Because Weaken combines with Armor/Resistance/other Damage Reduction via the standard multiplicative DR-stacking rule (not diluted by them), applying Weaken to a dangerous Elite or Boss stacks a genuine extra 15% (Elite) or 10% (Boss) damage reduction specifically against the source most likely to threaten your Life pool.
This is worth calling out because Weaken's raw percentages look small next to Armor/Resistance's near-90% figures, leading players to undervalue it; its real strength is that it is fully independent, always-multiplicative, and targetable at the specific enemy currently threatening you, rather than a static passive number.
All independent Damage Reduction sources (Armor's DR%, each Resistance's DR%, flat DR affixes, conditional DR, and debuffs like Weaken on the enemy) combine via 1-(1-DR1)*(1-DR2)*...*(1-DRn), so Weaken's percentage is never wasted or overlapping with your other DR investment.
Elite: -15% damage dealt. Boss: -10% damage dealt.
In a build with access to a Weaken source, prioritize applying it specifically before/during the burst windows of dangerous Elite/Boss mechanics rather than treating it as generic trash-clearing utility.
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