HOW TO CREATE/DUPLICATE A NEW CHARACTER TO GO TO TRISTRAM

Hello everyone
Well, sorry in advance if I ask a question that has already been answered... I searched and I didn't find it

Before explaining the problem, I'll give you the situation
1) I'm playing DIABLO 2 RESURECTED on PC - in solo mode and not online
2) I just finished the game in "normal" with my paladin
3) Thinking I could get

Wirt's Leg back in

Tristram, I started the game again in NIGHTMARE mode... with the SAME character
4) from what I understand... it's a mistake: because apparently you have to start a NEW game with a new character...

But mine is so well equipped with good stats... that frankly if I start from the beginning with a new one... I'm going to struggle

Here's my question
- I'd like to start a new game to go back to

Tristram
-... but is it possible to:
>>> create a new perso
>>> with a new name
>>> and give him all the characteristics of my old one...

So, I will have started a NEW game, with a NEW character but with the abilities of the old one
It will be easier for me to get to

Tristram

I imagine that it will be necessary to duplicate the SAVEGAME files but before doing anything, I wanted the expert's opinion

Thank you!

I'm not quite understanding the problem.

1)Using your current character, start a new game and select normal difficulty. Go to

Tristram and pick up the leg.
2)Go to the

Rogue Encampment and fuse the leg with a tomb of town portal in your

Horadric Cube.
3)A portal appears to the secret level.
You can repeat steps 1-3 as many times as you like. After you finish the

Baal quest on nightmare difficulty then you can do it on nightmare difficulty too.

Your character can change difficulties every time you play, that's not a problem.

If you are trying to open the

Secret Cow Level, you have to do it in normal (the difficulty you beat) not nightmare. You can do this with the same character, without duplicating anything

If you are trying to duplicate a character for some other reason, you duplicate and rename the .d2s file for that character

This is so not what I was expecting when I saw that title.

As was already said, you don't create a new character for nightmare, you merely continue on with your current one. The same goes for hell after that.

Wirt's Leg you can get every time you go to

Tristram, on any char and any difficulty. The leg in and by itself is fairly pointless though (even on normal it makes for a fairly bad weapon).

The only reason for it, beyond flair, is to open up the cow level. But that you can only do on a difficulty where you already killed

Baal.

So in your case, you keep using your same character but..
..if you want to progress through nightmare, you create a nightmare difficulty game.
..if you want to run cows, you create a normal difficulty game, go to

Tristram there, grab the leg off Wirt and go for cows.

Once you complete nightmare you get the same choices bumped up 1 difficulty each, either go for hell to progress or make new nightmare games to run cows. Still all on the same character.

You can switch difficulties as you please, every time you make a new game.