be robust, their capability gap persists. Followers simply interact too minimally to leverage legendary gems.

Gearing Followers for Maximum Impact

Since gems are off the table, let‘s explore how to maximize followers through gearing:

Ranking Follower Gear

Based on efficacy, here‘s how I tier follower equipment from S-F rank:

S Rank:

• Unity
• Immortality Relics
• Ess of Johan

A Rank:

• Flavor of Time
• Oculus Ring
• Thunderfury

B Rank:

• Freeze of Deflection
• Wyrdward
• Overwhelming Desire

C Rank:

• Buriza-Do Kyanon
• Enchanting Favor
• Ancient Parthan Defenders

D Rank:

• Random Legendaries
• Rare rings with CDR

F Rank:

• Everything else

For high-end gameplay, prioritize S rank items first, then fill in lower tier gear. The S rank vastly outshines lower ones.

Follower Damage Comparison

Let‘s see how much a follower‘s potential damage changes based on gear.

Follower base damage range: 20,000 – 30,000

Gear Setup	Damage Range	DPS Boost
No Legendaries	20k – 30k	0%
Thunderfury	24k – 36k	20%
Ess of Johan + Thunderfury	28k – 42k	40%
Ess of Johan + Thunderfury + Flavor of Time	32k – 48k	60%

While not suitable for dishing out pain, followers still gain substantial offensive boosts from essential legendaries.

Follower Skills for Support vs Damage

Based on whether you want your follower buffing you or assisting with damage, here are optimal skill loadouts:

Pure Support

• Templar – Heal, Guardian, Inspire
• Enchantress – Powered Armor, Focused Mind, Forceful Push
• Scoundrel – Anatomy, Hysteria, Vanish

Hybrid DPS/Support

• Templar – Charge, Guardian, Heal
• Enchantress – Powered Armor, Erosion, Forceful Push
• Scoundrel – Anatomy, Vanish, Big Game Hunter

Run the math and your needs will dictate which setup maximizes your capabilities.

Top Players Weigh In on Follower Optimization

Beyond number crunching, I wanted insights from elite gamers who push high solo and group Greater Rifts. Here are their thoughts on the follower metagame:

"Unity and immortal relics are mandatory for progressing into the 90+ GRs due to the 50% damage reduction. It literally doubles your survivability." – Zyphz, Rank 1 Monk

"Flavor of Time is crucial for having follower skills like heals and crowd control up for every dangerous elite pack." – Von Vikton, Rank 1 Necromancer

"I‘ll take a solid Unity over any Legendary Gem on my Enchantress. One makes me vastly tankier while the other does absolutely nothing." – Hydra, Rank 1 Crusader

Top leaderboard players recognize the value of optimizing followers but know legendary gems provide no meaningful gains. You‘re better off using them on your character.

So in summary, while the concept of plugging gems into followers seems promising, their limited mechanics prevent legendary gems from enhancing their capabilities. Focus instead on essential legendaries like Unity and Ess of Johan to get the most from your companions. Your hero will thank you!

Let me know if you have any other questions about min-maxing your follower or making the leap to higher solo Greater Rifts. I‘m always happy to chat more Demon Slaying!