Welcome back, Exiles! The excitement is palpable with Path of Exile 2 (PoE 2) just around the corner. And one of the key decisions you'll face is choosing the right build for your first character. In this guide, we'll walk you through the top starter builds for each class in PoE 2. based on mechanics, skill interactions, and what we've seen so far.
Path of Exile 2 Best Starting Builds
Path of Exile 2 will significantly shift how we approach builds compared to PoE 1. In PoE 1. players often relied on "one-button builds" and mechanics that were simpler by comparison. PoE 2 introduces a more complex system of skill interactions, ailments, and environmental mechanics that will demand a deeper understanding of how to chain skills together effectively.
One major takeaway is that mechanics are fundamental in PoE 2. Skills and ailments interact in more intricate ways, and that means understanding how to combine them is crucial for success. Concepts like Armor Break, Pin, and Stun Buildup will play a pivotal role in how you design your build.
General Tips for PoE 2 League Starter Builds:
Experimentation is Key: PoE 2 will likely see various balance changes throughout Early Access, so don't stress about creating the "perfect" build immediately. Instead, focus on learning mechanics and skill interactions.
Skill Chaining: Mobility in PoE 2 is less about raw movement speed and more about chaining skills together. Many classes, such as the Monk and Huntress, will rely heavily on quick skill rotations to maintain high mobility.
Weapon Switching: PoE 2 introduces the ability to switch weapons on the fly, with each weapon set having its own skills and passive tree points. This adds a layer of complexity and versatility to builds, allowing players to have different setups for clearing packs and fighting bosses.
Now, let's break down the best starter builds for each class based on the current information.
Updated on December 10th!
Related Read:
PoE 2 Best Leveling Builds for Each Class | Path of Exile 2 Starter Tier List
PoE 2 Best Endgame Builds for Each Class | Path of Exile 2 Endgame Tier List
PoE 2 Best Solo Class & Build | Path of Exile 2 Solo Tier List
1. Minion Witch Build (Witch)
This Witch build focuses on utilizing Skeletal Snipers, Unearth Constructs, and the powerful Bone Storm skill to dish out immense AoE and single-target damage. Poison stacking, contagion spreading, and armor-breaking mechanics make this a devastatingly effective minion build. The build excels at clearing packs, taking down bosses, and sustaining survivability through clever passive choices and utility skills.
Core Skills
Skeletal Snipers: Drop Gas Bombs from the sky, dealing poison damage and breaking enemy armor based on poison damage dealt (via Corrosion Support). Gas Bombs stack, shredding armor and amplifying all incoming damage from minions and spells.
Unearth Constructs: Summons Bone Constructs that explode on death (via Minion Instability) for AoE damage. Best suited for clearing mobs, as the explosions can spread Contagion.
Contagion: Applies a debuff that spreads damage to nearby enemies when the affected target dies. Synergizes perfectly with Bone Constructs and poison-stacking mechanics for incredible AoE clear.
Bone Storm: A channeling skill that summons spinning projectiles around you, dealing physical damage and debuffing enemies to take additional physical damage from all sources. Essential for both pack clearing and boss fights, amplifying your minion damage significantly.
Utility Skills
Grim Feast: Provides Energy Shield recovery when enemies or minions die. Helps sustain survivability in mob-heavy areas.
Chaos Bolts: Early-game single-target spell for bosses until minions can handle them alone.
Skeleton Taurus: Equipped with Meat Shield and Last Gasp, these tanky minions divert aggro and protect you.
Loyal Hellhound: Ignites enemies for instant Gas Bomb explosions, enhancing area clearing.
Scaling Damage
Poison Stacking: Gas Bombs from Skeletal Snipers apply poison, which scales with Corrosion Support and armor-breaking mechanics. The more poison dealt, the more armor is broken, amplifying overall damage.
Minion Instability: Bone Constructs explode on death, dealing massive AoE damage based on their life.
Physical Damage Scaling: Bone Storm debuffs enemies to take increased physical damage, which benefits all your minions and direct attacks.
Passive Skills
Early Game: Focus on Minion Life and Minion Damage nodes to increase survivability and damage output.
Mid-Game: Take Mana Regeneration and Energy Shield nodes for sustain, especially with Grim Feast. Invest in Cooldown Recovery and Area of Effect clusters to improve skill usage and minion abilities.
Late Game: Vile Mending: Provides minions with more max life, life regeneration, and Chaos Resistance. Minion Revive Speed: Reduces downtime for resurrecting minions, keeping your army active.
Synergies
Skeletal Snipers + Corrosion Support: Gas Bombs break armor, enabling all minions and Bone Storm to deal significantly more damage.
Unearth + Minion Instability: Constructs explode on death, spreading Contagion and dealing massive AoE damage.
Bone Storm + Minion Damage: The debuff from Bone Storm amplifies physical damage, making minions like Skeletal Snipers and Bone Constructs even more effective.
Loyal Hellhound + Gas Bombs: The Hellhound’s ignite triggers Gas Bomb explosions, creating devastating chain reactions in mob packs.
2. Precision Striker Deadeye Build (Ranger)
This build leverages the Deadeye Ascendancy to dominate with precision-based bow attacks, focusing on critical strikes, speed, and scaling projectile damage. With its unparalleled mobility and consistent damage output, this build is the undisputed top performer in the current meta.
Core Skills:
Bow Skills (e.g., Barrage, Tornado Shot): High single-target damage and clear speed.
Projectile Support Gems: Enhance damage and utility with skills like Greater Multiple Projectiles.
Utility Auras: Use Grace or Precision to enhance survivability and accuracy.
Damage Boosters: Skills like Sniper’s Mark to amplify projectile damage.
Scaling Damage:
Critical Strike Scaling: High crit chance and multiplier ensure consistent damage spikes.
Projectile Damage: Boosted by Deadeye’s ascendancy nodes, including Tailwind and Ricochet.
Flat Elemental Damage: Add flat fire, cold, or lightning damage to scale with high attack speed.
Attack Speed: Leverage Tailwind for enhanced mobility and damage uptime.
Passive Skills:
Deadeye Ascendancy:
Tailwind: Increases attack speed and mobility.
Ricochet: Enables projectiles to chain, improving clear speed.
Endless Munitions: Adds extra projectiles for better AoE coverage.
Projectile Damage and Crit Nodes:
Focus on critical strike chance, multiplier, and projectile damage scaling.
Pick nodes that enhance accuracy and attack speed.
Synergies:
This build excels in combining single-target boss-killing power with exceptional map-clear speed. Tailwind and Endless Munitions synergize with projectile skills to create a fast, fluid playstyle. The build's focus on crit scaling ensures massive DPS potential, while mobility allows you to reposition quickly during challenging encounters.
3. Grenade Witchhunter Build (Mercenary)
The Mercenary class is highly mobile and relies on ranged attacks and area control. This is a great class for players who prefer a fast-paced, tactical style of play with a focus on crowd control.
This build focuses on using Explosive Grenades and the Witchhunter's No Mercy ascendancy to deliver massive burst damage to bosses while maintaining strong mapping capabilities. It revolves around leveraging concentration mechanics (introduced in Path of Exile 2) to break enemies' defenses, scaling damage through decimating first hits, and exploiting powerful AoE overlaps with grenades. With reworked Culling Strike for better clear speed and No Mercy's multiplier, this build excels at melting bosses and swiftly clearing maps.
Core Skills:
Explosive Grenades: The main damage skill, dealing high attack damage with AoE overlap potential.
Decimating Strike: Removes up to 30% of the enemy's life pool on the first hit, synergizing with No Mercy.
Flame Wall: Provides added flat fire damage to grenades and enhances ignites.
Frostfire Support: Doubles ignite damage when enemies are frozen, enabling massive ignite scaling.
Utility Skills:
Scaling Damage:
No Mercy Ascendancy: Grants 30% more damage to enemies with reduced concentration, a new mechanic scaling damage based on the enemy's missing defenses.
Decimating Strike: Removes up to 30% of an enemy's life and contributes to breaking concentration.
Ignite Scaling: Combines Frostfire, flat fire damage (e.g., Flame Wall), and crit for massive ignite damage.
AoE Overlap: Grenade explosions scale heavily with AoE, enabling overlapping damage zones for high single-target DPS and strong clear speed.
Crit Scaling: High crit chance ensures reliable ignites and maximizes damage.
Passive Skills:
No Mercy: 30% more damage to enemies with lower concentration.
Witchbane: Reduces enemy concentration with hits, scaling with damage dealt.
Culling Strike: Instantly kills enemies at a percentage of their remaining life (30% for normal, 5% for bosses).
AoE and Grenade Nodes: Enhance AoE size and damage, allowing grenades to overlap for higher single-target DPS.
Crit Nodes: Boost crit chance and multiplier to maximize ignite and grenade damage.
Projectile Nodes: Scale projectile damage, chaining, and returns for additional grenade interactions.
Synergies:
This build synergizes Explosive Grenades with No Mercy to deliver massive burst damage by breaking enemy concentration and scaling the resulting damage multiplier. Decimating Strike removes a chunk of enemy life on the first hit, making it easier to freeze or ignite enemies, which synergizes with Frostfire for double ignite damage. AoE scaling allows grenades to overlap, multiplying damage in both single-target and AoE scenarios, while Culling Strike improves clear speed by executing enemies below a percentage of life. Combining flat fire damage (e.g., Flame Wall) and crit ensures consistent, devastating ignites for bosses.
4. Tactical Tank Titan Build (Warrior)
The Titan build focuses on high durability and melee damage, utilizing the Titan Ascendancy's defensive and offensive capabilities. By stacking armor, resistances, and AoE melee skills, this build thrives in close-range combat while shrugging off heavy damage.
Core Skills:
Ground Slam/Heavy Strike: Hard-hitting melee skills for AoE and single-target damage.
Endurance Charge Generators: Skills like Enduring Cry or Warlord’s Mark for survivability.
Defensive Buffs: Utilize Molten Shell or Immortal Call for damage mitigation.
Utility Auras: Determination and Defiance Banner for armor scaling.
Scaling Damage:
Melee Physical Damage: Scale with flat damage, attack speed, and strength.
Endurance Charge Damage: Enhance damage output through endurance charge nodes.
AoE Scaling: Increase melee skill radius for better clearing.
Flat Elemental Damage: Add elemental damage sources to hybridize damage output.
Passive Skills:
Titan Ascendancy:
Defensive Nodes:
Focus on armor, life, and damage mitigation.
Pick nodes that enhance endurance charge effectiveness.
Synergies:
This build excels in face-tanking enemies, utilizing Titan’s defensive capabilities to absorb significant amounts of damage. Endurance charges, armor scaling, and AoE melee skills combine to create a durable and hard-hitting playstyle. While it may not have the flashiest clear speed, its reliability in tough encounters makes it a solid choice.
5. Skill Chain Gemling Legionnaire Build (Mercenary)
This build capitalizes on the Gemling Legionnaire Ascendancy, focusing on chaining auto-trigger skills with Integrated Efficiency and achieving high defensive scaling through Thermologic Infusion. By overcapping resistances and chaining multiple triggered abilities, the build delivers consistent AoE damage while remaining incredibly tanky.
Core Skills:
Chained Trigger Skills: Utilize additional skill slots from Integrated Efficiency for auto-trigger effects.
Cloak of Flame: Converts physical damage taken to fire for better mitigation.
Projectile Skills (Crossbow Focus): Use crossbow abilities to deal AoE damage.
Utility Skills: Defensive or damage-boosting abilities triggered in sequence.
Scaling Damage:
Projectile Scaling: Enhance damage through projectile modifiers like chain or return.
Thermologic Infusion: Overcaps resistances, converting fire resistance into additional survivability.
Crit Scaling: Boost damage for triggered abilities.
Flat Damage Sources: Add flat damage to projectiles, such as from Flame Wall.
Passive Skills:
Gemling Legionnaire Ascendancy:
- Integrated Efficiency: Grants three additional skill slots for chaining abilities.
- Thermologic Infusion: Converts overcapped resistances into tankiness.
Projectile Damage Nodes: Enhance crossbow or projectile-based skills.
Defensive Nodes: Focus on resistances and mitigation for face-tanking enemies.
Synergies:
This build synergizes chained triggered abilities with defensive scaling from Thermologic Infusion, allowing for high uptime on offensive and defensive effects. Overcapped resistances and Cloak of Flame mitigate damage, while projectile skills deliver consistent AoE damage with added flat scaling. The result is a tanky, auto-triggering build that excels at both clearing and surviving intense encounters.
6. Explosive Pathfinder Build (Ranger)
The Pathfinder build utilizes poison mechanics and flask synergy to deal consistent damage over time. With boosted flask effects and chaos damage scaling, this build thrives in prolonged fights.
Core Skills:
Toxic Rain/Cobra Lash: Deals high poison damage over time.
Flask Utility: Use flasks to enhance damage and sustain.
Utility Auras: Grace and Herald of Agony for survivability and poison scaling.
Scaling Damage:
Poison Stacking: Scale poison damage through skill and flask modifiers.
Chaos Damage: Boost chaos damage to amplify poison effectiveness.
Flask Effects: Enhance flask uptime for sustained damage and survivability.
Passive Skills:
Pathfinder Ascendancy:
Poison and Chaos Nodes:
Synergies:
The Pathfinder Build excels at sustained poison damage and flask utility. By combining chaos scaling with long flask uptime, this build provides a unique playstyle that rewards strategic flask management.
7. Experimental Blood Mage Build (Sorceress)
The Blood Mage Build sacrifices life to cast high-damage spells. While intriguing, its drawbacks make it difficult to recommend in its current state.
Core Skills:
Arc/Fireball: High-damage spells with elemental scaling.
Life-Based Resource Management: Use Vitality to offset life loss.
Utility Auras: Defensive auras to improve survivability.
Scaling Damage:
Passive Skills:
Blood Mage Ascendancy:
Synergies:
Despite its unique concept, the Blood Mage Build struggles with survivability due to the life-sacrifice mechanics. Until optimizations are discovered, this build is best avoided.
8. Warcary Explosive Warbringer Build (Warrior)
The Warrior in PoE 2 is built to withstand significant damage and dish out powerful physical attacks. This class is ideal for players who enjoy face-tanking enemies and playing a more methodical, slower-paced combat style.
This build uses the Warbringer Ascendancy to deal massive AoE damage by spamming warcries that explode corpses and trigger seismic effects. With nodes like Warcaller’s Bellow and Great Wolf's Howl, it capitalizes on the removal of warcry cooldowns to chain devastating explosions and physical damage in quick succession.
Core Skills:
Seismic Cry: Main warcry skill, dealing physical damage and causing seismic effects.
Warcaller’s Bellow: Explodes corpses for massive AoE.
Great Wolf’s Howl: Removes warcry cooldowns, enabling constant ability spam.
Linked Slam Skills: Follow-up slams to capitalize on warcry damage boosts.
Scaling Damage:
Physical Damage Scaling: Warcry and slam skills scale with physical damage nodes.
AoE Overlap: Explosions and seismic effects create overlapping damage zones.
Corpse Explosion Mechanics: Convert corpse life into explosive damage.
Cooldown Removal: Enables non-stop warcry usage for consistent damage output.
Passive Skills:
Warbringer Ascendancy:
- Warcaller’s Bellow: Explodes corpses for damage.
- Great Wolf’s Howl: Removes warcry cooldowns.
Physical Damage Nodes: Enhance warcry and slam damage.
AoE Nodes: Expand explosion range for better clear speed.
Synergies:
This build synergizes non-stop warcries with AoE corpse explosions to create devastating damage. Nodes like Great Wolf’s Howl enable constant uptime on warcries, while Warcaller’s Bellow ensures massive physical AoE damage. Linked slam skills and physical scaling further enhance its ability to clear maps and obliterate bosses.
9. Titan Resonating Shieldwall Tanky Slam Build (Warrior)
This build focuses on Shield Skills and Slam Abilities, combining Resonating Shield and Shieldwall to create a tanky, high-damage melee playstyle. By leveraging aftershocks and armor-scaling mechanics, the build delivers consistent AoE damage and excels at stunning enemies for bonus damage.
Core Skills:
Resonating Shield: Main damage skill, exploding the Shieldwall for massive AoE.
Shieldwall: Creates a defensive barrier that synergizes with armor.
Seismic Cry: Buffs slam damage and triggers aftershocks.
Hammer of the Gods: Weapon-swap skill for high burst damage.
Scaling Damage:
Armor Scaling: Shield skills scale with shield armor for bonus damage.
Aftershocks: Slam skills cause aftershocks for additional AoE damage.
Stun Mechanics: Bonus damage to stunned enemies.
Physical Damage Scaling: Focus on physical and slam damage nodes.
Passive Skills:
Titan Ascendancy:
- Resonating Shield: Explodes the shield for AoE damage.
- Shield Slam Nodes: Enhance damage scaling with shield armor.
Physical Damage Nodes: Boost slam and shield skill damage.
Defensive Nodes: Focus on armor and stun mitigation.
Synergies:
This build combines slam mechanics with shield skills, using Resonating Shield to deal massive AoE damage while maintaining high survivability. Scaling shield armor amplifies both offense and defense, while aftershocks and stuns add bonus damage. The result is a durable melee build with strong AoE and single-target capabilities.
10. Quarterstaff Invoker Monk Build (Monk)
The Monk is a highly mobile melee class with a focus on quick, successive strikes. This class is ideal for players who prefer an aggressive, fast-paced combat style with high mobility.
This build focuses on creating a Jedi/Sith-inspired character using quarterstaff mechanics and the Invoker ascendancy, capitalizing on power charge consumption for burst boss damage and high clear speed. The build prioritizes situational damage bursts using Unbound Avatar, Scattered to the Winds, and the quarterstaff abilities, while leveraging shock and freeze mechanics for control. It also aims to balance survivability through hybrid life/energy shield setups with skills like Meditate. This build is designed to balance flashy thematic gameplay with strong elemental burst damage, making it both fun and effective for a league start.
Core Skills:
Quarterstaff Abilities: Consume power charges for massive damage boosts and clear speed.
Bell Ability: Reflects status effects and damage into an immovable AoE for increased boss damage.
Shock and Freeze Generators: Apply crowd control and trigger Unbound Avatar bonuses.
Meditate: Doubles energy shield for improved survivability.
Scaling Damage:
Power Charges: Damage scales with power charge consumption, generated through crits or passives.
Elemental Focus: Specialize in lightning or cold damage for shock and freeze effects.
Crit Scaling: Boost crit chance and multiplier for both damage and status effect triggers.
Burst Windows: Combine Bell, Unbound Avatar, and Scattered to the Winds for explosive damage phases.
Passive Skills:
Invoker Ascendancy: Abilities like Unbound Avatar and Scattered to the Winds enhance elemental damage and burst potential.
Hybrid Life/ES Nodes: Improve survivability with life and energy shield synergy.
Power Charge Nodes: Enhance charge generation and consumption for consistent damage boosts.
Elemental Damage Nodes: Focus on scaling lightning/cold damage and crit bonuses.
Synergies:
The build synergizes by combining power charge consumption, shock/freeze immobilization, and Invoker's elemental buffs for burst damage, while the Bell Ability amplifies bossing potential. Meditate bolsters survivability in a hybrid life/energy shield setup, and Elemental Expression triggers elemental waves to boost clear speed and single-target damage effectively.
11. Cold Slam Chronomancer Build (Sorceress)
The Sorceress in PoE 2 is a versatile elemental spellcaster, capable of dealing massive damage with fire, ice, and lightning spells. This build is perfect for players who love casting devastating spells from a distance while controlling the battlefield.
This unconventional build transforms the Sorceress into a melee-focused cold slam specialist, leveraging Time Freeze and cold conversion mechanics. By combining slam skills with reduced cooldowns and cold damage conversion, the build freezes enemies in place and delivers high-damage AoE slams. It integrates Time Snap to reduce cooldowns and amplify damage through elemental synergies.
Core Skills:
Slam Skills: Main source of damage, converted to cold for synergy with freeze mechanics.
Time Freeze: Freezes enemies in place, creating a window for high burst damage.
Time Snap: Reduces cooldowns, enabling faster slam skill rotations.
Hatred (or similar): Converts physical damage to cold for freeze synergies.
Scaling Damage:
Cold Damage Conversion: Converts slam skill damage to cold for elemental scaling.
Freeze Mechanics: Freezes enemies with high cold damage, improving control and DPS.
Crit Scaling: Focus on crit chance and multiplier for higher cold damage output.
Cooldown Reduction: Reduced cooldowns allow for frequent use of slam abilities.
Passive Skills:
Chronomancer Ascendancy:
- Time Freeze: Freezes enemies, amplifying damage potential.
- Time Snap: Reduces cooldowns for faster ability usage.
Elemental Damage Nodes: Enhance cold damage and freeze effectiveness.
Slam Skill Nodes: Improve melee AoE and damage output.
Synergies:
The build synergizes cold conversion with slam skills, using Time Freeze to immobilize enemies and enable heavy-hitting bursts. Reduced cooldowns from Time Snap ensure constant uptime on slam abilities, while cold damage scaling and freeze mechanics amplify both control and damage output. This creative hybrid melee-caster build delivers high AoE and single-target damage.
12. Poison Rain of Arrows Pathfinder Build (Ranger)
The Ranger in PoE 2 is a highly mobile ranged damage-dealer who excels at both single-target and area-of-effect damage. This class is ideal for players who prefer to take down enemies from a distance with precision and agility.
This build uses Rain of Arrows to apply rapid poison stacks by firing a large number of arrows in a wide area. With Pathfinder's ability to spread poisons and double poison stacks, the build delivers strong AoE and single-target damage while scaling chaos damage and poison effectiveness.
Core Skills:
Rain of Arrows: Main skill for applying poison to multiple enemies.
Plague Bearer: Stores poison for burst AoE damage.
Despair: Chaos resistance reduction for better poison scaling.
Toxic Growth: Single-target poison pods that explode for massive damage.
Barrage: Buff that repeats bow attacks for more poison stacks.
Scaling Damage:
Poison damage scales with hit damage, so critical strikes and base damage are important.
Chaos damage scaling via Pathfinder nodes and poison-related passives.
Additional poison stacks from Multiple Poisons support and Pathfinder's Contagious Contamination.
Passive Skills:
Pathfinder ascendancy for poison spreading, double poison stacks, and chaos damage.
Chaos damage, poison chance, and AoE nodes on the Ranger tree.
Frenzy charge generation and scaling for attack speed and damage.
Synergies:
Pathfinder's poison-spreading ability increases clear speed while maintaining high single-target damage. Rain of Arrows’ high arrow count ensures rapid poison stacking. Wither totems (via Dark Effigy) apply Wither debuffs for increased chaos damage taken by enemies.
13. Tornado Shot Grenade Deadeye Build (Ranger)
This build combines Tornado Shot and Explosive Grenades to create massive screen-wide AoE damage by leveraging Path of Exile 2's weapon-swap mechanics. Tornado Shot acts as a utility skill that multiplies projectiles, while Explosive Grenades deal high base damage, creating overlapping explosions for significant single-target and AoE damage.
Core Skills:
Tornado Shot - Creates tornados that amplify projectiles into Novas.
Explosive Grenades - High-damage crossbow skill used for the main damage output.
Flame Wall: Adds fire damage to projectiles and ignites enemies.
Flammability: Reduces enemy fire resistance.
Herald of Ash: Provides fire damage and overkill burn utility.
Scaling Damage:
Extra projectiles (Deadeye bonus and supports like Multiple Projectiles).
AoE scaling for overlapping grenade explosions.
Fire conversion via Avatar of Fire and supports like Fire Penetration.
Ignite utility with Cast on Ignite and Fiery Death.
Passive Skills:
Deadeye ascendancy for +1 projectiles, projectile scaling, and AoE.
Fire, AoE, and projectile nodes on the Ranger tree.
Mercenary's grenade nodes for crossbow synergy.
Synergies:
Path of Exile 2’s weapon-swap system allows simultaneous use of Tornado Shot (bow) and Explosive Grenades (crossbow). Tornado Shot amplifies the number of grenades fired, creating overlapping AoE. Ignite utility with fire damage and burn effects adds extra layers of damage.
14. Incinerate Ignite Channeling Infernalist Build (Witch)
The Witch in PoE 2 is the ultimate minion master, capable of commanding an army of skeletal warriors, zombies, and otherworldly spectres. This class is perfect for players who love to control the battlefield with minions while applying devastating chaos damage-over-time spells.
This build focuses on Incinerate, a channeling fire skill, in combination with Infernal Flame and ignite-scaling mechanics from the Infernal Ascendancy. By stacking Infernal Flame while channeling and leveraging nodes like Demonic Possession and Bringer of Flame, the build delivers massive fire damage through ignites and triggered abilities like Firestorm. It also incorporates Chaos Inoculation and energy shield scaling for a tanky, auto-triggering playstyle.
Core Skills:
Incinerate: Main channeling skill to stack Infernal Flame and deal consistent fire damage.
Firestorm (Triggered via Cast on Ignite): Provides additional AoE damage during ignites.
Chaos Inoculation: Converts life to energy shield for high survivability.
Utility Skills: Trigger setups using ignite or shock mechanics for auto-triggering secondary effects.
Scaling Damage:
Infernal Flame: Stacks while channeling, boosting fire damage.
Ignite Scaling: Focus on fire damage, elemental damage, and crit to enhance ignite damage.
Pyromantic Pact: Increases damage output for channeling builds.
Cast on Ignite: Automatically triggers secondary fire skills for additional damage.
Passive Skills:
Infernalist Ascendancy:
- Demonic Possession: Grants Demon Form for bonus damage while channeling.
- Bringer of Flame: Ignites enemies and applies Magnitude for additional fire effects.
Energy Shield Nodes: Focus on chaos inoculation and ES scaling for survivability.
Fire/Elemental Damage Nodes: Enhance ignite and elemental damage output.
Synergies:
This build combines Incinerate's stacking Infernal Flame with auto-triggered abilities like Firestorm to maximize damage output. Nodes like Demonic Possession boost sustained channeling damage, while Bringer of Flame ensures consistent ignites for proccing secondary effects. Chaos Inoculation and energy shield scaling provide tankiness, making it a durable caster build with high AoE and boss DPS.
15. Lightning God Storm Weaver Build (Sorcerer)
The Storm Weaver Build harnesses the raw power of lightning spells and shock mechanics to obliterate enemies with ease. Focused on high cast speed, AoE lightning damage, and mana management, this build turns you into an unstoppable lightning sorcerer. It excels in both boss killing and map clearing, making it a top-tier leveling and endgame setup.
Core Skills:
Spark: Your main damage skill, firing multiple lightning projectiles that swarm enemies and deal massive damage.
Support Gems:
- Unleash: Cast multiple Sparks at once for greater DPS.
- Tempo: Increases cast speed for faster projectile output.
- Conduction: Ensures 100% shock chance for triggering Cast on Shock effects.
Orb of Storms: A stationary AoE lightning spell that synergizes with Spark for massive damage.
Support Gems:
- Magnify Effect: Increases its radius for better coverage.
- Expanse: Further boosts AoE radius for more reliable shock procs.
Cast on Shock Mechanic: Automatically triggers Arc when enemies are shocked by Spark or Orb of Storms.
Support Gems:
- Impetus: Increases the frequency of Cast on Shock triggers.
Conductivity (Curse): Reduces enemy lightning resistance, amplifying your damage.
Support Gems:
- Persistence: Extends curse duration to reduce reapplication frequency.
- Heightened Curse: Enhances the effectiveness of the resistance reduction.
Mana Tempest: A high-damage mana-draining ability that increases your overall DPS.
Mechanic: Temporarily boosts damage while rapidly consuming mana.
Lightning Warp: A utility skill for repositioning and dealing AoE damage upon arrival.
Scaling Damage:
Shock Synergy: Leverages shock as a core mechanic to trigger Cast on Shock effects and increase enemy damage taken.
Flat Lightning Damage: Boosts Spark and Orb of Storms’ effectiveness via gear and passives.
Mana Scaling: Damage increases with maximum mana due to skills like Constant Gale and Mana Tempest.
AoE Scaling: Large radius increases make Orb of Storms and Spark highly effective in clearing groups.
Passive Skills:
Storm Weaver Ascendancy:
Constant Gale: Grants permanent Arcane Surge, increasing mana regeneration and cast speed.
Force of Will: Converts mana into a direct damage boost.
Path of Storms: Increases shock effectiveness and duration.
Passive Tree Focus:
Spell Damage Nodes: Boost overall lightning damage output.
Mana Regen Nodes: Sustain mana for longer Tempest uptime.
Shock Effect Nodes: Enhance shock duration and magnitude.
Intelligence and Mana Nodes: Increase maximum mana for better synergy with Force of Will and Mana Tempest.
Synergies:
This build thrives on combining Spark’s high projectile output with shock mechanics and Cast on Shock triggers. Orb of Storms acts as an additional AoE damage source and amplifies Spark’s effectiveness. Conductivity ensures enemies take maximum lightning damage, while Mana Tempest provides massive bursts of damage during boss fights.
Endgame Transition:
At level 58, you can transition into Archmage, which scales damage with mana. By stacking maximum mana, mana regeneration, and key passives like Mind Over Matter and Eldritch Battery, you’ll reach incredible levels of sustain and damage output.
Gear Recommendations:
Wands or Scepters: Prioritize +1 to Lightning Spell Skills or +1 to all Spell Skills for maximum damage scaling.
Mana and Energy Shield Gear: Look for affixes that increase maximum mana, mana regeneration, and energy shield.
Resistances: Keep resistances capped to survive higher difficulties.
Movement Speed Boots: Boost leveling efficiency.
These are the best starter builds for each ascendancy class that we know of at this stage. As the game is released, the actual build meta will change, and we will update this guide when that happens!
Google Safe
0
Home
.png)
.png)
