Stats 101 - In no particular order other than slightly based of DPS at lower levels here are what you want as a Demon Hunter. (Yes crit/crit damage scale better than dex as you stack more of it... by a lot, but not at the beginning or even my progress in the game.)
Dex - 1 dex = 1% damage.
+Damage (added directly to weapon, even on ring / ammy etc.
Increased attack speed
Crit hit%
Crit damage%
Vitality (I try to get vitality on all my gear)
My Actives:
1. Bola - with the 14 yard range explosion
2. Frozen Arrow(1st choice), Ball Lighting(2nd), Multishot(3rd), Chakram/twinz(at low levels)
3. Rapid Fire - withering
4. Caltrops - Spiked(or whatever the 80% slow is)
5. Smoke - 3 second rune
6. Shadow power (I got this instead of vault for NM, the life leech is so good, and spammable, lets me tank some champions in some situations).
Auction House - Staying current with your DPS
Every DH serious about leveling quickly and efficiently is using the AH. Each person has their own idiosyncrasies about when to hit up the auction house so it will vary.
I tend to check the AH as I complete an act, or complete a difficulty (going from normal to NM). This is how I do it, maybe you will do it less or maybe more frequently.
Guide continued after the page break.
Weapon
I only select rare quality filter.
Then in the option filters I put dex and vit into the optional filters. Search, then sort by DPS. I then go through them looking at the highest dps, with the optional affixes I want, at the cheapest price I can find (because I upgrade often).
Also, unless I find a "value" bow with the most perfect affixes (to me) I will only buy bows with sockets. Then buy the best value ruby to socket it with (adds +damage for a big DPS increase). Then I put my old "borrowed" bow on the AH for the next "renter" to use at a value price. Helps the next guy out and helps me get a little cash back.
All other Items
Non Jewelry - e.g. Chest.
Same idea looking for value as above. I add dex, vit, to optional filters and select rare quality then search and sort by lowest buyout price, then find something I'm happy with.
Jewelry types
Rings and Ammy - I tend to look for +damage and attack speed. As you gain higher levels and item quality is better start adding dex/vit crit/crit dmg to these as well.
PASSIVES - My personal must haves. Until you get Vengeance they really don't do much.
Vengeance - The most important passive for efficiency and believe it or not DPS.
+20 hatred and +2 disc when globes are picked up as well as +25 to Max hatred. This is HUGE as far as not having downtime, you can clear packs of monsters and with 3-4 globes dropping (sometimes more sometimes less) you will constantly be Spending hatred instead of generating hatred... honest to God if you don't use it for leveling, USE this Passive
Steady Aim
I use this, 20% to all damage if no monster is within 10 yards. 10 Yards is NOT large at all, Fan of knives is 10 yards, caltrops is 12 yards, if the monster is on the other side of caltrop you are > 10 yards away. See how easy it is to get a visual picture of that range? Just vault or run away (if you are to close) and start razing the monsters
Archery
15% damage bonus when using Bows. I use bows (for now), so I'll take the 15% damage pretty straight forward with this one.
SINGLE TARGET SKILLS - disclaimer - this section is completely personal preference, and here are my preferences.
Rapid Fire - For 39 levels this has been my goto single target ability. I've used impale with all runes up to overpenetration and rapid fire, with withering rune has been a blessing. Great damage and the best hatred/per damage of any of my single target abilities. If you are like me and don't like "downtime" aka waiting on your resources to fill back up then this will probably be a great single target spender for you. You get this early, it's stayed on my bar pretty much the entire time.
Hungering Arrow
I use hungering Arrow when I'm out of hatred and I'm in a single target "build". (Hungering is usually not on my hotkeys except for boss fights, more on that below). It's a great generator if you need it for generating), otherwise I'm usually spending.
Honestly I don't use any other single target skills other than these two... right now.
Area of Effect Skills
There are different kind of AOE skills with the Demon Hunter, some better than others, however, the variety and uses of them, when used situationally can really be amazing.
What do I mean? Well without further adieu here is my list of favorites in order of when I could actually use them in game (well maybe not exact order), and the reasoning and experiences I've learned when using them.
Bola Shot
When you first get this it is decent. WHen you get the first rune for this it because Amazing as an AOE generator (the rune that doubles the AOE effect). It's a pretty straight forward ability and it stays on my bar most the time as my generator. The "charges" do stack, however, any stack that has not exploded yet will not explode if the monster dies before doing so.
Chakram
Ah, the first real spender AOE. This skill is just right for the level in which you get it, it's tough in tight places, but it's cheap enough to spam and clear rooms. You just need to get used to the angles with this one.
Chakram - Twinz
Like butter when you get this. Take all the angling from the non runed version and throw that out the window. This shoots exactly where you think it should shoot. Great AOE spender until you get the next one...
Elemental arrow - Ball Lightning
This skill is AMAZING in all of normal. This skill remains to be swapped in and out of my skill selection for leveling based on act and monster content and here is what I mean. This skill shoots an orb of lightning that shoots out (pretty far) in every direction zapping enemies as it passes and pierces through all of them.
When monsters come in large packs, in a wide spread formation (meaning, they aren't running in a straight line or a 45% arc towards me), then I keep this skill on my bar as well as if they are normal speed, slow speed or slowed by my group (being tanked works to). It REALLY shines here, plus its cheap.
MultiShot - Fire at Will
I use multishot quite a bit, but I use it less than Ball lightning and I use that even less than Frozen Arrow. First read what I have to say about Frozen arrow then I will follow back up with multishot, I just listed it first because you get it first.
Elemental arrow - Frozen Arrow
Hands down this is my goto AOE most of the time. It shoots Fast, it has direct impact damage and it slows (appears to almost freeze them in place for 1 second and maybe it does). When it hits the target it splits, and it splits forgivingly, as long as the monsters are in a relatively decent 45ish degree angle when coming to you, this spell is incredible.
It does more damage than multishot and ball lighting (when at the optimal angle, like the monsters are running at you in a triangle formation where the tip of the triangle is pointing to you and that is the lead target you shoot at.).
Fast or slow monsters it doesn't matter this thing hits once and hits HARD, and hits Everything in its path. Easy to spam and is 10 hatred cheap. Now, when they are coming at you fast but they are a little wider than 45% and (triangle) then I use Multishot.
Back to Multishot. To me multishot is the gap closer between the weakness of Ball lighting (Fast enemies) and Frozen Arrow (Wide formation), so for Fast enemies in a wide formation I use Multishot.
It's good, against some pretty good weaknes, hits Hard (just a little less than frozen arrow), but costs just a little more, which is why I prefer to use Ball lighting or Frozen Arrow(most the time) if I can get away with it.
Once you learn the Acts, Quests (or just areas in general) you will start to know what type of enemy packs you can expect (not talking champions/elites). So you can swap your skills out appropriatly using the above as a guideline.
