Random Items? Or fixed upon first encounter?

[Akimbo]

Hey, my first question and first post here

I'm at the NPC Zombie in the graveyard ( Noric I think his name was. ) and I read you can get some okay/good items from him when you kill him. I don't seem to be lucky as I got a Flame Necklace ( +15% fire damage spells ) which doesn't seem to be much use to a warrior. So I tried reloading and killing him again....same item. So I tried reloading, leaving the area, fighting a few battles, then returned and killed him again....Flame Necklace. I've tried this a few times, and I'm assuming I'm stuck with this useless item. ( In fact it's so useless I'm considering starting over. ) Does anyone know if I'm just really unlucky, or if it's determined the first time I spoke to him?

Also I'm only on normal, but I've not found many good items at all, is it a good idea to kill the roaming bosses for some? Does level help you get better items if you do it this way? ( Your level and/or opponent level? )