Leviathan

Leviathan is an elite unique armor in Diablo 2 Resurrected that emphasizes raw physical defense through high defense values, massive strength bonuses, and significant damage reduction. This Kraken Shell serves primarily as a budget mercenary armor, offering solid survivability without the premium price of top-tier alternatives.

Defensive Focus

The armor provides +170-200% Enhanced Defense, +100-150 Defense, and Damage Reduced by 15-25%, resulting in defense values between 1,514-1,722. Perfect rolls approach Shaftstop's damage reduction, making it the second-highest physical damage reduction armor in the game. The Indestructible modifier eliminates durability concerns, allowing for indefinite use without repairs. These stats create a purely defensive armor prioritizing physical mitigation over offensive or utility bonuses.

Strength Considerations

Leviathan's most notable feature is its +40-50 to Strength bonus, one of the highest strength increases from any single item. However, the armor itself requires 174 strength to equip—an exceptionally high threshold that forces significant attribute investment. While the strength bonus helps meet equipment requirements for other gear, the net effect means characters sacrifice substantial vitality points. For most builds, this strength-vitality trade-off proves disadvantageous compared to armors with more balanced stat distributions.

Mercenary Applications

Leviathan functions best on Act 2 mercenaries as a budget defensive option. Mercenaries don't face the same opportunity cost from high strength requirements, and the damage reduction helps them survive physical threats. However, it faces stiff competition from cheaper alternatives—Duriel's Shell provides Cannot Be Frozen along with resistances, while upgraded ethereal Shaftstop offers superior damage reduction. The strength bonus matters little for mercenaries since their damage primarily comes from weapon choice rather than strength scaling.

Practical Limitations

For player characters, Leviathan rarely justifies its equipment slot. The prohibitive strength requirement, lack of resistances, absence of faster hit recovery, and no offensive modifiers create an armor that excels only at physical damage mitigation. Most builds prefer armors offering broader utility—Guardian Angel for maximum resistances, Chains of Honor for skills and resistances, or Fortitude for offense. Leviathan maintains minimal trade value, typically worth only a handful of mid-runes. It serves best as a temporary progression piece or budget mercenary armor before acquiring superior alternatives.